#Lazy Hsu

[co27]

9 people you'd like to know better

tagged by: @funshinebf woah!! hey!! hi!! :3

a) three ships:

DELLUMBRA. my beloveds forever and ever and ever. an animator put della and penumbra holding hands in the chibi valentines day thing and its the only thing that matters for the rest of time. seeing them never fails to make me the happy smiler

spova... HRHGHGHHGHGHHHHH (STARTS CLAWING AT THE WALLS) im getting a bunch of my irls to watch the show with me and like how do i explain why sparx catching nova in circus of ooze makes me actually start howling in pain. the slow burn... the trust... the botched confessions the loss the self blame. oh god its all just so fucking painful forever ill never be over them

tomshiv :) theyre the perfect eternal punishment for each other and i love seeing them make each other suffer. the dirty talk scene in season 3 permanently altered my brain chemistry and tom wambsgans mr brightside is the greatest video of our generation

a1: bonus ships:

SERIREI :) save me serirei... serirei save me... such a classic i love those crazy businessmen. 2018 serirei was literally the perfect era like you had to be there

joongdok. thousand yard stare. ive been coming around to yoohankim lately too but i feel like a lot of content doesnt really capture what i like about orv so i dont look at or like a lot of the shippy content in the first place

gibotto

also gibson/sparx

b) first ever ship:

...... :( it was grey/juvia from fairy tail. yandere x tsundere was like elite to me. if i close my eyes and pretend im in a universe where fairy tail is good i can honestly see the vision. the first one that made me really crazy crazy about shipping though was germany and italy from hetalia unfortunately. sorry. and sometimes i fear i may never escape the annoyingly optimistic x grump who secretly likes it trope and its all their fucking fault

c) last song:

hello, i love you by adore delano. SHE JUST GETS ME

d) last movie:

uuhhhh fuck i watch a lot of movies absolutely baked with my friends so its hard to remember. i think everything everywhere all at once :) i sincerely believe it is one of the best movies ever made. STEPHANIE HSU WAS ROBBED AT THE OSCARS

e) currently reading:

cirice by madeline miller, i havent picked it up in months tho... and i keep telling myself im going to start one piece and dungeon meshi but i havent yet #laziness

f) currently watching:

sooo many things but im currently keeping up with season 16 of drag race with my friend. besides that primarily trigun stampede and hannibal because im watching those with my friends. and i count srmthfg again. but also dungeon meshi is on the backburner too. and a million other things like the boys and interview with the vampire... GOD THERES TOO MANY SHOWS GUYS

g) currently consuming:

idk waht this means. if its about eating then i have a big tub of cocktail peanuts that im munching on right now

h) currently craving:

DAVES HOT CHICKEN. SAVE ME DAVES HOT CHICKEN

9 people to tag:

um uh um uhhh @godza @morguerue @irradiatedsnakes @faglagomorph @treecakes @itaots @soulreaper @puppetlooselystrung @vampirewings and also anyone else who wants to talk about themselves yay!!! i hope its okay i tagged you heart emoji <3

easily copyable version under the cut for joy and prosperity yay

9 people you'd like to know better

tagged by:

a) three ships:

a1: bonus ships:

b) first ever ship:

c) last song:

d) last movie:

e) currently reading:

f) currently watching:

g) currently consuming:

h) currently craving:

9 people to tag:

[pop-pop-pop-popculture]

My Favorite 2023 Met Gala Outfits

(link // link // link)

*this is out of random order!!!!*

Jenna Ortega

Rihanna

Gigi Hadid

Anne Hathaway

Aubrey Plaza

Elle Fanning

Keely Shaye Smith-Brosnan

Sean “Diddy” Combs

Olivia Rodrigo, much to my surprise

Teyana Taylor

Rita Ora

Ben Platt

Stormyz

Whitney Peak

Penelope Cruz

Russell Westbrook

Stephanie Hsu

Quannah Chasinghorse

Serena Williams

Barry Keoghan

Halle Bailey

Angèle

Nicola Peltz Beckham

Maya Penn (simple yet elegant, and gorgeous!)

Karen Elson

Stella McCartney

Baz Luhrmann

Maya Hawke

Catherine Martin

Alexa Chung

Joan Smalls

Ava Max

Imaan Hammam

Amber Valletta

Vittoria Ceretti

Labrinth

Jennie Kim

Pusha T

Ke Huy Quan

Usher

Chi Ossé

Daisy Edgar-Jones

Bella Ramsay

Glenn Close

Ashley Graham

Phoebe Bridgers

Alton Mason

Maude Apatow

Miranda Kerr (simple yet elegant, and gorgeous!)

