#an entire rainbow of check marks for my shot posting

[janetfraiser]

I finally updated the app (I refuse to have auto updates) and now I can see the rainbow check marks…but now I am staring longingly at more 👀👀

[rina-writes]

Tattoo

Summary: You have been thinking of getting a tattoo for sometime and inspiration strikes on a spontaneous date with your boyfriend Ethan, who supports with your tattoo from design to after care.

Warnings: The Fluffiest of Fluff

A/N: Figured it was a good time to post fluffy!E before the vid tomorrow. <3

You always went back and forth on getting a tattoo.  When you were much younger, it wasn’t your thing.  Why would you mark you body with something permanent?  You changed your clothes 15 times before going out because your shirts didn’t look right with your boobs.  How would you decide on a tattoo?

As you got older, you realized that tattoo’s shouldn’t only be viewed as something you wanted to represent you for the rest of your life.  They could be moments, like remembering a first road trip or the album art of the band of the first concert you attended. Tattoos could be used to mark the story of your life.  

Ethan, your boyfriend, was part of your inspiration to get tattoos.  You started dating around his first couple tattoos, back when you were still unsure about them.  Seeing his leg sleeve grow, especially the tattoos that represented memories you both shared, made you want to do something special. You especially enjoyed tracing his tattoos with your fingers and laying soft kisses on them during your intimate moments.  He would often play with your hair absentmindedly, enjoying the attention. You wanted to share this interaction in reverse as well.

After months of research, you couldn’t find a tattoo that spoke to you.  Ethan always urged you that sometimes you just need inspiration from the world, not from Instagram or Pinterest.  You took it with a grain of salt eyeing some of the sillier tattoos on his leg.  The fears of younger self came rushing back to you about making a mistake.

Then, one night, Ethan had this wild idea to go camping. 

Uh huh, Ethan Dolan, camping, outside, willingly, without his twin brother.  You kept checking his temperature the entire drive to the campsite. Ethan laughed, holding your wrist firmly, but not too tight as to hurt you.  He looked at you, allowing the Tesla to take over the drive and leaned in to peck your lips.

“Trust me, when we get there, you’ll understand.” He said to you.

“I dunno...” You said, hesitantly, smiling as you pulled your wrist from his grasp to hold his hand. Your fingers interlocked and he brought the back of your hand up to kiss the back of it.  He didn’t break eye contact and you chuckled.

“Now you’re just showing off.” You said, gesturing to the auto pilot with your free hand.

Ethan shrugged smugly, giving your hand another squeeze before fiddling with music playing the car.

By the time you arrived, the sun was about to set in a couple hours. You recognized the area from pictures Ethan had showed you from a video where he and Grayson went camping without technology.   Unlike Grayson, Ethan had no intention of roughing which was easy to tell thanks to his glamping setup.  Your tent was luxurious, way too big for two people and Ethan had brought enough blankets and pillows that they could be a fort all on it’s own. For dinner, he had made vegan meatballs with spaghetti and tomato sauce. He also made pancakes that he tried to pass of as crepes for dessert.

“It’s all I can make...” Ethan confessed, looking away embarrassed as he placed the pot of sauce on the logs of the campfire, next to the meatballs wrapped in aluminum fall.

“Thankfully, it’s my favorite.” You said, sitting in the spot next to him, checking on the meatballs to make sure they didn’t burn.

It was so quiet and spacious.  After eating and chatting, you took a break before dessert to explore.  Ethan led you up and down a few paths, holding your hand at the steepest points.  You watched the sunset from a high point, your breath taken away.  After taking a few nature shots and photos of each other, Ethan leaned in for kiss.  His hand rested on the back of your neck and you deepened the kiss by getting close enough to sit in his lap. Your arms wrapped around his shoulders as your lips massaged his, gradually getting more rough. His tongue tapped at your lips and you parted them to grant him access, both of you now breathing deeply to keep from breaking the kiss.  While it only seemed to seconds, you could see the sky was starting to lose it’s orange hue.

“We should head down,” You said breathlessly, breaking the kiss.

Ethan pulled back only slightly, your foreheads still chuckling, his hazel eyes looking chocolate brown in the dark as he stared deeply at you.

“You’re right.” He smiled, “We can do plenty more of that later.”

You giggled and he extended his hand to help you stand up with him.  The descend was a lot scarier with less light.  You were clinging on to him, but you were also aware he was scared and clinging out to you.  It was the blind leading the blind with a chorus of “What was that?” “Where are you?” “I’m scared.” and just pure screaming.  By the time you reached the bottom, following the light and smell for the weakening fire at your campsite, you were both laughing with relief.

You enjoyed your “crepes” with fruits that Ethan had packed in a cooler along with the cold beverages you had to drink. While you were chatting, you noticed, Ethan look up at the sky.  You were about to follow suit when he grabbed your chin. He turned you to look at him and your breath caught in your throat.  Every now and then, your mind was catapulted back to when you first started dating. When your brain was still processing all of his handsome features, his cut jaw, his full brows, his large expressive eyes, his pink lips, his shinning smile, his soft, brown locks...everything that made him breathtaking.  With the campfire light shining his face, it all seemed to look brand new again and you loved it.

“Don’t look yet, I want to show you something.”  He said, and you nodded.

He could have said anything to you at that moment and you would have nodded.  Ethan chuckled.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” He asked, biting his lip softly.

“No reason...” You smiled, pecking his lips.  “So, what do you want to show me?”

“Let’s clean up first.” Ethan said, gesturing to the stuff around you both.  

You both divided and conquered cleaning up the campsite.  The final step was to put on the fire.  You decided to take on the task while Ethan got the flashlight ready to go back to your tent.  You turned off the flashlights to not attract bugs as you entered.  Despite the tent being large enough that you could stand, you both somehow managed to trip over each other.  With lots of laughs and fake bickering, you finally closed the tent and turned the flashlight on.

“No turn it off.” Ethan said, not wanting to ruin the surprise.

“Oh okay...” You said hesitantly, laying back on one of the larger cushions.  You turned off the flashlight.  “Come here and cuddle me.” 

“I will, I promise.” Ethan said, his voice at a distance that told you he was still standing up.  You heard him unzipping something and you saw that he was moving the top of the tent.  There was a plastic covering on top, similar to a sun roof on a car.  From your position, you swear you could see the whole galaxy.  The rich deep purple and blues of the sky speckled with diamonds filled you. It felt like your heart was going to burst. Ethan crouched down and gently patted the cushioned floor for you. He finally found your arm and laid down next to you pulling you closer to him.  As your eyes adjusted to the darkness, Ethan studied your face as you stared incessantly at the sky like a kid watching cartoons.

“Are you crying?” His voice had a teasing tone, but he was whispering like he does when you cuddle at home.

“A little...” You admitted, snuggling into him. “This is so beautiful. Thank you.”

“I thought this would be a great way to show you how I feel when I look at you every day.” Ethan said, unable to make direct eye contact.

“God, E that was so corny.” You teased, but still inching closer for a kiss.

“Yeah...I know.” He agreed before closing the space between you to continue you where you left off on the mountain.

A couple of weeks later and you were at the tattoo parlor.  You had decided on your tattoo based on your camping night together.  You couldn’t stop thinking about those stars, and how they looked from that little sky roof.  You wanted to get a similar view, but add to it, with some trees lining the area around the sky.  After a few consultations with the tattoo artist, you decided a rectangle shaped “frame” on the side of your ribs designed to show a starry night in a pine tree forest.   The coloring was going to be black and white, so it had a spooky element that Ethan really liked as well.  Now, was the moment of truth. 

As you signed the waiver, Taylor, your tattoo artist, smiled at you. They looked exactly how you wanted your first tattoo artist to look, friendly, edgy, and have really cool rainbow hair and even more rainbow tattoos.

“Are you sure about this?” They teased. “I mean...this is a pretty intense tattoo for your first.”

Ethan, who’s leg was bouncing up and down next to you, perked up at the words. “Taylor, is right, Y/N.  The ribs really hurt.  You should go for somewhere with more cushion.”

“I want the ribs.” You said, standing up with more confidence than you actually had. 

“Alrighty,” Taylor said, “Come over when you’re ready.  I’ll show you one final stencil and we will get this party going.”

Ethan stood up, giving your butt a light squeeze.  Your eyes widened and you looked around to make sure no one saw.

“What do you think you’re doing, mister?” You asked, turning to wrap your arms around Ethan’s neck.

“Checking which places have the nicest cushion for this tattoo.” He grinned before kissing your forehead. “Jokes aside, I’ll be here when you need me.”

“I’ll be fine.” You assured him.

You were not fine.  You were so close to crying, but your dignity wouldn’t let you.  There were certain spots that hurt more than others, and your jagged breathing always revealed which ones the tattoo gun had just hit.  Ethan was beside you the entire time.  He was constantly giving you water, wiping your forehead, holding your head, kissing the top of your head and coaching you through it.

“It looks so sick, babe.” Ethan said, as he walked over to see how the tattoo was coming along. “You’re gonna love it. I’m actually pretty jealous.” 

You let out a hum, which you had been doing for awhile now. 

“You alright, hun?” Taylor asked, looking at you.  “If you want, we can stop and finish another time.”

You shook your head quickly. “I...wanna...finish.” You huffed out.

“She’s a tough one, Tay.” Ethan grinned, making Taylor smile as well.

“I can tell.” Taylor said, before focusing back on their work.

Ethan sat down on your other side, dipping his head to look at you since your head was bent down. He rested his forehead gently on yours and you moved your head closer to him, taking in his scent.

“It really looks amazing, Y/N. Reminds me of that night.” Ethan said, his voice soft and full of nostalgia. “But, it’s also so you. I’m so proud of you, baby. Your first tat.” 

You hummed again, trying to smile.  He continued to pat your head and speak to you softly.  Soon, Taylor announced you were done.  They helped you stand up, Ethan steadying you from behind.  You turned in the mirror and your eyes started to water.  It was everything you hoped for.  It looked great with your skin tone, even with the redness for the fresh tattoo.  

“I’d hug you, but you know...” You laughed softly. 

“We can hip bump on the other side.” Taylor suggested and you left as you turned to hip bump them.  

Taylor wrapped you up and Ethan helped you to adjust your clothes.  He practically carried you to the car.  He didn’t want to hurt you, so he was very careful with you the entire time.  He convinced you to spend the first half of your healing process at his place so he could take care of you.  You agreed, mostly because you were so exhausted and the thought of sleeping in his large bed and soft sheets was appealing.  He helped you to take off your clothes and clean up before helping you into bed for a nap.

Ethan spoiled you during your recovery.  He helped you in and out of bed, waiting on you hand and foot.  You loved the attention. Even when being intimate, Ethan was incredibly careful of your tattoo.  When your tattoo was a lot more healed, you almost wished you had a bit more time with Nurse Ethan. 

“It looks amazing, babe.” Ethan said, when he walked in on you getting dressed.  You were in your bra and shorts, about to put on a t-shirt. “Come here.” He said, pulling you to the bed.  He sat down and motioned for you to lay across his lap as he traced your tattoo with his fingers.  This was exactly how you imagined it, no it was better.  Your eyes began to feel heavy and you closed them, while Ethan continued to admire your tattoo.

“I love you, baby.” Ethan said, kissing your side.

“I love you too, E.”

[slvertongues]

show your process

To continue supporting content makers, this tag game is meant to show the entire process of making creative content: this can be for any creation.

RULES - When your work is tagged, show the process of its creation from planning to posting, then tag up to 5 people with a specific link to one of their creative works you’d like to see the process of. Use the tag #showyourprocess so we can find yours.

I rarely keep my psds or keep record of my process but luckily I saved the ones for these edits. Depending on how lazy I am it takes me between 2 hours and a week to finish a full set.

