#session 67 begin

[ask-mutant-ko-n-tko]

Session 67

"Well, break's over... I guess. I'll be back later!"

[ljblueteak]

Richard Hamilton Swingeing London 67 poster and Beatles 68 poster

Text from Andrew Wilson's Swingeing London 67

The [Beatles] poster, described by Hamilton as a 'give-away' print, was the result of a fairly complex design process that took about two weeks to complete, with daily visits from Paul McCartney, the one Beatle who worked directly with Hamilton on the project and who had prior knowledge, through[Robert] Fraser, of Hamilton's work--he had earlier bought one of the Solomon R. Guggenheim (1965) screenprints from the 1966 exhibition of the series that he had helped hang.

This relationship gave Hamilton the freedom to develop his idea for the poster and the whole design project without interference from the other band members, Yoko Ono, or the record company.

The poster shows George Harrison, John Lennon, McCartney and Ringo Starr as distinct individuals. This is in sharp contrast to the individual John Kelly portraits, in which the similarities of pose, gaze, and lighting, conforming to the aesthetics of of a record company's publicity department, portray them as members of a band.

The seemingly casual pinboard aesthetic by which these informal photographs were arranged was determined primarily as a solution to crucial design issues (echoing his decision to order the collage for Swingeing London 67--poster as newspaper columns, with headline at top left).

The sheet had to be folded three times in order to be inserted into the square album sleeve, and this obliged Hamilton to approach it as 'a series of subsidiary compositions. The top right and left-hand square are front and back of the folder and and had to independently stand as well as be a double spread together. The bottom four squares can be read independently and as a group of four. They all mate together when opened up and used as wall decoration.'

The top left-hand panel is what is seen first, and it presents the songwriting duo of Lennon and McCartney. Lennon is shown in blue light, singing. The image has probably been taken from a television screen, and the attendant distortion and blue glow are unflattering.

The image of Lennon overlays the bottom right corner of an equally unusual portrait of McCartney in a bathtub, his head half submerged, soapy suds giving him a halo. Running beneath the two portraits is a fabricated contact strip that includes an image of Lennon in front of one of his wall drawings; the band in a recording session...in which they are, unusually, playing brass instruments; and a colour image from the recording of 'Hey Jude' (1968).

This sense of fragmentation, of hidden codes and messages, echoes both the 'guarded privacy and locked rooms' and the 'disturbing, dreamlike darkness' that have been identified in the album, inviting the fan to imagine the band members' private worlds, and hinting at the beginning of the band's disintegration.

The dominant image of the poster's top right panel, opposite Lennon and McCartney, is of George Harrison. This portrait casts him in a mystical, otherworldly and contemplative light, with the right side of his face obscured and out of focus....

There are very few collective photographs of the band: playing in recording sessions or in filmed concerts; with Harold Wilson after they had each received the MBE; and a sequence of them doing the 'business' as they re-sign their contract with EMI.

Instead, the poster emphasizes the individual activities of John, Paul, George and Ringo around the time of the collage. Starr is shown with his co-star from the film Candy (1968), Ewa Aulin, and also dancing with Liz Taylor (wife of his other co-star in the film, Richard Burton). Lennon is shown becoming the working-class hero. Yoko Ono appears just twice: in a self-portrait by Lennon of the naked couple, and in an image of a naked Lennon sitting cross-legged in bed talking on the phone, as its stretched cord cuts her out-of-focus head in two--cancelling her identity.

Of the band, it is McCartney who emerges as the poster's dominant figure. Hamilton has said how The Beatles contains 'arcane touches which only The Beatles' more intimate associates were likely to smile at,' and yet such details--such as the doubled image of a shut door or McCartney 'pole dancing' both naked and clothed--are not at the cost of the poster's legibility. At its centre is the reverse of a photograph, a gift to one of the band, bearing a lipstick imprint and a groupie's imploring words: 'I love you.'

In all this, Hamilton's fundamental aim for The Beatles was that it should reach a large audience and be as accessible as the cover design was remote. This was not a new subject for Hamilton. My Marilyn had already adopted, three years earlier, the motif of the publicity photograph and the manipulation of celebrity image as a subject. What is different here is Hamilton's direct participation in popular culture: The Beatles, like Swingeing London 67--poster, shows him not only constructing work with a subject that revolves around the manipulation and production of pop celebrity imagery, but also inserting these works into the mass circulation of popular culture.

--Andrew Wilson. Bold mine.

[mylordshesacactus]

Suncrest Campaign Wrap-Up: The Duality Of Session Titles

Our player-notes document is a communal Google Doc, where everyone (including the beleaguered DM) can hop back to check details from earlier sessions--highly recommend this system, honestly. And, for ease of reference, every week after the session wraps up I go in and give the session a title, so that we can use the gdocs Table of Contents feature to easily jump between entries.

In general, I try to make these at least somewhat informative--I try to match the tone of the title to the overall tone of the session, and reference something that'll make it clear in six months what the hell I'm talking about.

So, in honor of the party reaching the campaign endgame: A final write-up of all our session titles over the course of the campaign.

A Long Time Ago In A Campaign Setting Far, Far Away (Level-1 Adventures & The Doppelganger Arc):

1: You Meet In A Tavern Fire 2: Patience Is A Virtue (in which the party got what was meant to be mid-campaign reveal information in session 2 due to excellent restraint and investigation, and also met long-term NPC Virtue Chirelli) 3: Secrets Of Shroudpost 4: Nightfall 5: Jumping At Shadows 6: Teamwork Makes The Dream Work

Both Parts Of The Name (Abandoned Temple Quest Arc)

7: Stories & Stoves (the party meets Arlette, who runs a magic-and-general-store called Staves & Stoves, and is given a quest) 8: Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Realistic Consequences 9: D&D A-Bridged 10: This Temple Is Weird (the party fights a water weird) 11: Big Fucking Dragon 12: Max and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Campaign, or: The Gang Gets Obscenely Rich

Night Hag Arc

13: Once More Into The Breach 14: #WWFD? (What Would Farrah Do--her player was absent that week) 15: The Power Of Friendship And These Tits I Found 16: GAH, Or: Wake Up There's Hags 17: Now With 33% Less Hag! 18: Hag-gling Over Loot 19: Good Thing We Didn't Leave Those NPC Guards Unsupervised

Werewolf Arc

20: Trouble In Thistledale 21: Family & Forestry 22: First Blood 23: There Wolves 24: Protectors 25: Assassin's Creed This Shit 26: The Silverlight Hounds 27: Overwhelming Force 28: New Moon 29: Firelight Festival

Election Fraud Arc

30: Political Theater 31: Landlords & Other Bloodthirsty Monstrosities 32: Hashtag Escapism 33: Of Mortgages & Murder 34: A Dish-tressing Discovery (a friendly NPC was almost murdered via sleep deprivation using a cursed goblet) 35: Jackoff And The Giant Beanstalk 36: The Key To Success

Requiem Arc

37: Directionality 38: Brought To You By The Letter 'N' 39: Long Rest 40: Please Do Not Bother The Violet Guard 41: Crimes 42: MASQUERAAAAAAAAADE 43: Everything Goes Completely Tits-Up 44: Breadcrumbs 45: A Suspiciously Well-Maintained Passageway 46: Foul Water 47: Several Discussions Of Traps 48: In Memoriam (the TREATY puzzle; the party learns everything about the day the world ended 50 years ago) 49: This Is Fine 50: Sax And Violince 51: You Have [36] New Messages

The Siege of Suncrest

52: Storm of Vengeance 53: Andromeda Gets Drugs From The Cops 54: Mindboggling (the party fights boggles) 55: The Siege Of Suncrest 56: What, Like It's Hard? (the party defeats what was meant to be a session-long boss fight in two rounds) 57: Breach 58: Your Stunned Silence Is Very Reassuring (death of a beloved NPC; the party was so stressed that nobody took a single note in the doc) 59: Tallyho 60: Release The Hounds

Faewild Arc

61: Crossover 62: The Tortoise And The Almost Perfect Aesop Reference (the party rides a dragon turtle and meets rabbitfolk) 63: Warren Of The Shining Wires 64: The Next Step 65: Perfect Time To Get Stoned (party fights a gorgon) 66: The Feathered Serpent 67: Plan C: Jo [the DM] Kills Us In Real Life 68: Frostfire 69: Wolves of Winter 70: Do It For The Vine

Endgame

71: [Preposition] The Hedge (the party begins infiltrating the Palace of Summer, which sits at the center of a giant hedge maze) 72: The Dread Gazebo 73: A Wolf A Goose A Cabbage And The Concept Of Summer Walk Into A Bar 74: Domination 75: In Which Nobody Touches Anything (the wizard, after spending the entire session of sneaking through several different trophy rooms frantically trying to keep the party from touching anything, pockets a legendary item off a display case without telling anyone) 76: The Hand Of Fate 77: Hold Fast 78: The Fall Of Summer 79: The Distant Light

[crucipuzzled]

About Psychiatry stuff in SPYxFAMILY. Part 1

Part 2 here / Part 3 here / Part 4 here

I'm a dumb and I just realized that ch. 29 of the manga will be animated, since Fiona appears for the 1st time in that chapter and she's in the key visual for the 2nd cour.