Devon Aoki

Lily James

Jeremy Scott

Nicole Kidman

Amy Fine Collins

Emma Ratajkowski

Gisele Bündchen

Kaitlyn Dever

Kim Petras

Grace Elizabeth

Jodi Comer

Suki Waterhouse

Jared Leto (he came as Choupette (literal cat costume), Karl’s cat!!!!)

Kendall Jenner

Kim Kardashian and Cardi B (they’re both pieces of shit, and I hate myself for liking their outfits)

I love that the stylists for the people I went all out and, for some, were camp-esque.

Kind of...

Paris Hilton

Yung Miami

Tems

Burna Boy

Alex Newell

Jennifer Lopez

Amanda Harlech

Dua Lipa

Irina Shayk

Quinton Brunson

Margaret Qualley (I like the dress and shoes, but I’m not, like in love)

Bad Bunny (I like the head-to-toe white, but I’m not crazy about the outfit????)

Lily Collins

Lily Aldridge

Ashley Park

Eh... / I Don’t Know... / Indifferent

Olivier Rousteing

Karla Bruni

Zac Posen (lookin’ dapper there, though, sir!)

Cara Delevingne

Lala Anthony

Chloe Fineman

Karlie Kloss

Brian Tyree Henry

Ice Spice

Robert Pattinson

Donatella Versace

Kate Moss

Lila Moss

Camila Morrone

Yes and No

Mary J. Blige

Madelyn Cline

Alexandra Daddario

Jeremy Pope (yes for the cape and no to everything else)

Viola Davis

Allison Williams (I love the shade of orange and the dress itself, but the whole look is still a no from me)

Ariana DeBose

Sydney Sweeney

Um...

Erykah Badu

Conan Gray

Doja Cat (edit; 11 PM - she’s supposed to be Choupette too?!)

Lil Nas X

What the ACTUAL Fuck?

Pedro Pascal

Erykah Badu

Lil Nas X

No

Bradley Cooper

Nick Jonas

I Don’t Give a F*ck

Priyanka Chopra

Emma Chamberlain

Kylie Jenner

Vanessa Hudgens

|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

I’m sure there are tons of more attendees, but I didn’t care to do more research because I am tired. I’ll probably research more tomorrow and reblog this. (I purposely left off some people out of pure, genuine laziness)

▪️ May 1, 2023 ▪️

[slashcrz]

☼☾ ( bie thassapak hsu , 35 , he/him , cis man , chakri 1 ) - have you seen THANIN CHAKRI?  we’ve heard through the grapevine that they’re EMPATHETIC but also MATERIALSTIC. when you think of them , you think of TENSE SHOULDERS HUNCHED OVER PARCHMENT IN THE BRILLIANT MOONLIGHT, SIGHS OVER SHAKY TEACUPS BEHIND FORCED SMILES, AND THE SCENT OF TRADITION & PRIDE WAFTING THROUGH A SECRET LETTER BOX.

TWs: attempted murder, depression

name; thanin chakri.

nicknames; anchan or simply chan, othertimes said as than-chan, a word play on his name- meaning butterfly pea, his favorite flower as a child.

birth date; feburary 3rd, an aquarius.

orientation; demisexual/demiromantic, preference for women.

relationship; married to aranya, queen of thailand, and only just now starting to crush on her...

politics; this is the struggle...

religion; thai-buddhist

languages; tba.

headcanons && backstory.

as eldest, there was no doubt he would be king someday. as a child, he was doted on by his mother, an his ego fluffed by his father. the chakri line had grown lazy && greedy long before his birth, toppled from there place at the top of the food chain, and he inherited the mistakes of his ancestors... but did little to fix them. despite all the attention he got in his early years, thanin took the death of his parents hard, relying on his sister more, and finding it hard to stay involved at meetings with his wandering mind. there was SO much to fix, so much to do, and he often felt overwhelmed by all the demand placed on him to fix thailand, to make it as great as it once was. everything thanin did, for YEARS, was to try and undo the mistakes of past rulers... but he was destined to continue them, for he'd only been taught to survive one way. the chakri would keep the best for themselves. thanin did not get out much, laden with work in his study, with correspondence. he was slower than his mother & father, he took longer to decide things, and in it all, his poor wife got lost in the process of his slow, long, painful adjustment into monarchy. now, he knows he has not done as good a job as he hoped; he feels lost, and without guide, and misses his parents more than ever. when a rebellion of thai citizens came into his home && tried to take his life in the night, an assassination attempt gone wrong, thanin took it as a wake up call. how long had he began hiding from the problems? the man who once woke up with the dawn to tackle the mountain of problems was gone, leaving a man who slept until noon, who blew off meetings, who never listened when his wife talked took his place... and with it, thailand suffered. the invitation to france was a welcome reprieve, and possibly the only thing keeping thanin from slipping into madness. he sees things more clearly now, with the distance, and less fear for his life causing the depressive episodes to worsen. he sees his wife now, her talents, but she sees only the disgrace thanin had become. he sees his family, their struggles, and he wishes he could get back all those lost years... but he also fears his mistakes have been too many, and he will never make up for it all.

