#le all kinds of crunching has arrived

[beardedmrbean]

[kcrabb88]

I was tagged by @aflamethatneverdies! <3 Thank you friend! Rules: List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favorite opening line. Then tag 10 of your favorite authors!

I have more than 20 fics but am doing less than 20 here because it would make quite a long post! This is a good smattering of my more recent fics. I’m definitely noticing a pattern of my first lines really honing in on a character, or trying to create a Mood using the setting around them. 

And the Sea Stopped It’s Roaring- Phantom of the Opera (Girl Raoul AU)

Raoul de Chagny didn’t mean to slip away from her aunt.

She just…lost track.

When She Heard You Sing- Phantom of the Opera (Girl Raoul AU)

Some things change, as the years pass. Some things, however, things like twenty-three-year-old Raoul de Chagny ignoring her elder brother at the breakfast table, never do.

And the Soul Felt It’s Worth- Les Mis 

Paris was cold to begin with.

Enjolras liked the cold, though he did not particularly care for the early sunsets it brought. A shiver passed over him, and he slid his gloved hands deeper into the pockets of his coat. The air smelled thick and fresh, the clouds above puffy with precipitation, but no snow had yet arrived, just the refrozen ice encrusted between the paving stones, a crunching sound resounding from beneath the soles of his shoes. He walked along the Île de la Cité, moonlight glimmering silver off the dark waters of the Seine.

She Was Bound to Love You Series- Phantom of the Opera (Girl Raoul AU)

Raoul de Chagny has never claimed to be anything other than a hopeless romantic.

Except, well, she wasn’t expecting to melt into her seat when she opened the program at the opera, because she wasn’t expecting to see Christine Daae’s name inside.

Christine Daae.

Between the Soul and the Star- Les Mis 

Bahorel comes up with the plan to bust through the barricade.

Enjolras isn’t surprised.

He is surprised Bahorel’s standing, frankly. Blood’s been slowly dripping from a bayonet wound near his ribcage, his shirt and red waistcoat ripped through.

That Same Calm and Dreamy Cast of Mind- Phantom of the Opera

Raoul rows them back across the lake.

He slips an arm around her waist, tight, like he's afraid Erik might run up behind them and snatch her right out of his hands. But not too tight, not like he owns her, not like Erik's hands around her neck, not like, you’ll be with me or no one, because Raoul has always cared most of all about her and her safety, her life, her happiness, whatever that meant about the two of them.

As If It Might Turn Out This Time- Hadestown

"Make the king feel young again!" Hades slams the stool down on the ground beside him with a great, echoing roar, and Persephone knows that look in his eyes. That shattered, vulnerable, dangerous look he only gets when she's clawed at something too deep inside him. Except, Orpheus isn’t Hades' wife. He isn’t a god who doesn’t really need to fear Hades’ anger in any kind of physical way. He’s a mortal. A mortal who is already exhausted and beaten up and too skinny besides, like a twig that might break at the slightest touch.

Echoing a Song- Les Mis Hadestown AU 

Would you believe it if I told you there is a railroad in an old, hollowed out Parisian sewer tunnel?

Would you believe it if I told you it leads to a place caught between life and death? A place where France sends the people it doesn't want anymore? Rebels. Prostitutes. Thieves. The list goes on. It’s not always about the gravity of the crime. It’s more about the danger the criminal poses to the status quo. It’s about the people who have that spark in their eyes. You know the one. Toulon, and everyone involved in it, aims to snuff that out. Well, at least that used to be true. And not so long ago.

A Sort of Electric Spark- Les Mis 

An impossible, raven-black midnight falls over the barricade.

Enjolras looks up at the sky, searching for any scattered stars. He finds a few, latching onto their dim light and pulling that light into himself. The crescent moon is lost among the deep, impenetrable black, the clouds holding it hostage. Enjolras sits down on the ground in a dark, shadowed corner outside the Corinthe, snatching just a tiny fraction of a moment alone. He looks toward the Corinthe itself, weak candlelight spilling out from the window of the room where their ill and dead lay. The orange glow drips onto the paving stones outside, revealing the smears of red-brown blood on the stone.

Bahorel is dead.

For my favorite line, I’ll do a bonus look at the first lines of the new and revamped Sailing by Orion’s Star, which was obviously once a fic.

Nicholas Jerome has not uttered a prayer since he was twelve years old.

Not once.

He doesn’t pray when he’s in his hammock at night, inches away from the next sailor. He doesn’t pray when storms transform the sea into a mythic monster frothing at the mouth, when thunder rattles the whole ship and his soul along with it, Davy Jones whispering promises of death in his ear.

Never.

I’ll no-pressure tag a few people! @amarguerite, @enigma731, @4beit

[helbramstrauma-main]

Big Brother

Masterlist

David Jacobs x Reader

Modern Era

Note: I hope you enjoy it! This was requested by @wholesumm

Word Count: 993

Personally, I find working for somebody else repulsing, being my own boss is something I take pride in. Although it is difficult to work out your own schedule, nothing is like being able to answer to no-one. Other than the people who hire me, of course. I tell people I am a freelancer to make myself sound more professional, but in reality, I am just a babysitter.  

Today is both my favorite kind of day and my least favorite type of day, starting a new client. Nothing is more exciting than meeting a new kid and getting to know them. On the other hand, there is the possibility that the parents are assuming, or the child is completely spoiled. No matter how many bad experiences I have I will always be overzealous about starting a new client.

I get there fifteen minutes more than I usually would so I could get to know the parents. All they could really get out of their mouth is that there son's schedule changed and that he could no longer babysit his little brother. The boy I am babysitting, Les, is bouncing up and down and is already dragging me around their apartment. Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs, just seem to laugh before excusing themselves, leaving me alone with Les.

At the beginning of our session, Les was bouncing off the walls but as time goes on he eventually settles. He rambles on and on about his big brother and all of his friends, he really idolizes him. Although Les as physically stopped running around the house to show me things, his attention is still hard to grasp. The only thing I get a definitive answer on is what he wants for dinner, the Jacob's have left me a little money to splurge, so we could order in.

Even though Les is technically hard to control, he is so sweet and enthusiastic that I think I would be able to spend all day with him. Our session ends almost as quickly as it started and I am saddened that I have to leave. Usually, I am a little relieved to get some time to myself after a long session, but not this time. However, words cannot describe how joyous I am to when I hear that the Jacobs's wants me to make my sessions regular with them.

I have been seeing Les for about two months and our sessions are anything but ordinary. The only thing that is bound to happen every time I see him, is him gushing about his big brother. I have come to learn his name as David, but he prefers to be called Davey, and that he usually keeps to himself. However, that does not stop Les from telling me stories about his brother, like he is his own personal superhero. Over time I have started to get more curious, like examining family portraits or reading his accomplishments on the fridge.

Right now Les and I are in an extremely intense game of Sorry when I hear the familiar sound of the door opening. I assume that Mr. and Mrs. Jacob have arrived so I do not get from my spot. That is only until I realize that they are not scheduled to come home for another hour, and they haven't come to get me. I immediately tell Les to go into his room, and I toss him a small chocolate bar as I do so, Les will do almost anything for a Crunch bar and it is kind of concerning. When I turn around to investigate who has come into the house, I simply see a rather tall boy similar looking to Les standing in the doorway looking at me.

His mouth is slightly agape and his eyes seem to me sparkling with delight, something that a serial killer would not be doing. Only calming down a little bit I recognize the boy in the doorway as the other face in the family photos, Les's big brother. The fear I once felt melts away as I realize I am not going to have to fight this man. After a while of staring at each other, he introduces himself as Davey Jacobs, something I already knew, and he comes to sit down beside me. As this is happening I call for Les to come back out, as I realize that everything is safe. However, Davey's eyes do not shift to look at Les, he keeps his vision focused on me. I cannot help but let a small blush appear across my cheeks.

Then it hits me, he wants me to leave. My purpose is no longer needed for tonight so I begin to pack up my belongings and I give Les a hug before I begin to head for the door.

David's voice stops me in my tracks, "where are you going?"

I turn around on my heels to see that Davey and Les have followed me into the hallway. In an attempt to not sound shacky I clear my throat before I begin, "I thought you would like me to leave, so you could spend time with Les".

Les quickly protests me leaving, and Davey also agrees to say that he wants to get to know the girl Les talks about all the time. Does Les talk about me? I guess it would not be out of his character to talk about me too. However, all I can wonder is if Davey knows how Les talks about him, the admiration in his eyes as he mentions his name.

I am quickly brought right back into the living room, and Les, Davey and I are playing Sorry like nothing ever happened. The rest of the night is filled with twice the laughter as usual. Getting to know Davey is also a tremendous bonus. Not only do I get to know an influential part of Les's life, but I also get to learn the admiration he has for his big brother.

[rhetoricandlogic]

Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway – review Nick Harkaway's second novel is a riotous fantasy involving automaton monks, East End villains and a plot to end the world. The real miracle is that it hangs together so brilliantly

Nick Harkaway is a hyphen-novelist. A tragical-comical-historical-pastoral novelist, if you like; or – more precisely in the case of this second book – a fantasy-gangster-espionage-romance novelist. The Gone-Away World, Harkaway's well-received debut, was a slightly overfilled post-apocalyptic pick-and-mix of genres. Just as blithe in its disregard of verisimilitude and generic constraint, Angelmaker flits between old-fashioned villains in London's East End and covert action in 1940s south Asia, arranging its whistlestop plot around the modern-day discovery of a weapon of mass destruction in the unlikely form of a skepful of clockwork bees. It's an ambitious, crowded, restless caper, cleverly told and utterly immune to precis.

The novel's rather dishevelled hero is Joshua Joseph Spork, son and reluctant heir of the late Mathew Spork, formerly the dandified king of the London underworld. In search of a quieter life, Joe has left his father's gangster circles behind to take up his grandfather's trade, crafting and repairing clocks and automata in a dilapidated warehouse on the Thames. Now, though, Joe has run into the usual dissatisfactions of a single Londoner in his mid-30s, and – through a mixture of genetic predisposition and sheer bad luck – has unwittingly entangled himself in the quest for an apian superweapon.

Also chasing the secret of the clockwork doomsday machine are the "Ruskinites", a sort of monastic pre-Raphaelite secret service now in the pay of the evil "Opium Khan" – an all-round pantomime villain known as Shem-Shem Tsien. And on it goes, beyond summarisation, making Don Quixote look sedentary. The octogenarian lady spy and the secret military prison, the serial killer and the guild of undertakers, the bumptious civil servants and the chairman of the Royal and Ancient..… A stingier novelist could find material here for a decade's output, but Harkaway is anything but stingy. The miracle is that it all hangs together so well.

Once or twice the wider sweep of the narrative snags on local oddities: among Harkaway's many enthusiasms is an attachment to the recherché, or just the slightly odd. So he will pause, rather breathlessly, to run through the bluffer's guide to Cartesian scepticism or the thermodynamics of free will. The word "actinic" – which seems to have something important to do with electromagnetic radiation – appears about twice too often, even for a novel as long as this one.

This is, no doubt, a hyperactive bit of storytelling, but despite all the hybridity and genre-bending, Angelmaker doesn't feel gimmicky. On the contrary, it feels agreeably old-fashioned. There is some well-managed Dickensian plotting, for one thing, including a tense scene in which the discovery of a body is presaged by a mess of misrecognised remains, and which owes a good deal to the discovery of the combusted Mr Krook in Bleak House. (On the other hand, there's also a throwaway reference to poor old "Miss Haversham", who seems destined to be abandoned by proof-readers as well as by her fiancé.)

What's more, for all the clockwork and locomotion, the thermodynamics and the Babbage technobabble, Harkaway can't be said to have hitched his bandwagon to the runaway engine of steampunk. In fact, with its lovingly hand-made "Ruskinite" technology, there's something in Angelmaker that sets it apart from steampunk's usual fetishisation of industrial Victoriana. From its frantic oscillation between plausibility and fantasy emerges an odd, unique composite that deserves its own moniker. Arts-and-crafts picaresque, perhaps.

And yet none of this quite does justice to the book. For over and above the clockwork bees, the automaton monks, the mad scientist, the Fu Manchu supervillain and the black-market army, Angelmaker turns out to be a very timely novel about belatedness. Joe, as he himself muses early on, "is the man who arrives too late. Too late for clockwork in its prime, too late to know his grandmother. Too late to be admitted to the secret places, too late to be a gentleman crook…" And it must be said that this interest in belatedness raises questions which are, for the admiring reviewer at least, a bit awkward. It's no secret that Harkaway is the son of the novelist John Le Carré. (Indeed, when The Gone-Away World was published, he wrote a very sane and self-deprecating newspaper piece about the difficulties of entering the family business.) Equally, there's no doubt that he is a very different kind of novelist. His magpie approach to genre and the unkempt exuberance of the prose build up into something so distinctive that it seems rather tactless to raise the family connection at all.

But here is Angelmaker: a novel about complicated heredities; about the relationship between a famous father and a cerebral, conflicted son; about the mythic past of the heroic rogue and the tedious present of the white-collar crook; about trying to tell a new story in a way that hasn't been exhausted and worked over by previous generations.