I don’t exactly remember each step but here are layer by layer breakdowns of the final product of the first gif i made for each set. Explanation down below

@essercipertuttienonperse tagged me for this Miss You edit

and @letsbealone-together tagged me for this Defenceless edit

I chose not to question the difference in quality between these two btw.

Planning i rarely plan tbh i just go with where the editing takes me with the first gif. bc once i have the first gif down it’s just a matter of making the others match to have a cohesive set.

Choosing the clips to gif + lyrics

Since these two gifsets are song based it was relatively easy to choose the clips because I’ve identified specific shots before that would fit a certain lyric.

For Miss You I used clips from the mv, the royal variety performance  and the x factor performance. + maybe i miss you

For Defenceless I used clips from wmi mv, miss you mv and walls mv. + 1st verse.

Making the gifs

I don’t want to turn this into a giffing tutorial rip, but i basically follow a very basic gifmaking routine and use 2 actions for loading and sharpening. (most of the giffing guides i based mine on can be found here.

But it goes: loading > cropping > sharpening > base colouring.

For refence, I either use PS CS5 or PS CS6. For Miss You: 540x300 px | For Defenceless: 540x400px Sharpening settings: smart sharpen twice (500/0.4 + 10/10) + gaussian blur (blending 30% opacity)

The base colouring is mostly there to brighten and colour correct the gif. For that I mainly use curves, levels, colour balance, selective color and vibrance.

For particularly dark shots I use a trick I learned from @stardustony using white color fills and b&w gradient map.

Colouring-Colouring This is where the fun begins.

Sometimes before even beginning I have a dominant and accent colour in mind, but more often than not the final result is very different from the first round lmao. I use multiple layers of selective colours to get everything to match and get what I want + different blending modes. For Miss You i knew I wanted blue and red/orange, so it was a matter of bringing out the cyans and reds of the scenes without making it too grainy. For Defenceless, the colour choices were based on the colours Nyx associated with the song, in this case pastels, blue, pink and yellow/beige. + Additional step for this gif because it was an experiment: i added an empty layer at some point, painted on it with big brushes of blue and peach, then set it to substract to get that rainbow-ish effect on the water.

Adding text

I choose the fonts:

For Miss You --> Gobold Bold (regular) 18pt/36pt

For Defenceless --> Kiona 7pt, Boiling Demo 18pt, Amalia 36pt

Then I add inner + outer shadows to the text.

Then for colours I usually just add two layers with random colour gradients as clipping marks on each text box OR change the font colour and play around with blending modes

Then placement, depends on the vibes lbr

The boxes

Shape > Rectangle Tool (make the box, choose size, stroke, fill) For Miss You : we have a dashed box thingie going on + the b&w/colour separation For Defenceless: the box lines are lyrics hehe, i actually forgot how to do it, but it involves making the text follow the path of the lines of the box using the direction selection tool.

Exporting

Save for Web (Alt + Ctrl + Shift + S) Selective or Adaptative, Pattern, Bicubic

Drafting

To check if the gifs are cohesive, arrange placements and check if the colouring is ok on different devices. I also send the links to friends to see if it’s ok.To add caption (html + edit fiddle)

To add tags: generic tags for louis edits + user tags + tag i use for my edits (usually louis tomlinson, louisupdates, tracksintheam, belletracks, *mine)

It’s also a hack to avoid no showing up in the tags.

Posting

I either let the gifset rot for weeks before I post it, or post it right away because I can. Some people schedule for specific hours for maximum engagement. I only schedule self-reblogs for after posting, 12 hours after, then 9pm my time, then 3am.

Bonus: camping in the notes of my own gifsets for the two first days.

Tagging people some oldish edits I really liked, don’t feel obligated to: @stanwalls for this pink gifset @stormyhale for this edit @tomthenetherlands​ for this edit

[the-general-hux]

@finishwhxtyoustartxd

Armitage Hux rested his forehead against the cool glass of the passenger side window. His parents had stopped talking hours ago, his mother was asleep in the front seat and his father was driving with white-knuckled fingers crimped around the steering wheel. Hux shared the backseat with luggage that wouldn’t fit in the trunk of their rental sedan. His knees pressed against the back of the driver’s seat and he longed for chance to stretch out his legs. His eyes blinked open and shut as he looked out the window at the endless procession of trees.

Traffic slowed down and his father spat out a string of curses at the other drivers’ abilities to keep stopping distance on the rain slick road. The air smelled damp, even through the filter of the air conditioning. A small town appeared and a sign declared it Bayport. Perhaps the settlers had never heard of redundancy, Hux thought. A smiling whale spouted a flourish of water on the sign. Hux gritted his teeth and put in his headphones.

Tourists crossed the highway, oblivious to oncoming traffic and the increasing frequency of his father’s cursing. A bead shop. Souvenirs. Weed shop. Rinse and repeat. Hux caught a glimpse of some amazing biceps in front of a coffee shop and he wrenched his neck to see if the potential face matched the muscles, but his father turned a corner and Hux lost his sight line. He huffed out a sigh. Probably just a tourist, maybe one of those bikers that cruised up and down the Oregon coast. Doing what? Whale-watching?

They pulled into a driveway that was marked with a jaunty lighthouse, Driftwood Cove. They named the rental house. Of course they did. His father stopped the car, turned off the ignition and announced. “This is our home for the next month. Let’s try to not kill each other.”

“No promises.” Hux said and his mother shot him a warning look. “Fine. You work on your book, you work on your paintings and I’ll work on growing a thick coat of mildew.”

“Now darling, it’s not that bad. The ocean air is marvelous for my health and I only have so much time with you before you go off to college and leave me behind.”

Forty two days, six hours and twelve minutes, Hux thought as he got out of the car. He sighed again and nodded because that was what you did when your sick mother guilt tripped you. This wasn’t his idea of a beach holiday. The sky was painted in shades of blue and gray, the whole landscape looked angry and battered into submission by the relentless coastal wind. Then he turned to the ocean. There was a haze covering the entire Pacific Ocean, as far as he could squint. “Twelve hours in the car and I can’t even see the fucking water.”

Hux claimed the room at the very top of the rental, it had a window overlooking the ocean and a stupid sign. “The Crow’s Nest.” He dragged his luggage up the stairs. The whole room smelled musty and forgotten. He sat down on the edge of the queen bed and flopped backwards, staring at the rafters. There was no need for a bed this big in such a small space— Hux scrunched his face up in disgust. Do not think about how many people have had sex in your bed, just don’t. That way lies madness, Hux thought. I am not going to look under the mattress pad.

“Boy!” His father hollered up the stairs, “Come help your mother with her junk!” Hux blew out the breath he was holding and descended the stairs.

It started to rain.

It continued to rain for three days. Drops splattered on the window panes and wind shrieked through the eaves. Hux made a bet with himself about how soon the roof would fly off. It was even money. He curled up on the bed, surrounded by fifteen decorative pillows that some poor soul had embroidered with seagulls and a two year old copy of People magazine. He’d read it cover to cover three times. Cellular service was complete shit and WiFi was apparently an alien concept in rustic vacation rentals. His father’s laptop had not survived the road trip and Hux’s had been commandeered, so no jerking off to his carefully curated archived amateur Alpha porn. The television downstairs had a dial to change the channels. All three channels.

“I’m going to start talking to myself. I am. I’m going to start talking to myself and go find a great white whale to have a battle to the death with. Honestly, it’s inevitable.” He could go talk to his parents. See what they were doing— Hux shook his head. Mother was sleeping, exhausted from her medication and Father was writing. He could write for days at a time, eating what was brought to him and pissing in a milk jug by his desk. He had a bestselling series, it was Regency romance of all things and the royalties were sending Hux to a very good school.

“Yet another thing for me to grateful for.” Hux told a decorative seahorse on the wall. “I have to get out of here. I have to.” He grabbed his coat and one of the guest umbrellas from the hallway. “I’m going out!” He called to his father who grunted in response and waved him off.

Hux made his way down the driveway towards the town center. He paused in front of the map of the town, drawn in a cartoon fashion that made the library and the police station look like equally jaunty places to visit. His sneakers squelched with wetness as he made his way to the coffee shop. It seemed like ages ago that he’d caught a glimpse of those glorious biceps. Everyone was wearing shapeless polar fleece and practical galoshes that he coveted with an practical intensity he’d never truly felt before.

He ordered a hot milky tea, something to chase the cold away from his bones and wrapped his fingers around it. “It's June,” he reminded himself and the counter girl smiled at him and then at his Omega Pride lapel pin. “It really is June, isn’t it?”

“It usually clears up by now. It’s not so bad. Just remember to take your vitamin D pills until the sun comes out again.” She pulled another shot of espresso after that bit of unsolicited advice. Hux pushed his sopping wet shock of red hair out of his face. He was not a natural sun worshipper, but the next time he saw the sun even he might offer up a few prayers of gratitude.

Hux wandered over to the small shelf of used books that lined the back wall. A hand lettered sign read, “Lending Library”.  Out of habit, he looked for his father’s name on the spines of the books. Only one volume this time. The fourth. Savage Unbroken Hearts. Hux couldn’t read his father’s writing, it was far too intimate an act. It was worse than the time his father had walked in on Hux taking a selfie, wearing glitter and a rainbow thong. Hux cringed at the memory and selected a paperback space opera that boasted about galactic conquest. He sat down at a table and thumbed through the yellowed pulpy pages. The previous owner had scrawled his name in childish block letters on the interior cover. Ben.

The counter girl gave him a plastic bag for the book and Hux stepped out into the rain. It wasn’t going to defeat him. “You hear me?” Hux muttered to the weather as he made his way down the boardwalk. He rolled his eyes at the tiny salon and a candy store that was only open on the weekend. He paused in front of a photograph studio that specialized in pirate portraits. Skywalker Studios. Tourists grinned in tawdry costumes and posed in front of pirate flags. Rain dripped from the tip of Hux’s nose and he snorted in disdain. There was a 90% chance that his mother would drag them all in here for a souvenir portrait.

The beach access stairwell was just beyond the photography studio and Hux gripped the guardrail as he wrestled with both the slippery seagull shit smeared steps and the wind that threatened to steal his umbrella. The ocean was surging, the tide rolling in. Hux stared out at the dark, seething waters and felt begrudging respect for the power and intensity of the storm. Also for the warning signs posted all over the beach. Rolling logs that could kill you. Rip tides. Sneaker waves. Tsunamis. This was not the ocean that was in the brochures. Icy spray hit him in the face and he blinked saltwater from his lashes.

There was a man strolling along the pebbled beach. Long dark hair whipped around his head. What kind of Alpha bullshit was this? It was a stereotype of course, but the only person who would have the sheer ballsy stupid confidence to be walking on that beach would be an Alpha. A shameful thrill trilled up the back of Hux’s neck and he tasted the salt on his own lips.

The man reached the stairwell and as he ascended, Hux hid behind his Driftwood Cove umbrella. The man paid him no mind as he passed, Hux peeked out from beneath the umbrella shade. He swallowed hard as he caught the hint of a defined, youthful jawline, speckled with interesting moles that reminded Hux of constellations. The man unlocked the door to Skywalker Studios, stepped inside and flipped on the OPEN neon sign.

Oh god dammit. He wasn’t going to follow that weirdo guy, no matter how broad his shoulders were, no matter how bored Hux was, no matter— he stood on the steps of the photography studio and pushed open the door.

A bell jingled announcing Hux’s presence as he folded up his umbrella in the entry way. “Just a moment!” A deep voice called out from behind a curtain. “Be right out!’

