#fairmount interrupts

[violetcottontail]

AT LONG LAST, PART 2. I'M NEVER HIRING INTERNS AGAIN, THESE FUCKING IDIOTS DESTROYED THE AUDIO, SO YOU DON'T GET TO HEAR ANY OF THE BABY GETTING EATEN. DAMMIT.

- ♡

[jules-has-notes]

Dayton, OH — VoicePlay live performances

After spending quite a bit of time in Ohio the previous autumn, VoicePlay returned in July 2015 for a night at the Fraze Pavilion. The show was almost cancelled for inclement weather, but luckily the rain held off and the outdoor venue stayed dry.

Their opening act was Eleventh Hour of Kettering Fairmount High School, the host group for the Kettering A Capella Festival that VoicePlay had participated in the year before. These talented kids had also opened for the Sing-Off tour a few months earlier at the Troy, OH show.

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[NOTE: The videographer sings along a lot.]

Each performance of this blend of comedy skit and musical medley is always a little different. How much will the driver and passenger poke at each other's buttons? Where will the air freshener go? What song will Layne sing? Have a watch and find out.

Details:

title: Road Trip

original songs / performers: [0:50] "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" by Tiny Tim; [1:08] "Orinoco Flow" by Enya; [1:26] "Cum On Feel the Noize" by Quiet Riot; [2:35] "Big Shot" by Billy Joel; [2:48] "I Wanna Rock" by Twisted Sister; [2:57] "Voices Carry" by ’Til Tuesday; [3:14] "Shout" by Tears For Fears; [3:30] "Why Can't We Be Friends?" by War; [3:40] "That Smell" by Lynyrd Skynyrd; [4:24] "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" by Chicago; [5:43] "We Just Disagree" by Dave Mason; [6:04] "Let It Go" by Idina Menzel as Elsa in Frozen (2013) ** see this dedicated post for original song links

written by: "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" by Al Dubin & Joe Burke; "Orinoco Flow" by Eithne "Enya" Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin & Roma Ryan; "Cum On Feel the Noize" by Noddy Holder & Jim Lea; "Big Shot" by Billy Joel; "I Wanna Rock" by Dee Snider; "Voices Carry" by Robert Holmes, Aimee Mann, Michael Hausman, & Joey Pesce; "Shout" by Roland Orzabal & Ian Stanley; "Why Can't We Be Friends?" by Papa Dee Allen, Harold Ray Brown, B.B. Dickerson, Lonnie Jordan, Charles Miller, Lee Oskar, Howard E. Scott, & Jerry Goldstein; "That Smell" by Allen Collins & Ronnie Van Zant; "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" by Peter Cetera & David Foster; "Let It Go" by Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez

arranged by: Geoff Castellucci

My favorite bits:

road raging Eli

Tony's flickering eye movements at the first iteration of "Cum On Feel the Noize"

♫ "We'll get WILD, wild, wild…" ♫

Layne jolting awake on the beat

Geoff's little twirl as he flees the vehicle

Earl using the pretend aerosol spray as deodorant rather than his usual hairspray motion

Hey, Layne, look up there. ☝

Eli almost laughing at the different interruption

Trivia:

VoicePlay had been performing and tweaking this medley/skit since at least 2010.

They made a professional recording in front of a live audience during the 2014 Sing-Off tour.

Layne usually sings "Royals" by Lorde as his interrupting solo, but sometimes changes it like he does here in an attempt to make the other guys break character.

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As much fun as this medley is to listen to, it's even more entertaining to watch the boys perform it live, bopping around the stage and playing together.

Details:

title: The King Has Returned (Lion King medley)

original songs: "Circle of Life"; [1:51] "I Just Can’t Wait to Be King"; [2:29] "Hakuna Matata"; [3:16] "Be Prepared"; [4:39] "Circle of Life" (reprise)

written by: Elton John & Tim Rice

arranged by: VoicePlay

My favorite bits:

the rhythm section step-touching their way through the "Circle of Life" chorus

Tony and Eli gesture-bickering over which of them "mine" refers to during "I Just Can't Wait to Be King"

Earl's little Elvis groove at the beginning of "Hakuna Matata"

Eli and Earl bouncing across the stage in time with Geoff's little downward riff

Tony and Geoff's alternating Twist moves

the crunchy transition into "Be Prepared", and their emphatic stomping

Layne making a butt-smacking motion toward Geoff to go with the whipcrack in his percussion line

the two beats of silence after "Pay attention!"

Trivia:

This medley originally appeared on VoicePlay's 2012 album "Once Upon an Ever After"

"Hakuna Matata" was also included in the "aca-Disney" mashup they created for the 20th anniversary of Disney On Broadway, as well as in their "Aca Top 10 — Disney Sidekicks" countdown.

"Be Prepared" later appeared in their "Aca Top 10 — Disney Villains" countdown.

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[NOTE: The videographer sings along a lot.]

VoicePlay isn't exactly a boy band, but they certainly sound good singing these hit pop songs from across the decades. And they've got a few moves to go with those talented voices.

Details:

title: Boy Bands medley

original songs / performers: "ABC" by The Jackson 5; [0:36] "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles; [1:19] "My Girl" by The Temptations; [2:08] "Sherry" by The Four Seasons; [3:04] "YMCA" by The Village People; [3:37] "(You Got It) The Right Stuff" by New Kids on the Block; [4:00] "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys; [4:40] "Bye Bye Bye" by *NSYNC

written by: "ABC" by Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Alphonzo Mizell, & Deke Richards; "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" by John Lennon & Paul McCartney; "My Girl" by Smokey Robinson & Ronald White; "Sherry" by Bob Gaudio; "YMCA" by Jacques Morali & Victor Willis; "You Got It (The Right Stuff)" by Maurice Starr; "I Want It That Way" by Andreas Carlsson & Max Martin; "Bye Bye Bye" by Kristian Lundin, Jake Schulze, & Andreas Carlsson

arranged by: VoicePlay

My favorite bits:

Geoff's slow realization that his mic is dying

the other four carrying on through "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" just fine, but knowing that the next transition could be borked

return of the bass right on time, but a third too low (Good recovery, dudes.)

Eli's little head tilt in the back during the chorus of "YMCA"

the crunchy transition from "Right Stuff" to "That Way"

Tony's fabulous pop timbre on the lead for the last two songs

"Everybody watch him drink that water." VoicePlay, modelling healthy hydration habits.

Trivia:

VoicePlay revised this medley and finally recorded a video for it in 2019 as the result of a Patreon poll.

This piece usually ended with "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction, but The Fraze didn't have a screen to project the visual gag that goes along with it, so the guys omited that part entirely for this performance.

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[NOTE: The videographer and her daughter sing along and yell a LOT.]

This video contains three separate numbers — Layne's drum solo, the "A Crimpella" medley of phonations, and an encore of "Don't Stop Believin'".

Details:

title: Layne's drum solo

written & arranged by: Layne Stein

Look at him go!!! 🥁

.

title: A Crimpella

original songs / performers: [2:12] "Walk the Dinosaur" by Was (Not Was); [2:25] "Witch Doctor" by Alvin & the Chipmunks; [2:32] "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; [2:37] "We Go Together" from Grease!; [2:44] "Motownphilly" by Boyz II Men; [2:53] "Imma Be" by the Black Eyed Peas; [3:01] "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard; [3:03] "Shoop" by Salt N Pepa; [3:10] "Jock-A-Mo" (aka "Iko Iko") by James "Sugar Boy" Crawford; [3:18] "Mahna Mahna" from The Muppet Show; [3:30] "Lovin, Touchin, Squeezin" by Journey; [3:51] "Goofy Goober Rock" from The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie; [3:55] "MMMBop" by Hanson; [4:08] "Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede; [4:10] "Bawitdaba" by Kid Rock; [4:16] "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" by Neil Sedaka; [4:25] "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen; [4:42] "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga; [4:46] "Can't Get You Outta My Head" by Kylie Minogue; [4:52] "Limbo La La" by James Lloyd; [4:56] "All Night Long" by Lionel Richie; [5:13] "Wanna Be Starting Something" by Michael Jackson; [5:20] "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam ** see this dedicated post for original song links

arranged by: VoicePlay

My favorite bits:

the stomp sending Eli flying

everyone "watching" the UFO flyby and waving to it

the big wind-up before the others join Tony in rocking out

Earl's little chugging motions during Geoff's "ooga chaka" solo, that Layne then picks up for the next section

using the ♫ "goo-ood-byyye" ♫ as an actual exit line

Trivia:

This medley was part of their setlist for several years, including during the 2014 Sing-Off tour.

