#Hardin Library

[fromthestacks]

Wedding Band: the complete first season

[swear-im-nice]

If anyone wants to join my friends up and coming book server on discord, lmk 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

[mckitterick]

Christofascist Republican calls LGBTQ people "filth" during public forum

The culture of hate among Christofascists recently led to the violent beating and subsequent death of Choctaw two-spirit teenager Nex Benedict in Oklahoma.

When questioned about how 50+ anti-LGBTQ bills might have affected this case, State Senator Tom Woods said,

“We are a Republican state - supermajority - in the House and Senate. I represent a constituency that doesn’t want that filth in Oklahoma.”

Several audience members clapped at his statement, while others appeared shocked.

“We are a religious state and we are going to fight it to keep that filth out of the state of Oklahoma because we are a Christian state - we are a moral state,” Woods said. “We want to ... let people be able to go to the faith they choose. We are a Republican state and I’m going to vote my district, and I’m going to vote my values, and we don’t want that in the state of Oklahoma.”

State Representative David Hardin added, ��How you live your life personally, that’s between you and God... but what goes through our public schools - I will fall back on my faith. I want to make sure that at least the children in our public schools have that faith... what I want to make sure of is that our young children have the right to grow up with that faith."

After the forum, Woods reiterated his stance on the matter: "I support my constituency, and like I said, we’re a Christian state, and we are tired of having that shoved down our throat at every turn... I stand behind my statement, and I stand behind the Republican Party values."

When asked what he thought of Woods’ characterization of LGBTQ people as “filth,” State Senator Dewayne Pemberton said, “No comment.”

Again and again, today's christofascist Republicans (any other sort doesn't get elected these days) reveal that they want to indoctrinate public school kids into their own bigoted hatred, forcing children to hate anyone who doesn't subscribe to their narrow interpretation of their religious texts. Christofascists seek to impose their personal, misguided religious biases on the general public, including creating laws codifying hate and authoritarian control over the lives and bodies of everyone, not just others in their own religion.

Make no mistake, Nex Benedict's death was caused by christofascist indoctrination of the three girls who brutally beat Nex in that school bathroom. Nex Benedict's death was caused by the school failing to take their injuries seriously, by hate codified in Oklahoma state laws designed to harass LGBTQ folks and normalize bigotry against them, by Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters appointing hate-speech villain Chaya Raichik (responsible for "Libs of TikTok") to the Oklahoma Department of Education's Library Media Advisory Committee even though she doesn't live in the state (but he likes that she used Benedict's school and teacher for targeted hate). And on and on - it's a systematic attack on personal freedom and human rights - and the lives of queer folks.

Nex Benedict's death is exactly what christofascists seek through indoctrinating children into their hate that perpetuates bigotry into the future and forcing their religious fanaticism into the public sphere through unconstitutional laws built on hate and control.

Do you want to live in a theocracy dictated by those who narrowly interpret their personal religious texts to promote hate? Because as long as citizens fail to speak out against these harbingers of civilizational collapse, they'll only feel more and more emboldened to turn hate crimes into victories.

We must not let another of our people become victim of systemic bigotry. To protect children and end generational indoctrination, we must fire all public officials who subscribe to christofascist hatred and, when appropriate, prosecute them for the violence they incite.

If we fail to end the careers of hateful christofascists, we fail our children.

[lambilegs]

LEE HARKER 2 | DAUGHTER OF THE SEVENTH SHE | HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING | HALF "PSYCHIC"

headcanons/messy litany of thoughts:

gf!lee harker headcanons

soccer player!lee 1

soccer player!lee 2

track team!lee

lee meeting case hardin

lee being high af 1

lee being high af 2

high!lee being more submissive for reader

modern!lee meeting reader on dating app

lee x milf!reader

lee x reader with genophobia

lee doing shibari

how lee would be causally affectionate

pervert!lee headcanons

pervert!lee's kinks

cnc with pervert!lee

lee being an attentive and doting lover

celebrating your birthday with lee

being lee's femme housewife

headcanons about lee's past (childhood, high school, college)

how lee initiates sex

casual dominance with lee headcanons

lee dressed as woody for halloween

thoughts on lee's trauma, isolation and queerness

lee's kinks 🤭 (1 + 2)

lee + wearing a carabiner and wanting queer community

if the devil initiated lee's romantic relationship

lee being AMAZING at fingerblasting

lee x flirty!reader headcanons

lee + making out <33

lee being shy wearing the strap for the first time

lee yearning for touch when tired

random hcs about lee and sleeping

lee interviewing you to get to know you

lee x introverted + anxious reader

werewolf!lee being horny during her ruts

putting a muzzle on werewolf!lee

lee giving and receiving thigh humping

lovers' day with lee

lee x reader with mommy issues

lee's experience with queer community

knight!lee

blurbs:

lee debunking stuff for silly reader

lee teaching reader something and reader being a menace + vice versa

lee knotting reader

lee eating out reader who is on their period

sucking lee off at the library (college!au)

virgin g!p lee coming in you too fast

lee punishing bratty!reader

gf!lee getting jealous

emotional sex with lee post-longlegs

sub g!p lee x reader's first time

overstimulating g!p lee

1K drabbles: trepverter, cafune, moxie

tender sex with lee before a work trip

lee using a vibrator on reader for the first time

longer fics:

the lovers are fighting

birthday wakeup call

unwrap me!

pretty hands and warm intentions

the tender sanctuary between monster and human

inspection time!

seep through the grooves and calluses of my fingers

breed breed breed!

reader getting jealous of lee's coworker

[zombeesknees]

Hello! First of all, I wanted to say that I am so excited to read the newest Hazeldine! I binged the series after I met you last year and loved it and I just ordered number 7 and can't wait to get it. I also wanted to ask, from one fellow writer in Bloomington to another...do you have any advice on how to make a name for yourself around here or meet other writers who are adults? The resources for anyone over 21 around here are pretty slim!

Aw, I'm SO GLAD to hear you're enjoying Hazeldine! Some big stuff goes down in this latest volume, so I hope you love it -- this is also making me want to sit down and get cracking at Vol. 8 again, so thank you for that!

