#Nail Polish Market Share

[pearlsmith25]

Nail Polish Market Magic: Painting Confidence, One Coat at a Time

The Nail Polish Market: Colorful Trends and Steady Growth

Nail polish has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a simple cosmetic product. In recent years, the nail polish market has witnessed remarkable growth and transformation. With a multitude of colors, finishes, and formulations, nail polish has become a statement of fashion and self-expression. This article explores the dynamics of the nail polish market, its key players, emerging trends, and the factors contributing to its sustained growth.

Historical Perspective

Nail polish, in its earliest form, dates back to ancient China, where it was made from a combination of beeswax, egg whites, gelatin, and natural dyes. Over time, this cosmetic product evolved significantly, with the modern nail polish we know today emerging in the early 20th century. Fast forward to the present, and nail polish has become a multi-billion-dollar industry, driven by innovation and consumer demand.

Market Size and Growth

The global nail polish market has experienced consistent growth over the years. In 2020, the market was valued at approximately $8.3 billion, and this figure is projected to continue rising in the coming years. The market's growth can be attributed to several factors, including the increasing focus on personal grooming, the influence of social media, and the introduction of new nail polish formulations.

Key Players

Several key players dominate the nail polish market. Leading brands such as OPI, Essie, Sally Hansen, and Revlon have established themselves as industry giants. These brands are known for their wide range of colors and innovative formulations, catering to different consumer preferences and nail care needs. In addition to established brands, the market has seen the emergence of niche and indie nail polish brands, adding diversity to the industry.

Consumer Trends

One of the driving forces behind the nail polish market's growth is the changing consumer trends. Nail polish has become an integral part of self-expression, with consumers using it to convey their individuality, creativity, and mood. The rise of social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok has further fueled this trend, as consumers share their nail art and manicure creations with a global audience. Nail polish has also gained popularity as a temporary accessory that complements fashion choices and seasons.

Innovation and Formulations

The nail polish market has witnessed significant innovation in recent years, with brands constantly developing new formulations to meet consumer demands. Traditional nail polishes have evolved into long-lasting, quick-drying, and chip-resistant varieties. Gel nail polish, for instance, offers a salon-like finish that lasts for weeks. Water-based and eco-friendly nail polishes have also gained traction, reflecting the growing awareness of sustainability among consumers.

Pandemic Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about unique challenges and opportunities for the nail polish market. With lockdowns and restrictions in place, consumers turned to at-home nail care solutions, driving a surge in DIY manicures. Brands responded by launching DIY-friendly products, including press-on nails and user-friendly nail polish kits. As people sought small luxuries and ways to maintain self-care routines during the pandemic, nail polish sales remained resilient.

Future Trends

The future of the nail polish market demand promises continued growth and innovation. Some key trends to watch out for include:

Nail Health and Wellness: Consumers are increasingly concerned about the health of their nails. Expect to see more nail polishes infused with vitamins, nutrients, and nail-strengthening ingredients.

Customization: Personalization is on the rise, with brands offering customizable nail polish shades and finishes, allowing consumers to create their own unique products.

Sustainability: Eco-friendly and cruelty-free nail polish options will continue to gain popularity as consumers prioritize sustainability.

Technology Integration: The integration of technology, such as augmented reality (AR), for virtual nail try-ons and AI-powered nail art suggestions, will enhance the shopping experience.

Conclusion

The nail polish market's colorful journey from ancient China to the modern beauty industry is a testament to its enduring popularity and adaptability. With a diverse array of colors, finishes, and formulations, nail polish has become a canvas for self-expression and creativity. As consumer trends evolve, and innovation continues to shape the industry, the future of the nail polish market remains vibrant and promising, ensuring that there will always be a shade to match every style and mood.

[research320]

Non-Toxic Nail Polish Market to Capture a CAGR of 5.45% Between 2023 and 2030 While Touching Approximately USD 2.78 Billion by 2030-End – Report by Market Research Future (MRFR)

[market-insider]

Nail Polish Market Fueled By Use Of Organically Produced Ingredients

The global nail polish market is expected to reach USD 25.8 billion by 2030, registering at a CAGR of 6.8% during the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Natural and non-toxic nail polish are gaining traction among a growing number of consumers, driven by the rising environmental awareness globally. The use of organically produced ingredients in the formulation of nail polish is likely to surge in the upcoming years. This, in turn, is anticipated to fuel the market growth during the forecast period.

Nail polish is available in a wide variety of types and colors to suit the requirements of a varied set of consumers. The demand for nail polish with natural ingredients is increasing rapidly owing to their various benefits to the nails, such as protecting nails because of the exclusion of harmful chemicals from it, further propelling their demand in the market. The regular nail polish segment accounted for the highest market share of the global revenue in 2021. Growing nail art trends, mainly among millennial groups, have risen the demand for nail polish in the market.

Gain deeper insights on the market and receive your free copy with TOC now @: Nail Polish Market Report

The e-commerce segment is expected to register the fastest CAGR from the year 2022 to 2030. This is due to the rising consumer spending, growing population, and wide availability of products. In addition, introducing mobile shopping apps for nail polish such as Amazon, Nykaa, and others, along with the availability of safe & convenient payment gateways, are contributing to the growth of the online retail industry.

In the year 2021, Asia-Pacific accounted for the lion's market share in the nail polish market and is also expected to be the fastest-growing market during the forecast period. This is due to the rising number of nail art salons and celebrity influence in the countries like India, South Korea, Japan, and others. Moreover, some Asian countries like Indonesia and Vietnam are experiencing an increasing middle to elite income class in recent years.

This, in turn, is likely to offer immense opportunities for the economy and premium nail cosmetics, including nail polish to enter the market of these countries. Additionally, In the year 2020, Indonesia was one of the biggest importers among the Southeast Asian countries, and Vietnam was the fifth biggest importer among the Southeast Asian countries. Thus, these countries are expected to be a high potential target market in the upcoming years.

[themarketinsights]

Nail Polish Remover Market is Booming Worldwide | Innisfree, Maybelline, Orly International, Karma Organic Spa

Advance Market Analytics published a new research publication on “Global Nail Polish Remover Market Insights, to 2027” with 232 pages and enriched with self-explained Tables and charts in presentable format. In the study, you will find new evolving Trends, Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities generated by targeting market-associated stakeholders. The growth of the Nail Polish Remover market was mainly driven by the increasing R&D spending across the world.

Major players profiled in the study are:

Lakmé (Unilever PLC) (India), Colorbar Cosmetics Pvt. Ltd (India), Maybelline LLC (L’Oréal S.A.) (United States), Kara (Future Consumer Limited) (India), Faces Cosmetics Inc (Canada), Innisfree Corporation (South Korea), Komal Manufacturing Chemists Pvt. Ltd. (India), Kiko Cosmetics Retail Private Limited (Italy), Orly International, Inc (United States), Kure Bazaar SAS (France), Karma Organic Spa (United States)

Get Exclusive PDF Sample Copy of This Research @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/sample-report/4363-global-nail-polish-remover-market#utm_source=DigitalJournalVinay

Scope of the Report of Nail Polish Remover

Nail Polish removers are intended to soften polishes, operations, or hardeners so that the coating on the nail can be easily excluded. Ingredients used in polish removers can include acetone, ethyl acetate, and isopropyl alcohol. Nail polishes, treatments and hardeners have very similar formulation composition. It is available in various forms including cotton pads soaked in solvent, and liquid remover which is used with a separate cotton pad. Besides, as the design patterns are changing, buyers are picking another look and style to paint their nails. This interaction includes different nail expressions with sparkle, shine, hued nail shines, and different items like stick-on tattoos. As this pattern is developing among the purchasers, the interest in nail clean removers is likewise expected to develop.

The Global Nail Polish Remover Market segments and Market Data Break Down are illuminated below:

by Application (Individual, Commercial), Nature (Natural, Synthetic), Form (Liquid, Wipes, Sponge), Distribution Channel (Online, Offline)

Market Opportunities:

The growing beauty industries is leading to a rise in demand for innovative products.

Increasing research and development activities for the development of the new and innovative type of products

Market Drivers:

Growing demand for the branded nail polish remover ‘

The increasing number of working women across the globe

Market Trend:

An increasing number of internet users emphasizing online retail channel

The trend of bio-based acetone nail polish remover

What can be explored with the Nail Polish Remover Market Study?

Gain Market Understanding

Identify Growth Opportunities

Analyze and Measure the Global Nail Polish Remover Market by Identifying Investment across various Industry Verticals

Understand the Trends that will drive Future Changes in Nail Polish Remover

Understand the Competitive Scenarios

Track Right Markets

Identify the Right Verticals

Region Included are: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Oceania, South America, Middle East & Africa

Country Level Break-Up: United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, South Africa, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Germany, United Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Austria, Turkey, Russia, France, Poland, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, India, Australia and New Zealand etc.

Have Any Questions Regarding Global Nail Polish Remover Market Report, Ask Our Experts@ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/enquiry-before-buy/4363-global-nail-polish-remover-market#utm_source=DigitalJournalVinay

Strategic Points Covered in Table of Content of Global Nail Polish Remover Market:

Chapter 1: Introduction, market driving force product Objective of Study and Research Scope the Nail Polish Remover market

Chapter 2: Exclusive Summary – the basic information of the Nail Polish Remover Market.

Chapter 3: Displaying the Market Dynamics- Drivers, Trends and Challenges & Opportunities of the Nail Polish Remover

Chapter 4: Presenting the Nail Polish Remover Market Factor Analysis, Porters Five Forces, Supply/Value Chain, PESTEL analysis, Market Entropy, Patent/Trademark Analysis.

Chapter 5: Displaying the by Type, End User and Region/Country 2016-2021

Chapter 6: Evaluating the leading manufacturers of the Nail Polish Remover market which consists of its Competitive Landscape, Peer Group Analysis, BCG Matrix & Company Profile

Chapter 7: To evaluate the market by segments, by countries and by Manufacturers/Company with revenue share and sales by key countries in these various regions (2022-2027)

Chapter 8 & 9: Displaying the Appendix, Methodology and Data Source

Finally, Nail Polish Remover Market is a valuable source of guidance for individuals and companies.

