#nats match making service

[natsnerd]

WANDANAT HEADCANONS

Wanda is a service top, if nat is edging you, being harsh and not letting you get that sweet release, wanda will whine, wanting to make you cum

Nat is the mean dom in the duo, letting wands be the “nice” dom just incase she goes too far and you need a safety escape and wands can be that for you 

Natasha is mistress

Wands is mommy, she gives mommy kink vibes,

 They are both dominant and we're tired of arguing over who goes for top which is why they brought you to the relationship, a cute little bratty sub who could satisfy their need to ruin their pretty girl 

They would spoil you, for example: cute outfits, matching colours, nat braiding your hair, amazing russian meals, if they see a toy, strap on, vibrator, paddle in your favourite colour? They buy it immediately 

Wanda's magic would flicker when your talking to other girls even if it's in a friendly interaction 

They will bend you over any surface, nat loves to have wands sitting on a surface, bending you over so you can eat mommy out whilst mistress fucks your cunt

[abellmunsonmovie]

Van Palmer Headcanons :)

has niche movie opinions but always has something to back it up, that makes it seem right

Her and Nat used to be really close, when Van moved to Wiskayok she didn’t know anyone but Nat was really nice to her and they bonded over their bad home lives - adding on to that in 6th grade Nat pierced Vans ears for her

Van and Tai became really close in middle school, and they always loved eachother and probably had crushes on eachother longer than they realized, but it really hit for Van when Tai took her to the fair and they had a sleep over and they watched Desert Hearts in 9th grade and half the time she was watching the movie, half the time she was watching Tai - who was very into the movie, and that’s when Van knew

Undiagnosed adhd

Her and tai have secret matching tattoos on their hips

She’s a foodie, more so because in the wilderness they didn’t get to eat hardly and when they did…well-

Had/has a crush on Jodie Foster and loves Hannibal

Adding onto that, she’s a big horror movie buff

Used to wanna be a movie director, and even did a short film, but she felt like it wouldn’t take off as well as she wanted so she opened the store instead (she would’ve been a great movie director)

Constant state of nostalgia

Ibuprofen queen (me too)

drinks a addictive amount of coffee, like it doesn’t even wake her up really anymore she’s so used to drinking coffee

will playfully smack your ass or squeeze your boobs (if ur okay with that ofc)

after her and tai broke up, she cut her hair super short like REALLY SHORT, think like a pixie or lauren Ambrose in can’t hardly wait

tried art school but hated all the people so only went for half a year

is a major theater kid and did a play in art school

LOVES KARAOKE, she didn’t have that mic for no reason

when drunk, is the giggliest person ever and she’s so touchy and clingy

her love language is touch, words of affirmation and acts of service, she’s chronically touch starved and always has a hand on your thigh or waist. and she loves getting help around the store or even as simple as you fixing a light bulb or doing the dishes

her favorite season is fall

NSFW UNDER HERE!!!

MUNCHHHHHH!!!!! she loves eating out her girl after a long day at the store

major switch, and I feel like when she’s a dom - she’s a soft dom. but when shes sub she is a WHIMPERING MESS

AGHHHH she’d be so needy but it’s so attractive

lovessssss giving and receiving love bites

I don’t think she’s into like slapping and stuff because I just think she’d feel immediately guilty

always makes sure she’s making you comfortable and asks before she does anything new

thank you anon for this request!

if you wanna be part of my taglist comment: 💋

[nataliasquote]

This is a snippet (edited) of Cowgirl Nat 🤠 pls tell me you love her as much as I do. That cocky cowgirl. Puts everyone in their place with a tilt of her hat and a shot from her gun 😏

-⧗-

Natasha pushed the wooden saloon doors open, the heels of her boots clicking against the tiled floor as she sauntered in. Her hat was dipped low over her face and she paused, surveying the room with a smirk before tipping it from her head, allowing her red waves to tumble around her shoulders. They were messy from hours of riding in the wind, but it suited her without fail.

Her green eyes darted across every familiar face, occasionally giving a slight smile if she felt that individual was worth her time. She held every single person in a trance, except the bartender who was all too familiar with her ways.

Natasha strolled up to the bar and leaned her forearms against the dark wood, crossing one leg over the other which accentuated the curve of her hips in her jeans. The brunette on a stool to her right choked on her beer and hid her spluttering mess behind her pitcher.

“My usual please, Barton,” Natasha husked with a wink to the bartender who pushed a bottle in her direction. As old friends, they went way back, and Clint was always delighted when she returned to pay him a visit. “Is this seat taken?”

The brunette, dressed in a plaid button down shirt, shook her head and scooted over, blinking in disbelief that she was being spoken to.

“Thanks darlin’.” If Y/n was stood up, she would have crumbled to the floor at those two words combined with Natasha’s southern drawl. She was new to the area, only stopping through to get her horse’s hooves checked over. But my goodness was she glad she picked this particular bar. She owed Clint Barton a massive favour.

Natasha slid onto the velvet-topped stool and sipped her drink, slender fingers tapping on the glass in her hand. She glanced at the woman to her right, taking her in with a simple flick up and down.

“I’ve not seen you before. You not from around here?” Natasha knew everyone who was anyone in this small town. It wasn’t hard to keep track, really, and visitors became fast spreading news.

“I’m only stopping by. Left my horse down at the stable at the end of town- gotta sort her hooves out.” Natasha nodded, knowing Bishop Stables was widely known for their services. “I’m guessing it’s obvious I’m a stranger?”

Natasha laughed around the rim of her bottle, green eyes sparkling in the dim light. “I know my people,” she replied, gesturing to the full tables behind them. “And I’d remember a face like yours, darling.” Y/n’s suddenly darted from Natasha’s face to the fringe on the waistcoat she wore. Never had she been such a mess in front of a stranger before, but this mysterious redhead was far more than just a regular stranger. She was captivating, and judging by the flirty glances she sent to several women scattered across the bar, she knew it.

“And does a gorgeous woman like you have a pretty name to match?” Natasha turned on her stool completely, resting a bare forearm on the bar in order to give Y/n her full attention.

“I’m Y/n. And you are..?”

“Natasha Romanoff, at your service.” The redhead quickly put her hat on and tipped it forwards, eliciting a laugh from the woman opposite. Clint eyed their interaction as he dried some glasses, grinning to himself at how effective Natasha’s charm truly was. She turned it on with the tip of her hat and a flash of her smile, making men and women alike stop dread in their tracks.

“Hey, Romanoff, give us a dance, will ya?” A leering voice echoed above the general hum of conversation and Y/n watched as Natasha rolled her eyes and adjusted her gun that sat in a holster on her hip.

“Give it up, Stark, you’re barking at a knot.” The man in question jeered at her and banged his beer bottle on the barrel table, several men around him doing the same.

But Natasha just stood up, squared her shoulders and fired her handgun in their direction, the bullet slamming into the wall mere inches above Stark’s head. She blew the smoke off her gun with a cocky smirk and shoved it back in the holster. The entire saloon fell silent, aside from Clint’s mutterings about yet another hole to fix thanks to his fiery friend.

Natasha waited a second longer, almost daring Stark and his guys to test her again. But they didn’t, now only watching her warily as she turned back to her new woman and held out her hand with a small flourish. Her other hand grabbed her hat from the bar and set it atop of her flaming hair.

“How about I show you around? And get you away from these coffee boilers before they start on you too.” Natasha nodded over to Stark’s table and Y/n shuddered, practically smelling their beer breaths from where she was sat.

“You’d do that? I haven’t had much of a chance to look around.” Y/n downed the rest of her drink and slid the pitcher back to Clint with a grateful smile.

Natasha helped Y/n down from her stool and rested her hand on her large belt buckle. “Well, lucky for you darlin’, you’ve got the best tour guide this town has to offer.” Y/n blushed and accepted Natasha’s arm, walking beside her as they stepped out into the blazing midday sun, leaving the darkness of the saloon behind them.

