#Julius Tanner

[wipbigbang]

WIP Big Bang 2023 Round Starting April 1st!

What is the WIP Big Bang? Good question! This is a Big Bang with one goal in mind: to clean out your fanfic drafts folder. These are stories that were unfinished for whatever reason, that authors returned to and completed, and the art that goes with them!

Please read our FAQ/check out our schedule for more details.

[alyygx]

Band of Brothers Easy Company Sorted Between Surviving and Not Surviving WWII: Part 1 of 2

Hey all! Here is part 1 of my big BoB post!!! I still have some work to do on part 2 but I will try to have it up as soon as I can. I hope you all find this useful and also a little bit interesting. I had so much fun doing the research for it. 🙂❤️

Enjoy!!! xoxo

Died During the War:

Company Commanders:

First Lieutenant Thomas Meehan III

Born: July 8th, 1921 (Philadelphia, PA)

Enlisted: March 16th, 1941 (Philadelphia, PA)

Died: June 6th, 1944/ D-Day (Normandy, France)

Age at Death: 22 years old

Cause of Death: Plane shot down and crashed after being hit by German anti-aircraft fire.

• His remains were finally returned to the U.S. in 1952 and he is currently buried at the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery just south of St. Louis, Missouri

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings)

• Combat Infantry Badge

• American Campaign Medal

• Purple Heart

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (with 2 service stars)

• World War II Victory Medal

• French Liberation Medal

• Croix de guerre with palm

Wounded?: No (died before seeing any combat)

Family:

• Thomas Meehan II (Father)

• Marion Opp Meehan (Mother)

• Anne Shore (Wife)

• Barrie Meehan Meller (Daughter)

Non-commissioned Officers:

Sergeant Warren Harold "Skip" Muck

Born: January 31st, 1922 (Tonawanda, NY)

Enlisted: August 17th, 1942 (Buffalo, NY)

Died: January 10th, 1945 (Foy, Bastogne, Belgium)

Age at Death: 22 years old

Cause of Death: Killed when an artillery round hit his foxhole, shared with Alex Penkala, and exploded.

• Skip Muck is buried at the Luxembourg American Cemetery in Hamm, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings) with 2 combat stars

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Bronze Star

• Purple Heart

• Presidential Unit Citation (with one Oak Leaf Cluster)

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (with 3 service stars and arrow device)

• World War II Victory Medal

• Army of Occupation Medal

• Croix de guerre with palm

• French Liberation Medal

• Belgian World War II Service Medal

Fought:

• D-Day/Battle of Normandy (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

• Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Forrest, Bastogne, Belgium)

Wounded?: Never wounded until KIA in Bastogne

Family:

• Elmer Julius Muck Sr. (Father)

• Loretta M. Muck (Mother)

• Elmer J. Muck Jr. (Older Brother)

• Ruth Muck (Younger Sister)

• Faye Tanner (Fiancée)

Enlisted Men:

Corporal Donald B. "Hoob" Hoobler

Born: June 28th, 1922 (Manchester, OH)

Enlisted: July 22nd, 1942 (Fort Thomas, KY)

• Joined the Ohio National Guard on October 15th, 1940 and served until October 1941.

Died: January 3rd, 1945 (Bastogne, Belgium)

• Don Hoobler is buried at Manchester IOOF Cemetery with his father (d. 1941), mother (d. 1976), and brother George (d. 1932).

Age at Death: 22 years old

Cause of Death: After acquiring a German Luger and placing the gun in his pocket the gun discharged due to the pressure of the multiple layers of clothing he was wearing and severed the femoral artery in his right leg. He bled out and died before he was able to be transported to an aid station.

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings)

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Purple Heart

• American Defense Medal

• European Theater of Operations Ribbon

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/D-Day (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

• Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Forrest, Bastogne, Belgium)

Wounded?: No. Not until his fatal non-combat related gunshot wound to his leg in Bastogne.

Family:

• Sergeant Ralph Brenton Hoobler (Father)

• Kathryn Phyllis [Carrigan] Hoobler (Mother)

• John R. Hoobler (Brother)

• George B. Hoobler (Brother)

• Mary Kathryn [Hoobler] Lane (Sister)

Private First Class Alex Mike Penkala Jr.

Born: August 30th, 1924 (Niles, Michigan)

Drafted: February 27th, 1942 (Toledo, OH)

Died: January 10th, 1945 (Foy, Bastogne, Belgium)

Age at Death: 20 years old

Cause of Death: Killed when an artillery round hit his foxhole, shared with Skip Muck, and exploded.

• Alex Penkala is buried at the Luxembourg American Cemetery in Hamm, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings)

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Purple Heart

• Bronze Star

• American Campaign Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (with 3 service stars and arrowhead)

• World War Two Victory Medal

• Reconnaissance de la France Libérée

• Croix de guerre with palm

• Médaille commémorative de la Guerre

• Good Conduct Medal

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/D-Day (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

• Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Forrest, Bastogne, Belgium)

Wounded?: Wounded by a mortar explosion in the arm in Bastogne.

Family: Alex Penkala's parents emigrated from Poland in 1906 and his father barely spoke English. All the Penkala children (including Alex) were fluent in Polish.

• Alexander Penkala Sr. (Father)

• Mary [Kinski] Penkala (Mother) *died in childbirth in 1927 delivering her 13th child

• Angela M. [Penkala] Sobczyk (Oldest Sister)

• Mary [Penkala] Setlak (2nd Oldest Sister)

• Helen E. [Penkala] Hawblitzel (3rd Oldest Sister)

• Matilda V. [Penkala] Budney (4th Oldest Sister)

• Genevieve A. [Penkala] Glujas (5th Oldest Sister)

• Edward F. Penkala (Oldest Brother)

• Clem J. Penkala (2nd Oldest Brother)

• Evelyn A. [Penkala] Tatay (6th Oldest Sister)

• Irene [Penkala] Lichatowich (7th Oldest Sister)

• Rose L. [Penkala] Kaczmarczyk (2nd Youngest Sister)

• Gertrude E. [Penkala] Picking (Youngest Sister)

• Sylvia (Girlfriend)

Survived the War:

Company Commanders:

Captain Herbert Maxwell Sobel

Born: January 26th, 1912 (Chicago, IL)

Enlisted: March, 7th 1941

Died: September 30th, 1987 (Waukegan, IL)

Age at Death: 75 years old

Cause of Death: Malnutrition

• In 1970 Sobal shot himself in the head in an attempted suicide. The bullet entered his temple and severed his optic nerve rendering him blind for the rest of his life.

• He died a Lieutenant Colonel; serving in both WWII & Korea

• Sobel was cremated after his death

• Sobel is buried at Montrose Cemetery-Crematorium in Chicago, IL

• No one attended his funeral

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings)

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Bronze Star Medal

• American Campaign Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

• World War II Victory Medal

• Croix de guerre (France)

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/D-Day (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

• Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Forrest, Bastogne, Belgium)

Wounded?: No

After the War: Worked as a credit manager for a telephone equipment company in Chicago.

• Sobel was born into a Jewish family, his wife was devoutly Catholic. This was a major problem for his family.

• Sobel and his wife divorced sometime in the late 1960s and he became estranged from his family shortly after.

Family:

• Max H. Sobel (Father)

• Dora Friedman (Mother)

• Julian Sobel (Brother)

• Maxine Sobel (Brother)

• Ruth Sobel (Sister)

• Rose Sobel (Wife)

• Michael Sobel (Son)

• Herbert Sobel Jr. (Son)

• Rick Sobel (Son)

• 1 daughter (died a few days after birth)

Major Richard Davis "Dick" Winters

Born: January 21st, 1918 (New Holland, PA)

Enlisted: August 25th, 1941 (place unknown)

Died: January 2nd, 2011 (Campbelltown, PA)

Age at Death: 92 years old

Cause of Death: Parkinson's disease

• Dick is buried at Bergstrasse Evangelical Lutheran Church, Ephrata Township, PA and was laid to rest on January 8th, 2011.

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (with 2 Combat Stars)

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Medal of the City of Einhoven

• Distinguish Service Cross [The second highest medal awarded by the US Military]

• Bronze Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster

• Purple Heart

• Presidential Unit Citation with one Oak Leaf Cluster

• American Defense Medal

• National Defense Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

• World War II Victory Medal

• Army of Occupation Medal

• Croix de guerre with palm

• French Liberation Medal

• War Cross (Belgium) with palm

• Belgian World War II Medal

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/D-Day (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

• Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Forrest, Bastogne, Belgium)

• Western Allied invasion of Germany

Wounded?: Took a ricochet sniper bullet to the leg in Carentan.

After the War: Became a production assistant at Nixon Nitration Works, a plastics adhesive factory, in Raritan, NJ

Family:

• Richard Winters (Father)

• Edith Winters (Mother)

• Beatrice Winters (Sister)

• Ann Sheehan (Younger Sister)

• Ethel Estoppey Winters (Wife)

• Richard T. Winters (Son)

• Jill Peckelun (Daughter)

First Lieutenant Frederick Theodore "Moose" Heyliger

Born: June 23rd, 1916 (Acton, MA)

Enlisted: November 25th, 1940

Died: November 3rd, 2001 (Concord, MA)

• Moose is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Age at Death: 85 years old

Cause of Death: Stroke

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutists Badge (aka Jump Wings)

• Bronze Star

• Purple Heart

• American Campaign Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

• Military Cross

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/D-Day (Normandy, France)

• Operation Market Garden (Einhoven, Holland)

Wounded?: Was accidentally shot by one of his own men (a replacement) on October 31st, 1944. His wounds caused him to need to undergo skin and nerve grafts. He was discharged from the army in February 1947 after being in military hospitals for nearly 3 years.

After the War: Worked as a salesman for landscape and agriculture chemical companies.

Family:

• Theodore Godet Heyliger (Father)

• Bertha Louise Heyliger (Mother)

• Johannes Almon Heyliger (Older Brother)

• Pauline Louise Heyliger (Older Sister)

• Howard Francis Heyliger (2nd Oldest Brother)

• Vic Heyliger (Younger Brother)

• Evelyn Davis (First Wife) [divorced early 1960s]

• Frederick Heyliger Jr. (Son)

• Diane Heyliger (Daughter)

• Mary Heyliger (Second Wife)

• Jon Heyliger (Son)

First Lieutenant Norman Staunton "Foxhole Norman" Dike Jr.

Born: May 19th, 1918 (Brooklyn, NY)

Enlisted: January 22nd, 1942

Died: June 23rd, 1989 (Rolle, Switzerland)

• Dike is buried at West Thompson Cemetery, Thompson Windham County, North Grosvenor Dale, Connecticut.

Age at Death: 71 years old

Cause of Death: "A long illness" is all the info I could find

Awards/Medals:

• Silver Star

• Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster

• Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster

• Order of Orange-Nassau Netherlands 2nd class

Fought:

• Operation Market Garden

• Battle of the Bulge

Wounded?: Shot in the right shoulder in Foy

After the War: Dike opened his own law practice in Switzerland

Family:

• Norman S. Dike Sr. (Father)

• Evelyn M. Biddle (Mother)

• Barbra Tredick Dimmick McIntire (Wife) (m. June 20th 1942 - divorced June 1946)

• Catherine Pochon (2nd Wife) (m. March 12th, 1957)

• Anthony Randolph Dike (Son)

• Robin Dike Auchincloss (Daughter)

• Barbra Matilda Dike (Daughter)

• Deborah Ann Dike (Daughter)

Captain Ronald Charles Speirs

Born: April 20th, 1920 (Edinburgh, United Kingdom)

Enlisted: April 11th 1942

Died: April 11th, 2007 (Saint Marie, Montana)

Age at Death: 86 years old

Cause of Death: Died suddenly; cause unknown

• Burial details unknown

Awards/Medals:

• Master Parachutist Badge with 4 combat jump devices (stars)

• Combat Infantry Badge 2nd Award

• Silver star

• Legion of Merit

• Bronze Star with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters

• Purple Heart with ne Oak Leaf Clusters

• Army Commendation Medal

• Presidential Unit Citation with one Oak Leaf Cluster

• American Campaign Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four Service Stars and Arrowhead Device

• World War II Victory Medal

• Army of Occupation Medal

• National Defense Service Medal with Service Star

• Korean Service Medal with four Service Stars and Arrowhead Device

• Croix de Guerre with palm

• French Liberation Medal

• Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation

• United Nations Korea Medal

• Korean War Service Medal

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/DDay

• Operation Market Garden

• Battle of the Bulge

Wounded?: Wounded by fire from an enemy machine gun in Rendijk, Holland

After the War: After WWII Spiers stayed in the army for 22 years and served in both the Korean and Cold Wars. Once out of the army Speirs served as the Governor of Spandau Prison (where Nazi war criminals were held).

Family:

• Robert Spiers (Father)

• Martha McNeil (Mother)

• Margaret Griffiths (Wife) (m. May 20th, 1944 - 1946) * Divorced bc she was British and didnt't want to move to America with him.

• Leonie Gertrude Hume Fritz (2nd Wife) (m. 1958)

• Ramona Dolores Pujol Strumph (3rd Wife) (m. 1987)

• Robert (Son from 1st wife)

Junior Officers:

Captain Lewis Nixon

Born: September 30th, 1918 (New York, NY)

Enlisted: January 14th, 1941 (Trenton, NJ)

Died: January 11th, 1995 (Los Angeles, CA)

Age at Death: 76 years old

Cause of Death: Complications from diabetes

• Lew is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutist Badge (Jump Wings) with 3 combat stars

• Combat Infantyman Badge

• Purple Heart

• American Defense Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Ribbion with 3 Battle Stars and a Bronze Arrowhead

• World War Two Victory Medal

• World Was Two Army of Occupation Award with Germany Clasp

• French Criox de Guerre (Cross of Valor)

• Presidential Unit Citation with Bronze Oak Leaf

• 5 Overseas Service Stripes

• Ruptured Duck Patch (WWII Discharge Patch)

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/DDay

• Operation Market Garden

• Battle of the Bulge

• Operation Varsity

Wounded?: In the Netherlands he was hit by a bullet from a German MG 42 machine gun. The bullet went through his helmet, grazed his forehead, and left a burn mark.

After the War: Nix worked at his family's Nixon Nitration Works in Edison, New Jersey alongside his father and friend Dick Winters.

Family:

• Stanhope Wood Nixon (father)

• Doris Ryer Nixon (mother)

• Fletcher Ryer Nixon (brother)

• Blanche Nixon (sister)

• Katharine Page (1st Wife) (m. December 20th, 1941 - 1944)

• Irene Miller (2nd Wife) (m. June 1946 - 1962)

• Grace Umezawa (3rd Wife) (m. 1962)

• Michael Nixon (Son with 1st Wife)

First Lieutenant Lynn Davis "Buck" Compton

Born: December 31st, 1921 (Los Angeles, CA)

Enlisted: Was already ROTC (started 1940) when the war broke out (graduated in 1943 and assigned to the 176th Infantry Regiment)

Died: February 25th, 2012 (Burlington, WA)

Age at Death: 90 years old

Cause of Death: Complications from a heart attack he had in January 2012

• Buck was cremated after his death and his ashes were given to his family

Awards/Medals:

• Parachutist Badge (Jump Wings) with 2 jump stars

• Combat Infantryman Badge

• Silver Star

• Bronze Star

• Purple Heart

• Presidential Unit Citation with one Oak Leaf Cluster

• American Defense Service Medal

• American Campaign Medal

• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with arrow device (airborne assult) and 3 campaign stars

• World War II Victory Medal

• Army of Occupation Medal

• French Croix de guere with palm

• French Liberation Medal

Fought:

• Battle of Normandy/DDay

• Operation Market Garden

• Battle of the Bulge

Wounded?: In 1944, during Operation Market Garden, Buck was shot in the backside. Then, in January 1945, Buck suffered severe battle fatigue after witnessing two close friends (Joe Toye and Bill Guarnere) badly wounded by artillery fire.