Read Detailed Index of full Research Study at @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/buy-now?format=1&report=4363#utm_source=DigitalJournalVinay

Contact Us:

Craig Francis (PR & Marketing Manager)

AMA Research & Media LLP

Unit No. 429, Parsonage Road Edison, NJ

New Jersey USA – 08837

[thestoryofusstan]

I Wanna Be Yours

pairing: boss!ceo!harry styles x reader

request: Omg, can I request a boss!harry fic where he’s mean to everyone except from her??

summary: harry is the notoriously mean owner of pleasing, and he might have a slight soft spot for the new girl in the marketing department.

warnings: cursing, not edited

--

you were extremely new to pleasing, a very famous brand known for their nail polishes and perfumes. ever since you started (about three months ago), you’d hear literal horror stories about the founder and ceo.

rachel, the girl who trained you, told you that he was just plain rude. it was safe to say you feared the day he came in. thankfully, he wasn’t around much. not at your location, anyway. you were at the los angeles location, but he preferred to stay at the new york one.

tuesday morning, you got ready like every day. put on your usual outfit (a skirt, white button-up, a blazer, and heels), along with some black fleece-lined tights and a headband to push your hair back. it was getting cold out, and you couldn’t get away with just a skirt much longer.

with your iced coffee in one hand, your macbook and a few files you’d taken home in the other, you walked quickly into the building.

“good morning, miss townes,” the concierge greeted you.

“morning, nancy!” you greeted back as you ran to the elevator and pressed the button.

“late?” nancy asked.

“almost! this stupid elevator—“ said elevator dinged, and you let out a sigh of relief. “speak of the devil. see you, nance!”

—

by the time you made it up to the marketing floor (the twentieth floor out of fifty), you were exactly on time.

you moved as quickly as your heels would allow, dropping your car keys, computer, and files onto the desk.

“right on time, y/n,” rachel teased as you sat down. the two of you had cubicles right next to each other.

“long line at the coffee shop.”

“lucky you weren’t any later,” she commented as you sat down and took a generous sip of the iced coffee that had almost made you late, “mr. styles is said to be coming in today.”

you nearly choked on your drink.

“you finished those edits, right?”

“.. uh.. yeah. yeah, finished them last night,” you lied with a nod.

“y/n! he’s ruthless— he will literally fire you! that’s the new launch, and it’s overdue!”

“i know! i know, but i’ve been so busy, and fucking josh keeps making me do his shit—“

“oh shit, shut up. he’s here.”

“what?” you squeaked, quickly cleaning up your desk and opening the new launch photos on both the desktop and your personal computer.

out of the corner of your eye, you watched as what had to be mr. styles strolled through with an assistant who was talking about what you assumed was his schedule.

“you’ll have a meeting with the investors at three, and we have some papers to sign—“

you tuned her out as you tried to speed up the editing— brightening colors and adjusting the text so it fit better.

and suddenly, the footsteps of mr. styles and his assistant stopped. directly in front of your desk.

“you,” a voice spoke, and oh my god, he was british, “i don’t know you. who are you?”

your eyes snapped up to meet his, “oh. uh.. i’m y/n.. y/n townes. i’m.. um.. i’m new.”

he mouthed your name as if thinking it over.

“you’re the one doing the edits for the new launch?” he asked.

“yes, sir.”

he nodded before continuing his stroll. because, of fucking course, his office had to be on the marketing floor.

you let out a breath, sinking into your chair. rachel grabbed your arm with a comforting smile, “it’s okay, babes. he could’ve been rude.”

“he’s gonna see i’m not done and fire me!”

“it’s fine, just don’t think about it.”

—

right as you were about to head out on a quick lunch break, mr. styles’ assistant popped up at your desk.

“ms. townes, mr. styles requested your presence in his office. you, as well, ms. evans,” she said, glancing at you and rachel.

“uh— me? for.. for what?” you questioned.

“you’ll find out. i have to find a.. josh richardson. go on.”

you and rachel shared uneasy looks as the two of you stood and made your way to mr. styles’ office.

“if i get fired, i’m jumping out of a window,” you muttered as rachel pulled the door open.

“ah, ms. evans. ms. townes…. where is mr. richardson?” mr. styles spoke.

“your assistant went to grab him,” rachel answered. “what are we needed for?”

“you’ll see… ah, mr. richardson. so kind of you to join us.”

even you could tell he did not mean that.

“what is this?” josh asked, looking to you and rachel.

“you three were all put in charge of the new launch. correct?”

you all chorused variations of yes.

“and yet… nothing is done. why is that?”

you glanced to your shoes. you knew rachel was done. the whole project was all three of you were to make 300 campaigns and promo photos for the new nail polish launch. you'd devided it to be 100 each, and you all picked however many billboard designs, posters, social media posts, and so-ons that you'd do for the project. however, josh had slowly but surely pushed all of his work onto you.. until you had to do 200, and you only had around 130 done.

“i expect an answer.”

“i.. i finished all my photos and campaigns,” rachel finally said.

“i'm nearly done with.. my things. i was just helping josh before i--“

“so.. what i’m hearing so far, and correct me if i’m wrong, is that mr. richardson hasn’t been doing his job?”

josh cleared his throat, and you could feel the daggers he was glaring at you burning into your skull, ��yes, mr. styles.”

mr. styles nodded, and you understood the horror stories now. he wasn’t even trying and he was terrifying. “do you like your job, mr. richardson?”

“yes, mr—“

“so why aren’t you doing it?”

“i— i’ve been.. busy.”

“busy.. right. well, i’ll make you less busy. you’re fired. get out.”

“wh— what? you can’t fire me!”

“i believe i can. and i just did. so get. out.”

“i have worked at this company for eight years! i make one mistake, and—“

“i will not ask you again!” mr. styles shouted, standing up from his chair. you flinched. “because i am not asking you, i am telling you. you are fired, and you will leave this building. and don’t even think about puttin’ this place on your resume, i won’t say a single good word about your ass.”

josh scoffed and stormed out of the room, you and rachel followed.

you turned the corner, yelping when someone grabbed your wrist and yanked it.

“what the hell, y/n? you said you’d do my—“

“i didn’t say that. you just assumed i would. i am not just apart of the valentines launch, josh, and i have fifty other things to do, and i can’t drop that just because you’re lazy.”

“you better watch what you say to me—“

a voice spoke from behind. mr. styles’ assisant, “uh.. miss townes? mr. styles requests he speak with you.. privately.”

you yanked your arm back, rubbing your wrist, “yes. of— of course. sorry.”

you walked back towards his office with your head down, glancing up at him once you entered the room.

you were surprised to see a... calm look on his face.

"miss townes, correct?" he asked.

"ye-.. uh.. yes, sir."

he smiled, which was very odd from what you'd seen of him so far, "you can relax, darling. you aren't in trouble. have a seat."

you hesitantly wandered towards the chair on the other side of his desk.

"what did you mean by.. helping mr. richardson with his work?"

"oh, well... he just.. he kept saying he was busy and asking if i could do.. certain parts of his work. and i--.. well, sometimes i'm a bit of a pushover, so i said yes."

"i see... and how much of his work, in total, did he push onto you?"

"uhm... all of it, mr. styles."

his eyes widened, "all of it? and you didn't tell a supervisor he wasn't planning on doing any of his work?"

"i.. i felt bad," you shrugged, looking down at your hands.

"yes. well... mrs. maruska, can you please bring mr. richardson back in here for a moment, please?"

you jumped when his assistant spoke behind you, not realizing she was even in the room.

"yes, mr. styles."

it was silent for a minute after the door shut, maybe two minutes, until the door re-opened and two pairs of footsteps entered.

"mr. richardson, before you leave, you are going to do something for me," mr. styles spoke. "you are going to apologize to y/n--"

you nearly choke on your own spit at his use of your first name.

"for making her do all of your work. and.. you will also apologize for whatever the hell that was i heard outside. that is no way to speak to any colleague."

josh scoffed, "i'm not apologiz--"

"i'm not asking."

mr. styles gaze switched to you as josh begrudgingly sighed, "i'm sorry, y/n."

"it's okay," you murmured, glancing at him.

"no, it isn't," mr. styles quickly interjected, keeping his eyes on you. you much preferred them on you than on josh. they were a lot kinder when they focused on you. softer. "but.. if ms. townes says it is alright... you may leave now."

you aren't quite sure what happens afterwards, because you keep your gaze away from mr. styles, because you're afraid he'll notice how nervous he makes you.

"how many did you have left?" mr. styles asked quietly. softly.

"i have 130 done. so.. seventy left. but i-- i can get them done soon, i promise. i can just stay late, or.. or--"

"no. none of that. you'll submit the ones you have.. and we'll figure out something for the rest."

"really? i mean.. are you sure?"

"i wouldn't have offered if i wasn't. you can go, now."

"thank you, mr. styles," you mumbled, standing and walking to the door.

right as you grabbed the handle, he called out.

"oh, and y/n?"

you turned around with a furrow in your brows.

"let me know if you have any other problems."

you can't even help the foolish smile on your lips as you nod and leave the room.

--

a/n: part 1!! i really love this request

[ferrstappen]

max, the wag (for the third time) l Max Verstappen x reader

a/n: i was in the middle of writing this when news of Danny coming back to the grid!!! omg I'm so happy of seeing RIC and listening to his radios and everything, it wasn't the same without him <3

also, about requests. Please keep sending them, I've LOVED all the reqs I've gotten but right now im getting ready for my bar exam in a couple of weeks so my time is super super limited, but I promise I'll get to most of them (bc imsorry there are some reqs that I really can't connect with) after the exam, it's one of the things I'm looking forward to <3 but for now this kind of mediocre story telling will have to do...

ANYWAY, HOPE YOU LIKE THIS INSTALLMENT! you can find part 1 and 2 on the master list <3

summary: the continuation of your favorite paddock couple.

Max arrived to the track by himself.

If he was being honest, it wasn’t on his plans to walk alone with the photographers, Red Bull marketing team snatching him for stuff right after he swapped his credential. Even from far away he was able to hear chants of fans and more media than usual. 

But you weren’t right there next to him. 

He knew it wasn’t your fault, Silverstone not being a track where he was usually welcomed with opened arms and he was aware of you not wanting to be too in the eye of photographers who didn’t make questions to you, but there still were different WAGs and outfits or whatever accounts tracking your every step, especially with the new wave of partners and sudden break ups and polemics. 