I'm aware this isn't the first analysis made on this chapter but so far I haven't seen anyone from the Psy world speaking about this. I'm a Clinical Psychologist grounded on Freudian-Lacanian Psychoanalitic theory and I think I can share some knowledge over several aspects of Psychiatry that are depicted in the manga. I've worked with Psychiatrists in the past, albeit for a short amount of time, in a public healthcare institution, so I have a notion of what Psychiatrists do in a public setting like a Hospital.

If there's a Psychiatrist out there who wants to refute this analysis, PLEASE DO SO. I'm more than pleased to learn and have a nice debate.

This is one of the most hilarious chapters in the whole SxF series, so if you don't want the fun to be spoiled, please skip this post!

Let's begin. 1. Working in a Hospital

I'm not sure if this is universal, as healthcare systems around the world differ in several aspects, but the consensus is that a Hospital, which is a public healthcare institution, is specialized in the treatment of the most complex diseases.

In Psychiatry, this usually means dealing with psychosis, drug intoxication, major depressive episodes with suicide attempts and serious personality disorders. Most of these conditions require hospitalization, as the risk of giving just ambulatory care is not enough to guarantee the patient's safety or that of the others's.

There are Hospitals that provide ambulatory care though. Again, it varies from where in the world you are. In my country (Chile) you usually go to the Hospital when your life is at risk, but if you are suffering from a less serious condition (for example, dealing with panic attacks), you'll be transferred to a primary healthcare institution. Unless you live in a rural area.

Indeed, working in a healthcare institution means gaining access to any patient's clinical record. But for the objective of Operation Strix, and Loid being a Psychiatrist, I don't think that's of much use, for reasons that I'll cover in Point 3.

2. Specialty in Psychiatry

Psychiatry has several subspecialties, like any other healthcare career. You have Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Adult Psychiatry (I believe these two are mandatory to become a Psychiatrist but I can't say it for sure), Addictions, Forensics, Emergencies... Loid said that he wants to help people affected by the war, veterans specially, so it's a polite guess to say that he's an Adult Psychiatrist. Then again, we have this panel:

The sand box is a diagnostic tool used for children. It's mostly used by Psychologists, as they have more time per session to analyze it. I'll cover the sand box in more detail in Part 4 of this series of analysis, but for now let's say that analyzing it consumes a lot of time that Psychiatrists, in a Hospital, usually don't have.

This panel suggests that Loid has worked with children before as a Psychiatrist, and we see him later in chapter 67 with a child (although it's not clear if the child is his patient), so here are another 2 polite guesses:

-Loid's a General Psychiatrist -Berlint General Hospital's Psychiatric Ward is understaffed and they put their Psychiatrists to do whatever is needed at the moment, regardless of their specialties. It sure doesn't look that poor of a Hospital to me, but who knows... My bet is option 1. Poor guy.

3. Donovan Desmond as a potential psychiatric patient

In the first chapter of the manga, Donovan is described as a hikikomori, meaning someone who withdraws from social interaction. This word also describes a psychopathological condition of japanese young lads that spend months, even years, holled up in their homes without interacting with anybody aside from their families (if they have). The word itself doesn't have a pathological connotation tough. In English, the closest concept to "hikikomori" as a psychpathological meaning would be Autism, which isn't equivalent at all. And, when a person is so reclused, we tend to pair it with paranoia, as it often leads to social withdrawal as well. The important thing here is, as you probably are thinking right now, the reason fo such decision. And this reason is always given by the symptoms. Paranoia is a type of psychosis in which a person suffers from delirium and hallucinations related to being endangered or threatened by something. Of course, a proof of reality is useless for these patients, as their perception of reality itself is disturbed. An UFO is watching over you at all times? I can't precisely prove that it's false, as I lack proof of the very existence of UFO, and even if I have it, the delirium would probably shift to attack me as I turn into a conspirator against the patient's truth.

Not that we clinicians waste time trying to do so, though. In these cases, the Psychiatrist kicks in and administers a dose of antipsychotic drugs. Psychotic paranoia often needs hospitalization and a strong compromise from the patient's family to constantly supervise him/her. After that, comes a long process of social rehab. A very characteristic feat of paranoid people is that THEY NEVER SEEK FOR PROFESSIONAL MENTAL HEALTH CARE HELP BY THEMSELVES. Paranoids often arrive to a Psychiatric Emergency Room dragged by a third party due to bizarre behaviour, self-aggression and/or attempts to hurt others.

There are people that is not psychotic and suffer from this kind of fear of pretty much everything as well, but it's hard to determine if they really aren't psychotics, as their reasons to recluse themselves strongly resemble a delirium. The key that helps to discern if it's a psychotic paranoia or not is finding the hole in which a patient allows himself to doubt. In paranoid psychosis there's absolute certainty, while in neurosis there is room for doubt.

These "neurotic paranoids", as we'll call them for now (it doesn't exist as a nosograhical entity anywhere; please don't waste your time looking it up in the DSM xD), tend to abandon therapy pretty soon, as they fight for sticking with their motives to recluse themselves. They don't want to realize what drive them to behave like that. Patients suffering from obsessions will probably act this way, as well as some hypochondriac and anorexic patients. Bear in mind that this is not a norm; everything depends on the symptoms.

All of this begs the question: Would Donovan Desmond ever need Psychiatric help from Dr. Loid Forger?

His interaction with Loid in chapter 38 suggests that he's not reclusive for a mental condition, but he does have a certain level of "neurotic paranoia", as he can't bring himself to really trust any other person much. If nobody is truly sympathetic to each other, they could pose a threat at any moment, right? Since he's clearly not psychotic, because he can hold an interaction with Loid in the same shared reality (not a dellirium, I mean), one can safely assume that he does trust someone, at least one single person. When a psychotic person suffers from paranoia, there's not a single hole in their life that is not filled with suspicions of others being dangerous. This isn't the case for Donovan.

We see him walking with a lot of guards, so he must trusts them. And he seems to be closer to Demetrius as he goes with him to the Imperial Scholar get-togethers, so that also counts. He even takes a detour to meet Damian. Seems like he can trust his family members, and that alone could be a measure of love, albeit in a really weird scale.

Tsundere? That aside, given the social status of the Desmonds, if they ever need psychiatric help, they probably would consult a private clinic instead of going to a public hospital. Unless they find themselves in a reeeeaaaally desperate situation. So, the answer is no... for the most part. Good try, though, Twilight.

I'll cover more stuff in the next part. This one turned out unexpectedly long. It's been fun ruining the fun for those who don't know about mental health though.

