#this whole this has lowered my sanity by some considerable amount

[theemeraldforesthideout]

I'm going to be without internet from tomorrow until mid next week. Probably around the 10th or 11th. I think I have enough to set the queue to 6 a day over 24hrs. I've been trying to have a 'summer road trip' since June... and every time the universe has very defiantly and ridiculously said no. A few weeks back I even set off on it and my luck just got worse and worse. I had a miserable time. I spent all of yesterday caught up in a procrastination-anxiety-circle of wondering if I should just outright let go of the idea. It's month 5 now of things going conveniently wrong at the exact right time but... I need this break, like of a week of just letting my brain rest and repair itself. I feel I should stop typing, as my life tends to do this flip-flop thing. State a plan or intention, and through no control of my own, it does the opposite.

[cellard0ors]

Ficlet: Beneath The Blue

Mermay isn't over and people enjoyed Part 1, so here's some more...

Rhett has a bit of a gambling problem.

No, that's not quite right. More like a gaming problem. He likes games. He likes the rush of winning and it's not so much about money as the thrill of nailing a dart on a bullseye or getting a hole in one or - well - being right.

He really loves that one. Trivia, guessing games, riddles - lucking out on the right answer or just knowing it, always makes him feel fantastic. He's had marginal luck in his life. With basketball, with singing, and now - with his new current career - fishing, but games?

Rhett's always mastered those, rarely ever a loser. But the thing is, to do those things, he tends to have to use cash as an entry to play, thus - a sort-of-not-really gambling problem.

And winning in those kind of situations is also a problem, because, after some time - it tends to attract...attention. And usually the bad kind. Recently it was very much the bad kind, because he was at The 101, engaging in his normal play only to be snatched up by some very rough looking characters.

Ones who took him into a backroom and decided to skip right over the 'broken knuckles' threat and jump right into the 'you're going to go sleep with the fishes' threat.

To be fair, they probably went quickly into the decision once he started fighting back. Rhett's not much of a brawler, but he's a big guy and that in and of itself can create...issues. Especially if his temper is up.

Long story short - Rhett's bit of a gambling problem led him to being clonked over the head (more than once, matter of fact) and taken out to sea. His last real memory before hitting the water was that he'd been amazed at the boulder they'd found to attach him to - where had they gotten such a huge rock from? A landfill?

Not that it mattered - rock, rope, and Rhett all went overboard and into the deep. Rhett tried not to hold his breath, to struggle enough just to get loose, but, in the end - he'd been lost.

Except he hadn't been.

He'd awoken to find the setting sun bathing him in golden light and, above him, an angel. Because only an angel could have such eyes. Eyes as blue and deep and mysterious as the sea he was supposed to have died in.

His throat ached from damn near drowning but he'd still managed to ask the angel for his name. And he'd gotten it.

Link.

But then the angel had turned, vanished, and Rhett had seen that - while he was right about his mythical savior - he was not at all right about what kind.

Because Link had a tail.

A fish tail.

One as sparkling blue and captivating as his eyes and he'd disappeared into the surf so fast, Rhett began to question his sanity.

Had he imagined it all? The entire experience had been traumatic as heck - maybe it was just a coping mechanism for his mind? But then, far out, he'd seen a head appear above the waters.

Seen it and a shy wave and he'd waved back, because what else could he do? He wasn't dead and he wasn't crazy. He'd been saved. Saved...by a mermaid (merman?) named Link.

Which leads to now and his camping out full time on this small rocky stretch of lonely beach. Rhett made sure to check in with the local marina, see if it was okay for him to dock his tiny fishing boat, The Bluegrass, nearby. And 'nearby' was about a mile or so away, because this bit of land is pretty unoccupied and small.

...the perfect place for a merman (mermaid?) to drop off someone they saved. And, hopefully, return to? Rhett's not sure - honestly, this whole thing might be a fool's errand, but either way - he has a tent pitched and is waiting.

Waiting to see if Link returns.

Night after night seems like a failure. Still, Rhett doesn't mind. He can be patient. His last haul (fish-wise, not gambling-wise) earned him a considerable amount, so there's no harm in waiting.

Still, as he sits here now, the sky a lovely lilac as the sun dips low beneath the horizon, he can't help but feel like time's running out. Honestly, what did he expect? For Link to return and want to...what? Be best friends?

The person...creature...per-creature? Did what he could and Rhett should just be grateful and move on. But there was something about him...and those eyes...and that voice...

Rhett cracks open another can of soda, takes a deep sip when he hears it. The water's waves have become almost a white noise at this point, so consistent, but this...this is different. Just a little splish. Or splash. Or whatever.

And it's close. He puts the can down and quickly surges to his feet, looking out intently over the water and then he sees it. Just the top of someone's head. His head. Dark wet hair and blue eyes behind...are those glasses? And Rhett can't see his nose or anything else, but he can see enough to cry out, "Hey!"

The head rears back, sinks some, and Rhett feels a surge of panic, not wanting to lose this opportunity, "No! Wait, wait! Link! I-!"

The head stops, goes still. Rhett continues on, desperate for this to continue, "Please...don't go."

He doesn't.

Bolstered, Rhett continues, hoping he's heard, understood, "I...I just-? You saved me."

Link simply blinks.

"Thank you."

There's a bobbing in the water around him and Rhett's pretty sure Link nodded. Rhett edges just that little bit closer, "I...I'd hoped you'd come back. Not only so I could thank you, but so...um...maybe-? Maybe we could-? Could talk-?"

Link sinks a little more again, but Rhett can still see his eyes and, as long as he can see those, he feels okay, "I mean...you-you came back. Right? So-so maybe you'd-? You'd like to talk too?"

Link's head disappears.

Rhett feels his heart break. But then he notices that the water is moving. There's a rippling, the kind he sees when fish swim close to the surface. As if to punctuate that thought, the broad tip of a blue tail rises up and out, pushing against the waves.

He's swimming closer!

Rhett resists the urge to hoot in delight, to pumping his arms in victory, as Link pushes forward and, on the next movement of water, he surges upwards - his whole head visible now.

Link's entire face is nice.

A strong jaw, a good nose, a very fine mouth and yeaaaah, Rhett doesn't want Link to swim off, so he's going to do his very best not to focus on that mouth too much as he says, "I'm-I'm Rhett."

Link licks his lips, dips his head shyly, "I'm Link."

"Y-Yeah, you-you said..."

They both just sort of eyeball one another, both clearly unsure of what to make of the other. Of how to proceed. Eventually Rhett does, "So, ah, you're-? You're a mermaid?"

Link's eyebrows rise.

"Merman?"

"Just Mer," Link clarifies, "Our kind doesn't really attach those bits on the end there."

"Really?"

Link nods, "Humans came up with that one."

"Oh? We-we did?"

Another nod, "Back when we first used to come across one another."

"...take it that doesn't really happen now?"

"Not really. No."

Another awkward silence falls. Rhett scratches at one cheek, struggling for something else to say when Link blurts, "You're hairy."

Rhett lowers his hand and - much to his own surprise - he bursts out laughing. Link colors some and he gives a bashful smile and okay, Rhett said he wasn't going to pay too much attention to that mouth, but it's hard when it's so danged cute, "Yeah, yeah I am, brother."

"Bro-ther?" Link repeats and it's clearly a word he's unfamiliar with. Rhett beams, "'Brother'. We use it for family members. Y'know, the boys born from the same Momma and such. Can be a term of endearment too."

"Oh..." Link seems pleased with this and Rhett grins, "You got one?"

Link's eyebrows knit together and Rhett explains, "A brother? Or-or some other family or-?"

"I was spawned from another Mer. She came to shore to give birth to me."

Rhett's eyes grow wide, "You-? You were born on land?"

Link nods, "Most of us are. Mers walk between both worlds more often than not."

Rhett lets that one wash over him even as Link comes closer. Rhett can see his tail better now. It's amazing. Glossy and sparkling blue, the scales tightly knit. Rhett's first reaction is wanting to touch it but he quickly shutters that idea - recognizing it as beyond rude. They've just started talking to one another, for goodness sake!

Still, seeing it rest against the wet sand of the shoreline is tempting and seeing it move, more so. It slides and slithers, but in such an enticing way. Rhett moves a little closer, foam teasing at his toes as Link looks up (and up) at him, "Hard to talk at this level..."