After the War: He attended Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and joined the LA Police Department in 1946 becoming a detective in the Central Burglary Division. He left the LAPD for the District Attorney's office in 1951 as a deputy district attorney. He was promoted in 1964 to chief deputy district attorney. In 1970, Governor Ronald Reagan appointed him an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal. He retired in 1990.

• (Fun Fact/Before the War) Buck played as the catcher on his college baseball team his junior year. One of his teammates was Jackie Robinson. Also, Bucks mother worked on movies and Buck was present on set with his mother and met actor Charlie Chaplin. Buck, being a child at the time, was so rowdy and disruptive that Charlie Chaplin kicked him off set.

Family:

• Roby Franks Compton (Father)

• Ethel Camille Compton (Mother)

• Geraldine Compton (1st Wife)

• Donna Faye Newman Compton (2nd Wife)

• Tracy Compton (adopted daughter w/ 2nd wife)

• Syndee Compton (adopted daughter w/ 2nd wife)

[whencyclopedia]

Anthony Wayne

Anthony Wayne (1745-1796), better known by his nickname 'Mad Anthony', was a brigadier general of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). After the war, he briefly served in Congress before resuming his military career, winning a victory over a coalition of Native American nations at the Battle of Fallen Timbers.

Born in Pennsylvania to a family of Irish immigrants, Wayne worked as a land surveyor before joining the Continental Army in 1776. Within a year, he had become a brigadier general, serving with distinction in the Philadelphia Campaign. His finest moment came in July 1779, when he led a nighttime raid against the British garrison at Stony Point, New York, capturing the fort even after sustaining a bullet wound to the head. After the American Revolution, Wayne won election to the House of Representatives as a member of the Federalist Party, working to help strengthen the authority of the federal government. In 1792, he became Senior Army Officer and defeated the Northwestern Confederacy of Native American nations that were contesting the United States' control of the Northwest Territory (modern Ohio). Wayne died shortly after his victory at Fallen Timbers on 15 December 1796, at the age of 51.

Early Life

Anthony Wayne was born on 1 January 1745 at his family's estate of Waynesborough in Easttown, Pennsylvania. He came from a family of Irish Protestants, and his grandfather had fought for the Williamites at the Battle of the Boyne (1 July 1690). In the early 1700s, the Wayne family emigrated from Ireland to the British colony of Pennsylvania, where Anthony's father, Isaac Wayne, found work as a tanner; over the decades, his tannery became the largest in Pennsylvania. In 1739, at the age of 40, Isaac Wayne married Elizabeth Iddings. The couple would have four children, of whom Anthony was the eldest. During the French and Indian War (1754-1763), Isaac served as a captain and raised a company of provincial soldiers. He participated in the 1758 Forbes Expedition to capture Fort Duquesne, in which he served alongside a young Colonel George Washington.

Growing up, Anthony Wayne was expected to inherit the 500-acre Waynesborough and work the fields as a farmer. But Wayne had other plans for his future; having listened to heroic tales of his grandfather's and father's military service as a child, the young Anthony dreamt of winning military glory himself. An insatiable reader, Wayne read all the military histories and classical works he could get his hands on and was soon able to recite both Julius Caesar and William Shakespeare. After completing his education at the College of Pennsylvania, Wayne became a land surveyor. In 1765, he and several of his associates were commissioned by Benjamin Franklin to survey 100,000 acres of land in Nova Scotia. After Wayne surveyed the land, which became the township of Monckton, it was settled by eleven Pennsylvania families of mostly German origin.

In 1763, Wayne married Mary Penrose. The couple had two children: a daughter Margarette (b. 1770) and a son, Isaac (b. 1772). Wayne and his growing family continued to live at Waynesborough, where he split his time between helping his father at the tannery and his own work as a surveyor. But, as relations between the Thirteen Colonies and Great Britain continued to deteriorate, Wayne found that he was being drawn toward the Patriot movement, which opposed the 'unjust' policies of the British Parliament such as taxation without colonial representation. In 1775, a year after the death of his father, Wayne was nominated to the Pennsylvania Committee of Safety, a shadow government run by American revolutionaries; on this committee, he served alongside prominent Patriot leaders like Benjamin Franklin and John Dickinson.

In this position, Wayne became increasingly radical in his disdain for the British, leading his primarily Quaker constituents to remove him from the committee in October, for fear that he had become too war hawkish. By now, the American Revolutionary War was underway and rapidly escalating. With his brief foray into politics over, Wayne could now follow his childhood dream and enter the military.

Continue reading...

[asordinaryppl]

A3! Main Story: Part 4 - Act 13: Budding Spring - Episode 28: Welcome Home

Itaru: (No good. The line is too long and there’s no more taxis… All I can do is find a rental nearby–)

Sakuya: Itaru-san! Welcome back!

Itaru: ——

Masumi: You’re late.

Citron: We came to pick you up~!

Chikage: You did good.

Tsuzuru: To think this plane would be delayed too, what a disaster.

Itaru: Huh? What? Why are you here? What about the performance? Why did all of you come here!?

Sakuya: We were going crazy with worry, so we made a bit of an unreasonable request.

Chikage: We had to practice our lines during the ride, because we'd be wasting precious time otherwise. 

Masumi: The Director was supposed to be the first person I’d drive somewhere…

Tsuzuru: As one would expect from him, Masumi’s a careful driver, so there’s no need to worry.

Itaru: Why would you all come together… Aren’t you lot being a bit too reckless?

Chikage: It turned out alright, didn’t it?

Tsuzuru: You couldn’t catch a taxi, could you?

Itaru: I mean, you definitely saved my butt with this.

Itaru: Pause, rewind. I didn’t realize your faces are so tan… What did you guys eat?

Tsuzuru: There’s nothing we can eat that will make our faces tanner! We just got our makeup on already!

Masumi: To save time.

Itaru: I C.

Citron: Itaru, now is not the time to be fooling around!

Itaru: Having Citron of all people tell me this is kinda…

Chikage: Guess there’s no need to worry about you if you’re this carefree.

Sakuya: Let’s hurry! Everyone is waiting for us!

-

Manager: Thank you very much for coming to today’s performance of “Romeo and Julius ~Rosso e Blu~”, by MANKAI Company’s Spring Troupe.

Manager: The performance will be starting shortly.

Towa: …

Audience A: I wonder what the sequel will be like?

Audience B: I hope the members are the same as last time.

Audience A: This is the first time MANKAI Company does a sequel. I don’t know if I’m excited or scared…

Audience B: I know, right! RomiJuri was the first performance I saw, and I fell head over heels for Romeo…

momo has entered the chat shiki: hi? i thought you were going to the opening day performance today? Iv: you were yapping about it earlier momo: i had to make sure i don’t butt in on other people’s conversation, so i came here Kar: that’s some thinking w Iv: yeah you’d look sus momo: i was also shocked when they announced the romijuli sequel. i understand why they’d be both excited and anxious and tbh i feel the same way momo: i can’t stop thinking about what i’d do if they announced a sequel to my fav play. i think i’d kms if they changed my oshi’s role tho Iv: woah woah woah  momo: also bc i went on the stage itself during the workshop, i think it looks even brighter now that i’m here to watch a performance momo: i think about all the people working bts and i’m overcome with emotion before the performance even starts, i don’t even know if my heart will last till the end Kar: momo the yapper is back shiki: isn’t it starting soon? have fun!

Towa: Whew…

Towa: (I think I’ve calmed down a bit.)

Audience A: It’s almost time, are they not starting yet?

Audience B: They should be ready around this time. Did something happen?

Towa: (Eh, is there some kind of problem? Are they okay??)

Audience A: This reminds me of that time the Autumn Troupe took too long to prepare, and the Summer Troupe had to make a really long introduction.

Audience B: Ah, I watched that on stream!

Audience A: They’re probably doing their best backstage right now.

Audience B: Stay strong…!

Towa: (Good luck, Spring Troupe, everyone on staff…!)

-

[Door slams open]

Sakuya: We’re here! Sorry for the wait!

Izumi: Thank goodness! Welcome back!

Yuki: You’re late!

Azami: You’re late.

Itaru: Three combo…

Azami: I gotta do your makeup, so hurry and sit.

Tsumugi: I’m glad you made it in time.

Itaru: I really troubled you this time. I didn’t think something like this would happen…

Izumi: But it all turned out okay, didn’t it?

Itaru: Pretty much. And my body’s still tingling from all the passion the overseas fans showed.

Itaru: It made me feel like there’s still lots of this world left for us to explore. All that’s left is for me to pour all this enthusiasm into this performance.

Izumi: That makes me happy

Itaru: Ah, but my stamina stats are lowered because of my fatigue and jet lag. TY for the support.

Tsuzuru: I’m pretty sure there’s barely any time difference, though?

Citron: It's better than fumbling and freezing up on stage because he hid it~!

Masumi: Like in the debut performance, huh?

Itaru: Pretty much.

-

Manager: The show is starting soon!

Itaru:  kk.

Chikage: Seems like we made it in time, somehow.

Tsuzuru: Doesn’t change the fact that we were all over the place this time, too, though.

Sakuya: We each took on new challenges in preparation for the New Fleur Award, so I feel like we can return to this stage with new feelings.

Sakuya: Although we can only stand on stage for the first time once, we can have many other “firsts” from now on.

Sakuya: We can remember those feelings again and again. That courage we had when leaping into a brand-new world–

Sakuya: Let’s take all our “firsts” in a positive light and have fun together!

Citron: Yeah!

Tsuzuru: Yeah.

Chikage: That’s a good way of putting it.

Itaru: All set over here.

Masumi: Let’s go, Romeo.

Sakuya: Yes! Let’s start our journey!

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[freetheshit-outofyou]

USS Albacore (SS-218), a 311-foot, Gato-class submarine lost 7 November 1944 of the coast of Hokkaido Japan, she was presumed lost on 21 December 1944 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 30 March 1945, found 16 February 2023.

The USS Albacore earned 9 battle stars, received 4 Presidential Unit Citations and was responsible for sinking at least 10 ships.

Below is a listing of the ships compliment, their names are written in memorial at the National Memorial Cemetary of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii:

IN THESE GARDENS ARE RECORDED

THE NAMES OF AMERICANS

WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES

IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY

AND WHOSE EARTHLY RESTING PLACE

IS KNOWN ONLY TO GOD

Walter Henry Barber, Jr., Kenneth Ripley Baumer, Henry Forbes Bigelow, Jr., Edward Brown Blackmon, William Walter Bower, Allan Rose Brannam, Herbert Hodge Burch, Nicholas John Cado, John Joseph Carano, Charles Lee Carpenter, James Louis Carpenter, Pasquale Charles Carracino, Stanley Chapman, Douglas Childress, Jr., Frederick Herbert Childs, Jr., Perry Aubrey Collom, Audrey Cecil Crayton, Eugene Cugnin, John Wilber Culbertson, Philip Hugh Davis, Ray Ellis Davis, Fred Wallace Day, Julius Delfonso, James Leroy DeWitt, James Thomas Dunlap, Carl Hillis Eskew, John Francis Fortier, Jr., Gordon Harvey Fullilove, Jr., John Wilfred Gant, John Paul Gennett, William Henry Gibson, John Frederick Gilkeson, Charles Chester Hall, James Kenneth Harrell, Robert Daniel Hill, Allen Don Hudgins, Donald Patrick Hughes, Eugene Edsel Hutchinson, Burton Paul Johnson, Sheridan Patrick Jones, George Kaplafka, Nelson Kelley, Jr., Morris Keith Kincaid, Victor Edward Kinon, Joseph Mike Krizanek, Arthur Star Kruger,Walter Emery Lang, Jr., Jack Allen Little, Kenneth Walter Manful, Patrick Kennyless McKenna, Willie Alexander McNeill, Joseph Norfleet Mercer, Leonard David Moss, Richard Joseph Naudack, Encarnacion Nevarez, Joseph Hayes Northam, Frank Robert Nystrom, Robert James O'Brien, Elmer Harold Peterson, Charles Francis Pieringer, Jr., James Teel Porter, Jerrold Winfred Reed, Jr., Francis Albert Riley, Hugh Raynor Rimmer, A. B. Roberts, James Ernest Rowe, Philip Shoenthal, George Maurice Sisk, Joe Lewis Spratt, Harold William St. Clair, Arthur Lemmie Stanton, Robert Joseph Starace, John Henry Stephenson, Maurice Crooks Strattan, Earl Richard Tanner, William George Tesser, Paul Raymond Tomich, Charles Edward Traynor, Theodore Taylor Walker, Elmer Weisenfluh, James Donald Welch, Richard Albert West, Wesley Joseph Willans, Leslie Allan Wilmott, David Robert Wood

[sylphidine]

[Fic] Call Signs, Chapter 35

Fandom: Deltarune

‘Verse: Human AU

Pairings: Swatch/Spamton [Swatchton]; Spamton/T.M. [SpamManager or Tasqueton, not quite sure of the ship name]

Characters: Terese Marlena Tinker [previously T.M. Tanner], Catechu Dyer, Indigo Dyer, Spamton Addison, Swatch Paletta, Julius Dyer, Desiree Dyer, Kirov Rouvin

Rating: Mature

Chapter title: Bootstrapped Leitmotif

Chapter summary: Spring is newly sprung. Our cast of characters has some adjustments to make, some minor, some major.

Author notes: Wow, two chapters in a single week?

Happy International Fanworks Day.

No trigger warnings, but content warnings for present alcohol use and past dubious consent.

_________

T.M. had wasted no time in changing desire into action. After getting her mother to hand over all the official originals of the documents T.M. would need, she sent a notarized letter to Mrs. Tanner stating her request for a cessation of all unsolicited contact.

[T.M. had wanted to send the letter to the attention of "the future Mrs. Horseface Fucker", but Swatch and Spamton between them had talked her out of it.]

Letter sent, T.M. started the process of getting her name legally changed to Terese Marlena Tinker.

Washing dishes side by side with Catechu in Spamton's and Swatch's kitchen a few days later, she ticked off verbal bullet points to explain her thinking. “This is New York, the home of red tape. It’s gonna take months, no matter what the site says about six to eight weeks.  It’s probably better for me to get this nailed down before my job starts in July. Easier for HR, easier for any place where I end up signing a lease."

Indigo looked up from where he was finishing icing the brownies he'd made. "You're still going to be able to use TMT for your initials. That's smart. Keep your brand, kind of." 

"That's the idea."

Catto finished drying a plate and slotted it into the dish drain. Paying no attention to T.M.'s wet hands or the running water, he picked her up and twirled her around. "You're still my big sis, no matter what your name is. You can smack my head if I slip up and call you Tabsy."

"Same here. And chances are I'll mess up more than that galoot," added Indo, pointing at his twin. "He's had practice, at least."

