#pragmatist bee

[the-unaligned-player]

Chapter -1: Load

Ava: Outcast student raised in a local orphanage. More feared than loathed for mental instability. Haunted all life by a hostile ghost. Depression hides melting anger. Anger is offset by a desire to help and be loved. Going through school life.

Dream: Former sheriff in a wretched hive. Overthrown for existing, and only not killed because he has information that is wanted. Ruthless to the point of Amorality. Responsible to the point of Selflessness. Protective to the point of Taunting. Stuck in a torture box prison.

Hazou: Newblood foreign noble head in a military oligarchy. Hated and mistrusted because he’s foreign, he’s very unstable, and he considers civilians to be people whose lives have value. Only not killed because his home doesn’t want to set a precedent, and his adopted father was the Military Dictator before he died. Analytical tendencies. Impulsive tendencies. Benevolent tendencies. Amoral tendencies. Socialist tendencies. Capitalist tendencies. In his territory managing his people and projects.

Edelgard: Heir apparent to the throne of a major empire. Headstrong firebrand. Torture-induced childhood amnesia. Planning War. Short lifespan. Hates nepotism. Hates government censorship. An advocate of meritocracy. In a military academy for nobles.

Una: A Doll through which the will of The Forge and The Lantern are enacted.

Punz: Career mercenary in a wretched hive. Loyalty beyond sanity. Incredible cynicism. Patient. Heart of light. Hanging out on his bee farm as he’s bereft of active contracts.

Wrathia: Ghost queen of a long-dead empire. Incredible bitch. Extremely proud. Hair-trigger temper. Manipulative liar. Willing to give up everything for her people. Stuck with the child she reincarnated into.

Hubert: Loyal servant of Edelgard Von Hresvelg. Casually creepy. Loyal beyond sanity. Murder is okay. Schadenfreude. In a military academy for nobles.

Akane: Lowborn consort of a foreign newblood noble. Ball of sunshine. Incredibly empathetic. Loyal to a fault. Believes in nothing. Wants to believe in something. Wants to be someone who believes in something. Improving the morale of her territories people.

Bia: A Doll that expresses its Wolf-like will through its every action.

Ami: Social prodigy from a clan of cold advisors. Attachment avoidant. Hedonistic. Shit starter. Fast talker. Well-versed in coercion and manipulation. Confused by genuine affection and cooperation. Hates to be bound. Loves her little sister. Galavanting about Hazou’s country and getting her hooks into the new land.

Technoblade: Anarchist terrorist from The Nine Hells. Deadpan. Utterly dedicated to the cause. Wary of being used. Hates systems first, people second. Thanatophobic. Irreverent. Training and relaxing in his tundra home.

Maggie: Desperate student raised in a local orphanage. Compulsive liar. Desperate for affection. Haunted by a longing ghost. Dangerously impulsive. Murderously vindictive. Doesn’t quite “get” love. Going through school life.

Claude: Burning star in a court of knives. Noble with a foreign mother. Affable jokester. Killer pragmatist. Seeks the truth. Hates racism. Knows when to fold 'em. Can’t understand not knowing when to fold 'em. In a military academy for nobles.

[REDACTED]: A Doll that simply wishes to know the joy of life.

[the-pragmatist]

Surprise show of a mystery character.

[firstginger]

I'm not familiar with this website, sorry. I feel like I'm barging onto a stage mid-concert. I'm asking for daemon form suggestions. My daemon's name is Paskel, rhymes with rascal. I'm introverted. I enjoy spending time with people I trust because I can act naturally. The general human population confuses me, and it takes energy to make sure all my words and actions won't be taken as being overly blunt. I'm creative. I like to come up with stories and draw. 1/4

I can come up with outside the box solutions to problems. I'm curious. I like knowing how things work. I detest being given "just because" as an answer. Everything has a reason behind it and it's so much easier for me to understand things if I know why it is that way. I'm loyal to my friends and parents. I'm not good at making new friends so I'm rather determined to keep the ones I have. Losing everyone and being completely alone is a worst-case scenario for me. 2/4

I'm passive. I don't like people looking at me and I don't stick my neck out unless it directly affects me or someone I care about. I have no problem letting other people make most of the decisions. Humor is my defense mechanism. You can bet I'm always the one cracking a joke in the middle of a depressing conversation or if I'm embarrassed. My Myers-Briggs type is solidly INTP-T. On Enneagram, I 98% match with type 5 and 95% match with type 9. I'm looking for a starting point 3/4

whether that's a specific species or not. Only preference is that I'm scared of house cats and bees and I'd rather not have one in my mind. Also I have a few questions about daemon gender. Is it something that will settle with time? Does it mean anything? Right now Paskel is male, but sometimes he's female and sometimes he doesn't have a gender. I'm a trans guy and I'm not sure if that's affecting it. Thank you so much for any help you can give. 4/4

you sound incredibly INTP! between enneagram 9 and 5 (9s often misidentify themselves as 5s too, i think less so than vice versa?), think primarily about level of detail: enneagram 5s are detail-oriented and become very focused on the thing that interests them, while enneagram 9s, while still profound, are typically more imaginative, idealistic, and generalists. they’re less focused on consequences and tend to be more nonjudgmental than 5s. in short, enneagram 9 is the dreamer while enneagram 5 is the pragmatist.

with your daemon’s gender, honestly i toss that out the window. the source material was written with little consideration for gender theory and some indication that gay people would have a same-sex daemon. this of course introduces questions about bi and pansexuality, and moreover if someone is trans does their daemon transition, or if they’re agender or genderfluid what does that mean for their daemon’s gender. in short i find the opposite sex thing to be a bit archaic and for people to just call their daemon whatever gender they want! they’re manifestations of the soul after all, and can really go by whatever pronouns you feel is good for them.

when we’re talking about human social behavior, i tend to think it’s more relevant to know how much one depends on their friends versus whether one has friends (not having any social support in humans is very detrimental and i would argue a sign of an unhealthy individual; it would really skew typing to only type unhealthily isolated people as extremely solitary animals). you say you’re loyal to your friends, but do you find yourself in frequent need of their company, emotional support, or physical support? do you do most of your projects independently, or do you appreciate assistance or need encouragement to see things through?

i think eupleridaes strike a good balance between your introversion and passivity, and your social tolerance and loyalty. in particular i was looking at species such as the ring-tailed mongoose, malagasy civet, and grandidier's mongoose. all of these species are going to be socially tolerant and attached to a specific group, but have a need to recharge alone. they’re all solitary hunters, which i would expect indicates that you have a private inner world and most prefer pursuing your goals alone. guarded and polite people, definitely more passive and not prone to conflict. considering they all have a very restricted habitat, i’d consider all of these species more habitual and not inclined towards change or spontaneity. in a few short words, the ring-tailed mongoose would be a capable and efficient person within their niche, humorous and playful, and happy to be together with others or alone; the malagasy civet would be more introverted but still passive and polite, a private person who plans ahead; and the grandidier’s mongoose someone who is intensely loyal, and more interested in new experiences and capable of being adaptable so long as they have their companions.

as far as birds go, i was thinking that frogmouths might be a good option for you. these species are going to be intensely loyal to their loved ones, but not so much interested in making new friends and have boundaries they don’t like strangers to cross. very and patient people, not terribly ambitious and prefer to let opportunities come to them. so, so dedicated and caring to their friends and family; they get expressive around those they love, while they tend to be quiet otherwise. the tawny frogmouth is going to be pretty stereotypical of this; the marbled frogmouth more shy, private, and conflict-averse; and the sri lanka frogmouth very passive, avoids attention, and often can be doormattish.

you said you were scared of house cats so i won’t go into too much detail in this section unless requested, but i could also see some smaller and more social breeds of felinaes for you... though usually i’d associate them more with INTJ, in particular i was thinking the jaguarundi (socially tolerant but also retains an essential degree of privacy, very passive and unassertive and tactful, cautious and intuitive and looks before they leap). the serval also came to mind, but i think is too private and not loyal enough for you.

and finally, if you’re open to an unconventional daemon, i just have to suggest the seahorse. these people would live very much in their own heads but like to be around those they’re close to, are generally very easy-going and cooperative, and tend to be rather passive people who are just happy to go with the flow and do what the group wants. ultimately very socially aware and group-bonding, but not pushy and tend to be on the anxious side. incredibly observant, watchful, and good at planning ahead and being opportune, but not the type to be spontaneous at all. they come in a delightful array of species with small distinctions, such as the lined seahorse being someone more adaptable, and the cape seahorse being someone much more shy.

[maevelin]

Episode 1x06 

1. Such an opening scene! 

And Klaus remembering Dave and throwing away the drugs in the toilet. OMG!

And the reason for Klaus wanting to get sober! MY HEART!

“His name was Dave...”

And my baby loved so much and so hard that fought to the first line only to lose the one he loved...he is a war hero that lost his love...Dave died in his hands...and for him it must be so raw and so soon...and now the world is ending and all he wants is to see Dave again...only that...I JUST FEEL THINKS OKAY?

