#ezra;zen

[guardian-angel12]

Zeb: I have the sharpest memory here - name one time I forgot something!

Ezra: You left me, Chopper and Sabine in a parking lot at 2am a day ago.

Zeb: I did that on purpose, try again.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

"If you remember nothing else, always remember this one great secret of spiritual practice: we don't have to feel any particular way. We don't have to have special experiences, nor do we have to be any particular way. With whatever arises, whether it's pleasing or not, try to remember that all we can do is experience and work with whatever our life is right now. No matter what life is and no matter how we feel about it, all that matters in practice is whether we can honestly acknowledge what is going on, and then stay present with the physical experience of that moment."

- Ezra Bayda Zen Heart

[sleepysigh]

Someone posted this quote on their Reddit profile and for some reason it really helped me straighten some thoughts out.

[nicksalius]

Liberarsi dalle paure - Ezra Bayda

Liberarsi dalle paure, ma come? Ovviamente con l’aiuto della meditazione! Ezra Bayda esplora – dunque – un approccio rivoluzionario alla pratica della meditazione e alla vita stessa. Bayda critica l’atteggiamento culturale ossessionato dal “fare”, sottolineando l’importanza di “lasciar essere” anziché cercare di cambiare o migliorare costantemente. Attraverso il racconto personale – nello…

[ongshat]

Xen The Zen Of The Other - The Audio Drama, Free Version

Xen The Zen Of The Other – The Audio Drama, Free Version

As is my custom, after a year of commercially making Xen: The Zen of the Other audio drama commercially available, I am releasing the entire bundle for free on Archive.org and Youtube. It is released with a Creative Commons license, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International. You may download and listen to it, share it, or post it, as long as it is not for commercial purposes, with no…

[antianakin]

Something I've noticed rewatching Rebels is Ezra's precognition. He's constantly reacting to things before they happen. Ducking before he's hit, realizing stormtroopers are coming before anyone else (even beating Zen's better hearing), even before he had much training he knew to avoid obstacles with the stolen TIE. Something that the show does a good job of implying is that even without formal training, he has been using his abilities that benefit survival. Enhanced agility and strength, reaction times, etc. maybe unintentionally it gives more worldbuilding for how the Force works and how force sensitives interact with the world

Yeah I think Rebels did a pretty good job showing how Force sensitivity might manifest in someone older who received no training and how that impacts them. We aren't really able to see a lot of this for Anakin because the films skip right over his training time period and it wasn't something that the OT was interested in looking at with Luke as much.

I like the way newer stories are trying to incorporate this idea into the characters, like the way the Kenobi show had Leia able to read people SO EASILY and could use that to help people or to hurt them and how Bail and Breha are trying SO HARD to teach her responsibility for that power without being able to actually explain why she can do this and without any experience of it themselves.

It's a cool new trend and I appreciate that while a lot of it is SIMILAR between these characters, it's not exactly the same. I'd love to keep seeing more of this!

[grogusmum]

Hi Hazel!

Let’s imagine you are having a birthday party and have invited the Pedro boys. Which ones do you hope can come and what would they give you for a present?

Okay, so to be clear, I've invited them all!?!?! 😮 this is gonna take a while -

Alright, welp, of course

Din (and Grogu)

(Picture is a giftee from @nicolethered thanks again, bb 💚)

And as you can see, they have brought me flowers, balloons, and a little something in a little gift bag -

I'm thinking Grogu got really excited about getting me a frog, but Din wasn't so sure and got a zen frog statue for my garden and a blaster because Din wants me to be able to protect myself.

Javi G

Javi brings champagne and some lovely tapas made by his chef and divine inspiration...

But because Javi Peña comes, Javi G has to stash it and promises we will use it another time.

And Peña gives me sexy underwear, and I turn bright red and stow it back in the gift bag hurriedly. He winks and says, "for later."

Joel (and Ellie) because they nnneeeeddd it!

And yes, they give me their boggle game. It's wrapped in the Sunday comic pages of a newspaper.

Frankie

Frankie "stole" my gardening tools and gifted them back all sharpened and oiled.

Dieter, and yes, he brought me a baby goat, but he isn't sure he can part with it, and we end up with joint custody.