“Where do you want to start?” Y/n looked up and down the sandy street, eyeing the wooden and old stone buildings that faced her.

“You’re the guide, you tell me.” Was that just another reason to hear Natasha speak? Y/n would never admit the answer to that.

Natasha rubbed her hands together. “Perfect. My favourite place… the armoury. If you don’t walk out of there wanting a new pistol, then I really haven’t done my job right.” Natasha set off down the centre of the street, her boots crunching the gravel underfoot. Y/n just blindly followed, her hand resting casually on her gun in case anyone tried to challenge her. Small towns weren’t usually all that accommodating of foreigners, but she’d clearly done something right by befriending Natasha.

Everyone gave them a wide berth, gossiping and whispering to themselves as they passed. But Natasha was extremely well respected, so if she accepted a visitor, everyone else would too. The social hierarchy certainly placed her close to the top. And for Y/n? Well… she was just getting started.

[faireyhouses]

do you have any thoughts/hcs about how the yellowjackets who became disabled in the wilderness get on post rescue? like how they support each other, or spend flare days when regressed together? or just the solidarity in general?

Oh heck yeah! It's au rambling/infodumping time again!!

requested by @wiserteriaoverbarefeet, part of my au

no pictures here bc im too tired to go looking for ones that match <3

— Jackie & Nat are particularly close, due to Nat bringing Jackie inside from the cold, them both suffering hearing loss and Nat taking on a cg role for Jackie alongside Tai

— Van & Laura Lee end up bonding due to spending the most time in the hospital directly post-rescue (Van bc of her wolf related injuries & Laura Lee bc of her leg/back injuries due to her flight), Laura Lee's positive outlook helps Van get through some hard patches

— When Laura Lee first gets her service dog (Leonard II), Van is quite skittish, which she hates 𓈒 she hates being scared despite knowing Leo is there to help Laura Lee, but Laura Lee fully understands and doesn't push/slowly introduces them to one another over time

— Jackie & Laura Lee had already bonded a good amount in the wilderness, and post-rescue Jackie will often seek her out for comfort 𓈒 Laura Lee's softness especially helps Jackie on flare up days when she just needs a calm presence

— Van & Nat were already close pre-crash, and they often find themselves together when they feel like only each other will understand certain things (ex. stuff related to their home lives) 𓈒 they often find themselves sitting in comfortable silences for long periods, with the knowledge that the other is there being enough to keep them both there

— on flare up days Jackie usually ends up bedridden, she doesn't like much company on these days (except for a cg or the occasional visits from calmer littles) and prefers to entertain herself quietly 𓈒 similarly on some days Laura Lee prefers to be left alone in her room to color or play away from the louder kiddos, making sure to regularly check in with cgs to let them know she's alright

— "You wouldn't understand, only [name] understands!" is a regular saying, because sometimes only one of the other injured yellowjackets could possibly understand certain pains and aches

[cherry-pop-elf]

Lionsquirrel Headcanons

Because this is a amazing OTP and I can’t comprehend why more people don’t ship it.

Also I need to convert more people because I can only make so much content with my disabled ass

He 10000% was the one to build her Treehouse Headquarters in Central Park

The T4T energy between them is off the charts man

Despite her being vegetarian and him eating a meat heavy diet it’s not as stressful of a deal in the kitchen as you would think. Sergei is a master hunter, and world traveler. It’s not like he doesn’t know how to make recipes with OUT meat products. Nothing like using separated kitchenware and cooking the fruits and veggies first before the meat can’t fix.

Speaking of food he makes her homemade nut butter. Fresh nuts from morning walks.

Since he’s so old, and had been married before, he knows the song and dance well. What does that mean? He actually gets a chance to enjoy this relationship compared to having it more of a business contract between powerful families.

He still has issues with his masculinity but whenever he and she are private together he is the biggest sappy kitty around. Purring and nuzzling her. His cat instincts able to be proudly displayed with no worries

The snuggles they have are top tier. They are constantly cuddling each other.

Doreen is normally the big spoon/the one being held due to her tail.

All four of his kids really like Doreen. Like genuinely. Think she is the healthiest thing their dad has had….Ever.

Since taking the more heroic role of Kraven The Hunter Of Hunters it’s put alot of his normal activities in the dumpster. Nearly took on a house husband role with Doreen going out and about. He finds it healing and comforting to do rather human things. Especially have time to spend with his kids. Who knew not hunting Spider-Man could be therapeutic?

Oh Doreen is pampered so hard. She is given hand made furs for her uniform and when the winter comes. Shes vegetarian, yes, but she knows furs from Sergei are done far more humane and ethnically than grabbing pleather from a store chain. She respects nature and he respects nature.

So many picnics oh my God

And him dragging her into the world traveling life. Give me Squirrel Girl over in Russia with Sergei dammit. Fur coats and all.

Doreen’s favorite feature on Sergei is his eyes. Sergei’s favorite feature about Doreen is her smile.

For an embarrassingly long time Sergei thought that whenever Doreen talked about ‘Python’ it was about a ACTUAL Python. She’s never let him live it down.

She got Sergei invested into video games with her. They especially love playing together on games like shooters, hehehe meta, and teamwork heavy gameplays. Stardew was one of the few games Sergei ever 100% on. Doreen helped, and it’s a cherished memory between them.

Matching jewelry. Doreen has one of his lion tooth’s on a necklace, and Sergei is sporting acorn charms.

She is constantly stealing his shirts, and since he’s a proud ass nudist it works out

Morning runs together constantly

Having an extra set of hands for her tail has made life so much easier. He also takes great joy in it. Acts of service is his love language, and what better than combing and helping her wash her tail?

She makes chirp noises like a squirrel and it makes him melt

In turn his purrs make her turn into a puddle all the same

PDA addicts. In private he’s alot more soft, but infront of others he is territorial as all hell. He’s holding her and growling at anyone who’s coming too close. She finds it adorable. Others find it terrifying.

Since he’s so old and done so much traveling he knows French. Since she’s Canadian she also knows French. The dialects are different but it’s nice to have their ‘own language’ to share.

She’s secretly been trying to learn Russian in private, to surprise Sergei, thanks to Nat, Bucky, and Illyana. Bucky and Nat really helped since they know older slang on top of it all.

Nose nuzzling kisses. Need I say more?

Took ages for tippy toe to warm up to him, but she can’t deny that he’s really nice to climb and nuzzle on. Not everyone is comfy with a squirrel running around on you. He welcomes it, and doesn’t even mind when she’s in his hair.

One of their favorite things to do, besides co op games, is just existing together. Even if it’s doing their own things. It won’t be a suprise to enter their home to see Sergei’s head in her stomach as she plays some video game. Either napping or happily listening to her talk out loud about the game itself. Doesn’t matter if he has no idea what any of the words mean. Existing is nice.

It’s also nice to have someone be there for his chronic depression and spiral spells. Sometimes you just need to exist and survive the moment. She’s always there to keep him grounded.

You’ll always see her pampering him in affection through words, and he is always pampering her in affection through actions.

When the day comes for proposing it’ll be Doreen who does it first.

[earthmixsclowderofcats]

I think in latest times we got perfect Max Nunew Zee (I don’t remember the event but Nhu was wearing pearly(?) white suit) https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNeTqWJJ4/ https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNeTqo9GF/ I’m in poly heaven

ahhhh, that was exactly the moment i was thinking about when i said zee was possessive and that probably why max keeps his distance. (aside from being kept busy with his own baby.)

i love how zee's boots match nunuew's outfit. but i see him giving max the up and down. that sideways glance at zee to make sure he was looking.

and then zee gets too close and now it's nunuew's turn to get jealous.

oh no. how ever will this problem be solved?

sidenote: i know that it's like, a bit that they're doing. and its very charming anyways that they're all so comfortable with each other. but that hint of jealousy seems real.

nunew gives me brat energy but not as much as yim. i feel like if he were to be wild with any of his coworkers to get zee's attention yim would be the first to offer his services. because i also feel like poor tutor, is 100% into his man being a flirty little minx. (as long as he remembers who he comes home to so to speak)

i am here for max and nununew teaming up against zee though. that man would not stand a chance.

nat has brat energy too, but not to the diva degree nunew has it, or the chaotic gremlin energy yim has. more like he gets cranky and fussy when he's not being paid attention to. and max always gives in so we dont see it often.

the cutie pie polycule agenda gains traction!

