#nothing to see here. just a pic from niagara falls

[just-2hu]

[seriouslyblacklikemysoul]

Until Forever - Sirius Black

MASTERLIST Warnings: My English,pics aren’t mine.  Word Count ~ 3k Prologue | Mercury | Delicate | Blue | Running | Aftermath | Stardust

Chapter 8. December.

           She had practiced everything she would say to him, rehearsing it like a play, going through all of his possible reactions and rehashing her speech to fit the situation, over and over and over again. But when he saw her in the hall between two classes, when she opened her mouth, all that fell out was crackling silence.

            It had been a bit more than just awkward; Remus was beyond competitive, trying to steal kisses of her when Sirius was watching. And Sirius was watching most of the time – he couldn’t stop pining after her and he knew it was all kinds of wrong.           There was something in the way she lied, he thought. She was staring straight into his eyes. He liked her lies – they brought the pain he was missing lately.  Of course, he was jealous that his best friend could have this moment while he was waiting for the ticking clock to burn. She had absolutely no problem admitting she had made a mess – coming to terms with it, that was a problem.

            December was upon them and she felt her heart longing for her family and friends – they would all get together, cook, eat, and drink, but mostly they would have fun. They had this tradition – each Friday of December they would have a movie night. And most of time, they didn’t even watch a movie; they were all there for the friendship. They used to have a chat called “Fam”, because they weren’t just friends, they were family, or a really small gang. She missed them like crazy.  She missed her life a bit more than she would admit – well, she had no one to admit that to. Reminiscing about her lost life wasn’t going to help her go back, but she couldn’t stop thinking about her friends and how wonderful it would be if all of this was simply a dream.            She no longer wanted to live inside a fairy tale. She wanted to return to her old life.  Maybe it was because she didn’t have her best friend telling her how stupid she was for actually being involved with any of them or how crazy it was … being in a relationship with Remus while she was pulled towards Sirius every breathing moment. She could use a girls’ night.…           Then again, she would be lying her ass off if she said she didn’t enjoy herself. Given everything, she was doing pretty amazing. It was just the guilt that ate her alive. It might have been a little heart wrenching but breaking down at 2 AM changed people. She became distant. She became doubtful. It created an emotional divide between her and everyone else. When she was slumped on the floor, paralyzed with grief, she begun to see through things. The Niagara of tears falling from her eyes, the lump in her throat, the pain pounding in her chest reminded her of the faces she wanted to see, the voices she wanted to hear, the caresses she wanted to feel. She would become isolated.           It was 2 AM, the world turned against her, the clock ticked louder than it used to as though to match the shrieking voices in her head. Those voices she wished would fall into silence for they driven her mad. She reached for her phone, to type a text, to try to dial a number, then realized she had no one – and no phone to do so. You begin to think of coping mechanisms. How would she get through this? Swallow a sleeping pill that didn’t work anymore? Seek the comfort of alcohol? Dance with her demons, let them tormented her until she became numb? She became lost. She didn’t know what to do. She pinched her skin to drive away the numbness. Everything became blurry. In a brief moment of clarity, he crossed her mind; she was tempted to talk to him.          She missed her friends and this unholy hour made her question the people in her life... Realizing just how much, hurt. Forcing her eyes shut and hoping in a peaceful slumber, she made herself fall asleep. Otherwise, she would have fallen apart.

             Waking up early had never been her thing - especially during winter time...But it was one of her favorite things. The frozen atmosphere stood still, waiting for the sun to rise, slowly, indolently; the sky was a pale, frosty, grayish blue and if she listened carefully, the silence was beautiful. As she approached the Great Hall, she heard the soft chatter and the distant yawing. She craved her hot cup of coffee and the delicious breakfast, without caring about her sad look or the fact that she had been avoiding everyone … a while.             She took her time, appreciating everything around her; the big, baroque fireplace, the tall walls that reached up to the ceiling, which was covered with floating candles and enchanted to look like the sky above – perfectly still and gray – the High Table, which was designed to house the entire Hogwarts staff – more than half of them were missing. From the architecture to the vibe, it had to be one of the most adoptable rooms inside the castle.            She sat down, smiling to them all, filling up her cup with freshly brewed coffee, with no interest of joining their conversation. She had to talk about her wants at some point but it wasn’t the moment – although, not receiving a message is also a message.            “You seem off” Peter commented later on, when she had made clear she didn’t want to participate in small talk. Forcing her thought back on track and her eyes to stop wondering around, she simply nodded. She felt off. Peter didn’t question her further, understanding her wish for peace and quiet. Sirius’ and Remus’ eyes met as they both looked at her – the silver eyed boy immediately averted his gaze back to his plate. That had to end at some point. To her disbelief, they hadn’t asked her anything, they hadn’t tried to talk to her and she felt rather grateful. How could she have justified that? ‘You know I miss my friends because I had a life before you? Or rather many years after you?’… no… Slowly, things had become too complicated and she had only her self to blame. Facing her demons had always been a challenge.             “… maybe you can join us, if you want to” she caught the last bit of James’ sentence, causing her head to raise instantly and her eyes to focus on him. She smiled apologetically as she hadn’t been listening, gaining an eye roll.            "I was saying that you are more than welcome to come with us - we have plenty of rooms and it will be fun. You know, for Christmas break... And New Year's party" James told her in the earnest and sweetest way possible. She was grateful for his invitation and friendship. He was the brother she was missing terribly. She thought about it for a moment. It would definitely be fun. But...           "Thank you, Jay. Since it's my first and last Christmas here, I would like to spend it inside the castle. I hear it's beautiful" she concluded. Otherwise, it would be too complicated... Not that now was easy, but she knew that being so close with them ... It could only end one way.           He agreed with her but two other people were harder to convince. She had yet to talk with Remus and she was fucking dreading it... And, as much as she wanted to, she couldn't talk with Sirius. She was a walking disaster.

      The small, fleeting moments that floated around her entire existence made the world seem distant in a way. She was catastrophically romantic but how could she be red in a world of black and white? She would be consumed either by her own façade or by her surroundings. In order to keep her sanity, she had realized that she needed to project a totally different image of who she was – she was balancing on very thin ice, trying not to fall right in the freezing sea of her lies.        She saw Remus eyeing her carefully as if he was trying to catch her lying. She wanted to have a proper conversation with him because she already knew where this was going but she knew that if she let him talk to her, she would back down. There was a certain truth in his words and at a time, for a time, it also happened to be true for her. But that was a lifetime ago. She had already chosen this path; she already knew the end and she craved a change. Maybe she was being selfish but prioritizing herself was a necessity at this time. And maybe things were simpler than all of the crap she was thinking.        Maybe it was just about smiling, smiling a lot, smiling well and wanting and feeling happy today, right now. Maybe it was just about knowing how to enjoy every moment she lived, thinking she will never repeat it again. Maybe it was just about enjoying each person she had around her at every moment of her life and knowing how to give them the best of her without expecting anything in return. Maybe, and just maybe, it was just about appreciating a little bit more every little gesture, every single thing she did every day, no matter how simple, and feeling like it was extraordinary, and learning to enjoy everything she held, because it sure wasn’t a little…         She met his eyes for the first time in days. Oh, crap. What a plot twist he was. And for a moment nothing else really even mattered. She lived in moments, nothing more. She owed it to them, but mostly to herself. She had to be honest. Some things were way too overwhelming for her to keep them secret.          Without much thought, she turned to Remus and begged him with her eyes for some privacy but as soon as his eyes found hers, she lost all her nerve and the guilt washed over her. Hopefully, all he saw was a rather perplexed look and a question.         “Are you coming?” Lily asked her with an eyebrow archer. She glanced her way, completely out of focus. The ginger-haired girl understood as she mouthed ‘Hogsmeade’ and ‘tomorrow’.         “Wouldn’t miss it for the world” she answered kindheartedly as she was already thinking about her first butterbeer.