[elendsessor]

no fusion run mini update

the demifiend’s ex girlfriend gets beaten up by a trans archangel, woman with nails so long it’s scary, and monke, more details at 7.

had to put some skill points into vitality because i was kinda getting nearly murdered in the sea of random encounters before getting to baal.

now with chiaki dead, i’m actually doing a bit of a revision to my team because of how luci’s fight works. going to have to use raidou as my second damage dealer no matter what because the only demons of mine that have focus aren’t going to do well, he’s the only one with pierce, pierce can’t be mutated into, the only way i can get pierce on everyone else even through fusion is via metatron, etc. luci is one big dps check because he can, at any given point, bust out diarahan, something the people who got dante from the devil may cry series never get to worry about. whatever sadist at atlus decided to give the hardest boss in the game a full heal better have gotten a raise because they’ve probably crushed many dreams.

but i also need a better healer. i love titania but i can’t get her to null ailments and she’s very squishy. the only demon i can recruit that can null ailments, has no weakness to the elemental attacks luci has, and have set up in the compendium to mutate a couple skills to get better ones… is suparna.

yeah the bird with the stupidly annoying death cry? actually op if you put in the time and effort.

there’s a couple problems though.

first, they’re insanely underleveled right now. no real issue because merciful’s exp wield can cut down grinding time but it’s still grinding time. i have a ton of unused incenses sitting in my inventory so i can boost some of the stats quicker, plus the chance for incenses to be gifts are amazing.

second, the unchangeable stuff. stone hunt is a garbage skill outside of low level runs and garuda gets generally better skills. wind cutter is the best wind element skill that isn’t tornado, plus he gets endure at level 67—a skill my team is lacking. there’s also an unused skill slot they have just sitting there. taunting me.

the goal is to have bufula change to dekaja and diarahan to mutate into megidola before chaining into prayer. the dekaja is so i can set up provoke without luci getting the attack buff and just in case of emergencies to begin with, and prayer because luci loves status ailments.

not sure about keeping zandyne or what i would even aim for. suparna is going to be a fully support-based demon, so i technically don’t need an attacking move, and i can’t get rid of mazandyne which is a good alternative. i’m considering debilitate but i already have debuffing moves across the entire team that cover the bases so having fog breath + debilitate feels repetitive. then again, i haven’t used any of those skills outside of provoke in ages, mainly because provoke recovers mp, and i could be out-dekunda’d. mana surge is the other option since prayer costs a ton of mp, with each time used to recover it being one less bit of damage. it definitely could be remedied with a maxed out magic stat though. still torn, but i’m likely going to go the debilitate route if i decide i absolutely have to.

of course i’m gonna be training up the rest of the team too. need some emergency switch-ins and a good group to knock out kagutsuchi first and foremost since luci is a back to back fight. gay snake and uber pixie are the primary revivers and are tanks at heart. don’t know how that’ll work for everyone else. lilith has life drain so if i have to go the stall route she can take some hits.

because of the lack of pierce, i do need to max out strength and vitality on the boyfriends asap.

decided in the meantime to go for a personal goal in the upcoming grinding session: try and fully master as many magatama as possible. yippee.

at least this is the final push before i’m free from playing megaten games until smt 5 vengeance where i’ll probably get beaten to death by something.

[sammeth]

could you write something with Gareth and thigh riding? (like reader riding his thigh I mean) he can be sub or dom, I don't mind

{ 4:23 pm }

it’s been a shit day, let’s be honest. gareth tosses his things down on the old couch in his room and sits down, you following him into his room and slamming the door. today’s been…challenging, at the least.

“i’m sorry, pretty boy,” you sit down on your knees in front of him, laying your head on his lap immediately. he leans his head back against the couch and sighs, crossing his arms. he’s not catching on to what you’re insinuating. he’s just stressed about what happened, you’re trying to relieve some of that tension built up.

“can’t believe that just happened,” he says, just above a whisper. ‘that’ is him referring to himself bombing a math test. he made a whole 67%, he was so close to passing. either way, you’re going to have to give him many, many tutoring sessions. he knows that. “we’re gonna waste so much time talkin’ about math, aren’t we?” he asks, sighing and looking down at you.

“yeah, buddy,” you give him a sad smile and stand, sitting on his lap. your legs are on either side of his hips, propping yourself up. “how about one more night of the things you wanna do before we get to work, though?” you propose, to which he quickly nods and flips the lights off. the soft glow of the sun outside comes in through the windows, illuminating his face. he just thinks it’s awkward to fuck with the lights on. you agree for the most part, but you need to be able to see him as well.

thumbing around with his belt, you slide it off and toss it away. your fingers fiddle with his buttons and the zipper and he finally whines, making you speed it up a little. you’re doing this on purpose, of course.

“y/n!” you smirk and finally slide his jeans down to just below his mid-thighs, and then his checkered boxers with them. he leans his head back again, but for different reasons. you lower yourself down fully onto his thigh, picking just one, and rut your hips against it. you’ve done this once before and it seemed to have a good effect on him. you’re not sure why. “wanna cum with me?” he asks, looking up at you with soft eyes. you nod.

“mhm, sit back and let me help you, baby,” you grip him hard and he tenses up, grabbing at the couch cushions. you’re quickly grinding your hips down against his thigh again and freeing your hand to slide your jeans and underwear off. he whines at how exposed you are and you resume your recent pace, wrapping your thighs tightly around one of his and humping him like you’re in heat, desperately trying to feel the release that you’re both craving.

“fuck,” he whines, it comes out slow and soft, but you hear it. you wrap your fingers around him again, not faltering with your hips, and play around with him a little at first. you don’t want him to cum too fast. he’s done that many times before.

when he starts getting whiny again, you raise your hand up and make him wet it for you before beginning to pump him slowly. you keep your pace slow until he’s produced enough precum to make it require a little less effort, then you spread it over his pretty pink cock and keep stroking him faster. he starts fucking himself up into your hand and you let him, knowing what a day he’s had.

“don’t cum too fast again,” you warn, not even slowing down for him.

“can’t help it! stop! stop!” but you’re already too far gone. he grips the fabric below him and mewls, throwing his head back and opening his mouth to let all of his pretty sounds out. nobody’s home, you two are safe. “mmm,” his eyebrows furrow and you think you see him going a little cross-eyed as he finishes, you angle him so it only gets on his t-shirt.

“good job,” you feel yourself getting closer and speed up your motions on his thigh, grinding down against him. there’s a wet spot on his jeans but he doesn’t mind.

“mmm!” he jumps as you grip him again and resume the motions. he gives you a confused look.

“we’re not done until you’ve got nothing left inside of you.”

[breathe987]

Unlocking Inner Peace: Meditation Lessons in London 🧘‍♂️

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[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

The religious makeup of the new Congress bucks the trends seen in American religious life, a new report finds.

The Pew Research Center says the Senate and House members are “largely untouched” by the continuing decrease in the portion of Americans who identify as Christian and the comparable increase in the share of those who say they do not have a religious affiliation.

Christians comprise 88% of the voting members of the 118th Congress who are expected to be sworn in this week (week of Jan. 3), a number that has not changed much since the 1970s, when 91% of members said they were affiliated with that faith.

The American population, on the other hand, has seen a drop in those identifying as Christians, from 78% in 2007 to 63% currently. Close to 3 in 10 Americans (29%) say they are religiously unaffiliated — atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” — a far larger portion than 16% in 2007.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent from Arizona, remains the only member of the new Congress who uses the description of religiously unaffiliated. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., described himself as humanist. Huffman also said he was “the token humanist in Congress” when he spoke via videotaped remarks to the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s annual convention in October.

Another 20 members are listed as having no known religious affiliations. Most of them declined to state an affiliation when asked by CQ Roll Call, whose data is the primary source of analysis for the Pew biennial report. The “Faith on the Hill” report noted that Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., was “moved to this category following revelations that he misrepresented parts of his life story and resume during his 2022 midterm campaign.”

The number of Christians — 469 — within the new Congress does mark the lowest number since Pew began its analysis of religious affiliation of the 111th Congress at the beginning of the 2009-10 session. But just by a hair. The number of Christians in Congress was above 470 in the eight most recent sessions and exceeded 500 as of 1970.

Overall, the 118th Congress looks similar to the previous body when comparing the two religiously.

Of the 534 total congressional members, 303 Protestants are being sworn in for the 2023-24 session, compared to 297 in the one that just ended. The number of Baptists remained the same — at 67 — while the number of Methodists and Episcopalians dropped by four each; Presbyterians had one fewer member. Catholics saw a drop of 10, with a new total of 148, but still comprise a greater share of Congress (28%) than they do the overall U.S. population (21%).

