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moro-nokimi · 3 years

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chapter 5: December 31, 2010

Summary: Shit gets real. Near continues to have refuge in his audacity and Naomi continues to be snarky.

NOTES: Two more chapters! Whew boy. We've got a live one up in here. Oh Near, we're really in it now. This bitch is almost 10k, so I BETTER get a review, ask, or reply talking ab how good this is. (This is a joke; no pressure.) TW: Death of a loved one, suicide mention, allusion to gun violence and sex.

ffn.online

“Light Yagami is a registered grad student at To-Oh University, but nobody has seen him on campus since he graduated. And the Japanese police have given all the employees false job titles to hide the fact they are members of the police force. He received letters of appreciation from the police in 2000 and 2002 for advice that led to resolved cases. I think it’s safe to say that these facts and the influence of his father point to him currently being with the police.

“When I asked former students what they remembered about him, several of them had interesting comments. He had the highest score in the entrance exam, but someone going by Hideki Ryuuga--the same name as the top idol back then---tied scores with Yagami. They gave the freshman address together, and were often seen with each other. But no photograph of this Hideki Ryuuga can be found.”

So was this L? Feels like suicide to me… then again, they don’t seem to instill Wammy’s alumni with a particular sense of self preservation, Naomi thought.

“I also received information that around June of 2004, Hideki Ryuuga, Light Yagami, and Misa Amane were seen together on university campus. After that, everyone seems to have lost track of this Ryuuga. Light Yagami and Misa Amane also went missing for several months at that time,” Rester finished.

“He used the name of a popular idol to get close to Light Yagami, whom he suspected of being Kira. It was a dangerous plan that assumed he wouldn’t be killed so long as Kira didn’t find out his real name. But then the Second Kira appeared, with the ability to learn people’s names just by looking at their faces. Then, they joined hands. Everything fits. Light Yagami is Kira, and Misa Amane being the Second Kira, and Hideki Ryuuga being L,” Near said.

“It corroborates the report we received that Mogi and Aizawa went straight to Amane’s place after leaving here,” Gevanni said.

“So the fact that Amane is Light’s fiancee is…,” Lidner added, avoiding Naomi’s eyes.

“No coincidence,” Naomi finished. “She was a loose cannon, just going back to when she first appeared. No doubt, he wants to keep her close to avoid any mishaps.”

Late at night and when everyone was distracted or asleep, Naomi finally had her chance.

“You’re still holding a grudge over what Mello did?” Lidner asked.

“I think it was a damn stupid thing to do, yes. No matter if Near said for you to go along with his wishes, he still walked in and you held me back from tackling him and ending the standoff,” Naomi seethed. She rarely found herself angry, but when she did, it was enough to make others recoil.

“He never would’ve forgiven you for the blow to his pride, and it would’ve just escalated things.”

“His pride is the least of my concerns, Lidner. He pointed a goddamn gun at Near and you wanted me to be worried about his pride? He. Almost. Killed. Near.”

“I never told you to be worried about anything.”

“Don't you fucking twist my words like that. You putting his pride over Near’s life says a lot.”

Lidner's brows had knit and her eyes had narrowed. “You’re complaining to me about double allegiances? At least they’re working together now, right?”

“The last thing I want is to be working with a criminal again.”

Lidner had chewed the inside of her mouth for a second before lowering her voice and adding, “Think of it like this. Your fiance is like Near: he asks too many questions before pulling the trigger. But in this case, Mello shoots first and asks questions later. Near needs that push to act.”

Naomi’s vocal volume spiked for a second, and this drew Rester and Gevanni’s attention:

“Raye exhausted all options to make sure his gun was the last resort!”

“That doesn’t sound like very good methodology to me," Lidner said sharply.

That was the last button Lidner pushed before Naomi snapped back, volume rising, “Don’t you fucking compare them! Raye was a good man, Mello is--”

“Is there a problem?” Rester asked. Gevanni was placid, eyes sliding between them, gears turning in his head.

“No,” said Lidner coolly, eyes boring into Naomi. Naomi was red with anger.

“I’m going out. If I’m not back for a couple hours, don’t worry.” She knew her hands were shaking.

She bunched her turtleneck to her mouth and screamed as soon as she was out of earshot. She cried later on her bike and almost ran a red light.

Naomi had the urge to scream now, just thinking back on it. She stepped outside and dug the photograph out of them on the beach. That had been a fun day. Suruga had taken the picture. He was also understandably irritated when Naomi told him about the incident.

“So she just uses something she told you in confidence like that? Sheesh,” Suruga said. “That’s just shitty.”

“I screamed. Not in the room, just as I was leaving.” Naomi shuddered. “I’m not proud of it.”

“You have every right to be irritated, Naomi. Again, talking about something she told you in confidence for the sake of a comparison was just low. Especially in earshot of your other coworkers and your boss.”

“I almost woke up my boss. I don’t think he would’ve been too happy, ha… Do you think about what would’ve happened if he lived, Suruga?”

He hadn’t responded. There was an implicit yes, but she supposed he feared crying more than being transparent with his friend.

“Men don’t like crying,” Audrey had explained. “Toxic masculinity says that men have to be these pinnacles of strength. The only emotion they show is anger, and so on. Hell, Raye was expressive, but he never liked crying, especially in front of me or you.”

Naomi figured there was some truth to that. But she also figured avoiding crying was unhealthy period. No way around it.

Though, she was one to talk.

She resisted the urge to cry and stepped back inside.

“Near, this NHN announcer Kiyomi Takada was a classmate of Light Yagami’s in college. She was an excellent student, and was on close terms with him, it seems,” Rester added.

“How do mean ‘close’?” Near asked.

“I can’t assume anything, but they looked to be more than friends. I don’t believe this is a coincidence.”

“But Light’s relationship with Amane started when he was in college, too,” Gevanni pointed out.

“I don’t believe anyone’s introduced you to the concept of male infidelity,” Naomi said dryly. "Clearly there's no accounting for taste."

“Commander Rester, can you get close to Takada?”

“I’ll give it a try, but… She’s more heavily protected by Kira worshippers than Demegawa ever was. I’d attribute it to her being a woman. To the worshippers, if Kira is their God, Takada is their goddess.”

Prophet, Naomi corrected.

“You said she was an excellent student, but that was only her grades. She’s downright stupid outside of class.”

This woman hosts debates and is knowledgeable about our political landscape, and she’s stupid because she worships Kira? Naomi thought. Audrey would’ve called this misogyny. I call it underestimation.

“It may be possible for me to get close to her among all the worshippers. But Mr Aizawa and Mogi have seen my face before. They may tell L about our movements.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. There’s no reason for them to get in the way of our investigation. I’m sure they won’t tell L you are a member of the SPK. And if that information is passed to L and you die, it means L is Kira. I find it hard to believe Kira would do such a thing before finding out about Mello and I, unless Kira is in a very tight situation.

“Gevanni, Lidner, Maki, would you like to go to Japan as well? It’s almost certain the one writing the names is in Japan. I think it’s a safe call based on the people killed, and from the fact an announcer from NHN was chosen as the spokesperson.”

Naomi wasn’t too impressed with Kiyomi Takada. It’s definitely not easy to keep up with Kira and what’s going on, but it was her blind loyalty and outright reverence to a murderer that chafed. She tried time and time again to put her personal ties to the Kira case aside, but it just wasn’t possible.

“Depending upon what their sin was, Kira will not tolerate people with a criminal record…,” Kiyomi Takada said. “Starting today, I will be introducing you to messages and requests from viewers as well as expressing my own opinion on some matters. Many of the countries and companies claim to support Kira now…”

Naomi shook her head and tuned the rest of it out.

“... But that is a mere empty promise, and we do not know how they are supporting Kira or should be supporting Kira. I feel that in order to create a peaceful world as fast as we can, Kira should give orders to the army and police of each country on how they should act. I would like Kira to give a reply to this and…”

Near turned on his PA. “Rester, find out who Takada saw last night. Whatever it takes.”

Rester nodded. “Well, Kiyomi Takada is being protected unbelievably well, and even getting near her is tough. I never expected it to be this difficult. A reporter who tried to investigate the meeting last night was caught by the guards and accused of breaking and entering, then got killed by Kira on the 9 o’clock news. Her phone is completely untraceable and bug proof. She’s better guarded than the president.”

“Speaking from experience?” Naomi asked. The thought of things becoming that authoritarian worried her, despite her wisecrack.

“Very funny, Maki. All her guards are people who’ve participated in TV programs pertaining to Kira many times, and whose backgrounds can be easily traced. It’s incredibly hard to get in.”

“Gevanni and Lidner should be getting back to Japan shortly. Please get near her any way you can,” Near said.

“Near, Takada went into the Perin Hotel. Until she comes out, no one is allowed to enter or leave unless requested by Takada,” Rester said.

“Then you’re going to have to try to become one of Takada’s trusted bodyguards at the very least,” Near said.

“I’ll do my best.”

December 12 “We’re trying to get on Takada’s personal bodyguard team, but the hurdles are getting higher. We need more time,” Rester said.

“Very well. I had a feeling it would be like that,” Near replied. “Maki, would you mind making flight arrangements?”

“Yeah, just a second.”

While she cleared her cookies and went searching for airplane tickets, Near called the Japanese task force.

“This is Near. I’d like to talk to L.”

“This is L speaking.”

“It’s been a while. Thank you for keeping the connection open.”

“What do you want?”

That’s no way to greet someone, Naomi thought.

“I am in Japan to capture Kira. Right now, actually,” Near said. He snipped away at paper. “Seeing as how the best way to investigate Kira is to start with Kiyomi Takada and all.”

L paused. “I’m in Japan already, doing just that. If you’d like to cooperate, I’m willing to do so as well. But since you’re suspicious of me, I guess that’s not possible.”

Near’s brow furrowed. It quickly turned into a scowl. “Did you just say ‘I’?”

“Yes. I’ve personally gotten into contact with Takada and am making headway in the investigation.”

In more ways than one, I think, Naomi thought.

“We’ve gotten as far as having our investigator, Mogi, be able to enter NHN.”

So he knows we’re trying to get into NHN ourselves. Or is hypothesizing as so. With these geniuses, any hypothesis automatically means they know something.

“We’ll find a way to get into NHN as well, but there’s one more thing. You said you’ve personally contacted Takada and are investigating her, right? Then please tell Takada however you can that members of the SPK have escaped from the Kira worshippers in New York have entered Japan to capture Kira. Judging from the current world situation and her position, that’s the type of news she’ll have to report.

“You can even say that there are five members of the group including Near, the leader. There are four other members that Mr Mogi and Mr Aizawa met. This isn’t a lie, so it’ll be a true report. If either of the aforementioned men see them near NHN, please feel free to tell L. We don’t want to get in the way of your investigation. But please don’t show their faces as members of the SPK on TV or via other media outlets. This report is to lure out Kira.

“Including me, there’s only five of us. There’s no way Kira is going to find out, and I’m sure that Kira will make a move to try and kill us. That is where I intend to counterstrike and defeat Kira.”

Oh, great, so we’re being used as bait. I’d rather I was the killing shot, Naomi thought, and slammed her laptop lid closed.

“There are five members altogether in Japan. Is that it for the message, Near?”

“Yes. I’d gathered people who could work under me, but now that the situation has changed, numbers aren’t important. I’m in Japan. Since you are as well, we may come face to face.”

“True.”

“And that will be something worth looking forward to.”

“Indeed.”

“We’ll bring Kira to an end once and for all.”

“Of course.”

Well, he’s taciturn all of a sudden. And here I thought he’d never shut up, seeing as how all the other meetings have been.

“The only way to restore the world now is to get rid of Kira and the existing notebooks. If we succeed in both of those objectives, we win. If we die, Kira wins. This battle was not about an arrest or something measured by the laws of this world. It’s always been a one-one battle to prove who’s on top.”

Near turned the PA off.

“You’re playing a zero-sum game, Near,” Naomi said.

“You don’t have to tell me that. The original L was doing the same thing. Commander Rester, where are Gevanni and Lidner now?”

“Right now, they’re in a booked room near NHN.”

“Please connect me to them.”

“Pay close attention to what I’m about to say. I have decided to meet L---rather, Kira---in person in the near future and settle this case once and for all.”

“In person?” Gevanni repeated, the poor guy surprised into echolalia.

“Do you mean you’re going to see him face to face and capture him?” Lidner asked.

“Yes. The world is practically in Kira’s hands now. But, in Kira’s nearly completed world, only the SPK members, Mello, the Japanese task force, and I remain in Kira’s way. I remain the biggest problem as well, since he can’t easily get my name or face.

“It seems Mello’s name has already been discovered, and he’s also wanted for the murder of the Japanese police director and deputy director.

“As we all know, he lets his emotions control him. Kira may think it will be easy to kill him using his followers. If Kira succeeds in killing me, he will very likely kill the rest of you, and the Japanese task force.

“Since I, his biggest headache, who hasn’t made a move until now am now making said move, Kira will not miss this opportunity to kill me. And the fact that he’s said he’s willing to meet me means he’s accepted my challenge. The die is cast. Whether we like it or not, we must make our move.

“Let’s examine this situation. L is Light Yagami and Light Yagami is Kira. We know for sure that L would answer yes if we asked if he was Light Yagami, seeing as how he told us he’d personally gotten into contact with Takada, as well as Maki’s account of meeting him five years ago. But he will obviously deny the fact that he’s Kira. There’ve been many incidents to make us suspect he’s Kira, but no solid proof.”

Naomi was rather bitter that things could’ve gone very differently if she’d not regarded Light’s “selling” of the Japanese task force as a bit too maudlin to be genuine. Mostly at herself. She’d learned her lesson then: hard evidence only, no circumstantial evidence will be taken as fact whatsoever.

“There’s almost no doubt that he’s Kira. I’m 99.9999 percent sure. The lack of proof is the only reason it’s not a hundred percent.

“Kira… let’s call him L-Kira. Around him are several people who know of the existence of the notebook, such as Aizawa, Mogi, and the others. However, L-KIra is not using the notebook himself. That’s because there are others around him keeping an eye on him and the notebook. Obviously, there’s another who has the notebook and is using it. That’s X-Kira. Based on the fact that L-KIra has used Misa Amane in the past, as well as with relation to the attack on Mello’s hideout, I think that L-Kira does not have the Shinigami eyes. But judging from the killings of recent criminals, X-Kira definitely has the eyes. Of course, both Kiras are connected in some way. But since L-Kira is being watched, it would be almost impossible for him to get in direct contact with X-Kira.

“So, they use Takada. Note how Kira’s messages are spread through NHN, and L-Kira and Takada can meet in person without arousing suspicion. At the moment, both Kiras are able to send messages to and through Takada. Though she may be only Kira’s puppet, we can’t deny she’s highly important to us in discovering X-Kira.

“I likely don’t have to explain this, but this is a recap of the situation. I see two ways to defeat Kira. The first is…” Naomi cringed as Near pulled the trigger on the toy gun and knocked over the legos. “We kill L- and X-Kira and confiscate the notebooks. If the killings stop, it means we are correct.”

“Right. That would prove L---Light Yagami---was Kira,” Rester said.

Near returned the cork to the barrel of the revolver. “We are almost positive that L is Kira, so I’m confident we can solve this case. But we won’t be using this method, no matter what.”

“Why not?”

“Even if the killings stop, it doesn’t really prove that Light Yagami is Kira. Since no one is using the notebook at the task force headquarters, there’s always a chance that the killings stopped because of X-Kira’s death. And the killings may continue if there are Y- and Z-Kiras.

“Most important of all, we kill those two and the killings stop, then to say see, we were right… such an ex post facto justification will not be tolerated. That’s not the way we do things.”

“We?”

“Of course, we being me and L. He wouldn’t be happy if we did that.”

Naomi was still ruminating on the possibility of X-Kira’s identity. She figured it would have to be an acquaintance of Takada’s but not Yagami’s, so it would leave a pool of up to a hundred people who were regulars on her debate show.

In another life, while her and Rester were discussing this during the C-Kira case and Rester would say this and shrug and say “like it would offend L’s spirit or something”, Naomi would shrug, too, and say, “Well, that means he centers his identity on being L’s true successor.” And Lidner would take a seat on the counter and say, “That could be used as an advantage some day, by someone unsavory.”

“It would be an insult to L, who entrusted those who came after him with this case.”

And then Rester would mention that line. Naomi had sat back in her chair and folded her arms. “You’d better hope someone wouldn’t decide to create another impossible to solve case,” Naomi would say. If she closed her eyes, she could see B’s burning silhouette.

“Hence, even if we are going to kill L- and X-Kira, first we must rub their faces in the evidence and make them taste the misery of their defeat. It’s out of the question to kill them before that. So we get solid proof.”

“And how will we do that?”

“Have him use the notebook and arrest him on the spot.”

Naomi’s throat went dry.

“Then the person whose name was written will die. Do you have any plans for that?’

“Not at the moment, no. But we no longer have other ways to get proof. But I’ll think of something. When we first meet Kira, the first person he’ll write down is me, so.” Lowering his voice, Near held the miniature notebook replica. “Now what will I do…”

Holding the L-Kira labelled lego, he added, “But just as I said now, killing Kira and confiscating the notebook with hopes that the killings will stop is a plan Kira will assume we have. We may be able to use that to our advantage. But for the time being, our job is to find out who is executing the criminals as Kira. And in order to do that, we must investigate NHN and Kiyomi Takada, even though Kira knows we will be doing it.”

December 14 “The Japanese police announced at three PM today that five members of the SPK who escaped from New York have entered Japan. The police are initiating a full search for these people and are calling out for public support,” Kiyomi Takada said.

To say Naomi was unsurprised was an understatement. Takada had expressed such authoritarian views before, so this was no surprise. But the police being willing to hunt them down and be the footsoldiers for a regime like this was the cherry on top of a shit sundae.

The latest ass-kissing program (Today’s Lady Takada) began.

“Today, Lady Takada chose four female bodyguards from 20 finalists who went through rigorous testing. These four glorious women are Tatsumi Ooyama, champion of the women’s 60KG weight class in the 22nd world karate championship. Former CIA agent, Hal Lidner…

“These four all passed the tests and…”

“It’s just as you said, Near,” Rester said. “Sooner or later, Takada needed female bodyguards, which she didn’t have until now. Being with the CIA formerly made it easier for Halle to be chosen, but it’ll make it easier for Kira to notice her as well.”

“Yes… I am grateful to Lidner for putting the investigation before her safety. By the way, Commander Rester, have you been able to come up with an answer for this?”

“If I was Kira, who would I have chosen for the spokesperson after Demegawa?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t watch and listen to several screens at the same time. I can’t do it in only five days. I need more time.”

“Gevanni said the same. I was merely going to use your opinions as a reference. Don’t think too hard about it. An answer off the top of your head will suffice. Maki?”

“An easier solution would be to look at each segment of each news channel separately. You’ll lose out on sleep, but maybe you’ll have more input that way,” Naomi said.

“That’s not what I’m asking.”

“I know. If I were Kira, I’d go for someone I know and has a platform. As for X-Kira…”

“So long as it’s not someone extreme like Demegawa, they all look the same as a possibility for Kira’s spokesperson,” Rester said.

“I can’t decide either, but I wouldn’t have chosen Takada. No matter of her and Yagami’s acquaintance, she’s still a rookie announcer,” Gevanni said.

“Agreed. It seems she’s popular, having gotten second place in a magazine poll. There are, of course, more male announcers with more experience and dignified demeanors. So why was Takada chosen? It could just be that Takada is the type of woman Kira fancies, but I think it was because…”

Naomi couldn't hold back a snort.

“Takada was a Kira worshipper and Kira knew about it. The reason Demegawa was chosen is because he zealously used Sakura TV to support Kira even before the world began leaning towards him. It would’ve been easy for Kira to threaten someone into being the spokesperson, but it would be to his advantage if the spokesperson supported Kira.

“Well, in Takada’s case, I’m sure she was chosen because she’s a Kira worshipper. Here’s a comment by Takada from last night’s news.”

He turned on a clip of Takada.

“I feel that it is necessary for schools to educate children about Kira, and that Kira’s teachings are the proper way to live.”

“Ever since she started making comments to Kira, Takada’s been nothing but a stupid Kira worshipper.”

“That’s not stupidity, that’s authoritarianism and incredibly worrying,” Naomi said. "She very much has her own agenda." … So could we be looking at her becoming Kira point blank, or does she want to be his follower and nothing more?

“True. But it’s also true that Takada’s words are affecting the public, which is filled with stupid people. To Kira, this is great.”

"It's quite easy to assume that because someone supports something authoritarian that they lack the ability to rub two brain cells together. It's much scarier to think about Kira supporters being our lawyers, our realtors, etcetera," Naomi said. Near shrugged.

“Then if we believe Light Yagami is Kira, does that mean he chose Takada because he was on intimate terms with her in college and knew her feelings towards Kira?” Rester asked. That’s generous, Naomi thought.

“No, Takada only started making pro-Kira remarks after the meeting at the hotel. L/Light Yagami claims that he’s in contact with Kira for the investigation. And I’m sure that we’ll be able to confirm that with Mr Aizawa and the others.

“Therefore, if L-Kira/Light Yagami chose Takada, he would’ve been able to get Takada to make pro-Kira remarks from the moment she became the spokesperson. But in reality, Takada only started making pro-Kira comments the day after the meeting. She also spoke directly to Kira in the comment, so I can only assume that L-Kira made her say this comment, since he hasn’t gotten into contact with X-Kira at that point. Same with Takada before the meeting. That’s likely because Mr Aizawa and the others had their eyes on him and had doubts. That means Takada was chosen as the spokesperson through X-Kira’s personal judgement.”

“But isn’t it possible L-Kira ordered X-Kira to kill Demegawa and choose Takada as the next spokesperson before Aizawa and the others began to watch over him?” Rester asked.

“I won’t say that it’s impossible, but after Demegawa died, it was a week before Takada was chosen as the next spokesperson. Even if L-Kira had ordered X-Kira to use Takada after Demegawa died, it would be meaningless and odd to order X-Kira to wait a week.” He leaned down to inspect a black lego. “So it fits better to assume that X-Kira, unable to get in contact with L-Kira, killed Demegawa and then took a week to decide who to choose as the next spokesperson.”

“Then that proves Maki right, that X-Kira has some kind of connection with Takada,” Rester said.

“Yes. I understand that it’s dangerous to investigate Takada right now, but could you please look into it with Gevanni again?”

Both agreed.

“I’m going to start off by tracing all of the programs that Takada has appeared on, Starting with the most recent ones and looking at the regulars. Maki, would you mind taking record of these people?”

“Of course.”

On a hunch, she dug up a previous survey of one Teru Mikami. Near practically swam through all the DVDs to find Kira’s Kingdom, coming to a stop in front of all the monitors in front of Mikami speaking about Kira’s ideals.

“The reason I became a prosecutor is because of the frustration and helplessness I felt over all the physical and emotional abuse I witnessed as a child. All the young people going into the world should have their own goals and use their abilities to contribute to society.”

The click of a remote, and next she heard:

“I would very much like to hear Kira’s voice again, and I intend to follow your ideals. I believe that following your orders and teachings is the quickest way to achieve world peace. Kira, please let me hear your voice. If there are no orders or words from Kira, I believe that I am going to have to judge by myself what Kira’s thoughts may be, and put them into action.”

Naomi looked up from the survey.

“Near, I think you want to take a look at this.”

Right on his survey on the question of his opinion on Kira, the answer was listed as “God.”

Near peered over her shoulder, and turned on his PA to Rester.

“You no longer need to look into Takada’s friends and associates. Please come back to HQ, as Maki and I have just found a suspect. I’ll ask you to start investigating again if my assumption is wrong.”

“You’ve already found a suspect?”

“We’re good at looking," Naomi said.

December 21 “According to Lidner, Mogi is acting as Amane’s manager, which means he will often be away from L’s headquarters,” Rester said.

“That’s right,” Near replied.

“We can get Lidner to ask Mogi if they have their eyes on L when he is meeting Takada. That way, L won’t find out what we’re investigating.”

“But Mogi probably won’t tell us. And it’s highly likely that both Kiras are contacting each other through Takada. They know that we know it, so there’s no reason for us to go sneaking.”

Obviously, being clandestine isn’t our strong suit, Naomi thought, and passed Near the PA to L.

“L, if Mr Aizawa is there with you right now, is it okay for me to talk to him in person through this?”

“It’s Aizawa. What’s the problem?”

“When L meets with Takada, are you recording their conversations through wires and cameras?”

“No, we’re only using wires.”

“I see… Thank you.”

She set the PA aside and rolled her neck.

“If it’s only a wire, we can assume that L- and X-Kira are getting into contact with another through Takada. This only makes things more dangerous for Lidner. All of Takada’s bodyguards have their cell phone records checked. We can’t directly contact Lidner, so is that all right?” Rester asked.

“Lidner is well aware of the danger, but the important thing is that she is still trying to find out who X-Kira is through Takada and we have no clue as to the identity of X-Kira, so L’s attention will lie with them," Near said.

“Gevanni?” Rester asked.

“It’s about Mikami. Tailing him is strangely easy. It’s not like he’s making a move to go into hiding or anything. He’s been living at the same place for the past four years and leads an ordinary life. He’s very active with his job as well. I understand he’s a Kira worshipper from the fact he was on Kira’s Kingdom, but I find it hard to believe he could be X-Kira.”

“It’s not like Kira’s going to be waving his arms around saying ‘I kill people for justice’,” Naomi said.

“Thanks, Maki. I appreciate your input.”

“No problem.”

“The chances of Mikami being X-Kira are high, even ignoring his personal endeavors. Please be careful. Don’t try to enter his house or anything else yet. Just keep your eye on him.”

“Of course. You should try this, Maki, it’s very fun.”

Too familiar. “Stalking isn’t my idea of fun. I’d be worried if I didn’t know you were joking.”

“Please,” Rester said.

“Mikami just pulled the notebook out. There’s something---ugh, weird about it. He took a picture of the guy who was harassing a girl before writing in the notebook. He’s getting off the train, I’ll follow---” Gevanni said.

A high pitched scream followed.

“The guy who was doing the harassing just collapsed, about a half minute after his name was written… but that leaves me curious as to what the purpose to taking the picture was. And he said delete while writing it.”

“O-kay. X-Kira is definitely Mikami,” Rester said.

“Yes, but that also makes the possibility known of there being a Y-Kira,” Near said.

“So what do we do? Aren’t we going to capture Mikami?”

“Commander Rester. Please don’t make me repeat myself. Even though we know for sure that Mikami is X-Kira, we’re not going to use that method. If we do that, we’re never going to be able to get to L. If we capture Mikami, we may even face the situation that the killings stop and Mikami will appear to everyone to be Kira.

“All will be meaningless unless we prove the Light Yagami is Kira, the root of all this, and stop him.”