"Oh? Do tell." Back on her feet now, T.M. abandoned the sink and moved to sit at the table, eyeing the brownies hungrily.

"Yeah, well, it's like this." Catechu rubbed the back of his head, looking sheepish. "Kendra's got a brother who used to be her sister, and now he's Emmett instead of Emily, and I don't always remember, so it's just easier for me to say 'Em' when I talk about her. Him, I mean."

This seemed to unlock some kind of heartfelt logjam, because Catto then burst out with, "I never had trouble when Swatch started wanting to be 'they'. So why is it so hard for me to hear you changing your name?"

Indigo looked at T.M., and she looked back at him. She got up and patted Catechu’s arm.

The big man was shaking. "Everything's changing, and I hate it."

The only thing T.M. could think of saying, "You both can still call me Tabsy."

Catto turned away and picked up another dish to dry that didn’t need to be dried. He said gruffly, “What the hell is taking Swatch and Spamton so long? There can’t be that many different kinds of cough drops at Pathmark.”

T.M. wisely did not point out that Swatch and Spamton had been gone less than ten minutes.

______

The two of them passed the registered letter back and forth.

ADDISON CYBERNETICS

1997 CIRCUIT DRIVE, SUITE 356

WHITE PLAINS, NY 10610

March 17, 2022

Dear Mx. Paletta:

Congratulations! I’m thrilled to extend an offer for our mask design internship in our Integrated Circuit Layout department at Addison Cybernetics.  

Your start date will be Monday, June 6, 2022. On your first day, you will report directly to Sam Chua. Your internship will take place between the hours of 9am and 4:30pm, with a cap at 48 hours per week should additional projects require it. 

We’re pleased to offer you a salary of $82.300 for the year’s internship, to be broken into weekly payments of $1582.69.  

At Addison Cybernetics, we pride ourselves on creating informative and rewarding experiences for our interns. That’s why you can look forward to receiving 1:1 mentorship, learning and development opportunities, and access to company privileges  

To accept this offer, please sign and return this letter by March 31, 2022. In the meantime, feel free to reach out with any questions. We look forward to welcoming you to the team.

Sincerely, 

Anne Demetriou

Human Resources, Addison Cybernetics

AD/glb

“I can’t believe how fast they made up their minds.  I only interviewed a week ago.”

“It’s to the c-c-company’s benefit not to - not to waste time.”

“I don’t know whether to kiss this letter or to frame it.”

“The f-f-first thing you need to do with that letter is sign all three copies and date - date them, s-s-send two of’em back, and THEN you c-can kiss the last one and put it under - our pillow.”

“Good thinking.”

“B-b-but you do know they’re lowballing you, right?”

“How so?”

“They’re g-g-going to make you do a full engineer’s work for the absolute minimum they can - they can g-get away with.”

“I don’t care. It’s a foot in the door. Besides, most of the engineering internships I looked at last year before Fairlight got sick paid less than half that.” “Shit. I t-take it back. You’re gonna be a k-king, king.”

“Thank you.”

Spamton pulled Swatch down on top of him with surprising strength and kissed them fiercely. “So, so proud of you,” he murmured into Swatch’s hair. 

_________

"Hello, fellow dreamers, this is DJ Dreamweaver. Before we all cross tonight's highways of fantasy together, so I can help you forget today's pain, I've got two announcements to make.

“First, and on the trivial side, due to seasonal shift changes here at WRCI, I’m pleased to announce that the DJ Dreamweaver show will be moving next week, starting on the 29th, to the Tuesday evening 8pm to 10pm slot. DJ Zonker will be burning the midnight oil with you on Wednesdays in my place to help you survive the midweek blues.

"Second, and much more importantly, don't forget that WRCI, the Nifty 850, the station that rocks a whole square block, will have a booth at the Seeds of Peace Festival in Garlic Park next month on Saturday, April 8th, rain or shine. The Seeds of Peace Festival is a fundraiser for relief efforts in Ukraine. Eight DJs from WRCI, including yours truly, will be spinning tunes from 8am until midnight for a sixteen-hour dance marathon to raise money for Ukraine. Sign up sheets and pledge forms are available to download from our website, or else pick up your hard copy from DJ Kaard in his office at the Student Union during station hours.

“Now it’s time to open the show with the late and much-missed Tom Petty, backed by his Heartbreakers and Jeff Lynne, performing ‘Learning To Fly’.”

_________

The vibrant, art-filled walls of SpaHa Soul never failed to send a shiver of happiness down Swatch’s spine. The Friday night after they got their offer letter, they followed Uncle Julius to a corner glass-topped table, while Indigo pulled out a chair for Aunt Desiree. Catechu chatted with the guitarist setting up for the evening’s set and waved at Artist T., just emerging from the kitchen with plates for the group of diners in the opposite corner.

Uncle Julius had found this place about eight years ago and it had become THE go-to place for Dyer-Paletta family celebrations.   

And tonight they were here to celebrate Indo and Catto’s getting summer internships at the Wythe in Williamsburg, as well as Swatch’s internship.

“Chef’s choice tonight, sir,” Uncle Julius said to Artist T., after getting a hearty backslap from the proprietor. “All three of these fine young people, going out into the world and making their mark!”

“It’s a better world for you all being in it,” agreed Artist T., making a note on his pad and heading back through the swinging doors.

“I like the new glasses, honey,” Aunt Desiree commented to Swatch. “You look good in aviators, and brown is a nice color for you.”

Swatch nodded.”The tint’s helpful for cutting out blue light, and since I expect I’m going to be spending a lot more time in front of screens with the new job, I figured they were worth a splurge.”

On the other side of the table, Indo was listing off all the different areas in the boutique hotel where he and his twin would be working during their ten weeks. “I don’t know how I’m going to keep a straight face when I’m answering phones and directing calls to ‘Le Crocodile’. It’ll probably get easier after a while. At least ‘Bar Blondeau’ sounds more normal. Only thing I’m worried about is getting there on time every day.”

“Better than the commute would have been if we’d gotten the gig at The Ludlow. That commute would have been a real bitch.” Catto caught his mother’s glare and muttered, “Sorry, mom.  It would have been a real bear .”

Uncle Julius laughed and then turned to Swatch. “You’re going to be cutting it awfully fine, between graduation and starting this new job. You’d better start looking at apartments now if you don’t think your landlady will extend your lease past June.”

“I know. Even with a decent salary, I’m either going to have to spend all my time commuting or all my money on a shoebox to live in.” They realized that it sounded like they were complaining, and quickly added with a laugh in their voice, “Or I could ask my favorite aunt to use her real estate agent superpowers and her mad networking skills.”

“That’s the spirit,” Aunt Desiree answered. “We’re not going to leave you out in the cold, even if you have to stay with us for a month or so while you’re getting your feet under you. You’ve got family, don’t forget.

Swatch smiled back at her. “I will never forget that.”

“And don’t forget we’re proud of you. All three of you,” Uncle Julius interjected, waving his hand to include his sons. “Not a bad apple in the bunch.”

“Thanks, Pop,” Indo replied for himself and for his brother. “Especially thanks for being such a good sport about us not working at Ambit Automation.” “Oh, you boys might still end up there if the economy tanks. Luxury disappears, but people always need manufacturing. Look at the Brooklyn Navy Yards. That’s as big a comeback as the Jazz beating the Nuggets.”

“But the boys are using their degrees,” Aunt Desiree pointed out. “Degrees that you and I both approved of, husband mine.”

“Yes, dear.”

At that moment Artist T. and Amber swooped in with platters of fried chicken, stuffed pork chops, coconut rice, spicy yams, and collard greens, enough to feed an army.

Catechu raised his glass. “To family.”

Four glasses clinked against his.

________

“Tell me more about these buff birdmen in corsets,” T.M. teased.

Spamton chuckled in embarrassed remembrance. “They weren’t  actually b-b-birds. They wore bird masks. Like - like beaks. Sexier than plague d-d-doctors.”

“So you turned your living room into an adults-only butler cafe for your twentieth birthday party.”

“I’m not - not pr-proud of who I was then. I didn’t - didn’t br-break the ‘no touch’ rule, but I did - I did ogle a lot.”

“You weren’t a complete sleaze, I guess.”

“Thank you, Trez.”

The first time Spamton had fumbled his words while trying out T.M. 's new name, “Terese” had come out of his mouth as “Trez”. To his relief and delight, she had happily adopted it as a nickname.

She was curled up in the basket chair in the upstairs room that Swatch had named “Spamton’s eyrie”. He was sitting on the floor and had his head in her lap while she played with his hair. Spamton had taken the advice of his current therapist and was now giving T.M. some of the edited “highlights” of his checkered past.

HEAVILY edited. 

“I c-could do the flexing thing, if you wanted. But I don’t think it would b-be quite as impressive as those g-guys.” He got to his knees and raised his face to meet her kiss.

They hadn’t moved beyond kissing yet, and T.M. seemed perfectly happy with that. She told him how much she enjoyed how carefully he kissed her. “Some guys think they have to be rough because I’ve got piercings, like it’s a challenge.”

Spamton was fairly sure that she knew he was careful only because he didn’t have a lot of experience kissing people with piercings, but she was too courteous to say so.  The snakebite bothered him less and less the more often they kissed, since her daily jewelry consisted of the tiniest of studs. 

The sound of the front door downstairs opening and shutting made them both smile. “Up here!” Spamton called out, sitting back down on the rug.

Swatch called back, “Are you decent?” as they climbed the stairs.

“Yes, and we’re even dressed!” T.M. trilled. This exchange had become the three’s shared joke.

“How was - how was d-d-dinner?”

“Fabulous. Real, honest-to-God soul food, in more ways than one.” Swatch took Spamton’s desk chair and turned to sit backwards on it. “My aunt and uncle send their love.”

“I gotta go down to Queens soon and just have a girly day with Desiree. It’s long overdue.” “Mmmm-hmmm. And maybe you can pick her brain about apartment-hunting. As Uncle Julius reminded me, graduation’s just around the corner.”

“Yeah.”

Spamton changed the subject to stave off the panic he felt at the idea of these two leaving him just when he'd found them. “N-now that all three - all three of us are here, c-can I ask both for a - a favor?”

“Of course.”

“Yeah, of course. Ask away, Short Stuff.”

“C-can you both sit in with me in the stu-stu-studio for the first leg of my radio show next week? I’m going to try something d-d-d-different and I kind of - kind of need both of you there.”

T.M. looked across at Swatch and nodded. Swatch got up and pulled Spamton to his feet and into a hug. With a suspicious raspiness in their voice, they said, “We’ll be there.”

_________

“I printed two copies, just in case you didn’t get a chance to.”

“Thank you, schwitthott.” T.M. took one of the sheets from Swatch and started reading. 

The two of them stood in the hallway of the student union, just outside the doors of WRCI’s main studio, waiting for Spamton. The dinnertime DJ was playing J-pop.

“He said this was your idea?” Swatch asked.

“Kind of. I mentioned I have a set of ‘go to hell’ playlists that I rotate through to cope with stuff. This timeline stuff though, that’s all 100% our lad’s doing.” T.M. smiled fondly.

“Our lad.  I like that. Not ‘lad’ like he’s our kid. but like we’re all lads together.”

“Uh huh.”

Swatch leaned against the wall and sighed. “So you know that he was homeless for a while, after… well, after everything.”

She nodded. “It explains a lot about his food issues. As horrible as it might sound, I’m really, really happy that it wasn’t what I first thought.”

“Oh?”

“I thought Spamton had the same thing going on that I did with my dad. At least the whole power-trippy withholding food thing so I had to hoard stuff. Trust me, I would have put at least one of his siblings through a wall if that’s what had happened.”

“Remind me never to wander down a dark alley with you when you’re pissed off with me, Moggy.” 

Swatch straightened up when they saw Spamton walking down the hallway towards the other two. 

T.M. murmured, “It’s showtime.” 

When he reached them, Spamton stretched up and gave each a kiss on the cheek. “Let’s - let’s do this thing.”

______

“Welcome to the premiere of the Tuesday night version of the DJ Dreamweaver show. Normally I give a little bit of background on what I’ve chosen for the night’s selections. This time around, I’m going to let the music do the talking. Thanks for listening.”

T.M. sat beside Spamton on one side of the booth, headphones on, ready to help him with the potentiometers for segues and fade-ins. Swatch sat on the opposite side, just there to listen and to give moral support. Spamton had mentioned that the playlist was less than an hour long, so Swatch would have plenty of time to leave before the extra Tuesday night shift they’d picked up at Plato’s.

They picked up the printed sheet of paper and started to read along with the lyrics Spamton had typed out, as well as Spamton’s notes as to why he’d put particular songs in his “timeline”. 

THE LOGICAL SONG - SUPERTRAMP

[ Self-explanatory, the little kid I was, and my boarding school days ]

When I was young

It seemed that life was so wonderful

A miracle, oh it was beautiful, magical

And all the birds in the trees

Well they'd be singing so happily

Oh joyfully, oh playfully watching me

But then they sent me away

To teach me how to be sensible

Logical, oh responsible, practical

And then they showed me a world

Where I could be so dependable

Oh clinical, oh intellectual, cynical

There are times

When all the world's asleep

The questions run too deep

For such a simple man

Won't you please

Please tell me what we've learned

I know it sounds absurd

Please tell me who I am

NUMB - MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS

[That’s when it started to hit me that I had a lot to live up to, being a part of the Addison family. Perfect set-up for Mike to step in]

One track mind like a goldfish

Stuck inside my Petri dish

I can't breathe and I can't smile

This better be worth my while

I feel numb most of the time

The lower I get the higher I'll climb

And I will wonder why

I got dark only to shine

Looking for the golden light

Oh, it's a reasonable sacrifice

Burn, burn, burn bright

Forego families, forego friends

It's how it started, how it ends

I can't open up and cry

'Cause I've been silent all my life

JUST LIKE YOU - THREE DAYS GRACE

[ all the accusations I threw back at my brothers and sister before breaking with them ]

I could be mean

I could be angry

You know I could be just like you

I could be fake

I could be stupid

You know I could be just like you

You thought you were standing beside me

You were only in my way

You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

You thought you were there to guide me

You were only in my way

You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

I could be cold

I could be ruthless

You know I could be just like you

I could be weak

I could be senseless

You know I could be just like you

On my own, cause I can't take living with you

I'm alone, so I won't turn out like you

Want me to

You thought you were standing beside me

You were only in my way

You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

You thought you were there to guide me

You were only in my way

You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

THE SANITY ASSASSIN - BAUHAUS

[Mike and all his lies. Hindsight’s 20/20, huh?]