The members of Congress aligned with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon church, remained unchanged: nine. And the number of Orthodox Christians increased by one to eight. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is the sole member of the new Congress who identifies herself as Messianic Jewish; she has also described herself as a Christian.

The number of Jews decreased by one to 33 members and all three Muslims and two Hindus were reelected in the House as well as all three members who identify as Unitarian Universalist.

Here are some of the other findings related to Congress’ religious makeup:

• Both chambers are dominated by Christians numerically.

• Almost all Republicans — 268 out of 271 — and three quarters of Democrats — 201 of 263 — identify themselves as Christians.

• All nine members of Congress who are Mormons are Republicans while Orthodox Christians are evenly split, with four from each major political party.

• Almost two-thirds (64%) of newcomers to Congress are Protestant; a bit more than half (55%) of incumbents identify with that branch of Christianity.

• There are fewer Catholic first-timers than returning members of Congress (22% compared with 29%).

[dollarbin]

Dollar Bin #23:

Carole King's Writer

Thrift store dollar bins were packed with copies of Tapestry 30 years ago. Battered copies were straight up ubiquitous, and I blamed the crazy cat lady on cover for taking up space in the bin that I felt should have been given over to all the Lou Reed records I did not yet own. I didn't want Tapestry, or Herb Albert's whipped cream covered lady or that terrifying record with my bearded cousin naked in the arms of Barbara Streisand. I wanted a goddamn copy of The Bells.

I wasn't the only person pissed at poor Carole King. Soon after helping Joni, Aretha and Linda tear down patriarchy's first wall King became terribly unpopular. It took Lauren Graham plopping into bed beside her TV daughter for the public to welcome King back into their ears.

Good luck getting King's rewritten-for-the-show ode to parental dedication out of your head in the next 24 hours.

But why did King spend the 20+ years before Lorelai as a Dollar Bin villain? Why did Emmylou and Joni get 90's reboots while King got squat? Sure, as the 70's unfurled, King's records faded from transcendent to dull, but let's not kid ourselves: simply put, King was a gangly songwriting genius with a slightly nasal singing voice, and that still only works for people with dicks.

King was so unpopular in the 80's that her biggest credit that decade is the theme song to the Care Bears Movie. Brace yourselves.

Happily, King eventually escaped from these terrifyingly plush beasts, got a well deserved medal from Obama and grudgingly allowed Lane to play the drums, so don't expect to find a copy of Tapestry in any Dollar Bin these days.

But every other one of King's records is easily and cheaply available, and there's a whole lot to appreciate about King other than Tapestry. The very best place to start is with her first solo record, Writer.

Common misconceptions about King are a) that she and her lyricists stuck to dull, G-Rated topics (like caring-a-lot) and b) that she could not rock. Tapestry lives up to its hallowed status, but it also reinforces these tropes: the only vaguely PG lyrics on Tapestry involve Slapwater Jack's shotgun, and the album contains zero feedback.

But drop the needle on Side 1 of Writer: the first track, Spaceship Races, is wild and weird; had King's cat sat in on this recording session it would have, to quote Steinbeck, crapped a litter of lizards.

There is so much going on in this song.  Okay, the guitar riff isn't exactly J Mascis material, but the drums spur us forward, the bridge slows us down, the closing guitar/piano fade is worthy of a whole additional song and King's jubilant chorus is just what I'd want my R2 unit to spill into the X-Wing's cockpit while I kamikazed joyfully into the Death Star.

Writer also includes King's own take on one of her most covered tracks, Goin' Back. The song was made famous by the Dusty Springfield in 66 and the Byrds in 67 but everyone sings it, from Nils Lofgrin to Phil Collins. I've never heard a version I didn't like (probably because I have not listened to the version by Collins), but King's own recording, with tasteful backing vocals from her friend James Taylor, rocks, swings and sways: Carole understands her own song better than anyone else.

Goin' Back isn't the only already classic track of her own that King finally claims on this album. I wish there was a copy of the Byrd's Easy Rider theme Wasn't Born to Follow on Writer, but King's even more famous musical manual for self-reflection, Up On The Roof, stands in for it here, a lovely fade at the end of this Dollar Bin classic.

As you surely know, King had spent all of the 60's writing such songs with her husband/lyricist Gerry Goffin for other performers. Together King and Goffin let Aretha Franklin be a natural woman and invented the Locomotion.

But Writer sees King begin her pivot away from both her marriage (they divorced in 68) and the patriarchal gesture. Her friend Toni Stern (she/her) helps King write for the first time without a man in the room on this record; a partnership that would culminate a year later in one the best individual songs of King's, make that anyone's, entire career, It's Too Late, from Tapestry.

Here's to the upcoming wave of Gen Z and Gen Alpha non-male singer-songwriters. Let's hope they are a powerful group who are admired not for their cookie cutter looks, heterosexuality or voice, but instead for their genius and their shared loathing of Stephen Stills.

And let's hope they all love and respect Carole King. In other words, let's hope there are a whole more Lucy Dacus's in the pipeline. We need them!

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I posted 545 times in 2022

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#i posted this on 4th of july 2019 and just stumbled across it again

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#5

I wrote a little something inspired by Heaven (from the OST of Secrets of Dumbledore) - of course it’s about Albus and Gellert.

It may contain some spoilers for Secrets of Dumbledore, though, so beware!

33 notes - Posted April 9, 2022

#4

if you take angstier prompts: perhaps something with Dumbledore actually being seriously hurt after his battle with Credence/Aurelius, and Grindelwald having some weird angst session about it? (like he still was the one who sent him after Dumbledore with the intent of Dumbledore dying, but when it now becomes a real possibility, he realizes that he really doesnt want him dead?)

Thank you very much! So, I changed the set up a bit because it gave me a reason to explore a theory of mine concerning Gellert’s intentions with Credence, but I tried to capture the gist of Gellert’s angst session! Hope you enjoy! (Also yes, I tried to keep the technicalities of all the magical aspects very vague here bc it would’ve turned too long and honestly I have no idea how everything’s going to work out, either, don’t mind that.)

It was funny how Sight and reality could deviate. When he’d set up the boy to combat Albus he had done so with the conviction that Aurelius would never actually be able to harm Albus. Not clever, powerful Albus. Not Albus, who could shake the world with a flip of his wand. That was exactly why he’d set Credence up to do it.

Hurting Albus physically, magically was almost impossible. (Except for himself, Gellert knew.) But there were a million other ways to hurt a man and Gellert knew all of them and then some more for Albus, simply because he knew him so intimately.

Set up a boy he cares about to fight him. Force him to relive the moment they’d all lost control, yet Gellert was the one to be blamed for. Force him to hurt the boy. All that would do more damage to Albus than any spell ever could, he’d been sure of it.

Of course, he knew that Aurelius would never stand a chance against Albus, despite his vision. Admittedly, he had been curious about how it would play out. How Fate would fit in with the reality he was creating.

He had not expected this, though.

As always, he had forgotten about Albus’s stupid noble heart. Perhaps it was because he could not even imagine the kindness Albus was willing to show that he always underestimated this part of the equation, but once again it had literally blown up in his face.

How in Merlin’s name should he have anticipated that Albus was willing to die for that stupid boy? How could he have imagined that Albus would take the whole blow of the Obscurus and some strange magic Gellert had never seen before but that he was sure Albus had come up with, with the help of Scamander?

Now that his plan had worked out (it hadn’t since this had never really been his plan to begin with) and Fate was seeming to get her way, he realised that he’d been wrong once again. The fear he’d felt, when he’d had that vision was not because of his opponent. It was the cruel, cold fist of fear that was now squeezing his chest at the sight of Albus, pale and motionless and bleeding, lying on the ground, his friends and his brother rushing towards him.