Ezra because he is my beloved, and he also brings Cee (all the found fathers chat at the party about their kids)

Cee has given me a story she wrote, and Ezra, a white quartz, rounded and smoothed by the sea

Pero, yes, I know he is just going to be grumpy in the corner, but I loves him - and I think he deserves cake

Pero has given me a deer he has killed, "to last me the rest of the winter," and a dagger, like Din, because he wants me to be able to protect myself. Oberyn says it looks like he's courting me, and Pero blushes just a little.

Oberyn wishes he knew children were invited. He would have brought his younger daughters to be with Cee and Ellie, who are having a great time together, and the Littles to play with Grogu.

And he gifts me dornish wine and a silk scarf in the colors of sunspear

And here is me about pretty much all thise Pedros:

Of course, I would gladly have the Marcuses and Jack, too, and Mr. Ben... hahaha, and Dio would be a riot to have there.

[mrsleonkennedy]

Me: Im gonna be productive today! *Sims 4 noises playing in the backgroud*

When you cant draw them but you have sims (⌐■_■)

✨ When MC said they want a cute couple photos but does a whole "dark villain wattpad edition" photoshoot✨

With Ezra (@restartheartvn ) , Friend (@stnaf-vn ) , Ren (@14dayswithyou), Nova (@cannibalsweetheart), Krow (@thekrows-nest), Harper (@campwillowpeak) and Fone @ringringringbananafone (im so sorry Nick, Fone looks like Zen in MM, i cant find any braided hair for him)

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ Bonus behind the scene photos:

My pc right now after doing all the hardwork: 🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬 may it rest in pieces 😅

If the game dev/creator find this, forgive me T_T im unable to find exact hair for your boys and idk how to make pretty male sims (╥_╥) I have failed you~ /lh

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “The Lost Commanders”

After the harrowing peril of the premiere we settle in for a more laid-back and chill adventure with some old familiar faces.

We open with the Rebels discussing what to do next, after the shankening that Vader handed them last episode.

(And let’s appreciate for a moment how, if not for becoming distracted by Ahsoka, Vader would have completely decimated Phoenix Cell in its entirety by himself.)

Ezra blurts out his ideas before remembering that he needs to have a modicum of proper decorum.  (I love his awkward little salute and Sabine shaking her head all cutely long-suffering.)  Clearly he feels comfortable enough to be himself in this formal, militarized environment.

“You are never shy with your opinions, Ezra Bridger,” has all the hidden consternated tones of, “Why did we let this feral gremlin child into the Rebelllion.” lol, Sato is just so confounded that this is his life now, he’s the commander of ragtag teams with literal fifteen year olds.

This episode is the first of what I’m going to affectionately call the “Friendship Fetch Quests”, in which we go have mildly interesting adventures and do something seemingly innocuous that gains us an ally that will wind up being important later.  Season Two is mostly this, if we’re honest.  We go to this location, we do this character’s Loyalty Mission, we gain them as an asset to call upon later.  It fits very well with the overall theme of connection and family, of making friendships and bridges that benefit the cause.  Ezra’s unique Force ability is literally the power to connect, so it makes perfect thematic sense that the show emphasizes the connections made to bring so many disparate people together and unite them in the fight against the Empire.

Anyway, Ahsoka decides to aim the Ghost crew at Rex, not telling Kanan beforehand that she’s sending him to meet some clones which is... a bit of a questionable decision.

“There are questions... questions that need answering.”  Aaaaaand take a shot every time there’s a Lord of the Rings shoutout in this show, we’re gonna be seeing a lot of them.

The fanfare is slightly altered this episode, vaguely TCW-sounding?

The Ghost suffers a Plot Contrivance so that Hera and Chopper can stay in orbit while the rest go down to the planet.  And MY GOSH this is pretty.

I know I keep harping on the soft, watercolor-like quality of the textures but seriously, the Ralph McQuarrie style is all over these backgrounds.

Ralph McQuarrie being one of the original concept artists for the OT; his designs and art style were largely recycled, reused, and repurposed for Rebels.

You can already tell Kanan is suspecting what they’re about to encounter.