Klaus’ story with Dave was so pure and beautiful. And tragic. Why? Why did it have to be tragic? I can’t take this anymore. This type of storytelling always seems to end in one endgame and it is always death and pain and I am sick of it. And especially in Klaus’ case it just...I can’t! Okay? I CANNOT!

And I know I am generally allergic to fluff but in this case...why couldn’t we get the rainbows and the unicorns and the puppies? WHY?

And then Klaus finally saw Dave again...and the timeline was erased...I just...

2. I just love Diego’s and Klaus’ scenes! Seriously and I am soaking them up like a sponge! And the fact that Klaus turned to Diego for help!

They can be funny and sad at the same time. 

It was so sad that only Ben could see him struggling with his withdrawal symptoms. 

But then Diego stepped up...out of all his siblings he is the one that is there for Klaus. He makes it seem as if he is annoyed but it is such a brotherly thing to do. And truly Diego feels that he has let his mom and Eudora down but he is not letting Klaus down too and that gets me! He truly cares. It just gets me! Precious baby!

And in return...Klaus needs to ...pee LMFAO! 

I also love Diego’s scenes with his mom. She is definitely feeling things. I would like to see more of that.

Pogo is annoying me to be honest. Supposedly he cares and is wise and is there for the siblings and is a better father figure but no...he is just as problematic as Reginald was in my eyes. He supported this toxicity, he still does and apocalypse or not that is a shitty thing to do to children.

3. Hazel was right. Boy he was right. Five is a legend! My deadly little thing! 

YEAH BABY...FIVE IS A LEGEND! A FREAKING LEGEND!

Five’s scenes are electric! And his showdown with the Handler...AWESOME!

At this point I can’t choose between who I like more, Five or Klaus? I am more sentimental for Klaus for sure and I love him all the way but Five...Five is my iconic kind of character! Badass to the bone and legendary! Not to mention a cynic with a heart and a sarcastic disposition! My bitter cinnamon roll of an assassin! My precious little hit man! Brilliant, manipulative, kicking ass taking names, lethal, a killer, so done with life but still a survivor! A pragmatist and a dreamer.,,with an unhealthy obsession for coffee, alcohol and...Dolores...WHAT IS NOT TO LIKE?

Boy oh boy it is always the same characters! 

4. Vanya’s guy is such a creeper. Every time he is in a scene I cringe. And you can see how creepy he is. It is just so sad that Vanya is unable to see it because she was treated so horribly in her life that even a shred of kindness can blind her so because she is starving for it. Her father did a number on her. If we are honest all her family did.

That book though...to keep her sedated...Vanya finding that book will definitely push her off the edge.

And her powers...with the apocalypse coming...it’s her powers that lead to it right? 

She will go out like a bomb of something? It would make sense because if the drugs were the cause of keeping her emotions on a leash and repressing them along with her powers now that the leash is gone and after all this time of repressing her powers and feeling worthless she is like a ticking bomb ready to go off. Who thought it would be a good idea to do that to her? That fucked up excuse of a father she had for sure (what an asshole indeed!) but no matter how destructive her powers can be it does not take a genius to understand that bottling up emotions and suppressing them along with powers of such scale is like just delaying the inevitable and creating the right circumstances for a freaking big bang. Those powers laying dormant for so long and Vanya building up all those negative emotions inside her that she can now feel...well shit...Why not train Vanya like her siblings? Maybe her powers were uncontrollable but this alternative does not seem much better.

5.  LOL at Luther’s revelation...we died...I said...WE DIED...LMAO

But all jokes aside...

My heart broke for him in this episode. Poor baby. To be sent to the moon. To exile. All alone. A monster hidden from the world. With no love, no support, no humanity. It is dreadful. 

I honestly don’t understand how a person can fuck up their children in so many ways each one of them individually but also collectively. 

And Luther that always looked up to his father and in the end all he wanted was for his dad to be proud of him. Despite all the abuse he trusted him. Truth is though that if he was leader material and if he wanted to be the leader of his team, a team created by his family, then he should have responded to that abuse and tried to make it stop. For him and for his siblings. He just averted his eyes and found excuses for what his father was doing both to him and his siblings and I don’t blame him because he was also an abused victim but in the end it was all coming to this. In the same way it happened with the rest of his siblings. 

“I was never good to be number one.”

That’s the thing though. I don’t think that his number means what he thought it meant. Best case scenario it was a lucky pick by a negligent asshole, or the babies were born the same day but not in the exact time so their numbers just showcase which one is the oldest....however worst case scenario for Luther anyway is that his father probably labeled the children based on the potential of their powers starting from the most basic level one in the power scale leading up to the strongest while is probably Vanya that reaches the highest and most dangerous level of power. In that case Luther was probably the weakest link.

Also let us face it. When Tom cries...boy that shit hurts. He has very expressive eyes. He is like a big sad bear that you want to hug when he gets like that.

6. Allison’s and Luther’s romance story on the other hand...Yikes...thanks NO THANKS.

That was probably the only normal fatherly reaction their dad had when he caught them....

.....and then it was because they played out of schedule..moron...

And when I said I wanted more from Allison’s storyline...this is not what I meant...and yeah it was always brewing but YUCK!

P.s” 

- “What are we? Chopped Liver?” Well Cha Cha one can hope! For you anyway! Hazel, the work bee can drive away in the sunset with the bird waitress LOL

- I loved how one of Hazel’s motivations to stop the apocalypse is to have the freedom to kill whomever he wants and not those the Commission wants LOL

- The Commission has to go!

- Side note: As much as I despise that incest thing between Allison and Luther...admittedly in their dance scene I’d be blind not to notice that Tom Hopper is hella fine! I mean...damn! 

[skyhooks-notebook]

My John Wick/Jason Bourne movie which will never be made

(Bourne, of course, is a brutally disillusioned idealist. He had no idea he was signing away his soul. Wick likely sold his soul with his eyes wide open, though he probably only understood the ultimate cost later on - a naive pragmatist.)

I don’t post much at all, but here is a thing that happened on my computer. I was thinking about how John Wick and Jason Bourne could be brought together. My thoughts became long, and I started writing it down. This isn’t a story, just a sketch of how I think such a movie could be made. It’s not really edited either, this is all off-the-cuff.

[I only know what’s in the movies. I don’t know other canon from either ‘verse.]

So, if I were making a movie…

The universes of John Wick and Jason Bourne have very different styles, creating a problem.

Problem: - Bourne lives in a Universe where government is large, powerful, knowledgeable and nearly competent. - Wick lives in a Universe where a vast and elaborate criminal underworld exists, where we’ve never seen those major criminal figures worry about law enforcement or government.

The discrepancy must be resolved.

Simple.

Jason Bourne has never dealt with crime. Everything has been political and confined to the intelligence community.

Wick has never dealt with politics or the intelligence community.

So.

We must assume that the intelligence community is perfectly happy to leave common crime in the hands of law enforcement.

- Law enforcement has an unwritten and fatalistic attitude that there will always be some level of crime no matter what you do because it’s innate to human nature. And if you’re going to have crime, it might as well be organized. Let the strongest and most dangerous criminals accumulate power and influence, because they will go a long way to controlling the stupid, the excessive and the disruptive crooks. Better to have one major weapons trafficker controlling the traffic than have a thousand slightly smaller and more disruptive dealers completely out of control. (You can strongly hint that there’s an uneasy, unwritten and largely unspoken agreement between crime and law enforcement, and that it’s often a two-way street.) And if the big crime gets too big, it’s easier to knock it back down to “acceptable” levels because you’ve got bigger targets, which are easier to hit and which make a large and impressive splash across the front page when you throw RICO charges at them.

Plus it would also illustrate that Wickian Law Enforcement at its highest levels is just as dirty, amoral and underhanded as the Bournite Intelligence community.

- So, with a little work and willing suspension of disbelief (which wouldn’t be hard, because who wouldn’t want to see Wick and Bourne on the same screen provided it’s done with at least half an ass), it’s possible to bring the two Universes together.

- We start with Bourne. Someone else, like an hard ass, experienced reporter, is snooping into the government’s history of creating conditioned assassins. Maybe because a public face, like a former intelligence director, has left the shade to become a politician. And many strongly suspect that he’s dirty as fuck, but our snoopy reporter is just figuring out how deep the rabbit hole goes. Our politician was, of course, instrumental in developing programs like Treadstone, Blackbriar, et al.

- The Snoop finds out, one way or another, that one of the earliest failures of these programs was an “asset” who experienced a psychological break, went “off the res”, starting killing people and still turns up now and then to kill more people. To our Snoop, it appears that the government has created an uncontrollable monster who is still on the loose and possibly lurking right outside the White House, dear reader, are you scared now?

- The story, scanty, incorrect and harshly spun, gets printed as above. A few names are named, but mostly dead people (and maybe someone who has already been publicly discredited.) Our politician is not named because our Snoop doesn’t yet have absolute proof linking Mr. Politician to the Treadstone/Blackbriar/etc. machine.