Rhett realizes he probably looks like a giant at Link's angle, the Mer practically lying at his feet, so he lowers himself down until his butt hits the sand, crossing his legs at the ankles, "Better?"

Link nods and Rhett does a bit of a wiggle backward to avoid getting his khaki cargo shorts wet. There's an amused smirk around Link that says he recognizes that action. But of course he does - Mers, apparently, can traverse between land and sea.

So, Link is probably aware of how clothing works. Has he ever worn clothing? Come to the shore? Rhett wants to ask so many questions, but isn't sure what's appropriate and what isn't, but Link beats him to the questioning, "Are you a fisherman?"

Rhett lets out a strained 'Ah-?' as he immediately realizes that the true answer will no doubt insult his new acquaintance, but, again, Link beats him to the punch, "You've got the attire for it. Flannel shirt, baseball cap..."

Rhett frowns, "You think fisherman have a particular attire?"

"To my recollection..." The remark makes Rhett chuckle again, unable to help himself, "'Recollection' - you sound so danged southern. Just like me. I was born and raised in North Carolina."

Link beams, "That's where I was spawned! My sire came from the same location. Not all Mers are from the sea. Some reside in lakes, rivers - any water deep enough to conceal us, but a lot of us return to the ocean, considering its the biggest body of water."

Rhett lets that sink in even as Link again asks, "So, you are a fisherman, right?"

"Um-?"

"It's okay if you are," Link assures him, folding his arms and resting his chin there, "It's not really a proud profession amongst my kind, but it's understandable."

Rhett's lips twitch from side to side, "So I'm not, like, catching up your friends or something?"

Link snorts, "What - you think we talk to them?"

"Heck, man - I don't know how it works," Rhett lets out a peal of nervous giggles, getting the idea that Link is teasing him. Link returns the laugh and Rhett relaxes as a realization settles in.

Whether or not Rhett wants to admit it, he did want Link to return. He wanted him to return and be his friend and it appears that that is indeed what is happening.

It's happening and Rhett couldn't be any happier.

[anghraine]

...okay, still thinking about the Dúnedain adaptation:

- I really want to see Lebennin. The Elves still sing songs about how beautiful it is and it’s sadly underappreciated. Also, Pelargir could be awesome. Also, there’s a substantial population of heroic, short, dark, mainly non-Númenórean,  resilient Gondorians in Lebennin who are completely ignored outside the text and it’d be good to bring them forward IMO. The book just says they’re the descendants of the ‘forgotten’ people who lived there before the Númenóreans came, which itself could be interesting, esp combined with the importance placed on rescuing the coast.

- We’d get some establishing moments for Minas Tirith itself as a sort of character: it’s before the evacuation, so while there’s guarded tension with Mordor looming beyond it and vacant and/or decaying buildings, there’s also a considerable amount of city bustle in marketplaces and the like, and a glamour of size and ancientry. And we get to see how fertile and prosperous the general location is.

- Re: size—Tolkien said that the Dúnedain of Gondor were notable for their love of constructing enormous things, so I’d like a sense of just ... bigness, with the bonus contrast between the actual living people and the looming shadows of these absolutely gigantic statues, mosaics, buildings, etc of the past. The contrast with the young Rohan is stark.

- Re: the city bustle—we see glimpses of people with different occupations, different classes, different backgrounds, different languages, living their daily lives. Despite the weight of legacy and the pressures of war, it should be clear that Gondor’s culture is diverse and vibrant. There might be a contrast with the Northern Dúnedain here as well, as they’re a much smaller and more homogeneous population.

- The Northern Dúnedain would need ... like, a plot or something to bring them in before they’re summoned to help Aragorn. We need a sense of what their deal is, both where it’s connected to Gondor’s on the Dúnadan level and where it’s separate. Maybe this doubles as our introduction to hobbits—we first see them from the perspective of the Dúnedain protecting them. 

- I mentioned this in a reply, but I would (regretfully) lower the register of the Dúnedain characters’ dialogue to a somewhat more accessible level for central characters—not modern casual by any means, but not quite so high-diction as the book.

- It’s dreamland, so I’d get linguists who could not only handle neo-Sindarin, but neo-Sindarin with dialectical differences. Even in “English,” there’d be different accents between, say, the Northern and Southern Dúnedain, even if it’s not very pronounced (and definitely between e.g. Rivendell Elves and Boromir).

- (I am very set on Boromir using Sindarin at least once. I’m pretty sure that I lose a year off my life every time I see people assuming he can’t.)

- I’m really looking forward to the ‘the Sword that was Broken’ dream. I mean. I would be, if this was actually, you know, a thing.

- I have a headcanon that Ivriniel accompanied Finduilas to Minas Tirith way back in the day, studied with the healers, and just ... never left again, until Denethor evacuated her before the battle. My more tentative headcanon is that Lothíriel has been with her for some time, mostly due to escalating Corsair raids, so if I went with that, we could get three whole canon female characters in MT and have some sense of Lothíriel beyond her familial/marital connections.

(Bonus: the expanded headcanon is that Denethor and Ivriniel got on super well, but she was enraged when he sent her off in the evacuation, and they had a bitter fight about it before she left. Of course, she never sees him again.)

- Tolkien remarks in UT that Denethor was not only driven by personal pride but by his love for Gondor and the burden of being selected to lead his people through a desperate time. This should be really clear, esp when it comes to his use of the palantír. (I don’t think that would be a secret to the audience. Probably. If anything, we might even experience some episodes of his use of it with him, culminating in his sanity finally snapping.)

- Gandalf is a major recurring character in both ‘halves’ of the story. Maybe we get his line to Faramir about who he truly is and are eventually given enough information to understand what it means? Not sure how deep into Middle-earth cosmology we want to get, but it’s ... kind of important. At any rate, we would see his affinity with both Aragorn and Faramir, and Denethor’s resentment of Faramir’s affection for Gandalf would have some context.

- In my most perfect world, Gandalf and Denethor would actually be framed in similar ways at points, obviously enough to see them as related, parallel figures per Pippin’s observation. 

- We’d get some glimpses of the Elves, if not more, via the Northern Dúnedain, though the “northern” focus would probably narrow in on Aragorn as the plot closes in on FOTR. At the very least we’d meet Elladan and Elrohir and get an idea of their quasi-eternal bromance with the Northern Dúnedain and undying hatred of orcs.

- It’s a lot, but I’m imagining some of these things as quite brief in terms of actual screen time spent on them (not all, of course). Definitely TV rather than film material, though.

[lilikags]

That’s My Decision.

ೃ‧₊› a b o u t  t h i s  p o s t° ➮ Pairing: Kenma Kozume x fem! reader ➮ Series: Back to Me ➮ Tags: fluff, royal au, reincarnation au ➮ Part: 9 ➮ Word Count: 1602

-- Kenma's POV --

His mom had given him a week to decide- a week to settle on a lifelong partner. That didn't really seem like much, but to most people during that time, getting a choice would be a blessing. Most marriages were often arranged by parents, who took several factors into consideration when choosing a partner for their child. It was common belief that one should trust their parents, and the parents must choose a partner best for their child. Children sometimes had a say with the decision, but it really depended on the family. In any case, it was rare for anyone to choose their own spouse.

Kenma had an easy decision- really there wasn't anything to "debate" on, really. Sure, Langelica could probably help him with his work better than y/n, but he figured he and y/n would be able to figure it out. After all, y/n was responsible (enough), and nothing really seemed to change too much. He felt no connection with Langelica, and he couldn't really care. Probably, with y/n's last letter to him describing her and Langelica's recent pleasant conversations, he'd have her as an advisor or something; that would be good. Plus, he and y/n were soulmates, shouldn't that be enough of a reason?

He absolutely hated where he was going- well, more like what he was going to do. He knew he had the final say, but it was just really hard to say, "I chose y/n and that's it." He absolutely knew his mom was going to try to persuade him to choose someone else, probably Langelica or even Daphne- he saw his mother show some partialness to Daphne at some times.

As he entered his mother's office, he took a look at one of the guards with a nervous face, which almost said, "Uh-", and took a seat on one of the fancy chairs she kept in this room. She got to him right away after she sent a guard to deliver some papers she had just signed.