“Right…”

“In any event, we must get near Mikami, but there is one thing we must be extra careful about. And that is the Shinigami.”

Naomi raised an eyebrow. She’d never particularly believed in them, even as her dad told her that they take children who don’t go to sleep by 10pm’s souls. (Because what is the point of parenting if you can’t scare them a little.)

“The Japanese task force once told us that in order to get the notebook back from Mello, Kira gave the Japanese HQ a different notebook from that of Mello’s via a Shinigami. That means a Shinigami followed Kira’s orders and brought the notebook to them. And that means the Shinigami possessing Mikami will follow Mikami’s orders. So if we are going to tail Mikami from now on, there’s a chance that Mikami’s Shinigami will alert him.”

Rester said, “But the Shinigami can only be seen by those who’ve touched the notebook. Being careful of something you can’t see isn’t easy.”

“Even so, I would like you to do it. But this time, you may keep some distance from him and film his movements. It would be best if you can get an image of him talking to the Shinigami.”

“All right. I’ll see what I can do.”

December 25 If they only have wires, they’d just have to not say something out loud if they wanted to avoid being caught by the task force, Naomi thought.

Her attention was drawn by a notification that Lidner was on the monitor.

“I’m sorry, I’ve hardly had time to be alone. It was four days ago. Takada, Amane, and me met up. The conversation was really only about which of them was ‘his’---really meaning Light Yagami’s girlfriend,” Lidner said.

Naomi rolled her eyes. “So it was a covert catfight?”

“What does it mean?” Rester asked. Lidner’s expression just about screamed Are you shitting me?

“That Light Yagami’s a two timer?” Naomi said, as Near replied, “This just proves that Light Yagami is a ladykiller. Takada and Amane are infatuated with him. Though I’d be inclined to agree with Maki’s summary.”

“Seriously, Near?” Rester asked. “You too, Maki.”

“And they went after each other instead of going after Light for being a two timer.” Naomi shook her head and rolled her eyes.

“But being seriously infatuated can be a problem. They won’t betray him, and he can control them as he wants. However, what I’m more worried about is that there’s been nothing new in Gevanni’s reports,” Near said.

“But he reported today that Mikami pulled out the notebook and killed someone. Or had him killed, if we’re going with the Y-Kira hypothesis.”

“Not the notebook, but the Shinigami. If a Shinigami is possessing him, it would be normal to say a word or two to each other in three days. If they’ve decided not to talk to each other in public, then it doesn’t make sense that he pulled the notebook twice this week in front of everyone to kill someone. And then it’s strange that…”

“What is?”

“The Shinigami at L’s headquarters can be seen by the other members. That means that apart from Light Yagami, they’re also keeping a close watch on the notebook and the Shinigami. Obviously, L-Kira is not able to give orders or talk to Shinigami that easily. But judging from the fact that Kira probably got his notebook from L-Kira, then only L-Kira and Mikami should be able to see the Shinigami on that notebook.

“And if that’s so, why didn’t they get into contact with each other by using that Shinigami? It’s a lot safer than making contact through Takada, and if only the two of them can see the Shinigami, there should have been a way for them to get into contact.”

Naomi stretched her legs, careful to avoid the legos, and swivelled until she was laying on her front. “That also means the task force has touched the notebook.”

Rester’s knees popped as he got onto Near’s level. “Now that you mention it… But the only thing I can think of is that there are Shinigami that will work for you and those that won’t.”

“Yes. Or the members of the task force can see Mikami’s Shinigami too. Mello said that he’d seen a Shinigami. While he had his own, L’s investigation team must have had their own Shinigami as well. Mr Aizawa and Mogi have claimed to have seen a Shinigami that was different from the one that their headquarters. That could be possible.”

The monitors beeped.

“Gevanni?” Rester asked.

“Mikami’s talking to himself!”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, I’m wondering if he’s talking to the Shinigami. I’m too far away from him to hear what he’s saving, but I’ve been able to film his mouth as it moves. The footage is here.” Gevanni sent the footage to the monitor where everyone could see it. “It’s at the rooftop of the prosecutor’s office where Mikami works, during a break. Oh---he’s saying something right here.”

“Slow it down.” Rester leaned towards the monitors and read Mikami’s lips word-for-word perfect. “I guess he’s asking if it’s his Shinigami?”

“I see you aren’t a commander for nothing,” Near said.

“He seems to have reacted to the piece of paper to the bottom right of him.”

“He’s giving a small sigh.”

“He’s talking a little more from here. Give me a second, I’m going to zoom up to his mouth and slow down the footage.”

“That Shinigami… ever since he handed me the notebook, he hasn’t appeared…,” Rester said.

“Huh,” Naomi said. She pushed herself off the floor and into a squatting position.

“So there’s no Shinigami possessing Mikami at the moment.”

“But that makes me wonder if there’s a time limit as to when the Shinigami can appear to Mikami,” Naomi said.

“True…”

Near threw one of the Grim Reaper legos over his shoulder without comment.

“It makes things easier for our investigation if Mikami isn’t being possessed by a Shinigami. We may even be able to find proof from him that Light Yagami is Kira.”

“Yes…”

“Gevanni here. I’m at Mikami’s apartment. I’ve counted two surveillance cameras at the door to his room from my position. I’m assuming that the security inside is even tighter so even if I’m able to get inside, it’s going to be hard for me to remain unnoticed.”

“The tenants gotta be loaded if there’s security cameras everywhere,” Naomi said.

“Mikami makes 200 grand a year easily, not counting bonuses. Anyways, when he’s outside, Mikami just leaves the notebook inside his bag, so it’s not seriously guarded. But it would be undoubtedly strange if he did keep his guard up in public.”

“Commander Rester, I would like you and Gevanni to research Mikami’s behaviour patterns as much as possible, and look for any opportunity that might let us touch the notebook.”

“I thought you weren’t going to confiscate the notebook from him,” Rester said.

“Yes. I won’t use Mikami and the notebook as proof. The chances are that Mikami doesn’t have a Shinigami of his own, but we can’t be sure until we touch the notebook and monitor Mikami for several days. Of course, there’s a possibility that Mikami does have a Shinigami possessing him, and that the Shinigami will tell Mikami that we touched the notebook and have him kill us. But even so, from all the observation so far, it’s likely that Mikami’s Shinigami isn’t very cooperative with him.”

“So who’s going to touch the notebook? Me or Gevanni?”

“Well, since you’re his superior… Gevanni, I guess.”

Naomi cringed.

“I appreciate the support, Maki.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

“If there is no Shinigami possessing Mikami, then there’s a plan I’d like to see put into action. But if there isn’t, I’m going to have to make some changes.”

“Very well. I’ll keep my eye on Mikami.”

“Mr Aizawa. It’s been a while,” Near said.

“I believe what you said earlier. L and Takada have been seeing each other almost every night,” Aizawa said.

“I know.”

“What about this? The two are talking to each other via notepads. I left a mark on the notepads at the hotel, and…”

“Of course. As I said before, I know what’s going on. Kira is using the notepad to give orders to X-Kira through Takada. X-Kira being the person who’s doing the killings. Anyways, it’s commendable that you found this out on your own. But it does little for us unless you’ve found any actual notes.”

“I haven’t found them yet…”

“Then it means nothing. Those notes can be ripped up and flushed down the toilet or merely handed over to Takada to dispose of, since no one can search her bodily. In other words, there are a million ways to dispose of them.”

“You said that if we could get one note, it’ll be proof! I can talk to other members of the task force and have one of them hide inside the room once it’s booked. The wire detectors don’t react to people and I can pretend to have checked the place where the investigator is hiding. That way it’ll be possible to get one of the notes before they’re thrown away.”

“Mr Aizawa…,” Near said, “please stay out of the way.”

“What do you mean?”

Near underlined just why Aizawa intervening was such a bad idea.

“Unless they were to institute cameras in certain spots,” Naomi pointed out.

“But they run the risk of detection either way,” Near pointed out. “Obviously, all of your identities have been revealed to whoever is doing Kira’s killings. They know who you are. Kira probably has it set up so he can kill you all with the snap of a finger. The only reason you’re all still alive is because of me. There’s no other reason now that everything has fallen into Kira’s hands.

“Though, if you are able to get that notepad and are killed, I could use that as proof that L is Kira. But I already know that, so it’s useless to me. It’s not the way to go. If you do this, it’ll only allow Kira to move about freely, and it’s nothing but a headache for me. Even if Kira’s identity is proven to the world, most people are still going to take Kira’s side. And even if that happens, even I will no longer be a threat to Kira. Do you follow?

“Mr Aizawa, it’s not longer a matter of merely finding evidence that L is Kira. The only way to stop Kira is for me to completely defeat him and rub it into his face.” He held up his own lego figure. “Mr Aizawa, I’m sorry to say, but Kira doesn’t even consider the task force a threat. You’re not worth dealing with to him. He sees you as a bunch of flies buzzing around him.” Near took his Kira figurine and knocked down the task force’s lego models. “However, he’ll never be able to ignore me. That’s because, to Kira, I’m his current opponent in the battle for pride between him and L. The only way to stop Kira is for me to defeat him.

“Mr Aizawa, you and the task force are no longer a part of this battle. Please stay out of our way. This is the reality of things. However, if you still wish to capture Kira and continue to cooperate with me. Just keep an eye on him like you’ve been doing. That’s the best thing you can do for me and this investigation.”

“Just keep an eye on him…”

“That’s right. Anything more will just be a nuisance to me. The plan is almost set, and I do not want you to do anything that may disrupt it. Kira is also in the midst of coming up with a plan to defeat me. As such, any moves on your part will be a waste of time.”

“Are you saying that we’re of no significance now?”

“No. There is a significance in keeping an eye on L, and that is a part of my plan. And that is how I want you to cooperate with me in order to bring down Kira.” He lined up the figurines made of the task force. “Kira kills people without a second thought as if they were bugs, but it’s very likely that he will keep you all alive until time comes to fight face to face with me. I want you to see this through to the end, to Kira’s defeat.”

Silence.

“Mr Aizawa…?”

“Okay.”

She did feel for the guy. If someone said that she couldn't do anything of use, she'd be unhappy too.

December 31 Happy birthday, Raye, Naomi thought. Kira will go down and I’ll be thinking of you the whole time.

She held her phone away from her ear as Misa Amane screamed in the backseat of Lidner’s car. “She’s temperamental isn’t she?”

“Yup,” Rester said.

“I guess Kiyomi’s angry at me again, but this’ll teach her a lesson. She’s lost face now as the host of the show!” Amane said.

“Is the lesson going to be not letting her perform on NHN again?” Naomi asked, rolling her eyes.

“What is it, L?” Near asked.

“Mogi and Misa Amane have gone missing.”

“Yes. I’ve taken the liberty of bringing them into my custody.”

The task force began cussing Near out.

“What for?” L asked.

Near smirked. “Just to be on the safe side.”

Silence. Naomi was beginning to wish they’d put away their dicks and rulers.

“Near, kidnapping and confining people is criminal! Please stop, this instant!”

You sound like you’re chastising a child instead of trying to order Near to let your employee and one of your girlfriends go, Naomi thought.

“Well, Mr Mogi and Amane have agreed to cooperate with me. They won’t be staying with me, but you can talk to them if you want to. Should I connect you to them?”

“I must find out if they are safe, and if what you’re saying is true, then connect me to them.”

“Sure.” He patched L through to the mic in Mogi and Misa’s room.

“Mogi, Misa, it’s L. I heard you’ve been imprisoned by Near, but is it true that you agreed to it?”

“Yes,” Mogi said.

“Mochi said that it would be better for us to stay put until the whole Kira ordeal is over. If not, we might all be killed, so I’m fine with that. I just want to live happily with my boyfriend once Kira’s caught.”

Naomi’s chest panged. I wanted that too, she thought.

“Very well. If you two are fine with that. There are no problems, but please remember you can leave any time you want to. I’ll be switching back to speak with Near now. Near, I’ve talked with them, and I’m okay with everything.”

She ducked her head as she wiped her eyes. I don’t think Near’s too inclined to be asking for permission or your forgiveness.

“L, if I pose as you and announce to the world about the existence of the notebook and of my speculations on who Kira really is, a lot of people will probably believe me. If I do that, there are definitely going to be people who’ll try to kill Kira, but Kira isn’t going to just stand there and be killed. He’ll make use of his worshippers to try and stop that. I don’t want such meaningless bloodshed to occur. So I’ll bring this to an end by defeating Kira myself.”

L’s tone rankled. The condescension and babying she’d put up with for a long time, whether it was at a boss or coworker’s hands, and L was just another shitheel boss who thought he knew better than someone else of arguably more expertise.

“Near, your speculations are wrong. You mustn’t announce to the world what is a mere assumption on your part.”

“You’re right. I’m going to end this by pinning solid proof right in front of Kira’s face. But if my assumptions are wrong, then… Well, even if my assumptions are correct, but if I lose to Kira, then the world will no doubt be his. When that happens, Kira will kill me and all of those who are aware of the notebook’s existence. Only then is it a complete victory for Kira.”

“Near, the world is close to being Kira’s perfect world already, so we must capture him as soon as possible. That is the only point on which I agree with you today.”

“ … Anyway, it’s incredibly likely that Misa Amane was the second Kira who had the Shinigami eyes. Therefore, I’ve decided to keep her contact in case Kira wants to use her again. I intend to keep her here until the Kira incident comes to an end. Rather, until I give her permission to leave. L, I’m sure you’re well aware of the present situation even if I don’t say any more.”

The task force debated this current situation.

“Apart from the fact that he leaves his office at slightly different times depending on his workload, Mikami’s habits are completely fixed. He’s also a bit of a neat freak,” Gevanni relayed.

“And every Thursday and Sunday, he attends the gym from nine to 10:30 pm?” Near asked.

“Yes. I’ve become a member myself to do research on that. Ever since he joined four years ago, he’s been going to the gym on those days at that time. Near Year’s day 2006 was a Sunday, and he went to the gym on that day as well. The only reason I can think of for him to have picked a hotel gym that’s open all year is because he wants to go on those specific days at that time.”

“Then I suppose it’s safe to say that he’ll be going there on the 31st.”

Naomi clenched her teeth. She’d almost forgotten in the midst of all this.

“Well. Yes. I don’t see a reason why he wouldn’t. I don’t believe he’s devout Shinto or goes to the temples.”

Near paused. “Gevanni, is it possible for you to touch the notebook at the gym on the 31st?”

“I’ll probably be able to. The lock on his bag won’t be an issue, but the location may be… No matter, either way.”

“Have you checked on the security system at the hotel?”

“Yes. There’s surveillance cameras inside the hotel, but none in the locker room for obvious reasons.”

“Right. If Mikami is at the gym on New Year’s, touch the notebook. Takada will be hosting the show, but I’ll distract L just in case.”

“What are the chances that a Shinigami is possessing him?”

“I don’t believe there’s one near him, but I’m asking you to touch the notebook to check that. If there is one, then that’s that. I’m going to have to think of another plan. Even if you want to touch the notebook and don’t see the Shinigami, I want you to keep your eye on him for a while to be sure that there is no Shinigami possessing him.”

“But if there is, I’ll probably die, right?”

“Yes. If you’re scared, I can have Rester do it.”

“It’s all right. I’ll do it.”

“Please be extra careful not to be noticed by Mikami either.”

“Of course.”

“Mikami and Gevanni would have left the hotel around eleven, and then he tails Mikami back to his house. It should be about time for Gevanni to call us,” Rester said. He took off his suit jacket and placed it over the back of a chair.

“Ooh, I can’t do anything until they catch Kira… Why am I here anyway?” Misa Amane whined.

“I’m surprised you didn’t say 2300 hours. You’re supposed to be a commander,” Naomi said.

“Very funny, Maki.”

“I try.”

Near’s thoughts were somewhere else: “Misa Amane, the person suspected of being the second Kira by the first L…”

Rester said, “But she didn’t say anything even when she was confined for more than 50 days. I don’t think you can get any information from her. Anyway, we’re talking about a notebook that can kill people. It probably has powers beyond comprehension. Of course, trying to find that out is our job, but…”

“I know. I wasn’t expecting to get any new information from Amane. This is only so Gevanni will feel a little easier about touching the notebook and in case Kira needs her eyes.”

A notification went up that Gevanni was onscreen. “It’s Gevanni. How’d it go?”

“I’ve successfully touched the notebook. But I haven’t confirmed the presence of the Shinigami yet.” He checked his watch. “I touched the notebook at 9:09. Mikami returned home at 12:07 and I tailed him back to his house.”

“And during those three hours, you didn’t see the Shinigami, is that right?’

“Yes.”

“Please continue to keep an eye on him.”

“Okay.”

“Commander Rester, please connect me to Mr Mogi. Mr Mogi, do you remember the rules of death when Higuchi was doing those death meetings at Yotsuba?’

“The rules of death? That sounds scary…,” Misa Amane said. Naomi rolled her eyes. Of course, she’d been in the job for roughly a decade, she’s desensitized. Though if Misa Amane is the second Kira, she ought to be too.

“I disagree with you when it comes to your assessment of Kiyomi Takada’s assessment, but if you called Amane stupid, I wouldn’t disagree.”

“Mm.”

Mogi looked up. “I do. It’s been quite a while now, but…”

“In return for information on Mello, I was told by the new L about the rules written inside the notebook and about the rules of death. If a person is to die of an illness, unless it takes longer for that illness to progress, the notebook is able to control people for up to 23 days before their deaths. Is that right?” Near poked at his Mogi figurine.

“Yes. It’s not that we tested it out ourselves, but the killings at Yotsuba proved that.”

“Thank you very much.” Near shut off the PA and added, “Then let us consider the possibility that there is a Shinigami possessing Mikami’s notebook, and it has already told Mikami that Gevanni has touched the notebook. Hence, Gevanni is actually being controlled by the notebook to say that Mikami doesn’t have a Shinigami with him. So we’re going to face L if Gevanni is still alive 24 days from now.”

Naomi’s eyebrows shot up. That was a gamble that she considered the former and current L to make, not…

“However, Maki, I’m going to move the plan ahead under the assumption that he will still be alive.”

#long post #my writing #tw death of a loved one #tw innuendo #tw suicide #tw gun violence #gotta love the snark to snark combat

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Robert Rodriguez on We Can Be Heroes and How Pedro Pascal Reminds Him of Harrison Ford

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Robert Rodriguez is a man of many hats – in every sense of the word.

While he has been known to rock a fedora or two down the years, the idiom is more a reflection of his “one-man film crew” approach to movie-making, with Rodriguez known for not only writing, and directing but also doing everything from editing to operating the camera.

It’s also a reflection of his ability to turn his hand to disparate genres and movies aimed and markedly different audiences.

Having made his name with movies like El Mariachi and From Dusk till Dawn, the new millennium saw Rodriguez’s career take a surprising turn into the world of family-orientated action with Spy Kids.

A major success with critics and audiences alike, the film spawned three further sequels, with Rodriguez even roping in Sylvester Stallone for the third and fourth efforts.

Since then, he has happily flipped back and forth between the two worlds, with 2005’s The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lava Girl sandwiched in between work on Sin City and Planet Terror.

It’s a pretty stark contrast in cinematic terms but one Rodriguez happily explains while speaking to Den of Geek about his latest movie, We Can Be Heroes, a superhero movie about a group of kids forced to do battle with alien invaders who have kidnapped their superhero parents.

“You are using the same skills. You just have a different mindset as far as tone. It’s just like if you’re at work or out with your buddies, you’ve got one way of talking and then when you go home and you’re with your kids it’s dad time. You have your dad hat on.

“When I make these movies, I have the dad hat on and then when I am out with my buddies that’s Sin City mode, that’s Machete mode. That’s when that other side of me comes out.”

While the kids take centre stage in We Can Be Heroes, they are ably supported by an impressive adult cast that includes Boyd Holbrook, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Christian Slater and Pedro Pascal.

It was the first time Pascal and Rodriguez had worked together, but it wouldn’t be the last. While working post-production on We Can Be Heroes, Rodriguez was recruited by Jon Favreau to direct an episode of The Mandalorian.

As such, he knows more than most about what makes Pascal such an engaging and intriguing presence on the screen.

“He reminds me of Harrison Ford in a way, he’s like this everyman type guy. He can be funny, he can be really intense, he can be very heroic but in We Can Be Heroes he kind of has to be a dweebish dad where it’s just all about him and his daughter [YaYa Gosselin].”

“He played that really well and was then also able to become this superhero. He can be very human and warm. In The Mandalorian he does a similar type of thing but with that heart. But he can play intense too. He’s got a wide range.”

“He reminds me of some of my favourite actors that I have worked with before like George Clooney. That’s why he’s got such a big career right now. People can see that he’s very much able to do 180 degrees in any direction.”

Working on The Mandalorian served as a stark contrast to his efforts on We Can Be Heroes but Rodriguez believes it definitely informed the making of this film.

“The Mandalorian is wonderful because you’ve got such a great big crew and they all know what they are doing and it’s a well-oiled machine. Jon Favreau is there, Dave Filoni is there, so I can just go in and direct.

“It was great to take a little break, go play with all the Star Wars toys and then come back and apply what I learned there to We Can Be Heroes, because they have a lot of cutting-edge technologies and techniques. I think this movie really benefited from side projects like that and Alita.”

We Can Be Heroes has been billed by some as a sequel to The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl but Rodriguez is keen to stress that this film doesn’t take place in the same universe.

“I wrote this as an original story for Netflix because they found movies like Sky Kids and Shark Boy and Lava Girl played really well on their service. Also, it is so rare to have live-action kids adventures for the whole family.”

“I love the genre so I came up with the idea for We Can Be Heroes where you have this adult Avengers-style team and then have little kids with superior powers but they don’t know how to use them.”

“I was surprised that there had never been superheroes that were kids, except for Shark Boy and Lava Girl back in the day, even after all these superhero movies and TV shows and spin-offs and reboots. I thought it was ripe for the taking.”

“The first script I turned in didn’t have Shark Boy or Lava Girl in it. But then I just thought let’s borrow their characters and bring them in as parents because it will help legitimise the adult team to have someone recognisable. It was more like we borrowed them. It’s not set in that universe.”

Working on the film has certainly given Rodriguez an appreciation for the superhero genre, which he would be keen to explore in future movies though he does note that it’s a genre that could benefit from more diversity.

“I think superhero films are just like westerns. It’s really about the story being told through that genre.”

“That’s why people live in there. It’s not because they’re superheroes it’s because the stories are relatable.”

“The superhero genre is still really vital. There’s a lot of room to grow. I think it could use more diversity and I know I could bring that. So yeah, I would be interested in continuing with it.”

Rodriguez has always been a strong advocate for representation on the screen and once cited his biggest creative victory as having the kids in Spy Kids be part of a Latino family.

In that sense, We Can Be Heroes is another big win with the film’s cast of 11 child superheroes notable for featuring a female lead, several black and Asian characters and a boy with special abilities who uses a wheelchair.

“I’m always looking to do that in my films since the beginning and that was what I liked about this early,” Rodriguez explains.

“It’s just something that was very organic to the story because the adult superhero team would have been assembled from the best of the best all over the world. That works well with this audience too with Netflix movies going out all at once all over the world.”

Still, having such a large ensemble cast created something of a logistical nightmare when it came time to shoot the film.

“You ask any director what is the most difficult scene to do and they will say a dinner scene. A dinner scene where there are like 10 people around a table because you have got to shoot a wide shot and then you have got to shoot everybody in there talking to each other. Close ups of everybody. “

“It’s very tedious because you have got 10 or 11 people and that’s what this whole movie was because there are 11 kids in every scene because they are all together, they’re not split up.

“I had to wrangle them for every shot and make sure they all had a very specific thing to do. We only had six hours a day, that’s like half a work day. So that was a challenge.”

While Rodriguez insists he makes kids films “purely for the innocence of children” with no adult jokes that go over their heads, We Can Be Heroes does feature a US President, played by Happy Gilmore’s Christopher McDonald, who audiences are initially told sleeps in until 12 and struggles to put a sentence together. Could this be a reference to anyone in particular?

Rodriguez laughs at this suggestion.

“It’s funny because I really did think maybe the adults would laugh at that but when we tested it to an audience in one of the earliest versions before the pandemic hit, kids laughed the most. So, they all thought they knew what we were talking about.”

Ultimately, he insists that was simply “misdirection” as part of the film’s wider message about the importance of parents being role models to their kids in order to ensure they make the world a better place because, as Rodriguez puts it, “obviously we’ve screwed this place up.”

“It’s designed to be something to inspire the next generation. It’s supposed to show that the world is kind of falling apart. That adults are not working together – just like the adult superhero team shows.

“There are constant battles within the group and this only underlines the problems in not being able to see eye to eye, to make a compromise, to make concessions, to make things work.”

Rodriguez hopes that while We Can Be Heroes entertains it also encourages better communication among parents and children to ensure the same mistakes found in society today, which have been drawn into sharp focus over the past 12 months, are not repeated.

“The kids need mentors; they need role models. Parents have to step up and be better examples and kids have to know that they are the future. They have to do things a better way and they are going to have better ideas.”

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We Can Be Heroes is available on Netflix from 25th December.

The post Robert Rodriguez on We Can Be Heroes and How Pedro Pascal Reminds Him of Harrison Ford appeared first on Den of Geek.

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#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

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harryeatsburger · 5 years

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★ 𝒥𝒶𝓃𝓊𝒶𝓇𝓎 𝐹𝒾𝒸 𝑅𝑒𝒸 ★

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I’m super late for this, but here are the fics I read in January. They’re all amazing and I loved every single one. I list them as I read them, so here we go!

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1) A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall by rosegoldhl (Rosegoldhl) @rosegoldhlfics

Like an automatic machine, Harry opened his marker and stood in front of the customer waiting to write the name and order. “Hi, welcome to the 78 Café, what would you like to order?”

“Free tea?”

Harry’s eyes snapped to the customer, the voice spreading warmth in his chest. He smiled at the blue-eyed man, who looked cozy in an oversized hoodie, sleepy eyes and tangled hair.

Louis is a homeless man and Harry is an uninspired writer, who gives him a home.

2) For As Long As I Can Remember (It's Been December) by green_feelings @greenfeelings

After recovering from a severe accident that causes Harry to lose his memory of three years, he moves to London to start his life over as a star chef. Little does he know that when he falls in love with Louis at first sight, it’s not the first time they meet.

Featuring an unintentional game of hot and cold, Harry chasing memories that won’t come back, Louis burying himself in work to try and forget what he can’t forget, Liam being torn between two of his best friends, Zayn as a moral compass and Niall saving the day with good music and brutal honesty.