Hux looked at the puddle of rain water accumulating around his feet and he flushed with embarrassment. He glanced to the side at a mirror for the tourists to check their costumes. His hair was plastered to his head, water dripped from his ears. No, no, no this was a mistake—

The broad-shouldered stranger walked out in a muscle baring tank top, drying his hair with a towel. The lack of fabric made one thing painfully clear to Hux’s libido. This was the owner of the Glorious Biceps. He wrapped the towel around his hair in a makeshift turban and looked at Hux. For a long moment, the Alpha’s plush pink mouth fell open as he took in the bedraggled, soaked ginger making a mess of his shop floor. If the Earth could open up and swallow me whole right now, that would be just dandy, Hux thought. He turned to leave.

[lirusstories]

Stories: Please Read

Edit because I’m a fuckin moron that forgot the Soul-Mate Aus for Little Fortune. Sorry about that.

Alright so sorry about this, I swear I’m halfway through the first Chapter for both Run Boy Run and New Beginnings. But anyway here we are, these are the 14 stories I’m working on, and yes I am well aware that it’s not a good Idea but fuck it, I’m havin’ fun so Anyway. These are the title’s and they will have Descriptions of who is in it and what the Au is and also, yes all of them have soul-mate Au's (y'all couldn’t even rip this from my cold dead hands) many of them are different ones from each other. (Also each of them are embodiment's of something for each other which will be explain at the bottom) Also some of these are inspired by or have parts that are inspired by @oh-itskitkat and I’ll put Links to the ones that Inspired what and if they inspired the story are something that will happen in the story. Also please go check out her shit, it’s amazing. Everything will be under a read more because This post is long as fuck.

1. The Kings and Their Queen which you can find here @thekingsandtheirqueen

2. No Place Like Home 

I legit Cannot explain this you just gotta read it. But I can tell you that it’s a non-traditional A/B/O au and a Hero X Villain Au

Characters: Liru, Anti, JJ, Illinois, Yancy, Emile, Remy, Virgil, Jack, Jackie, Marvin, Henrik, Chase, Dark, Wilford, Jamie, Sammi, Oliva, Roman, Remus, Patton, Thomas, Logan, Janus, Robbie, Yan, Ethan, Tyler, Mark, Kira, and the rest will be added later on.

Soul-Mate Aus: 

1. Soul-Mark Au 

2. Every so often you will get flashes of what your soulmate is seeing at the time, but your soulmate doesn’t know when it happens.

Inspired by: https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/613250836029734912/so-youre-just-gonna-up-and-leave-without-a

3. Once Upon A Dream

This one can’t be explained without spoilers so your just gonna have to read it.

Characters: Liru, Henrik, Jackie, Marvin, Chase, Jack, Yan, Robbie, Anti

Soul-Mate Au: Soul-Marks

Inspiration for scenes:

1. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/617661429060911104/those-arent-birds-please-do-not-stealrepost

2. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/616741587195658240/ill-wait-here-then-please-do-not

3. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/614495447412834304/just-a-little-while-longer-please-do-not

4. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/613412510108909568/a-much-needed-break-please-do-not-stealrepost

5. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190358452918/purring-is-simply-soothing-or-self-soothing

6. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/617016760676335616/catching-up-please-do-not-stealrepost

7. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190596652918/tending-the-garden-please-do-not

4. Run Boy Run

This one can’t be explained without spoilers so your just gonna have to read it.

Characters: Liru, Anti, Jackie, JJ, Marvin, Chase, Jack, Henrik, Robbie, Yan, Remy, Virgil, Remus, Wilford, Roman, Remy, Emile, Jacques, Angus, Sam, Shawn, Patton, Logan, Magnum, Janus, Wilford, Dark, Mark, Thomas. (Maybe some more Iplier ego’s not sure yet but we’ll get there when we get there)

Soul-Mate Au’s: 

1. Soul-Mark appearing through Touch

2. Remembering Past Life through touch.

5. New Beginnings

Multiverse type thing. JJ, Dark and Wilford are from the same universe, Jack and Marvin are from the same one, Logan, Patton, Janus and Virgil are from the same one, Roman and Remus are the same one. Something bad happens in each of their universes resulting in them winding up in the main.

Universe’s

Main: Liru, Anti, Yancy, Jack, Chase, Thomas, Mark, Henrik, Emile, Remy, Robbie

1920 ish(don’t hate me because I doubt anything will be accurate): JJ, Dark, Wilford

Hero Vs. “Villain”: Jackie and Marvin

Medieval Fantasy: Roman and Remus

Pathos, Ethos, Logos and their dark strange son: Patton, Janus, Logan, Virgil

Characters: Liru, Anti, Jackie, Henrik, Chase, Jack, Marvin, JJ, Yancy, Emile, Remy, Yan, Robbie, Roman, Remus, Janus, Patton, Logan, Virgil

Soul-Mate Au’s:

1. Telepathic Soul-Mates

2. Soul-Mark appearing through Touch

Inspirations:

Story: https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/612154125154664448/how-did-i-get-here-please-do-not-stealrepost

Universe’s

Hero vs “Villain”

A. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190615542808/head-in-the-clouds-please-do-not-stealrepost

B. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/183388705923/its-magic-bro-please-do-not-stealrepost

Medieval Fantasy :

 https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/614616863892209664/speak-softly-for-words-carry-please-do-not

Pathos, Ethos, Logos and their dark strange son: 

  https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190331869898/in-the-athenaeum-please-do-not-stealrepost

6. Family Against All

Scp au type thing (I’m using what information my brain can retain but I know alot of it is inaccurate, please don’t hate me).

Liru is a lot shyer and quieter in this one. She is avoiding the SCP Foundation heavily because they are looking for her after an incident where she lost temporary control of her abilities which had caused a temporary rift in the fabric of reality. Mark and Jack are still YouTubers in this and Chase is too.

Liru will find the more innocent or even objects of SCP's and take them home. She also has some that the SCP foundation hasn't discovered.

Henrik doesn't tell his brothers where he works. He tells them he's a doctor though and leaves it at that.

His first chapter will him discovering Anti and just straight up Freezing in his tracks because that's his little brother. And he doesn't know why he knows or knows how he knows he just does. and repeat for Jameson, and Marvin and Jackie(but they're older siblings except JJ of course) And when he discovers Robbie he nearly loses his shit but manages to keep it together because Holy Shit Thats A Child.

He's never met them before. And now he has to figure out why he knows them before anyone else can figure out that they aren't doppelgangers or something and has to figure out why there is a 6 year old child that never talks but when he does he's screaming for his mom.

Characters:  Liru, Anti, Jackie, Henrik, Chase, Jack, Marvin, JJ, Robbie, Yan, Dark, The Googles, Bing, The Host, Bim, Wilford, Mark(Maybe the kids)

Soul-Mate Au: Telepathic Connection through knowing soul-mates Preferred Full Name, has to go both ways before connecting.

7. A Burning Soul

It's a Hero x Villains Au, Jackie is the "Hero"(unknowingly works for the bad guy) and Liru, Celine and Yancy are the "Villains" who are in a polyamorous relationship and are trying to get Jackie to switch to there side so he can be protected. A bit more insight is that Jackie was threatened with the safety of someone close to him to be a "Hero" and the other "Hero's" He works with are there to keep him on a leash. While Celine, Liru and Yancy(mostly Liru because she's the one he interacts with the most) Try their best to convince him to join them so they can help him. 

Characters: Liru, Celine, Jackie, Yancy, Robbie, Yan, Virgil, Remy, Emile

Soul-Mate Au: Where you have a splotch of color of your soul-mates soul where your soul-mate touches you skin to skin for the first time. It burns when touched for the first time so there's no missing it. It will only stop burning when you accept your Soul-Mate.

8. A Chase Down the Rabbit Hole

This started because of the one-shot I made for Chases birthday and now it’s gonna be a story. I can’t really tell much without spoiling a lot of it so here are the characters in it and the soul-mate au.

Characters: Liru, Chase, Henrik, Jackie, Jack, Anti, JJ, Marvin, Angus, Jacques, Shawn, Sam, Jaym, Katie, Gabriel, Roman, Remus, Kiara, Uma (Possibly the other sides but eh we’ll see)

Soul-Mate Au: Gains Mark Through First Touch

9. Death and Her Soulmates

Alright so the first one is Gonna be Called Death and then whatever soulmate is in it. It's all connected to one story though but they come in one-shots. For instance Liru and Remus would be "Death and Green Sword" or if it's Liru and Roman It's "Death and the Red Shield". Anti and her would be "Death and the Angel" or her and JJ would be "Death and the Master of Time". Robbie and her would be "Death and the Lavender Boy" (every time I see the words Lavender boy my mind sings it to the tune of "Calendar girl") Thomas and her would be "Death and the Rainbow Heart" and the ones that don’t Involve her Would be “The Lightning bug and The Angel”(Jack and Anti) The entire character List is in the story.

Soul-Mate Au’s:

1. Markings gained through touch.

2. The ability to send gifts to your soul-mate/s once a year (You choose something and it appears to them but nothing “living”)

10. Sacred Motives

Inspired by  https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/616607308121849856/you-got-your-ass-handed-to-you-by-a-man-in-a

Alright so for what led up to “You got your ass handed to you by” “a man in a cat mask, yes!”. Marvin was getting an Artifact back that belongs to JJ that humans have taken. It's not the only artifact as well. Humans had raided a sacred place, where a bunch of important artifacts were and they stole, which now they are trying to get back. And they’re gonna get more than they expected.

Characters that are in it: 

The "What do you have?" “Humans: Your artifacts!” “NO!” is:

Liru, Marvin, Chase, Anti, JJ ,Robbie, Sammi, Jamie, Yan, Yancy, Emile, Remy, Virgil

The "don't know that the sacred artifacts belong to the other side" is: 

Jackie, Henrik, Jack, Oliva, Wilford, Dark (unwillingly dealing with the other bullshit because Wilford and Jack are somehow friends)

and the “why did you encourage her to get entangled in mortal affairs, Remus”: 

Roman, Remus, Labadon, Logan, Patton, Thomas

Soul-Mate Aus: 

1. You can see numbers over your soul-mate’s/soulmates’ heads indicating how dangerous they are 1-100 anything higher than 100 is “Most-likely” Inhuman. The number is in their favorite color and their hand writing.

2. The first thing you soul-mate says to you becomes written on your body.

Inspiration for scene:

https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/181356373658/h-he-got-me-good-huh-doc-mein-gott

11. Little Fortune

So the best way I can explain it is that It started with Anti meeting Liru at a Park and because he had nothing better to do he just kinda sat and talked with her and after that they just kept meeting up Until Anti actually takes her on a Date one night. She gets into a fight with her Acquaintance on the phone(she's visiting Brighton for work) So Anti invites her over so she doesn't have to go back to the hotel room(I should mention that they are ego's in this) So the go back to the Septic house and she stays the night(nothing dirty happens don’t worry) And the others wake up before Anti and Liru and notice that there are heels by the front door so of course they rush up to Anti's room only to see them both Dead asleep on his bed just cuddling(Anti's the little spoon). They freeze at the sight and due to both the door slamming open and the light bleeding in they both wake up. After an explanation and a near attempted murder on Anti's part they let her stay for the time being and despite the fact that they were supposed to erase the memories of anyone who finds out about them they don't because they see the way she reins in Anti before he can even start. And over the months she keeps visiting and they all begin to notice something is a bit strange about her. And on top of that they have to juggle trying not to let Jack find out about her and trying to ignore the feelings that they gain for her(can't wait to write those parts:) ). And the thing is Liru doesn't even notice something is off about her but Anti does and just assumes she knows and thinks that she'll tell him when she's ready. And more often than not she is seen at their house even when she goes back to Oregon, Anti just keeps bringing her over via teleportation.

Characters: Liru, Anti, Jackie, Henrik, Chase, Jack, Marvin, JJ, and some will be added later on.