Sinister echoes clutching at straws

Letter boxes screaming

You try to pin him to the wall

You end up on the ceiling

Locked in a dome

The shadows flicker by

He's the madcap pusher

Delirium the drug he's dealing

You empty yourself once again

But he's always one step ahead

He whispers in your ear

was it nothing that you said

He's walking in your sleep now

He keeps your fat paranoia well-fed

The sanity assassin

Stays up all night stalking

The sanity assassin

Picks off victims like flies

The sanity assassin

Let his fingers do the walking

He drops a capsule in your drink

And spikes your dreams with madness

I GOT YOU - SPLIT ENZ

[Deluding myself that Mike actually gave a damn about me]

I got you - and that's all I want

I won't forget - that's a whole lot

I don't go out - not now that you're in

Sometimes we shout - but that's no problem

Look at you - you're a pageant

You're everything - that I've imagined

Something's wrong - I feel uneasy

Reassure me - tell me you're not teasing

There's no doubt - not when I'm with you

When I'm without - I stay in my room

Where do you go - I get no answer

You're always out - it gets on my nerves

I don't know why sometimes I get frightened

You can see my eyes, you can tell that I'm not lying

But I don't know why sometimes I get frightened

You can see my eyes, can you tell me you're not lyin'

WHAT DO ALL THE PEOPLE KNOW? - THE MONROES

[The year of the trade show circuit]

You know I told you once tonight

That you could always speak your mind

You work so hard to say what's right

I watch you do it all the time

And when I called you on the phone

You said that I could be the one

But here I'm standing all alone

And you're out lying in the sun

Tell me, am I getting in too deep?

Every night I'm talking in my sleep

Lately I’ve been so confused

I really don't know what to do

Could you be the one I'm thinking of?

Could you be the one I really love?

All the people tell me so

But what do all the people know?

Maybe we're just holding on

To something that'll soon be gone

Do you think I'm blind to what you do?

Do you think I really care for you?

Do you think that we both should let it show?

Do you think that we both should let it go?

Or is it just another game that you and I pretend to play?

All the people tell me so

But what do all the people know?

UNKNOWN SOLDIER - BREAKING BENJAMIN

[Being lost in my own mind at the Pandora Palace for however long that was after the trade show circuit ended. I’m never going to get that time back.]

Border line,

Dead inside.

I don't mind,

Falling to pieces.

Count me in, violent

Let's begin, feeding the sickness.

How do I simplify,

Dislocate - the enemy's on the way.

Full of fear,

Ever clear.

I'll be here,

Fighting forever.

Curious,

Venomous,

You'll find me

Climbing to heaven.

Never mind,

Turn back time.

You'll be fine - I will get left behind.

It only hurts just once.

They're only broken bones.

Hide the hate inside.

Show me what it's like

To dream in black and white,

So I can leave this world tonight.

RUSTED FROM THE RAIN - BILLY TALENT

[life on the streets after he threw me away]

You hung me like a picture/Now I'm just a frame

I used to be your lapdog/Now I'm just a stray

Shackled in the graveyard/Left here to decay

DEATH ON TWO LEGS - QUEEN

[Finally starting to blame Mike rather than myself, during that second homeless winter just before Ballew found me]

You suck my blood like a leech

You break the law and you breach

Screw my brain 'til it hurts

You've taken all my money

And you want more

Misguided old mule with your pigheaded rules

With your narrow minded cronies

Who are fools of the first division

Talk like a big business tycoon

You're just a hot air balloon

So no one gives you a damn

You're just an overgrown schoolboy

Let me tan your hide

A dog with disease

You're the king of the sleaze

Put your money where your mouth is, Mister Know-All

Was the fin on your back

Part of the deal? (Shark)

Death on two legs

Tearing me apart

Death on two legs

You never had a heart (you never did)

Of your own (right from the start)

Insane, should be put inside

You're a sewer rat decaying in a cesspool of pride

Should be made unemployed

Then make yourself null and void

Make me feel good (I feel good)

[The first therapist I saw on Dr. George’s advice told me to start writing letters to my old Big Shot self as though they were a separate person, so that’s the last three songs. Maybe I’ll get closure, some day.]

PAID IN FULL - SONATA ARCTICA

It's hard for me to love myself right now,

I've waited, hated, blamed it all on you...

It's hard for me to love your face right now

I'm waiting, hating, needing being

Me...

I need you...less and less...

Every day leads us farther away...

From that moment

It’s hard for me to hate myself right now

Finally I'm understanding me

SUNSHINE - BARENAKED LADIES

Most of us, have learned to trust

What we see with our own eyes

But with blinders on you hardly realize

That out of view, it's still true

Even when no one's around

We can stumble and fall down

It's just as well, It's hard to tell

Cause my hindsight's crystal clear

But the view from then's not like the view from here

If you are passed through a looking glass

The important parts appear

But the details start to smear

I ran fast, but I came last

'Cause although I set the pace

It was rigged from the start that I'd lose this race

Sunshine burns your skin

Sometimes the things we love so much just eat us up from the outside in

Oceans blue will drown

I could find a way to live with your ghost but I won't be happy till I leave this town.

GOODBYE TO YOU - SCANDAL

Those times I waited for you seem so long ago

I wanted you far too much to ever let you go

You know you never got by your fear to choose

And I guess I never could stand to lose

It's such a pity to say

Goodbye to you

Goodbye to you

How could I have loved someone like the one I see in you

I remember the good times baby now, and the bad times too

These last few weeks of holding on

The days are dull, the nights are long

Guess it's better to say

Goodbye to you

Goodbye to you

Goodbye to you

Goodbye to you

'Cause baby it's over now

No need to talk about it

It's not the same

My love for you's just not the same

And my heart, and my heart

And my heart can't stand the strain

And my love, and my love

And my love won't stand the pain

Goodbye baby

So long darling

Goodbye to you

Spamton nodded at T.M. about halfway through Patti Smith’s final chorus, letting her know that he was getting ready for his talkback. She nodded back and cued up “Solsbury Hill” and “Scarecrow’s Dream” for him, as well as digging up an advertisement for Janovic Express to play at the quarter of the hour.

Swatch dug out the painted signboard they’d made and held it up wordlessly so that Spamton could see it.

You Are Loved. And You Are Stronger Than You Know. Never Forget That.

Spamton blew Swatch a silent kiss in return. 

Swatch left a few minutes later to go do their shift. T.M. stayed another half-hour and then slipped Spamton a note telling him to meet her down at Plato’s Cave.

There were plenty of spots open at the bar, but the one in the dead center of the ten or so stools was taken up by a reddish-haired stranger who looked like Sid the Sloth from ICE AGE. And he was following Swatch’s every move with his bugged-out eyes.

T.M. thought of Spamton’s bird-masked buff butlers in corsets and giggled to herself, picturing Swatch in that kind of outfit. This had to be that freshman who Swatch said was a fixture on Wednesday nights. How the kid had figured out that her bestie was on duty tonight, she didn’t have a clue, but she got the devilish urge to mess with the guy’s mind a little.

She sat herself down at the farthest end of the bar and put her purse on the seat beside her to reserve it. When Swatch came over to take her order, she whispered, “When Spamton gets here, give him the old ‘your usual, sir?’ routine. And then follow my lead.”

Swatch caught on swiftly and gave her a wink while asking in their clearly audible customer service voice, “May I suggest a Blue Moon for the young lady?”

“Oooooh, that sounds yummy,” T.M. squealed in her best imitation of some of the airheads she had loathed in high school.

“Very good. I’m certain you won’t be disappointed.”  Swatch moved away to get her a bottle and a glass.

Blue Moon was a fruitier beer than she usually drank, but it had the benefit of being known for putting lightweights under the table.

T.M. was no lightweight, but she was a fantastic actress.

The things we do for love , she thought to herself.

________

Spamton hit the switch for the cold open after his final talkback, unhooked the vocoder, hung up his headphones, and queued up the next few selections for segue for the DJ who would be following him. 

It seemed to him that time was moving both at a snail's pace and in the blink of an eye. The past few weeks had established a new status quo in his life and had brought about changes that were cementing the groundwork of his partners' lives.

Partners, plural.

He still had to grin and hug himself at the thought of having partners. Equal partners. No bloody power imbalance. No secrets. No head games. No possessiveness. No jealousy.

The new love didn't outshine the old. He didn't love Swatch any less now that he had Trez to love as well.

His heart sank, though, as he crossed the floor of Plato’s Cave and saw Kirov Rouvin seated at the bar. He was obviously trying to engage Swatch in flirtatious banter while Swatch was trying to juggle drinks and food orders for several other customers.

Including bringing another bottle of beer to one very familiar girl with golden contact lenses and blue tips at the ends of her hair. They put it down in front of her and said in an unnecessarily loud voice, “I’m afraid I will need to cut you off after this one, miss.”

Was T.M. drunk?  He hurried over to the seat beside her and looked anxiously into her face.

She tittered at Swatch’s comment, and then turned to face Spamton, her eyes stone cold sober while she grinned inanely.

Ah.

Not sure what’s going on here, but I’ll play my part.

He pulled himself up onto the barstool, pretending to ignore T.M. and waiting for Swatch to approach him, in the meantime keeping an eye on Kirov.  The young Chechen had yet to see Spamton, since Kirov’s eyes were fixed on Swatch.

Swatch finally finished with their flurry of transactions and came over to Spamton.  “The usual, my good man?” they asked him, the mellifluousness in their voice turned up to eleven.

Feeling like a celluloid hero, he replied, “Yes, indeed!”

And Swatch leaned over the bar and kissed Spamton on the forehead.

Applause broke out from the tables behind him and seemed to rouse T.M. from her state of faux -inebriation. “Hey, I wan’ some of that,” she slurred, standing up.

Kirov’s face was red and his eyes were narrowed into angry slits. Spamton sighed to himself and thought, might as well go for broke.

“It’s constitutionally impossible for me to refuse a lady.” He extended a hand to T.M. in the time-honored fashion of asking someone to dance, and she placed her hand.in his, not forgetting to loop her purse over her wrist. Clasping her around the waist, he began to circle her around the floor while crooning the song that came to mind when he saw the empty bottle on the bar.

Blue moon

You saw me standing alone

Without a dream in my heart

Without a love of my own

Blue moon

You knew just what I was there for

You heard me saying a prayer for

Someone I really could care for

The impromptu waltz had them near enough to the doors to make a dramatic exit. Spamton called over T.M.’s shoulder to Swatch, “I’m going make sure this dolly gets home in one piece. See you there, sweetie?”

“Sure thing, darling," Swatch replied.

The wolf whistles and catcalls were cut off as the heavy oaken doors closed behind them.

Once outside, T.M. immediately shed her drunken lolling posture. “God, that was fun. And hopefully that stops any more workplace harassment for Swatch.”

“You are br-brilliant as well as b-b-b-beautiful.”

Now that he no longer had to channel both Cary Grant and Fred Astaire at the same time, Spamton was feeling the adrenaline that had sustained him all night starting to drain away.  It was good to see with his own eyes that Swatch hadn’t been exaggerating Kirov’s increasing creepiness, and T.M.’s little maneuver was better than anything he could have come up with.

T.M. noticed the change in his mood and asked, “Are you going to be able to relax after all this?”

He took a minute to think about it so  that he could answer her honestly. “N-not right away, no.”

“Do you trust me?”

He didn’t even have to think for a second. “Yes.”

“Come with me, then. I’ll text Swatchy so that they don’t wait up and worry.”

TO: BIRDMAN

FROM: MOGGY

taking spamton to the invisible castle

FROM: BIRDMAN

TO: MOGGY

See you both in the morning. Be safe.

[mask131]

Fantasy read-list: A-1.5

I thought I had concluded the whole “A” part of my big fantasy read-list last spring... 

... BUT FATE WOULD HAVE IT OTHERWISE! In between then and now I found a collection of articles covering the evolution and chronology of fantasy literature, and they added a lot more of titles and informations that I think I will add to my “Fantasy read-list”. 

My original “A-1″ post dealt with works of fiction and poetry that, beyond being masterpieces of the Greco-Roman literature, were the key basis of Greco-Roman mythology as we know it today, and massive inspirations for the later fantasy genre. Here, I will use an article written by Fabien Clavel asking the question “Is there an Antique fantasy?” to add some names to this list.

Not the names of works written in Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome however. No, when it comes to the great classics from “before Christ”, the same names are dropped - Hesiod’s Theogony, Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, Virgil’s Aeneid, Ovid’s Metamorphoses... The only antique work Fabien Clavel mentions that I did not mention was Lucan’s Pharsalia. Also called “On the Civil War” it is, as the name says, an epic poem retelling the actual civil war that opposed Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great. Why would a historical work fit into the world of fantasy you ask? Because this epic retelling is pretty-fantasy likes, with several omens and oracles of the gods (including trees that start bleeding like humans), and even scenes of necromancy where the ghosts of the dead answer the protagonists’ questions. 

Fabien Clavel’s article, however, focuses much more on the modern fantasy inspired by the Greek and Roman myths, that he classifies into four categories.

1) The retellings. Works of fantasy that retell classic legends or well-known myth of Greco-Roman antiquity. You find in this category the works of the fantasy author David Gemmel, be it his Troy trilogy (retelling of the Trojan war) or his Lion of Macedon trilogy (a more fantastical version of Alexander the Great’s life). You have Gene Wolf’s Soldier of the Mist, about the titular soldier, cursed with both retrograde and anterograde amnesia, and forced to find his way home through mythical Ancient Greece. There is C.S. Lewis’ last novel, Till we have faces, his retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth from The Golden Ass. And in French literature, you have Maurice Druon’s Les Mémoires de Zeus, an autobiography of Zeus himself. 

2) The “feminist” works - which technically are a sub-division of the “retellings”, since they are retellings of ancient legends and tales, but with the twist that the focus is placed on female characters, often side-lined or pushed away from Greco-Roman narratives. In this category you will find Margaret Atwood’s The Penelopiad (the Odyssey through Penelope’s eyes), Maron Zimmer Bradley’s The Firebrand (the Trojan War as told by Cassandra), Ursula LeGuin’s Lavinia (an exploration of the titular character, from the Aeneid). To get out of the  English literature, you will also have the work of the Hungarian writer Magda Szabo, The Moment, or the Creusiad, another Aeneid retelling focusing on the character of Creusa. 

3) The “appropriation” works. No, this is not used in a negative way but a neutral one. In this category, Clavel places all the works that are not a precise retelling of a given myth or legend, but rather a fantasy story reusing the elements, tropes, characters and settings of Greek or Roman mythology. You have Thomas Burnett Swann’s Trilogy of the Minotaur, Guy Gavriel Kay’s Sarantine Mosaic series - and in French literature you have Rachel Tanner’s Le Cycle de Mithra, an uchrony imagining what the world would look like if Mithraism had become the official religion of the Roman Empire instead of Christianity. 

4) The “interaction” tales - aka, fantasy works that take elements of Greek mythology and have them be confronted by elements not belonging to Greek mythology. For example, there is the Merlin Codex series by Robert Holdstock, describing how Merlin the Enchanter resurrects Jason and the Argonauts in the Arthurian world. There is also in France Johan Heliot’s Reconquérants, an uchrony fantasy about a group of lost Roman colonizers who built a second Roman Empire in Northern America, and fifteen centuries later try to return to the “old world” they left behind only to find it overrun with mythical creatures. Finally, Clavel adds the Percy Jackson series, the new best-selling series of teenage fantasy fiction/urban fantasy a la “Harry Potter”, describing the adventures of an American teenage boy discovering the Greek gods moved to America, that he is the son of Poseidon, and that monsters of Greek mythology are trying to kill him. 

Clavel concludes his article by saying how hard it is to pinpoint exactly where the influence of Greek mythology stops in the fantasy world, since elements of Greek legends are omnipresent and overused in the fantasy genre. To illustrate this he mentions the centaurs, that appeared in four of the classic works of fantasy for children that are however VERY different from each other: Harry Potter, the Narnia Chronicles, the Artemis Fowl series, and The Neverending Story. 