3) Have Faith In Me by stylinsoncity

As the son of Anne Styles, millionaire owner of one of the world's most luxurious fashion labels, Harry has spent his last seventeen years living in carefree extravagance. And now he's grown tired of it, along with the pressure from his mum to follow in her footsteps and the constant care given to him by her past assistants.

When his mum's newest assistant, Louis, moves into the guesthouse, Harry determines to be treated differently. To be treated like an adult. Except Louis is not at all what Harry was expecting...

This is a story about growing up, growing in love and having the faith to make it last.

4) amaryllis by hattalove

"Where are we?" "Um. A little while out of London?" Niall tries, seemingly the only one willing to not be mysterious and provide Harry with information, and. Oh. "London London? As in, the capital of England London?" he asks, just in case he'd misheard. "No, the other London," Louis laughs, low and biting. He comes closer finally, the moonlight just enough to reveal a sharp-cut jaw and pale skin. "Sorry, Pup." Nobody's ever called Harry a "pup". Frankly, he finds it quite insulting, but he lets it slide to try and comprehend his current crisis.

or the one where harry gets bitten by a werewolf. louis is the mysterious not-quite alpha, liam and zayn have Things going on, niall is their token human, and together, they watch a lot of TV.

5) Heading for Limbo by FullOnLarrie @fullonlarrie

Childhood best friends who’ve fallen in and out of touch with each other since Louis’ family moved away when they were thirteen, Harry and Louis find their paths crossing again and again. Each time, no matter how many miles apart or how many years it’s been, it’s as if no time has passed. They fall back into their easy friendship, until life intervenes and sends them on their separate ways once more.

When Harry discovers some life-changing things about himself, Louis is there for him, however he needs. But it’s all temporary because Louis has plans that will move his life from New York all the way to L.A. and the distance isn’t the only thing between them.

The pieces of their twice broken hearts are scattered from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

6) red hands by reveries_passions

“I’ve never told anyone,” Harry murmurs, voice so soft no one else would be able to hear, if it wasn’t just the two of them.

“But you’ve told someone,” Louis says firmly. “And that’s not gonna fucking happen around here. You don’t speak a word of it, or someone’s going to kill you, and we can’t let that happen.”

a dystopian au in which harry, an ex-soldier who’s escaped from his government run camp, accidentally stumbles across the biggest rebel movement in the country, and louis, one of the rebellion’s mysterious leaders who appears to hate him, seems to simultaneously have an obsession with keeping him alive. or: harry is wanted for treason, niall hasn’t changed in four years, liam is always smiling, and louis is angry. like, really angry.

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- please remember to leave kudos and/or kudos to make a writer happy and feel appreciated! thank you <3 -

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#january fic rec #larry fic rec #love them all #thank you @ writers #<3 #Larry Stylinson #one direction #fanfiction

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neotrinitythinker · 5 years

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Brush Off The Grime Of Yesterday (And Begin Again) Chapter 1.

Summary: He didn't deserve the android. Or, five times hank was grateful for Connor.

(also posted on my ao3)

It starts a few weeks after everything goes back to normal.

Or, close to it, Hank doesn't think anything's gonna be normal for a while. How long a while is he isn't actually sure. When should things normal again after a literal revolution?

The kid has been living with him for all five of those weeks, taking up residence on the couch until further notice, or, whenever androids finally getting some fucking property rights. It's the least he could do. He did save his life after all. Which, looking back, Connor was a fucking fighting machine when he put his mind to it.

Or maybe he didn't even have to think about it. His point was Connor could kick ass. Even against a clone.

It was going to take a while for Android Rights to take off, despite all of the negotiating, he figured. However long the shitty politics of it all have to take to get them rights to actually have somewhere of their own to sleep, his home is Connor's. He owes him that much.

And, as much as he doesn't want to admit it, Connor isn't an all bad roommate. Or a bad partner for that matter. Connor hadn't rejoined the force yet, but that didn't mean he hadn't given Hank advice on the past few cases. Pretty solid advice if you asked him. And, if he was truly being honest, Connor had grown on him. He was a good man.

His eyes open sluggishly, raising a left arm to shield them from the harsh, unforgiving rays of the morning sun. He groans, raising the torn blanket to his face. The sun never fucking helped a hangover. Not one fucking bit. He hears Sumo softly snore from the somewhere on the floor.

It's a Sunday in December, and despite sunshine the cold shows no sign of being merciful. He doesn't have to leave the house or check the temperature to know it's probably below freezing. Detroit was a nightmare during winter. That was guaranteed at least.

His door was ajar slightly, and he could hear the living room tv playing a news report softly from the other room, from where he laid on the bed he saw the left half of the obscured face of whichever reporter was giving the forecast. The distant clattering in the kitchen floating through the air. The normalcy was familiar and alien at the same time.

He smells something. Bacon, his mind offers. Which, now that his house is no longer occupied by just himself, isn't exactly alarming. Connor had been making him breakfast for the past five weeks. And dinner. No matter how much he told him he didn't need to. He didn't mind the help, he minded that Connor felt he had to help.

He misses the gratuitous amount of fast food intake, he barely cooked before. He guesses his heart does not.

And, until a week ago, Connor had been waking him up each morning. Until a grumpy Monday morning Hank had finally stumbled out of bed and politely (maybe he snapped a bit) sat down and told him he didn't need to act like his goddamn butler. Connor had quickly apologized, assured he wouldn't wake Hank up again, and, like no confrontation had even happened, changed the subject.

Eventually they'd have to have an actual conversation, He realizes. He doesn't want to exactly. He isn't sure what the conversation would even sound like. Something along of the lines of you know you don't have be my servant just because you live here now right?

He hates bacon though. It reminds him of the breakfast he would make Cole before school. When he and Isobel would coax him out of bed with eggs and bacon. Right before he would grab his navy blue backpack adorned by grey dolphins that he always, always fucking struggled to zip up by himself-

He hated mornings. He wants to crawl back under the trio of blankets and sleep until tomorrow. Mornings were bullshit. He needed to breathe. Fucking bacon.

Usually he was drunk by now, on a bad day at least. Usually he didn't have to think of these things until his sixth bottle. Which he never got to, he was always passed out by his fifth.

He only had three whiskey's last night, not for a lack of trying however. By the time he come back from a piss Connor had hid the remaining bottles. He had been so pissed before stomping off to pass out in the comfort of his own bed.

Maybe that had been for the best, he muses. Wouldn't of done him any fucking good to think about Cole with five bottles in him. He always tried to do something during his fifth. Whether it was a date with a game of Russian Roulette or a twenty minute puke in the toilet. Or something worse.

What fucking ever. He thinks. Less of a hangover. Less time to drunkenly wallow in the last few years of sorrow grief. There was that, at least.

He glances at the digital clock beside him, red numbers yelling at him. Eight Thirty, that's new. He hasn't woken up this early by himself in three years. It feels weird. Maybe the kid's influence was rubbing off on him. Not that it was a bad thing.

After a few moments, he sighs, sitting up, the sun that melts through the curtains persistently falling onto his eyes. And, after another minute, pushes the blankets back and swinging his legs over the bed. The house feels colder without them. And without socks. Sumo trails behind him.

He gently pushes the bedroom door open, the sizzling of the frying pan greeting his ears first, the voices on the tv more or less white noise to him. He turns, meeting the back of Connor inside of the kitchen.

The android still doesn't have clothes of his own, or, money for that matter to buy said clothes with. Save for a brown jacket and beanie. And Hank was getting tired of seeing him sporting that same Cyberlife jacket he first talked to him in. They both were. The hoodie he loaned him was definitely bit big for him, but anything had to of been better than that damned jacket.

Connor glances back. "Good morning Hank!"

The grey haired man plops down into nearest kitchen chair, sticking a hand under his chin for support. " I think you and I have very different definitions of what a good morning is, kid." He runs a hand over his face.

"Mornings are pleasant though." Connor muses.

"Easy for you to say, you don't go to sleep and end up waking up tired. Or need sleep at all actually."

Connor hums. "I'm making food, though. Don't humans always feel better after they've had some food?" He asks.

Hank shrugs, letting both of his arms rest on the table. "You've got a point there."

Connor looks back, softly smiling, before returning back to cooking, giving a nearby Sumo a gentle pat on the head. And for a while they keep each other company in silence, save for the noise of the frying pan and tv, and an occasional cough from the older man.

Eventually however, Hank cuts through the silence. He wants to get this over with, whatever this is.

"You know you don't have to do this.. right Connor?" He hopes he knows. He's smarter than that.

Connor spares a quick look back at him. "Do what?"

Hank raises his arms, gesturing. This is the second time they've had this conversation, he thinks. "You know, this. All of it. You know what I mean." The unspoken acting like you're still programmed to have to help hangs in the air waiting to drop like a shoe.

Connor tilts his head. moving towards the table and setting down the fresh plate of bacon and toast with a small clatter. "What, cook breakfast? I think I actually might enjoy it." He admits. "It's relaxing, despite not being able to actually eat what I make."

"That isn't..exactly what I meant- look, can you just..sit down a second? Please?" Hank sighs, looking up at him, using a hand to gesture at the chair in front of him.

Connor frowns but complies, stepping forward and lowering himself into a chair, arms folded neatly in his lap.

"Did I...do something wrong?" He asks, chestnut eyes staring back at him.

"No, you didn't it's- just- you don't have to do all of this, Connor. Making me breakfast, dinner, hell, until a week ago you were even waking me up in the morning. You know you aren't programmed to serve anyone anymore right? This is your house just as much as it's mine. You don't have to walk on eggshells."

The android stays quiet for a moment, biting his lip, he looks down, avoiding eye contact. Until he speaks.

"Lieutenant-"

"Hank."

"-Hank, I know, i'm not doing any of this because I have to. Or because I believe I owe you. Well, it's partly that." Connor starts.

"I...you took me in, when.. when I had nowhere else to go. You opened your home to someone who not even five days ago you hated and I just... I wanted to show my gratitude. And if i'm being honest it's also because I wanted you to get....healthier." Connor continues.

"Healthier." Hank echos.

Connor nods, shifting in his chair, he wrings his hands. "You're unhealthy, Hank." He states in an empty voice.

"Well jeez thanks, appreciate this fucking observation." Hank remarks. "Always a nice day to bring up my shitty lifestyle."

Connor sighs, raising his head. "No it's.. it's just...You're a good man, lieutenant. You let me into your home after only five or six days of knowing me. I'm grateful...Hank. And I don't...want you to die." He confesses, frustration in his voice.

Hank blinks, taken aback. He leans forward. "I'm not dying, kid."

"You're a self destructive alcoholic, Hank." Connor says softly, looking everywhere but Hank's eyes. I'm sure if I hadn't said yes to your offer of living here, you'd still be sleeping right now. And possibly drunk. And you would of spent last night far drunker."

Hank huffs, annoyance bubbling up. "Thanks." He says, pushing his chair back, harshly, and heading towards the other room. "I loved our little chat."

"Hank. Please just- what I meant," Connor sighs, raising his voice slightly. "is, that you're my friend." He continues. Hank stops a few meters short of the living room, clenching and unclenching his hands before slowly turning around.

"And," Connor continues, shifting again and crossing his arms. "I hope with time I could be yours. But I don't want you to just...waste away. I thought since you let me lay on your couch each night, the least I could do was make sure you weren't going to just let yourself slowly die because I like you alive."

Hank blinks. Unbelievable. He thinks. Usually people paid those who let them sleep on their couch, in their home, paid them back with money, or bought them a plant or something. Connor however, set out on a mission to make sure he didn't end up drinking himself to death or something. If it was anyone else giving him this much grief, he would of picked them up and thrown them out of his house as he picked up another drink.

But the sincerity of it all, however short their friendship has been so far, he trusts Connor's intentions.

He doesn't deserve to have to worry about him.

"I understand if I have upset you." Connor says quietly. "But you deserve to be able to live again. Resume your life."

Resume life. Resume life because he's spent the last three years with his on pause as he drank himself into a deep, whiskey scented, bottomless, hole.

Without his son.

Without Cole.

Hank closes the distance between him and the table, pulling the chair out, settling down into it again. For a moment he says nothing.

"I'll quit making you breakfast and dinner so much. Or altogether, you'd like. But I won't stop being persistent with the drinking." Connor says.

Hank scoffs. "You sound like my ex wife."

"Sorry."

"No it's...you're a good kid, Connor. You know that?"

"I'm not a kid, lieutenant. I'm a RK800 android, however I was designed to look to like an adult man in his late twentie-"

"Fuck sake kid, you know what I meant."

Connor cracks a smile, a moment or two later Hank speaks again.

"I can't promise i'll stop completely, or even a little bit. It's...hard. But i'll...try. Harder, at least. But, shit, you don't have to worry about me dying, any time soon."

"That's good. Can I help you in anyway?"

"God, no. You've...helped enough. And I didn't even have to ask. I have to do this by myself. But if I do need help i'll tell ya okay?"

Connor nods.

"Good. Now, this bacon is gonna go cold if I don't eat it. So, if you excuse me..."He trails off, digging into it.

Connor leaves him to his food, and for once in a long while, Hank genuinely smiles.

He felt grateful.

#roree writes #this is a five times fanfiction and its 7k i wasn't even gonna try putting it all in one post #detroit become human #hank anderson

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annakie · 6 years

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It’s gonna be the future soon...

So, I think that it’s close enough to definite now that I can say something solid about it.

Very close to 10 months after my old, awesome company was acquired by this... other... company... that we had an extremely not-awesome experience with... unless something goes terribly wrong with my pre-employment checks, on June 11th I’ll be starting a new job, at a new company, doing exactly what I want to do with people who I don’t know but I seem to like so far, in a location really close to home.

I didn’t talk about much of this outside of private channels because it’s always a bad idea to be negative about your employer when they’re your employer, but... I’m feeling such catharsis, and like the cold hand that’s been gripping my head and heart for so long is finally letting go.

Anyway, here’s a lot of words, and a few pictures.

Last year, on the five-year anniversary of working for the company I worked for, we’ll call it company A, I wrote this long blog post about how much I loved my job.

I really did. I was so happy. Most people who worked there were really happy. The IT/Dev group were mostly very close with each other. My team, the IT team specifically extended out with two others, we were honestly like brothers and sisters.

On August 15th, we were acquired by Company B.

I knew it was coming for like a month ahead of time, and throughout July and early August every day I made myself appreciate all the little things about working there, because things were going to change some. But you know, we’d probably just lose the top bosses and maybe they’d cut like, Marketing, which would be sad, but understandable. And maybe a few other people would leave and things would be different, but still, it couldn’t be that bad.

But it was. It started when... for most of the employees, our stock was worthless. A few people got a few hundred dollars but... some of us had been given stock in leiu of bonuses and raises. So our outgoing board screwed us. That cut, deep. It wasn’t the new company’s fault, but we started out disgruntled.

And the new company... I think that the people in charge didn’t really want to acquire us, but were told to by the financial backing partners. It was bad from the start. From an absolutely ridiculous NDA/Non-Compete which many lawyers we consulted said we shouldn’t sign which made 5 important people just walk out instead of signing, and the fact that my boss was almost walked out on orders of the CEO for speaking his mind when in a meeting Company B set up to answer questions. Our old and new CTOs just barely averted that from happening.

Picture break! This is the old office, the view from my desk. I mean... Carlos wasn’t ALWAYS dressed that way, just when there was a World Cup or Euro Cup happening. But every one of those desks and a bunch you can’t see were filled with people I loved working with.

But within a month, communication and trust between the two companies was already shattered. They made much deeper cuts from the staff than we thought would happen. We lost one of our 3 locations, everyone but the 2 devs there were laid off. The entire marketing team, almost all of the sales team, all of accounting. And it wasn’t too long before my boss found something else because his days were numbered anyway. And our CTO was pushed out a month later. Expected, but it stung.

And in all this time, they kept telling us that we were wanted. The IT/dev teams. And we kept dropping like flies. People just saying “Fuck this shit, I’m out.” Finding something better, higher paying, less painful, and quickly. For most of the last 4 and a half months of last year, I was turning accounts down.

We were getting punched in the stomach by something from the new company every few days, it felt like. There was no morale. There was only us, huddling together for warmth as people were torn away or dropped out, one by one. I organized probably close to 20 goodbye lunches, and several more “Hey who wants to go to lunch? We’re going to ____, whoever can go, meet there at 11:30″ to keep in touch lunches.

The last one we had was May 11th, to celebrate my birthday and one of our remote guys being in town.

I take a picture at almost every group lunch we have. I have so many pictures of various groups of us sitting at a table, smiling, all just happy to be hanging out together again for an hour.

This was the “new” Dev manager and Carlos’ goodbye lunch.

I can’t get into specifics of all the ways things happened that hurt. There are so many things that happened that just left our jaws hanging open. So many things we questioned. This post would be ten times the length were I to really get into it.

They hired a new Development manager, promised him support and the ability to run what remained of the IT department his way, and then in actuality though, gave him no power and no money and no ability to change anything. He was a scapegoat. He started out rah-rah we can fix this in late October or early November-ish? By Christmas, even his spirit was broken.

We were told during the acquisition we would get to participate in the company’s bonus program. Neat! Prorated, of course, I mean, that makes sense. Cool. Well, December we get our bonus checks and um... it’s half of what they should be. We did the math, a lot. Several times. Someone, somewhere made the decision that we only deserved half of our prorated bonuses. That’s just the way it was.

There’s so much more. But let’s move on.

We’d been told when all this started that they wanted to move our office and turn our development-focused office into more of a sales-focused office. The move is its own story of hilarity, but those of us left got the honor of cleaning out the office and packing it all away. We did, at least, get to take a lot of stuff home. I am, right now, sitting at my desk from work, and my chair from work, in the middle of my living room. What used to be my office is now in process of being turned into the living room. I took home my favorite painting, a TV console, and lots of just misc stuff we wouldn’t need at the new place. So that’s nice.

Yeah so that’s basically my living room now. The cats like it! They got new beds AND a big cat tree out of the bargain! Pemily only uses a bottom “house” level, Fry likes the bed on top and the bigger level right under it. They use the beds a lot more, though.

There have been so many days where I would just get in the car at the end of the day and cry out of frustration and anger and sadness over what we lost. The promises broken, the things that we were told wouldn’t happen and did, the things we were told would happen and didn’t. The loss of so many people I cared so much about from my daily life.

And I should say, some of the people at the new company are great. My new immediate boss, I really do like him, and I have always tried to be as honest with him as I could. The last several months, I’ve been completely honest with him, for both his sake and mine. He, more than anyone on their side, has gotten the brunt of taking several bad decisions by the higher ups on his chin. The rest of the other IT team, they are very nice people and I enjoy working with them. Even their CTO, well, there are some mixed feelings about him, but as a person, I like him a lot. We’ve even hung out when he’s been in town.

So yeah... by the beginning of 2018, the IT/Dev team was down to like six people, out of over 20 when we started.

The day of The Move, January 27th, everyone on the team who was left got pulled into a meeting at the new place, while the movers were still moving our things in.

We were told that we were all losing our jobs in six months. We’d get a (TBH, laughable, 12%) severance if we stayed the entire time. Or, we could move to Kansas City, Kansas. Hmm... from the #1 job market in the US to Kansas City. Lol. No.

Immediately, I mean like WHILE THAT MEETING WAS STILL HAPPENING, my last two team members from IT accepted other job offers they’d been mulling over. My last other friend who I’d gotten a job there not long after I started, went from “Nah, I’m gonna stick it out.” to “I’m out.”

Eric was gone a week after the announcement, Carlos and the new Dev manager were gone the next week. My dev friend and I were the last two left. It only took him about a month to be gone.

They’d designed an area in the new office for development and IT before they made the decision to move us. I literally sit in this area of 10 cubes utterly alone. Soon, the only people left from my office were 2 guys from sales and one project manager which... his story is a whole other doozy I’m not getting into. Anyway, four of us left, out of the 30 that were there in August. And eight of the twelve from Memphis still have their jobs. Twelve people left. Out of fifty.

So yeah, this is my view. Nobody sits in any cube you can see besides mine. My back is to a wall. One of the remaining guys DOES sit in that office on the right, and recently another of them moved into the office next to that one, which you can’t see in the picture, though. That helps stave off the lonely a lot.

The same day we were starting work in the new office, the Monday after the day we were told about losing our jobs (Friday) a whole other set of people started work there, too. Eight call-center salespeople and their manager.

It was very apparent that first week that... whatever used to be my company was utterly gone.

I wasn’t totally alone. The 3 guys left and I banded together. They were already close with each other, and I did consider myself friends with them already but we hadn’t been like, close. But they took me in, and made me a part of their clique. That helped.

And the new people... aren’t bad, honestly. The manager is great, I really like him, and most of the sales people are nice, even though I don’t really talk to them much. They have calls to make, and I don’t go to their meetings so... I’m just... there. It’s still a weird feeling. I mean, I IT Support them as is my job, but yeah. There’s still a divide there. The new office space is OK. The building is pretty classy, we’re on the 7th floor right off of a freeway, it’s a great view. Lots of nice amenities. It’s also a 45 minute drive from home. The drive would be a little better if I wanted to pay $5 a day in tolls, lol. No.

And mostly, I’ve been horribly bored. I mean, sure, I’ve made it to like episode 42 of Critical Role. I do all my work. I help the people in the office who need help. I set up cubicles with the computers and peripherals the Kansas office sends me for the new hires. I find more work to do. I’ve been documenting all the things I do in anticipation of when I’m no longer going to be there, and I don’t wanna leave my new team hanging when that happens -- none of this is their fault. I’ve been wiping all our laptops we don’t use anymore and sending them to Kansas so they can use them. I’ve been sorting boxes and throwing more stuff out. It just... it wasn’t what I wanted to be doing anymore. It wasn’t interesting or challenging.

So why was I even still there? I had reasons.

There was... an opportunity... I was told I was going to get. It was solid, a lock. And in fact at one point there was ANOTHER opportunity I was supposedly a lock for. For quite awhile, I was waiting for one of these to pan out because either would have been awesome. I just needed to hang on a few more weeks.

When suddenly it was April and neither had panned out, I realized that it was really fucking time that I stop waiting and being sad about what was gone, and to start actually taking charge of the next few months. I had til July 27th to make something happen for myself. I’d been assured that unless I did something really terrible at work, my current job was safe until that date. (I very much appreciated that and suspect my direct boss and (possibly the CTO too) has stuck his neck out for me a time or two to make sure this happened.) That took some pressure off. And I still had hope that the opportunity was going to pan out, but I could work harder to make things work out.

I first had to sit down and really decide what I wanted to focus on. Before the acquisition, I had two halves to my job. IT Support for the entire 50+ person company, and project managing our yearly SOC2 Audit. I knew I could pretty easily get another straight up IT Support job. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I’d been doing IT Support for like, 18 years now, along with another half to both of the jobs I’d had in that time (Telephony in my previous job, and auditing in this one.) I started to wonder if I could make a real go at getting a job 100% in auditing.

I started poking around at job listings for that and kept seeing the acronym “CISA” as a requirement for everything I was interested in. So I googled it -- Certified Information Systems Auditor. Intrigued, I spent a day learning about what that was. I took a “practice test” I found online and thought “Oh, hm, I don’t know most of these answers but I do understand the questions. I... I think I could do this.” So I joined a professional organization for the first time, dropped a load of money on that, plus study materials, and set aside another $600 for when it’s time to take the exam

A great deal of my free time since early/mid April has been taken up by studying. I’m hoping to take the test in late June.

I also modified my resume at this point to add that I was preparing for the test. Couldn’t hurt.

In the last six weeks or so, I’ve probably applied to 20 or 30 IT Auditor type jobs, and some just more in general IT Security. I’ve talked to about a dozen recruiters. I’ve heard a lot of people say my resume is great and they could definitely find me a job. None of them tried. I didn’t even hear back from most of them, ever. I’ve talked to a lot of internal recruiters, some of whom made me big promises then ghosted me, some of whom were excited to place me and then whoops it turned out the hiring manager promoted from within and all interviews were canceled... or something.

It was frustrating, but people kept telling me, this is also normal. TBH, I hadn’t had to job hunt literally since the year 2000. I’d read up a lot about what I needed to do, how to act and talk and what to say and how to answer the hard questions and I felt like I did well whenever I was given a shot. It’s just that Something always happened. I started to joke with my guys left at work that I wondered what this week’s Big Disappointment would be. I was also joking that if I wanted to feel let down this consistently, I’d go back to dating.

Two Sundays ago I was doing a pass at job boards, and went to one I hadn’t been using before, but probably should have. And there I saw it.

A job doing exactly the auditing things I wanted to do, but more stuff, that I also wanted to do, and I had almost every line of their “Must haves” already on my resume. It was one of like, three jobs I applied to that night.

Tuesday I got an email for a phone screening. I didn’t let myself get excited, but I researched the company as much as I could, and liked what I saw. I also noticed, holy crap, they’re a 15 minute drive, all on surface roads and no freeways, from my house. That. Would. Be. Awesome.

The internal recruiter was really responsive, and nice, and seemed interested, all things I’d come to not really expect. We set up a phone screening for Wednesday, and on Thursday she said that the hiring manager wanted to skip a phone conversation and jump right to in-person interview on Monday.

Um, wow.

So I finally got a chance to wear that $200 interview outfit I’d bought, and put on the $100 makeup, and Monday, I drove the fifteen minutes oh my God this is awesome to the new place. Holy crap there’s a Starbucks RIGHT OUT FRONT IN THE SAME PARKING LOT YOU CAN WALK THERE. I took the elevator to the top floor wow this view is beautiful I can almost see my house from here! and met my possible new manager. I kind of got the vibe early that he was already heavily favoring me, and our conversation was basically like “I need someone who can do ____” “Oh, yeah, I was already doing that, so I can definitely do that.” And some of it was “Hm, I don’t have any experience in that area.” and he was like “Eh, but you have experience in this related thing, you can definitely pick it up.” And it was a lot more like a conversation than an interview. Always a good sign.

I’d actually put under like “Other interests” my masseffectsaves.com site and being admin and a major contributor to the TAH wiki, as a “see, I have other interests, I’m an interesting person” and he even asked about both of those things. I think being able to explain these semi-complex ideas helped a lot. (Why do you need a saves site? WHAT THE HECK IS Thrilling Adventure Hour? And I explained that the wiki shows I am able to write well, and have a good head for categorizing information.)

I felt things were going very well when he asked me to stay, and went and got the team, the people who would be my equals. They came and asked me questions, I asked them a few, and they thanked me and left.

And then he brought in the CIO, his boss. Later edit: this was not his boss, but someone very important at the company and I have since learned he told my boss he should absolutely hire me and I was perfect for the job and thought I’d do great. And since it’s 2 months later I’m making this edit, he’s already told my boss he thinks I’m great. :) And we had a good conversation.

Then I got the office tour. That was when I felt really good about it. And I had decided pretty early on in the interview that yeah, I really wanted this job.