Multiple other people have already pointed out that the AT-TE has a lot of Studio Ghilbi Howl’s Moving Castle vibes.  I’m just gonna reiterate them.

I love this moment right here with no music or dialogue, just the soft sound of the wind chimes.  Very zen.  Very lovely atmosphere.

I still haven’t actually seen TCW in its entirety, full disclosure, so I was not nearly as excited about this reveal as the Tari Husband was.

(He was sooo excited, lemme tell ya.)

HGKAJHSFKAHSFSA KANAN BEING CONFRONTED WITH A WALKING PTSD TRIGGER FROM HIS PAST AND HIS IMMEDIATE FIRST THOUGHT IS TO STEP IN FRONT OF HIS PADAWAN.

A couple people have pointed it out but Kanan’s posture here is mirrored to Depa’s in the Kanan: The Last Padwan comics.  (AKA the superior tragic Kanan backstory *glares at The Bad Batch*)  One hand forward, one hand with lightsaber back, shielding the padawan.

Love that.

Lol awww, Ezra being excited about the Gen 1 Clone Trooper helmet and then disappointed when Rex tells him not to touch it.

Kinda dig that Ezra’s the one doing the talking.  Kanan has obvious issues with clones but Ezra doesn’t have that bias, and he’s naturally likable, so it’s easy for Rex to give in to him, at least somewhat.

*continues to grumble about The Bad Batch retconning Rex’s characterization here*

No, listen, this is why new writers need to be given refresher courses on the characters before they come on board and shows with interconnected continuities need to have detailed arc and plot maps to follow, sure we can infer and theorize that something or other sapped Rex of his motivation and drive to fight but then that’s fandom carrying the water and doing the work for the writers and I hate that, don’t do the writers’ work for them we deserve better than that!

*ahem*

But I’ll refrain from going into that rant.

Kanan’s expression. :(  He hates every minute of this.

This is a nice dolly shot around here.

THIS WHOLE CONVERSATION. :(

Ezra the empath, trying to understand why his master is so agitated.  How he shrinks slightly when Kanan yells.  How Kanan says he doesn’t want to discuss it but does so anyway because Ezra just has that effect on people?

THE ABSOLUTE PAIN AND RAW EMOTION IN KANAN’S VOICE AS HE TALKS ABOUT ORDER 66 AND WATCHING HIS MASTER DIE.

*grumbles a little bit about TCW Season Seven making this line of Rex’s into more of a self-cope than the honest truth*

This whole sequence with the Joopa hunt is technically completely superfluous but it’s soooooo much fun. :D

The camerawork, the dialogue, the animation, the sound design and music, the Old West adventure-feel of it, the badass little moments and characterization bits for Sabine and Zeb and Kanan and Ezra...

It just makes me smile.

Speaking of the music though, this has such a classic Hollywood sound.  Bombastic strings and brass, soaring into high notes and dancing.

(Favorite bit of this sequence is Kanan kick-jumping his rod into Ezra’s hands and Ezra immediately turning around and jamming them both into the line.)

Sweet.

This shot. <333

Zeb deciding to roll with Gregor’s compliment. <333

A brief snippet of Ezra’s theme here, when Kanan calls Hera.  I’m actually not going to grumble about Hera’s backstory later being filled in a little, that was undefined enough that the fleshing out didn’t change anything vital.

Instead I’m going to note this very pretty flute line here.

Rex and Ezra’s friendship is criminally underrated.  I bet Rex sees shades of a younger Ahsoka in him and Ezra just sees a cool old guy with great stories, another strong male influence for a teenage boy who needs them.

Ezra still can’t help talking Kanan up though.

<3333

Ezra playing peacekeeper.  (Not for the last time.)

As I said, still haven’t fully watched TCW but I do appreciate that Wolffe and Gregor are both obviously damaged by their wartime experiences, Gregor by going just slightly batty, Wolffe by being a paraonoid anxiety wreck, white bites the Rebels when he calls the Empire.  Rex having to remind him, “[The Jedi] weren’t the ones that betrayed us.” and “The war is over.” are like so many self-regulating mantras he must have practiced, to remind both him and the others of the truth.  The chip’s influence lingers, even though they’ve all had it removed.