As a personal note I will add to this list the recent success of Madeline Miller’s Greek mythology retellings, which I have seen regularly pop up in book shops and that some of my friends fell in love with (I never read them though) - be it her Song of Achilles (the life of Achilles told through the eyes of Patroclus) or her Circe (a novel about the life of the famous Greek witch). 

[kingsbridgelibraryteens]

The Library for the Performing Arts is home to the entire collection of VIBE magazine print periodicals—a magazine started by Quincy Jones and David Salzman in 1993, that captured the golden age of hip-hop. Its pages interviewed and profiled rappers like Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg, and Notorious B.I.G, and as a contemporaneous counterpart during the East Coast vs West Coast hip-hop battles that peaked in the late 90s, it captured the often raw feelings and differences of opinion of that heady time.

[boxscorehockey]

Seattle Squid Franchise Roster

Seattle- Ian

G

Blackwood Mackenzie Clara Damian Comesso Drew Daccord Joey Daws Nico Dostal Lukas Fowler Jacob Gajan Adam Gardner Evan Greaves Jet Gustavsson Filip Hildeby Dennis Hofer Joel Hrabal Michael Ingram Connor Kahkonen Kaapo Kokko Niklas Lankinen Kevin Merzlikins Elvis Montembault Samuel Mrazek Petr Portillo Erik Primeau Cayden Saarinen Kim Samsonov Ilya Schmid Akira Stolarz Anthony Tarasov Daniil Vejmelka Karel Vinni Eemil Wallstedt Jesper Woll Joseph

F

Bedard Connor Beniers Matty Bjorkstrand Oliver Bratt Jesper But Daniil Catton Berkly Celebrini Macklin Chinakhov Yegor Cowan Easton Crouse Lawson Dach Kirby Doan Josh Domi Max Dufour William Dvorsky Dalibor Edstrom David Evangelista Luke Fisker Molgaard Oscar Garland Conor Gaucher Nathan Gauthier Cutter Gauthier Ethan Goyette David Greene Ryan Hage Michael Hagel Brandon Holmstrom Simon Howard Isaac Kaliyev Arthur Kartye Tye Knies Matthew Lucius Chaz Mangiapane Andrew McCann Jared Mercer Dawson Miettinen Julius Minten Fraser Musty Quentin Novak Tommy Nyman Jani Raty Aatu Rehkopf Carson Reichel Lukas Robertson Nick Roy Nicolas Sale Edouard Sherangovich Yegor Stenberg Otto Stramel Charlie Strome Dylan Tolvanen Eeli Tomasino Philip Villeneuve Nathan Voronkov Dmitry Wood Matthew Wright Shane

D

Bertucci Tristan Casey Seamus Ceulemans Corson Chychrun Jakob Cormier Lukas Dunn Vince Durzi Sean Evans Ryker Faber Brock Freij Alfons Gavrikov Vladislav Harley Thomas Heinola Ville Hughes Luke Kesselring Michael Kiviharju Aron Korczak Keadan LaCombe Jackson Liljegren Timothy Lundkvist Nils Luneau Tristan Mateychuk Denton Matheson Mike Mews Henry Miromanov Daniil Molendyk Tanner Moser Janis Mukhamadullin Shakir Niemela Topi Pickering Owen Rinzel Sam Romanov Alex Simashev Dmitri Thompson Jack Vlasic Alex Willander Tom Yakemchuk Carter

2024-25 waivers: 17

[americanahighways]

REVIEW: Blind Boys of Alabama "Echoes of the South"

Blind Boys of Alabama – Echoes of the South Blind Boys of Alabama have a new album out on Single Lock Records, Echoes of the South, produced by Matt Ross Spang, Ben Tanner and Charles Driebe. The members of BBOA are vocalists Jimmy Carter, Ricky McKinnie, Ben Moore, Paul Beasley, Rev. Julius Love, and Joey Williams.  Recently, the Blind Boys lost two members: Benjamin Moore and Paul Beasley.…

[lignes2frappe]

L'ABÉCÉDAIRE DE MICHAEL JORDAN

A comme Air

Le surnom qui lui a très rapidement été donné en raison de son style de jeu des plus aériens.

Aussi élégant qu’athlétique, là où le commun des mortels est irrémédiablement soumis à la loi de la gravité, à chaque fois qu’il attaque le cercle, Michael Jordan donne cette impression de flotter quelques secondes supplémentaires.

Roi du dunk, il n’a cependant pas été le premier joueur à avoir survolé les défenses : dix ans plus tôt, l’ailier des Philadelphie Sixers Julius Erving avait révolutionné le jeu en s’appuyant sur sa détente hors du commun – la légende veut que lorsqu’il marquait, ses adversaires attendaient la rediffusion de l’action sur l’écran du stade avant de reprendre le match.

Malheureusement pour lui, il n’a à son époque pas bénéficié de la montée en gamme des retransmissions télé (multiplication des caméras, ralentis, compilations…) couplée à l’explosion des audiences.

Beau joueur, MJ a toujours admis s’être inspiré de lui.

B comme Barcelone 92

Quand Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird et toute la Dream Team débarquent en terres espagnoles pour la 25ème édition des Jeux olympiques d’été, c’est dès le départ plus que du basketball.

Ambassadeurs d’un lifestyle encore méconnu dans le vieux monde, nos GIs des parquets parachèvent le plan Marshall en important hip hop, grosses sneakers et coolitude.

Au centre de tous les regards quinze jours durant, MJ, qui vient tout juste de s’adjuger sa deuxième bague NBA et son troisième trophée de MVP, devient d’un coup d’un seul le sportif le plus populaire de la planète.

Et c’est ainsi qu’à la rentrée des classes suivante, toute une génération s’est précipitée en club pour s’initier à la balle orange – et accessoirement tanner ses parents pour une paire de pompes coûtant le prix de trois anniversaires.

C comme Chicago

Bien que choisi en troisième position derrière Hakeem Olajuwon et Sam Bowie lors de la draft 1984, Michael Jordan est considéré comme la sensation de cette nouvelle cuvée.

Tout comme Nike qui a mis le paquet pour s’offrir ses services, les Chicago Bulls ne s’y trompent et lui déroulent le tapis rouge : quand bien même il n’a pas disputé la moindre rencontre pro, le General Manager Rod Thorn lui propose directement le plus gros salaire de l’équipe.

C’est ainsi que le 12 septembre 1984, MJ accepte de s’engager avec les Taureaux pour 5 millions de dollars sur sept ans, plus une prime à la signature d’un million.

En 1988, il fait ensuite jouer sa clause libératoire pour renégocier ses émoluments à la hausse (25 millions sur 8 ans).

Curieusement, il lui faudra attendre 1996 pour devenir à 33 ans le joueur le mieux payé de la ligue avec 30,1 millions de dollars par an… soit quasiment l’équivalent en cumulé de ses 10 précédentes saisons !

D comme Dean Smith

Son entraîneur lors de ses trois années passées à l’université de North Carolina.

Après ses parents, « la personne qui l’a le plus influencé dans la vie ».

« Coach Smith traitait tous ses joueurs comme des membres de sa famille, qu’ils soient titulaires ou qu’ils ne quittent jamais le banc. Il se comportait comme un père avec nous, jamais il ne mettait un joueur au-dessus de l’autre. Il prenait soin de nous, il nous donnait des conseils. Il nous éduquait avec toute sa force et sa détermination. »

Outre le fait d’avoir énormément fait pour booster sa confiance en lui (en l’intégrant à la surprise générale dans le cinq majeur dès sa première saison, en l’encourageant à shooter dès qu’il en avait l’occasion…), Michael lui doit de l’avoir persuadé de tenter sa chance en NBA sans attendre de terminer son cursus universitaire, chose extrêmement rare dans les 80’s.

Dean Smith nous a quittés en 2015 à l’âge de 83 ans.

E comme « Et si ? »

Tant de fois la vie et la carrière de Michael Jordan auraient pu être différentes.

Plus encore que tous les titres et distinctions glanés, ce qui détonne peut-être le plus dans sa biographie, c’est sa propension à toujours se trouver au bon endroit au bon moment. De rencontrer l’histoire.

Et s’il avait signé chez Adidas plutôt que chez Nike ? Et s’il avait réussi sa reconversion dans le baseball ? Et s’il jouait à notre époque ? Etc.

Retrouvez neuf scénarios avec effet papillon dans cet article fleuve que personne n’a lu.

F comme Fortune

Premier athlète milliardaire, Michael Jordan pèse quasiment deux fois plus que Cristiano Ronaldo et Lionel Messi réunis – 1,6 milliard de dollars dans sa tirelire contre 915 petits millions en cumulé pour nos deux footeux.

Et lorsque l’on sait que l’ami Mike encaisse chaque année entre 100 et 150 millions de royautés grâce à Jordan Brand, sa place sur le trône paraît assurée pour quelques générations.

G comme Game 6

« Psycho, I’m liable to go Michael, take your pick: Jackson, Tyson, Jordan, Game 6 »

Quand en 2011, dans Niggas in Paris, Jay Z loue les vertus de MJ dans le money time, la ligne ne sort pas de son chapeau : sur six finales disputées (toutes gagnées), cinq d’entre elles se sont terminées au sixième match.

H comme Hornets

En 2010, Michael Jordan a déboursé 275 millions de dollars de sa poche pour devenir le propriétaire majoritaire de la franchise de Caroline du Nord.

Si le défi semblait à l’instant T à sa hauteur, douze ans plus tard, c’est à se demander quelle mouche l’a piqué d’aller se fourrer dans un tel guêpier (lol).

396 défaites sur 545 matchs joués, deux petites qualifications en playoffs de rien du tout (et deux éliminations au premier tour), le record de la pire saison régulière en 2012 (7 victoires pour 59 défaites), parmi les pires de choix de draft possibles (genre laisser passer Giannis Anteokounmpo, Klay Thompson ou Kawhi Leonard), six entraîneurs… difficile de faire bilan plus calamiteux.

Loin donc d’être comme il l’espérait « le point culminant de sa seconde carrière », ce job lui rapporte toutefois un max’ de dividendes : en 2020, les Charlottes Hornets pesaient selon Forbes 1,5 milliard de dollars !

I comme Interceptions

Sacré dix fois meilleur marqueur en saison régulière et seul joueur de l’histoire à afficher plus de 30 points de moyenne par match en carrière, on en oublierait que Michael Jordan était également un défenseur hors pair.

Formé à la dure par Dean Smith (il ne faisait jouer que ceux qui se donnaient à fond des deux côtés du terrain), entre ses réflexes, sa vitesse d’exécution et son sens aigu de la compétition, Michael a remporté le titre de meilleur intercepteur à trois reprises (1988, 1990, 1993).

Auteur de 2,3 vols de ballon en carrière, avec 2 515 interceptions en 1 072 matchs, il se classe en cumulé troisième ever de cette catégorie statistique.

Tout cela sans oublier ses neuf sélections au sein de la All-Defensive First Team, son trophée de défenseur de l’année en 1988… et sa toute dernière action sous le maillot des Bulls, quand dans les dernières secondes des finales de 1998, il a piqué la balle des mains du gros Karl Malone, avant de remonter tout le court, puis de scorer sur la tête du pauvre Byron Russell.

J comme Jam

Le jour où les montagnes se sont rencontrées.

Sur le tonitruant quatrième single de Dangerous, Michael Jackson convie dans le clip Kris Kross, Heavy D, Naughty by Nature et Michael Jordan.

Le concept ? MJ apprend à MJ à dribbler et shooter, tandis qu’en retour MJ apprend à MJ à danser.

Aujourd’hui comme hier un brin cucul la praline, Jam a néanmoins tourné en boucle toute la saison 92 au Chicago Stadium.

K comme Kwame Brown

Sur le papier, il ne pouvait rêver d’un meilleur début de carrière.

Tout juste désigné meilleur lycéen du pays en 2000, Kwame Brown est dans la foulée drafté en première position par les Washington Wizards, et ce, sans être passé par la case université. Une première dans l’histoire de la NBA.

Mieux, tandis qu’il se murmure qu’en coulisses Michael Jordan a activement soutenu ce choix (il était depuis peu actionnaire des Wizards), quelques mois plus tard, le numéro 23 annonce son retour sur les parquets.

Le truc, c’est que si dans un premier temps MJ se comporte comme un mentor avec Brown, sa personnalité bordeline reprend très vite le dessus. Agacé de la lenteur de ses progrès, consumé par son esprit de compétition, il s’acharne sur lui plus que de raison, qu’il s’agisse de lui mener la vie dure à l’entraînement, de l’invectiver en public, ou de moquer ses lignes statistiques à la fin des matchs.

Souffre-douleur de Sa Majesté, Kwame Brown loupe complètement sa première saison (4,5 points, 3,7 rebonds de moyenne), tant et si bien qu’il est à l’heure actuelle encore considéré comme l’un des pires flops de la draft.

Alors certes, peut-être n’était-il pas à la hauteur des espoirs placés en lui, et peut-être Jordan pensait-il l’aider à s’endurcir en se comportant de la sorte, mais toujours est-il que nombreux sont les observateurs qui estiment que sa confiance en lui s’en est trouvée à jamais brisée.

Le côté sombre de Michael Jordan, ce n’était vraiment pas de la blague.

L comme Larry

« Si mon grand frère Larry avait mesuré 1m90 ou 1m95, je serais connu comme ‘le frère de Larry Jordan’, pas comme Michael Jordan. »

Avant-dernier d’une famille de cinq frères et sœurs, Michael cultive un lien particulier avec Larry, son aîné de 11 mois.

Basketteur de talent à l’adolescence, il affronte Michael tous les soirs en un contre un dans leur jardin.

« Si je perdais contre Mike, nous recommencions jusqu’à que je gagne. La plupart du temps, ça se terminait en bagarre » déclara-t-il un jour sur ESPN.

Au lycée, les deux frangins joueront même ensemble pendant une saison. Malheureusement pour Larry qui à cette période était vu comme un futur espoir, sa croissance stoppe à 1m73.

« Je dois à Larry mon instinct de compétition, sans nos confrontations sans fin, je ne serais pas où j’en suis. C’était plus que du basket, je me battais pour obtenir l’attention de mon père. Nos duels à couteaux tirés ont attisé ce feu en moi. »

M comme Mème

Le 11 septembre 2009, Michael Jordan est officiellement intronisé au Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, le Panthéon du b-ball.

Visiblement très ému, lors de son discours, l’homme qui du temps de sa splendeur martyrisait sans relâche la concurrence, connaît toutes les peines du monde à contenir ses larmes.

L’œil humide, la joue luisante, le visage presque bouffi… l’instant est immortalisé en photo.

Joies de l’internet, quelques années plus tard, le cliché ressurgit.

Rebaptisé le « Crying Jordan », il colonise dès lors forums, médias et réseaux sociaux, au point de s’imposer comme le même le plus viral de sa génération.

Comment ? Pourquoi ? On vous explique tout ici.

N comme Numéro 23

Non, Michael Jordan n’est pas le seul joueur à avoir porté un jersey floqué du numéro 23.

Certains l’ont porté avant lui, comme Lou Hudson ou Alex English. D’autres l’ont porté en même temps que lui, comme Mark Aguirre ou Cedric Ceballos.