The only downside is a smaller bump in my salary than I was hoping for. But it’s still a bump. And literally, everything else is fantastic.

I left the interview at 11:30.

I got a phone call from the internal recruiter (I made sure to tell both her and her boss how great she is) with a verbal offer at 3:30. I verbally accepted.

(Side note, I also got another request for a phone screening interview with another company I’d applied to that same night while I was in the interview. I did set up the phone screening just in case, but canceled it this morning after signing my offer letter.)

I signed all my paperwork today, submitted for the background and credit checks (because of the industry of the company, the credit check is like, mandatory. And my credit is great so, no worries.)

My current boss knew I had an interview Monday. I didn’t go to work Monday or yesterday, but I talked to him and let him know. If everything goes well, I’ll be turning in my notice on Tuesday (Monday is a holiday), and the 8th will be my last day.

A week shy of 10 months since all this started.

To the people I’m close to who read this, I’m sorry I’ve been withdrawn for so long, It’s just how I needed to cope, thank you for sticking with me. IDK if anyone noticed, but I didn’t post on tumblr and let my queue run out for like three months at the end of the year. I’ve still not been here a lot, but... enough to keep a queue going and make a few actual posts here and there. It was really bad for a long time. I didn’t want to engage with almost anyone about almost anything. I didn’t feel like I had much positive to say. And I couldn’t really talk about this publicly.

And now, today, it feels so good. I just want to scream about how great it feels to be getting out. Moving on! And to be fair, the last four months haven’t been terrible. They’ve been fine. Just fine. They actually offered to let me keep my job, to be even more fair, back in April, at about the time I’d decided to start studying for my CISA. Also about that time I was going through my first “Oh you’re gonna get this job!” excitement, pre-disappointment, besides the two that I’d been waiting on.

Oh yeah, of those two I’d waited on... one of them ghosted, and the other one, the one I’d really been waiting on, offically fell through like two weeks after I turned down the offer to stay on at the current company. I did have one weekend of “OH SHIT WHAT DID YOU DO NO ONE IS EVER GOING TO HIRE YOU WHY DID YOU TELL THEM YOU WERE GONNA LEAVE MAYBE YOU CAN BEG TO KEEP YOUR JOB” thoughts, a pretty bad panic attack, a bunch of scared crying, and utter despair in there. Then Sunday afternoon I picked myself back up, and went back to studying, and told myself over and over there was going to be something awesome out there for me. Plus, I had savings enough plus the “retention bonus” money to live on for a few months, if worse came to worse and I hadn’t found something on July 27th.

And to be honest, I really didn’t think I’d find a job in It Security/Auditing until after I passed the exam. I was applying to things, though, just in case, maybe I will.

I’m so, very glad to be wrong. I’m still going to pass my exam, and there’s at least one other certification I’m going for afterwards.

Which is just another weird thing.

My whole life I’ve been like, drifting when it came to college and work. TBH I never finished college. I got into IT almost by accident, because someone believed in me and pulled me onto his team. That person went from being my boss for a few years, long ago to now one of my closest friends I stayed in IT + Telephony then IT + Auditing because... I could. I always had a solid job that I was happy in (except near the end of the first job, the last 2 or 3 years were... hooo boy. Anyway.) I never felt a particular passion or calling to it. I liked it, I was good enough at it. It was a good paycheck and I got to work with awesome people.

But, as much as I would sometimes grouse about the audit, secretly kinda loved it. It was a LOT of work, and nerve-wracking, but I was good at managing it. I knew I could be better at it and do more if I didn’t have that whole other half of my job of IT Support to do. But realizing last month I could actually get a certification and there were other certs I could do that would also make work better and actually holy shit I have a career PATH. What sorcery is this? It’s weird. I just really, really, really wish I would have started looking at it... oh... five years ago.

I also took this other step about a month ago. There were several jobs I didn’t apply to because I never finished college and they stressed a degree was mandatory. That made me sad, and nervous.

I knew I had a TON of college credits, probably close to 120, but nothing that would coalesce into like, a degree. Also as the years went by it was like... well. There’s no way I could start all over with college.

On a whim, though, I googled “What to do when you have a lot of college credits and no degree”. And it turns out, there’s a couple of real, actual accredited non-profit colleges that have programs exactly for people like me. They accept transfer credits liberally and will tell you what you need to get a real actual diploma. I said what the fuck, and applied and got my transcripts from the three colleges I had significant credits at sent over there.

They finished the evaluation and got back to me today. I need twelve hours to get a bachelors of Liberal Arts. TWELVE. Five classes. (one is a 1 hour credit, one is a 2 hour credit, the rest are three. And I can CLEP out of two of the classes, if I want to.) I was also accepted into the program. I’m kicking myself for not doing THIS years ago.

So... the rest of this year will be dedicated to CISA and at least one more certification. Starting in the spring semester, I’m going back to school. Online, night classes type school, but I’m going to do it. I’m gonna get a fucking diploma, even if it’s a liberal arts diploma, at 43 years old. (Hell, I’ll be 44 by then.)

And what’s crazy is... this is like the silver lining to a dark, dark cloud. No, it’s more than that. It’s... coming out of the dark. It almost feels like a rebirth. It took five and a half months of a torturous slow death of the job and place that I loved. Then two months of emptiness. Then two months of terror and pushing myself and frustration and disappointment.

And now... I’m here.

I’m starting a new job that I think I’m going to be great at, and think I can be very happy at the place.

I’m getting real professional certifications.

I’m going to graduate college, finally.

Sometimes it really does take a lot of pain in order to grow. It takes the death of a thing that you hold dear to push you out of the nest and force you to make changes, to work hard, to be better.

I’m still sad that it took all of that to get to where I am, but I’m so glad, today, to be here. I feel like I can breathe again. I feel like the future is good.

Sorry this post is so long, by the way. I feel like.. for a really long time I couldn’t talk much about it. There were only a few people / private places I really talked about it because I was afraid of consequences should the wrong people see -- I still needed this job. I needed to figure out what I was doing. So now, this is me able to talk about it. Thanks for reading. It’s been a journey, and this chapter is closing. I really, really can’t wait to get to the new one.

#this is a very very long post #but also an important post for me #personal post tag thingy #work

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wazafam · 3 years

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Jihoon Lee from 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way has described his legal fight to see his son Taeyang as "important." The now-single father split from his son's mother Deavan Clegg after appearing on the hit reality series. The estranged exes have been exchanging unpleasant jabs at one another on social media, but Jihoon seems determined to push past the struggles because he wants to be a better father.

In December, it was reported that Jihoon is linked with a GoFundMe that was founded to help him access funds for legal costs, so he can battle Deavan in family court. Deavan moved on from her relationship with Jihoon after a disappointing stint living in South Korea with him. She was forced to contend with his criminal background and his failure to provide for her (and to provide for Taeyang and her daughter Drascilla from a previous relationship). There was also the possibility that he had been unfaithful to her. Since their breakup, Deavan Clegg has rebounded, publicly speaking out against her ex. She alleged that he abused her daughter Drascilla and that he's made no attempts to maintain a relationship with Taeyang.

Related: 90 Day Fiancé: All Jihoon's Red Flags While He Was Dating Deavan

Jihoon recently addressed his fans on Instagram in a touching post, complete with a photo of him and Taeyang. He wrote: "This is Jihoon. I am overwhelmed with the support I have received in getting the opportunity to be in my son's life. I have made mistakes, but am trying to improve for the future. I appreciate all that are willing to help me see my son." See his post below:

Deavan has a new man in her life named Topher Park. He is often photographed holding Taeyang, or shown in other "fatherly" poses with the little boy on Instagram. Seeing his son on the Internet, with another man acting as his guardian, has been heartbreaking for Jihoon. He's been vocal ever since about wanting to be more of a presence in Taeyang's life. As well, he's chided Deavan for fostering the relationship between Topher and Taeyang. However, some fans of 90 Day Fiancé still side with Deavan. Although Jihoon is the boy's biological father, some feel that his inability to properly provide for his family speaks volumes about his parenting ability (or lack thereof).

Jihoon's plight is resonating with some fans, who are hurting for him, although he has his critics. He's determined to show the world that he's a dedicated father. It's the only way that he'll be able to leave some imprint on Taeyang's life, at least, for now. With Deavan in a new relationship and Taeyang growing up each day (and probably retaining fewer and fewer memories of his own father), Jihoon must race against time to find a way back into his child's life. Until that happens, he continues to wage his own war in the media, looking for any opportunity to show that he hasn't given up on his only child. This father's love knows no bounds, including the inconvenience of distance. Now, it's just a matter of proving to 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way alum Deavan that he's worthy of another opportunity to get it right.

Next: 90 Day Fiancé: Why Darcey Silva Should Stop Pursuing Relationships On TV

Source: Jihoon Lee/Instagram

90 Day Fiancé: Why Jihoon Calls His Legal Fight To See Taeyang 'Important' from https://ift.tt/39DYMWl

#Blogger

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joyofcrime-elinorhigh · 5 years

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Rick and Morty REVIEW: (With MiketheHuman113)

... ... Ahem... To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Rick and Morty. The humour is extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of theo-

Hello everybody, my name is JoyofCrimeArt and welcome to my first review of Deviant-cember year two! In case you aren't aware what Deviant-cember is, it's we're I post one regular upload every Monday and one cartoon review every Friday for the entire month of December. Why am I doing this? Well, consider it a Christmas present from me to you, as a way to thank all of you for helping me get this far. I've done a lot in my three and a half years on this site, and want to keep doing better and better things as the years go on. But I never would of gotten this far without all of your support. You have no idea how much I appreciate all you guys do for me, but hopefully this can give you all somekinda idea. Anyway what can be said about Rick and Morty that hasn't been said already? Ever since the series premieres on adult swim back in 2013 it has blown up in popularity and has become a GIGANTIC hit in not just the animation community, but also in main stream nerd culture as well. T-shirts, figurines, stupid twenty four hour Youtube livestreams that Youtube just won't stop recommending me no matter how many times I click the "uninterested" button, the show is everywhere. Even the big M themselves have taken notice. Clearly there's something about this show that really resonates with people. But what is it? What is it that makes people love Rick and Morty so much? I don't know. Cause I don't like this show. At all. Okay, maybe "at all" might be a bit strong, as there are a lot of elements of the show that I very much like. But as a whole, I really don't get why so many people love this show so much! I tried to like it, I really tried, but no matter what I could never give the series more than just an "okay" at best. And this isn't just hype backlash either, I've been watching the series since episode one, before the show had the recognition that it has now. I just don't like this show! But why don't I like this, you may ask? Is there something there that everyone else see's that I just don't see? Man, if only I had someone semi-notable to help me answer these questions, perhaps in some kind of "collaboration" style situation- WUBBA LUBBA DUB DUB!

*Gasp!* MiketheHuman, from MiketheHuman Deviantart reviews? (PLUG!) mikethehuman113.deviantart.com… Here?! In my review? What a simply preposterous concept, if I do say so myself! I’M MR. MIKESEEKS! LOOK AT MEEEEE! *pause* Yeah, I’m not gonna do that voice for the whole review. But it’s still great to be here, man! Right. So let's dive right in, and talk about the adult swim smash hit, Rick and Morty. Also light spoiler warning for the series ahead. Though we'll try to leave a spoiler warning before we talk about any important plot points...let's say beyond the season two finale. Just in case you havn't seen the show yet and want to check it out for yourself. Let’s do it! So grab your plumbus and a bowl of Eyeholes because it’s time to get schwifty in here! I apologize for nothing. Rick and Morty, created by Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, follows the adventures of Rick Sanchez, an amoral, narcissist, alcoholic mad scientist who, after twenty years of being mysteriously absent from his families life, shows back up into there lives out of nowhere. The series follows Rick, along with his neurotic yet somewhat snarky grandson Morty, as they go on a wide array of sci-fi adventures. Along for the ride is Rick's vapid yet spunky granddaughter Summer, his emotionally repressed daughter Beth, and his idiotic loser of a son in law Jerry. Galaxy and Multiverse spanning shenanigans ensue. Now normally this would be the part where I would go into more details about the characters, but I want to save that for a bit later. As for now I want to talk about the elements of Rick and Morty that I personally think work the best. One thing about Rick and Morty that I have to praise is the way that the show handles it's voice acting. If there's one thing that people think of when they think of Rick and Morty, it's the shows trademarked use of adlibs and retroscripting. Characters stutter and fumble there words when they talk, (A staple of co creator Justin Roiland's work.) and while it may sound like it would get annoying very quickly, it actually gives the show and by extension the comedy a very naturalistic feel, as well as gives a uniqueness to the shows dialogue. The characters talk like how real people, and it's refreshing to hear when compared to the way characters talk in tv shows. Also because of this process the show lends it's self to some really good improved lines. I have to praise co creator Justin Roiland, who does an excellent job voicing both Rick and Morty. He manages to make the two characters sound completely different from each other and the fact that he voices both characters also makes it all the easier for chemistry to build between them, in the same way some cartoons have all the actors record in the same booth to give there characters a dynamic between the characters. It really is impressive how a single man can create two insanely iconic characters with two distinct voices that are still both very much his own. He’s certainly not the first to do it, or even the first to do it in the realm of adult cartoons (Trey Parker and Matt Stone from South Park and Seth MacFarlane from Family Guy), but still, if you were to close your eyes and listen to either Rick or Morty speak, you’d immediately recognize them. And the improvisational style of comedy and dialogue shines through in a vast majority of the show’s episodes, especially both episodes revolving around Interdimensional Cable, in which the writers and voice actors just have a blast throwing whatever they can at the wall and seeing what sticks. Trust me, it’s a lot funnier than it sounds. The rest of the case also deliver good performances as well. Particularly Chris Parnell as Jerry, who plays the character in a very similar way to the way he plays Cyril from Archer. (However, not so similar the point where it feels like the exact same character.) My only criticism with the shows voice acting is that, while Justin Roiland is able to give two characters completely different voices, he's can't really do a third. This results in a lot of the shows side characters sounding very similar, as Justin Roiland plays a lot of them. Sometimes it works in cases where he goes really out there with the voice and comes off very funny, but it's hard to deny that characters like Mr. Meeseeks, Noob Noob, and Mr. Poopybutthole pretty much all have the exact same voice, and it can be a bit jarring. And to be fair, this is an issue Justin Roiland’s had in several other shows he’s done voice work for. Lemongrab from Adventure Time and Blendin Blandin from Gravity Falls both pretty much share the same voice as Mr. Meeseeks and the other previously mentioned characters, for example. It’s a type of voice that I can totally understand if you would get easily annoyed by, and if you see the first episode and you’re already sick of the voices, then this show likely isn’t for you. But if, like us, you find an earnestness and charm to both Rick and Morty’s voices and verbal tics, then it’s just one extra detail to appreciate about the uniqueness of this show overall. The comedy of the show is also pretty strong. While many lines do feel like there improvised (and improved well) a lot of the jokes in Rick and Morty feel very layered in terms of the way that they are written. And considering the sometimes over year long break between seasons it would be hard for me to believe that multiple drafts and rewrites and weren't used when writing these jokes. The shows humor feels very well thought out. This combination of both deeply written layered jokes and off the cuff drunken improve works well in tandem to make the humor really work the majority of the time. I admit that I'm not the biggest fan of dark humor, and that does hold me back from loving the shows comedy, but I completely acknowledge that that's a personal preference, and doesn't take away from the shows writing on an technical level. I feel the show does best when it delves into absurd surreal humor, which it often does. The comedy of Rick and Morty is extremely quoteable in the same way that say The Simpsons and Futurama are. Not to mention the way the shows surrealist style of humor melds so well with modern meme culture. Weather or not that's a good thing or a bad thing I'll leave up to you...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUpsKsBqqwE

Well, especially given the universally negative reaction to the fanbase lately, I’ll just assume most of you find it a bad thing, so moving on. However, if I had to pick the element of Rick and Morty that I think works the best, it would be the series creative way that the series satirized and subverts the tropes of science fiction genre. Without going into to many specifics, it's clear that the writers behind this series know there sci fi lore and the series is constantly doing new and creative things with it's sci fi premise. This is where the show really shines, with episodes like "Total Rickall." "Auto-Erotic Assimilation" and "A Rickle in Time" while not necessary being the best episodes of the series per say, are the episodes where we see the series at it's most creative, at least in my opinion. Not to bring up the Futurama comparison again, but the series does sort of remind me of Futurama in the way that it satirizes the science fiction genre. Though Rick and Morty's take on the genre is a lot darker, and this does help a lot in differentiating the series and stop it from feeling like a rip off. Even in the show’s weaker episodes, which tend to vary from person to person, you’re almost always guaranteed to encounter something you’ve never seen before. This all comes down to, as previously mentioned, the creativity of the ingenious writers. Even if an episode’s concept has been seen before, the writers will throw enough twists at it to make it feel fresh and new. “Anatomy Park” isn’t a great episode because it’s a parody of Jurassic Park, it’s great because of all the areas explored and the creatures encountered, and the overall unique conflict. “Look Who’s Purging Now” isn’t just great because it parodies The Purge, it’s great because it takes that concept and kicks it up to eleven in the best and most creative way possible. This extends into the episodes that aren’t just straight-up satires, but if I were to list them all, we’d be here all day. This series has this massive scale to it, in terms of the scope of it's story. The world and adventures of Rick and Morty exist on an entirely cosmic scale. The series goes well out of it's way to make you feel the unimaginable scope of the multiverse. It's not something that you see much in many other series. It's one of the shows greatest strengths, but it also may be one of the series biggest weakness too too. But I'll go more into that later. Unfortunately one of the series flaws is that while the writers are able to give the science fiction elements this massive scale, they aren't really able to do this with the more mundane elements. Weather it be Morty's crush on Jessica, Summer's boy troubles, or Beth and Jerry's struggling marriage (which to be fair I don't think I hate as most Rick and Morty fans seem to, and I personally think did improve a lot in season three...) these elements just never seem to be as interesting as the sci fi adventures, which is probably why the series tends to focus less and less on these elements as the series progresses. And to be fair, while it can be a bit frustrating that these plot points are rarely touched upon, there is always a chance that they will be touched upon in future seasons. Even if they aren’t, the focus of the show is still primarily the bizarre, downright insane adventures that Rick and Morty themselves go on. The more mundane elements can kind of be considered a cherry on top of the ice cream sundae that the writers sometimes forget to add. I also want to briefly talk about the show's animation. I've heard a lot of people call it bad. And yes, while it isn't the greatest looking series (I mean it's adult swim after all) I think the the animation does what it's suppose to do. While the art style may not be as crisp and clean as say Steven Universe, I don't think the show would of worked if it was. The world of Rick and Morty is alien, dark, bizarre, and ugly. And the animation reflects this. Sort of like the story the mundane Earth elements is where the animation feels the weakest. But when the series goes into the weird alien worlds and the artist get to just fun with it, that's where the art really shines. It uses creativity to make up for any of it's other shortcomings, and most of the time it works out pretty dang well.

And unlike other “edgy” adult shows like, say, Mr. Pickles, Ren and Stimpy: Adult Party Cartoon, King Star King, and the like, Rick and Morty’s style of somewhat ugly animation isn’t ugly for the sake of ugliness. As Anthony said, it helps that the worlds visited are usually quite varied, unique, and at times even beautiful. No two areas look the same, and it's just another thing to look forward to with each new episode you choose to watch. This applies to both the worlds visited and the creatures encountered, even if most of them end up looking like penises and testicles, whether by accident or on purpose. You make the call! I also want to give the series credit for being, to my knowledge, the first adult comedy cartoon to have a fairly thick continuity. Where actions in one episode has a direct effect on other episodes. (And yes, I'm sure there was some adult comedy series before Rick and Morty to have a continuity, but I'm talking specifically about series with a fair bit of continuity, not just occasional status quo changes or references.) However this show does suffer a bit from what I call Adventure Time syndrome in terms of it's plot points. What I mean with this is that the series will introduce interesting concepts for new plot lines, and just reset to the status quo. Like (Spoiler Warning) the family being intergalactic outlaws after "The Wedding Squanchers." Aliens colonizing the Earth, also in "The Wedding Squanchers." Or the entire Season three divorce plot line. All things that would have been interesting to expand upon, but are just undone to return the series back to the status quo. (Spoiler's Over Now) However, luckily not all the changes are like that, and there are some series changing elements still present in the show, which works to keep the series fresh. It can be quite risky for a show like this to have a non-floating timeline, as it poses the risk of alienating the audience, but Rick and Morty pulls this off quite well. True, there are some episodes that you pretty much can’t skip if you choose to watch this show, like the aforementioned “Wedding Squanchers”, “Total Rickall”, “The Rickshank Rickdemption” and most notably “Rick Potion #9”, but for the most part, the show doesn’t punish you if you’ve missed any of these episodes. The plots themselves are mostly self-contained and if there’s a plot point from a previous episode that makes a return, it’s generally not the main focus of the episode, but more something for the dedicated watcher to pay attention to. But with all of that said, I think it's time that we go back and talk about all the stuff that I said we'd get back to. Let's start with the characters, particularly Rick. Because, while this show may be called "Rick and Morty" the show is really about Rick. Not only is Rick the most popular character in the series BY FAR, but he is also in the A plot of every single episode of the series as of the first three seasons, while there are several episodes where Morty is given the B plot. Your opinion on Rick will make or break this show for you. I will say that Rick is by far the most interesting character in the series. I also think that he is the funniest character, with most of the series's best lines coming from him... ...But honestly, I frickin' hate Rick. And frankly I think about ninety percent of the reasons why I don't like this show come down to how the show treats Rick. WHAAAAAAAAAT?! How could this be?! Rick is an amazing character! This revelation comes off as totally shocking to me and not as though we had planned it weeks in advance! Please go on, I need to hear what you have to say!

Rick's just a really unlikeable character to me, and he becomes more and more unlikeable each and every season. Really, I don't quite get why so many people like him. He's honestly not anything I haven't seen before. He's the same token jerk who you see in every other adult cartoon. You see, ninety percent of all adult American animation tends to fall into two main camps. They'll either have a cast full of jerks, (Like most Seth MacFarlane series for example) or they will have what I refer to as the "token jerk." Y'know, the jerky character who usually becomes the fan favorite because they say what's on there mind and usually have the best lines. Often times the character is an alcoholic, a womanizer, a cynic. And don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with this type of character at all! I don't want you to get that impression. It's a character trope, and there is nothing wrong with character tropes if you use them right or do something different with them, and in all fairness Rick does have a bit more depth than most other characters that fall into this camp. The problem though comes from to way that the show treats Rick. And to explain my problem with Rick, allow me to present this graph I made to help illustrate my point! God, you're a loser. Hey, who the heck said that?! Oh, sorry, that's my TRADE. The fu*ks a TRADE?! Oh, just my Totally Real Assistant that Definitely Exist. Don't worry about her. (She doesn't do much.) I have a name you know. It's- Oooh, side characters interrupting the review. Okay. Nice lore, Linkara. You wanna be the victim of my next satire? I'll...I'll be good s-sir. Yeah, this'll make no sense to any of your watchers you know. Anyway don't you have a graph to show off or something? Ah, right. You're both idiots.