[oliveratlanta]

RT MidtownATL: Hey, Midtown! The 999 Peachtree building is getting a new restaurant! Welcome, Lazy Betty (originally located in Candler Park), featuring a unique tasting menu by chefs Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips. It will take over Empire State South’s for… https://t.co/JICLAdLC0K

RT MidtownATL: Hey, Midtown! The 999 Peachtree building is getting a new restaurant! Welcome, Lazy Betty (originally located in Candler Park), featuring a unique tasting menu by chefs Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips. It will take over Empire State South’s for… https://t.co/JICLAdLC0K

— Ian Oliver Atlanta (@oliveratlanta) Jun 7, 2023

from Twitter https://twitter.com/oliveratlanta

[smokeybrandreviews]

Royal Flush

Poker Face is the best show you’re not watching. Seriously, it’s exceptional. I finished my first run of the show the day episode ten dropped and sat on it for a bit. I thought about praising it after that first watch but ended up binging it last week, three episodes a night starting on Thursday, finishing this morning after i took the dog out. Let me tell you, that second viewing was as solid as the first. This show hits the same way that first season of Luther hit and i have longed for that level of quality out of my domestic television fair. The US sucks at TV. We tend to fall into lazy tropes and uninspired writing. And then The Wire happened, ushering in a standard of television that most couldn’t keep up with but they tried. For a few years there, w got sh*t like Hannibal, Breaking Bad, Legion, and Atlanta. Those shows didn’t wear out their welcome but that can’t be said for others. The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones, juggernauts back in the day, went out with a whimper in their respective final seasons. Because of the US laziness. We’re seeing a lot of that with the MCU now, too. But not with Poker Face. No, this show is inspired!

Of the top, this is a Rian Johnson production so you kind of know what you’re going to get. There is a lot of decent writing, overall, but it’s not the most intellectually challenging to say the least. This sh*t is basically Knives Out but, instead of a southern gentlemen detective, you have a washed out, Jersey, card-shark with borderline psychic intuition. It’s a ridiculous premise but it works so well because Natasha Lyonne embodies this part. The strength of Johnson’s writing lies with those lead characters. We watch the Knives Out franchise because of Benoit Blanc, not necessarily the overarching mystery, though they are pretty entertaining. The same can be said about Poker Face. You watch this show because the character of Charlie Cale, is so deftly brought to life by Lyonne. She’s brilliant, spastic, slothful yet inventive, and absurdly funny in the most wry of ways. Charlie is one of the best written characters in television and Lyonne’s performance goes a very long way to bring what was on the page, to vivid life.

In truth, Poker Face is kind of soft on overall plot and the execution of the  "case-of-the-week" is hit-and-miss but these admittedly minor grievances are easily forgiven in the face of how brilliant all the performances are in this show. Lyonne is the gem in this embarrassment of riches but that’s not to slight any of the other treasures in this trove of acting. I mean, you have Adrien Brody and Dascha Polanco delivering small but galvanizing portrayals that immediately energize you for what comes next. Seriously, that first episode absolutely sets the tone going forward, particularly the mic drop climax. That sh*t was unexpected and an absolutely brilliant subversion of expectation. And that’s just the first episodes! Seriously, sh*t like this is what this show is built upon. Guest stars come through for a few episodes, absolutely deliver their best work, and trot off into the sunset leaving you hungry for more of their catalog. Ron Perlman and Benjamin Bratt are the primary antagonists but, episode-to-episode gives us tantalizing little character arcs that give this show life. Just a small list of these little starburst actors include: Megan Suri, John Ratzenberger, Lil Rel Howery,  Chloe Sevigny, Tim Meadows, Jameela Jamil, Clea Duvall, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Stephanie Hsu. Seriously, if you’re not watching Poker Face, fix that sh*t right now. It’s free to watch on Peacock. Go binge that sh*t right now. You’ll thank me later.

[humble234]

Best Restaurants Of 2023 Atlanta - Humble Pie Food

Indulge in the delectable flavors of humble pie food. Savor every bite of our delicious and comforting dishes that are sure to warm your heart and soul.  Led by the acclaimed chefs Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips, the restaurant is a proud addition to the culinary portfolio that includes the James Beard Nominated Lazy Betty and the recently lauded Juniper Cafe.Experience a humble culinary journey with our wholesome recipes that will leave you craving for more.