[dweemeister]

On Borrowed Time (1939)

As time marches on, certain names that were once synonymous with American drama lose their weight, even among film buffs. In the early twentieth century, the Barrymore siblings – Ethel, John, and Lionel – were celebrated on both Broadway and in Hollywood, each one making a successful transition from the silent era to synchronized sound. The eldest, Lionel, was born in 1878 and was a Hollywood elder statesman when he made 1939’s On Borrowed Time. Directed by Harold S. Bucquet and based on a 1938 play of the same name by Paul Osborn (itself based on a 1937 Lawrence Edward Watkin novel of the same name), On Borrowed Time is a star vehicle for the eldest Barrymore. By the late 1930s, Barrymore had broken his hip twice – never healing properly. As such, he remained wheelchair-bound for the remainder of his life. Physical disablement, even in modern Hollywood, often curtails acting careers. But Barrymore’s home studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), often had their screenwriters find ways to incorporate Barrymore’s disability.

Lionel Barrymore was also in physical pain and depended on cocaine injections to work and sleep. However, this never affected his acting, as he delivers a wonderful lead performance in On Borrowed Time. Those less knowledgeable about this period in Hollywood history will probably only recognize his surname and the acting family he came from. Nowadays, most cinephiles probably only know of Lionel Barrymore through It’s a Wonderful Life (1946; Barrymore played the villainous Mr. Potter). Lionel Barrymore's role as the somewhat foul-mouthed but caring grandfather here offers something completely different.

Mr. Brink (Cedric Hardwicke) is hitchhiking somewhere near a small town in contemporary America. But he is not interested in riding with just anyone:

MAN IN CONVERTIBLE: May I give you a lift, sir? MR. BRINK: Thank you, no. I have an appointment – a lady and gentleman. MAN IN CONVERTIBLE: Oh, I’m sorry. [coughs] I thought you signaled me. MR. BRINK: No. Not yet...

As you may have guessed, Mr. Brink is a personification of death. A few minutes later, he flags down that lady and gentleman and takes their lives in a car accident. That couple are the parents of John “Pud” Northrup (Bobs Watson; best known as Pee Wee in 1938’s Boys Town), who will now live solely under the care of Gramps and Granny (Barrymore and Beulah Bondi) and their housemaid Marcia (Una Merkel). At the memorial service for Pud’s parents, Gramps donates a substantial sum to the church. After learning of Gramps’ generosity, Pud exclaims that his grandfather doing such a good deed should allow him a wish. Gramps’ wish: as a deterrence local children stealing his apples, he wishes that anyone who climbs up his apple tree will be stuck there until he permits them down. Some time later, Mr. Brink arrives at Northrup grandparent homestead for an appointment with Gramps. Gramps tricks Mr. Brink up the apple tree, trapping him there – setting off a series of developments that put Gramps in a moral bind.

In a cast already headlined by character actors, how about some more? On Borrowed Time also features Henry Travers (the guardian angel Clarence in It’s a Wonderful Life) and Nat Pendleton as neighbors, Grant Mitchell as Gramps’ lawyer, James Burke as the sheriff, Charles Waldron as the reverend, and an uncredited Hans Conried (Captain Hook and Mr. Darling in 1953’s Peter Pan) as the man in the convertible.

Elsewhere, away from the camera, one can’t find much of composer Franz Waxman’s (1935’s Bride of Frankenstein, 1951’s A Place in the Sun) string-dominated score anywhere, but this is one of Waxman’s finest scores of his early career.

The opening half-hour of On Borrowed Time are its weakest. Hardwicke’s Mr. Brink has an eerily charismatic first impression that the scenes immediately following it cannot hope to match. Instead of learning more about the nature of Mr. Brink, the film instead shows us some of Pud’s misadventures and his relationship with his grandparents. Strangely, the loss of his parents seems to have had little effect on Pud at all, although his sadness seems to emerge in his contentious relationships with the other local boys and Aunt Demetria (Eily Malyon). Aunt Demetria, shortly after the Northrup parents’ deaths, hatches a scheme to assume guardianship of Pud and attain access to his considerable inheritance. Her designs are so obvious to all that when Gramps and Pud start calling her a “pismire” (literally, a pissing ant), Granny looks the other way when she might otherwise correct their boorish behavior. All of this takes longer to develop than it should (it does not help that Bobs Watson’s performance as Pud feels disjointed, but more on that shortly), even if the opening act primarily serves to show us how close Pud is to his grandparents. Even though we sense where the dramatic stakes are headed, On Borrowed Time almost seems to splinter into another film before we see Mr. Brink again.

In addition, contemporary reviews of On Borrowed Time lambasted screenwriters Alice D.G. Miller (1929’s The Bridge of San Luis Rey) and Frank O’Neill (no other film credits) for sanitizing the language from the original stage play due to the demands of the Hays Code (the self-censorship code that applied to major Hollywood studios from 1934-1968, repealed in favor of the current MPA ratings system). For the record, the text of the stage play was not freely available as I was writing this piece, so I have no means of comparison. Paul Osborn’s On Borrowed Time has only appeared on Broadway thrice: the 1938 original production and short-lived revivals in 1953 and 1991. The play had also been adapted for radio and television.

Compared to those film reviewers during the film’s 1939 release and many modern writers, I tend to be more forgiving if the Hays Code-enforced changes to a film do not significantly alter the spirit of the text. Sure, it would be funnier to hear disparaging language stronger than “pismire” in a 1939 film, but Pud’s and Gramps’ feelings towards Aunt Demetria, the apple-stealing boys, and Mr. Brink are comprehensible in this movie.

The closing two acts of On Borrowed Time draw its strengths from the performances and the narrative’s adoption of fairy tale logic (any film beginning with death flagging down folks he has an “appointment” with is almost always operating under the terms of the fantasy genre). In tandem, Lionel Barrymore and Bobs Watson’s good-humored and loving rapport lift the film above its structural flaws. Barrymore’s Gramps – an American Civil War and Spanish-American War veteran* – is a classic small town curmudgeon, only allowing his bitter exterior to crumble when Granny and Pud are around. Looking to protect Pud from Aunt Demetria, Gramps remains defiant towards the wills of Mr. Brink and the insistent neighbors. Perhaps it is not the greatest Lionel Barrymore performance, but he is always effective.

Bobs Watson, as Pud, is inconsistent anytime he does not share the scene with Barrymore. The explanation for his performance comes from Watson himself: “My dad was the one that really directed me, and I think some of the directors resented it a little bit… I trusted my dad implicitly, so I read the dialogue the way he told me.” His father’s influence results in occasionally overcooked line readings against director Harold S. Bucquet’s vision (MGM’s Dr. Kildare series, 1943’s The Adventures of Tartu), more theatrical than what the scene calls for. But when the scene calls for crying, by golly can Watson (who had a reputation for crying on cue) deliver. And his scenes with Barrymore are beautifully acted, convincingly showing the audience the love between grandson and grandfather.

Sir Cedric Hardwicke, a noted Shakespearean actor, cuts no corners as Mr. Brink. Mr. Brink is aware that, in time, he will keep all his appointments. Hardwicke plays Brink as slightly menacing, always dignified (no one expects that perfect an English accent in rural America), and somewhat aloof to what he probably thinks are childish trivialities and life’s mundane moments. He is the antagonist, but in no way is he the villain of this movie. That belongs to Eily Malyon as Aunt Demetria, a character some compare to Margaret Hamilton’s Mrs. Gulch/Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz (1939; released a little more than a month after On Borrowed Time) due to her temperament and unbending nature. One wishes the film made more use of the always-underappreciated Beulah Bondi as Granny (Bondi very often played elderly mothers and grandmothers, almost always appearing much older than she actually was), too.