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title: Don't Stop Believin'

original songs / performers: [8:00] "Don't Stop Believin'"; [10:38] "Open Arms"; and [10:47] "Any Way You Want It" by Journey; [10:31] "Oh Sherrie" by Steve Perry

written by: all songs written by Steve Perry in collaboration – "Don't Stop Believin'" with Jonathan Cain & Neal Schon; "Oh Sherrie" with Randy Goodrum, Craig Krampf, & Bill Cuomo; "Open Arms" with Jonathan Cain; "Any Way You Want It" with Neal Schon

arranged by: Layne Stein & Geoff Castellucci

My favorite bits:

the rare pairing up of Geoff and Tony & Eli and Layne during the first set of harmonies

Earl giving the camera a pointed look

Geoff's growl note as everyone but Earl drops out

the stacking of the polyphony section

Trivia:

Contrary to the cameraperson's assertion, Earl did not "mess up" the melody. That's how VoicePlay's arrangement goes. It's intentionally different from the original Journey version that she was probably expecting.

VoicePlay had been performing this arrangement since at least 2009, when they were still going by 4:2:Five.

In 2016, they were the featured guests at Camp A Cappella, and recorded a video for this song with the campers.

They later recorded a full version of "Any Way You Want It" during the second round of their PartWork series.

For a couple years, Eli also sang with a Journey cover band called Raised On Radio in between VoicePlay gigs.

[universityhouse-tcu]

Easy Living for Busy Students

Apartment life should be simple, not stressful. Having your own space to relax after a long day makes all the difference. At University House TCU, you get the perks of private living with the convenience of student-friendly amenities. Balconies and patios give you fresh air whenever you need a break, and high-speed Internet keeps you connected without interruptions. No need to worry about finding a roommate—per-person contracts and roommate matching take care of that. Whether you want a cozy studio or a spacious four-bedroom setup, there’s an option that fits your lifestyle. Living in the best apartments for students in Fort Worth means less stress and more time for school, friends, and everything in between.

Neighborhood Vibes and Unique Districts in Fort Worth, Texas

Every part of Fort Worth has its own feel. If you want that classic cowboy charm, the Stockyards deliver with live rodeos, country music, and plenty of history. Sundance Square is the heart of downtown, with cool shops, restaurants, and a lively nightlife. Magnolia Avenue has a more laid-back, artsy vibe, where you’ll find coffee shops, local boutiques, and some of the best food in the city. West 7th is great if you’re looking for a mix of entertainment and upscale living. If you’re into history and architecture, Fairmount’s bungalows and tree-lined streets make it one of the city’s most charming spots. Each neighborhood offers something different, so whether you’re after energy, culture, or a quiet spot to relax, there’s a place that fits your style.

Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas

You don’t have to be an art expert to appreciate the Kimbell Art Museum. It’s one of those places where even the building itself feels like a work of art. Designed by renowned architect Louis Kahn, the museum has a peaceful, light-filled atmosphere that makes wandering through the galleries a calming experience. The collection isn’t huge, but it’s packed with masterpieces, from Michelangelo to Monet. They also bring in impressive temporary exhibits, so there’s always something new to see. Admission to the permanent collection is free, which makes it an easy choice for an afternoon outing. Whether you love classic paintings, sculptures, or just a quiet place to escape for a bit, the Kimbell delivers. It’s one of Fort Worth’s cultural gems, and it’s worth a visit.

Fort Worth Police Confirm Seizure of Sally Mann Photos From Museum, a Move Rarely Seen Nationally

The seizure of Sally Mann’s photos from the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth is unsettling, not just for the art world but for free expression as a whole. The images have been displayed in major museums for decades, yet now they’re suddenly being treated as evidence in a criminal investigation. That raises big questions. Is this about protecting children, or is it about censoring art? The fact that police took the works before a legal determination was made feels like a dangerous precedent. If officials can pull art from a museum based on public outcry, where does it stop? Controversy in art is nothing new, but outright removal without charges? That’s rare, and it’s worth asking what’s really driving this reaction—and what it could mean for artistic freedom moving forward.

Link to map

Kimbell Art Museum 3333 Camp Bowie Blvd, Fort Worth, TX 76107, United States Head north toward Darnell St 13 ft Turn right onto Darnell St 423 ft Turn right onto University Dr Pass by Chase Bank (on the right in 2.9 mi) 3.1 mi Turn left onto W Devitt St Destination will be on the right 56 ft University House TCU 3201 S University Dr, Fort Worth, TX 76109, United States

[clatterbane]

As already mentioned in this year's Honorable Mention post, the selections for Ramonesmas 2020 have been somewhat complicated by this year being the way it was.

[2020 Runner Up / 2019 Runner Up / 2019 Winner - with links to previous years’ installments]

Well, this year's Winner really mixes things up--by not being a cover of "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)" at all! Instead, I have chosen one other suitably Plague Timey collaboration.

(Thus the event suddenly turning into Ramonesmas 2020, too. 😊)

RAMONES 'BONZO GOES TO BITBURG' COVER - FEAT: OFFSPRING, MILLENCOLIN, INTERRUPTERS, FLATLINERS, ETC.

Published on 14 Oct 2020

This might not be the most famous song by the Ramones, but it's certainly my favourite! It's a masterpiece, from start to finish. The melody, the lyrics, the key change, and of course those epic sing along choruses. Was an honour to cover this one with some new, and old friends. - Mikey

If you would like to support the team that it takes to create these videos, please check out our Patreon Page here : https://www.patreon.com/mikeyandhisuke

Featuring: Nikola Sarcevic (Millencolin) Chris Cresswell (The Flatliners) Noodles (The Offspring) Justin Bivona (The Interrupters) Jesse Bivona (The Interrupters) Karina Denike (NOFX, Dance Hall Crashers, Karina Denike (solo), The Cottontails, Red Room Orchestra) Amy Gabba (Amy Gabba And The Almost Famous) Mikey Hawdon (Fairmounts)

Video Edited by Michael Crusty of Crusty Media Mixed and Mastered by Steve Rizun at Drive Studios Nikola audio recorded by Scott Lamb @movininstereo Amy Gabba audio recorded by Harley Tamblin at Acrylic Recording Karina Denike audio and videography by Desmond Shea

Special thank you to 'Mable Syndrome Podcast' for the help.

A little context (plus lyrics) for the Reagan-era original:

You might want to check out Mikey's YouTube channel, which I just discovered tonight myself.

Another feature along this particular theme, among the other Plague Time collaborations--plus loads of solo covers of everything from Willie Nelson to the Spice Girls?

Mikey And His Uke Vol 90 - 'She's The One' (Ramones Cover) Quarantunes Edition

Looking like a good bit of fun there! Especially if you have too much time on your hands, like yours truly. 👋

[larcenywrites]

The Boy Next Door

Chapter One: Suburbian Introductions

Warnings: she/her term used for reader | immediate thirsting |

Word Count: 3.9K

Masterpost

It was funny how something can look exactly like a memory, but be a new one entirely. The street was just as sun-bleached, once a smooth black, you were sure, but now a weathered grey starting to crack under the heat. Yellowing concrete ran alongside its old friend, separated by a generous strip of grass and backed with stretching lawns. It felt like you had just been here yesterday, except with every home that blurred past your passenger side window, this time you would never spot yours, and every turn only lost you in a maze much larger than the one you left behind. At least it wasn't one of those crowded suburban nightmares- the ones without foliage or even a yard of space between houses. Well, some of these bricks were still close together, but lines of trees provided some sense of seclusion from one another, and faux forests were left undisturbed to span an acre or two here and there. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Even the grass looked greener on this side of the fence. 

