#the notes on this post are gold great addition everyone

[silicacid]

[pomefioredove]

Saw requests opened again! Can I have Scarabia headcanons for this scenario: so they invited their s/o back to the Scalding Sands for a festival and provides their lover with a special evening attire for a party or smth. The outfit itself is red and gold (typical Scarabia colors) but the s/o is from a culture where those are wedding colors (ex: China, Vietnam, India, Nepal, etc). Cue the reader teasingly asking them if this was their way of proposing. How do Jamil and Kalim react (separately) and how blushy do they get?

OH THIS IS SO CUTE! omggg

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ wedding colors

summary: a little misunderstanding type of post: headcanons characters: jamil, kalim additional info: romantic, reader is gender neutral, reader is yuu

poor Jamil

in all the chaos of preparing for the festival, he forgot to ask you what colors you wanted

of course, he knows your favorites

but he wants this to be special

and now he only has a day left to arrange an outfit for you!

that's not enough time to customize something

so, he gets his mom's permission to borrow something of hers

she has the nicest clothes, and it'll be meaningful

he chooses something neutral (or so he thinks)

red and gold for the festival, right?

and you look stunning in it!

but he takes note of the strange smirk on your face as you ask where he got it

"It's my mother's nicest outfit," he says, a little too proud of himself

"Your mothers... and in these colors... is this your way of proposing?"

huh

???

Jamil knows he fucked up right away

only then, he remembers you mentioning the meaning of red in your culture, and...

it completely slipped his mind

he stammers out some half-assed explanation and then excuses himself to cool down in the hall

how embarrassing...

at least you just think it's funny

but, even he will admit, the following festival makes a great "wedding venue"

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Kalim's family tailor wasn't enough

this is a special event, after all, and he wants everyone to know just how special you are

he hires the finest tailor in the land and tells him to make the "prettiest outfit anyone's ever seen"

...and nothing else

so, the tailor, with such little foresight, chooses the easiest colors

red for courage and life

gold for nobility and perfection

easy, right?

well...

Kalim thinks you look amazing, and he's so excited to introduce you to everyone that he doesn't let you get a word in

at the end of the festival, you joke that if it had been your family, everyone would be asking about the wedding

and he's like

:)?

so you explain the meaning of the colors

and his face just fills with dread

not at the premise of marrying you

but because this outfit isn't nearly good enough to propose to you in!!!

and once he starts, he won't stop

first of all, he would have gotten you the most beautiful clothes anyone has ever worn

he would have an entire parade of exotic animals and gold and jewels in your honor

and then a banquet

and then a scenic carpet ride

and then he'd propose. of course!

it's cute how worked up he gets over it, and how much he's already thought it out :)

[lakecountylibrary]

As a public librarian whose own library’s marketing is, not to put too fine a point on it, garbâge, I have to ask: How did y’all manage to get a tumblr account?? Our communications dept would *never* let us be that cool.

It went kind of like 'Hey. We should do more reader's advisory. It's great social media *checks notes* uh, content. Should be a blog since it's long form writing. No, I can manage it, it fits in my task list. Have you heard of Tumblr? No? Well it would be perfect, and it's free. Approved? Greatthanksbye!'

And then I ran and they haven't caught me yet.

Much longer answer under the cut, in case you're looking for tips to convince coms ⬇️

I'm the person who manages all of our online marketing, so I really only had to ask the director. The words "I'll manage it myself, no additional staff time" were also magical since... well, I'm the social media manager, they know I'm good for it (and that I'm not going to post something the library is going to have to make an embarrassed press release about later.)

The way I made the case for tumblr was by saying it's a spot to host staff recs/reviews that's not character limited, and we can link back to it from all of our other social media platforms. Our website isn't set up for blog-style posts so making a new page every time we wanted to rec a book would be hugely obnoxious. Plus tumblr's tagging system aids in discovery (you know, in theory) in a way our website couldn't.

Even if our book rec posts don't get many notes here on tumblr (they don't, with a few exceptions) posts with links back to tumblr do pretty well on our other platforms. So our benchmarking for tumblr doesn't look great on its own but it does improve our stats elsewhere, so it's worth keeping on - especially since the overhead on staff time is very low. Staff send in their book recs and reviews when they have something to say and a little time to write it up, no strict schedule or deadlines. I take care of all the formatting, proofreading, graphics, scheduling, and tagging myself.

Obviously we're doing more than just our rec posts - reblogging and answering asks and replying to posts where relevant, plus the occasional one-off non-book-rec post. Which is all, you know. Just being on tumblr. Gotta do our bit to keep the tumblr ecosystem healthy. If you want to convince a marketing department that's worthwhile, then it's raising brand awareness.

(Plus I really like tumblr and keeping the social media manager happy when she has to spend eight hours a day looking at the kind of nonsense people say to libraries on Facebook other social media sites is worth its weight in gold, though I may be biased. But getting to manage the tumblr at work is sort of like an oasis in my day.)

And then sometimes Neil Gaiman reblogs an addition we made on his post and suddenly everyone at work is very excited that someone has kept up the tumblr for all these years :D

[stardewremixed]

Stardew Confessions

This started as a musings post and grew into something much bigger. Sometimes I dream of selecting the resident saloon owner as my bachelor of choice. Yes, I'm running off with Gus. Here are my justifications (in no particular order):

Warning: Spoilers for his personality and heart events.

He has a kind word for everyone.

He is warm, friendly, and welcoming.

He has a deep compassion for his friends and neighbors, as evidenced by how he treats Linus (that scene always warms my heart) and how he wants to "help out" Pam even if his business is hurting.

He is sensitive to your allergies. Enough said.

He is rocking the dad-bod.

He is not a heavy drinker (and this is a welcome relief after Shane). He mentions that he likes a good Stardew Valley vintage from time-to-time. (I prefer a good vino over spirits, anyhow.)

He is "proud" of you if you upgrade Pam's house. (And if he doesn't know it's you, he tells you that person deserves the best).

He cooks for weeks for the Egg Day festival. A man who is dedicated to keeping the Valley well fed is a good man in my book.

The man runs one of the most successful businesses in the Valley. He is the only bar and restaurant in town. Financial stability is practical AND sexy, people!

A man who cooks and mixes a mean cocktail is a catch. He would keep you in good food, good drinks, and coffee.

Mmm... and the man has a special omelet. As a girl who loves her eggs, this is a total perk in my book! (And he makes the best crab cakes too!)

The man also makes his own candy canes! Sweet!

Living above a bar and restaurant would have its perks. (I lived above one in my first apartment - the water pressure was incredible for showers and the rooms were surprisingly spacious). And if you're hit with the 2am munchies, you'd have access to the best snacks.

Since he is on the older side, he is established and has a healthy self-esteem.

He wouldn't play games. He is straightforward and honest.

He has good taste in gifts - definitely higher quality (later game) stuff. Escargot, fish tacos, tropical curry all strike me as things a man with a discerning palate would enjoy. Oranges are a healthy addition. One of his favorites at the movie theater is a cappuccino mousse cake (which sounds absolutely mouthwatering and delicious - and I'd totally learn the recipe for him!)

He sends good gifts in the mail after 1+ hearts. And his note reads: "I made you a little treat this morning at the Saloon. Dig in. Your friend, Gus." (I'll admit the first time I received this letter, I swooned a bit. Maybe I want to be more than friends here, Gus.) He's so thoughtful. 3+ hearts - he says he only shares the salmon dinner recipe with his "good friends." ;)

He kindly employs Emily. (I bet he makes a great boss - a nice blend of fair and understanding.) He knows this is only temporary for her until she gets her clothing business up and running, but he is appreciative of the help.

In his 5-heart event, he basically calls you the "special ingredient" in the secret sauce! *wiggles eyebrows* He has come to view you as a good friend.

And the man gives you a mini jukebox for your home!!! Any man who gives you the "gift of music" has to be a sweetheart.

He's also worried about Pam and wants to maintain a friendship with her (and yes, I'll acknowledge the elephant in the room. I know there are problematic implications of giving her alcohol, but he is running a business and she is responsible for her own choices). He wants others to like him and he respects people's autonomy. Maybe he's a bit too nice at times since he does need to make a living, but I think this contributes to his all-around "good guy" vibes.

TL;DR - I'm convinced Gus could keep you in relative comfort and happiness, that he has a "heart of gold," and he would make an excellent marriage candidate.

[waitmyturtles]

Last Twilight, episode 1: reflections

TW: suicide

ALLLLLLLLRIGHT! Aof Noppharnach began our year with Moonlight Chicken; interjected it with Our Skyy 2 x Bad Buddy x A Tale of Thousand Stars, and bookends it with Last Twilight. I've got my cha yen ready (not too sweet), here we go, Last Twilight, episode 1.

Some quick notes on random stuff first, then themes I'm picking up on:

1) Yes, we had to have Doc Jimmy start a new series with a new fight, huh (and always in these bowling shirt/jackets, too)

2) Ajahn Pichai with the gold chain, sheeeet! (Listen. It's my OGMMTVC Bad Buddy Meta Month. Just about everyone working on this show on the screenwriting and directing team are BBS alums. The comparisons will be unavoidable!)

3) Why do I know Sea Tawinan? It’s not because I watched Vice Versa (I stayed away), but because he was great in a small role in 55:15 Never Too Late, AND, more importantly, homeboy wore an off-shoulder Fendi sweater WITH a blazer (CLAP EMOJIS) to some GMMTV event, which warmed my couture cockles. Much respect for the taste! (Poor @lurkingshan has had to literally hear about my fashion obsession with this get-up MULTIPLE TIMES, sorry Shan, palms together!)