- The evidence still exists. Witnesses still live, in numbers too great to be cleanly eliminated.

- Mr. Politician is sweating bullets.

- The Snoop isn’t done. He wants to find Bourne so he can say, “Here’s your monster, where’s my Pulitzer?” As investigation continues, the story becomes clearer to the Snoop, and the monster starts to look like little less monstrous and little more victimized. Which is an even better story.

- Now Mr. Politician is not only worried that he will be named, he’s worried that if Snoop makes contact with Bourne, or simply as a consequence of Snoop stirring the shit, Bourne will find out who our Politician is and how complicit he was in the program that destroyed David Webb. Mr. Pol knows this is likely to be a death sentence.

- It has become obvious to everyone who isn’t deeply deluded that Jason Bourne is practically indestructible and that sending more valuable and increasingly scarce ‘assets’ against him is just going to result in the loss of those assets. Agents available may be trained and conditioned to within an inch of their lives, but Bourne’s psychological break caused him to exceed his limits, training and conditioning in a way Black Ops programs haven’t been able to replicate. Those with a pragmatic attitude believe that they have no agent who can measure up to Bourne. Politician believes this as well.

- But Mr. Politician knows some things that the intelligence community has never concerned itself with. In his many years of government service, Mr. Pol was also involved with Law Enforcement at various times. Maybe he did a stint with the effa-bee-eye. Whatever. He knows about the Criminal Underworld, he knows that to maintain the ugly equilibrium, the Underworld may be influenced to comply with certain requests. And he knows a name. John Wick.

- Mr. Politician is also savvy about recent developments in the Underworld. He’s got a friend who’s still in the business of monitoring organized crime and keeping tabs on what’s going on down there. Mr. Pol has listened to recent stories with fascination because of certain similarities to a well known government failure who has haunted his dreams for decades. It has become a fact in Mr. Pol’s mind that the CIA will never be able to take down Bourne, but maybe there’s another way.

- Mr. Politician approaches a major Crime Lord and tells him point blank to activate John Wick by any means necessary and set him on the trail of one Jason Bourne. If Wick can’t be activated, Crime Lord will receive his own personal set of extensive criminal and RICO charges, delivered to his doorstep by the entire FBI

- Crime Lord knows if he gets charged, he probably won’t survive because other crime lords are going to want to make sure he doesn’t talk - about them. Also, his family will be endangered no matter which way the sword swings; either the FBI will be targeting them or his fellow criminals will be.

- Crime Lord knows John Wick. They’re old friends. Crime Lord feels a bit conflicted about it, but his first loyalties are to his family and his own hide. So he swallows his fondness for John Wick and commits falsehood, deception, a calling in of favors, maybe a little blackmail and the old Rock-And-A-Hard-Fuck-You-Up-Place on Wick. An elaborate, manipulative lie, that sets a misinformed John Wick on the trail of a man potentially as dangerous as himself.

- Now, we’ve got Jason Bourne being hunted by the Snoop, which has him on alert. We have John Wick hunting Bourne because he believes, once again, that he has no choice.

- We also have a Jason Bourne who is somewhat confounded. We need the scene where Bourne finds out, before contact ever takes place, that someone has taken out a contract on him with an Underworld assassin. Bourne doesn’t know much more about the Criminal Underworld than Joe Schmoe from Kokomo, just what he’s seen in the news and largely ignored, because it never had anything to do with him. Even in all that training years and years ago, there was this gap, because organized crime wasn’t the CIA’s beat. Maybe at first, Bourne even assumes that this Wick character isn’t a threat because he’s just a murderer, a thug, and not a highly trained government operative like himself.

- So in a riveting scene where Bourne and Wick first come into contact, we see Bourne - under the influence of his ignorant assumption - nearly getting killed by Wick and making an extremely narrow escape by use of desperate measures. We also have Mr. Wick limping away, suitably impressed with the skills of his opponent.

- Now we have that stretch of the story where Wick is on the hunt, Bourne is on the run and Bourne is trying to uncover any information he can find about this assassin. Wick doesn’t research much, though, because that’s not how he works. Bourne is a machine; the gears must grind. Wick is a force of nature, like a tornado; most of the info he gets he just picks up along the way, either paying for it or having it given to him by friends.

- Bourne discovers that Wick had a military past, Special Forces, maybe he was fucked over by the military/government in his own way. Or Bourne sees it that way. Bourne finds out about Helen and her death, and maybe not the whole story, but quite a bit about how John cut through a small army of Russian mob mooks for vengeance. He identifies with Wick’s grief and anger. He sees something of himself in John Wick. He sympathizes with the devil.

- John hasn’t done the heavy research. He understands that Bourne is dangerous, perhaps more dangerous than anyone he’s ever met. He consolidates his resources and finds someone else to do his research. He is awaiting a report on Jason Bourne when…

- Bourne stops running, goes to confront Wick and ends up trying to explain, while fighting of course, what he knows about the Dirty Politician and the Crime Lord who has called John out of his troubled retirement yet again, and how Wick has been used and betrayed (this time) until he says something that causes Wick to call truce long enough to hear it all.

- Bourne can see the beginning of a way to solve the whole mess. After some persuasion, Wick is on board and has some ideas of his own.

- Now we’ve got our boys on the same side and it’s only left to decide whether the war will be conventional or nuclear.

- There are two victories we need to see. We must see the destruction of Mr. Politician and Mr. Crime Lord.

- You might-could send Bourne, who doesn’t really give a shit about the covenants and conventions of the criminal world, to the Continental - probably breaking in, instead of checking in. Luring the Crime Lord out into the open, perhaps on the intimation that Mr. Politician is about to take up backstabbing. Draw the Crime Lord out to confront the Politician. Bourne’s plan, reluctantly agreed to by Wick, is to draw the Politician and the Crime Lord together, get evidence and even a full recording of the meeting and expose them both to the world.

Or course, this backfires. Bourne finds himself in a position where he has to kill either Crime Lord or Mr. Politician in self-defense. Probably the Crime Lord.

- It would also be immensely satisfying to see Wick take out the dirty politician with a head shot. Bourne would, of course, be stoically pissed about it all, but it also illustrates the difference. Bourne is willing to let even unrepentant bastards live because he’s tired of having blood on his hands. Wick doesn’t let anybody live who’s fucked him over. Bourne is still conflicted about who and what he is. Wick has come to terms with himself. Bourne believes in atonement. Wick believes in damnation. Bourne still cares. Wick doesn’t give a fuck. Bourne still dreams of inner peace. Wick would settle for a little peace and quiet, would you motherfuckers just leave me the fuck alone already. Get off my lawn. And stop teasing my dog, you bastards.

(Bourne, of course, is a brutally disillusioned idealist. He had no idea he was signing away his soul. Wick likely sold his soul with his eyes wide open, though he probably only understood the ultimate cost later on - a naive pragmatist.)

- You must also show Wick taking an active role in planning, because if Bourne does all of it and says here’s what we’re going to do, then 1) he’s just using Wick as a tool or weapon, instead of treating him like a person and an equal and 2) Wick once again is being controlled by someone else instead of doing what he does best, which is take matters into his own hands (shooting Santino may have looked like a misstep, but who in the audience didn’t love it?)

- I’ve forgotten our Snoop reporter.

We could let Bourne track him down, in which case he will almost certainly die, because going by canon everybody who sympathizes with Jason Bourne must die.

We could let Wick find him, in which case he probably has a much better chance of surviving to publish his Pulitzer Prize winning story provided he’s not armed when he meets Mr. Wick. Hell, Wick could give him a coin, which could buy him entrance and protection at the Continental (even the government doesn’t want to mess with that bunch - like stirring a hornet’s nest with a stick; you might survive, but it will be excruciatingly painful and you’ll look like an idiot the whole time with all the screaming and flailing and jumping around in a panic.)

John Wick’s name will not appear in the story. Only a vaguely defined “other sources”.

- And after all is said and done, Bourne and Wick part company, with mutual respect and recognition. Though they really don’t like each other very much.

So that’s my John Wick/Jason Bourne movie which will never be made. But I had fun.

P.S. Please excuse crappy photoshop, I just wanted something there.

[maddythemidwife]

THE ENEMY WITHIN

A first time for everything. Writing a blog at 62.

I am a midwife, a partner, a mother, a grandmother, a teacher, a musician, a comic (well... I think so) and a pragmatist......

I did not vote for Brexit.

I love life.

I love laughing until it hurts.

I love the West Country.

I love crafts and creating stuff.

I love cooking.

I love dogs and cats (although currently owning none)

I love the sunshine and beautiful autumn colours.

I love the Bake-off but the Great British Sewing Bee is even better!

I love loads of things!

I hate people who are unkind and who drop litter......... and I hate bullies.

Apologies now to any readers of my blog who are medical - I’m going to simplify everything so that my non-medical friends can understand.

The lowest common denominator - always the best place to start......