Or maybe the sodding here was just more expensive. 

Really. It wasn't so bad. The damper in your mood was just due to being on the road for the past six hours, and it was only ten in the morning. The rattle of your belongings behind you couldn't quite lull you into sleep anymore, especially when you were so close to, well, home. Instead, you laid your cheek against the cool glass of the car window, but even its rattling couldn't get you any further than staring at the darkness behind your eyelids. Speckles of reds interrupted your personal void, dappling in the shapes of the sunlight as it filtered between leaves and around towering chimneys. 

It was irritating, an inconsistent display of colors. Until it was all red. The string of trees that had provided some breakage from the hash morning light betrayed you. You sighed a bit dramatically, opening your eyes. You were met with tree stumps and turned-up dirt. The treeline hadn't ended- well, it had, but not by choice. Even these pristine yards had ugly stumps or unfilled holes, no longer quite as shielded from the road or their neighbors without those firs and oaks. Obviously, the uprooting hadn't been intentional, and it didn't give you very high hopes for your own yard. You could have had a better thought about it than weird, but a name you'd heard a few times now drifted by as the car turned down another street, catching your attention. Fairmount St read in white letters on a tidy green sign. Turns out, home had been right around the corner. The entrance to two short driveways lay next to one another and curled away as they trailed up a hill, each leading to their respective house. Between them was a close pair of mailboxes. The car made its turn, choosing the red one. 

"I swear there were still trees there last I was up here," your dad finally spoke up for the first time in a few hours, bringing the car to a slow. You followed his gaze to the space between the two brick houses. The evidence of a rooted-up treeline wasn't as obvious. There wasn't much ugly dirt and holes, but the ground was uneven, and only neighboring psychopaths wouldn't have separated the homes with some greenery to keep those facing windows private. 

"Hope we like our neighbors," you snorted. Your dad sighed, digging for that little remote in the center console that opened the garage. With a loud groan, one of the large metal doors began to rise, welcoming your car inside the coolness of the dark and rather cramped room. You'd only been here once a few months ago, being left at the house while your dad dropped off belongings and had furniture hauled whenever he had to come up here for business. You hoped it wouldn't look quite as lifeless as it once did.

Next to the car you sat in was a larger truck, currently blocking your view of the door that let inside. It was your dad's, dark blue and mostly used for his work. With another click of the button, the second door groaned open. As if to follow suit, your father opened his car door, eager to step out. "Okay, let's get these boxes out of here and I'll go get the rest with the truck," he directed before slamming the door shut without further comment. You sat there for a moment longer, but the car shifting and trunk opening were your cues to get out and help. You slid boxes from the low sitting back seat, guiding them straight to the concrete floor and pushing them aside to make room for the next, while your dad had a stack of three piled onto one another. Some of them were unlabeled, but you had made sure to mark your own and were already investigating each box. 

"Alright, I'll be right back." The rushed voice of your father called you to attention. "Can you get these inside?" 

"Probably," you shrugged, looking at him tiredly. You weren't in as much of a hurry as he was. He snickered. "Good enough." You watched him search his pockets for his keys before rushing to the driver's side of that midnight blue truck. 

"Oh, here's a house key," he exclaimed, reaching back into his pocket and holding out a silver key. You walked over to him, taking the key from his hands. As if you had freed him, he hastily walked back and climbed into his seat. You didn't even move as he pulled out of the garage, back on the road again. A newly painted black door now faced you in his absence, four little windows letting you peek in on a tan-colored wall. You quickly worked at the lock, eager to get these boxes inside so you could sit down somewhere much more comfortable than that car. The door creaked as you pushed on it, opening inward. You turned around, back to the job at hand. 

You really weren't sure which was which, but something told you to handle the not-so-stable tower under the open garage door. You'd have to move it anyway if you wanted a little more privacy. You tried to shift the boxes to be a little more even, but the lopsided heaviness of the top one only dragged and wavered the stack. As much moving as you'd done, your dad sure wasn't good at packing. You huffed, bracing yourself to slide it off. Nice and easy. You probably shouldn't have pushed toward the heavy side first, only considering it now that it was toppling down top first.

"Dammit," you cursed, hearing it echo against the tall brick wall and through the empty garage. There was hardly any time to cringe at the sound of clinking, a few items scattering through the flaps you'd failed to close back properly earlier this morning when you'd thrown something in. You watched in near horror as your father's small snow globe rolled out, and only gained momentum down the slight incline of your driveway. You couldn't bring yourself to even a brisk walk, instead following far behind and waiting for the raised pavement of the road to stop its rolling one way or another. But something, or rather someone, stepped in-- quite literally. You hadn't noticed you had an audience of one down by the pair of mailboxes until he was lurching into the base of your drive. Your steps faltered, already slow. You weren't afraid to approach, but you had to admit you weren't exactly prepped for any interaction right now. You watched your presumed neighbor bend down, effortlessly catching the snow globe that rolled into his palm. He somehow made standing up look attractive, inspecting the small decor with a few careful flicks of his wrist before his eyes followed its runaway path. His gaze landed on you. With a shameful smile that he was probably too far to even see, you hurried your pace, not wanting to keep him waiting. Mind blank the closer you got, you tried not to look down. 

A face straight out of a magazine watched your approach. Actually- was it straight out of a magazine? You swear you might've seen that face staring back at you somewhere, but your strained attention was needed elsewhere. A hand offered its lucky catch to you. You took it tentatively, taking care not to let your fingers bump even though you were probably the only one that would overthink it. The fake snow stirred dizzily in its dome. You could relate, pulse rushing past your warm cheeks and thoughts spinning to sort themselves out enough to decide what to say next. 

"Sorry," you meekly apologized for nothing. It was the easiest thing to break the awkward silence, and the easiest word to get out while you fumbled with the contents in your palm (and in your brain). The glass was scuffed from the impact but otherwise unbroken. 

"It's fine," a tired tone chuckled a bit awkwardly. It made you look back up at him. You couldn't get a read on his expression, but his lips were parted in an upcoming question. Inquisitive eyes flicked behind you, likely landing on the array of boxes. You took the split seconds opportunity to get an uninterrupted (and unashamed) study of his face again, taking note of the dark honeyed features standing bold against his paler complexion. 

"Do you, uh, need any help?" He suddenly spoke up again, his question slow with hesitation. Dark lashes fluttered when he glanced back. He stared down at you, either still with curiosity or concern in his hard-to-read brow. It probably looked like you were out here all alone, to be fair. Well, currently you are alone, and obviously struggling- in more ways than one. You weren't expecting to meet any neighbors at all, much less keep up any interaction. You had to glance away for a moment to come up with an answer that wasn't so flustered. 

"Oh, you don't have to. My dad will be back at some point," you trailed off, looking at the pile of boxed-up belongings. Lips still parted in search of a response, you turned back only for him to avoid meeting your gaze this time. The twitch of a frown was subtle, but enough to send a bolt of panic through your chest. Your veiled rejection hurt you just as much, if not more. Not that you didn't want an excuse to keep him around, but sometimes you were too nice for your own good. No, he didn't have to, but god did you want him to, even in your socially stunted state. Moving here was supposed to be full of new opportunities, and here you were, turning down your first one before you even got a chance to know where it could lead. Even if that was nowhere.

"But I guess I should still get everything inside, so," you quickly continued, trying to salvage his offer. Mocha eyes meeting yours again stopped you from blathering further. Especially when they so obviously drifted over your face and quickly dipped lower for further inspection. He backed up a few steps, the opposite of what you had wanted, but you couldn't exactly protest. Luckily you didn't have to. You'd been so tuned in to the voice coming from plush lips and the highlighted features of his face that you didn't even notice the stack of envelopes in his hand. He grabbed the small latch at the top of his mailbox, black and sleek next to your shiny red one, and slid the mail back in for safekeeping. 

