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jazziehart · 9 months

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New Year, New Beginnings

Hello to all of my lovely readers/followers,

As you may have noticed I have taken a fairly long hiatus from Tumblr. I've decided to use this account as what Twitlonger used to be for me which is to post lenghty things that don't just fit on my account so, I will be posting here a lot more frequently come 2024 with lots of new and exciting content, especially regarding the Sims verse so if you're a fan, please stick around.

What can I say, 2023, for me was truly the year from hell. There were so many wonderful things that occured throughout the year (mainly the concerts and movies I got to attend especially the Eras Tour) but for the vast majority of the year I found myself enthralled in a deep depression like I had never had before.

The reason for said depression, sadly isn't a new one I've had in my life, people decided to say untrue things about me which blindsided me. Especially since it came from people who had barely spoken to and hadn't met before.

I was incredibly fortunate to have friends who stood by and defended me against these allegations saying it was something I would never do which I greatly appreciate that the vast majority of people I've met could speak to my character in a great way.

However, that incident and others since then in what is known as the ORG (Online Reality Games) community became a place of toxicity to me which has led to me going on an indefinate hiatus from being a part of any of those games ever again.

Unfortunately, what became apparent to me as time went on was in order to get away from it, I would have to let go of most social media platforms I was using which is where this post really comes into play.

For my new beginnings of 2024, I decided to focus a lot more on myself and the things I love rather than be a part of fandoms that I have felt were incredibly toxic. So, with that being said, this is kind of my goodbye post to the ORG community, at least for now.

To the friends I've made along the way,

I'm still willing to talk more through messaging via twitter or instagram but I will no longer be using Skype or Zoom. My reasons for this is just because I want to get away from the community, not from all of you. I just know many of you are embedded in the community and I don't want to be a downer who complains if you talk about it since you guys love it. For me, it's no longer a safe space or at this point a space I intend to be a part of in any way, so if you could please respect that.

Another new beginning I'm going to start in 2024, is to focus on making videos. I know I promised videos in the past and haven't delivered and I sincerely apologize for that but my life itself has been chaotic with a lot of medical and physical issues besides the mental and emotional ones.

I will be starting a few Sims series following an Eras Legacy Challenge (Something I am curently testing out before I officially post the rules because yeah I'm a perfectionist) as well as the long awaited Quinn Fabray series I promised you all.

I also will try to do an outfit haul of the many gorgeous pieces I own that were worn by Quinn Fabray. If you want me to recreate any scenes let me know, I may do them over TikTok or YouTube depending on the lenght.

I also will be focusing on my writing which is something that has brought me so much joy. I'm probably unfortunately going to abandon the projects I have been working on and will be completely starting a new.

Gleewrite and Twins Fabray will be making a comeback but in a very different way than I had started them. Sorry for the long rambly article you have to read but I felt I wanted to update everyone on what I'm hoping to focus on.

Here's to 2024 being a good year.

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anonquack · 3 years

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| Chef Q |

Alex Quackity x Reader, Oneshot, Requested by: @anotherdreamsimp !!

Word Count: 3328

Warnings: Some curse words, mainly just some fluff !

Summary: Quackity hasn't been streaming recently, and decides to come back with a cooking stream. Featuring you as a special guest.

Lately, Quackity had been studying like crazy for his final exams. That meant no streaming. He'd take a break from it to focus entirely on his studies. Absolutely nothing else.

He claimed to have his priorities straight, and had the goal to pass all exams with high scores in order to keep his grades looking wonderful.

This also meant there was rarely any time spent between you two, beside the occasional snack breaks you forced him to take so he wouldn't die at his desk.

It was tough not being able to show him a random video you'd found on the timeline, or walking up to chat with him whenever you wanted, but you knew this was very important to him. So you gladly supported him and offered as much support as possible.

Thankfully, all of his studying paid off and he passed with flying colors. A teacher had even informed him that he'd received the top score for one of his final exams.

You were the first person to hear the news, and you couldn't help but feel the adoration coursing through your body at how excited he was to tell you. Jumping up and down and shaking you lightly as he told you about his scores.

You'd offered to take him out for a celebratory meal, to treat him for all his hard work and also since you missed the fun outings with him. There was no way he was saying no to that.

—

After a day out and about, you two had made your way back home. Both of you were pleasantly full, having enjoyed the meal and also dessert. His request, for "doing so well on his finals." How could you possibly deny him that?

You both were also very content, a warmth and comfort surrounding the air around you two the entirety of the outing.

One thing that was impossible not to notice was how he'd become exceptionally clingy as soon as you two were out of the car. Gripping onto your hand tightly as you singlehandedly unlocked the front door.

"I've missed you so much these past few days." He murmered as you finally got the door to open and pulled him inside.

"I've missed you too." You hummed softly. It was always nice hearing him say these things. You locked the front door, and gently pulled at his hand to lead him back to your room.

It didn't take much of a pull for him to willingly follow you. "Can we cuddle or something?" He asked softly, almost as if he was a bit embarrassed to ask. You turned to him and gave him a grin, along with a small nod.

You'd missed him, even if you two had been in the same apartment this whole time. You'd especially been missing cuddles with him, considering he studied pretty much all day. There wasn't enough time being shared together so you gladly agreed to some cuddling.

Sooner than later, you two found yourselves in your pajamas, laying in bed peacefully as you scrolled through tiktok, screen tilted in order for him to see as well. It really was so nice finally being able to be this close to him again.

After some time, you found yourself looking through tweets on the timeline. A certain one caught his attention and he asked you to stop scrolling.

It was a tweet from a fan, saying they missed Quackity since he hadn't streamed in two weeks, but that overall they hoped his tests were going fine.

"Has it really been 2 weeks?" He asked aloud as he clicked on it and looked through the replies, all agreeing with the original tweet.

"Mm.. two and a half, I think." You answered, looking at him curiously as a guilty expression appeared on his face.

"Hey." You called out once you saw the expression wasn't leaving. He turned to you with a small frown.

"It's fine. You had a good reason for being gone so long. I'm sure they understand. Plus, you'll be back soon, right?" You asked, to which he nodded before sitting up from the cuddling position you two were in.

You sat up as well, noticing how his eyes widened slightly, and a small smile made its way onto his face.

"I just got a great idea." He exclaimed. "Y'know, I was going to just spend the next few days with you since I missed you but– how about we stream something together? That way I can enjoy both, and the fans get a stream too."

You stared at him in surprise. The fans did know he was dating someone, but you rarely ever came out on streams, not because he didn't want you to but because you didn't deem it to be necessary.

The few times you had been on, you'd received tons of love and support from the chat, so you didn't think anything too bad would happen if you were to appear on his stream again.

"What did you have in mind?" You asked curiously. The other times you'd been on were him playing horror games and an extremely scuffed IRL stream.

"Well.. I haven't done a cooking stream in a while." He began, but you quickly shook your head.

"Oh no. Don't tell me you're going to make us eat some monstrosity‐ like your past cooking streams." You visibly shuddered at the thought. You remember having to help clean up the mess after. And no matter how funny it had been, the actual cleanup was awful.

"No no– I was thinking maybe we do a serious one, y'know? Chat hasn't really been able to see my cooking abilities, and well.. I'd say I am pretty good at it." He grinned. He was unfortunately right.

You relaxed at the mention of it being a 'serious' cooking stream. It could never really be too serious when it came to Quackity, but it meant not eating dog food or poorly made pizza. You were in.

"So we'll make an actual.. edible.. meal?" You questioned again, just to be sure. To which he nodded.

"Yeah, and we can enjoy that meal after. Like a date. What do you say?" He was beaming. It was his creativity rolling in. And he was probably so proud of himself for finding a way to spend time with you yet also give chat the stream content they'd been missing out on.

"Alright. I'm in."

You hadn't seen him this eager to get out of bed and head to the grocery store ever before. Chat was really in for a fun stream tomorrow.

—

He'd tweeted it out several hours before you two planned on starting the stream that he'd be streaming today with a special guest, and that he had his chef hat ready to go.

As you scrolled through Twitter you could see the timeline freaking out over 'COOKING STREAM' and 'SPECIAL GUEST'. Lots of discussion over who it was.

You couldn't help but feel a bit bad since the fans were probably speculating that he'd met up with his online friends, but in reality it was just you. In that case, you'd try your best to make this a fun stream, and your presence an enjoyable one.

As the time for the stream to start got closer, you helped him set the ingredients you'd be using onto the table, in a way where it was in perfect view for the stream to see and follow along if they wished.

"We're supposed to start in 5." You called out as he slipped his beanie on, fixing the few hair strands that were sticking out a bit too much.

He smiled and made his way over to you, cupping your face and giving you a small kiss. "I'm so excited to do some cooking with you. They're all going to love you."

You couldn't help the warm feeling that spread over your chest at his words. It was like introducing you all over again. He'd recently gained a lot of new followers, and that meant they probably had no idea who you were. Always fun going through that again.

He dealt with some last minute editing and placing, checking all ingredients were there and that everything was set, before hitting the 'Go Live' button.

It didn't take long for the viewers to increase after the tweet notification went out, and the starting soon screen was the only thing really protecting you two from the roaring chat.

Everyone was dying to know what was going on, who the special guest was, and whether this would be yet another scuffed cooking stream.

You stood behind the camera as the starting soon screen finally disappeared and he began greeting the viewers, thanking all the subs coming in, and eventually also giving them a little update on how he'd done on his exams.

You felt so proud as you watched him boast about how his studying had paid off, and how he talked about being the happiest he'd been in a while. He deserved all of it. And chat thought so too.

After some rambling about his test scores and what they'd be cooking today, chat finally became too impatient and asked for a reveal of the special guest.

"Fine. Fine. Since you guys are so fucking impatient." He huffed, watching as chat flew by, telling him to 'get on with it' and to 'TELL US WHO IT IS'. You couldn't help but laugh at the relationship he had with his chat. Always bullying each other but usually knowing when to stop and send love.

"I've actually had them on multiple other streams, not so much recently.. but they've been on my horror streams.. some IRL streams.. and they are really really special to me, chat!" He said with a big smile. Some of chat was confused as to who he was referring to, while older fans began to question if it was YOU. They were very smart.

"Some of the viewers might not know of them, so this is like I'm introducing them to chat all over again! Come over here." He finally directed the last part at you. You couldn't help but feel the sudden spike in anxiety, but chose to ignore it as you smiled back at him and headed into the frame beside him.

With a small wave and a greeting, you watched as chat completely broke. A mess of question marks and your name being spread in chat. You couldn't help but laugh. It was an overwhelmingly positive reaction as Quackity explained to new viewers that you were his partner, and that older fans were already aware of this for a while now.

The amount of 'y/n our beloved' and people asking if quackity's partner was single were abundant in chat, and you couldn't help but feel stupid for thinking the newer viewers would hate you or something.

Having the approval of Quackity's chat also made you feel lighter, it made it easier to let go and just enjoy the cooking stream.

You two began to explain what you'd be cooking to chat, and you made it very clear that he actually had to try and cook this time, to which chat agreed wholeheartedly.

He'd taken a recipe from his mom for one of his favorite meals, one he hadn't had in a while. He explained to chat that he wanted to see how well you and him could recreate it until you two took a trip to visit his family.

"Hopefully we don't disappoint her too much." You mumbled as he placed the chef hat onto your head, fixing it so you looked presentable.

"She can't be because we're actually gonna try." He stated before beginning to explain to chat what the meal was since many of them might not have even heard of it before. As he did that, you began to set aside the ingredients you wouldn't be needing until later.

After everything had been explained, it was time to get cooking. His concentration to try and recreate his mom's recipe was adorable, and chat agreed on that too.

This stream wasn't loud and messy like the others, but it was still enjoyable in its own way. Quackity was radiating such wonderful light and energy, cracking jokes and genuinely enjoying himself. It was all thanks to the stress and worries being lifted off his back. You really enjoyed seeing him like this.

Chat was able to follow along later if they wanted with how organized you guys were being, but the banter he had with you and chat made it entertaining to any casual viewer. He always found a way to make it fun.

Not only that, but chat was able to see a new side of him. The Chef Q side. More often than not, a message would roll in saying they were amazed by how good Quackity actually was at cooking. You could already imagine some of the edits that'd come out of the stream.

His mom had told you two beforehand how long it would normally take to cook this meal, and it was perfect for a usual stream and some extras where you two would actually get to try the food.

There was moments where chat was warning you two that the food would burn or that he'd accidentally set the kitchen on fire, but overall you were enjoying yourself so much.

And chat was enjoying your presence too!

By the time you two managed to finish the meal, you both plopped down onto the chairs he'd set for the supposed 'breaks'.