Soul-Mate Au’s:

1. Songs sung by your Soulmate are stuck in your head.

2. Music that’s stuck in your Soulmate’s/Soumates’ head/s is stuck in yours as well.

3. You have accessories/an accessory that represent your Soulmates/Soulmate

Inspirations for scenes:

1. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190358452918/purring-is-simply-soothing-or-self-soothing

2. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/616293064973189120/not-all-angels-have-wings-please-do-not

3. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190866033653/never-too-old-please-do-not-stealrepost

4. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/615127312520871936/on-the-11th-of-april-a-drop-of-sunshine-fell-to

12. Songs of the Lost Souls

It's kinda a Hero and Villain x "Civilian" type things and it's Jackie and Anti but the others are also into her(Liru) The Characters in this are Jackie, Angus( the survival Hunter) Marvin, Jacques(the french "ego" from passepartout), Henrik, Chase, Jack, Anti, Shawn Flynn, JJ and S34N(he's an android "underdevelopment"(he was considered to be to human) who Anti accidentally saved). 

This takes place in some random metropolis that Liru Moved to to get away from a rather bad past. She's friends with Jacques, Shawn and Sam(S34N) and they Helped her get a rather expensive apartment that she doesn’t need to pay because Jacques already has(“To help a fellow painter out.” “Jacques I Will throw you off this balcony. WHY?!”) Jacques, Shawn and Sam are all types of Artists, Jacques is a rather Famous Painter, Shawn is a hand drawn animation artist. Sam is a sculptor. 

Liru’s Older brothers are Roman and Remus and they live in Florida with Roman’s husbands and their three adopted children but they came from Oregon. The reason why Jacques paid for her apartment is because he wanted to help her out of her bad situation despite the fact he knew virtually nothing about it. So the story starts a few days after she moves into the apartment. Also I should mention that Marvin helps out Jackie in his fights against Anti when Anti is particularly aggressive.

Characters: Liru, Jackie, Angus, Marvin, Jacques, Henrik, Chase, Jack, Anti, Shawn, JJ and S34N(Sam), Roman, Remus, Patton, Janus, Thomas, Emile, Remy, Virgil, Sammi, Jamie

Soul-Mate Au’s: 

1. When you and your soul-mate touch for the first time, what your song together is will be written on your body with your’s and your soul-mates handwriting and favorite color. And it doesn’t matter how small it is or if it’s in a different language you can always understand it. 

2. When your soul-mate is singing you can’t get the song they’re singing out of your head. 

3. When the two soul-mates finally sing their song together that their souls essentially connect to each-other finally and it allows them to gain certain abilities they have. Like in a human sense if one could speak Spanish and the other couldn't and when they sing their song together for the first time the person who couldn't speak Spanish now can but not as well as the original. And say the one that couldn’t speak Spanish was really flexible but the Spanish speaker wasn't so when they sing together for the first time the Spanish speaking one becomes somewhat flexible.

Inspirations for Scenes:

1. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/611367312035119104/under-my-umbrella-please-do-not-stealrepost

2. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/610901204242972672/somewhere-in-time-inspired-by

3. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/616210494266671104/10-million-fireflies-please-do-not-stealrepost

13. Soul Pack 

(Harry Potter au sorta it doesn’t take place in his time) I do not have a description for this so when It comes out I hope you’ll enjoy it.

Characters: Everyone, every single one of them will wind up in it.

Soul-Mate Au’s:

1. Telepathic Connection since birth but gets stronger the more you know your Soul-Mate.

2. Whatever you write on your skin appears on your Soulmate’s/Soulmates’.

14. For The Divine

It's Kinda different from the others. This one is where Liru, Roman and Remus start out as humans and the others are Gods or Divine beings whatever you wanna call them. And the others are looking for the last pieces of themselves(aka soulmates). And eventually they one by one begin to stumble upon Either, Roman, Remus or Liru.

With Roman, Remus and Liru. Roman and Remus are Liru's Legal Guardians (although she is 21 in this, they're 34 though they don't look it, just like Thomas doesn't look like he's thirty in real life.) Roman, Remus and Liru inherited everything that they're family owned after they all mysteriously died off,(Remus killed them but Roman doesn't know but he suspects but he never said anything because that is A. his brother and B. He thought they deserved it as well(they did) Liru knows because she remembers him telling her that they ever laid a hand on her he's kill them all(He did) and she never said anything because she knew that they deserved it as well. and this was when Roman and Remus were 19. 

They both quickly adopted Liru before they could put her in the system and when Liru was in school one day and a teacher made a horrible remark about her brothers taking her in, she mentioned it "Offhandedly" to Roman where Remus would hear. And the next day when Roman and Remus(for the sake of appearances) went to go talk to the teacher about it, the teacher had already been murdered the night before by some of Remus' "Friends". Roman is both a Fashion Designer and Model, Remus is a Painter, Liru is a Fashion Designer(Both Roman and Remus model for her when she needs help figuring out what to do with it) and Painter, she also makes jewelry and Masks to go with her and Romans designs. They all base their outfits/paintings/statues around the animals that represent there Soulmates.

Characters: All of them Minus Jaym and Katie.

Soul-Mate Au’s:

1. You have an animal(or in their cases, animals) that represent your soulmate/s

2. Gained Telepathic Link through getting to know your Soulmate. The more you know and trust them, the stronger the Link and the more control you have over it.

Inspiration for Scenes

1. https://oh-itskitkat.tumblr.com/post/190596652918/tending-the-garden-please-do-not

Alright now for the embodiment thing.

So I was Originally Only gonna do it for the Sanders but It just bleed over into the others. But anyway so it's essentially that they are an embodiment of certain things for there soul-mates For example, Logan Is Logic (so when any of them actually stop and think instead of diving right in Logan can tell) or Anti is Curiosity (for instance if on of the were to notice something they are unfamiliar with and they can't help but investigate Anti can tell) Or Robbie is Child-Like Wonder like the feeling you get when your a kid and you see presents under the tree on Christmas morning or Like that one Here Be Dragons from that SCP Unity episode Mark did. Robbie can feel when they feel that but at the same time it doesn't necessarily mean that they have to be a feeling or something you use. For instance Damien is the Embodiment of the Day and he can get a sense of where is soulmates are and whether or not they are in danger.

Tags:

@kittican

@antis-gauge

@flowers-zombie-rob

@trixie8264

@animallover4000

@i-maybe-exist

@nightanjel

@thegamerbook

@smolbean-pma

@the-chemist

@therealtiger77

@immabethehero

[nisaeiam]

TIMELESS - an ACOTAR fanfic

After spending her entire life in Cretea, Zivia finds herself in the company of the Night Court, sent as an emissary to help after the war. As she navigates her way outside her once secluded life, she develops unlikely bonds with the people around her - especially with the one wreathed in shadows.

PROLOGUE, CHAPTER 1, CHAPTER 2, CHAPTER 3, CHAPTER 4, CHAPTER 5, CHAPTER 6

Also posted on ff HERE

CHAPTER 7

"It was here."

Zivia muttered under her breath then took another turn in an alley. She had been walking around the streets of the city for minutes now after leaving Rhys at the town house, looking for the sweet shop they passed by earlier.

She rolled her eyes as another dead end met her. Turning back, she scratched her head as she casually walked back to the main street. Some of the faeries would occasionally look at her and she best hoped that they couldn't see how utterly and pathetically lost she was. As much as she thanks the Mother for giving her gift, she couldn't help thinking would it hurt anyone for her to do something about her terrible sense of direction?

She growled in frustration and just as she was about to give it up and fly home, she sensed a familiar presence around the corner.

"I thought you were dancing?" she said as Azriel emerged from the shadows lining the alleys. He looked a bit surprised at her noticing him

"And I thought you were tired," he countered.

"Well I am now." She loosed a sigh blowing the loose strands of hair from her face.

His eyes narrowed at her and she felt stupid for her sarcastic retort. She opened her mouth to say something but realized that he wasn't exactly looking at her but at something behind her. Her wings. Or where her wings were supposed to be, at least. She hadn't let down her illusion since conjuring it up back at the bridge.

It was that same look he was giving that prompted her to ask, "What is it?"

The others might not have noticed but she saw all that curious looks he was giving her the moment she arrived at the Court. It would be incredibly stupid of her to think they meant anything besides him being suspicious of her. She met his eyes that almost looked black in the dark.

"What are you?"

She blinked.

"Excuse me?"

Last time she checked, she was still a high-Fae complete with all the necessary limbs but she ransacked her memory for any possible instance she could've gone wrong with casting her glamour. She once tried to make herself look like a wyvern only to end up her looking like a hybrid between a monkey and a horse – almost gave her father a quick trip to the afterlife, she could still remember. But that was centuries ago. Surely she's gotten a better grip on her powers now.

"You look like you're having an identity crisis," said Azriel noting the horrified expression on her face, an almost smirk ghosting his lips.

"Yes!" she blurted, "No! I mean, don't…don't I look normal to you?" She hated that she sounded desperate and worried.

He made a strangled sound that might have been a laugh. He covered it with a cough and said, "What I meant was the kind of magic you use."

Oh.

She scratched her nose in embarrassment. Stupid.

Her magic, of course it would be about that. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to her if the spymaster asked her about it. She had actually been expecting for him to make a move the moment she knew that he knew something was off about her. Feigning ignorance would only increase his wariness towards her, and if they were going to spend time together in the Continent, it definitely wouldn't help.

"It's my gift," she said as Azriel stepped completely out of the shadows. "Aside from my deft use of the air magic that our kind possesses."

Like being a daemati or a shadowsinger. But she couldn't discern what hers was called exactly.

The Illyrian started walking and though he didn't say anything, she felt inclined to follow.

"The High Lord of the Day Court has the same affinity towards light," she ventured, falling into step beside him.

"But it's different. Helion's light allows him to break various kinds of spells. Yours doesn't do that." His voice sounded accusatory.

"It doesn't," she murmured more to herself than him.

The way she uses light allows her to manipulate it at its basest form giving her access to bend it to her will and to merge with it altogether.

"It feels a lot like mine."

She turned toward the shadowsinger. "That was what I felt whenever I see those shadows around you."

That was what it was that has always been tugging at the back of her mind but couldn't quite place.

"I have not met another shadowsinger yet and I'm wondering what you were for being someone who could use a magic similar to mine but with a different element."

And all those curious looks he was giving made sense now too.

Maybe that's what she really was - a lightsinger.

Nope.

Doesn't sound good, didn't seem right either.

"I guess it has something to do with me being in my mother's belly when she was Made, probably messed up something during my development."

Ever since discovering her abilities at a very young age, her parents have always been puzzled how it was unlike any other magic they've known. But that was the extent of it. It didn't matter whatever kind of power she had as long as she was alive and healthy, considering the ordeal she and Miryam went through together.

Azriel inclined his head as if deciding whether that was explanation enough. The gesture made his face catch the light in all the right places and she hated that little tumble her heart made at the sight of it.

After a while, he halted and faced her. "I'll go from here." He paused, considering. "Do you want me to accompany you back to the House of Wind?"

Her cheeks heated and she fumbled for a response. "No. I'm – I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

She raised a brow at him. "Yes."

Azriel tipped his head in a bow before spreading his mighty wings and shot toward the sky, sending waves of humid night air. Her eyes followed him for a moment while she smoothed her hair back into place and deciding to call it a day, she turned on her heels to go when she found herself standing in front of a shop lined with jars of rainbow-colored candies and stacks of chocolate bars.

No way.

She quickly looked back towards where the spymaster has flown to but he was already gone. Reluctantly, she entered the shop unable to decide whether to feel thankful or embarrassed.

===================

Their trip to the Continent wasn't scheduled for another day and Zivia spent most of her time waiting cooped up inside the library, gathering as much information as she possibly could.

Being secluded in an island away from the rest of the world for centuries, she needed to increase her limited knowledge about how things exactly go in the outside world. She was reminded about Mor saying that the mortals she's used to won't be the same as the ones they are going to deal with and she wasn't about to make a fool out of herself and disappoint the High Lord especially not in front of his spymaster. Hopefully, her experience in politics and with humans back in Cretea would help her through it.