Death and loss are two themes currently popular in modern cinema (see: a vast bulk of Pixar’s filmography, 2016’s Manchester by the Sea, 2019’s The Farewell, and a large selection of pieces from any film festival worldwide), but in the early decades of talkies in Hollywood, you would be hard-pressed to find films in which those themes were truly central, not secondary, to the narrative. And when those themes do appear, they appear in the context of fantasy films, like Death Takes a Holiday (1934) and On Borrowed Time. Anecdotally, I suspect the scarcity of major Hollywood movies revolving around death and loss is partly due to the realities of the 1930s and 1940s. Audiences, concerned with a worldwide Great Depression and soon a Second World War, did not seek films ruminating about death and loss and sought escapist fare instead. There was enough despair to go around.

The film that emerges on the back of these performances is thanks to its ability not to concentrate on the fantastical situation the Gramps and Pud find themselves in, but to raise the moral questions that Mr. Brink’s presence – and eventual entrapment – poses. Mr. Brink’s time in the tree results in consequences that Gramps and Pud could not imagine. Gramps’ decision to delay his death for the love of his grandson is concurrently noble and selfish. It is noble in respect to wanting the best for Pud, so that he may live life away from his aunt’s icy attitude and pernicious designs regarding her nephew’s inheritance. But it is selfish in that, as Gramps learns, that Brink’s inability to make any appointments unless he comes down from the apple tree means that almost no living being can die (for spoiler reasons, I am not listing the exceptions here) – even the ones in physical pain. How is Gramps supposed to navigate this situation, in addition to the communal and legal pressures from his neighbors and the police?

A resolution comes abruptly, in a way that devastates Gramps (but would probably make the Brothers Grimm nod in appreciation). On Borrowed Time’s bittersweet ending is deserved, and – as long as the viewer accepts the film’s fantastical premise and rules – will play quite differently for audiences of different ages.

Lionel Barrymore had two daughters with Doris Rankin, his first wife. Barrymore and Rankin lost both daughters in their infancies; neither ever truly recovered from their losses. One wonders what Barrymore thought while making On Borrowed Time, a film that argues for one coming to terms with death, however unfair or untimely its arrival. For a 1939 release (a legendarily glorious year for American cinema), positioning such ideas as the film’s narrative keystone ensures On Borrowed Time a unique spot in the early years of Hollywood’s Golden Age.

My rating: 8/10

^ Based on my personal imdb rating. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found in the “Ratings system” page on my blog. Half-points are always rounded down.

* Gramps describes himself as having fought for the Union. This might make Gramps close to ninety years old, give or take, if we are to believe the film’s self-professed setting!

For more of my reviews tagged “My Movie Odyssey”, check out the tag of the same name on my blog.

NOTE: This is the 800th full-length Movie Odyssey review I have published on tumblr.

[motionvillee]

10 Types of Video Content That Attract the Most Viewers

Not all videos are created equal. If you’re looking to engage customers, partners, or investors, understanding the 10 types of video content that consistently attract viewers is a strong place to start. Each format has a distinct purpose, audience fit, and performance pattern, and using the wrong one can mean missed opportunities.

Different video types appeal to different stages of the buyer journey. For example:

A short product demo helps a potential client understand your offer in seconds.

A detailed explainer video can clarify complex services and speed up decision-making.

Customer testimonials build trust before a sales call even happens.

You don’t need to invest in every format. The key is to know what works best for your message and audience. Think of video as a toolbox, not a single solution. A CEO explaining company vision, a SaaS founder introducing a new feature, or a healthcare company educating users, each benefits from a different video strategy.

Real value comes from matching your video type to your communication goal. That’s what this blog is here to help you do.

1. Explainer Videos: Clear, Simple, and Direct

Explainer videos are perfect for breaking down complex concepts. When you need to communicate a service, product, or idea quickly and simply, these videos are a great choice. In fact, explainer videos have been shown to boost conversion rates by up to 20%, a statistic that highlights their effectiveness in helping viewers grasp new ideas without confusion.

For brands aiming to clarify their message and strengthen identity, explainer video production offers a compelling way to connect with audiences through clear storytelling and focused visuals.

For example, a SaaS company launching a new feature can use an explainer video to show how it works in just a few minutes, making it easier for users to understand its value quickly.

Why they work:

Ideal for complex topics.

Short, engaging, and easy to understand.

Boosts conversions by simplifying difficult content.

2. Customer Testimonials: Building Trust

Testimonials are a powerful form of social proof. When real customers speak about their positive experiences, it strengthens your credibility and influences others to take action. Testimonials typically outperform product demos in terms of trust, as potential customers find real feedback more reliable than marketing materials.

A great example is how large e-commerce platforms like Shopify showcase success stories from real entrepreneurs. These videos resonate with viewers because they highlight authentic experiences with tangible results.

Why they work:

Real voices make content more trustworthy.

Builds emotional connections by sharing genuine experiences.

Helps drive conversions through peer validation.

3. Product Demos: Showcasing Your Offer

Product demo videos are excellent for introducing new products or services to potential customers. These videos walk viewers through the features and benefits, showing them how the product works in a real-world setting. They are especially useful for SaaS products or tech startups, where the value proposition needs clear illustration.

Effective product demo video production can highlight real-world applications, making even complex tools feel intuitive and user-friendly, especially for digital platforms or B2B software solutions.

Why they work:

Offers a hands-on experience of the product.

Clarifies benefits and use cases.

Drives purchasing decisions through visual examples.

4. Educational Videos: Positioning Your Brand as a Knowledge Leader

Educational content offers value beyond just selling. These videos aim to teach something new, such as tips, how-tos, or deep dives into specific topics. By providing educational value, your brand can build authority in your industry and keep your audience coming back for more. For example, video tutorials that show how to use specific software or how to solve common problems will naturally draw in those looking for answers.

Training and development video production is a great way to elevate your internal learning programs or external client education efforts, helping your audience or employees gain key skills and knowledge.

Why they work:

Positions your brand as an authority.

Provides real value to your audience.

Keeps viewers engaged and encourages brand loyalty.

5. Brand Videos: Showcasing Your Brand’s Personality

Brand videos offer an opportunity to showcase your company’s mission, values, and overall personality. They can be used as part of an introductory campaign or as an ongoing way to strengthen your brand identity. Think of brand videos as a window into your company’s world, showing how you want the audience to perceive you.

Why they work:

Highlights your company’s values and mission.

Builds an emotional connection with viewers.

Boosts brand awareness and recognition.

6. Behind-the-Scenes Videos: Humanizing Your Brand

Behind-the-scenes videos offer a peek into your company’s inner workings. Whether it’s a sneak peek at your office culture, a look at how products are made, or a glimpse into an important company event, these videos build a connection with your audience. They help humanize your brand, making it more relatable and trustworthy.

A prime example would be how fashion brands like Nike show their design and production processes, giving their audience a sense of ownership and authenticity in the brand.

Why they work:

Provides transparency and authenticity.

Connects with your audience on a personal level.

Builds trust by showing the people behind the brand.

7. Event Videos: Capturing Key Moments

Event videos are another great way to engage your audience. Whether it’s a conference, product launch, or corporate event, event videos provide an inside look at significant moments in your company’s journey. These videos can capture key speeches, interviews, and behind-the-scenes action, turning real-time events into valuable, shareable content.

A great example is the annual Apple Keynote event videos, where they not only showcase new products but also provide exciting, shareable moments that draw massive global attention.

Why they work:

Captures high-energy moments.

Provides an engaging summary of events.

Creates shareable content that extends the reach of the event.