He had some of the sauce on his cheek and his apron, but still managed to look good. He'd also smeared sauce onto your cheek, and at this point some strands were sticking out of your hat in such a messy way since the last few minutes had been rather hectic, food almost burning and all.

"Chat. We did it." He called out before cheering loudly and clapping his hands, to which you swiftly followed along, chat beginning to cheer as well.

"I think its only right that we try what we made, don't you think?" You ask, to which chat quickly types YES in all caps, wanting to see the finished product and also find out if it even tastes good.

Quackity let out a chuckle as he smiled over at you. "Not gonna lie, I'm a little nervous. We haven't even seen it so it might just be black. Burnt to a crisp. Or what if it tastes like shit? Y/N i don't know what I'm going to do if the food tastes like shit. Thats what we're supposed to eat on our date." He whined a bit.

You shook your head, "It'll be great. And if not, we can just order takeout. It'll be fine big q." You smiled reassuringly. Chat became a frenzy of calling him cute for the state he was in, declaring their love for how supportive and kind you were, and melting over your relationship.

Before you knew it, you were both revealing the meal to chat, and pleasantly surprised by the results. The presentation of the meal itself looked really good. It looked like what you'd expect from such a plate. Quackity had even gone as far as saying it looked similar to how his mom made it.

You gasped, smiling in surprise at him. "Really? Did we really do that good of a job." His face turned into one of regret, and a long segment of silence engulfed you two before he nodded hesitantly. You both broke out into a fit of laughter.

"Okay okay, seriously. Chat's waiting for you to try it." You placed a fork in front of him, earning a loud scoff from him.

"They want to see you try it as well." He mirrored your actions and you gladly took the fork.

"Alright. First bite. Let's see if all our hard work paid off! Chat, are you ready?" You grinned and watched as the 'YES's started rolling in, some viewers telling you both to get the fuck on with it, and others gushing about how the food actually looked good. You could only hope.

You watched as he began to dig in, mouth full and chewing slowly, truly trying to savor the first bite. You did the same, and the stream was silent for the first time in a while. Chat was in suspense as well, question marks and incoherent rambling rolling through the chat.

"Chat..." he finally spoke after swallowing his bite. "Chat. It's." He paused before showing a small smile. "It's not bad at all. I like it. It's good."

You nodded your head in agreement, "It's nowhere near as good as the ones your mom makes.. but I think you and I make a pretty good team."

"I think so too. And not just for cooking." He grinned, earning himself a playful eye roll and shy smile from you.

The stream proceeded to you two feeding each other bites of the meal, asking each other if it was good, and just enjoying yourselves for a bit longer before Quackity deemed it was time to end.

"Chat !! Thank you so much for tuning in and watching this.. actually coordinated cooking stream. I had so much fun and well, I ate yummy food. I'm happy." He laughed, thanking a few more gifters before doing his signature Bye, and ending stream.

He hurried over to your side, pulling you into a hug. "Thank you so much. I truly had fun. And they definitely loved you, but not nearly as much as I do."

You chuckled at his words, giving him a small kiss before cupping his face. "I had a lot of fun too. Thank you for always being so nice to me." You paused, observing how cute he looked with his chef hat still on. "I think I like Chef Alex." You reached over and fixed his hat a bit.

"Yeah? Should I keep it on?" He teased, coming a bit closer. You couldn't help the warmth that spread over your cheeks at how blunt he was.

"Yes, but you need to help me clean this up. Maybe after we finish the food, hm? C'mon. Don't think I forgot our deal."

He whined, already feeling too lazy, but he quickly followed after you as you two sat down to actually eat. Still wearing the silly attire he'd bought for the stream, far too unbothered to change just yet.

Through a mouthful he asked, "Cuddles and a nap after we're done?"

You smiled and nodded, to which he gave a silent cheer. That was enough motivation to get you both up and cleaning after finishing the meal.

—

Wrapped in each other's arms again. He couldn't seem to get enough of it. You were once again scrolling through Twitter, this time scrolling through his indirects, wanting to see what people were saying about the stream.

He'd ask you to stop to read certain ones he found funny, and even 'aww'd at the ones he found cute, mainly those talking about how cute you two looked.

Surely enough, there was already edits using the clips of him cooking, and you'd openly admitted to him that he looked "so fucking good." To which he responded by cuddling closer, if even humanly possible.

Quackity found the numerous clips of you two feeding each other to be the best part of the tweets. You two rewatched, saved, liked as many as you could before he became tired.

And with that, he was pulling you close, and leaving small kisses anywhere he could on your face. Eventually, his chest slowly rose and fell as he entered a deep slumber. You smiled, glad to see he was finally getting the rest he deserved.

"Goodnight, Alex." You whispered, leaving a small kiss on his cheek before closing your eyes as well.

#alex quackity #quackity #quackity x you #quackity x reader #quackity x y/n #gender neutral reader #quackity brainrot #quackity scenario #streamer #quackity headcannons #quackity imagines #chef quackity #cooking stream #quackity fluff #quackity my beloved #revealing lovers #leave some requests !!! I am accepting requests #look at me posting a few days apart wooo #quackity <3

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royalcalum · 4 years

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Must Love Dogs

Featuring: Calum x reader

Warnings: language, mentions of being catfished I guess... it’s just straight up fluff tbh

Summary: As an up-and-coming Twitch streamer, you’re used to befriending people online. When you start getting cozy enough with one fan for them to ask for a ride from the airport, you find out who you’ve really been talking to for six months.

Author’s Note: I’m going to try to start rewriting some old fics (mainly Calum tbh) to make them more realistic (lol as if this is realistic) and better in general so this is a rewrite of “blurb request lol 4/4 where you're whole relationship has been on the internet like you met on twitter or something and you finally meet at the airport after like five months idk this would be really cute and it's like my dream :----(“ Not beta’d

It started as an innocent fan and creator friendship. You’d been streaming on twitch for a while and had gained a decent sized following, averaging about 500 viewers per stream. Needless to say, your comments section was a little difficult to keep up with. But even with the quick scrolling of new comments with each statement you made, you noticed one name in particular whose comments were always funny or sweet instead of crude and vulgar, like some of those your mods were frequently deleting.

When that same username followed you on Twitter not long after you took notice of them, you were quick to follow back. You’d followed a few of your “fans” before, so it wasn’t unusual. Hell, it wasn’t even odd for you to DM back and forth with some of your followers. What was out of character was becoming attached to one of those fans.

All you knew was his first name (Calum), his age (24), and his location (LA) before you started talking regularly. He had asked for your number at one point, but was understanding when you said you don’t give out that kind of information. For you, it was a relief to finally talk to a man who not only enjoyed your streams, but didn’t make you feel objectified and demeaned. For him, it was a relief to finally meet someone who liked him instead of his name or money.

Communicating with him grew difficult when he flew to Australia to visit family. The time difference still gave you time to DM every day, but staying up late wasn’t quite the same when it was just afternoon for him. You’d already spent five months talking to him and as much as you hated admitting it, you had started to care for this mystery man despite never seeing his face. That never stopped you before (Corpse, anyone?), but for all you knew, “Calum, 24, California” was actually “Craig, 42, Alabama.”

When it came time for him to fly back to LA, you were surprised when he asked if you wanted to meet up when he got back. Like, right when he got back. As in “my friend can’t pick me up and I don’t want to ask you of all people to suffer through LAX traffic so I can just get an Uber if I need to but it’d also be nice to finally meet if you could give me a ride from the airport,” back.

You’d be lying if you said you weren’t apprehensive. He was technically still a stranger you met on the internet and you couldn’t guarantee he wasn’t going to overpower you, take your car, kidnap you, and murder you somewhere in the desert. But you took precautions and told your roommate and a couple other friends where you would be and when to expect you back. If things went well and you spent more time with Calum, you’d call them and tell them, no texting.

Two days later, you stood next to your car parked outside the baggage claim for his airline. You didn’t even know who to look for, but he knew what you looked like — obviously, since you met through your twitch stream.

As people started to flood out of the airport doors, you started to wonder if you had been duped. Would this be a story worthy of Nev and Max? Being led to an airport just to be stood up? More and more people left the terminal while you took up space with your car. You’d get a ticket if you didn’t leave soon — your car may be running but you were technically parked in the loading zone — and your anxiety just continued to grow. He wouldn’t lead you on for nearly six months and stand you up at LAX, of all places… right?

Just as you looked down at your phone again to let your roommate know you might be back sooner than expected, you heard your name called from a few feet away.

And when you looked up, you were starstruck.

“You motherfucker,” you laughed as he got closer. “You knew I was a fan from my stream! That’s why you didn’t want to FaceTime!”

He laughed with you and didn’t hesitate to pull you into a hug.

“It was fun getting to just talk to you,” he defended. “I didn’t want you to unintentionally treat me differently just because you like my band.”

It felt nice to not only meet him, but feel him. He held you tight against his chest, his arms circling your shoulders with yours around his waist. And his thick sweater gave you a soft cushion to rest your head against as you just held each other. You pulled back from his hug but kept your hands on his ribcage, his resting on the sides of your neck as you asked, “How did you end up on my stream?”

“Someone tweeted a clip of you singing one of our songs from an older stream so I decided to check you out. I thought you were pretty and fun so I came back for more.”

For a second, you just stared up at him in multiple stages of shock. This was Calum Hood. From your favorite band. He just hugged you. And called you pretty. How could you handle this?!

But you could handle this. Because he was also the guy you had been talking to for the past six months. The guy you stayed up late talking to and who sent supportive messages when your chat got too aggressive and told you stories from his childhood. You knew him. You just had to let yourself realize the man you’d grown to care about personally was also the man you cared about as a fan.

Holy shit.

“Are you okay?” he asked, sliding his hands down your neck and over your shoulders to your upper arms as he looked down at you with concern etched on his face.

“What? Oh, yeah. Sorry, it’s just taking me a second to really let this all sink in,” you admitted.

“Yeah, now that we’re here, I’m realizing I probably should’ve broken the news in a less, uh, spontaneous way,” he laughed nervously, dropping his hands from you and shoving them in his pockets instead.

You should’ve just kept your mouth shut to keep those hands on you. Or if luck was on your side, he’d have his hands all over you later.

“I mean, I’m not mad about it,” you shrugged. “It’s just not what I expected.”

“What did you expect?” he asked with a smirk.

You let out a sigh. “Honestly? I was kind of expecting to either be stood-up or meet a 42-year-old balding man from Alabama with a beer belly named Craig.”

“Wait… his beer belly is named Craig?”

“No, he is named Craig, you doof!” you laughed, gently shoving Calum’s arm.

“Well I’m sorry to disappoint,” he said with that same smirk on his lips.

“Oh believe me, I’m anything but disappointed,” you replied with a quirk of your own lips. “So, am I taking you to your place then?”

Calum started loading his luggage into the backseat of your car as he spoke to you. With only two checked bags and a carry-on, he didn’t have much, but clearly wouldn’t let you help as he hoisted everything in.

“Yes, please,” he said as he shut the car door. “As excited as I am to finally meet you, I really miss my dog.”

You gasped and immediately perked up. “Duke?!”

“Yeah,” he laughed. “Do you want to meet him?”

“Oh my god, yes!” You ran around to the driver’s side and impatiently waited for Calum to get in and buckle his seatbelt before weaving through the waiting cars to get out of LAX. Fortunately, Calum got in on a late night flight so the traffic wasn’t as bad as you’ve seen before.

“I feel like you’re more excited to meet my dog than you are to meet me,” Calum pouted from the passenger’s seat.

“As excited as I am to finally meet you,” you started with a direct quote, “I really love dogs.”

#Calum x reader #Calum hood x reader #Calum hood fluff #calum hood one shot

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elitegymnastics · 3 years

Photo

Q: What is this?

A: It’s a flyer for a virtual fundraiser on June 4th that Elite Gymnastics is playing. You can access the show at quietyear.com

Q: Hasn’t Elite Gymnastics been inactive for like, ten years?

A: Yes. This is the first Elite Gymnastics performance of any kind since November 30th 2012, at the Horn Gallery at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio.

Q: Why did Elite Gymnastics stop playing shows?

A: Elite Gymnastics started out as me (Jaime) and a bunch of my friends agreeing to help me play my songs live back in 2009. I made a lot of weird demos in GarageBand and my friend Dominique Davis from the band Dearling Physique got tired of watching me sit on them. So, he booked me to play at a show he was curating as part of a small local music and arts festival called Clapperclaw. For several months that’s mainly what EG was. At some point the focus shifted to making recordings rather than playing shows, to participate in the emergent culture of new music distributed via MP3 file-sharing. The lineup winnowed to just me and Josh Clancy, who began creating digital EPs that we posted on this Tumblr page as ZIP files full of MP3s accompanied by a PDF of artwork. This is the incarnation of the group that most people are familiar with.