My best advice is to reach out to the library and bookstores in the area -- Bobzbay downtown and our local Barnes; Book Rack (owned by Stacy Hardin) and Book Nook (run by Cheryl Langley) in Peoria -- and talk to them about:

a) upcoming events (for instance, Book Nook is doing the Readers and Writers Rendezvous event at the Peoria Civic Center in Sept! There's going to be around 100 different local authors/booths set up all day, including yours truly, so you can do a TON of networking while also picking up some new books) and how to get on their contact lists for future ones; being terminally online, I also have folks like Stacy, Cheryl, and other authors I've met at these things (Jackie Lawson, DM Gritzmacher, Jen Woodrum, etc.) friended on Facebook to stay up on news from them;

b) if they ever host writers' workshops or have an "in" for such things (even just a contact email for such a group!); in the past I've also done a virtual Write Club with several old friends/fellow writers, where we exchange our WIPs and give each other feedback through Google Docs and a monthly(ish) meeting via Discord; and

c) what their policy is re: selling copies of your book (should you have a book ready for sale). I know with the Peoria stores, Prairie Fox Books in Ottawa, and Bobzbay, there's just a form to fill out, you give them copies of your books, they sell them for you, and then they keep a small percentage and save the rest for you to pick up at a later date.

ALSO, the Bloomington Barnes has a Book Club that meets at 7 pm the first Tuesday of every month -- our next meeting is July 1st, in the cafe! -- and myself and another local author, Abby, are always there. There's no pressure to have read "the" book for the month; we usually spend most of our time talking about whatever random things we've read since our last meeting, there's always snacks to be had, and it's very laid-back and fun. New people are always welcome!

[mariacallous]

Around a dozen masked individuals marched in downtown Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday carrying Nazi flags and hurling antisemitic and racist rhetoric, earning condemnation from a broad range of officials including the White House and the state’s Republican governor.

The display came only a week after another neo-Nazi gathering in Michigan outside a community theater production of “The Diary of Anne Frank.” 

The marches exacerbated fears among Jewish groups and others that the reelection of President Donald Trump may trigger an increase in white supremacist activity.

“I’m sorry the President-elect has emboldened these creeps,” tweeted Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin, a Democrat. “This community rejects their pathetic efforts to promote fear and hate.”

A White House spokesperson condemned the march Monday morning as a “sickening display” and said President Joe Biden “abhors the hateful poison of Nazism, antisemitism, and racism.”

“We will not tolerate hate in Ohio,” the state’s governor, Mike DeWine, said in a statement published on social media. “Neo-Nazis — their faces hidden behind red masks — roamed streets in Columbus today, carrying Nazi flags and spewing vile and racist speech against people of color and Jews.”

Referring to what he said were reports that the group was “also espousing white power sentiments,” DeWine continued, “There is no place in this State for hate, bigotry, antisemitism, or violence, and we must denounce it wherever we see it.”

Some members of the group were armed, and at least one member sprayed pepper spray at spectators, according to the Columbus Dispatch. Police detained several people on the scene in response to reports of a physical altercation but later told reporters they “determined that an assault did not take place and all of the individuals were released.” Police had separately told the Columbus Jewish News that physical altercations “broke out, stopped and then broke out again.”

National Jewish groups including the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee condemned the march, with AJC regional director Lee Shapiro calling it “another sad example of the bigotry that we have witnessed across the country.” The Columbus Jewish federation and Jewish Community Relations Council also condemned the march, telling the Jewish News they were “disgusted by the reprehensible display of hate.”

The rally was also condemned by the city’s Democratic mayor and by its Democratic city attorney, Zach Klein.

“Columbus embraces diversity of opinions, religions, backgrounds and everything that makes us special, but we will never embrace hate. Take your flags and the masks you hide behind and  go home and never come back. Your hate isn’t welcome in our city,” Klein said in a statement. “I stand with our Jewish friends and all those who continue to be targeted by bias and hate. I’ll always have your back.”

Also over the weekend, hundreds of people in a Philadelphia suburb turned up outside a public library to protest a Nazi flag that had been flown briefly outside a private residence in Whitpain Township. Following media attention, the homeowners replaced the swastika flag with an American flag, according to CBS News. 

A similar, though much smaller, rally had taken place in the state capital of Harrisburg, in August, following a neo-Nazi demonstration there.

“The thing that scared me about this is that someone was willing, in their neighborhood, to put out a Nazi flag because that says something about them,” Lynne Krause, president of the newly formed non-denominational synagogue Darchei Noam in nearby Ambler, told CBS about the Whitpain Nazi flag. “They felt so at comfort to let people know, ‘This is what I believe.’ … White supremacy, Nazi stuff, it’s on the rise, and I think it’s unfortunate.” 

[muspeccoll]

We have an exciting new acquisition to feature this Friday! Last week, a generous donor gave the Libraries a copy of Pierre Borel's De Vero Telescopii Inventore (1655). This work is a history of the invention of the telescope from antiquity to the time of writing. At the time, both Hans Lippershey and Zacharias Janssen claimed to be the inventor of the telescope, and Pierre Borel found Janssen's claims to be more convincing. Present-day historians have tended to recognize Lippershey instead, but they do give Janssen credit for inventing the compound microscope.

Borel also printed a letter from Christiaan Huygens' in which he details his observations of Titan, one of the moons of Saturn. This letter also contained Huygens' identification of the rings of Saturn in an anagram - a sly way to sneak the idea into print without giving it away before Huygens' own publication of Systema Saturnium in 1659.

This volume is bound with several others: Johann Franz Griendel's Micrographia nova (1687); Anton van Leeuwenhoek's Ontledingen en ontdekkingen van levende dierkens in de teel-deelen van verscheide dieren, vogelen en visschen (1696); and Govard Bidloo's Brief aan Antony van Leeuwenhoek (1698).

Many thanks to donor Rick Hardin for this newest addition to the collection.