That's not to say that Harkaway's novel should be read with one eye on the family tree. Far from it. But it might help to direct attention to what may be the most interesting thing about Angelmaker, namely how, in the midst of all this boisterous errancy, Harkaway finds a way both to acknowledge the particular circumstances of his own writing, and to reflect on a wider contemporary sense of generational unease. "Story of my life," Joe thinks towards the end of the book: "Don't make a fuss. You don't want to be noticed. Pay on time, work to order, play by the rules. Don't misbehave. Do as you're told, and you'll be all right.

"Except I did, and I'm not."

Skilled, dependable, law-abiding: despite his background in gangland royalty, Joe is in one sense a 21st-century everyman, indebted to a previous generation, disenfranchised by a conspiratorial state.

In the end, for all its old-new, serio-comic hyphenation, Angelmaker turns out to be a solid work of modern fantasy fiction, coupling credit-crunch anxiety with an understandable nostalgia for the mythical days of "good, wholesome, old-fashioned British crime".

[salmankhanholics]

Part 3: ★ Highest Grosser of The Year from 1990 to 2020: Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan dominate, as Hrithik Roshan climbs the ladder!

Dec 29, 2020

In the first part of the highest grosser of the year series, Bollywood Hungama did an in-depth analysis of the actors with maximum highest grossing film of the year spanning 73 years from 1947 to 2020. While Salman Khan was crowned the biggest Bollywood superstar since independence with 10 highest grossers of the year, Dilip Kumar bagged the second spot with 9 films in the list, whereas Aamir Khan was third with 7 films in the list. Shah Rukh Khan on the other hand had 5 films in the list, while Hrithik Roshan was fast climbing the ladder of success with 4 highest grossers of the year in merely 20 years span. The top three stars contributed 26 of the total 73 highest grossers of the year, which in percentage terms is 35%. In the second part of the series, we came up with a detailed decade by decade analysis of stars fighting for the top spot in the respective decades from 1957 to 1989. Now, in the third and final part of this Bollywood Hungama exclusive, we are back with the number crunching analysis from 1990 till 2020. Interestingly, in a span of these 31 years (From 1989 till 2020), the three Khans – Salman Khan (10), Aamir Khan (7) and Shah Rukh Khan (5) – in total delivered 22 highest grossers of the year, whereas Hrithik Roshan delivered 4 more, leaving just 5 spots in three decades for some 25 plus actors of the industry to score the biggest hit of the year. Here’s a 3-decade analysis

1990 to 1999: Sunny Deol, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan take charge

In terms of sheer box-office pull, this decade was dominated by three names – Sunny Deol, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan, though Anil Kapoor and Govinda too were going strong in terms of hit count this decade. While Deol delivered one highest grosser of the year this decade in Border, he maintained his supremacy with constant flow of releases. Ghayal (1990) too managed to surpass the collections of Dil, if we take reruns into account, taking his total to two films.

Salman on the other hand rose like a phoenix with Maine Pyaar Kiya (1989) and followed it up with three other highest grossers of the year in the 90s – Saajan, Hum Aapke Hai Koun and Hum Saath Saath Hain.

Shah Rukh Khan was the biggest find of the 90s, particularly for the kind of consistency he showed at the box-office – both in terms of opening as well as lifetime collections. He delivered two highest grossers of the year in the 90s – Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. He became a superstar within two years of arriving in the industry, and with every passing year, bettered his standing. As the 90’s came to an end, the trade already started to label Shah Rukh Khan alongside legends like Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar. In-fact, in times to come, he became the biggest superstar India has ever seen in the overseas market (more on this later). Though Salman has a lead in terms of HGOTY in the 90s, the consistency gave Shah Rukh an edge over him for the top spot of 90s, with him and Sunny following suit. However, in terms of highest grossers of the year, Salman scored big, and without any doubts, it was in the 90s itself that he cemented his position as a superstar as he had some solid openers, massive blockbusters and big grossers under his kitty within 10 years in the industry. Sunny Deol on the other hand saw the lead in terms of sheer raw mass fan following in the 90s. Anil Kapoor and Govinda too had one HGOTY year in Beta (1992) and Aankhen (1993).

2000 to 2009: Shah Rukh Khan’s supremacy challenged by Hrithik Roshan

This decade saw a major turnaround of things, as Shah Rukh continued to scale new heights in the beginning, whereas Salman Khan was seeing a slight downfall due to controversies in the personal space, whereas Aamir Khan had taken a break from acting due to some issues in personal life following his divorce. While everyone thought that Shah Rukh Khan will be undisputed number one star of 00’s, there came Hrithik Roshan to challenge the supremacy and following the release of Kaho Naa…Pyaar Hai, there was no looking back for him. He became a superstar overnight and just the second actor after Salman to make his debut with a highest grosser of the year. Till date, Kaho Naa…Pyaar Hai is considered the biggest launch vehicle for a Bollywood actor, and one had to witness the euphoria surrounding Hrithik post his debut, to believe it. It marked the arrival of a superstar, probably the last of Hindi cinema. In the first seven years of this decade, Shah Rukh Khan delivered three highest grossers of the year in Devdas (2002), Veer Zaara (2004) and Om Shanti Om (2007), whereas Hrithik Roshan too had three highest grossers of the year in Kaho Naa…Pyaar Hai (2000), Koi Mil Gaya (2003) and Dhoom 2 (2006). In-fact, in 2006, the top 2 grossers of the year (Dhoom 2 and Krrish) belonged to Hrithik. Towards the decade end, Aamir made a comeback and delivered back-to-back HGOTY in Ghajini (2008) and 3 Idiots (2009). Salman and Sunny Deol had one HGOTY each in No Entry and Gadar, with latter being the biggest grosser of all time in India. Akshay too was strong for a period of 3 years between 2006 and 2008, with back-to-back hits and bumper openers, however, none of his releases could find a place in the prestigious list of highest grosser of the year, and till date, though a major film star, he awaits his turn to open his account in this aspect. The decade belonged to Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan.

2010 to 2020: The Salman Khan Era, with some cameo’s by Aamir Khan

It would not be wrong to say that the decade of 2010 to 2019 belonged to Salman Khan as the superstar delivered five highest grosser of the year – Dabangg (2010), Bodyguard (2011), Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015), and Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), along with three second highest grosser of the year – Ready (2011, overlapping with Bodyguard), Kick (2014) and Sultan (2016) – indicating that 7 of the 10 years belonged to him, an unheard phenomenon in Bollywood history, easily putting him in the list of all-time greats.

Aamir comes at the third spot with three highest grossers of the year, which all proved to be all time grossers – Dhoom 3 (2013), PK (2014) and Dangal (2016). 8 of the 10 years belonged to these two mighty Khans, dominating like no other decade post-Independence. Hrithik Roshan took the tally of his highest grosser of the year to 4 films with War becoming the highest grosser of 2019. He is just a film away to tie with Raj Kapoor, Dharmendra and Shah Rukh Khan, and all this within a period of 20 years. Ranbir Kapoor opened his account this decade with his first highest grosser of the year with Sanju (2018), and Ajay Devgn too, after an illustrious career of over 25 years, delivered his first highest grosser of the year with Tanhaji (2020).

To put the last 3 decades in a nutshell, Salman Khan (10 films) + Aamir Khan (7 films) + Shah Rukh Khan (5 films) topped the year 22 times since 1989, whereas Hrithik topped it 4 times since 2000 – Putting these 4 as the top 4 stars of Hindi cinema since the new millennium aka 2000. While the three Khans have at most 5 more years to continue as leading heroes until they reach the age of 60, Hrithik still has ample of gas left in his tank to keep climbing the ladder, and aim at the sky. Salman, Aamir and Shah Rukh can add a film or two more to their kitty and in the years to come. Given the current pattern of working adapted by the actors, it would be near impossible for anyone to reach the double-digit mark in terms of highest grosser of the year and dethrone Salman from the top spot with 10 films at the moment, which is highest for any actor in history of Hindi cinema. Aamir, with 7 films as biggest grosser of the year at present, however can aim at the second spot - a tie with Dilip Kumar, who has ended his career with 9 highest grossers of the year.

[madame-brioche]

Hiii! So I don’t know if you write stories on here, but I was wondering if you could do something on the post you made about Doc Roe sleeptalking and having a nightmare? That one really messed me up 😫 Thanks!

Hopefully this is kinda along the lines of what you’re lookin for :)

Title: Paralysie

Author: madame-brioche

Prompt: In which Doc Roe escapes the war for a few moments, even if it's all in his head.

Warnings: Lots of angst. And French.

. . .

Alors, mon petit chat. Qu'est-ce qui t'arrive ?

The pale, broad-shouldered Cajun medic knit his eyebrows together, wrinkling up his forehead and his frost-bitten nose like a frozen bunny rabbit. His lips were so cracked from the bitter chill it was a wonder they hadn't started bleeding. His canvas medical bag was propped between his head and the snow, his arms folded tightly, legs sprawled out in front of him. If it weren’t for the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest, one might’ve mistaken him for a corpse.

T'arrive pas à t’endormir, quoi ? T'as fait de mauvais rêves ?

Eugene Roe was in a deep sleep, the first of its kind since Easy Company had arrived in Belgium not long ago. And now, blanketed by a thin moth-eaten tarp, the young medic was shrouded in the darkness of his foxhole, at the complete mercy of Mother Nature’s tempest of a blizzard.

Voilà, mon petit. Maman est là. Maman sera toujours là.

Gene's lips twitched into something of a half-smile, his shoulders barely shrugging as he folded his arms tighter against himself. Breathing somewhat heavily, he slowly tilted his head and burrowed himself closely inward, like a fox that hears a twig snap in the distance.

Je laisserai personne te faire du mal, mon bébé.

He's mumbling now, incoherent words at first, nothing more than gibberish. Little by little, he forms a word, a word that he's repeating over and over — growing all the more hopeful and distressed with each utterance. "Maman...Maman...Maman, c’est toi, là?”

He’s whispering her name again and again, his eyebrows raising and knitting in a continuous battle as the voice in his head begins to develop a face.

A face with laughing green eyes, a warm complexion, a doting smile. Her soft brown hair is out of its usual pile atop her head, and now it hangs long and free, and Gene can feel it tickling his face as her lips meet his forehead. He can hear the little jingle her medal of Saint-François-d’Assise makes as she leans forward.

Bah, tu veux que je chante, mon petit chat ?

And then she's there, holding him in her arms as she rocks him back and forth, lulling him to sleep. Gene can see the print of his maman’s favorite worn but clean calico dress, can smell her familiar scent of lavender soap, can hear the sizzles of his papa’s jambalaya simmering nearby. This is home.

And when she begins to sing, he's swept away and snuggled against her once more. Her hand is smoothing back the hair from his forehead, her heartbeat echoing steadily in his ear.

Fais dodo, Eugène mon p’tit frère

Fais dodo, t’auras du lolo

Her voice is sweet-sounding, like the little hummingbirds that used to hover around the red coral honeysuckle outside his window. She uses his name in the lullaby, like she always has, and the way it sounds rolling off her tongue is how Gene knows it’s really her. He’d know her accent anywhere.

Maman est en haut

Qui fait du gâteau

Papa est en bas

Qui fait du chocolat

Gene parts his chapped lips, wanting to sing along to the lullaby that has lilted him and his siblings to sleep for years. Slowly, and with the breath of a dying man, he begins to repeat the chorus in a scratchy mumble. And the two are singing together, safe and tucked away within the comforts of the farmhouse near the canopied bayou.

Fais dodo, Eugène, mon p’tit frère

Fais dodo, t’auras du lolo

His mumbles turn louder into audible words, and louder still into melodic slurs as the young man — once more a little boy — lulls himself into the sweetest escape from the frozen hell of Bastogne. “Fais...dodo...Eugène mon p’tit frère....”

He doesn’t hear the crunch of boots against the snow drawing closer to him. He can’t see the exhausted paratrooper stumbling in the darkness toward the young medic’s foxhole. “Fais dodo...t’auras...t’auras du lolo...Fais dodo—”

“Eugene?”

The deep voice is intrusive, and suddenly there’s an earthquake of sorts that is jolting Gene from his trance and tearing him away from Maman’s arms. He can feel her soothing hands leaving him and her song becoming distant until it’s completely gone, and all he’s left with is this cold and empty feeling.

“Eugene, wake up.”

The 22-year-old medic jolts upright, suddenly awake and gasping for his breath, startled out of his mind. He’s breathing so raggedly and desperately that he doesn’t process where he is until he sees Captain Winters’ concerned face illuminated before him. His heart sinks, and the heat of embarrassment rises to his cheeks as he stares into the eyes of his superior.

“I didn’t mean to frighten you,” Winters says quietly, dropping down beside, but not into, the foxhole. “I only wanted to check on you.” His words are calm but his eyes show an array of worry.

Gene looks at his own arms wrapped around himself and slowly loosens them up. His doe eyes are wide and frozen with fear, his lip beginning to quiver. “I-I’m fine, sir. Is someone hurt? Was I called for?”

Winters shakes his head and gives a small sigh. “No, I just thought I heard—” he stops himself, not wanting to say he’d heard the young medic talking in his sleep, knowing that would embarrass the poor kid. “Nothing. I just wanted to check on you is all. Sorry for waking ya.”

With a fatherly pat on the shoulder, Winters stands back up and begins to turn around. He pauses for a moment, glancing back to find Gene pulling the tarp tighter around himself, burying his face into his knees so as to hide his face. He wants to say something to the kid, anything, but decides against it.