This was before Patreon existed. If Bandcamp was around, we’d never heard of it. Though MP3 file-sharing culture and file transfer sites like MediaFire and MegaUpload allowed anyone to distribute music freely across the world via the internet, it was still pretty difficult to get people to pay you for it. I think it was for this reason that a lot of internet music back then featured a lot of sampling. A lot of artists’ first forays into the world of DAWs and production took the form of mash-ups, bootleg remixes, and DJ mixes. Artists like Animal Collective, MIA, Kanye West, and Daft Punk for whom sampling was a pillar of their creative process were extremely influential. Elite Gymnastics was no exception - the first song of ours to gain traction online was “Is This On Me?” which made no attempt to hide the fact that it heavily sampled Faye Wong’s “Eyes On Me.” The fact that it was so difficult to make money off MP3s pushed people to make different creative decisions than they would have otherwise. It was sort of a free-for-all.

Eventually, all of this started to change. The major labels started getting a lot more aggressive about trying to destroy MP3 file-sharing culture. Platforms like MegaUpload were raided and taken offline. The replacements that sprung up to replace them were increasingly infested with ads and malware. Corporate platforms like YouTube and SoundCloud adopted Content ID filters to prevent the proliferation of copyrighted music there. Blogs and private torrent trackers being taken down meant thousands of hours of labor were wiped out in an instant. Some of the best archives of the history of recorded music ever created were destroyed without hesitation. Even the most devoted participants lost the will to keep repairing and re-making the stuff that cops and record companies kept obliterating.

Josh and I both dreamed of being able to make a living as musicians. We still do. Back then, we were willing to accept a lot of changes in order to make that possible, which seemed necessary. A lot of the stuff that we were great at just didn’t make any money. Once, we were asked to do a remix of a song called “Sa Sa Samoa” by the band Korallreven. I did the remix by myself, which was normal for us, and Josh was so inspired by it that he spent a week working non-stop to create a video for it. People loved it - the day the video dropped, Pitchfork designated the song as a “Best New Track” and New York Magazine wrote about it in their “Approval Matrix.” The video led to a ton of exposure, but from a financial perspective, it just did not make sense to put that much effort into promoting a remix of someone else’s song. The stuff we were personally excited by just seemed to have less and less to do with what actually makes money.

A lot of internet bands during this era began to palpably shapeshift in an effort to succeed in music as a career. Artists who’d first attracted notice for sample-based bangers they made on a laptop started posing with vintage hardware in their press photos and trading in their laptops for live bands and recording studios. It became harder to distribute DJ mixes or mash-ups that contained copyrighted music in them. Influential bloggers either closed up shop or were absorbed into the traditional music industry in some way. Feeds that once touted bizarre songs by laptop-toting weirdos with no industry connections started to become populated mostly by artists with labels and publicists. The bottom rungs of festival lineups started to consist mostly of new major label signings who have lots of money to spend on stage production but not much in the way of grassroots fan enthusiasm or media buzz.

Internet music and what people tend to refer to as “indie music” split off into two separate streams. Today, there’s a pretty intense firewall between internet culture and whatever you want to call the culture of vinyl records, mid-sized indie labels with publicists, and positive reviews from the few remaining websites that still pay people to write about music. I call it “publicist indie,” “lifestyle techno,” or “prestige electronica” depending on whether or not the music features guitars and/or vocals. The recent online kerfuffle about NFTs really emphasized this split. The worlds of digital illustration and game development campaigned aggressively against mass adoption of cryptocurrency - if you saw any Medium posts explaining crypto’s environmental issues, chances are they were written by someone from those fields. Every new announcement by an artist that they had minted an NFT was met with a swift and vocal backlash from fans. Though I’ve never really been much of an Aphex Twin fan, it was still pretty startling to look at the replies under his NFT announcement tweet and see hundreds of furious people announcing that he was now dead to them. That’s an artist who has seemed more or less unimpeachable for most of my life up until this point! All of that seemed to change in an instant.

There is a massive disconnect between the insular world of the industry establishment and the cutting edge of online counterculture. We saw this again a couple of weeks ago with the online response to the crisis in Gaza. We saw passionate advocacy for Palestinians from games journalists and developers much more often than we saw it from musicians. This is a very serious problem for music! I do not believe it is possible to please both sides - that is to say, I do not believe it is possible to be part of internet counterculture and the industry establishment simultaneously. The music industry is too conservative, too compromised, too corrupt. If it weren’t for the ocean of valuable copyrights that labels are sitting on, most of them would be bankrupt within a year. If the industry was forced to live or die based on how they handle what’s happening right now in the present, it would most assuredly die. The only people who don’t realize this are those who are being paid to stay ignorant.

Josh and I did not know this back then. From where we were standing, it looked like internet culture and established media industries were on track to converge. A career in the arts seemed genuinely, tantalizingly possible, right up until the moment that it no longer did.

In my case, I had really been struggling up until that point. My life had been this ongoing sequence of evictions and hospitalizations, and it seemed to be getting worse, not better. I donated plasma twice a week to pay for groceries and while I was sitting there with a giant needle stuck in my left arm for an hour I would see my picture in The Fader or my songs being recommended by one of the Kings of Leon on Twitter or whatever. Music seemed like the only thing the world thought I was any good at. It felt like my only chance at a peaceful, happy life was somewhere out there in a world I could only perceive through a laptop screen.

Gender, for me, was a big factor in all of this. The more invested in the craft of songwriting I became, the harder it was to repress or ignore my gender stuff. At that time I’m not sure I even knew what the word “transgender” meant - I just knew that when I showed up at a venue wearing a skirt, no one would talk to me or look me in the eye, and that reading about people like Anohni or Terre Thaemlitz or on the internet made me feel like if I could get out of Minneapolis maybe I could find a place where people would accept me. The internet was like, a pretty toxic place for someone in my position. When I tried to find people to talk to about what I was feeling, nobody tried to tell me to read Judith Butler or ask me what pronouns I preferred. The internet was just like, overrun with predators who just wanted to fetishize me and exploit me. Music seemed like the only way I’d ever have an actual life as myself. I was desperate for that. I was well and truly desperate.

Between all the big changes that were happening to us individually and the music industry moving farther and farther away of the anarchic free-for-all of MP3 file-sharing culture, the strain on us just got to be too much. We stopped trusting each other. We became the unstoppable force and the immovable object, crashing haphazardly against one another’s resolve in a dazzling display of youthful futility. Our partnership ended, and after finishing out the remaining live shows on the calendar by myself, I retired the name “Elite Gymnastics” and started making music on my own under other names. That was that.

Q: Why is Elite Gymnastics coming back now, then?

A: Over the years, Josh and I eventually started talking again. Though there was a lot we did agree on, and potential future projects were discussed, nothing truly felt right. We haven’t been in the same room since Summer 2012, and we’ve both changed a lot since then. We both have other projects and we’ve both developed other ways of working since we stopped working together. It’s a pretty big commitment to put all of that aside in order to join your fortunes together with someone you haven’t seen in a decade.

Recently, Josh decided to leave Elite Gymnastics. His reasons are his own, and I was very surprised by his decision, but after having had time to adjust, I’m really grateful to him. I had kept these songs at a distance for many years, because it seemed foolish to allow myself to get too attached to songs I didn’t feel like I was allowed to think of as mine, if that makes any sense. The songs felt like casualties of a conflict that I had to bury in the ground and try to forget about. Being able to embrace them again felt like re-growing a severed limb or having a loved one come back to life, almost. Feeling like it was safe to love these songs again made me feel whole in a way I didn’t expect to. I became really excited by the prospect of revisiting them, so that’s what I decided to do.

Q: Does this mean you’re going to put RUIN back on Spotify?

A: No. Taking the record off Spotify was the right thing to do. That record was only ever intended to exist during the era of MP3 piracy. I never envisioned a world where the music industry would be so aggressive about policing the way that copyrighted music is allowed to exist online. If we hadn’t opted to take the record down when we did, someone would inevitably have forced us to. If you want to hear those specific recordings again, you’re going to have to do it the way we originally intended: by downloading MP3 files from the internet. Try SoulSeek.

Q: What’s next for Elite Gymnastics, then?

A: Here’s the situation currently. There is no Elite Gymnastics music available to stream or purchase in an official capacity anywhere on the internet. It wouldn’t really be possible for me to put the old stuff on Spotify or Bandcamp now because of all the samples. Like I said before, it was a different time. Those records were created to thrive on a past version of the internet that no longer exists. They weren’t designed to be compatible with the 2021 internet.

Technically, Elite Gymnastics didn’t ever release a debut album. We had EPs, a compilation, and a remix collection. We didn’t make an album, a record that existed as the distillation of all that experimentation that contained all of the songs that fans of the EPs would want to hear, all in one place. It’s like we did Good Fridays but stopped before we made My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

So, I am currently working on the first Elite Gymnastics album. If you were following my stuff as Default Genders, you may have noticed me posting demos on my SoundCloud page from 2015-2018 that were all eventually reworked into the album Main Pop Girl 2019. The album I am making is taking that approach to all the old EG songs, including some unreleased stuff. I’m collaborating with others on some songs and I honestly feel like it has resulted in some of the best and most exciting music I have ever been involved with. It is a drastic reinvention, but iteration and reinvention have always been a big part of what I do. I want to make something that feels like the culmination of everything that came before, and so far, I think I’m succeeding.

Q: When will I be able to hear this new music?

At a virtual fundraiser on June 4th, 2021, where there is a suggested donation of $10. You can access it at quietyear.com

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astormyjet · 3 years

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Winter of 2018 - Summer of 2021 TIME FILES WHEN YOU’RE IN YOUR 20s!!!!

OH BOY. It’s been three years (or more) since I updated this. “Time is a weird soup!” to quote a fave. I guess I quit tumblr around the time there was a purge of content and creators and a smack down on a lot of the fandom communities. Tumblr has always been something of a crapshow though so I’ve been more productive with my time than I was in some ways, but I’ve also found other ways to waste my time. *cough twitter/netflix/youtube/MTGArena cough*.

General Life Achievements since 2018 -JLPT N3 GET in 2019! -Blackbelt GET in 2018! -TESOL 120 Hour and BE 50 Hour Cert from online provider GET in 2021 -STUDENT LOAN BANISHED (Thank you grandparents) -Survived Apartment flooding in early 2020. -Mystery anxiety related illness and chronic pain in my left leg from early 2020 - Present. -A mythical 6th and 7th year on the JET Programme. -Started posting on Instagram a lot more about my wanderings around Matsuyama/Uwajima. Mainly old buildings and stray cats. @astormyknight -Surviving so far in Japan with old rona-chan.

2018 was rough. I was given an additional school in the first semester (March to July) as we had someone find a better job. I enjoyed it, but it was a bit of a rough go especially when I was transferred that August after three fantastic years at Tsubaki JHS and ES and only a semester there. I legit went through the five stages of grief - which I think is another reason I stopped blogging. I was given my current base school along with four other schools. Going from 2(3) to 5 schools was a bit of an adjustment. I still feel a bit spread out.

That said, I keep running into teachers and students who were at the Tsubaki’s. The teachers shuffle around every April, so it's always a lottery with which new faces are going to be old friends (or enemies…). A couple of kids moved and transferred into my current schools from Tsubaki too. So I have one kid I can say I've been teaching for 6 out of the 7 years I've been here!

One of the kids who was in JHS 3rd grade when I first got here (in 2015!) hangs out around one of my favorite cafes, so I got chatting with him recently. He's in his second year of nursing school - his class nearly broke me in the first year, it was really a trial by fire with those kids. I was 22 then, and he’s 20 now, so it was interesting chatting to him about that first year of teaching. His younger sister was one of my favorite students too, she was in the group of kids that graduated in the March of 2018, the year group that went through Tsubaki JHS with me - they’re newly minted University students now!

This Thursday morning when I was cycling in to work, a kid who was 2nd year JHS when I left (so 2nd or 3rd year JHS now) pulled up with their Mum in a van and got their mamachari out of the back to bike to school. The franticness of it all was hilarious. Their Mum legit sat on the horn until I pulled over. I was so happy to run into this kid, even at social distance and both of us late to work/school - because we both remembered each other and as they were going around the corners they were yelling each time they turned and humming the old elementary school directions chant and pelting me with questions about what I’ve been up to.