De vero telescopii inventore : cum brevi omnium conspiciliorum historia : ubi de eorum confectione, ac usu, seu de effectibus agitur, novaque quaedam circa ea proponuntur : accessit etiam centuria observationum microcospicarum / Authore Petro Borello, regis Christianissimi consiliario, & medico ordinario. VAULT QB88 .B72 1655

[wawamouse]

Oz Rewatch 3: S4E16: Famous Last Words

Plotlines

Hill is framed for using, Supreme Allah tells Hill to kill Redding; Hill double crosses Supreme and kills him by allergic reaction;

Colonel’s daughter comes to visit; at Redding’s behest, he tries to kill Morales in the elevator; Morales kills him instead

Cloutier resigns from his church; the prisoners turns on him; Mukada advises Cloutier to get on their level; they brick him into the wall

Hughes declares the Republic of Huhru in Solitary and gets himself killed

Glynn wants to resign; Floria secretly crumples up the letter

McManus loses the final basketball game; Omar keeps bugging McManus; McManus appears on Up Your Ante; Omar and Chico start a fight; Pablo Calderon gets shoved into the TV; Omar freaks out and beats McManus and is placed in Solitary

With Beecher’s parole coming up, Schillinger tries to cause trouble; Said and the Muslims try to make sure that nothing happens; Beecher dreams his release on parole; Said stabs Schillinger and Robson in the library

Bomb plot; kitchen explodes

Sister: (sigh) He was too attractive for this show anyway...

Me: Everyone’s meeting with their lawyer in the visiting room today… Sister: They’re having a convention at the Marriott so they thought they'd swing by.

Sister: Why’s he so tan? Me: ...Probably because they don’t actually live here.

Sister: Hmm… Well, since Egg Man is dead, guess he can be the new eye candy. They keep sending them all away, though, so I bet he’s going to die soon anyway…

Sister: Tendeth? That’s what [Sister] does. Adds an -eth on the end of words!

Sister: (gasp) The cast of monte carlo…. The cask of… amontadillo… What is it? The cast… the cask… of amonte… amontypython?

Sister: Going to start saying this when anyone tries to talk to me on the toilet.

Sister: (perks up) Oh, are we going to end Solitary confinement? (pause) Nah… He doesn’t have the brain power to make that connection… He just wants the delusions to end so he can stick him back in Solitary.

Sister: Not this again. [Sister] doesn’t want to watch this…

Sister: Yeah, he killed like four people! Me: He didn’t kill anyone. Sister: The guy in the TV? Me: Oh right. Well, before, though. He just stabbed McManus, he didn’t kill anyone. Sister: He stabbed your guy, too! Me: (laughing) Oh yeah… He didn’t stab anyone else, though. Just McManus. He attacked the reporter guy but didn’t stab him. Sister: (pained sigh) You have selective memory just because you find him amusing… He’s like a troublesome little dinosaur to me. Gotta keep my eye on him…

Sister: I can’t even remember it and I’ve been watching this every Saturday for months...

Sister: (suddenly turning to me) Question for the community: why hasn’t anyone noticed yet that the church guy is missing?

Sister: He’s not out?! Oughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh….

Sister: You know, when they say they’re hardened criminals, you don’t expect them to have, like, turtle plates… The hacks die so easily… It’s because they don’t have osteoderms like the prisoners… The doctor’s going to do another unethical medical trial and discover all the prisoners are turtle people.

Sister: Um.. they don’t really believe in you, though. They got, like, weak minds… And you constantly bamboozle them…

Sister: So embarrassing…. No boom?

Stray Thoughts

Prisoner named Hardin who works bedpans

Penis count: 1

Old man butt: 1

Sister was suspicious of Tobias’s entire release sequence due to how ominous she found the outdoors; she kept thinking Beecher would get killed

The J&B whiskey bottle looks pretty much exactly like Chinese black vinegar bottles which makes it funny to see characters like Glynn with the bottle on their desk

Spotted another Chico lip lick during the scene they finally get HBO in Oz lol

[beebeesiims]

GRACE: ...oh? that sounds interesting, where'd you get that? MARNIE: the library at school. ms. hardin said they were fairytales based on old moonwood mill legends...but she doesn't know. GRACE: yeah, 'course not...

[sheenashifts1217]

Hiii! I’m sending an ask about the shufflemancy post

Can I get a message from my s/o Mattia from my dr?

Thank you♥️

-Mel

Hello my love :)

I asked Mattia what they (idk their pronouns so I’m using “they” to be as respectful as I can) would like to say to you.

First song:

Lyrics that stand out:

“How’s life, tell me how’s your family

You’ve been good, busier than ever

Wishin I’d realized what I had

I haven’t been sleeping

Swallowing my pride standing infront of you

Nothing but missing you

I go back to December all the time

Your sweet smile

So good to me

I understand”

So I’m feeling a mix of energies when I listen to this song for you. Firstly Mattia cares about you deeply and can feel your love no matter the distance. However, it feels like you guys may be going through an argument or a rough patch at the moment, but DO NOT worry. Mattia is telling you they are here and ready to listen. If they messed up, they want you to know they will apologize. They may have a hard time admitting their faults but I’m hearing “you’re worth it”. Whatever happened between you guys, it will be or already is fixed because I’m seeing how you guys find a new version of each other once you resolve the problem.

Second song:

Lyrics stood out:

“Let her dance with me just for the hell of it

You got me wrong

Thank ya dear bring your sister over here

Get lonely after ya leave

The one you believe”

Do you guys have a miscommunication trope? That’s what it’s feeling like. The first song shows that you all had a deep history and then went through some kind of conflict. Then you guys figured it out and started to find yourselves again. THIS song is continuing you all truly finding each other. Mattia is trying to prove themselves to you. They want you to see they’re ready this time. They want to be the one for you. They’re saying “believe in me”. Almost as if it’s destiny.