4) Of the few episodes of Midnight Museum and UMG that I watched earlier this year, I was not impressed with Namtan Tipnaree, but I appreciate that she's starting off quite strong and moodily here. (Also, UMG's script did literally no human being any justice.)

@twig-tea has gathered the ragged and burnt out (oh, is that just me, lmao) Ephemerality Squad from the Only Friends meta circle to join them in a Last Twilight Liminality.... what should we call ourselves, the Liminality League? The Liminality Legion? Someone choose! Anyway, I am super down, and ready to start chewing on some themes. Twig captured the big theme of liminality, of time purgatory, and I totally agree with what you've gotten down in your post, Twig.

In the preview episode for this series, Before Last Twilight, we learn that Day has 180 days -- six months -- of vision left. At the same time, Mhok has 180 days -- six months -- to earn enough money to buy back his late sister's car.

In addition to liminality/time purgatory (this is only my coinage, btw, a way in which I can understand the moment in life this show is capturing), we clearly have a theme of cars and movement. Mhok is a mechanic. He wants to keep his late sister's car. The Bimmer that Night is driving is Day's car. Mhok has to get Day home on the back of a motorcycle as Night had to drive away while Day was wandering in the middle of the road. A car can move backwards only very temporarily, and will HAVE to move forwards at any point in time in order to get to another location (..... unless you're a driver from New Jersey, ayooo!). The car belonging to the late Rung is very much in purgatory at the moment.

We have a theme of sibling rivalry between Day and Night. Day was the success of the family, knows it, and hangs it over Night's head. And we have a theme of opposites. Day, Night, blind, seeing. I can play badminton, I cannot play badminton.

(BY THE WAY! We know we'll be reading more into badminton, AND in the rivalry of Day and Night, AND in the rivalry of Sea and Mark in this series, yes? Mark Pakin and Sea Tawinan are both national-level Thai badminton players who chose acting as their careers. They're facing off in some GMMTV BL sports tournament at the end of the year. I hope it's slightly aggressive! In Before Last Twilight, Sea actually made reference to his rivalry with Mark. Ooooh, TESTY!)

While I'm watching closely the tension between Day and Night, I'm also watching for the stress and pressure that caring for Day will put on Mhok, as well as Night and his and Day's mother. As many of us are watching Last Twilight very closely for accuracy and authenticity in reflecting the experience of a disabled person in an unaccommodating environment; I'm also looking to this show to hopefully capture stories of caregiver stress, which is an incredibly real and important phenomenon (relevant articles here and here).

As I always, always harken to in my posts: behavioral change is very real, and very difficult -- especially when behavioral change is forced upon an individual AND/OR a group, all of which contain very different emotional constructions. Day and Night's forced behavioral change, based on Day's vision condition, has very naturally and automatically caused stress in the group dynamic of Day's family system, as we saw in the outburst in Day's car. I wonder how Mhok will deal with that stress, and how he'll manage his own stress vis à vis caring for Day.

Last theme for now, and then some concluding thoughts. Mhok's emotional distance from his sister's suicide. He can't bring himself to connect with it directly.

I'm eating this up. It's certainly Mhok's way of grieving at the moment. He's also talking with his ex-girlfriend in both of these scenes. There's emotional space between him and Rung, between him and Porjai. And certainly there's simmering and unresolved anger as well -- honestly, the whole emotional circle. But Mhok, at this point, is not toeing the line of getting close to those emotions, and is engaging with the memory of his sister with distance, which is bound to be addressed vis à vis his connection with Day.

There's a lot of anger, a lot of regret, a lot of avoidance, a lot of dancing around the honest truth. Mhok and Day are likely conduits of emotional openness and steadiness to each other; we will see how it plays out.

What do I think of JimmySea? I'm not you're average Wai hater -- I really liked Jimmy as Wai in Bad Buddy. Because I didn't watch Vice Versa, I honestly don't know what I think about him in a lead role. So I am going in REAL fresh, knowing nothing about JimmySea's chemistry, and I like what I'm seeing so far, particularly with Jimmy's emotional control. I appreciate having seen a bit of the work they did together in Before Last Twilight to get to this series premiere.

Aof has done this before: he's recognized potential in pairings (specifically in Dark Blue Kiss with TayNew and Still 2gether with BrightWin) to come up with fabulous shows. So I have trust that he knows what he's doing with JimmySea. Let's see. I really like this so far, but Only Friends did indeed burn me out to a crisp, so I'm allowing myself the slightest touch of hesitancy as I get into a new and big GMMTV show.

[lucalicatteart]

Finally finished my weird hanging painting thing (originally a secondhand partially-done 'paint by numbers' kit that I found at a thrift store and kept to repurpose lol)! Imagery somewhat based in my own worldbuilding projects, and text written in my constructed language for one of my fantasy species, but also vaguely inspired by old tapestries and illuminated manuscripts and etc. I've never been great at neat clean patterning or text, but it looks cool from afar, and I always enjoy making "props" or things that are somewhat like real objects that might could exist in my world. :0

(additional pictures/info under the readmore)

-

Here's what it was originally! I probably didn't have to actually have a river running down the middle because it further makes the composition of the whole thing weird (various connected yet separate locations and things happening, instead of one unified event being portrayed), but I wasn't sure if I'd be able to fully cover up the already existing paint that was there.. and I can also kind of justify it by going with a more "all the imagery is just symbolic so it doesn't have to make exact sense" approach lol.. How is one half of the grass green and the other is suddenly snowy? shhhh.. it's not literal.. shhh...

Made a vague sketch, then painted over it, and then added more distinct lines in black pen. Center image first and border second.

The very last thing was the text, which actually took forever to translate because my conlang is still only like.. partially done, and some of the grammar is not worked out exactly how I would like it to be, so a few sentences I had to think about for a long time before just going "eh, this is probably not how I would do it if I considered it more, but I'll go with it for now" lol . I also am not entirely satisfied with all of the characters for the writing system, but again, it's good enough for a quick project, it doesn't have to be 100% accurate and perfect because it's a fake language that nobody knows anyway lol.

I thought about breaking down the text and translation here like I have for some of the tidbits of Avirrekava (the language) in things I've posted in the past, but I think it would take too long and is not interesting to anyone but me ghghj, so for the sake of getting the post out quickly, I shall not spend an hour typing All That lol.

The general jist of the writing though is that it's just about the Avirre'thel being cast out from the other elves, after abandoning their magic for immortality as a means to truly attain perfection (an important concept in elven culture), the usual, blah blah blah, but how it's Actually A Good Thing, because the gods are wrong and immortality is Cool actually and they like the shitty frozen lands they were sent to, so it's fine that everyone else is being a Hater about it lol

Lastly, here's a few photos outside in the sun to TRY and show the gold detailing actually shimmering or showing up! It really doesn't come through in photos, but there's plenty of little golden spots to highlight light or Importance.

Mostly the fire, the pink sparkle that represents magic, the red drop that represents blood, the light behind Inaashi's hands and head (common symbol for the elven religion/one of their main gods, shout out to anyone who read the ancient elven religion post and recognized that lol), the sun, and the symbol for the Avirre'thel/country of Navyete at the very top. I did a few other gold bits, but they're not highlighted because they're Significant, more just that it looked more symmetrical to have some gold on the border too lol.

Other things of note: The animals are not actually significant to Avirre'thel culture really, I just wanted to put a cat and a bird because I like them lol. (I also wanted to have a few funny looking creatures, as I was slightly trying to go with the 'in some old medieval painting the anatomy and perspective is very weird' vibe, though I think some of the other parts of it look too Normal to pull it off entirely). Same with the four leaf clover, which means nothing in their culture - but these are the only areas where stuff was just added self-indulgently .

Bligabata (giant cabbage that grows along rivers in Navyete) making an appearance! The architecture of the building IS based on actual concepts for ancient elven/older Avirre'thel architecture and metalwork. The Avirre'thel who's turning away from Inaashi/elves/magic and collecting blood, is doing so in a Special Bowl, as is part of their culture (collecting it in the hands, or just in a normal vessel would be disrespectful, they have Specific Bowls which is the only thing blood can be kept in, etc.).

The figure that represents Jhevona (and thus, a closer connection to magic, celestial imagery, etc.) is in weird ugly teal, which is not necessarily a color or design associated with them, as I don't have much common culture (like clothing) worked out for Northern Jhevona (who the avirre'thel would have come into contact with) yet, BUT everyone else is in more Typical colors (a northern elf in green, Inaashi in lavender + white + blue, an Avirre'thel in darker purples and reds).

Some things, like the four figures in the corners, and the two people + fish in the stream, do not currently have a meaning, but in-world they would.. Like, I could make up lore for how they're culturally significant and it would be true because I am god of the world, but I don't have anything currently. But just know.. they DO mean something, I just haven't decided it yet, maybe kind of fill in as I go, come up with a meaning later lol. Probably along the lines of an old myth from the ancient elven religion, a story, etc.

-

I don't know, probably other stuff, but that's my Trying To Keep It Short rambling for now lol. I'm just glad I finally finished this! For how vaguely sloppy it is up close (everything being completely freehanded, only used rulers once when doing the initial sketch and lining where the border should be + my hands are shaky + the canvas is bumpy + my handwriting is scratchy and terrible + etc. etc.) it still took a REALLY long time, even when not trying to make it all perfect. Especially if including the text translation + writing, which took like 3+ hours itself.

