#Under the Java Moon

[teenageread]

Review: Under the Java Moon

Synopsis:

Based on a true story, this gripping WWII novel captures the resilience, hope, and courage of a Dutch family who is separated during the war when the Japanese occupy the Dutch East Indies. Java Island, 1941. Six-year-old Rita Vischer cowers in her family's dug-out bomb shelter, listening to the sirens and waiting for a bomb to fall. Her charmed life on Java--living with other Dutch families--had always been peaceful, but when Holland declares war on Japan and the Japanese army invades Indonesia, Rita's family is forced to relocate to a POW camp, and Rita must help care for her little brother, Georgie. 

Mary Vischer is three months pregnant when she enters the Tjideng women's camp with thousands of other women and children. Her husband, George, is somewhere on the Java Sea with the Dutch Navy, so she must care alone for her young children, Rita and Georgie, and her frail mother. The brutal conditions of the overcrowded camp make starvation, malaria, and dysentery a grim reality. Mary must do everything she can to keep her family alive. 

George Vischer survives the bombing of his minesweeper but feels little hope floating on a small dinghy in the Java Sea. Reaching the northern tip of the Thousand Islands would be a miracle. Focusing on of the love of his life, Mary, and his two children, he battles against the sea and merciless sun. He'll do whatever it takes to close the divide between him and his family, even if it means risking being captured by the Japanese. Under the Java Moon highlights a little-known part of WWII history and the impact of war on Indonesia, its people, and the more than 100,000 Dutch men, women, and children who were funneled into prison camps and faced with the ultimate fight for survival.

Plot:

Rita was one of hundreds of Dutch children who knew Java to be her home. As part of the Dutch East India Company, the Dutch colonized Indonesia and ruled it under Dutch government, which allowed families like the Vischer to live and work in Indonesia, a small island far away from the Netherlands. Life was peaceful on this island for Rita, she had friends, her little brother Georgie, and the promise of starting school in the fall. All that changed when the war was brought to her doorsteps. With the ongoing battles of World War Two, the Netherlands declared war on Japan, which made islands like Java a target for Japanese attacks. With bomb shelters being built, Rita believed her mother, Mary, when she said their family would be okay. Even after her father, George, got sent to Australia with the other navy men. Rita's faith began to waver, as the Japanese came to Java.

 Mary never knew her life would end up like this. Marrying George, moving to Java, having two beautiful children and a third on its way. Only to have her life ripped away from her as the Japanese transported her and her family to Tjideng women's prisoner of war camp. There she and her children endure brutal punishment, starvation, forced labor, and cruelty at its highest forms. With the hope that George is alive and the Allies can win the war, Mary tries to keep her head up high as she supports her family through these harsh times. 

George only wanted what was best for his family, and his nation. Forced to leave his wife and children vulnerable as he travels to Australia, it was a mission that never happened. Having their mindsweeper hit, George and fellow navy men found themselves castaways, hoping to avoid the Japanese and their POWs camps, while trying to make it back to their families, in one piece.

Thoughts: 

Heather Moore never ceases to surprise me, and this novel is nothing different. Taken from multiple points of view of a single family, Moore gives us another historically accurate account, and one of the first historical fiction novels to recount the Dutch experience in Indonesia during World War Two. Telling the true story of what happened to Rita [Marie] Vischer’s family, Moore interviews Rita who was a child during World War Two and the POW camp she and her family were a part of. To make it more accurate, Moore includes small journal entries from other members of the Japanese POW camps in Indonesia during this time period. For the story, Moore switches between the point of view of Rita, Mary (Rita’s mother), and George (Rita’s father), and she tells us this compelling tale, with part one happening between 1941-1942, and part two happening between 1944-1945. This allows us to get a chance to know the family prior to Japan’s attack, during, and afterwards allowing us to know what happened to the Vischer family. What an incredible story it is! Full of hope, heartache, determination and fear, Moore captures the reader's attention at this unknown story, and draws you into the Vischer family and what they endured. Mary, the mother, was a hero, doing what is best for her children despite being in a horrible situation. Moore wrote her as a strong character who pushed through life challenges, never gave up hope, and was a constant good role model to her children, despite going through a terrible experience herself. George, the father, matched his wife in determination and perseverance, as he went through his own POW experience. Where Rita’s story is told from a child’s perspective, Moore does not dial down on the heartbreak that poor girl experiences as her childhood was changed forever. Like all Moore novels, I can not recommend this novel enough, as it's a beautiful story about a historical event that deserves to be remembered.

Read more reviews: Goodreads

Buy the book: Amazon

[wisteriagoesvroom]

LOL I can imagine for vampire au Lando starting to third wheel Carcar and so even though turning Franco is a complete accident he can’t feel too guilty bc he uses it as an excuse to hang around someone else, and somehow he learns more about vampirism lore through a human grad student than he’s learned in his whole life (he’s lived a long time, lots of info to absorb). Then also, if you don’t mind my ask, what do they all do for jobs/how do they get money and would Franco keep studying ?

HELP this is so cute. ok. norpinto-frando vampire au for those who aren't up to speed...