So as you can see by this graph, there tends to be a scale that most "Token Jerk" adult cartoon characters fall under. There's an axis of how likeable vs how evil the token jerk will be. The farther left you go, the more likeable or sympathetic the character is. There the characters who are jerks, but aren't too jerky to the point that we stop rooting for them to succeed. And the farther right you go, the more unlikeable the character is. These are the character who we want to watch fail. We want to watch them be jerks, but then get there just desserts at the end of the episodes. It gives us a sense of schadenfreude. And characters don't just have to be on one side or the other, they can kinda dance around the line depending on the situation, but overall they tend to have some general point that they fall under. And both types of characters can work. One side is not better than the other. It all depends on how well the character is written and how the series presents the character. Okay. So if that's the case where does Rick fall on this axis? Well see, that's my biggest problem with Rick. The show wants to play it both ways! If we're going by moral standards Rick would be WAY on the right side of the graph. He murdered countless people, destroyed several civilization, supplies assassin's with weapons, literally owns slaves, and he also steals cable. Overall, he's a very bad bloke. And again, there's nothing inherently wrong with that. The problem comes from the fact that the show also wants us to sympathize him. And I don't. His actions are horrible, and the fact that this show has continuity makes it even worse, because it makes it a lot harder to look past his actions. Cause basically what were watching over the course of the three seasons that are out so far, is the story of an abuser slowly conditioning his family to take his abuse, and it get's really bad in season three. Again (Spoiler Warning) But if you pay attention it's fairly easy to see how twisted Rick is. He abandons his daughter for twenty years, causing her to grow an almost stockholm syndrome-esq dependency complex, doing anything Rick wants in order to prevent him from leaving. He then purposely let's himself get captured in the season two finale as part of his plan to get rid of Jerry, and not only reawakens his daughters fear of abandonment issues, but passing this fear onto Summer as well. Resulting in her gaining a hero complex regarding Rick. Rick pressures Beth into divorcing Jerry, and due to her newly revived fear of parental abandonment she excepts even after admitting she love's Jerry seconds before. Then Rick either replaces Beth with a clone that he could destroy at any time, or a version of Beth that thinks she's a clone and THINKS that he destroy at any time. All as a ploy to take over the family by manipulating his families abandonment issues that he himself caused. Cause if they don't do what he says doesn't he can just leave again. Who knows, maybe that's why he left twenty years ago in the first place. I mean the creators have said we're never getting any kind of backstory on Rick. All so he can forever force his family to be his assistance, weather they want to or not. (Spoiler's Over Now)

So yeah, between all of that I just don't find myself liking this character. Just because he has one or two sympathetic moments doesn't make up for everything else. What doesn't help is the fact that, despite all of his horrible actions, he always comes up on top. In all thirty one episodes out so far there are only two episodes where Rick really loses. "Auto Erotic Assimilation" and "The Rickchurian Mortydate." You could also make an argument for "Meeseeks and Destroy" but he chose to lose in that one. Other than that, he always wins. He's always right. He always get's his way. It get's to the point where he really comes off as a real Mary Sue character, where he always has something that can fix the situation at hand. Even if it's not set up or even explained, we're just suppose to buy it because it's Rick's and he's the smartest person in the multiverse. Well, the Mary Sue argument is one that I’ll gladly defend against. While yes, Rick does end up winning in a majority of the show’s episodes, it’s not always something he does effortlessly. He has to use his wit and scientific skills to figure his way out of the terrible situations he finds himself in. There’s even some instances in which he has to rely on others to bail him out of an episode’s conflict. He was the only male on Gazorpazorp in the episode “Raising Gazorpazorp” and had to be bailed out by Summer, he lost a ton of IQ points in “The Whirly Dirly Conspiracy” and only didn’t die because of pure luck, “Get Schwifty” shows that he doesn’t work well under pressure, hell, even in “A Rickle in Time” not only is he one of the main contributors of the episode’s conflict due to his own uncertainties, but the episode ends with Beth and Jerry laughing at how ridiculous he looks. I’d hardly call that a win. Plus, I think he has more sympathetic moments than you give him credit for. We find out at the end of “Ricksy Business” just how sad and lonely he is with the revealed meaning of his catchphrase, there’s a really subtle scene in “Something Ricked This Way Comes” that displays just how lonely he is without the rest of the family, he actually apologizes to Jerry for interfering with him and Beth’s Marriage in “The Whirly Dirly Conspiracy”, and both “Big Trouble in Little Sanchez” and “Pickle Rick” explore how self-loathsome and flawed of a person Rick is, especially with the speech delivered to him by Dr. Wong in the latter episode. The latter two examples may not be sympathetic moments, per say, but they do at the very least prove that he’s not a Mary Sue, or Marty Stu, if you will. And (Spoiler Warning) while I will admit that it’s a pretty despicable action to try and force two people into a divorce, I think the audience can make an exception for Beth and Jerry. Prior to season three, everyone wanted them to divorce. Just ask any fan of this show and they’ll say they wanted them to divorce, I guarantee it. True, but it's how it was handled that bothers me. If Beth and Jerry decided to separate on there own, I wouldn't of minded it. It's the fact that it was Rick, the man with all of the emotional power over Beth, that pulled the strings to make it happen. (Spoiler's Over Now) The show makes many parallels between Rick and God, and I admit that the idea of a person who has all the power of a god, but all the flaws and vices of a human is interesting. But it doesn't really work in the way that the series presents it. We know Rick's going to win in the end, and there's no tension as a result. Also because of this there are a lot of easy ways that problems can be fixed, but aren't because of the plot. Like in "The Rickchurian Mortydate." (Spoiler Warning, Again) Why doesn't Rick just leave and find a universe with a more submissive family? It's not because he loves them, because he's reality hoped before. Also, why doesn't he just use the mind blower from "Morty's Mind Blowers" to just erase Beth's memory of possibly being a clone once it started becoming a problem for him? That's just one of many examples of plots that could be solved WAY easier then they are. (Spoiler's Over Now) The shows nihilistic philosophy also helps make it hard to care about anything that happens. When there are an infinite number of realities, and the show goes with the idea that anyone can easily be replaced by one of the infinite possible versions of themselves because nothing matters, then why should I be invested? Who cares if someone dies, they can just go find another version of them, or clone them, or whatever. It doesn't matter. Nothing matters, which I guess is the point of the show. But to me what it really comes down to is that Rick and Morty is the story of an immoral, emotionally abusive all powerful God, who always wins and exist in a universe where nothing matters. And we're suppose to be emotionally invested? How am I suppose to relate to a God? I'm sorry, but it just doesn't work for me. At all. Again, I would disagree that Rick always wins, but I think you just hit the nail on the head on why people relate to Rick and, by extension, this show. It is purely nihilistic, but, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, so is this latest generation of millennials! I know, I know, there’s a lot of stereotypes surrounding this group, but I’m not kidding when I say that nihilism in this day and age is more prevalent than ever. All you need to do is go to any news channel to figure that out for yourself. But that’s why people can relate to Rick. He’s the ultimate in nihilism. He has all the power in the universe and yet he’s absolutely miserable. He can create anything he wants at any time he can, but he’s lonely; he can’t relate to people, he’s harsh to the people that love him the most. A lot of people around our age have found themselves in very similar states of depression that Rick is going through. Obviously a majority of the people I’m referring to aren’t super geniuses like Rick, but that nihilistic aspect of his character just makes it that much more relatable that even a character as godlike as Rick can be as bitter, unhappy, and lonely as a lot of people find themselves these days. Maybe that’s why a lot of people can identify with him and look past the terrible things he’s done that have either been seen or alluded to. That is an interesting perspective. I guess I can see how some people could relate to this. And if Rick and Morty has helped people like with these problems realize that there not alone, than I can't fault it for that. I guess part of it comes from the fact that, I'm not a nihilist. I try to be an optimistic person and see the best in things, so maybe that's why I have trouble relating to Rick. As for why he doesn’t just switch universes, he did say in “Rick Potion #9” and “Morty’s Mind Blowers” that it’s something he can only do a limited amount of times, so there’s at least a bit of an explanation for that. Yeah but they never explain why he can only do it a couple of times. If there are an infinite number of universes then there should be a infinite number of universes at any given moment that he could switch to. It's not like traveling between universes is at all difficult for him. It honestly just feels like a line thrown in to try to give the show more stakes, even when there aren't any. Honestly this may be something that we might have to just agree to disagree on... The rest of the cast range from meh to okay personally. Though they all commit the same kind of terrible acts that Rick do, though to a much lesser extent. This, again, makes them hard to like. Also several characters like Summer and Beth seem like there written pretty inconsistently between episodes. If I had to pick a favorite out of the main cast I'd probably say Jerry. He's flawed, he's by far the most likeable, and I'm actually rooting for him to win. Sure he's not perfect, and has his fair share of jerky moments too, but when it comes to character motivations all he wants is a normal life. It's hard not to root for that. I also do kinda like Morty's character act of learning how to manipulate Rick and becoming more and more disillusioned with with him. Someone that doesn’t loathe Jerry with a fiery passion of a thousand suns? I thought people like that didn’t exist! It’s nice to know SOMEONE doesn’t despise this harmless character. Yeah, he’s not perfect and he can be manipulative at times, but WAY too many people treat him like he’s the most unlikable character ever conceived. To that I say, really guys? Is he really that bad? I will give you Summer and Beth, though. Summer can be cool but wildly inconsistent, and Beth is just….the worst. Never funny, always bitchy, and always unlikable in every episode she’s in, with the exception of the final two episodes of season 3. Hell, when she was threatened into making a choice of saving one of her two kids, she INSTANTLY chose Summer. Right in front of Morty! Why does a majority of the fanbase hate Jerry when Beth exists in this show, exactly? I know. I personally don't get it. Personally I think a lot of my points I pointed out above are why so many (Not all, keep in mind.) of the people in the Rick and Morty fan base are so toxic. Because while yes, the show does try to show that you shouldn't be like Rick, they never really show any negative repercussions for acting as such. The show gives off this vibe that, as long as your smart, nothing else matters. Which is a real philosophy that I think is becoming more prominent by the day, as I think that there are people who hold intelligent at a higher value then just being a good person. And I think this attitude is what attracts these types of people. Because it's easy for someone to decide that there smart. (SOME PEOPLE KEEP IN MIND. I'M NOT SAYING ALL RICK AND MORTY FANS ARE LIKE THIS. IN ACTUALITY IT'S PROBABLY ONLY LIKE ONE OR TWO PERCENT. I'M JUST SAYING.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GC5rAX0xHg

You're really using that clip? Yes. There. Now that we've referenced every Rick and Mortmeme I think it's time we start to wrap up this review. I believe you forgot about "Show me what you got." Mr. CrimeArt. Damn. Well anyway, Mike, since you are my guest I'll let you go first. Any final thoughts? And do you recommend the series to anyone reading this who's yet to watch Rick and Morty? (Who somehow got this far into the review.) I can totally see where someone like you would be coming from in your dislike of Rick. I may love him, but I will fully admit that there are a lot of things to hate about him, and his writing isn’t always the most consistent. But that’s certainly not enough for me to dislike him. To me, he’s the prime example of doing a “jerk with a heart of gold” trope perfectly. Sure, he’s done hideously heinous things in nearly every episode of the show, but something about his not-give-a-fu*k attitude, his charm, and his sheer badassery are enough for me to look past his, at times, pure dickishness. He’s funny, he’s sympathetic, and despite displaying all these godlike abilities and powers, the show does a fantastic job at showing that he’s very much a flawed individual, unlike say, Roger from American Dad! Rick may be the most flawed person on the show, in fact, but that’s all up for debate and this review is long enough as is. In short, Rick is amazing and I love nearly every second of the show when he’s onscreen. Though I can understand where others would disagree. As for the show itself, I absolutely recommend it to anyone that hasn’t seen it yet. Though I would advise starting with the first four episodes and seeing if you like what you’re presented with. This is not a show for everyone and if the first four episodes don’t convince you, the rest of the show likely won’t. But if you find yourself enjoying those first four, I can almost guarantee that you’ll fall for this show head over heels. It’s unlike any show that’s come before it, with its unique plots, fantastic characters (even if we happen to disagree in that regard), beyond clever writing, and bizarre yet somehow beautiful visuals that just get more and more impressive with each season. Easily one of my favorite adult shows, if not my favorite, as well as one of my favorite cartoons of this decade, which is certainly saying a lot. Yeah. As for me, as odd as this may sound after my long tangent, I also do recommend that you check out the series for yourself. Wait, Really? Yes. Because, while I do personally have a lot of problems with the show, I've been around the internet long enough to know that I am in the minority. Almost everyone else I've run in to love this show, and I do kinda get why. The comedy is really clever and funny. The worlds they create is interesting. And I admire that the show has the guts to deal with things like philosophy and existentialism. Also the season three finale seems like it'll be making some changes to the status quo that I think would help improve the show for the better, though honestly I have my doubts that it'll stick, but only time will tell. I get why people like the show. There are elements of the show, and even whole episodes that I do enjoy. I also can see how people can like Rick, and just find him more charming and how endearing than I do. I can also see how he can be seen as a power fantasy character. I mean who wouldn't want to be a all powerful godlike jerk who can do whatever they want while still having a heart of gold? There's nothing wrong with power fantasy characters, if there was then Superman wouldn't be a national icon after all. Honestly, I think it's just a personal thing. Something about this show just doesn't click with me, and while I'll probably never one hundred percent understand how so many people can love the show, that doesn't mean that my opinion is anymore valid than there's. So check out the show and watch it for yourself. You'll probably like it. Or maybe you'll be like me, and just not get what all the hype was about... Thanks for coming to help me on this colab, Mike. Any Parting Words? It was great to collab with you, Anthony. I wish the best for your page and to those of you that want to see more of my stupid shit, I do reviews of TV shows and movies and I also do satires of some of the biggest assholes ever to taint the website of DeviantArt! Links to some of my favorites of each down below. SHAMELESS PLUG!!1!!111!11! So that's our thoughts on Rick and Morty. What do you all think of the series. Leave your thoughts in the comments down bellow. I would love to start a conversation, even if your opinion is completely different from my own. Also tell me what you think of the collaboration format. It's something I want to try experimenting with, so I would love your input. And if I were to collab with another deviantart review, which one do you think I should do? Leave all of that in the comments down bellow. Please fav, follow, and comment if you liked the review and don't forget to check out MiketheHuman's page for more reviews from him. And come back next week as Deviant-cember....get a lot more Super. ... Is it Dragon Ball Super? Frickin' TRADE...(Sigh!) Have a great day. (I do not own any of the images or videos in this review. All credit goes to there original owners.)

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sunshinelulusplatoon · 7 years

Text

To Let The Past Go Chapter 4

(Wooot, chapter 4 done! Hope you guys enjoy!)

Chapter 1: http://sunshinelulusplatoon.tumblr.com/post/154343280234/alright-finally-ive-got-this-started-for-those

Chapter 2: http://sunshinelulusplatoon.tumblr.com/post/155644766709/to-let-the-past-go-chapter-2)

Chapter 3: http://sunshinelulusplatoon.tumblr.com/post/155825340079/to-let-the-past-go-chapter-3

Chapter 4: Investigation

As December passed, presents handed out, and the holidays coming to the end, Lulu was taking her grandpa’s advice and not letting the situation with her mother get to her. Though it was hard when Lulu was by herself not to think about her and feel down about it. By this point Lulu had told everybody what had happened so her friends and family would try to cheer her up if they saw her down. Lulu was appreciative of their efforts. It helped her remember she did have love ones when her feelings got to her.

As December came to a close on the night of New Year’s Eve, Lulu had gone out to spend it with a friend in another universe. Coming home after the celebrations around 12:30am New Year’s Day, Lulu grandpa was waiting for her when she slide the door open. “Grandpa! What are you still doing up?” Lulu questioned, surprised to see him. “Hehe, just wanted make sure you got home safely,” Octavio chuckled. Lulu groaned. “Overprotective Octo!” Lulu replied annoyed. Octavio just chuckled again. “Did you have fun? You have been hanging out with that octoling boy more often? Anything I should be concerned about?” Octavio question, smirk on his face. Lulu flustered and huff. “NO! He’s…ju-just a friend…that’s…all…Nuugh, I’m going to bed,” Lulu huffed, flustered and annoyed by her grandpa. “Right behind yah Sunshine,” Octavio chuckled as he followed behind Lulu to the bedroom.

As the next few days passed and things went back to normal routine, Lulu was at home playing video games on the living room TV after having gotten her studies done for the day and passing the language test Camilla had given her earlier that afternoon. Headphones on as she played Squid Bros 4, she was oblivious to the call that came in on the house phone. Picking the phone off the hook, Octavio answered. “Entra residence, Octavio speaking,” Octavio stated. “Good Morning your highness! Or should I say Afternoon,” the voice on the phone replied. “Habu! I take it you have news for me?” Octavio questioned. “I sure do. Got time to listen?” Habu asked. “Yes. Let me take this to the office though. I’ll call you back in just a second,” Octavio replied before hanging the phone up and walking past Lulu, still not paying attention, and entered the small music room down the hallway. Shutting the door and shuffling around music sheets box of records, CD’s, and other musical nick knacks, and music equipment, Octavio took a seat at the desk in the back. Once settled in, Octavio pulled his cell phone out from his pocket and dialed the number for Habu again. Answering, Habu respond, “Your Highness?” to which Octavio replied, “Yes, it’s me. Alright, what do you got?” “Ooooooh, your daughter has been busy! Where do I start?” Habu joked. “From the beginning please Habu,” Octavio replied, rolling his eyes at the jellyfish’s words. “Right! Right! Okay, so from what I found, Precious headed for the states just after leaving the last time. We know now from Lulu that she dropped Lulu off at an orphanage before leaving. From what I gathered, she went there to start a music career, away from home and from your influence it seems,” Habu began. “Figures! I knew she enjoyed singing and if she fully got away, she would either trying to build things up on her own or drink herself crazy,” Octavio snorted. “Hehe, funny your highness,” Habu joked, “Anyway, she seemed to have done well for herself. Records showed she join a music company called Bloomheart Industries which is where she met her deceased husband Dale Bloomheart.” “Deceased?” Octavio questioned. “Died in a car wreck sir. Hit in the side from a speeding truck and slammed into a traffic pole. Died in the ambulance.”Habu explained. “Shame,” Octavio replied, shaking his head. “Sure is. Left her and her 6 year old son behind,” Habu replied. “Kane?” Octavio questioned, hearing about the son. “Yes sir!” Habu replied. “How old is he now?” Octavio asked. “Kane Bloomheart is two years younger than Lulu. Boy, talk about not waiting some huh?” Habu stated, a bit of a chuckle coming through the phone. Shaking his head, Octavio sighed before replying, “No she didn’t. I assume they married before having him?” “Yes sir and after Dale’s death, Precious took over the company and has since being running it while making a career for herself. Right now, she’s got 14 CD’s out with multiple hits and few #1 songs. On stage, she goes under that name Princess and has a fashion and make up line,” Habu continued. Octavio grunted. “Fitting,” Octavio replied ironically. Habu just chuckled. “So what is she doing now?” Octavio asked. “Going through lawsuits sir,” Habu replied. “Lawsuits?” Octavio question, face looking stern and confused. “Yes sir, seems some trouble has happened in the company. Seems a few of her head co-workers were embezzling money into the company unbeknownst to her and word got out. Company’s hit hard and it’s all on her head as the ones at fault have run off with the money. Way things are going, she may have to bankrupt and sell out to even make even,” Habu explained. “How bad? Octaivo questioned. “About a decent 5,000K in the hole sir,” Habu replied. Surprised, Octavio sighed, blowing a raspberry and taking a deep breath. “That’s pretty bad,” Octavio sighed. “Yes sir it is. So, what are you planning to do?” Habu asked. “Right now I’ll have to think on it. For now, just keep tabs her and once I figure something out, we will go from there,” Octavio stated. “Sure thing sir. Till then, I bid you adieu,” Habu replied before hanging up.

Ending the call, Octavio sat there, arms crossed on the desk, thinking about what he was told. He sat there for a good bit when a voice from behind the door broke his concentration. “Grandpa?” Lulu asked as she opened the door. “Lulu. What is it Sunshine?” Octavio asked. “You disappeared on me. Everything okay?” Lulu asked concern on her face. Perking up to not worry Lulu, Octavio replied, “Fine baby girl. Just need to take a call and get some work done is all.” Getting up and walking around the mess, he scooted Lulu out of the room before shutting the door and stating, “How about we go out tonight for dinner. What would you like?” Giving a smile at the thought of going out, Lulu replied, “Buffet!” Chuckling and patting her head, Octavio replied, “Buffet, okay. Well let’s get our baths done and we will head out.” Nodding, Lulu rushed back into the living room to turn the game system and TV off before rushing past her grandpa to her room to grab some clothes.

Baths taken, and out the door, the two came out of their dome and took a glider to the middle cluster of domes. Inside and hitting the main city as the night cycle settled in on the domes walls around them, the two found their favorite buffet and once settled in, Octavio let Lulu go first to get her own food. Watching her with a concerned look, Octavio didn’t notice a familiar face coming up to him. “Yen for your thoughts sir,” Sako, Octavio’s lackey and one of the main scientists of the military science division, had asked wondering what was on his king’s mind. Startled, Octavio looked at him before giving a sigh. “Just thinking about Lulu and my daughter,” Octavio replied. Nodding, Sako asked, “Mind if I join?” “Not at all. Take a seat,” Octavio gestured, pulling the chair out next to him with a tentacle. Sitting down and placing the plate he had on the table, Sako looked at the old king before stating, “It’s been going around Lulu found her mother. Though the encounter didn’t go very well from what I’ve heard.” Octavio sighed, watching Lulu again before replying, “No it didn’t. Seems Precious wants nothing to do with her.” “Shame. Can’t see anybody not loving a girl like her. Genuinely sweet and caring,” Sako stated before looking towards Lulu as well. Watching Lulu, she was chatting away with others as she grabbed things she liked before coming back to the table. “Hi Sako. Done with work for today?” Lulu asked as she took a seat in front of her grandpa. “Yes princess. But I would have been done sooner if that crazy inkling friend or yours hadn’t crawled through the vents again and kept asking me twenty questions about my favorite pizza toppings,” Sako huffed. Octavio and Lulu giggling now, Lulu replied, “Sorry. That’s Velma for you. You know she comes to see Aquamarine and cheer the scientist up from their gloomy work days. She means no harm.” “I know this. Doesn’t mean she isn’t annoying at times,” Sako replied before sticking an octopus tentacle in his mouth and eating it.

Getting their heart’s content of the seafood and other foods served at the buffet, the three walked out after Octavio and Sako paid for the food before giving waves and going their separate ways. Walking back towards the air dock, Lulu was humming away as her illuminessence lit the way before looking up at her grandpa to see he was staring off into space. “Grandpa?” Lulu questioned concern on her face. Snapping him back into reality, Octavio looked at her. “Yes Sunshine?” Octavio smiled. “Are you okay? You were quite through dinner,” Lulu stated. “Fine baby girl. Just stuff on my mind is all. Nothing you need to worry about,” Octavio replied, trying to push away Lulu’s worry. Lulu just pouted until they came across a familiar park, empty at moment. Noticing the swings, Lulu pointed towards them. “Aren’t you a little old for those?” Octavio chuckled with a nod that she could get on one. “NO!” Lulu huffed before running off and jumping on one of the swings. Taking a seat to watch her swing, a smile was on Octavio’s face as he watched her but soon it dropped as his mind returned to earlier thoughts. “From what she’s been through, it’s surprising to see how happy she gets from just the simplest things. Always bright in nature, she’s a light in anybody’s life. Childish one minute and mature a next, Lulu’s a gem. Only a fool would turn her away. Precious better have a good excuse for doing what she did,” Octavio thought to himself. Having her fill, Lulu jumped off the swing and walked over to her grandpa. “Good?” he asked to which Lulu nodded. Leaving the park and returning home, Octavio was unlocking the front door when Lulu asked, “Grandpa, can we go see a movie tomorrow since it’s Saturday?” “Of course Sunshine. Whatever you like,” Octavio chuckled humoring his granddaughter. Lulu smiled bright as the two walked into the house.

A few hours later as Octavio got Lulu into bed and sound asleep, he decided to walk back into the music room and taking a seat at his desk, sat there and pondered a bit. Although he never fully showed it, masking it behind the false pretense that he didn’t care anymore, Octavio wanted answers. Why Precious acted the way she did and why she would put a child through fifteen years of hell. Taking a long breath, Octavio noticed the writing pad under the piled of music sheets on the desk. Thinking on it some, he decided to pull it out and grabbing a pen from a cup sitting behind him on a stereo, Octavio started to write. About 30 minutes later, Octavio called up Habu on his phone. “Evening Sir. Did you need something?” “Yes Habu. Do you know Precious’s mailing address?” Octavio asked. “Sure do sir. You need it?” Habu asked. “Yes,” Octavio replied as he held the pen in his hand, waiting to write the address down, a closed envelope now in front of him with the return address of the house written on it and the name Precious Bloomheart as the receiving party.

#sunshinelulu

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coreytravelogue · 4 years

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Bay Roberts, NFLD - December 29, 2019

It has been awhile since I have updated this travelogue as one could tell, well at least 2 months since. The last entry was the day I was to leave Amsterdam. What has happened since then has been fairly uneventful for me, well uneventful compared to years prior.

In October me and my girlfriend went to Seattle to see Jukebox The Ghost which was a concert she wanted to see. While doing that we saw the downtown area and I got to indulge in some more German wiezen beer once again and for the last time this year. There rest of the time was spent working really, no real adventures as my trips to Europe, Yellowknife, Kelowna, Toronto and California wound up costing me more than I wanted to.

As you can tell I am back in Newfoundland where I usually am at this point of the year but unlike last year I am spending three weeks here. I gave my parents only one week last year so I felt I owed them more this year. I may not be able to give them this much for a long while though however given the amount of money I spent this year 2020 may not be much of a travel year for me for many reasons. One is I can’t afford to do it at the level I have been over the past few years especially now. I do plan on going to Edmonton next month and I will more than likely do something for Easter long weekend because I have to (I dont have to but when I can get 5 straight days off from work I have to use it for something) but I don’t plan on traveling much in 2020 and want to use it more for saving and for just in case I move out of Vancouver.

I love Vancouver but it is just too expensive for me to live there while supporting my girlfriend and my addiction to travel (and beer). 2020 I do plan on lowering many other things but I am not going to bother talking about them, actions speak louder than words and I have no idea if I can accomplish them or not. All I know is 2020 will be a year of change for me once again but then every year presents a change. I feel as though this entry should be more about talking about the 2010s than anything else. I don’t want to continuously rehash old trips but I do want to use this time to reflect a decade which came to be probably the biggest, most important and most transitional decade of my life thus far.

80s I can’t remember because I was a baby becoming child at that time. The 90s I remember fondly though there were some bad points but many good. At this time in my life I try my best to think of the good times in the 90s because childhood should always be held precious. The 00s were easily the darkest times of my life where my depression basically took over my life and helped waste it as I went from job to job, heartbreak to heartbreak and etc. and I left 00s in worse shape than I came into it. The same cannot be said about the 10s I came out far greater than I did coming in to where I can barely recognize who I was back then outside of the musical triggers I left for myself in the mixes I made for myself over the years.

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The start of the 10s carried over the issues I had in the 00s and it only got worst that lead to my first mental breakdown in 2011. In 2013 for the first time in my life I decided to take a trip for myself. For my adult life up to that point the only trips I would take for myself were to Edmonton and if I was to take any vacations they would be for a Christmas in Newfoundland. I never went anywhere else. However in October for 2013 I decided to travel to Seattle.

In hindsight it wasn’t a big trip at all for me, it’s a 4 hour drive from Vancouver but for me at that time it was the first time I left Canada as an adult on my own in my life. However I wanted to see Fiona Apple in concert, I missed out on her show in Vancouver previously so I did not want to miss out on this one. I am glad I didn’t miss out because she hasn’t really toured since then. I only spent two nights in Seattle but my time there reignited something I didn’t really know I had up to that point; a love for travel.

Prior to that when I was a kid I continuously took traveling for granted with my family but it was only then that I got to appreciate how lucky I was to have been able to see as much of the planet especially Canada as I did growing up on our road trips cross country many times over. Up to that point I felt like making a movie before I turned 30 was the only thing I could do at that point but my trip to Seattle provided another option which wound up being a better option.

By 2013 it had been 7 years since I ‘graduated’ from Vancouver Film School. For years I would try to get into the union and try to get work but it would almost always fall flat on my face with me. It led me to do free work here and there and sooner or later just get regular work. By 2013 I would have worked at EA for about 5 years, I practically forgotten most of what I had learned in film school, all my contacts gone and so on. By 2013 I knew full well the chances of me making a movie before I was turned 30 was slim and if I did make one it would not be what I would want it to be. I basically wasted my 20s. In hindsight I should have just flat out made a movie or made something regardless right out of film school. Would it have been any good? Probably not but it would have been something. I think now as a 35 year old looking back at my 20s I should not have listened to my friend Tyler and waited. I should have just done something, even if it would have burned a hole in my bank account that I would probably never be able to crawl out of, I would have been able to have done something.

My Seattle trip at that point gave me another option I never considered before; travel. In the three days I explored Seattle I was intrigued by the differences the city provided me, even though it was just ‘next door’ it felt like a different world to me. I began to create more experiences like that where I could just get lost, explore and further more actually have fun for once which at that point was something I didn’t really know how to do anymore.

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In 2014 my 20s were nearing its end and I knew I had to make changes in my life; personal, professional and emotional because I knew I wasn’t going to live that much longer if I didn’t I knew another mental breakdown was looming, it was already building with other things going on my life at that point. I knew working at EA was a dead end, they never had any intention of keeping me as nothing more than a tester working for peanuts. I had friends in my life that i knew were not worth having in my life that I had to cut bait on as well. In April if I remember correctly I booked the ticket to go to London and leave from London 78 days later. From April till August right before my trip was all about preparing.

I am not going to get into my Europe trip (again) because honesty if you really want to know what happened then just go to the beginning of the blog and work your way up. As much as I love reliving those 78 days in my mind continuously I am also sort of sick of talking about it to others as much as I am sure they are sick of me talking about it. I made this travelogue specifically for that trip. I had no idea whether I would be continuing this or not after it because I felt if I could not find a reason to live after that trip I may as well be dead and the travelogue was to me my public testament followed by my personal journal kept. I came back home alive just in time for my last mental breakdown.