As Gene hears the footsteps fade away, he brings his head back up, fighting the hot tears that threaten to pour down at any given second. His mother is gone, and he’s alone now in the middle of a tundra battlefield with nothing and no one. He clenches his jaw, determined not to cry, his emotions dangerously close to escaping from where he’s buried them.

With a shaky hand, he closes his eyes and reaches up into his jacket, clasping his mother’s Saint-François-d’Assise medal that hangs around his neck alongside the dog tags. He brings the cool silver to his lips and kisses it softly, running his thumb and forefinger along the delicate grooves and outlines.

Opening his eyes, Gene bites his lip in an effort to stop it from quivering, either from the cries or the cold, not even he can tell. His thoughts, meanwhile, fumble their way through a prayer of his own.

“Chère Maman,” he begins in the softest of whispers, glancing up through glassy eyes at the stars above. “Ils disent que je peux pas rentrer chez nous tant que la guerre est pas finie, tant que j’ai pas fait mon travail ici. Mais t’es toujours dans mon cœur.”

Gene sniffles quietly, his bloodshot eyes focusing on a single star just above him. Polaris, the North Star. It seems to be staring back down at him, twinkling with a dim determination.

“Tu m’as dit que tu aimais regarder les étoiles ?” He whispers, feeling burning tears cut wet paths down his face. “Les étoiles sont si belles ici, comme toi, Maman. La promesse d’un nouveau jour suit une nuit étoilée. Et un nouveau jour me rapproche de toi.”

He wipes angrily at his tears, brows furrowed and forehead lined with stubborn resistance. “Chaque jour, les arbres de ces bois bruissent leurs branches, me chuchotant que tu vas bien,” Gene takes a shallow breath and runs his shaky fingers through his hair. “J’aime écouter les petits oiseaux qui s’cachent dans leurs creux. Ces sons me font penser à nos petits oiseaux de chez nous.”

His whispers are so quiet that his lips barely move as he forms the words. As the sharp chill of the December air stings his face, Gene pulls the tarp up so that it covers his nose and mouth, pulling his numb hands into his sleeves to keep them warm.

“Je sais pas—” he stops himself, his throat locking up and his eyes spilling over once more. “Je sais pas si je te reverrai un jour. Mais,” he whispers in a cracked strain, “garde la foi que quoi qu’il arrive, je serai ton étoile polaire même dans la mort. Et je trouverai le chemin du retour vers toi.”

Kissing the medal around his neck once more, he closes his eyes and tries to imagine Maman’s voice, just as she’d sounded in the dream. But it keeps fading away from him as quickly as it comes.

“Je vais demander à Saint-François-d’Assise de veiller sur nous deux. Nous pourrions utiliser sa force et son courage,” he breathed, listening to a round of rapid gunshots somewhere beyond the haze of falling snow. They grew louder, closer, until—

“MEDIC!”

The cry that used to launch Gene into a state frenzied panic, but now only seemed to trigger a sense of detached duty, numb obedience.

“DOC!” The voice screamed again from somewhere behind him.

Je t’aime, Maman, pour le reste de mes jours, he finishes quickly in his head, returning back to Earth. Ton fils, Eugène.

And just like that, he’s up and out of his foxhole, swinging his Red Cross bag over his shoulder and crouching below enemy fire as he hurriedly shuffles toward his injured brother. Ready to bandage whatever horrible wound, ready to hold and comfort whoever it is.

All day, all night, and all alone.

. . .

And there ya have it. [ et merci @alienoresimagines pour l'aide à l'orthographe ;) ]

[buffaloareafishfrygal]

March 10, 2022

Casey’s Black Rock

484 Amherst Street

Buffalo, NY 14207

Arrived a little after 5pm and there was no wait for a table. I was immediately impressed with what they have done with the place. Really nice bar area that I wasn’t expecting. I almost wished that we weren’t seated right away so we could have had a cold one there while waiting for our table! After taking in my surroundings, I made note of the penalty box in the corner and the pinball and skee ball machines in the back room. Super cool! Now wait just a second! Hold up! This Buffalo Gal has stumbled into a Kansas City Chiefs backers bar?! My first instinct was to run but then I realized, I’ve gone to Bills backer bars in other NFL cities. It’s ok for Chiefs fans to have a place to gather in enemy territory too. Here is where this place sets itself apart. The personality. The bartender who was also our waiter was tending to a bar full of patrons and taking table orders. Managing it all quite well and making us laugh. Quite the ball buster! I asked for his name and he said just say hey “a$$h*le.” Beer selection was ok. Nothing spectacular but something to please everyone. On to why we came! They have two offerings of fish here. Beer battered and breaded cod. They both had a lot of flavor. That almost metallic finish that I really enjoy, but some people do not. They came out hot and very crisp. Beer batter was a lighter colored golden crust that on first bite was fantastic. It did become a bit heavy after getting about half way through though. I did notice slight inconsistency between each fish piece in our party. One was a little doughy on the inside, one had exposed fish missing batter, but the majority were picture perfect. You kind of have to expect this when there is one guy cooking it AND bringing it out to your table! All while being super friendly! So do the math here. Two guys doing everything and crushing it. Pretty impressive. Breaded was nicely done, and had a good crunch. Just a wee bit greasy. Overall the fish was good. (8) The sides caused much discussion amongst the review crew. The table was split on whether the sides were home made. If they were from a restaurant supply bucket, they weren’t the standard ones I’ve had hundreds of times. Coleslaw was finely chopped cabbage with green onion and a few bits of carrot (6). Potato salad was a rose color. A hint of bbq perhaps? Funny after taste though. (5) Mac salad was the best of the three although a bit watery. Elbow noodles with celery, red onion, and green onion. (7). None were bad. Just decent. Fries were seasoned curly much like what you would get at Arby’s. (9) Plenty of them too! At first glance of the tartar I thought they gave us just plain mayo. Upon further inspection there were shards of pickle in it, but not many. Tasted ok but their pickle to mayo ratio was definitely off.(7) No bread with our dinners. That’s a bummer. Overall I give them an 8. I really did love the place and would definitely go back. Plenty of parking in their lot next door which is great for a city establishment. When we left just before seven, all the tables were full but there wasn’t anyone waiting for a table. It appears this little gem has yet to be discovered by the Friday fish fry goers. Sounds like a great place to go if you don’t want to wait an hour for a table… until the secret gets out anyway.

[gdelgiproducer]

DOTV AU: An Exercise in Alternate History (Part VIII)

Parts I, II, III, IV, V, VI, and VII offer more detailed context. (To briefly sum up why these posts are happening: alt history – as in sci fi, not “alternative facts” – buff, one day got the idea that DOTV could have turned out hella different if Jim Steinman looked for a star lead in other places, decided to reason out how that might work.) This is still getting a good response, so I’m gonna keep the train rolling.

Parts of the AU timeline established so far:

Instead of stopping at recording two songs from Whistle Down the Wind on a greatest hits compilation, Meat Loaf wound up taking more of an interest in Steinman’s new theater work than he did in our timeline, and through a series of circumstances found himself volunteering to play Krolock in the impending DOTV when Jim poured out his woes to him about needing to find some sort of star to attract investors. At a loss for any better ideas, Jim accepted Meat’s impulsive proposal, but not without resistance from his manager, David Sonenberg, who proposed Michael Crawford as an alternate candidate. Through quick thinking on Meat’s part, and inspiration on Jim’s, Crawford left the room accepting an entirely different role than he walked in hoping to get, leaving Krolock still open for Meat.

There was a brief speed bump, when Meat disliked Jim’s English script for the show, but after meeting with the original German author Michael Kunze and convincing Jim to compromise, things were on the road to being back on track… at least until 9/11 occurred.

Following a brief hiatus, everyone involved met to re-assess their options. The current game-plan was to put the new script on paper, schmooze with potential investors or producers, and put together a new creative team. Preferably not all at the same time, but with the crunch on, they’d do whatever needed to be done.

Schmoozing went well, but everybody that Meat, Jim, and the crew wanted to be involved was tentative. The conclusion reached was that they needed to show them there was a working show, which resulted in a concert of selections from the score paid for by none other than Courtney Love (!) that received some in-depth press coverage.

Now we join our heroes as new wrinkles emerge in the path to Broadway.

A week after the concert of selections from Dance of the Vampires (and after Michael Riedel noting that Meat Loaf has yet to sign on the dotted line for the show), a brief story appears in Rolling Stone’s Random Notes section: “Rocker Meat Loaf announced this week that he has terminated the management services of Allen Kovac and is currently seeking new representation. Kovac, who is in the process of leaving Left Bank Management to form his own firm, issued the following statement which is believed to be a comment on the heavyset singer’s departure, though he is not mentioned by name: ‘I don’t tell artists what they want to hear, I tell them what I know to be true. When I first sign an artist I let them know that I’m not their friend. Too many artists don’t measure their manager on their performance; they measure them on how many times they’ve been invited to their house. That’s not my style. If an artist is going to be successful, you need to tell them how to run their business -- not ask them how to run their business. Does it work? Look it up: no artist has ever done better after leaving my company.’” Requests from the Vampires team to speak to Meat about what’s up are met with total radio silence.

Meanwhile, the business side of Vampires continues to shore up. Jim Steinman receives delighted reports from his manager, David Sonenberg, that Jerry Weintraub and the Weisslers are ready to commit, bumping the total number of producers thus far up to nine. “How’s it looking now?” Jim queries. “Well, remember we’re trying to raise 15 million,” says David. “I don’t mean to be pessimistic, but it will be an uphill battle.” “What else is new in the theater?” Steinman grumbles in response. “On the bright side, we can now tighten the list of how many producers we need to seven.”

The representatives from Concerts West, based in L.A., get back to them within the week. Reports Sonenberg to all parties by e-mail: “They’re interested, but only if it tours. Live touring events are what they do, and the theatrical market is something they haven’t explored; they’d be more comfortable with a national tour than a Broadway run, it’s more similar to what they do at a nuts-and-bolts level.” A decision is ultimately reached by quorum to make Concerts West’s involvement in a national tour contingent on investing in the Broadway run first, and the counter-offer is duly sent their way.

As the business side shores up, the creative side is beginning to percolate as well. Meetings are had with John Rando, the Urinetown director who attended the concert and spoke very enthusiastically about the show in Riedel’s column. He’s very excited about the chance to work on the show, both to work with David Ives again (having done numerous shows at Encores! together, he feels working with David will be really special and help focus the play) and especially to work with Meat. “I’d get to hear him sing every day,” Rando enthuses. “That’s a blessing. Can you imagine that? Every single day of your life you get to hear that voice.” He also ticks the right boxes when it comes to the commercial appeal of the piece and how it meshes with his vision for the show: “It’s such a different reality. It’s silly and fun and kind of glamorous, too. These vampires sort of pull you in and you find you’re turned on by them, too! It’s a wonderful, Gothic playground.” When asked for suggestions for a choreographer, and more specifically if they should ask his choreographer on Urinetown, John Carrafa, to be a part of the show, Rando is mildly hesitant but mostly enthusiastic. Jim is admittedly happiest when it comes to Rando’s assessment of how much creative control he should be allowed to have: “Look, Jim, what are you worried about? It’s your baby! You’ve been working on it forever! The quality, the tone, the ideas, the music... this play is all you! You’d be very much a part of it.”

More progress is made when a new set designer is engaged: David Gallo. Jim immediately likes him instinctively, when, upon meeting him for the first time, Gallo stops the interview process dead. “I have two things to tell you before we continue. Number one: I’m probably the only set designer in America who still subscribes to Heavy Metal Magazine. Number two: I bought Bat Out of Hell because I saw the album cover artwork and decided I had to have it before I even heard the music.” This is no idle compliment, considering the album cover was conceived by Steinman and executed by Richard Corben... and a sequence very similar to the events depicted on the cover forms the shape of one of Vampires’ opening scenes. His sample sketches of the sets are surprisingly atmospheric as well.

The more things shape up on the creative end, however, the more everyone on the business side of the table nervously eyes the chair where Meat Loaf should be. Since his firing of Kovac, who was more a hindrance than a help so is not really missed, he hasn’t said word one to anybody. Irving Azoff, widely proclaimed the biggest agent in the world, who attended the concert and may be interested in the show, is sending them queries about who is managing Meat now, hinting that he has his eye on Meat as a client. But nobody knows what’s going on with him. When he is finally able to get him on the phone, Jim pleads with Meat to see him, one on one if need be. Meat agrees.

The scene: Le Bar Bat, in Hell’s Kitchen on West 57th. Only 9 years prior, Steinman had conducted an interview for Bat Out of Hell II at this very establishment, celebrating his and Meat Loaf’s long-awaited reunion. Plastic bats still hang from the ceiling, and the bar is still sparsely attended. A deafening fusion group still plays a seemingly endless set. Steinman greets them, as per tradition, with a cheery “fuck off!” as they finish a tune. Meat sits alone in a booth, awaiting Jim’s arrival. He rummages through his CBS Records holdall, his shoulder juddering as if it were a pneumatic drill. His graying hair could do with a shampoo. Finally, he finds what he is seeking: a couple of throat lozenges, which he pops. “Jimmy, I don’t think I can do the show.” Immediately Jim’s heart is in his throat: “WHAT?!?” “What we’re about to do is insane! Lunatic. Totally insane. We’re just gonna go out there in front of everybody with our pants down!” Jim, searching for a way to respond, can only come out with “Think of it as a character-building experience! It’ll be amazing!”