"You've decided, yes?" she started, with a serious expression. Anyone could tell she was expecting one of the few people in her mind. "Yes. y/n- I chose y/n," Kenma said, expecting some sort of look of disappointment from his mother's face. The queen wasn't particularly surprised, but she was definitely thinking, "Why?" She knew y/n and Kenma had seemed to share some kind of bond, somehow, which she never really understood, other than thinking that it must've had to do with the whole soulmate thing. "Oh? Why?" she crossed her arms and leaned back, ready to listen to a whole story of "excuses".

Kenma brought out the reasons he had brought to the table, while being interrogated by his mother. She was sharp, always finding some sort of hole in the argument. Most debatable topics had some sort of hole, weak point, etc.- and she had the ability to find that weakness in the point. One could say it was perceptiveness. The more he talked about y/n, the more he revealed about the bond you two had. He tried using the soulmate excuse, but his mother wouldn't believe in the whole excuse thing. Even though she had heard it herself from the High Priest, she still believed that a Queen was to be made from hard work, not something decided by the Goddess. She still believed in her, as that was her religion, but she was not as religious as everyone else.

Kenma had brought up the point of "y/n knowing him very well", and his mother crossed her arms once again, "Oh?" He knew he messed up and had to tell her. Well, it would be a good argument point anyways. So, he lowered his guard, and started to tell her his whole past- the secret he and y/n had shared. He was nervous about telling her, but it would really help him win the argument. With telling the story, actually quite messily but still getting the point across just fine, his mother started to believe him a bit, especially with the "it happened because we're soulmates" reason for reincarnation.

The Queen still wasn't sure if her son was making it up- she had no idea why he would choose y/n out of all the options he had, and she didn't necessarily trust y/n as much as Langelica. It could have been a scheme by her parents, people whom she didn't trust as much as well. Giving up on the position long ago and suddenly working hard for it- seemed suspicious to her.

-- Y/N's POV --

You were reading some novels in your room. It was the closest you had to anything immersive; video games, social media, light novels, anime- those weren't available and that was just sad. Well, there wasn't anything you could do about it anyways. The only thing you could do was do the best you could and find an interesting novel to read. The most popular trope these days was the one about a commoner becoming a princess- which probably described the mass's desire to become rich and royalty. Well, having money would be nice, you supposed.

"Lady y/n, her majesty has arrived," Elisa informed you.

"Wha-" you blinked, not expecting this at all. Results were supposed to come at around this time, yes, but it was to be sent out by mail. For what reason would she have to come here herself, in person?

You hurried to the front door to greet her immediately, not caring how frantic you looked to the servants. You told them to prepare some tea in the guest room, anything was fine. You caught your breath as you neared the front door, as to not look as frantic in front of her highness, and greeted her with a curtsy, "Welcome, your majesty."

She greeted your back with a quick nod, less than what she would usually do. That really couldn't be good. You led her to the guest room, anxious to hear what she had to say to you. The small amount of words she was speaking was unusually small, which was definitely scary. The two of you sat down and the tea was served.

"I have a question," she started off, taking a sip of her tea. You nodded. "How close are you with Kenma?"

You took a long sip of your tea. Does she know? Did he tell her?  You really didn't have much of an idea, but the look in her eye told you "I know something here". So, you decided to start general, and work your way to the point. You started off with what people already knew, so the lady sitting across you changed her question, "Do you believe in soulmates?" With that question, you were really sure about what she wanted to know. Lying would definitely be counted as treason, and the punishments for treason.... were not pretty to say the least.

And so, you told her like you would a story. You started from the beginning, working your way through your history. At first, you started off a bit general; there wasn't much need to go into much detail anyways. You described how you first met when you were at school. You saw him around sometimes, but you really never talked to him that much, until you joined the boy's volleyball club as their manager. You didn't really want to be interrogated; it would be best if you could say as much as she wanted, but no more and no less, though you did get a bit sidetracked and told a couple more than enough funny stories of little antics and pranks that happened within the team. You started to talk with more affection, expressing your care for each one in the team, especially for Kenma when you got to him. You also ended up expressing your gratitude to Yaku, who literally saved your sanity by taking care of the rest of the rambunctious boys on the team.

She listened on with a straight expression on her face, which one could tell that she was also thinking about Kenma's story. She was definitely thinking about how they lined up; this wasn't made up at all. And some of the ideas described and lifestyle were so different than in the kingdom that she doubted that anyone could come up with a life like that. One would need to be an extraordinary author to do so, especially because it just seemed so foreign to the ideas of the time of the kingdom.

By the time you were done, it was already time for dinner, and you could smell the food waiting for you. It was one of your favorites, (fav meal), and you couldn't wait. You invited your guest over for dinner and she refused, saying that it was time for her to head back to the palace. You waved her goodbye, and headed to the dining room for dinner.

A couple of days later, you received an invitation to the palace. You headed there, expecting to see all the other remaining candidates there, but you were the only one led into the waiting room. Perhaps she wanted to see you individually. After a few minutes, Kenma walked in, surprisingly, and sat next to you. Her highness showed up too, and smiled warmly, "Congratulations." He rested his head on your shoulder, continuing to fiddle with the marble maze thing that he had discovered recently. You smiled softly at him, missing the physical affection the two of you had before.

『••✎••』 Extra Info * ˚ ✦ ⇢ If you haven’t read the other parts, find them here! * ˚ ✦ ⇢ Taglist: [n/a] If you would like to be on my taglist, send me an ask! // if you do not specify what you would like to be tagged for, I will be putting you on my general taglist!

A/N: I FINALLY GOT THIS DONE OAJEAISJEOFJSOAFJOSEJAJ I totally didn't put up an ask event on my tumblr and it was totally not only one person who participated... Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter and the series is nearing its end, wow

[mappinglasirena]

Mapping La Sirena

Welcome one and all to the Mapping La Sirena Project!

If you are a fan of Star Trek: Picard and you would like to know more about the show’s most prominent ship, to check out floor plans and screencaps, and to discuss theories about the layout of this magnificent vessel, this is will be the place for you!

(Long, slightly rambly introduction and masterpost after the cut ;] )

Hi! My name is Lili and I’ve been a fan of pretty much all things Star Trek ever since I started watching Voyager at the tender age of 6. Besides the sometimes goofy, often brilliant storytelling and the wonderful characters, I always loved the worldbuilding of these shows - and in particularly the starships.

When Star Trek: Picard started airing a  few months ago, I was immediately drawn to the main ship, La Sirena. The mixture of the monumental physical set, judiciously used CGI, and sheer attention to detail made me fall madly in love with this little mermaid, and I wanted to find out every little thing about her that I possibly could. And since I imagine, I’m not the only one who feels this way, I decided to take you all on this journey with me!

What am I doing here?

As a reader and writer of fanfic, I know how helpful it can be to have a clear sense of the location your story is set in. When I realized that a good month after the final episode of ST:PIC season one aired, there still was no floor plan of La Sirena easily found on the web (easily = using my very limited googling-skills), I figured somebody had to sit down and do it. And apparently, that somebody was me. (May the gods help us all =D)

So, I sat myself down, and over the course of a few long days screencapped every single last scrap of Sirena that appears on the show. I now have a library of reference images and will post my progress as I work through them, trying to determine questions about the general layout of this ship, the details of its architecture and furnishings and all the questions that still remain. By the end of it, I am pretty confident that I will have a mostly accurate floorplan of the set that was used on the show (at least the parts of it that were shown to us thus far). We might even end up with the basis for a plan of the ship as it would exist in-universe (more on the movie set vs. “real place” issue later).

The following soon-to-be-links might give you an idea of what I plan to post over the next few months and I’ll keep adding links to this post as I go. So, without (even more) ado: Have fun exploring La Sirena!

Schematics & Floor Plans

A very crude first sketch

Official Set plan

We finally have an official set plan from the Ready Room!

A First Deeper Look at the Ready Room set plans

Centred Floor Plans from Set Me Up + cross section & more designs

Layout of the Captain’s Quarters

Shape and size

How large is La Sirena as seen on the show and is she larger on the inside?

Upper Deck

The Bridge

Where is the Holodeck?

Picard’s Study

Transporter Pad and Engine

The Trouble with Locating the Quarters/Conference Room

Crew Quarters

Captain’s Quarters

A closer Look at the windows

Conference room

The Mysterious Back End of the Ship

Crates, Tanks, Boxes, and Miscellania

Lower Deck

The Mess

Sickbay: Pt. 1: Size and Construction; Pt. 2: Furniture

So Many Nets

The Wall Problem, aka. Mysterious Nonexistent Corridors

Cargo Bay and other Speculative Spaces

Is there a dedicated cargo bay at the back of the ship?