She just came out of the library and on the way to sun her wings after spending hours inside when Cassian landed in the balcony.

"Hey there, princess," he greeted.

"Please don't call me that." Her brow furrowed at him. "What do you want?"

The Illyrian flicked an invisible dust on his armor as he tucked in his wings and stepped inside the dining room.

"I was wondering if you're up for another exercise."

"Again?"

The two of them have spent some time at the training grounds above the house, sparring with each other. She was quite surprised when he first asked her to train with him and, thinking it would be a nice way to kill time, she obliged with his request. It wasn't a total shock when he came back to ask a second time. And a third and a fourth…

"Let me guess, the High Lord was again busy with all his lord-ly duties and Azriel is out there spying and whatnot?"

He turned to her and smiled sheepishly. "I'm telling the truth this time."

When he told her that days ago, she knew he was lying but she did not dare call him out for it when he clearly looked upset and mad.

"You know I'm not some kind of punching bag where you can punch away all of your frustrations hoping to chase them off from constantly bugging you."

She met his gaze and for a moment, his muscles went taut and he stood with utter stillness that Zivia second-guessed whether it was right to bring up this subject. But she knows that they both knew what – or rather who – was the reason behind his constant need to vent out.

"So is that a yes?" he asked, all the tension disappearing from him like a smoke on a windy day. A wide-toothed grin now plastered on his face.

She couldn't help rolling her eyes as she threw up her hands in exasperation and they both head to the training grounds without any delay. They've somehow developed an unlikely platonic friendship during those times and she would really feel bad for not helping him on this one.

It was barely half an hour after her workout session with Cassian when Rhysand sent out notice that he'll be meeting them at the estate to talk about last-minute plans before they set off for the Continent. Azriel and Cassian were already present when she got there. Mor arrived few minutes after her.

"What happened to you?" exclaimed Cassian throwing an incredulous look at Mor. "You look … rushed."

Indeed, the female looked like she just got up from bed, her hair disheveled as if hastily styled and she wore a dress that was probably the first thing she saw after waking up and didn't bother looking for another.

"I got the notice late," Mor reasoned as she smoothed out the folds of her dress.

Zivia pointedly ignored the narrowed look that Azriel was giving Mor, as if also doubting the words she said. When Mor sauntered over to a chair beside her, she noticed a small bruise-like mark on her neck that she tried to conceal with her hair when she noticed that she was staring. She gave her a not-so-subtle wink and Zivia snapped her attention back to Rhysand and did her best to school her face into obliviousness, more so when she felt the shadowsinger's burrowing gaze turn to her.

The meeting was fairly quick, going over some new information that Azriel was able to gather and also additional preparations that needed to be done for the upcoming treaty council involving all the high lords of Prythian in a few months' time.

Zivia was walking along the corridors of the estate after the meeting when she caught sight of the lush garden through the glass windows. An onslaught of fresh and sweet earthy scents greeted her upon stepping out of the veranda and she took a deep breath, drinking in the aroma that reminded her of her mother's own botanical garden atop their palace. She followed the cobblestone path that leads to the fountain in the middle of the garden, letting her hand graze along the hedges as she walked by. Almost every kind of blossoming plants were present – from hydrangeas to daisies to daffodils and peonies and tulips and roses and her all-time favourite, sunflowers. She was busy admiring the towering yellow-petalled flower that she overlooked someone who was crouched and digging the soil around the plant. The gardener spotted her as she approached and stopped to greet her.

"Hello."

It was the High Lady's sister.

"Uhm, hi."

An awkward reply wasn't what she was planning to give her but given how gorgeous she looked even in her drab gardening clothes, she instantly felt conscious about herself again. She was suddenly glad that she was able to take at least a shower before going to the meeting.

"You like flowers too?" Elain asked her as she dusted off the dirt from her gloved hands. Her palms didn't appear too sweaty when she removed them.

Must be enchanted, she thought. Like the one she would use whenever her mother would ask her for help in trimming a bougainvillea shrub, as it prevents getting her fingers torn by its spiky stems.

"My mother developed a particular inclination towards horticulture and I find myself enjoying it too. We do pottery together for some of her plants."

She took a step closer to the sunflower to stoke its petals.

"Isn't it amazing how they turn towards the sun, following it across the sky? Plants do have magic on their own." Elain's smile was expectedly devastating.

"Do you think they'll live when grown away from sunlight?" she mused as she stared at the flower tilted towards the ball of light now sinking slowly on the horizon.

"Where there is darkness, the light will always find its way."

Her head snapped to her, brows knitting together in confusion. She wasn't sure if she was still talking about the plant. And there was something odd about the look Elain was giving her. But it didn't linger for long when she offered to walk with her to the fountain and talk more about gardening.

[breathinginthevapor]

When I was your man

Summary: Calum has lost the love of his life and he writes her one last letter. 

A/N: Right now I’m just posting my old pieces, but If any of you are triggered by angsty one shots, you probably shouldn’t read this...  Also, it’s written over Bruno Mars’ song, if any of you were wondering xx.

TW: swearing, I guess

Masterlist

Same bed, but it feels just a little bit bigger now

Our song on the radio, but it don’t sound the same

 ”Dear Y/N.

I don’t really know why I’m writing you this letter, or if you’re even going to read this, because even though it was never my intention, I hurt you. And I can’t tell you how sorry I am. And I know that it’s selfish of me, sending you this letter and offering you my heart when all I ever did was breaking yours, but without you I am weak and I don’t know how to be strong again without you by my side. Without waking up to your beautiful sleeping face every morning, because the bed that we bought together when you moved in feels too big now that you’re not here, even though I always complained there wasn’t enough space for two in it.

I just really miss you, you know? I miss your weird laugh, your soft hair between my fingers, the cute little eskimo kisses we shared late at night, the way you nuzzled up to my chest when you were tired after a long day at college and all the times we drove in your old car, our song came on the radio and you started singing on the top of your lungs, even though it sounded really bad, and we just felt so alive. But most of all, I miss the way you made me feel. The calmness that floated through my veins when I was in your presence made me feel at home, no matter where I was. And I know it sounds fucking sappy and cliché, but Y/N you are my home, and now that you’re not mine anymore, it feels like I’m aching for something that will never come my way again: your love. However, missing you for the rest of my life and watching you with another man is better than being with someone else, because no one compares to you. Not even a single bit.”

 When our friends talk about you all that it does is just tear me down

Cause my heart breaks a little when I hear your name

 “In the days after we split up I remember checking all of your social media accounts several times a day, until I realized that of course you weren’t going to use them anymore, because they were filled with messages from my fans and pictures of us, smiling happily at each other. And it must have been easier just to let them be and start others, than making your accounts private and deleting all of the happy pictures. Sometimes I catch myself checking them again, at 2 a.m after some of my friends make the mistake of talking of you in my presence. They forget that heart break isn’t measured by time, that just because it’s been more than ten months already I don’t have to be over you yet. When they say your name with their drunk sloppy voices, my heart breaks a little; not much, but enough to make me fall apart again. Because it brings back flashes of our happiness, and then our great sadness at the end of our journey. It’s not always whole scenarios, sometimes it’s just the sound of you, angrily yelling my name through our living room, or a few seconds of seeing you smile on our third date. Do you remember that one, by the way? We went to Build A Bear and you couldn’t decide whether you wanted the monkey or the cat – so I bought you both. And the ecstatic look on your face when you offered me the monkey (so we had a teddy each, as you explained) were definitely worth all of the comments from my friends when they asked why I had a stuffed monkey sitting on my couch. And when I for the first time visited your small apartment, my heart swelled at the sight of the stuffed cat in your bed. Especially when you admitted that you always slept with it when you missed me.

I have no idea why you, even if it was only for a short amount of time, chose me to complete you, but I’ll always be grateful. You are so beautiful, so pure, so precious, and I’m just a man who, for a while, was saved by your love. After all the selfish things I’ve done and the great people I’ve given up to follow my own dreams, your love was the only thing able to save me from the dark inside me, but now you’re gone and I’m stuck with my own demons. Not that I blame you, of course, don’t ever think that. “

 Too young, too dumb to realize

That I should have bought you flowers and held your hand

 “When I think back and wonder what went wrong, I always come to the same conclusion: I was too young, too dumb to appreciate you properly; I forgot that just because you were my forever, there was still a possibility that you didn’t feel the same way. And I can’t help but regretting that I didn’t bring you your favorite flowers and held your hand when you were crying out of stress because of all the school work that had to be done. Instead I went on tour with my band, left you alone for months and convinced myself we were still going strong, even though we only talked twice a week. And every time I saw you on a blurry screen, you looked so fucking tired, but I never asked how you were doing, and you never told me to shut up. Maybe that’s what broke you: your great strength became a burden that was too heavy in the end. I hope you have learned to love yourself first. You deserve that.”

 Should have gave you all my hours when I had the chance

Take you to every party cause all you wanted to do was dance

Now my baby is dancing, but she’s dancing with another man.

 “Perhaps I forgot where we came from, where we met. Perhaps I got too caught up in my own little fantasy about you, us, and forgot who you really were. You were outstanding and wild and contained an inner fire that lit up your beautiful eyes. The first time I touched you, the fire marked my skin and I knew that there was no turning back. But I forgot that even though you could be so serious and considerate and grown up, you needed breaks, too. Sometimes you needed to dance all night long and turn your blood into alcohol. But I went to the club myself, and in the end, your hands weren’t the ones on my body late at night. I hate myself for ending us like this.

I’m beginning to realize that maybe we actually don’t belong together, you are way too good for me, but I wish we could have ended in better way so that you always would remember me as a nice guy, who made you happy for a while and not as an asshole who broke your heart.

I hope you didn’t notice me at the club last week. I give you my word, that I didn’t went there to catch a glance of you, but I did and it felt like hearing a song that you haven’t heard since you were a little child; it was so relieving and comforting. Or, it was until I saw you in his arms. You looked so comfortable, so safe and so happy that I couldn’t even be mad at him for having something that I wanted so bad myself. Your beautiful eyes had that amazing sparkle in them again, and even though it probably sounds weird, I am more than grateful for his love for you. He seems like a great guy, and I’m glad you are happy. I wish it was me who made you feel like that, though. “

 My pride, my ego, my needs and my selfish ways

Caused a good strong woman like you to walk out my life

 “I ruined us, didn’t I? My pride and my way-too-big ego ruined the best thing I’ve ever had, and I can’t believe I let all of my selfish ways come between us. You were so good, so strong, and I broke you, tore you heart apart and destroyed the love you shared for me in your heart. And for that, I will always be sorry. You are too god for this world, Y/N, and oh how it breaks me to be the one to reveal the real, nasty world with all its evil and self-centered people to you. You, of all people, deserve to live in your own little beautiful world, full of rainbows, love and happiness. But I didn��t let you. And you have the right to hate me for that, but no matter what, I will always love you.”

 Now I never, never get to clean up the mess I made

And it haunts me every time I close my eyes

 “Sometimes I wonder if you ever think of me. One part of me wants to know, and the other part doesn’t. Because even though it’s very selfish of me, I don’t want you to forget me. But if you think of me, you will remember the bad things too. All the times I did you wrong, all the times I put my stupid needs before yours. And that, I can’t bear. But if I have to be completely honest, I must admit that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget you, not when I see your tearstained cheeks and your watery eyes every time I close my eyes. It haunts me, and I can’t sleep when the most terrible day of my entire life keeps repeating for my inner sight. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard you screaming “We’re over.” And it hurts like the first time every time. I just wish I could turn back time and clean up the fucking mess I’ve made. But I can’t. I can’t undo my mistakes and I can’t make you fall in love with me in again. But I can promise you, that I’ve learned from them and that I’ll never be so stupid again.“

  Although it hurts I’ll be the first to say that I was wrong

Oh, I know I’m probably much too late

To try and apologize for my mistakes

 “I know I am too late, but I just want you to know that I’m sorry. It’s always like that, isn’t it? You don’t realize what you’ve got until it’s gone. I didn’t know that I wasn’t able to live without you when I had you because I hadn’t tried it yet. But now I know.”