"I mean, if you're busy, then..." you squeaked out suddenly, a shoulder raised mid-shrug. You weren't exactly sure why you said it. Your brain was receiving mixed signals, and at this point, you were probably giving him mixed signals too. He looked at you as he closed the small door. Your seemingly reserved neighbor wasn't the most expressive, but you could pick up on the amusement in that raised brow and slight the tug at the corner of his lips as he looked you up and down. "Really, I don't mind," he assured you, walking your way and brushing purposefully past you. He looked down at you beckoningly as he did. Though your heart was racing and your gulp was stuck in your throat, you were relieved that he was taking over, leading you back to your own house as if you were the stranger here... well, you were, weren't you? You followed behind, trying not to ignore the warm shiver he'd sent down your spine with something so simple. It was too early for this. You followed after him.

Once again, you took advantage of the opportunity that came with his preoccupied line of sight. He looked lean under that loosely fitted black tee that you were sure wasn't doing him much justice. Fit shoulders hidden under short sleeves cascaded into the curve of his half-visible biceps, and your eyes lingered on a peeking vein. You finally swallowed down that nervous gulp. You'd look away to clear your thoughts, but if you looked up, dark strands of hair curled messily against his neck, and if you looked down- well, let's just say you noticed something in the back pocket of his faded jeans. Your neighbor, who's being very nice right now and doesn't deserve to be part of one of your unhinged wet dreams right now, was undeniably hot. Maybe you'd stick to reading the red lettering that spelled out states and tour dates instead until you reached the garage again. 

You carefully picked up the toppled box, sitting it upright and carefully placing your father's snow globe back into its box. You quickly gathered the other knickknacks that had spilled out, cradling them in your arms and trying not to dump them into the box too harshly. You watched your current companion wandering around, taking note of the boxes while he waited for your instruction. You sighed, once again deciding where to start. He must have picked up on it, deciding to pick out the box he'd watched you struggle with earlier, and the one you'd just put that damned globe back into. You were already slacking, watching him lift the box against his chest instead of getting your own. You grabbed the nearest unlabeled box that, thankfully, wasn't as horribly packed. With a huff, you made your way toward the still wide open door. Hopefully the neighbors don't have any wandering cats. 

"These can just go in the living room," you chimed, instructing him to follow you. You walked into a boring beige hall that had yet to be adorned with pictures on the walls or decor on the faded blue sofa table. You kept following the stained wooden floors to a maroon-walled kitchen that was just as boring. You kept going a little further, sticking to the beige wall that led to its similarly colored living room, and the hardwood beneath your shoes turned cushier. It was mostly furnished, just as Dad had said. A cream-colored couch on one wall, two dark green recliners in the center shared a small table between them, and all shared a low glass table that sat in front of a large stand for the television. A stone fireplace nestled into the wall opposite the sofa, its barren oak mantel begging to finally be put to use. There was a thump from a box being heavily put to rest on the carpet, and you were just eager to put yours down too. Two down, five to go. Until your dad got home from the storage unit that is... The pair of you grabbed the last two boxes for the living room in silence. 

"These three are mine so," you trailed off, but surely the destination was implied. For some very unknown reason, you hesitated to say it, but your silence was excused while you tried not to struggle with yet another box. This time, you led him through the kitchen and down another hall, passing a large office along the way and a closed door that led to your bathroom. It felt longer than it looked. In hindsight, maybe it wasn't the best idea to invite a random guy into your house when your dad was gone, but he seemed harmless enough. Enough to make himself play good samaritan for the day, at least. He may have just been more nosey about who was moving in next door and, more importantly, nosey about their pretty daughter- not that you'd be upset by the latter! Maybe there was a joke to be had here about the awful plots at the beginning of pornos... 

You had to shake your head to yourself, sweeping away that thought before it could spiral. Now was definitely not the time for that as you walked into your bedroom. Your room was furnished and bare at the same time. An empty white desk faced the empty wall, and a dresser of the same color had a wall all to itself aside from the standing mirror next to it. Your coverless bed was nestled into an ornate wooden frame that sat between two curtainless windows. A small sofa, similar to the cream color of its larger cousin in the living room, sat on the dresser's opposite wall, your closet by its side. It looked much better now that there was some other colors and objects to even out the pale yellow wallpaper, lined with white columns and roses with connecting stems. When you first saw it, you'd considered scrapping it off and redoing it yourself, but it was growing on you now. Cute in a decade-old kind of way. Maybe it already felt like home, but that was easy when you'd been in a new bedroom a few times before. 

With a sigh, you looked over at your still unnamed acquaintance as you put down the heavy contents in your arms. He'd walked past you for more room, lost in his own study as he paused with his own box. The view from your window must have caught his eye. You could only see the thick curls of the back of his head, pretty eyes too busy staring through the panes for a few seconds longer than a simple glance would demand. To be fair, it was probably a little jarring to see your house from, well, another house like this. Especially so close, maybe twenty feet if you had to guess. For some reason, his curiosity made you antsy. 

"Dad said there used to be trees there," you broke the silence, capturing his attention again. He started to turn to you, lingering on the view for another second. He lowered his box onto the carpeted floor, looking thoughtful. Actually, he almost looked confused when he looked at you. Like he was processing what you'd even said. His lips were parted in a reply that took a few more seconds. 

"Oh- yeah," he started. There was a spark behind his eyes upon finally registering your comment, or from finally tearing out of whatever thoughts he'd been sifting through. "There were um, beetles or something in them." He said it with a soft rise in his tone, like he was stating a question. "They cut down a lot of trees around here, actually." He quickly glanced back to the window as if to prove his point, and what came back was a solemn look. That explains a lot.

"Yeah, I think I saw that on our way in," you thought out loud. "Thought it was pretty weird." You walked under your doorway, waiting for him to join you so you could retreat back to the garage. 

"It's pretty ugly, too," he said sarcastically. "We should have planted something else there by now." 

"How long has it been?" Your nervousness settled with such a normal conversation that could flow on its own. 

"A month, maybe?" He questioned himself. "Honestly, I didn't really think about it until now." He followed you back down the hall that would hopefully be filled with picture frames and decoration by tomorrow night. 

"My mom usually takes any opportunity to make something else into her garden," he tagged on fondly. "Maybe she'd even let you choose what to plant there." 

You laughed, stepping onto the gray concrete and making your way to the last box sitting next to the car. You would've come up with a reply, but you noticed him eyeing the box at your feet. "I can get this one." You tapped the box with the tip of your shoe. "It's just some plants." You looked back up at him, but he was reading the out-of-state license plate that still had yet to be replaced. 

He's an observant one. 

"What'd you move up here for?" He asked, meeting your stare with an innocent question in those big brown eyes. They made your pulse flutter again. 

"College," you started, hooking your fingers with one another to give yourself something to fumble with. "Um, MIT, actually," you awkwardly chuckled your choice of university. Not that it was a bad university, far from it, and you could tell it piqued a new interest behind those eyes. 

"Hey, no way, I go there too," he revealed.

"Really?" 

He nodded, humming to match. He crossed his arms, head tilting in cute curiosity and narrowed eyes giving you another once-over. He almost smirked, but it faded when his eyes darted away for a moment. His lips pursed in thought, and to suppress that sneaking grin. There was a shift in the mood and a pep in his stance as he leaned a little closer.

"Maybe I'll show you around sometime," he smoothly offered. That smirk from earlier was sneaking back in to curl at the corner of his lips. His tone was so confident, privileged even, like he was giving you an opportunity. For all you knew, he was. "Around campus, or around the town," he continued with a shurg. "I'd say the neighborhood, but it's not all that interesting," he said the last party quietly like an embarrassing secret with a shake of his head and a teasing grin that grew more with your smile. This sudden shift in demeanor didn't fly over your head, and neither did that suggestion. You already knew that you'd be damned to take him up on his offer, but damned if you didn't. Your teeth dragged over your bottom lip, debating, but it caught another audience in the quick flick of dark eyes. Even with burning cheeks that hopefully weren't noticeable and your tone shy again, you were confident in your answer. "I'd like that."

He accepted your answer without any change in expression other than flicking eyes studying yours, but he did take it as his cue to take his leave. "If you need anything," he trailed off, taking a few steps back. He paused. "I never got your name."

"(Y/N)," you replied without hesitation, smiling giddily at hearing it repeated in that honeyed tone.