Third song:

Lyrics standing out:

“Don’t make a sound

I know they’re watching

Sex is on fire

I’m driving

We’re the ones to transpire

We’re still the greatest”

First thing I want to say about this song is that towards the end of it, I saw that montage of Hardin and Tessa from After, where they’re running through the library and then get to know each other more and more. So, again, you all have found each other on a new level. Mattia is incredibly grateful for you and thankful that you have them a second chance. They know what people say and they know you hear what people say, but mattia is saying “let them watch” and you couldn’t agree more. You all are happy and thriving. They feel like your relationship will definitely last and they want it to last. They are reminding you to take care of yourself and know that it’s all going to work out. I just heard “you got it, come see me”. Mattia feels almost giddy at just the thought of holding you in their arms. So they want you to hurry but also to put yourself first.

I hope this resonates, please let me know if it does or doesn’t. I hope you’re doing well and I love you so much!!!

[uispeccoll]

Special Guest Post from John Martin Rare Book Room

Hardin Library of Health Sciences

INGRASSIA, GIOVANNI FILIPPO (1510-1580). Iatrapologia: Quaestio, quae capitis vulneribus ac phrenitidi medicamenta conveniant [Defense of Medicine: Question regarding the medicinals convenient for head injuries and meningitis]. Printed in Venice by Giovanni Griffio, 1547. 16 cm tall.

This month's book was one of six John Martin Rare Book Room items selected to be scanned as part of the Iowa Initiative for Scientific Imaging and Conservation of Cultural Artifacts (IISICCA) project. Iatrapologia (Greek: "defense of medicine") by Giovanni Filippo Ingrassia (1510-1580) was selected for two reasons. One, with backlighting through the thin, limp vellum cover, we were able to determine it had small pieces of manuscript waste that included both green and red inks. Different inks show up at different energy levels in Computed Tomography (CT) scanners - or sometimes not at all. Finding a variety of inks helps to calibrate both types of scanners used in the project.

And two, it's just a darn cool book.

Ingrassia was an influential 16th-century Italian physician. He grew up in a well-educated family and received a classical education. He studied at the University of Padua, one of the most important western centers for the study of medicine and anatomy.

There, he learned from renowned intellectuals and physicians, such as Realdo Columbo, Bartolomeo Eustachi, Girolamo Fracastoro, and, of course, the Anatomaster® himself, Andreas Vesalius. Ingrassia would go on to make his own significant impact on not only anatomical medicine but also public health and hygiene, forensic medicine, and teratology (the study of abnormalities of physiological development).

After completing his studies in 1537, he became the personal physician to a minor Italian noble family in Palermo. Soon after, he became the professor of human anatomy at the University of Naples. It was during his time in Naples that he wrote Iatrapologia. Ostensibly a book about how to treat head wounds, it was also a critique of the current state of medicine and surgery - one of the subtitles, liber quo multa adversus barbaros medicos disputantur, translates as "a book in which many things are argued against the barbarian physicians."

In Iatrapologia and elsewhere, Ingrassia argued that medicine should be considered a less subjective discipline. Treatments should be verified, results checked, and useful diagnoses disseminated among physicians. He also thought that physicians and surgeons should be integrated into a single profession to prevent surgeries by "unqualified" people. Indeed, in Iatrapologia, he states rather dramatically,

"Oh, God, so much human suffering has been caused by the vainglory of contemporary doctors. Indeed, surgery has been abandoned to some inexperienced, empiric [i.e., quack] physicians, most of whom are not only lacking in dogma, but also in what relates to the Art." p. 252

Ingrassia was also a strong believer in continuing education, suggesting physicians should refresh their dissection skills every five years so as to avoid becoming "imperfect and ignorant physicians." If nothing else, Ingrassia demonstrated a natural skill with insults!

Ingrassia made significant contributions to the field of anatomy, particularly with bones and the skull. He is most well known for identifying a third small bone in the middle ear, which he called the "stapes." He also described differences between human and animal bones, breaking down parts of each bone to make identification easier.

Ingrassia was not only a physician and anatomist but also a pioneer in public health. He held various political positions, most notably Protomedicus (chief physician) of Sicily, and implemented measures to prevent the spread of diseases such as malaria and the plague. He emphasized the importance of preventive measures, such as isolating infected patients and cleaning objects to reduce the risk of transmission.

Overall, Giovanni Filippo Ingrassia was a remarkable physician and scientist who significantly contributed to our understanding of human anatomy and the practice of medicine.

Our copy of Iatrapologia is a delight to hold and leaf through and, as indicated, holds a few secrets inside. The limp vellum cover is soft but dried out enough that it has a bit of a rattle while opening. The cover image above shows discoloration from use and bits of writing here and there. The textblock is in excellent shape, the paper bright, and almost completely free of damage.

One interesting surprise is a piece of paper that has been pasted over the verso side of leaf A3 in an attempt to cover up a printer's error (a repeated page from elsewhere in the book). At some point, someone made a concerted effort to remove the paper to see what was underneath. Whoever glued it on, though, made sure the vandal couldn't remove much!

Other surprises can be seen in the images above. The images show close-ups of the text visible with backlighting. In one image, green and red inks are still vibrant and really jump out. The IISICCA group estimates the date of the manuscript to be roughly the 10th or 11th century and suspects the complete word is some form of "archiabbas" (chief abbot).

Another image shows a small scrap where the photo is repeated several times. Different photo filters were applied in an attempt to make the text more legible.

Contact me to take a look at this book or any others from this or past newsletters: damien-ihrig@uiowa.edu

[mikidoink]

Ako si Anneza, ang hilig ko ay mag document ng maraming karanasan gamit ang litrato. Mahilig ako maglibot at sumubok ng maraming bagong karanasan.

Kada taon, ang aking pamilya ay nagbabakasyon sa ibat ibang parte ng mundo. Noong Hulyo 2023, nagtungo ako sa Korea para sa aking kaarawan. Malaki ang aking pasasalamat sa aking pamilya dahil nadala nila ako sa lugar na hindi ko akalain na aking mapupuntahan. Sa airport palamang ay hindi ko na mapigilan ang mga ngiti sa aking mga labi.