 But I just want you to know

I hope he buys you flowers, I hope he holds your hand

Give you all his hours when he has the chance

Take you to every party cause I remember how much you loved to dance

Do all the things I should have done when I was your man

Do all the things I should have done when I was your man

 “You’re probably wondering about the reason for telling you all of these things, and since I’m not exactly sure either, I can’t give you any straight answer. But I guess it’s because I miss you, miss talking to you, and because I want to apologize for my shitty behavior. I can’t explain why I did what I did, I don’t have a single clue myself, but I’m very sorry, and how selfish as it is, I need you to forgive me. As I’ve already told you, I don’t know how to live without you, but what I do know is that I can’t survive without your forgiveness, even though I don’t deserve it at all. I’m not asking you to take me back, I promise, I just need you to forgive me, to remember the few good things I consist of instead of all the bad things I have done. And I’m begging you to please accept my apology and then I will let you go. Or at least try.

I know I’m not in a position to ask you for favors, but please promise me that he treats you better than I did. That he buys you the flowers I never did and holds your hand when you’re sad. Promise me that he takes you to all the parties you want to attend, because I remember how you always loved to dance. Promise me, that he does all the things that I should have done when I was your man.

 Yours forever

Calum Thomas Hood

[hemlockdumpling]

2016 Anime/Animation Challenge ~ October

My Little Pony Season 6

Pastel coloured pony time! I think October is the Month of Pony, given I finished Season 6, watched The Legend of Everfree and rewatched the other Equestria Girls films. It's just that kind of month. Season 6 of My Little Pony follows the reformed Starlight Glimmer learning lessons of friendship from, who else, the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle and her awesome posse of friends. From a season opener about a royal Crystalling to her very first best friend and an unexpected return, Season 6 is Starlight Hour as she struggles to learn the importance of friendship and worries about being judged for her past mistakes. Very relatable. Except the whole enslaving/almost ending the world/kinda messing with time shenanigans.

Then again, we're not perfect. #lifelessonsiguess

Other episodes include Spike returning to the Land of Dragons to compete for the title of "Dragon Lord" (Gauntlet of Fire,) a Pony retelling of A Christmas Carol (A Hearth's Warming Tail,) a griffon seeking her cutie mark (The Fault in Our Cutie Marks,) Rainbow Dash butting heads with a Daring Do fan at a con (Stranger Than Fanfiction,) a fantasy role-playing session courtesy of Spike, Big Mac and Discord of all folks (Dungeons & Discords,) and Starlight Glimmer taking on evil with the most unexpected band of allies (To Where and Back.)

It only serves to make me wonder what Season 7 will have in store. Yay.

My Little Pony: Equestria Girls: The Legend of Everfree

Another Humanised Pony story, The Legend of Everfree takes our heroines camping in the woods on a school trip where Twilight Sparkle struggles with the aftermath of the previous film, trying to hide her darkness, while new found magical powers find theirselves to the Mane Six just in time to take on another magical threat.

The concept of the Mane Six and Sunset gaining powers is very interesting and it's fun to see how they are utilised (though never let Pinkie Pie near anything fragile, please.) Twilight's struggles with darkness are similar to Sunset in Rainbow Rocks and their friendship is a strong part of the film.

My only qwuibbles were around the less appealing opening song (compared to the other films,) another love interest character introduced for Twilight Sparkle though Timber Spruce isn't completely unlikeable, and Filthy Rich suddenly becoming a villain for simplicity sake in this feature. Other than that, it was an enjoyable piece to the Equestria Girls series, especially with the post credits stinger.

Orenchi No Furo Jiyo

Short anime about a young man that takes care of a mermaid in his bathtub. No, really. The everyday comedy of Tatsumi looking after Wakasa is an endearing way to pass the time, especially when other hybrid humans start popping in to say hello, like Takasu the octopus man and Mikuni the humanoid jellyfish.

It's a softer, light hearted anime than the darker sexual comedy of Monster Musume, so if you want something about cute monster human characters and the poor boy trying to keep things in check (without the extreme fanservice and dark comedy,) Orenchi No Furo Jiyo might be your cup of chamomile tea.

Brotherhood: FFXV

Let's get one thing straight, I love Final Fantasy XV, but I will be the first to admit the story structure of the video game could have been better. You shouldn't need to consult seperate media to get the full story, especially when said things really should have been in the game to flesh it out and paying for DLC that should have been ingame in the first place is a practice that needs to go. With that out the way, Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV is the story we really needed to get some much needed context on our beloved Chocobros and their connection to Noctis. Each Chocobro gets an episode about his past, including the very important monster attack that Noctis survived when he was a child that barely got mentioned in the game. If you ever wanted to get some backstory on your bros, this is the place to go. In fact, I insist. It really does help. Trust me.

Persona 5 The Animation ~ The Day Breakers ~

Lemme break it to you, the Persona franchise is awesomesauce. With stories about personal darkness and demons, symbolic creatures of the mind that would make Freud blush, and character development that is a much needed breath of fresh air, Persona is a series of personal recommendation for those wanting something a little different.

Persona 5 The Animation ~ The Day Breakers ~ is an OVA of sorts that adapts one of the potential side missions in the video game, fleshing out the backstory of the target, Kazuya. It would be an interesting opening gate for folks unfamiliar with P5 to get into the ideas of the game in smaller chunks. We get a glimpse at the Phantom Thieves of Hearts and how they target those with corrupt, impure hearts, giving you an idea of what the story is like in game on a smaller scale. Give it a try.

Rewatch

Big part of my childhood for introducing me to the concept of death at an early age,

The Animals of Farthing Wood

finally found its way to a DVD release in 2016. This gave many viewers, like myself, a chance to re-experience the perils and dangers of a group of animals fleeing their endangered home to promises of a better life at White Deer Park. As you can imagine, there are plenty of deaths and struggles for this varied band of creatures great and small, from newts and moles to badgers and foxes. Even now, I still remember scenes depicting the harsh reality of the food chain and being a creature of the wild.

The Butcher Bird. The motorway. The fox hunt. The farm.

What is a new experience, with The Animals of Farthing Wood, that perhaps wasn't as apparent as a younger viewer, is how dicky the different animals are to each other. Worst offenders are Adder, Owl and Weasel. Before, you knew they teased and took parting shots. As a 30 year old watcher, it comes across as bullying, especially in what is a stressful situation of survival. As a child, Weasel was one of my favourites, now she's definitely outstayed her welcome (laughing at mourning animals is not appreciated and THAT LAUGH.) I still love the likes of Kestrel, Mole, Badger and even Owl (despite her recurring theme of trash talking the other animals, it wouldn't be the same without her.)

Another Crowning Moment is the Music. The Theme song alone is the stuff of nostalgia overload by the senses, but even the background music (the same piece of music with different instruments depending on which animal is on screen.) I can perfectly envision that entire opening in my mind with the music alone, which tells you how powerful it is.

The Third Season, featuring a pack of rats that want to take over White Deer Park, was perhaps not the strongest part of the series, given very popular characters are Put On the Bus, never mentioned again and replaced with not as appealing ones. Nevertheless, it was still enjoyable, even if the first two seasons were the strongest.

Perhaps not as child friendly as it advertised (THAT BUTCHER BIRD,) The Animals of Farthing Wood is still the stuff of animation legend and worth the watch. If you want Watership Down with a mixture of different animals, this is the one to watch.

Following the new Legend of Everfree film, I decided to turn to Equestria Girls, Rainbow Rocks and Friendship Games. These are My Little Pony movies that feature the mane six as humans attending high school and defending the human world from magical threats. The surprising thing is, despite how cliched the high school setting is, they are quite enjoyable. For me, a big part of the enjoyment is Sunset Shimmer, a unicorn that escapes to the human world after stealing Twilight Sparkle's crown in the first movie, Equestria Girls. She is both a compelling antagonist that grows into so much more in the following movies.

As far as plots go, they are quite straightforward. Equestria Girls, like I mentioned before, introduces us to the human world when Twilight Sparkle chases Celestia's former student, Sunset Shimmer, into this strange, new world in pursuit of her crown (trying HARD not to make a Game Grumps joke, here.) We also meet the human versions of not only the other members of the Mane Six (Fluttershy, so cute,) but background ponies in a different form now. The fun is trying to find them as they make their way about Canterlot High.

Rainbow Rocks, one of my personal favourites, is the ultimate Battle of the Bands showdown as the Mane Six take on the standout villains of the piece, the Dazzlings. Everything is a musical spectical with the Dazzlings being the stars of the show. We also get the start of Sunset Shimmer's character development, which is also a reason I enjoy the EG films.

Friendship Games is the clash between two High Schools in a tournament of intellectual and athletic prowess... and the introduction of another Twilight Sparkle? School rivalry, peer pressure and, of course, Friendship is the order of the day with more great musical numbers and a showdown that wouldn't be out of place in a Magical Girl Show.

To MLP fans that are somewhat cycnical to these humanised forms of their beloved ponies, I'd say give the films a try. What have you got to lose? You might enjoy them more than you think. Rainbow Rocks and Friendship Games are the stronger entries.

[latoyajkelson70506]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[deborahaphillips54303]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[cyberpoetryballoon]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[carolrhackett85282]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[melodymgill49801]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[carolinechanson97838]

TikTok Is the Food Platform of the People

Tway Nguyen, also known as @twaydabae, isn't totally sure why a video of her cooking fried rice on TikTok blew up to 5.5 million views, but her guess is that it's because she cracked two eggs at the same time. She thinks that's why TikTok's algorithm pushed it onto the For You page, the assortment of recommended videos you see when you open the app. Though she used to post dancing videos and makeup tips with no real rhyme or reason, Nguyen has used TikTok exclusively for cooking ever since, picking up millions of views and gaining a following of over 282,000 users.

Since that video on March 22, TikTok has been a fast-growing space for Nguyen, who decided to take her kitchen experience online after finishing culinary school last year. She'd initially planned to work on the line in a kitchen, but now, social media is her full-time job. Though she's been making food content on YouTube and Instagram for longer, her following on those platforms has grown slower. "A really good thing about TikTok is it's still in the beginning stages where we're still getting a lot of genuine and original personalities rather than just a lot of people copying each other," Nguyen told VICE. "Right now is like the golden time."

@twaydabae

Quick and easy #friedrice #recipe #easyrecipe #foodie #food #homecook #howto #howtocook

♬ original sound - twaydabae

If you want to make food videos in 2020, and all you have is a phone, your home kitchen, and not much of an online following, where do you start? For people at the beginning of their path in food, TikTok is increasingly the answer. There, there's still a chance to become a food star.

In the food world, TikTok is the anti-YouTube. At 15 years old, YouTube now feels like the old guard, while TikTok, which was released worldwide in 2018, has been called the "wild west." On YouTube, food videos are like TV shows—Bon Appétit's now push the 30-minute mark—but TikTok videos max out at one minute. As YouTube has become another product for influencer chefs and media publications like this one, the expectations for content and production are high. TikTok, meanwhile, has the DIY appeal of a new platform.

There's a lo-fi, unpolished quality to TikTok's food world, where videos are often taken by a person holding the phone in one hand and cooking with the other. Sometimes, the kitchens are dirty, the shots are blurry, and the omelettes flip imperfectly, but that doesn't stop the views; the popular user @blockboyjmomey posts cooking videos made in a cell at a California prison. "A good phone, a good mic, a tripod, and some window light—that's what I use. There's nothing fancy about my kitchen. It's just simple, relatable," Nguyen said. Everything feels like you could do it too, without a production crew, a test kitchen, or even high-end cookware.