Ezra looking between Rex and Kanan like an anxious child in the middle of a custody battle lol.

This sequence is loose with the animation, bouncy like the first season, but the quick movements and shot choices emphasize the frantic nature of them needing to shoot the probe.

A veeery small excerpt of the Imperial March here as we close out.

This episode (and it’s following companion) is soooo rewatchable.  It has the fun chill vibe of the first season with an emphasis on heavier character development and background stakes.  The clones are well-integrated into the plot, used mostly to trigger and discuss Kanan’s personal traumas, while also hinting at the crap the clones have gone through themselves.  There’s an almost self-defensive anger in Rex’s voice when he insists, “I didn’t betray my Jedi. [...] We all have a choice.” because for the clones... they didn’t.

I’m one of the people who likes the chips, who likes it being literally mind control rather than just genetic conditioning that turned the clones on the Jedi, like in Legends.  The way I tend to sum it up is thus:

With Order 66 being just one order in many that the clones followed unquestioningly because they’re just that loyal and obedient, it makes the clones seems more monstrous.  With it being a literal brainwashing device overriding their free will, it makes Palpatine more monstrous.

That he would choose clones instead of droids, because the Jedi would see the clones as human, as friends, as worthy of protecting and fighting alongside, and thus would be more blindsided, and the clones would be loyal and dependable friends right up until the chip kicked in and blanked them out, giving no warning, snaring the Jedi into the perfect deathtrap...

Hgnnnh the feels.

Ezra-as-everyone’s-therapist would continue through the season but for now let me just appreciate that Kanan’s issues are so deeply rooted it takes a few episodes to solve, lol.

Anyway, this episode is great.

[thecleverqueer]

On Marrok: Why I hated your theories and why I am glad I was right all along:

So, Marrok ended up being literally no one, and this I sort of knew. I’ve blogged about why. I’ve also blogged about why I thought your theories sucked, but let me break it down for you again because I feel like gloating a little.

First, your theories about Barriss Offee:

Barriss was done hella dirty in The Clone Wars. In legends, she was one of the greatest healers the Jedi had. And, to this effect, it would make sense that she would hate the war and what was happening. She felt that shit on a molecular level. Every cell in her body probably pulsated pain from what she was witnessing day in and out on the battlefield. Orchestrating a bombing of the Jedi temple though? Eh? I don’t know. I get WHY she was the choice, but… it still sucked. There is a pretty sizable chunk of fandom that still have a lot of negative feelings about it too (people that the Ahsoka series was made for). And, even on a Watsonian level, Barriss’s reasoning for bombing the temple would suggest that she would never become an inquisitor willingly. It just wouldn’t make sense that she bombed the temple because she was keenly aware of the fact that the Jedi were unknowingly (in their defense) fighting for the dark-side only to later become an inquisitor. She would likely sacrifice herself before it came to that. Never mind, on a Doylist level, the fact that ship has sailed. If Filoni had intended to use her as a mere Inquisitor, he would have already done so in Rebels. Barriss could have easily been the seventh sister, but she wasn’t (Filoni has said so).

Could we still see Barriss? Perhaps. I don’t hold my breath, but I think a lot of folks want to know what became of her. I tend to think IF she shows up in the Ahsoka series, it will be as whatever the hell kind of “Jedi” Baylan and Shin are. While Shin obviously has a sort of dark wild-side, Baylan seems as though he is motivated by something he sees as a greater good. What becomes of this is anyone’s guess, but I could see Barriss trying to better the Galaxy… whatever that may mean for her.

Second, your theories about Ezra Bridger:

So, this one I have not talked about prior, but I still thought it was sort of a stretch. While being the most compelling option if Filoni had wanted to take the “he’s someone important” route, it didn’t make much sense characteristically for Ezra at this point. And, I say that because Ezra already flirted with the dark side in Rebels and gave it up. We saw him struggle with anger and attachments, so much so that he was able to open the Sith holocron, attain knowledge from it, and use questionable dark side powers to help his friends (him controlling that Imperial in the walker in season three was peak; I’m not going to lie, but…). Ezra was already brought back in. He failed epically and nearly got his friends killed, and Kanan was able to talk him off of the ledge. By the end of season four, Ezra was zen in a lot of ways, wise in others and was willing to let go of his attachments for the greater good. He overcame.