Paglapag ko sa aiport ng Korea, ako agad ay tumikim ng kanilang donut. Ang korea ay kilala sa makukulay at madisenyo na pagkain, kaya ako ay hindi na nagdalawang isip na bumili. Sumunod ay kumain naman ako ng “Samgyupsal”, kakaiba ang pagtimpla nila ng pagkain dito na kung saan ako ay nagkaroon ng isang masayang karanasan sa Korean cuisine.

Upang hindi masayang ang aking araw, ako ay naglibot sa Myeongdong. Malapit lang dito ang aming tinutuluyan kaya sinadya na namin na puntahan agad. Ito ay isang lugar na kung saan punong puno ng maraming tindahan at streetfoods naman kapag kinagabihan. Sa bawat sulok ay maraming kainan ang nagaalok ng ibat-ibang uri ng pagkain. Tampok dito ang pagkain ng keso na mayroong condensed milk, lobster o ulang na mayroong ibat-ibang keso, at marami pang iba. Bilang isang bata na mahilig sa keso, ako ay nag enjoy ng sobra. Hindi ko mapigilang maglakad dahil sa nakakamangha nilang estraktura at paligid.

Kinabukasan, ako naman ay bumisita sa Gyeongbokgung Palace upang masubukan ang kanilang “Hanbok” sa isang rental place kung saan ikaw ay maaari mamili ng iyong kulay ng damit, haba, at ibat-ibang mga accesories. Habang naglalakad ako sa malawak na hardin, nadama ko angpagpapahalaga sa kultura ng iba. Tila ba na ako’y isang prinsesa sa loob ng isang malaking kaharian. Isa ito sa experience na hindi ko makakalimutan sa aking buhay. Ang renta sa hanbok ay nagdedepende sa iyong oras ng pagbalik. Ang pagsuot ng “Hanbok” ay hindi lamang karanasan, ito rin ay simbolo ng pagtangkilik ng kultura ng iba.

Sumunod sa aming ginawa ay pumunta sa taas ng N Seoul Tower. Mula doon, tanaw ko ang buong lugar, sumakay rin kami ng malaking cable car papunta. Sa itaas ay maaari mong bisitahin ang love lock place na kung saan punong puno ng kadena o lock ang isang buong lugar. Ipinapakita dito ang pagmamahalan at isinusulat ang pangalan ng mahal natin sa buhay. Kinagabihan ay kumain kami sa tanyag na kainan, pinilahan namin ito sa loob ng 45 na minuto upang matikman. Sa murang presyo, ang lasa nito ay kalidad at masarap. Ito ang inirerekomenda ko pag ikaw ay pupunta sa Korea.

Kinabukasan, ako naman ay tumungo sa Fortress Wall of Seoul. Ito ay ang mga bahay na nakikita o napapanood sa isang Korean na movie. Napakaganda ng mga bahay dito pero ang pagbista ay nililimitahan lamang dahil bawal magingay. Ako ay nabawalan dahil sa aking malakas na tawa, ako ay agad humingi ng paumahnhin. Sumunod ay pumunta ako sa Gangnam kung saan nakita ko ang statwa na sumisimbulo sa kanta na “Gangnam Style”, isa sa aking paborito noong ako ay bata pa lamang. Sinubukan ko rin ang mga pagkain sa kanilang 7/11 dahil ito at araw araw ginagawa at marami dito ang gusto kong masubukan. Isa sa tumatak sa aking isip ay ang kanilang cake. Pumunta rin ako isang malaking library, na itinawag na “Starfield Library”. Ito ay puno ng ibat-ibang libro at nasa gitna ito ng isang magarbong mall. Napakasaya sa pakiramdam ng makaranas ng maraming bagong experiences sa loob ng isang araw.

Ika huli ay ang aking pagpunta sa Alpaca World. Ipinilit ko talaga ang aking pamilya na pumunta rito kahit ang byahe ay umaabot sa higit na 2 oras. Ang pagpapakain ng Alpaca ay isa sa aking bucket-list na hiling matupad. Ang pagpunta ko rito ay mas napadali sa pagbook ng tourguide sa klook, hindi kami nahirapan at mas napadali ang pagpunta rito. Liblib ang lugar at ito ay nasa lokasyon na kung saan ito ay nasa bundok. Mahirap makapunta dito kapag ikaw ay magisa lamang kaya mararapat na maghanap tayo ng tourguide. Pagtapos nito ay dumeretso kami sa Nami Island na kung saan makikita ang mararaming mga puno. Sumakay ako ng zipline papunta at ferry naman pabalik. Pagkayari ay sinubukan namin gumamit ng 4x4 bike train upang bumalik sa aming kinaroroonan ulit. Isa itong karanasan na gusto ko pang maulit sa aking buhay. Marami akong nakilala na ibat-ibang lahi, naging masaya ako ng lubos dahil dito.

Sa huli, kami ay bumalik ng Myeongdong upang magpahinga. Sa bawat hakbang, napuno ako ng ibat-ibang karanasan. At ito ang bumubuo sa ibat-ibang parte ng aking sarili. Mula sa paglipad sa paliparan hanggang sa pabalik, naging buo ang aking kasiyahan. Sa pagtatapos ng aking lakbay, ako ay umaasa na muling makabalik sa isang lugar na kung saan natutunan kong sumubok ng maraming pagkain at activity. Hanggang sa muli.

[stargazers-telescopes]

She's a Runner, She's a Track Star

She’s a runner, She’s a track star

Author’s note: Hieee everyone it's been awhile since I posted (one year to be precise) and I was in the thick of my final year at highschool, now I'm in college and have a lot more time than I thought I would…. Anyhoo here's another novella type story for you. This one is pretty long… but it all ties together towards the end.

Inspiration: Since My stories are heavily influenced by my own romantic escapades (disasters) this one is based on the time when I uh ran away from my crush because he found out I liked him…not through a diary but because, much like Arya, I cannot keep my mouth shut when I like someone and I uh accidentally confessed because my brain which is usually uh functional decided to shutdown. Anyway that relationship ended awhileeee back and thank god, I heavily regret it.  Also, like many problems Arya faced, I did too at school, the constant expectation and managing outer as well as inner- perception were issues I faced. Of course, Arya’s a whole other girl, but she is a direct reflection of me.