Still, the selfish part of him wanted you to enter the track with him, even if it was a few steps ahead or behind him, holding your hand and smiling as you complained about the amount of credentials you had to carry: the usual green VIP Paddock, Red Bull something. You’d think after all these years they’d know me, you’d say and he’d laugh.

On the other hand, you finished getting ready and called the front desk to get a taxi to get there, feeling a bit guilty of letting Max go on his own, especially when there were more eyes on the track with Brad Pitt being there and a lot of important people who’d want to talk with him all day. 

Texting Max to let him know you were already by the guests entrance waiting when you noticed some intense flashes getting near. You’d been around a time or two to know this wasn’t usual, maybe in Miami but not when you were on the abandoned back entrance, not very glamorous and low key. 

But you saw her…

Shakira, are you visiting Lewis?

Who are you cheering today?

Shakira, third Grand Prix of the year! 

Did you talk to Lewis before? Is he nervous?

Your eyes followed her, mouth opening when you followed her small frame, exuding class and sympathy, even Alexandra who was also making her entrance stopped to get a closer look of the Colombian bombshell. 

Of course, they didn’t ask her to show and get accredited, she just walked by with a radiant smile leaving paparazzi behind as she kept talking with the friend she came with. 

But wasn’t that a Haas credential?

It didn’t matter, it wasn’t important, because right then your brain made the connections and started dialing Max while nervously biting your polished nails. 

“Baby, everything okay? Are you already inside?” Max answered, but his words were quiet and rushed. 

“Yes, but you’re never going to believe…”

“I’m sorry we have a meeting, please don’t go to the paddock, go straight to the driver’s lounge, okay? Love you” 

He hung up and you wanted to pull your hair out, knowing he is the one and only person you wanted to share this information with, and you were also certain he was the only person who would truly appreciate the gossip and speculation about his fellow driver’s love life. 

Max was able to leave the meeting almost forty minutes later, getting outside for some air until he remembered your call and that you probably were bored to death on the lounge. He was turning around to go there when…

When he saw the one and only Shakira in all of her glory. 

He wasn’t starstruck or anything, being immune to celebrities and the imaginary pedestal where most people placed them, but this wasn’t about that, it was about the way she was supposedly hiding under a cap walking towards the Mercedes garage.

He covered his mouth and hastily made his way to you. 

You didn’t greet each other with the usual peck on the lips and short hug; his slightly widened blue eyes told you exactly what you needed to know as he opened the door to his small room. 

“Please tell me that you saw her!” You said as soon as he closed the door. 

“Yes, just now she was walking to Mercedes,” Max was whisper shouting as if someone would hear him and it was the highest of secrets. 

“Did you see Lewis?” You asked Max but he said no. “What if you try to ask Brad Pitt if he saw her and like if they’re friends… with Shakira?” This time both you and your boyfriend laughed at the idea.

"I did see Sainz trying to go unnoticed with a tall brunette,do you think she is the new girlfriend?" Max asked and you nodded.

"I'm pretty sure he cheated on Isa with her, and I am almost certain she was in the Paddock Club in Monaco during qualifying," Max whistled at the new information.

Now he kissed you, lips fitting perfectly against each other, but your eyes suddenly opened and separated from him. What? Why? What happened? Max was disconcerted. 

“Please don’t laugh at me because this is a serious idea…” You told Max who had your entire attention. “What if we write to Deuxmoi?”

“Deux what?”

“They have all the inside scoops  and sightings, even your name’s popped up once or twice,” Max’s eyebrows rose at the information. “We should write that Shakira was seen on the British Grand Prix and I am one hundred percent sure someone will have more information!” You proposed and Max chuckled.

“Schatz, I can just ask Lewis why she’s here,” Max told you before embracing you, his arms circled around your waist.

You rolled your eyes before resting your head on his chest, but suddenly it hit you, swiftly lifting your head and facing Max. 

“Then why haven’t you asked him yet?!”

[thatstonedwriter]

⋆｡˚ 「 Relationship Headcanons 」 ⋆｡˚

Fizzarolli

── ˙•˚∘✮🌙ᯓ🪐˙•˚∘ ──

You in the market for a sweet n’ sassy performer? Fizzarolli is the one for you! My man lives for being dramatic, although he doesn’t always need to be the center of attention. Fizz is more than happy to share the spotlight~.

Shenanigans is the word that best describes this relationship. Fizz will play harmless pranks and playfully tease you constantly. A lot of the time, he’s filming too (but won’t post it to his socials if you don’t want him to). Of course there are times when you'll need space, and in those cases, Fizz just goes to bother Blitzø.

Speaking of- Hangouts with Blitzø are pretty frequent. I hope you can tolerate threesome jokes, because Blitzø will make them. Most of the time, the two bicker with each other, with Fizzarolli relying on you for backup.

One of his favorite activities is singing with you! Doesn't matter if you're good or not- Fizz just loves the thrill of singing along to your favorite songs together.

On that same note (hehe), Fizz loves solos (watching and performing). So whether it's you cheering him on or vice versa, taking a moment to feel like a rockstar does wonders for your self-esteem.

Fizz will often do this thing where he pretends something is a microphone, and he'll act as if you're a celebrity on the red carpet. It's a fun way for Fizz to flirt with you; complimenting your outfit, hair, accessories, etc.

loves pampering you (and himself), so expect lots of self-care supplies to take over your bathroom. Nail polish, cuticle oil, face masks, scented lotions- you name it, he probably has it.

I imagine Fizz suffers from some chronic pain due to his scars and injuries. I also think that his skin is super sensitive because of the burn scars. I also think because of that, he'd be very particular about the skin care products he picks out.

In the beginning of your relationship, Fizz will have lots of reservations regarding physicality. His main concern is that the texture of his burns, and the scars themselves will freak you out, and you won't find him attractive.

Later on, when he's more comfortable, Fizz loves cuddling - though, if you have any boundaries surrounding physicality, he'll adhere to them. If not, be ready to have him hanging on you all the time. A robotic limb draped across your shoulders, his head leaned against yours, a hand caressing your back, fingers tracing your palms- Fizz just loves being in contact with you.

spontaneity, impulsivity, and creativity- the lethal trifecta. Fizz’s mind almost never stops. Some days, he’ll be brimming with ideas, songs, comedy bits- others. Others, his mind is racing with insecurities, and overwhelmed by the need to do everything at once. He has the tendency to bounce from one task to another, so sometimes, you’ll find half the laundry folded, the dishes clean, but not dry, or hastily written reminders on post-it notes scattered on counter tops and mirrors.

He tries not to show them often, but Fizz has a lot of insecurities. They range from him not being attractive enough to full-on crises regarding his self-worth. If you struggle with the same issues, you both can be pillars for each other, offering comfort and support when needed. Regardless, comfort and reassurance are very important to Fizzarolli, and they play a big role in the relationship.

── ˙•˚∘✮ 🔭๋࣭ᯓ🌙˙•˚∘ ──

[fruit-salad-ship]

Jlxkgfhlzlhzlhvgslhhxhlxgkxmgzlgcgdmgsktxfjd

SOFT SUPERVILLAINS!!!!

YEEEES!!!!!

Let them have moments of soft!

I will share one I have thought about for the last two days.

Injured and in hiding, the girls retire to a safe house, patching wounds, passing bandages, and peach being the frontline has sustained some serious internal bruising, she hurts, so she pops some pain killers and clumps on an old dusty couch. Her head lolls to the side to watch plum applying a plaster to her arm, she sees her boss’ white clothes muddied, blood splattered, her hair is not it’s regimented style, her nail polish is chipped, her skin sports damage. She is not herself, and yet peach can’t help but fall back on a daydream. Hazy with her meds she doesn’t seem to mind being caught looking. Plum asks her what, a defensive tone, and peach rolls her head to be comfortable and indulges in her little secret.

She tells plum about the secret wish she’d had. She tells her that in another life, she’d have loved to have met her like a normal person. No violence, no spite, no job between them. Peach paints this picture of running a strawberry farm, selling them by the punnet at a farmers market. She is happy, with no one there to tell her what to do. Plum shows up to her stand, and they both seem to click, a background thought in their heads of ‘oh. I was made for you.’ As they fumble around conversation, with peach’s cheeky grin and plums open smile. Neither girl was damaged, they had a normal upbringing with no trauma to shape them into what they are now. Plum buys two punnets after being offered to try one, and they’re good, they’re so good, peach knows it, she grows em with care. Her parting words are that she’ll be here again same time next week, if plum likes them she should come back and get some more, you know, while they’re in season.

Plum of course comes back, same time next week, looking as radiant as ever, and this time peach works up the nerve to ask her to go for coffee sometime, if she likes, don’t have to. Plum agrees. They go on this coffee date and laugh, genuinely laugh. Have fun. Go on other dates, and this is where peach describes a bunch of things that even in her real life, even now sat on that dusty old sofa, plum would enjoy, she knows because she’s been around her long enough to have picked up on her interests.

Plum once upon a time would have used her quirk to get this story, but peach offers it freely, a cocktail of pain killers keeping her calm and numbing out the pain she’s managing. To plum, this is a gift she did not expect to get, always she has to extract information with force, but this is handed to her, this gentle notion of another lifetime where they get to be normal is offered up with peach’s smiles and weak laughter, aware enough that she’s being stupid saying it out loud.

Plum eventually says peach is wrong. It takes a while to find the words, but she toys with a thread on a cushion and mulls over the story. It’s not that it’s bad, she says it’s that she’d have asked to go out with peach first time they met, she’d not wait to see her again, and she’d not let peach lead. There’s no way. This gets a laugh that hurts, but her big guard can’t help it. Of all the things to have an issue with, that was it? Typical.

Peach slips into sleep and leaves plum to chew over the notion of what if. A woman impossibly cautious, daunted by personal connections, fearful of meaningful relationships, she’s been burnt so many times, now it’s natural to guard herself.

Once they’re back to work and healed up, the story hopefully is forgotten, peach put it behind her, plum however, can’t. She’s tried, she’s really tried, but it’s hard to look at that black clad woman beside her and imagine her being anything but a brutal gun for hire. The idea of her being slack, being sweet, is alien. It’s even more abstract to imagine plum would be on the receiving end, even after how she’s treated her, after how they clash hard, how many times she’s used her quirk to mess with her.