Aurelius, perfectly fine, probably even better than ever before sat on the ground not far from them, dumbstruck at what had happened. It was Aberforth – of course it was – who dared to call out to him and ask if he was all right and Gellert was uncomfortably reminded of a similar afternoon, a lifetime ago it seemed, only that Albus had slipped his hand in his and asked him in a shaky whisper to please, stay and let me explain.

Albus wasn’t moving now. Theseus Scamander was steadily casting Renervate at his chest and Eulalie Hicks was cushioning his bleeding head on her cloak, but nothing happened.

Even from the other side of the plaza he’d felt Albus’s magic vibrating in the air all around them, before. It had been so distinctly familiar that it had almost driven him crazy, but now there was nothing. His own magic was searching, almost desperately, for that familiar trace, for the strings so intricately connected to his own but came up empty.

A feeling unknown to him, like a dark shadow surfacing from the depths of his being, began to rise in his body, constricting his lungs and throat, squeezing his chest, replacing his blood with ice water.

He was constantly surrounded by death these days, he’d told the members of alliance time and again that Albus was the greatest danger to their cause, when he’d been angry, he’d imagined hurting him, but now the prospect of Albus, the only person on this damn earth that it was really worth talking to, the only one, who’d ever been able to understand his mind, the only one, who’d ever known him – gone?

No, he’d never wanted this. He didn’t want this. That stubborn fool couldn’t leave him alone in this shameful world!

If he refused to see how brilliant they could be together for the rest of his damn life, fine, but he couldn’t leave him for good! Albus couldn’t just take his only connection away like that by dying.

He only noticed that his body had started shaking from the tension in his muscles, when Vinda touched his arm, muttering: “We should go.”

“No, wait,” he told her, still observing how Albus’s friends were trying to breathe life back into him. He knew they wouldn’t let him approach them and he couldn’t be seen helping Albus Dumbledore, but all his impulses were pushing him to stride over and pour out all his magic and remind Albus’s blood that it was still bound to earth, bound to life.

“The Aurors will be here soon,” Vinda said. And she was right. They needed to be gone soon, but he couldn’t as long as he wasn’t sure that Albus would live. He watched as Aurelius slowly, carefully stumbled over to the group of people surrounding Albus and for the second time that day he witnessed magic he had never seen before. (He wasn’t sure anyone had seen it before; they were definitely pushing the boundaries of known magical territory.)

He would never understand what it was with phoenixes and the Dumbledores but for a moment he did not care. There was blinding red and gold like a flame and then he could feel the familiar presence of Albus’s magic filling the plaza again, no matter how weak it seemed, and the next moment a dozen Aurors apparated all over the place.

Vinda’s eyes had already widened with fear, when he finally gave her permission to go, following with merely a last glance at Albus’s slowly moving form.

37 notes - Posted March 5, 2022

#3

Promise

This is for @darkangelis, who requested: They meet in secret throughout the war because they can’t stay away from each other but Albus feels so guilty about it he starts to suffer from panic attacks. They normally happen after Gellert has left but one time Albus can’t stop one coming on while he’s still there. Gellert comforts him through it.

I absolutely LOVED writing this, it was very therapeutic and I do love making Albus suffer, so thank you very much for this! I hope you enjoy it!

TW panic attacks

Albus was wondering time and again how he got into all the comfortable hotel rooms in various countries on the continent and in the end he always came up with one simple answer: He wanted to.

He wanted to, even though he knew it was wrong. He wanted to, even though he knew that no decent man would’ve ever done it. He wanted to, even though he despised himself for it.

He never told anyone about it, naturally. Who could he tell? Nobody would understand and the shame he felt over it was so overwhelming that it sealed his lips tightly shut. Perhaps that was the reason for the increasingly severe sessions of discomfort that had started to follow those encounters with Gellert. (Perhaps discomfort was not quite right considering that his throat was so constricted he couldn’t breathe and his body was shaking so much he wasn’t even sure it was his own anymore.)

Back when he’d been eighteen and broken after that summer Nicolas had told him that speaking about it, no matter how hard or impossible it seemed, would relieve him. He’d been right. He’d poured it all out one night, fully expecting Nicolas to tell him what he already knew: that there was something wrong with him. But Nicolas had done no such thing. He’d been kind and understanding and encouraging and somehow that had saved him.

But he wasn’t eighteen anymore and none of this could be blamed on youthful carelessness, on accidents or ignorance. He knew perfectly well who Gellert was and he knew perfectly well what he was doing. Not even Nicolas could tell him there was no shame in that.

He forgot about all that, the moment Gellert kissed him. No matter how much he wanted to deny it, no matter how much he’d tried to suppress it, his heart was longing for it. He was suddenly reminded that his whole being wanted nothing more but to be with Gellert. He remembered everything he’d dreamed of as a boy, of Gellert by his side, of them growing old together. He certainly hadn’t imagined it like this, but if this was all that he would get, he had to take it, no matter how much it hurt him, no matter how wrong it was.

In the beginning a small part of him had hoped that perhaps, Gellert would change his mind, leave his path and return to him, but their irregular meetings continued for more than three decades now and if anything Gellert had become only more determined with his cause.

They weren’t meeting very often, they couldn’t afford it and Albus suspected that the long breaks were doing nothing for his emotional stability. It was always enough time to let him get over the dark pit of guilt and shame and contempt he fell into right after such an encounter. It was even enough time to let him forget how much it hurt every time Gellert left, every time he had to beat himself up afterwards. It was so much time that his heart started missing Gellert again, despite everything. So much time that, when he made a fascinating magical discovery, he instantly thought of sharing it with Gellert until the second passed and reality crept back in that he could not simply tell Gellert about it.

Sometimes this downward spiral was delayed when he heard especially atrocious rumors about what Gellert and his Alliance were doing and he was forcefully reminded of all the blood on Gellert’s hands but even that could not deter him, whenever he found himself faced with a chance encounter or one of Gellert’s subtle invitations. (It was the only dignity he could retain: He would never ask for a meeting, although lately he wasn’t sure anymore if it didn’t make him more pathetic that he came running each time Gellert called.)

Now, though, he found himself once again in a hotel room in a small French village near Versailles (of all places, of course!) with his robe on the floor and Gellert’s hands all over his body.

It was what he would’ve dreamed of at eighteen. A cozy room, a warm summer breeze toying with the curtains leading out to the balcony, a rich country. Foolishly, he’d not imagined a war, he’d not imagined the most powerful wand in the world to have drawn so much blood just the day before Gellert was running it up his leg, vanishing his undergarments.

Gellert’s teeth were grazing the crook of his neck and he felt the thrill of it running through his body, but it was oddly distant. Gellert’s hands and lips on his skin, which had been fire before, emptied his head and had him craving more were suddenly obscured by numbness. Before he knew what was happening, before he could try to do anything about it, his breath was coming in shallow gasps – not of the good kind -, he desperately tried to fill his lungs with oxygen but not air could reach it, his throat was constricted. He could feel his body shaking and tears escaping his eyes, running down his cheeks of their own volition.

“Albus?” He could hear Gellert’s voice, could even recognize the concern in it but he couldn’t speak. His body had forgotten how to obey him, how to do anything but shake with the uncontrollable feeling of dread and doom that was filling out his chest.

“Albus!” Gellert’s hand found his and he could squeeze it, so tightly he was almost worried he could hurt Gellert, but he couldn’t let go. Once his hand had closed around it, it refused any commands his hazy mind might make.

“It’s all right, Albus. Breathe. Slowly.”

Uncontrollable, embarrassing sobs were escaping his mouth as he desperately tried to do as Gellert told him. He tried to get a hold of his breathing again, tried to suck in air slowly.

“Albus. You’re safe, you’re all right. Breathe in and out. In and out.” Gellert was squeezing his hand back, while he was slowly succeeding in slowing down his breathing. “Hey, do you remember the first time we met? You had the tale of the three brothers memorized… There were once three brothers who were traveling along a lonely, winding road at twilight.”

“In time, the brothers reached a river too deep to wade through and too dangerous to swim across,” his mind supplied automatically. He could feel the tears subside and his body stopped shaking. “However, these brothers were learned in the magical arts, and so they simply waved their wands and made a bridge appear across the treacherous water.” He could feel Gellert’s hand in his again, the room came into focus again and with it Gellert’s face. His body was listening to him again. He loosened the grip on Gellert’s hand and drew a few shaky but controlled breaths before he slowly sat up.