I guess this story is a tribute to my friends in many ways, who really helped me keep it together in my last year at highschool. I have no Brandon In my life, so to speak, so he really is just a plot driver… but maybe one day I will be as lucky as Arya. 

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story of A LOT of second hand embarrassment. Love you~

..............................................................................................................................

One thing that differentiated Arya Kumar from most was her incredibly volatile attitude. Zero or nothing. One to one hundred. She had never been good with the in-betweens. Of course, if she had to be moderate, then she would be, but she hated it severely. Not doing things made her feel like she was gonna spontaneously combust. Being in the last year of schooling meant extreme scrutiny from everyone around her. She did relatively well at school, engaged in multiple extra -curricular activities apart from her track athletics. And she knew she had her stuff going for her… all except one thing. And that was Brandon Ashford. 

Ashford had come into her life out of nowhere, and soon she found him nearly everywhere. Captain of the male’s swim team and vice president of the astronomy club, their lives should not have coincided. It started rather innocently too. It went from a random phone call one evening to clear some trouble in the student body council to random texts almost everyday. 

Then it became cheering for her from the bleachers at the tracks to irritating her while she tried to conduct her club meetings as president of the debate club. Then at the library and then on her way back home after school. And soon it felt wrong to go even a day without speaking to him, soon his smile sent her heart into overdrive and his voice canceled any coherent thoughts in her head and just like that…Arya developed a big fat crush on her newfound friend. 

She soon found herself running around the whole school just to get a glimpse of his face if by chance he hadn't shown up in front of her that day, and her best friend had to endure all the behind-the-scenes dramatics Arya never thought herself capable of producing. And that was the only person she told. Hardin had to hear Arya gush about Ashford’s twinkling eyes, and his actually terrible jokes that somehow sent his usually sensible friend into fits of hysterical laughter. 

“For the love of GOD, Ari, get a GRIP on yourself mate”, Hardin scolded her, which really didn't work too well because: firstly, Hardin refused to swear and secondly Arya was too stubborn and obstinate to listen.

“You’re lucky I still put up with you”

“Yeah but you love me too much, so”, Arya said, smiling cheekily as she put her gear on the bleachers and tied up her unruly brown hair into a high ponytail.

‘Hmph’, Hardin sat with a plop as he watched his best friend go to warm up.

Keeping her crush a secret was something Arya struggled with terribly, because she was a person of action. And not taking action meant keeping quiet. This was rather difficult because Arya wasn’t by any means a quiet person. So, she had to keep quiet momentarily otherwise she would quite possibly accidentally start a riot dealing with the frustration that was the heart-rendering problem of Brandon. So the only two places that had knowledge of Arya’s secret were the jail-safe mind of her best friend and her journal that she kept in her running kit

Arya started journaling when she was 14 because it allowed her to rant and complain and detail out everything that annoyed her. It also allowed her to set out her goals and plans for she had many things she wanted to do, learn and see in her life. She often went through her older journals and cringed at her entries but that's the fun of it, that was what she was feeling in the moment and it was almost laughable how she was nervous or excited or scared or happy and what she wrote about it. 

She prided herself on her good handwriting and grammar because what was the use of knowing how to write if one did not write well? Oh, and she had a lot to complain about this year.

And then there was the issue of the winter dance which was a much anticipated event 3 weeks before final exams and one week after mid-semester tests for the seniors. And that was around 3 weeks away. And there was the issue of Mara, the perennial pain in her ass, in the same class as her and on the track team too and as impertinent as ever. 

Mara for whatever reason decided she wanted to be the most annoying twit Arya had to deal with. Taking a special liking to constantly questioning her decisions as Captain and taking jabs and shots at her whenever possible, she nearly drove Arya to madness. However, Arya in her own right was equally as obsessive about dealing with her ‘Mara Problems’, as Hardin had coined the term.

[clemiju]

Someday, I’ll make a home with you, it may be big it may be small. Pero sandali nga, ano ba ang dream house mo? sa’kin kasi, simple lang naman, nothing too luxurious— isang kubol, pero ang gusto ko sa Baguio o kundi sa Tagaytay.

Sa aking pangarap na tahanan, gusto ko ng balkonahe with a great view of the mountains, pine trees at ang mga bahay na sobrang ganda kahit sila’y nag ka dikit-dikit, ito ay nakaka-hanga pa rin. At gusto ko rin ng malaki na kusina, at sa lutuan mismo, nais ko ng bintana na sakto ang laki, at may magandang tunawin. And, you don’t need to worry about cooking dahil ako na ang bahala sa lahat— I’ll make you breakfast every morning. Ako na ang mag luto, ikaw na ang mag hugas, pero gusto ko rin sa tuwing ako’y nag luluto, niyayakap mo ako mula sa likod, para mas maramdam ko ang lambing mo. (Sabayan mo rin ng kiss, please) O kaya naman, p’wede rin na tayong dalawa mismo ang magluluto, while we do this side by side— our daughter will be in charge of arranging the plates on the table, with 'Be With You' by The Ridleys playing in the background.

Gusto ko rin ng malaking hardin na puno ng mga magagandang bulaklak at halamang gulay, sa gitna nito, I want to put a patio so all of us three can sing together, listen close— I’ll sing your name. And ikaw mismo ang maglalaro ng gitara. As the gentle breeze blows, we’ll create beautiful melodies, and our laughter will fill the air— making every moment magical.

Gusto ko rin pala ng maliit na library so you can read all of the books na gusto mong basahin, kaya sa tuwing wala ka sa bahay o sa tabi ko— ako nalang ang mag babasa sa mga paborito mong libro habang nakikinig sa mga paborito mong musika, dahil in them, I find little bits of you.

At tsaka, gusto ko rin ng kwarto sa second floor na may magandang tanawin. It’s like ang bungad mo sa umaga ay ang balcony mo and the amazing view of the mountains and pine trees. Plus, waking up beside her every morning will be the first thing I see— her beautiful smile, which totally brightens my day and makes everything feel so right in this world.