8. Tutorial Videos: Teaching Step-by-Step Usage

Tutorial videos walk your audience through how to use a product, tool, or service effectively. These are especially useful for SaaS companies, platforms with multiple features, or any solution that requires onboarding. Unlike explainer videos, which focus on the what and why, tutorials focus on the how.

For example, Adobe frequently publishes step-by-step video tutorials on YouTube to help users navigate their Creative Cloud tools. These videos are clear, actionable, and directly address user challenges.��How to video production services can help streamline this process, ensuring that your tutorial content is clear, engaging, and easy to follow, allowing users to quickly get the most out of your product.

Why they work:

They reduce support queries by preemptively answering common user questions.

Viewers stay engaged longer, especially if the content solves a pressing problem.

They help build authority by showing that your team understands the product inside out.

When positioned correctly, tutorial content can also support your SEO by ranking for “how-to” and “setup” related queries.

9. Company Culture Videos: Highlighting Your Work Environment and People

Company culture videos give your audience a peek behind the curtain. These videos highlight your values, team dynamics, work environment, and internal rituals. While they may seem informal, they’re highly effective in B2B environments where relationships and brand alignment matter.

Take HubSpot, for instance. Their culture-focused videos show how they foster collaboration and personal growth across global teams. This builds trust with potential clients and attracts top-tier talent.

Why they work:

Humanizes your brand and builds emotional rapport.

Attracts talent that aligns with your values.

Strengthens client relationships by showcasing transparency and team spirit.

10. Social Media Videos: Short, Sweet, and Shareable

Social media videos are a must-have for brands looking to engage with their audience on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. These videos are typically short, snackable, and designed for high engagement. They are an excellent way to share bite-sized content that encourages likes, shares, and comments. Since social media users have short attention spans, these videos need to grab attention quickly and convey value instantly.

With the rise in demand for social media video production, brands now focus on creating platform-specific videos that are not only visually appealing but also optimized for engagement and shareability.

An example of social media videos done well is how brands like Starbucks use short, engaging videos to showcase new products, behind-the-scenes content, and customer stories, all designed to be shareable.

Why they work:

Short, engaging content tailored for social platforms.

Easy to consume and share.

Drives high levels of interaction and engagement.

Conclusion

Incorporating the 10 types of video content that attract the most viewers into your content strategy can significantly boost your brand’s visibility and engagement. Each video type has its own purpose and audience, allowing you to cater your message in a way that resonates best with your target viewers.

Whether you’re looking to build brand awareness, educate your audience, or boost conversions, there’s a video type that fits your needs. The key is to choose wisely and integrate these formats strategically into your marketing plan.

If you’re ready to take your content to the next level, explore the potential of explainer videos or case studies. At Motionvillee, we specialize in creating high-quality B2B animated explainer videos that make your message clear, engaging, and unforgettable.

[suhana21]

The Perfect Playlist for Your Dream Wedding: Investing in a Quality Wedding DJ

The wedding day marks a fresh chapter in one's life. It is the event when the whole family comes together to bless and celebrate. So couples plan their dream wedding and want every element flawless, right down to the music. As music plays a vital part in making such an event truly memorable, couples living in Northern Virginia hire the best audio and video service for weddings in Northern Virginia, who can curate the perfect playlist that matches the mood and tone of your wedding. They have a knack for entertaining the guests keep the party going. Considering the top DJ services in Northern Virginia for weddings is definitely a profitable investment, as they can play music that communicates the actual emotions of the couple.

Personalizing Your Playlist 

Imagine the bride walking down the aisle amidst the backdrop music of 'A Thousand Years' by Christina Perri or the joyful song of 'You Make My Dreams' by Hall & Oates during the post-nuptial making the ambiance more upbeat, and the guests hitting the dance floor during the cocktail hours and dancing to the light and catchy tune of 'L-O-V-E' by Nat King Cole or 'Cheek to Cheek' by Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong. Professional DJs identify the musical preference of the couple and ensure their wedding day resonates with the perfect soundtrack. For this, they set up a meeting to create a list of ‘must-play’ songs that reflect the personality and love story of the couple. They curate your wedding playlist for every moment of the wedding making the event more meaningful and memorable! Balancing Genres to Please All Guests

Weddings are attended by family members and friends who belong to different generations. Professional DJ sound service providers in Northern Virginia, know the art of balancing music of different eras that keeps the guest engaged and entertained. They may play some of the handpicked Motown classic hits for the older guests while they play the latest pop anthems for the younger crowd.

Timing Your Playlist for Key Moments

Right from the entry of the bride to the aisle, the first dance, the cake-cutting ceremony, to the cocktail hour, a professional DJ ensures that the right music is played during the entire wedding event. This keeps the flow of the event going.

Collaborating with Your DJ or Band

It is necessary to communicate with the DJs to create the perfect wedding playlist. Once the couple mentions their choice of music, it becomes easier for the DJs to prepare the ideal wedding playlist that can make the wedding unforgettable. Incorporating Guest Requests Thoughtfully

Be it pop, rock, hip-hop, or country, professional DJs can balance guest requests with your planned playlist while keeping the dance floor full and lively. Selecting the Perfect Exit Song

A professional DJ will select the perfect wedding exit song that captures the essence of the couple’s love story and represents the myriad emotions and promises that a wedding conveys.

Preparing a Backup Plan

An experienced DJ knows that not all weddings go as planned. Therefore, they are well prepared with a foolproof backup plan. Be it a technical issue, a last-minute change in the playlist, or a special announcement to be made during the wedding, a professional DJ knows how to handle such situations. Summing Up

A perfect wedding playlist can make a world of difference as a married couple starts their momentous journey together. StratAV Sound & Video Services is one of the top DJ sound service providers in Northern Virginia, curating the perfect compilation of tunes that capture the spirit of your special day.

[govindhtech]

GKE Cluster networking issues and troubleshooting

Typical GKE networking issues and their solutions

The Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) provides a strong and expandable method for managing applications that are containerised. Nevertheless, networking complexity can provide difficulties and cause connectivity problems, just as in any distributed system. This blog post explores typical GKE networking issues and offers detailed troubleshooting methods to resolve them.

The following are some typical GKE connectivity problems google cloud encounter:

Problems with GKE Cluster control plane connectivity

Perhaps because of network problems, pods or nodes in a GKE cluster are unable to reach the control plane endpoint.

GKE internal communications

Within the same VPC, pods cannot reach other pods or services: In a GKE cluster, every pod is assigned a distinct IP address. The functionality of the application may be impacted by a disruption in connectivity between pods within the cluster.

Pods cannot be reached by nodes, or vice versa: A GKE cluster can contain numerous nodes to divide the workload of applications for scalability and dependability. A single node can host multiple pods. Nodes may not be able to communicate with the pods they host due to network problems.

Issues with external communication

Pods are unable to access online services: Issues with internet connectivity may make it impossible for pods to use databases, external APIs, or other resources.

Pods cannot be reached by outside services: It’s possible that services made available by GKE load balancers are unavailable from outside the cluster.

Interaction outside of Cluster VPCs

Resources in other VPCs are inaccessible to pods: When pods need to communicate with services in a different VPC (either within the same project or through VPC peering), connectivity problems could occur.

Pods are unable to access on-site resources: When GKE clusters must interact with systems in the data centre of your business, issues may arise (for example connecting over VPN or Hybrid Connectivity).

Steps for troubleshooting

Should you experience a connectivity problem in your Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) environment, there are particular actions you may take to resolve the issue. Kindly consult the troubleshooting tree provided below for a thorough rundown of the suggested troubleshooting procedure.

Step 1: Check for connectivity

A diagnostic tool called connectivity tests allows you to verify that network endpoints are connected to one another. In addition to examining your configuration, it occasionally carries out real-time dataplane analysis between the endpoints. It will assist in confirming whether the network path is accurate and whether any firewall rules or routes are preventing connectivity.

Step 2: Identify the problem

Make sure your GKE cluster and GCE VM are on the same subnet. Check if this virtual machine can connect to the external endpoint.