Where are the rest of the crew quarters hidden?

Overall Design and Technological Aspects

A quick rundown of the Engine placement and history

Some Considerations

Tv Set vs . Starship

The set of La Sirena is just that, a tv set. When building a set, there are many constraints of time, budget, and practicality that will force the creatives to make decisions that will not always make sense when mapped onto a “real” starship. Take, for example, the fact that the Captain’s Quarters and the Conference Room were likely filmed in the same physical set, just redressed for the occasion.

Of course, there can always be Watsonian explanations for these kinds of incongruities and I’d love to hear people’s takes or read fics about them (after all, the entirety of La Sirena is apparently equipped with holoemitters, so I suppose technically, anything is possible).

But I am sticking with the Doylian “it’s a movie set” approach and will generally ignore these kinds of problems when trying to draft an in-universe-accurate floorplan of what we can know of the ship so far. I will be very diligent about pointing out whenever I handwave anything, though, so if you want to stick as closely to what we actually see on the whoe, you’ll know which parts of my analysis/headcanon to disregard ;)

Questions about “silly little details”

I have spend a ridiculous amount of time on this little project so far and in the course of it have gotten pretty familiar with a lot of aspects of the interior and exterior of this amazing starship. If you have any questions regarding details about what we can see of La Sirena on the show, please ask me and I will do my best to help! I absolutely love digging into the really nitpicky, tiny little scraps of information, and at this point, I can probably tell you straight away which scene might provide the info you’re looking for or whether there likely is no answer and you’ll have to get creative. So if you don’t feel like scrubbing through the entire 10 episodes of Picard to find out, say, the colour of the plates produced by Sirena’s replicators, please shoot me an ask, I’m always utterly delighted to help! (They’re white, btw.)

And just to make clear what I mean by “tiny little details”: in the course of writing some of my stories, I have collected answers to such important questions as

On which side of the desk does Rios have his chair? (Both)

How many cups are on the shelf next to the replicators? (4, even when one of them is currently in use)

Could a football roll under the railing on the upper deck and fall down into the mess hall anywhere but where the stairs go down? (No, there is a raised edge all around the rim that would catch it. Bouncing would work, though, since the space between the railing bars is large enough.)

Could I just say “Fuck it, I’ll just write it however, because it really doesn’t matter at all?” Yes. Would it be better for my sanity? Probably. Will I still keep trying to figure out as much about this crazy little ship as I possibly can at every turn? You betcha! So, no question is too silly, please ask away!!

A Quick Thought on Fanfic and “Accuracy”

This whole project started because whenever I write fanfic or make up stories set on La Sirena, my brain keeps insisting that we need to know which side of the mess hall the replicators are on! We need to know where exactly the holodeck is located and whether a football could fall to the lower deck through the railing. I would never hold anyone to these standards of “accuracy” - in fact I frequently don’t hold myself to these standards. Fic is for creative expression, so if in your imagination, La Sirena is twice the size of what we see in the show and has a ton of additional rooms and features, I would love to read that story! I want to create a resource for anyone looking for Sirena references to get inspired, not to point out inconsistencies or canon-divergence in lovingly created fanworks. I hope it comes across that way =)

[pimpson18]

Month of the Sad Boy

I know this is tl;dr as heck but whatever, here you go.

In honor of #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, I decided to have probably the worst breakdown I've ever experienced in my life. I'm ok now, but I feel compelled to share my experience, because as much as I appreciate all the memes saying "It's ok to take a day off" and "Being Bipolar isn't just moodiness", I feel like it makes struggling with mental health issues feel "cute".

It feels like struggling with mental health is a brand that's being promoted. Burger King made freaking UNHAPPY MEALS for Christ's sake. Your brain might not be able to produce serotonin, but it's generating some great marketable content.

My Mental Health Awareness Month® started with the death of my grandmother. I tend to handle death and loss pretty well, but this absolutely wrecked me. At first, I thought this was because I had lost my final grandparent. An entire generation of my family was completely lost. Cue a heightened sense of mortality and existential dread.

This was also the first time I was over a thousand miles away from my family; Outside of reasonable driving range. Air travel costs $700-$1000 for a last minute ticket. Cue resentment and helplessness caused by capitalism and class struggles. It's reasonable that maybe my anxiety and depression would be heightened by this predicament.

Thanks to some help from my parents, I was able to make my way out to my grandmother's funeral and spend some time with my family. It felt nice spending time with them. We cried and laughed in equal measure. A salve filled the wound left behind from the loss. Healing had begun.

But something felt off.

My foundation had shifted.

In quiet moments, I felt fear. Not "ooohhh it's kinda dark and creepy in this room" fear, but "Dear lord the specter of death has their (that's right, death is a they. I'm progressive) hand around my heart" fear. I have never felt this way before. It was terrifying. I truly thought I was dead.

I couldn't stop thinking about it. Every second all I could think was, "You've lost your mind. You're dead. You'll never stop thinking like this. You've lost your mind. You're dead."

It was like The Tell Tale Heart but I hadn't murdered anyone. My only crime was being alive and having a brain.

There would be moments where I could distract myself. I could get caught up in a conversation, or watch something engaging enough on TV, but these moments were fleeting. I'd feel myself get pulled back in, the demons inside dragging me, clawing and screaming, back into the endless abyss. I’m not being melodramatic here. If this were an UNHAPPY MEAL, it would be the Supreme Deluxe Family-sized XXL Jumbo Anxiety Box with a Large Cup of Depression and a tote bag full of Chili Cries (Sorry, it was too easy).

The thoughts went on for weeks. It was constant. Each passing thought a stone piling on top of the last one, slowly crushing me. I was trapped inside of myself. It was the opposite of an out of body experience. I was withdrawing deeper and deeper, sanity slipping further and further out of reach. I was plummeting like a rat that had been given a pair of brand new concrete shoes.

During all of this, I was seeking the help of professionals. I’ve been seeking help since I moved out to DC. My wife (who is a saint deserving of a thousand Michelangelo murals) and I left hundreds of messages with psychiatrists. A few have gotten back. Most of them weren’t available for an appointment well into the fall. Nothing really soothes an anxious breakdown like sitting and waiting.

We kept searching. I tried getting a teleconference with a psychiatrist so I could get at least some temporary relief. The app my insurance provided me hooked me up with some dude who was holed up in Alaska. He was an older gent who could only seem to get his wispy white comb-over in the frame of my phone screen. I don’t remember his name, but he was very warm and considerate. He recommended I double the amount of Welbutrin I was taking to help curb my anxiety.

“Isn’t Welbutrin an upper? Won’t that actually make my anxiety worse?” I asked.

“It is an upper but it will actually help lower your anxiety.” He said comfortably from his remote psychiatric ward/icefishing hut in Alaska.

One of us was right, and it wasn’t the person who has a license to be a psychiatrist.

I receded further. The thoughts of death and insanity looping tighter and tighter around me like dual anacondas, preparing to swallow me whole like Jon Voight in the movie Anaconda, only I wasn’t going to pop back out and wink at Jennifer Lopez and Ice Cube. My wife consoled me as I sobbed in her arms, terrified I would never be able to enjoy another second with her ever again. This had been my life for two weeks, why would it ever stop?

My wife finally found me a psychiatrist who could see me immediately. A stroke of luck! She also found a therapist who specialized in CBT and sounded like a nice guy on the phone who could see me the same day. A two-for-one luck special!

The psychiatrist was part of a larger “mental healthcare group”. Whoa! Cool! It’s like they’re the Avengers of giving out happy pills!

Not really. It’s more like they’re brain farmers herding sad cattle into a slaughterhouse, grinding them into a bunch of manufactured Happy Paddies™. I got prodded into a cold, desolate office where a woman stared unblinkingly at a tablet, while she entered all my symptoms into some kind of program. The algorithm confirmed my medications were out of whack and suggested I #glowup the milligrams of my bipolar meds, while I cut down on the Welbutrin, which was not sparking my joy. The psychiatrist never made eye contact with me and the visit ended within 10 minutes. It was just like my wedding night, hey oh!