Minsan naman, nag-uusap kami tungkol sa mga pangarap namin habang naka higa, hawak ang telepono— sharing our hopes and aspirations, making plans of our future. Like, 'Magkakaroon din ako ng madaming Jollibee Franchise, bibigyan ko lahat ’yung mga ex mo para hindi mo na sila ilibre.' And, ang cute pa ng laugh niya whenever I make my stupid jokes, her voice is like a music to my ears.

I can already imagine how I’ll hold her close, wrapping my arms around her. I’ll always make sure na she feels just as loved as she makes me feel, kasi ’di ba nga sabi ni Pablo Neruda, 'I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where'— ganon ka deep ang love ko for her.

Pero nga, ikaw ang kasama ko. Every little thing you dream of will have its place in our home, dahil nga it’s not just my dream house— it’s ours, built for us and filled everything with everything we love.

Beyond everything, I want our home to feel like a sanctuary. Not just a place to live, but parang isang warm embrace after a long day. I once asked my self, 'What makes a home?'— and I realized it’s not just about where you go, but who you’re with. I want our house to be the place you safe, the place you return to when the world gets tough.

But if the dreams don’t happen right away, but as we wait, I promise I’ll be here, working on myself— for us, in our on ways and for the better. I’ll make sure na our home reflects all the love and effort we pour into it. It’s a place where you’ll feel cherished, no matter what life throws our way. I’ll be more of a shelter than less a storm, I will work on my temper and be more careful with my words para hindi kita masaktan. Hinding-hindi ko papatawarin ang sarili ko kung nasaktan kita, habang minamahal kita at the same time. I will do everything to be with you every single day and for the rest our lives.

When our hearts lead us there, we’ll craft a sanctuary that resonates with our laughter and love. Hindi ‘yung puro sigawan at masasakit na salita ang umuugong, kundi puno ng saya at pag-unawa. Sabay-sabay tayong kakain tuwing almusal, tanghalian, at hapunan. There will be no explosive rage, no slamming doors, no breaking things, and no holes punched into the walls. Our home will be gentle and warm. Both of us have come from broken and twisted places, but I promise to do my best to build you a home that truly feels like a home. I want our daughter to grow up without needing to heal from the past or carry the burdens and trauma we endured back then in that terrible place.

Together, we’ll create a haven kung saan our Lavinia (this will be our daughter’s name hehe) can thrive, surrounded by love and kindness, para malaman niya na she is safe and cherished every day.

[fragilelunar]

2023 Reading Wrap Up

General Stats:

Total Books Read: 105

Pages: 25, 224

Time: 194.17 Hours

Average Rating: 4.31 Stars

Library Books: 41

Books Owned: 14

5 Stars: 38

hello! for my first post on this new blog I figured I'd do a little wrap up of my reading from last year!! Tiny bit of back history to give y'all before I start doing monthly wrap ups and things. I always make my reading goal 50 books so that I can easily hit it and then just vibe the rest of the year btw!!

anyways!! here are all the books I read last year and my ratings of each:

Finale - Stephanie Garber ✭✭✭✭

The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row - Lara Love Hardin, Anthony Ray Hinton ✭✭✭✭✭

The Inheritance Games - Jennifer Lynn Barners ✭✭✭✭✭

Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases - Paul Holes ✭✭✭✭✭

Aquicorn Cove - K. O'neill ✭✭✭✭✭

Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute - Talia Hibbert ✭✭✭✭.5

Doughnuts and Doom - Balazs Lorinczi ✭✭✭✭

The Severed Thread - Leslia Vedder ✭✭✭✭

Anya's Ghost - Vera Brosgol ✭✭✭.5

The Hawthorne Legacy - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ✭✭✭✭

The Final Gambit - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ✭✭✭✭

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - Amanda Montell ✭✭✭✭

Babel - R.F. Kuang ✭✭✭✭✭

Save Yourself! - Bones Leopard ✭✭✭✭✭

Blink - Christopher Sebela ✭✭✭

The River Has Teeth - Erica Waters ✭✭✭✭.5

Hold Back the Tide - Melinda Salisbury ✭✭✭✭

Atari and Tika - Efa ✭✭✭✭

Goblin Slayer Vol 1 - Kumo Kagyu ✭✭✭.5

Goblin Slayer Vol 2 - Kumo Kagyu ✭✭✭✭

The Memory Eater - Rebecca Mahoney ✭✭✭✭✭

Legends & Lattes - Travis Baldree ✭✭✭✭

Amari and the Great Game - B.B. Alston ✭✭✭✭.5

Thanks a Lot, Universe - Chad Lucas ✭✭✭✭.5

Coming Back - Jessi Zabarsky ✭✭✭.5

I Wish You All the Best - Mason Deaver ✭✭✭✭✭

Heartstopper Vol 1 - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Heartstopper Vol 2 - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Heartstopper Vol 3 - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Heartstopper Vol 4 - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Chaos & Flame - Tessa Gratton, Justina Ireland ✭✭✭✭

Heart, Haunt, Havoc - Freydis Moon

The Feeling of Falling in Love - Mason Deaver ✭✭✭✭✭

Ana on the Edge - A.J. Sass ✭✭✭✭

Hell Followed With Us - Andrew Joseph White ✭✭✭✭✭

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Suzanne Collins ✭✭.5

Solitaire - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Nick and Charlie - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Radio Silence - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Belle of the Ball - Mari Costa ✭✭✭✭✭