If you can connect from the virtual machine, your GKE settings is probably the problem. If not, concentrate on networking VPCs.

Step 3: Examine and correct your GKE setup

Examine the connection using a GKE node. Look into the following areas if it functions from the node but not from a pod:

IP Scamming: Verify that it is operational, enabled, and that the ip-masq-agent configmap matches the configuration of your network. The endpoint destination should permit traffic from the pod ip range since communication to the destinations specified in “nonMasqueradeCIDRs” in the configmap yaml is transmitted with source as pod ip address rather than node ip address. Traffic to all default non-masquerade destinations is routed via pod ip address if there is only an ip-masq-agent daemon operating and no configmap for ip-masq-agent. Egress NAT policies will be used to setup this for Autopilot clusters.

Network Guidelines: Check the rules of entry and exit for any possible obstructions. If you’re using Dataplane V2, turn on logging.

IPtables: The rules of working and non-working nodes should be compared. You might run “sudo iptables-save” on the specific output node to use it.

Mesh of services: Consider trying with istio-proxy injection disabled for a test pod in the namespace if you are using Cloud Service Mesh or Istio in your environment to see if the problem persists. If sidecar injection is off and connectivity still functions, the service mesh setup is probably the problem.

Note: Certain procedures, which are only applicable to Standard Clusters, such as verifying IP tables or testing connections from the GKE node, will not function with GKE Autopilot Clusters.

Step 4: Identify problems unique to a node

If a certain node’s connectivity is lost:

Compare the setups: Make sure the working nodes match.

Verify the use of resources: Check for problems with the CPU, RAM, or cache table.

Gather the sosreport from a faulty node. This might facilitate RCA generation.

If the problem was limited to GKE nodes, you may apply the logging filter that is described below. To find any prevalent errors, narrow the search down to a certain timestamp. Troubleshooting can be aided by the presence of logs such as connection timeout, OOM kill (oom_watcher), Kubelet is unhealthy, NetworkPluginNotReady, and so on. You can look up additional comparable queries by using GKE Node-level queries.

Step 5: Take care of correspondence with outside parties

Make sure  Cloud NAT is turned on for both pod and node CIDRs if you’re having issues with external connectivity with a private GKE cluster.

Step 6: Resolve connectivity problems with the control plane

Depending on the type of GKE cluster (Private, Public, or PSC based cluster), connectivity from nodes to the GKE cluster control plane (GKE master endpoint) varies.

When it comes to troubleshooting common connectivity issues, including executing connectivity tests to the GKE cluster private or public control plane endpoint, most of the processes for confirming control plane connectivity are identical to those described above.

Apart from the aforementioned, confirm that the source is permitted in the control plane authorised networks and that, in the event that the source is located outside of the GKE cluster’s region, global access to the control plane of the cluster is enabled.

Make that the cluster is formed with –enable-private-endpoint if routing traffic from outside GKE has to reach the control plane on its private endpoint alone. This attribute shows that the control plane API endpoint’s private IP address is used to govern the cluster. Please be aware that regardless of the public endpoint option, pods or nodes within the same cluster will always attempt to connect to the GKE master via its private endpoint only.

Pods of cluster B will always attempt to connect to the public endpoint of cluster A when accessing the control plane of a GKE cluster A with its public endpoint enabled from another private GKE cluster B (such as  Cloud Composer). Therefore, they must ensure that the private cluster B has  Cloud NAT enabled for outside access and that Cloud NAT IP ranges are whitelisted in control plane authorised networks on cluster A.

In summary

The preceding procedures cover typical connectivity problems and offer a basic framework for troubleshooting. In case the issue is intricate or sporadic, a more thorough examination is necessary. For a thorough root cause study, this entails gathering packet captures on the impacted node (applicable only to standard cluster) or pod (applicable to both autopilot and standard cluster) at the moment of the problem. Kindly contact  Cloud Support if you need any additional help with these problems.

Read more on Govindhtech.com

[akrnd085]

Comprehensive Guide to Linux Firewalls: iptables, nftables, ufw, and firewalld

In the dynamic landscape of network security, firewalls play a pivotal role in fortifying systems against potential threats. Within the Linux ecosystem, where robust security measures are paramount, understanding and navigating tools like iptables vs ufw ,nftables and firewalld becomes crucial. This comprehensive guide aims to delve into the intricacies of each tool, shedding light on their core concepts, functionalities, and use cases.

iptables: Understanding the Core Concepts Overview of iptables: Iptables stands as a cornerstone tool for controlling firewalls on Linux systems. Operating directly with the Linux kernel for packet filtering, iptables provides a versatile but verbose interface.

Organizational Structure: The organizational structure of iptables involves tables, chains, rules, and targets. Three primary tables — filter, nat, and mangle — categorize rules. The filter table manages incoming and outgoing packets, nat facilitates Network Address Translation (NAT), and mangle is employed for advanced packet alteration.

Default Policies and Rule Creation: By default, iptables adds rules to the filter table, with default policies for INPUT, OUTPUT, and FORWARD chains set to ACCEPT. Security best practices recommend setting at least FORWARD and INPUT policies to DROP. Loopback interface access is usually allowed, and established or related connections are accepted.

Example Rules for Common Protocols: Allowing HTTP and HTTPS traffic: sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp — dport 80 -j ACCEPT sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp — dport 443 -j ACCEPT Allowing SSH traffic for remote access: sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp — dport 22 -j ACCEPT Common iptables Options: Iptables provides various options for rule management, including -A or –append, -I or –insert, -D or –delete, -P or –policy, -j or –jump, -s or –source, -d or –destination, -p or –protocol, -i or –in-interface, -o or –out-interface, –sport or –source-port, –dport or –destination-port, and -m or –match.

Advanced Features in iptables: Iptables offers advanced features such as NAT, interface bonding, TCP multipath, and more, making it a versatile tool for complex network configurations.

nftables: The Next Generation Firewall Overview of nftables: Nftables emerges as a user-friendly alternative to iptables, offering a more logical and streamlined structure. While positioned as a replacement for iptables, both tools coexist in modern systems.

Organizational Structure in nftables: Nftables adopts a logical structure comprising tables, chains, rules, and verdicts. It simplifies rule organization with various table types, including ip, arp, ip6, bridge, inet, and netdev.

Setting Default Policies and Example Rules: sudo nft add rule ip filter input drop sudo nft add rule ip filter forward drop sudo nft add rule ip filter input iifname “lo” accept sudo nft add rule ip filter input ct state established,related accept sudo nft add rule ip filter input tcp dport {80, 443} accept sudo nft add rule ip filter input tcp dport 22 accept Common nftables Options: Nftables options include add, insert, delete, chain, ip saddr, ip daddr, ip protocol, iifname, oifname, tcp sport, tcp dport, and ct state.

nftables vs iptables: While nftables provides a more streamlined approach, both tools coexist, allowing users to choose based on preferences and familiarity.

ufw: Simplifying Firewall Management Overview of ufw: Uncomplicated Firewall (ufw) serves as a frontend for iptables, offering a simplified interface for managing firewall configurations. It is designed to be user-friendly and automatically sets up iptables rules based on specified configurations.Ufw not only simplifies iptables but also integrates well with applications and services. Its simplicity makes it an ideal choice for those who want a quick setup without delving into intricate firewall configurations. Moreover, ufw supports application profiles, allowing users to define rules specific to applications.

Enabling ufw and Example Rules: sudo ufw enable sudo ufw allow 80/tcp sudo ufw allow 443/tcp sudo ufw allow 80,443/tcp Checking ufw Status: sudo ufw status firewalld: Dynamic Firewall Configuration Overview of firewalld: Firewalld streamlines dynamic firewall configuration, featuring zones to declare trust levels in interfaces and networks. It comes pre-installed in distributions like Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Fedora, CentOS, and can be installed on others.Firewalld excels in dynamic environments where network configurations change frequently. Its zone-based approach allows administrators to define different trust levels for various network interfaces.