Lando starting to third wheel Carcar and so even though turning Franco is a complete accident, [Lando] can’t feel too guilty bc he uses it as an excuse to hang around someone else -> screaming cus, absolutely. random associated headcanons for this... i'll rewind a bit:

carlos is the oldest vampire, like, moorish/medieval era. he met lando while they were both at a masquerade ball in the early 1600s and smelled each other right away (carlos like wood and ink, lando like gas lamps and wet stone).

lando is an tudor era vampire. like he actually knew shakespeare and said he was one of the best viral marketers of the era

oscar was turned in the early days of the australian penal colony, he's like first or second generation white australian but he refuses to be called british. he moved in to the house because the rent was cheap and he doesn't feel the need to live extravagantly -- even though he, too, is $$ loaded $$

oscar didn't move in until about two decades ago - very short by vampire standards, to them it feels like yesterday - but carlos and oscar are basically They Were Roommates atp even though they squabble con-stant-ly

their neighbours think they are a new age-y polyam group but because the people who live opposite them are students, nobody ever hangs around longer than a year to remember them or dig deeper

so franco definitely brings a fun funky fresh dynamic

he learns more about vampirism lore through a human grad student than he’s learned in his whole life (he’s lived a long time, lots of info to absorb) -> things that baby vamp!franco teaches lando include

tiktok trends, like how to make ur teeth comically large in photos. lando finds this hilarious

how to use venmo

creating a roster on google docs for who needs to do what house chores

jailbreaking an apple watch so it doesn't read their pulses (they don't have any), but it will remind them of the moon phases and when they might be extra hungry to feed

at one point franco actually puts his academic skills to use and helps lando hunt down some of his family tree, because since lando was turned and it's been so long, he doesn't remember much about them : ( so one of franco's little gifts to lando is helping him trace his heritage

what do they all do for jobs/how do they get money and would Franco keep studying ? -> i love how practical-minded you are. um well let's say this fictional supernatural creatures' market mostly runs on barter trades and goodwill agreements. the entire house sometimes just gets lazy tbh so lando or carlos will just dig into one of the old chests of random shit and pull out an antique and go: "do we think this is worth anything?" then they take it to an antiques dealer who is also a mage (alex albon) and there is a 1 in 25 chance that the antique is actually is worth something, so that bankrolls them for another half a year or whatever.

carlos makes a lot of noise about being "an art dealer" just because he sold a goya painting to a museum once.

oscar is a man of industry, of the "newer" world (australia) etc etc so he spent the 80s and 90s learning C++ and Java and Python so he legit just codes for a living. or when he feels like it. oscar has helped launch at least a dozen startups under various pseudonyms and one of them is even a blue chip company by now. he doesn't do it for money tho. he just does it cus he likes a challenge, and otherwise fights with carlos too much. when he isn't coding he likes to tinker and fix things just for fun. like, he legit knows how to fix a boiler and stuff. his familiar is definitely a grumpy orange neighbourhood cat.

franco keeps studying!! he is such a nerd that he's like "i can totally learn everything about anything now, and i could in theory do like 20 masters degrees, and nobody can stop me"!! then lando is like, "well you might get bored of it after a while or burn out". but franco insists he will not. in fact with his enhanced neurological abilities he goes on an academic bender trying to fast forward through an entire harvard's undergrad degree's worth of material in a week, and he ends up faceplanting on his desk. and then poor lando has to go and find a fresh chicken or something to kill and revive franco 'cus franco wore himself out too fast being a bb vampire with accelerated mind powers.

franco promises never to do that again (but of course he will continue to do it once in a while, and everyone still looks after him in his lil study hangovers because he is so very nice. also he taught them how to use venmo.)

and. one time. franco is like. "i can't find this rare sonnet do you know what library i could maybe locate it in" and lando is like "wait i know that one" and pulls out an honest to god original copy that he at some point got laminated in the early 80s. and franco is like. "um i think this should be in a museum??" and lando is like "yeah but i gave them a copy of this, cus i spilled ink on the corner of this in 1603 after a really good night out" and franco is like "???? ok ????"

then lando swans off to moodily stare at the moon or some shit.

[aeriedwelling]

psst hi what smp series would you recommend someone watch if they're. not completely new but pretty much entirely out of the loop with mcyt? i keep seeing posts and its rrararrar and i wanna understand them

also bc. minecraf good /silly

hi hello !!!!

Depends on the sort of vibe you're going for I guess? I'll tell you about a bunch of the series i like and you can pick and choose what sounds interesting :D !! (it got really long so it's under the cut)

I had these at the bottom but im moving them to the top because i want you to watch them first. heart emoji.

These are some Non-SMPs that I watch!

Pixlriffs does the minecraft survival guide, which is basically just him teaching you how to play survival minecraft in java edition! he's really thorough and his tutorials are easy to understand and follow :3 i also just like listening to him talk so i put them on in the background sometimes if i don't wanna listen to empires for the . checks watch. eighth time.

There's Parkour Civilization which is just . a fucking. fever dream. it's so bad. it's so good. when you're done with the first one here's Parkour Civilization Two and PVP Civilization . thumbsup.

Whitepine. Is. So. Fucking. Cool. ivorycello made a period drama in minecraft. there's only four episodes and it's very pretty <33 that is all

//

now on to smps!!

//

Hermitcraft is the first one that comes to mind - it's a family friendly server with about 25 people on it! They're currently on season 10, but you don't have to watch any of the previous seasons to start watching!! It's just a buncha friends playing minecraft. good vibe :D

Some folks do Lore, others just kinda hang out and build. it's a very good time. I recommend Geminitay and Joel Smallishbeans, but if you don't like their vibe then here's a playlist with every single hermitcraft pov on it and you can jump around to whoever looks interesting!!