[smokeybrand]

Royal Flush

Poker Face is the best show you’re not watching. Seriously, it’s exceptional. I finished my first run of the show the day episode ten dropped and sat on it for a bit. I thought about praising it after that first watch but ended up binging it last week, three episodes a night starting on Thursday, finishing this morning after i took the dog out. Let me tell you, that second viewing was as solid as the first. This show hits the same way that first season of Luther hit and i have longed for that level of quality out of my domestic television fair. The US sucks at TV. We tend to fall into lazy tropes and uninspired writing. And then The Wire happened, ushering in a standard of television that most couldn’t keep up with but they tried. For a few years there, w got sh*t like Hannibal, Breaking Bad, Legion, and Atlanta. Those shows didn’t wear out their welcome but that can’t be said for others. The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones, juggernauts back in the day, went out with a whimper in their respective final seasons. Because of the US laziness. We’re seeing a lot of that with the MCU now, too. But not with Poker Face. No, this show is inspired!

Of the top, this is a Rian Johnson production so you kind of know what you’re going to get. There is a lot of decent writing, overall, but it’s not the most intellectually challenging to say the least. This sh*t is basically Knives Out but, instead of a southern gentlemen detective, you have a washed out, Jersey, card-shark with borderline psychic intuition. It’s a ridiculous premise but it works so well because Natasha Lyonne embodies this part. The strength of Johnson’s writing lies with those lead characters. We watch the Knives Out franchise because of Benoit Blanc, not necessarily the overarching mystery, though they are pretty entertaining. The same can be said about Poker Face. You watch this show because the character of Charlie Cale, is so deftly brought to life by Lyonne. She’s brilliant, spastic, slothful yet inventive, and absurdly funny in the most wry of ways. Charlie is one of the best written characters in television and Lyonne’s performance goes a very long way to bring what was on the page, to vivid life.

In truth, Poker Face is kind of soft on overall plot and the execution of the  "case-of-the-week" is hit-and-miss but these admittedly minor grievances are easily forgiven in the face of how brilliant all the performances are in this show. Lyonne is the gem in this embarrassment of riches but that’s not to slight any of the other treasures in this trove of acting. I mean, you have Adrien Brody and Dascha Polanco delivering small but galvanizing portrayals that immediately energize you for what comes next. Seriously, that first episode absolutely sets the tone going forward, particularly the mic drop climax. That sh*t was unexpected and an absolutely brilliant subversion of expectation. And that’s just the first episodes! Seriously, sh*t like this is what this show is built upon. Guest stars come through for a few episodes, absolutely deliver their best work, and trot off into the sunset leaving you hungry for more of their catalog. Ron Perlman and Benjamin Bratt are the primary antagonists but, episode-to-episode gives us tantalizing little character arcs that give this show life. Just a small list of these little starburst actors include: Megan Suri, John Ratzenberger, Lil Rel Howery,  Chloe Sevigny, Tim Meadows, Jameela Jamil, Clea Duvall, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Stephanie Hsu. Seriously, if you’re not watching Poker Face, fix that sh*t right now. It’s free to watch on Peacock. Go binge that sh*t right now. You’ll thank me later.

[laceyrowland]

2022 Reading Wrapped Part IV

I was chatting with a dear friend the other day about audiobooks and how we both came around to them after being the kind of people that believed that listening to audiobooks wasn't really reading. Audiobooks have been a game-changer for us. There's something magical about being read to, and there are certain narrators who really bring the text alive.

But if you're reluctant to get into audiobooks, or maybe you've tried and it hasn't really gripped you, I'd like to recommend some audiobooks that hooked me and made me fall in love with the medium.

The Dutch House - Ann Patchett, narrated by Tom Hanks. Tom Hanks made me realize that this book actually had some humor in it. It was one of the audiobooks that made me want to listen to it on repeat.

The Years - Annie Ernaux, narrated by Anna Bentinck. I'm embarrassed to admit that I'd never heard of Annie Ernaux until this year when she won the Nobel Prize in Literature. This was the only audiobook my local library had by her, so I took a gamble on it. It's a winding journey through post-WWII to the early 2000s, following a woman's life in France (presumably Ernaux's, it's described as a sort of fictionalized memoir). I learned so much, but it didn't feel like learning. As I was working on my miniatures I found myself saying, "Huh, I never knew that" a lot. It's one to listen to if you can dedicate longer stretches of time to.

Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain (narrated by the author). Anthony Bourdain has a certain magnitude in his voice. With him reading his own work it felt like I was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking a beer with him and swapping old stories.

Any book by David Sedaris. He's hilarious, his essays are poignant and bizarre. He narrates his own work, and so it feels like you're listening to a sort of stand-up performance, rather than a book.

Mystic River - Dennis Lehane, narrated by Scott Brick. If you're looking for a psychological thriller, this one is one of my favorites. I'd already read the book ages ago, and also seen the movie, but I had the chance to listen to this while driving from Missouri to North Carolina and through the Blue Ridge Mountains and the audiobook made me want to keep driving, to stay in the car until the very end.