Yesterday I was diagnosed with Endometrioid Adenocarcinoma (womb cancer to the uninitiated)........ I have learnt so much about this condition since last Wednesday when the nice registrar told me that my uterus looked “polypy”....... and to be honest, by the time I heard the news, I was relieved, because there are other more scary types of womb cancer.

It’s been a swift course since I had a little amount of postmenopausal bleeding (blood in knickers when unprepared) three weeks ago - quite impressive for our NHS which is criticised very publicly.

I’ve had a GP appointment, a TVS (transvaginal scan), a hysteroscopy (camera up the Noonoo), a biopsy (bit cut away) an MRI (noisy machine shaped like an enormous doughnut and feared by claustrophics which uses magnets apparently) and then yesterday, the appointment with my consultant who gave me the news....... every single individual along the way has been lovely......

I am now waiting for an appointment at the Royal Marsden when the planned course of therapy will be outlined to me. I imagine this will involve a radical hysterectomy followed by adjuvant therapy if deemed necessary (cut away all the lady bits I no longer require...see picture of enormous offspring..... and then blitz and poison any traces of the cancer which might be lurking)

Yesterday evening, I posted on facebook that I had been diagnosed with cancer and I wanted to write a blog. I’ve had a lovely response from loads of people so here I am trying to get to grips with this very 21st Century communication system!

My boys have reacted true to form:

Josh (sensitive and loving) “I am crying at all the responses to Facebook Mum.... my fucking phone keeps vibrating...”

Rupert (solid and dependable) - arrived to see us (me) with extra puddings.....

Ned (youngest and most indulged) - shared my post with this added on his own Facebook page “My amazing mother is going to write a blog about her experience being diagnosed and treated for uterine cancer. If anyone has any advice for good places to write a blog let us know.

Apart from the fact that she is almost entirely responsible for every positive character trait I have (sorry dad), she is also the only person in the world I am scared of, so I don't think much of cancer's chances.”

No idea how this is going to go, so I’ll post this now and see what happens next!

[halforc-mercenary]

29. What do they do when they find out someone else’s fear? Do they tease them? Or get very over protective?

That depends on what this person is to her. As Mar is above all a pragmatist and while in battle she will cut aterys, will break bones, will slice off limbs and will gauge eyes out,  she is more brutal than she is cruel. And with beeing more brutal than she is cruel, she would only use anothers fears against them if they would be their opponets in battle and those fears could be used in the battle. However, as a person who is herself followed by certaine fears, she would never mock another for their fear- use it against them when it can´t be avoided in battle- but never dare to mock them for them since this would be respectless. However if she would discover one of the people she calls her companions fears, she would keep them away from what triggers this fear and protect them without a single second of hestiation. As said, she is brutal but she is not cruel. 

[skyhook-sly]

My John Wick/Jason Bourne movie which will never be made

(Bourne, of course, is a brutally disillusioned idealist. He had no idea he was signing away his soul. Wick likely sold his soul with his eyes wide open, though he probably only understood the ultimate cost later on - a naive pragmatist.)

I don’t post much at all, but here is a thing that happened on my computer. I was thinking about how John Wick and Jason Bourne could be brought together. My thoughts became long, and I started writing it down. This isn’t a story, just a sketch of how I think such a movie could be made. It’s not really edited either, this is all off-the-cuff.

[I only know what’s in the movies. I don’t know other canon from either ‘verse.]

So, if I were making a movie…

The universes of John Wick and Jason Bourne have very different styles, creating a problem.

Problem: - Bourne lives in a Universe where government is large, powerful, knowledgeable and nearly competent. - Wick lives in a Universe where a vast and elaborate criminal underworld exists, where we’ve never seen those major criminal figures worry about law enforcement or government.

The discrepancy must be resolved.

Simple.

Jason Bourne has never dealt with crime. Everything has been political and confined to the intelligence community.

Wick has never dealt with politics or the intelligence community.

So.

We must assume that the intelligence community is perfectly happy to leave common crime in the hands of law enforcement.

- Law enforcement has an unwritten and fatalistic attitude that there will always be some level of crime no matter what you do because it’s innate to human nature. And if you’re going to have crime, it might as well be organized. Let the strongest and most dangerous criminals accumulate power and influence, because they will go a long way to controlling the stupid, the excessive and the disruptive crooks. Better to have one major weapons trafficker controlling the traffic than have a thousand slightly smaller and more disruptive dealers completely out of control. (You can strongly hint that there’s an uneasy, unwritten and largely unspoken agreement between crime and law enforcement, and that it’s often a two-way street.) And if the big crime gets too big, it’s easier to knock it back down to “acceptable” levels because you’ve got bigger targets, which are easier to hit and which make a large and impressive splash across the front page when you throw RICO charges at them.

Plus it would also illustrate that Wickian Law Enforcement at its highest levels is just as dirty, amoral and underhanded as the Bournite Intelligence community.

- So, with a little work and willing suspension of disbelief (which wouldn’t be hard, because who wouldn’t want to see Wick and Bourne on the same screen provided it’s done with at least half an ass), it’s possible to bring the two Universes together.

- We start with Bourne. Someone else, like an hard ass, experienced reporter, is snooping into the government’s history of creating conditioned assassins. Maybe because a public face, like a former intelligence director, has left the shade to become a politician. And many strongly suspect that he’s dirty as fuck, but our snoopy reporter is just figuring out how deep the rabbit hole goes. Our politician was, of course, instrumental in developing programs like Treadstone, Blackbriar, et al.

- The Snoop finds out, one way or another, that one of the earliest failures of these programs was an “asset” who experienced a psychological break, went “off the res”, starting killing people and still turns up now and then to kill more people. To our Snoop, it appears that the government has created an uncontrollable monster who is still on the loose and possibly lurking right outside the White House, dear reader, are you scared now?

- The story, scanty, incorrect and harshly spun, gets printed as above. A few names are named, but mostly dead people (and maybe someone who has already been publicly discredited.) Our politician is not named because our Snoop doesn’t yet have absolute proof linking Mr. Politician to the Treadstone/Blackbriar/etc. machine.

- The evidence still exists. Witnesses still live, in numbers too great to be cleanly eliminated.

- Mr. Politician is sweating bullets.

- The Snoop isn’t done. He wants to find Bourne so he can say, “Here’s your monster, where’s my Pulitzer?” As investigation continues, the story becomes clearer to the Snoop, and the monster starts to look like little less monstrous and little more victimized. Which is an even better story.

- Now Mr. Politician is not only worried that he will be named, he’s worried that if Snoop makes contact with Bourne, or simply as a consequence of Snoop stirring the shit, Bourne will find out who our Politician is and how complicit he was in the program that destroyed David Webb. Mr. Pol knows this is likely to be a death sentence.

- It has become obvious to everyone who isn’t deeply deluded that Jason Bourne is practically indestructible and that sending more valuable and increasingly scarce 'assets’ against him is just going to result in the loss of those assets. Agents available may be trained and conditioned to within an inch of their lives, but Bourne’s psychological break caused him to exceed his limits, training and conditioning in a way Black Ops programs haven’t been able to replicate. Those with a pragmatic attitude believe that they have no agent who can measure up to Bourne. Politician believes this as well.

- But Mr. Politician knows some things that the intelligence community has never concerned itself with. In his many years of government service, Mr. Pol was also involved with Law Enforcement at various times. Maybe he did a stint with the effa-bee-eye. Whatever. He knows about the Criminal Underworld, he knows that to maintain the ugly equilibrium, the Underworld may be influenced to comply with certain requests. And he knows a name. John Wick.

- Mr. Politician is also savvy about recent developments in the Underworld. He’s got a friend who’s still in the business of monitoring organized crime and keeping tabs on what’s going on down there. Mr. Pol has listened to recent stories with fascination because of certain similarities to a well known government failure who has haunted his dreams for decades. It has become a fact in Mr. Pol’s mind that the CIA will never be able to take down Bourne, but maybe there’s another way.

- Mr. Politician approaches a major Crime Lord and tells him point blank to activate John Wick by any means necessary and set him on the trail of one Jason Bourne. If Wick can’t be activated, Crime Lord will receive his own personal set of extensive criminal and RICO charges, delivered to his doorstep by the entire FBI

- Crime Lord knows if he gets charged, he probably won’t survive because other crime lords are going to want to make sure he doesn’t talk - about them. Also, his family will be endangered no matter which way the sword swings; either the FBI will be targeting them or his fellow criminals will be.

- Crime Lord knows John Wick. They’re old friends. Crime Lord feels a bit conflicted about it, but his first loyalties are to his family and his own hide. So he swallows his fondness for John Wick and commits falsehood, deception, a calling in of favors, maybe a little blackmail and the old Rock-And-A-Hard-Fuck-You-Up-Place on Wick. An elaborate, manipulative lie, that sets a misinformed John Wick on the trail of a man potentially as dangerous as himself.

- Now, we’ve got Jason Bourne being hunted by the Snoop, which has him on alert. We have John Wick hunting Bourne because he believes, once again, that he has no choice.