(I also watch Mumbo, Pearlescentmoon, Tango, and Skizz ! I'm not completely caught up but . yeag <33)

(also. season 8. is really short. and really good. and the moon may or may not be big but dw about that <3 /silly ohhh you wanna watch mumbo's season 8 soooo bad...)

//

Next series is the Life Series ! A handful of hermits and a few outside friends get together on a tiny little world and beat the shit out of each other. (half joking). it's hardcore with a twist, they have 3 lives. On green, it's a normal minecraft server where everyone is friends :) . on yellow they're in the uh oh zone !! and when they turn red they can start killing >:) . they get really dramatic with it and it spawned a lot of fun duos !! there's lots of discourse around winner symbols and shipping but you don't have to care about any of that you can just enjoy watching the silly goofy block people.

This one I would recommend watching in season order- it's a lot shorter than hermitcraft. the seasons are, in order: Third Life, Last Life, Double Life, Limited Life, Secret Life, then Wild Life.

once again i recommend Joel Smallishbeans! and once again here's a playlist with everyone's third life povs if you wanna jump around to whoever looks interesting! Grian, Scar, Martyn, and Ren all have really cool storylines :3 Martyn has lore that stretches across the entire life series which is pretty cool

//

Next is Empires !! it's about half the size of hermitcraft, with only 13 empires. Each player is a ruler of their own empire. there's established trades, and allies and enemies- there's a war about salmon and cod !! there's a wedding !! there's multiverse lore !! it's all really really cool !!

recommended povs . Pixlriffs (ohhh you wanna watch pix's empires soooo bad) and . you guessed it. Joel Smallishbeans! and once again a playlist with everyone's videos if you'd like to jump around :D Pearl and Gem are here too, and Fwhip is the guy who made it so his is a good pov to watch as well <3

there are two seasons and you can technically start with either so . yeag! i think season one is better but im trying to remain unbiased so coughs loudly who said that

//

THEN THERE'S SOS SMP which is like empires 3 !! kinda !! also by fwhip !!! it's another hardcore series with a twist- but the twist this time is that when you die you become a grave, and the other players can revive you with Fate Coins !! You get Fate Coins by doing advancements and the server challenges. It's a short term smp and im gonna say it's my favorite. SOS is REALLY GOOD.

i watched Pixlriffs here too ! and Mogswamp has really fun editing, and she just made a movie about the server :D and here's a playlist with everyone's povs again :3 shockingly enough i haven't actually watched joels sos pov sjldfksdj

//

OwengeJuice runs Rats SMP, which is a bunch of creators as little rats :D i've not finished either season but it's fun and cute and silly :3 first season they're in a mansion, second season they're in a hotel in paris! i think season 2 is still ongoing but i haven't caught up with it so i have no idea. o7

//

Pirates SMP is another one that I've seen a little bit of but not everything- they're all pirates ! there's factions! they do silly pirate things!

//

Then completely disconnected from any of these guys is Skyblock Kingdoms, which is a multiplayer skyblock server !! all of the players are divided up into kingdoms. they use wood as currency. there's cool lore and cool people. i watched every pov for a while so this one u will just have to jump around to see who you like sjdlfkj. (i like avid, doovid, ruby, vintage, and milkman if that helps at all!)

//

hopefully that's an alright start !! if you're drawn to like . specific fanart and want to know what's up with the fanart specifically then you can send it to me and i'll let you know what server it's for if you wanna start there :3

that is all thank u for letting me infodump. i can attempt to go more in depth with any and all of these if u would like <33

[aloekat]

im starting to cook a bit……..

(explanation for each choice below the cut)

ok SO!

gorgug / gorge (lazy name ik im sorry </3) - mudwing because mudwings can be seen as “stupid” or “slow” but are actually gentle giants so this fit gorgug very well. would be raised by leafwings (thistlespring is a VERY leafwing-y name) who also taught him kindness rather than anger.

fabian / seacast (another lazy name but it works rlly well) - a flamesilk hybrid, he creates webbed sheets that he uses in battle and dance to both dazzle and destroy. excellent swimmer and can breathe underwater.

adaine / oracle (too perfect of a name NOT to choose) - a nightwing for prophetic powers obviously how could i not make her a nightwing. born under 3 moons but strangely does not have mind reading. because of this it has strengthened her prophetic power even more, to an almost divine level.

riz / java (like a coffee bean because my boy is also small and filled with energy) - uses his camouflage to do detective work. has learned to keep his scales in check when it comes to emotions, as he doesnt want to give any free insight to his enemies (or sometimes his friends sadly :[ )

kristen / maize (her parents would name her after corn of course) - considered a prophet of a harvest god, she is said to being good fortune to even the harshest parts of the desert. however she soon worships a goddess of night because the desert at night seems always overlooked

fig / cardinal (very protective bird who is also red colored) - part hivewing but the forehead horn didn’t come in until preteens. most dragons thought she was just a spikier skywing until that front horn started growing. she has a firescales skywing (named Phoenix) for her girlfriend :]

this is going to appeal to i feel a VERY small demographic (both wings of fire AND fantasy high fans) so i do not expect much attention to be given to this post lol

but i have been thinking about it a lot so i at lease wanted to share :]!

[greenbergsays]

Ked's right, I do have book recs that you can find under this tag and also some on my writing blog here. I also have a page here where you can see what's on my bookshelf, but you can't filter it because Tumblr doesn't allow Java anymore >__>

I wouldn't call that page a rec list, though, it's just an inventory of what I own or what's on my list to own. Some of those books are objectively terrible and I will freely admit that, but there was something about them compelling enough that I read them more than once.