"If you need anything, (Y/N), remember I'm right next door." Oh, you'd remember, alright. You realized as he was turning step to leave again that you hadn't thanked him, and you still hadn't learned his name.

"Thanks, uh-" 

He turned on his heels, still backing away. "Tony," he spoke his name so proudly, like he had been waiting for you to ask. It was the first smile you'd cracked from him, and hopefully not the last. Smug looked good on him. "Tony Stark." 

Previous<- ->Next

[21ate]

CLARIFYING PRINCETON

[google docs version]

so i wrote some stuff about emh again, but this time i think its actually a very necessary part of the story that needed to be discussed and clarified. this is very...very long. sorry!

~~~

The Princeton iteration of the everymanhybrid timeline is one of the hardest to consume, as dates and the chronological order of events is moreso implied through the context of the dialogue provided in the tapes rather than outright and plainly shown.

We know that the Fairmount era begins in 1971 with the first Corenthal Report, and ends in 1981 with the news that the last child of the mining town 4 had finally succumbed. We know that the Everymanhybrid era begins in 2010 when the youtube channel was created, and ends in 2018 with the deaths of Evan and Vinny.

We know that the Princeton era begins in December of 1987, just before Christmas, as evident in what Vinny tells us throughout the first few entries of the tapes. But...when did Princeton end?

It’s not as simple as just figuring out when Vinny himself died, because he isn’t solely reliable for when iterations begin and end. A big, very important part of it for sure...but Vinny has friends: Jeff and Evan. And to assume they died immediately following their disappearance from Vin’s life as described in TRAILHEAD would simply be jumping the gun a bit.

Why? Well the answer isn’t too hard. It’s because Evan was alive in 2005, and Habit used his body during the confrontation with Corenthal at Baldpate (described in house phone 2005, and referenced in an article from the microfilm collection). So what happened? How had Evan been alive in 2005? What happened to Jeff, Steph, and Vinny during the time period between 1993 (the year Vinny presumably died) and 2010? To answer this, we will need to cross reference between the Tapes, house phone 2005, and -.-. (the morse code video “C”) - as well as take a deep dive into the dates at which entries occur in the Princeton Tapes. In doing so, we will find a coherent timeline of events which will explain many details that before now have yet to really be discussed.

in the princeton iteration, vinny mentions that evan and jeff have disappeared on him (TRAILHEAD), and in the entry following (SHOPPING), he reiterates a sentiment about being abandoned...and ends with stating the Phillies won. if the listening order of these tapes is to be believed as entirely correct, then these two entries MUST take place before MOVIES, which we know was recorded in 1989 because that is the year Pet Sematary was released and when Vinny saw it.

lets take a look at the phillies 1983 and 1989 seasons. in 1983, the phillies won the national league east title. in 1989, it was the phillies 107th season. they did not win the title  - in fact, they placed last. they only played 163 games in the regular season; in the june 5th game against the pittsburgh pirates, the score was tied 3-3...however, rainy weather caused the game to be interrupted. thus, a replacement game was played at a later date. this would mark the last regular season tie game for the phillies as playing rules changed in 2007 allowing tie games to continue from the point of interruption at a later date. on june 8th 1989, against the pittsburgh pirates for the second time, the phillies won.

If the tapes begin in December of 1987, that only leaves a few years time between then and TRAILHEAD/SHOPPING. FRIENDS & GAMING takes place in 1988, which we know from the reference to that year’s presidential election with Dukakis. Thus, its pretty indisputable that Jeff and Evan must have disappeared between FRIENDS & GAMING in 1988 and TRAILHEAD/SHOPPING, 1989. With that being the case, we can then assume that Vinny was indeed referencing the June 8th Phillies win against the Pittsburgh Pirates, 1989.

So Jeff and Evan were gone from Vinny’s life before June 1989, but what happened to them?

The short answer: they had to have died at some point, of course. but we can get more specific than that. Let’s take a look at Jeff.

in -.-., jeff says, "nineteen years go by...you forget...for a moment i thought it was all real."

-.-. takes place in 2010 (we know this because evan states its been 5 years since corenthal and habits confrontation which we know for certain takes place in 2005.) 2010 - 19 is 1991. jeff may not necessarily be referencing how long he has been in the candleverse, but there is a connection worth making here. in box 7 there is a labyrinth books bookmark with dates written on the back, written by vinny presumably. 1989, 1990, and 1991 are present

1989 is crossed out, and 1990 and 1991 have a question mark to the side. there could be a few ways to interpret this, but my assumption is that this note was written in 1989 around the time vinny received the zine (explained in detail below:)

1989 is the year TRAILHEAD takes place, as we’ve figured out earlier. later entries will suggest they were recorded in close succession:

in trailhead, vinny's dialogue tells us that he had just sat down at the diner before pressing record, we're listening to his reaction to the zine and the girl in real time on a tape recorded in 1989. he talks about evan and jeff going dark on him, and ends by saying that he's going to find the girl to ask about the zine

in SHOPPING, vinny reiterates his current distress about feeling abandoned by those closest to him, obviously meaning evan and jeff again. he buys his groceries and ends by mentioning the 1989 phillies win (likely the june 8th game)

HOMELIFE is misplaced as entry 15, as the news report recorded on the tape is about hurricane hugo. this storm took place around september 1989.

if we assume the tapes are in order, this creates a discrepancy because in the next entry MOVIES, vinny sees pet sematary which came out in april 1989. shopping takes place around june 8th when the phillies won, and in movies vinny references back to the strangeness from "earlier this week", meaning the zine and the girl. thus, trailhead, shopping, and movies take place in the same week in june 1989 (and homelife, for some reason, is out of place. we can gloss over this though, i dont think it changes much)

So with that said, jeff must have died at some point in order for him to be present in the candleverse in 2010, pre-emh iteration. he could have died anywhere between 1989 to 1991, since we can't say for certain that his death was immediate, or even the direct cause of his absence.

so ev and jeff disappear around 1989. they may not have died immediately, only separated from vinnys life. in 1993, vinny dies and we know it must be around this time because he had been in contact with Davidson, whose law practice only just begun in 1993 (both versions of his death take place in the same time frame, per soft reset rules). in -.-., jeff talks about nineteen years going by. since this takes place in 2010, nineteen years prior would have been 1991. given that 1991 is written on the bookmark and made light of, and given all this concerns the iteration cycle, i think it'd be fair to say jeff died that year and entered the candleverse, two years before vinny bit the dust.

So, what about Evan?

evan was distanced from vinny around 1989 alongside jeff. vinny dies in 1993, and in one version of this event, its habit who kills him at fairmount. of course, habit was not using evans body to do so, instead apparently possessing doctor peters instead. that doesnt mean evan was out of the picture though, he simply wasnt what habit used in this particular instance to get at vinny and have him make the north star. this may be because habit was still ironing out the details of his grand scheme, with this particular method being a test of sorts. or, perhaps separately or in conjunction to this, habit planned to keep evan alive intentionally for whatever reason habit needed him for.

that reason, i conclude, would have been to get to corenthal. with jeff and vinny dead, and steph somewhere being irrelevant, habit and the other monsters all flocked to corenthal and plagued his life wherever he went. 3 deaths described in the microfilm collection, which contain news articles about corenthals activities from 1984 to 2005, match the MO for habit. the victims were described as all having been involved in an intense struggle with the assailant, one case "lasting a few hours, at minimum."

the articles in question are dated october 11th, 2002 and march 2nd, 2003

as far back as 1998, elizabeth was an active player as a psychic solving crimes through her special ability. as i said earlier, i had my doubts about her having been the offender to these crimes through habits actions. until 2005, elizabeth really is just a psychic, or at least she had been gifted her ability by one of the monsters for their own nefarious purposes. regardless though, she was not being controlled...yet. with that being the case, of course habit would have needed another vessel in the meantime.