- We also have a Jason Bourne who is somewhat confounded. We need the scene where Bourne finds out, before contact ever takes place, that someone has taken out a contract on him with an Underworld assassin. Bourne doesn’t know much more about the Criminal Underworld than Joe Schmoe from Kokomo, just what he’s seen in the news and largely ignored, because it never had anything to do with him. Even in all that training years and years ago, there was this gap, because organized crime wasn’t the CIA’s beat. Maybe at first, Bourne even assumes that this Wick character isn’t a threat because he’s just a murderer, a thug, and not a highly trained government operative like himself.

- So in a riveting scene where Bourne and Wick first come into contact, we see Bourne - under the influence of his ignorant assumption - nearly getting killed by Wick and making an extremely narrow escape by use of desperate measures. We also have Mr. Wick limping away, suitably impressed with the skills of his opponent.

- Now we have that stretch of the story where Wick is on the hunt, Bourne is on the run and Bourne is trying to uncover any information he can find about this assassin. Wick doesn’t research much, though, because that’s not how he works. Bourne is a machine; the gears must grind. Wick is a force of nature, like a tornado; most of the info he gets he just picks up along the way, either paying for it or having it given to him by friends.

- Bourne discovers that Wick had a military past, Special Forces, maybe he was fucked over by the military/government in his own way. Or Bourne sees it that way. Bourne finds out about Helen and her death, and maybe not the whole story, but quite a bit about how John cut through a small army of Russian mob mooks for vengeance. He identifies with Wick’s grief and anger. He sees something of himself in John Wick. He sympathizes with the devil.

- John hasn’t done the heavy research. He understands that Bourne is dangerous, perhaps more dangerous than anyone he’s ever met. He consolidates his resources and finds someone else to do his research. He is awaiting a report on Jason Bourne when…

- Bourne stops running, goes to confront Wick and ends up trying to explain, while fighting of course, what he knows about the Dirty Politician and the Crime Lord who has called John out of his troubled retirement yet again, and how Wick has been used and betrayed (this time) until he says something that causes Wick to call truce long enough to hear it all.

- Bourne can see the beginning of a way to solve the whole mess. After some persuasion, Wick is on board and has some ideas of his own.

- Now we’ve got our boys on the same side and it’s only left to decide whether the war will be conventional or nuclear.

- There are two victories we need to see. We must see the destruction of Mr. Politician and Mr. Crime Lord.

- You might-could send Bourne, who doesn’t really give a shit about the covenants and conventions of the criminal world, to the Continental - probably breaking in, instead of checking in. Luring the Crime Lord out into the open, perhaps on the intimation that Mr. Politician is about to take up backstabbing. Draw the Crime Lord out to confront the Politician. Bourne’s plan, reluctantly agreed to by Wick, is to draw the Politician and the Crime Lord together, get evidence and even a full recording of the meeting and expose them both to the world.

Or course, this backfires. Bourne finds himself in a position where he has to kill either Crime Lord or Mr. Politician in self-defense. Probably the Crime Lord.

- It would also be immensely satisfying to see Wick take out the dirty politician with a head shot. Bourne would, of course, be stoically pissed about it all, but it also illustrates the difference. Bourne is willing to let even unrepentant bastards live because he’s tired of having blood on his hands. Wick doesn’t let anybody live who’s fucked him over. Bourne is still conflicted about who and what he is. Wick has come to terms with himself. Bourne believes in atonement. Wick believes in damnation. Bourne still cares. Wick doesn’t give a fuck. Bourne still dreams of inner peace. Wick would settle for a little peace and quiet, would you motherfuckers just leave me the fuck alone already. Get off my lawn. And stop teasing my dog, you bastards.

(Bourne, of course, is a brutally disillusioned idealist. He had no idea he was signing away his soul. Wick likely sold his soul with his eyes wide open, though he probably only understood the ultimate cost later on - a naive pragmatist.)

- You must also show Wick taking an active role in planning, because if Bourne does all of it and says here’s what we’re going to do, then 1) he’s just using Wick as a tool or weapon, instead of treating him like a person and an equal and 2) Wick once again is being controlled by someone else instead of doing what he does best, which is take matters into his own hands (shooting Santino may have looked like a misstep, but who in the audience didn’t love it?)

- I’ve forgotten our Snoop reporter.

We could let Bourne track him down, in which case he will almost certainly die, because going by canon everybody who sympathizes with Jason Bourne must die.

We could let Wick find him, in which case he probably has a much better chance of surviving to publish his Pulitzer Prize winning story provided he’s not armed when he meets Mr. Wick. Hell, Wick could give him a coin, which could buy him entrance and protection at the Continental (even the government doesn’t want to mess with that bunch - like stirring a hornet’s nest with a stick; you might survive, but it will be excruciatingly painful and you’ll look like an idiot the whole time with all the screaming and flailing and jumping around in a panic.)

John Wick’s name will not appear in the story. Only a vaguely defined “other sources”.

- And after all is said and done, Bourne and Wick part company, with mutual respect and recognition. Though they really don’t like each other very much.

So that’s my John Wick/Jason Bourne movie which will never be made. But I had fun.

P.S. Please excuse crappy photoshop, I just wanted something there.

[inhumansforever]

"They’re far too similar and the two would just keep on trying to out queen-bee the other." Absolutely agree. Too similar, hell even the guys they love are similar in a few aspects. The most i see would have been more of an alliance for their races rather than a friendship.

That I could definitely see.  Medusa and Emma are both proud and haughty, both also very much pragmatists and I could easily see an alliance were it to be mutually beneficial to the Mutant and Inhuman peoples.

[systlin]

I was reading this article that said bees where pessimists. I thought this was a bit weird but I don't keep bees. Are bees pessimists?

Bees are just bees. Their concern is the survival of the hive, nothing more. They do what is needed to ensure that. If that requires the sacrifice of their own lives, so be it. 

Call them pragmatists, perhaps, but there’s really no way to assign human higher reasoning to insects. Bees are smart for insects, but not THAT smart. 

[blueskyscribe]

On them question thingies: DFUV. D is for LiGH. On a side note, I was rereading the most recent couple chapters of LiGH last night and caught Knock Out referencing KO Burger, and maybe I'm just slow on the uptake for this, but... do LiGH and With a Side of Rust happen in the same universe...?

I’ve never specifically thought about it, but I would say different universes for LiGH and WaSoR.  But Knock Out set up the KO Burger chain in both of them, because it was easier to buy cosmetics than to steal them.

D: Is there a song or a playlist to associate with [insert fic]?

There is!  It can mostly be derived from the epigraphs (song quotes) at the start of each chapter, LOL.  At some point I’ll compile them and post them on Tumblr.  Back when Grooveshark was still around I also had playlists for individual characters.  RIP Grooveshark.

F: Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.

“You know what I think?  I think you know you’re in deep slag if they figure out that the Autobots are like Decepticons here, and Decepticons are like Autobots.  So you waltz in here trying to convince me to back up your crazy story—”

“Listen, Autobot!” Knock Out shot to his feet so fast he almost knocked over the chair.  " I don’t have to be doing this!  I don’t have to be sneaking around in the dead of night trying to coordinate with you, trying to come up with something to save our chassis—"

“To save YOUR chassis!”

“To save OUR CHASSIS.” He gripped the side of the berth, the railing chained to his arm clanging against it.  "And you know what?  YOU’RE the one in deep slag here!  I look like their doctor, you look like some psycho who snuffed Dreadwing!  They put a handcuff on me and tied you down like a science experiment, what does that tell you?“

“Once they talk to me, they’ll realize—”

“What, Bumblebee?  What will they realize?  That you’re ‘good on the inside’?  Please!  They don’t have a cortical patch to turn your brain inside out and they’re scared of you, understand? If Shockwave turned up on your doorstep with a different color scheme, what would you do?”

“Shut up.”

“And if he was with Cliffjumper, which would you trust?”

“The truth hurts, doesn’t it, Bumblebee?” His fingers creaked with pressure as they gripped the berth.  "And the truth is I’m your best shot at freedom here.  And, Primus help me, I vouched for you, you ungrateful little wretch.  'Oh, Bumblebee, he’s harmless.’  'Not a real Autobot like Smokescreen.’  'No, I’ve never been afraid of him, he’s very sedate.’  I didn’t have to stick my neck out for you!  I could just as easily have said what they expected to hear!“

"Then why didn’t you?” Bumblebee shot back.  "Out of the kindness of your spark?  Oh wait, I know, it’s because I’m an ASSET, to keep in reserve until you need to push me into the line of fire!“

Knock Out straightened, his optics burning.

"That’s right, Autobot. You ARE just an asset to me.  Something to help me get home.  And, guess what? I’m an asset to you, too.”

—

Why I like this:

First, very basic reason: I love writing arguments.  I’m very non-confrontational in real life, so I find it cathartic, I guess.  This one in particular is intense.  They are both scared, trapped.  Everything is strange.  They hate each other, but … at least they are familiar to each other.  Knock Out is too much of a pragmatist to shun a potential ally based on a little thing like faction, and Bumblebee is horrified to discover that he is too.