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2015 began with a mental breakdown but ended with in many ways in better emotional footing than I had ever been in in my adult life. I went back to school, met new and more healthier people to be around.

2016 and 2017 was all work and then school with no travel as I tried to build a new life for myself. By the end of 2017 and beginning of 2018 when I was stranded in Toronto for a night I realized I needed to get back on the road again and explore.

In 2018 I knew I had a full time job and knowing that I spent the first 2 years of my 30s working I knew I had to make up for it by getting back on the road where I went to Toronto, Montreal, Whitehorse, Fort McMurray and Australia to spend time with my girlfriend. It was overall a great year for me in travel. One for which i feel I grew a fair bit. Toronto seemed like a great place to visit only for me to be disappointed by it but it wasn’t regretful. Montreal however was as advertised but in hindsight I feel like i should have spent my Easter in Montreal instead of Toronto but the only real reason I went to Montreal was because tickets were dirt cheap during Thanksgiving, cheap enough for me to afford to. Whitehorse was a eye opener, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy myself much up there only to go there to say I went up there but I would have no problem going back up there again.

Fort McMurray was also an eye opening experience for me. I had not returned by to my hometown since 2007 or so so it had been 11 years and only a year before a fire nearly burnt it to a crisp. The city though was very recognizable was not entirely the same to me, I felt like a tourist there. No one outside of my former bosses at McMurray TV recognized me and even then it required a second look from them.

Australia was a trip that I feel more glad to have taken the more I think about it these days. Not just to be with my girlfriend but to also experience a whole different continent and culture not that dissimilar to my own but still its own thing. Looking back being in Andamooka was the best part of the trip followed by Haundorf and exploring Adelaide.

My traveling in 2019 continued when I took my girlfriend to Disneyland where we spent our easter long weekend there. I had been to Disneyland so many times as a kid and teen but never as an adult where the sole purpose was not for me to go, this time it was for her but I enjoyed the trip nonetheless, more so than I expected to enjoy it.

The trip was followed by stops to Yellowknife, Kelowna, Toronto (for work) capping off with Europe once again.

Yellowknife I enjoyed but I definitely would not need to go back there ever again. Kelowna was disappointing but I think I came in with high expectations. I was hoping for it to be at least similar to the kind of place I enjoyed when I seen it last in 1992 but it was barely recognizable to me. I spent 2 nights in Toronto for work and really had no time to really get a second opinion of the place outside of trying to see more of the beer the city had but I still got disappointed in that.

Then there was my 2.5 weeks in Europe, it had been 5 years since I was in Europe and I only had a short time to enjoy it.

Ghent wasn’t that great but seeing my friend Katharina made it worth it. Luxembourg City was needlessly stressful but more so because of my naivety, it was a beautiful city that I probably could have done another day in but the city was small enough to where two nights was enough for me to get the gist of the place.

Dusseldorf was the best part of the trip where i got to hang out with my first host and her boyfriend. I was only there for 3 nights but I feel like I should have spent longer there, it was just so much fun there.

Berlin I just didn’t enjoy at all which sucked, many because it was there that I realized I couldn’t travel like I did five years ago. I no longer had the stamina or mental fortitude to be able to get up and go for 12 plus hours a day and move to a new place every three days. My time in Berlin was nearly a write off and where I was reminded that this trip needed more vacation and less work to explore.

Zeipzig and Nuremberg were just that, I did next to nothing in Leipzig but there wasn’t much to do there anyway. The same could have been said about Nuremberg which at first felt like a disappointment too given it’s history but the Altstadt festival changed all that and I spent the entire trip there shit faced on hefeweizen beer.

My 2 nights in Amsterdam were ok but I am not going to lie I was ready to go back home though I knew it would not be long before i had that travel itch.

So that is 2019 and my view of the 2010s. In 2010 I was an emotional wreck burning the candle at both ends teetering on a mental breakdown. in 2019 I am 35 years old, in a career, have someone in my life and in pretty good health considering. What does 2020 hold for me in terms of travel and life.

Edmonton is the first stop but I dont think that place counts anymore. It is possible that I may be going to California again for Easter simply because it is cheap to go there. However that is the thing I can't really afford to go anywhere unless it is cheaper. I did want to go to Fort Mac again for 2020 but I am starting to feel like that may be a waste of a trip. There isn’t much I would want to do in Fort Mac, if I go back I would only really wallow in missing living where I once lived, eat lots of Jomaa’s pizza and just explore the same old places I once took for granted. I would like to spend more time really walking through places. I would have if I would have been able to rent a bike for that trip. I was totally ready to bike through the city like I did so often as a kid but I doubt I could now like I couldn't then.

Australia is looking like it will be not he itinerary as well for 2020 as my girlfriend wants to go back home for awhile and there are still plenty of places to see on that continent. Outside of that I have no idea, I feel as though in 2020 I can’t travel hard and have to balance saving with travel. I also need to figure out what the next stage of my life is at this point this coming year. Its another adventure, 10 years ago I wasn’t looking forward to the new decade, 10 years later to tell you the truth I cannot wait.

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See you in 2020, shazbot nanu nanu.

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entergamingxp · 4 years

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DualShockers’ Favorite Games of 2019 — Mario’s Top 10

December 28, 2019 2:00 PM EST

While it was hard for me to just choose ten games for this list, 2019 still gave us a ton of exceptional games like Death Stranding and more.

As 2019 comes to a close, DualShockers and our staff are reflecting on this year’s batch of games and what were their personal highlights within the last year. Unlike the official Game of the Year 2019 awards for DualShockers, there are little-to-no-rules on our individual Top 10 posts. For instance, any game — not just 2019 releases — can be considered.

Hello DualShockers! This is your resident new video boi writing for the first time for DualShockers for my top ten games of the year. Please take kindly because I don’t normally do this, my mind is best suited for video. With that said, here’s what I had to say year of great games.

Just as a note for my list: the first nine games are in no particular, with the last game as my overall Game of the Year.

Resident Evil 2

This game used to scare the piss out of me as a young boy. To imagine the remake still having the same effect on me nearly 21 years later is an understatement. The hallways I’m used to exploring felt new and fresh along with some great new surprises, making Resident Evil 2 among the best in the series right up there with Resident Evil 4.

This game looks incredible and is an example of this generation’s superb visual quality. The modern control enhancements are a dream and the reworked puzzles are exceptional. Its replayability with the inclusion of the additional side stories and missions makes this game worth every cent.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Resident Evil 2.

Devil May Cry 5

Dante and his merry band of misfits never before clicked with me with the few games of the series I have attempted to play throughout the years. But then high school happened, My Chemical Romance broke up, and my emo phase has never felt the same. However, that all changed in 2019 until this game.

This video game is a rocking emo metal love song with guns, spells, and robot arms. It’s The Fast and the Furious of video games. It has a fun inventive cast all-around with a story that makes no sense, but the action is non-stop fun. This game takes the RE engine and proves you can do so much more with it, and I’m excited for more that this series has to offer. I’m still looking for a good deal to play the rest of this series of games: it’s that damn good.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Devil May Cry 5.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Like DMC5, this strategy series has before never clicked with me. Awakening at the time did nothing for me, and I never picked these characters in Smash. But when you give me a Harry Potter-like school mixed with a Persona-style companion system (not sure if this is in the other games in the series, sorry) and you have my sword, or bow, or javelin.

This game hooked me deep. From falling in love with my chosen house and characters, to realizing that the gameplay is like Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, it was the perfect entry in the series to pull me in.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Respawn going two-for-two for some of the best games I have played in 2019 is quite an achievement, given how different the games are. While Fallen Order certainly takes a lot of inspiration from other games, even mixing multiple genres, it’s the Star Wars layer on top that really holds it all together. The game’s Dark Souls-inspired combat was the only aspect that I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy, because normally it’s not my wheelhouse. But the Soulslike combat of Fallen Order really made me appreciate it, especially when you combine that with the story of rediscovering yourself as a Jedi.

This game’s greatest strength hands down was the story, because it follows through with Cal’s journey through his past, his crew, and what his future is to be in the Star Wars canon. This was one of the highlights of the year, and it’s a game I can’t wait to see a sequel for.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

Control

Remedy has a formula of game design that just speaks directly to my sensibilities. The moment that I saw the first trailer for Control, I knew it was going to be one of my favorites from them. Whether it’s crime noir with Max Payne, science fiction drama with Quantum Break (which is an underrated gem this generation), and Control being a supernatural secret government organization game in the vein of The X-Files and Twin Peaks, oh boy is it speaking to me.

The game just looks beautiful, even in the most mundane areas to the most elaborate twisted puzzle box-like sections of the world. The gameplay is the power fantasy version of their previous games, and that formula still works with this game. This game makes me regret it more for skipping Alan Wake, so I’m happy to correct that mistake soon.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Control.

Katana Zero

There’s always a few indie games that really catch my eye each year, and for my list I really want to show my appreciation for this side-scrolling action platformer. As someone who is not the biggest fan of the gameplay of Hotline Miami, something about the perspective change to side-scrolling “don’t die” gameplay really captured me.

A lot of the heavy lifting that got me through the game were the story elements that were in between each of the levels, something I didn’t care for in the Hotline games. If you’re a fan of The Messenger and other amazing side-scrollers, this is not one to miss, and one I hope to get a sequel because there’s still some story left on the table that they could explore.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Katana Zero.

Apex Legends

Titanfall 2 from Respawn Entertainment really knocked my socks off when it came out, but with its launch coinciding with that of Battlefield 1, I was afraid that would have been the last of that world we would get to see. Thankfully, with a retooling of the genre, Apex Legends brings that action-adventure-style that I loved to the battle royale genre. With the mix of Titanfall gameplay with Overwatch-like heroes, this game kept bringing me back game-after-game long before a battle pass was ever introduced.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Apex Legends.

Gears 5

The fifth entry (technically sixth) in the ongoing Gears saga did something that the fourth one did not succeed in; it made me care about the franchise again. Taking DJ way from the spotlight and focusing on Kait and Del was the smartest move to make Gears unique again.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Gears 5.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

The original Modern Warfare picked up the torch that Halo 2 had in the previous generation and ran with it. With this new iteration, it goes back to its roots as a shooter and still retains the spark it had all those years ago, just now for 2019. Add multi-platform crossplay, and this shooter is a must-own.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

My Favorite Game of the Year: Death Stranding

Death Stranding is my Breath of the Wild for 2019. The story is loosely there, but the gameplay and the world you exist in kept me coming back hour-after-hour, and when I finished the game all I ever did was think about it. At work, in an Uber, while watching TV; all I wanted to do was walk that empty landscape alone and just deliver packages. I have never finished a Kojima game, but Death Stranding was the silly ambitious art project that I couldn’t help but admire and ultimately love. The story is silly. The themes are extremely on the noise. The performances are incredible.

Recently, I called this game the crazy version of The Wizard of Oz. The characters you meet along the way all bring their individual quirks that, to me, make the game special. The world around you is beautiful and sad. The score is beautiful and sometimes, when the Low Roar songs start to play perfectly to fit the mood of the moment, it’s wonderful.

The combat is not great, but to me it never was the focus. The connectivity of the world with strands from other players is as inventive as Journey was years before. I could go on and on about this game, but then there will be no room for the others on this list. This game may not be for everyone, but I dare you to try it for yourself.

Check out DualShockers‘ review for Death Stranding.

Check out the rest of the DualShockers staff Top 10 lists and our official Game of the Year Awards:

December 23: DualShockers Game of the Year Awards 2019 December 25: Lou Contaldi, Editor-in-Chief // Logan Moore, Managing Editor December 26: Tomas Franzese, News Editor // Ryan Meitzler, Features Editor December 27: Mike Long, Community Manager // Scott White, Staff Writer December 28: Chris Compendio, Contributor // Mario Rivera, Video Manager // Kris Cornelisse, Staff Writer December 29: Scott Meaney, Community Director // Allisa James, Senior Staff Writer // Ben Bayliss, Senior Staff Writer December 30: Cameron Hawkins, Staff Writer // David Gill, Senior Staff Writer // Portia Lightfoot, Contributor December 31: Iyane Agossah, Senior Staff Writer // Michael Ruiz, Senior Staff Writer // Rachael Fiddis, Contributor January 1: Ricky Frech, Senior Staff Writer // Tanner Pierce, Staff Writer

December 28, 2019 2:00 PM EST

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2019/12/dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-marios-top-10/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dualshockers-favorite-games-of-2019-marios-top-10

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megamikethomson · 5 years

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Georgia toffolo on dropping herself after i’m a movie star, new relationships and why she’s bffs with boris johnson’s dad

last christmas day, in the early hours of the morning, georgia toffolo was on a four-hour road experience to her mum’s domestic in devon while she became too exhausted to pressure. She pulled into a carrier station, switched off the engine and closed her eyes. “i don't forget wondering: ‘i want to get domestic for christmas,’ but i was so worn-out,” she sighs. The 25-12 months-old joined itv’s this morning, offered at the ntas, landed a magazine column and designed a sixteen-piece line for undies emblem with love lillycredit: mark hayman jumpsuit, £49. Ninety nine from mango — buy now polo neck from primark— purchase now jewelry, £6 from river island — buy now boots, £90 from river island — buy now

“i had a half of-hour nap then arrived domestic for christmas day at 3 within the morning. That’s no longer regular. I must were home the day earlier than however i’d been working,

"then all christmas day i was so distracted and actually no longer nice employer. And that i went lower back to paintings on boxing day.”

winning i’m a movie star… get me out of here! In 2017 catapulted georgia, aka toff, to celeb heights beyond whatever she’d skilled on e4’s made in chelsea. In addition to countless media interviews celebrating her jungle victory, toff, 25, joined itv’s this morning as a reporter, supplied behind the scenes at the ntas, landed a mag column, designed a sixteen-piece line for lingerie emblem with love lilly and made her acting debut in an animated remake of the grinch. Georgia toffolo on losing herself after i'm a superstar, new relationships, and why she's bffs with boris johnson's dadcredit: mark hayman top from warehouse — purchase now skirt, £15 from pass over selfridge — purchase now jewelry from river island — buy now boots from river island — buy now

that’s on top of being signed because the face of favor logo very. Co. Uk and beauty powerhouse dermalogica, turning into an ambassador for amazing british racing, penning her autobiography constantly smiling and launching her very own youtube channel tofftube – in addition to continuing to megastar in mic. By means of remaining december, bodily and emotionally exhausted after grabbing “so many exquisite opportunities”, bubbly toff – who turned into so famous with i’m a superstar! Visitors that 71% voted for her to win – started out fading away.

“i think a touch little bit of my personality become misplaced,” she admits. “i’d be in a room however not be there due to the fact i used to be so worn-out. Ultimate yr i was running all of the time and work changed into over[powering] everything. Thank goodness my buddies and circle of relatives had been so supportive, and in fact pretty forgiving.”

nearly a 12 months on, the toff at our shoot is a one of a kind kettle of fish absolutely. She’s scaled returned paintings commitments and now simplest accepts projects that sense “real”. It is clear toff is still reigning very best as she pointers at a publishing deal and is bursting with ideas for her youtube channelcredit: mark hayman coat from reserved — purchase now sun shades, £7. 99 from reserved — buy now earrings from river island — purchase now

she attempts to hold her weekends paintings-loose, enjoys nights out with her friends again and doesn’t beat herself up over the occasional cover morning.

“ultimate yr if i’d achieved that i’d have concept: ‘oh my god, what’s wrong with you?’ the guilt that i used to be carrying all of the time…” she shakes her head with disbelief at how the balance become once so wrong. And now?

“i’ve honestly realigned the whole thing so that my personal happiness is on a par with my happiness inside my paintings lifestyles,” she says. “i’m toff once more.”

quitting mic last august after four years of sharing each spit and cough approximately her private lifestyles become, she admits, a calculated move to defend her intellectual fitness. 'i am toff again'

“i cast my profession out of giving the whole lot. While i was 18, 19, i didn’t provide a s**t. We signal our contracts and say: ‘we are able to provide you with our entire life.’

but now i don’t recognise whether being public property is conducive to being mentally satisfied. I just need to live happy and healthful in my mind. I’ve come to the conclusion that you have to maintain a bit bit for yourself.”

that “little bit” is her rumoured new courting with millionaire aristocrat george cottrell, aka “posh george”, a former senior advisor to nigel farage and deputy treasurer for ukip who spent 8 months in an american jail for cord fraud after explaining to undercover cops how cash could be laundered. He become released from prison in 2017. Toff and george, 26, reportedly met in march at a social event, however neither have confirmed or denied their relationship, regardless of pics aplenty suggesting they're together. As a teenager stunner toff suffered from horrible acne and become a target for bulliescredit: mark hayman

“i’ve attempted so hard to shield that part of my life. I simply feel as although i don’t want to talk approximately it,” she says, firmly. “i’m simply very satisfied in my private existence and i don’t want that to change.”

perhaps her reluctance to open up is also rooted in an awkwardness over george’s debatable beyond. In comparison to her other high-profile boyfriends, namely mic co-stars james taylor, james middleton and richard dinan, plus chelsy davy’s ex, jeweller charles goode, toff’s state-of-the-art suitor seems a bit much less clean-cut.

“i’ve by no means absolutely desired to talk about it… any time,” she insists. “i’m certainly sorry. I hate speaking about this.” difficulty closed. Her selection to take anything care essential to safeguard her mental health is understandable. Truth tv has confronted unheard of scrutiny this yr following the suicide of a visitor on the jeremy kyle display and the deaths of former love island contestants mike thalassitis and sophie gradon. I cast my career out of giving the whole thing. Georgia toffolo

in might also, the government released an enquiry into reality television’s duty of care to members, which includes assessing the psychological help offered to them by using manufacturing companies. Quickly after she joined mic in 2014, executives referred toff to the show’s psychologist when she found herself at a crossroads – whether to proceed with a law degree on the college of bristol or stay with television tube. She selected the latter and transferred to take a look at politics at the college of westminster, however she feels no uneasiness about her years baring all at the fact display. Even being dumped on small screen television is regarded thru rose-tinted glasses.

“all of us bloody realize how it hurts while you’re dumped or if a person runs off with a girl that you don’t like, and that i wouldn’t alternate it for the world because it’s made me have an appreciation for the u. S. And downs which can be inevitable throughout your 20s,” she laughs.

"high-quality, i did do mine in a genuinely bizarre public way, but i just wouldn’t trade it.” toff is also a lady dominated by means of her heart. It’s why the previous scholar of £30,000-a-12 months blundell’s boarding college in tiverton, devon, ultimately threw within the towel on university. Toff has banked a suggested £1. 8million since leaving the i'm a celebrity jungle in 2017

2 toff has banked a stated £1. 8million considering the fact that leaving the i'm a movie star jungle in 2017credit: getty - contributor

“thank god i did. 8million considering that i’m a superstar! She’s still obsessed with politics, although, and joined the conservative celebration as a youngster, however in recent times now attempts to be “as nonpartisan as possible”. What’s modified? “it’s tough because i’ve been really aligned with the conservatives, but i’m the primary to say that there are so many things i don’t trust,” she explains. “i suppose → the conservative birthday party could be very conventional of their thinking, so i wish they would modernise.

"when you have a look at westminster you suspect of it as faded, male and rancid and i hate that so much. What the ones human beings are talking about goes to have an effect on me and our generation a lot more than the fuddy-duddies in there.

"i might have greater young people in politics with hundreds of really different, out-there perspectives.” georgia is her rumoured to be in a brand new relationship with millionaire aristocrat george cottrell, aka 'posh george'

2 georgia is her rumoured to be in a new dating with millionaire aristocrat george cottrell, aka 'posh george'credit score: bguk

does that no longer make her, as young and lady, the right candidate for becoming an mp? She shakes her head. “i like what i do too much. Why might i alternate that during? Politics is so divisive. I simply want people to engage and have their own viewpoints.”

one mention of brexit and he or she winces. “oh my god. Christ, i don’t recognize,” she says, taking an urgent swig from her bottle of water. Firstly a remainer, she sooner or later switched allegiance and became firmly supportive of england leaving the ecu.

“i need human beings to be assured in our united states once more. I'd have been a remainer but i trust in democracy – 17. Four million human beings voted to leave.”

boris johnson could be chuffed. When she left the jungle, toff became called “boris in a bikini” – it’s a tag she nonetheless consists of round and thinks is “hilarious”. Given her former camp mate and close buddy is boris’ dad stanley johnson, 79, has she had an opportunity to speak about the funny story with the pm himself? Boris' dad stanley johnson is a regular at toff's mythical sunday lunch events

“i haven’t delivered up that word exactly. I’m sure he’s examine it,” she laughs, going coy when asked if she and bojo are pals. I understand boris, yeah. I haven’t visible him for the reason that he’s been prime minister but… yeah.” toff’s now not so coy approximately her bond with stanley. While she got the keys to her new one-bed room basement flat 10 months in the past, stanley turned into on your doorstep inside the hour. He’s additionally a regular at her legendary sunday lunch parties or even seemed in a few episodes of mic, such were toff’s powers of persuasion.

Toff and stanley united once more in channel 4’s superstar hunted in aid of get up to cancer – a reason she is obsessed with because of her eighty two-12 months-vintage grandfather bertie’s ongoing battle. And the duo’s stint on movie star gogglebox in advance this year had the nation in stitches, no longer least the episode when they have been filmed watching a steamy sex scene from ‘80s mystery deadly enchantment. The distinction in my happiness and confidence… i will’t positioned it into phrases. Georgia toffolo

“oh don’t, i died!” roars toff, burying her face in her fingers. “it become so awkward! And that i made them promise they wouldn’t show whatever untoward!

“i was a chunk concerned that there would be a ‘earlier than’ boris become pm and ‘after’ chapter of our friendship, and when we were at the run [for celebrity hunted] stanley stated: ’i assume i’m going to close down my twitter and forestall doing some of these stupid small screen television matters.’

the next week [he was] tweeting, instagramming and taking place the television tube. I notion: ‘thank goodness, you’ve now not changed one bit.’”

toff again to ozultimate yr to film i’m a celeb! Greater camp, however in line with reviews fell out with show host scarlett moffatt after scarlett made her sense “unwelcome and victimised”. Such became the severity of the feud, toff flew home and missed out on crowning jungle king harry redknapp. Triumphing i’m a movie star… get me out of here! In 2017 catapulted georgia to celebrity heightscredit: james gourley/shutterstock

“if i’m absolutely sincere, i didn’t have a completely nice time in australia and i used to be pretty unhappy about that due to the fact i glaringly had such brilliant reminiscences the year earlier than,” she says. “it changed into very tough.”

because of scarlett? “i don’t need to mention, however my enjoy in australia wasn’t very fun,” she says. “it was very sudden due to the fact, via nature, i do get on truely nicely with every person.”

the only child of her assets developer mum nicky, 53, and scrap metallic enterprise proprietor dad gary, fifty four, who split whilst she become a toddler, as a teenager toff suffered from horrible pimples and changed into a goal for bullies, who shattered her self belief. Before getting into the jungle, she turned into so self-conscious about her complexion she siphoned bottles of estée lauder double put on into a large micellar water bottle – her one luxury item. 'very tough'

the night earlier than filming started out, she was knowledgeable camp mates would best be reunited with their gadgets after winning responsibilities over a count of days. Toff informed bosses she wouldn’t be taking element.

“i was like: ‘no, no, no, no.’ i burst into tears and said: ‘sorry, i'm able to’t do it.’ i got my mum to get all my docs’ notes about my pimples for the past 10 years,” she recollects. “[then] they stated: ‘we do believe it’s a medical difficulty, we’re going to can help you placed on your double wear as soon as an afternoon in the morning,’ and i did. Thank god.”

nowadays, she arrives for her interview make-up-unfastened, some thing she says wouldn’t were viable a year in the past, and credit the transformation to a “virtually strong skin care routine”, ingesting lots of water, cutting out dairy and decreasing stress.

“i appearance in the mirror and in reality like what i see. If you’d have informed that to my 14-12 months-old self, i wouldn’t have believed you. I might have idea: ‘this is a lifelong problem you’re going to have – you’re going to be embarrassed, hate your skin and that’s the quit of it.’ she siphoned bottles of estée lauder double put on right into a giant micellar water bottle – her one luxury item, while at the showcredit: rex capabilities

“and but i’ve just accomplished an interview with terrifi mag with out a makeup on! The difference in my happiness and confidence… i'm able to’t placed it into phrases.” as toff teeters closer to 2020 there’s plenty more to smile about. Next saturday she finishes her stint as a roving reporter for amazing british racing at huntingdon iciness ladies’ day, where she may be focusing at the horses and their adventure from the stables to the place to begin.

“it just doesn’t sense like paintings,” she says. “girls’ day at chester has been my favourite. I love the fashion that is going with racing, however you don’t should spend a fortune. Beauty good buy lady bags herself £a hundred of makeup revolution merchandise for simply £30 at b&m

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naked necessity mum transforms conservatory into epic jungle smooth play vicinity for below £500

what a alleviation mum famous amazing tip for cleaning ‘ruined iron’ the usage of 29p paracetamol

aisle be damned visitor wears tiny white dress to wedding and you could ‘almost see her crotch’

pants concept sideflank is the new sideboob, however you cannot put on knickers to tug the appearance off

so inside the morning i went and purchased my whole outfit from a charity keep in chester. I spent £30 on everything, along with my bag!”

she pointers at a publishing deal to write a jilly-cooper-esque novel (“can’t let you know. Maybe!”) and is bursting with ideas for her youtube channel. Upload in a new home, man and outlook, and it’s clean – toff’s nonetheless reigning excellent.