Activities that pair well with audiobooks: Walking in the park or hiking (but be aware of your surroundings!), riding on trains or airplanes, roadtrips, putting together puzzles, crafting, baking, and on lazy mornings with a good cup of coffee.

Here's what I read from October to December of 2022:

The Last White Man - Mohsin Hamid

My Begging Chart - Keiler Roberts

Shuggie Bain - Douglas Stuart*

Severance - Ling Ma

The Swimmers - Julie Ostuka

The Summer Book - Tove Jansson*

Stay True - Hua Hsu*

Five Tuesdays in Winter - Lily King*

The Years - Annie Ernaux*

Nothing to See Here - Kevin Wilson*

*Books that blew my hair back

Catch up on my Reading Wrapped Parts I, II, and III.

See you in 2023!

[fyeahcindie]

魏如萱 waa wei and Lovely Baby band (Achino Chang 張瀚中 (阿雞)-keys/accordion, 韓立康 Likang Han-guitar/synth, 賴聖文 Peter Lai-drums, Jack Ko 柯遵毓-bass, supplemented by cellist Hang Liu 劉涵, and that is 徐平 Lobby Boy on guitar. I think that is a new nickname for 徐皮 Lazybody aka Lazy Hsu.) 

This song (lyrics by Waa, music by Likang Han) is a imaginative new arrangement (by 徐平 Lobby Boy) of the original from 2011, which just goes to show you the versatility of a great song:

[ben-the-hyena]

FUCK THE 8 DEMON SORCERERS ARE LIKE SKEKSIS

WANT AN EMPIRE, WANT TO RULE OVER A WORLD THAT ISN'T THEIRS USING THEIR POWERS AND IMMORTALITY, USED TO BE FEARED AND ADORED AND HAVE NO QUALM IN KILLING AND EATING THEIR SUBJECTS, EAT LIKE SLOBS, HAVE SLAVES, ONLY ONE OF THEM IS CALM AND REGAL AND JUDGING WHILE ALL THE OTHERS ARE LOUD, VULGAR, CHILDISH ETC

THEY EVEN CORRESPOND TO THE 8 MOVIE SKEKSIS

SHENDU IS SKEKSIL (CUNNING, MANIPULATIVE, LIAR, AMBITIOUS, COWARD)

PO KONG IS SKEKAYUK (FAT AND EATS)

BAI TZA IS SKEKNA (SADISTIC, CRUEL AND AGGRESSIVE)

TSO LAN IS SKEKZOK (CALM, JUDGING, COLLECTED, REGAL YET CRUEL)

HSU WI IS SKEKTEK (THE BUTT NOBODY CARES ABOUT AND HE LIKES TECHNOLOGY)

XIAO FUNG IS SKEKEKT (LIKES GOSSIP)

TCHANG ZU IS SKEKUNG (STRONG, ANGRY, AGRESSIVE, BOSSES AROUND NOTABLY SKEKSIL/SHENDU AND WANTS TO BE THE BOSS, LOUD)

DAI GUI IS SKEKOK (THE ONE LEFT EVEN IF NO COMMON POINT LOL)

DAMN WHAT WERE THE ODDS

[muddyraindrop]

[rumenta]

Few days ago I saw that picture of jer and christine hugging and it was the sweetest thing I've ever seen, so this needed to be done

[yourfrankiethings]

Lazy Betty, Atlanta, 11/10/21

Lazy Betty, Atlanta, 11/10/21

Lazy Betty delivers a world-class menu prepared by Chefs Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips.  Chef Hsu formally was with Le Bernardin as the Executive Sous Chef and then Creative Director, but ultimately is the product of a family all about food, particularly his mother Betty.  He and Phillips opened Lazy Betty in October of 2019, offering only a tasting menu. The interior is designed to relax the diner,…

[cheolbooluvr]

the class president

pairing: joshua x reader

genre: enemies to ???!au, high school!au, angst, a sprinkle of fluff??? idk

warnings: a couple of swear words here and there, maybe a kith but nothing crazy

word count: 2.8k

a/n: i would do anything for platinumshua, he’s so special to me <3 anyways, hope you enjoy this one :’) i haven’t decided if i’m gonna write a pt.2 to this yet, so lmk if you want it!! edit: thank you for the likes, reblogs are so very much appreciated 🥺

next

my masterlist ＼ʕ •ᴥ•ʔ／

Joshua Hong was perfect. He was the captain of the swim team and the debate team, he played the guitar, and to top it all off, he was the class president. Not only that, he was also incredibly beautiful and all of the girls and guys at school adored him. It wasn’t just the students, but also the teachers who loved him, too. They said he was so ahead of his time. He was mature, smart, considerate, and just so kind.

