caityrose · 1 year ago
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thechildoflightning · 5 years ago
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The Service Dogs from
just keep stumbling forward (baby im waiting for you)
A Sander Sides fanfiction series
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My series focuses on CALM/LAMP as well as handing life and mental illness (which can be found here) and features two service dog handlers in Remy and Virgil.
As I’ve written these characters I’ve grown quite attached to their dogs, and I know some of the fans of the series have as well. As such, 
I’ve put together a collective post featuring the dogs
Which includes their breeds, names, personalities, and how/why they are so important to their owners. Oh, and reference pictures of course!
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[Image Description: Photo of a young Bernese Mountain dog sitting in a field. The puppy is looking at the camera with big brown eyes and adorable expression. The puppy is quite fluffy and has the traditional tri color markings of its breed. ID ends]
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[Image Description: Photo of a large Bernese Mountain dog striding through a nature trail. The dog is holding its head high and seems quite regal. It is wearing a harness and it’s tongue is hanging out of its mouth slightly. The dog has the traditional tri color markings of it’s breed and it’s long fur has a slight curly wave to it. ID ends]
Dolly
Bernese Mountain Dog
The name Dolly is English, Greek, and American. It most commonly means “a gift from God” and/or “a vision.”
Dolly, being Virgil’s first service dog, had a lot of work cut out for, and her name represents her very being. Dolly was what gave back Virgil his independence and life while also providing him hope and safety. At the time, she really did seem like a true gift from God as the large dog immediately got Virgil to open up and decrease his violent and unsafe behaviors. She was a vision of what Virgil’s future could be.
Dolly was incredible gentle but firm. She was very much a sweetheart and a lap dog when off duty. She was all for cuddles, and her soft, thick fur always made Virgil feel safe.
But she also held her boundaries. At the time, Virgil was in a fragile place, and not only did he need Dolly to ground him and help him through flashbacks, he needed her to feel safe. Dolly often had to task into a Block, physically separating her handler from others to allow him the perceived safety he needed.
Dolly was the definition of a firm and gentle giant, and her passing was devastating on Virgil, only helped by the arrival of his new service dog, Trixie.
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[Image Description: Photo of a Dutch Shepherd puppy sitting impatiently outdoors. The dog is black with slight brindle markings. It is looking at something off screen and can barely sit still. ID ends]
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[Image Description: Photo of a Dutch Shepherd lying down in a green field. While lying down, the dog is intensely focused on whatever is behind the camera. The dog’s ears are perked up and it has bright amber eyes. The dog’s coat is black with brindle markings. ID ends]
Trixie
Dutch Sheperd
The name Trixie is English and Latin and means “bringer of joy.”
Trixie stepped in as Virgil’s newest service dog almost a year before Dolly’s passing. Dolly was a part of Virgil’s very soul, and had profound importance in his life, making her loss truly devastating. In fact, Virgil was adamant in his refusal to get a new service dog after. And then came along Trixie. Like her name suggests, Trixie’s puppy-like innocence and behavior brought back joy to Virgil’s life as he came to terms with Dolly’s passing. Dolly may have helped Virgil first recover from being kidnapped, but Trixie held the responsibility of helping guide Virgil through normal life and reintroduce him to the joys of it.
Trixie was dignified and passionate while also playful. She took her job seriously separating play time and work time like a pro. She was a constant at Virgil’s side and seemed to know the importance of her position. She took her job seriously and did it with purpose. She got honest joy from doing her job and doing it well. But, let her off duty, and she turned into a light-hearted puppy. She was sure to always wake up Virgil with enthusiasm and slobbery licks each morning.
Trixie was powerful, representing Virgil’s transition to adulthood, while still never forgetting the importance of living life to the fullest, a trait that would continue in Kit.
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[Image Description: Photo of a Boxer German Shepherd Mix puppy leaping across a field in front of a house. The dog’s tail and ears are sticking straight up as it proudly holds an antler toy in its mouth. The dog is a caramel brown color with white paws and darker markings around its face. ID ends]
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[Image Description: Photo of a Boxer German Shepherd Mix in a snowy field looking directly at the camera. The dog’s ears are a mix between half perked up and half folded over and it’s muzzle has bits of snow on it. The dog has an almost confused expression. It’s coat is brown with a small white marking on its chest and darker markings around its face and ears. ID ends]
Kit
Boxer German Shepherd Mix
The name Kit itself has no real meaning or origin. It has been used both as a nickname for Christopher and Katherine, therefore sometimes tying it to be related to Christ or purity and clearness. A more common use of the name is the abbreviation, meaning Keep In Touch. In result of these conflicts and lack of origin, the name Kit fits perfectly. After all, our origins don’t define us.
Kit’s position was different in a way that neither of Virgil’s other dogs had to experience. While both of his other dogs had to help support Virgil through trying times, Kit was only there for the aftermath. Virgil, while still having severe PTSD, had learned to adapt and manage his life in healthy ways and now had support systems in place. Kit, above all, needed to be adaptable to this new Virgil. He struggled the most in his training, causing Virgil to consider more than once to get a new dog, but it was Kit’s sheer determination that turned him against the idea. And eventually, Kit had a breakthrough in his training and everything fell into place.