● comply with @greatbritishracing for georgia’s record from huntingdon on saturday. Go to gbraci. Ng/toff

the final…

e-book you read? Sweet sorrow by david nicholls. I really loved it. Field set you binged on? The thick of it. I’ll watch box units on a hangover day. Movie you suspect? Up in the air with george clooney. Time you were drunk? Saturday night. Champagne doesn’t deliver me a hangover, are you able to believe? However it’s so expensive. Whatsapp message? Mum. My ex-headmaster known as her up asking me to retweet something. I imply, what the f**k? I left faculty seven years ago! Time you cried? I cried the complete manner via approximately time. I’m a sucker for a richard curtis movie. Hair: dino pereira the usage of kiehl’s considering the fact that 1851 magic elixir makeup: aimee adams the use of zoeva styling: nana acheampong

#boxing day #https://boxingday.in/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-definition/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-in-london-uk/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-premier-league-fixtures/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-2019/#http://boxingday.in/do-americans-celebrate-boxing-day/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-in-australia/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-soccer-tradition-in-england/#http://boxingday.in/boxing-day-in-uk-and-england/

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robgrayofficial · 5 years

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Happy Saturday Deplorables!This is u/IvaginaryFriend here and I'm back to delver all things spicy and dank from the past week! Before we get started if you happened to miss any past recaps you can check those out here!Now onto the recap!Sunday, December 23rd:🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:The only way to stop drugs, gangs, human trafficking, criminal elements and much else from coming into our Country is with a Wall or Barrier. Drones and all of the rest are wonderful and lots of fun, but it is only a good old fashioned Wall that works!I am pleased to announce that our very talented Deputy Secretary of Defense, Patrick Shanahan, will assume the title of Acting Secretary of Defense starting January 1, 2019. Patrick has a long list of accomplishments while serving as Deputy, & previously Boeing. He will be great!I just had a long and productive call with President @RT_Erdogan of Turkey. We discussed ISIS, our mutual involvement in Syria, & the slow & highly coordinated pullout of U.S. troops from the area. After many years they are coming home. We also discussed heavily expanded Trade.Unthinkable devastation from the tsunami disaster in Indonesia. More than two hundred dead and nearly a thousand injured or unaccounted for. We are praying for recovery and healing. America is with you!We signed two pieces of major legislation this week, Criminal Justice Reform and the Farm Bill. These are two Big Deals, but all the Fake News Media wants to talk about is “the mistake” of bringing our young people back home from the Never Ending Wars. It all began 19 years ago!Senator Bob Corker just stated that, “I’m so priveledged to serve in the Senate for twelve years, and that’s what I told the people of our state that’s what I’d do, serve for two terms.” But that is Not True - wanted to run but poll numbers TANKED when I wouldn’t endorse him..... ... .....Bob Corker was responsible for giving us the horrible Iran Nuclear Deal, which I ended, yet he badmouths me for wanting to bring our young people safely back home. Bob wanted to run and asked for my endorsement. I said NO and the game was over. #MAGA I LOVE TENNESSEE!Thanks @RandPaul “I am very proud of the President. This is exactly what he promised, and I think the people agree with him. We’ve been at war too long and in too many places...spent several trillion dollars on these wars everywhere. He’s different...that’s why he got elected.”“It should not be the job of America to replace regimes around the world. This is what President Trump recognized in Iraq, that it was the biggest foreign policy disaster of the last several decades, and he’s right...The generals still don’t get the mistake.” @RandPaulMitch McConnell just told a group of people, and me, that he has been in the U.S. Senate for 32 years and the last two have been by far the best & most productive of his career. Tax & Regulation Cuts, VA Choice, Farm Bill, Criminal Justice Reform, Judgeships & much more. Great!The most important way to stop gangs, drugs, human trafficking and massive crime is at our Southern Border. We need Border Security, and as EVERYONE knows, you can’t have Border Security without a Wall. The Drones & Technology are just bells and whistles. Safety for America!“The President has been remarkable. I do not doubt that he will thrive in this new environment, and he will be a constant reminder of what populism is.” Thank you to Tammy Bruce and Steve Hilton. Presidential Harassment has been with me from the beginning!President @RT_Erdogan of Turkey has very strongly informed me that he will eradicate whatever is left of ISIS in Syria....and he is a man who can do it plus, Turkey is right “next door.” Our troops are coming home!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Rand Paul is a national treasure!YouTube is hiding the dislikes in this Bernie Sanders videoHow did California turn blue? Reagan offered amnesty in return for border security in 1986. Amnesty happened, and border security did not. Never forget: You CANNOT trust the left to play fairly on these issues!David Hogg Announces His Acceptance at Harvard -- After 12 Colleges Reject Him for His Less than Stellar School RecordSenator Rand Paul's 2018 Festivus Tweetstorm🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Hey ‘Pedes! Celebrated my anniversary!!How LeBron James sees the world...Encouragement from San Diego!Monday, December 24th:🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:Virtually every Democrat we are dealing with today strongly supported a Border Wall or Fence. It was only when I made it an important part of my campaign, because people and drugs were pouring into our Country unchecked, that they turned against it. Desperately needed!To those few Senators who think I don’t like or appreciate being allied with other countries, they are wrong, I DO. What I don’t like, however, is when many of these same countries take advantage of their friendship with the United States, both in Military Protection and Trade... ... ....We are substantially subsidizing the Militaries of many VERY rich countries all over the world, while at the same time these countries take total advantage of the U.S., and our TAXPAYERS, on Trade. General Mattis did not see this as a problem. I DO, and it is being fixed!For all of the sympathizers out there of Brett McGurk remember, he was the Obama appointee who was responsible for loading up airplanes with 1.8 Billion Dollars in CASH & sending it to Iran as part of the horrific Iran Nuclear Deal (now terminated) approved by Little Bob Corker.AMERICA IS RESPECTED AGAIN!The only problem our economy has is the Fed. They don’t have a feel for the Market, they don’t understand necessary Trade Wars or Strong Dollars or even Democrat Shutdowns over Borders. The Fed is like a powerful golfer who can’t score because he has no touch - he can’t putt!I never “lashed out” at the Acting Attorney General of the U.S., a man for whom I have great respect. This is a made up story, one of many, by the Fake News Media!The Wall is different than the 25 Billion Dollars in Border Security. The complete Wall will be built with the Shutdown money plus funds already in hand. The reporting has been inaccurate on the point. The problem is, without the Wall, much of the rest of Dollars are wasted!Saudi Arabia has now agreed to spend the necessary money needed to help rebuild Syria, instead of the United States. See? Isn’t it nice when immensely wealthy countries help rebuild their neighbors rather than a Great Country, the U.S., that is 5000 miles away. Thanks to Saudi A!I am all alone (poor me) in the White House waiting for the Democrats to come back and make a deal on desperately needed Border Security. At some point the Democrats not wanting to make a deal will cost our Country more money than the Border Wall we are all talking about. Crazy!Christmas Eve briefing with my team working on North Korea – Progress being made. Looking forward to my next summit with Chairman Kim!I am in the Oval Office & just gave out a 115 mile long contract for another large section of the Wall in Texas. We are already building and renovating many miles of Wall, some complete. Democrats must end Shutdown and finish funding. Billions of Dollars, & lives, will be saved!(Retweeting FLOTUS) Helping children across the country track #Santa is becoming one of my favorite traditions! @Potus and I enjoyed working with @NORADSanta - #ChristmasEveSIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:President Trump and Melania talking to children who called @NoradSantaWorld's Youngest Leader Closes Mosques, Deports Imams From AustriaWe hate quantum computing now: Trump signs legislation to back quantum computing with $1.2 billion🚨REDACTED BULLSHIT ALERT🚨 - EVERYTHING President Trump has done has only INCREASED my support of him. In fact, I want more tweets, more everything (especially winning)❗️ AND I’M CORE AF‼️ 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 I don’t think Redacted knows what core even means...SADNEW JERSEY: FUCK YOU – 1 Million Gun Owners to Become Felons Overnight – Residents of New Jersey were given a deadline to turn in their gun magazines or become felons overnight, and so far, no one is complying.🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Leftists nowadaysNever forget when Trump helped Kevin find the lobby. Merry Christmas!Santa voted Trump!Hmmmm 🤔My wife whipped up a batch of racist, white supremacist alt-right cookies for Christmas day. DELICIOUSTuesday, December 25th:TODAY'S ACTION:President Trump Participates in a Christmas Day Video Teleconference with Members of the Military🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:Merry Christmas!I hope everyone, even the Fake News Media, is having a great Christmas! Our Country is doing very well. We are securing our Borders, making great new Trade Deals, and bringing our Troops Back Home. We are finally putting America First. MERRY CHRISTMAS! #MAGASIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:President Trump in the Oval Office on Christmas Day, speaking with military service members stationed at remote sites worldwide to thank them for their service to our nationMerry Christmas from the border road. We’re still here, and we still want our Wall!TV Guide Calls Actor Chris Pratt 'Problematic' for Hunting and Raising Lambs on His Farm==I have no clue who he is (other than what the article gave) but if he's a hunter and raises lambs to eat from his own farm that gets him bonus points from me.FITTON: Merry Christmas from Judicial Watch--Thanks for your strong support this year!🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:An oldie but a goodie!yes, I'm that oldGive a man a jingle, he will jingle for a day. - Teach a man to jingle, he will jingle all the way.Thanks to this woman for these unique times we all live. Merry Christmas Mary TrumpIt's been a great Christmas thanks to all of youWednesday, December 26th:TODAY'S ACTION:President Trump Delivers Remarks To Troops🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:.@FLOTUS Melania and I were honored to visit our incredible troops at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq. GOD BLESS THE U.S.A.!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Troops chant "USA! USA! USA!" as President Trump takes the stageDonald and Melania Trump make surprise visit to US troops in IraqPOTUS and FLOTUS in GermanyPresident Trump doubles down on shutdown saying government won't reopen without wall fundingDow Soars 1,000 Points, Biggest Point Gain EverPresident Trump's Full Speech to US Troops in Iraq 1080p🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Seth Rogen BTFO by Stefan MolyneuxTime Traveling Trump..... Brit Hume ... Master Of The ShitPost...Press Secretary Sarah Sanders: Powerful moment - Member of United States Army told the President he came back into the military because of him. And President Trump responded, “And I am here because of you.” I met him after and he gave me the patch from his arm. Incredible.http://bit.ly/2VekQh7 Hill Celebrates Trump's most memorable insults and nicknames of 2018Thursday, December 27th:TODAY'S ACTION:President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Appoint Individual to Key Administration Post🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:Just returned from visiting our troops in Iraq and Germany. One thing is certain, we have incredible people representing our Country - people that know how to win!Have the Democrats finally realized that we desperately need Border Security and a Wall on the Southern Border. Need to stop Drugs, Human Trafficking,Gang Members & Criminals from coming into our Country. Do the Dems realize that most of the people not getting paid are Democrats?The Democrats OBSTRUCTION of the desperately needed Wall, where they almost all recently agreed it should be built, is exceeded only by their OBSTRUCTION of 350 great people wanting & expecting to come into Government after being delayed for more than two years, a U.S. record!The reason the DACA for Wall deal didn’t get done was that a ridiculous court decision from the 9th Circuit allowed DACA to remain, thereby setting up a Supreme Court case. After ruling, Dems dropped deal - and that’s where we are today, Democrat obstruction of the needed Wall.“Border Patrol Agents want the Wall.” Democrat’s say they don’t want the Wall (even though they know it is really needed), and they don’t want ICE. They don’t have much to campaign on, do they? An Open Southern Border and the large scale crime that comes with such stupidity!There is right now a full scale manhunt going on in California for an illegal immigrant accused of shooting and killing a police officer during a traffic stop. Time to get tough on Border Security. Build the Wall!I totally agree!Brad Blakeman: “The American people understand that we have been played by foreign actors who would rather have us fight their battles for them. The President says look, this is your neighborhood, you’ve got to stand up to protect yourselves. Don’t always look to America.”This isn’t about the Wall, everybody knows that a Wall will work perfectly (In Israel the Wall works 99.9%). This is only about the Dems not letting Donald Trump & the Republicans have a win. They may have the 10 Senate votes, but we have the issue, Border Security. 2020!CNN & others within the Fake News Universe were going wild about my signing MAGA hats for our military in Iraq and Germany. If these brave young people ask me to sign their hat, I will sign. Can you imagine my saying NO? We brought or gave NO hats as the Fake News first reported!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Tens of thousands of /r/politics NPCs are rooting for the American economy to collapse.I believe that Melania is first FLOTUS to visit a combat zone since 1969. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.UPDATE: DOJ Colluding with Clinton Email Scandal Witnesses!President Trump, first lady back in Washington after surprise visit to US troops in IraqNot the Onion. This is actually on CNN right now. WTF?!CNN slammed for trashing Trump’s visit to troops, criticizing soldiers for bringing MAGA hats🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:Obama NEVER Missed Seeing The Troops On Christmas Day!RIP to Richard Overton, America’s Oldest Veteran and most badass citizen 🇺🇸Obama NEVER Missed Seeing The Troops On Christmas Day!This is AmericaLiberal news says soldiers were "forced" to be polite for Trump's visit. Were they "forced" to get selfies, too?Friday, December 28th:🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with. Hard to believe there was a Congress & President who would approve! ... ....The United States looses soooo much money on Trade with Mexico under NAFTA, over 75 Billion Dollars a year (not including Drug Money which would be many times that amount), that I would consider closing the Southern Border a “profit making operation.” We build a Wall or..... ... .....close the Southern Border. Bring our car industry back into the United States where it belongs. Go back to pre-NAFTA, before so many of our companies and jobs were so foolishly sent to Mexico. Either we build (finish) the Wall or we close the Border...... ... .....Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are doing nothing for the United States but taking our money. Word is that a new Caravan is forming in Honduras and they are doing nothing about it. We will be cutting off all aid to these 3 countries - taking advantage of U.S. for years!Thank you to Sean Parnell for the nice comments on @foxandfriends about the troops wonderful reaction to Melania and I in Iraq and Germany. Great things are happening!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:Army pilot: Media sank to a ‘new low’ by trashing Trump’s visit to US troops in war-zone IraqNPC has a meltdown in a vape shop. THIS is how you handle radical leftists.Trump was RIGHT AGAIN! Bombshell! WaPo's Khashoggi Was a Propagandist for Terror-Tied Nation Trying to Change US Policy, Major Scandal for WaPoRolling Stone article about Snoop Dogg and his posse violently gang raping Jimmy Kimmel's makeup artist backstage. Snoop and his good friend Jimmy both paid her to keep it quiet. Libs don't care. #BelieveWomen #MeToo2018 YEAR END WRAP UP FOR FAKE HATE CRIMES, HATE HOAXES AND FAKE RAPES!🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:He knows who's on his team/new is being brigaded hard. Do your part.HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA!!!Hey shills, CNN doxxed multiple people for sharing this harmlesss gif on social media. That's who's side you are on and history will remember you for it!As the Book of Kek commands us, "When thou dost see a gray arrow, thou shalt make it orange. For this, I shall chuck blessings upon thee like a side of beef."Saturday, December 29th:🔥🔥TRUMP TWEETS🔥🔥:The Mueller Angry Democrats recently deleted approximately 19,000 Text messages between FBI Agent Lisa Page and her lover, Agent Peter S. These Texts were asked for and INVALUABLE to the truth of the Witch Hunt Hoax. This is a total Obstruction of Justice. All Texts Demanded!I am in the White House waiting for the Democrats to come on over and make a deal on Border Security. From what I hear, they are spending so much time on Presidential Harassment that they have little time left for things like stopping crime and our military!Just had a long and very good call with President Xi of China. Deal is moving along very well. If made, it will be very comprehensive, covering all subjects, areas and points of dispute. Big progress being made!SIGNIFICANT TWEETS AND NEWS:This is Reggie, Officer Singh’s brother. Lurking shills, before downvoting him, take a good hard look at him. If Ronil’s killer were deported on his prior DUI arrests, he would be here today. Stay strong, Reggie. We are with you and every Angel Family who has suffered due to this border madness.CNN spent the entire year supporting, defending & promoting illegal immigrants. Okay. CNN ended the year by attacking United States military personnel in Iraq. Okay. The truth is clear. CNN is a pro-war, anti-America news network.Swedish state broadcaster SVT ran an article claiming that the gruesome ISIS-inspired murder of two Scandinavian girls in Morocco "had nothing to do with Islam," before warning Swedes that sharing a graphic beheading video of the incident could result in up to four years of imprisonment.BREAKING!!! Angela Merkel: Nation States Must "Give Up Sovereignty" To New World Order!!!The anti trump vape employee has been fired. Go easy on the negative reviews now, this was one idiots actions not the store owners🐸 TOP SPICE OF THE DAY 🐸:The Reeeeee Heard 'Round The World....You’re welcome.MAGA!Safe to say Melania is the most beautiful FIRST LADY!WEEEW LAD!!Of course, no recap is complete without some tunes to get you jamming on this beautiful Saturday:Why iii love the moonReconcileLowlifeFadedPussy MineOrange ShirtMAGA ON PATRIOTS! #robgray

#robgray

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samuelfields · 6 years

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Financial Samurai Passive Income Portfolio Update 2018

Ever since landing my first job post college in 1999, I’ve been determined to build enough passive income in order to not have a job. A future that included getting into work by 5:30am and leaving after 7:30pm each day for decades seemed too brutal to endure.

In 2010 I decided that if I could earn about $80,000 in passive income, I would leave my job permanently and work on Financial Samurai while traveling instead. So I left work in 2012. Then once Financial Samurai started growing, I decided to shoot for $200,000 in passive income with the funny money I was earning online.

With $200,000 a year in passive income, I would have enough income to provide for a family of up to four in San Francisco or Honolulu given that my housing costs in either city would be low due to low purchase prices. Now that we have a son, I’m happy to say that $200,000 indeed does seem enough, especially if you don’t have to save for retirement.

Almost Took A Big Passive Income Hit

In 2017, I sold my San Francisco rental home which had been generating roughly $60,000 a year in cash flow after expenses, but before taxes. Selling the house brought my passive income down to roughly $150,000 a year, which was a significant 28% step backwards.

Within six months of selling, however, I had reinvested the proceeds from the home sale and brought total passive income for 2018 back up to an estimated $203,724. Without a clear plan for reinvesting the proceeds, I’m not sure I would have sold the house since I’m bullish on the SF housing market long term. However, because I did have a plan and the challenges of raising a newborn and dealing with rowdy tenants left me feeling a bit stretched, I decided to simplify and sell.

Interest Income ($7,620/year, 3.7% of total)

I’ve got a $185,000 CD generating 3% interest coming due this summer. Although the return is low, it’s guaranteed. The CD gave me the confidence to investment more aggressively in risk over the years. My online interest income has come down since I aggressively deployed some capital at the beginning of the year and again during the February market correction. You’ll see these figures in my quarterly investment income update.

Don’t underestimate the value of your cash and risk-free income, especially during times of uncertainty. The last thing you want to do is be a forced seller in a downturn because panic will be everywhere. Cash allows you to take advantage of corrections, pay for unexpected expenses, and worry less about your risk assets.

Related: How Much Savings Should I Have Accumulated By Age

Stocks & Bonds Income ($103,344/year, 50.7% of total)

In 2017, I ended up deploying roughly $611,000 into stocks and $604,327 into municipal bonds. The stock allocation should boost dividend income by ~$12,500 a year and the municipal bond portion should boost income by ~$18,000 a year after tax ($26,000 pre-tax). Therefore, total passive income gets a ~$38,500 lift, which recovers over half of my $60,000 loss from selling the house.

A good portion of my stock allocation is in growth stocks and structured notes that pay no dividends. The dividend income that comes from stocks is primarily from S&P 500 index ETFs. Although this is a passive income report, as I’m still relatively young, I’m more interested in building a large financial nut through principal appreciation rather than through dividend investing. As an entrepreneur, I can’t help but have a growth mindset.

With interest rates reaching two-year highs, I will be allocating more cash flow to bonds for the remainder of the year, thereby boosting passive income. In fact, I will probably reinvest 70% of my $185,000, 3% CD into municipal bonds that now pay 4.5%-5% gross yields.

Real Estate Income ($43,080/year, 21.1% of total)

I’ve now only got a SF rental condo and a Lake Tahoe vacation rental in my real estate rental portfolio. Although I miss my old house, I certainly don’t miss paying $23,000 a year in property taxes, another mortgage, dealing with leaks and managing terrible tenants. I drove by the other day and couldn’t believe how much noisier and busier the street was than where I currently live. I wouldn’t be comfortable raising my son there.

In January 2018, I missed my chance of raising the rent on my new incoming tenants because it didn’t come to mind until very late in the interview process. I didn’t write about my previous tenant’s sudden decision to move out in December 2017 after 1.5 years because they provided a relatively seamless transition by introducing their long time friends to replace them. I didn’t miss a month of rent and didn’t have to do any marketing so I felt I’d just keep the rent the same.

After these tenants move out, I’m thinking of just keeping the rental empty with furniture. It sounds stupid to give up $4,200/month, but I really hate dealing with the HOA, move-in/move-out rules, and maintenance issues. Given the condo doesn’t have a mortgage and I have to pay taxes on some of the rental income, I’m not giving up that much. The condo can be a place for my sister, parents, or in-laws to crash when they want to stay in SF for longer than a week or two.

The Lake Tahoe property continues to be 100% managed by a property management company. It feels amazing not to have to do anything. I can’t wait to bring up my boy this coming winter to play in the snow! I could go up this winter, but I want him to be able to walk and run comfortably before he goes. I’ve been dreaming of this moment for over 10 years now. The income from the property is highly dependent on how much it snows. Summer income is always very strong.

Alternative Income ($49,680, 24.4% of total)

Book sales ($36,000/year): Sales of How To Engineer Your Layoff continue to be steady. I don’t see book sales really taking off unless I start pitching the book hard on TV or radio or speaking at conferences or writing a lot of guest posts about the subject. I just have no interest promoting it heavily, probably because I don’t like selling anything to anybody. The only way book sales will go up drastically without me doing anything is if the economy starts weakening. People often wait until the very end to do something about a bad situation. Only the smart ones will read the book before they feel they need to make a change.

I did get this pretty cool e-mail at the beginning of the year from one of my newsletter readers:

Hey Sam, just wanna say thank you for “How To Engineer Your Layoff.”

I wasn’t one of those amazing cases where I negotiated a $60,000 settlement, BUT thanks to your book, I…

…figured out how much my severance package would total

…waited until they offered me to relocate

…turned it down, knowing very well what my severance package was worth

The grand total was $13,000, which is nothing compared to some of your case studies, but listen what happened next. I took $9k of that and put it into Bitcoin when it was $3,000. Bitcoin itself has now 5x’d, while my portfolio has done 10x. That $9k has effectively become $90k of unrealized gains, which will keep growing for a long time…

The $13k is not much, but your book gave me the confidence and tools to prepare for the layoff. I am eternally grateful for your book.

What’s crazy is that my book income is more than my SF rental condo income. Yet, I didn’t have to come up with $1,200,000 of capital (minimum cost to buy my condo) to create my book. All I needed to create my book was energy, effort, and creativity. I truly believe developing your own online product is one of the best ways to make money.

Venture Debt ($12,240/year): The first venture debt fund has returned almost all my initial capital so I decided to invest $200,000 in the second fund. I took a risk investing $150,000 in my friend’s first fund, so I’m hoping there’s less risk in the second fund given he has four more years of experience on top of his 12+ years experience running a venture debt portfolio for another company.

The whole idea of investing in venture debt is trying to get a mid-to-high teens annual return with less risk than private equity. Venture debt lends money to well-funded private companies with a 1-3 year terms. They go in and out, collect their interest and sometimes gets a warrant. They’re higher on the capital structure as well.

P2P Lending ($1,440/year): I’ve lost interest in P2P lending since returns started coming down. You would think that returns would start going up with a rise in interest rates, but I’m not really seeing this yet. Prosper missed its window for IPO in 2015-16, and LendingClub lowered its growth estimates for this year. I won’t be putting in new capital until I see returns go back to the 10% range versus 6%-7% for top rated loans. I hate it when people default on their debt obligations, which is why I haven’t invested large sums of money in P2P.

Real Estate Crowdfunding ($9,600/year)): Once I sold my SF rental, it was natural to reinvest some of the proceeds into real estate crowdfunding to keep sector exposure. I didn’t invest a lot in some of my favorite REITs like OHI and O because I felt a rising interest rate environment would be a stronger headwind for REITs. But if I could be more surgical with my real estate investments by identifying specific investments in stronger employment growth markets, I thought I could do better.

In the summer of 2017, I first reinvested $250,000 into a RealtyShares Domestic Equity Fund. I already had $250,000 invested with them and I liked the projects they were choosing. After spending the rest of the year making low ball offers on SF real estate and losing, I invested another $300,000 in the fund in December 2017. Given 100% of my real estate crowdfunding are equity investments, there is no set monthly dividend. Each of the 12 investments in the fund have different timetables and objectives. I’m simply estimating that I’ll earn $9,600 for the year.

$800K invested in an equity fund and $10K in a PA commercial property equity deal.

If the RealtyShares fund achieves its objective return of 15% a year, I could earn a compounded $70,000 – $120,000 a year, which would really boost my passive income returns. However, I don’t expect them or any fund to achieve their target. Instead, I’m hoping for a solid 8% a year return instead.

Feels Good To Simplify In 2018

It was easier recouping the lost $60,000 in rental income than I expected. For so long, my primary mindset for passive income was rental income. Having $815,000 less debt, but still generating roughly the same amount of passive income with a much larger cash balance feels great. Meanwhile, having less debt during the 10%+ February 2018 stock market correction and all the recent natural disasters also made me feel more at ease. Finally, my passive income portfolio got even more passive, which is good to a newly minted father.

I’m no longer interested in generating much more passive income because of my marginal tax rate, even though it has come down due to tax reform. Hopefully when I do my 2018 taxes in 2019, there will indeed be a cut in small business pass through income as promised, but who knows until then.

In a sense, I’ve been trying to throttle back my income or at least shift the income to the future through equity investments when my energy and business income fades. So far they hasn’t, but it’s always good to plan for the future.

If you want financial freedom, you must get your passive income squared away. Once you’ve done so, you’ll be able to comfortably do anything you want.

Related: Ranking The Best Passive Income Investments

Readers, how is your passive income portfolio coming along? With the rise in interest rates, are you finding higher income opportunities? Note: the top picture in this post was taken in November 2011 at the top of Santorini. It was then that I finalized my plan to negotiate a severance and leave work for good.

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zillowcondo · 7 years

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Four Seasons Nevis Reviewed

I’m fresh off a fabulous trip to the Four Seasons Nevis. Until recently not only did I not know how to pronounce Nevis (by the way it’s Nee-Vis) but I had no idea where it was even located. Geography was never my subject–guess they didn’t teach a class on luxe travel destinations at my high school. As soon as I learned about the exotic island of Nevis, where luxury abounds and monkeys nearly outnumber the residents, I knew I needed to visit.

I’m not ashamed to admit that when I find out that there is a Four Seasons in a city, I immediately assume that the destination is worthy of a visit. The Four Seasons chooses only the most amazing places to create FS outposts (with maybe a few exceptions that are big business cities–sorry Baltimore). Case and point? The Four Seasons Carmelo! I never would have found this charming town had it not been for my faith in the Four Seasons’ location scouting.

Nevis is really a stunning island and the islanders are so charming and warm I never wanted to leave… I truly enjoyed my stay at this classic Caribbean hotel.

Arrival

There are many ways to reach the Four Seasons Nevis. Most involve a flight into St. Kitts Airport (SKB) and then a boat ride over to Nevis. There are also some small flights to Nevis like the non-stop flight from Puerto Rico with Tradewind Aviation straight into Nevis’ Vance W. Armory International Airport. Saves you a boat ride and it’s a luxury plane! Next time I’ll have to try this. But for this trip, I was a little worried because sometimes small planes freak me out–St. Barth! So I opted for the non-stop flight from JFK to SKB (there are a couple a week).