He was perfect. In fact, he was too perfect, but you knew otherwise. Everyone always called him a gentleman, but you knew that was all a ruse. After all, you had spent the last seventeen years of your life living next door to him. Your parents were good friends and they desperately wanted the two of you to be friends, too. And actually, at some point, you were. He would come over every Saturday morning and the two of you would watch anime until your mom had to pry the two of you away from the TV and force you to play outside. He was always clumsy and had cried when he fell off his bike and scraped his knee on the asphalt. You were always jealous of the pool he had in his backyard, but it didn’t matter since you went over every day in the summer and swam to your hearts’ content.

It was like this all the way up until middle school. At some point, he had hit puberty and the clumsy, silly boy you knew in your childhood had changed both physically and emotionally. He joined the middle school swim team and always swam a league higher because he was that good. Because of this, he made friends with the upperclassmen, and to the girls your age, that made him ten times more desirable. Somewhere along the way, he became too polished, too prim and proper for you and left you in the dust while he quickly made new friends and had girls chasing after him constantly.

Though honestly, you didn’t mind. You had your own small group of friends, what did you need dumb Joshua Hong for? It was finally the weekend and both of your parents had left to go on a semi annual trip as they always did. Under their impression, you and Joshua were still very much friends, and neither of you bothered to correct them and break their precious thoughts of their kids being best friends. You had just gotten home and threw your backpack on the couch and headed upstairs to change into your PJ’s. It was barely 4 PM but you’d rather get comfy now before you got too lazy and end up falling asleep in jeans. For dinner, you popped a frozen chicken pot pie into the microwave and watched as it spun a couple times before getting bored and plopping down on the couch. The house was quiet and you enjoyed the peacefulness of being home alone. A couple hours later, you heard numerous car doors slamming and looked out the window to see a couple of Joshua’s swim team friends get out of their cars.

“Oh, great, it’s the aquatic meatheads,” you mumbled, rolling your eyes. Returning to the couch, you resumed your movie that you had been watching. It was a Taiwanese movie called “Our Times,” about young high school love. You’ve seen this movie more times than you could count, but every time had you sobbing hysterically. Around 8 PM, you could hear more car doors slam and the music next door grow increasingly louder by the minute. Lin Truly had just learned what happened to Ouyang and Hsu Taiyu and your face was wet with tears. You tried your best to ignore it and even turned up the volume, but nothing could drown out the noise from next door. You hit pause and got up from the couch, throwing a light jacket over your loose shirt. It was time you gave Joshua a piece of your mind and tell him to turn the music down, but as you opened the door, a familiar face appeared right in front of you.

Without a word, Joshua barged into your house, shirtless and dripping with water. He had recently dyed his hair a bright platinum blonde and even you had to admit he really pulled it off.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” you asked him.

“I need to hang out here for a bit,” he said, walking further into your living room and leaving a trail of pool water behind him.

“Get out.” You furrowed your eyebrows and pointed at the door.

“Please, my ex is at my house right now and I need to hide from her.”

“Why do you think I care?”

“Just help me out this one time. Wait… ” Joshua moved in to look at you closely. You stepped back, weirded out by his sudden gesture. “Were you… crying?”

Wiping the tears from your face, you huffed. “I was watching a movie, but you and your goonies are being too loud. You’re going to get the cops called on you.”

“It was just supposed to be the swim team,” he added.

“Doesn’t sound like just the swim team, Joshua.”

Hearing his name come from your mouth was a weird feeling. Truth be told, it had been a long time since the two of you have talked. It wasn’t until then that he wished he had heard it sooner. Suddenly, he found himself missing you.

“I know, I know. Mingyu, being the dumbass that he is, told a ‘couple’ people and then word spread so fast. I didn’t know how to say no.”

“You can just… say no?”

Joshua sighed. “It’s not that easy. I’m the class president.”

You waved him off and returned to the couch. “And I’m trying to watch a movie and not get in trouble with our parents when the cops get called and they find out you were having a party.”

It was Joshua’s turn to say your name now. “Please, just let me stay here for a bit until my ex leaves. I’ll tell Seungcheol to wrap it up and get everyone to leave. He always knows what to do.”

“Why didn’t you just do that in the first place?” you quipped.

“I guess I didn’t think of it because I was too busy trying to hide from her.” He was now standing in front of you, blocking the view of the TV. “Please let me hang out here until she leaves.”

“No, get out.” You tried to move to look at the TV but he moved with you, ensuring your view was blocked no matter what you tried to do. Finally, you gave up and sighed. “Fine, but only for thirty minutes max. If you’re not gone by then, I’m kicking you out.”

“Okay, deal.”