I've had so many students and schools now, that everything is kind of running into a blur. I remember flashes of kids faces and voices, random memories of in class or out of class shenanigans out of the blue. Also, I now, more than ever, have issues remembering kids' names, but I still know their faces (even with their masks), whose homeroom class they were in, who their friends were and which club they were in. I get random flashbacks to past conversations with them when I see them on the street or we run into each other. I feel bad because the first thing former students ask is ‘Do you remember my name?’ and I always have to be like, ‘Honestly, no, but I remember you did this on x day, x month in x classroom’.

Socially in 2018 -2019 - a few of our friends went home and things shook up a little. Our DnD group changed a bit - one of our players stepped into the role forever DM (THANK YOU RALPH). From memory the newbies were great - some of them just went home at the start of last month and it’s weird not seeing them around (JESS DO YOUR BEST!). I think we only have one or two people left from that rotation. There’s no 6th year ALTs, and only two 5th years.

Aug 2018 - Aug 2019 was the year of Hiura - my mountain school. Dang man, they were so cool. The students of the JHS and the ES combined barely hit 30, so each class was between 3-10 students depending on the grade. It was easier to get to know the kids, their abilities and their goals than it has been for me at other schools. I miss it so bad, being in nature once a week did my country-kid heart so good! The bugs! The frogs! The river! The mountain! The monkeys! The lizards! The dilapidated houses and hidden shrines!!!! The random crabs in the English room...I forgot that there was such a thing as freshwater crabs, and being right next to a river, the invasion wasn’t as out of place as I first thought...

The area is so picturesque and calming. Every week up there was a small adventure (after getting over my motion sickness from the bus ride up). The kids were constantly pranking either myself or the main English teacher. There was always some new weird bug or lizard in a tank to be educated about. There were chickens on the way to the JHS that used to escape from their cardboard box prisons to run riot on the gardens. There were old people to freak out with my youth and foreignness! The kids also got to do a lot of extra classes, sumiyakai (making charcoal the traditional way), planting and maintaining rice paddies, setting up vegetable gardens, raising fireflies, conserving a special breed of fire lily (only found in this particular mountain valley) and another rare flower, wilderness training ect.

I wish I could have stayed there a lot longer but SOMEONE (read...the BoE) decided that schools had to be shuffled again(thank goodness the dude who has it now was able to keep it from the 2021 shuffle, he's the best fit for the school). I had so many good memories from there, I wish I had been more consistent in writing it down. I do have a bunch of photos and videos from there though, so that's nice. The only thing I don’t miss is the bus trip up and down - not only was it motion sickness, there was a healthy dose of fear each ride as the driver brought us perilously close to the edge of the mountain drop…

2019 - 2020 was interesting. With the school I got given instead of the Hirua’s I was roped into more demonstration lessons which was a lot of pressure because I was also involved quite heavily with the JHS observation and training lessons too. They were somewhat rewarding, the third graders are now super smart 5th graders, but the teachers who need to embrace the new curriculum and ways of teaching really haven’t taken on anything from the lessons....

Outside of work as well, I was given the chance, thanks to an ALT buddy of mine, to join in with the local festival. It's been one of the biggest highlights of my time here, and I am gutted it’s been cancelled for the last two years, but I understand the reason…. I was able to travel to Okinawa too during that summer for an international Karate seminar with the Dojo I train with. I met the head of the style I currently practice and a bunch of people from around the world. I also got to see Shuri castle before it burned down. So that was a stroke of luck. One of the places I want to go when/if we get out of this pandemic is Okinawa. I want to see more of those Islands so bad. Just before the whole pandemic thing too - I managed to see the Rugby World Cup, a Canada vs NZ match, I even ran into Tana Umanga in Oita city!!!

2019 - 2020 was supposed to be my last year on JET, so I was frantically Job hunting. I went to the Career Fair in Osaka in early Feb/Late January 2020. I applied and got interviewed for a position in Sendai in early Jan 2020. In the end though - the Rona hit. We started hearing whispers of it around the end of 2019, then the cruise boats happened, and then Japan refused to cancel the Olympics...every holiday season there is a new wave of infections, my nurse friends in Tokyo are struggling....my teacher friends in more populous areas of Japan are struggling…

JET couldn't get new ALTs for 2020-2021, I took the extra year when it was eventually offered, as the one job I had managed to get a serious offer for was hesitating because with the rona setting in, things were uncertain. There was a lot of time spent adjusting to the new rules surrounding what we could do in class with the kids as well as textbook change. Schools shut on and off during the spring months.

I also got a reminder of my mortality mid May with an unrelated illness which is still smacking me around a bit - stress/age, it does things to the human body it has no right to. It's only been in the last three months I’ve been able to exercise like I used to, I’ve put on a bunch of weight I can't shrug off (one part medication, another part diet) My relationship with food needs to change, and I really need a kitchen that allows me for more than one pan meals. I also need to figure out what to do with a left leg that is in constant pain from the knee down and a heart that misses beats when stressed out (mentally and physically…).

My apartment also got flooded by the guy upstairs at one point, I spent most of late February/early March living in a hotel while my walls and floor got redone - I think this was one of the things that really stressed me out and kicked my anxiety right up a notch, it was right when things were getting REALLY bad with rona-chan in Hokkaido and schools were shutting down here as it was filtering into the prefecture and so Japan closed schools for the first time…

Classes in covid times have been weird. We’ve been wearing facemasks full time since the early stages of the pandemic (March 2020) - so I admit that I get a bit pissed off seeing both Americans and New Zealanders back home bitching about just having to start wearing them full time in public. I have asthma and have been suffering with the things on during the 30*C plus with high 90s humidity summers. Teachers were offered vaccines late July 2021, just days before the Olympics were open - and I finished my two shots in the middle of August. But the overall distribution and take up of the jab has been slow. As mentioned above, we can't play a lot of the games we used to play with kids in classes anymore, and a lot of the activities outlined in the textbook curriculum need to be adjusted too, so we’ve had to be creative. We use hand sanitizer a lot more too. One of the things I miss the most though, is eating lunch with the kids.

Socially from summer 2020 - now 2021 we played a lot of DnD and board games, both online and in person when we could. There were no new ALTs again for the 2021-2022 JET year, and those of us who were in 6th year were offered a 7th. Four out of six of us took it. As a whole we’re down from a peak of 38 ALTs for Junior High and Elementary school to 22 for now. We hopefully will get a new person at the end of September, and 4 more in November. Which will bring us to 27. This has led to ANOTHER round of school shuffles.

Summer vacation has been weird the last two years. With rona-chan, we haven’t really been able to travel. All the summer festivals (all the Autumn and Winter ones too!) have been cancelled, so the changing of seasons just feels, wrong. I dunno. There is so much we all miss from pre-rona-chan, and so much that doesn’t happen that makes this just feel like one long long unending year of sadness, coldness, raininess, unbearable heat and repeat. I’m tired. Time is going so fast, but so.dang.slow.

I lost my favorite school (AGAIN GDI!!!) and gained the school I taught a semester at in 2019....I had my first day there on Wednesday. Schools actually started back on September 1st so there was some drama as the BoE didn’t communicate fast enough about our school changes. We legit got told on the 27th of August (on a Friday) our schools were changing effective September 1st, but somehow some of our schools found out on the Monday 30th August. In July we were told we would be changing schools at the end of September, so.a lot of ALTs and schools were left short changed, not having opportunities to say goodbye to co-workers or students/having their planning for the semester more or less thrown out the window too. I love my job. I really dislike the way the BoE treats us, the Japanese assistant language teachers and our schools.

The new school I have is used to having an ALT there twice a week, who plans all the lessons and executes them. I’m at three elementary schools. I'm only at each once a week, I want to plan, but being that I miss an entire lesson in between visits, it's going to be difficult to do so. Not impossible, but being that I'm already doing it for two other schools, who are at two different places in the textbook ah…….. From what I have talked to my new supervisor about though, it sounds like the teachers have taken on more of the lesson planning and I'll be able to contribute ideas when I'm there. I just want to and wish I could do more without being confused all the time. (This is all usually done in my second language too, not in English so extra levels of confusion and miscommunication abound).

I feel like this at my JHS too a lot of the time. I want to contribute more, but even with constant communication with my main in school supervisor (who is a badass and pretty much on the same page about everything with me) I still feel about as useful as tits on a bull. Especially now that classes have been cancelled and or shortened, there's less time to do stuff. Any game or activity I plan is usually cut in favor of making up time in the textbook. When I'm in class, I'm back to being a tape recorder, the fun police and general nuisance.　

Also in the last week...my two of my schools were shut due to students testing positive for the rona. This is the second time my schools have had a scare in the last 8 months. And by shut, I mean the students were all at home, but the teachers all had to come into the office. Because why not I guess….. I mean, the cases increasing is really not unexpected with the amount of people who were travelling over obon and the increase of cases due to the Olympics/Japan being slow on vaccinating/delta being the dominant strain/Japan's leaders doing relatively little except asking shops and restaurants to limit people coming in at one time and closing before 8pm. I know my schools weren't the only one shut either - but still High Schools were having their sports days this week. I kept on seeing groups of kids hanging in the park after, so that was a little bit nerve wracking.

It's just frustrating - we’ve been on half days to “minimize the risk of infection” for kids and teachers, as if only being at school from 8am through to 1pm is going to reduce the risk. My schools have only just started testing out Microsoft teams and Zoom lesson equipment. Thankfully our school’s run in this time was contained real quick, the family was super good about informing us when they got their results back, and the fact they needed to be tested. The homeroom teacher and the students from the same class were the only ones tested, and they all came back clear, which was nice. But the information came back so SLOW.

I’m a little irritated because I found out on Wednesday night what was going on, and even if I am vaccinated, I am super worried that I will end up being the covid monkey due to being at different schools three days out of five. I think other than being worried that I will catch it myself and get real sick, my biggest fear is that I will be protected from bad symptoms from the vaccine, but still be able to pass it onto some of my more vulnerable friends and students. The whole thing is a mess.

Other than Covid and BoE drama, life is good. I’ve had a couple of other big changes - both fantastic and not so great, but yeah. I have my health (and health insurance!) for now. I have a job, for now. I have a sense of existential dread for the next 12 months, but we’ll see where we end up. Life post JET is going to be way less cushy and I am TERRIFIED. I mean, I have a BA in Eng/Ling and no idea what to do with it…..because I am NOT suited for academia.

TLDR: Love my job. Don’t like the system. What is life? Future scary.

#life on JET #blog post #life in Japan #jet programme #jet program

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lilydalexf · 4 years

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Old School X is a project interviewing X-Files fanfic authors who were posting fic during the original run of the show. New interviews are posted every Tuesday.

Interview with Rae

Rae has 16 stories at Gossamer. If you like MSR, you should go check them out, including (but not limited to) the fun-titled, banter-filled The Cat, an Espresso and a Bag of Sunflower Seeds. Big thanks to Rae for doing this interview.

Does it surprise you that people are still interested in reading your X-Files fanfics and others that were posted during the original run of the show (1993-2002)?

It surprises me that anyone reads my fanfic at all, let alone they are reading it 20 years after I wrote it!

But in the same vein, I am still actively reading xfiles fanfic and I tend to read the older fics, or new fics by authors I recognize or remember from back in the day. I cannot explain this lack of rationale. 🤷

What do you think of when you think about your X-Files fandom experience? What did you take away from it?

I had a great experience with the X-Files fandom! I made some fantastic friends - many even attended my wedding! I didn't really get involved in the dramas that went on. I was aware of it, but really, I just wanted to discuss my show with people that loved it like I did and read the fic, so I ignored all the other static.

Social media didn't really exist during the show's original run. How were you most involved with the X-Files online (atxc, message board, email mailing list, etc.)?

Mainly message boards. AOL chat rooms, Yahoo groups, etc. We would all sign on after the episode aired and chat about it. Deconstruct it. And then we started traveling to meet each other and the real fun began!

What did you take away from your experience with X-Files fic or with the fandom in general?

It was definitely a growing experience. It forced me to step outside my comfort zone a little bit. Traveling to NYC, LA and Chicago to meet people just to fangirl with. Meeting Gillian and getting a picture with her - it was wild.

Different shared experiences that "real life" family and friends just didn't understand. It was fun and exciting.

What was it that got you hooked on the X-Files as a show?

So I came to the show late in the game. I was sick, lying in bed channel surfing and caught the last 5 minutes of Fight the Future and immediately wanted to know why this woman was sitting in the snow holding onto this man. I spent the summer recording episodes on FX during the week and watching them all weekend and was somehow able to pretty much catch up on the first 6 seasons in time for the 7th season premiere.

What got you involved with X-Files fanfic?