Plum stands in a shop later on, peach is gone, it’s just her, eyeing a tray on a shelf, biting her lip in thought, trying to be brave about something so stupid. She picks up the item, buys it, and takes it home. It’s placed on the kitchen table, where she looks at it for a longtime, with wine, over dinner, while sorting out emails and paperwork. Her eyes always return to the thing she bought.

It’s not until the next day, peach back in guard rotation, that she gestures vaguely after her shift ends for the night, trying not to meet the gaze of her member of staff, a woman who’s gone above and beyond in her work. ‘It’s for you.’ Stated simply as she continues typing on her laptop, not even giving peach a moment of her time, as if she had better things to do, when in fact she’d thought about this for almost 2 days now. It made her nervous. Peach picks up a tray of 6 strawberry starts. Little baby plants that need time and care, but could grow healthy. The only hint peach has gotten that her story didn’t just get thrown in the trash as she’d expected.

Neither say anything, plum can feel her looking over, but peach goes home, and carefully plants them up, and waters them in, and looks at them with a very gentle smile. In another life, they’d have been better, had a good honest chance at love, but who’s to say they don’t deserve it in this one? It’s all they got, may as well try to make something of it.

Doodle for fun^

[soralinklokidottirofmirkwood]

Quick errand: Big brother Alhaitham x astrologist little sister reader x Kaveh.

Age: 14/15 Reader Chan is Alhaitham’s little sister, she has a cryo vision, is a catalyst user and is studying astrology. Kaveh sends her to the tavern for spice but on the way home she runs into trouble luckily big brother Al got out of work on time.

You are sitting in a tree not too far from Sumeru city Sketching out a Star map that your teacher assigned to you.

(Ignore the broom, the book is your catalyst, you have on black nail polish and your wearing a cloak like Venti but in the same color scheme as the outfit.)

As you finished sketching a drop of water hit your paper.

Looking up you saw dark clouds cover the stars and moon as rain went down “I gotta get home anyways Al and Kaveh are probably wondering where I am.” You said quickly putting your sketch book, Star map and pencil case in your bag and then pulling the hood of your cloak up and running towards the city waving at your neighbors and friends “Goodnight Nilou and Layla.” You said running passed the performer and your upperclass woman who waved at you “See you in class Y/N.” Layla said yawning “Hope to see you qt the festival Y/N.” Nilou said waving back as you made your way carefully through the now wet streets of Sumeru city with the lamp posts being your only source of light.

You finally made it to your brothers house that you both shared with his roommate.

When you got in the house you’re surprised to not hear Alhaitham and Kaveh arguing.

You hang your cloak on the rack near the door then called out for your older brother and his roommate “Al! kav! I’m home.” You said walking to put your bag in your room “I’m in the kitchen Y/N but Alhaitham won’t be home in an hour.” Kaveh said walking out of the kitchen with a wooden spoon in his hand wearing his weasel house slippers and a matching apron “Do you mind going to the market Y/N? We’re almost out of spice.” He said giving you some Mora and going back into the kitchen “Sure Kav.” You said walking back towards the door to put your cloak on and heading to the market place “If you see your brother tell him I’m cooking.” He said mixing up chopped vegetables.

You walked into Lambad’s tavern and went up to Lambad at the counter “Ahh welcome Y/N what can I do for you?” He asked “hello Lambad. I’m just getting spice.” You said handing him the Mora “Spice coming up.” He said heading to the back.

As you’re waiting you saw a drunk man slowly walking towards the counter while Swaying and leaving a tip “Better be carful on the way home kid! The Fatui has been active in the city.” He said walking out of the tavern holding his head in his palm “I will thank you.” You said thanking the man as Lambad came out of the back with the spice “Here you are Y/N. The spice.” He said giving you a bag filled with the spice “You know while I’m here I’ll take three rose custards.” You said pointing to the display of freshly made rose custards “certainly.” He said as you gave him the Mora “Here you go.” He said giving you another bag “Thank you Lambad.” You said happily walking out of the tavern with the bags.

When you got out of the tavern you saw that it stopped raining but the streets were still wet, You walked down the streets again for the third time that night determined to get home and hopefully not run into any Fatui but sadly luck wasn’t on your side tonight when you saw four Fatui agents stand in front of you “Hey kid? come join the Fatui! Some one with your skill would make a great addition.” The masked stranger said “Sorry I’m not interested.” You said trying to walk around them but they blocked your way “Hey! You’re the acting grand sages kid sister.” One of the agents said taking out his weapon while you summoned your catalyst ‘Great leaser Lord Kusanali help me.’ You think to yourself preparing to fight “If you want to leave in one piece I suggest you leave my sister alone.” Said a deep and familiar voice making you turn around to see your older brother with his sword out “Crud, let’s go boys.” The leader of the group said running with his goons “Let’s go sis.” Alhaitham said grabbing a bag from you and then your hand.

When you got home Kaveh was seasoning meat “oh good you’re both home.” He said walking over as you held out the bag of spice towards him “Next time check to make sure we have enough spice. There has been Fatui active in the city, Y/N almost got in a fight with some agents tonight.” Alhaitham said when Kaveh shrieked “WHAT!?” And began checking you “Kaveh I’m fine I had my catalyst at the ready incase things went ugly. Oh I brought rose custard for dessert.” You said taking the treat to the kitchen to put in the ice box.

Once dinner was ready you, Your brother and roommate sat and ate “So Y/N how’s your star mapping homework going?” Your brother asked taking a sip of dandelion wine imported from Mondstadt “It’s going well but it started raining when I had finished.” You said “I heard That Layla did hers while sleeping.” Kaveh said “The rumor is true, but our teacher will give us another load.” You said biting on the steak then taking a sip of your Wolfhook juice “She’s one of the most devoted teachers in the academia.” Alhaitham said as you all continue to eat your dinner “And next time Kaveh wait for me to get home before sending Y/N.” Your brother said getting up to wash his plate “I didn’t know the Fatui were in the city and Y/N is old enough to take care of herself she’s had her vision since she was 7.” The ash blond man said as you two took your dishes to wash while you shook your heads from your brother’s and roommates bickering.

After dinner you bathed and changed into your pajamas and then you checked your homework to see that it wasn’t wet and was protected by the books you sandwiched it in between.

Smiling you put the map back in your bag and went straight to sleep hoping that Layla gets a goodnights rest “That girl deserves a vacation away from school work.” You said to yourself falling into a goodnights rest.

[awesomefringey]

Hi Sabine- hope you are having a good day. I have a question about PR relationships. I’ve never really been a fully committed fan of anyone before I discovered 1D and Louis and Harry (except maybe in the early 90’s but that was pre-social media so different parameters) so I’ve never paid close enough attention to one person to follow along with them outside of regular mainstream news, and I gave up reading gossip mags about 20yrs ago when I realised they were mostly bullshit.

I’ll preface this with saying that I absolutely don’t believe Harry is in a relationship with Olivia. My question is surrounding the purpose of some of the ‘sightings’. I get the pap walks and the attendance at high media profile events like Coachella etc. as these make their way into the GP’s realm and assist with PR for both of them (and reinforce Harry’s closet) . I don’t understand the objective behind the side stage/ backstage presence and other more obscure sightings such as these? This seems like something only fans would pay attention to (sometimes the photos only come from fans in the crowd) and I don’t believe the PR is there to convince fans of anything as I don’t think either side of this fandom supports her.

Is this extra ‘togetherness’ outside of the organised for Media outlets pap stuff a normal aspect of a PR relationship? Usually I’m quite good as seeing the rationale behind general things we are shown in different aspects of the media etc. but I don’t see what purpose this serves- am I just being thick?

Hi nonnie, thank you for reaching out because I could ramble about this forever. But I think your guess would be as good as mine since we both share similar experiences around fandoms and observing PR strategies.

This is going to be long, so my apologies in advance. 💜

I think Holivia has huge issues with credibility and image. In the general public they’re far from the iconic Bennifer-fication. They are called a “strange couple” and depending on the POV people wonder why Harry is with her or the other way around.

It must be a great disappointment that even Harry's het fanbase doesn't buy into it and rejects Olivia. I think younger fans can’t identify with her because she’s so much older and Harry’s fans closer to her age are furious about her behavior while dragging her kids into it all and making a show of custody battles like it’s some trashy reality tv. (It’s not helping either that she’s got a long history of treating people poorly.) This all manifests itself in very weak Holivia UAs with like 8k followers at best, of which many only lurk to rant over what they see if we’re being honest.

My impression is that Full Stop planned to market Holivia as this woke ageism-breaking ‘newly single mum succeeding in Hollywood in a male dominated field proving 40 with kids is not the end for romance or beauty or indefinite freedom’ dating this ‘gender bending rockstar aspiring actor who sells nail polish and wears dresses and waves his ally-LGBTQ flags every night but is so so very straight and therefore an icon who ends toxic masculinity’ where brand endorsement deals can be used in double with access to two different target groups/demographics. Harry and Olivia both wear éliou pearl necklaces, Bode, Gucci, Vans, Pleasing, Harry merch. Even better when one wears what seemingly belongs to the other. So outrageous. 🙄

But what happened instead is that people only saw an odd couple with zero chemistry that got together under questionable circumstances (they were still filming DWD due to the delay from closing the set) with Harry as Olivia's subordinate, when she had JUST separated (or had she?), and Harry had only been booked for his second role… And all of it in the wake of Times Up and Me Too as if THIS were the New Hollywood... To me it was the dirtiest kick off for a Pro-mance I could have ever imagined. I hate that Harry is involved in this shit.

Maybe many don’t see it like I do, but to me who takes great pride in feminist values and has worked hard in my profession to overcome the “cute and pretty label” to be taken seriously and now being a team lead in a male dominated field myself, it triggers me to no end. A female in a position of power should never abuse it and call it feminist. Olivia Wilde doesn't bring change when she stands for the same toxic values and creates unsafe work environments that have existed all along.

Why am I pointing it out? Because that part, the beginning of it all is something they still try to make up for. The longer this lasts, the less it looks like a reckless work hook up and more like a super serious love story that needed to happen under any circumstances.