Plus étonnant, nombreux sont ceux qui ont eu l’outrecuidance de le porter après lui, comme Lebron James (lui qui en 2009 estimait pourtant que la NBA aurait dû le retirer) ou les plus obscurs Jeremy Richardson (5 matchs avec les Spurs, 1,9 points de moyenne) et Vakeaton Quamar Wafer, dont le plus haut fait de gloire à ce jour reste d’avoir été surnommé ‘Le Cookie hollandais’.

Au total, depuis 1946, ce sont ainsi 237 joueurs qui ont arboré ce numéro mythique au cours d’un match au moins.

Notez que MJ lui-même n’a pas toujours porté le numéro 23 Cf. le numéro 45 lors de son premier comeback en 1995 ou le numéro 9 avec la Dream Team (Fat Joe knows).

Moins connu, il a également été vu avec le numéro 12 sur les épaules.

Le 14 février 1990, Chicago se déplace à Orlando pour en découdre avec les Magics. Juste avant le début du match, les membres du staff se rendent compte qu’ils ont oublié d’embarquer son maillot.

Jordan va alors demander aux fans présents dans le public de lui en prêter un, sauf qu’ils sont tous trop petits. Mike récupère alors le seul maillot non floqué en stock, un numéro 12.

Cet imprévu ne le décontenancera toutefois nullement et il finira la rencontre avec 49 points au compteur.

O comme OG

Mais nom d’une belette, c’est quoi une Air Jordan OG ? Et c’est quoi la différence entre une OG et une rétro ?

Et bien une Air Jordan OG (OG signifiant « original » ou « original release »), c’est une Air Jordan première version.

Là où ça se complique, c’est que si le terme OG faisait à la base référence uniquement aux premiers modèles sortis (la Air Jordan 1 de 1985, la Air Jordan 6 de 1991…), il a en ensuite été étendu aux premiers coloris.

Du coup, une OG peut très bien être une rétro (la Air Jordan 1 High OG Patent Bred de 2021, la Air Jordan 6 OG Infrared de 2019…), tout en sachant qu’il arrive fréquemment que les rétros modifient certaines finitions ou matériaux des OG (et pas toujours en bien).

P comme Pistons

Dire des Detroit Pistons et des Chicago Bulls qu’il ne s’aimaient pas relève de l’euphémisme.

Défait par les Bad Boys en finale de la conférence Est en 1988 et en 1989, quand Jordan s’incline une nouvelle fois au même stade en 1990, c’en est trop. En larmes à la sortie du stade, il met à profit l’été qui suit pour prendre 7 kilos de muscle, et ce, dans l’unique but de leur tenir tête aux prochains playoffs.

Si la suite de l’histoire est connue (les Pistons sont sweepés en 1991, ils quittent le terrain avant même la fin du dernier match sans serrer la main aux Bulls, Isiah Thomas est expressément blacklisté de la Dream Team par MJ…), un mystère demeure : comment diable Jordan qui d’habitude est si rancunier (en 2020, il en était encore à traiter Thomas de « trou d’*c ») a-t-il pu s’entendre avec Dennis Rodman quand ce dernier a débarqué chez les Bulls quelques années plus tard ?

Q comme Quote

Clairement, niveau citations, MJ n’était pas Mohammed Ali.

Toujours est-il que s’il en est une qui mérite de passer à la postérité, c’est celle-là : « J’ai raté 9 000 tirs dans ma carrière. J’ai perdu presque 300 matchs. À 26 reprises, on m’a fait confiance pour prendre le tir de la victoire et j’ai raté. J’ai échoué encore et encore et encore dans ma vie. Et c’est pourquoi je réussis. »

Ben ouais, avec un pourcentage d’adresse de 49,7%, MJ ratait un shoot sur deux. La prochaine fois que vous vous hésitez à vous lancer par peur de l’échec, pensez-y.

R comme Religion

20 avril 1986. Après avoir planté 49 points lors du tout premier match des playoffs face aux invincibles Celtics de Boston (67 victoires en saison régulière, 40 matchs gagnés à domicile sur 41, Larry Bird élu MVP pour la troisième fois d’affilée), Michael Jordan leur en inflige 63 au Game 2. Un record.

Dépité, Bird confie au coup de sifflet final qu’il a affronté ce soir-là « Dieu déguisé en Michael Jordan ».

À compter de ce jour-là, les témoignages sur la nature divine du numéro 23 se succèdent.

C’est son coach Doug Collins qui le compare ouvertement à Jésus Christ. C’est Allen Iverson qui raconte lors de son discours introduction au Hall of Fame que la première fois où il l’a vu, « il ne lui a pas paru réel ». C’est Lebron James qui déclare que rencontrer MJ pour la première fois, « c’est comme rencontrer Dieu ».

C’est enfin Michael lui-même, qui, un jour où Reggie Miller s’était permis de la chambrer un peu trop ouvertement, l’avait enjoint, après avoir inscrit 44 points, de « ne plus jamais parler comme ça au Jésus noir ».

Amen.

S comme Scottie Pippen

Étiqueté éternel lieutenant de Jordan, dans n’importe quelle autre équipe il aurait été un Batman, et non pas Robin.

Sur le site internet du Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, il est dit de lui qu’il était capable de « traverser le court comme un meneur, d’attaquer le cercle comme ailier, et de shooter comme un arrière ». Il a été un membre éminemment de la Dream Team. Kobe Bryant a loué « son génie défensif ». Ses Nike Air More Uptempo de 1996 (celles avec « AIR » écrit en gros sur chaque côté) sont à chaque réédition un hit…

Ah, si seulement il avait remporté une septième bague avec les Rockets ou les Blazers – ou même avec les Bulls de 93/94.

T comme The Last Dance

Le documentaire que tout fan de His Airness se doit d’avoir vu dans sa vie.

Mis en boîte par ESPN, il se compose de dix épisodes de 50 minutes revenant en détails sur l’avènement de la dynastie des Chicago Bulls dans les années 90.

Étayé par quantité d’interviews, de témoignages et d’images d’archives inédites (notamment celles filmées tout au long de la saison 1997-1998 par une équipe de reporters), ces presque dix heures (!) se regardent comme la plus palpitante des séries.

Pour autant, la comparaison tourne court avec les chefs-d’œuvre du genre que sont Hoop Dreams, O.J. Made in America ou When We Were Kings.

À trop flirter avec l’hagiographie pour être honnête (Michael Jordan a exigé le final cut), à trop s’autoriser de liberté par rapport aux faits (ce que de nombreux acteurs de l’époque comme Horace Grant, Isaiah Thomas ou Sam Smith se sont empressés de souligner), The Last Dance pêche par manque de substance.

Rien n’est dit sur la société, aucun grand thème n’est connecté.

Pur produit de divertissement, The Last Dance se contente de refléter l’obsession de l’un des plus grands sportifs de tous les temps pour son image dans un monde du sport phagocyté par les intérêts financiers.

Après tout, peut-être est-ce là son intérêt.

U comme Upper Deck

Croyez-le ou non, mais il est un record qui échappe à Michael Jordan : celui de la carte sportive la plus chère jamais vendue.

Certes, MJ ne démérite pas sur ce coup avec sa 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey Michael Jordan (Autograph) #GJ13S PSA qui en 2021 a trouvé preneur aux enchères pour la modique somme de 2 103 300 dollars (éditée à 23 exemplaires, elle incorpore un bout de tissu du maillot qu’il portait lors du All-Star game de 1992, le dernier auquel participa Magic Johnson), mais cela ne lui vaut pas de monter sur le podium

Devancé par Luka Doncic (4,6 millions), Lebron James (5,2 millions) et Stephen Curry (5,9 millions), Mike fait ici les frais du partenariat passé en 2009 entre la NBA et Panini, qui a marginalisé Upper Deck, le fabricant qui détient le droit exclusif de reproduire son image sur des cartes à collectionner.

V comme Victoire

La chose qui compte le plus dans sa vie, celle pour laquelle il a tout sacrifié.

Si sur le papier cette obsession lui vaut d’être considéré comme le Greatest Of All Time (6 fois champions, 5 fois MVP, 14 fois All-Star…), au quotidien elle flirte allègrement avec la pathologie – les psychologues parlent d’hypercompétitivité, « une quête incessante et aveugle de supériorité individuelle qui imprègne tous les domaines de d’une vie ».

Imbuvable avec ses coéquipiers, infect avec ses adversaires, Jordan ne perdait en effet jamais une occasion de rabaisser son prochain (insultes, menaces, coups…).

Lorsqu’il était au sommet de son game, cela passait à peu près, mais une fois ces belles années derrière lui, le masque a fini par tomber, et cette « intensité » s’est mise à rimer avec « toxicité ».

Égocentrique, manipulateur, consumé par sa rancœur… Michael Jordan n’a en réalité jamais été ce personnage lisse et propre sur lui vendu par David Stern, Nike, Gatorade & Co.

W comme What The F*** is Michael Jordan Wearing?

Le Tumblr de l’hérésie.

Celui qui liste sans une once de révérence les pires tenues portées par His Airness.

Baggy jeans douteux, assemblage de couleurs encore plus douteux, vestes trois tailles trop grandes (un petit exploit lorsqu’on mesure 1m98)… Mike continue de s’habiller comme un lycéen fan de rnb des années 90.

À l’époque, ça passait à peu près (surtout que dans leur genre Karl Malone et Scottie Pippen n’étaient pas mal non plus). Aujourd’hui, c’est à croire qu’à chaque fois qu’il sort de chez lui, il a perdu un pari.

X comme XI

Alors oui, depuis plusieurs saisons les Air Jordan 1 sont celles que l’on voit à tous les pieds, mais cela n’empêche pas les Air Jordan 11 de prétendre au titre de meilleures Jordan de meilleures sneakers de tous les temps.

« Je voulais qu’elles ressemblent à la carrosserie d’une voiture, qu’elles brillent et soient faciles à nettoyer » raconte le designer de légende Tinker Hatfield. « Et comme dans ma tête c’était une voiture décapotable, le haut devait être composé de tissu. »

Symbole de vitesse et d’élégance, les XI sont également un petit bijou de technologie : aux coussins d’air qui assurent un amorti tout en douceur, elles associent dans la semelle une tige en carbone spécialement conçue qui donne plus de rigidité aux appuis.

Objet de culte depuis plus d’un quart de siècle, leur popularité ne se dément absolument pas (en 2016 Nike a annoncé que la réédition du modèle Space Jam avait battu tous les records, en 2018 la réédition du coloris Concord a fait encore mieux…).

Y comme Yvette Prieto

Divorcé en 2006 de Juanita Vanoy avec qui il était marié depuis 17 ans, Michael Jordan avait alors dû s’acquitter d’un chèque de 168 millions de dollars de compensation (230 millions de dollars actuels).

Cela ne l’a cependant pas empêché de convoler à nouveau en noces en 2013 avec Yvette Prieto, une ancienne mannequin d’origine cubaine de quinze ans sa cadette.

Devenus parents de deux jumelles en 2014, le couple se fait voir à l’occasion en public, quand bien même madame se fait extrêmement discrète dans les médias (zéro interview, zéro séance photos, zéro réseaux sociaux).

Z comme Zen

Michael Jordan aurait-il pu devenir Michael Jordan à lui tout seul ?

Évidemment non, ne serait-ce que si l’on s’attarde sur l’influence que Phil Jackson a exercé sur lui.

Assistant coach des Bulls de 87 à 89, quand celui que l’on surnomme le Maître Zen pour ses techniques de coaching d’inspiration orientale prend en main les rênes de l’équipe en 1989, il convainc Michael de faire le deuil de l’ancien lui.

Le Michael Jordan pre-1989, c’était en effet cet incroyable soliste qui empilait les distinctions individuelles et affolait les compteurs sans accorder la moindre confiance à ses coéquipiers. Ce Michael Jordan-là n’a rien gagné collectivement.

Le Michael Jordan post-1989, c’est celui qui va remporter six finales de rang et faire de Chicago l’une des franchises les plus titrées du basketball en une décennie à peine.

Dans l’éternel débat sur le plus grand basketteur tous les temps, s’il est un critère qui fait la différence entre MJ et tous les Magic/Wilt/Bird/Lebron/Kobe de la Terre, c’est avant tout celui-là.

Merci Phil Jackson.

Publié initialement sur Booska-p.com le 9 août 2022.

[alolanrain]

Do you have some serotonin ive been sobbing for fuck knows how long

Ph sweetheart, thats not good for your body. I don’t have anything Pokemon related, I’m about to start like my fifth angst arc on this acc, but have my angelic baby boy Seto for some serotonin instead. Drink some water and go watch family feud or AFF.

[veryjanewatson]

“Wasson.” His assistant’s name was slurred on his currently quite clumsy tongue. Normally a weapon of both bluntness and sophistication, it was as incapacitated as the rest of him right now. The culprit, the cause, was clear to anyone with the most rudimentary of deductive sense: the large and empty bottle on the small carved table beside him which had only just recently contained something both potent enough to sedate a gorilla (or Shaw, same thing) and expensive enough to fund several college grants.  Shaw often had a glass in his hand in public, but when he was going to actually be drunk, he drank alone, enclosing himself somewhere comfortable that he wouldn’t be interrupted. Such as the cozy, plush sitting room he was in now, opulent and ornate while also almost claustrophobic compared to most of the Club’s spaces. It was very dimly lit as well, with only just enough antique lighting here and there to allow him to see the bottle, at least until his vision blurred. A more Freudian person might even call it womblike, but it was unlikely that was what Shaw was seeking to return to, considering he had, in all likelihood, not come from a womb so much as sprung fully-formed from a briefcase like Athena rising from Zeus’s broken brow, ready conquer the corporate world from his first breath. But from Julius Caesar to Genghis Khan, even the greatest of conquerors needed. . .much as he hated the word. . .a break. And he did not wish to be seen on his, did not want his weakness and repose beholden by anyone. Not even his highly competent assistant; he had not called for her, and not expected her entry. In a more sober state, he’d have sent her away. But with his mind dimmed, the typical sharpness of his countenance dulled, and he instead regarded her, outlined in the comparatively bright doorway. The gears in his brain seemed to be trying to whirr, but they were jammed, halted to a crawl. Whatever he wanted to say to her next, it took several moments for him to remember. He gestured to her with two fingers to come in, come to him. If she did, he’d speak, leaning his elbow on the chair’s arm and the side of his unshaven face on the curled knuckles of the attached hand, his gaze uncharacteristically relaxed, “Wasson. . .you’ve wor...been woring....been worin....working for me how long?” Again, a Freudian might have said that was a very significant slip, but in fact, it was just a very ordinary difficulty with diction while drunk.  Shaw was a creature of great carnality, but also great professionalism---he didn’t fuck the staff, unless fucking him was explicitly what they’d been hired for. And that was NOT what “Wasson” was here for. Had he checked out her hot little body many times? Yes, of course, he just didn’t say or do anything externally. But that wasn’t want he was doing now. No, his expression was shifting to something far stranger for the likes of him than lust.  He looked. . .sad. He lifted his opposite hand, and touched the back of it, very lightly, to MJ’s cheek, while lifting his own from his hand so that he could tilt his face up more directly at her.  “You have a boyfrien’, don you?” The words were a little jumbled, but very comprehensible. He brought his hand down from her face, and grasped it around her hand. His other hand joined them, her small white paw sandwiched for a long moment between his larger, tanner, hirsute ones, his palms calloused and his veins prominent under the hair. He looked at the stack a long time. He was thinking about assistants he had before, or rather, on in particular. One who had been on the very, very short list of people he trusted. And about redheads he’d had before, or rather, on in particular. One who had been on the very, very short list of people he had cared about. And how both had betrayed him.  It is the nature of animals, when they are sick or wounded, to instinctively hide this. Shaw was no exception. He did not announce these thoughts. He could not have had them seduced or threatened out of him had anyone cared to try. Not even in this weakened state where he allowed himself to think them in the first place. He released her, leaned back, and rested his head again against his hand. “Be good to him.” And then he closed his eyes.