“Have you read what your fans are saying about this on the Internet? They’re saying you should be sticking aside all the old, fat guys named after a dinner dish! ‘Get rid of Meat Loaf.’ They don’t want to see me do this!” “Now, Meat, come on. You know better than to buy into their bullshit. If I believed what I read on the Internet about anything I should do, I’d never get anything done. You’re going to be glad that you stuck with it.” “Well... we need to go out of town first. New York is the hardest when it comes to people being critical. We’re gonna be judged. A lot.” “Meat, you know we can’t afford to do that. Besides, every musical that you’ve done on Broadway has opened cold in New York. I like having the preview audience be the New York audience. There’s no BS -- they’re right there telling you what you need to fix. It’s great.”

Meat heaves a sigh: “Jimmy, I’ll be honest with you; I’m more tired now than I was when Amanda was two months old!” “Meat, listen to me. We have a lot of time. We’re gonna work very hard and very slowly. I know you’re not good at dealing with change, but you really have to stay focused and believe in the project.” “But Jimmy, it’s huge! It’s got to be one of the biggest shows on Broadway right now without even opening yet. And there’s still so much to work out.”

“What happened to Allen?” “He never believed in the show. You saw what happened when he kept the door open for Night of the Proms. After the concert, I called him to ask why he wasn’t there, and he said to me, ‘Y’know, an album and a tour are still possibilities, so why not do that instead? At least you know that will sell.’ We got into it pretty hard, and he called our show garbage. He said I did better off away from you, and that if I did this album and the tour, I could retire, or I could come back afterwards if you wanted to talk Bat III, but he was adamant that I was not doing this show. It became pretty clear to me that it was going to come down to either you or him.” Jim, touched, perhaps even a little misty-eyed: “And you chose me?” “As if I had a choice! Jim, you’re my brother. I love you... more than you’ll ever know.” 

A beat of silence, awkward, emotional, and then... “Irving Azoff liked the concert.” “Yeah?” “He keeps calling us. I think he wants to sign you, and he wants to do the show too. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a manager who was on the same page?” “...will it get him to produce if I sign with him?” “I dunno. Maybe?” “I’ll give him a call. What else is going on?” Jim proceeds to update him on everything going on with the show, culminating in the reminder that they have a meeting with John Carrafa coming up to decide his suitability to the choreographic duties. “Can I count on you to be there?” “Jim, I’m signing the contract for a year, manager or no manager.  If we’re fortunate enough to run, that’s how long I’ll be here. And then I’ll be in a nursing home, no doubt!” For the first time all night, both men laugh. A rosy future may well be in sight.

TO BE CONTINUED!

[gripefroot]

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps [6/15]

It’s a cold night; a clear night. The nearest Germans are three miles away, and according to their transmissions, staying put for the next several days while they wait for supplies. Steve is huddled in his tent, preparing a plan to strike the camp and supplies before they meet - with Peggy, newly arrived from wherever Colonel Phillips has been keeping her. Not that they’ll be seen for a while.  

So Bucky is left with the rest of the Commandos, enjoying their night off around a blazing fire, confident and eager to make the most of the temporary rest. Still, his rifle is propped up between his legs.  

There’s singing and some pilfered gin - and more singing. Even Bucky is caught up in it, roaring with laughter at Dum-Dum’s dumb jokes - until silence falls over the group and a laugh stalls in his throat. 

You’re walking by. Eyes averted. But Dernier jumps to his feel bowing a silly bow and you pause, blinking at him.  

“Mademoiselle! Pourrais-je avoir cette danse? La lune brille et je dois absolument danser ou bien je mourrais!" 

Bucky snorts to himself - Dernier has had more gin than anyone else, and Dum-Dum is outright sniggering. But the joke is on them - as Dernier offers a hand, you give a little curtsey and the tiniest smile, and he exclaims something else in French. And then he starts singing, and swinging you around.  

La pendule fait tic tac tic tac Les oiseaux du lac font pic pic pic pic Glou glou glou font tous les dindons Et la jolie cloche ding din don... 

Falsworth starts clapping along, keeping the beat of Dernier’s rich voice, and Pinky is just staring in envy. Bucky’s smile feels forced - but he’s distracted by the delight in your eyes. It’s very pretty - you, not Dernier - and absently he taps a finger on the barrel of his rifle, cocking his head to the side.  

The dance gets wilder, you’re spun out further and Dernier’s voice louder - then it dissolves into giggles, and Dernier pretends to faint, but you catch him by the elbow just in time.  

“Tout va bien, monsieur Dernier?” you ask breathlessly, hauling him back up with a smile.  

“Ah, oui, oui!” But Dernier is sweating, and he waves you away, pulling out a handkerchief to dab at his forehead. Junior is laughing with Dum-Dum. 

“Merci, monsieur,” you say, clearing your throat. “J'ai apprécié la danse. J'ignorais que vous dansiez si bien!” 

Dernier giggles - and gives another silly bow. “Une jolie dame me donne toujours la grâce d'un papillon!”  

Bucky could drink in the sight of your smile all day long, and all night, too. Your eyes flit around the campfire, at everyone in turn - but on him, your gaze drops. Shifting, you steady your breath and blurt, “It’s late - good night.” 

A chorus of replies. Bucky stands.  

“I’ll walk ya back to your tent. Make sure Dernier doesn’t follow you.” 

Laughs for Dernier’s sake. Your eyes stay on Bucky, and he swings his rifle over his shoulder and walks around the backs of the men to your side. You’ve clasped your hands together, eyeing him warily - but Bucky just offers a polite nod, and stays at your side as you start to wander away.  

Laughter and more singing fade behind him. Just the crunch of footsteps on underbrush. The air is cooler away from the fires.  

“Thank you, Sergeant Barnes,” you break the silence, “It is kind of you to walk me back.” 

“Old habit,” Bucky shrugs, tucking his thumbs in his pockets. “Isn’t right to leave a dame to walk home alone. We’ve been doing ya wrong.” 

“No, it’s quite alright,” you hurry to say. “I’m just another person serving my country out here, Sergeant. No special treatment.” 

Bucky grunts, but doesn’t agree.  

“Dernier is a sweet gentleman,” you muse a moment later.  

Bucky grunts again. “Yeah. Swell.” 

“Do you disapprove of dancing, Sergeant?” you ask, voice a little harder now, and he blinks up in surprise to see a frown on your face. 

“Not at all, sweethe - er, not at all, ma’am,” Bucky says, and his face is burning. “Loved to dance, back in Brooklyn. ‘S tough bein’ out here. You should take whatever enjoyment ya get.” 

The answer seems to satisfy you - the frown fades. Nearly to your tent now, and Bucky’s heart is skipping odd beats.  

“Thank you again,” you say, pausing outside the flaps. With only the moonlight streaking through the canopy of trees above, Bucky can’t see your expression terribly well - but he’d like to. Gnawing his lip for an uncertain moment, he reaches up to tilt your chin slightly. Your eyes are glowing beautifully, staring back at his scrutiny.  

“‘S no problem,” he says roughly, his hand dropping. “Um - if you need anything - ” 

“I’ll tell you,” you finish, with the barest hint of a smile. Bucky chuckles, digging the heel of his boot in the dirt. Aw, fudge it all. You wouldn’t still be out here with him if you didn’t want to be - at least, that’s his desperate hope - and so he reaches up again, this time to clasp your face in his hands, and he leans down to plant a kiss on your surprised lips. Finally.  

“There,” he rasps. “Now I don’t hafta think about ya anymore.” 

“Sergeant, I - ” 

“Sorry.” It’s a mutter under his breath, and with your taste still on his lips, not daring to look back at your lone figure, Bucky grumbles his way back to the campfire. 

continue

[theseadagiodays]

April 6, 2020

Travel at home

I have always been a passionate traveler, with an insatiable curiosity for new experiences, cultures and sensations.  But what also comes with all the titillation is a fair dose of unfamiliar, unsettling, and often challenging new circumstances every traveler must agily welcome if they are to thrive.  When you are served dinner with no cutlery in Kalkata, scooping sloppy curry with your hands has to do.  When you’re penniless and lose your companion, hours from home in Bangkok’s busy streets, you must ingratitate yourself to the kindness of strangers for bus fare to your hotel.  It strikes me that this same flexibility can serve us well as we navigate the unchartered territories of this new nation we all inhabit, called COVID.

But what moves me most as I wander the world is the way in which constant new sensory input elevates my present-minded attention so intensely.  My ears delight in a particularly evocative call to prayer in Morocco.  My mouth savors the sour sweetness of a Colombian maracuya (passionfruit).  And my nose even appreciates the cow dung furnaces on the side of the road in India. It is like meditation in motion.  After each journey, when I return home, I set the earnest intention to sustain such sensory focus at home.  But as the days pass, this consistently becomes increasingly difficult.  However now, with little opportunity to venture much more than metres from our door, we need new strategies to remain sane and stimulated.  So, I think we can all benefit from living like tourists at home. I believe there is a science to this. I’ve even coined a term for it. It came from a time when I heard education expert Ken Robinson define the word aesthetics.  Associated with beauty, most think of the definition as subjective.  But he simplified this by pointing out that the opposite of aesthetics is anaesthetics (that which numbs our senses).  So, aesthetics are those things which make us feel.  Since this revelation, I have come to call myself an aesthesiologist because I believe that all artists are in the business of making people feel.  And this is why I feel that sharing artistic resources on this blog is the best medicine I can offer as we all ride out this crisis together.

So, maybe today you can consiciously pay attention to some subtle new observation each of your senses notice in your environment.  The way the light hits your tea kettle at dawn.  The call of a returning bird at spring time.  The crunch of the potato chips that you’re binging on right now.  Lately, I’ve certainly learned to feel extra fortunate that I can taste or smell at all, because my husband completely lost his sense of smell 3 weeks ago.  Most have probably heard that this is an alarming and bizarre potential sign of COVID, particularly in people with no other symptoms.  So, having come thru full incubation period, we’re at least past the scare that it could have become worse or that he might have infected myself or others with whom he’d had contact prior to quarantine.  But he never thought he’d look so forward to the day he could smell my farts again.  (Meanwhile, I’m indulging in all the beans and garlic I want)

At any rate, if home sensations don’t tickle you enough, there is always virtual travel.  And while that certainly risks inspiring a vicarious longing that may not serve you, for others, it can elicit some of the same wonders as adventures themselves.  So, if you’re craving sensory immersion into other worlds, New York Times can help you do this with their 13 recommended travel podcasts.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/09/travel/travel-podcasts.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage&contentCollection=AtHome

I know I have certainly spent many days in quarantine wallowing over my screensaver trip photos, longing for a time when I could journey further afield once more.  But I have also been swept away by the photographic brilliance of some of the work that the New York Times is featuring weekly, in their World Through a Lens column.  Marcus Westerberg’s shots of Zambian wildlife (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/31/travel/zambia-safari.html) were particularly emotional for me, having just had one of the most meaningful travel experiences of my life there, last year, when I served as resident visiting artist at a music school in Lusaka.  In fact, I arrived exactly one year ago, today, and can’t wait to return to those magical people.  A girl has to dream, after all...

April 7, 2020

Creativity at Home

If any of you are variety-mongers like me, seeing only the same person or people, day in and day out, can have you dressing up your spouse in wigs or Hawaian skirts or bear costumes just to mix things up a bit.    But largely, I’ve been hearing that many parents and siblings are embracing ways to capitalize on their excessive togetherness. I think it’s why the show Survivor has been so successful all these years. Forced into small spaces and “tribes”, we tend to do whatever it takes to get along with our fellow captives.  Cooped up together for days on end, there is no limit to the clever activities some families have created to keep themselves occupied.  

This crew took a simple tube and board of wood to create some exercise apparatus that has kept them busy for hours:  https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.5518064

Others are taking vicarious travel to the next level with some Photoshop fun - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/07/travel/coronavirus-fake-travel.html

And the most impressive might be this 5-person brood, each with operatic quality voices, who belt out their rendition of One More Day, from Les Miserable.

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-52106893/coronavirus-family-goes-viral-with-lockdown-les-mis-song-adaptation

But, if you happen to be stumped for ideas yourselves, here are a few ways you can kickstart your family’s creativity.  A bunch of resourceful theatre company’s have been commissioning playwrights to create short Plays at Home, designed for actors and amateurs alike to perform in their own living rooms.  Most are staged for 1-7 humans, with joyful themes, and participants are welcome to share video recordings of their readings.

https://www.playathome.org/?fbclid=IwAR3_Uib1GQV5134ZbF7IEI5F5lpt0HQdxYkd1HtiNeUFws1UKCvVV4_2KEQ

And right here in Vancouver, my friend Vanessa Richards is finding thoughtful ways to engage community in collaborative singing, by sustaining her weekly free choir sessions, now in Livestream, every Wednesday, from 6-7:30.  You can check out Van Van Song Society here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/togethersinging/

April 8, 2020

Quarantine Living - Al Yankovic style Some of you may be too young to recognize this reference to our favorite weasly moustached 80’s bard, who humorously bastardized everything from Queen’s Another One Rides the Bus to Michael Jakcson’s Eat It, with his own comic lyrics.  But lately, like our Les Miserable family, Weird Al Yancovic’s “wordsquatting” trend is spreading more virally than corona.