In my quest to know all the things that summer before the 7th season, I discovered AOL chat rooms that led me to different discussions on the show in general and at one point, a link was posted to whatever fanfic was hot that minute and I was instantly hooked.

What is your relationship like now to X-Files fandom?

I often feel like a wallflower at a party. I'm on the fringe, looking in to see what's going on. I don't bother anyone and most people don't even know I'm there. Every now and then I'll send feedback on a story, or I might even participate in a random discussion, but I feel it's a little more difficult these days without the chatrooms and discussion boards. Following people on tumblr or twitter and trying to engage in those platforms is more awkward since it feels so much more personal. It's like I'm intruding on someone's personal space. Or having to scroll through non-fandom stuff to find the fic. The message boards were a more even playing field I guess? It's hard to explain.

When I'm hardcore searching for something...anything to read, I'll refer to "The Classics" list. There are still many on there I haven't read.

I miss ephemeral.

Were you involved with any fandoms after the X-Files? If so, what was it like compared to X-Files?

No. No other characters have ever interested me beyond the story we're given within the confines of the show/movie/book like Mulder and Scully did. My friends would dive into Harry Potter or Marvel or (fill in the blank with anything) and I would try to get excited, but there's nothing.

Who are some of your favorite fictional characters? Why?

Well, Scully because she's so bad-ass. She's always so certain of her convictions. We don't see her second-guess herself often.

Anne of Green Gables because against all odds, she still sees the beauty in everything.

Jo in Little Women because she is just so tenacious. She knows what she wants.

Hermione in Harry Potter. She knows the most important thing she'll do is help Harry and there is value in that, so she gives it all she's got.

Do you ever still watch The X-Files or think about Mulder and Scully?

I do. A couple of years after the original run was over, I lost a dear friend (met because of XF) and then later I had my first baby and life just got busy in a very different way so I fell out of the fandom and just dropped all of it.

And then there was the revival. I waited until all episodes aired and then binge-watched them. And I did the same with season 11, but waited about 6 mos after it aired to watch it, rewatching the whole series from the beginning, first.

But now I turn it on a few times a week while I'm folding laundry or making dinner or some other chore. It's nice to have it on in the background because I don't have to pay close attention because I know what's going to happen. I've actually watched the whole series a few times this way.

Do you ever still read X-Files fic? Fic in another fandom?

I still read XF fic. It's still my favorite thing to read. I am always looking for the next great fic to lose myself in. Back in the day, I would read any pairing, any genre...I was game for anything, as long as it was XF fic. I'm a little more choosy, now, but only because my free-time is more limited. I only want to read MSR and I'm not at all interested in revival fics.

Do you have any favorite X-Files fanfic stories or authors?

I am partial to the novel-length AU and canon-divergent stories. I love everything by Prufrock's Love and Bonetree. I have read Paracelsus, A Moment in the Sun and the Goshen/Secret World series countless times. Journal 1999 and Journal 2000 by MD1016, The Mastodon Diaries by akaJake, Blinded by White Light by Dashak, Deliverance From Evil by Char Chaffin and Tess.

I could go on all day.

My absolute favorite story is Arizona Highways by Fialka.

I am partial to Scully angst. And the Emily storyline just kills me, so when authors take those elements and write a kick-ass story, I am there for it.

What is your favorite of your own fics, X-Files and/or otherwise?

How awful is it that I had to look up my fics to answer this question? I don't know that I have a favorite. That's like asking a mother which child she favors. Maybe One of the Damned.

Do you think you'll ever write another X-Files story? Or dust off and post an oldie that for whatever reason never made it online?

I won't say never, but I don't think so. I've tried to start one or two with some ideas I've had, but I haven't gotten far with them.

Do you still write fic now? Or other creative work?

No. I don't even have time to read as often as I would like to.

Where do you get ideas for stories?

Usually what if scenarios - I try to work out different ways the story could go in my head. I would usually have the guts of the story written in my head before I typed the first word.

What's the story behind your pen name?

There was already a well-known Rachel posting fic when I got started, so I just decided to go with a nickname - Rae.

Do your friends and family know about your fic and, if so, what have been their reactions?

My husband is crazy supportive and tries to convince me to write again All. The. Time. I never hid my XF obsession from anyone, but I don't think I told many people about my writing.

Is there a place online (tumblr, twitter, AO3, etc.) where people can find you and/or your stories now?

I am on tumblr and twitter, but like I said above, I don't really post. All of my stories are at Gossamer.

(Posted by Lilydale on February 9, 2021)

#new post #old school x #xfiles fanfic #xf fanfic #xf fanfic author interviews #rae

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tirpse · 4 years

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DRUCK @ TINCON 2020 via mylilquarantine (Twitter)

Disclaimer: The following is all taken from mylilquarantine’s Twitter. They translated the livestream from today with Sara Günter (funk), Julia Penner and Jonas Lindt (writers).

There was a #Druck writers livestream today, they talked about how they went about writing the show, especially the upcoming season 5. It was in german so I’m gonna make a thread here of the main things they said in english.

⁃they asked themselves how to continue being as authentic as possible for the target audience now that they’re doing their own season

⁃to come up with these new stories they looked at posts about the first 4 seasons and fans wishes for the future.

⁃they read everything, on all platforms, even tumblr, reddit, etc and started writing down topics that fans requested and they found interesting.

⁃they also did an online survey that they sent out via the newsletter. they expected maybe a couple hundred people to fill it out but there were over 21.000.

⁃the average response time was 19 minutes (how long fans took time to answer the survey)

⁃the season 3 change from the bipolar storyline to the transgender storyline was because of the petition of a fan who wished for this to happen

⁃Lukas was in the writers room for season 5 because they found it important to have a very young and diverse writers room

⁃they found it important to look at what changed in the last 3 years in youth culture and met up with lots of teenagers, went to schools, etc to get a feel for this new generation

⁃they thought that there were quite a few changes and that the pressure was even more than a few years ago

⁃they talked about the school classes they spoke with and found that they were very open when it came to gender issues and sexuality

⁃they also noted how political this generation is, that they go out to many protests which adds societal pressure on top of educational pressure ⁃they did 8 focus talks in 2 different school classes

+they had casting days where the writers also interviewed the auditioning ppl

⁃in these interviews they focussed on what’s happening in the actual actors‘ lives which was important to them because they’re (sadly) a mainly white writers room and wanted to hear POC‘s stories/feelings/...

⁃they will try to be better about POC representation in the writers room in the future but for now they hope they captured some important things through these interviews

⁃before s4 for example they went to the mosque with Tua and met her friends to be sure that what they portray is realistic

⁃after all of this they did 10 research talks where they concentrated on the concrete topics they want to display in season 5 to be as accurate as possible representation wise

⁃they would never want to force a character trait or hobby or similar onto an actor that he would never have in real life

⁃they DO want to make clear distinctions between the actors and their roles though (for example they said that Lukas is way nicer than David 😂)

⁃they also did script readings with the cast where the actors also corrected dialogue („we would never say that, that’s such a boomer word“)

⁃this was especially funny in season 3 because the boys had a lot of talks about sex and all suggested different words for it

⁃before they do the script readings they have workshops where they can try out different dynamics and situations which might also influence the script

- for example there was a different dynamic planned for season 3 but that didn’t work out with Lukas & Michi so they adjusted the scenes accordingly

⁃Fan Question: Did BLM influence Druck season 5? Answer: Definitely, as Jonas said, as a mainly white writers room we drew consequences from that and are working together with a queer POC collective („Jünglinge“) who also suggested some new team members behind the camera.

⁃Fan Question: Will season 5 have Corona as a topic? Answer: Yes, because it is supposed to be authentic and in real time and we always film very close to the release. It wouldn’t be Druck if we didn’t have it in there in some form, especially with school.

⁃Q: Is it possible to rewrite things while the season is filming? A: we were already writing & casting in March & all of a sudden the lockdown happened, so we had to make major changes in the script. We try to keep some things flexible from then on so we can react to changes

⁃Q: Is there a topic that is close to your heart and wasn’t portrayed yet? A: Season 5 will definitely include topics like that. I think with this new gen we laid the foundation for many things that interest us for whatever is to come. (hinting at future seasons)

⁃They clarified that the actors are not the ones posting on the characters instagram profiles, they have a social media team for that

⁃Q: I’m with over 30 not in the target audience but I still love the show. Is that something that you hear often? A: I mean, we ourselves are fans so we totally get it. In our Youtube Analytics we can see though that the intended target audience is the biggest group of viewers.

⁃Q: is it a big responsibility for you to make that distinction between actors and characters clear? A: Yes definitely, we also have a consultant for the actors, for example when it comes to their own social media profiles and all the followers they gain at once when they’re allowed to make their profiles public again, since they’re all quite young. When reading some fans‘ comments on instagram it’s not always clear if they’re aware that it’s just a character in a tv show and not a real person so we try to handle all of this very carefully.

⁃I also have a message for the fans when the season starts: „Love every shape and body type.“ That’s all I’m gonna say.

⁃Q: Who thinks up all these amazing instagram profile names? A: Team effort, but mainly Farid for the old gen and now it was a mix of the social media team and some even came from the actors (for example Nora‘s).

#druck #tincon

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totallyvain · 4 years

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Vanity Hour: Meet the FRITOGANG

Words by Thania Garcia

Photo by Gabby Arvelo

Hometown: San Antonio, Texas

Sounds like: A party in your grandma’s basement

FRITOGANG is a music collective made up of nine 20-somethings making a blend of sounds sincerely theirs. There’s Adriel, Dubb & Speck (brothers), Marco, Malcolm, Niko, Kue, Tonsoul, and Levi.

The idea of a team this large is always interesting. First it indicates shared understanding of friendship and business, so that the group’s success relies on a common sacrifice. As musicians it also means working through differences, learning from one another and inevitably growing faster together.

Adriel: With all the different inputs that everybody has…you can see and hear how it all comes together. That is what makes FRITOGANG what it is. I may sound cocky but FRITOGANG has its own sound, we can’t compare it to other people…it’s like an adjective for the music-making process, we sound like FRITOGANG.

It’s the individuality of every member involved that makes this team so dynamic both in friendship and in music.

Speck: It happened a lot of different ways. Me and my brother Dubb, we started making music with Kue and Niko and one of our other homies…we conceptualized FRITOGANG because at the time no one was really f*****g with what was going on…we felt like Fritos…

At this point the zoom call erupts with laughter and I eventually learn the story of the FRITOGANG name. I am calling it the Fritos Philosophy which is really just an analogy to the popular chip brand’s underdog qualities. No one was listening to the music when it was initially released but that all changed when the group released their 2018 album “Are You Even Listening?” on Spotify.

Speck: We had some stuff on Soundcloud and we were uploading there mainly but we used ‘Are You Even Listening?’ to test the transition onto the streaming on [Spotify] and that was a good move for us. The Soundcloud market was kind of dying down. Coming off the platform and onto the Spotify algorithm really does help because it puts our music in front of a lot of people and Soundcloud doesn’t necessarily do that in the same way. From that moment, I started noticing a steady climb on our monthly listeners. People find us and stay and keep listening, which is what you want as an artist. For them to be invested and continue coming back and listening to you.

Totally Vain: Is that when most of you noticed a shift in terms of numbers?

Levi: For me…it was packing out local shows

Buzzing in agreement, the group starts to reminisce on that idea.

Adriel: To see that we could sell out shows in our city and like people knowing all the words and showing up early, that was when I realized we could make that happen in any city, so it was just about getting the music out there and once people gravitate towards the music…we know what we can do.

Levi: We actually planned a tour and had to cancel it...the thing is I feel like we do have a lot of online love but the people…well from what I’ve heard is that the people love to come watch us perform because we throw our own shows. We love to interact with the crowd and that experience was something that we haven’t had with the fans this year and us missing that tour was …man f**k corona…

The pandemic has been an incredibly devastating roadblock on various levels and all over the world. The music industry (much like any industry) is bending and shifting into uncomfortable positions in attempts to find new and innovative ways to combat the blow. When I ask how it effects the group as up-and-comers, the tone of the conversation shifts to anticipation.

Adriel: The shows started to become something that we could be inspired by and look forward too. They were bonding experiences for all of us, performing together. Even doing Instagram lives are really cool experiences although they aren’t the same it gave us a taste of how it was and how we will hopefully get through it.

A couple of weeks ago, FRITOGANG released their fourth album on Spotify called “GOTTA KEEP MY PEOPLE CLOSE,” an accurate reflection of the group’s roots.

Speck: We just kept at it, making music in the city and meeting people. We met Levi through somebody we were making music with and then Levi introduced us to Tonsoul. Adriel and Mike…I had seen them perform a couple of times and we ended up linking, making music. My brother Dubb heard Malcolm rap on Twitter.