on june 11th, 2005, elizabeth's place of business burns to the ground. on august 26th, corenthal had been set up by habit using elizabeth to lead him into a trap. we even know HOW habit did it: using elizabeth, s/he had contacted adam roberts. adam then relays the information to corenthal. according to house phone 2005, adam mentions the meeting a month prior to it occurring. thus, in july, elizabeth and adam decide to meet with corenthal in august and of course they do - except corenthal was lead to the wrong place.

corenthal encounters evan on a bench near the meeting place, a diner. This means evan is ALIVE at this point AND being possessed by habit, because in -.-. evan recalls being shot in the face. he recalls the confrontation that occurred, and he knows what year it took place and how long ago it happened relative to 2010, when -.-. was recorded. in true habit fashion, this encounter is brief as corenthal describes evan having been gone like he evaporated into thin air

corenthal gets to the diner and receives a call from elizabeth. this elizabeth is the real deal, and she calls to try and warn corenthal about having been set up. it was too late of course, and corenthal is ambushed by the patrons of the diner all possessed presumably by habit. corenthal struggles but manages to get out, heading towards baldpate now. he could hear sirens as he fled

at this point, elizabeth calls the house phone - now possessed by habit once more. habit mocks corenthal as elizabeth, "missed you at the diner, but you sure as hell bit it with me!", as if to imply corenthal intentionally skipped out on their meeting and had disappointed elizabeth in doing so. however, its pretty apparent the true intention is to mock him for falling for a trap. habit as elizabeth tells corenthal that s/he will see him at the park, obviously meaning balpdate to which corenthal would be currently fleeing to at the time of this call. we know this to be the order of events thanks to the inclusion of the siren detail and the order of habit/elizabeth and corenthals voicemail as they were recorded to the house phone.

we dont know what happened to elizabeth following this last bout of possession. it could be possible that habit brought her along to the park in addition to evan, given habit can and had just proven he could possess more than one body at a time and hop between them. however, i find it more likely that habit only confronted corenthal with evans body alone.

habit may have had company of a different sort, though. corenthal mentions that he felt like he was being watched, and his dialogue implies there being two distinct entities involved. the first, corenthal says, "knew it would end up like this", and corenthal says this shortly after mentioning evan from the bench again - therefore this is habit. the second entity corenthal describes as a "spectre" and the monster that took his children - Man, of course

whether man had any involvement with habit and corenthals confrontation is unknown, but we can at least say that he was around. corenthal and habit presumably have a fight, which for certain results in habit being shot in the face and corenthal ending up in the candleverse/eden

evans body dies there in 2005, leaving habit without him as a vessel in this plane of reality. with evan dead, the candleverse then had jeff and vinny and now evan. this aligns with what we see in -.-., the boys together while steph was nowhere to be seen. however, there is a five year gap between the events of 2005 and the candleverse conversation in 2010. this means steph was still alive, since the next iteration cannot begin until all four of them are in the candleverse...

Therefore, Steph had been alive since the Princeton iteration starting back in late 1987. the reason she lived so long? she never met vinny, evan, or jeff in the princeton iteration. or at least, she was distant enough from them to survive as long as she did. this reflects the nature of her role in that she does not have one, not like the boys do. she is different because she knew how to stay alive through ignorance. while we dont know the specifics of stephs relationship with man during the princeton timeline, it stands to reason that she was aware of him just like before during fairmount and after during the emh iteration. thus, her survival tactic of willful ignorance and aversion kept her alive for two decades.

Simply put, the Princeton iteration did not truly end until 2010, just before the beginning of the Everymanhybrid channel and its iteration cycle…

Making the Princeton era span a total of 23 YEARS. Jeff died in 1991, Vinny was next in 1993, Evan’s death is third in 2005, and around 2010, Steph perishes and the EMH Iteration begins.

Below I have written a more condensed timeline of events based on everything ive broken down here. There are a few details missing date-wise, but for our purposes we dont have to delve into them in order to understand with satisfying accuracy about what exactly happened in the years between 1987 and 2010.

DECEMBER, 1987: the princeton iteration begins.

BEFORE JUNE 8TH, 1989: jeff and evan disappear from vinnys life.

FIRST WEEK OF JUNE, 1989: vinny despairs over the loss of his friends in conjunction to the strange going ons of his life and a peculiar zine. trailhead, shopping, and movies all take place within this week.

AROUND 1991: jeff succumbs and appears in the candleverse.

BETWEEN 1989 AND 1993: tape 3 is recorded

DECEMBER 14TH, 1990: corenthal has a premonition about linnie heading off to find her siblings (noah release 1)

BETWEEN 1990 AND 1993: vinny encounters linnie (tape 3)

SOMETIME BEFORE OR AROUND 1993: vinny speaks to patrick andersen from mlandersen0 (tape 3).

AROUND 1993: vinny dies at fairmount, joining jeff in the candleverse. evan and steph remain alive at this time.

JULY 22ND AND JULY 23RD, 1995: corenthal encounters milo asher.

SOMETIME AFTER 1995: corenthal sends the piece of cloth found by milo’s house to his colleague adam roberts, who then creates the black box device.

BETWEEN 1989 AND 2002: evan is possessed by habit at some point, maybe as the reason for jeffs death in 1991, and go after corenthal alongside man and the rake.

OCTOBER 7TH, 1998: an article is published regarding elizabeth solving her first case.

BETWEEN OCTOBER 1998 AND JUNE 2005: corenthal discovers elizabeth and writes to adam roberts to listen for her name on the news, claiming she can help

MARCH 22ND AND JUNE 11TH, 1999: elizabeth solves two more cases.

OCTOBER 11TH 2002 AND MARCH 2ND, 2003: habits MO is apparent in three deaths following the appearance of corenthal at the homes of two families.

AROUND 2002 :elizabeth starts teaching classes at bucks county community college.

ON JUNE 11th 2005: an article is published regarding elizabeths place of business burning down

JULY, 2005: elizabeth is possessed by habit and using her body, s/he contacts adam roberts to arrange a meeting with corenthal in august. soon after speaking to a possessed elizabeth, adam roberts leaves a voicemail for corenthal telling him of the meeting.

AROUND AUGUST 26th 2005: corenthal heads out to his presumed meeting with roberts and elizabeth - only to find out he has been set up by elizabeth (habit). he sees evan, whose body is still alive at this time. habit has control over evan, and ultimately he and corenthal have a confrontation at baldpate. corenthal shoots him, killing evans body but not habit, and corenthal ends up in the candleverse/eden

AUGUST 2005: evan dies, joining vinny and jeff. This makes steph the sole survivor for the time being.

2010, PRE-EMH: evan jeff and vinny meet around a cluster of candles as seen in the video -.-.. evans dialogue suggests that while he had died in 2005, it hadnt been until 5 years later in 2010 that he has been able to meet up with jeff and vinny together properly since his death. further dialogue in -.-. suggests that steph is still missing from their group. presumably this means she hadnt been killed yet. jeff remarks about having no idea they were even looking for her, which falls in line with the idea that steph was not around the boys much if at all during their time alive in princeton, further solidified by her...well, lack of existence in the tapes.

BETWEEN 2005 AND 2010: before the start of the emh iteration but after evan died and came to the candleverse, evan and jeff work together making trips to a powerline in order to have a chance at making contact with the outside world (as in, us the audience).

this results in the phantom tweet telling us to stop watching, which appears in 2011. vin is of course dead at this point too, but its apparent that meeting up is risky and kept to a minimum. it may not be intentional that vin isnt present here, but jeff and ev WOULD have good reason for excluding vinny from this particular plan of theirs, given that vinny is the cog that powers the emh iteration (and a lot of what happens before too, frankly). perhaps they couldnt trust him, which would make sense since at this point, ev and jeffs recent memories of vinny would be from the princeton era and fairmount + whatever glimpses they get when they bump into one another in the candleverse. vin's involvement with their plan could cause a hinderance, and they wouldnt want that to happen