I also like that this is secretly the first kind thing that Knock Out does for Bumblebee (and the first he’s done for anyone since Breakdown died). As Knock Out says, he could have told the SG ‘Cons any story about Bumblebee.  The reason he played up Bumblebee as harmless and nice is that he knows Bumblebee tried to help him when he was bleeding out and–although he would never admit it–he is trying to return the favor.

That’s why the full scene ends with Knock Out returning Bumblebee’s flask, which Bee gave him to keep him from going offline.  A gesture of karma.

U: Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much.

@lizwuzthere [AO3 link] - I particularly enjoy her alternate timeline TFP fics!  Great character interaction, great dialogue, and logical progression of events.  Like, her fics aren’t just “Knock Out defected, so here is the rest of the season exactly like it was on the show, except with Knock Out on the Autobot side.”  Instead, his defection changes the dynamics of both factions and the events that follow.

@greyliliy [AO3 link] - Not only is she great to brainstorm with / bounce ideas off of, but her fics routinely make me cry.  She’s made me a Dreadwing/Yellowjacket shipper, which I never saw coming but now they are perfect and tragic.  *whispers* You monster.

@albawrites [AO3 link] This Scavengers fic is the best I’ve ever read.  Just amazing.  Especially Spinister’s characterization.

V: If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose?

This is a boring answer, but I don’t think I would!  I love reading fics, all kinds of fics.  But when it comes to writing, I like to do my own thing in my own universe.  (I mean, with Transformers it’s not exactly ‘my own’ universe, but it’s still a universe where all my headcanons, backstories, etc, are in place.)

[glenngaylord]

DON’T SAVE THE CAT! - My Review of PET SEMATARY (3 Stars)

For the uninitiated, the late Blake Snyder wrote “Save The Cat!”, a book on screenwriting in which he broke down story structure and common archetypes, demonstrating how in films which need to emphasize the heroism of a character, they often have them literally or metaphorically save a cat. FRUITVALE STATION had its main character stop the action to literally tend to an injured dog, thus making him more empathetic.  It has become such a trope, that future filmmakers would best be advised to think of something else!

I bring this up because PET SEMATARY, the new remake based on the Stephen King classic, saves its cat as its basic premise, giving Snyder enthusiasts a new talking point.  Was it worth it?  Magic 8 ball says, “Ask again later”.  Co-directed by the STARRY EYES team of Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer and adapted by Jeff Buhler (THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN), the film certainly improves upon its cheesy 1989 predecessor, offering up a handsomely crafted, cleanly filmed movie, but truth be told, it’s not particularly scary and it has an overall bland feel to it.  Despite this, I admired its themes, performances, and yes, Church the cat impresses as a feral monster.  

After a gruesome opening tableau, we join the Creeds - Louis (Jason Clarke), Rachel (Amy Seimetz), Ellie (Jeté Laurence ) and Gage (played by twins Hugo and Lucas Lavoie) as they move their family from Boston to the quieter town of Ludlow.  Louis, an ER doctor, hopes the new location will give the family more time together and even offer him up a decent night’s sleep.  The best laid plans…sorry Louis.  Immediately upon their arrival, several red flags go up, including their new home’s proximity to a road littered with barreling semis, a pet graveyard run by creepy local children sporting creepy AF masks, and the old man neighbor who peers out his window like a stalker and who doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with accosting a young child in the woods and grabbing their leg to pull out a bee stinger.  Ok, he’s the infamous Jud from the novel and is played by the eternally lovable John Lithgow, so we’ll let it slide this time.  Of course, Jud knows all about the town’s history because he’s lived through all of it, and he especially knows about the Creed’s back yard.  I thought it strange that Jud knew how far back their property went, but the Creed’s themselves had no idea.  Isn’t that something you usually ask a Real Estate Agent?  You know, how much land do we own?  Has anyone ever been murdered here?  Has it already been equipped with WiFi?  The usuals.

We learn that Rachel has experienced some early life traumas, which will be put to the test once their perfect little Eden turns out to have some horrible things in store for them. Louis himself has a haunting incident at work which will also occupy his thoughts. Maybe Ludlow isn’t as serene as the South End.  It’s no spoiler that we lose Church, as it’s what sets the story in motion.  This leads to the most important discussion in the film, where Louis and Rachel disagree about whether to tell little Ellie about their pet’s death.  Louis, the pragmatist, wants her to learn that death is perfectly natural, whereas the understandably more spiritual Rachel prefers to shield her daughter from the sadness in the world.  This scene offers a richness you don’t always get in horror films, clearly laying out the conflict and forcing the audience to reflect on this conversation throughout.  The fact that two wonderful actors like Clarke and Seimetz inhabit these roles gives the film much more gravity than it would have had otherwise.  

Jud, who has grown fond of Ellie, steps in to offer a third solution by taking Church and Louis to a Native American burial ground beyond the Pet Sematary which has the ability to reanimate the creature but in a more zombified form.  “If we could bring something back to life, would we?”, the film asks, and it’s a provocative enough question to carry us through everything that comes next.  I won’t reveal any plot points from here on out, but Louis’ choices, while completely understandable, could have been better.  

The film has a plethora of jump scares, starting with the first truck to appear, and Church made me want to wear work gloves and a full Hazmat suit.  Cats, to me are inherently scary.  Sure they purr and rub against us all cute-like and all, but you just never know when they’re going to hiss or take a swat at you with their sharp claws.  This cat creeped me out, nowhere more than in an iconic shot of the little feline staring down the barrel of the camera as it sits in the middle of the road.  But why, oh why, did nobody think to wash the blood-soaked, mangy creature upon its return?  Didn’t little Eliie wonder why her beloved pet was such a hot mess?  

Regardless, the film has many twists and turns in store for you, growing increasingly darker and nihilistic right up until the final second.  Yet, something about it just didn’t land perfectly for me.  I wondered if we had spent so much time looking at the past that we didn’t really get to know the characters in the present.  There’s a stock quality to this family and to how the movie has been assembled.  It moves and glides well, almost too well.  It’s pretty, sometimes gorgeous when I felt it needed to be messier, grittier.  It has that big studio sheen.  

It also suffers from a somewhat lumbering pace, the director caught up in how awesome it looks to glide the camera over foliage instead of getting us places quicker.  Its stately tone works against it, and the third act, while violent and intense, didn’t really scare me.  As a meditation on death, there’s a richness here, and it’s worthy.  As a fright fest, it’s a little lacking.  

Still, kudos to the performances, with little Lawrence stealing the show as the standard cute little girl who gets to show off way more than that.  The opening scene pays off in the end, giving you just enough information to figure out the rest after the abrupt cut to black.  I would have preferred the original Ramones version of the title track instead of a cover, because…well, you can’t improve upon the original.  PET SEMATARY succeeds as a primer for parents who have difficult topics to discuss with their children.  It’s just not going to keep you up at night wondering if you’re gonna get the life force sucked out of you for not cleaning the litter box.  

[eclectic-pragmatist]

News??

I've been a consumer of news since very young. More importantly, I learned long ago that whatever the shortcomings of news media might be, news is our way of monitoring and holding accountable those in politics, governance and business. It's called the fourth estate — attributed to Edmund Burke, who used it in a parliamentary debate in 1787. The value of the press is in making voters more informed and our democracy more effective. And it has been the goal of those aspiring to or in office to find fault with journalists, the "liberal" media and media "elitism" — a goal ever more hysterical and absurd in its current excesses. My patience and tolerance for the war on the media is running out of bandwidth.

Now I read that the outlier who is the chief strategist to the deranged new president has declared the media to be the administration's opposition, and it should shut up. Perhaps that's because his boss, the über-narcissist who is obsessed with his "ratings" in everything from the popular vote to number of attendees at his inauguration, is furious — as always — about being the "victim" of news organizations. Unlike normal presidents, this one is on the fringes of reality when it comes to how he perceives he is perceived, and this shows up in his assertions about journalists being the most dishonest people on the planet — supreme irony from someone who can't and won't tell the difference between the truth and his made-up version of it.

So I find myself spending less time and more selectively reading the news because there is diminishing value in confirming how the new president is a predictable liability creating problems rather than solving them. Instead of anything resembling intelligent governance, what we have is someone at the edges of reason lashing out at any who might question his values, ethics and honesty (all marginal at best). His loathsome female chief consultant defends him with ludicrous remarks about alternative facts, which is about equal to alternative realities. I don't need to fritter away my time reading the inane prattling of people with so little intellectual integrity it's essentially nonexistent.

With four years of this deplorable nonsense ahead, my time and energy are better spent reaching out to help those organizations that are pushing back against the bizarre version of the presidency we face. Of course, everyone gets to choose their way of dealing with this. Others may find the circus entertaining, but I perceive the twenty-first century to be showing ominous deterioration of the institutions and processes necessary for progress and improvement. Incredibly obtuse populism is focused on trying to destroy the establishment and its supposed elitism that is asserted to be undermining the lives of the common people. But what is most common about them is a lack of wisdom and enlightenment.