I didn't mean for the below to turn into me just reccing you authors but it kind of turned into that, so here are authors I would recommend:

Onley James - I love her so much that I support her Patreon. All of her stuff is good (and loosely connected) but my favorites are, of course, the Necessary Evils series. It has two spin-off series which I also very much enjoy: Jericho's Boys & The Watch. All three series surround the psychopaths in love trope, however Jericho's Boys and the first book in the Watch series do not feature it as a main trope because neither of the main characters fit the bill. Most of them do feature some level of kink, though.

Kiki Clark - Her main series is werewolves (but no Omegaverse) and it's called the Kincaid Pack. The first book is my favorite, but I own them all. It's finished and she's starting a new series in that 'verse, the prequel to which I think is The Mobster's Mate, which is so up my alley it's like someone was spying on me. She also has a MC/kink series called Leather & Chrome that's good, but it's not my favorite kink series. (Kiki also have other contemporary books that I love, I just don't want this to get too long)

SPEAKING of kink. Robin (RJ) Moray - She has a series called His Boy Next Door that gay-awakening, age gap, and BDSM-related. It has a spin-off series about two other characters called A Collar For His Brat, both are excellent. The only thing is in HBND, the main character's name is Channon and that took some getting used to. Robin also has other books which I highly recommend--including a space Omegaverse story called Changed: Mated to the Alien Alpha, which is very good--she is probably my Top 3 favorite authors and the fact that more of her stuff isn't available in paperback is a source of constant misery for me.

Eliot Grayson -- The only person I can think of off the top of my head that writes well-written first person POV. The Mismatched Mates series is her main title iirc. It's a soul-bonding / "mate or die" situation at first and segues eventually into "mating for convenience." Some stories are related and some aren't.

Stella Starling -- if you like high fluff and low angst, this is the author for you. All of her stuff is contemporary and very cute. My favorite series is the Semper Fi one but I like & own them all.

Sam Burns (and Sam Burns w/ W.M. Fawkes) - They do anything fantasy/magic-related. Werewolves, urban fantasy, there's a series about the Greek Gods, etc. I haven't read ALL of their works, but the stuff I have read, I like. My favorites / the ones I own: Wolves of Kismet (Omegaverse), the Star-Marked Warrior series (sci-fi/aliens), & Wolf Moon Rising (Omegaverse).

Ella Frank (and Ella Frank w/ Brooke Blaine) - Contemporary writer(s) that specialize in writing multiple books for the same couple. There's a lot of gay/bi-awakening. The Temptation series is a fantastic audiobook journey that I cannot recommend enough, that narrator was amazing. I also really liked the first three Fallen Angel books are about the same couple and I love them, the fourth FA book is about a different couple and I DNFed it. Couldn't say why, it just didn't hold my interest.

...I have more, but I should probably work at some point this morning. So if you want more / want a specific rec for a specific trope or genre, lemme know!

[primaverina]

welcome 🌙

my name is andrea and i write sometimes (exclusively jinkook atm!).

INFO:

📝 ao3 💌 mond inbox 🦋 bluesky 📖 carrd

AO3 WORKS:

java java 💻☕️ - on a thursday morning like any other, seokjin loses two things: his wallet and a little bit of his dignity. but he also gains two: a cheeky new regular at his coffee shop and a desperate wish for his life to go back to normal. (Rated E, 10/12 chapters, 187k words, ongoing) two lovers under the moon 🫂 ⬇️ 🌕 - Their paths cross once more, five years after their greatest heartbreak, after everything was lost. Jeongguk returns to Hanyang in glory and is determined to do it all differently. Seokjin suffers the loss of his family's status and faces heartbreak once again. Can they overcome the pain and grief of their separation, or will their fates break apart for good? (Rated T, 15/? chapters, 86k words, ongoing) s(we)e(t) dreams are made of this 💦 💭 - Jeon Jungkook has gone over six months without sex and it's driving him a little crazy. That is the only explanation for the dreams he keeps having about Kim Seokjin, the co-worker he swears he doesn't like. (Rated E, 3/4 chapters, 44k words, ongoing) his private life 🎮 🤫 ⛈️ 😱 - It was the day they got caught in the rain that Seokjin’s biggest secret was revealed. (Rated G, 1/1 chapters, 4k words, complete)

OTHER THINGS:

i track #user primaverina

i write slow

BTS FOREVER

[marismoments39]

:-0 no problem if you're not an avid yuri gal! I'd say not a lot has been animated anyway lol. Dragon maid is. Uh. -_-. And I would say adachi n shimamura suffers from "adapted from a light novel so its kinda weird" so I'm not surprised you didnt hook onto those.

If you ever want suggestions you might like slow start or demon girl next door, both pretty fun slice of life comedy affairs. For more action akuma no riddle is still solid.

Enough about that though, we can see you like genshin, but do you play a lot of other games?