This original take on the Beatles, I gotta wash my hands is a classic.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxOJ7hh3H-I

For more potty humor, I adore this Philipino artists’ no-toilet paper campaign, I love tabo- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vzb98tQp53I

And certainly, the most high tech example has come from Vancouver’s own Phoenix Chamber Choir, in their rendition of the hugely popular Queen song, Coronavirus Rhapsody- https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/1720158275935?fbclid=IwAR3gEdqv95oX4KT_W4F4_naJyASRhUaGpr-T56Aux9k4tCStGvow9xgHIQw

April 9, 2020

Reading Respite Endless screentime has probably left many of us fatigued and squinting, with a need for stronger reading glass prescriptions that we can’t fill, because all the optometry shops have shut down.  So, these next suggestions are offered with that caveat. However, for me, the tactile experience of a book in my hand can still be a nourishing antidote to digital overload. Often just a page is capable of transporting my body, mind and soul away from news feeds, virus counts, and press conferences.  

Never a fan of e-readers, I have always passionately supported my local bookshops.  And thankfully, there is a current intiative intended to do the same, at a time when the threat of a certain Capital A behometh taking over global commerce is greater than ever.  So, you can actually feed your spirit and your neighborhood bookseller by purchasing any literary craving here. Thanks to the new site, bookshop.org, you can order what you’d like from the local bookstore of your choice, while this company acts as liason.  And the fair split allows your local vendor to keep 30% of total profit, when direct sales that are no longer possible for them may have only been slightly more (40-45%).  

As far as what to stories to consume at a time like this, it has amazed me how much films like Contagion and Outbreak have had huge resurgences. This tells me that relevance and resonance are key factors in people’s entertainment choices.  However, if you’re looking for something that relates to your current circumstances, but leaves you not with more fear, but with actual hope, inspiration, or tools for survival, here are a few better options:

Emily St. Mandel’s Station Eleven is, in fact, a post-apocalyptic tale.  But her narrative’s most clever survivors form a travelling Shakespeare troupe, demonstrating the power of art to heal in dire times.  

For some existential musing reaped in self-isolation, Thoreau’s Life in the Woods always still provides.

And if the new stressors arising from this crisis find you busier than ever, but you long to slow down, travel journalist, Pico Iyer, in his prophetic 2014 book, The Art of Stillness, makes a strong case for the fact that “in our madly accelerating world, our lives are crowded, chaotic and noisy. So, there’s never been a greater need to slow down, tune out and give ourselves permission to be still.”

April 10, 2020

How Might We Fill This Space?

Never before have Memes, Tik tok or Cat Videos provided such many needed lifelines for people all over the world.  But the video that most stirred me to action was this stunning dance collaboration that popped up in my Facebook feed, during the early days of self-isolation, before my first Zoom conference, before I’d seen my first collaborative musical Quarantine Song spoof. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3pFxsYPLgU

This global initiative to weave together dance gestures, while performers were entirely physically separate, seeded the idea for a community art and writing project that I have recently started with a few friends.

In an effort to connect artists during this physically distant time, we have launched Spool of Thought.  And all artistic contributions are welcome to the thread.  

https://www.instagram.com/spoolofthought2020/

On this page, we invite people to respond to the question, “How might we fill this space?”as we adjust to different rhythms of being. The idea is to weave together our thoughts, through the fluid form of cursive writing, in a non-linear narrative documenting this unique time on our planet.

The full instructions are below, for those interested and eager to participate:

1.Using Notes (iPhone) or Evernote (Android) and the digital pen, draw a continuous cursive line from the left to right side of the note (arranged horizontally) and write a word, phrase or sentence that responds to the prompt: How Might We Fill This Space?

2. Save it to your photos.

3. Then,send it by email to: spoolofthought2020@gmail.com, and we will add your text to the Spool of Thought Instagram page.

4. Please include your name, your location, your occupation, and your Instagram@ for the caption of your photo.

5. And feel free to share this invite with your community, along with these instructions.

6. Finally, enjoy watching the spool unravel on @spoolofthought2020, as the thread grows, and tag us wherever you choose to share: #spoolofthought2020.

[heyligaya]

MY KOREA 2019 ITINERARY

Okay. I decided to make (write) this guide that might help someone out there planning to go to Korea. I'm going to make this guide the one I wished I read when I was fixing our itinerary so let’s go to what needs to be done after booking your ticket.

Honestly, it’s just simple guideline any traveler I think already knows but just in case.

Check the weather. I am a freak when it comes to packing. There is no such thing as PACK LIGHT. Homegurl needs options okay?? So I always check if what I'm going to bring will fit the current weather. Ask yourself, “do I need extra baggage allowance?” If personal baggage isn’t enough am I right? Haha.. hahaaa...haaa. But do consider this once you booked your flight. In my case, I added baggage allowance AFTER we booked the ticket since I figured “teka, pasalubongs will be extraaaa on this trip so better come prepared”

RESEARCH. Yeah yeah I know it can be a burden making those itineraries but honey, if you can stalk your ex-boyfriend for a week, you can search some good activities to do on your trip too! So get your stalking skills in work! In my case, my priority was PROXIMITY and BUDGET but will discuss that later. Make sure to change your peso bills to dolla dolla bills yo! It’s better to change the currency in Incheon Airport from dollar to Won than in any place outside the airport so better get those dollars before your flight.

Keep at least ₱2000 with you on your departure day. Why you ask? Two words. TRAVEL TAX. I learned this the hard way. I thought all was paid upon booking the ticket but Cebu Pac be like “Sis no! Better get that money for this countryyy” so yeah. You can actually pay Travel Tax upon booking but I didn’t know that. ₱1640  per person for travel tax. SHAKS ANG MAHAL DIBA? But it’s mandatory so...

Bring your own light snacks. My family ain’t playin. Once the plane took off, they started grabbing their hopia, crackers, and chips and people hear them crunch through and I'm so proud! Not paying 150 for a cheese cupcake okay? No. So bring your own.

If you’re planning to go to Korea, here are a few of my recommendations to purchase:

KLOOK Nami Island + Le Petit France. = It costs (₱1689 per pax) and it’s actually quite sulit for the whole experience.

KLOOK Discovery Pass = This is probably one of the most worth it purchase we had. 35 sightseeing privileges for free for only ₱2222 per person! COME ON! I actually calculated the number of entrance fees of the places we want to go to versus the amount of DP and yup! I definitely saved A LOT from that.

KLOOK UNLIMITED WIFI = Okay! I mean there were a lot of 4G internet that you can purchase here in PH already but with my pro-research skills, I found out that you can actually rent wifi that you can redeem in Incheon Airport upon arrival.(₱575 for 5 days) I purchased the 5-day free wifi. Para connected tayo diba?

If you are going to purchase, make sure to take note what terminal in Incheon you will depart since there are several choices where you can pick them up. Also, align your time of departure. Not all kiosks are 24hrs so if you’ll arrive beyond 9pm, choose the kiosk that has 24hrs running time for you to claim your rentals and passes.

If you booked your ticket with a late arrival LIKE ME (10:25pm but settled all the claims and reloads of T-Money at around 1:00am), your only choice is the NIGHT BUS. (see pic below for the airport bus schedules)

If however, you have a normal time of booking which reaches within the time where AREX is still going then I HIGHLY recommend using the AREX for ₩9000.

We took the N6001 bus which will drop us at Seoul Station.

Let us start.

So my itinerary wasn’t your typical one. I had the places as my priority so when I made this one, I made sure that I can utilize the location as much as possible. I researched all the places I can visit near

Myeongdong

Insadong

Ewha Woman’s University

Okay. So It might sound boring when I only mentioned three BUT do imply that these 3 have an abundance of tourists spots where either I can just walk or a 9min subway ride.

OUR LOCATION: We rented an Airbnb in Jungnim-ro.

(https://www.airbnb.com/users/show/214545347)

That is literally 7 mins away from Seoul Station subway which was HIGHLY convenient for us since we used the subway. ONLY subway (psh if I’ll rant about how many time I’ve been conned in my first time in KR, it’s gonna be to long) so I’ll attach my host’s details and if you want to rent her place WHICH IS SUPER DUPER NEAT BTW and we’re located near police station so the place is 100% safe so if you want to rent, you may do so. And one more thing, they have a youtube directional instruction on how you’ll be able to go to the main building of the house. LUV THAT! <3

PS: My Itinerary is made for my mum and aunt where they can explore but also minimize the stress of walking coz they’re old but STILL I made sure to expand the place I can explore as much as I can.

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Day 1.

Namsan Tower/Myeongdong

Disclaimer: Don’t judge! I know we only went to two destinations for Day 1 but I consider the fact that I'm with my mum who’s a senior citizen and we haven’t slept yet 😳 so I decided to shorten our destinations to visit for Day 1 so she can rest in the afternoon

Discover Pass can be used as T-Money (like beep card here in PH) so I suggest to load at least ₩30,000 for subway purposes.

Subway ride costs ₩1,2000 FIXED.

N SEOUOL TOWER

NAMSAN PARK

LOVE LOCK LANE

MYEONGDONG

Namsan Cable Car opens at 10:30. I specifically picked the daytime tour since Im with my mum and aunt and the would pretty much appreciate pictures in light BUT I highly suggest visiting Namsan Tower at night. The City lights is AMAZING.

Namsan Entrance fee is around ₩3000. You can choose if you want the one-way ride or the round trip. CAREFUL! The payment for the Cable car is different from the Namsan Tower Entrance. We have to pay for the cable car but have the Entrance fee for free in Namsan tower because of the Discover Pass (YASSSSSS)

You’ll find Love Lock Lane amazing scenery! If you get hungry, you can take the roundtrip cable car and just go back to Myeongdong and explore all the food!

PS : Okay, Korea has a few restaurants that offer “solo” on their menu. It’s always, MINIMUM of two orders. Doesn’t matter how many you guys are, the menu will always be a minimum of two. Example: Samgyupsal is around ₩23,000 so multiply by two, that’s ₩46,000 but I guarantee that it will feed 4 people. If you’re with more than four people who will accompany you, make sure to bring enough money for food. BECAUSE IT’S SOOOOOOOOO FLIPPIN’ GOOD!!

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Day 2

LE PETIT FRANCE + NAMI ISLAND

DONGDAEMUN

Le Petit France + Nami Island will take your WHOLE day. We departed at around 9am at the meeting place (Myeondong Station Exit 3) which is just where we dropped off for Namsan Tower and got back at around 5pm in the afternoon.

Nami is known for their DAKGALBI which is grilled chicken or Spicy chicken. Again, a minimum of two orders. There’s this place where we ate Dakgalbi two years ago and luckily, it’s still there when we visited and decided to eat there. I don’t remember the place BUT It’s in front of the Bus Parking space. It’s the only one there so I definitely suggest that place. Try their Buckwheat cold noodles too. IT’S THE BEST!

Dongdaemun for me was THE. BEST. ONE. YET!

So upon departure, the tour bus will give you instructions on where you can drop off. We had our meet up at Myeongdong and just our luck, the tour guide informed us that Dongdaemun station will be one of the drop off stations for those who want to explore the place WHICH WE DID. The drop off area was just at the gate of Dongdaemun so there’s not much walking needed. One thing you need to know is that it’s a very tricky place. It’s like a maze. A lot going up (not stairs) but the place was worth it. We went just before sunset but didn’t manage to experience the place at night. So I suggest you visit Dongdaemun at night too because the whole place is lit with lights and you’ll probably appreciate the structure more.

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DAY 3

GYEOUNGBUKGONG PALACE

NATIONAL FOLK MUSEUM OF KOREA

INSADONG

MYEONGDONG

I originally planned the Palace tour for 2 Palace visit BUT I underestimated Gyeoungbukgong palace. THAT PLACE IS TOO BIG for a day visit. I was telling myself there is NO way a Prince or Emperor could finish morning walk AROUND that palace coz it’s so big! So we only managed to visit Gyeoungbukgong Palace.

TRIVIA : It’s the biggest palace in the country AND many K-drama set place in G.Palace. An example would be Goblin.

National Folk Museum was actually INSIDE/BESIDE G.Palace and it’s free! We went there knowing they have CHAIRS coz our feet went bonkers after all that walking around the palace but we never knew how beautiful the museum was inside! All the history and ornaments and even old traditions were there.

INSADONG was probably one of my most awaited place to visit. Two years ago, Insadong was our last destination so we kinda rushed our visit here so this year I decided to take my time and really enjoy the place (so I didn’t really have that many pictures). Insadong is just a WALK away from G.Palace so it was pretty convenient. Insadong was a place for souvenir shopping. Literally, ALL kinds of stuff and magnets are there at such cheap prices. My mum hoarded A LOT of ‘em. Also, Insadong is where some of their traditional dishes are sold. I tried a honey thread-like candy (am so sorry I can’t remember the name of the stall) which for me was the highlight of my visit there. They have a public show of how they make these candies and also they know how to speak Filipino which is super cool. So if you’re going to buy souvenirs, I recommend Insadong. There’s a subway station direct to Insadong BUT it’s Jongno Station.

MYEONGDONG

This is probably the most mainstream place for tourists but I DO LOVE ME SOME GOOD FOOD. Cheap skin care products and awesome food!

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LAST DAY

We kinda rushed this day since our flight is scheduled that night but managed to still go ONE. MY. MOST. FAVORITE. PLACE.

EHWA WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY

I'm a sucker for good architecture and this place is mindblowing. Instagramable! Snapchat worthy! Photo walk legend!