         Sometimes things went wrong. People left. Hearts broke Stuff that she didn’t want to happen, happened. Experiences that were out of her control hit her like a wall, and there was nothing she could do other than accept this phase of life. In those moments, it was hard to believe that life would be okay again. Because how could it be when everything was going wrong. But things have to get better, didn’t they? Bad stuff happened in order for her to appreciate the good, and often things fell apart so that the pieces could join together in a new way—the way they were supposed to.         But sometimes things went wrong because she was trying so hard to push pieces that didn’t fit together, in order for life to make sense. But those pieces needed to fall apart. She needed to fall apart. Life needed to fall apart—so that it could come together the way it was meant to.        Her entire life in this timeline meant that she had to let go of all the things she thought of as given, her own and not there anymore. It was the hardest task she had yet to achieve. One thing that she had realized was that some of her older friends weren’t really all that great after all. And how did she realize that? Oh, it was simple. All it took was a walk to the nearest village.        Lily was the kindest and sweetest person, Alice was the most considering, Mary and Dorcas were the most free-spirited people she had ever met and Marlene was… well, she was pretty much like her. Even she had opened up to her; the blonde had let her do her eyeliner and as much as she wanted her to look like a panda, she was gorgeous. With the boys, though, it was different. James was her brother, Peter was – despite her desire to hate him – fun, sweet, shy. She wasn’t going to bother her mind trying to think about the other two.        She had never seen anything like it – or felt that she could freeze to death like that ever before. Hogsmeade was exactly as she had imagined but nothing like it at the same time. Covered in snow, she could barely see the sign of the Three Broomsticks but the entire village was magnificent and vivid. The pub was a rather small place but that didn’t bother her. Sure, it was probably packed but she would still enjoy a butterbeer and a firewhiskey – she was old enough for that.       She was pretty sure that Remus wanted this to be a proper date and that was why she never left Lily’s side. They had an honest talk the previous night – well, as honest as it could ever be. The most important things were left out and instead they had focused on her love life. Or how badly she had screwed it up.         The boys found a rather large but secluded table with a comfy couch and plenty of chairs. Lily and James scouted in, but she preferred the chair – something, she was sure, Remus took notice of. Once she saw Sirius taking out his cigarette pack, she realized it was okay for her to smoke inside but before she could, she found herself standing up and offering to get them drinks – Remus was glaring daggers at her.           The bar hadn’t enough drinks for her to be okay. After the nine butterbeers, she finally ordered hers, leaving both Remus and the barman startled.          “The strongest bourbon you have – and do keep them coming” she emphasized. Clearly, she had her share of drinks, Remus thought, just as she was avoiding him and a conversation. The barman laughed and told her that she wasn’t old enough, mistaking her for just another Hogwarts student.         “Look, I don’t have an ID but you can bet your ass, I’m twenty-two. Just ask her” she pointed at a rather amused Minerva McGonagall – which he did and got his answer, even though the professor gave her a stern look of disapproval. As they waited, Remus grasped the opportunity to talk to her.         “So, are you enjoying Hogsmeade?” he tried to stir up a proper answer but didn’t stick to it, as he cut her off.         “Screw this. You know what? I can’t do this anymore. You’re avoiding me and I’m pretending to understand why. So, please, tell me, because my imagination is making up things that are far worse than anything you’ll say” he whispered-yelled at her. Just in time, the drinks were ready and waiting for them to carry them to their table. She finally looked at him and saw how terrible this must had been for him. “When you get used to goodbyes, nothing really surprises you anymore. You’re not afraid that people might leave and you’re not holding on to someone because you can’t imagine your life without them. When you get used to goodbyes, you get used to being alone. You still feel sad or heartbroken but it never takes over your life, it never stops you from knowing you’re a person worth loving and it never makes you doubt yourself. When you get used to goodbyes, you get used to leaving too. You get used to walking away when you’re being mistreated. You know how to detach when things are no longer healthy for you. You don’t feel like it’s the end of the world if you leave even if you don’t know where you’re going or what’s going to happen next. When you get used to goodbyes, you get used to instability, inconsistency and uncertainty. Your life never really felt like a straight line, it was always zigzagging and twists and turns. Your life never really had one path but it was always a bunch of different paths that you had to explore all by yourself. When you get used to goodbyes, you get used to the pain. You learn how to live with it instead of avoiding it. You don’t let it consume you anymore. In a way, it trains you to face certain challenges alone instead of running away from them. It trains you to expect the unexpected somehow. It trains you that you can trust people and fall in love with them but that doesn’t mean they’ll stay and it doesn’t mean that they won’t move to another country and it doesn’t mean that they’ll always be by your side. When you get used to goodbyes, you learn that you can be as open and as vulnerable as you can be and it still won’t be enough. When you get used to goodbyes, you learn how to appreciate your own company and accept your flaws and your demons because no matter who’s sleeping next to you now, you could eventually wake up and find yourself sleeping alone and no matter how many beautiful promises you’ve heard, you know that some of them are empty. When you get used to goodbyes, forever is not linked to someone else, forever is linked to you and only you” she knew that it was what she wanted to confess. She knew it would end up in a goodbye soon enough. Instead she simply told him,

          “I will. Just not here”. She took a testing sip of her drink and rather impressed downed it immediately, as she ordered the second one. Maybe it wasn’t smart, but she had a bunch of friends in the next table waiting to have fun – and  if she wanted to survive the constant kissing and snogging and touching, she would have to be a bit tipsy.

 ___ Taglist:  @nadinissavage​ @mycobrakai1972 

[alcalavicci]

(Disclaimer: if either of you wrote this and don’t want it up, send me an ask and I’ll take it down)

Lisa and Laurie meet Dean:

Laurie: Well, I started talking [to Dean at Dragon*Con] and I reminded him that Lisa brought him a book of my poems last October. At which he said, "Oh, you're Laurie." He was so kind. I gave him a copy of the new book and asked him to sign mine, which he did. Then he . . . ."

Well, he leaned over to Jay, whispered something to him and then turned back to me and said, "I'd like to take you out to dinner." He looked at Lisa and said, "I want you to come too."

Just a moment before that he handed me his drink and I took a few sips of his scotch and soda. I was bowled over by that so when he asked us to dinner, I just mumbled, "Uh, sure." He had just checked in and didn't know where we could go. Lisa jumped right in with "The Marquis Steakhouse is good!" He said, "That's what we'll do" and suddenly we had dinner reservations with Dean at the most expensive restaurant in the building. <G>

We met Dean at seven at the restaurant. He got there first and was waiting for us. We had dinner with Dean Stockwell!!! At his invitation!!!

Exactly what happened at dinner will be in future posts when we're both more coherent. We're still in the clouds. Right now I wish I had more of Dean's scotch and soda. The man drinks good scotch. He's not as picky with wine. <g>

Part I: (by Lisa)

Hello all. My turn to tell some of the tale!

Okay...As Laurie has said, We were invited, by Dean himself to dinner on Friday night. This happened within five minutes of meeting him. Dean was so impressed with Laurie's poetry that he wanted more of a chance to talk to her about it. LOL...I think I was invited along because he didn't know what else to do with me. So, while Dean and Laurie talked I gave Jay the name of the restaurant again. The Marquis Steakhouse. Jay set it up for reservations for three at 7pm.

Laurie and I left the autograph section, the "Walk Of Fame" flying higher than air and shaking out of our skin. In just under six hours we were going to be having dinner with Dean! So, we took a walk outside to get some air before we both passed out. Everything was kind of a blur. I of course was on the cell calling my sisters and telling them all about it.

I honestly don't remember a lot of what happened in those hours of waiting. If I remember correctly, that is the day I had to lay down and take a nap. Ah, I'm IMing with Laurie as I write this and she's filling me in on a bit. I went back to my room to practice breathing and she went to the connecting mall for some "alone time."

We set up a time to meet down in the Atrium at "our" table and wait for 7pm.

I went about ironing the best outfit I had brought with me and trying to get my hair just right. (A very big task for me my hair is) Okay, okay...you all don't want to hear this part of it all. On to the good stuff.

Laurie just asked me to add this..... "This was a big deal for me. I had no expectations other than meeting him and giving him the poetry. I was stunned and amazed that he could even want to spend time with us at all. I had to be alone to begin to sort it all out and begin to believe it."

(And also from Laurie....."My hair is a lost cause and I was already wearing my best blouse so all I did was make sure my breath was okay and that my shoes were tied.")

So, we meet downstairs and sit at our table trying to pretend that our world is normal and that we aren't looking for Dean to walk past. At just a few minutes to 7:00 we make our way to the restaurant which is all of hmmm...200 feet away from us.

We enter, turn the corner and there standing with his back to us is Dean. Somehow how he got past us in the atrium and made it into the restaurant ahead of us. Yes, the gall of us, we left Robert Dean Stockwell waiting.

I spoke to him and he didn't hear me. I do believe now more than ever that our guy is a wee bit hard of hearing. Calvin the Maitre'd/diningroom supervisor then let Dean know that his guests were behind him. Dean turned to us and I have no idea what words were spoken or just how we made it to our table, but we were being seated.

Laurie and I sat across from each other and Dean sat to Laurie's left and to my right.

Oh, Laurie just asked me to add in that we requested the waiter we had had our first night there, Sylvester. We wanted only the best for Dean.

So, we're all seated and notice Dean has his laptop with him. He asked me to please move to the seat across from him, to Laurie's right. LOL...He told me I could move back if I wanted to in a bit, but hey, I was across the table from him now looking into his eyes. I wasn't going anywhere! Anyway, Dean sits his laptop on the table and again says something that my air starved brain can't remember. Laurie comments to him that this is all very surreal, to which Dean replies..."It's about to become even more surreal." During all of this, our waiter and the Maitre'd are fussing all around us. Filling glasses and tending to us and, LOL, hovering over us like a couple of very hunky well-dressed buzzards not missing a thing at our table.

So, after the "even more surreal" comment from Dean, he starts to slide his laptop around and with a great amount of grace knocks his water glass over and sends it spilling my way like Niagara Falls! Laurie said Dean's face turned several shades of red. (Laurie just added this..."He was so red I thought it was apoplexy! His eyes rolled up into his head just like Al does every so often on QL.") I couldn't tell you because to busy wondering if I was going to drown. I do however remember hearing Dean say, "Great way to start off the night." Honestly, like he was worried about impressing us? He was so embarrassed. And the staff went crazy. They wanted us to switch tables, they wanted to change the table cloth. They were beside themselves.