Arriving via Boat to FS Nevis

Immediately after customs we were greeted by a Four Seasons employee who directs you to someone who will take your luggage and send you to a van. You then take about a 10-minute drive to the boat marina where you reach the Four Seasons’ private boat. The crew passes out (complimentary) rum punches, Carib beers, waters or fruit punch. We had to wait for about 20 minutes to leave for a few guests but no one was complaining (my guess is that the free drinks had something to do with that!) We then set sail for about 40 minutes to the Four Seasons Nevis. The boat ride itself is lovely, we happen to experience the sunset during ours–added bonus! Sunset cruise? Yes please! I loved this ride and found it very exciting to be headed to such a remote locale.

Check In

Upon arrival, you’re greeted at the the boat pier by friendly staffers who take you directly to your room. You don’t have to deal with your bags, they are taken directly to your room (ours took about 15 minutes—very quick!). On our way to our room we were given a mini-property tour, our guide just pointed out a few things as well as the general direction that the lobby, spa, fitness center and adults-only pool were in. We then signed a few forms in our room and he was on his way.

Welcome Amenity? I would say that they one-upped a welcome cocktail with the complimentary open bar on the boat ride over! Cheers to that!

The Grounds

The grounds are stunning and they are also sprawling. The property is comprised of a total of 350 acres. The property features West Indian plantation-style decor and classic Caribbean architecture. Its covered in lush tropical greenery and tropical flowers. And as of December 20, 2013, the property now has its own organic herb garden (hello house-made herb cocktails)! There are a total of 179 rooms and 17 suites. Rooms are just steps away from Pinney’s beach. There are also 40 private residence villas that are available for rental as well (if you’re part of the lucky one percenters!). Four Seasons Nevis is also home to 5 pools,10 tennis courts, and an 18-hole golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones II. There is also a 1500 sq. ft. fitness center and one of the most gorgeous spas I’ve ever been to–more on that later.

Fitness Center? If you want to be guilt-free you can work off some of the fabulous calories you ingest in the fitness center. There are plenty of machines and the equipment is all very modern. The room is light, airy and cool–no mildewy smells or anything unpleasant here.

Adults Only Pool? Yes. It was huge too with plenty of seating options, including large round couches for snuggling couples.

The Beach!

The Beach? The Four Seasons Nevis is located on Pinney’s beach, which is on the island’s sheltered west coast (the east coast’s beach is much choppier). There aren’t large waves and the water is pretty warm but it still takes a second to wade in if you’re like me who is always cold. There are plenty of chairs and several beach attendants who constantly walk around offering up cold towels, cold water and taking orders for food and drink. I highly recommend renting a private beach cabana. These cabanas are stocked with mini-fridges, four lounge chairs, a flat-screen TV, a couch and small dining table, board games and an iPod dock. The cabanas are surrounded by shrubs, which give you plenty of privacy from your neighbors. There was also highly attentive service–whenever you wanted to order something you just had to raise a flag and cocktails and a full menu of delicious options were brought to you quickly.

The Lobby

The open-air lobby is beautiful and sophisticated. Since I was here around the holidays I had the pleasure to experience a Caribbean-style Christmas tree. I absolutely love Christmas and this tree was so special, decorated with warm colors, crystals and starfish! Its high-ceiling and comfy furniture give it a plantation feel. My favorite seating was at the back, which overlooks the water, the terrace and lush gardens. One of my favorite experiences during my stay was checking out the live piano player and sipping champagne at sunset.

Reception

Lobby seating around the Xmas Tree!

More Lobby Seating with Property Views

The Rooms

Rooms are set in two-story buildings that feel like cottages. This allows the property to retain a laid-back and undeveloped feel, which is what you want at a resort in the Caribbean–no high rises obviously.

I was in room 228, which is a standard guest room with an ocean view. We had a lovely view of the water–especially around sunset! Rooms in the 200s have this benefit, however, are a bit further away from the adults-only reflection pool. Personally though, I didn’t mind the walk and you can always call for a golf-cart if you prefer.

I love nothing more than waking up, opening my window and being able to see and hear the water. To me this is the ultimate luxury! As much as I wanted to invite the Caribbean breeze in all the time, because rooms all have spacious balconies and sliding doors, there are not screens–so open at your own risk because there are mosquitos (and they happen to adore me). I should also add that I had a chance to check out the rooms with a view of Nevis Peak (these are the Mountain View class of rooms) and thought it was stunning as well. If you’re looking to save a little money, Mountain View rooms are slightly less money. Plus, it may provide a refreshing change if you’re spending your days on the beach to have a view of this unique volcano. Really, you can’t lose though. That said, I would opt for a second floor room since these have more unobstructed views of whatever it is you’re hoping to see. (And also the New Yorker in me is always a little freaked out by ground level rooms with balconies–but I am paranoid so there you go).

Room decor is understated, neutral and distinctly Caribbean (with a little Ralph Lauren flair). It’s definitely not overdone but there were still plenty of charming details. I loved the intricately carved four-poster wooden bed and pops of color like the yellow couch and the throw pillows on the bed. Speaking of the beds, even though this Four Seasons has not yet been updated with the new Four Seasons mattress it was insanely comfortable. No adjusting to a different bed here, the second I climbed in I was fast asleep.

I will say that although the room was beautiful I wasn’t a huge fan of its ivory tiled floor, which I felt dated the room a bit. I also would have enjoyed a more up to date coffee machine–but what can I say–even the best of us need some work done now and again, dahhhhling? That’s what botox is for (or so I hear)!

Closet/Dresser Details? There were actually two huge closets and a large dresser with plenty of storage. There were proper hangers in the closet–not the thief-proof ones. I suspect the clientele at the Four Seasons have better things to do than steal hangers.

Charging Situation? This day and age we all need easy access to charge up our electronics. I loved that by the couch there was a little charging station for easy access and extra plugs (even a USB port).

Turn-Down Service: Yes–maids come automatically and restocked anything you might need. They also made sure to lock the sliding door for your safety.

Bottled Water? Yes complimentary at turn down and you can always call and order more.

Coffee maker? Hamilton Beach. While it was a nice model, these days at a Four Seasons I think that I would expect an espresso machine of some sort or at the very least, a Keurig.

Reading Material in the Room? They had a copy of Four Seasons Magazine, Town and Country and one other I can’t quite remember. These were laid out nicely by the couch. I loved this and don’t think that hotels do this enough.

White Glove Inspection: The white linens were perfectly pristine–I even pulled back the duvet cover a little to see the state of what was going on beneath the surface. I am happy to report that even with close inspection I have nothing to report!

The Bathroom

The bathroom featured his and her sinks and was well-lit. To the left was a large soaking tub and a standalone shower. The shower had a standard head (not rain shower) and had strong pressure. I also did not experience any water temperature issues. The toilet was in a separte, small water-closet, which I appreciate for added privacy. Also helps move things along in the morning–if your man likes to take his time in there, you can be doing your makeup.

Famous Mirror Pic of TP!

Makeup Mirror? Yes! Mounted at eye-level and it lit up!

Hairdryer? Small, travel-sized hairdryer (not attached to the wall though). This was a little disappointing to me. I expected more from a Four Seasons.

Designer Toiletries? The bathroom featured L’Occitane products (as many Four Seasons do). These aren’t my favorites but that’s just because the shampoo never seems to do much for my long locks.

Towel quality? Amazing, really thick and absorbent. And plenty of ‘em.

Robes? Yes, they were thick terry with the Four Seasons logo. There were also fluffy white slippers! My favorite!

Amenities? Shower cap, individually wrapped Q-tips and cotton pads. There was also after-sun lotion, which I thought was a nice and much needed amenity!

View from Room 228

The Food & Drink

The restaurants at Four Seasons Nevis are definitely some of the finest on the island. They all use locally sourced ingredients like eggplant, papaya, lemongrass, coconut, mangos and coconut.

The resort’s fine dining restaurant is Coral Grill and it serves high quality cuisine with top notch ingredients from all over the world. While the steaks and seafoods here were phenomenal, the Macaroni and cheese here is not to be missed. You can customize your dish by choosing protein and cheese on the spot. The desserts here were also my favorite on the property. The souffles and the cheesecake lollipops were delectable.

Right around the corner is Neve, where the fabulous breakfast buffet is served. Fresh fruit, eggs, pastries, pancakes, waffles, you name it. The highlights here for me were the freshly made nut butters (cashew and almond) and the variety of locally-made hot sauces (my fave was the mango pepper!) that I generously poured all over everything. While it’s tempting to order breakfast in bed, you need to experience this buffet at least once during your stay.

Cabana is the resort’s outdoor and laid-back restaurant. The signature dish here is the spiny lobster risotto. While it was delicious, I must say it was outshined by Mango and Coral Grill.

And speaking of Mango–wow! I absolutely loved it here. Dinner here is exactly the experience you’re looking to have at a luxe Caribbean resort. The building itself is lovely and the food is incredible. Mango is famous for its BBQ ribs. I didn’t think I liked ribs actually until I ate here–turns out, I just hadn’t tried the perfect ribs. Absolutely delicious. A must-have while on the island! I will dream of these until I return!

Mango Bar features over 100 Rums!

Tableside Service at Mango

During the day you can order food from the pools or eat lunch at Cabana restaurant. The food here was spot on no matter what we tried. The chopped salad was delicious and plentiful. The tuna tacos were amazing. But probably our favorite thing was the Mediterranean pizza, which they fired up in their own brick-oven. Thin crust and just the right amount of cheese, sauce and veggies. We actually ate this twice during our stay.

Med Pizza!

Classy Hotel Bar? Few bars anywhere compare to how much I loved the Library bar here. They seamlessly integrated a rich environment with a Caribbean feel!

My Kind of Library!

Specialty Cocktails? The Ginger Angostura was one of my favorites and my husband loved the Mango mojito–and trust us we really tried many of the specialties. My other favorite though was the dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives at Coral Restaurant. Also a local favorite is the Ting with a Sting!

The Spa

The Spa at the Four Seasons Nevis is not only one of the best I’ve been to in the Caribbean, but probably even anywhere in the world. Its grounds are simply stunning and I’ll let the photos do the heavy lifting here since words just would never be enough to capture its beauty. The service is super. Not only are the staff extremely professional but they are friendly and very knowledgeable about the treatments and the spa’s philosophy. In addition to the usual treatments like massages, body treatments, salon services and facials, the spa offers Ayurvedic treatments. I also highly recommend getting a Rum and Tonic body treatment! It is absolutely heavenly–and unique to the resort!

Spa Hot Tub

View of Nevis Peak from Spa Reflection Pool

Ahhhh!

Cold Plunge Pool

Treatment Cabanas at the Spa

The Little Things

Did I feel truly welcome by the staff? Staff made a huge effort to learn guests names and remember them. If I had a server in a restaurant and saw them a few days later on the property they always knew exactly who I was and also remembered everything we told them and made sure to ask about it. I always find this incredible since I have the worst memory in the world.

Wi-Fi? Yes, throughout the property. However, it was a bit spotty in my room because they were having internet issues. Internet is not complimentary, which can be a pro or a con. On one hand you won’t use it the entire time, but if you need to, then it can be a little pricey. However, there are two computers in the main lobby–one in the Library bar and one in the center of the lobby, available for guests to print boarding passes.

Mini-Bar? It’s a Four Seasons so of course it’s stocked with fancy (and pricey) snacks and liquors. They had special tea bags you could purchase for your eyes to depuff. I never got the chance to try them but I thought they were super cool!

Cocktail Quality? I have nothing but positive things to say about every cocktail I experienced while at the property. Especially at Mango where they have 100 different kinds of rum! I recommend trying a Ting with a Sting, Angostura Ginger or the uber impressively muddled Mango Mojito.

Board Games at Sunset

Any other quirky things? There is free laundry available for guest use. Although I never had a chance to try it out it’s a great feature, especially for families (or New Yorkers who don’t have access to their own washing machines!). They also include laundry detergent free of charge.

Flowers: I loved the tropical flowers flourishing around the property.

Special Treats: I am sad to report that there were no special treats at turndown service. However, in the typical Four Seasons style, special treats were passed around at the pool and down by the beach, cold towels, Evian spritzes, frozen fruit kebabs and my personal favorite–lemongrass water!

Good For Families: Absolutely! The hotel is large enough for families and couples alike to enjoy. There is also a kids’ club, playground and even a small game room.

Where do Most Guests Hail From? Most guests are North Americans, many families but also lots of honeymooners. Like I said earlier, the property is so large that there is definitely room for everyone to enjoy the property as they wish. We never experienced any annoying children during our stay

Service Fee? Yes, check your bill it usually includes a charge for service–however, be sure to ask how much of that goes to the employee. I asked at the spa and only a small percentage of it went to the employee herself. So if you have stellar service you still may want to leave an additional amount.

Room for Improvement

Although non-motorized watersports are complimentary, other recreational activities will cost you a pretty penny (for example, you have to rent tennis courts if you’re not playing with a pro or having a lesson).

Rooms should stock bugspray.

The floors in the standard rooms need to be updated. What can I say, I know I’m nitpicking here but that’s what I’m here for.

The Wow Factor(s):

Dive and Dine!

My most memorable experience was the day we had a private beach cabana. This same day we participated in the hotel’s Dive and Dine program. You can actually scuba dive with the hotel’s specialist and chef and then enjoy a beachside BBQ with the lobsters that you caught yourself! If that’s not the catch of the day, I don’t know what is!

Chef Kai hard at Work. Not a bad office though.

View from our Beach Cabana

Our Spoils from Dive and Dine

Beach Cabana Day!

Interior of Beach Cabana

Also, while standard rooms are nice, the luxury suite is one of the most gorgeous hotel rooms I have ever laid eyes on! Seriously, I was snapping photos for a home I plan to one day decorate–and I plan to try and emulate this exact room–especially the closet! If you’ve got money to spend, this would be well worth it. Stunning!

Luxury Suite

I also think that an effort to connect with the local wildlife was very unique. We took a golf-cart one afternoon (you can also go in the early AM) and watched the monkeys playing out on the golf course. You can also take garden tours with the hotel’s botanists or take a moonlit walk to go check out the sea turtles.

The Bottom Line: Would I recommend it? Am I coming Back?

The Four Seasons Nevis laid-back, sleepy atmosphere suits its Caribbean locale perfectly. It’s entirely unstuffy and unpretentious so all guests feel comfortable at all times. I think that the Four Seasons Nevis’ ambience, decor and dining options do a nice job capturing the essence of the island. The staff at Four Seasons Nevis makes the guests feel extremely special and like they have had an authentic island experience.

It’s also worth noting that I had a chance to see rooms at both Golden Rock Plantation (though I did not see the honeymoon suite) and Montpelier, I will tell you that the rooms at the Four Seasons blew them out of the water. Although both of those properties are gorgeous and definitely worth visiting for a meal, the rooms at the Four Seasons are far, FAR more luxe and truly the only place I would have been happy resting my luxury-obsessed self.

I would definitely come back and many of their guests agree. There was more than one occasion when I saw guests arriving and staffers literally running towards them with excitement. The reunion was equally as joyful for the guests. The people and the West Indian hospitality at the Four Seasons Nevis are truly what makes it so memorable.

Basically, this is an amazing escape for luxe-loving couples (and even families) off the beaten path of the usual Caribbean destinations. I loved it! Travelingpanties approved!

Stunning Sunset

Four Seasons Nevis Information

Address: The Four Seasons Resort Nevis, West Indies, P.O. Box 565, Pinney’s Beach, Charlestown, Nevis

Phone:1-869-469-1111

Cost: Rooms start at $345 during off-season and about $1200 during high season.

*Disclaimer* As is common in the travel industry, writers are provided with complimentary services for review purposes. Although my visit was part of a press trip–meaning that I did not pay, all opinions herein are my own. You can’t buy the love here, people! Just ask my husband!

Daydreaming of Returning to Nevis Already

Photos Credit: Katie Goldstein

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atypical60 · 7 years

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BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND. MANY HAVE WONDERED. MANY HAVE ASKED.

HERE YOU GO!

A couple of readers are curious as to how Bonaparte and I came to be a couple and I thought it would make for a fun post so here goes! I hope you enjoy….

Joséphine de Beauharnais and Napoleon Bonaparte

Seriously Josephine. Get outta my way. The Frenchman is mine!

The story of little loud-mouthed girl from New York and baguette loving little French Parisian boy….

My divorce wreaked some havoc—especially havoc in the form of a horrific financial downfall. My oldest son was away in Austin at University of Texas. My middle son, my daughter and I were now housed in a small apartment. I may have lost our home, but at least there was a roof overhead.

It wasn’t easy. The water and electricity were constantly being shut off—so much so that the staff at Trenton Water Authority knew me by my first name. But—they were always pleasant and I always managed to scrape up enough cash to have the water put back on. Ditto the electricity.

I’ll skip some other bad stuff that I don’t want to get into. But—after a while, it was time to get back on the social train. I was signed up for a “trial” of 30 days on “Match.com”. I had two meetings over coffee, but just figured I was better off alone. Anyway, a couple of days before my “trial” ended, I figured I would peruse through the pickin’s.

Yes. We met on Match.com!

I stopped at a picture of a man in a light blue crew-neck sweater. I could tell it was wool and not polyester—that grabbed my shallow attention. Then I noticed this gentleman’s eyes were as blue as the color of the sweater. This gentleman appeared to be very distinguished. Something I was not. In fact I was sitting at the computer in granny pants and an old, holey T-Shirt.

I then went on to read his profile. He liked art (check); New York City (check, check, check); fine food (sorta check—I was cooking for teens but I love me a great and fancy meal!) and tennis (uncheck). OK –so three out of four wasn’t bad.

I love art..especially Renoir, so it was a good thing Bonaparte had a good appreciation–I mean, he’s French afterall…..

Given the fact he loved my home town, was also a plus!

Then I noticed where he was born and raised. Paris, France.

I had heard that Parisians were the rather “difficult” of all the Frenchmen–and women!

Oh.

Now, you need to understand something—I fed into that whole “Oh-the-French-hate-Americans” thing. Yes. After 9/11 I had a propensity to refer to “French Fries” as “Freedom” fries.

Yup! I don’t necessarily like fried potatoes, but I did refer to them as “freedom” fries. These days I just call them “Frites”!

I learned every single stereotypical image about the French from cartoons and TV shows.

Yes. My educational on French stereotypes were from “great” sources…

…although sometimes Pepe Le Pew is easier to understand.

However, something inside me, perhaps it was the contrarian or the curiosity, made me write a little blurb to him. It went something like this:

“So, you like art. Impressionism? It’s my fave. I love Renoir. You like NYC? I lived there for many years!” “You got an accent?” (THAT was a dopey question)

He wrote back. We spent a bit of time writing back and forth. I finally wrote to him that my “trial” was about to expire and I gave him my email address and told him to just shoot me an email.

We emailed back and forth and he asked me for my phone number. I gave it to him. He called. He had a very heavy accent that was somewhat hard to understand. But, we kept talking.

He asked me out—that last weekend of November 2004. Actually, Thanksgiving weekend. I explained to him that I could not make it because my daughter had a regional Irish Dance competition in Philadelphia and would be busy from Thanksgiving evening through that Sunday. (Yay! Party time at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Oireachtas!) Anyone involved in Irish Dance is fully-aware that you never make plans that conflict with those Thanksgiving weekend regionals!

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Irish Dance competitions, especially the Oireachtas, takes top priority. Over EVERYTHING!!! (spoken like a true dance mom)!

He asked if I wanted to meet him the following Friday. Friday, December 3rd, 2004. I nervously agreed. It was just easier talking on the phone and emailing than having to get all dressed up, and trying to look “pretty” and worrying how I looked, and did I look too fat…yada yada yada.

We both wanted to keep things casual so we met on somewhat safe and common ground. We met at The Marketplace in Princeton. The Marketplace was a smaller mall, and in that mall were many stores I frequented! (I spent many a rainy summer day there when the kids were young). In addition, I felt comfortable there. I figured if things turned sour, I could always use some retail therapy—and spend money I didn’t have.

I spent a lot of time, and money I didn’t have at this Princeton Mall. It was a safe place for our first meeting!

It was easy to spot Monsieur Bonaparte because, luckily, he looked just like his photo. In fact, he looked very nice. Until I noticed what he was wearing on his feet. A FRENCHMAN wearing TENNIS SHOES???? Yes! I was shocked. As much as I fed into the “anti-French” propaganda, the one thing I did have in common with the French was the disgust of white tennis shoes and/or sneakers. In my most humble opinion, tennis shoes belong on the tennis court and only on the tennis court. The sneaker thing—only a few types of sneakers get my stamp of approval. Chuck Taylors and old-school Keds. End of story.

Was Bonaparte REALLY French–or was he faux-French. What self-respecting Frenchman would wear these on a DATE????

I become physically upset when I see tourists wearing white tennis shoes/sneakers, heavy ankle sport socks and ill-fitting shorts with t-shirts—especially when I see this kind of attire in a large city. It was bad enough for me to be seen off the courts with someone wearing these hideous shoes!

Those tennis shoes had my red flag at half-mast.

My red flag was at half-mast. Uh Oh!

As Bonaparte was not familiar with the Princeton area, so we took my car and we drove down Route 1 just a bit to grab a bite to eat at The Princetonian Diner.

Best diner in the Princeton area! The burgers and “freedom” fries are delicious!

Bonaparte had his red flag at half-mast upon entering my car—which, by the way he later deemed as the messiest car he had ever been in. I don’t even it being a mess except for a few pieces of sports equipment that belonged to the kids. The car wasn’t that bad. I mean really; he actually thinks he saw papers strewn on the floor!

My oh my. Bonaparte had HIS red flag at half mast after seeing the inside of my little green Cavalier. Now we were even!

Wait. It gets better. After having a quick bite at the diner, Bonaparte asked me if I wanted to drive across the road to check out furniture at Ethan Allen and Domain. (I thought he was moving a bit fast!). It turned out his daughter was moving into a new place and he wanted to check out furniture for her.

Imagine that! This helicopter mom met her helicopter dad!

Get rid of those red flags. Helicopter Mom has met her true match..

The French version of the Helicopter Dad!!!!

We actually had a pretty good time checking out all that furniture—it seemed that we both had pretty much similar tastes!

Surprisingly, all the sofas and loveseats in our home are white and slipcovered! Who knew?

A stop at Starbucks ended our first “date” *giggle* *giggle*

A delightful end to our first date was a stop at Starbucks!

We have been together since that first date–but there’s more so read on…

Shortly thereafter, Bonaparte administered a “test”, unbeknownst to me. The test was disguised as a movie and dinner date. He was to cook dinner for me after seeing a “surprise” movie.

When I arrived at Bonaparte’s home, he was ready to leave. (*NOTE: Bonaparte is ALWAYS on time. Worse yet, he’s early. I am always late with the exception of doctor’s appointments, air and train travel. That’s it.) I think I may have been a couple of minutes late because he was not smiling. Oh wait. He’s French!

To lighten things up, I asked him “Why do you always wear those white tennis shoes? You’re supposed to be French! I thought the French had better taste in footwear?” “They really are not attractive!” (He didn’t realize I had a “thing” about footwear).

Embarrassed, he took the fugly tennis shoes off and changed into the classy, chic, European loafers, that he should have been wearing in the first place.

He also explained “Ah em so embarrahrrrazzz.” “Ah soughs zhat Americanzzz loved zuh tennis shuz.” “Ah em zoo ‘eppy ow don’ lek zhem.” “Ow ahr lek zuh Fra’shhh. Ow spek ur meen”.

(Translation: “I thought that Americans loved the tennis shoes. I am so happy you don’t like them. You are like the French. You speak your mind.”)

Score one for me!

While on the way to see the movie, he wouldn’t budge when I asked him whatmovie we were seeing. Instead, I hounded him about dinner. He was making roast chicken, French style. He then started talking about the various courses. He explained that we were having , in his words

“Pate and Cornish hen to start” He explained in his heavy accent.

I asked him why we were having Cornish hen before having chicken.

He knew I love a good meal, but Cornish Hen as a starter? Whoa–I’m not that much of a little piggy!

He was becoming frustrated “Cornish hen..wizz mutar!!!”

Sensing his frustration, I started to laugh and asked why he was getting so upset.

Bonaparte: “Ow no zouz gren zings zhewish pip-ul et?” From zuh bar’rel?”

(Translation: “You know those green things jewish people eat? From the barrel?”)

Me: “Yeah. You mean pickles??”

Bonaparte: “Oui.” Cornish hen ahr leedul peekuhls”.

Thus, I found out what “cornichon” were! Years later, I still cannot understand everything he says!

This is what the “Cornish hen” was! Oops!

The movie turned out to be “A Very Long Engagement”. A World War I epic of love and the search for a loved one. It starred Audrey Tatou and Gaspar Uliel as the doomed but engaged lovers, Mathilde and Manech. I loved this film. In fact, to this day it remains one of my faves!

I outsmarted Bonaparte! He had no idea I was a fan of French cinema!

This film turned out to be the “test”. Apparently, Bonaparte was unsure of a long-term relationship if I didn’t like French film. What he didn’t realize that I had been a fan of French cinema since my early twenties. Living in Manhattan gave me the opportunity to enjoy many French films. I was especially fond of Francois Truffaut, Louis Malle, Jean Renoir and Eric Rohmer. (Also..Bonaparte’s uncle, Yves Robert! Bonus!!!)

After expressing my disgust at this ridiculous test, I scored another one for me!

I guess the French are just more pragmatic in their relationship thinking! They judge compatibility by film and food!

We’ve had ups and downs, but mostly ups. We have fun and enjoy each other and balance each other very well. It’s nice!

I even introduced Bonaparte to selfies!

Bonaparte wasn’t used to divey bars in NYC until he met me! Here we are waiting for my son Roman’s band “Bad Man Yells” to begin playing. My oldest son Jake is with us. This is from 2010!

In Long Island. November 2011 at a family wedding (my side)!

So that’s it. Here’s a link to an article I wrote in “FrenchEntree” about my first attempt at making a nice French dinner for Bonaparte. It started out as a complete disaster but it really is a fun read:

My Dinner for Bonaparte

To keep you in the mood..Le Temps De L’Amour from Francois Hardy! Oh lala! XOXOXOXO

Move Over Josephine! Bonaparte is Mine!!! (The Story of how a New York Girl and Parisian Man Met) BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND. MANY HAVE WONDERED. MANY HAVE ASKED. HERE YOU GO! A couple of readers are curious as to how Bonaparte and I came to be a couple and I thought it would make for a fun post so here goes!

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