@twaydabae

so easy it doesn’t require chopping! Full written recipe & directions on my IG @ TWAYDABAE #howto #easyrecipe #homecook #cookathome #asianrecipe

♬ original sound - twaydabae

The style of overhead shots and floating hands pioneered by Tasty became the norm on other platforms, but there isn't a formula for a TikTok food video yet. Some clips on the platform are narrated in quick hits of instructions; others are set to popular audio clips, which allows food creators to ride on the buzz of songs backing viral dance trends or memes.

Only so much can be explained in one minute or shown in a meaningful way through un-narrated clips, so TikTok food videos focus on quick techniques, replications of well-known dishes, and "hacks." The effect of this is that the food is simple, and one of Nguyen's early goals was to show young Asian Americans how easy their cultural foods are.

TikTok food is best explained by its big trends: the viral one-pan breakfast sandwich showed a lifehack for a common meal; the three-ingredient dalgona coffee can be made by anyone who can vigorously whisk; the tiny pancakes are just regular pancakes but small. Consider the Hot Cheetos-crusted mozzarella sticks, the Oreo cake, and the bread pizza, and it's clear that TikTok foods draw on familiar, easy-to-recreate elements instead of introducing people to entirely new concepts.

@twincoast

VEGAN strawberry smoothie! 🍓 no bananas 🍌 #vegan #veganfood #smoothie #smoothiebowl #veganrecipe #healthysmoothie #vitamixlife #vitamix

♬ SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK - Joji

Sisters Ashley and Taylor Johnston have made it big on TikTok by making nothing but smoothies. As @twincoast, their feed is a rainbow grid of Vitamix containers full of blended fruit. They uploaded their first smoothie video on TikTok in November 2019 and "it went pretty much viral overnight with over 500,000 views," the sisters told VICE in an email. Today, that video has over 1 million views.

"We think that our smoothies have been popular on TikTok because it is different from the other content being uploaded," the Johnston sisters said. On YouTube, where they've had an account since 2012 and occasionally post food tutorials, they have a following of 61,000, but on TikTok, they've gained over 757,000 followers since last November. Their audience is excited to watch videos that show little more than a smoothie being scooped and smoothed with a spoon. There's a market for that though, the sisters said: "Our followers have grown to know what our smoothies look like and the exact spoon we use for our scoop videos."

@spurweezy

Making Filipino Chicken adobo with Mom #filipino #cooking #fyp #foryourpage

♬ Wii store - .

Mike Spurlock, who posts videos on TikTok as @spurweezy, sees TikTok as a space to be realistic about home cooking. An event planner by trade, Spurlock previously shared his home-cooked meals in private group chats, but last July, he began cooking on TikTok to show a long-distance romantic partner what he was up to in the kitchen. Even after the relationship ended, he stayed on the platform, where his videos have gained him 62,000 followers. "People like to know that you don't have to be a world-star chef with world-star equipment to make a great meal," he told VICE.

Users who've found followings primarily on TikTok attribute their success to "the algorithm." As Instagram influencers and YouTubers see their view counts slide, they see "the algorithm" as something to be blamed, but on TikTok, the algorithm offers promise. Creating good, grabby content is king, both Nguyen and Spurlock acknowledged, but the algorithm—which dictates what ends up on the For You page—is necessary for being discovered.

"The way the TikTok algorithm works is you can not have any followers and overnight, your video can go crazy because of just... something," Spurlock said. The first video of his that got the algorithm's attention was one of him cooking bratwurst, because people in the comments began arguing over whether or not he'd burnt them, he said. Despite all the videos and articles offering ways to "hack" the TikTok algorithm, there's still a sense that no one really knows how it works—after all, if these tutorials really nailed it, wouldn't everyone be a TikTok star? When you look at it that way, "the algorithm" is another way of saying "luck."

@spurweezy

♬ original sound - Auzzy4

No matter how the algorithm works, home cooking has worked for Spurlock on TikTok, though it hasn't been the same on other platforms. On Instagram, his follower count hovers under 1,000; one day, he wants to make the jump to YouTube. "I think [TikTok] users are a little bit more forgiving of, I guess, more home-styled content. The professional stuff is out there, but when I check on the OG TikTok chefs, what kinda brought everybody together was that we're all just focused on home cooking," Spurlock said. "On Instagram, it feels a little bit more commercial. Yes, you can have your own style, but it's way more curated. TikTok just feels more authentic."

That perception of authenticity could explain why big food brands haven't quite cracked TikTok, even if they've found monumental success on YouTube and Instagram. Perhaps the best example is Bon Appétit's absence from the platform, despite its huge YouTube presence. Though accounts with the handles @bonappetit and @bonappetitmag exist, they're blank and don't carry the magazine's branding.

With 1.2 million followers, Tasty runs one of the largest accounts in the TikTok food space, but its content appears to be cut from existing videos. First We Feast's page is similarly popular, though it mostly reposts random TikTok users. Thrillist, with 581,000 followers on YouTube, has just over 46,000 on TikTok; though its videos are more in line with TikTok's style, they rarely break 2,000 views.

Part of that, according to Alessandro Bogliari, CEO and co-founder of the Influencer Marketing Factory, is likely because of who runs media companies. "It's management that is definitely older. They might not understand what TikTok is," he told VICE. TikTok might seem too new to invest resources into, and the platform can change faster than companies might strategize around it. "It's relatively new, and the rules are changing every single day and every week. I think that a lot of brands are usually slower in decision making."

@spurweezy

Whats your favorite #chicken sandwich, Popeyes🐔 or Chick-fil-A🐄? S/o to @nishcooks #foryoupage #fyp #cooking #food #popeyes #chickfila #烹饪 #duet

♬ Cheryl - yung gravy

To Nguyen, part of the appeal of social media is that she controls the whole process. "I don't have to go through a boss to say, 'Okay, you can post your video,'" Nguyen said. With conventional food media catching well-earned criticism for gatekeeping, breaking into the field through traditional means can feel like an uphill climb. Jobs are scarce and landing them can be a mix of luck and connections. On TikTok, meanwhile, you don't need to worry about that: Anyone can hit record, publish, and have a similar shot at getting swept into the algorithm.

"On YouTube and Instagram, I feel like you almost have this pedigree," Spurlock said. "You know, just like the picture-perfect everything. TikTok is a little bit more open to everyday people."

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - undefined US VICE US - undefined US via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[randomconnections]

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

To say that tulips are a big deal in the Skagit Valley would be a massive understatement. Just looking around the town of Mount Vernon one sees a huge smoke painted with tulips and tulip motifs worked into architecture and bridges. Several business are named for the flowers, such as the Tulip Inn. It’s a big business and it all comes to a head during the month of April when the tulips are in bloom. That’s when the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival takes place.

This year marks the 35th Anniversary of the Tulip Festival, but tulips have been an important crop in the area for much longer. The industry started on our very own Samish Island in the early 1900s. According to a recent article in the Skagit Valley Herald…

In the early 1900s, Samish Island resident Mary Brown Stewart ordered Skagit County’s first tulip bulbs from Holland, planting the first one in her yard in 1906.

Mary and her husband William Stewart settled in Skagit County in 1903. It was there on the couple’s 40 acres that Mary’s tulips began attracting attention — first from her neighbors, some who never thought to grow something they couldn’t eat — and later others in the region.

According to the Skagit County Historical Museum, Mary soon had a small mail-order bulb business and is credited with starting the county’s tulip bulb industry.

Now two large planters, Roozengaarde and Tulip Town are the main growers in the area. The flowers themselves are harvested and sold, but the most important products are the bulbs themselves. The bulbs are planted sometime in the fall and each spring fields in the Skagit River Flats between the towns of Mount Vernon and La Conner burst into color.

My first experience with the Tulip Festival was sometime in the mid-1990s. Laura and I had come out over spring break to visit her mom. Like many first time visitors, we were blown away with the seemingly endless fields of flowers. At that time you could park on the side of the road and wander into the fields. I took tons of photos using a 35mm Nikkormat SLR that had belonged to Laura’s father. Here are a couple from that trip, including a much younger version of me standing in the tulip fields.

Laura and I had been watching the tulip progress in anticipation of this spring’s event. First there was the Daffodil Festival in March, centered around La Conner. Toward the end of March the tulips were just starting to show color as the daffodils were fading. We visited Roozengaarde’s display garden to take a few “before” photos – before the blooms, before the crowds, and before they started charging admission.

About the time that the blooms were breaking out the weather turned crappy, so Laura and I didn’t really venture out much more. The week that Houston was with us was our first real trek out into tulip land. We drove past a couple of fields and found one place where we could pull off the road and park.

This was the only spot we found that you could pull off the road and get to the fields for free. One big difference between this year and our visit in the 1990s was that there were more “No Parking” signs and the places that did have parking were charging for it. I don’t blame them. It was crowded and the people were crazy.

We decided to bite the bullet and drive on around to Roozengaarde. This was a Wednesday and the crowds and traffic were already bad.

We paid our admission and headed on in. The display gardens looked very different from when Laura and I had visited earlier in the month.

There were masterful displays of the bulbs available through the Roozengaarde catalog. Woven through the plantings were shapes and designs only available if viewed from above. Fortunately I had my wide-angle GoPro on a long selfie-stick so that I could hold it over my head and get some good shots.

Laura’s favorites were an orange-purple-yellow combination. These were three different cultivars that were slightly variegated. They had the effect of fading from one color to the next when planted together.

Behind the display gardens were the open fields. With the recent rains these were quite muddy, but we headed out anyway.

Later in the week Laura had to fly to Chicago for a meeting, leaving Houston and me to explore the Tulip Street Festival in downtown Mount Vernon. It was a typical street fair, with artisan booths and musicians. We stopped to listen to the Prozac Mountain Boys play some Bluegrass. At one of the casino booths we were each given four decks of used cards. The decks had holes drilled in them so that they could no longer be used in the casinos, but they would work fine for home. You don’t get that in the street fairs in our area.

The weather for the weekend was beautiful, so that’s when all hell broke loose as far as traffic and crowds are concerned. Saturday Houston and I didn’t venture into the tulip fields but stayed safely on the island. On Sunday I had to drive him down to the airport, then pick up Laura on her return from Chicago. As we drove south all of the exits for Mount Vernon were backed up about a mile onto the interstate. I was glad to be going the opposite direction.

Houston was back home in Georgia and Laura was back with me on the island. After recovering from her trip we decided to take one more trip out to the fields on Tuesday. We figured a morning trip early in the week might be better than the weekend madness. We decided to check out Tulip Town, since we’d never been there.

At Tulip Town there was a charge for admission, as with Roozengaarde. Large parafoil kites were flying overhead, as if the fields of color were not enough of an attraction. After paying our entry fee we entered a barn converted into retail and display space. Out back there were more display gardens, but nowhere near as elaborate as Roozengaarde’s.

The main attraction here were the fields. The bands of color were closer together, creating more of a rainbow effect. There were only a couple of rows of each cultivar.

For an additional fee you could take a tractor ride around the field. We decided to stay on foot.

It just so happened that this was “‘Dins Day”, a fundraising effort for Furman University (‘Dins being short for Paladins.) In addition to giving money, they wanted folks to post selfies in purple shirts. I had worn my purple shirt, but Laura thought that photos in front of purple tulips would be perfect.

It looked like some of the flowers were just slightly past prime. It was also apparent that this was a working tulip farm. Workers were “deadheading” a couple of rows of flowers and a tractor was plowing between them. These would soon be harvested for bulbs.

We continued on around the Tulip Town fields eventually making it back to the display barns. We found it interesting, but really liked Roozengaarde better. We decided to make one more trip back there. Since it was a sunny day the crowds were even larger than when we had been here last week. Didn’t matter. We still enjoyed the colors. Here, too, it was obvious that the flowers wouldn’t be around for much longer. We enjoyed them while we could.