Levi: It’s not difficult when everybody’s friends. We can sit in the crib together and not make music, but it comes naturally.

TV: What are we thinking about in terms of label relations? Is that something you guys think or talk about, signing a deal together?

Adriel: The goal is to get there on our own and as a team. We also have people that are getting our music out to more places and we like the idea of that and how that’s been working for us up until now.

Levi: It’s people like you who actually like the music and reach out to us and they want to know more. We like that process and the difference is...if we ask for it, it won’t be as interesting and real.

TV: When I was first digging through your music and content, I noticed you guys had quite a few music videos. How important is the visual aspect of your music for you guys?

Levi: It’s important to have a good amount of videos but also a good amount of good videos. We are nine whole people and it’s easier to know us and our personalities as individual artists through visual scenes and these music videos where we are “acting,” it’s a good doorway into our personalities.

TV: In terms of inspiration either visually or musically, what kind of stuff were you consuming when you were creating “GOTTA KEEP MY PEOPLE CLOSE”?

Levi: It’s hard to pick one type of music since we all pull from different places, but I was listening to old 90s R&B and then to some indie stuff like Winona Forever. It comes from everywhere…

Malcolm: Some songs get made at different times and we’ll kind of just put them together because we do end up making a lot of music.

Levi: We try to make timeless music because we like to have a full vault.

TV: What advice would you have for other local artists looking to expand their fanbase?

Tonsoul: I would tell them to do what they want do and to stop giving a f*** about what’ s hot right now and put themselves in the music so people can love the art for what it is…which is really a piece of themselves.

Levi: Don’t make music with an audience in mind.

You can listen to “GOTTA KEEP MY PEOPLE CLOSE” on Apple Music and Spotify now. You can also listen to the FRITOGANG curated playlist on Totally Vain’s Spotify.

Make sure to follow us on Instagram to keep up with our latest coverage!

#vanityhour #totallyvain #r&b #r&b playlist #fritogang #musicjournalism #journalism #interview #music #SOUL #gospel

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popscenery · 5 years

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Javiera Mena, »Un Audífono Tú, Un Audífono Yo«

by Ryo Miyauchi

About five years ago, Tumblr deleted my original account that I set up in summer 2009. Basically, it got flagged from its links to Taylor Swift mp3s. So my early writings on music no longer exist all because I wanted to share a Fearless single as a song of the day. Not that I miss the blog exactly, but it would have been nice to show you what I was up to back then.

A thing I miss working on from those days was something I called Record Club, where I chose an album to discuss as the Album of the Week. It didn’t fulfill its entire premise because, well, I didn’t have an audience on Tumblr, so any attempts for engagement would get radio silence. Except, I got a few recommendations when I asked which album to tackle next as the Album of the Week. One of them was Javiera Mena’s Mena.

How else would I have stumbled upon an album made by a pop artist from Chile? Pitchfork surely wasn’t covering any Spanish-language pop in 2013. I would also later discover the site Club Fonograma from that friend, and from what I know, they seemed to be the only one championing Mena’s music or really any other Spanish-language pop online. I grew into liking other artists like Natalia Lafourcade, Julieta Venegas and Ximena Sarinana by just keeping in touch with this other scene of music that opened up to me from a simple recommendation — and with more help from that friend, of course.

I have no idea how people found me during that time except through pure luck of them clicking on, like, the Owen Pallett music tag when I attempted to discuss Heartlands for a week. It’s surprising I even got responses for that project. It’s a bigger miracle that my posts inspired one of those readers, the same friend who suggested I write about Mena, to ask if I wanted to join her and her friends to write about music.

The more I wrote, the more people I got to meet. One of those friends in our collective of music writers invited me to another site that he edited for. I got to know mutuals of mutuals, and even got to write with some of them, by just broadcasting about an album I was obsessing over on Twitter. That collective and that website unfortunately took their natural courses, but I do have them to thank for helping me become a contributor for the Singles Jukebox, which houses so many brilliant writers.

There are so many artists that I only know because of those people I met along the way. And really, I’m mainly enthusiastic about those artists because I know someone else who’s talking about them too. I started writing at the beginning of the decade just to have a conversation with myself about the music I liked. I really didn’t think I’d get to actually talk about it with other people.

#Javiera mena #music blogs #music discovery #tumblr music #mena

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natasharomanovs · 6 years

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This Is Not A Puppy Love | bucky barnes x clint barton

Prompt: winterhawk Valentines fluff (pre-relationship)

Pairing: Clint Barton x Bucky Barnes

Words: 1899

A/N: This is dedicated to @awstark, happy valentines my babes, here’s finally some Betty Barnes content. Also it’s 1am so please excuse any mistakes x

READ IT ON AO3

Valentines Day was shitty generally shitty for Bucky nowadays.

Sure. Once upon a time he would have a girl on his elbow, a dance partner for the night, someone to spend some quality time with, someone to romance, and then the next day they would go their separate ways and he would find someone new.

But as he said, that was all ‘once upon a time’.

The past few Valentines Days (the ones he could remember anyway) he had mainly stayed holed up in his room, avoiding anyone and everyone. That included every mention of the day where romance was high in the air and everyone seemed to be having a good time getting along and enjoying the peace.

Steve liked to worry about Bucky, a known fact amongst everyone, but days like this were days that he got free of the constant limpet on his shoulder, shadowing his every move due to the other jobs that needed to be taken care of.

No matter how much he loved that man, sometimes he just needed a break.

And if Bucky had pulled the “aw, shucks, I’d really hate to be the reason you didn’t show, Steve” when his friend was desperately looking for a reason to skip the kissing booth at some event, then who was Steve to know that Bucky had only made up being busy so that he could see the ridiculous pictures of Steve online later.

Except he wasn’t exactly fibbing, he did have plans.

On Valentines Day.

For once.

Except it wasn’t anything romantic, it was just him and Clint meeting at the dog park to watch their two dogs run around like idiots and wait for the inevitable mess that the two would get themselves into. Of course, Bucky’s dog Betty was much better than Lucky, but Clint had yet to come around to common sense on that one.

As if hearing him thinking about her, the giant alaskan malamute made her way over to him, plopping her head on his knee and letting out a little huff of breath, causing him to let out a little laugh as he ran his hands down her neck and then back up to scratch behind her ears, moving her head from side to side as he did so, “You ready to go, baby girl?”

And yes, he was such a hopeless pushover for the dog that he called her every nickname under the sun and spoiled her rotten, but who was he to deny those big deep brown and soulful whines? So shut up Steve, he had it under control.

Besides, Betty was his dog and he could treat her however he wanted - and anyway, the best girls deserved nothing less than the best.

Clipping the leash to her collar he pulled the black beanie he’d stolen from Clint the last time he’d been over at the other man's apartment and left, locking the door behind him before making his way down to the lobby and outside.

It was only a quick walk to the park yet Bucky still found himself there sooner than he thought he would have. It could have been due to the fact that Betty was desperately trying to get to their destination as fast as possible and Bucky allowed himself to just get dragged along, but it could also have been partly due to the fact that spending time with Clint was something that he genuinely enjoyed these days.

During the first weeks that they had met he wasn’t sure how to view the archer. He hadn’t really known much about him, yet when they had met he had found himself weirdly underwhelmed. It wasn’t like he was expecting anything though, which was the strangest part, but he assumed after meeting all of Steve’s other super-hero friends he had put them all on a pretty high mental pedestal of ‘out of my reach’.

Except then one day suddenly it all made sense. Clint was just a normal guy living an irregular life, and somehow that was the most startling fact to Bucky.

Between Clint when he stumbled awake at 2pm and heading straight for the coffee, to the Clint who loved and adored his trash dog, and even to the Clint who got snippy with people when he was running low on sleep yet running high on paranoia, Bucky couldn’t help but feel himself begin to get comfortable with the man.

The only flaw though, as Steve liked to point out, was that Bucky never seemed to do something like falling in love by halves, and when Bucky became to get comfortable with the man, he knew it was only a matter of time before the wax poetry started.

Steve.

Bucky rolled his eyes and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets, hunching his back as he slipped easily through the gate, holding it open with his hip for Betty to go running through, excited to see all of her friends. Catching Clint’s eye when he looked up, the man sitting in their usual seats, Bucky couldn’t help but bitterly think that even when his friend wasn’t around, he still seemed to be annoying Bucky with his smug knowingness.

He’d have to go deal with Steve, imaginary or no, later though.

“Hey! You’re late! Was beginning to think that I’d have to call Lucky and go home.” Perking up upon hearing the other dogs name, Betty’s tail started wagging and she leaned closer into Bucky whilst looking around, trying to locate her friend.

She hadn’t needed to though because it was only a few moments later that the other dog came running over, the two sniffing each other and then running off when Bucky managed to click off the leash, “I would say blame Betty, but she loves coming here. I swear she has some sixth sense whenever we start heading this way, she always seems to speed up.”

Clint let out a laugh and shuffled over a bit on the bench to allow more room for Bucky which he accepted with a small smile, the two sitting in silence for a moment before Clint pulled out his phone with a slight sheepish look on his face, “So I wanted to wait until we met but I couldn’t help myself.”

Bucky rolled his eyes and leaned closer in, trying to get a good view of the phone even though he knew Clint would accommodate to his line of sight, “I told you you’d do this, can’t wait for a damn thing.”

Letting out a wounded noise, Clint leaned away slightly and put a hand on his heart, pout firmly on his face, “I am nothing but reliable! So what if I had a sneak peak, there’s probably so many more pictures of Steve now - Tony’s probably even made an appearance by now.”

Letting out a little snort and shaking his head, Bucky easily snatched the phone from Clint and opened the Twitter app, searching up ‘Captain America’ and instantly laughing at the pictures showing up.

Just as he had assumed it looked like his friend was having the time of his life.

“Oh my god! Look at his face when he saw Tony walking up!”

Bucky pushed the phone into Clint’s face and the man immediately lit up with laughter, gripping the edged to try get a clearer look as he kept laughing, “That’s brilliant! Oh man, you think he’s gonna get a PR call to at least act like he wants to be there?”

“Probably sooner than he’s wanting, maybe even more than once. Man, that face makes it seem like the depression was one giant vacation.”

Clint let out a loud cackle and his head fell back as Bucky grinned shyly up at the other, turning his attention back to the phone before he could get too lost in the view of the happiness and ease littered across the others face.

They continued looking through Twitter before putting the phone away and just talking, catching each other up on the things that they had missed in the two days they had been apart. You’d think two days wasn’t enough time to have full on stories, but no one could really ever explain how Clint got into the messes he did.

“-and you would have thought that I would have learned my lesson from the last time but apparently we all had too much faith in me. We really need to stop doing that, it’s getting my hopes up.”

Bucky shook his head, about to open his mouth and reply when Betty came running up to him, covered in mud, “Doll! What the hell?”

“Oh god.” Lucky came running up then, somehow covered in even more mud than Betty and both men groaned as they stood up.

“Your dog is trash and a terrible influence.”

“You only think that because you think your dog is perfect.”

“Think? That’s an insult to my baby, she’s the best girl, aren’t you? Yes you are, yes you are!”

From where he had crouched to try pat any clean spot on Betty, he looked back up at Clint to find the other man smiling down at him fondly. He couldn’t help but grin back before Betty tried to jump onto him and he let out an ‘oomph’ as he was crushed under the weight of the dog.

Bucky scowled as he managed to get Betty off of him and stand up, but the damage was already done and some of the mud had already rubbed off of her and onto him. He sighed and looked to where Clint was desperately trying not to laugh.

“Shut up, she’s still better than your mutt.”

“Whatever you say, Barnes.”

The two stood there grinning at each other for a moment or two before Betty let out a whine, rubbing herself more firmly against Bucky’s leg, causing the two to look down at their two dogs.

Coughing a little, Bucky rubbed at the back of his neck and looked towards Clint, trying to feel more confident than he felt, “So uh, my apartment’s closer and it’s… Probably more ideal to try clean these two at the same time so uh, wanna come to mine?”

“Why Mr. Barnes, are you asking me to spend my Valentines with you? I could have a hot date lined up for all you know.”

Bucky snorted, “You’ve got a hot date like I’ve got any date at all.”

He started walking out towards the gate and Clint bumped shoulders with him, grinning, “Well now that’s just offensive, I’ll have you know that I’m a very hot date. And so are you,” he scrunched up his nose and looked down at Betty before looking up, teasing glint in his eye, “Preconceived ideas about your dog and all.”

So yeah.