Populism and populists have it all wrong. The establishment and the so-called elites have raised prosperity and reduced poverty for vastly more people than have been disadvantaged by the changes wrought from a globalized economy, immigration and technology. This is a fact-driven reality, and no rational pragmatist is going to ignore it. Fixing what is wrong is not done by screwing up what works. I realize this is, apparently, too deep a concept for the barely educated, low-information citizen, but that doesn't diminish its reality.

Less news isn't me running away, but simply leaving news to non-voters who didn't bother to participate in 2016 — they can deal (or not) with the inevitable chaos and havoc resulting from their not voting. They need to see and feel and comprehend what can happen when the least talented govern their country. For me, the quality of my life will not be negatively affected by not knowing every sordid detail, and selectively consuming news will actually improve it.

That's what pragmatism is all about. I can watch Bill Maher, John Oliver, Samantha Bee and Stephen Colbert to know (and laugh about) what's going on and yet not become soiled with the daily stupid of the narcissist-in-chief and his band of clueless sycophants. There's nothing I can do about it anyway. I live in California, a very, very blue state where Trump is a five-letter version of a four-letter word. I refuse to sacrifice my peace of mind beyond supporting any candidate and cause that opposes him in every way possible.

Mindless change is not preferable to rational change. Given the choice, I'll take the establishment and elites, because the alternative is really a form of anarchy disguised as giving the country back to its citizens — who don't have a clue what governing a modern society in a global environment requires. This is what happens when fear-mongering and fear become the center of political discourse. An insecure, dishonest narcissist promotes dystopian fear and those most fearful responded by voting for him. Now he caters exclusively to their fear because they are his only constituency, much to the dismay of the rest of us.

A recent poll reported that white Republican males feel that women have it easier than they do, and that women have achieved equality and more. Really? You mean being a woman or minority whose still underpaid and has only some of the privileges once reserved for white males now has all the advantages? If that's what fear is about, then making America "great again" isn't about progress but code for regression. Fear makes people stupid in many ways. As if the enemy — the problem — is women, minorities and immigrants. I'd suggest adding robots to the list then, because they will really demonstrate what change is all about.

I've fought and voted for equality, justice and fairness for many years. If the younger generations don't carry these forward, we will all be far worse for the results. Millennial females will find out that not supporting a woman candidate comes with the results they see. Educated males should (and likely will) support pushing back against fear and anger, because the alternative is to accept that lying is the new normal and making it up the new reality. But for me, writing about how to pragmatically cope with the here and now is about the best I can do for the time being. That and shutting out the noise with earphones and music. More pragmatism.

[ad3023-brookekeene-blog]

Design Approaches Research

Co-Design Presentation

Co-design, also known as participatory design, co-operative design and co-creation, was originated in Scandinavia. It is used to reduce the demand on designers to understand their subject, also blurring the boundaries between designer and user. Co-design helps build the designer-client relationship, helping create a better outcome for the client. Co-design gathers people with different specialities to collaborate in finding the best outcome. Using it minimises the risks later on as there a range of perspectives so problems can be dealt with early on. There is no shortage of input to ideas and solutions when necessary, so it is easier to come up with unique ideas and quicker to solve any issues without getting too far into the process for the client. An example of a method used in co-design is in role-play. When a person wants to express their opinion on something, they can use a cardboard cut-out of an old-style TV, as it  is easy to recognise, and bring up to their head, so it looks as though they cut are in the TV. Doing so, they are made to feel more involved and it feels easier to talk about what they want. This helps with building relationships with clients as they feel more involved with the process, with something that isn’t usually their responsibility.

John Chisholm

Publishing date  unknown

What is co-design?  | Design for Europe [online]

Design for Europe

http://designforeurope.eu/what-co-design

Design Culture Presentation

In a company that had a healthy design culture, everyone involved is taught to understand the value of design and how it creates a harmonious experience. For example, the Eames lounger looks great and is an iconic piece of furniture featured in a lot of movies and TV shows, however, a lot of people claim that it is uncomfortable. Also, the North Face jackets, they’re extremely popular and expensive, even though there are jackets out there that are better and probably cheaper, more worth the price; people buy them because of the name and the logo. Design Concept also includes the function of things. Bic for example, they make pens and the pen lids have a hole in the tip, creating a straw like shape, so if a child swallows the lid, it becomes less of a choking hazard. This shows that the company has thought of all possibilities and provided a solution. Another part of design concept is the intention or thought behind a project, like the environment. The Butterfly Cup was designed to be 100% biodegradable, 100% recyclable and 100% compostable. So, this brand puts the environment before all else. Design concept shows the different aspect of design and how some brands and companies prioritise one thing over another.

Jordan Koschei                                                                                                      July 26, 2016                                                                                                      What exactly is a design culture? | Inside Design Blog [online]                             Invisionapp.com                                                                       https://www.invisionapp.com/inside-design/what-is-a-design-culture                                  

Steven Bradley                                                                                                     December 23, 2010                                                                                              Thoughts on Developing A Design Concept [online]                                               Vanseo Design                                                                                      https://vanseodesign.com/web-design/design-concept-thoughts/        

Design Thinking Presentation

Design thinking is all about the person, what their learning style is and what helps in designing a product – the stages. People learn differently and there are four types of learner, the activist, the reactor, the theorist and the pragmatist. There is a chart that goes int more detail of learner styles that  was created by Peter Honey and Alan Mumford. Some people have purely one learning style and some are partially one with aspects from the others. Inspiration, interpretation, development and realisation is what stages occur in a project creation. The ‘IIDR’ model breaks down different stages of a project and shows how inspiration, interpretation, development and realisation work, in that order too. Inspiration is a starting point to inspire, where annotation is key, no annotation means anyone looking at the work doesn’t understand why you’ve the reasoning behind the choices you’ve made. Interpretation asks is the research and development just filler or is it purposeful? Drawing or painting makes you think more about how to use it, it’s a visual stimulant. Development used interpretation, design research, and helps to create a concept 2D or 3D. Realisation comes with the resolution of a project, it is the time where observation and reflection happens, which is then taken into account when going onto another project for the initial ideas and inspiration for that.

 Ruby Rumson                                                                                                       September 17, 2017                                                                                                Honey and Mumford Learning Styles [online]                                                         Eln.io                                                                                      https://www.eln.io/blog/honey-and-mumford-learning-styles

Thinking Differently About Fashion Presentation

When thinking differently about design, there are many questions to be asked, like how do we re-design to be safer? How do we bridge quantum and nano technology? Design is about being relevant in people’s lives. Designers cannot change the world, but they can contribute a lot in order to do so. An example of something that changed the way we think would be virtual reality. It completely changed the way we play video games, from watching it on a screen on your monitor or TV, to actually being inside the game itself, the submersion takes it to a whole other reality and world. Fashion is a huge part of design and like everything, it has its ups and downs. When manufacturing clothes, dyes are added to the fabrics to give it colour, however the dyes are mixed with water, which is hard to separate and leads to toxic chemicals being spread around, causing damage to any wildlife it may come into contact with. There are many materials on this planet exactly 109 to currently exist and there’s still 1025 more to be created. Materials such as adaptive materials, smart materials and intelligent materials are all hoped to be created in the future by 2028.

2019 Impact - Fashion Revolution                                                                          Fashion Revolution                                                           https://www.fashionrevolution.org/resources/2019-impact/

Our Environment Under Stress Presentation

In design there are ways that are being looked into to help our environment in its time of need. If we don’t do something soon, we will not have any bees, which means no pollination and that leads to no crops and less food. IPPC publishes a definitive report on climate change, in 2019 results of IPES 7-year study on natural world change clearly demonstrates habitat loss, climate change, pollution, depletion and exploitation is the greatest threats to planets diversity. However, there is good news on how to create economically friendly energy. Fusion. Successful full-scale processing will yield clean and free energy for everyone. 1 litre of water would be enough to power London for one day! In 2000, science was made feasible. In 2030, operation for the pilot plant takes place. 2050, a full-scale demonstration plant will open and in 2070, an industrial scale will come online to the grid. Finally, in 2100, there will be clean and free energy for everyone. All in all, this shows what can potentially happen in our future and how we can make the world a better place for the future generations, making it easier for them to advance their technology too.

Design for the Environment [online]                                                                        Last Edited March 18, 2020                                                                                    En.wikipedia.org                                             https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_for_the_Environment

Critical Design Presentation

Critical design is related to haute culture, concept cars, design propaganda and visions of the future, with its intention being to attract new business and predict new trends, stimulating discussions and debates. Design fiction combines science fiction and design. Science fiction is used as a design approach to imagine and create near future products and services. Speculative design is a design method addressing big societal problems and looking towards the future and creating something for those scenarios. It aims to open up new perspectives on what are sometimes called ‘wicked problems’, to create spaces for discussions and debates about alternative ways of being, encouraging inspiration and imagination. The Huggable Atomic Mushroom was created as a collection available in red, white or a reflective fabric. They were designed to meet irrational but real needs, in that case, a fear of nuclear annihilation. The Moto Undone bike is an exercise in aesthetics, the result of ignoring what makes motorcycles interesting. Joey Ruiter, the creator, wanted to strip away the historical attributes that make motorcycles great. He wanted to create something without fancy paint, overpowered motors, exposed mechanical genius and exhaust tones, creating a minimal frame, giving an unconventional (and uncomfortable looking) concept bike.