Side note from Laurie: "Dean wasn't fussy and fretting about how fast the staff attended to him. He tried to put them at ease. There was nothing put on or self-important about him at all. He wasn't there to impress anyone - not even us. He was there because he wanted to be."

Once we convinced the staff that we were fine and the table was fine and that we would all survive, and that I would dry out at some point during the evening, Dean tried to get past his embarrassment and make us all feel at ease by joking to me, "I bet you'll never wash that shirt again because I spilled my water on it." (Please note, quotes will be off by a word or two. Remember, I was trying to remember to keep breathing at the time. Some words got past my over worked brain.) And I told him that no I wouldn't and could get a good price for it on eBay.

Okay, so back to the "even more surreal" comment from Dean… It did become very, VERY more surreal. For on Dean's handy laptop were images from his show that has just now (but not as of that night) opened in Santa Monica at the Chris Krull Gallery! No only that, but there were images that are not to be included in the new exhibit! Robert Dean Stockwell himself showed us his work! He shared them with us and studied our faces while we looked at them, with me open mouthed I'm sure, and waited for our comments on them. He was like a proud father. No, he WAS a proud father. I mean, he wanted our opinions and he listened and commented when we gave them!

Now, you ask "Why did he do this?" I thought it was because he so happy to be in a convention environment, yet have people who appreciated his art and he just had to share it. And I do believe that was part of it. But the main reason for showing them to us, to Laurie...He wanted her to see them so she could write her poetry to them as well!!!!! Get this...he said "If you want to." Like she wouldn't?!?!?! Of course Laurie was (and is honored) and not being a stupid woman she told him yes. So he told her what email address to be looking out for and let her know that he would be sending her the images!!!!!! How amazing is that? Our Laurie!!! His exact words to her were… "A lot of people write poetry. You are a true poet."

Laurie just asked me to please add this..."My heart dropped from my chest into my gut. I couldn't believe that he would share his art with me so that I could write more. It was more than a dream come true. I'm not clever enough to come up with a scenario like the one that took place in the Marquis that night."

Now, I do have to take a moment here and make a request. I sent scans to Andrea of Dean's work to put up on our website. During our meeting Dean let us know that he feels very strongly about copyright infringement. So, I need to ask that the images I sent for use on the site be pulled. The ones from the Ravens site shouldn't be a problem. But Andrea, please pull all of the ones I sent to you. I respected Dean before ever meeting him that first time back at Chiller, now, after having had this encounter with him, I also want to respect his wishes. Sorry to all for that, but it's clear when talking to him that his art is his soul. I hope you all understand why I'm requesting the ones I sent come down.

So ladies, my fingers hurt and my eyes are drooping. There is a lot more to tell you about this dinner. A lot more! I hope this will hold you over until the next mail. I'm also working very hard to get pics up for you.

More soon!

Part II:

Laurie:

We'll begin tonight with actual eating since that's why we met at a restaurant. The first thing you do when you sit down at a restaurant is tell the waiter, our dear Sylvester, what we'd like to drink. Lisa and I don't usually drink alcohol and I sure didn't want to get blitzed at dinner with Dean so Lisa opted for a cola and I got my usual - club soda with a lime. Dean ordered a glass of the house Merlot. Now this was an upscale place so Sylvester poured Dean half an inch of wine, showed him the bottle and waited for Dean to take a sip and approve the choice. Dean just sort of laughed and told Sylvester he just wanted a glass, not the bottle. Then Dean said, "At home I drink wine from a box. This will be fine." Yes, Dean Stockwell drinks wine from a box. <g> I love that he drinks wine from a box. Even I don't drink box wine. Lisa is IMing with me and said, "I didn't know there was such a thing!"

We had the menus in our hot little hands and Dean kept asking what we wanted to eat. Lisa picked a Petite Filet Mignon and a Herbed Double Baked Potato. I chose Lobster Bisque and Pan Seared Copper River Salmon. Dean had a big lunch so he wanted a Caesar Salad and a side dish, Sauteed Exotic Mushrooms. When Sylvester returned for our order, Dean ordered for us. He pointed to me, "She'll have. . . " Then he pointed to Lisa, "And she'll have. . . " It was so old world of him. Now, I believe myself to be a liberated woman, but it was kind of fun to have him do the ordering. I wanted to giggle, but being the always appropriate woman I am, I refrained. <g> Lisa says, "I love that he ordered for us!!! He can do it anytime he wants! Plus, when he ordered my Filet he looked at me and said 'Honey (I think it was Honey), how do you want that cooked?' And when I said how I wanted it he said 'Don't you want anything else?' and I ordered the potato."

Now this restaurant is the kind where you are served an amuse bouche, an itty bitty tiny hors d'ouevres that is eaten in one bite. That's how small it is. We were served our amuse bouch, a swirl of smoked trout mousse on a quarter-sized slice of cumcumber. Dean ate his. I ate mine and Lisa who does not eat smoked fish or green vegetables chose not to eat hers. So Dean, being ever so proper, took the little plate and began a ceremony to cut it in half for he and I to share. We toasted with our forks and chowed down on these itty bitty bits. So, not only does Dean drink wine from a box, he plays with his food. <g> Dean said he was sorry if he and I were being rude by eating in front of Lisa, but she took one of the incredible cheese biscuits and joined in.

Since Dean and I had appetizers, they came first. My lobster bisque was beautifully served with chunks of lobster on top. Dean's salad was a beautiful affair that came in an unusual bowl. It was rather large,

white ceramic and the shallow bowl was seated on a circular base on the bottom. Now the bowl part itself was tilted slightly and Sylvester placed it in front of Dean with the lower side toward him and the bowl tilting up. Well, you would have thought he was witnessing the absence of gravity or something. He examined that bowl from top to bottom, sticking his face nearly onto the table to see the bottom of it, and just behaving like a little boy seeing Santa. He was beside himself with the shape of this bowl. We weren't sure if he'd ever stop remarking about this bowl. He finally did, but it did bring about a new activity for him which I'll tell you about in a few minutes. Lisa just reminded me. She is saying. "I asked him if he wanted a pic of the bowl to use in a future image. Then a bit later he said something about it and I said I can't take it now because you moved your bread. Then he went all crazy with the piece of bread sliding it around inside his bowl."

Dean eats his salad and I have my soup and we are very happy eaters. Then we have our main courses. Lisa's potato is about the size of Idaho. My salmon could feed about three people and Dean's exotic mushrooms could keep Alice in Wonderland happy for a few weeks, lots and lots of shrooms. Dean commented on how good everything looked and he was eying my salmon. I told him the mushrooms looked good too, so we shared our food. He gave me some of his mushrooms and I cut him a piece of salmon. Lisa offered him some potato, but he doesn't eat carbs. Lisa is saying, "Dean and Laurie were in their own little food world. I could have left the table at that point and they wouldn't have noticed." Well, we would have noticed - eventually. <g> The food was really good!!! Now by eating off each other's plate, I mean exactly that. I stuck my fork into a few mushrooms on his plate and he stabbed at my salmon.

When we finished what we were able to eat, Lisa still had at least half of her steak and most of her potato left. I had at least half of my salmon. Dean wanted us to take our leftovers back to our rooms. Now, I don't usually eat fish left out unrefrigerated overnight. Lisa doesn't usually eat steak left out either, but he was so adamant about us taking the leftovers that we finally said yes just to stop him from talking. Lisa managed to convince him that she didn't want her steak and he took it saying he was going to have it for breakfast. I on the other hand got stuck with delicious, yet (by the morning) stinky fish to take with me. <g>

Sylvester asked if we wanted dessert. Dean roared laughing and sat back almost tipping his chair over. "They didn't eat what they have here!" He is easily amused and finds himself very funny. It was fun to watch him. Lisa says, "And to see him laugh like that in person, so close, oh, it does things to a girl! He has an energy, an addictive energy. And when the man is happy, when he's smiling and laughing, you have no choice but to get carried away in it."

Now, back to wine glasses. Some time during all this, Dean drank about half his glass of Merlot. Then, inspired by the tilted bowl, he started to try to balance his wine glass on the edge of the glass's base. It's hard to describe, but he wanted to balance the glass on an angle like the salad bowl. All I could think was, "First the water and now the wine is going to go!" But the man did it. He managed to balance his wine glass on its edge and he was very very proud of his whole self. Lisa says, "A big part of that is because he was sure we didn't think he could do it. After it sat there balanced for a bit, in a grand gesture he snatched it up and got the most rakish look on his face. Then he toasted us. I told him it was impressive, but the look made the whole thing work that much better. He was very happy that his 'look' was appreciated."