The good thing about EHWA is they have a subway station for it. Literally EHWA University Station and just outside the station exit are stores filled with coffee shops and boutiques and my favorite, ARTBOX which is a store of tumblers and iphone cases and cute college bags and pens and notebooks and my heart JUSSSSST mmf! Paris Baguette is a very well known bakery in Korea and we just happened to pass by one at EHWA since we haven’t had any breakfast or lunch yet and let me tell you, BAKERIES IN KOREA ARE LEGIT. BEST ONES! Coffee in EHWA is different in Myeongdong. It’s like specially catered for students. It’s so goooood! Goblin also had kdrama shoots in EHWA so I was a little excited to see some of their buildings.

PS: EHWA doesn’t have entrance fee BUT you can only take pictures at the famous stairs but you can’t go further inside unless you’re a student.

AND THAT WAS THAT.

For our departure, we used the free ride of AREX that comes with Discover Pass. Price of AREX was mention earlier. It’s a 30 min. ride so you have to make sure you have enough time before your flight. ALWAYS BE IN ADVANCE.

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HERE ARE SOME OF MY TIPS:

Upload these apps! It’s definitely A MUST! This 3 apps made my life easier as a first-time subway user.

SUBWAY app helps you with the subway stations. It look intimidating at first because of the loops and colors but I tell you, it’s really easy! Im bad with directions and I understood the subway stations so much faster because of this.

KOREA TRANSIT GUIDE will help you with transfers and time. Your destinations may have a direct subway station but doesn’t mean you are connected to just one line. It’s like here in PH, there are instances where you need to transfer from LRT to MRT to get to your destination. It’s the same with Korea Subway BUT what’s good in Korea Subway is that transfers are all in one place. If you are going to transfer stations, there’s directions and instructional signs right when you drop off to point you to where you’re going. It’s so easy! Then you can use SUBWAY app to check the color of the subway transfer. As you can see, there are several color codes on each Subway lines. This app will also give you what BUS number you can take or if it’s possible to walk instead.

I posted a picture where you can see color codes in subway suggestions. Seoul Station (blue) to City Hall (green) then you can check in SUBWAY app the color code if it’s correct and to familiarize you with the station names you’ll encounter.

DISCOVERY PASS app IS A MUST if you’re going to avail one. You need to register your app so you can check the remaining balance of your Discovery Pass. You can also use it as T-Money for subways. I loaded ₩30,000 and I used it fully.

Bring good walking slippers (depending on what season you’ll go). Comfortable shoes goes a looong way but it’s good to have spare walking slippers just in case

Buy 110 plugs here in PH. Sockets in Korea is different so be prepared to have at least 2 or 3 for your chargers.

Bring clear packaging tapes. If you’re going to buy liquid skin care, make sure to put a seal because you don’t want your expensive skin care bottles to explode inside your luggage so better be ready that regret after.

POWERBANK POWERBANK POWERBANK. Never forget!

Korea is filled with PUBLIC wifi. So if you’re lost and didn’t avail the pocket WIFI they have at Klook, you can just go to a near coffee shop and have their free wifi just outside.

FOOD IS A MUST. I know you have your skin care list ready but don’t be thrifty when it comes to their good food. COZ IT’S GOOD! TOO GOOD!

Bring your own towel. We are used to big towels. Towels that can cover and dry your body. However, in Korea, they prefer a smaller towel. Like…..bimpo type of towel. It takes us 5 towels just to dry us up. They do give an abundance of small towels but come on! I need to be dried up in one swoop okay? So just bring your own.

AND THAT’S THAT! Hope this LOOOONG itinerary helps people one way or another.

[transparentpiratechaos]

Crash Bandicoot one-shot-Translation of “the bee and the peacock”

Part of the Crash Bandicoot+MiraculousLadybug AU crossover

Me and @mixture-lady made this one-shot together. She gave me the ideas and I wrote them. These were her ideas:

For example, can you write down an one shot of the life of le paon and queen bee Like, like she’s a girl who likes ladybug and gets the miraculous of the bee She’s smart and and always helps ladybug in strategics *coco In the other side Mega-mix tries to have a "normal" life but suspects a bit in ladybug’s identity For some reason he gets the miraculous of the peacock like a present from Yaya (who doesn’t fear him) and with that he tries to discover who they are while he saves his lady (yaya) in case papillon does something But also he saves his other “lady” (ladybug) when he screw up things and he’s alone Like tuxedo mask (sailor moon)

I think those are great ideas and although, I couldn’t replicate all her ideas (I tried to adjust them as I suppose was appropriate), I liked the result. At the moment she told me something very interesting and I’m looking forward to it. I thank all of you who like my au-crossover. You guys can contribute with it as whatever you like, it’s an au that everyone can use after all x'D

*********************************************

Coco is the younger sister of Crash and Crunch, the beloved girl of the bandicoot family. It’s true she’s a hacker and she knows karate, but staying on the pc or design inventions is not the only thing she does all day (like some jealous people accused of to the nerdy girl). Maybe none of them know it, but she’s the actual bee miraculous holder, the matchless Queen Bee!

The day she got her miraculous was when her brothers and Aku Aku left home to get some wumpa fruit and she was left alone in the house. As usual she was going to turn on her laptop but above it she found a small box, and when she opened it some kind of bee came out from it and they gladly explained to her they were a kwami and the meaning behind their meeting. Coco didn’t wait long to transform herself and prove the powers that the suit offered her. And if that wasn’t enough that day she fight alongside with Volpina, a very skilled heroine with powers of illusionism.

As Queen Bee she is the strategist of the group by excellence, as Ladybug mentioned once, and there’s no day she stops trying to give her best. Right now, they had just released the Komodo brothers, who fled quickly to avoid confrontations.

“And I thought I was fast” said Volpina very amused, who kept moving her spongy tail.

Chat smiles approvingly also smiling even though this battle was quite exhausting.

“At least they got what they deserved for today” said Queen Bee a bit tired.

“I agr- ah I think it’s time for me to go” comments Ladybug, who looked rather anxious to get out of there.

Everyone says goodbye and Coco decides to go through a market to buy some food before returning home.

“Now I wasn’t lucky enough to get new material for the Ladyblog” she thinks with certain hassle. It’s no secret she and her brothers are Ladybug’s fans, to the degree of being responsible for managing a page and a club dedicated only to the bearer of luck, also with a section dedicated to the other heroes of course. Aku Aku showed some concern about that admiration of theirs, but she feels they aren’t being obsessive, it's just something common that everyone does with the people they admire, right?

“Hey Coco!”

“Ah, Crunch! What are you doing here?”

“You won’t believe what just happened!”

“What’s the matter Crunch, you look so-“

“Excited?! It's to be expected, look!”

Coco couldn’t believe it, Crunch had in possession the posters they had acquired last week. But that wasn’t the surprise, but the fact that they were signed by none other than Ladybug.

“But how?!

“I don’t know, I just had some luck!. Here, this one’s yours, hang it in your room little sis! I'm going to find Crash to give him his poster!”

Crunch left as fast as he arrived and Coco bought her stuff. She no longer felt tired, in fact she felt so excited that as soon as she got home she was going to scan the poster to upload it to the net. Apparently she doesn’t need to find Ladybug to get anything from him. She can't stop hugging the poster, now she will take care of it with much more care than before.

———————————

For Mega-Mix being Le Paon wasn’t easy, since he has to pretend to be on a side and help another without making Le Papillon, more know as Hawk Moth, realize it. On top of that, he always carried his research to determine who are all the holders who owns a kwami, especially Ladybug. Why? Well, he always felt something familiar about him and he can't help but think about it, to the extent of going so far as to help him even if Ladybug sometimes gets annoyed. All of this exhaust him enormously occasionally and Yaya always helped him to feel better.

He doesn’t remember anything about how he was created or how did he get here, but since he had appeared he was alone until on one occasion he saw some mutants disturb the young panda. At that moment he saw how she defended  from them with great agility but still he decided to help her, fleeing from there without letting her being able to thank him. Mega-Mix had already problems before while trying to coexist with others and that’s why he decided to live in anonymity; nevertheless Yaya always tried to communicate with him and Mega-Mix without further ado accept her like somebody part of his life.  

Yes, Yaya knows he’s Le Paon, after all she’s the one who gave him the miraculous as a present the day of his birthday. Yaya told him he deserved that opportunity and he shouldn’t waste it, she seemed to be confident that he would do the right thing and of course he would show her she didn’t picked the wrong mutant, he appreciated that she trusted him a lot. Did that make them break the rule about no one should know their identity? Neither of them know it, but every time she finds herself in trouble he helps her from the shadows and vice versa. They can't risk meeting like others do, it's always behind closed doors, as many would say. Just like now, they are having a picnic at 2:30 in the morning.

“Are you cold Yaya?” he asks with some concern.

“No, I’m fine with this blanket. What about you Mega-Mix?” she says with a smile

“This is nothing.” he replies giving her a similar smile like the one she gave him.

Yaya gets closer to Mega-Mix, leaning on him while drinking some hot tea. Mega-Mix sighs a bit and decides to take a jam sandwich.

“Are you feeling well?”

“More than well Yaya, don’t worry”

“You can tell me anything Mega-Mix”

“I know Yaya, maybe I’m just tired. On a side note, this jam sandwich taste so good”

“You like it? That's the jam I prepare for the restaurant. You should come there some day”

“Maybe I will”

The two stopped talking and kept eating while they watched the night sky from the backyard of her house. Moments like these are what Mega-Mix always tries to have along with Yaya, there’s no day he stops thinking about it. Ladybug and Yaya are two of his biggest priorities for him, he will not let anything or anyone hurt them. It's true, things are hard right now and that makes it a bit difficult for him to decipher the identity of the other holders without revealing his true intentions to Hawk Moth, however he thinks he has time for it, after all he and Yaya are happy and that’s enough for now.

[argumentclinician]

Friday, 13 January 2017: the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The Christmas season reaches its conclusion today, with the commemoration of the Baptism of our Lord in the Jordan River. As Christmas is the feast of the Word’s incarnation, so the feasts of Christmas season (Holy Family, Holy Name, Epiphany, and Baptism) are extended meditations on the progressive revelation to the world of God’s Incarnation. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.” (John 1:14)

It seems then that I should probably write a bit about my Christmas trip (if I ever intend to do it!). Mom probably wants to see some pictures, so here goes.

I spent the Christmas holiday with a group of three other seminarians in southern France and northern Spain. We all thought, “You know what sounds like great fun in the coldest and wettest part of the year? The Pyrenees!”

(”I want to see MOUNTAINS, Gandalf!”)

So we all traipsed to a monastery named Le Barroux for the last few days leading up to Christmas. Le Barroux is a traditional Benedictine monastery a couple hours from Marseille, and they mercifully had a somewhat heated church. (I say “somewhat”: I was still wearing wool coat and gloves for the morning offices, but the water in the fonts was liquid, which is an improvement on the frozen fonts of Fontgombault.) But one of the unofficial requirements for “NAC Christmas” is to go somewhere they have real beer and real butter (which, for most of us, means France, England, or Germany), and that was certainly fulfilled by a stay with French Benedictines! I love Rome, but it sure is good to get out of Italy sometimes!

Have you been to a real monastery? It’s incredible. What a beautiful, prayerful place. The monastery is out in the French countryside, surrounded by olive groves, vineyards, orchards, and in the distance, low mountains. The monks rise at 3:20 each day to start their daily prayers, all chanted in the fairly plain stone church. I was on “retreat mode” and mostly slept through the nighttime offices: I really admire those men for their endurance. They pray seven different “hours” (the name for the praying of the psalms) during the day, plus Mass. Fifty men, all in black, moving with simple reverence and practiced ease. We don’t talk with them, but the atmosphere is certainly welcoming. Even the meals are taken in silence, which can be a bit jarring at first (but for the Roman escapee, this is wonderfully soothing).

The countryside, too! I get to a point every couple months when I decide that it’s time to go up a mountain again, and also see the stars to remember what the night sky looks like. Le Barroux provides!

(The monastery is in the center, just to the right of the foreground mountain.)

I spent several cold nights looking up from the darkened cloister at a night sky with no moon. I saw faint traces of the Milky Way for the first time.

And then Christmas arrived! The most tiring day of the year for the monks! The prayers begin with Matins at 8:45 pm on Christmas Eve, which leads straight into midnight Mass. We all have some drinks and cookies afterward, and then get to bed by about 2:30. Then up again at 6 am for Lauds and Mass at dawn! And a third Solemn Mass once the sun actually comes up! And the priest-monks have their own Masses to say, after they attend in choir! It’s certainly a strenuous exercise, but very beautiful.

My French survived the disuse of a semester, too! The Abbot speaks very clearly, and I could understand a good deal of his homily. I’m really pleased with that. But more French adventures later.

After Christmas, we rented a car and traveled each day to a new city: Barcelona, Zaragosa, Pamplona, Loyola, San Sebastian, Lourdes, Toulouse, Carcassonne, and Nimes. Plenty of adventures along the way, but I’ll just tell a few of them.

First off, we had a hilarious cab driver from the monastery to the train station to begin our trip. He had an almost-incomprehensible Provençal accent, very deep and from the back of the throat. You think French is a throaty language?! Good luck! Anyway, we were attempting to fit our bags into the trunk of his cab, and they just didn’t quite fit. But he shoved the last one in, and with a booming “BON!” smashed the hatchback closed. Which action was accompanied by a worrying plastic crunch. Also, the trunk didn’t close. A bit of rearranging, and it did close, but we had a catchword for the rest of our trip. Every time we resumed our travels, or were ready to leave a restaurant, or had found our lodging for the night: BON!