Coming back to your actual question and taking into account what I said above - Olivia hasn’t been offered any deals at all so far.

I'm not aware Olivia is in talks for any scripts to be directed by her. The documentary she planned to do was cancelled? It looks like promoting DWD is the only thing left on her agenda. She has a lot of time on her hands and she attempts to use it.

Their ‘organic sightings’ are being used for articles is the thing. Those fan pics of Harry bathing in Dublin were all over the tabloids. Random ‘Olivia at Coachella’ fan videos were used as well. Harry meeting a fan in South England made it into the press. Harry playing golf didn’t.

So pics from the back of Harry unenthusiastically holding Olivia’s hand in Dublin didn’t end up in the tabloids. So Harry kicked it up a notch and went for a swim in Dublin instead. LOL. I really believe that’s the part that’s unpredictable for their teams. They “offer” Holivia content here and there, walking and walking and walking, but what will be newsworthy is up to the tabloids. It’s an unreliable yet very cheap way of creating buzz and promotion. And Olivia looooves the attention and I’m sure she gets off on the idea that people envy her that she gets to be so close to Harry...

[prince-rowan-of-the-forest]

Hurts Like Hell

----

Losing a friend sucks, somehow it's even worse when they were still there, only just out of reach.

----

| Ao3 |

Warnings: angsttt, bullying mentions, jealousy/anger, intrusive thoughts (i think?) about hurting someone. self depreciation, (perceived) unsympathetic Virgil,

Pairings: Janus & Virgil, platonic LAMP, very background Prinxiety mention, a single sentence of Roceit

Word count: 1557

Notes:

Hello! I very rarely write vent fic, but here we are. I had lots of feelings and couldn't write anything else, so I thought I would chuck the feelings at this au and see how that turned out. I think it went well.

This fic also serves as a bit of backstory/a prequel to This Fic for which I wrote the beginning but gave away to @lily-janus for the Spring Cleaning event! I recommend going and giving it a read!

However, this could also likely be read as an only slightly confusing standalone as well.

----

Losing a friend hurts. 

Having your best friend move away, losing contact, maybe you moved schools and never saw them again, maybe they moved out of the country so you couldn’t visit.

Maybe they’d ditched you as soon as they had a better option.

It hurt a little more, Janus thought, when they weren’t forced apart. When your friend chose to leave, chose to turn his back on you and never speak to you again. When you still had to see him every day in the halls and in classes and in the cafeteria at lunch. When you still walked home the same way from school but now you had to avoid him because otherwise it would be far too awkward. When he hung around in all of your old hang out spots with all of his new, better, friends. 

He didn’t know it could hurt that much.

He had been friends with Virgil for years, three years, in fact. They’d bonded over their disabilities - Virgil, struggling with crippling anxiety and newly diagnosed (at the time) autism, and Janus with his chronic pain and partial blindness. They had found solace in each other, as friends often did, and stood together against the bullying and harassment they both faced. It made it easier.

They had done things together, of course. Outside of school they’d go to the park or the library, when Virgil had mentioned trying to get out more, Janus had taken him to some smaller local events - fairs, small music gigs, local markets - or on days when the anxiety was worst they’d sneak off to the fields just outside of the town and walk if it was a good day for Janus or just sit together if not. They went thrifting, got coffee, spent time at each other’s houses, did school projects together and complained about the unfair amount of homework they each got given. Janus suffered as a living mannequin for Virgil when he wanted to work on his clothing design hobby - Janus had always envied Virgil’s ability to make his own clothes - and Virgil painstakingly beta read everything Janus wrote even if his stories would never be good enough to be published. 

They weren’t that alike, not really, Virgil liked loud, angry music, where Janus preferred the classics, Virgil liked cheesy horror films and Disney whereas Janus would rather watch a true crime documentary or murder mystery any day. Virgil liked putting on makeup, dying his hair, wearing nail polish - although all of it was punk-ish, Janus had never felt a need to bother with that stuff, makeup wouldn’t cover up the massive scar on his face, after all - he wouldn’t be able to do it evenly anyway, not with being blind in one eye. 

Between them there were very few similarities, really, but they found themselves getting along despite that. Their senses of humour seemed to match quite well and they had enough shared experience to fill up most of the space where shared hobbies and interests should be. And hey, neither of them really had anyone else, so it’s not like there was any better option.

Until, apparently for Virgil, there was. 

Janus still didn’t really know what had happened, it was barely the beginning of the school year, their freshman year of highschool, to be precise. Janus knew it would be a difficult move for Virgil, what with his already strong dislike for people and change, so he’d tried to check up a little more, make sure Virgil was doing alright, he’d tried to communicate a little better - texting Virgil when he found something cool or funny on the internet or out and about but… it must not have been enough. 

Virgil stopped texting first, leaving Janus’ messages unanswered while he got quieter and quieter around him when they were together in person until one day… one day he just didn’t show up at the spot where they met every morning.

He’d tried not to think anything of it, at the time. Maybe Virgil had been late that day - though he was never late - maybe he’d needed to speak with a teacher or wanted to get to class early… It was fine. 

Virgil didn’t come back over the next few days, nor did he reply to any of Janus’ messages (he had quickly stopped sending them), he was never in any of their usual meeting spots and Janus was just starting to get worried. 

But then he saw Virgil with… them. 

He saw him sitting at their table during lunch, he sat next to Patton and across from Roman and Logan, watching Roman talk animatedly - with wide gestures and a constant grin. He saw him walking down the halls next to Patton, saw him studying for a chemistry test - which Janus was also in the same class for - in the school library with Logan…

Then he’d seen Virgil waiting in their usual meeting spot after school and foolishly he’d gotten his hopes up, he’d gone to walk over before Roman got there first, laughing when he saw Virgil and patting him on the arm and… Janus had always thought Virgil had been averse to touch, hadn't he mentioned it once or twice?

Apparently Roman lived their direction too, and Janus had needed to change the route he walked home on good days to avoid them. Part of him couldn’t handle seeing it. 

He sat with them at lunch, talked to them in class, worked with them on projects, Leaving Janus well and truly… alone. 

It hurt so much. Every time Virgil passed him - barely batting an eye - Janus felt his chest constrict painfully. Every time he overheard him having a conversation with one of the others - especially at the beginning - Janus felt a little like someone had taken the floor out from under him and not in the pleasant ways always described in cheesy romance. Later, as time moved on, that hurt and sadness morphed into overwhelming anger. Every time he heard Virgil talk or laugh he wanted to scream, part of him wanted to hurt him, push him in the hallways, trip him up, make it look like an accident. He wanted to yell at him, let Virgil know exactly how much his leaving out of nowhere had hurt him and make it hurt for Virgil too. He never did, because for some stupid reason, despite everything, he still cared too much about Virgil to do something like that.

He was jealous, after that, jealous of Virgil because now that he had the protection of the popular kids he didn’t have to worry about the bullies and the harassment, jealous because he had new, better friends who could go on walks in the fields whenever he wanted. He was jealous of Roman and Logan and Patton, because now Roman helped with Virgil’s costume design, now Logan worked with him on projects and Patton would complain with him about the difficulty of the homework. He was jealous of the four of them, because they never seemed to worry about anything, because even Virgil’s anxiety seemed to ease off as time went on. Because none of them suffered like he did, and because none of them seemed to care.

Janus wished he didn’t care. 

Because caring made it hurt so much more. 

It hurt more when he made eye contact and Virgil turned away, hurt more when they passed each other in the halls and Virgil didn’t even glance his way. It hurt when he was struggling and Virgil was right there and he didn’t stop to help like Janus knew he would have years ago. It hurt when he first heard the rumour that Virgil and Roman had started dating - not only because of his well hidden and carefully pushed down crush on Roman himself but also because Virgil had gotten something he never could have and he couldn’t even congratulate him - the amount of sincerity involved in the theoretical congratulation varied with his mood. 

He’d tried being happy for Virgil, but somehow that had hurt even more, torn an even larger hole in his heart. He’d tried to forget about him, tried not to think about it, but it was impossible when Virgil was right there, just out of reach all the goddamn time. He’d tried letting himself be angry, but then he just got angrier and guiltier for being angry in the first place. Virgil was better off now, objectively. His feelings about it didn’t matter.

A small part of him just… wished that he knew what he’d done wrong. 

What mistake had he made? Because he’d analysed their last few interactions so much that he was certain he could repeat every word they’d both said by heart and yet still couldn’t work out what he’d done wrong. On top of that still, why did he deserve to be tossed out? Like a broken tool that had served its purpose? Why was it perfectly ok for Virgil to leave him in the dust as though they hadn't been each other's only friend for three years, how was that fair?

It wasn't, Janus thought bitterly, but when had life ever been fair to him anyway.

Being honest, he didn't know what he had expected, everything always goes wrong for him in the end.

That didn't make it hurt any less.

----

Tags: @full-of-roman-angst-trash @reptilianrapscallion420 @your-local-random-dino @cutebisexualmess @glacierruler @roseianxiety @bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti (if anyone wants to be added, let me know!)

[wellthatwasaletdown]

https://www.tumblr.com/wellthatwasaletdown/751685271796514816/calls-it-hot-wet-pleasing-summer-releases-the?source=share

Not necessarily ugly. I didn't see the entire collection which is why I said boomer ahh shit but after seeing the collection, it's either too boomer or too childish, there's no in between. But yea after seeing the collection I agree its ugly af. I also don't get why they have these cartoon/childish aesthetics when none of their products are for kids.

And Pleasing's marketing strategy 🙄🙄 I remember they had this really old singer from his fav band to model for their brand (Idk that band nor I've never listened to their songs. Before anyone comes for my throat I'm from an Asian country, and that band is not at all known in my place). I get that it's all about inclusiveness but he could've also approached so many iconic millenial & gen z celebrities to model for his brand. Anyways harries who buy Pleasing yet complains about its pricing are all clowns to me just like their idol. How can you still not see that man is greedy af. Its like Harry is the main clown leader, harries are baby clowns, Pleasing is a circus and we're the audiences.