I'm going to let Lisa tell you the next part because she has much clearer memories of it than I do. I was just trying to shield myself. <g> From Lisa - Dean called Sylvester over to get a second glass of wine. Sylvester was beside himself because he did not want to sit another glass of wine in front of Dean until he finished his first. So they went back and forth and Sylvester won. He told Dean he would get him the second glass when Dean finished the first. Dean gave in and said it was fine. Lisa said, “He just wants to try and balance two at the same time. I know what he's after.” To which Dean calls to Sylvester..."Hey babe! I really want..." and he points to a wine glass on the table behind him..."Pour it in here." So Sylvester does. While Sylvester is getting it Dean's says..."Sometimes, one gets a challenge. And then, what do you do? You say you can't do that?" As for what we were saying? We're not sure. We were laughing too hard.

Laurie here again - The challenge was presented and Dean started working on balancing both glasses. Now he goes to the first glass and gets it balanced again. He almost spilled that glass, but he caught it before it fell over. It is not precariously sitting on its edge. I'm holding my napkin in front of me since I know he's going to spill it all like he spilled the water. Dean was having trouble getting the glass to balance since it was too full and the wine was sloshing around too much. So in this beautiful restaurant with elegantly dressed staff Dean shouts out, "Everyone stop walking!" Again, he was highly amused with himself. He licked his finger and rubbed it along the bottom of the glass. He got it balanced. So he had two wine glasses standing on their edges. Now I'm ashamed to admit this, but Lisa had faith in his unique skill, but I didn't. When he told us his record was nine I was astounded. He added, "But that was back when I had a steadier hand." Lisa says, "He was very impressed with himself. And when I told him it was good but he forgot 'the look' this time, he said...'I did the look once. I didn't need to repeat it.'"

And then just to prove the sophistication of his humor, he started to try and balance his reading glasses. He was amused by "wine glass - eye glass!" We tried not to groan. I wasn't successful. Neither was Lisa, but we also aren't sure if he was joking or not. Something tells us he was really trying to balance them! Then he joked about sipping wine from his eyeglasses.

That's about it for the actual food related stuff. We have more stories though!!! Just let us know if you want more. We could probably bore you with this for at least two of three more days. <g>

Laurie (and Lisa on AIM)

P.S. Dean did talk about his art and copyrights so I'd like to back up Lisa's request to only post art on the Sassies page that is already online from galleries where he has his shows. His art works are very dear to him.

Part III (by Lisa):

I had to sign off last night while Laurie and I were working on the last post so I'd like to add a couple of things now.

During some our conversations with Dean, we talked about happy and fun things, sad things and one thing in particular that made Dean very angry. With every new subject Dean was completely comfortable with showing his emotions on the topic. We saw him laugh without abandon, we saw sadness and compassion on his face during tough talks and we saw a blazing anger when we spoke of something that just really pee'd him off. I will never, ever forget how he opened up to us. We started out thinking we were going to have dinner with Dean Stockwell the artist and actor, but we left the restaurant after having dinner with Robert Dean Stockwell the artist, actor and above all else human being. There are not and never will be enough words for me to describe the total and complete new found respect I have for the man.

As Laurie mention, I told Dean about my Mother's passing. Now, last October when I went to Chiller my Mom sent me with a letter to give to Dean. I handed it to him and he read it and asked me to tell my Mother thank you. I later found out the my Mom, ornery little woman that she was, asked Dean to give me a kiss. LOL...He didn't of course. Well, when we were leaving Chiller for the day he did blow me a kiss. Anyway, I was telling Dean a bit about the letter during dinner. I wanted him to know Mom and the sweet, silly woman she was. He smiled when I mentioned the kiss. So, when we were leaving the restaurant Dean gave Laurie a kiss on the forehead and turned to walk away. Of course I shamelessly stopped him and pointing to my forehead asked him where mine kiss was. He turned to me and said "You don't get one there" and proceeded to give me a kiss on the cheek. Suddenly I felt another soft kiss and he whispered to me "That one's for Mom." I have to tell you, Dean and no one reading this could ever begin to know just how must that meant to me. When I went back to my room, I looked out the window over Atlanta and told Mom I got the kissed she had asked for and cried like a baby. I have no doubt Mom was sitting on a cloud, swinging her feet and clapping her hands with that big ornery grin on her face.

And on a more fun note, Dean wanted to know how fast Laurie's [wheel]chair could go. So as we were leaving the restaurant, there is this long hallway you have to walk down before you get into the hotel atrium area. Laurie and I were behind Dean and when he heard us coming he turned around and started running backwards away from Laurie and her chair. She yelled for Dean to be careful and he turned. Se no one behind him he told Laurie so. "There's no one behind me!". LOL...Laurie wasn't worried about that, she just didn't like the thought of 69 year old Dean running backwards. But I have to tell you, I had more faith in his ability to do it than I do in my own.

Okay, that's all for now from me. I have no doubt as bits and pieces come back to us we'll be sending them your way.

Later, in a different thread:

Another member: I think, if it's done the right way, "Sassies Uber Alles" (with the umlaut though) would be hysterical. Of course Dean will forget he said that, so he'll have no idea why the pin says that until someone explains it to him... :-)

Lisa: Karen, that's the true. When our dinner was over with Dean at Dragon*Con, Laurie and I both had food left on our plates (seriously...eat with Dean sitting at your table and talking to you and balancing wine glasses?...ummm...no). I had most of my steak left and Dean asked our waiter to wrap it up to go and he would have it for breakfast. The next morning when we saw him I ask him if he enjoyed his breakfast and he looked at me like I had lost my mind. Explaining just seemed to baffle him more. Got to love that man.

[beatdisc]

7″ PUNK VINYL

Recently we've bought 3-4 incredible punk/hardcore/post-punk/new wave 7" vinyl collections. So we thought we'd make a list (around 300 titles) for ya'll to check out. See below for everything in-stock right now and get in touch for details & orders!