[trans-and-baby-names]

Masculine Names

Aaron  Abdul Abe  Abel Abraham  Abram Ace Achilles  Adair Adam Adonis Adrian Adriel  Ahmed Ajax Ajay Aiden Alan Albert Alejandro Alex Alexander Alfonso Alfred Alistair Alister Allen  Alonzo Amadeo Amadeus Amani Amari Ambrose Amir Anders  Anderson Andre Andreas Andrew Andy Angel Angelo Angus Ansel  Anson Anthony Antonio Apollo Aries Archer Archie Aristotle Arlo  Arnaldo Arnold Arsenio Arthur Arturo Arwin Asa Asher Aslan Atlas  Atticus Aubrey August Augustin Augustine Augustus Aurelio Aurelius Austin Axel  Aziz

Balthazar  Bane Barnabas  Barnaby Barney Baron  Barrett Basil Bastian  Bear Beau Beck Ben Benjamin  Benji Bentley Bernard Bertram Bertrand  Blake Blaze Blue Bobby Bodhi Booker Boris  Boston Bowie Boyd Brad Bradford Bradley Bram  Bramwell Bran Brandon Brandt Braxton Braylen Brayden Brendon  Brent Brett Brian Briar Brick Bridge Bridger Brock Brody Brogan  Bronx Brook Brooks Bruce Bruno Brutus Bryce Bryson Buck Bud Buddha  Buddy Buck Burt Burton Buster Buzz Byron 

Cade  Caden Cain  Cairo Caius Calder  Caleb Callum Calvin Cam  Cameron Camillo Campbell Carl  Carlisle Carlito Carlo Carlos Carlton  Carmine Carson Carter Casper Caspian Cassian  Cassias Cato Cecil Cedar Cedric Cesar Chad Chadwick  Chance Charles Charlton Chase Chauncey Chester Chidi Chip  Christoff Christoph Christopher Christian Chuck Cian Cillian  Clarence Clark Claud Clay Clayton Cliff Clifford Clint Clinton  Clyde Coby Cody Colby Cole Collin Colt Colton Conan Connor Conrad  Constantine Cooper Copper Corbin Cornelius Cory Cosmo Cosmos Costas Craig Crispin Cruz Curt Curtis Cyrus

Dale  Dallas  Dalton Damien  Damon Dan Dane Daniel  Dante Darius Darrel Darren  Dash Dashiell Davey David Dawson  Dax Daxton Deacon Dean DeAndre Declan  Demetrius Denali Dennis Denny Denzel Derek  Derrick Des Desmond Dewey Dex Dexter Diego Diesel  Dion Dirk Dixon Dmitri Dominic Donatello Donovan Dorian  Doug Douglas Draco Drew Duke Duncan Dustin Dusty Dwayne Dwight  Dylan Dyson 

Earl  Easton  Edgar Edmund  Eduardo Edward Edwin  Egon Eli Elijah Elias  Elliott Ellis Elroy Elton  Emanuel Emeric Emerson Emery  Emil Emiliano Emmett Emrys Enrique  Enzo Eric Ernest Ernesto Ernie Esteban  Ethan Eugene Eustace Euvan Evan Evander Everett  Ezekiel Ezra 

Fabian  Fabio Falcon  Faustus Felix Ferdinand  Fergus Ferguson Fernando Fidel  Fido Finbar Findlay Finn Finnley  Fionn Fisher Fitz Fletcher Flint Florence  Florian Ford Forrest Fort Foster Fowler Fox  Francesco Francis Francisco Franco Frank Frankie  Franklin Fred Freddy Fredrick Frederico

Gabe  Gabriel  Gael Gage  Gale Galen Garfield Garrett Gaston Gatsby  Gavin Geoffrey Geordie George  Gerald Gerard Gideon Gil Gilbert  Gilberto Giovanni Glenn Gordon Gordy  Grady Graham Grant Gray Grayson Gregg  Gregory Grey Griffin Griffith Grover Gunner  Gunther Gus Gustavo Guy 

Hades  Hal Hamilton  Hank Hans Harley Harrison  Harry Hawk Hayden Hayes Heath Hector  Henrik Hendrix Henry Herb Herbert Herbie  Hercules Hermes Hershel Hiram Holden Howard  Howie Hudson Hugo Humphrey Hunter Hux Huxley 

Ian Igor Iker Irvin Isaac Isaiah Ivan 

Jace  Jack Jackson  Jacob Jaques Jaden  Jake Jalen Jamal James  Jameson Jared Jason Jax  Jay Jed Jedidiah Jefferson  Jeffrey Jeremiah Jeremy Jerome  Jerry Jesus Jethro Jett Jim Jimmy  Joe Joel Johan Johannes John Johnny Jonah  Jonas Jonathan Jones Jordan Jose Joseph Joshua  Josiah Juan Juanito Judah Judas Judd Jude Jules Julian  Julien Julio Julius Junior Jupiter Jurgen Justice Justin Justus 

Kaden  Kai Kaiser  Kale Kaleb Kane  Keane Keanu Keaton  Keegan Keenan Keith  Kellen Kenan Kendrick  Kenneth Kenzo Keoni Kevin Khalid  Kian Kieran Kiernan Kingsley Kingston Killian  Kip Kwan Kyle

Lachlan  Lake Lamar  Lance Lancelot  Landon Lane Larkin  Larry Lars Laurence Laurent  Lawrence Lawson Lazlo Legend Leif  Leith Leland Leo Leon Leonardo Leopold  Leroy Levi Liam Lincoln Linden Logan Loki  London Lonnie Lonny Lorcan Lorenzo Lou Louie  Louis Luc Luca Lucas Lucian Lucky Luke Lupe Luther

Maddox  Maksim Malachi  Malachy Malakai Malcolm  Malik Manfred Manny Marcel Marcello  Marcellus Marcio Marcius Marco Marcos  Marcus Marian Marino Mario Marius Mark  Marlin Marlon Marmaduke Marques Mars Marshall  Martin Marty Marvel Marvin Massimo Mason Matt Matteo  Matthew Maurice Maverick Max Maximilian Maximus Maxwell  Melvin Mercury Meredith Merritt Micah Michael Miguel Miles  Milo Mitchell Moe Monte Montgomery Murdoch Murphy Murray Murtagh  Murtaugh Myles

Nathan  Nathaniel  Ned Nelson  Nemo Neo Neon  Neptune Neville  Newt Newton Nick  Nicky Nicola Nicolai  Nicholas Niko Noah Noel Nolan  Norm Norman Novak 

Obadiah  Octavio Octavius  Odin Olaf Oleg Oliver  Olivier Omar Orion Orlando  Orville Osborn Oscar Oso Osvaldo  Oswald Ottis Otto Owen Oz Ozzy

Pablo  Palmer Panther  Parker Pascal Patrick Paul  Paxton Pedro Penn Percival Percy Perseus  Peter Peyton Phil Philip Phineas Phoenix Pier  Pierce Pierre Pilot Pluto Porter Poseidon Preston  Prince Prosper

Qadir  Quincy Quinn  Quinton 

Raiden  Ralph Ramone  Ramses Randall Randolph  Randy Raphael Ravi Ray Raymond Red  Reece Reggie Reginald Regis Reid Remington  Reuben Rex Reynald Reynaldo Reynard Rhett Rhys  Ricardo Richard Richie Richmond Rick Ricky Rico Ridge  Riley Rio Riordan River Robert Roberto Robbie Rocco Rocky  Rodney Rodrigo Roger Ricky Riley Rod Rodrick Roger Roland  Roman Romeo Ross Rowan Rudy Rufus Russell Ryder Ryker Rylan Ryland 

Salem  Salvador  Salvator Sam  Samir Sampson Samson  Samuel Sander Sandford Sanjay  Santiago Saul Sawyer Scott Sean Sebastian  Septimus Serge Sergio Seth Seus Seymour Shane  Shawn Shayne Sheldon Shepherd Sherlock Sherman Shin Sidney  Sigmund Silas Silver Silvester Simon Sinclair Sinjin Sirius  Slade Slate Sol Solomon Sonny Sparrow Spartacus Spencer Spike  Soren Stan Stanford Stanley Steele Stephen Steven Stevie Stone Sven Summit  Sullivan Sully Sylvester

Tad  Tag Talon  Tanner Tate  Ted Teddy Teo Teodor  Teodoro Terence Terrell  Terry Tex Thad Thaddeus Thane  Thatcher Theo Theoden Theodore Thomas  Thor Thorn Tiberius Tiger Tito Titus Timothy  Titus Tobias Toby Tommy Tony Topher Trace Travis  Trent Trenton Trev Trevor Trey Tristan Troy Truman Tucker  Tudor Tullio Tullius Tully Tycho Tyler Tyrell Tyrese Tyrone  Tyson

Uberto  Ulric Ulrich  Ulysses Uriah Urban Urijah  Uriel

Van  Vance  Vaugn Victor  Vince Vincenco Vincent  Vinny Virgil Vlad Vladimir 

Wade  Walden  Waldo Walker  Wallace Wally Walt  Walter Warner Warren  Watson Waylon Wayne Wendall  Wesley Westley Weston Wilbert  Wilbur Wilder Wiley Wilfred Will William  Winston Wolf Wolfe Wolfgang Woodrow Wyatt 

Xander  Xavier Xavion  Xenon

Yael  Yahir York Yosef  Yousef Yusef

Zac  Zach Zachariah  Zacharias Zachary Zack  Zander Zane Zayden Zeke  Zeus Ziggy Zion Zoltan

[ksansart]

For the MI6 Cafe Prompt Exchange - “art prompt: Q with rolled-up sleeves and bloody arms like Brutus in Julius Caesar”

I imagine Q was attacked, and while defending himself, killed his assailant. Que to Q frantically washing his hands, trying to get the blood out...

and maybe Bond/Tanner/whatever lover you ship him with, coming from behind, pulling Q away from the stream and frantic scrubbing, hugging the shocked and not quite sobbing boffin, keeping him close.

[tkmedia]

NHL Expansion Draft 2021: Full list of players available for Seattle Kraken

The NHL announced the protected lists for the 30 teams involved in the NHL Expansion Draft. (Vegas is exempt.) With the names of those protected come the guys who could be snatched up by the Seattle Kraken. There are a number of big names that have everyone trying to figure out just what general manager Ron Francis will do. Will he take Canadiens netminder, and future Hall of Famer, Carey Price and his hefty cap hit? Is Vladimir Tarasenko the sniper he needs or is his health a big question mark? There's also a number of guys who would fit in nicely but are free agents and the chances of signing them are not high (i.e. Alex Ovechkin).  EXPANSION DRAFT: Date, time, rules & more for Seattle Kraken team selectionRegardless of what Francis, coach Dave Hakstrol and Co. end up doing, there's a good chance the Kraken will be a playoff contender in just their first season. For now, let the intrigue and the guessing WWRFD (that's: what will Ron Francis do?) begin. Here's a look at every player they can pick.