The whole point of having a celebrity-owned company is to use the celebrity as the face of the company. They are selling point. Where is Harry Edward Styles in Pleasing? They use him every once in a while. Harries can pick that man's hand out of a lineup, but Pleasing rarely uses them to model the nail polish. They could use AI to put the new colors on his hands, ffs. It's ridiculous at this point. Harries wouldn't complain about pricing if their dear leader was modeling that ugly junk. They don't want to buy stuff from unknown models. Why do I have to keep pointing this out? The nail ranges are no longer selling out upon release. The only products that actually sell out are the ones that harries see him using. I need to be paid because the guy they are actually paying to run that company is just as incompetent as Baby Azoff.

[nancypullen]

Sunday Fun Day

I opened my eyes at 6:37 this morning because a certain black and white cat was battering me with questions.  I refused to get out of bed but I did give her some love.  The mister is in charge of cat breakfast, so once his feet hit the floor I’m abandoned by the furry sisters.  I don’t care.  I love being left upstairs alone.

After our morning ritual we puttered around a bit and then Mickey suggested driving over to the Centreville Farmers Market.  Centreville is a very pretty town about 19 miles from us, and it’s the seat of Queen Anne’s County.  Their market is fairly new, but promising. So off we went. It was hot and humid, it rained last night and tried to drizzle off and on all day, but what fun it was!  I came home with a big ol’ elderberry bush, some baked goods (focaccia!) and the cutest bracelets.  There were stalls with fresh flowers, lots of fruits and veggies, some art, breads and sweets, even candy.  I was hoping to see some peaches but didn’t spot any.  Poor Mickey waited patiently in the heat while I talked everyone’s ears off.  He even lugged around my elderberry bush and put it in the car.  Major husband points. He was rewarded with this focaccia.

I purchased one and we each had a little slice with our lunch. Basil, feta, artichoke, garlic...ohmyword, so delicious. My favorite purchase of the day was from a really delightful gal whose banner said Fresca Frankie. She makes accessories from all sorts of recycled goods - soda cans, bottle tops, old costume jewelry, etc.  It was all so fun and funky.

The beads on my bracelets are made from old soda cans.

I’m crazy about them! Bright, cheerful, just plain cute! This was the first photo I snapped to share, but I was horrified to see how chippy my nail polish was. Who am I? A year ago I wouldn’t have been caught dead with nails like that. Now I’m posting photos of my old lady hands with raggedy polish. It’s hard to care anymore. But hey, the bracelets are a hit!

Anywho, we came home and unloaded our goodies, had a bit of lunch, and then went over to the auction house to peruse this week’s goods.  I didn’t see anything I needed, and only a couple of things I’d be interested in grabbing if the price is right - baskets for the pantry, that sort of thing.  I only want them if I can win them for a couple bucks, otherwise it’s not as much fun. After that, Mickey went to his office to prepare some instructional videos he’s making for a photography class, and I sat at my desk and fiddled with polymer clay.  I should have done my PT, but I didn’t.  I traded mental therapy (the clay) for the physical therapy.  It was a win. Fast forward to dinner and I made some black bean/veggie burgers, we watched Jeopardy and felt very smart, then we FaceTimed with the Pullen boys. Tyler flew to Minneapolis and is at Matt’s place. They depart tomorrow for Berlin for a few days, and then on to Prague to end their trip. They’re already having fun, what a pair.  Oh, the tales they’ll have to share when they get home.  They always make me laugh. I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to be their mom.  Now here we are at almost 9:30, it’s dark outside, and I’m wondering if it’s too early for bed. It’s not, considering the cats will be talking to me before sunrise. So this girl is off to soak in the tub and then crawl into bed. I’m reading a mediocre book, not too excited about it yet, but I’ll plug away in hopes that there’s a plot twist. Goodnight from me to you, wishing you sweet dreams and restful slumber.  Stay safe, stay well. XOXO, Nancy

[brekker-by-brekkerr]

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#stranger things - 361 posts

#hsmtmts - 260 posts

#stancy - 184 posts

#insert witty queue tag here - 173 posts

#portwell - 142 posts

#marvel - 138 posts

#yes - 116 posts

#grishaverse - 113 posts

#stranger things 4 spoilers - 108 posts

#taylor swift - 87 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#also it's just wack to see how quickly people start to hate steve for liking a person they don't want him to. like i have never been a fan

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

tag yourself: types of people as seasons

winter: buying gifts for friends. soup in the crockpot. sitting by the fireplace. ice skating. fluffy mittens. baking cookies. dressing up snowmen. catching snowflakes on tongue. flushed cheeks. red nose. collection of mugs. snowflakes on their lashes. thick sweaters. sleeping in. warm hugs. hot chocolate. snow angels. peppermints. evergreen scent. vanilla candles. knitting scarves for friends. fuzzy socks. doc martens. cold hands. always has chapstick. smells snow coming. shows their friends the constellations. pine trees. good advice. nostalgic. always has something to look forward to. sleeping next to friends. snuggling. holding hands under a blanket. friends with the barista. long novels. watching breath fog in the air and pretending to smoke. dressing dogs in sweaters. skipping school. dinner parties. buying chocolate to share with friends. sledding. dead plants. hallmark movies. decorating cookies. believes in ordinary magic. toasted marshmallows. window shopping. fun pajamas. hates goodbyes. neutral colours. celebrating the small things. 

spring: writing platonic love letters. countryside picnics. tire swing into a river. flowy dresses. flowers in hair. gardening. wishing on dandelions. pastel colours. dancing in a meadow. daydreaming.

freckled cheeks. strawberry picking. soft indie music. rose perfume. daisy chains. tree climbing. cloud watching. hiking in the mountains. caring for ducklings. embroidery hoops. glossy pink lips. tea parties. farmers markets. butterfly gardens. handkerchiefs in hair. mushroom hunting. believing in fairytales. cleaning their room for fun. looking for fairies. rescuing animals. jane austen. pressing flowers. braiding their friend's hair. reading under an apple tree. light rain showers. smiling at strangers. giving everyone compliments. novelty. baking pies. floral print. thrifting. gazebos in the woods. living life slow. messy braids. holding hands. falling asleep on other people's shoulders. kind heart. flowers in overall pockets. early bird. laying in the grass with a friend. encouraging notes on the bathroom mirror. journals full of cursive. music festivals.

summer: vibrant colours. sea salt. coconut shampoo. messy waves. running around barefoot. sunkissed cheeks. melting ice cream. driving around with the roof down. denim shorts. strawberry lemonade. sandy floors. fresh-cut grass. sparklers. swinging at the park late at night. sunset walks on the beach. hysterical laughter. 3 am conversations. unplanned sleepovers. swimsuit under clothes. truth or dare. dancing in the rain. backyard picnics. crop tops. driving through the city at night. childhood nostalgia. music on full blast. dirty converse. drive in movies. sleeping with a stuffed animal. fun stickers. scavenger hunts. spontaneous road trips. stargazing. sneaking out the window. sidewalk chalk art. cherry slushies. travel backpack in the trunk of car. chipped yellow nail polish. chasing bubbles. friendship bracelets. disposable cameras. riding in the shopping cart. collecting seashells. dog walking. confessions at the top of the ferris wheel. chasing fireflies. the smell of sunscreen.

autumn: closets full of sweaters. messy buns. worn brown boots. hiking through the woods. crunching leaves. writing in a coffee shop. acoustic guitar. bonfires. painting pumpkins. getting lost in a corn maze. reading by a window while it storms. caffeine addiction. adopting the cat that lives outside the old bookstore. long scarves. salted caramel. tea collection. movie marathons. cozy blankets. exploring the world. maps pinned to the wall. drawing their friends. museums. turtlenecks. classic literature. dressing as ghosts with their friends. spooky stories. coffee shop concerts. book signings. cooking dinner for friends. discount tuesdays at the cinema. string lights. sunflowers on the windowsill. baking pumpkin bread. flea markets. hot apple cider. whispered secrets. sarcastic quips. old architecture. driving for hours. smells like cinnamon. flannel collection. costume parties. candles. phases of the moon. pine trees. foggy mornings. good storyteller. polaroid pictures of trees. loves change. walking through the city. gives their friends their favourite books. record stores. dancing in the kitchen. pillow forts. brown backpack. staying at the library till it closes. white button-downs. apple picking. staring out the window.

139 notes - Posted January 30, 2022

#4

If Portwell gets broken up in the next episode (or the last) over two weeks and extenuating circumstances, that’s bad writing. If season 3 had been a whole semester season (or half a semester, however long the last 2 have been) like the others and we saw the gradual deterioration of their relationship in a way that made sense, then I could roll with it. I don’t think they would break up in those circumstances, because I think they work really well together, but it would be better than breaking them up because EJ can’t spend time with Gina while directing an entire musical in 2 weeks that’s going on a major streaming service for the world to see. You can’t even say this shows how their relationship would go in other stressful circumstances, because first of all from what we saw of them last season the behaviour they’ve shown this season doesn’t even match, but second, they will never be in circumstances like these again. And it certainly won’t be the norm for them. 

Are we forgetting that EJ went to this camp specifically wanting to enjoy it with Gina? He’s not choosing this. If he were to say screw it all and hang out with Gina, everything would fall apart. Literally everything. Of course Ricky can afford to be there for Gina and hang out with her because he has significantly less responsibility. It’s not fair to say he’s the better person for Gina when you look at the reason EJ isn’t the one spending all this time with her.

Also, all the people who are making these comments about how they’ll laugh if Portwell breaks up, how Portwells are idiots and “delusional,” etc., why? Why do you feel the need to be so rude about a ship that isn’t even unhealthy? I may not ship R*na, but I don’t think it’s toxic by any means. I have my reasons for not shipping it. I could see it, if the show was giving me better reasons to ship them than him being able to support her at a time when if EJ wasn’t forced into sucky circumstances, he would have been there supporting her and having fun with her the whole season. If Portwell gets broken up, okay. You don’t have to rub it in our faces or be rude about it. 

I still have hope, and I’m going to say that knowing people might later make fun of me for it because they have nothing better to do. I have hope because I love Portwell, and some of their scenes together have been the best I’ve seen from romances in general. They’ve had amazing build-up, and I will always cherish my experience with this fandom and the excitement we all had last season as we saw them get together. It’s been a fun time. 