...AND THE NATIVE HIPSTERS THERE GOES CONCORDE AGAIN $60.00 4" BE 2" ONE OF THE LADS $10.00 7 SECONDS BLASTS FROM THE PAST $15.00 7 SECONDS SKINS, BRAINS & GUTS E.P. $20.00 7 SECONDS / KILL YOUR IDOLS 7 SECONDS / KILL YOUR IDOLS $10.00 86 MENTALITY 86 MENTALITY $15.00 ABRASIVE WHEELS VICIOUS CIRCLE EP $15.00 ADVERTS, THE SAFETY IN NUMBERS $10.00 AGNOSTIC FRONT THAT'S LIFE $10.00 ALCOA DROWNED $10.00 AMBER INN SERENITY IN HAND $8.00 AMPERE / DAITRO SPLIT: PIC DISC $15.00 ANGELIC UPSTARTS NEVER 'AD NOTHIN' $10.00 ANGRY SAMOANS D. FOR THE DEAD $15.00 ARMS RACE GOTTA GET OUT $10.00 ASYLUM SYSTEM OVERLOAD $5.00 ATTEN ASH / LYCANTHIA CITY IN THE SEA / THE HARBINGER $10.00 BAMODI / MEKARE-KARE SPLIT $5.00 BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP UPSTREAM $5.00 BLACK EYES / EARLY HUMANS SPLIT $8.00 BLIND JUSTICE / HEAVY CHAINS SPLIT $10.00 BONELESS UNSTOPPABLE $5.00 BOOKS LIE I FELT LIKE SUCH A LOSER UNTIL I REALIZE $5.00 BOW WOW WOW W.O.R.K. $10.00 BRING ME THE HORIZON DROWN: PIC DISC $15.00 BUZZCOCKS PROMISES / LIPSTICK $15.00 CATHOLIC GIRLS DISTANT $8.00 CHAINSAW GIRLS CHAINSAW GIRLS $5.00 CHOKE WAR OF THE SUBURBS $10.00 CHUCK RAGAN / MUFF POTTER SPLIT $8.00 CIVIL WAR JADED MINDS $5.00 CLASH, THE WHITE RIOT $15.00 CLASH, THE COMPLETE CONTROL $10.00 CLASH, THE CLASH CITY ROCKERS $10.00 COALESCE SALT AND PASSAGE $15.00 COCKNEY REJECTS I'M NOT A FOOL $15.00 COCKNEY REJECTS THE GREATEST COCKNEY RIP-OFF $15.00 COCKNEY REJECTS WE CAN DO ANYTHING $10.00 COKE BUST / VACCINE SPLIT $8.00 COLD WORLD / WAR HUNGRY SPLIT $8.00 COLOSSVS CLEANSED IN BLOOD/REBORN IN SIN $10.00 COMA REGALIA / LAEIRS SPLIT $5.00 COMA REGALIA / QUANTIS SPLIT $10.00 CONTROLLED SELF SUFFICE $5.00 CORPS, THE TOUR 2008 $8.00 COUNT ME OUT WHAT WE BUILT $30.00 CRAWLING CHAOS SEX MACHINE $30.00 CREATURES, THE WILD THINGS $15.00 CRIPPLE BASTARDS JAPAN/AUSTRALIA TOUR 2014 $15.00 CRISIS ALERT CRISIS ALERT $10.00 CRUEL HAND CRUEL HAND $10.00 CRUEL HAND VIGILANT CITIZEN $8.00 CURSED EARTH / BURNING SEASON SPLIT $15.00 DAMNED, THE ELOISE $10.00 DANGEROUS TOYS SCARED $5.00 DANSE MACABRE DIE KRITIK IST KEINE LEIDENSCHAFT DES KO $10.00 DARK HORSE / BLACK JESUS SPLIT $5.00 DAVE GOODMAN & FRIENDS JUSTIFIABLE HOMICIDE $10.00 DAVE HAUSE TIME WILL TELL $8.00 DAVE HAUSE PRAY FOR TUCSON: COLOUR $8.00 DAVE HAUSE HEAVY HEART $8.00 DAVE HAUSE RESOLUTIONS: RSD 2012 $15.00 DAVE HAUSE PRAY FOR TUCSON $5.00 DAVE HAUSE C'MON KID $5.00 DEAD / VAZ SPLIT $10.00 DEAD END PATH DEATH WALKS BESIDE US $10.00 DEAD KENNEDYS BLEED FOR ME $20.00 DEAD KENNEDYS KILL THE POOR $20.00 DEAD KENNEDYS TOO DRUNK TO FUCK $20.00 DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR OUR GLORY DAYS $8.00 DECLARATION BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE $8.00 DEFEATER LOST GROUND $15.00 DISGORGE / GORE BEYOND NECROPSY SPLIT $8.00 DISTRACTIONS, THE TIME GOES BY SO SLOW $15.00 DOWNPRESSER AGE OF IGNORANCE $10.00 DOWNPRESSER / CREATURES SPLIT $10.00 DOWNSIDE / LEGIONS SPLIT $10.00 DRAGO MIETTE, THE A SLOW SUMMER DROWNING $5.00 DROPDEAD / UNHOLY GRAVE SPLIT $10.00 DROWNINGMAN HOW THEY LIGHT CIGAREETES IN PRISON $8.00 EL EJE DEL MAL / INQUIRY LAST SCENERY SPLIT $5.00 ELECTRIK DYNAMITE STEEL OF FORTUNE $10.00 END, THE MY CONFESSION / WHITE WORLD $150.00 EXPLOITED, THE COMPUTERS DON'T BLUNDER $15.00 EXPLOITED, THE DEAD CITIES $15.00 EXPLOITED, THE ATTACK / ALTERNATIVE $15.00 FAILURES FAILURES $8.00 FALL, THE THE MAN WHOSE HEAD EXPANDED $30.00 FALL, THE LIE DREAM OF A CASINO SOUL $25.00 FALL, THE LOOK, KNOW $30.00 FINAL EXIT MIDDLE AGED STINKING COWBOYS $5.00 FIRE & ICE GODS & DEVILS $5.00 FIRE & ICE GRIM $5.00 FIRST STEP, THE CONNECTION EP $10.00 FIT FOR ABUSE MINDLESS VIOLENCE EP $15.00 FLEX, THE DO YA THINK I'M FLEXI? $5.00 FLEX, THE DON'T BOTHER WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD $8.00 FRANK RIZZO EXTRACTION $5.00 FRENZAL RHOMB 4 LITRES $10.00 FUCK U IS MY NAME CATELBOW $5.00 GASH GOD IS DEAD $80.00 GAYRILLA BISCUITS HUNG QUEENS CAN SUCK IT EP $15.00 GBH GIVE ME FIRE / MAN-TRAP $15.00 GEHENNA / CALIFORNIA LOVE SPLIT $5.00 GENERAL STRIKE MY BODY $50.00 GENERATION X YOUR GENERATION $15.00 GENERATION X YOUR GENERATION $300.00 GET RAD BASTARDS UNITE $5.00 GET RAD / CALL ME LIGHTING SPLIT $5.00 GLOVE, THE LIKE AN ANIMAL $15.00 GOD'S HATE DIVINE INJUSTICE $10.00 GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN SEATTLE CREW DEMO $10.00 GRAVES FIDES AD NAUSEAM $8.00 HARD-ONS DULL / SRI LANKA $30.00 HARD-ONS WHERE DID SHE COME FROM? / GET OUT OF MY $15.00 HARMS WAY BREEDING GROUNDS $15.00 HI-STANDARD CALIFORNIA DREAMIN' $10.00 HOAX HOAX $8.00 HOLY MOLAR CAVITY SEARCH $8.00 HOSTILE OBJECTS YOUNG GOD $8.00 HOSTILE OBJECTS CAVE IN $8.00 HUMAN LEAGUE, THE EMPIRE STATE HUMAN $10.00 HUMAN LEAGUE, THE BOYS AND GIRLS $10.00 HUMAN LEAGUE, THE HOLIDAY 80 / ROCK 'N' ROLL $8.00 HUMAN LEAGUE, THE FASCINATION $8.00 HURTxUNIT WIRED WRONG $8.00 HURTxUNIT DEMO $8.00 I RISE / SOUL CONTROL SPLIT $5.00 ICEMEN, THE THE ICEMEN $15.00 IDYLLS AMPS FOR GOD / PLAGUE HELL $10.00 ILL BRIGADE THE E.P. $8.00 ILL BRIGADE IN THIS AGE $8.00 IMAGES DREAMS ARE REAL $8.00 INTENT TO INJURE KEEP US STRONG E.P. $10.00 JAMES DEAN ACROSS THE GREAT DIVIDE $8.00 JERRY'S KIDS SPYMASTER $10.00 JOHNNY TEEN & THE BROKEN HEARTS SHE STINKS OF SEX $10.00 JONAH MATRANGA / KEVIN SECONDS JONAH MATRANGA / KEVIN SECONDS $5.00 JUMP VISION CAN'T GET USED TO YOU $30.00 JUNGLE FEVER JUNGLE FEVER! $15.00 KEEP IT CLEAR KEEP IT CLEAR $15.00 KEVIN SECONDS / MIKE HALE SPLIT $5.00 KEVIN SECONDS / MIKE SCOTT SPLIT $6.00 KUNGFU RICK / THE ULTIMATE WARRIORS SPLIT $5.00 LEMON KITTENS SPOONFED + WRITHING $30.00 LEMURIA BRILLIANT DANCER $8.00 LEMURIA VAROOM ALLURE: RSD 2012 $10.00 LEMURIA RACE THE GERM / BIG GOLD ADULTS $15.00 LOCUST, THE FLIGHT OF THE WOUNDED LOCUST $15.00 LOCUST, THE / ARAB ON RADAR SPLIT $15.00 LOGIC SYSTEM DOMINO DANCE / BE YOURSELF: PIC DISC $10.00 LOVE, HOPE AND FEAR FATE'S FROWNED ON US $5.00 MEO 245 SIN CITY $10.00 MILHOUSE EVERYTHING'S COMING UP: REISSUE $8.00 MINOR THREAT LIVE AT BUFF HALL $20.00 MO-DETTES, THE PAINT IT BLACK $15.00 MOMENT / THERE WERE WIRES SPLIT $5.00 MONTE CAZAZZA SOMETHING FOR NOBODY $30.00 MONTE CAZAZZA TO MOM ON MOTHER'S DAY $30.00 MONUMENT A 3 SONG 7" $5.00 MOVING PARTS LIVING CHINA DOLL $15.00 NAYSAYER NO REMORSE: COLOUR $8.00 NAZ NOMAD AND THE NIGHTMARES / A.N.T.S.S HEY BO DIDDLEY / M-A-N $40.00 NEW BRIGADE DEMO 2011 $15.00 NEWTOWN NEUROTICS BLITZKRIEG BOP $15.00 NO ANCHOR THE HISTORY OF THE EAGLES PT. 1 $10.00 NOFX SURFER $10.00 NOFX FUCK THE KIDS $10.00 NOFX THE P.M.R.C. CAN SUCK ON THIS $10.00 NOFX LIZA AND LOUISE: COLOUR $30.00 NOFX TIMMY THE TURTLE: COLOUR $20.00 NOFX LOUISE AND LIZA: COLOUR $15.00 NUCLEAR SUMMER / STOCKADES SPLIT $5.00 OF FEATHER AND BONE / REPROACHER SPLIT $5.00 ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK ENOLA GAY $10.00 OUT CROWD JUST US $8.00 OUTSIDERS CODE DEMO $5.00 PALAIS SCHAUMBURG TELEPHON / KINDER DER TOD $50.00 PARADES END PARADES END $10.00 PEACEBREAKERS EVERY DAY BATTLE $5.00 PENETRATION FIRING SQUAD $15.00 PETER & THE TEST TUBE BABIES KEY TO THE CITY $15.00 PHANTOMS S.O.S. $15.00 PLAGUES PERFECT STATE $5.00 POPULAR MECHANICS FROM HERE TO OBSCURITY $60.00 POSTBLUE LAP YEAR $10.00 PRODUCT OF WASTE GOOD AND EVIL $10.00 PROGRESSION CULT NEW BLOOD EP $50.00 PSYCHEDELIC FURS, THE WE LOVE YOU $8.00 PSYCHOTIC MANIACS A TRIBE OF MELBOURNE $40.00 PUBLIC IMAGE LTD. PUBLIC IMAGE $15.00 PUBLIC IMAGE LTD. BAD LIFE $10.00 RACEBANNON CLUBBER LANG $5.00 RACOON CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT / TIRED MI SPLIT $5.00 RANCID RADIO RADIO RADIO $10.00 REJEX NIAGARA BABY $250.00 RICH KIDS RICH KIDS $10.00 RIVERDALES BLOOD ON THE ICE / NO SENSE $15.00 R'N'R I'VE HAD IT / YOUR RULES $5.00 R'N'R / A-TEAM SPLIT $5.00 R'N'R / FIT FOR ABUSE SPLIT $6.00 ROCK BOTTOM BORN II HATE $5.00 ROCK BOTTOM YOUR DEMISE $8.00 RUDE AWAKENING THE AWAKENING $8.00 RUKUS RUKUS $10.00 SADDEST LANDSCAPE, THE COVER YOUR HEART $10.00 SAINTS, THE KNOW YOUR PRODUCT $30.00 SCAPAFLOW ENDLESS SLEEP / THE END $30.00 SECTOR 27 NOT READY $8.00 SETUP, THE / WOW, OWLS! THE SETUP VS. WOW, OWLS! $5.00 SEX GANG CHILDREN INTO THE ABYSS $15.00 SFO / WHITE MALE DUMBINANCE SPLIT $8.00 SHEER MAG SHEER MAG III $8.00 SHIPWRECKED ARCTIC NIGHTS $15.00 SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ISRAEL $10.00 SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES THE STAIRCASE (MYSTERY) $15.00 SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES PLAYGROUND TWIST $15.00 SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES SPELLBOUND $15.00 SLAPSHOT EVERYTHING WANTS TO KILL YOU $30.00 SLAPSHOT LIMITED TOUR EDITION 2012 $20.00 SMIRKS, THE ROSEMARY $10.00 SNATCH I.R.T. / STANLEY $10.00 SNUFF LONG BALL TO NO-ONE $8.00 SOUL SEARCH NOTHING BUT A NIGHTMARE $15.00 SOUL SEARCH / MINUS SPLIT $10.00 STARVATION / NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT SPLIT $8.00 STEP FORWARD STEP FORWARD $8.00 STEVE DIGGLE 50 YEARS OF COMPARATIVE WEALTH E.P. $15.00 STIFF LITTLE FINGERS GOTTA GETTAWAY $15.00 STIGMATA THERE IS NO MERCY HERE $8.00 STINKY TOYS BOOZY CREED / DRIVER BLUES $20.00 STRAFE FUR REBELLION MOSCHE BILDT NJET $10.00 STRESS RELIEF FEELINGS OF EXPIRATION $8.00 SURVIVAL SURVIVAL $6.00 SWELLERS, THE WELCOME BACK RIDERS $10.00 TACTICS COALFACE $10.00 TACTICS LONG WEEKEND $500.00 TEN YARD FIGHT DEMO 1995 $10.00 TERRITORY BLOWBACK $8.00 THICK SKIN WOLF $5.00 TILLER BOYS, THE BIG NOISE FROM THE JUNGLE $15.00 TILT GUN PLAY $8.00 TIMBER TIMBER $5.00 TONY SLY / JOEY CAPE SPLIT $20.00 TOUCHE AMORE LIVE ON BBC RADIO 1 $10.00 TRANSISTOR TRANSISTOR / MANNEQUIN SPLIT $5.00 TRUE COLOURS CONSIDER IT DONE $10.00 TSK TSK TSK NICE NOISE $100.00 TURNSTILE PRESSURE TO SUCCEED $10.00 UN QUARTO MORTO AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2010 $10.00 UNBROKEN AND / FALL ON PROVERB $10.00 UNDERDOG UNDERDOG $10.00 UNDERTONES, THE GET OVER YOU $10.00 UNIFORM CHOICE 1982 ORANGE PEEL SESSIONS $10.00 URNS URNS $8.00 VACCINE DEAD INSIDE $5.00 VANILLA CHAINSAWS LIKE YOU $10.00 VARIOUS VERY COOL & VERY CORE $8.00 VARIOUS THE EXTERMINATION $10.00 VARIOUS SICK OF THINGS THE WAY THEY ARE $6.00 VARIOUS FREE HARD VINYL EP! $5.00 VARIOUS READ ARMY FACTION $10.00 VARIOUS THE ICEMEN COMETH $10.00 VARIOUS ABSOLUTES NEW ENGLAND HARDCORE COMPILA $10.00 VIOLENCE TO FADE TUG OF WAR $8.00 VIOLENT CHILDREN ROCK AGAINST SPINDLERS $15.00 VIOLENT CHILDREN VIOLENT CHILDREN $20.00 VIOLENT FUTURE VIOLENT FUTURE $10.00 VIOLENT FUTURE VIOLENT FUTURE $10.00 VIOLENT MINDS VIOLENT MINDS $5.00 VIOLENT REACTION VIOLENT REACTION $10.00 VIOLENT REACTION DEAD END E.P. $15.00 VULTEES KICK IT OUT $10.00 VVEGAS/ABRAXIS SPLIT: GREEN $8.00 WAR HUNGRY RETURN TO EARTH $5.00 WARBRAIN PARANOIA $10.00 WARBRAIN / MINUS SPLIT $10.00 WASTE MANAGEMENT POWER ABUSE $8.00 WASTED YOUTH JEALOUSY $15.00 WEAR YOUR WOUNDS / REVELATOR WEAR YOUR WOUNDS / REVELATOR $10.00 WHITE LUNG BLOW IT SOUTH $10.00 YACHTS THERE'S A GHOST IN MY HOUSE $10.00 YOUNG OFFENDERS BIG MAN, SMALL HOUSE $5.00