We stayed the first couple days at another convent near Barcelona, at a famous medieval Marian shrine called Montserrat. Here, Catalan became the twelfth language I have heard Mass in (English, Latin, Polish, Italian, French, Spanish, Icelandic, Portuguese, Croatian, German, Lithuanian). It is also probably the least beautiful. Ach, Catalan! We had plenty of fun doing very bad impersonations of Catalan. But the people are very kind, and Barcelona is beautiful. I finally got to see the Sagrada Familia in full color, during the day.

We began our dual pilgrimage at Montserrat, where we sang a medieval pilgrim song called Stella Splendens and saw the Mary altar where Saint Ignatius left his sword as a token of his conversion and dedication to the Gospel.

(Saint Ignatius the Pilgrim, bearing his sword as an offering, Montserrat)

As we passed on to Zaragoza and the magnificent Shrine of Our Lady of Pilar, we stopped also at Manresa and prayed in the cave where Ignatius received the Spiritual Exercises during his long meditation. From there, we moved along to Basque country! Basque is something of a foil to Catalan: it looks ugly in print, but it is very beautiful spoken. I have no idea what they’re saying, but it’s quite pleasant to listen to. We stayed at a converted farmhouse in the hills above Loyola, and spent the day at the castle-turned-shrine where Ignatius grew up. The museum of Ignatius and the early Jesuits is the best “saint museum” I have ever visited, and the most moving part of our trip, for me, was seeing the place “where Ignatius of Loyola gave himself to God.”

(”Here Ignatius of Loyola gave himself to God.”)

Also: mountains!

After a brief jaunt through San Sebastian, we ended up at Lourdes for New Years’ Eve and the feast of Mary, Mother of God. I finally got to climb my mountain! And we prayed in the New Year from the Grotto where the Immaculate Conception appeared. I honestly don’t know how bishop offered the Mass. I was in underarmor under my pants under my cassock under my wool coat, and I was still frozen. I don’t know how his fingers had dexterity enough to handle the host. God bless him.

After that, we went on to visit Saint Thomas Aquinas in Toulouse (church is closed Monday! Bah!) and then continued on to a marvelously-preserved medieval town called Carcassonne. (My brother Keith would have had a blast tramping around the battlements. I would have been with him.) But the best adventure was staying with a house of Cistercian nuns. We had searched “Monastery near Carcassonne”, and theirs was the only website that worked, so we ended up driving along a one-lane road to a village, then along a dirt road into the countryside, and finally up a forest logging road, in order to reach a little convent in the middle of the woods. I thought the stars at Le Barroux were spectacular! There’s a little convent of five Cistercian sisters, making jams and bottling essential oils, and praying for France and for the world. What devotion! And they have a new vocation coming at Easter! God bless them!

Finally, we made our way to Nimes, which was an ancient Roman colony and has some of the best-preserved Roman ruins in the world. The Arena and the Aqueduct are stunning. We stayed there with a lovely retired couple whose daughter moved to Dallas and became involved with supporting the Seminary there so one of our guys knew her and asked if we could stay with them. If it sounds convoluted, it is. But they were very generous to us, and we spent many long evenings talking over aperitif, dinner, cheese course, and dessert. (God bless the French.) I found a new liquorice-flavored drink that Dad will enjoy: like drinking black jellybeans!

(The aqueduct of Pont du Gard, near Nimes...)

(...which we walked through!)

Well, that’s more than enough. If you are still reading, you’re probably my mom, so I here’s one more picture.

(All right, you can see my face!)

Exams await! Pray for me! God bless you all!

[thebestintoronto]

Spending Two Perfect Days In Toronto

Toronto’s condominium boom is no secret — just try snapping a photo of the city’s skyline without including a crane or two — but these rising glass towers are ushering in more than sky-high residences. They’ve also helped create an influx of luxury hotels and restaurants that make the already dynamic destination a newly alluring place to visit. Though you could spend weeks exploring the changing landscape of Canada’s largest city, Toronto is also an excellent choice for a walkable two-day getaway. Hit the highlights, both classic and new, with this itinerary.

Day One

Choosing a Toronto hotel is no small task when the city’s bumper crop of properties includes some of Canada’s most luxurious. The Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto; Four-Stars The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto, Park Hyatt Toronto, Shangri-La Hotel, Toronto and The Hazelton Hotel; and Recommendeds SoHo Metropolitan Hotel, Toronto, Thompson Toronto and Templar Hotel all delight with their service and amenities. But on our most recent trip, Four Seasons Hotel Toronto fit the bill. Opened in late 2012 as the Toronto-based brand’s new flagship, this Five-Star, 55-story Yorkville stunner is home to 259 sleek guest rooms and suites outfitted with floor-to-ceiling windows, iPads and custom Etro bath products. Its restaurant and spa are among the best in town — but you’ll get to those later.

After checking in and freshening up in your impossibly large bathroom, it’s time for a pre-lunch walking tour of the Yorkville neighborhood. This tony corner of Toronto, a 10-minute drive north of downtown, is also a cornerstone of the city’s fashion scene, and the best way to see all the boutiques its quaint alleys have to offer is with The Refinery’s Wendy Woods, a local style expert. As Woods explains, shopping in Toronto is pricey but unique; because the city has relatively few big-box stores outside of Holt Renfrew and Hudson’s Bay, there’s an opening for local designers to thrive, and a plethora of their combination boutique-studios dot the city. Woods’ tour, which can be customized for men or women, will lead you through her favorite hidden gems and the signature items in each. If you opt to explore Yorkville on your own, don’t miss Pink Tartan to shop tailored women’s clothing in a historic building; Teatro Verde for two floors of one-of-a-kind gifts and a fittingly orange-yellow room dedicated to Veuve Clicquot products; Ça Va de Soi for luxe basics like sweaters woven with rare Karnak Menoufi cotton; Karir Eyewear for high-end, artistic frames; and LeatherFoot for bespoke or prêt-à-porter men’s shoes from European designers such as John Lobb and Gaziano & Girling.

When you’ve worked up an appetite, wind your way to Sassafraz for lunch. A Yorkville institution, Sassafraz consists of a restaurant and a more casual café, both set inside a yellow house where it’s not unusual for famous clientele, from Matt Damon to Bono, to outshine the farm-fresh, French-inspired cuisine. Request a spot on the restaurant’s rearmost banquette for the best vantage point; you can survey the entire dining room from this perch under a glass atrium. After appetizers, such as a baby spinach salad piled high with blackberries and Ontario sheep feta, and a hearty main — the smoked-chicken torchietti with cubed andouille sausage and kale pesto is a warm comfort on a cold Canadian day — finish with the trio of crème brûlée. This dessert flight — with ramekins of white-chocolate-Oreo crumble, Baileys with peppermint crunch, and maple with ginger snap — is just the thing to fuel your trip to the Art Gallery of Ontario or Royal Ontario Museum.

Both have world-class permanent collections — at the Art Gallery of Ontario, work from the last two millennia, and at the Royal Ontario Museum, natural history and cultural articles — and are impressive from the outside in. Daniel Libeskind created the ROM’s incongruous crystalline entrance in 2007; Toronto-born architect Frank Gehry added the AGO’s curved-glass façade in 2008. The one at which you spend your afternoon wandering is your choice. Exhibitions include “Francis Bacon and Henry Moore: Terror and Beauty,” featuring more than 130 pieces from the British art titans at the AGO through July 20, and “The Forbidden City: Inside the Court of China’s Emperors” at the ROM through July 1, along with various retrospectives throughout the year to celebrate the museum’s 100th anniversary.

Recover from your travels to and around the city back at your hotel, where The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Toronto beckons. At 30,000 square feet, this Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star retreat is the largest luxury spa in Toronto, and it’s filled with serene spaces in which to unwind before you even hit the treatment room. Be sure to spend ample time in the relaxation area where you’ll wait for your therapist; curl up with a fuzzy gray or brown blanket as you browse the music menu and select one of six channels — perhaps “spa chill vibes” or “spa spiritual” — to enhance your massage. For the ultimate pampering with a sense of place, choose one of the spa’s Toronto-inspired treatments: The Cultural Mosaic of Canada blends spa traditions from India, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Europe; We Are Yorkville pays homage to the neighborhood’s 1960s hippie past with a foot bath, hemp-seed scrub, honey-arnica wrap and patchouli hemp oil massage.

You don’t have to go far for a special dinner at Four-Star Café Boulud Toronto, Four Seasons Hotel Toronto’s Daniel Boulud-helmed restaurant. Head to the eclectic second-floor space, filled with celebrity portraits by Banksy protégé Mr. Brainwash, to taste the passion that chef de cuisine Tyler Shedden and wine director Drew Walker have for Ontario-sourced menus. Dishes such as roasted Grandview Farms chicken with ricotta gnudi, white onion, porcini mushrooms and sage jus, and wines such as Norman Hardie pinot noir from Prince Edward County, show off both the area’s bounty and Boulud’s French traditions, and the personable staff discusses local ingredients with Portlandia-style precision. For dessert, the grapefruit givré is a must — so dramatic as to require two hands to eat it with any grace, this blend of grapefruit sorbet, grapefruit compote, rose loukoum and halva crumble, with a towering crown of sesame-seed-dotted halva floss, is as delicious as it is striking.

Day Two

St. Lawrence Market in Old Town Toronto has been home to a thriving city smorgasbord since 1803, so what better place to do some fun foraging for breakfast? The food market is open Tuesday through Saturday, with Saturday heralding in an Ontario farmers market in the North Market building. Start there and wind your way through dozens of stalls heaving with everything from kale to currants before arriving at Cathy Roncetti’s Oodles of Strudels and buying one of her fruit strudels or seasonal loaves — her tropical colada is moist and flavorful. Or pop into the South Market, where two floors house more than 120 permanent vendors specializing in prepared food. Stop by the famed Carousel Bakery, known for its peameal bacon sandwiches, and Anton Kozlik’s Canadian Mustard, where any number of mustards — clobbered cranberry, triple crunch, amazing maple — and pastries may seduce your senses.

Once you’re sated, it’s time (10 a.m., to be exact) to meet historian Bruce Bell for a tour of the market and its environs. (Reserve a spot on this popular tour ahead of time.) Bell has a noted knack for making history come to life during his 90-minute excursions, and there isn’t a question about his beloved Toronto that he can’t answer. As Bell guides you from St. Lawrence Hall, a meeting place since 1851, to Toronto’s first jail, you’ll begin to notice plaques marking these as historic buildings, with the label “a Bruce Bell history project.” Throughout the city, Bell’s historical prowess is rather set in stone.

After your tour, enjoy a 15-minute walk down the tree-flanked Esplanade to the Distillery District and sit down to lunch at El Catrin. The design firm Munge Leung, the visionary behind Vancouver’s Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Rosewood Hotel Georgia and the new Whiskey Down at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, conspired with Mexican street artist Oscar Flores to create a kaleidoscopic smiling-skulls motif for the space. The team delivers high drama with a two-story Flores mural, a two-story bar and a giant brick patio that glows under black-metal chandeliers. In contrast, chef Olivier Le Calvez’s menu is simple, perfectly spicy comfort food: tacos, burritos, tortas and ceviches, with a weekend brunch menu (10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday) full of savory and sweet stick-to-your-ribs treats, such as chilaquiles verdes with pulled chicken, or 24-hour-soaked vanilla challah with mango, ancho chili mascarpone and mezcal-maple syrup. Wash it all down with any of the flavorful aguas frescas — the hibiscus-spiked flavored water is particularly refreshing.

You no doubt passed some of the galleries and boutiques that line the Distillery District’s red-brick, pedestrian-only lanes on your way to lunch. Now learn about the history of these 47 Victorian industrial buildings that once constituted the Gooderham & Worts Distillery. Segway Ontario, a short walk from El Catrin on Gristmill Lane, runs entertaining 30- and 60-minute tours of the neighborhood that stop at several historically notable corners and, if you’re up for it, tastings at Soma Chocolatemaker and Mill Street Brewery. A five-minute training session on your Segway gives you a ticket to ride in a single-file line between two guides while they regale the group with tales of living, working and drinking in Toronto during the 19th century.

If it’s your first time in Toronto, the CN Tower is worth a quick stop for panoramic views of the city and Lake Ontario. If you’ve already ascended to the 113th-floor, glass-floored observation deck before, consider upping the ante with the 116th-floor, hands-free EdgeWalk (the season starts April 14) that has been thrilling daredevils since 2011. Even just watching the jumpsuited, harnessed participants lean over the edge of tower — which was the world’s tallest freestanding structure until 2010 — is enough to make your palms sweat or your spirit soar, depending on your point of view. Less adventurous visitors may prefer the tower’s new next-door neighbor, Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada, but be sure to reserve tickets ahead of time, as we spotted lines around the building on a recent Saturday afternoon.