Maybe all the asymmetry/lack of things being centered is NOT because I was too lazy to measure anything, but is actually because in-universe, it's a practice illustration made by some young apprentice who has to work on little canvases for years before he can be trusted will a full sized mural or tapestry. It's his first week on the job! of course he's uncoordinated! don't laugh at him!!! lol

[corinthianism]

gold rush | thor

pairing: thor odinson (mcu)/f!reader additional tags: fluff warnings: none

note: super short cutesy fic about thor!! he's so cute i love him! anyway, i might just make this acc my main acc bc posts on my other acc literally just won't show up

“Come on! Just this once, sweetheart!” 

“No!”

“It’ll be good for you!”

“Good in what way exactly, Tony?” you raised your brow at him. Looking back at you was a grown man attempting puppy dog eyes. If you weren’t so annoyed by him, you would’ve laughed. When he didn’t respond to your question, you thought you were free to go but as always, there’s no winning against Tony Stark.

“Thor will be thereee,” he sang. “I’ll be sure to tell him to wear those extra-fitted gym shirts you like so much.”

“You’re a bitch, you know that?”

“Yup.”

That morning interaction left you in a daze for the rest of the day. The party was later at night, which left you with only a couple of hours to decide what you were going to wear.

It wasn’t uncommon for you to see people fawning over him. It didn’t mean that you were ever going to get used to it, though. But, as always, you understood. After all, how could anyone resist him? He towered over everyone. He was funny, kind, sweet, and smarter than people gave him credit for. And you swore his golden hair and blue eyes shone under the light. He was literally inhumanly perfect. It was simultaneously endearing and infuriating. 

You nursed your second (third?) mojito and tried to get your attention off of him. This was supposed to be a celebration. You’d been working for Tony Stark, or more accurately, Pepper Potts, as his new glorified babysitter. Your job ranged from reminding Tony to not die of sleep deprivation to reminding all of the Avengers to also not die of sleep deprivation. Naturally, you were invited to another big party Tony threw to celebrate the team’s latest successful mission. From what you heard, the situation was getting pretty bleak before Thor showed up.

Thor. The most beautiful man you’d ever laid your eyes on. He smiled so easily, like he didn’t have the weight of the world on his shoulders. He quite literally beamed like sunlight. 

“Snap out of it!” you blinked as you scolded yourself internally. This was getting ridiculous. It was at that moment that you decided to just ditch the party and get comfortable at home. You’d have to make up an excuse though. The Jimmy Choo heels Tony gifted you last month, as comfortable as they were, could be blamed for your sudden disappearance. “Yeah, that works,” you hummed to yourself.

Before you could leave the scene, however, you heard the familiar rumbling voice of a certain god of thunder, “Leaving so soon, my lady?” 

Shit.

You turned around, surely looking like a child caught in the act, and smiled awkwardly at him, “Uh…”–you laughed nervously–“yeah. Uh, my feet were starting to ache so I think I’m gonna just. Um. Dip. Yes.” 

“Dip,” he repeated, his lips curling up into a kind smile. “The more I think I know Midgardian culture, the more I’m proven wrong. You sure do know how to keep things exciting, my lady.” 

You could only manage to nod as you tried to suppress the dizziness you felt from his compliment. How does he even manage to do that? 

He cleared his throat and offered you his hand, “Oh! You said your feet were aching, would you like me to accompany you back to your quarters?” 

“Oh,” you gulped. Saynosaynosaynosaynosaynosaynosayno. “Yeah, sure! That would be great, thank you.” 

MORON!

You knew this was a bad idea. Not in the sense that he’d be a total asshole; he’s quite the opposite. It’s just that–maybe–this would just give you false hope. Thor often blurred the lines of politeness and plain flirting, the latter of which you have seen on numerous occasions, used on women you considered to be far better than you. Whatever level your self-esteem was at the moment, it certainly wasn’t increasing. 

You took his hand, feeling the roughness of his palm and all its little scars and thought about, just for a moment, how many battles he’s fought. How many people he saved. Or lost. You gulped, suddenly acutely aware of how small you were compared to him, but there was no fear. You felt his eyes on you, piercing through you, and you couldn’t bring yourself to look at him. 

The both of you stood in front of the elevator, seemingly waiting for the other to speak first.

“So!”

“So, um–” 

You were finally looking at him. He was golden in this light. He always was. 

“You go first,” he said lowly, urging you to continue.

“I was gonna ask how you liked the party?” you responded meekly, still in unfamiliar territory.

“How funny, I was gonna ask you the same thing,” he chuckled. “It was nice, however not as nice as the ones we hold at Asgard.” 

You smiled, “I can imagine.” 

“Perhaps one of these days, you’ll see them for yourself.” 

A beat.

“I’d like that.” 

[extinction-force1718]

My Hangover experience. Movie talk.

I found The Hangover steel book blu-ray at Big Lots. (Also found Zoolander steel book for 1.75 too. I like Zoolander it's good) My steel book collection is just alright...its not massive. I enjoy collecting steel books, that is when I find one that I want and this is one that is definitely a great addition to my collection.

Anyway about the The Hangover. When the movie was released years ago people went ape shit over it. People were laughing and screaming about it. My cousin was hysterical about it after he watched in at the theater. I didn't go to the movies to see it, I just watched it when it was released on DVD. I wouldn't had been able to sit through it with people going wild at every funny line. Anyway, I watched it and I didn't find it all that funny. But I did find it to be a good movie. Nothing more, nothing less.

So the sequels come out and I didn't pay them any attention, I had no interest in seeing them. They didn't seem to generate the mass hysteria the first one did. Even if they did I would have not watched them.

So this year I bought The Hangover trilogy to watch the second and third. I first watched the second and I was like that was pretty good, I really liked it. I then watched the third and I even liked it more. I then watched them in order and I fucking loved it. It's a masterpiece. To me it's like the dollars trilogy of comedy and the reason I said that is because the third deals with gold.

Only word to describe Bradley Cooper in it ...is cool. Zach (I won't be able to spell his last name) is hilarious in it. (I listened to interview with him saying they may should had ended it after first...that was a bummer statement.) Ed Helms is great and Mr. Chow is classic. Everyone in it is amazing. Todd Phillips is great director, he can do anything.

Side note** You can take the title The Hangover and change it to Tropic Thunder in this post. And same thing but I did see Tropic Thunder in theaters. I didn't find it that funny at time, same thing...I found it to be a good movie ...but nothing more but I re-watched it. (Its included in a Tom Cruise 10 pack for 12 bucks, I bought. Great deal worth it for Collateral alone.) And now I love Tropic Thunder. RDJ role in that and in Natural Born Killers to me makes him one best actors ever.

Okay I'm done for now.

[rangedreign]

ohhh my favourite part of ask games, (harmless) petty fandom drama. i know these are a lot so ofc feel free to pick and choose but im nosy and love gossip so if you feel like it *eyes emoji*:

1 2 (just for the drama lol) 6 (feel free to ignore i understand u completely but i live for drama lol) 7 (MORE) 8 12 (<3) 16 (*eyes emoji*) 21 22 (for some final positivity)

1 - the character everyone gets wrong cedric the sorcerer. he deserves respect as a person, and the royal family was wrong to deny him that, but he does little to earn respect as royal sorcerer. 'oh he has such a good and relatable arc' whup tee doo his grand finale was... *checks notes* doing his job correctly. the one he's been training for his whole life. color me unimpressed by a character that should have either left that job YEARS ago or put a little effort into anticipating what he'd be asked to do and practicing instead of trying to prove his worth through stunts and domination.

2 - a compelling argument for why your fave would never top or bottom can't do it lol, everyone's a verse in my mind

6 - which ship fans are the most annoying? shoutout to the time i went through the snape/lily tag and couldn't scroll 3 posts without a james/lily shipper trying to pull moral rank. however i think 75% of the hp fandom has ship rabies.

7 - what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them? eh, none, i don't let fandom influence my interpretations of characters that way. cedric is closest but the fandom misinterpretation is just an additional annoyance, rather than a driving force

8 - common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about 'cedric and sofia have a good relationship'. shipping or not, they're completely one-sided. what does cedric provide sofia with? he doesn't even listen to her particularly well.

12 - the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them to no one's surprise, my first pick here is wormwood from sofia the first. he was created as a joke, ha ha the pet is smarter than the human master, but then the show makes you judge him by human moral standards as the foil to cedric's 'deserving of second chances'. the show itself asks you to view a character that cannot leave servitude as human, and wants you to believe that his station is right. it's so deeply unfair. i care him. i respect him. i want to see him take the power of humanity for himself, abuse it, naturally, because that's all humans have ever done to him, then grow into a complete person when he realizes he cares despite it all. knowing that, i feel like mentioning areelu should come as no surprise. doing great evil in response to evil that was done to you? that's so up my alley. up my pussy even. making her bond with daeran of all people is such a great idea, someone who cannot forgive her, but must move on and work with her regardless. it seems like most people write her off as too evil to live, but she's still a super genius. there's a lot to be gained by befriending her. the gold dragon ""redemption"" happens so absurdly fast though. 'oh shit guess this is pretty fucked up, so glad you're a piss-colored lizard bc that's the only way i'd ever listen to you' wrath's writing in general has a bit of a quantity over quality issue. a lacking-logic issue. no way my azata would sacrifice herself just cuz without knowing what areelu will do once she's gone.