Previous Valentines had been doomed from the start, but as the two of them kneeled on the floor of Bucky’s bathroom later, trying for their dear lives to clean their dogs with as little mess as possible, teasing each other along the way and Clint pecking Bucky on the cheek sweetly when they were done with that task, Bucky thought that this Valentines really couldn’t get that much better.

At least until he saw a compilation a few hours later of ‘Captain America Doesn’t Wike It’ from the kissing booth and yeah.

Best Valentines ever.

#winterhawk #clint barton #bucky barnes #sniper husbands #buckyclint #writing from nz

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weregonnaneedmorewhiskey · 6 years

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Social Media:Guilty in the court of public opinion. The problem with cancel culture and its toxic nature and why I have a major problem with it

DISCLAIMER: If you read parts of this and not the whole thing and type a “rebuttal”. Just save your time and don’t do it because you don’t the smoke

Ok before I start, I would like to say this. 1. If you are an ignorant person who cannot accept the opinions and thought of others then don’t read this. 2. If you don’t take the time to look at facts, then don’t read this. I don't have time for you and 3. If you are to crucify people then you can just go. I just gave you some warnings already so why is your ass still here?! Ok I have a love/hate relationship with social media. I think social media can be great in terms of communicating with others and making friends online and of course sharing memes and funny videos because those are fantastic. Social media can be great for displaying people’s interests and talents. I myself have a photography blog alongside this one and some people have made a career from social media. However like all good things, it has its ugly side. In the last year or so, a trend has appeared on social media and that's cancel culture. I myself have never taken part in cancel culture myself as I thought it was toxic, immature and petty in most circumstances. I'm definite that cancel culture will come to an end (hopefully this year) but for now, we have to deal with it on our timelines. Anything that is either taken out of context, blow out of proportion or is a simple mistake will face the court of public opinion. The social justice warriors of the internet, the holier than thou folks will decide your fate.

First and for most, we all need to remember that we are all human. We make mistakes and we learn from it. I am not better than the next person as I have made my fuck ups at the end of the day but we all grow and evolve. I have several problems with cancel culture. If a person makes a mistake or has made a mistake in the past, that does not give you the right to ruin them. By doing so you are no better than the person who’s made a mistake and you are ruining a person’s life. Prime example, Kevin Hart and the Oscars. Kevin Hart was forced to step down as the host for this year's Oscars ceremony due to some homophobic tweets from 2009. Whilst I believe that homophobia is wrong, Kevin has moved on from a tweet that he made almost a decade ago in which that comments probably wouldn’t have taken as seriously. Kevin has grown and evolved but the court of public opinion has forced him to step down from the role due to the mass controversy. If you are searching through old tweets from 2009, you clearly have an agenda to ruin a person’s life because you are blinded by your hatred and do not want to see someone have success. This role was an amazing opportunity for Kevin but because of this toxic era of being overly PC, it was taken away because people wanted to hold his past against him and not acknowledge his evolution.

Now let’s get to how cancel culture is effecting the legal system. We’ve all heard the term “innocent until proven guilty”. In terms of the legal system, this is still true but for social media, this isn't the cause. Cancel culture has pronounced people to be guilty into proven innocent. People are no longer reading the facts, they are immediate to jump to conclusion, therefor inspiring this title “guilty in the court of public opinion” This is extremely dangerous. Social media should have no influence in the judicial system WHATSOEVER unless the person has committed the crime on Instagram Live (a man who raped someone on Instagram Live was recently found not guilty, just letting you know. What a fucked up world we’re living in huh?). When it comes to a case, people need to look at the evidence that has been presented and not from outside influences especially if it turns out shock horror that the person is actually innocent and then they’ve been sentenced to 25 to life.

This leads perfectly leads into my next point. So if you've been on Twitter in the last 24 hours then you would have seen that Chris Brown was detained in Paris for several hours on a rape complaint. Now before I go into this and break this down, if you are expecting me to drag Chris and call him a piece of shit and xyz, you can stop reading this now because I’m happy to let you know that I am a fan of Chris and have been since his debut. Now when this report broke out, I immediately went and read the whole report because we look at facts in this household. As soon as I saw that the “accuser” had done an interview with Closer Magazine France and went to The Shade Room, I immediately raised an eyebrow because why would you go to a tabloid before going to the police? This rang some serious bells and red flags and reminded of another incident involving Chris.

Back in 2016, a woman went to TMZ to say that Chris had held her at gunpoint. Again if you were held at gunpoint, then why are you going to a tabloid? Eventually LAPD found out that this was a false allegation and Chris was released from jail and the charges were dropped. Another thought that popped across my mind is that “I don’t think Chris is that stupid to do something like with the amount of negative press he's had in career over the last decade and I can’t see him doing something like especially since he has a daughter who is his life and who has helped him grow up significantly” . Bear in mind Chris has not made a public appearance since October when he attended Diddy’s Halloween party and his public appearance are few and far between now within the last few years with Royalty in his life. He mainly stay at home or is on the road. Paris fashion week is the first public appearance from him in months.

The accuser then went on to Instagram to say that she was not raped by Chris and he was not even present at the club that it was claimed that they met. Several eyewitnesses also went to social media to confirm that the allegations were false and that Chris never had an encounter with this woman and that he has never been alone at one point during this Paris trip. (PSA can we you know go to the fucking police to give statements to prove someone is innocent or guilty instead of going to social media because you are screwing with someone’s livelihood here!). Of course the court of public opinion came and gave their two cents on the situation and they pretty much proclaimed that Chris was guilty without looking at the facts.

Now if you are about to say “well look at 2009?” Yes Chris made a mistake which I don't agree with but we also need to remind/enlighten ourselves that the Rihanna incident was A FIGHT and both parties were wrong. She should have not hit him and he shouldn’t have retaliated. (side note: can we hold women accountable of when they are abusive towards men because there is a serious gender bias when it comes to abuse in relationships and we need to remind ourselves both genders can be abusive). He has also evolved from that and showed genuine remorse for the situation. The majority of social media were on Chris’ side in regards to this situation and he was eventually released from police custody when the French police found out the accusations was false and issued an apology to Chris and told him that he was free to leave the country. Chris’ lawyer has said that he intends to sue for defamation of character rightly so and Chris has also gone to social media to deny the allegation. Chris’ situation sparks several different issues. The first being in regards to social media. It is extremely dangerous and toxic to contribute to a false narrative without looking at the fact especially with a charge as serious as rape and even more the silence upon it being revealed that accusations were false just shows how DISGUSTING people can be since many people wanted this accusations to be true.

This shows the type of world we live in that people WANT a woman to be raped all the expense of not liking someone. I cannot associate myself with people who think like this when they are actual rapists such as R Kelly who is yet to be charged for his NUMEROUS crimes against underage black girls despite concrete evidence and a tape but yet we can arrest Chris on a false accusation and several eyewitness and hotel footage to show that he didn't commit this crime? Kevin Spacey and Matt Lauer are also rapists who careers have ended but have yet to be charged for the crime despite once again having concrete evidence and eyewitnesses. The president of the United States is also guilty of sexual assault and is on a recording bragging about his crimes like its a badge of honour. Brett Kavanaugh is walking a free man despite also having concrete evidence and eyewitness confirming his crime. Asia Argento, a victim of Harvey Weinstein was discovered to be guilty of sexual abuse after a young man came forward about how he was abused by Asia as a teenager. Harvey Weinstein is awaiting trial for his numerous crimes. Why can't the court of public opinion keep the same energy they had for a man who was innocent for those who are guilty. Secondly in light of the Me too movement, to accuse someone of a crime as serious as rape is extremely dangerous to their career and their character, a person’s life can be destroy at the expense of an opportunist. Additionally to lie about rape is DISGUSTING! This is what stops ACTUAL rape victims from coming forward because we have people who lie about it and the true victims aren't taken as seriously as a result. I would also think in light of the Me Too movement and Surviving R Kelly, people would pay more attention to the facts now before we “cancel” people. Personally I think that if you lie about a offence as serious as rape, you should go to jail and get sued because you are evil and karma will come to you. What if this your brother or your son or uncle or dad etc who was being accused of this crime? How would you feel if everyone thought they were guilty because of a mistake they made a teenager that has nothing to do with what they were currently accused of? Just think about that for a moment.

To end this I think Chris deserves an apology, one of them being from Eve after her comments on The Talk and that he should not only sue the women who lied but should sue media outlets such as TMZ and The Shade Room for defamation of character and let's remember this: innocent until proven guilty and look at the facts (in this day and age we really need to do this)

Update: Malibu Dollface made a video pretty much explaining everything I feel about cancel culture. Please watch and support him because he’s amazing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ah4ZfxTqT5s

#cancel culture #me too #chris brown #social media #blogger #blogpost

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quartzandpetals-blog · 5 years

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If you’ve recently begun looking for a job after years

If you've recently begun looking for a job after years out of practice, you are probably having that"uh oh" moment in which you do not quite remember where--or how--to begin.

It's OK, we've all been there. So, to help you get over that"I am feeling so overwhelmed" state, I'm going to refresh your memory on all of the fundamentals: from tailoring your resume to writing a cover letter into the terrifying feat of actually applying for a job.

After I've covered all of it, the job search will immediately transform from something scary to something you can totally handle. Trust me, we have your back.

1. Customize Your Resume for Each Job

If you've been out of college for some time along with your resume nonetheless lists your very first internships, you are probably better off creating one from scratch. When it's up to speed, you are going to need to tailor it, quantify your bullet points, and cut it down to a single page. And yes, you will have to go through this procedure for each new place you find. Mainly because the hiring supervisor's only giving you six seconds--unless you give them a reason to stay around more.

Oh, and that goal statement has to proceed. (Unless you are changing careers, in which case, have a look at the summary announcement )

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2. Customize Your Cover Letter, Too

For starters, this means you need to address it into some person. (And no, that individual's never called,"To Whom it May Concern.") And that it must open and shut with attention-grabbing lines.

Here's the simplest template to get you going.

LinkedIn is the new preferred type of social media in regards to finding a job. You most likely have a profile, but you would like to craft a fantastic summary that sums up who you are, your specialist experiences, along with your future aspirations. In addition you wish to personalize your headline, connect with people you know (and do not know, but admire), and even attach a number of your personal work, such as published articles, advertisements, or media releases.

And yes, you can even make it stand out more with an eye-catching desktop photo.

After all of your stuff are in sequence, you finally have the chance to chat with fellow LinkedIn members. When reaching out to some stranger, then personalize your message while keeping it short and to the point.

As soon as a hiring manager looks at your resume, he or she promptly Googles you (OK, maybe not immediately, but when he or she is interested, it is going to occur at a certain point). Which means that everything on your Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, as well as Pinterest is instantly part of your program.

So how can you manage your social websites for career achievement? Step one is making certain all public programs are specialist. That doesn't mean you only share the latest from Forbes. However, it does mean there's nothing (nothing!) That could be interpreted badly.

Step two would be the interesting part--the part where you get to impress anyone searching for your online presence. While we recommend building your own personal portfolio (which isn't as hard as it sounds), we also advise you to ensure that your bios send the right message --out of the LinkedIn summary to all those 160 characters in your Twitter profile.

5. Network (and Then Network More)

So you are going to have to get out and do some networking. I saw you shudder--but fear not, networking comes in all forms, so regardless of if you are introverted or extroverted, there's always a means for you to get in touch with the right men and women. Emphasis on the right way.

You'll want to start by reaching out to your own network and letting them know you're looking for a new task (here's a fantastic template for this email). Then, the uncomfortable part, asking strangers for assistance. It's easier than you would imagine! For instance, this email template will get you a meeting with nearly anyone you ask. The goal here would be to put up informational interviews (a.k.a., coffee dates) to not only catch your foot in the door, but also learn more about companie you are interested in and find the right fit.

When there's somebody you met in a party (or via a friend of a friend of a cousin) that you think could give you a hand, there's nothing wrong with politely following up and asking to get his or her advice. Regardless of that you know, nearly anyone can develop into a valuable career connection with a few genuine work.

6. Be Deliberate When Applying to Jobs

1 common misconception concerning the search is that you ought to apply to as many tasks as possible, but this is definitely not the case. Instead, you wish to spend time doing your research, filling out your software, and only applying for positions you are really qualified for and interested in. (Although there are ways to get in the door if you are only slightly under-qualified, or even a bit too over-qualified.)

Note: A huge reason it's better to aim your search rather than apply aimlessly is as the program has to get through an ATS first--meaning a robot will read through your stuff in front of a human does. There is a means to past that dumb bot, but it takes some effort on your end.