Ezra serving the dark side in New Republic times would be a step backwards, and I don’t think that’s going to happen. I don’t know how Ezra is going to get pulled back into the fold, but when he is, he won’t be evil.

Third, your theories about Galen Marek (aka Starkiller):

I’m going to be real with you. This seemed to be the most popular theory, and yet it was my least favorite one. Mainly because of the toxicity that would have surrounded this choice on so many levels.

First, Starkiller was grossly overpowered. He brought a fucking Star Destroyer out of the sky with the force, melted an entire legion of storm troopers and wiped the floor with Vader in a duel. Ahsoka wouldn’t have stood a chance in hell. And, folks are like “well he could have been nerfed!” But no, because the toxic element of fandom that truly wanted Starkiller to face Ahsoka would have been pissed that he was nerfed… and they would have bitched loudly about it.

Second, thematically, it made no sense. It would have been the worst possible fan service known to mankind. It would have made virtually no sense narratively, and it would have sent up dozens of questions about canon that would be yet another mess creatives would have to clean up afterward. So, no. Bad. Bad all around.

Third, and this is just me being who I am, but I know good and goddamned well an uncomfortably large set of fandom would have shipped him and Ahsoka. There’s probably a small underbelly of fiction about it that already exists. And, honestly, I’m completely surprised we didn’t get Marrok shipped with Ahsoka (Marrosoka? Ahsorok?) because it feels as if Filoni is purposely avoiding men to ship Ahsoka with in this series. Like, you’re being force to grasp at straws. Regardless, it would have been gross. It would have been problematic on so many levels. It just makes me cringe thinking about it.

In closing:

Anyway, it was good watching Marrok literally go up in smoke. For those of you that aren’t privy to this, that was night sister magic. Marrok was the equivalent of a night sister zombie. If you haven’t seen The Clone Wars, you probably didn’t know that and congrats, Filoni just gave you the finger again for not being in the know. I will say that while this moment seemed insignificant in the short term (Marrok’s existence as an entity), this is going to come back to haunt the heroes later… as there is likely a whole hoard of undead night sister zombie creatures waiting in the wings to wreak havoc on everything and everyone. It isn’t coincidental that everyone stopped battling the moment Marrok went up in a puff of green smoke including Shin. Wait for it.

[sunshinies]

hihi would you be able to do names and pronouns for a Jing Yuan (honkai star rail) fictive and maybe a Luocha (also honkai star rail) fictive too? if its too much thats okay,, you can just ignore ty <3 /p

Of course !

🐅 Jing Yuan name suggestions:

Ezra , Apollo , Othello , Isaiah , Zen , Cassius , Moses , Valentino , Roman , Gray , Lance , Lark , Conan , Heath , Lupin , Cedar , Marshall , Caspian , Lowell , Cairo , Lyon , Leigh , Eason , Ivan , Orion , Phoenix , Aldrin , Leo , Jericho

🗡️Jing Yuan pronoun suggestions:

slash/slashes/slashself , slice/slices/sliceself , zzz/zzzs/zzzself , strength/strengths/strengthself , spear/spears/spearself , zap/zaps/zapself , wise/wises/wiseself , wis/wis/wisdomself , cloud/cloud/cloudself , sky/skys/skyself , sword/swords/swordself , snow/snows/snowself , leo/leos/leoself

🌾 Luocha name suggestions:

Elio , Cary , Salem , Cullen , Jack , Alaric , Dexter , Emmett , Fester , Lon , Basil , Lucius , Cullen , Rune , Laurent , Lachlan , Cain , Alistair , Hemlock , Allan , Dyer , Blair , Poe , Ambrose , Onyx , Melancholy , Luther

⚰️ Luocha pronoun suggestions:

heal/heals/healself , medi/medis/mediself , wander/wanders/wanderself , myst/mysts/mystself , cor/cors/corpseself , mort/morts/mortuself , death/deaths/deathself , eter/eters/eternalself , pure/pures/pureself , mourn/mourns/mournself , dark/darks/darkself , shun/shuns/shunself

[ahsoka-in-a-hood]

I'm enjoying being in the position where I don't feel I can quite predict how things will shake out with Sabine, but I'm probably going to like it either way. We haven't even got to her re-uniting with Ezra, there's more layers to this yet to be unpeeled. I can see this going several ways, and I'm happy with most of them. This might end with her staying on the path of the jedi, it might also not. I'm feeling very zen about it.