Michael Anastassiades                                                                                    2004-2005                                                                                                                Dunne & Raby [online]                                                                         Dunneandraby.co.uk                                       http://dunneandraby.co.uk/content/books/66/0

Tony Ho Tran                                                                                                            April 8, 2019                                                                                                            Speculative design: 3 examples of design fiction | Inside Design Blog [online]      Invisionapp.com                                                                       https://www.invisionapp.com/inside-design/speculative-design/

Ray Hu                                                                                                                    September 8, 2011                                                                                                  Joey Ruiter Outdoes Himself with "Moto Undone" - Core77 [online]                    Core77                                                                        https://www.core77.com/posts/20465/joey-ruiter-outdoes-himself-with-moto-undone-20465

Experiencing Design Presentation

Designing things that enhance your experience is a big part to designers. Interactive design is a big part of this, being that the practice of designing interactive products, environments, systems and services is so huge and they often address more than one problem. For example, the National Trust App helps you discover new laces, so you’d expect it to work well and run smoothly. However, when starting out on three platforms, it became very buggy and damaging for the brand name, so they were on it right away, enhancing their users experience, as well as fixing their issues. They added extra features, thinking their app should work without being connected to the internet. They wanted to enhance their users experience and keep them on the app longer, so they added a feature where if you’re close to a certain place, you’ll get a notification through the app letting you know that they’re open until a certain time and welcomes you inside. It also lets you know, when you’re somewhere when it closes and gives you a reminder before closing time, so you can get ready to leave. In total, experiencing design can be varied a lot to how well something works, to how things can be enhanced to make your experience better.

Patrick Newbery                                                                                                      Experience Design: When Innovation Isn’t Enough | WIRED [online]                  WIRED                                                          https://www.wired.com/insights/2014/03/experience-design-innovation-isnt-enough/

[halforc-mercenary]

Diablo: What would you do with the knowledge of another’s greatest fear? Loved one’s? Enemies?

From one moment to anothe rthe Halforcs freckled face became as hard as stone and one of her hands grabbed the hilt of her word in a unspoken threat: “I would never torture my companions with their fears.”She thought about water clashing over her head, she thought about the coldness of the deep sea creeping beenath her cloth like icy hands, she thought about water filling her nose, her mouth, her lungs. It was the truth. Still Mar was pragmatic. As Mar was above all a pragmatist and while in battle she will cut aterys, will break bones, will slice off limbs and will gauge eyes out,  she always was more brutal than she was cruel. And with beeing more brutal than she was cruel, she would only use anothers fears against them if they would be their opponets in battle and those fears could be used in the battle in the first place. However, as a person who was herself followed by certaine fears like by a curse,  she would never mock another for their fear - she would use it against them when it can´t be avoided in battle- but never dare to mock them for them since this would be respectless. However if she would discover one of the people she calls her companions fears, she would protetcive keep them away from what triggers this fear and protect them without a single second of hestiation. As after all, she was brutal but she was not cruel.

[angeladrpalencia]

Blog #2

An example from pop culture that demonstrates elements of organizational culture is the way that the characters in the show Gossip Girl distinguish themselves from everyone who is not an “Upper Eastsider.” The high class culture of a select group in Gossip Girl uses rites and rituals, relevant constructs, and vocabulary to demonstrate how to fit in with other Manhattanites. Additionally, Upper Eastsiders show a really good example of having a pragmatist approach to culture that is being infringed by a purist approach.

First, the rites and rituals in Gossip Girl are very distinct and traditional. Rites and rituals are events that occur “...partly from a need for organization members to experience order and predictability in their lives” (Mumby, 2013). For example, in different seasons, you see repeat events occuring because of their importance, like the annual debutante ball, New York Fashion Week, summer break, and Thanksgiving. The narrator is the main one leading the show, introducing what will happen in that episode and how important it is to the characters. However, something always goes wrong, which deeply unsettled those who are most compatible with the status quo, like the character Blair Waldorf, a snobby, overachieving socialite who is the daughter of a famous fashion designer. The debutante ball, for example, is a rite of integration into the upper crust of society, which features lavish ballgowns and the daughters and sons of “New York’s best.” New York Fashion Week is a rite of enhancement, as only the most famous and esteemed are invited to sit front row at a designer’s fashion show or attend the after parties. Summer break and Thanksgiving serve as additional rites of enhancement because only the richest high schoolers can go to Monaco for the summer or celebrate Thanksgiving in Paris.

The relevant constructs that are present in the show Gossip Girl include the presence of a “Gossip Girl blast,” being the “it-girl” or “queen bee,” and even brunch. Relevant constructs are “....”(Mumby, 2013). A “Gossip Girl blast” is when the anonymous blogger who goes by Gossip Girl publishes a juicy story about one of the Manhattanites and sends it to literally every student. To be published under her website isn’t exactly an honor, but is a common thing for the main characters of the show because of the drama that surrounds their lives and the audience that yearns to hear everything. Another relevant construct is the idea of being the “it-girl” or “queen bee,” which shifts between the two female leads Blair Waldorf and Serena Van Der Woodsen. Essentially, the girl with this title holds the most respect and authority over the other, less popular socialites. In fact, the queen bee in high school even controlled where everyone sat, what was popular to wear, and what was trendy to eat. In an early episode, the narrator describes brunch as an experience that “comes with champagne, a dress code, and a hundred of our closest friends. And enemies.” These type of experiences controls everyone whos everyone’s behavior and social status. Most know that brunch means a spread of at least a four course meal as well as copious amount of mimosas, because the children of the wealthy are never carded.

The vocabulary and metaphors that the socialites of Gossip Girl use is very exclusive and unique to their culture. Vocabulary, in terms of organizational culture, are words that become “... [a] ‘badge’ signifying membership of the culture, and anyone who doesn’t know the jargon can be immediately identified as an outsider” (Mumby, 2013). We see this primarily in situations where characters of the show are speaking about high fashion designers, restaurants, artists, or even use foreign words to exemplify their high class culture. I, myself, had to Google words several times when characters referred to something so obscure to me that is largely familiar to them. Vocabulary can be used to look down on members of outside groups as well, which we see whenever Blair Waldorf looks down from her nose when she says someone is from Brooklyn or when she speaks about those who go to New York University. The main characters of Gossip Girl also use quite dramatic language in their everyday lives to emphasize the grandiose nature of living as a rich person in New York. For example, the character Blair will often cry about how a certain day is “the worst day of her life” or how Serena, her best friend, is a complete “train wreck” when she kisses someone and is caught on camera. Interestingly enough, a study on Korean viewers of Gossip Girl found that they were using the show to both learn English and create an online community. Through this community, those who were better at understanding the vocabulary and metaphors of the characters, despite the language barrier, were found to have “gained increased recognition and admiration” because information about the series “[served] as a form of… capital among fans” (Lee, 2016; Baym, 2000). Therefore, even the fans were serving into the organizational culture of superiority of Gossip Girl just through the access to the vocabulary that they were using.

A defining feature of Upper Eastsider culture is the resistance to change from those that are outside of the main group. Blair, Serena, and all the other characters with families who make billions are typically against lower class people coming in and changing the rules that have existed among them for what seems to them like forever. It appears that they have a pragmatist approach to their culture because they like to control how people think and behave depending on their moods. There is supposed to be one single culture to attune yourself to or you’re out. Even things that would not make sense to normal people, like bullying the girl you call your best friend because she left to boarding school for a summer and didn’t tell you, makes sense to those in the circle that see it as a fair punishment for not abiding by the rules. When characters like Daniel and Jenny Humphrey attempt to come in and change the status quo with a more purist approach, they are faced with shock, dismay, and immediate disposition. In fact, Jenny was severely demoted after gaining queen bee status and trying to “change things up” to the point where she had to move away. Her brother, on the other hand, adapted to the culture despite his claim in the earlier seasons that he “didn’t get it.”

Overall, Gossip Girl is a great example for creating examples of organizational culture with concepts like rites and rituals, relevant constructs, vocabulary and metaphors, and even showing the struggle of pragmatist versus purist culture. Despite the fanfare and dramatics of many of the show’s characters, it’s easy to see how in any case there can be organizations that will never lose control over how things are done and where things are done, and this is especially true on the Upper East Side.

Sources

Baym, N. K. (2000). Tune in, log on: soaps, fandom, and online community. London, UK: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Lee, H. (2016). Developing identities: Gossip Girl, fan activities, and online fan community in Korea. Participations - Journal of Audience and Reception Studies, 13(2), 109-133.

Mumby, D. K. (2013). Organizational communication: a critical approach. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.