also note that jeff and evans powerline plan is also something corenthal is closely involved in, at least as shown in the day the world ended (2018). i dont think its too much of a stretch to imagine he was also involved in coming up with the plan years prior, between 2005 and 2010. this further highlights vinny's absence in the general affairs of the candleverse, despite the fact that he had been around since 1993. again, theres credence to believe he was intentionally excluded by jeff, evan, and corenthal

AROUND 2010: steph dies and rejoins the boys, and with all four now in the candleverse, the princeton iteration finally comes to an end.

MARCH 21st, 2010: the everymanhybrid channel uploads their first video - marking the beginning of the emh iteration

MARCH 17TH, 2011: the unsigned phantom tweet sent out by Jeff and Evan from the powerline tower in baldpate finally surfaces

STATS:

FAIRMOUNT: 1971 to 1981 (10 years) PRINCETON: 1987 to 2010 (23 years) EVERYMANHYBRID: 2010 to 2018 (8 years)

Steph lived the entire 23 year period for the Princeton era. Evan lived 18 years. Vinny lived 6 years. Jeff lived 4 years.

Jeff spent the longest amount of time in the candleverse post-Princeton at 19 years. Vinny spent a total of 17 years. Evan spent 5 years. Steph spent less than a year.

[dreampoetforhire]

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you a Dream Poet posing in a field full of cherry blossoms. Thank you for watching. This has been a daily reminder to go out and enjoy the Earth poetry in nature. (at Fairmount Park Horticultural Center) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cb_HPHnJxUH/?utm_medium=tumblr

[violetcottontail]

WELL HERE'S PART 1, YOU'LL GET PART 2 WHEN THE EDITORS STOP FUCKING UNIONIZING EVERY TIME I TURN MY BACK

- ♡

PART TWO ADDED FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE.

- ♡

[dusudaunord]

Things to do in Montréal from May 12 to18

We’ve been celebrating Montréal’s 375th anniversary since January, but this week marks the city’s official birthday party and kick-off of springtime activities! We’re also celebrating Mother’s Day in style, the 50th anniversary of Expo 67, a new Cirque du Soleil show and more.

Celebrate Montréal’s 375th birthday!

On May 17, it’s official: the city of Montréal is 375 years old! Watch the 375th anniversary ceremonies starting at 8 a.m. outside city hall – listen for the bells of Oratoire Saint-Joseph on the other side of the city to ring at 8:45 a.m. – followed by a multi-faith mass at Notre-Dame Basilica, a ceremony at Place d’Armes, and later that night the premier of multimedia show Montréal Avudo in the Old Port at 8 p.m. and the illumination of the Jacques-Cartier Bridge at 9:45 p.m. accompanied by the Orchestre Métropolitain, plus a massive Bonne Fête Montréal concert at the Bell Centre. Another major 375th project: La Grand Tournée weekend events, presented by innovative circus company Cirque Éloize, begins May 12 and runs throughout the summer and in every neighbourhood, from group picnics in the park and green alleyway tours to circus shows and cinema under the stars. Visit the Parc des Rapides in the LaSalle neighbourhood for the Rhythm of the Rapids historical performance on May 12-13. And take a tour of Canadian warship HMCS Montréal, stationed in the Old Port later this week.

Celebrate moms!

Show your mom how much you care this Sunday by making her Mother’s Day a joyful and extravagant one. Numerous restaurants offer special Sunday brunch menus, including the Ritz-Carlton, Restaurant Tandem, Restaurant Helena, Les Cavistes, Chez Alexandre and Industria Brasserie Italienne and more brunch favourites Tapas 24, Mercuri, Nolana and Madre. Or try different brunches from around the world or dine at new Montréal restaurants. See the city sights and eat well too on Montréal’s best food tours and relax with a cup of tea at Montréal’s tea houses. Give mom the gift of a luxurious spa day at an internationally renowned spa. If you’re coming to the city with kids, check out the many fun things to do for families in Montréal, including the incredible likenesses of celebrities at the Musée Grévin wax museum (free for moms on May 14!) and Chagall: Colour and Music at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, with free tea and cookies on Mother’s Day plus hands-on kids workshop Chagall’s Little Box. Or spend Sunday afternoon in Mount-Royal Park with a violin and piano concert at 3 p.m. in the Mount Royal Chalet.

May flowers

Take a walk through the Botanical Garden‘s blooming grounds and tropical greenhouse and follow avian experts through the Biodôme during Bird Fest at the Montréal Space for Life. Meanwhile, downtown’s Place des Festivals is awash in colour at the music-making 21 Swings installation and Maëstro interactive digital orchestra and water fountains, part of this year’s Digital Spring art-meets-tech creations, as well as Québec-style “Kitchen parties” May 12-14. Two more signs of spring: the return of Montréal’s food trucks and street food and 18 shades of gay ball floating above Sainte-Catherine Street in the Village – this year instead of their original pink hue, they’re a rainbow of colours! Walk up Saint-Laurent to see bright building-sized murals, pop by Place Riopelle in Old Montréal to step aboard the future of public transit at the Place au Transport Expo May 15-16, or take a walk off the beaten path to discover welcoming and wonderful quirky spots in Montréal. Find out more about free things to do this Spring in Montréal, from art galleries to outdoor activities.

Bonus anniversary: Expo 67

Montréal celebrates the 50th anniversary of Expo 67 with entertaining and history-rich exhibitions: see colourful outfits and products created by Québec designers at the McCord Museum’s Fashioning Expo 67; photographs tell the tale in The Sixties in Montréal: Archives de Montréal at City Hall; marvel (and maybe laugh a little) at the technological innovations of EXPO 67: A World of Dreams at the Stewart Museum and Écho 67 at the nearby Buckminster Fuller designed Biosphère; baby boomer youth culture is a blast in Explosion 67 – Youth and Their World at the Centre d’histoire de Montréal, and it’s all about  ’60s artistic expression in the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts’s Révolution: “You say you want a revolution” and the Musée d’art contemporain’s In Search of Expo 67. Photography exhibition Aime comme Montréal celebrates the city’s diversity in an installation at Place des arts. Old Montréal landmark Notre-Dame Basilica, one of the city’s most stunning churches, lights up with beautiful high-tech spectacle Aura, while the surrounding streets are illuminated by the historic tableaux projections of Cité Memoire.

On stage

Prepare to be stunned by the incredible acrobats, dancers, parkour experts and motor bike athletes of Cirque du Soleil’s VOLTA, under the big top in the Old Port of Montréal. A visual and musical spectacle, Russian performance artist Slava Polunin’s Slava’s Snowshow wows at Theâtre St-Denis to May 14. At Centaur Theatre see Clybourne Park, a neighbourhood drama tracing racial tensions in Chicago, and hilarious and heartwarming Bed & Breakfast; The Segal Centre presents true family story How to Disappear Completely and hit musical Million Dollar Quartet, the true rock ‘n’ roll story of Sam Phillips, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley (moving over to Place des Arts May 17-21 for an extended run); and Aboriginal Spring of Art THREE presents Productions Ondinnok’s dance/theatre performance El buen vestir-Tlakentli May 10-12 at Monument-National. As part of Montréal’s winter-spring dance program: Flamenco Fascination takes us on a colourful, energetic journey inspired by the gypsy passion of Andalusia, at Place des Arts May 16; vibrant, emotional dance and music merge in a show by virtuoso Spanish guitarist José Vega and his Flamenco Company May 17 at Place des Arts; see Dominque Porte’s Conte de faits, family-friendly short danced tales inspired by the poetry of Jacques Prévert and drawings of René Magritte at Agora de la danse May 12-13; and on May 13, NYC dancer-choreographer Heather Cornell and musician Antonio Vilchez present Making Music Dance with African and South American rhythms, a free event at St. Jax church, followed by collaborative event  Heartbeats, bringing musicians and dancers from Montréal, NYC and Peru together. Also on May 13, House of Laureen Drag Cabaret hosts a wild and wacky fundraiser for the Festival St-Ambroise Fringe de Montréal.

Art and film