List of players made available by all 30 NHL teams

Anaheim DucksAndrew Agozzino (F) David Backes (F) Sam Carrick (F) Chase De Leo (F) Ryan Getzlaf (F) Derek Grant (F) Danton Heinen (F) Adam Henrique (F) Vinni Lettieri (F) Sonny Milano (F) Andrew Poturalski (F) Carter Rowney (F) Nick Sorensen (F) Alexander Volkov (F) Trevor Carrick (D) Haydn Fleury (D) Brendan Guhle (D) Jacob Larsson (D) Josh Mahura (D) Kevin Shattenkirk (D) Andy Welinski (D) Ryan Miller (G) Anthony Stolarz (G)Arizona CoyotesDerick Brassard (F) Michael Bunting (F) Brayden Burke (F) Michael Chaput (F) Hudson Fasching (F) Christian Fischer (F) Frederik Gauthier (F) John Hayden (F) Dryden Hunt (F) Andrew Ladd (F) Lane Pederson (F) Tyler Pitlick (F) Blake Speers (F) Tyler Steenbergen (F) Jason Demers (D) Cam Dineen (D) Alex Goligoski (D) Jordan Gross (D) Niklas Hjalmarsson (D) Ilya Lyubushkin (D) Dysin Mayo (D) Aaron Ness (D) Jordan Oesterle (D) Vili Saarijarvi (D) Josef Korenar (G) Marek Langhamer (G) Antti Raanta (G)Boston BruinsAnton Blidh (F) Paul Carey (F) Peter Cehlarik (F) Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson (F) Taylor Hall (F) Cameron Hughes (F) Ondrej Kase (F) Alex Khokhlachev (F) Joona Koppanen (F) David Krejci (F) Karson Kuhlman (F) Sean Kuraly (F) Curtis Lazar (F) Greg McKegg (F) Nick Ritchie (F) Zach Senyshyn (F) Chris Wagner (F) Linus Arnesson (D) Connor Clifton (D) Steven Kampfer (D) Jeremy Lauzon (D) Kevan Miller (D) John Moore (D) Mike Reilly (D) Jarred Tinordi (D) Jakub Zboril (D) Callum Booth (G) Jaroslav Halak (G) Tuukka Rask (G)Buffalo SabresDrake Caggiula (F) Jean-Sebastien Dea (F) Cody Eakin (F) Steven Fogarty (F) Zemgus Girgensons (F) Andrew Oglevie (F) Kyle Okposo (F) Tobias Rieder (F) Riley Sheahan (F) Jeff Skinner (F) C.J. Smith (F) Will Borgen (D) Brandon Davidson (D) Matt Irwin (D) Jake McCabe (D) Colin Miller (D) Casey Nelson (D) Michael Houser (G) Carter Hutton (G) Dustin Tokarski (G)Calgary FlamesByron Froese (F) Glenn Gawdin (F) Justin Kirkland (F) Josh Leivo (F) Milan Lucic (F) Joakim Nordstrom (F) Matthew Phillips (F) Zac Rinaldo (F) Brett Ritchie (F) Buddy Robinson (F) Derek Ryan (F) Dominik Simon (F) Mark Giordano (D) Oliver Kylington (D) Nikita Nesterov (D) Alexander Petrovic (D) Michael Stone (D) Louis Domingue (G) Tyler Parsons (G)Carolina HurricanesMorgan Geekie (F) Steven Lorentz (F) Jordan Martinook (F) Max McCormick (F) Brock McGinn (F) Nino Niederreiter (F) Cedric Paquette (F) Sheldon Rempal (F) Drew Shore (F) Spencer Smallman (F) Jake Bean (D) Jake Gardiner (D) Eric Gelinas (D) Jani Hakanpaa (D) Dougie Hamilton (D) Maxime Lajoie (D) Roland McKeown (D) Joakim Ryan (D) David Warsofsky (D) Antoine Bibeau (G) Jeremy Helvig (G) Petr Mrazek (G) James Reimer (G) Dylan Wells (G)Chicago BlackhawksRyan Carpenter (F) Brett Connolly (F) Josh Dickinson (F) Adam Gaudette (F) Vinnie Hinostroza (F) Brandon Pirri (F) John Quenneville (F) Zack Smith (F) Calvin de Haan (D) Anton Lindholm (D) Nikita Zadorov (D) Collin Delia (G) Malcolm Subban (G)Colorado AvalancheTravis Barron (F) Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (F) Matt Calvert (F) J.T. Compher (F) Joonas Donskoi (F) Sheldon Dries (F) Vladislav Kamenev (F) Gabriel Landeskog (F) Ty Lewis (F) Jayson Megna (F) Liam O'Brien (F) Brandon Saad (F) Miikka Salomaki (F) Kiefer Sherwood (F) Carl Soderberg (F) T.J. Tynan (F) Mike Vecchione (F) Kyle Burroughs (D) Dennis Gilbert (D) Erik Johnson (D) Jacob MacDonald (D) Patrik Nemeth (D) Dan Renouf (D) Devan Dubnyk (G) Jonas Johansson (G) Hunter Miska (G)Columbus Blue JacketsZac Dalpe (F) Max Domi (F) Nathan Gerbe (F) Mikhail Grigorenko (F) Ryan MacInnis (F) Stefan Matteau (F) Cliff Pu (F) Kole Sherwood (F) Kevin Stenlund (F) Calvin Thurkauf (F) Daniel Zaar (F) Gavin Bayreuther (D) Gabriel Carlsson (D) Adam Clendening (D) Michael Del Zotto (D) Scott Harrington (D) Dean Kukan (D) Cameron Johnson (G)Dallas StarsNick Caamano (F) Andrew Cogliano (F) Blake Comeau (F) Justin Dowling (F) Tanner Kero (F) Joel L'Esperance (F) Adam Mascherin (F) Matej Stransky (F) Taylor Fedun (D) Ben Gleason (D) Joel Hanley (D) Niklas Hansson (D) Julius Honka (D) Jamie Oleksiak (D) Mark Pysyk (D) Andrej Sekera (D) Sami Vatanen (D) Ben Bishop (G) Landon Bow (G) Colton Point (G)Detroit Red WingsRiley Barber (F) Kyle Criscuolo (F) Turner Elson (F) Valtteri Filppula (F) Sam Gagner (F) Luke Glendening (F) Darren Helm (F) Taro Hirose (F) Vladislav Namestnikov (F) Frans Nielsen (F) Bobby Ryan (F) Evgeny Svechnikov (F) Dominic Turgeon (F) Hayden Verbeek (F) Alex Biega (D) Dennis Cholowski (D) Danny DeKeyser (D) Christian Djoos (D) Joe Hicketts (D) Dylan McIlrath (D) Marc Staal (D) Troy Stecher (D) Jonathan Bernier (G) Kevin Boyle (G) Kaden Fulcher (G) Calvin Pickard (G)EXPANSION DRAFT: Full list of players protected by all 30 teamsEdmonton OilersTyler Benson (F) Alex Chiasson (F) Adam Cracknell (F) Tyler Ennis (F) Joseph Gambardella (F) Seth Griffith (F) Dominik Kahun (F) Jujhar Khaira (F) Cooper Marody (F) James Neal (F) Alan Quine (F) Patrick Russell (F) Devin Shore (F) Anton Slepyshev (F) Kyle Turris (F) Bogdan Yakimov (F) Tyson Barrie (D) Oscar Klefbom (D) Slater Koekkoek (D) Dmitry Kulikov (D) William Lagesson (D) Adam Larsson (D) Kris Russell (D) Mikko Koskinen (G) Mike Smith (G) Alex Stalock (G)DUNCAN KEITH: Oilers add three-time Stanley Cup championFlorida PanthersNoel Acciari (F) Patrick Bajkov (F) Juho Lammikko (F) Ryan Lomberg (F) Brad Morrison (F) Aleksi Saarela (F) Frank Vatrano (F) Lucas Wallmark (F) Alex Wennberg (F) Scott Wilson (F) Lucas Carlsson (D) Kevin Connauton (D) Tommy Cross (D) Radko Gudas (D) Noah Juulsen (D) Brady Keeper (D) Brandon Montour (D) Markus Nutivaara (D) Ethan Prow (D) Anton Stralman (D) Philippe Desrosiers (G) Chris Driedger (G) Sam Montembeault (G)Los Angeles KingsAndreas Athanasiou (F) Michael Eyssimont (F) Martin Frk (F) Carl Grundstrom (F) Bokondji Imama (F) Brendan Lemieux (F) Blake Lizotte (F) Matt Luff (F) Drake Rymsha (F) Austin Wagner (F) Mark Alt (D) Daniel Brickley (D) Kale Clague (D) Olli Maatta (D) Kurtis MacDermid (D) Jacob Moverare (D) Austin Strand (D) Christian Wolanin (D) Troy Grosenick (G) Jonathan Quick (G)Minnesota WildWilliam Bitten (F) Nick Bjugstad (F) Nick Bonino (F) Joseph Cramarossa (F) Gabriel Dumont (F) Marcus Johansson (F) Luke Johnson (F) Victor Rask (F) Kyle Rau (F) Mason Shaw (F) Dmitry Sokolov (F) Matt Bartkowski (D) Louie Belpedio (D) Ian Cole (D) Brad Hunt (D) Ian McCoshen (D) Brennan Menell (D) Dakota Mermis (D) Carson Soucy (D) Andrew Hammond (G) Kaapo Kahkonen (G)Montreal CanadiensBrandon Baddock (F) Joseph Blandisi (F) Paul Byron (F) Phillip Danault (F) Laurent Dauphin (F) Jonathan Drouin (F) Michael Frolik (F) Charles Hudon (F) Corey Perry (F) Michael Pezzetta (F) Eric Staal (F) Tomas Tatar (F) Lukas Vejdemo (F) Jordan Weal (F) Cale Fleury (D) Erik Gustafsson (D) Brett Kulak (D) Jon Merrill (D) Gustav Olofsson (D) Xavier Ouellet (D) Shea Weber (D) Charlie Lindgren (G) Michael McNiven (G) Carey Price (G)Nashville PredatorsMichael Carcone (F) Nick Cousins (F) Matt Duchene (F) Mikael Granlund (F) Rocco Grimaldi (F) Erik Haula (F) Calle Jarnkrok (F) Ryan Johansen (F) Sean Malone (F) Michael McCarron (F) Rem Pitlick (F) Anthony Richard (F) Brad Richardson (F) Colton Sissons (F) Yakov Trenin (F) Frederic Allard (D) Matt Benning (D) Mark Borowiecki (D) Erik Gudbranson (D) Ben Harpur (D) Josh Healey (D) Tyler Lewington (D) Connor Ingram (G) Kasimir Kaskisuo (G) Pekka Rinne (G)New Jersey DevilsNathan Bastian (F) Christoph Bertschy (F) Brandon Gignac (F) A.J. Greer (F) Andreas Johnsson (F) Ivan Khomutov (F) Nicholas Merkley (F) Brett Seney (F) Ben Street (F) Marian Studenic (F) Will Butcher (D) Connor Carrick (D) Josh Jacobs (D) Ryan Murray (D) David Quenneville (D) Colby Sissons (D) P.K. Subban (D) Matt Tennyson (D) Colton White (D) Evan Cormier (G) Aaron Dell (G) Scott Wedgewood (G)New York IslandersJosh Bailey (F) Cole Bardreau (F) Kieffer Bellows (F) Casey Cizikas (F) Austin Czarnik (F) Michael Dal Colle (F) Jordan Eberle (F) Tanner Fritz (F) Joshua Ho-Sang (F) Ross Johnston (F) Otto Koivula (F) Leo Komarov (F) Kyle Palmieri (F) Richard Panik (F) Dmytro Timashov (F) Travis Zajac (F) Sebastian Aho (D) Braydon Coburn (D) Andy Greene (D) Thomas Hickey (D) Mitchell Vande Sompel (D) Parker Wotherspoon (D) Ken Appleby (G) Cory Schneider (G)New York RangersColin Blackwell (F) Jonny Brodzinski (F) Phillip Di Giuseppe (F) Gabriel Fontaine (F) Julien Gauthier (F) Tim Gettinger (F) Barclay Goodrow (F) Anthony Greco (F) Ty Ronning (F) Anthony Bitetto (D) Brandon Crawley (D) Tony DeAngelo (D) Nick DeSimone (D) Mason Geertsen (D) Jack Johnson (D) Darren Raddysh (D) Brendan Smith (D) Keith Kinkaid (G)EXPANSION DRAFT FRENZY: Ryan Ellis, Jared McCann, Barclay Goodrow among players swapped before trade freezeOttawa SenatorsAvailable Vitaly Abramov (F) Michael Amadio (F) Artem Anisimov (F) J.C. Beaudin (F) Clark Bishop (F) Evgenii Dadonov (F) Jonathan Davidsson (F) Ryan Dzingel (F) Micheal Haley (F) Jack Kopacka (F) Zachary Magwood (F) Matthew Peca (F) Logan Shaw (F) Derek Stepan (F) Chris Tierney (F) Josh Brown (D) Cody Goloubef (D) Mikael Wikstrand (D) Joey Daccord (G) Anton Forsberg (G) Marcus Hogberg (G) Matt Murray (G)Philadelphia FlyersAndy Andreoff (F) Connor Bunnaman (F) David Kase (F) Pascal Laberge (F) Samuel Morin (F) German Rubtsov (F) Carsen Twarynski (F) James van Riemsdyk (F) Jakub Voracek (F) Mikhail Vorobyev (F) Chris Bigras (D) Justin Braun (D) Shayne Gostisbehere (D) Robert Hagg (D) Derrick Pouliot (D) Nate Prosser (D) Tyler Wotherspoon (D) Brian Elliott (G) Alex Lyon (G) Felix Sandstrom (G)Pittsburgh PenguinsPontus Aberg (F) Anthony Angello (F) Zach Aston-Reese (F) Josh Currie (F) Frederick Gaudreau (F) Mark Jankowski (F) Sam Lafferty (F) Sam Miletic (F) Evan Rodrigues (F) Colton Sceviour (F) Brandon Tanev (F) Jason Zucker (F) Cody Ceci (D) Kevin Czuczman (D) Mark Friedman (D) Jesper Lindgren (D) Andrey Pedan (D) Marcus Pettersson (D) Juuso Riikola (D) Chad Ruhwedel (D) Yannick Weber (D) Casey DeSmith (G) Maxime Lagace (G)San Jose SharksRyan Donato (F) Kurtis Gabriel (F) Dylan Gambrell (F) Jayden Halbgewachs (F) Maxim Letunov (F) Patrick Marleau (F) Matt Nieto (F) Marcus Sorensen (F) Alexander True (F) Christian Jaros (D) Nicolas Meloche (D) Jacob Middleton (D) Greg Pateryn (D) Radim Simek (D) Martin Jones (G)St. Louis BluesSam Anas (F) Sammy Blais (F) Tyler Bozak (F) Kyle Clifford (F) Jacob de la Rose (F) Mike Hoffman (F) Tanner Kaspick (F) Mackenzie MacEachern (F) Curtis McKenzie (F) Austin Poganski (F) Zach Sanford (F) Jaden Schwartz (F) Nolan Stevens (F) Vladimir Tarasenko (F) Nathan Walker (F) Robert Bortuzzo (D) Vince Dunn (D) Petteri Lindbohm (D) Niko Mikkola (D) Mitch Reinke (D) Steven Santini (D) Marco Scandella (D) Jake Walman (D) Evan Fitzpatrick (G) Jon Gillies (G) Ville Husso (G)Tampa Bay LightningAlex Barre-Boulet (F) Blake Coleman (F) Ross Colton (F) Yanni Gourde (F) Tyler Johnson (F) Mathieu Joseph (F) Boris Katchouk (F) Alex Killorn (F) Pat Maroon (F) Boo Nieves (F) Ondrej Palat (F) Taylor Raddysh (F) Gemel Smith (F) Otto Somppi (F) Mitchell Stephens (F) Daniel Walcott (F) Luke Witkowski (F) Andreas Borgman (D) Fredrik Claesson (D) Sean Day (D) Cal Foote (D) Brian Lashoff (D) Dominik Masin (D) Jan Rutta (D) David Savard (D) Luke Schenn (D) Ben Thomas (D) Christopher Gibson (G) Spencer Martin (G) Curtis McElhinney (G)MORE: Maroon fourth player to win three straight Stanley Cups with two different teamsToronto Maple LeafsAvailable Kenny Agostino (F) Joey Anderson (F) Adam Brooks (F) Pierre Engvall (F) Nick Foligno (F) Alex Galchenyuk (F) Zach Hyman (F) Alexander Kerfoot (F) Kalle Kossila (F) Denis Malgin (F) Jared McCann (F) Riley Nash (F) Stefan Noesen (F) Nic Petan (F) Scott Sabourin (F) Wayne Simmonds (F) Jason Spezza (F) Antti Suomela (F) Joe Thornton (F) Zach Bogosian (D) Travis Dermott (D) Ben Hutton (D) Martin Marincin (D) Calle Rosen (D) Frederik Andersen (G) Michael Hutchinson (G) David Rittich (G)Vancouver CanucksSven Baertschi (F) Justin Bailey (F) Jay Beagle (F) Travis Boyd (F) Loui Eriksson (F) Jonah Gadjovich (F) Tyler Graovac (F) Jayce Hawryluk (F) Matthew Highmore (F) Lukas Jasek (F) Kole Lind (F) Zack MacEwen (F) Petrus Palmu (F) Antoine Roussel (F) Brandon Sutter (F) Jimmy Vesey (F) Jake Virtanen (F) Madison Bowey (D) Guillaume Brisebois (D) Jalen Chatfield (D) Alexander Edler (D) Travis Hamonic (D) Brogan Rafferty (D) Ashton Sautner (D) Josh Teves (D) Braden Holtby (G)Washington CapitalsDaniel Carr (F) Nic Dowd (F) Shane Gersich (F) Carl Hagelin (F) Garnet Hathaway (F) Axel Jonsson-Fjallby (F) Alex Ovechkin (F) Garrett Pilon (F) Brian Pinho (F) Michael Raffl (F) Michael Sgarbossa (F) Conor Sheary (F) Zdeno Chara (D) Brenden Dillon (D) Nick Jensen (D) Lucas Johansen (D) Michal Kempny (D) Paul LaDue (D) Cameron Schilling (D) Justin Schultz (D) Craig Anderson (G) Pheonix Copley (G) Zach Fucale (G) Vitek Vanecek (G)Winnipeg JetsMason Appleton (F) Marko Dano (F) Jansen Harkins (F) Trevor Lewis (F) Skyler McKenzie (F) Mathieu Perreault (F) Paul Stastny (F) CJ Suess (F) Nate Thompson (F) Dominic Toninato (F) Nathan Beaulieu (D) Jordie Benn (D) Dylan DeMelo (D) Derek Forbort (D) Luke Green (D) Sami Niku (D) Nelson Nogier (D) Tucker Poolman (D) Mikhail Berdin (G) Laurent Brossoit (G) Eric Comrie (G) Cole Kehler (G) Read the full article