“And don’t sit on my couch while you’re still sopping wet.”

“Can I borrow a towel?” he asked, smiling shyly at you.

After he had dried off, you gave him one of your dad’s t-shirts and shorts to wear. He sat on the other side of the couch, trying to figure out what was happening. “So, what’s Hsu Taiyu’s deal? He kind of seems like an asshole?”

You rolled your eyes at his comment. “You have to watch the whole movie to understand,” you explained.

“Or you could just explain it to me right now.”

“Or I could walk over to your house and tell your ex that you’re here.”

Joshua scoffed. “You wouldn’t.”

“Oh yeah?” You stood up and tried to make a beeline for the door, but he was quick to grab your hand.

“Wait! Fine, I won’t ask.”

You smirked at him as if to say, Yeah, that’s what I thought, and sat back down. You had been so entrenched in the movie that you had forgotten about the thirty minute time limit you put on Joshua. It was near the end when you looked over to find Joshua passed out, his head resting on the arm rest. Your heart skipped a beat seeing his face so serene and peaceful. It was almost as if you missed him and the friends that you used to be. You shook your head trying to remove any thoughts of being friends with this two-faced prick, and you tried to nudge him awake. He wouldn’t move so you shook his shoulders even more. He groaned and barely opened his eyes.

“Joshua, you need to go.” As if on cue, his phone dinged and you saw a message from Seungcheol.

Seungcheol: hey man everyone’s gone

Seungcheol: i’m going home see you tomorrow

“Seungcheol sent everyone home. You’ve gotta go.”

“Okay,” he mumbled. You went to grab your phone that was charging on the kitchen counter, and when you returned, he had fallen back asleep, his whole body taking up the couch.

“Joshua, come on. You can’t stay here.” You nudged him again, but he turned his body so he was facing the couch. Taking a deep breath, you figured you would just try again in a bit. You took a blanket from the hallway closet and draped it over his body and went upstairs to read a bit before bed. Before you knew it, you were asleep, too.

The next morning, you woke up to the sun shining brightly through your curtains. It felt like a typical Saturday morning as you lay in bed scrolling through your phone. Suddenly, you jolted up and remembered that Joshua Hong was downstairs sleeping on your couch the night before. You walked downstairs quietly expecting to see the blonde boy still fast asleep, but instead, the blanket you had given him was neatly folded and there was no sign of him anywhere. You sighed a breath of relief, though you couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.

｡☆✼★ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ★✼☆｡

Days had passed since Joshua had shown up at your house, and neither of you mentioned it to the other. In fact, you both had acted as if it never happened. However, a part of you couldn’t help but wonder what your lives would be like had you stayed friends throughout middle school. You were mindlessly cutting through your steak when your mom tried to get your attention.

“Sweetie?” she asked. You looked up at her with wide eyes. “Is everything okay? You’ve already cut a piece of your steak off.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I’m fine.”

“Everything going okay at school?” she prodded further.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.”

“Your mom and I were thinking,” your dad said. “We should have a nice dinner with the Hongs this Friday.”

You looked up from your plate. “What?”

“Yeah, it’s been a while since all of us have sat down and spent time together. I know you and Josh are busy with school, but they said he was free this weekend.”

“You’re not doing anything, right?” your mom asked.

“Um, no I don’t think so.”

Your dad clapped his hands together. “Great! I’ll let them know and we can have a nice barbecue together.”

“Great,” you said with a fake smile. There went all your plans to avoid Joshua and all thoughts related to him.

｡☆✼★ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ★✼☆｡

Friday came and you braced yourself for what would happen. Best case scenario was that he would come over and eat and then politely ask to leave to go do some group project or something. Or maybe you would do that, since Joshua was all about maintaining this picture perfect image. It didn’t matter, one way or another, you would find a way out. You came home after school and showered quickly while your parents prepared the hamburgers for dinner. Joshua’s parents had offered to make their infamous potato wedges, and your parents couldn’t decline a beautiful offer, so they decided hamburgers were the best choice. After your shower, you threw on a fitted baby blue top and high waisted denim shorts. It was still warm out and you were thankful you could get a few more wears out of your shorts. You went downstairs to help your parents prepare everything, grabbing some drinks, plates and cups from the garage.

“Need some help?” Joshua’s raspy voice surprised you, causing you to almost drop everything. He laughed and grabbed the drinks from you, freeing your hands to better hold the cups and plates.

“Thanks,” you mumbled as the two of you made your way to your backyard where your parents were all sitting and talking.

“Hey, look who it is!” your dad exclaimed. Joshua put the drinks on the table outside and gave your dad a firm handshake. You watched them converse happily, but you couldn’t think that this was the last that either of you wanted to be doing right now.