Next was the therapist. I thought I wanted eye contact until I saw this dude. He was 100 going on 100,000 years old. His eyes were bloodshot, his office smelled like soup, and his phone rang at least 20 times. It felt more like an interview to be his caretaker. I was so deep within my mind that I was about to fall down my throat and into my stomach.

The icing on the Shit Cake™ was when I mentioned that I did comedy (I can’t help but brag about myself, even when I’m completely collapsing. I’ll probably plug my Twitter page on my deathbed.). He stopped the therapy session and began plugging his side hustles. He mentioned that he did career counseling and could help me get gigs that paid upward of $40-$50 an hour. He also said I should bring by show flyers for him to look over. He dabbled in graphic design.

I was furious. Our session was 45 minutes in. I had opened up, cried, and begged for relief. He merely saw me as an opportunity. Someone he could upsell.

I had some choice words and stormed out.

Tears ran down my cheeks as I got in my car. They were bitter and hopeless.

At least I got a new prescription.

Turns out that was actually a decent enough solution. I’m 5 days into my new medication regiment and I’m close to normal again. The thoughts will pop up every now and then, but they’re faint and go away quickly. I’ve had two good days in a row. Feels like I’ll have a lot more.

The reason why I wrote all this is two-fold:

1. I like the attention

2. I wanted to show what the struggle looks like in all its ugly glory.

Depression, anxiety, bi-polar, etc. can be managed, fought back, and abated; sometimes for short periods of time, sometimes for years and years. It can be like a common cold or it can be full blown brain AIDS. You may need to take a mental health day; you might need to go to the ER.

Treatment can be as capricious as the sickness itself. You may feel safe, seen, and cared for. You might feel like a product on a conveyor belt, being inspected by an uncaring factory worker or gobbled up by an unqualified Lucille Ball (does this metaphor track? I think it does.)

Mental illness is hard because even the person suffering through it doesn’t really understand what’s going on. Sometimes all we need from others is to know that. Sometimes we might appreciate some effort, like going out and getting us an UNHAPPY MEAL™.

[rex101111]

When Eri Midoriya, yah damn lizard?

(You fucking want it ya flying rat shaped tree??? You’ll fucking get it)

Aizawa was no stranger to paperwork. The process of going through thesometimes endless amount of documents that needed to be signed, marked forerrors, copied and sent to various people so they could sign, mark forerrors and copy and send to other people and so on was a curse he had todeal with on a daily basis for many years now, first when he started working asa professional hero, and again as he added “teacher” to his longresume.

He had to fill out situation reports, damage costs, and budget requests,as well as go through essays and grade tests and home work from dozens ofpeople over the years, and he did it with the detached professionalism thatthat kind of work required.

So why was one line in a personal file giving him this muchtrouble?

Well, because he couldn’t detach himself here, couldn’t think interms of pure numbers and figures, couldn’t boil everything he needed to writedown into simple terms, Shouta “Eraserhead” Aizawa was doing the samemistake he has been finding himself doing since he began teaching the newestversion of class 1-A of year one in UA academy.

He got attached, made it personal, and now he was in the middle of anintense internal moral debate over what to put in the “family name”field of Eri’s personal file.

“What a headache…” He muttered out loud as he put his pendown, rubbing his forehead with both hands while he leaned his elbows on thetable in the empty teacher’s lounge he had sat next to about an hour ago,getting his paperwork done when this one file was all that he had to dobefore his work for the day was done.

The problem wasn’t that he didn’t know what her family name was,using the information he got from Chronostasis while he was captured, aboutEri’s history and how she came under Chisaki’s wing, so to speak, and the oldman that was found in the base hooked up to a life support machine made it veryeasy to put two and two together.

No, the problem was if he used that name for her, it would nodoubt cause the girl no end of trouble down the line. Having a connection to aleader of Yakuza group, especially one that made such an impact, and that manyconnections, would serve only to complicate her life further and give her morehardships to deal with.

The girl was half the age of his students, and has already suffered morethan her fair share, he was not going to make her suffer through anymoreif he could help it.

But, that sudden moral obligation left him without any real option ofwhat to give her as a last name, and if he left any field on this paper empty,others would either walk right back to him with it or force him to writethe obvious answer down, or fill it in themselves with significantly lesssympathy.

So, he had to put something else, anything else, in that field,but again, he had to be careful about that as well. Putting in any random namewould either sever any rights UA might have to keep her safe once she’s out ofthe woods and the whole mess over the precepts died down (and just thinking ofthe mess that would cause in his class is giving him a migraine), orwould put her in harm’s way if, by some impossible stupid chance, it was thefamily name of someone with ill intentions.

He tapped his fingers on the table surface, glaring down at the page asif it would surrender the perfect answer to this mess, trying to hash out somethingto would, at the very least, cause the girl the least amount of grief.

“What a damn joke,” He muttered bitterly, Family names shouldbe a point of pride shouldn’t they? And here’s a girl with either none to speakof, or ones that would bring her nothing but trouble,“ He rubbed his eyestiredly, "Might as give her my-”

He stopped.

He took his hands away from his eyes to look at the file one more time,going over the various details he’d had to fill out about her, height, weightand blood type, and the one small picture he was able to convince her to takestapled to the upper right corner of the file.

She was wearing a long sleeved shirt with a brightly grinning sun on thefront, while she herself was smiling much more timidly, most of her white haircombed and brushed and tied in a single braid by Ashido and Hagakure, with aNo. 13 hairpin stuck, given to her by Uraraka, on the side of her bangs liftingthem over her eyes. Her arms were clasped behind her back nervously, but shewas staring right at the camera, ruby eyes shining.

He stared at the picture with a blank stare, as he did when the girlspresented it to him when he had asked for one. He held it by one of its lowercorners, rubbing his fingers where he held it idly as he considered it.

“Aizawa Eri,” He muttered under his breath, feeling out thesound of it on his tongue, making one corner of his mouth twitch up less thanhalf an inch, “The name of a pro hero….might gain her some allies…” Afew more things crossed his mind for a moment, of course, but as always the practicaland pragmatic benefits that floated up before anything else…as did the negatives,“….And enemies.”

Eraserhead was not a name that would make many average citizens widentheir eyes in recognition, and that was by design, since he was a teenager hefound the glorified popularity contest that was the hero rankings distasteful,and so he does his work in the shadows, when most honest working folk sleep.

On the other hand, many criminals and outlaws would clench their fistsand grind their teeth at the mention of his hero name, it was a point of pridefor Aizawa that he had managed to make a nuisance of himself to anyone whothought themselves worthy of the titles “villain.”

He was a veteran in the field,and one of the best in the business, and more than once did he have to suffer theodd ambush in his daily life, and he handled himself as well as his positiondemanded of him.

But, a little girl? Alone during school or with friends? Who had alreadygone through the wringer?

He let go of the picture, shaking his head. No need to burden her withthat….his apartment would have been too small anyway.

But of course, this left him back in square one, but before he couldbang his head on the table to get his thoughts in order, into the room crashedthe one person that never failed to make a mess of them.

“Ey yo ERASER!” Present Mic shouted as the door he flung opencrashed in the wall next to him, making his fellow teacher flinch and his eyestwitch, “What are you doing here man!? You and I were supposed to be outdrinking by now!”

Rubbing his eyes while taking a very deep breath, as well as remindinghimself that this headache in the shape of a man was his coworker and friendand hitting him is not the proper reaction to him yelling (Nedzu’s words andnot his, obviously), Aizawa turned to him, “Almost done Mic, I just needto finish this one last paper.”

Yes, just this one paper, just this one paper that he can’t help butthink of what kind of impact it will have on the life of the little girl whohas found herself under the protection of his school and his students, mostlyfor the fact that she has literally no one else in her life to take care ofher.

Easy.

“One paper!? That’s what’s been holding you back here all thistime!?” He yelled out some more, stomping over to his coworker to peerover his shoulder…or rather shove his head next to his to see what this paperis all about, “What could it-” He stopped, his mouth closing as hesaw what it was that Aizawa was working on, “Oh, It’s aboutEri-chan.” His voice softened considerably, the way it always did when he discussedthings that actually mattered to him, getting out of Aizawa’s space, the latterglaring at him lightly before he returned to glaring at the file instead, Micscratched the back of his head, “Need help?”