Gellert pulled the sheets over them and leaned back against the headrest of the bed, while Albus ran his hands over his face and tried to collect the rest of his sanity.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled. He felt drained like all energy had been plucked from his body. Here he was now, in a hotel room in France, naked with Europe’s most wanted man next to him and all he wanted was to be somewhere else, to be someone else. He could feel tears rising in his throat again and closed his eyes. It was embarrassing enough to have been so vulnerable in front of Gellert once today, he could not bear a second time. But Merlin, he was sure that this war, that Gellert, that his own despicable traitorous heart would break what he’d tried to put back together years ago.

“Don’t be. Did I do anything – ?” Gellert asked.

He took the hands from his face and shook his head and he almost had to laugh. “No.” He turned his head to look at Gellert, who was watching him curiously (he even imagined there was still a concerned spark in his eyes). “No, it was nothing you did. This just – happens sometimes.”

Of course, it was everything Gellert did outside of this room, outside of this bed. Of course, it was everything Albus didn’t do. It was everything he did do with Gellert. He leaned back against the headrest as well. They wouldn’t be doing a lot today, at least.

“It wasn’t always this bad,” Gellert said and he was right. When he’d been younger, there had been occasions when it had been hard to breathe, when he’d felt similar dread take over his body and he’d taken to recounting magical laws and literature in his head to get through it, but it had been controllable.

“No, that is a recent development,” he sighed.

“Why do you think that is?”

See the full post

40 notes - Posted March 6, 2022

#2

if you take anon prompts, how about Gellert realizing his feelings for Albus? Perhaps he previously though he only wanted to manipulate Albus to make him stay, but suddenly he realizes that his feelings actually are real ones.

Thank you very much! I am taking anon prompts, always feel free to send them! :) this turned into a bit of a character study for Gellert, but I do hope you enjoy it!

It was fascinating. Albus was the most brilliant person in the world. His mind was sharp and precise like a razor blade, yet vast and creative and unconventional. He was the only person really worth talking to, if one was to ask Gellert. And he was so magnificently powerful, too. The way Albus did magic, felt magic was the most beautiful, intriguing spectacle Gellert had ever witnessed. Magic flowed through Albus like blood, he directed the matter around him effortlessly, he altered the earth with a flick of his wrist, he took the most ancient incantations and made them his own.

Albus was everything he had never dreamed to find. An equal in mind and might. Someone he’d never thought could even exist.

It was dazzling, thrilling, that he had chosen a path of fate that led him right to Albus. It was exactly what his plans had needed, without his knowing. What the world had needed.

And yet Albus was so different. He had a warm, noble heart and a kind soul, so much that Gellert sometimes wondered how a mind like his could bear the confinement of his virtue. For all his brooding and rightful bitterness that came with the duty of caring for his siblings, he sternly refused any talk of abandoning them. Albus was patient with even the most dimwitted of people (Gellert was sure that Aberforth was the only one to ever successfully push him into losing his temper.) and he tried to see light in even the darkest of people. Muggles had ripped his family apart and yet, he did not harbor any intimate rancour against them.

Gellert would have thought it foolish if it hadn’t been Albus. He could not say that he agreed with Albus’s gentleness, but he knew that he didn’t have to, anyway. Their plans remained the same and he was more than happy to let Albus care for the muggles in their scheme, while he cared for wizardkind. That’s what they did after all - complement each other. That was why they would change the world for the better, they would create a world for all of humanity. They bore that responsibility together. For The Greater Good, as Albus had so fittingly put it.

He had to admit it took him a few days longer than it usually did to notice the way Albus was looking at him. Not because Albus was very good at hiding it. He was not. Actually, for such a private person, for all the secrecy he’d lived with since he was a young child, for someone with such rhetoric skill - he was exceptionally bad at hiding his affection.

No, he merely had been so caught up in his own admiration for Albus that he hadn’t realized what the faint nervous flutter of Albus’s magic meant, whenever they were especially caught up in an intense debate. Or the lingering stares or the more frequent excuses to touch, however innocently. It was by accident (almost) that he discovered Albus was a lot more lenient with his more forceful suggestions, when they were touching while discussing them (even if it was only their knees brushing, or his arm on the headrest of Albus’s chair).

He respected Albus more than anybody else, so he was reluctant to use this advantage too often. And he was also aware that while Albus was even more willing than usual to see brightness in him, where he was sure was only dark, Albus was no fool and would not simply be played.

He had to admit it sent a very pleasant rush of power through him to have the single other most powerful wizard of their time at his fingertips, willing to be pushed, surrendering control to him. He was sure, Albus was inclined to do anything (almost anything) he would ask of him.

And yet, he had to wonder, why he was so reluctant to play those strings of Albus’s heart whenever the opportunity arose. He’d discovered that a simple kiss could make Albus forget about a lot of admonitions and yet he had rather spent an evening discussing the morales and necessities of the Imperius curse.

Later that night in bed, he examined his uncharacteristic hesitancy and all he could stumble upon were Albus’s crystal blue eyes that shone with so much warmth and affection that it sent an odd sensation right to his stomach.

He had never considered… any of his feelings, really. He got angry sometimes, furious, so much that hot rage was the only thing to fill his body and he had to act on his impulses then. He felt dread when he could feel a vision nearing and often even afterwards. He felt excitement and triumph, when he accomplished academic goals or succeeded in overcoming a particularly difficult problem. Rarely, he could even feel his pride, most prominently, when it had taken a blow.

But apart from that?

He knew that Albus had fallen in love with him, but he had never stopped to consider what it felt like to be loved by the only human he admired.

He thought of Albus’s warmth again. Of the twinkling of his eyes, of the tenderness with which his fingertips had traced the lines on his hand only yesterday. He thought of the pleasure of being so thoroughly understood that he sometimes felt like his mind was directly connected to Albus’s. He thought of the strange new desire that had overcome him to feel Albus’s lips on his the other day.

He had never felt like that for anyone.

It was an early evening, when he realized that, despite his certainty that love, which had been oustandingly absent from his life until then, was not for him - perhaps, Albus would show him yet another kind of magic.

They knew each other three weeks now, of which they had spent every possible second in each other’s company and had filled their absence with a steady flow of letters. He felt like he knew Albus inside out and the only topic he had ever expressed reluctance for was divination.

Yet, when Gellert collapsed in the middle of his room, in the middle of an animated discussion with a vision, that was so forceful he had no chance to control it in any way, Albus caught him.

He didn’t ask stupid questions. He didn’t try to stop him from shaking with dread after icy fear had been the dominant theme of his vision. Albus didn’t doubt him, not even for a second.

He held him until the shaking stopped and listened to what he’d seen with a very serious, very thoughtful expression.

“What do you think?” He asked, perhaps a little harshly and Albus blinked. He knew he’d dragged him out of a very complex thought process, but Gellert knew that Fate and Sight did not work systemically as he’d liked it and he didn’t need Albus trying to figure out what could not be figured out yet.

“I think that I want to be there, whenever this happens to you again. I hope I can be there,” Albus said, squeezing his hand, almost as if he was making a request.

Something shifted then. It wasn’t magic, at least he thought it wasn’t, but he noticed clearly that strings inside him vibrated and wove together that he hadn’t known before. Somehow his chest was filled with emotions that wanted to spill out of him and the only one that he could recognize was relief. He hadn’t even known he’d feared Albus’s rejection of this part of him he knew he would understand the least. But now that Albus was looking at him only with love and worry and a little bit of wonder, the overwhelming desire to kiss him, overcame him again.

Kiss him, drown in him, become one with him. He’d never felt the urge to be so close to someone before. He’d never felt his heart beating like that before. He’d never felt so complete before.

And he knew that he wanted to be with Albus for the rest of his life. He simply, purely wanted it for the sake of his beating heart.