And if you are in a unique position--such as changing careers, returning to work after taking time off to raise children, or rebounding from being laid-off--know you're going to have to take a couple added steps.

7. Prepare for the Interview

Now, before you walk into that meeting, you need to practice the way you are going to answer a few common questions. You also wish to have in your repertoire a collection of tales you can share your previous experiences and how you conquer obstacles. And when the interviewer goes to ask you if you have any queries, you're going to want to come prepared with several excellent ones. Basically, this is your chance to show the hiring manager who you are and why you'd be a great fit for the company.

When that is over, you are down to the final actions. Like sending a thank you note. No, really, these few lines could make all of the difference. And if you still haven't heard back after a couple of months, then try following up with the hiring manager to show you are still interested in the position.

8. Remember That This Process Takes Time

You'll probably start your search super-excited to get started. Then it'll drag on and on--and you'll find excuses to stop. Do not!

This is a long process--particularly if you know exactly what you need (which can be great!) . Your program has to capture the attention of busy recruiters, hiring managers, and yes, some robots. Trust me, I know it's exhausting.

My advice to you? And on the days when you truly feel like throwing in the towel, do. Not permanently, but for this evening. So put your feet up, put Netflix on, and treat yourself to a relaxing evening. The listings will all still be there in the morning.

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heldyourpride · 6 years

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Rep Room Experience/Santa Clara night 2

5/12/18. It all started with a group of six girls who had a spectacular costume idea for Santa Clara night 2. We had bought tickets in December and were so excited for this day to come. We were texting in the group chat literally every single day about it.

Before I begin, nothing I’m about to say is meant to be malicious. It’s a slippery slope because we’re not as close with two of the girls in the group, but we are in no way trying to hurt them by saying this. I just need to make it clear that nothing that occurred was with bad intentions, however sometimes even the best intentions end up shitty.

We thought it would be a good idea to have more people for our costume, even though we weren’t as close with two of the girls. The day of the show, we posted our costume online and in a matter of a few hours our group was viral on Twitter and Tumblr. I couldn’t believe the traction we got and even in the stadium people wanted to take pictures of us. It was an absolute blast, and we met so many old and new friends from social media. We started to walk around some more to see if we could spot anyone from Taylor Nation and then all of a sudden, Steph approached us.

She said how much she loved our costumes and wanted to take a picture of us. We talked to Steph for a few minutes and she asked what shows we were going to, and where we would be sitting. A little girl and her mom asked us for a photo while we were talking to Steph, so that was where the conversation ended and we said goodbye.

Fast forward to Charli XCX’s set, Karina got a notification that Taylor liked our costume post on Tumblr and even followed her! It felt so incredible and we were all jumping up and down. We had a feeling something was going to happen tonight after getting approached by Taylor Nation and receiving a Taylor like, but we didn’t want to get our hopes up.

The show was amazing and we were just dancing like crazy and having a good time, as time went on we basically figured it wasn’t happening so we were just enjoying the show without checking our phones or anything. During Blank Space, Karina gets a tap on her shoulder and its STEPH. We all started freaking out because we knew what was coming. She thought we were on the floor had had been trying to find us.

She asked if anyone in our group had met Taylor before and I said, “Yes me.” I told her I would be okay with staying back because I needed my friends to meet her. Steph called me over and whispered in my ear and said, “Normally we can’t do this because if you have met Taylor you can’t go back but she specifically asked for all six of you.” I LITERALLY STARTED CRYING AND FELL TO THE GROUND. It was the best feeling in the whole world. I know there is a lot of controversy over the “rule” being so inconsistent, but I guess when Taylor breaks it, it’s okay. I understand how shitty it is to everyone else who has been turned away, but if you were in my position you would go too. There will be lots of strong opinions about this, but please don’t hate on TN.

Our other three friends that were sitting in a different section also got the news and were so excited! After the show, we got in line and waited to go in the Rep Room. Once we were inside we got to take pictures and eat some pizza while waiting for Taylor. All of a sudden, Taylor popped her head out and said “Hi everyone!” I literally died… She went back into a curtained room as everyone lined up to meet her. We tried to be last in line because we knew we were a big group and were hoping if we went last, we’d be less rushed. There was a guy who was having lots of anxiety about meeting her so we went before him to give him time to calm down. As soon as we walked in she hugged each of us and said how happy she was that we were there. She wouldn’t stop talking about our costumes and how much she appreciated the effort and creativity. One of the girls in the group that we weren’t as close with started talking to Taylor and would not let any of us get a word in. Every time one of us tried to talk or respond to one of Taylor’s questions, she would talk over us. I felt so sad for the other girls in my group who hadn’t met her before, and I was trying to step back and let everyone else have a chance. I even kept saying that they all had something to tell her, trying to get the one girl to stop talking over them, but it didn’t work. The girl didn’t do it on purpose, she was nervous rambling, so I really don’t want any hate towards her. This is mainly to give our full story, not to bring anyone down.

About halfway through the M&G, one of the girls says to her friend, “Didn’t you want to ask Taylor something?” She says, “Tayyyy I just wanna know, how did you get so thick?” The four of us were so stunned someone would ever say that to her. We all looked at each other mortified. Anna said out loud “why would you ask her that??” This is the first time I’ve ever seen Taylor hesitate to respond to a question. In interviews and everything, she’s always so quick-witted and on the ball. But she genuinely looked taken aback and it broke my heart. It was so uncomfortable, but Taylor being the kind goddess that she is recovered and replied “I don’t know I just started eating what I wanted and I’m happy now”

After that comment, the entire mood had shifted. One of the girls started talking again and before we knew it, Taylor was asking to take the picture. We still didn’t have the chance to get individual moments with Taylor, and most of the girls in the group didn’t say a single word to her. She mentioned she only had three minutes left until she got kicked out of the building but she had one more person to meet. Most of us didn’t even get a hug goodbye. I mainly feel horrible for my friends, because I’ve already had this chance but they haven’t.

I am so grateful that I got to talk and hug Taylor again, but under the circumstances it was not what we imagined. Being talked over and having Taylor thrown off by that comment probably is why our time was shorter with her. Before you take this the wrong way, I know it’s hard to understand until you have the perspective of meeting her. I know many people will say we’re being ungrateful because at least we got to go to the concert, or at least we got to hug her. However it really is heartbreaking to wait so long for that moment and to have it turn out that way. We’ve gotten so many kind messages from people sharing that they had similar experiences but were too scared to come forward in the fear of being attacked, or seeming ungrateful.

I know for many of us we value the connection and conversation with Taylor more than the photo, and the girls didn’t get that. I am disappointed by what happened and hope my friends get another chance to tell Taylor everything they need to.

@lovinhimwasread @yourfaceinalocket @jen-loves-tay-13

#reputation #mine #story #meeting tay #taylor swift #rep room

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thechrispavon · 6 years

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Okay, I think I'm in the mood to talk about 2018 and the year to come.

(Originally posted on Twitter)

2018 has been... an odd year, I guess? It definitely wasn't as bad as my 2017, but I always think it could've been a bit better. I think I'd give it a 6 or a 7 out of 10, mainly because I think I could've done more. (Plus, my 2017 was flat out horrible.)

I started 2018 finally getting employed. Even though it was only a part time job, it was my first job after I finished my Bachelor's degree in 2016. Constantly applying for jobs and getting no response greatly contributed to my depression.

And even though I occasionally apply nowadays, I at least have my current part time job to fall back on. It makes my job-hunting less soul-sucking. While I take calls for theater patrons who want to order tickets, I slowly got to know my co-workers.

I feel like I didn't really open up until summertime, which was the theater's off-season. I can say I've met a few friends. Some of them have their quirks, but I don't mind. Through working, I've noticed I have more patience than others. And boi, it comes in handy.

Plus, with a part time job, I get to treat myself! AND BOI, DID I DO THAT! I got myself a Switch on my birthday, a bunch of merch at NYCC, several games during Christmastime, a new phone, and that KH3 Deluxe coming next year! I'd hate to flex, but I worked for it. XD

Creatively this year, I've been mentally throwing stuff at a wall to see what sticks. At the end of last year/beginning of this year, I talked to a producer and showed him my writing work. I was just happy to talk to him.

To be honest, I didn't expect much from the conversation, so being able to show him my work and get feedback was pretty much an honor! Lol Afterwards, I went to work brainstorming and developing new ideas, but they were a hit or miss. I feel like some ideas need more time.

Meanwhile, I managed to finish writing the Children of the Sky Episode 4 Script around October. I was ecstatic. I don't remember when I started that! It was a long time, way before I wrote the Series Bible in January 2018.

Speaking of the Children of the Sky Project: Even though I finished Episode 4 and I'm currently writing 5, I really don't know what's going to happen with the project in 2019. Honestly, I've never been this unsure with the project before.

Children of the Sky is a huge story, and yes, I could continue writing scripts, but I REALLY want to share it with people. I wanted it to be animated. That's why I wrote screenplays. I tried to do it back in 2016 with a couple of people, but it turned out to be REALLY difficult.

I tried to make Children of the Sky into a comic all on my own, but I became absolutely exhausted, because I'm a huge perfectionist. It took me a few weeks just make this one panel. (And looking at it in hindsight, there's a bunch of things I could've done differently.)

I toyed with the idea of turning my story into a video game series, because that would be awesome. (I can dream, okay?) I thought about how battles would play and I even dabbled once into very basic 3D modeling, but honestly? I don't know anyone with that expertise.

I know I could hire people who know how to draw, animate, make 3D models, or even program a game, but with my expectations and standards, I can't afford to properly pay them with my part-time job. And I'm terrified of crowdfunding, because what if people don't like my ideas?

Only recently have I begun to think about turning Children of the Sky into a series of novels. Using my scripts as a foundation, I would have to greatly revise the episodes to properly fit the medium. It will take some time and I don't know if I'm really keen on the idea.

And I haven't even started on my stuff on YouTube!! My "Throw-Stuff-At-Wall-And-See-What-Sticks" mentality REALLY transferred over to that space in 2018. I tried to do vlogs, dabbled in reviews, and I don't know what else. Just some random videos. I need a focus. Or a coach lol.

My Most Viewed YT Videos I made in 2018 were...

Kingdom Hearts III Release Date Reaction

My Manga Collection

Cloud and Sephiroth But with Ed Edd n Eddy Sound Effects

Devilman Crybaby Fast Review

Reacting to KH3 is Hard

VA Demo Reel

The KH3 Release Date Reaction was just good timing, because I released it RIGHT after it was announced. FF7 with Ed Edd n Eddy was just a meme. And my demo reel only got that much views because I marketed it to Voice Actors on Twitter often.

Right now, I don't know what I'm doing for YouTube! Lol I've been debating on doing a video on how Kingdom Hearts means so much to me, but I'm hesitant, because I don't know how people are going to take it! XD But outside of that? I have no idea!

Let's change the subject to voice acting!

This past summer, I came out of a massive hiatus. Before then, I hadn't been doing voice acting in YEARS. What prompted me? Some idiot I worked with once decided to go to recording studios and anonymously slandered a couple of well known voice actors.

But that absolutely PALES in comparison to the whole Mylez Dimitrovski fiasco. The worst thing? I worked with the guy a couple times. I kinda chatted with him. But I knew NOTHING about his shit. Only hints I get from other voice acting friends in the past.

I missed voice acting during my hiatus, but nothing really inspired me. I was so pissed off about these two that I felt COMPELLED to actually get back into it.

I met some voice actors online because of this, but I still honestly feel like an outsider to the voice acting community. I quickly became aware of how my quality isn't as good as anyone else's. Plus, getting rejected auditions still feels like crap today as it did years ago.

I got to Round 2 of Now Voice This and I was very shocked. I did not expect that at all. I just submitted a few days before the deadline and tried not to think too much about. When I saw my name in Round 2, I didn't believe it. My first thought was, "You're kidding, right?"

But now, I unfortunately have to take another voice acting hiatus, because my family and I will be moving soon. The new house will be closer to work. It'll still be in the same state, so no California or Texas for me!

I'm concerned about where to record in the new house, because most of the place has hardwood or tiled floors. Reverb's gonna be horrible. Maybe I could ask my parents to install a studio? I would need to upgrade my equipment, because I don't think my Yeti's gonna cut it anymore.

But yeah. For the past couple of years, my parents have been thinking about moving and have been looking for houses. They just bought the new house last month. So it just created this weird seismic shift in my life. 2019 is really going to be marked by my family and I moving.

I've been in the old house my entire life. Sure, I was on a college campus for 4 years, but the old house was my childhood. I don't know what's going to happen in 2019. I just want to get used to the new house and play Kingdom Hearts III.

#I made a thing!#telegraphs

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