[newtsoftheworldunite]

Reading tag game! Tagged by @hoeratius. Tagging @the-lincyclopedia @the-knights-who-say-book @oughtaagh @eponymiad @cartograffiti

Last book I read: The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho. It’s a comedic wuxia adventure in a fantasy setting where religious orders have been caught in the crossfire between an authoritarian government and rebel bandits. A nun who loses her job as a waitress joins a group of black market vagabonds attempting to navigate this new reality and everybody gets more than they bargained for.

It’s a whole lot of fun and also gave me so much to think about. I wish I had a hundred more books like this one.

Book I recommend: Maria Dahvana Headley’s translation of Beowulf. @hoeratius recommended the Heaney, as is her right, and that’s the first Beowulf I read but I encountered MDH’s translation in 2021 and was absolutely blown away. I want to do things like this as a translator.

Book I couldn't put down: I first encountered Nate Stevenson’s graphic novel Nimona while it was being serialized online and probably about 80% complete, zoomed through everything that existed so far in a few hours, and then waited eagerly for each additional page. It was absolutely captivating. I’ve had other similar experiences but that one stands out right now in my memory.

Book I've read twice: I’ve been an inveterate rereader over the past four years. Through 2019 probably less than 10% of my reading was rereads and now it’s around 50%. The Queen’s Thief series, The Goblin Emperor and Cemeteries of Amalo books, the Murderbot Diaries, the Wayfarers novels, the Vorkosigan Saga and the Five Gods books, Discworld, and the Young Wizards series have all been ones I’ve revisited regularly. And in 2022 I did a LeGuin readthrough that included revisiting many of her works and experiencing others for the first time. There are so many others as well. Rereading is great!

A book on my TBR: Navdeep Singh Dhillon’s YA romcom Sunny G’s Series of Rash Decisions. I don’t see books with Punjabi protagonists very often so I’m very interested in this one.

A book I have put down: I started An Immense World last year, which is an examination of nonhuman sensory experiences, and I’d really like to get back to it but my brain has been having a harder time with nonfiction over the past couple of years so I haven’t found my way back around yet. I’ve also bounced off Translation State a couple of times now which is frustrating because I’ve enjoyed every other Ann Leckie book I’ve read.

A book on my wish list: I don’t actually have much of a wish list for books because I’m very library-centric. There are definitely books I end up buying and I have a fairly eclectic home collection. But mostly I get books through the public library and the Libby and Hoopla apps with the library’s digital holdings. I do like to buy interesting haggadot and siddurim and have my eye on a new translation of Tehillim, so that’s something.

A favourite book from childhood: There is a picture book with text by Lloyd Alexander and illustrations by Ezra Jack Keats called The King’s Fountain, which I haven’t encountered in decades but remember adoring as a child. It’s a fable about a monarch who plans to divert the city’s water to build a beautiful fountain for himself and a beggar who tries to find some way to convince him to change his mind.

A book I would give a friend: The Thief by @meganwhalenturner. I want everybody to read it.

A book of poetry or lyrics I own: I’m very invested in my local poetry scene which means that unfortunately most of the poetry I own would reveal more about my geographic location than I’m comfortable posting on tumblr. TFW most of the books of poetry you own are written by people you personally know. Highly recommend. I grew up on a lot of Billy Collins and e e cummings and Paul Lawrence Dunbar and Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou and Edna St Vincent Millay and so many others. But that was my mother’s collection and I unfortunately haven’t filled my shelves at home with poetic classics. As a teenager I also had an absolutely wonderful global anthology of poetry from all over the world and from ancient times until the nineteenth century that I’ve never been able to find again and I don’t remember the title. It was very thick and paperback and had a reddish purple cover and was organized by the language each poem had been translated from.