Kit was pure energy. Everything about him had charm, determination, and life. While Kit struggled the most to learn his tasks and master his training, he worked the hardest. Virgil put him through the wringer and he always came back for more. It was Kit that inspired Virgil to find his own determination and self-love in himself. He was a reminder of new days and new futures. If Dolly and Trixie were steady, Kit was flexibility. 
Kit became Virgil’s reminder to work through and find new ways to solve his problems, while also taking the time to smell the roses. Kit was balance.
Bonus!
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[Image Description: Photo of a chocolate labradoodle puppy in front of stone and brick. The dog’s head is slightly tilted with its tongue hanging out. The dog has a bright brown nose and eyes. ID ends]
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[Image Description: Photo of a chocolate labradoodle in front of a cream background. The dog’s body is not facing the camera, but it’s head is turned to directly look at the camera. The dog is lifting its head slightly and has a lolling tongue. It’s fur is quite bushy and curly. ID ends]
Cha-Cha
Labradoodle
The name Cha-Cha does not have an origin, as it was not originally a name, but a dance known for it’s hip movements, small steps, Latin American music, and most of all, it’s energy.
Cha-Cha may not have a name origin, but it certainly has meaning, just as the large labradoodle had in Remy’s own life. Both members of the team have an unmistakably energy, just as the dance the dog is named after. Cha-Cha, compared to Virgil’s dogs, also has a completely different job. Cha-Cha’s job is unmistakable- to guide and support Remy in order to give him more independence.
Cha-Cha is sophisticated and intuitive, and like her owner, dramatic. The dog, more than any other, has always seemed to be almost human. She has been a constant in Remy’s life and has seen him evolve into a more confident version of himself. Her sophistication has allowed him pace to be his own person, while her intuition has always kept them connected as one. She was the perfect in between independence and dependence. Plus, she has always had a sense for the dramatic, as when she was off duty, she would pout like nobody’s business when denied a lick from the peanut butter jar. 
Cha-Cha has always been so much more than just “a guide dog.” She is Remy’s love, freedom, dreams, passions, and aspirations.
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I really hope you all enjoyed this! This was both very self indulgent as well as me wanting to convey a bit more about the dogs to the readers. I just, these doggos are so good, and they deserve that recognition. I hope you love them as much as I do!
And if you haven’t read my series, but are in anyway interested, you can find it here. 
Thanks so much!
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imogenbennettblogsdp · 5 years ago
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Transmedia storytelling - session 6
again as said in previous blog (week 5) I am virtual learning from my home, which as in that blog I felt not as productive as I would have in a class room but under the circumstances I find I accomplished and learnt quite a bit. Also the working in Pjs is a plus...
Web 2.0 is something we have touched on before, in the first sessions which is important as Web 2.0 has become something everyone is very familiar with (even if they don't know what the word means) and that Social Media, with social media its very much broadened to a active audience, we are contanstly looking, creating and thinking about what we are seeing which can be pretty much anything. take my edit instagram account for example, I am constantly seeking new techniques by others (almost collaborating by sharing editing styles with people and I am making ‘User Generated Content’. Also Web 2.0 offers audience participation ‘Participatory culture’, for example the Comment section. this allows the viewer to give feedback, praise and even abuse (even though that's not what its particularly meant for) This gives the viewer a feel of incorporation towards the creator (or photo, video, information- if on wiki).
*Referring to the voice over presentation video* the way marketing use ‘User Generated Content’ is very interesting and it has changed the ways we receive ads and how marketers approach sponsoring etc, I wanted to look more into it/ provide evidence to this and with two popular examples being - Youtube and Game ads.  when you watch a video on youtube by a content creator what do you usually get:
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Ads. 
Youtube (a popular Web 2.0 website) is a Queen Bee hive for Ads... swarming. compared to old visual Ads being Ads on tv in the commercial break or flyers, these ads can be incorporated in the video, being at the beginning of the ad like the 1st picture above, or in collaboration with the creator of the video. I found this very intriguing and interesting, Im quite fascinated by idea of marketing and this little investigation (even tho I'm pretty familiar by being a YouTube veteran) so perhaps in future I can explore it more.
As I am watching the ‘Harry Jenkins film’ I now feel more supported in what I have said previously in the Blog, Mostly where I mention my instagram account, he says “what were seeing in the digital age people are taking media into their hands... and innovating and experimenting” with that media which Is exactly what I am doing, I am taking content and mixing it up making it into my own.