16 - you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc) - hero-type main characters in general. idk exactly what it is but i find most of them very dull, and often irritating. a lack of desires beyond duty? can't often be described as freaks? they just never have any footholds for interesting ideas to me. - gold aasimar cum. if you want something golden to come out of daeran's dick, you can just make him piss XD also does that imply his hair is naturally white? - daeran x chill/lawful/'boring' kcs - i can tell that on some level he wants the stability from people like that, but i can't see him actually bonding with them. esp not towards the start of the game. - truly, utterly pathetic meow meows. like, listen, i love shoving a character into a Situation and watching them flounder around, but they've gotta be proficient at something!

21 - part of canon you think is overhyped for just about everything: the worldbuilding. i think people get impressed by the mere existence of worldbuilding, rather than the quality of it. pf surprised me when i looked deeper into stuff and found it gave me the same 'this is a hot mess and i have to make shit up for it to make sense' feeling as stf. i expected better from a massive ttrpg but ok. for wrath, also the characters and the music. the characters rely on one-note personalities with maybe a ~hint~ of spice, with one extremely notable exception of daeran. the degree to which he beats out every other character in complexity is stunning, really. the music is... just fine? it's not amazing, it does exactly what you'd expect a track for that purpose to do. I think most of the tracks have muddy orchestration, too much focus on harmony/vibes and not enough on rhythm and melody. the one track i really love is 'a drink before the battle', it has a great flow and dynamics and i wish it played more often.

22 - your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores the villains/antagonists, best part of literally any media ever

[dunmeshi]

I posted 1,440 times in 2022

410 posts created (28%)

1,030 posts reblogged (72%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@iiota

@dunmeshi

@snailmailmp3

@beepathan

@ekaterinaroskova

I tagged 779 of my posts in 2022

Only 46% of my posts had no tags

#dimension 20 - 265 posts

#wha - 68 posts

#mabel - 46 posts

#utena - 34 posts

#dimension  20 - 19 posts

#witcher - 7 posts

#good omens - 6 posts

#time for crab - 4 posts

#dungeon meshi - 3 posts

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Longest Tag: 139 characters

#i dont sell all of these great but know that i love them and think theyre wonderful and if they interest you in the least you should try it

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

@matoitech i dont want to keep replying to the same post but i want to summarize what ive found. plus this way everyone can easily view it!

to catch everyone up, theres a post going around saying the rainbow infinity sign is neurodiversity and the gold infinity sign is for autism

hi im cutting this down so it doesn't eat this post. click the link if you really wanna see it

16 notes - Posted March 28, 2022

#4

this segment from a blackout poetry experiment are pretty high up there on the list of lines of my own poetry that I like

transcript:

"What are you?"

the fringe

the femme!

18 notes - Posted February 15, 2022

#3

i think one of the funniest traits izutsumi has as a catgirl is the ability to detect ghosts

40 notes - Posted April 11, 2022

#2

Julia really named her weird train town "train station ville"

58 notes - Posted January 4, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

ooh question! does creating a new character feel like a subtractive or additive process to you? i think of it as subtractive; i'm taking away stuff i don't need to make a clear, detailed, hopefully fully dimensional character.

217 notes - Posted February 9, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[imagine-fight-write]

Random - Review of Dark Side of Dimensions

Hello everyone!

So I’m working through my planned posts, except now I’m going to take a sharp turn to left and talk about YuGiOh! Movies - Dark Side of Dimensions.

*I was going to add Pyramid of Light to this, but this is so long already & it’s been awhile since I watched both movies, so - this is what you get. For now! There will be another post focusing on Pyramid of Light someday hopefully!

I forgot I hadn’t posted this. I am so sorry.

2nd sharp left turn: I just found this thing / video. Hope you enjoy!

Also the 2nd video, because I left the road of plans already.

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Also YuGiOh! Millenium World is the perfect (bang up to the elephant worthy) end to a series + it is so pretty, both the anime & the manga. Just, so pretty. All the lovely gold & Egypt-esk setting & plot . . . it’s really great.

I love Yami’s crown so much.

Now on to YuGiOh! movies. Dark Side of Dimensions 1st.

Neither are perfect movies - I’d honestly take elements from both & mesh them together - but I did enjoy watching both.

Also, they both have great titles & basic plot ideas are great.

Writers take note!

Both also take place after the series has ended, Pyramid of Light I think happens sooner than Dimensions. 

MAJOR SPOILER WARNING FOR BOTH MOVIES.

I highly recommend you watch them before reading this.

I’ll try to keep spoilers to a minimum, but I will gush. BE PREPARED.

Dark Side of Dimensions

Good Things & Plot Related Stuff

Of the two, I like Dimensions better overall (the plot moves faster & more naturally & the anime was better quality - Kiba’s tech & duel with not!Atem was such a lovely fan's dream (also the whole basic plot)+ the comment about Atem/Yami/The Pharoah’s hair. (more on that later)

1st, I want to point out, keeping with all the good stuff this movie has to offer, which is a lot -

I really like the character designs of most everyone (apart from 2 which I’ll talk about in the “needs to be improved” section. (I am so angry / disappointed I can’t even.)

(running away from their teacher, LOL.)

Yugi’s character design is great - he looks more similar to Atem!Pharaoh yet still keeps his more gentle aura.

I also liked the designs for Tea / Anzu & Joey / Jonunichi & Tristan / Hiroto.

Anzu’s design & Jounichi’s particularly stood out to me for some reason.

The bright pop of every day scenes really helps, and again, apart from set up from the Aigami (the bag guy) & the puzzle’s discovery by Kiba, it’s mostly giving a quick refresher on who everyone is. Yugi’s goal of running his grandpa’s game store & designing his own game is a great idea, and I really wish we could’ve seen more of it.

Yugi also duels on his own for a good portion of the movie, and it is wonderful. I especially like a lot of his Egyptian themed cards.

Also, Mokuba, much like Tails in Sonic SatAM, is now helping design Kiba’s tech (he also does in Pyramid of Light.) Again, I like this addition to the character.

(And yes, there’s a reason why I haven’t mentioned Bakura or Devlin. Just wait.)

Action scenes were great. Everything was pretty. There was an epic rain scene in the city that set such a mood.

Seriously, the tech is this is lovely & cool. Shout out to the “deprevation mask” Aigmai is forced to wear at one point. If it didn’t deprive a person of most of their senses & had eye openings, I’d wear it.

For a detailed look at the animation, here’s an AMV - there are spoilers, so again, try to watch the movie first.

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I also like everyone’s Japanese names better 

(Joey’s is prob. my favorite of the English names, but I still prefer Jonouchi). Also note for anyone who hasn’t read the manga - everyone has stronger personalities in it. I especially like Anzu. She has guts. Reminds me of most of the side female characters in Yu Yu Hakusho.

We’re introduced to the “bad guy” quite early, which helps keep the tension. His powers are activated with a cool cube thing, are super chilling, and involve lovely and creepy animation. I’m not sure what the ring of ghosts is for, but it’s certainly “I want to run away now.”

“And this is why you must vanish.” - Aigami

Funny, I actually like his fake name Aigami (he pretends to be a student at their school) much better than his actual name - wait for it - Diva. That’s his name.

I just. I just can’t. Can’t take him seriously when he’s named that.

I really like his design, especially how the longer parts of his hair move when he walks and when he switches to his true form they’re bound with gold rings.

He’s very pretty.

Terrible real name aside, there’s a scene where he takes care of some bullies to establish his powers, and it’s suitably creepy.

Also a weird scene where none of the main cast can remember his name or that he’s in their class, and then promptly forget their puzzlement. It’s very creepy.

Not only are his powers creepy, he means to flat out kill Yugi to prevent the Pharoah from returning (which would take his powers away.)

 Or worse yet, he’ll send Yugi to a dimension created by Yugi’s own memories, which will slowly fade away until Yugi himself vanishes. He also refers to Yuigi as the “vessel of the Pharoah” which is both fascinating, rude, & creepy.

Aigami’s cube creatures in his deck are fascinating in terms of design & animation & certaintly fit him. However, I think combining it with an ancient civilization / Ancient Egyptian theme would help make his character stronger. (More on that in the “Could be Improved” section.)

I also put “bad guy” in quotes because, while he does some horrible things, he’s meant to be sympathetic. It’s not a bad character arc but rather forced, I guess to make room for the real bad guy, your favorite, the Millenium Ring Electric Hair Bakura.

Anyway. Some dialogue gems:

“I certainly didn’t go through all the trouble of bringing you here to dance.”

- Kiba to not!Atem before their duel.

“Pharaoh . . . You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to duel you.”

-Kiba, thinking to himself.

“After all, my scars of defeat run deep, Pharaoh . . . Inflict on your enemy an even greater wound - a defeat so resounding it leaves their soul crushed!”

- Kiba, being his typical melodramatic self, to not!Atem

“You can’t stand up to my power.” - Kiba to not!Atem

Atem - “I beg to differ.” (smirks)

“It’s true, I went through a great deal of trouble recreating the Pharoah’s deck, strategies, even his perfectly coiffed hair. In fact, that part is what took the longest . . . [But] it wasn’t the real Pharoah, so I didn’t beat him. And until I do, my scars of defeat continue to burn!” - Kiba, being a Drama Queen again

“Quiet, you sniveling sycophants!” - Kiba, to his poor, hard working staff / research and development team 

*I want to say he isn’t this rude in the original series, but I could be wrong.

Kiba crunches a KibaCorp made water bottle, flings it.

“Fire whoever designed that water bottle. KibaCorp products shouldn’t bend so easily.”

“I’m just sending him away to a dimension he might not enjoy.”