A non-fiction book I own: One of my favorites is The House Book by Phaidon which is a little reference book with a selection of 500 houses from ancient times to the present as an exploration of how people live and what architectural possibilities we’ve explored.

Currently reading: Demon Daughter by Lois McMaster Bujold, Omnitopia Dawn by @dianeduane for the @crossingscon book club, Little Thieves by @what-eats-owls, and Witch King by Martha Wells, not counting rereads.

Planning on reading next: Painted Devils and The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi. There are a few other titles that might intervene, because my choice of reading material is heavily dependent on mood now. Which is part of what makes rereading so appealing. It’s easier to know what mood something is right for if I’ve already read it!

[galactic-pirates]

Liveblog of episode 7 of Ahsoka.

Is there really just one more? Yikes.

“No I protected the New Republic by ignoring you” and a lot of hidden smiles at that. Best way she knew how. You know it’s easy for them to criticise, “can’t have people still acting like it’s a rebellion” but Hera was a child in the Clone Wars, grew up fighting the Empire. I think it was Thrawn who said war was all she had ever known. But while I do actually sympathise with the position that there has to be chain of command, and people can’t just do whatever they feel like in the name of the Republic, there is something to be said for wisdom and experience. It wasn’t like Hera attacked anything, or created an enemy. I would have thought part of naming someone a General was acknowledging that they had the ability to use their head when necessary. Hera has earned the right to be given a little leeway. She knows what she’s about.

“I don’t know what frightens me more, the possibility of what might happen or your unwillingness to see it”. You know this Senator guy strikes me as someone who wants to protect his powerbase. He didn’t fight in the rebellion, but obviously wasn’t part of the Empire, so clearly he kept his head down - and that’s no way to gain power. Now he has that power, he is maybe terrified of another conflict because he doesn’t want to be in danger. He dismissed Hera’s account as a ‘childish fairytale’ when really he’s like a child, thinking if he closes his eyes what he can’t see isn’t there.

Yeah! C3PO and he’s there for Leia. I mean obviously because unless they recast… so sad. I love that she is still there in spirit though and I doubly love that Leia is basically using her status to give the middle finger to dicks like that Senator. I’m sure Carrie would approve. I love that Leia is lying for Hera, I just love it so much. First she was trying to cover and now she’s just like, whelp guess I better do it myself, and that is her whole character there.

Chopper growling at the insult to droids. Love it. Oooooh Leia is leader of the defence council. That makes sense. I love that for her. Shame she doesn’t have Mon Mothma’s job to be honest but I guess if it got out that Vader was his bio-dad that could be awkward, it’s lucky that she’s head of defence.

Oh my holo!Anakin! That’s like what Kanan had downloaded. Ezra watched those recordings. He clearly made this one for Ahsoka directly but I like that Anakin did make more for general use. He was a skilled fighter and that would have been helpful in the time of the clone wars, when masters were away from the temple and not there to train the younglings so much.

For Huyang who likes to be right, the worst thing probably is that he is hoping he’s wrong. I love that. “At least the whales are providing some cover” - it was probably hurting them! Poor whales :( And yeah finding an imperial minefield in another galaxy is a pretty good indicator they are in the right place. Thrawn noting that Anakin was her master suggests to me awareness of him having previously met him and/or that he became Vader as the novels stated.

The Emperor died - that’s what people say. Typical dry Sabine but also she kinda called that there, just because they say it doesn’t make it so. Zeb mention!!! Yay, I have missed him. I feel like Ezra really learned some patience while he’s been lost. I guess he got older but he’s just noting “complicated” and not pushing it. I mean especially after Kanan and in the finale he did lean into the whole ‘listening to the force’ thing and that did make him a bit more zen rather than angry how he had been. I guess I am concerned he’s not pushing as time is a factor. They kinda need to ‘hitch a ride’ somehow or they will be stuck there. I am worried that Sabine isn’t showing any sign of urgency. Usually she would be tapping or pacing or worrying at something somehow I feel.

I liked that Ezra was surprised that Sabine became Ahsoka’s apprentice, his spluttered question of “why?” and same, hard same. He said he guessed it made sense as Sabine learned a bit (calling back to the darksaber) but that was purely bladework not the force. It’s annoying how they are just circling round that. I’m not sure I like that they are using a master/padawan bond because Kanan and Ezra never really did that. Maybe Kanan didn’t know how to make one? Or maybe they just never called it that exactly, they could sense each other.