Along with the wonderful exhibition CHAGALL: COLOUR AND MUSIC at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, see deeply moving work by foremost Mexican artist Teresa Margolles and Québec artist Emanuel Licha’s Now Have a Look at This Machine documentary installation at the Musée d’art contemporain and Mexican artist Gilberto Esparza’s biotechnical art exhibition Plantas autofotosintéticas at Galerie de l’UQAM. British artist Ed Atkins poses questions on human bodies, digital creation and reality in video exhibition Modern Piano Music at DHC-ART. Never Apart‘s Spring Exhibition features Two-Spirit Sur-Thrivance and the Art of Interrupting Narratives. Pointe-à-Callière archaeology and history museum presents the fascinating Amazonia: The Shaman and the Mind of the Forest. The Cinémathèque québécoise’s Fête du cinéma screens restored masterpiece Thirty Years of Motion Pictures with piano accompaniment as well as new films by Sébastien Laudenbach and Philippe Falardeau, Frailty in tribute to Bill Paxton, and more May 12-13, all for $10. Travel through virtual worlds in Felix & Paul Studios Virtual Reality Garden at the Phi Centre. Get immersed in new space-exploration double feature KYMA – Power of Waves and Edge of Darkness at the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium, or in electroacoustic A/V performance Électro-Acrylique and the high-tech 360° visuals of Orbits at the Satosphere surround-sound dome to May 13, followed by audiovisual wonders / IS //// IS ////// and Plateaux May 16-19.

Live music

On Friday, discover the world’s finest young pianists at the Concours musical international de Montréal in a major gala concert May 12 at Place des Arts, or see Irish singer-songwriter Gavin James at Cabaret Lion D’or, pop-rock artist Perfume Genius at Théâtre Fairmount, heady indie musician Nick Hakim at Bar Le Ritz P.D.B. or dance to house music by Ben Vedren, Ohm Hourani, Nicolas Kehl and Owly. The eclectic and multidisciplinary Festival Accès Asie coincides with Canada’s Asian Heritage Month – this week featuring musical performance Les préoccupations et les attentes on May 12, the opening of Serendipity art exhibition at the MAI and Indian music concert La magie du Mohan-Veenaon on May 13, and the Golestan (“flower garden”) concert of Syrian and Turkish music on May 18. Meanwhile, Distortion Psych Fest gets heavy with PyPy, We Are Wolves, Co/ntry and many more bands May 12-14 at Église S-E-J du Mile-End and l’Escogriffe bar, plus Le Marché psychédélique printanier afternoon psych-themed market on March 13. On May 13, Bernard Labadie conducts Les Violons du Roy, La Chapelle de Québec and outstanding soloists in Purcell’s King Arthur at Maison symphonique. Saturday also brings German electronic artist Boris Brejcha to Théâtre Fairmount, singer-songwriter Laura Marling to Théâtre Corona, and celebrated German electronic producer Paul Van Dyk to New City Gas.

On Sunday, the Orchestre Métropolitain continues its Bruckner cycle with Symphony No. 1, accompanied by harpist Valérie Milot at Maison symphonique, CJ Ramone (of The Ramones!) plays Foufounes Electriques and experimental music collective Wrekmeister Harmonies plays Bar Le Ritz P.D.B. Opéra de Montréal, Place des Arts et Le Sac à Dos present Humanitudes – Opéra de rue and a performance by singer Marie-Josée Lord at Cinquième Salle on May 15. If you’re into Russian and Norwegian pagan metal, then you’re into Arkona and Sirenia at L’Astral on Tuesday night – Swedish metal guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen also happens to be in town that night at Théâtre Corona. On Wednesday, singer-songwriter Lewis Watson comes to L’Astral.

Up next:The Giants by Royal de Luxe

  The post Things to do in Montréal from May 12 to18 appeared first on Tourisme Montréal Blog.

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[livinginlandmarketing]

By Donna Kennedy

Contributing Columnist

My 13-year-old grandson hates to write. He’d rather play Roblox Starscape online, explore Fairmount Park on his bicycle or start a monologue that begins with “Imagine that …” and ends with an idea for a futuristic device. I tell him he could be a science fiction writer.

Donna Kennedy, a features writer for The Press-Enterprise and a former writing instructor,has a grandson who’s showing writing talent. (Courtesy of Donna Kennedy)

“Bruh,” he growls. A blank screen or blank paper is a personal enemy.

This is tough on us, the writer grandparents who have raised him and his twin sister for the past eight years. His sister, by the way, dashes out her writing assignments with alacrity. They may not be as elaborate, but they are exactly what the teacher ordered.

Their required writing began with thank-you notes, a big job since their New Year’s birthdays come right after Christmas and their loving relatives are generous. We wrote the brief notes together when they were 5 and could first sign their names. “What did you like best about the toy?” we’d ask. Now they value their independence, so we don’t even read the letters, except to check addresses for legibility. We do get feedback: My cousin said our grandson drew a picture of the Lego tank that she sent. Grandma reported he’d listed every gift she gave him, and Grandpa liked his letter written on a paper airplane.

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Sometimes writing is easier than speaking, especially when an apology is needed. An “I’m sorry” note under the door does wonders for family relationships, which can be especially fragile during the pandemic (and adolescence).

The strange thing is that our grandson, when he finally gives in, writes with imagination, specific detail and a sense of humor. When we asked him to compare summer camps from 2019, he concluded:

“Each of the camps had good things, but, to my word, Camp Seely is better. You get a better sense of common sense, knowledge, and you make more friends (if you know how to). Every day you wake up to the fresh scent of forest and nature, the song of birds, and the howl of the counselors for you to wake up.”

Once he starts, don’t interrupt. He’ll write for an hour or more, turning out two or three pages instead of the required one.

Reading his handwriting is tough, though I usually can do it, given my own scribbles. To him, the first draft is the finished copy. “Why do I have to write it again?” he growls, despite his indecipherable handwriting, inventive spelling, random capital letters and neglect of punctuation.

Nevertheless, he ended his virtual seventh-grade year at Riverside’s Central Middle School in triumph, after reading his final project aloud in Language Arts:

“I wake up in a house, the walls made of a type of tree I’ve never heard of, with a fireplace and people sitting around it, like in the memory about love and holiday I had, but this time it’s different for three reasons. One, everything is real. I can tell from how everything is shaded, and how I can control where my body is. Two, I can feel the ache in my back, and my head throbbing with the pain of a fever. Last, but not least, the people sitting on the recliners in front of me look worried, or serious, and have been talking with words like “me” and “I,” which would be against the rules in my society. … ” (Our grandson’s ending for “The Giver” by Lois Lowry was slightly off-topic, but appreciated none-the-less.)

His teacher responded, “You may have the potential of becoming a writer.”

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I agree, for sometimes he dashes off a tale on his own. On a day when he was banned from online gaming—and the next book in the “Rot & Ruin” series by Jonathan Maberry had not  yet arrived at the Robidoux Library— he disappeared into his room and closed the door. An hour later he emerged to announce with some pride: “I’m writing a diary. It’s fiction. Survival during a zombie apocalypse.”

“Day 1⅔:  I woke up in the middle of the night to a high-pitched scream. It sounded VERY close. I got out my airsoft shotgun, filled with metal bb’s. There was thumping. It got closer, and closer. I was alert now. I stood up and shook off my sleeping bag. The door opened. I thought ‘Zombies can’t open doors,’ and my friend P—— came into the room.

He yelled ‘WHO ARE YOU? Oh, B—-??? Are you infected?’

I responded ‘No, why should I be? I’m not walking around gurgling, am I?’”

And there you have it, a temporary happy ending to my grandson’s latest writing project. I can’t wait for the next installment. Will he and his friends survive the zombie apocalypse? Will he keep writing? I’d bet money on it.

Donna Kennedy writes flash fiction and memoir, including “Queen of the Salton Sea: Helen Burns and Me” (Sagebrush Press, 2018), which she wrote with her husband, Bill Linehan. In the past, she wrote features for The Press-Enterprise and taught writing at UC Riverside’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and San Bernardino Valley College.

-on June 12, 2021 at 04:00AM by Contributing Writer

[violetcottontail]

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HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY YOU FILTHY ANIMALS <3

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this is how i image dms look like after the poll

also sorry for nsfw text

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Going to the sanctuary to see some rabbits today. Heard there's a new breed in, called slop bunnies.

Slop bunnies nutz.

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Hey looks who's alive!!

*COUGHS AND SNEEZES ON YOU*

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hello silly man.