- Aigami

“Good cannot grow from evil.” - Sara, sister of Aigami

“There are no limits when you’re as brilliant as Seto Kiba!”

- Kiba, after he defeats magic through sheer force of will, arrogance, & tech (also, he’s an incarnation of an Egyptian priest)

“You cower from power . . . while I . . . embrace it!”

- Kiba, to Aigami

(perfect encapsulation of Kiba - complete melodramatic-ness & obsession to be the best)

“It’s no monster . . . it’s a god.” - Seto Kiba

When the Pharoah does appear, it’s truly epic. Had this movie combined more ancient Egyptian feels with the slick high tech, + a bag guy with actual evil plan, it’d have been a complete bang up the elephant / perfect in my book.

Seriously, almost everyone was on point. But no movie’s perfect, which brings me to:

COULD HAVE USED IMPROVEMENT SECTION

Except what on earth did they do to poor Devlin and Bakura’s character’s designs? Seriously, they look awful, and they’re 2 of my favorite good looking YuGiOh! characters.

Also, “Plana” is a silly sounding word & should’ve been changed to . . .

IDK, something sounding more harsh, powerful, & / or related to the cube / memory / dimension changing themes going on.

Plana makes me think of plants, or the planet Earth.

Maybe it sounded cooler in Japanese?

IDEAS FOR A GRAND MIXED PLOT OF BOTH MOVIES - Dark Side of Dimensions + Pyramid of Light

Aigami is an ancient enemy kgosi (king) from another empire that often warred with Egypt (Syria? I have to research) & is dressed appropriately.

Aigami wants to drain Atem’s life force to revive himself. Locks Yugi & co. in the Millennium Puzzle. Possibly possesses Kiba. OR Kiba goes in the Puzzle too (has Kiba ever been in the Millennium Puzzle?) Mia flies a helicopter.

OR Atem gets locked inside the Millennium Puzzle & everyone else has to rescue him.

Are Yugi & good!Malik friends?  Because I’d love for a chance for good! Malik to show up.

Pyramid of Light’s evil guy has a long term plan failure.

Actually, the final bad guy in Dark Side of Dimensions does to.

To the tune of, let’s cover the entire world in darkness / destroy it.

Why? Wouldn’t that make it impossible for you to keep existing? And even if it didn’t, wouldn’t such a life be boring?

Like I said, long term failure when it comes to evil plans.

Far better to drain a person’s life force or soul & inhabit their body instead.

[peternelthorpe]

Small Gift Ideas For Everyone on Your List

New Post has been published on https://smallgiftideas.org/small-gift-ideas-for-everyone/

Small Gift Ideas For Everyone on Your List

Small Gift Ideas For Everyone on Your List

There are few things as special as small gifts, especially when it comes to showing the people in your life how much they mean to you. From a handmade note to a gift basket filled with everything from coffee to homemade bath salts, here are some of our favorite small ideas for every type of person on your list.

Jewelry

Jewels are one of the most classic small gifts to give. They can be worn at any age and are a great way to express your love and affection.

Whether you’re looking for a gift for your mom, sister, or best friend, jewelry can be an easy choice. With the right piece, you’ll give them a gift that will be remembered forever.

The best jewelry gifts are a combination of beauty and style, making them perfect for any occasion. They also make a statement that you put time and effort into selecting the perfect piece.

For example, if your mom loves to dress up and go out, you’ll want to find jewelry pieces that will compliment her outfit. For instance, a necklace with an emerald pendant will look gorgeous when she wears it to an evening event.

Another way to make a big impression on your mother is to gift her with an engraved ring. You can have it personalized with a special message or name, and she’ll be sure to treasure it for years to come.

If you’re looking for a more simple gift, you can consider giving her a set of bracelets. They’re inexpensive, versatile, and can be paired with any outfit.

They’re also a great option for women who prefer a minimalist aesthetic. The Cuban Bracelet from IceLink is a simple yet beautiful addition to any wardrobe, and it’ll be sure to get a lot of attention.

The mixed tube ring from Mejuri is a gorgeous gift for a jewelry lover who likes to experiment with different metals. It has a very minimalist design, but its texture makes it stand out from the rest of her jewelry.

These bamboo-shaped earrings are another easy pick, and they’ll be a great addition to her jewelry collection. They’re crafted in 18-karat gold, so they’ll stay lightweight and don’t add too much weight to her outfits.

Lastly, birthstones make a classic small gift that will always be in style. If you’re buying jewelry for someone born in February, a beautiful amethyst ring will look elegant and feminine, and if she’s born in December, she’ll love a piece with turquoise.

Watches

A watch is a gift that anyone can enjoy, and there are a lot of options to choose from. It’s important to consider the personality and lifestyle of the person you’re buying for, as well as the size and shape they prefer.

A small gift of a new or classic watch will be appreciated by any watch enthusiast. It’s also a great way to start their collection and get them started on the road to collecting watches.

The most popular choice is a Rolex watch, but if you’re looking for something a bit different, Tudor makes excellent quality watches for a fraction of the price. If your recipient likes to travel, a GMT watch with a second time zone is a good option.

Another option is a travel bag, such as this one from the Swiss luxury brand Hermes. It’s the perfect gift for someone who wants to look good while traveling, but doesn’t necessarily have an expensive watch to match.

Lastly, a watch winder isn’t just useful for keeping automatic watches wound, but it’s a handsome addition to a desk or home. Wolf makes quality, reasonably priced winders, such as this one, that can hold up to two watches.

There are also a number of watch publications available, from technical manuals to historic watch texts. Some of these are reprints, but many of them are fresh from the press. A watch workshop or seminar would also be an interesting gift for a watch lover who wants to learn more about the industry.

Finally, a trip to La Chaux-de-Fonds, home of some of the world’s best watch brands, is an excellent gift for any serious horology aficionado. A tour of the storied town and the factories is sure to make any watch collector happy.

Getting something special for the watch enthusiast in your life can be difficult, especially when they are so focused on their favorite watches. But if you’re willing to put in a little extra effort, you can find some great gifts that will truly make them happy. Here are some ideas for small gifts that can be a lot of fun and will make any watch lover’s Christmas.

Trinket Trays

Small gifts are a great way to show your loved ones how much they mean to you. A cute trinket tray is the perfect way to do just that! Not only can you keep your rings and earrings all in one place, but these pretty pieces of decor also look incredibly stylish on a dresser top or bathroom counter.

Trinket trays are a great way to keep loose bits and bobs organized, like paper clips, push pins, rubber bands and even colourful washi tape. You can find them in all shapes and sizes, from small trays to larger bowls, so there’s something that will suit your home style perfectly.

These adorable trinket trays are also the perfect way to show off your favourite jewellery. Pick a design that’s reminiscent of your favourite colour or style of jewellery to really make a statement. A white ceramic heart shaped trinket dish with a gold foil print will look stunning on your bedside table or anywhere else you choose to put it.

Trinket trays can be used as alternative plant saucers for smaller plants, to keep coins on display or even as a small fruit dish in the kitchen. They can even be paired with a set of keys so that they’re always on hand in the entryway, avoiding those dreaded early morning scrambles. They’re a fantastic decorative element, but they’re also extremely practical, making them a great choice for gifting! If you’re looking for a simple, but sweet and meaningful gift idea for the woman in your life, these trays are an excellent option.

Clothing

A well-chosen gift can be the perfect way to show you care. To get the most mileage out of your small gift, choose a present that fits your recipient’s style and interests. For example, if your friend is a fashion buff, they’ll probably appreciate a good book about design and pattern making. If you know that your recipient is a fan of soft, snuggly knitwear, opt for a slouchy version of the same thing. Or, if your recipient is an avid traveler, you can’t go wrong with a fun, stylish luggage set from one of the many online retailers that offer a wide variety of unique and useful items for the modern explorer. It’s a small gift that won’t be buried under their bed for too long, so it’s sure to get lots of use.

[alexracheltravel]

We Saved the Biggest for Last

We began the morning with a quick trip back to the old city. We visited the Lanna Folklife Museum to learn more about the heritage and culture of the people who founded Chiang Mai. The Lanna were a major cultural group of Northern Thais with a specific rural and agrarian lifestyle. The museum showcased their delicate fabrics, adorned in crosshatched patterns of bright colors, used as long skirts, dresses, and robes. Their Buddhist rituals appeared familiar, as we had spent a great deal of time already observing so many temples and idols. But the artifacts on display at the museum were all unique and culturally interesting. We had already seen some of the small statues of Buddha but now we learned that many had been carved in wood, and then painted over with bright, luminous gold. Others were cast in bronze. We also found out more about the incredible murals we saw the other day. It turns out they're not as old, and are a more recent addition (only 100 years old) to the temples. They were created by putting plaster over brick, and then painting once it was flattened. Overall, the museum was an interesting look at the culture we had been seeing a long this trip, and getting an insight into their long, elaborate history.

To wrap up the morning, and for our last stop on Chiang Mai, we went over to the confusingly named Wat Chiang Man. This is the oldest temple in the city, dating back to the late thirteenth century. We could see parallels between this and Angkor Wat, whether it was the evenness of the stone steps, or the pillars representing the mountain at the center of the universe. This temple, however, had statues of elephants in addition to the usual serpents and lions. It was a relic that has been well-preserved.

That was all we had time for in Chiang Mai. It was off to Bangkok! Yes, the mega-city, giant parade of fun that everyone talks about. That Bangkok. After some flight delays (shockingly the first of the trip) and traffic jams (roadside picnics, our driver called them), we made it to our final city of our trip. We got out of the taxi, put our bags down, and got right back in the taxi for an epic dinner. Yes, we know we're making you wait for The Gallery post. So we're writing about this meal right now!