The dinner wasn’t nearly as bad as you thought it would be and actually, the conversation between you and Joshua flowed smoothly. It was almost as if you had been friends this whole time. Almost. At some point, your parents asked what you guys did last weekend while they were gone, expecting you two to have hung out with each other. And they weren’t completely wrong, but you weren’t quite sure what to say.

“Oh, we watched a movie,” Joshua said coolly.

“What movie did you watch?” his mom asked.

“It’s called ‘Our Times,’” you replied.

Your mom had a look of realization. “That’s a wonderful movie, but you watch it all the time!” Your cheeks flushed with embarrassment. You’d never thought it was a problem before, so why now?

“Really?” Joshua was looking at you now.

“Yeah, we’ll come home from date nights and she’ll be sobbing on the couch,” your dad added.

“Dad, please stop.” You had to get away. Pulling out your phone, you pretended that your friend needed help with homework and tried to excuse yourself.

“You’re leaving already?” Joshua’s dad asked.

“Honey, it’s been a while since we’ve all spent time together,” your mom chided. “Can you help your friend tomorrow?” At this point, everyone’s eyes were on you, and you didn’t want to be the one to kill the mood.

“Okay, I’ll let her know. Let me just go call her real quick,” you said. You went inside and upstairs to your bedroom. If anything you just needed a moment to yourself.

Apparently you had been alone for a bit too long and your mom sent Joshua to come check on you. He knocked on the door and you jumped, turning to see his tall figure in the doorway.

“Sorry, I’ll come down now,” you mumbled quietly, staring at your phone.

“No, it’s fine. Your mom actually said maybe I should come up here and hang out with you.”

“You really don’t have to.”

“I don’t have much of an option. I can’t really go home, can I?”

“I mean, you live next door.”

“But our parents would find it suspicious and ask questions.”

You nodded. He had a point, so you let him come in. Your room was mostly dark, so you turned on the string lights. Joshua sat on the other side of your bed, staring at all of the posters and artwork you had hanging on your walls. He was fascinated by it all, and except for a few changes here and there, your room was mostly the same from what he remembered.

“Remember when I helped you paint your room blue?” he asked.

“And then you got jealous and tried to steal the buckets of paint so you could paint your room blue, too?” You smiled at the memory.

“My parents were not happy, but I got what I wanted in the end,” he shrugged with a grin on his face.

“Like you always do,” you mumbled quietly.

“What?”

“Nothing,” you added quickly. Joshua fell back on your bed and looked at you. His eyes sparkled in the dim light and you couldn’t help but feel a warmth in your heart. Maybe you did miss him. But no, he was too good for you, too cool, and you would never be on his level.

“Go to homecoming with me,” he said.

You took a minute to process his words and scoffed. “That’s funny.”

“I mean it.”

“Why would I go with you?”

Joshua sat up and scooted closer to you. “Why not?”

You took a deep breath. “Because, Joshua Hong, I have no reason to. We’re not friends.”

There it was again, his name coming from your lips. “But we used to be,” he said.

“Yeah, keywords: ‘used to be.’”

“I missed you.” You raised your eyebrows in shock at his words. “I really, fucking, missed you.”

He leaned in, closing the distance between your faces, and before you knew it, his lips were on yours and you were suddenly kissing your childhood friend and next door neighbor of seventeen years.

｡☆✼★ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ★✼☆｡

Your eyes shot wide open and you sat up straight in your bed. It was a dream, you realized with disappointment. You touched your lips, marveling at how real it all felt. When you looked at your clock, it was 7:55 AM, Friday. You had to get ready for school and eventually, for dinner tonight, too.

[colindigs]

Omari Jazz's Dream Child

I've been very blessed to have gotten some wonderful recommendations from very thoughtful curators!

Came across this album on Bandcamp, off the music writer/critic Hua Hsu's feed.

Omari Jazz is an Oregon based music producer - I'd say their music is characterised by beautiful loop based, MPC centred, and live instrumentations.

How's it sound?

For fans of early Flying Lotus - and it's really melodic! If you're looking for something astral-facing and cosmic and spacey and a bit new age, yet warm - with lots of percussions and harps and strings - and really beautiful synth work.

What mood?

Good for relaxing! Lazy afternoons, early and unrushed mornings - any time really. A great alternative to lo-fi hip hop beats to study to.

You can check out my entire bandcamp collection here - it's not a perfect way to buy music because we are still relying on a tech company, but it's better than streaming! plus you own copies of the music!

[signutai]

sure. colonel hsu having 5s in all his SPECIAL stats could be explained away as just developer oversight or laziness or there just not being a need to customize him too much (chief hanlon’s stats are also 5s for what i assume are similar reasons). i could throw that out and come up with some stats i think would suit him better. but there is something immensely charming to think of him as just being an exceedingly average man.