Impatience for victory will guarantee defeat - that is definitely a lesson Shin needs. I am not surprised they are parting ways Baylan never was interested in Thrawn or the Empire, and Shin clearly wanted the political power. I hope Sabine gives Ezra his lightsaber back, he could reflect those bolts. Why isn’t Sabine giving Ezra the lightsaber?? She has her blasters!! Oh I thought Ahsoka was jumping down to Sabine, not Baylan. Interesting.

I about threw my hands up in the air - finally! When Sabine tried to give Ezra the lightsaber but then he wouldn’t take it. WHAAAT?! He didn’t give it to her, not exactly. He left it behind because Thrawn said to come unarmed. I am facepalming. I mean sure Sabine has used it and modified it but a lightsaber is a lightsaber. Yeah they are harder to use when not attuned I think? But Kanan used Ezra’s just fine. And “the force is my ally” I mean yeah but you use the force + a lightsaber most of the time. I mean force push/force jump/force reflexes only get you so far. Maybe Ezra just wants to see what Sabine can do? Or maybe after all the years without a lightsaber he’s worried he’s rusty and she’ll be better than him anyway?

So what was the point of the fight with Baylan then? Ahsoka didn’t finish him. She just used Huyang’s bombs to run away as she couldn’t beat him. Why fight him at all? Why jump out at Baylan and not wait and jump out near Sabine? It doesn’t make sense.

“Well they are all back together. I hope I survive long enough to see the outcome” oh I love it. So funny. I do love that Sabine is mostly fighting like a Mando. I love that Thrawn is still a strategic master. I hate that Ezra refused the damn lightsaber. I mean he doesn’t need it I guess but ugh. I’m also worried that she seems to have dropped one of her blasters. I know, I know, it’s weird of me to be tracking her equipment but it’s things like that which bug me.

Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. “I’m getting a feeling, I think I might be going home after all” - why? Why did you have to say that? In story terms that’s like a neon flashing sign which says nope you are not going home. I’m not sure if they will kill him off or Ezra will sacrifice himself and stay behind. I’m sure it will be heroic but damn I wanted a happy ending. I wanted Ezra to reunite with Hera, and to meet Jacen, maybe even train Jacen. Sad :( I mean ok it’s not happened yet, I could be wrong, but it’s like when Huyang made them promise to stay together, I knew that meant they wouldn’t and that’s why it would all go bad /sigh.

Is there really just one more left? I am not ready for that. Also I ask again how they can possibly wrap everything up in time. It better be like double length or something.

[nicksalius]

Perseveranza - Ezra Bayda

La perseveranza – in ambito prettamente meditativo – è uno degli atteggiamenti più utili che si possa mai adottare. Lungi dall’essere mera cocciutaggine, un comportamento fermo e continuo, una disposizione d’animo costante, è – in realtà – sinonimo di tenacia. Persistere in siffatta condotta richiede, innanzitutto, forza di volontà … e questo è il nodo cruciale di qualunque training spirituale.…

[penandpaperdreams]

50 Futuristic Male Names

Some space/futuristic inspired names for your male characters!

1. Archer

2. Ash

3. Aspen / Espen

4. Asriel / Azriel

5. Aster

6. Atlas

7. Bastian

8. Blaze / Blaise

9. Blue

10. Caraway

11. Caspian

12. Cian

13. Clay / Klay

14. Colt / Colton

15. Cosmo

16. Cypher

17. Cyrus

18. Echo

19. Ember

20. Ezra

21. Flint

22. Forrest

23. Idris

24. Jax / Jaxon

25. Jethro

26. Jupiter

27. Kaiser

28. Kalel

29. Kasper

30. Knox

31. Leon

32. Luca / Luka

33. Lucien / Lucius

34. Lynx

35. Odin

36. Omega

37. Onyx

38. Ridley

39. River

40. Rune

41. Ryder

42. Sage

43. Salem

44. Silas

45. Torin

46. Xander

47. Zaiden

48. Zane

49. Zen

50. Zephyr