Ah, I see! Thanks for the recommendations! It'll probably take me a long while to get around to them (as you can see with my.. very slow ask-answering....) but I'll bear them in mind for whenever I wanna start something new!

anyways, as for games? I'm in a bit of a situation here!! my computer.. SUCKS. it has like NO SPACE!! I only have FOUR GAMES on it!!!!

those being (in order of when I first played them:)

-Minecraft (bedrock) (this computer can't run java and honestly I blame minecraft itself) -Terraria -Genshin Impact -Honkai: Star Rail

I LOVE all of these games SO VERY MUCH!! well, maybe star rail still needs to grow on me, but ALL THE OTHERS I LOVE THEM! this list probably doesn't give you a good idea of what I am as a gamer lol, these are all extremely popular games, I do have a NINTENDO SWITCH!! THOUGH!!! ISN'T THAT COOL??? I still don't believe I have it

here are the games I have on there (in order of hours played)

-Hollow Knight -Hatsune Miku: Project Diva: Mega Mix -Sonic Frontiers -Sonic Mania (plus) -Pokemon Scarlet -Deltarune -Hatsune Miku Logic Paint S -Hatsune Miku Jigsaw Puzzle -PuyoPuyo Tetris 2 -Rain world (mainly got it cuz of pow but GOD is it hard) -Everhood -Ace Attourney

-I also tried out games like A Hat in Time and Stardew Valley, though they were fun to watch, I didn't have much fun playing them. which is sad. I don't know how to refund on switch lol

some of these games only have low hours because I just got them. like ace attourney? under an hour of gametime lol

I'll tell you a little anecdote about each game!!

Hollow Knight: I first played hollow knight at my cousin's house in 2018(or 2019?) I sorta sucked at it. I remember saying "this is just swordigo but, like, better" and I guess I was right? swordigo's a mobile metroidvania I used to play btw lol~ anyways in 2020(??? or 2021?????) one of my favourite youtubers (merg) started playing hollow knight and I was like huh..! this is actually sorta fun?? I didn't have an income nor allowance at the time so I couldn't BUY the game for myself.. so I watched his ENTIRE series before I bought the game for myself!! still, it was fun!

Hatsune Miku: Project Diva: You may not know this game, but there are two modes! arcade mode, and mix mode! arcade mode is like the mode where you hold the joy-cons vertically and use like motion controls and uh it's complicated but basically I LOVE THAT!! I LOVE THE MOTION CONTROLS SO MUCH!! LITERALLY THE ONLY GAME WHERE I LIKE THEM LOL!!! Also! Project Diva is what got me into vocaloid! not the other way round! isn't that cool!!!

Sonic fron... wait. I'm gonna. I'm gonna be typing this post forever

obviously this isn't every game I've played ever, I mean how can any list of moon's favourite games be complete without min hero?? uh, but, I don't wanna be typing this list forever! how about this, if any of those games sounded interesting, say so! I'll give you stories! I have a TON!!

Thanks for the ask!

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 6.21 (after 1960)

1963 – Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini is elected as Pope Paul VI. 1964 – Three civil rights workers, Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner, are murdered in Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States, by members of the Ku Klux Klan. 1970 – Penn Central declares Section 77 bankruptcy in what was the largest U.S. corporate bankruptcy to date. 1973 – The Primer Congreso del Hombre Andino is inaugurated in Arica, Chile. 1973 – In its decision in Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15, the Supreme Court of the United States establishes the Miller test for determining whether something is obscene and not protected speech under the U.S. constitution. 1978 – The original production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, Evita, based on the life of Eva Perón, opens at the Prince Edward Theatre, London. 1982 – John Hinckley is found not guilty by reason of insanity for the attempted assassination of U.S. President Ronald Reagan. 1985 – Braathens SAFE Flight 139 is hijacked on approach to Oslo Airport, Fornebu. Special forces arrest the hijacker and there are no fatalities. 1989 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397, that American flag-burning is a form of political protest protected by the First Amendment. 1993 – Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on STS-57 to retrieve the European Retrievable Carrier (EURECA) satellite. It is also the first shuttle mission to carry the Spacehab module. 2000 – Section 28 (of the Local Government Act 1988), outlawing the 'promotion' of homosexuality in the United Kingdom, is repealed in Scotland with a 99 to 17 vote. 2001 – A federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, indicts 13 Saudis and a Lebanese in the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 American servicemen. 2004 – SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately funded spaceplane to achieve spaceflight. 2005 – Edgar Ray Killen, who had previously been unsuccessfully tried for the murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Mickey Schwerner, is convicted of manslaughter 41 years afterwards (the case had been reopened in 2004). 2006 – Pluto's newly discovered moons are officially named Nix and Hydra. 2006 – A Yeti Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter crashes at Jumla Airport in Nepal, killing nine people. 2009 – Greenland assumes self-rule. 2012 – A boat carrying more than 200 migrants capsizes in the Indian Ocean between the Indonesian island of Java and Christmas Island, killing 17 people and leaving 70 others missing. 2012 – An Indonesian Air Force Fokker F27 Friendship crashes near Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport, killing 11.

[module06travel-log]

Creative Project: Travel Log - Indonesia (1)

Indonesia is a country rich in historical and cultural roots. I visited 3 sites and attended two events in Indonesia post-1500 CE. This post shares my findings throughout each site and the events I experienced during my unforgettable excursion.

Borobudur Temple 1500 CE:

In 1500 CE, shortly after its abandonment, I visited the great Buddhist temple of Borobudur. Located about 25 miles from Yogyakarta, the revered Borobudur temple of central Java is a historical landmark of the now-fallen Shailendra dynasty.

I admired the holy site from afar. Trekking my way up the elevated hill, the temple seemed to span well over the size of an American football field, stretching just a bit above 400 feet at a glance. It was an astounding 2,000,000 cubic feet in size consisting of a pyramid-like base, 5 square terraces, and 3 primary levels constructed of andesite.