#beatdiscpreownedvinyl

[umichenginabroad]

La Cataratas de Iguazú

This weekend brought the first side trip as a group which took a lot of coordinating for our large group of eleven. Being that this is only our second week in Buenos Aires we had to plan quickly. After meeting up in the beginning of the week, our travels plans were set: we’d leave Friday night and return Sunday afternoon. This allowed us to get a full day of seeing the falls from the Argentinian side. As of right now U.S. citizens need a visa to enter Brazil and to save the time and money it takes to get one, we decided to just see the Argentina side.

When we arrived in Buenos Aires, we flew into EZE (the international airport) which was far away from the city. But for this trip, we flew out of AEP – the local airport for domestic flights right off the coast of the city.

Sunset behind the city as our taxi driver took us to the airport

Gang gang on the plane plane!

The flight itself was only about an hour and 45 minutes so it was nice and short (the perfect amount of time for a nap). After arriving at the airport in Puerto Iguazú we got taxis to take us to our Airbnb. After going out for a quick bite to eat, we went to bed so we wouldn’t be too tired for our early start the next morning.

My ticket for the park (don’t worry its in pesos)

The train that took us around the park

Our first stop in the park brought us to the farthest station called the Devil’s Throat which is the main lookout point tourists go to. Throughout my research, this is the spot that gets the most crowded, so we went here first.

The super high water levels that day

Devil’s Throat lookout

Due to a few days of rain and thunderstorms beforehand, the water levels were super high and upon returning home, our host family wondered if the park was even open. Luckily for us, it was and we got to walk all around. Most of the park was paved trails so the “hiking trails” were really just the walking paths.

Before getting on the train back down, I decided to open some crackers I got because I was a little hungry and knew we wouldn’t be eating for a while. However, Iguazú is home to these animals called Coaties that sense when food is near. Even before I pulled one out to eat, they had found me.

Two coaties ^^

Now I thought they were kind of cute, but there were a lot of signs around the park warning people to be careful because they have been known to bite and scratch for food.

They even had caged areas for people to go inside when they wanted to eat so that the coaties weren’t able to get to them! Cage the people instead of the animals – oh the irony.

ALSO, they had monkeys!!! I’ve never seen a monkey in the wilderness so when I saw signs saying beware of them so I was really hoping they’d cross our path-and cross our path they did! While walking along the lower trail we passed under a lot of foliage and one area had monkeys swinging about!

Monkey business

Walking along the lower trail

The lower trail gave breathtaking views of the falls from a few different angles and from afar. Despite the fact that the devil’s throat is the main lookout point, I enjoyed the views from this trail far more. Since it had rained so much the previous days, the Devil’s throat was the waterfalls and big clouds of mist that covered some of the view whereas this path let us see the vast majority of a chunk of the falls. For reference the falls are taller and wider than Niagara Falls so these images only show what can be seen at different parts (although I believe you can see them all from the Brazil side).

At the end of the lower path, we were brought to a portion of the wooden walkway where we would run out and get as close as we could to the falls and got drenched in the process. I put my camera in a plastic bag, my raincoat over my drawstring bag, and braced myself for the worst.

The aftermath

Despite getting soaking wet and having to dry throughout the rest of the walk around the park (and dinner when we got back to town), I’d have to say that this was one of my favorite parts of the park. There’s nothing like throwing all care to the wind and taking a quick rinse with a bit of Earth’s finest waterfalls!

A few pictures from the upper trail!

The upper trail offered a different vantage point on the falls as we walked on top of the flowing water and observed it fall into the river below. The path back took us through a weave of trees and clearings with water to get back to the main site where the train could take us back to the visitor’s center.

Group pic in front of the park sign!