Opening Ports with firewalld: sudo firewall-cmd — add-port=80/tcp — permanent sudo firewall-cmd — add-port=443/tcp — permanent sudo firewall-cmd — add-port=80/tcp — add-port=443/tcp — permanent sudo firewall-cmd — reload sudo firewall-cmd — list-ports Conclusion: Linux firewalls, comprising iptables vs ufw, nftables and firewalld, offer robust defense mechanisms for network security. While iptables and nftables cater to experienced users, ufw and firewalld provide simplified interfaces for ease of use. The choice of tools depends on user expertise and specific requirements, ensuring a secure and well-managed network environment. This extended guide provides additional insights into ufw and firewalld, enhancing your understanding of Linux firewall tools for configuring and securing systems effectively.

[nat20marketing]

Welcome to part two of this week’s Nat 20 Marketing!

In the last post, we covered what makes a BIG IDEA good. Part of a successful delivery comes from knowing the audience’s needs and where to find them. The other critical part is choosing the right tone and right message for it.

What are tones and why do they help in marketing?

To simply put, tones give messages an emotional touch and help the recipient picture the scenario better. A birthday party should be a happy occasion, so the invitation should sound joyous and exciting. A funeral is a serious and sad occasion, so it would be much better to sound sincere when asking people to visit the memorial service. If the tones are not used correctly, the message is going to sound jarring and possibly triggering. When people say “read the room”, it means using the right tone and saying the right things at the right time to match the emotions and energy of others.

I have seen promotional campaigns for charities and I have a rather personal gripe against the tones the organizations usually use to send their messages. Some organizations prefer showing the harsh reality of what is happening to those in need in addition to using severe and depressing tones. The use of people’s empathy is often highly effective in marketing. It helps raise awareness and catch people’s attention extremely quickly. Despite this, I find these advertisements to be rather guilt-tripping and manipulative. Whether this take on marketing for not-for-profit organizations is ethical or not is subjective, but as a consumer, I will be brutally honest here: I tend to skip these advertisements in a heartbeat and if I can, I will also send a report to whichever platform I am currently on that I am not interested in such promotions.

So how do we make tones obvious for text-based communication?

Over the pandemic, we have all gotten used to online chatrooms and forums to replace in-person conversations. As a moderator for a rather popular server on Discord, I have since recognized the importance of tone usage. Let’s use the example of “Guess what happened last night” here to demonstrate. Without the tone, you can’t really guess what possibly could have happened and what the appropriate response should be. Your friend could have broken up with their significant other (sad), or your friend received a thoughtful surprise gift from their loved one (happy). Neurodivergent people have already struggled to detect tones when they converse with others face-to-face for a long time. The lack of tone in text is worse for essentially everyone.

As an avid online chatter, I find the use of emojis and tone indicators to be quite useful in solving this problem. Emojis are little pictures that show emotions and reactions. We are starting to see more companies adopting emojis into their social media posts to generate excitement and become a closer part of the community they serve. However, it’s not always that marketers can use emojis in their messages. For B2B companies, it is almost impossible to do so since emojis are often perceived to be casual and unserious. It is extremely dependent on the brand image whether using emojis to emphasize tones is a feasible solution.

The next best option is the proper choice of words. Language is evolving all the time. Ten years ago, we wouldn’t be seeing phrases like “slay queen” and “poggers”. Now, the word “cook” doesn’t always mean “preparing food”. People have started to use it for “making things into reality”. I can even say what I’m doing right now is “cooking up a blog post”. I wouldn’t use the word “cook” this way if I am writing a professional email to my senior at work, but I would use it when I’m talking with my friends. Using the right tone and the right words for the right occasion is the key takeaway.

Perhaps a blog post by a video game company would use words that are more formal, but daily social media updates should sound far more casual and even humorous given the audience is often gamers and from both Millenials and Gen Z. We can take a look at Larian Studios’ posts and replies on X. The studio uses a good mix of images, gifs, emotes, and casual phrases to connect with its customers (i.e., the players) every day. When Larian Studios was celebrating its achievements after the Game Awards last year, the tones were more heartfelt and thankful for the community’s overwhelming love and support.

Okay, and what about the message content itself?

As mentioned in the previous blog, people’s attention span has declined significantly over the past two decades. Short videos that are no longer than a minute have become the most popular media for content creators to reach their audience. People multitask all the time. They can be working on a research report, watching a YouTube video, and replying to their friends on WhatsApp all at the same time. A short, catchy slogan or even a musical tune is probably one of the best tactics to have people remember the brand.

A few years ago, I watched an advertisement by PepsiCo called STACK YOUR SLEIGH. It was a very short video but it left an extremely memorable impression because of the song that was rewritten and sung in it. I still remember it to this day to use it as an example. The video was made for the holiday season, so the company chose an uplifting Christmas carol classic as the base. The advertisement was rather well-received judging from the positive comments on YouTube. Even without watching the video itself, the audience can already easily tell what occasion the commercial was targeting. On the contrary, if PepsiCo chose Silent Night as the base, it might not have worked as well due to the slow and peaceful tone. This directly links back to the key point of this blog post: CHOOSE THE RIGHT TONE FOR THE RIGHT MESSAGE.

This is it for this week’s Nat 20 Marketing. Stay tuned for next week’s post on Right Message, Right Time, Right Place!

[technology--2]

Strategic Karma Management: Fostering Ethical Excellence in Business Operations

The quest of success in the complex web of contemporary business involves more than just monetary rewards; it also involves moral decisions and accountable behavior. An emerging idea that is becoming more and more popular in business circles is karma management, which encapsulates the idea of matching moral values with commercial practices. The idea of karma management is explored in this article along with how it relates to important services like National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS), statutory compliance services India, supplier audit services, finest talent acquisition firms, and statutory compliance services.

The Foundation: Best Talent Acquisition Companies

Ethical Hiring Practices: At the heart of karma management lays the strategic acquisition of talent through the best talent acquisition companies. These agencies specialize not only in identifying candidates with the requisite skills but also in aligning organizational values with those of potential hires. Ethical hiring practices contribute to the creation of a workforce committed not only to professional excellence but also to ethical and responsible business conduct.

Nurturing a Positive Corporate Culture: The best talent acquisition firms are essential to fostering a healthy work environment. By selecting applicants who share the organization's values, these businesses help to create a workplace that encourages cooperation, diversity, and moral decision-making. This makes a positive business culture an essential element of karma management.

Supplier Audit Services: Extending Ethical Responsibility

Ethical Supply Chains: Supplier audit services, which include supply chains in the company environment, are essential to karma management. These services are essential for assessing and verifying vendors' moral conduct. Organizations can demonstrate their commitment to moral business conduct and responsible sourcing by conducting thorough audits.

Building Ethical Partnerships: Conducting supplier audits encourages cooperative and moral relationships between companies and their suppliers. In this case, karma management entails actively collaborating with suppliers to raise ethical standards in addition to making sure that compliance is maintained. This cooperative strategy adheres to the karma management tenets by spreading beneficial behaviors throughout the supply chain.

Upholding Ethical Governance with Statutory Compliance Services

Legal and Regulatory Adherence: Karma management entails following the law and other rules. Statutory compliance services help businesses comprehend and abide by rules pertaining to data privacy, taxation, labor, and the environment. This dedication to following the law supports the organization's ethical governance, which is essential to karma management.

Proactive Risk Mitigation and Continuous Improvement: Statutory compliance services help maintain continuous improvement and proactively detect risks, which helps with karma management. This guarantees that companies anticipate and adjust to changing legal environments in addition to adhering to existing requirements. A dedication to ongoing development is consistent with the karma management concepts

National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS): Nurturing Ethical Growth

Investing in Skill Development: Karma management entails making investments in the community's and the organization's progress and development. This philosophy is reflected in the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS), which offers chances for skill development while also promoting the ethical development of individuals and communities.