It could be overwhelming. As a photographer I found myself taking many of the same shots over and over. After awhile even fields of color in a photograph can get monotonous, so you have to look for variety. I would look for interesting lighting, where the tulips were made translucent by the sun’s backlighting.

I also played around with depth of field. Increasing the aperture narrows the depth of field, so only flowers within the target range are in focus and everything else is blurred out. You can also achieve this with a long telephoto.

My favorite targets were the anomalies – a single red tulip in a field of yellow, or vice versa.

With my GoPro/Selfie Stick setup I could do more experimentation. Not only was I able to get a wide-angle view from above, but I could hold the camera directly over a grouping for some interesting overhead shots.

The best use of the GoPro was to place it deep within the flower beds. I was able to get shots of the tulips reaching skyward. I even got a couple of selfies as the wide angle captured me, too.

There are still a few flowers out in the fields and there are even some fields of daffodils still in bloom. We’ll probably ride by them, but I don’t think we will actively wander through the fields again. I’m just glad that we were once again able to experience this incredible display of color. I couldn’t possible post all of my photos here, so here’s a link to the entire photo album on Flickr.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2HWGz9v via IFTTT

[theworstbob]

yellin’ at songs, week forty

oops

brief considerations of the songs which debuted on billboard on 10.11.1997, 10.13.2007, and 10.14.2017

10.11.1997

1) "Candle in the Wind 1997/Something in the Way You Look Tonight," by Elton John

princess diana seemed like a nice person and i don't agree that it is good that she passed on. i think she should have continued to live, and finally, i found a song that agrees with my worldview.

44) "Too Gone, Too Long," by En Vogue

So real talk this is late because one week I saw two Post Malone songs and I said fuck it because, like, it's, and I just, I don't think it's fair when older generations yell at younger generations? But the average '90s R&B track was infinitely better than the average '10s anything. You could drive down the street bumping the radio and a song like this, with that small miracle that happens around the 3:00 mark, and this would be like the seventh-best song you'd hear. Kids these days are just listening to songs that don't make any stabs at greatness, they just exist in a way that doesn't motivate you to change the station. The problem is with the children. I'm not actually talking about this song, I'm talking about the way people consume music. This song is heckin' great and everyone should listen to it 20 times and then try to get through a Post Malone song.

58) "Heaven," by Nu Flavor

In this overly intense '90s R&B slo jamz, the R&B boys plead to God to convince this woman to fuck them. That sentence is the last thing I wrote for YAS before taking a weeks-long sabbatical and I'm glad I found it.

63) "Love Gets Me Every Time," by Shania Twain

Where do we rank Shania Twain in the diva pantheon? Like, this is a song with a hook I recognized when I heard it, after 20 years of just not thinking about this song I heard "dolgurn gone and done it" and was like "oh yeah! This jam!" and not all singers can dig that deep into your memory, but in terms of historical import, where does she rank? You can't really argue that "country needs a rep in the pantheon" because um hello? Dolly? but there's at least four Shania songs that are absolutely legendary. Does that merit inclusion among the greats? Or is Shania just on that second tier with a Kelly Clarkson or a Carrie Underwood, reliable but not as powerful as the women we'll tell our grandkids about?

65) "Electric Barbarella," by Duran Duran

One of the things that struck me as odd about the film Sing Street was the reverence with which the film treated Duran Duran. I always sort of thought Duran Duran was a boy band, but there was a film set in the heyday of Duran Duran's popularity, with a scene where an older brother extols the virtues of Duran Duran's musicianship to a younger brother, and I'm just like, "I never would have guessed this band was at the vanguard of new wave?" But I guess maybe they were a less dark Depeche Mode and I should check this out because this song from 1997 probably isn't indicative of peak Duran Duran? Hello welcome back to YAS I'm already asking questions to no one instead of offering criticism, it's like I never left.

70) "They Like it Slow," by H-Town

Sometimes, when you abandon a project for a while and come back, you notice things about the thing you're doing that you never would have noticed if you had worked on it in the last two months. To that end: I just realized all the 1997 and prolly most of the 2007 music videos were shot in 4:3. Like, when they filmed these music videos, they were composing shots with the idea they would be on TVs. That's kind of interesting! Like, when you go to film school, you probably have the idea you're gonna direct films, so having to compose shots for a smaller aspect ratio probably fucks you up a little bit. Anyway, I can't tell if this '90s R&B slo jamz is a parody or not.

87) "A Smile Like Yours," by Natalie Cole

"I have seen the bluest skies/Rainbows that would make you cry." It's absolutely amazing which lines in these songs gain significance from 20 years of events. Like, that line about rainbows takes on a whole new meaning now that we've all enjoyed and then forgot about the Double Rainbow video.

91) "Alright," by Jamiroquai

groovy! i’m okay with this! this is like what all the calvin harris songs would sound like if they were good.

92) "Spin Spin Sugar," by Sneaker Pimps

there's so much cool stuff happening in this song and i really just wanna sit down and get to know this band a lot more because they've always seemed like something i was supposed to like and now i realize that i do actually like them, unfortunately WE'RE LISTENING TO 100 SONGS TONIGHT GOODBYE GOOD SONG I WILL KEEP THIS MEMORY WARM IN MY HEART UNTIL THE END OF TIME

10.13.2007

58) "Tattoo," Jordin Sparks

This is a song that just barely missed the lyric video trend. If any song needed to have words appearing on random actors' skin, it was this one, it would have been such a no-brainer decision. Like, you do it right, hire some calligraphers and tell them to take it up a thousand notches, you have a classic lyric video. Wasn't e'er to be, though. Just a standard music video, and I guess a nice song? It's very2007. It's very the sort of song you'd give to the winner of a forgettable Idol season. "Oh, that? Uh, yeah, keep it. It's either going on this album or in that trash can, might as well use every part of the buffalo that is my brain."

80) "The Way I Am," Ingrid Michaelson

this is the sonic version of a scarf worn indoors in june

86) "Our Song," Tay Tay

"Our song is a slammin' screen door." Did you know Tay Tay's dad was an investment banker? I have reason to believe Tay Tay's only seen a screen door in movies. I dunno. Do rich people have screen doors? I've never been in a mansion, but I don't think screen doors would be appropriate for mansions.

91) "Shoulda Let You Go," Keyshia Cole intro./Amina

I like how Billboard gave Amina an "introducing" credit. You don't see that in music nowadays. Now it's just "hey this 17-year-old has a million plays on Soundcloud, what do you mean you 'haven't heard of him,' he's already been responsible for thirteen memes and they're all dead, we're actually over him already, he's lame now." It is now known that Amina was actually a woman who was okay at rapping. The point still stands, I'd at least like to know that the randos on these songs are people no one but the people who made this song know.

96) "Hypnotized," Piles ft./Akon

"I know she wet 'cuz she told me." I don't know why, but this line tickles me! "Piles, you got me so wet." "YO, SHE'S WET! I MADE HER WET, GUYS!" "You touch mine and I touch yours." Piles must be hypnotized because in my (admittedly limited) experience with his work he doesn't seem like a man who gives head. He seems like a man who needs to be coerced into reciprocating pleasure.

97) "Nothin' Better to Do," LeAnn Rimes

OK so real talk, while I was listening to this song I got distracted because I realized I hadn't updated my Poke Bank subscription in like a year and I have so many precious little babies I need to keep forever, and you know what? This is a fun song. I didn't really need to pay attention to it! It's a song about being naughty that keeps it PG enough to play on country radio, and I wouldn't mind bumping into it again!

100) "Fake It," Seether

So Amy Lee and the dude from Seether broke up. After the break-up, Evanescence hit first with "Call Me When You're Sober," which isn't a particularly devastating song, but the title is incredibly unsubtle, and, like, Seether's a shitty post-grunge band, of course he's an alcoholic, and Amy Lee is right to say "yo I'm kinda done with this, I don't like dealing with the drunk you." Seether strikes back by saying Amy Lee is a liar and that he "feels so raped," and Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii'm gonna go ahead and say that's #problematic! Amy Lee made a dumb but fair song about how she was out of patience, and here comes Donald Trump by way of Creed to say "YOU ARE RAPING ME WITH THIS BREAK-UP." Like, I'm gonna go ahead and say that the part using rape metaphors to describe their feelings is the one in the wrong in this mediation.

10.14.2017

65) "I Fall Apart," by Post Malone 100) "Go Flex," by Post Malone

i could have spent eight minutes sitting perfectly still listening to ambient noise and have had the same emotional reaction. "never caught a feeling this hard/harder than the liquor i pour." oh fuck off already.

70) "Good Old Days," by Macklemore ft./Kesha

FINALLY. The pop music gods have heard my prayers: Macklemore rapping about nostalgia. Everything I love, in one delightful package! ...He shouts out Minnesota and this is probably gonna end up being the best song from this week because of that and also because this week is lookin' pretty horrible.

94) "Losing Sleep," by Chris Young

OK so real talk during this bro country joint I got distracted because I was looking at new music releases and APPARENTLY THERE'S AN ANIMATED MOVIE BASED ON "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU?" IT WAS MADE THIS YEAR? THIS YEAR. YOU CAN BUY IT ON DVD TODAY AND OWN IT FOR THE REST OF YOUR FUCKING LIFE. I'm sorry. I'm not going to bother processing whatever bullshit this song is about, sex I guess, because THIS WORLD IS CAPABLE OF SO MUCH MORE. This is a movie. This is also a movie which presupposes that this entire time "All I Want for Christmas Is You" is about a puppy that Mariah Carey needed for a... charity fashion show? "Great! We're short one girl with a dog!" "Oh..." This is a cinematic masterpiece and my life is better for having stumbled across it. This and Pokemon Christmas Bash.

95) "Like I Loved You," by Brett Young

So the writer of Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas Is You is one Temple Mathews, who has also written The Little Mermaid II, Peter Pan II, and 101 Dalmatians 2. That is a fucking nuts credit roll, Temple. Dude also goes multiple years between projects, which suggests to me he's like someone at Disney's cousin, and every couple years that person at Disney goes "hey, Temple, wanna make $100,000?" and Temple says "fuck yeah bro" and Temple just lives off that. He makes smart investments and lives in a cabin in Montana and has never actually seen a movie because why would you look at pictures when you've got mountains in your backyard? Temple is living the best life. Dude's my hero. He has someone describe a cartoon to him and writes something based off that and never has to write a second draft.

97) "Round Here Buzz," by Eric Church

Listen, if Eric Church is gonna give us repeats of songs he's done before, at least he's giving us repeats of "Give Me Back My Hometown." It's a slower, sadder version of that song, one that can't be misconstrued as an "I'm poor AND PROUD OF IT!" anthem, this is a song that can only be about a dude thinking about a girl living a life without him while he lives a life with her ghost, but also "Give Me Back My Hometown" is more fun? I dunno, this still prolly gets 2017 SOTY, I've just heard it before. Also, Eric Church? Welcome to the Decade Dance Club. You are the 36th member, and the tenth white male country artist.

98) "Plain Jane," by A$AP Ferg

ok nvm this is song of the week, simply because in the first verse Ferg raised and lowered the volume of his voice. this song went somewhere! this song actually did something! it didn't just bleep and bloop for three minutes or be about how it's nice when things are good, Ferg had things he wanted to say and delivered his lines with actual emotions! he did the bare goddamn minimum, and by 2017 standards, that's pretty good! i'm actually going to remember this song a little bit!

Who won the week?

1997. Like, of course 1997 won. It had Sneaker Pimps and Shania, if 1997 lost to these other wack-ass years it would’ve been stunning.

Standings: 1997: 15 2007: 12 2017: 13 oh god all the songs for the next edition look awful, welp