Aizawa shook his head, “No, just need to fill out one morething,” He pointed to the still empty, “Family name” field onthe paper, tapping on the vacant line after, “And it’s proving harder thanI thought…”

Yamada raised his brow at him, “Don’t we know Eri-chan’slast name though?”

“Yes, that’s part of the problem.”

“Wha-Oh, oh yeah.”

The two looked down at the paper together, both completely silent asthey considered what to put there, Yamada slowly catching up on all the optionsAizawa has thought of already.

“Can’t give her a random name…”

“Too unpredictable.”

“Can’t give her actual name…”

“Very much predictable.”

Mic stopped, looking at Aizawa directly, his mouth turning up as what heconsidered to be an amazing idea popped into his head.

“Can’t use mine either,” Aizawa snapped, knowing what he wasthinking just by looking at him, “The last thing she needs is a connectionto any kind of….reputation.”

Mic dropped his smile, sighing, “Can’t use mine either then…”

The quiet stretched out for a few more minutes, the two men glaring downat the paper hoping it would sort itself out, before a chuckle escaped PresentMic as a thought occurred to him.

“Something funny Yamada?” Aizawa snapped, not evenslightly in the mood for any of his friend’s nonsense.  

Mic shook his head as he just kept chuckling, ignoring Aizawa’s tiredmenace, “Nah Eraser, I just remembered something and it gave me anidea.” He looked at him and grinning a cheeky little smile at Aizawa,“How about we make her a Midoriya?”

Aizawa’s gut reaction was to hit Mic on the back of the head andquestion his sanity, but a split second after he stopped, mulling the thoughtover as he considered how the girl acted around his class….specifically aroundMidoriya and Uraraka.

“I mean,” Mic continued, seeing that Aizawa was starting onthe same track of thought as he as, “She already calls him papa…whynot make it official?”

Aizawa scratched his chin, the idea rollingin his head a bit more….he reached for a pencil, and carefully scratched downthe character for ‘green’.

—-

Midoriya looked up at his teacher in shook, before looking back down onthe paper in his hands, especially at a very specific name written on it, beforeagain looking at his teacher and repeating a few more times, the situation notquite sinking in just yet.

“It’s just an idea,” Aizawa said, with a placating handgesture, to little effect, “But as I’ve explained, it’s more or less thebest idea I could think of.”

The boy gulped, putting down the paper and pulling on his lower lip ashe thought deeply on it, pragmatic reason at once clashing and in cahoots withhis personal feelings, “What if someone looks into it?”

“I’ve talked to your mother,” He said, smirking as he thoughtback to the rather…emotional conversation he’s had with Inko Midoriyalast night, “And after I’d explained the circumstances to her, she admittedthat she’d always wanted a daughter as well.”

Izuku blinked, blushing a little as the matter became clearer to him,looking down at the paper again, looking between the picture Uraraka and therest of the girls took of Eri…and his last name next to hers, “…It’s herdecision.” He said finally, sighing as one corner of his mouth twitched up,“We can’t force her.”

Aizawa smirked at his student while shakinghis head, wondering how someone could be that dense, “I don’t think we’llhave too.”

—

Eri stared wide eyed at Izuku, the paper in her hand shaking in hergrip, “Is-is this real?”

He smiled gently at her, putting a warm hand on her shoulder, “Onlyif you want it to be.”

She looked between the paper and Izuku a few times, her eyes growing wetteras she did, before she dropped it in favor of flinging her arms around his neckas she wept openly, squeezing as hard as she could as he wrapped his armsaround her in return rubbing calming circles on her back.

At their feet the file floated down gently until it touched the ground,the two far too busy hugging and crying to notice it.

(The very next morning, Present Mic had several announcements regardingrecent events, included among them a reminder for students to change into theirsummer uniforms next week, the planned menu for the cafeteria that day…and amessage to Midoriya Eri to remember come pick up her jacket from the teachers’lounge, before he decided he liked it too much to give it back and take it forhimself.

As she rushed out of the common room to retrieve her jacket, all eyeswere on Midoriya as he rubbed the back of his head, “It’s uhh…it’s a longstory.”

As the rest of the students rushed him with question, Uraraka stayedbehind the implications of all of this rushing through her head.

To her horror, the idea didn’t seem too bad.)

[davidanderson7162]

Choosing the Right Training Belt for You

For any person that's doing hefty Olympic-styled powerlifts at the gym, sooner or later possessing a weightlifting belt ends up being almost a need. But with all the options out on the marketplace, how can you tell which one is for you? Right here is a review of the various choices you'll need to make regarding your belt and also the advantages and disadvantages of each.Figure 8 Straps

The initial thing that you'll involve your belt is decide what product you want to have it made out of. The two options that you generally have here are nylon and also leather. Natural leather weight training belts are the hardest on the market as well as will keep your back in position no matter what. Sadly, their rigidity can be their downfall too. For intricate steps they may not have sufficient offer as well as they have a tendency to scratch your skin. Nylon belts solve these troubles by being a lot more versatile, but they additionally offer less assistance.

The next thing you will need to choose is exactly how thick you want your belt to be. Belts vary in thickness from four to six inches on the rear end of them, with a couple of smaller sized or larger ones to be discovered periodically. The bigger you are the larger belt you will usually need, however this is likewise in some cases an issue of choice. If you are a huge lifter, however have a strong back you may only desire a smaller belt. Look for a belt that has to do with the size you wish to utilize before you buy one to see if it will fit you.

Ultimately, you require to consider the securing system of the belt. Usually leather belts will have a fixed securing system as well as nylong belts have a quick launch, yet this is not constantly real. A quick launch will certainly give you a better fit, yet a fixed lock provides you even more assistance Australia.

Build Up Muscular Tissue Rapid With Powerlifting Routines

Powerlifting is an approach of weightlifting which is rather advanced in contrast to typical weight training or even bodybuilding. A powerlifting competition involves lifting a one-repetition optimum (for up to 3 attempts) in the squat, bench press, and also the deadlift.

The reason you must take into consideration using powerlifting routines to accumulate muscle mass quick is that powerlifting is among the fastest ways to obtain stronger. In addition to consuming effectively for muscle building, you must obtain more powerful prior to getting bigger ... or else you would have specialist bodybuilders on stage who might just squat 200 extra pounds injury-free! The strength established in powerlifting is amazing.

Right here is what you require to recognize prior to you begin utilizing powerlifting routines to build up muscle mass:

You MUST get physician's authorization PRIOR TO starting powerlifting Unlike other kinds of weightlifting where control of the weight and sluggish lifting as well as lowering is essential, powerlifting concentrates on eruptive lifting and controlled lowering of the weights. See to it that your back, knees, shoulders, and other joints can deal with the stress and anxiety. On top of that, see to it that you do not have any heart, blood circulation, high blood pressure, or various other worries prior to you start powerlifting. Choose whether you are mosting likely to contend. If so, you might need to make a financial investment in proper powerlifting equipment including, however not restricted to: squat match, bench press t-shirt, hefty powerlifter's belt, wrist wraps, knee covers, chalk, and other powerlifting things. A minimum of take into consideration an excellent, sturdy belt. If you do not understand where to begin, grab a duplicate of Powerlifting U.S.A. magazine and check out the marketers there You may have to discover new workouts. While powerlifting concentrates on the fundamental squat, bench, as well as deadlift there are numerous supplementary exercises developed to aid you get stronger in those lifts. Such extra exercises are the floor press, board press, box bows, making use of chains, utilizing heavy-duty rubber bands, and other workouts which the majority of people (as well as also most personal trainers) do not recognize exactly how to do. Look for properly trained and skilled individuals who have actually been involved in powerlifting for several years if you intend to discover these workouts Australia.

Body building Or Powerlifting - Can You Do Both?

The difference in between body building and also powerlifting can be puzzling to some. The most effective and quickest way to describe this is body builders go with proportion putting on as much muscular tissue as feasible but keeping body fat levels in the low-single figures while powerlifters are going for pure toughness. Muscle building is figure and cosmetic based. Powerlifting is just to raise as much weight as possible. The diet plan as well as training strategies have some variations from one another as a result of their various objectives.