Creating Ethically Trained Talent: By taking part in NATS, you may build a talent pipeline of people who have received ethical training and industry-specific expertise. In this context, karma management entails helping to further the larger objective of promoting employability and ethical work practices in addition to reaping the benefits from this talent pool.

Strategic Implementation of Karma Management In the rapidly evolving landscape of modern business, organizations must strategically implement karma management. This involves:

Integrating Ethical Practices across Business Functions: A comprehensive integration of ethical principles into all company processes is necessary for karma management. Companies need to constantly make sure that everything they do, from hiring procedures to supply chain management and governance, complies with ethical standards.

Engaging in Continuous Learning and Improvement: A dedication to lifelong learning and development is a component of karma management. In order to promote a culture of continuous development, organizations should keep up with changing regulatory requirements, industry best practices, and ethical standards.

Communicating Ethical Commitments to Stakeholders: One essential element of karma management is transparency. It is imperative for organizations to effectively convey their ethical values and conduct to all relevant parties, such as staff members, clients, and the local community. This increases confidence and reaffirms the company's commitment to moral and ethical business practices.

Karma management is an approach to strategy that goes beyond conventional business models. Organizations can foster ethical excellence by incorporating ethical concepts into various aspects of their operations such as hiring, labor compliance, supplier audits, statutory compliance, and national apprenticeship training schemes. Achieving financial goals is just one aspect of success; another is making decisions that benefit stakeholders' well-being, the environment, and the community at large. Adopting karma management is a commitment to a sustainable, ethically-driven, and responsible future in the fast-paced business world; it's more than just a strategic choice.

[ofharfordss]

TO: tpriestly@leiryweekly.com, tomas.priestly@lwnews.net, t.priestlywrites@gmail.com (pls forgive the wild email roulette i guessed 🙏)

FROM: happytails.jasper@gmail.com

SUBJECT: A MATCH MADE IN PRINT!!! 💘🐺 (aka THANK YOU!!)

TIME: 1:42AM

Hi Tomas (…I hope this reaches you??),

Okay. WHOA. This article? It’s like someone cast Charm Person on the entire town and then rolled a nat 20. I don’t even know what to say except THANK YOU - this was the nicest surprise, and it means the absolute world to me.

I’ve been a huge fan of the The Leiry Conspiracy ever since that one feature about the haunted sandwich shop, and getting a write-up in it? Me?! My imposter syndrome had to go lie down.

You made me sound so cool I had to reread it twice just to make sure you weren’t secretly describing someone else. “Stats”? “Friendly and approachable”? Sir. That’s Pokémon trainer bio-level praise and I am FLATTERED.

Anyway, I hope this email reaches the real Tomas Priestley and not, like, an insurance adjuster in Delaware. If it does reach you: thank you again. You’ve officially helped launch Port Leiry’s most earnest matchmaking service. (Now taking applicants. And snacks.)

May your inbox be full of fan mail and only mild spam, Jasper Felix Founder, Happy Tails Matchmaking Amateur Love Wizard | Full-Time Dweeb 📍Currently loitering around Balliol Street, ethically 📚 Soon-to-be bestselling author??? (Manifesting!!!)

THE LEIRY CONSPIRACY APRIL 2025, VOL 2, ISS 4.

[rozie-gray]

Saint or Sinner

We all have our times like this.

Be it for good or evil.

We all have choices to make,

But those choices make us who we are.

- Anonymous

*****

"I'm such an idiot," he said while pounding his fist on the wall. "Why did I let her go? God, I'm such an idiot."

He could barely hold in his tears and anger.

“I didn’t ask to be a demon,” he screamed. “It can’t be helped. But why does it have to be the reason not to be with you?!,” then he looks up at the ceiling, “You said that everyone can love but why doesn’t that include us?”

The demon regretted that he ever became one, his eyes burning with flames of white and red. In his rage, he grabbed a chair and threw it out the window, breaking it in the process. Rage took over and proceeded to destroy everything in the room with reckless abandon.

Ten minutes of destruction passed and his anger has finally subsided.

The room became a warzone. The bed is covered with scratches and burn marks, the walls are filled with cracks, and the furniture are either hacked into pieces or turned upside down.

He glanced at the photo album that dropped on the floor. He picks it up and sits down on the broken tiles as he opens it and slowly leafs through the pages.

Photo after photo, memory by memory. The images of their time spent together stared back at him. Guilt, heartache, and anger mingled together inside him to form sadness before he tossed the album aside. He bends his knees towards him and lies down on the floor in a fetal position, crying.

Did she love me, he thought. How could she like a demon like me? I'm a demon, I'm not meant to be loved.

"I'm nobody," he faintly whispered to the broken walls.

*****

Night fell and the lights of the cities on the human world are starting to light up. The rain was pouring incessantly while the cold winds blow. It was at that time that Matt was walking through the streets with his hoodie down, alone.

He wanted to go ask his friend for something and maybe grab a drink down at the Pig's Place, the bar he and Natalie frequently visits.

Hopefully, he thought, Pidge could probably help me. The girl's got gall, she's gotta help. Plus, she's a human. They know this sort of thing more than me.

As he was walking, he thought he saw her. He turned around but was met with disappointment and a little relief. It’s just some lady with her boyfriend, he must be imagining it. Nat won't stab me in the back like that, then he wondered, would she?

The idea haunted him like a ghost. He quickly walked away in frustration.

Inside the Pig’s Place, there are always a lot of customers but there were more than usual tonight as it was the “Happy Hour”. There are some smoking, others drinking their alcohol to drown their worries of the day, and others just staying for the “special services”.

Pidge was at the counter, as usual. Bartending to the patrons and sending them home when they got piss drunk. She was quite the gal for her caliber, and nobody ever messes with her without signing a death warrant.

Pidge is about six feet tall, with black and red dyed hair, cut like a mohawk, and goth make-up everywhere. She wears a black death metal T-shirt, minus the sleeves, black fishnet stockings, high red boots, and a studded choker that matches the two bracelets on her wrists.

Pidge notices Matt at the doorway but pays no attention to him. He sits down at a vacant table and motions for her to come.

She just shrugs and continues her work, serving drinks to the other patrons. He motions again, this time she comes near.

“So, she finally dumped you,” she said while pouring him a drink. “Can’t blame you if the Big Guy Upstairs said “no” and punched you in the face.”

Matt flipped her off and immediately gulped down his drink. He shivered, for the drink was more bitter than usual. He sets down the glass and hung his head.

“Hey,” she nudged him, “don’t pussy out on me on this one. I told you that they’d say no and I want the deets who the other guy is.”

Matt glared at her.

“Alright, alright,” she said, raising her hands in mock surrender. “I’ll back out.” Then she said, with a grin, “But I might know a way to get your princess back.”

[gyllenhaalics]

Hiii, I was hoping I could be apart of your matchmaking service :))) ! I'm in college ( Foreign languages faculty), pursuing a philology degree in italian and english. I like singing, listening to music, watching movies and reading literature. I'd like to be paired with one of Jake's characters!

(Heyyyy, thank you so much for your messages the other day <3)

I match you with Donnie Darko (aged up!)

Donnie is an interesting guy.

He might seem like someone who gets into trouble constantly.

But he’s actually very kind, but he needs sometimes to open up to people.

He breaks the rules only when they stop making sense (which means, a lot of times)

He’s very smart and he responds very well to mental stimulation.

Which is why he loves to talk about a wide range of things that pique his interest.

He also majors in Philosophy and you two met in a lecture.

He was impressed by one of your presentations.

This leads to a lot of discussion between you and Donnie.

He’s surprisingly conventional when it comes to dating.

He loves to take you out for a movie, then you two share a quiet dinner.

One of the things he enjoys is you resting your head on his shoulders and read him your favorite books.

He may make sarcastic comments at the writing once in a while.

He looks after the people he cares deeply about (that means you).

He always asks you how your day is and expresses concerns when you’re not feeling well.

When that happens, Donnie can be very stubborn in convincing you to rest.