The exact causes of the temple’s desertion remain debated among modern historians, however, it is undeniable that the rapid spread of Islam in the 15th century was the main reason for this abandonment. Despite the wear and tear of the temple, it was a sight to marvel at. The level of detail on every surface of the structure was something I had never seen before. Every block and ornamental piece was carefully cut and placed in a way that did not require bonding agents such as mortar or cement. It likely took ~20-40 decades (c. 775 CE - 800-825 CE) to construct.

Once I finally set foot on the sacred grounds, I was unexpectedly greeted by a Buddhist monk wearing a traditional saffron-colored robe.

He is one of the last few dedicated members to leave the site, claiming that the holy temple was once a religious pillar of the region and a place of pilgrimage. A celebration of Buddha’s conception, passing, and journey of enlightenment took place in the temple of Borobudur every year during the blue moon. Large gatherings of devout followers would proceed in dignified unison in this commemoration known as the Waisak or Vesak ceremony.

I ascend the structure with him as he earnestly explains how the monument portrays the path to bodhisattva (path towards Buddhahood), each level, and the stories behind them. The combination of square terraces and circular platforms represents the symbols of Earth and heaven, creating the Mandala, a mythological depiction of the universe itself. On the lowest level of the temple were more than a hundred bas-relief engravings, each wall illustrating kama-dhatu, the “realm of feeling.”

The 2nd level, representing rupa-dhatu, the “realm of form,” is similarly embellished with countless reliefs, portraying the story of Gautama Buddha (the enlightened one).

Finally, at the zenith of the temple, standing at an impressive 115 feet tall from its foundation rests 72 stupas. These bell-shaped forms hold sacred artifacts that depict the arupa-dhatu, the “realm of formlessness.” At this moment, my appreciation for the magnificent temple reaches its peak. The Borobudur Temple was and still is a hallmark of Javanese culture. It is an invaluable relic of the bygone era of the Shailendra Dynasty and Mahayana Buddhism.

Prambanan Temple 1500 CE:

My next stop was the Prambanan Temple compound (Loro Jonggrang in Javanese) near the Temple of Borobudur. Compromised of 240 temples and six main ones, it is the country’s grandest monument dedicated to the Hindu divinity Shiva. The Prambanan Temple was said to have been erected under the orders of King Rakai Pikatan of the Hindu Sanjaya Dynasty from c. 840-850 CE. The Sanjaya and Shailendra Dynasties of the Mataram Kingdom competed against each other for political power, and it is suspected that the construction of the temple complex was a retort to the creation of the Borobudur Temple.

Situated near the Prambanan Temple is Mount Merapi, a sacred volcano prone to eruptions and causing earthquakes. Despite these dangers, there appear to be many villagers living close by, farming and making good use of the volcanic ash that fertilizes the land. These people remain loyal to their homes and devote time to working and restoring the holy site. It became evident to me that the Javanese people hold these natural and man-made structures very dearly, and consider them to be the heart of the region.

As I finally near the Prambanan Temple, I am met with the 47-meter tall (154-foot) main Shiva temple and stand in awe at its grandiosity.

The Brahma and Vishnu temples can be found to the south and north of the Shiva temple respectively. Together, these deities constitute three of the six main temples and form the Trimurti of the three major Gods of Hinduism.

Finally, each divinity was accompanied by their corresponding animal companions, making up the smaller half of the six cardinal temples.

Like the Borobudur temple, every inch of the site was intricately adorned with holy freestanding figures and stone reliefs. Together, these works of art gloriously depict the chronicles of the Indian epic Ramayana through brick and volcanic stone.

The Prambanan Temple is one of the finest Hindu temples in Indonesia, and it is ever-inspiring that the site is still a place of worship for the villagers of Prambanan village.

Wayang Kulit 1500 CE:

Wayang Kulit is a form of shadow puppetry originating from Java, Indonesia. A captivating method of storytelling, the ancient puppet theater incorporates lessons valuable to everyday life. Many plays challenge the status quo in their narratives through handcrafted Wayang puppets. Mythological tales and epics that showcase characters like ogres, beasts, heroes, villains, and royalty consistently feature in these performances. Hindu epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata are often inspirations for the storylines of these plays.

An hour before the show, I get the privilege of meeting the dalang, the lone master puppeteer.

He concentrated on the performance to come, empowering himself with spiritual energy. It was custom to meditate before the play as he would have to tell a story, move the puppets, and voice every character for several hours or the entire night. The dalang was honored among the Javanese people and recognized as a figure of spiritual wisdom. He was in charge of bringing the story to life and commandeering the puppets to action. After meeting the dalang, I seated myself in the front row. Hundreds of people attended the venue.

The gamelan, a traditional orchestra composed of bronze percussion, string instruments, and singers began playing a haunting tune to set up the tone of the play.

The first figure presented behind the shadow screen was a woman, presumably the daughter of a royal kingdom. This puppet was aesthetically crafted from buffalo hide and beautifully painted in traditional Wayang Kulit fashion. I sat tight, entranced by the swaying puppets and gamelan orchestra. Many new characters were introduced. Some were flat and made out of leather (Wayang Kulit) and others were three-dimensional and created out of wood (Wayang Klitik or Golèk).

The play had gone on for a few hours, and it was at this moment, that the plot reached its highest point of conflict between the main hero and rivaling demons. It was a battle between good and evil.