175 notes - Posted September 6, 2022

#3

I don’t understand why they couldn’t have left Portwell as a cute high school relationship where they're unfortunately going two different directions, realize that together, communicate about their future, and come to a respectful breakup where they’ll have their good memories, and they’ll always care about each other in some way. That’s more consistent with these characters, it respects the shippers and the characters, and it’s something that happens in real life. I still think with the Portwell we saw in season 2 they could have worked out (like, they’ve always been in somewhat different places, like him having his future planned out and hers always being up in the air as discussed in the couch scene, but they still understood each other and connected, that’s part of why they work so well), but if the writers needed to break them up, that would at least be better than destroying them and making them out of character. 

Seriously, why did the writers act like Portwell was bad and would never work? And now, acting like Gina didn’t have feelings for EJ. I feel like I’m being gaslit as a viewer. How can you spend all of season 2 making me not want to ship R*na, pouring everything into making Portwell one of the best relationships ever, give two characters incredible growth, and then try to backtrack and act like none of that happened. When I saw the way these characters looked at each other and acted around each other. This is bad writing, plain and simple. 

It’s not just a matter of liking one ship more than the other. If R*na was handled better, if they found a way to handle Portwell respectfully in a way that made sense, I could have been on board. Imagine if they had let Portwell unfold more like Jack and Gina’s airport episode, where they’re cute and fun but at the end of the day Ricky is the one she really feels things for. Because the way they wrote Portwell, it feels real and important and they’re so clearly in love and happy together. It’s not just this cute little midgame ship, they have a connection like I’ve never seen. They fake date, they scheme together, they do so much for each other and they have so much effort put into their relationship only to have it torn apart and treated like it was never important. 

Also, once again, EJ has fallen in love with a girl and she doesn’t love him back (Gina was definitely in love with him too but whatever the writers want to gaslight us into believing I guess. Which is so dumb because you can love more than one person in your life. Why did they feel the need to completely destroy every bit of Portwell after working so hard to make us ship them). Pointing this out isn’t prioritizing EJ in the relationship, it’s pointing out the crappy writing. Why are we doing this again. I think the writers must hate EJ or something because he never gets serious songs, of the main four he has the least time spent on him (other than this season with Nini being gone), and the writing this season for him was just awful. 

And this sucks for Gina because she’s having to put in the emotional work again with Ricky, which I discussed in this post so I won’t get into again. Do they hate Gina too? She wanted the guy who shows up, and Ricky hasn’t really done that yet, not in a meaningful way because it was just him hanging out with Gina because he didn’t have any responsibilities while the only reason EJ wasn’t “showing up” for her like normal this season was the pressure on him, and he still found ways to encourage her and make sweet gestures like picking her flowers. Ricky should be putting in so much more work. 

It’s sad for so many reasons but in large part because it’s going to be hard to watch the show from here with how all the relationships were handled. I wish I could love R*na and ignore the bad writing, but I can’t. And they could have been such a cute couple. 

293 notes - Posted September 14, 2022

#2

I don't want to hear people saying Ricky was the first one to really recognise Gina's accomplishment in getting the lead, and I definitely don't want to hear people saying EJ isn't being a good boyfriend or that he wasn't proud of her or any of the EJ slander I've been seeing.

EJ came to this camp wanting to enjoy one last summer of having fun and being a kid before going off to college and now he's being forced into directing an entire show in TWO WEEKS, a show that will be on Disney+ and therefore viewed by the entire world, and now he has to act in it, and he's been given no help. He doesn't even have directing experience. If he screws up it doesn't just reflect on him but all the people he cares about who are in the show with him. And it's IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE WORLD. Not only that, EJ as a character has a drive to succeed and excell and be liked so this already stressful situation is going to be even more stressful (if you know about the enneagram and/or you're a type 3 you KNOW). That's not even mentioning the amount of pressure we know his dad already puts on him.

EJ has all of this pressure on his mind and obviously wants to talk to his girlfriend about it, someone who would understand because part of why they connected is their similar ambition and drive and desire to perform well (they're both type 3s), but he waits because his first priority is giving her flowers and letting her know he believed in her and that's she's a star and she looks so happy, she says "you have no idea how much that means to me." As she talks about her feelings about everything, you can see EJ actively listening, and when she talks about being worried about not being enough you see him nodding because that's something they can both relate to, but then when she starts talking about how many lines she has and the play at large you can see him struggling to stay focused because of COURSE that's going to remind him of the pressure on his back at the moment. EJ didn't waltz into the cabin talking about his issues and ignoring Gina's accomplishment in getting the lead, he didn't even bring up his stress until Gina asks.

I don't know about you guys, but if I was told I had two weeks to direct a show that would stream on Disney+, with my zero directing experience, and then I would be acting in it on top of that, I would be stressed out of my freaking mind. Most normal humans would. And EJ is 18 YEARS OLD. He's just a kid and now he has all this weight on him and people are mad that he's stressed? He's trying his best please leave him alone. He's obviously still trying to be a good boyfriend to Gina on top of everything. He took the time to handpick flowers for her and tell her she deserves the lead and listen to her even though he's stressed out of his mind. When Gina comes to ask him to explore the woods he's apologetic about not being able to go and you can tell he's sad because he came to this camp wanting those kinds of experiences with her and now he can't and he doesn't want to hurt Gina and stars I feel for him.

Anyways if you can't empathise with EJ's situation then please keep his name out of your mouth.

459 notes - Posted August 10, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

people are acting like stancy being endgame would be the end of the world. when j*ncy is a relationship that began with j*nathan taking pictures of nancy undressed, which he then went so far as to develop...it’s so nasty and I still can’t believe they got together anyway. all they have is “shared trauma.” That’s all that holds their ship together, and guess what? all of the characters have shared trauma. i could keep going about all the reasons i don’t ship j*ncy, but there are plenty of posts out there that do that for me, and i think the him-taking-pervy-pictures thing is really valid enough reason to be anti j*ncy. 

but stancy. they were both so young and dealing with a lot of fricked up crap. both of them made mistakes. but they’ve changed a lot, and they’ve grown and matured and figured themselves out. i think two people can be unfit for each other at a time in their life (especially if, you know, you’re in a love triangle where the other person you’re into is someone who you keep being forced to spend time with so you have “shared trauma” and creepy old men telling you that’s love) and maybe it’s the wrong time, then grow on their own and come back together when they’re both in a healthier place. i think that’s beautiful. 

i still think nancy and steve are the most supportive of each other. and i’m so done with people being like “oh poor j*nathan this will hurt him he deserves nancy” but like. what does nancy get out of this relationship??? 

also people being mad that the everyone is “shoving” stancy together...it’s better than some random creepy old man telling them to hook up in his bunker like freaking murray did to j*ncy. this is different because it’s their friends (PEOPLE THEIR AGE) being like “hey we have eyes something is going on here my dudes.”

steve and nancy spent a very long time apart, and they’ve both changed a lot...it’s not something that’s coming out of left field and being shoved on us lol. it actually makes sense. people are too butt-hurt about j*nathan and j*ncy to see that. it bothers me how angry people are getting about the POTENTIAL of stancy (and not tagging posts appropriately but whatever) when it’s like. we’ve had to deal with j*ncy for three seasons basically. three seasons of this unhealthy relationship that started with j*nathan violating her privacy and never offering a true apology. great. but stancy is so offensive. okay yeah sure. 

870 notes - Posted May 28, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[conkniving]

pinned.

lalisa manoban. cis woman. she/her. bisexual greyromantic.  —   hey, isn’t that fallon amarin  ( aka: midas )?   i think that the thirty year old from pattaya city, thailand works as a night clerk for the black dog motel & the debt collector for the bastards, but outside of that people describe them as the foreign thrill of standing in liminal spaces, replacing the company of people with volumes of books, altered states of mind and the sober panic, the selfishness borne of young neglect, wide unblinking bloodshot eyes, welcoming the numb of biting cold and dirty snow, and cracked nail polish sifting crinkled notes of cash. i hear they are overzealous   &   paranoid, but they are also known to be crafty  &   dutiful. consider giving them a visit at their home in the seal harbour apartments and get to know why they’re called the conniving. written by  cat, she/her, est.

stats. pinboard.

tw:  drugs, negligence, violence & threats of violence

present.

at first thought, it would make more sense if fallon worked alongside a number of the bastards at one of the establishments they frequent   —   rather than haunting the black dog motel at night. but if you happen to catch the gangly figure nursing a cigarette against the railing overlooking the void encroaching the recess of the joint, it begins to paint a picture that she belongs in.

to add to the irony, she had happened upon the offspring of a busted puppy mill as they were brought into the local animal shelter several years ago. already teeming with homeless creatures, few things in life strike her as fate like the moment she decided to walk in empty-handed and leave shortly thereafter with what has now grown into a menacing all black doberman affectionately named cerberus.

not a mathematical whiz by any definition, she became the organic proponent for ensuring the gang is given what they are due and everyone their fair share. be it the experience   ( the beneficial and the traumatizing )   that has moulded the sort of person callous enough to obtain through whatever means necessary, or the sheer loyalty to the only true family she has ever known, fallon has been promoted from meagre black market dealer to managing all bastard revenue.

despite the complaints, the smells, the rats  —  fallon loves the seal harbour apartments. sure, paranoia keeps her from lingering on her coveted fire escape longer than a joint lasts  ( and the colder winter months ).  but the cinema lights filtering through ragged curtains, the drone of the market lulling her into a nap, the ability to catch a flick anytime she wants just downstairs...  it’s home. the first home she’s felt was all hers.

the bathroom sink has been permanently stained a darker shade from the frequent dye jobs. punk rock blaring from a busted boombox, an ashy cigarette dangling from pouty lips, spidery fingers massaging in convenience store sludge. anything to keep away the natural mousy brown under the ebony.

don’t comment on guitar practice. even if it’s a compliment. especially if it’s criticism. the latter garners a reaction not unlike a rockstar at the end of a wild performance. that instrument will be smashed to pieces, and on you if you don’t get away. it's best to just act natural if you come upon her lounging on the futon and plucking away discordant tunes.

speaks several languages:  thai, english, french less fluently, and korean even less. makes it easier to find reading material however, and it’s easy to know which book belongs to fallon by the cracked spines, peeling covers from fidgety nails, and endlessly dog-eared pages. peer through a couple and you might even find annotations, but you shouldn’t.