Devil on Her Shoulder - Cédric Mayen ✭✭✭✭

City of Vicious Night - Claire Winn ✭✭✭✭

SpyxFamily Vol 1 - Tatsuya Endo ✭✭✭✭✭

Joe Hill's Rain - David M. Booher, Joe Hill ✭✭✭✭

Small Nozomi and Big Yume - Sou Hamayumiba ✭✭✭

Girls Like Girls - Hayley Kiyoko ✭✭✭✭

Cursed - Marissa Meyer ✭✭✭✭

I Was Born for This - Alice Oseman ✭✭✭✭✭

Threads That Bind - Kika Hatzopoulou ✭✭✭✭✭

Mooncakes - Suzanne Walker ✭✭✭✭

Ellen Outside the Lines - A.J. Sass ✭✭✭✭✭

Always Human - Ari North ✭✭✭✭

Out of the Blue - Jason June ✭✭✭✭

The Backstagers Vol 1 - James Tynion IV ✭✭✭✭.5

The Backstagers Vol 2 - James Tynion IV ✭✭✭✭✭

Dear Mothman - Robin Gow ✭✭✭✭✭

The Alchemy of Moonlight - David Ferraro ✭✭✭✭

Fake Dates and Mooncakes - Sher Lee ✭✭✭✭✭

The Backstagers Vol 3 - James Tynion IV ✭✭✭✭

So This Is Ever After - F.T. Lukens ✭✭✭✭

Bruised - Tanya Boteju ✭✭✭✭✭

Spell Bound - F.T. Lukens ✭✭✭✭.5

Sensory: Life on the Spectrum - Schnumm, Bex Ollerton ✭✭✭✭✭

Gender Is Really Strange - Teddy G. Goetz ✭✭✭✭✭

If You'll Have Me - Eunnie ✭✭✭✭✭

Fourth Wing - Rebecca Yarros ✭✭.5

Ode to My First Car - Robin Gow ✭✭✭.5

Save Me! (From Myself): Crushes, Cats, and Existential Crises - So Lazo ✭✭✭✭✭

Soppy: A Love Story - Philippa Rice ✭✭✭✭

You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight - Kalynn Bayron ✭✭✭

Rebent Sinner - Ivan Coyote ✭✭✭✭

The Bone Shard Daughter - Andrea Stewart ✭✭✭✭

Legendborn - Tracy Deonn ✭✭✭✭

The Bone Shard Emperor - Andrea Stewart ✭✭✭✭.5

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth - Andrew Joseph White ✭✭✭✭✭

Open Throat - Henry Hoke ✭✭✭.5

Girl Juice - Benji Nate ✭✭✭✭

Flavor Girls - Loïc Locatelli-Kournwsky, Eros De Santiago ✭✭✭✭

The Love Report - Béka ✭✭✭.5

Last Chance Books - Kelsey Rodkey ✭✭✭.5

Red Rising - Pierce Brown ✭✭✭✭

Where Darkness Blooms - Andrea Hannah ✭✭✭.5

Bittersweet in the Hollow - Kate Pearsall ✭✭✭✭.5

Dead Women Don't Tell Tales - Adrian J. Smith ✭✭✭.5

The Black Cat & the Vampire Vol 1 - Nikke Taino ✭✭✭✭

Mortal Follies - Alexis Hall ✭✭✭✭

The Hundred Years' War on Palestine - Rashid Khalidi ✭✭✭✭✭

The Black Cat & the Vampire Vol 2 - Nikke Taino ✭✭✭✭

These Violent Delights - Chloe Gong ✭✭✭✭✭

The Brothers Hawthorne - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ✭✭✭✭

Squire - Nadia Shammas ✭✭✭✭

The Companion - E.E. Ottoman ✭✭✭✭

Unfamiliar - Haley Newsome ✭✭✭✭

Something More - Jackie Khalilieh ✭✭✭.5

Turtle Bread - Kim-Joy ✭✭✭✭

Our Violent Ends - Chloe Gong ✭✭✭✭✭

Lore Olympus Vol 1 - Rachel Smythe ✭✭✭✭

Lore Olympus Vol 2 - Rachel Smythe ✭✭✭✭

Minor Detail - Adania Shibli ✭✭✭✭✭

Unfamiliar 2 - Haley Newsome ✭✭✭✭

Lore Olympus Vol 3 - Rachel Smythe ✭✭✭✭

Freedom Is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement - Angela Y. Davis ✭✭✭✭✭

Lore Olympus Vol 4 - Rachel Smythe ✭✭✭✭

Us - Sara Soler ✭✭✭✭.5

(titles in italics were ARCs!)

[darkcrowprincess]

I haven't read the After books or experienced this particular phenomenon. On the other hand, maybe I had to see the first 3 films ? (With a friend and we will watch the sequel at some point because we laugh a lot in front of it, basically we watch for the joke) Which I find really really bad, but I have no doubt that the books must be better. There was a time when I had volume 1 in my library but I never read it. Perhaps I should just to finally understand what could have pleased you so much ? On the other hand, I experienced the 50 Shades of Gray phenomenon thoroughly at the time when I was 13 / 14 years old when the first film came out ? I read all the books before the first film came out and I absolutely loved it even if today I find it not crazy, but still entertaining. And the books remained better than the films, especially the last one where they massacred Anna's accident in the adaptation. 😂😭

I haven't read the books. I've seen the movies. But I want to read them. Mostly because I find the drama entertaining. I dont see it as romance. I see it more as entertaining smutty dumpster fire drama. Like soap opera on crack. Thats what I think makes them so interesting. Its suppose to be toxic. It's suppose to be messed up. Thats the point. Mainly I want the first and second books because those were my favorite of the movies(though the third movie had my favorite ending). Both the main characters are two messed up people. But what makes them interesting, is that they're hilariously interesting about how equally messed up they each are, its not just the guy. They both have issues, and they make each other worse! 😈 I know its bad, but I take pleasure in watching their drama. It makes me want to sit back and eat popcorn. Just messy dramatic white people drama.

For example my favorite scene in the second movie is when a drunk Tessa gets into a fight with one of Hardins ex fuck buddies Molly. Its just hilarious to watch. Especially when Hardin(and god is Hardin such a stupid name. Sounds like hard on lol 😆) pulls a drunk Tessa away from the fight. Tosses her over his shoulder and walks away with Tessa drunk laughing evilly and giving a bloody nose Molly the middle finger as she says, "Happy New Year bitch!" And Hardin the alcoholic and one always getting into fights is the one that told her they shouldn't go to this party.

Lol honestly I still laugh about that. They both so many issues.