The dalang took the audience through a turbulent adventure and whirlwind of a story. It was a remarkable experience filled with chaos, sentimental value, and symbolism. The Wayang Kulit performance of the night left me with newfound feelings and an even greater appreciation for the ancient storytelling medium.

[littlemosbookrecs]

Title: Under the Java Moon

Author: Heather B. Moore

This was one of my favorite books in 2023!

The story begins with a Dutch family being separated during WWII when Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies. Rita was forced to relocate to a POW camp along with her pregnant mother, Mary, and little brother, Georgie. The conditions were deplorable — overcrowded, malnourished, and rampant with malaria and dysentery. But they had to do what they could to survive, holding out hope that the patriarch of their family, George, was still alive.

This was a such a harrowing, and yet uplifting, story. I have to be honest, I didn’t know anything about this part of WWII, but it is one I will never forget. Rita and her family were such strong and determined characters, and I admired them a great deal. If you enjoy emotionally-driven historical fiction that is based on true events, then you will love Under the Java Moon!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain for providing a copy of this book to review.*

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

https://amzn.to/3TvGoFP

[baganindya]

I were

There is a night when I wish I were a feral cat sleeping under a grapefruit tree; the moon was halved but it looked so bright, and the air was sticky. There is a morning when I wish I were a dog sleeping under my master's blanket; her brown soft skin touched my wet nose. She loved me dearly. There is a day when I wish I were just a spec of dust floating in the air; the wind just blew me far from the ground. I was up high, and landed on someone's old hat. There is an afternoon I wish I sat next to you; talking about how I could eat seven plates of cheap stall's sushi in a day, or how you love the poet, and worrying about nothing but a cup of Java that didn't get in our table even after 15 minutes.

[wunthyll]

Again, there are 5 actively developed browser engines and only 4 have a significant market share, and two of them are forks of another one.

The most common is Blink. This is the underlying tech for all chromium based browsers. This includes Edge, Brave, and Opera, some of the most popular Chrome alternatives. They don't report their data back to google necessarily, but they all have the same flaws as Chrome.

The next most common is WebKit. This is what Apple uses for Safari. The only reason it's so common is because EVERY browser on iOS has to be a WebKit view. The only difference between browsers on iOS and iPadOS is the bookmark sync, and some extra features. The core is still WebKit. A fun fact though is that Google's Blink is actually a fork of WebKit.

Then we have Firefox's engine: Gecko. There used to be a ton of browsers and products that relied on Gecko, and it's the oldest engine on this list, starting life as part of NetScape Navigator. However, the only major browser that still runs on Gecko is Firefox, which Mozilla has changed its versioning to be in lockstep with Firefox, no longer recognizing it as a separate component. Goanna is a fork of Gecko from 2016 in an effort to further differentiate their Pale Moon browser from Firefox. If you haven't heard of Pale Moon, that's not surprising. I didn't even know about it until I did some fact checking on this.

The cool thing about these four engines is that they are all free, open source software. Blink and WebKit however have a slightly less open GNU LGPL license. That allows open source code to be modified and made proprietary pretty easily. Gecko and Goanna are both using the Mozilla Public License which allows a mix of open and proprietary code, but if it started open under the MPL, that part has to stay open and part of the MPL, regardless of changes. These both differ from the GPL where all of the project must be open and all code shared.

Different from all that though, is Flow, a new and entirely closed source (other than the SpiderMonkey Java engine licensed from Mozilla.) It doesn't appear to be a contender any time soon, mostly showing up on TV's and set top boxes, as well as a version for the raspberry pi and other embedded devices.

So there's kind of 5 browsers, but right now Safari and Firefox make up just around 8% of the desktop market, and Chromium based make up over 88%. In mobile it's not as dire, but that only because iPhone's don't have anything other than WebKit, and that's 31%, Firefox has .5%, and everything else is chromium.

This gives google pretty much total control of the web. This is a VERY bad thing, and you should do your level best to avoid it when possible. Download and use Firefox on Windows, Linux, and Android. On Apple stuff use Firefox or Safari. Hell, pick up Pale Moon or LibreWolf if you're really concerned about privacy. Just don't use a chromium browser. The industry needs competition if we want to maintain freedom AND innovation.

Ok everyone time for the big question:

[bookcoversaroundtheworld]

Under the Java Moon - US

[luffywhatelse]

What's the link between Joy Boy and the Lunarians?

Gorosei spoke of a specific and maybe special fruit, presumably Gomu Gomu (for the moment we will call it that, even if we know that this is not its real name). Kaido's words in chapter 1042 would have already underlined how "special" Gomu Gomu appeared.

This means that Luffy has more skills than rubber specific ones. For example, let's think of another skill that Luffy can use. We all remember Red Hawk and Red Rock:

... it seems that Luffy can control flames. Which reminds us of a race known for this ability: King's race, Lunaria.

Marco said: "fire conjuring race that lived on top of the Red Line". And also Queen: "they were all supposed to be eradicated" and "they were considered gods"

We can thus summarize the characteristics of the Lunaria race: 1 – they can manipulate flames; 2 – people considered them as gods; 3 – they were supposed to be extinct; 4 – they lived on the Red Line.