You’ll also want to book a table for dinner at one of Toronto’s newest (and most talked about) culinary imports. Ramen ace David Chang brought his New York City-based Momofuku empire to University Avenue in 2012, opening five concepts in a single three-floor glass cube. The ground floor houses Momofuku Noodle Bar; the second level is home to Nikai, a lounge that serves noodle dishes and bigger plates. Dessert mecca Momofuku Milk Bar is also on the second floor, inside its own glass box in which wire baskets overflow with cookies and truffles. And the third level is dedicated to Daisho, where the menu mixes shareable plates with large-format meals such as bo ssäm (a pork shoulder dish and the namesake of a Chang restaurant in New York), and Shoto. Reserve your spot at the intimate Shoto counter between Tuesday and Saturday to enjoy a tasting menu of about 10 courses, or stick with Momofuku Noodle Bar and experience a ramen revelation over a bowl of pork, chicken or vegetable noodles.

Toronto is one of only three cities to lay claim to the famed Second City comedy troupe, so don’t miss an after-dinner show at its intimate downtown theater, where the tables are close together and the jokes even closer. The Second City’s alumni list is a who’s who of Canadian comedians, from Gilda Radner to Martin Short to Mike Myers. Shows last just less than two hours, and you’ll want to catch the last performance, as it’s followed by free improv — the actors’ wheelhouse — every night but Friday. The ensemble’s latest sketch show, Sixteen Scandals, kicked off in March and is the perfect ending to your whirlwind tour north of the border.

This post " Spending Two Perfect Days In Toronto " was first seen on Forbes Travel Guide by Michelle Doucette

Naturopath Toronto - Dr. Amauri Caversan

[localfreshies]

New Post has been published on Local Freshies | Be a local wherever you go

New Post has been published on http://localfreshies.com/snowmobiling-burgdorf-hot-springs-idaho/

Snowmobiling into the wilderness for a Hot Springs getaway

Why travel? Is it to leave your daily stresses behind? Spend time with family or friends? Party? For us, it’s about trying things that we wouldn’t experience at home. Whether to enjoy food we can’t find anywhere else or to escape the crowds, today we’ll be checking off lots of ideas from our list! To start, we’re going to try a cinnamon roll the size of a dinner plate. Next, hop onto snowmobiles and head into the backcountry for a soak at the Burgdorf Hot Springs. And to finish it all up, grab a few local brews and eat some venison.  The perfect action-packed day for sure!

A hometown Pancake House

The Pancake House in McCall

Excited for the day to start, we got up a little earlier than planned. We love to check out everything we can around ski towns, so throwing on our jackets, we head out the door. First stop is the Pancake House. I know what you’re thinking, “Hey Local Freshies®, isn’t that a chain?” Nope, it’s a local joint here in McCall. With a parking spot right in front, the first thing we notice is how huge the building looks. Swinging open the log cabin style door, we look up to the exposed beams giving a sense of openness and grandeur. With a welcoming “Good Morning”, we sit in a booth and place our order.

Cinnamon Roll fit for Andre the Giant

Andre the Giant’s cinnamon roll

As quickly as we ordered, the tasty items arrive. Placing the cinnamon roll in front of us, our jaws drop. This cinnamon roll is so large, you could survive a week in the wilderness on it.  The breakfast dessert is warm, gooey, and fluffy.  If you have a sweet tooth then you’ll LOVE it! If you’re about venturing a little further into the unknown, the sourdough pancakes are the right choice. You read that right. Sourdough pancakes not sourdough bread. First, they are sour like sourdough bread but then the softest, gooiest pancakes ever. Smothered in syrup, the sweet and sour combination is intense and amazing at the same time. Definitely not for everyone but a must try if you like one-of-a-kind food experiences. After our sweet start to the day, it’s time to head out so we wrap up the cinnamon roll and get moving.

The “Town Deer”

The Town Deer

With a big day planned and in need of some extra breakfast nutrition, we head over to the Alpine Pantry. On our way, we notice deer just chillin’ in people’s yards. We’re not talking one or two but rather dozens just moseying through town. When we get to the Alpine Pantry we had to ask, “What’s up with the deer?” Apparently, they are famous in town. They’re a decent sized herd showing up after hunting season begins (super smart!). They stay around town, foraging for food throughout the winter, to finally disappear once spring arrives. Talk about a great plan!

A comfy Pantry – perfect for studying

Ordering our food at the counter, we sit down by a window and take in the atmosphere. The Alpine Pantry is the type of place you would come, have a cup of coffee and study or grab a bite to eat with a friend. A truly relaxed and comfortable vibe. Just in time as we enjoyed our coffees, our food arrives. First up, the Breakfast BLT. Instead of lettuce, the greens are spinach which fits well with the egg, adding the slight crunch you need on a BLT.

Local Freshies® Tip: Splurge a little and go for it. Ask for the smoked trout cream cheese and smear it on your sandwich bread. You might feel guilty but you won’t regret it!

The Avocado Toast

Up next, the Avocado Toast. This open faced egg sandwich with slices of avocado covered in bacon bits (real ones) and salty queso fresco is a winner. It’s a great treat for anyone that enjoys avocados on everything. With our appetites satisfied and energy charged up, it’s time to hit the mountain road to Brundage. Packing up and saying our goodbyes, we are greeted with a goodie-bag for the road. How generous! Filled with a delicious looking pastry and cookies, today just keeps getting better!

Onward to Brundage!

The drive from McCall to Brundage is an easy one. The road slowly meanders its way up to the resort. Just a few miles outside of town is another ski area named Little Ski Hill. This place has been around for 75+ years and is where diehard Locals get their start before graduating to Brundage Ski Resort. It’s also a place you can ski at night if you’re looking for something to do in the evening. Passing by Little Ski Hill, we make the climb towards our day’s adventure. Entering the parking lot around 9 am, we’re pleasantly surprised to see a quaint lodge and hardly any cars.

A Local guide to the Burgdorf Hot Springs

As we check in, we meet our guide for the day, Cody Fox. A true Local growing up in the region, his regular gig is with the Forest Service fighting fires in the Western US. He’s even been in our neck-of-the-woods when he battled the King fire in Placerville CA. In the winter though, he spends time guiding folks like us and manning the Brundage TV studio. Talk about a cool deal! Since we’re heading into the backcountry on snowmobiles, we suit up with our beacons, shovels, and probes. Like they always say about the backcountry… It’s always better to be over-prepared then get caught by surprise.

We get the Ferrari of snowmobiles!

The Ferrari of snowmobiles

All suited up, we head over to the snowmobiles. Talk about a total shock! We are outfitted with a pair of Ski-doo Summit snowmobiles. We’d gone snowmobiling before but normally their touring machines which drive like a 1987 Lincoln Towncar. Instead, we are on the Ferrari of snowmobiles. Talk about responsive and easy to ride. Revving out of the main area, we make a turn and ascend quickly towards the summit pass.

The Tale of Two Rides

Getting face-shots turn after turn

With blowing snow and howling wind, we reach the summit and pass through the worst weather conditions of the day. On the other side of the crest, the wind dies down and becomes more comfortable. Pulling into a meadow, Cody asks us if we want to ride through some powder and play. Cody could tell that I was hesitating a bit. He gives me the option to hop on the back of his for a quick ride just to try it. “Sure!” What’s the worst that could happen? Cody hits the throttle and we zoom off into the untracked pow. Bouncing from side to side, we get face-shots turn after turn. It was a combination of snowboarding deep pow while riding a wild horse. Talk about exciting!

A lap on the Les Mans race course

From there it was time to descend to the valley floor. The route had tight banked turns which reminded me more of a Les Mans race course than a normal groomed trail. Navigating down the terrain is exhilarating and nerve racking at the same time.  The snow and wind blocked our views of just how steep the drop-offs were on each side, which I appreciated.

Secret Idaho Pillows… Not Potatoes

Secret Idaho Pillows… not Potatoes

As we pulled up to a certain segment of switchbacks, Cody stopped and pointed upwards. Where he is pointing is a perfect slope filled with bumps, rollers, and pillows that you would find in the Kootenays. With a smile, he says this is one of his favorite secret zones to ride. Making a mental note, I’ll be back another season to check it out.

The clouds part above the Burgdorf Hot Springs

Idaho welcomes us to the Burgdorf Hot Springs

Throughout the journey, swirling wind and snow battered our caravan. As we made the final turn into the valley, the clouds quickly parted and glimpses of blue sky peeked through. It was as if Idaho welcomed us to the Burgdorf Hot Springs. With snowmobile or Nordic ski access only, the hot springs felt as if we were deep in Alaska.

It’s getting hot out here!

A good soak and a few beers

The old weathered wooden buildings had character and charm not seen anywhere else on our trip and in the center of it all sits the steaming hot springs. A natural gravel-bottom pool filled with people enjoying a good soak and a few beers melts the stresses of life away, miles from the closest civilization. Heated changing rooms sit off to one side of the pool helping us change into our swimsuits without freezing from the wintry weather outside.

Local Freshies® Tip: Entrance fee to Burgdorf Hot Springs is not included with your snowmobile rental so carry a few bucks in your backpack.

  The cabin on the right can be yours for only $36 / night

Watching the snow fall lightly onto our heads in the steamy water, we asked if anyone could stay out here on the property. Cody told us that it’s only $36 to stay overnight in one of the cabins AND they include all the things you need to keep warm and comfortable, like lots of firewood! No electricity out here so bring lanterns and candles to get cozy. If there’s a meteor shower or you just want to get away from the city lights, this is the perfect place for you to check out.

After a leisurely soak, we change back into our snow gear and saddle up our iron horses for Brundage. Twenty miles in, zipping through the virgin forest and across the mountainous landscape, we arrive at the resort quicker than expected. Hopping off our steeds, we thank Cody for an amazing day. It was time to celebrate and try one of the local breweries.

Local Brews and Affordable Art

McCall Brewing a great option after a long day snowmobiling

One of the bigger brewing institutions in town is McCall Brewing. Located conveniently a few blocks from Hotel McCall, it was the perfect option after a great day out-and-about. The interior has the comfortable appeal of a mountain cabin but big enough to fit all your friends and family. Once inside, we ordered a flight of beers and a snack. Here’s a few of our favorites on tap:

Wobbily Man Smoked Scotch – This beechwood smoked beer lends itself to the taste of bacon. It starts with a dark chocolate flavor but has a few similarities of a good Scotch such as peat, earth & wood. This is a great option for anyone that enjoys an aged brew.

Say Whut Coconut Porter – The name fits. As you take the first sip, the only thing out of your mouth is “Say whut?!?” It reminded me of when your a kid and Mom would bake your favorite cookies with coconut shavings on top. She told you not to eat them but when she turned around, you quickly grabbed a face full. That’s exactly how this beer tastes.

Devious Intent Imperial Stout – A dark moody beverage that is complex on all levels. It begins with smooth iced coffee notes and finishes with a malted milk ball flavor. Talk about interesting and definitely worth a try.

Minimalist Bane IPA – An English Style IPA, it has the English Style Ale flavors but with IPA tendencies. Don’t expect a ton of hoppiness but just enough to peak your curiosity.

Beer and Cheese are best friends

Order fries & you can dip them right into the soup

If you’re looking for a bite to eat, we highly suggest trying the Beer Cheese Soup. It has the taste of aged cheddar with a hint of beer. If you order fries on the side, you can dip them right into the soup… Better than any ketchup option! Not wanting to waste a drop of their precious beer, the soup itself is made from all the over pour beer. Talk about inventive and a flavor that would be hard for anyone to duplicate.

Gallery 55

Gallery 55 showcases local and regional artists

With a bit of time left before dinner, we headed across the street to Gallery 55. For anyone that has visited an art gallery in a ski town like Aspen or Jackson Hole, the price tag for items are usually in the tens of thousands of dollars making it more a museum than a shop. Gallery 55 is NOT that type of gallery. Prices range from $30 to $500 meaning anyone can buy something beautiful. They keep their costs down by having their artists work 2 days/month at the gallery, made possible as they showcase local and regional artists. From sculptures to paintings and photos to jewelry, there really is something for everyone.

5 Wine Spectator Awards of Excellence

With our stomachs rumbling, it was time to head to dinner at the Shore Lodge. There are several options for dining at this classic lodge – The Narrows, The Narrows Grill, and the Lake Grill. If you’re looking for very fine dining, The Narrows is the way to go. They’ve been awarded with FIVE Wine Spectator Awards of Excellence. For tonight, we are feeling something a bit more low key. The Narrows Grill is perfect for us as it serves a great menu but in a bar setting.

High class lodging that’s accessible

As you step into the lodge, there is a sense of prestige but without the pompous attitude. The interior is decorated with taxidermy mounts, leather couches and fireplaces, and the staff is attentive and high caliber. This focus on service and attention to detail are proven by being rated as the 3rd Best Resort in the Western US by Conde Nast Traveler. Walking past the front desk and into The Narrows Grill, we sit down at the bar ordering beers and some food.

Cajun Venison Dumplings are a must try

Cajun venison dumplings

Of course you can try the burger, but when on a journey, we look for things that we can’t have anywhere else. Immediately, the Cajun Venison dumplings peaked our interest. The dish came out in a large bowl filled with chunks of venison that you would see from a pot roast. The sauce and meat had spicy Cajun seasoning with no hint of game taste at all. The house made dumplings were dense yet creamy and matched perfectly with the large pieces of venison. It was a classic hearty dish perfect for a cold evening. If looking for a lighter fare, the Idaho blackened trout tacos are also insanely good.

With the snow continuing to fall it was time to head back to the hotel and rest up for tomorrow. A day on the slopes at Brundage Ski Resort awaits us.