After a long day in the park we went back to our Airbnb and just hung out for the rest of the night a made some dinner for ourselves (a delicacy in and of itself since we can’t actually cook in our homestays).

The next morning consisted of getting back to the airport and flying back home to Buenos Aires. Since Puerto Iguazú is such a small town, it also consists of a pretty small airport with most of the flights just heading back to Buenos Aires.

Walking from the tarmac and onto the plane in style – the only way we know how.

We also had a partially empty plane, so we got to spread out and move around on the way back for optimum comfort.

I’d highly recommend Iguazú Falls for anyone travelling to Argentina – they beat Niagara hands down. Everyone had a great time and. I’m excited for the next side trip. We’re currently in the middle of planning a four-day trip to Salta!!

See ya later!

~~~~~~~~~~

Larissa Wermers

Mechanical Engineering

Engineering in Buenos Aires, Argentina

[clearlybeardedcheckplease]

NurseyDex Friendship

Ok, I love these two as mushy saps but that’s unrealistic, so what’s the part of their relationship outside of fighting, roasts, and lovey dovey gross shit.

It starts when Nursey goes stiff in one of the classes they take. At this point they still don’t really get along, but Dex can’t fight someone who won’t fight back, and someone so collected as Nursey being thrown off, it’s bad

So Dex switches seats with the LAX bro next to him in exchange for a slice of pie, since people are defensive over their seats.

Nursey notices, and as soon as Chad leaves, Dex immediately is like, “What The Literal Fuck Happened and Do I Need To Fight Someone.”

Nursey is actually alright it’s just that he’s bad at the subject and he gets ye olde Anxiety so Dex is like, I will mcfucking tutor you I just can’t take you acting like this please let me help

Nursey is reluctant because he isn’t one for being helped, but he’d like to stay on the team, and Dex is pretty smart in his own right, not to mention he has an insane work ethic.

So then they start to tutor each other for varying subjects, not without chirping, but now Dex can roast Nursey without the guilt of him being unokay

So moving foward from mutual respect and stuff, the tutoring is what brings them down a bit from arguing to friendly anger/ roasts/ arguments.  It’s also how they become casual, asking about each other’s day

But they’re still not friends, so how?

Well Chowder is still a mutual friend they love, and he’s such a good guy, and so energetic,but sometimes people who are so outgoing can be too much for others and in comes Under Cover Chowder Defense League so like, this is where they start casually texting outside of important shit, this includes a pie blacklist if they overhear any shit being talked, roasts of any new blacklist member, and just sharing their mutual love of Chowder this could totally be the start of polyfrogs getting together

The UCCDL becomes a group chat with Bitty, half the volleyball team, and Tango

But sometimes they’d just bitch about people when this first became a thing and the league chat is not the place, so this where they start to be  casual friends, great when together, and they def talk, but don’t necessarily seek each other out

So again more how

The answer, Haus Game Night, all d man pairs and liney pairs must be a team.  Ollie and Wicks are drift compatible ass kickers at Mario Party

Ransom and Holster will kick your ass at Mario Kart

Bitty and Jack run a mean just dance duo

Chowder and Lardo pair together since they have no one to latch on to, and well, board games are banned, but cards aren’t. yet. Don’t challenge their card game skills

And nursey and dex literally must compete the fuck together, so their new goal, FUCK UP EVERYONE. Which would be hard, if they both weren’t dirty players, which they are

They end up being great at kareoke, and lip sync battles, since Nursey is artsy fartsy, but Dex has EMOTION (Carly Rae Jepsen 2015), so they work well together

Holster stops Ransom to be like, bro why can’t we sing like that to each other.  Why don’t you sing with me?

Ransom probs said, Bro if I sing with you then I don’t get to focus on your beautiful voice.

During Haus Game Night they get to be strong casual friends, so how do we hit BFF Mode

It’s summer and Nursey doesn’t really feel like hanging out with old friends, so he sometimes drives to Buffalo to see Holster(They are friends and he canonically respects Holtzy ok)

But halfway through summer Holster leaves for The Falls to be with the bro of his life Ransom

And Holster is just like, go see Dex why not, and so He and Dex coordinate a way to hang out

Dex is Near Like Eddington (Shout Out, You know who you are)

The Halfway point that I was given was Andover. And I’m sorry but um, WTF my laptop knew ok

So yea, Andover becomes their Niagara Falls.

Which is hilarious because at one point Shitty is like, you don’t know what those assholes were like sweet sweet Dexy

To which him and Nursey chuckle

When they get back they connect even better on ice, and Holster feels so goddamn proud

Unfortunately now if Nursey is about to get checked REAL hard and Dx is close enough he will literally take it.  He is practising with Bitty to get faster because he will help keep pucks away from Chowder, and people off of Nursey so help him

Nursey gets really good at knowing when he’s about to get checked and also starts to try to one up his speed so he can show Dex he can get himself out of the way in time, seriously STOP IT

But he’s touched, on the inside

They balance each other, when Dex needs to chill, when Nursey needs to FEEL, 

When Dex needs to dream more, and Nursey needs to pull his head out of his ass.  

When they both need to check each other’s privilege. 

Nursey who has learned to be tactful and careful and cautious, and Dex who cuts to the chase. 

Dex who gives in actions and time like it’s nothing, and Nursey who gives physical affection and random small gifts, who doesn’t share his heartfelt poetry lightly but shares with Dex

They share childhood movies, and stories, Dex will send Nursey photos of things he’s fixed or built when he’s proud, Nursey sends pics of his poetry, albeit it’s hard to read since Nursey totes writes small guys

The two roast each other’s music taste, but will always have the other dj for them

During family weekend Nursey’s parents can’t come down because they need to be in town waiting for a client to get in, so he’s just going to go

But then Dex’s family can’t come, so Nursey takes Dex home to cheer him up to keep him company in case his moms are way busier than they said since that always happens

No one says anything about it when they get back because they know it bummed Dex and Nursey out, and really this is good for them

But Dex loved Nursey’s moms, and loved New York, and Nursey really loved showing him all the things he never got to show anyone else, not the kids at Andover, not the prep school kids he was with before that, not even the rest of the team, not even girlfriends or boyfriends.  Nursey has never had a chance to bring people into his home, into his life so fully, to have them help him, and know when he’s upset, and know his coffee order

Nursey starts the Dex poetry at this point, but it really is platonic

Also yes, fanon change, Dex meets Nursey’s family first

After Hausgiving when everyone goes home for actual Thanksgiving Nursey’s moms are out of town, so Dex takes him home

The Poindexters love Nursey. Dex canonically has one brother, but ALL  the nearby family comes by, regardless of how extended it is. Everyone brings in spouses or BFFs or just friends without a home to go to, it’s super normal.

Nursey and Dex become each others best friends, by senior year they are Ransom and Holster level. They show Hockey Shit to people, but they have their own shit Bylaws and Crap.

Best Friend Sundaes come back, but they are a three way between Chowder, Nursey, and Dex

So really, if you ship NurseyDex and stuff, this kind of leads up to it, so really it’s not unsurprising/ borderline concerning.  They can still argue, and roast and chirp, but there has to be something to take the true bite out of their words so they can really love in a healthy manner, the crushing could start earlier in the timeline and all, but like love is also friendship, and most fics don’t focus on them being friends, now I love them being in love, but I’m selfish and want both so here, both.

[mistressemmedi]

NECKGATE 1.5

SIT DOWN AND GET READY FOR THIS ROLLERCOASTER RIDE FILLED WITH THICK SWEATY NECKS.

REMEMBER TO HYDRATE ALL THROUGHOUT THIS POST, BECAUSE ONCE I’M DONE WITH Y’ALL, NIAGARA FALLS IN YO PANTIES WILL BE HAPPENING.

LET’S START OFF WITH SWEET BABY PASCAL:

AIN’T SO SWEET NOW. GOTTA ADMIRE HIS EFFORTS BUT HE GOTTA STOP HIDING THAT NECK OF HIS. Neck quality: 5/10

NEXT UP, WE GOT ROMAIN:

EVERY DAMN TIME I SEE A PICTURE OF HIM, HE’S LOOKING MORE AND MORE LIKE THE DUDE FROM RATATOUILLE. ALSO, WTF IS THAT SMALL BREADSTICK OF A NECK. FAM, IT GONNA SNAP OFF WITH THE NEW CARS Neck quality: 3/10

NEXT UP, PASTY ENGLISH BOY AKA JOLYON:

WHERE’S THE NECK JO? OF THE LOVE OF GOD, STOP LOOKING LIKE YOU’RE ALWAYS IN THE MIDDLE OF A MIDLIFE CRISIS. Neck quality: 4/10 Hairy legs quality: 11/10

NEXT UP, DANISH PASTRY AKA KEVIN:

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PICTURE THAT MAKES ME WANNA SCREAM AT KEVIN “DO YOU EVEN LIFT BRO?”. ALSO, IS HE DECIDING ON THE BACK-SPLASH FOR HIS KITCHEN? WHAT’S WITH THE TILES ON THE FLOOR??? Neck quality: 6/10

NEXT UP, MODERN SENNA AKA LEWIS:

HE IS TOO COOL TO POST WORK OUT PICS WITH QUALITY NECK, BUT I LIKED THIS ONE AND HIS STARE THAT SCREAMS “Girl, Imma toss you around like a well done calzone” Neck quality: 7/10

FOLLOWING LEWIS, WE GOT BABY CHURRO

LISTEN, THERE ISN’T EVEN THAT MUCH NECK, I JUST WANTED A FUCKING EXCUSE TO POST THIS ONE AGAIN. I’D WORSHIP THE SHIT OUT OF THOSE ABS. HOLY SHIT, I FOUND A NEW RELIGION AND IT’S CARLOS’ BODY. Neck quality 11/10 (LIKE THE REST OF HIM)

NEXT UP, MY FAVORITE NICO:

WHERE’S THERE’S A PICTURE OF HULKIE WORKING OUT, YOU BET YOUR ASS THERE IS A SCREAMING MAY. WHAT A FUCKING MASTERPIECE THIS MAN IS. A+ GRADE FUCKBOY, A MARSHMALLOW INSIDE. I’M GONNA CENSOR MYSELF HERE OTHERWISE THIS POST GONNA BE FOREVER LONG. Neck quality: 10/10

SINCE I AM DOING ALL 2017 DRIVERS, NEXT UP IS LANCE:

IS THIS AN AD FOR BAYWATCH? OR SIMPLY WHAT THE LIFE OF A YOUNG MILLIONAIRE LOOKS LIKE? IN ANY CASE, JOLYON HAS SOME COMPETITION IN THE HAIRY LEGS DEPARTMENT Neck quality: 6/10 (he’s got time to grow it out)

NEXT UP, OUR FAVORITE FINN:

LOOK AT HIM. IN THE COLD, TRAINING SO HARD FOR THAT SEAT AT MERCEDES AND STILL LOOKING LIKE AN ANGEL. FUCKING HELL, ROCKY BALBOA HAS NOTHING ON VALTTERI. I ADORE HIM, LET ME LIVE. Neck quality: 8/10

LITTLE VERSTAPPEN UP NEXT:

LISTEN, QUALITY NECK HERE, BUT THAT FACE? HE LOOKS LIKE A WEEK LONG CONSTIPATED MAN WHO IS FOCUSING ON HIS UPCOMING BATTLE AGAINST THE TOILET. Neck quality: 9/10 (point deducted for the face)

NEXT UP, FERNANDOOOO:

NO WORDS NEEDED. FUCK ME UP ‘NANDO. JUST DO IT. Neck quality: 10/10

UP NEXT, DAN THE MAN:

LISTEN, THE MAN HAS BEEN TRAINING HARD, HE DESERVES TO PICTURES. ALSO, MY NETHER REGIONS ARE ARE SOAKED AS HE IS IN THE LAST PICTURE. JUST AN FYI. Neck quality: 10/10

LASTLY (saving the best for last) OUR FAVORITE BELGIAN WAFFLE:

WORK OF ART. MASTERPIECE. PERFECT. I DON’T NEED TO ADD ANYTHING MORE. Neck quality: ALL THE DAMN AWARDS.

SO THAT’S IT KIDS, TUNE IN SOON FOR MORE NECKS AND MORE SCREAMING FROM YOUR FAVORITE PERV.

I HOPE Y’ALL FEEL BETTER.

[annamcnuff]

Falltum In America’s Rust Belt

Is it fall? Is it autumn? Don’t be silly, it’s Falltum. Considering my present affection for both sides of the pond, I’ve made a UK-US seasonal term compromise, and hereby introduce: Falltum. Gosh I’m diplomatic. Someone make me Pres-Minister already.

Passing through through Indiana, Ohio and Northern Pennsylvania during Falltum is a delight. It’s like the trees are having a party (not in their pants) and everyone’s invited. Well except the Evergreens. They, evidently, missed the memo. And remain stubbornly clad in their verdurous robes as surrounding neighbours partake in a slow summer-end striptease. Of course we have turning leaves in the UK, but nothing quite like the US. In the US, trees pop. They erupt. They explode in a multitude of colours, the likes of which I’ve just never seen before in shrub form. It’s stunning at best, and intriguing at worst. Fall in the North-East US is one thing about which you should definitely believe the hype.

So, aye, it’s cold. Aye, I have to check the weather on an hourly basis and dabble in days of rain and wind. But who gives a Badger’s nadger about that when there’s a chance you’ll get blue skies and sights like the below? Not I, for one.

LOU ANN, THE STORYTELLER

In the midst of my Falltum tour, I came across a profile on cycle hosting website Warm Showers which (in part) read: “... I live in a hundred year old house in a lovely mid-western town. I am a writer and a story teller, hang my laundry out in my garden!… Folks are often found sitting round in my living room listening to music and telling stories. ”

Well. Isn’t that the profile of a woman you simply have to meet? I thought so. Luckily I was in town on the one night that Lou Ann could actually host a vagabond. When I arrived there was no one about, but a kindly neighbour showed me indoors and I texted to notify her that there was now a Lycra clad stranger in her living room. A reply came quickly back - “Am out galavanting. Back soon”. Marvellous. I think the world would be a far better place if people galavanted just a little more, or in fact at all. I for one, plan to galavant much more on my return to the UK. Life’s just to short not to.

Her house is a marvel in itself. Brimming with trinkets, theatre posters, instruments and photos - it is a ‘real’ home. One that’s an extension of the owner’s personality. Enough with the minimalist, clean surfaced, clinical spaces, I say, give me a cosy cave any day. There was even a 'welcome wall’ with quotes an signatures from previous guests - Something that made me feel as if I were creating a little piece of history, just by crossing the threshold.

Once Lou Ann returned, we got to chatting. And I slowly pieced together the rich tapestry that is her life. With each paragraph came a new activity, passion or contribution to the local community. She’s a storyteller by trade (a rare art), and when not touring the country, spends summers on Oracoke Island - off the coast of Virginia, telling ghost tales of the legendary Black Beard, who sunk nearby. She’s also a professor at the local university, writes and performs community plays, hosts seasonal and themed parties in her living room and contributes a weekly column for Northern Indiana newspapers. To further warm your heart, she rides her shiny Trek bike (a Mother’s day present) everywhere around town, and is perplexed by those who don’t use two wheels instead of four “I did 12 errands on my bike today. It just makes good sense. I don’t know what it is about being on a bike - that feeling you get. I can’t quite describe it…”

Lou Ann is a gem, and one of life’s true characters. As a friend of mine recently wrote, no matter how abrupt and transient our modern day Tweet/Facebook/Email exchanges become - there’s always space and indeed a human need for a really good story. It’s food for the soul, and at this - Lou Ann is a Masterchef.

NIAGARA FALLS

This wasn’t my first meeting with Lady Niagara. I was lucky enough to visit the falls as part of a Toronto school netball tour, at the tender age of 16. Experience tells me that American readers aren’t familiar with netball. It’s like basketball, but you don’t move. Yes it’s silly, but were really rather good at it. This time, things were different. This time, I wasn’t dressed in 'shants’ (why? Just why?), nor was I listening to, and achingly sympathising with the plight of Blink 182. No, no this time - I was making my Niagara assault from the US of A.

I cannie lie to you all, visiting Niagra from the US side isn’t especially scenic, and that’s putting it kindly. The only way for me to describe it is as … Industrial. I was working my way across what is affectionately known as 'The Rust Belt’ after all. Comprised a of towns and cities that formed the backbone of the 19th century engineering boom - Like Detroit, Michigan (once an automotive hub, now a shell of its former self) and Gary, Indiana (contender for scariest place on earth to ride a bicycle). Henry Ford produced the first Model T on this belt and the cities within it were the greatest casualties when the US economic depression hit in 1929.

But let us not judge Niagara by her rusty surroundings. She is a rose amongst thorns. And no matter how many people tell you that the US side isn’t worth a detour, it’s nothing short of spectacular.

Of course, I’m not the only daredevil to make it to Niagara. I’m not a daredevil at all, it seems, when you consider the Niagara thrill seekers of the 20th century. Many of whom decided that encasing oneself in a barrel and throwing oneself into a watery abyss was a good way to pass some time. Evidently there was nothing good on tele that weekend (probably in-between Made in Chelsea seasons). Sixty-three year old Annie Edison Taylor was the first to take the perilous plunge in 1901. She was followed by a succession of others, in barrels, kayaks, or just… diving in. Predictably, many perished, like George Stathakis - although you’ll be pleased to know that the 105 year old pet turtle he took in the barrel with him made it out alive (quite suspicious - I smell a murderous turtle with blood on its… paws).

STATE 25

I’ll confess my week on the rust belt has been a bit of beast, averaging 90 - 110 mile days for the most part to take advantage of good weather and the flat plains. I’m now steaming across the rest of upstate New York, hitting substantially more hills and gearing up to cross into state number 25 tomorrow - Vermont. If we could all pray for the weather Gods to hang on to their winter motherloads for a few more days until I make Maine, I’d be much obliged.

Pics are up on Flickr again, so get your Falltum fill here

See you all next weekend then, once I’ve hit the Atlantic coast, and Maine - gulp!