47 notes - Posted February 25, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Okay, since I wrote that long rant about how I imagine Albus being neurodivergent (more specially autistic and suffering from anxiety) and how it’s always prevalent in my mind, whenever I write him, I’m also sharing it on here:

‪I think it’s especially apparent in his relationship with his siblings (apart from the whole world calling him “eccentric” multiple times), but I always imagine that Aberforth (who I imagine to be incredibly empathetic) is very good with ‬Ariana bc they’re just well neurotypical kids (until Ariana’s incident) and Albus is - well - not. Always caught up in books, which to me, read: hyperfixation, which other kids consider weird and which adults consider adorable up to a point where he seems to be almost anti social bc he is so caught up in his mind that he doesn’t play with the other kids (I magine Kendra to be very ambiguous here too, very proud of her ‘gifted child’ but also at dinner she’d say things like “don’t you have anything else to talk about but that fairy tale?”, “you should go and play with the other kids more often” and he’d say “yes mother”, but really he’d feel very much like an alien in his own home) and Aberforth is just accepting him the way he is, he’s the one, who punches other kids, if they make fun of his weird brother, he’s the one, who listens to Albus’s ramblings about the three brothers even though he doesn’t care about it

And then Ariana is attacked and everythings falls apart and Aberforth is so good with Ariana bc he is just good at accepting people the way they are and Albus is terrified bc even with healthy people he always seems to say the wrong stuff at the wrong time, how is he supposed to interact with Ariana, who seems to have a breakdown at the littlest thing?

And then he goes to school and he’s brilliant and admired and suddenly his gift and power outweighs his eccentricities and he is kind and friendly and polite enough that people like him and his friends are nice and also he’s learned that people don’t want to hear hour long deliberations about fairy tales or dragons or magic, no matter how fascinating he finds it, he has learned the technicalities of lying, of keeping secrets, of holding back, not only because Mother told him to, but also because not revealing his true self was usually the best option, bc no matter how nice people seemed, they still made him feel alien one way or another, wether that is because he talked a little too much about transfiguration, because he can’t stop his leg from bouncing bc he doesn’t even notice but other people do and they find it annoying or simply bc as much as they don’t understand him, he doesn’t get what they’re on about either with their parties and ever changing love interests and gossip, but he learns to seem interested

I also imagine him learning legilimency initially in hopes to understand the people around him more, to connect with his family more, but it ultimately ends up (mostly) with people being annoyed bc he’s looking into their heads

And Aberforth, obviously also very much burdened by the fate of the family and angry about pretty much everything bc what are they even doing? Does love his brother and he knows how he is, but he also needs his older brother and he really has zero nerves to spare and Ariana needs his care while Albus seems to be sufficiently great at school and he really doesn’t understand why it’s so difficult for Albus to be good at school but not good at home, when they all love him

And then Mother dies and Gellert arrives and Gellert is the first and only person, who doesn’t make him feel like an alien, he actually likes to hear Albus’s thoughts, even for hours on end on the same topic (the Hallows for one, Gellert can talk about just as much, so he doesn’t even feel guilty or like a burden, bc he can actually believe he is not too much for Gellert) and how incredible is that? And Gellert is understanding, Gellert knows how his mind works bc his is the same! And what he’s feeling for Gellert is amazing but also so overwhelming and he really cannot focus on his siblings’ needs, which are a whole different can of worms (here comes in anxiety bc how in the name of Merlin is he supposed to manage that? And change is hard anyway and he’d just planned this whole tour and it should have been him shining and all, how everyone has always predicted and he really doesn’t want to be responsible bc he also not good at it, but magic, that’s what he’s good at)

48 notes - Posted March 12, 2022

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I posted 1,242 times in 2022

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#my art - 51 posts

#the-expatriate - 49 posts

#anon - 37 posts

#the expatriate - 34 posts

Longest Tag: 72 characters

#fun fact i had another reply typed out and firefox crashed the other day

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

burdened-boy magazine: your #1 guide to the end of the world.

i thought i would commemorate hitting 100 mutuals/followers (101 to be exact) with this little thing. warmest gratitude to @rabbit-trolls​ for being #1! i like to envision burdened-boy as one of those “indie gems nobody knows about” - you see the black eye in your inbox, but what’s really going on under the surface?

top left corner is @the-expatriate​ and below is @songofsilentechoes​

thank you everyone! 

james (i use the name polybiiex for my art stuff)

24 notes - Posted July 8, 2022

#4

/ M  / I / S / T /

[ @the-expatriate​ has returned to the void. ]

With a choked grunt, Limbo is splayed out onto the Tube platform, having been hurled down a short set of concrete stairs. Catching himself on a set of turnstiles (albeit rather painfully), the disgruntled hitman gazes up the stairs from which he came.

To his amazement, his longtime quarry Q. Bensis (a college botany professor turned druglord) had decided to get high off his own supply. Bensis, typically a scrawny, bald man in his late fifties, had ingested a large dose of Gamma Blue, a powerful deliriant that also served a stimulant. Limbo surmised that this was done in preparation for the two men’s confrontation; despite the hitman being a relatively heavy person, the much weaker Bensis was able to pick him up and throw him like Donkey Kong. As a matter of fact, the professor had been handing Limbo’s ass to him all afternoon.

Wheezing, the hitman reached for his gun, uncaring of any bystanders around him. 

Suddenly, Bensis appeared in the stairwell, the mid-afternoon sun lighting the whole scene up with bleached white light. Limbo drew his pistol, ready for battle once more. 

30 notes - Posted July 29, 2022

#3

50 notes - Posted June 24, 2022

#2

[ @the-expatriate has joined the fray ]

A Grand Machine, a glittering silver snake of stainless steel streaks across the plains, its diesel hum serving as a quiet lullaby for its passengers. Jon had not taken a long distance train ride in a long time, preferring the cost of a cheap flight, or the independence of a road trip. However, his target for the evening was a known train enjoyer, so where the money went, Limbo followed. After all, when money talks, bullshit walks.

The criminal found himself in the observation deck, amongst other passengers, watching the nighttime scenery whizz past and sipping a cup of cola through a coffee stirrer. He was sizing people up, searching for a middle aged man with a shiny bald head and a long brown beard.

"...more than a symbol, more than I bargained for," the hitman whispered to himself.

90 notes - Posted February 6, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

[ @songofsilentechoes​ is back.]

With the quiet click of the glass door behind him, Limbo steps out onto the sidewalk, having spent the last sixty-two minutes of his life in therapy. As is customary when living in Neo-Los Angeles, the cyborg checked both ways before proceeding towards the parking garage at the end of the block.

It was getting late, with the sun beginning to crest below the vast, dirty skyline of the big city. It was also beginning to drizzle. As usual with these late-night therapy sessions, the thought of grabbing carryout in lieu of his typical iced coffee flashed in his head, but after feeling his stomach bounce in a way he wasn’t particularly fond of, Limbo shook this thought from his head. 

126 notes - Posted March 30, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[barmadumet]

I posted 621 times in 2022

That's 621 more posts than 2021!

120 posts created (19%)

501 posts reblogged (81%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@bi-wan

@bladling

@kana7o

@misscoet

@pararararablof

I tagged 597 of my posts in 2022

Only 4% of my posts had no tags

#obikin - 406 posts

#fanart - 302 posts

#anakin skywalker - 67 posts

#fanfic - 56 posts

#obi wan kenobi - 49 posts

#jedi garland - 39 posts

#streets of gold - 34 posts

#vaderwan - 24 posts

#obi-wan kenobi - 19 posts

#halloween - 18 posts

Longest Tag: 108 characters

#it’s like religion with these two. all you have to do is ask for forgiveness and then your sins are absolved

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

I could cry. I think it’s been about a year since Rocklove first started releasing this line. I was so hoping these two would eventually be announced as part of the collection. Finally announced in May! Finally released on the first day of Celebration! I had to wait over a month for them to arrive, but today is the day!!!! Worth the wait ❤️

37 notes - Posted June 28, 2022

#4

Purchased Obi-Wan itty bitty in the spring. Had been waiting for Anakin to release… Ummmm. Imagine my surprise bc I thought I only ordered 1 🤔 This is where the fun begins……

They were laid out in the box just like this too 😂 I wish I could’ve seen my own face when I saw them.