‘Conversion Culture” Having different platforms to see it (say youtube, insta and TikTok) which is shaped by us rather than corporations, we have control. we can all collaborate and mix information together (on say wiki) which leads to much more complex ‘than what someone in a board room can come up with on their own’. I also found this interesting and very off topic to the video but I realised that a very Recent and Popular example can  be how the Convid-19 information is spread out, TikTok a very content creator based app which mostly is used by younger generations and if you go on it now you'll see a lot of information on how to stay safe and social distance during this pandemic which is very interesting... Could it be argued that kids are paying more attention because they see this entering ‘their world’? not just seeing it on the news (which they might not watch as heavily as the app). 
interesting as It creates more of a world for the viewer
Talking on the Transmedia topic of having multiple platforms I was shown the Blair witch project website. This fascinated me and reminded me of my personal experience With this, ‘Ingrid goes west’ a film near and dear to my heart, which is mostly based on instagram (and how it effects us) #LIFE. I was reminded of this film as the creators also made Ingrid's and Taylor’s (the influencer in the film) instagram account real which is quite fun and I enjoyed looking into it and felt like she semi excited in a way, provided more of a world outside of the film.
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Taylors instagram* I found this so clever and funny, with the captions down to the T. also something to note that loads of fans are allowed to interact with Taylor like Ingrid did, Commenting quotes (especially “Damn girl that looks yummy as fuck!” which is a popular comment you'll see). Its clever if you ask me. I myself have to admit to commenting that quote as- well. (but I'm being involved!) 
Watching the ‘Transmedia storytelling’ video with a cinderella adaptation. watching this had made me think. about A- what story I want to create/adapt. and B- how it links so well to todays generation. And yet again watching this reminded me of something I have seen that is off similar structure. An Ad for the social media app ‘Own it” created by BBC. showing how little connections through sharing can lead to bigger things. (this made helped me understand the Transmedia storytelling video more as I know its all about the connections between things and seeing it visually really helped.)Im not looking forward to doing this task though, storyboarding and mind maps are not my friend and I don't enjoy them, (I may have mentioned this before) but I like to freestyle it and see where it takes me instead of planing and expecting etc. Also Im not a fan of Lucid Charts, I find it hard to use and complicated to what it is which I know is unproductive as I should be using a variety of sites to improve my skills but you can't help but hating something... Lucid chart is my kryptonite.  
For my Transmedia story I decided to do it based off of Joker (2019), I chose this as it has a major event in it which I felt I could use events for, also I really like the film so why not.
I started to think about what I would focus the story around and it was hard to pin-point a certain one, I did pick joker killing the 3 men on the subway (Spoiler!) as that is essentially in my opinion what cracked him into becoming the ‘Joker’. *Refer to the story map in google docs*. Being honest I didn't enjoy it as much as I though I did, I found it quite confusing for what I had to do for a while (so like what directions do I go in? what characters do I use?). Something I also didn't like which is strange is that I didn't like making all the social media accounts... strange because I usually make tons in my own time (I have 6+ personal instagram accounts :/) 
I did start using the software ‘Zeebob’ but I found it quite (this will make me sound snobbish but,) cheap. I just felt it limited me and to what I could create and just didn't seem realistic, 
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so I made two on here but ditched it and went for the real thing... making actual accounts for the posts. Guess which is which... the 1st one is zee bob and second is an actual account I made. The upside of making the actual accounts is having the freedom and more ability to do more things (like on twitter I can retweet stuff that I feel the character would and who they follow which adds personality to the account. 
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Of course the downside of making actual accounts is that I couldn't fake the likes or followers which takes away the realism to the accounts. 
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Out of all the accounts and social media’s I created, surprisingly the @GothamNews was my favourite, probably because i spent the most thought on this; creating the logo (on Canva) .. and finding the cool retweets like the van which I thought was like striking gold to add to the realism.
I did make a mistake that i knew occur from using the same account and changing it (E,G, I made a twitter account and kept changing the name,pictures, retweets etc)... Notice that Arthur’s and GothamNews background photo is the same... well I just noticed that too and its why I need to pay attention to it. so tiny lesson to myself for future and if I was going to do this for real I would create separate accounts and spend more time to trying to find the fitting photos for each character and why? it makes more sense for the news account to have trash as (in the film) Trash was the relevant topic, but joker not so much - he doesn't strike me and the recycling type.
While making the accounts I tried to add as much passive detail as I could... adding the subtle detail, like (as I mentioned) who they follow, retweet, like, what's in their bio, what's their background photo etc. referring a little to one of the earlier sessions in visual design (semiotics 'Denotation and Connotation'). 
(especially Jokers) I paid attention to the way joker writes, to my knowledge he isn't very educated so his writing is very childlike and he writes how he hears (eg  when we see him write ‘hope my life makes more cents etc) it so that was a nice detail I added. 
here are some notes I made for when I was thinking about the map:
- plan event - riot
- bruce Waynes dad saying “stop trash/ campaign
- joker “maybe my life would make more cents if I was dead” 
- Marty “tonights show will be interesting “ 
- jokers video going on air
overall I think I will take the idea of broadening the ‘World’ I create (with film) by creating different platforms. I found this lesson a lot harder than I would of found it in class due to my focus being lost and feeling like im not putting 100% into it unfortunately. 
And who knows maybe ill get loads of followers on one of the accounts and become famous.
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