I wish to provide you my individual expectation right here, which is the factor for creating this article. I was always a skinny kid throughout my childhood and also couldn't put on weight to save my life. So allowing and also solid is really crucial to me as well as most likely constantly will be. On the very same token, I don't desire my gut hanging over my belt either so because sense I do care what my figure looks like. I have actually always felt I would be way also small if I ever got bone-ripped as what a body building competition would need, as well as in the past when I have actually attempted to stay with a very rigorous diet (despite having consuming a great deal of protein) my stamina went down substantially. So I pick to stay in the middle of the roadway with muscle building and powerlifting, utilizing techniques for both causes. Because I simply do this for myself and also do not contend in either, I can escape it.

I'm not claiming all powerlifters are fat, yet they do tend to bring more over all weight simply due to the fact that they're missions has little or absolutely nothing to do with how they look. Body builders on the other hand need to experience a strenuous weight loss stage a number of weeks before a competitors in order to go down body fat. Regrettably throughout this process stamina can go down considerably also, as well as dimension. Body building has commonly been called an impression due to the fact that when you're ripped with striations bulging, you will certainly show up bigger and also stronger because of your balance (smaller sized midsection line with larger legs, thicker back and also broader shoulders amounts to quite a remarkable appearance). However, this can be psychologically as well as literally straining as the majority of us hard core lifters recognize just how shedding dimension as well as stamina can play mental techniques on us. When those XL t shirts start feeling loose, you feel you're going to end up in the nut-house.

The factor of all this is that if you're not competing and just weight train for your own advantage and also sanity, you can certainly bodybuild along with powerlift. Actually, some complete in both sports though these are normally genetically gifted creatures. However, I do not want to claim that it can not be done, good genetics or not.

A few of the strategies that have confirmed to be successful for me are:

1) Lift heavy weights with low reps for your very first couple of exercises, then for your last couple of exercises go with a few even more associates while focusing much more on muscle contraction.

2) Perform cardio, however use your strength as a gauge as to just how much cardio you execute.

3) Diet regimen is the hardest component. You require calories to obtain strong, bottom line. One way is to cycle your huge carb days every 2-3 days (simply put, have a high carbohydrate consumption for a 2-3 days after that back off for a day or 2, preferably on non-weight training days). This has actually been called the zigzag diet though I never recommend cutting carbs completely on any day. An additional means you can achieve good outcomes is by keeping your carbohydrate intake extremely high around your workout times, and also the various other times don't absorb as much. This principle works fantastic if you train in the early mornings. Or else simply keep an eye on the mirror. Nevertheless, the mirror will constantly be sincere with you. If do not like what you see, adjust your diet plan accordingly Australia.

4) Consume a lots of healthy protein. You require high healthy protein consumption for both bodybuilding and also powerlifting. I suggest a minimum of 1.5 grams of protein per extra pound of bodyweight.

Exactly How to Correctly Execute a Powerlifting Deadlift Type

Deadlift is one of the most basic as well as uncomplicated actions of toughness available. Almost anybody can do this lift. Deadlift is additionally one of the three events in powerlifting. Although it needs the least method when contrasted to other self-controls it is still a very technical lift and it takes years for discovering the appropriate method.

As well as any other powerlifting training, deadlifting requests for a completely special technique in oppose to conventional muscle building exercises. There are 2 kinds of deadlift executed in powerlifting: traditional and also sumo style. In this manual I will explain just the conventional.

Very first point you require to do is to put the middle of your feet below bench. Ensure this is the middle of your whole feet not simply the part that you can see from the front. Position size need to be really comfortable, which is generally a little narrower than the shoulder size. Toes can point forward or a little to the sides. Order bench with hands positioned shoulder width apart. If you place your hands broader path of bench that it needs to travel will be longer and you do not want that. As soon as you have the weight in your hands see to it the wrists and also joints are totally right. This is very important since you do not intend to pull the bar with the biceps flexed. This is one of the most commonly cause of injury throughout deadlift. Relax your traps as much as you can. Arc your back strongly as well as reduce your hips simply sufficient to get the bar with your hands. Make certain not to go into the squat position, however rather hold your hips as high as you can. In this setting, the middle deltoid (midline of the shoulder when seen from the side) should be right above or a little behind bench, not such as in weightlifting where shoulders must stand method front.

The second phase is the real pull. Agreement your hips onward while pushing the entire weight from the heels. It must feel like you are pushing the flooring down as opposed to elevating bench up. After the weight is above knee degree extend your knees to a completely locked placement. Attaining the upright placement of the body with hips and also knees secured is the indication that whatever worked out.

Yet, the lift is not over yet. Using the exact same trajectory of the ascent, the descent needs to be done. Bench must be decreased not necessarily slow down, yet in a controlled means. This is important since courts can quickly pronounce your lift not successful if you dispose the weight also quickly to the ground.

Proper deadlift form anticipates a lot of technique to be improved. Before trying any kind of major training because regard get in touch with a powerlifting training professional to assist you through the understanding Australia.

Fitness center Essential - What Are Straps, Chalk as well as Weight Training Belts For?

There are several types of lifting aids used within the gym setting. You may have seen various muscle bound gym-goers making use of Figure 6's, Number 8's and chalk to assist in lifting hefty weights? Have you ever questioned what each one is created for? What do they do and also which ones would fit you and your type of training?

Bands: The 2 most typical straps used in the fitness center are the number 6's and number 8's.

When training muscles such as back or traps the lower arm muscle mass play an important duty in being able to grip or hang onto a weights or pinhead. However sometimes midway with a session the forearms come to be so pumped causing the fingers not being able keep a barbell or dumbbell.

When training with straps the tons is decreased considerably because as opposed to the forearms taking all the weight it is distributed via the strap and also wrist resulting in your lower arms not obtaining tired out as swiftly.

Workouts where Number 6's and number 8's are required are workouts such as farmers stroll, chin ups, dead-lifts, rows and also shrugs.

There are 2 distinctive differences with the 6's and also 8's.

Number 6's are developed to make sure that you not just utilize even more of your lower arm muscles, however if the weight is also hefty as well as you need to drop it, the weight will certainly slide out from the band. On the other hand when making use of figure 8's you boost also much less forearm stamina as well as rely upon the number 8 band to hold the weight. Not only this yet if you go down the weight, the band will stay leaving your arm attached to whatever it was you were lifting. This can become unsafe if carrying out some workouts.

I suggest making use of figure 6's for all lift but if you like utilizing figure 8's do not use them with dead-lifts and rows, in situation you go down the weight.

Chalk: Chalk is used mainly by powerlifters and also weightlifters. A lot of gyms do not allow the usage of chalk because it can cause quite a mess on the flooring in addition to get throughout the weight plates and weights.

Chalk is mainly utilized on rope climbing, deadlifts, power cleans up, nab and crouches. Its primary duty is for the trainer to be able to grip as quickly as feasible while still using natural grasp stamina.

The advantage with using chalk is that the fitness instructor can raise heavy weights (mostly on deadlifts) as well as continue to utilize the muscle mass in the fingers and forearms without having to rely upon bands (which tend to take a great deal of the tons off the grasp.).

Knee wraps:. Knee covers are created to push your patella down securely making it simpler to move backwards and forwards. Power-lifters think by doing this they will certainly be able to lift more weight when squatting. Knee covers likewise help you at the bottom of the squat by causing a 'bounce' out of the bottom position, which to some is the hardest placement Australia.

I suggest to be cautious with utilizing knee wraps since if you utilize them excessive they can trigger slight tears below the kneecap on the patella tendon.

Powerlifting Movements For True Abdominal Strength - Strong Abs Without Problems.

Prior to we dive in, let's get one point right. Shredded abdominal muscles don't come from any type of specific exercise. The multitude of ab gimmicks out there aren't mosting likely to bring them out either. Acquiring visible abs is merely an outcome of diet regimen and cardio. If you can do 200 crunches a day however if you're having pizza and beer every night, all you'll ever before see is an all-round digestive tract.

Since we have actually obtained that clear, allow's discuss methods to enhance your stomach muscles. Many individuals think that unlimited problems, sit ups or targeted abdominal equipments will work. But the best method to truly construct muscle mass in your belly region is by powerlifting workouts. Theoretically, every workout you perform in the health club will certainly work your abdominal muscles as you should be maintaining your belly region tight. These muscle mass work as a stabilizer enabling you to concentrate on correct kind and likewise protecting against reduced back pressure or injury.