“Stranger. From the outside. Ooooooooo”

See the full post

38 notes - Posted October 20, 2022

#3

See the full post

50 notes - Posted October 8, 2022

#2

“The tree looks wonderful, dear one.” 🎄

🎅Photo Session 5!!! 🎅I got excited and decided to share sooner than planned 😘

See the full post

57 notes - Posted December 6, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

See the full post

246 notes - Posted September 7, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[skilliqcourse]

The Essentials of Hardware and Networking: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

Welcome to "The Essentials of Hardware and Networking: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners," presented by SkillIQ. If you're interested in starting a career in information technology or just want to learn about how computers and networks work, this guide is perfect for you. At SkillIQ, we are dedicated Experts to giving you the basic knowledge you need to do well in the tech world.

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Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer system. This includes the central processing unit (CPU), hard drives, RAM, motherboards, and more. In our course, you will learn how each component functions and how they interact with one another to form a functioning computer. We also cover essential troubleshooting techniques to help you diagnose and repair common hardware issues.

Networking Fundamentals

Networking is crucial as it connects various computers and devices, allowing them to communicate and share resources efficiently. Our course introduces you to the basics of networking, including the different types of networks (like LAN, WAN, and WiFi), networking protocols, and the OSI model. You will gain hands-on experience in setting up and managing network connections, configuring routers and switches, and ensuring network security.

Practical, Hands-On Learning

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Enroll in SkillIQ’s Hardware and Networking Course today to begin your journey into the tech world. With our expert instructors and comprehensive curriculum, you’re sure to gain the skills and confidence you need to excel. Get ready to unlock new opportunities and secure your future in the rapidly growing tech industry!

For detailed inquiry

Contact us on: +91 7600 7800 67 

Email us at: info@skilliq.co.in

[spiritismo-italiano]

Article no. 67

THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SPIRITS’ WORLD IS ANYTHING BUT EASY

Usually, the influence of contrasting forces – which, for good results, we must get to know – determines the anything but easy mediumistic experience and our relationship with the Spirits’ world.

Not knowing these forces renders it very difficult to distinguish a real phenomenon from a fake and afterwards, the doubts let us or accept all occurrences as works of the Spirits’ World, or decisively deny them.

As suggestion often plays an important role, it is necessary knowing how to distinguish the phenomena, knowing at least theoretically the laws that regulate these relationships and actuating them in order not to influence the medium and disturb the actions of the Spirits. Only in this way, can we establish a steady relationship with the Invisible World and recognize the phenomena.

Actually, the more a medium is sensitive, the more he or she feels the magnetic influence of the experimenters. This goes so far that the emanation of mental fluids on behalf of the attendees become extremely important for the success of the séance.

Furthermore, those entities knowing the laws of mediumistic communication do not deliberately volunteer for this contact with mediums pursuing only personal interests, be it consciously or unconsciously, and who do not show the humble willingness of being an instrument for studies, through which we can gain a knowledge useful to everybody.

The mediumistic force, that marvelous faculty, does not develop and sometimes even vanishes, if only used for personal purposes and without the right motivation; on the other hand, it may reinforce itself when we make good use of it.

In order not to be fooled or used as a tool for inferior spirits, it is necessary to approach this boundary to the Afterlife with a receptive, humble and strong mind, and to be willing to make the sacrifice of a long-lasting education.

Mediumship first manifests at an intuitive level (Intuitive Mediumship), and then it slowly transforms into writing mediumship, a phenomenon where a spirit sends ideas and impulses to the subject who automatically transcribes them.

Obviously, at the beginning, ideas and thoughts of the same medium commingle during these communications; however, relaxing well and exercising a lot may help to reduce notably this interference.

As time goes by, the medium will learn how to release and surrender, and to detach the mind from the body; moreover, he or she will diverge from the energetic network and the plexuses thus, facilitating the expansion of that spiritual structure (Perispirit) inherent to each of us. This is the beginning of witnessing various phenomena.

By continuing with the exercise and learning how to surrender completely, the mediums drop off to a magnetic sleep (often erroneously called “trance”) and – under the guidance of a spiritual magnetizer – they may commence direct communications, which – according to the level of preparation and the exercises made – are more or less free from interferences.

Once arrived at that point, the mediums can no longer work alone; they need the help of not only the Spirit Guides, but also of the fluidic chain built by the experimenters.

However, when being in this state, the medium is most sensitive and may somatize the environmental energies as well as those emanated by the chairperson of the session: in the long term, the medium may receive energetic blocks and physical damages.

Many spirits, not knowing those energetic mechanisms, act bona fide, and they often continue holding the séance thus, blocking the mediumistic possibility and inflicting considerable physical damages on the medium.

Superior Spirits perfectly know how to regulate this kind of work without inflicting damages on the medium.

This is the reason why the Spirit Guides at times avoid generating striking phenomena – even with a good medium at hand – and wait until the ideal environmental conditions of defense will be created.

[witoldwieslster]

Article no. 67

THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SPIRITS’ WORLD IS ANYTHING BUT EASY

Usually, the influence of contrasting forces – which, for good results, we must get to know – determines the anything but easy mediumistic experience and our relationship with the Spirits’ world.

Not knowing these forces renders it very difficult to distinguish a real phenomenon from a fake and afterwards, the doubts let us or accept all occurrences as works of the Spirits’ World, or decisively deny them.

As suggestion often plays an important role, it is necessary knowing how to distinguish the phenomena, knowing at least theoretically the laws that regulate these relationships and actuating them in order not to influence the medium and disturb the actions of the Spirits. Only in this way, can we establish a steady relationship with the Invisible World and recognize the phenomena.

Actually, the more a medium is sensitive, the more he or she feels the magnetic influence of the experimenters. This goes so far that the emanation of mental fluids on behalf of the attendees become extremely important for the success of the séance.

Furthermore, those entities knowing the laws of mediumistic communication do not deliberately volunteer for this contact with mediums pursuing only personal interests, be it consciously or unconsciously, and who do not show the humble willingness of being an instrument for studies, through which we can gain a knowledge useful to everybody.

The mediumistic force, that marvelous faculty, does not develop and sometimes even vanishes, if only used for personal purposes and without the right motivation; on the other hand, it may reinforce itself when we make good use of it.

In order not to be fooled or used as a tool for inferior spirits, it is necessary to approach this boundary to the Afterlife with a receptive, humble and strong mind, and to be willing to make the sacrifice of a long-lasting education.

Mediumship first manifests at an intuitive level (Intuitive Mediumship), and then it slowly transforms into writing mediumship, a phenomenon where a spirit sends ideas and impulses to the subject who automatically transcribes them.

Obviously, at the beginning, ideas and thoughts of the same medium commingle during these communications; however, relaxing well and exercising a lot may help to reduce notably this interference.

As time goes by, the medium will learn how to release and surrender, and to detach the mind from the body; moreover, he or she will diverge from the energetic network and the plexuses thus, facilitating the expansion of that spiritual structure (Perispirit) inherent to each of us. This is the beginning of witnessing various phenomena.

By continuing with the exercise and learning how to surrender completely, the mediums drop off to a magnetic sleep (often erroneously called “trance”) and – under the guidance of a spiritual magnetizer – they may commence direct communications, which – according to the level of preparation and the exercises made – are more or less free from interferences.

Once arrived at that point, the mediums can no longer work alone; they need the help of not only the Spirit Guides, but also of the fluidic chain built by the experimenters.

However, when being in this state, the medium is most sensitive and may somatize the environmental energies as well as those emanated by the chairperson of the session: in the long term, the medium may receive energetic blocks and physical damages.

Many spirits, not knowing those energetic mechanisms, act bona fide, and they often continue holding the séance thus, blocking the mediumistic possibility and inflicting considerable physical damages on the medium.

Superior Spirits perfectly know how to regulate this kind of work without inflicting damages on the medium.

This is the reason why the Spirit Guides at times avoid generating striking phenomena – even with a good medium at hand – and wait until the ideal environmental conditions of defense will be created.

[jelliedigital]

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