when faced with a moment that overwhelms, fallon will forget and push back her hair behind her ears...  there it is. that ugly scar. jagging through the hairline on the left, separating the first inch of the ear from the skull, sewn back together again. don’t ask.

past.

in retrospect, a lot of fallon’s juxtaposed behaviour and habits are attributed to being somewhat of a wallflower in the beginning stages of her life. set front and centre stage was her parents, who never quite got the memo to grow up  —  whatever the fuck that means.

born in thailand, fallon watched her parents’ lives unfold much like a passerby might; only ever briefly involved, skimming knowledge from the brief windows. sure, her parents were probably in love. at some point. at the very least pretended. what priority they shared was  money!  yes, cash. not their only daughter. her mother loved it for the things it could get her and her father loved it for the stacks he could accumulate. who’s to say got who in trouble?

the next chapter of substance was when the amarin family abruptly relocated to alaska. it's hard to remember what changed, how they ended up in some cold, dark corner of the world, or why they thought it would be better. at times, it feels like something is missing there, a gap in the gray matter, but fallon could sense the shift. in herself and in the life that she would then lead.

fallon often felt the absence of her father for those extended periods of time that she later came to realize was in due to his hiding from whatever they had escaped back home. but her mother didn’t seem to notice the vacancy. instead, she found new companions. it was jarring to witness the strangers that would leave her parents’ bedroom  —  until her mother thrust a new distraction into her hands in the form of whatever she could snatch swiftly enough. a toy. a cellphone game. some jewelry. a romance novel. cigarette packs. wine.

and when her father was present, it was never without unease. school went as average as it could get for a thirteen year old learning a brand new language, but that took a dip the first time the loan sharks came around the house. initially, they only surveilled outside on the street. what really scared her that first time was how her parents reacted. never had she seen two people sweat so much. mother scurried around the house like there was active gunfire but not to hide herself. only her valuables. father was a damn mess, approaching pissing-his-pants level, until he finally remembered his family and grabbed them both to huddle in the closet under the stairs the entire night. this would reoccur any time the strangers would loiter about the twilight hours.

when fallon’s school reported her slipping academics? all she could focus on was the shine on her father’s brow when he grasped at her bony shoulders desperately and insisted that she do better or they would find them. that she was being too obvious. it only made her resent his presence further.

yet, those loan sharks uncovered their identities despite her best efforts  ( really, was it her fault? ).  the sounds of her father’s screams seemed to follow her no matter how frantically she escaped out her bedroom window, no matter how far she ran barefoot, no matter how lost she became in the dark.

the thing was, those ‘people’ couldn’t kill her father if they wanted whatever it was they needed from him. that first visit, they beat his face until it was hard for her to look him in the eye. not only because of the shiners closing up the lids, but the blood that seeped into the whites instilling such fear that fallon often felt sick. it was long enough for him to recover and to try again to disappear before her mother shoved her aside one evening as she hurried her husband to the hospital  —  they had broken his fingers one by one.

being at home was getting unbearable. the good thing about growing up coming to the conclusion you weren’t even a main character in your own parents’ lives was that you could start doing whatever the hell you want.

subject to change.

[learningnewways]

Week 5

Well, week 5 has come and gone. I spent a lot of time in bed sick, so not much time in the library. Monday was a public holiday here so schools were shut. I spent the morning in bed, my stomach still sore from the weekend. By the afternoon I was feeling better so I opened the library. Since Antonia has the day off, she came over to help me run the library which was so nice. I really appreciated the help and the kids all loved her. 

On Tuesday M and I went back to the government shelter to visit the girls we had met the previous week. Unfortunately one of the girls had run away from shelter the previous day, so there were just four out of the five left. It was sad to know she had run away, not knowing where she had gone or what kind of life she would be running to. It’s not uncommon for survivors to run away, which I understand much more after seeing their living conditions at the shelter and no hope in sight for any change of circumstances...

For the four that remained, we brought them ingredients they had asked for to cook a local meal they are missing from home. It had lots of random ingredients and certainly did not look appealing at first, but by the end it looked really delicious. They offered me some and I felt I couldn’t say no, so I took a small serving, but I have to say, it was actually really good! It was probably at maximum spice level for me to handle, but it was still really delicious! It had fish in it and the fish just fell off the bone, it was so yum, the best fish I’ve had in a looooooong time, even though I saw it at the market before it was cooked with flies all over it... Haha.

Tuesday’s visit to the girls was much more lighthearted than the previous week, and they seemed to be in better spirits, other than having their friend recently leave. We cooked the food together, ate the delicious meal and just chatted. M brought some nail polish and one of the girls did all the other girls nails while I watched on. We left our compound at 8am and didn’t return until around 3:30pm, so it was a full day! I always seem to get headaches after being out all day, might be dehydration or the sun or something, not sure... 

While at the shelter, M took me to see the babies briefly. We went into a room that has about ten babies and toddlers in it, all sitting around or sleeping in their cribs. Some shared a crib and others had their own. There were no toys or mats in the room, and it looked like they spend the majority of their time in their cribs. I picked up one baby who looked a few months old and straight away could smell it’s dirty diaper. M could also smell it and told the lady there helping, who said, “Yes I know, we’ll feed them soon and then change their diapers.” So the kids just sit there for who knows how long in their dirty nappies... Doesn’t sound super hygienic, but hey, this is a government shelter, so what do you expect? 

M said the babies are not often held or played with and that any chance I get while here I should come and play with them. I picked up one baby who was sleeping and she was so small. The lady who was helping picked her up literally by the arm, it freaked me out. I’m always so scared that I’m going to hold a baby the wrong way, but that made me realise that my way is much safer! Yikes... She told me that the baby was only five days old and that it’s mother had died in childbirth... Wow. The other baby had been abandoned a few months earlier. It was sad to see these orphaned and abandoned babies just sitting in a room by themselves, no one playing with them or snuggling with them, meanwhile next door there was about five staff all sitting around chatting and doing not much. I asked if they were on their break but M explained that’s just what they do. They work here but have no love or care for the kids... That is so sad... These kids need an extra dose of love! Next week I will make sure I visit the babies when I come to visit.

On Wednesday, M took me to the capital of The Gambia, Banjul, which wasn’t all that exciting... Not much to write home about! No tall buildings or anything, just much of the same... We visited a large market which felt like a maze. There’s hardly any tourists at the moment so everyone was eager for me to buy something, but all the shops sold the same thing, so it was a bit awkward... Can’t buy from everyone! Especially when I only brought carry-on luggage... We went through the food market and I saw a few cow heads and snouts... Now that was one thing I could not look at! Like yup, that’s a cow... For sure that’s a cow...

On Thursday I was supposed to be in the library, but woke up with a sore stomach again... It could’ve been the local food I ate the previous day... Okay yeah, it probably was! So I spent the morning in bed unfortunately... Then I was supposed to catch up with Annie and an American lady from church called Joan who’s been in West Africa for over 20 years, but sadly I couldn’t go as I felt unwell... In the evening M was going to take me to the brothels and streets where the girls sell themselves, which I was really fascinated about and looking forward to visiting them, buuuuuut, that got cancelled too... So what was going to be a full on day ended up being a sick day... Fingers crossed I’ll get to go with M to the brothels and streets to meet the girls at some stage. That would really help me to understand the full circle of sex trafficking and prostitution from on the ground.

On Friday I did the second presentation for the school I’d been to the previous week. Last week the kids were all so attentive and focused, and it was a breeze. But this time they would not listen! Nothing I said or did made them listen, they were very chatty and fidgety... Not ideal when you’re trying to talk to them about important topics like sexual abuse... Overall I think it went okay and at the end I got them all to write down a question for the question box, and I’ll answer them next week. I got some questions, mainly asking, “why do guys like to touch girls?” But I got a lot of statements from girls saying they’ve been abused or harassed, or that they’ve seen it happen. Statements such as...

I don’t like people telling me, “let’s have sex”

I don’t like people touching my private parts

I don’t like students who touch girls bodies

I don’t like having sex with someone

Someone touched my breasts

Someone touched my bottom

Someone touched my private parts

Someone touched my friend

I saw a man forcing a girl to have sex with her

A family member came to our house and touched my breasts and bottom

Wow... I’ve spent all of an hour with these kids who are intermediate aged, and I got countless confessions from students who have felt uncomfortable about sexual things that have happened to them or that they have witnessed... When I read that last one I felt sick, like I wanted to find out who this student was and go rescue them. Unfortunately the questions and statements were anonymous, so if they want help they will have to be more clear and identity themselves to me. We do have a phone number they can call or message which I put on the black-board, so hopefully those girls wrote it down. 

I have two more sessions with that class, so hopefully I can build trust with the victims in the room, and be a safe person they can come to to talk. Even just standing up the front and saying, “If you have been sexually abused, it is not okay and it is not your fault,” is so powerful, and is a message that unfortunately not many of them have heard. On the flip side I received lots of statements, practically the same number of statements as there were boys in the room, that simply said, “girls like sex”. 

Unfortunately it’s not even a joke, it is literally what the boys think. Their culture and upbringing has conditioned them to believe that all girls are good for is sex and making babies, and all girls like sex. They don’t believe sexual abuse or rape is even a thing, because “girls like sex”. Well, that’s not what my comments from the girls in their class tell me! Their comments tell me they don’t want to be touched and that they don’t like it. So you have the boys who think all girls like sex and want it, and you have the girls who don’t like it and don’t want it! Wish me luck trying to explain to the boys next week that no, actually the girls you’re forcing yourselves on and touching actually don’t like it... Yikes.

My weekend was a quiet one. On Saturday morning I video called a friend back home and that was fun, we even managed to play a board game online together which was impressive! Technology is great. Then in the evening I called my parents, which was good. I updated them on all the details I can’t necessarily talk about on the blog... Ha. The real realities and struggles of life here and back home. On Sunday I went to church with Annie, then came home and decided to try making some good old NZ style fish n chips! Well, minus the chips, I’d made some of them earlier in the week. I went to the market and bought local fish for the first time, then made up some batter and got the oil out. It was okay, but not as good as the stuff you get in NZ, but still decent for an amateur! I did forget to take a photo sadly... Whoops...