Issaya Siamese Club was easily our second favorite restaurant of the trip. All vegetables are grown locally or on property owned by the restaurant and the dishes are upscale Thai cuisine, focusing on central and northern dishes. There's a difference, and it's mostly about spice. 

This restaurant was hard to find, and was hidden in an alleyway beside a busy highway. The restaurant is covered by long plants, so thick one can't see inside. But yet again, music led us ahead. We walked inside to see a large garden restaurant and a small inside space. We got outdoor seats, since it's about 80 degrees at night here and we were seated right away. The copious plants and the wide garden, topped with the light of the full moon gave the space a true Thai jungle feel.

For an appetizer, we ordered lamb satay. It came served to us atop a leaf-wrapped box, with a charcoal grill atop, to ensure it had been cooked. The lamb was incredibly tender, a true melt-in-the-mouth feel, and was flavored with Thai spices galore. It also came with two side sauces: peanut and cucumber-chili. Of the two, we preferred the latter, but we also could have eaten a hundred of the skewers plain.

For main course, Alex ordered a roast chicken dish, coated in a sweet sauce and then flambeed table side. It didn't quite erupt in flame, but simmered, and the charred taste was especially felt on the coconut flake garnish. But the chicken was incomplete if it was not dipped alongside the spiced mixture on the side of the plate. Remember how we once ate fruit dipped in chili? This was quite similar, adding a ton of complexity to the dish. Notes of chili and coriander and pepper could be tasted in the mix, along with a healthy dose of salt.

Rachel ordered a pork dish done two ways. First, were slices of tenderloin, coated in a light sauce, but again, it was incomplete without the braised pork shoulder, rich and deeply stewed in a thick ragu-like stew. Combined, the two met each other in moments of sweet and savory, salt and spicy. We were too full for dessert.

We rounded out the end of the night with a stroll through the Bangkok streets. A night market was right by the hotel, selling a lot of products we had seen elsewhere. Maybe this time we'll finally buy a knockoff Balenciaga hat, or touristy Thailand shirt. Or maybe not. We've got a big day tomorrow and it's gonna be hot too.

[rcmndedlisten]

Interview: Stephen Pierce of Gold Dust On His Band’s New Album ‘The Late Great Gold Dust’

Photo by Laura Mason

In his short time on this Earth thus far, Stephen Pierce has already become a cornerstone fixture within the Western Massachusetts independent music scene, having been a key driving force behind post-hardcore bastions Ampere and decibel-decimating shoegazers Kindling. Last year, Pierce took a sonic turn and introduced his latest creative chapter with the debut album from his psychedelic folk project Gold Dust, and this year, the band has expanded its view by many miles swith its standout sophomore effort and essential fall listen, The Late Great Gold Dust.

+rcmndedlisten spoke with Stephen via e-mail in depth about the kinship between Gold Dust and its surrounding nature, opening the door into the band’s scenic world with its cast of collaborators, being loud as a softer facet of his sound, and where the trail leads him next.

+rl: Last autumn's self-titled debut album as Gold Dust sounded like a seasonably accurate refraction of sunlit psych folk, considered indie rock songwriting, and autumn leaves crunching beneath your feet during a walk through the Western Mass trails. You're releasing its follow-up almost a year to the date. Do you take the seasons of New England into account when envisioning how and when your songs will enter the world?

Stephen Pierce: Definitely, yeah. I think most things are better during the fall, so my bias here might be exactly that, but I think the sort of experience that Gold Dust is proffering fits with the cold air and falling leaves. There's a sort of peaceful melancholy to the fall, for me, and I think there's some of that in what we're putting out there. Autumn is kinda a beautiful foreboding, you know? A "like it while it lasts, because it won't last long" sort of thing, the tension of enjoying something but knowing that immediately following that thing it gets dark, literally and figuratively in this case.

I spend a lot of time outside though, mostly on the trails of Mt. Tom, above Easthampton/Holyoke. The trails, the views, the experience -- it's all constantly changing, and I'm grateful for all of it, even when it sucks. In recent years I learned of the Japanese term "shinrin yoku" which essentially translates to "forest bathing": the idea that intentional and focused engagement with the natural world can help with depression, burnout, anxiety, etc., in addition to simply offering placidity and mind-freeing disconnect and an opportunity for mindfulness. I mean, it's broader than that, but that's sort of the bullet-pointed version of it. While the trails haven't cured me of depression or anything that dramatic, getting out there each day is definitely elemental to my wellbeing and provides me with at least a few hours of less ennui, or whatever. Especially when you're trail running, you're kinda forced to be present, noticing the roots and rocks, trying to keep your footing and shit. Everything else just kinda washes away for a bit.

+rl: The recording of the Late Great Gold Dust also involved more collaboration than its predecessor. Alongside your live drummer Adam Reid, Fred Thomas of Saturday Looks Good to Me, Jacki Sullivan, formerly of Hop Along, your Kindling bandmate, Gretchen Wiliams, and a very necessary guitar solo from J Mascis on "Larks Swarm A Hawk", there's also a short story in the liner notes written by Sean Yeaton of Parquet Courts. Add in Justin Pizzoferatto on production, and it's as if you gathered an aesthetically astute circle into Western Mass' weirdness. How much does the local music scene inform that creative process?

SP: It felt cool to open things up a little, to get some perspective that isn't my own. Everyone else's contributions -- Fred's synth part on "And Yet", Jacki's Hammond organ on "Catalpa" -- those are totally different from where my ear would've guided them. Adam's Rhodes parts in particular served to flesh out some moments that I thought were missing something, but wasn't able to pinpoint just what - I'm thinking particularly of the first minutes or so of "Unreliable Narrator" and the extra moodiness he brought to "All Things Aside" and "A Storm". Gretchen had ideas when I was working on the first GD record, but I very willfully wanted that record to be literally just me, for better or for worse, so it was good to have her along for the ride here. I'm thinking of songs like "Mountain Laurel" and "Absolutely Nowhere" that wouldn't have worked with just one person's vocals. Gretchen's probably as obsessive about getting "the right take" as I am, so it all came together quick and easy.

The approach with all of the folks who played on the record with me was just to say, like, "Hey, I trust your ear here, I trust your ability, here's roughly the idea that I'm working with, good luck and thank you," and to just sort of leave it with them to fill in how they saw fit.

Sean's liner notes are something else. A thing I've always really loved about older records -- and particularly a lot of the folk boom records of the mid-to-late 60s -- is that they included a bit of writing alongside it from someone who wasn't on the record, typically a producer or music journalist or something, and usually to the end of puffing up the musician. While I don't really see much value in liner notes being about the band, or about me, or whatever, it's such an opportunity to kinda thread some sort of connection to something else, some broader idea. It's all stage-setting, really. It's all community. Sean's been a good friend for a long, long time and to be able to work together in any capacity on these records has been awesome.

All that aside, I'm really fortunate to have such talented friends, and even more fortunate that some of them generously made themselves available to join me on this record. Half jokingly but with more than just a dash of sincerity, I'll say that it's pretty cool to look at the who's who of it all and think, "Man, I'm the least talented person on this thing!" A lot to be grateful for there.

+rl: One of the main observations of this album is that it's heavier, sonically and emotionally. "Go Gently" worships at the doom folk altar in a way that bridges your work in Kindling before segueing into lush, dream pastures with massive drums hitting behind it. That carries on forward. Inverting your shoegaze identity with more organically layered effects and long sighs popping equally heavily has been both a challenge, but also something that's come easy to understand once cracking the code from your perspective, one has to imagine...

SP: To be honest, a lot of it comes down to practice and familiarity with myself, my limitations and skills. Volume is great, I'd usually say that everything sounds better louder, but loud is only loud if quiet is quiet, right? It's sorta how a song like "Planet Caravan" or "Fluff" by Sabbath will make everything around it hit even harder by comparison, you know? Since I first heard "Washer" by Slint, or the song that everyone called "Angry Son" by Indian Summer, I'd been big on dynamics in a song. When those songs kick it up a notch, it's jarring and exciting and dangerous, and in a way feels like the wheels are threatening to come off. I figured going the opposite direction, massive-heavy to quiet-meditative, would have an inverse effect and, like, feel like the eye of a hurricane coming over you after a spell of 60mph winds.

There's also the question that I sometimes consider, "What is heavy?" Is heavy a riff, the way that certain notes sound next to each other? Lyrical content? Is it a mood that's created, or something else entirely, something unquantifiable? Fuck if I know, and I think some of the tension of not knowing shows up in song, or in production, or whatever. In any case, it's a cool journey, to see how something that often starts as just, like, something played on an acoustic guitar can unfold once you start digging to see what's beneath.

+rl: Do you feel like you've mined the depths of Gold Dust fully here, or can we expect to hear this journey go further and take on trilogy form come autumn of 2023?

SP: Yeah. I mean, I sure hope I haven't stripped the quarry of the last of its useful materials. I have like seven to ten songs, depending on what you want to consider a "song", towards the next record already. I'm taking my time with it, though. I'm really looking forward to a third LP. Maybe the move is to make each record progressively less "me" and more "us." It's a cool thing, to be able to make a record all by yourself at home, but it's an even cooler thing to make one with friends, with people whose musical intuitions you trust and who you really love being around. As it goes, they'll have different approaches to playing the songs than I would, which should bring some different points of view to the table. In any case, as long as I'm around, Gold Dust is around, I suppose. Making music is a compulsion, or I guess just some form of creation is, anyway, and I couldn't stop doing whatever it is that I'm doing if I tried.