Now let's consider Who's Who's words about Nika:

Actually, we don't have enough information about the Sun God but we could try to hypothesize Nika's characteristics:

1 – as we said, Luffy is able to manipulate flames and this ability could come from Nika himself; 2 – we know that, according to legend, he was considered the "Sun God"; 3 – his identity is hidden by the World Government to the point that the man who told Who's Who about Nika has been taken away... it’s been said that Lunarian race is extinct but it may actually have been "wiped out" from the World Government. During the fight between Zoro and King, we see a man saying:

4 – why was Nika called "SUN God"? Perhaps because he was able to manipulate flames, or because, if he had been Lunarian, he too would have lived on the Red Line, which is objectively close to the sun.

We now know that Joy Boy/Nika has awakened in Luffy's body. So, most likely, Nika also has the skills of a rubber "human being". And this seems to be another skill that Nika would have in common with Lunarians. Let's look at this technique from King, which probably made us smile:

King seems to be "rubbery". Could we say that Luffy ate a fruit that gives him characteristics similar to those possessed by the Lunaria race?

What we know is that Lunarians have black, feathered wings, brown skin, and white hair. And that the Strawhats already met a race with wings on their backs: the Shandia, the inhabitants of Shandora, during the Skypiea arc. We know that there were four tribes: Skypieans, possessing small wings that are pointed upward; Shandians, who possess wings that also point upward; Birkans, with wings pointed downward. In the Enel's Great Space Operations Cover Page Serial, it was revealed that all the three tribes once lived on the Moon. When they exhausted the resources of their land, they came to Earth and settled on Skypeia and the nearby Birka. "Luna" is the Latin word for "moon", and considering the Lunarians also have wings, it is hard to not see a connection with the other "moon tribes".

In chapter 1035, King finally revealed his face, which he usually keeps hidden under a mask to hide his Lunarian identity from the World Government. When this happened, we could see that he bears a striking resemblance to Wiper, a character that the Strawhats encountered during the Sky Island arc. Wiper had features similar to King's, and the two also share a peculiar tattoo around their left eye. This could be yet another sign of shared heritage between the Shandian and Lunarian tribes. Perhaps the Lunarians were the ruling tribe on the Moon.

Let's go back to the Sun God Nika: the word "Nike" in Greek means "victory", and in the Javanese language victory is "Jaya". An ancient, legendary king from Java was called Joyoboyo, which sounds a lot like Joy Boy. Joyoboyo was a strong and wise king, who brought prosperity to his kingdom. Joy Boy was the "Sun God" of ancient times, and probably the king of the Ancient Kingdom who fought and lost against the World Government. Perhaps the Lunarians were allies of the Ancient Kingdom and were hunted down for this reason. Perhaps they also have a connection to the sun, an idea that is reinforced by their ability to manipulate flames. Perhaps the Lunarians are precisely the Ancient Kingdom people.

We have already connected Nika the Sun God to Skypiea, noticing how the only representation of Nika shown until now strongly resembles a Shandian warrior, and also looks similar to an image of Luffy dancing around a fire during the Sky Island arc.

We now know for sure that Nika is somehow in Luffy. The same person who rang the golden bell in Skypiea and the same who may have been the wise king who brought prosperity to his kingdom.

On the other hand, the cover of volume 27 has always intrigued me... Luffy with a pair of wings throwing us a half moon shaped wink ;)

[tacticalhimbo]

-> OC ASSOCIATIONS ! (OBSCURE AND OTHERWISE)

tagged by the lovely @galeboettichergf​​ tagging anybody who feels like doing this; feel free to tag me if ya do <3

character: bailey hill (watch dogs) -> freelance grey-hat hacker, anti-corporate hacktivist

info under the cut! 

COLORS | burgundy; neon green; black; burnt orange; most shades of purple (mid to dark toned)

SEASONINGS | cayenne pepper; red pepper; cumin

WEATHER | overcast

SKY | sunrise

MAGICAL POWER | illusionism / form manipulation

PLANTS |  barrel cactus; sunflowers

WEAPON | butterfly knife; brass knuckles; pepper spray

SUBJECT | cyber security; digital media & graphic design

MAKEUP PRODUCT | dark creamy lipstick (pref. deep red or plain black)

CANDY | rock sugar; jolly ranchers; warheads & toxic waste

FEAR | claustrophobia (confined or tight spaces); abandonment

ICE CUBE SHAPE | crescent shaped cubes for that crisp(tm) chew

METHOD OF LONG DISTANCE TRAVEL | train

ART STYLE |  bauhaus; futurism

MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURE | werewolf

SONGS | government hooker // lady gaga; cyber sex // doja cat; woman // doja cat; human pills // kap bambino

PIECE OF STATIONARY | ballpoint pens

THREE EMOJIS | ⛓ (chains); 🖤 (black heart); 👻 (ghost)

CELESTIAL BODY | the moon

ANIMAL | spotted hyena

MONTH | july

NUMBER | 17

SMELLS | caramelized nuts; petrichor; incense sticks (plum blossom & dragon's blood); cinnamon; vanilla

TIME OF DAY | midnight

GEMSTONE |  citrine

SEASON | summer

PLACES | abandoned carparks; dimly lit alleyways; the bean (aka cloud gate); quiet city parks

FOOD | sweet and sour pork; pho; bean and cheese burritos; tajine; pork adobo; bhel puri (tldr: she loves ordering from ma and pop food joints)

DRINKS | monster energy (java & reserve white pineapple); milk tea (w/ tapioca pearls or coffee pudding)

ELEMENT | aether (sometimes refered to as space, zero, or void)

ASTROLOGICAL SIGNS | cancer sun; aquarius moon; cancer rising