Making music in the way that I've made these two Gold Dust records, it's fulfilling to have gone about it mostly on my own, but it's also a lonely thing. It's easy to end up feeling hypercritical and rudderless throughout the process, giving those nagging voices of self-doubt more weight than they're due. I've variously felt bad and at peace with that, but ultimately, pushing through it all was a pretty rewarding thing. It allowed me to actualize these two LPs that ostensibly ended up being exactly the sort of records that I'd want to make. That's why I didn't press too many of the first one, at first. I went into it all kind of free from any expectation that people would find it or listen to it, or buy it if they did. I just wanted to make something true to myself, that pushed me to write in a different way than I'd been writing, pick up some new technique and skill, and if possible at the same time try to kill the ego and make something that earnestly tries to answer the question of "Who the fuck am I and why?"

It's all kind of reframed my approach to doing this sort of thing: it's underlined and reaffirmed for me why I do this, what I'm hoping to get out of it. Helps me remember what's important, why I started strumming a guitar in the first place.

The Late Great Gold Dust by Gold Dust

Gold Dust’s The Late Great Gold Dust is available now on Centripetal Force Records.

[thehighschoolmarauderslife]

Why Hugo Boss Is Still One of the Best Perfumes to Wear?

If you’re looking for a classic, sophisticated perfume that will never go out of style, look no further than Hugo Boss. This German fragrance house has been in business since 1924, and their scents have only gotten better with time. In this post, we’ll explore some of the reasons why Hugo Boss is still one of the best perfumes to wear today. From its timeless appeal to its modern twist, Hugo Boss has something for everyone. So if you’re looking for a new signature scent, read on to find out why Hugo Boss perfume should be your go-to choice.

What is Hugo Boss?

Hugo Boss Perfume is a German fashion house founded in 1924 by Hugo Boss. The company produces clothing, accessories, and fragrances for men and women. The Hugo Boss brand is known for its classic and elegant style.

The Hugo Boss fragrance line includes many popular scents, such as Boss Orange, Boss Intense, and Boss Bottled. These perfumes are perfect for any occasion, whether you're dressing up for a night out or just wanting to feel confident and stylish during the day.

Hugo Boss fragrances are made with high-quality ingredients and are long lasting. They also have a wide range of scents to choose from, so you can find the perfect one for you. Whether you prefer a light and fresh scent or a more powerful and intense fragrance, Hugo Boss has something for everyone.

The Different Types of Hugo Boss Perfumes

Men’s colognes from Hugo Boss are some of the best in the world. The brand has a wide variety of scents to choose from, each with its own unique smell. 

1. Hugo Boss Bottled: This is a classic fragrance that has been around for years. It has a woodsy smell with hints of citrus and spice.

2. Hugo Boss Orange: This scent is fresh and fruity with notes of orange, lemon, and grapefruit.

3. Hugo Boss Green: This fragrance is clean and crisp with notes of apple, cucumber, and sage.

4. Hugo Boss Red: This scent is bold and powerful with notes of tobacco, leather, and amber.

5. Hugo Boss Black: This fragrance is intense and mysterious with notes of coffee, chocolate, and musk.

6. Hugo Boss Silver: This scent is modern and sophisticated with notes of juniper, lavender, and violet.

7. Hugo Boss Gold: This fragrance is luxurious and opulent with notes of amber, vanilla, and sandalwood.

8. Hugo Boss Platinum: This fragrance is intense and seductive with notes of oud, musk, and saffron.

9. Hugo Boss Diamond: This fragrance is sparkling and bright with notes of bergamot, lemon, and neroli.

10. Hugo Boss Dark Blue: This fragrance is deep and enigmatic with notes of amber, patchouli, and vetiver.

11. Hugo Boss The Scent: This fragrance is sensual and seductive with notes of ginger, cardamom, and maninka fruit.

12. Hugo Boss Bottled Night: This fragrance is dark and sexy with notes of black coffee, tobacco, and leather.

13. Hugo Boss Bottled Tonic: This fragrance is fresh and invigorating with notes of gin, tonic water, and lemon.

The Pros and Cons of Wearing Hugo Boss Perfumes

As one of the most popular and well-known fragrance lines in the world, it's no surprise that people have strong opinions when it comes to wearing Hugo Boss perfumes. Some love the classic, sophisticated scents while others find them too strong or old-fashioned. If you're trying to decide whether or not to wear Hugo Boss perfumes, 

PROS:

Hugo Boss fragrances are generally very long-lasting, so you won't have to reapply throughout the day.

The scents are perfect for special occasions or evenings out when you want to feel confident and sexy.

Many of the Hugo Boss perfume bottles are true works of art, so they make for a beautiful addition to your vanity table.

CONS:

Some people find Hugo Boss fragrances too strong, so they may not be suitable for everyday wear.

The price point can be a bit high for some people's budgets.

What to Consider When Buying a Hugo Boss Perfume?

If you're looking for a high-quality, timeless perfume, Hugo Boss is a great option. However, 

First, consider what type of scent you prefer. Hugo Boss offers a wide range of scents, from fresh and floral to woody and musky. There's sure to be a Hugo Boss perfume that suits your taste.

Next, think about how long you want the scent to last. Some Hugo Boss perfumes are light and delicate, while others are more intense and long-lasting. Consider how often you'll be wearing the perfume and how long you want it to last before making your decision.

Finally, take into account the price. Hugo Boss perfumes range in price depending on the size and concentration of the fragrance. Choose the option that fits your budget and needs.

How to Choose the Right Hugo Boss Perfume?

The first is the occasion. Boss perfumes are great for everyday wear, but they can also be dressed up or down depending on the event. If you're looking for a casual scent, something like Boss Orange will be perfect. But if you need something a bit more formal, then the classic Boss Bottled is ideal.

The second thing to consider is your own personal style. Hugo Boss perfumes come in a variety of different scents, so there's sure to be one that suits your taste. For example, if you prefer fresh and fruity scents, then Boss In Motion Green might be right up your alley. Or if you prefer something muskier and richer, then try out Boss bottled night.

Finally, don't forget to take into account the season when choosing your Hugo Boss perfume. Heavier scents like Boss Bottled are great for winter, while lighter ones like boss In Motion White are perfect for summer. No matter what time of year it is, though, there's always a Hugo Boss perfume that's perfect for you.

There are many reasons why Hugo Boss is still one of the best men's perfumes to wear. For one, it has a unique and timeless scent that is perfect for any occasion. Additionally, the quality of the ingredients used in the perfume is impeccable, which contributes to its longevity. Finally, Hugo Boss is a classic brand that oozes luxury and sophistication, making it an excellent choice for anyone who wants to make a good impression.

[traincat]

I’ve been trying to piece together a few things from your Twitter and Tumblr posts alike and still can’t make heads or tales of things, so would you mind helping out a FF & spideytorch noob? 1) what is currently happening with Johnny in the comics? (I’ve fallen head over heels for this guy, largely all your doing) 2) when’s the last time he and Peter have interacted, canon wise? (And do you think upcoming interactions are likely?) 3) your thoughts on if they’ll have him come out in the near future? (has that ‘biggest change to the fantastic four’ teaser come to pass yet?) Love all your content, thank you!

I'd say no problem but then I started thinking about this current run again and got a headache. But yes, I can do that to save you from reading it, because it is very largely not good.

So I don't think it's unfair to just flat out say the current Fantastic Four run is not very good, largely due to writer Dan Slott's efforts. Slott was previously on Amazing Spider-Man for 10 years, to mixed opinions, but a large portion of Spider-Man fandom, myself included, blames him near singlehandedly for the decline in quality of Spider-Man books over those ten years. I will say, in the interest of fairness, that Slott as a writer has an incredible fondness for the Spider-Man/Human Torch relationship, and that a lot of the recent teamups and interactions between them have been written or co-written by him. So it's all not all negative here. But in general, I personally find Slott's more recent comics (the last seven-ish years especially) to be badly plotted out, messily characterized disasters that feature characters written with all the emotion of a cardboard cutout. That's me putting it nicely.

To explain this fully, you have to understand the position Fantastic Four comics were in from the years 2015 through 2018, both in the fictional 616 universe and in the real publishing world. Following the 2015 Secret Wars event (great if you want some Johnny angst in the background of your plot), the Fantastic Four were disbanded -- Reed, Sue, and their many biological and found family children were presumed dead but in reality were remaking the multiverse, unable, for a reason that was never clearly defined, to reach home. Ben and Johnny were left on Earth. They had an unspecified falling out, likely due to Reed and Sue's absence, and went their separate ways -- Ben joined the Guardians of the Galaxy and went to space. Johnny was featured on both Inhumans and Avengers books. What's notable about this period is that it's the first time since 1961 that there was no Fantastic Four book being published by Marvel. Now the real world reason behind this is both complicated and extremely petty: Marvel really wanted the Fantastic Four film rights. Marvel denied this explanation at the time, stating that the reason was sales motivated, but it was a thoroughly flimsy excuse and Jonathan Hickman, writer of 2015's Secret Wars and overseer of the current X-Men plot, gave an interview saying the decision was film rights motivated. This decision kept the Fantastic Four books off the shelves for three years, up until the Disney-Fox merger, which secured the X-Men and Fantastic Four rights for Disney's Marvel Studios. Marvel then announced that the Fantastic Four book would be returning. So that's a little bit of background as to the precarious place the Fantastic Four currently occupy in the Marvel universe -- it's worth noting that this year is their 60th anniversary, and Marvel has done very little for it. Compare this to the X-Men, whose film rights Marvel also obtained during the Disney-Fox merger, and whose books are currently dominating the publishing lineup. The Fantastic Four definitely occupy an unpopular position, one Marvel themselves is at least partially responsible for forcing them into.

But to move back into the actual content of the book -- the readjustment period Slott wrote reintroducing the Fantastic Four into the Marvel universe can be described as clumsy, at best. It's never fully explained why Reed, Sue, and the kids couldn't return to Earth, something that was explored in Chip Zdarsky's 2017 Marvel Two-in-One, which featured Ben, Johnny, and Doom on a multiversal roadtrip to try and find their family and which I on the whole recommend, despite it having an awkward ending due to being cut short by Slott's announced Fantastic Four main title.

(Marvel Two-in-One 2017 #4)

Instead, the Fantastic Four return to a Marvel universe a little different than how they left it, with the Baxter Building -- formerly the offices of Parker Industries, the company Doc Ock started in Peter's body during Superior Spider-Man that Peter inherited after his defeat and then lost spectacularly when he trashed his own company to fight nazis (good for him) -- occupied by a different fantastic foursome in a plot that goes nowhere and does nothing. This is somewhat emblematic of the early days of Slott's run -- he introduces ideas that fail to go anywhere, including Johnny's rekindled relationship with his other best friend and former college roommate, Wyatt Wingfoot, who he was seen being very cuddly with in the early issues.

(FF 2018 #1) A small group of Fantastic Four fans have argued for a while that if Marvel was to have Johnny come out, a relationship with Wyatt would feel very natural -- they're already close, with Wyatt being an important Fantastic Four supporting character since the '60s. I have some further analysis here on the conspiracy theory that Johnny and Wyatt were supposed to be in relationship at the beginning of this run but that that plot was, for whatever reason, nixed. I don't know that I entirely believe this theory, for the record -- but I do think the pieces line up remarkably well.

Anyway, that didn't/hasn't yet happened, obviously. Slott instead for the most part put Johnny on the back burner for the beginning of his run, up until the Spyre arc, which I have reason to believe is the main story he pitched that he credits with securing him the Fantastic Four title. The Spyre arc suggests that the Fantastic Four's failed space exploration during which they got their powers wasn't just to beat the commies to the moon, as Lee and Kirby envisioned (simpler days), but to reach a specific planet outside of our galaxy. When the team sets out to conquer this mission, they arrive at the planet, but are quickly captured. The planet, they find out, operates like a soulmate AU -- everyone has a fated person that they are matched to via a gold armband. Reed and Sue are soulmates (and Ben is confined to an underground subterranean with the other monsters, because this is a Fantastic Four comic) while it's discovered! Shocker! That Johnny is actually the soulmate of the one the planet's inhabitants, a winged woman named Sky, with the suggestion that this is both why Johnny's previous relationships have never worked and why he loves space exploration -- he was just trying to get to his Soulmate TM.

(FF 2018 #15) "What's going on here? Where are my clothes?" As you can see, this didn't start off super great, with Johnny being separated from his family, stripped naked, and put in Sky's bed with a soulmate armband slapped on him. Did I mention they're only removable if your soulmate takes it off for you? And that Sky has consistently refused despite Johnny asking her to? Yeah. It's bad. (I think it's important to note Johnny's long history as a victim of assault plays into this narrative, whether or not Slott is personally holding that in mind while writing, which I don't believe he is. cw in the linked post for discussions of sexual assault.) There's an additional issue here in that Slott has a history of problematic writing regarding women of color, featuring characters he's created to act as love interests being oversexualized, infantilized, villainized, or some mix of all three, with two examples of this phenomena being Cindy Moon and Lian Tang, both of whom he introduced in quick succession in Amazing Spider-Man. Slott certainly didn't have to write Sky as manipulative or controlling towards Johnny, but that's what he chose to do, and that factors into the bigger picture of unfortunate themes in his writing.

Sky returns to Earth with the Fantastic Four despite Johnny appearing unenthused about the idea and initially generally reluctant to interact with her. Apparently they went on a few dates after this and kind of made up. I don't know because I stopped reading for about ten issues in there but I feel confident I missed very little. It's hard to talk about the Sky plot without referencing Johnny's previous interactions with a character named Lyja, a Skrull whose relationship to Johnny I have a long breakdown of here. It's doubly hard, because Lyja actually showed back up in Fantastic Four during this plot. Lyja's modus operandi has remained consistent throughout almost all of her appearances, which I guess makes sense, because she literally has no storylines that do not involve her being obsessed with Johnny, and this recent story isn't any different: Lyja shows up, Lyja disguises herself as another woman in Johnny's life to get close to Johnny, Lyja gets caught and claims it was all fine because she did it for love. This time she disguised herself as Sky.

(FF 2018 #32) Not gonna lie, kind of proud of him for this one. That's one of my problems with Slott -- very occasionally, he busts out good moments, only to undermine them with the rest of his narrative.

In the same issue, Alicia Masters, the first woman Lyja impersonated in order to get close to Johnny, uses her supervillain stepfather's radioactive clay to control Lyja's mind and send her back to space, and I do think she utilized girl power when she did this. Johnny, left reeling after Lyja's latest attempts to trick him into a relationship, ends this issue by sleeping with Victorious, Dr. Doom's right hand woman.

I know she pegged him. I know it. This scene was a little controversial in Johnny fandom, because a lot of people viewed it as Johnny cheating on Sky and thought that that action was out of character for Johnny. I'm personally of a little different opinion, which is that regardless of whether or not you view Johnny and Sky in a committed enough relationship that Johnny's tryst would count as infidelity when all Johnny and Sky are bound by are magic plot soulmate bracelets, I think Lyja's involvement changes things significantly when it comes to Johnny's characterization. All of Johnny's "playboy" periods, if we can call them that, coincide directly with Lyja having been in and then left his life again, which I think makes a certain amount of sense -- it's Johnny trying to wrest control back after a situation where he had none. None of this is explicitly canon, I have to note, but sometimes in comics you have to do the work yourself. So I think this is a case of something being accidentally extremely in character that Slott accidentally stumbled into because he had these love triangles in mind, not because he put a lot of thought into it.

Speaking of love triangles! Johnny sleeping with Victorious gets more complicated when Dr. Doom announces his intent to marry Victorious -- not because he has any romantic interest in her (this engagement caused a lot of uproar in Fantastic Four because Victorious had been previously referred to as being like Doom's adopted daughter) but in order to install her as Latverian regent in his absence. I'm not going to lie, I love a political wedding. Victorious, for some reason, thinks Doom will be deeply upset that she slept with some closeted blond twink and the member of the Fantastic Four he views least as an enemy and more as an annoyance. Johnny, who Sky is currently not talking to because she "felt" him sleeping with Victorious through their magic plot soulmate bracelets, also feels nervous about Doom finding out about this, which I guess is slightly more valid. Anyway, for some completely ridiculous reason, Victorious decides the best time to tell Doom about this little indiscretion is when they're standing at the altar, which coincidentally the Fantastic Four are also standing at, because Doom asked Reed to be his best man in a not at all homoerotic little setup involving midnight swordfighting and Reed slipping Doom's emerald ring onto his own finger. Sorry to sidetrack into DoomReed territory here but it's just like. It's just a lot.

(FF 2018 #33) Also, Ben walked the bride down the aisle. :,) Look at his gigantic hand.

Anyway then Doom decides he's going to kill everyone in a completely reasonable and not at all overblown reaction to Johnny and Zora having what was most likely both disappointing for Zora and weepy for Johnny sex. And that brings us up to where Fantastic Four comics left us yesterday -- in answer to your "big change" question, that's most likely coming up in the next issue, so it hasn't come to pass yet.

Having gotten all that out of the way -- the last time Johnny and Peter interacted canon-wise was in the recent Empyre Fallout Fantastic Four, at the end of the Empyre event:

It was cute! Slott does right good interactions between them. This is possibly the Stockholm Syndrome talking. I don't know if more interactions are likely imminent -- the Empyre event was fairly recent. On the other hand, Slott does like writing interactions between them. So I'd give it about a 50/50 shot. I was skimming the letter page in the latest issue and someone wrote in asking if Peter was likely to appear in the pages of Fantastic Four again any time soon, so there is definitely a demand.

As for Johnny coming out -- I don't know. It's not a call I feel comfortable making at this moment, which I guess means I wouldn't bet money on it. I'd like to say yes, especially because I think Slott set up, whether that was his intention or more likely not, several good places in his run where Johnny could have come out. The beginning, when he's implied to be living with Wyatt again and where he and Wyatt are paralleled against Ben and Alicia. Ben's bachelor party, where Johnny laments not finding the right person -- specifically person and not woman -- and where Ben tells him to "be brave, Johnny Storm." And the soulmate planet plot, where I think could have had a very different and much better ending if Johnny had told Sky that she couldn't be his romantic soulmate, because he knows he wants to be with a man. But those are just places that I think would have made good opportunities for a coming out story. Instead, Johnny's been involved (dubiously) with three different women over the space of the last 10 issues, which is more heterosexuality at one time than he's been confronted with in the last 60 years. So my thoughts are still that it's going to happen eventually, but quite possibly not anytime soon.

Hope that helps! And that my incredibly long answer about what's currently going on with Johnny in comics sheds some light on things!