A couple of movements that will actually function your abdominals are squats, deadlifts as well as bench presses; the 3 major powerlifting workouts. You're entire body is working to some degree during these lifts, specifically with squats and also deadlifts. You need to be keeping your tummy as well as in fact your whole body tight throughout these lifts. These are powerful lifts as well as you're pressing a great deal of weight, straining your muscles as well as core. I've also observed my abdominals being pushed into tightening when doing wire pushdowns or rope extensions for triceps Australia.

I do not advise against performing targeted exercises for your abs. Nonetheless, if you're getting aggravated because you can not see them, doing even more workouts for them may not always be the solution. It's greater than likely that you require to change your diet and also cardio. The issue several hard core fitness instructors encounter is the small loss of toughness when taking in much less calories as well as carrying out even more cardio. You eventually need to decide what's more important. For those of you that are deathly scared of being slim (I'm one of these individuals as I was a smaller kid growing up) you may require to discover a happy medium to make sure that you can be muscle as well as solid, yet without your gut hanging over your belt. This needs a disciplined diet plan and also cardio routines however not quite as rigorous as if you were going for a shredded six-pack.

[beyonddevices]

Putting Some Numbers Around Amazon Prime

Amazon filed its 10-K report for 2016 late last week, and it adds a few bits of additional information which haven’t been in previous versions. Most notably, it provides a breakdown of revenue by similar product, which is the first real visibility we’ve had into Prime and certain other categories. It doesn’t report Prime directly, but there’s enough data here to provide some really interesting insights into the Prime program, how many members it has, how much revenue it generates, and how revenue is split between shipping and other services.

Amazon’s new revenue breakdown

First up, here’s the new breakdown. Revenue is split into five categories which, other than AWS, we haven’t seen broken out before:

Retail Products – this is basically all e-commerce plus most one-off sales of digital goods except those which are sold on a net basis (likely mostly apps); plus any direct shipping revenue associated with e-commerce purchases

Retail third-party seller services – this is all the revenue Amazon generates from its third party sellers including commissions, related fulfillment and shipping fees

Retail subscription services – Prime is the biggest component here, but it also includes Audible, Amazon Music, Kindle Unlimited, and other non-Prime subscriptions

AWS – Amazon Web Services, as reported in its segment reporting

Other – all the stuff that doesn’t fit in any other bucket, with co-branded credit cards and advertising the only two components called out specifically.

Here’s what that revenue breakdown looks like in percentage terms over the last three years:

As you can see, Product Sales are by far the largest component, but they’re falling rapidly as a percentage of the total, from 77% in 2014 to 67% in 2016, while the other categories are coming up fast. Here are the growth rates for the last two years for these various components:

As you can see, the growth rates are all over the map, with the fastest-growing that mysterious Other section, which I suspect is largely driven by Amazon’s small but flourishing ad business. eMarketer estimates that this is already a roughly billion-dollar business for Amazon, so that would make sense, though the growth rate here is much higher than eMarketer projects. Those credit cards must be doing well too.

But outside that, it’s worth noting that third party services are growing much faster than product sales, with retail products (i.e. Amazon’s own direct sales) the slowest growing of any of these categories. Both retail subscriptions and AWS are coming down somewhat in percentage growth terms, but largely as a factor of becoming quite big numbers – in both cases, the dollar growth year on year actually increased. That third party sellers are growing faster than first party is actually a good thing – Amazon’s margins on those services are much higher, because it only reports its cut rather than the gross take as revenue. This growth has been a major driver, alongside AWS, of Amazon’s increasing margins lately.

Deducing Prime subscribers

Let’s focus, though, on that retail subscriptions business, because that’s where Prime revenue sits. We need to make some assumptions about how much of that revenue is actually Prime to start. Morgan Stanley reckons it’s about 90%, and though I was originally tempted to say it was more than that, checking into the size of Audible made me think it’s probably about right. So I’m going to stick with that.

If we want to know subscriber numbers, though, we need to figure out what the average subscriber pays, and that’s a complex proposition because the price of Prime increased by $20 in 2014 in the US, and costs different amounts in each market. If we make reasonable assumptions about the mix of where those Prime subscribers are located (e.g. by using Amazon’s revenue split by country) and then apply the going rates at various times for a Prime subscription, we can arrive at a reasonable average. Mine starts at $76 in 2014 and rises to $81 in 2015 and $82 in 2016, whereas Morgan Stanley’s is at $88 for both 2015 and 2016.

On that basis, then, here’s a reasonable estimate for Prime’s subscriber numbers over the last four years, together with a sanity check in the form of the minimum possible number Amazon might have based on various public statements it’s made:

The numbers you end up with are just barely above those minimum numbers provided by Amazon. There’s no way to be 100% sure about my numbers, but they certainly imply that Amazon has been making the biggest possible deal out of its total number ever since that “tens of millions” comment at the end of 2013 (which referred to 21 million subscribers according to my estimate). These numbers would also help explain why Amazon didn’t provide a percentage growth number at the end of 2016 as it did in the previous two years: the percentage likely went down, again as a result of an increasingly large base, not lower subscriber growth – it added 20 million subs in 2016 versus 17 million in 2015.

Prime revenue allocation

One other interesting wrinkle which I’ve wondered about for a long time is the way Amazon allocates revenue between the components of its Prime service, which after all combines free two day shipping with a Netflix-like video subscription and various other benefits. Its financial reporting has always made clear that it allocates these portions of revenue to different buckets – specifically, its Net Product Sales and Net Service Sales categories – even though they all come from the same Prime subscriptions. Understanding this split may seem of purely academic interest, but in fact it’s key to divining the economics of Amazon’s Prime video business.

One interesting thing about the new grouping of revenues Amazon provided in its 10-K is that there is just one portion of revenue allocated differently here from in Amazon’s other reporting, and that’s the shipping component of Prime revenues. In the Net Product/Service Sales split, shipping goes into Product, whereas in the Similar Products split it goes into retail subscriptions. Therefore, if we look at the differences between the amounts reported in the various segments, we can deduce the Prime shipping component, and by implication the portion allocated to everything else (mostly video).

What you can see is that the revenue allocation is shifting quite significantly over time from shipping towards the rest – shipping was 63% or almost two thirds of the total in 2014, but only 56% of the total in 2016, and the actual numbers have both risen considerably. For comparison’s sake, the Prime shipping allocation is around a third of Amazon’s total shipping revenue.

Competing with Netflix on content will be tough at these levels

We can then compare Amazon’s non-shipping revenue (the vast majority of which should probably be seen as video revenue) against Netflix’s global streaming revenue:

What you see here is that Netflix’s revenue from its streaming business is massively larger, not least because it allocates the full $8-10 per month it collects from its nearly 100 million subscribers  to streaming, whereas even with 70 million subscribers, Amazon only allocates just under half to streaming.

This has significant implications for the viability of the two companies’ investments in original content. Netflix has committed to spending $6 billion in total on content in 2017, which is more than twice Amazon’s entire revenue from streaming video in 2016. To the extent that Amazon wants to be competitive in content, it either needs to lose money on the whole thing as a subsidy for its e-commerce business, or charge (or allocate) a lot more of its total take to streaming video. Interestingly, the standalone monthly Prime Video service Amazon offers comes in at $9, suggesting that without the flywheel benefits of free shipping, it needs to recoup far more like the total real cost of providing the streaming service.

Putting Some Numbers Around Amazon Prime was originally published on Beyond Devices

[keithnankervis7-blog]

Moon Swimming pool

For recent year toptips-healthylive.info I've been putting together renowned labels to list on my label numerology web site. That was the 6th moon ever before discovered, following our own and also the four Galilean moons around Jupiter. Yet if you took place to be on the Moon or in some subarctic ice industry without access to media for those couple of weeks, allow me quickly detail. There is actually absolutely no much better way of raising your vibration at that point taking advantage of the electrical power and also the one of a kind this moon particularly, as this is actually recognized that the moon possesses an incredible religious electricity. Commonly, most internet resources will shade the dates as well as deliver times for the greatest possible time to get considerable amounts of fish on your travel. Hotshot brand new concept firms pop every day, yet the longer a web design firm has actually stayed in business, this is actually typically a great sign that the company is actually reputable, delivers top quality service, and also won't pack up as well as vanish through the night. In the lunar plateaus, which is the part of the moon that is actually certainly not smooth-- if you look at the moon, you observe the soft parts as well as the uneven little bits. South Oriental President Moon Jae-in said it would not be quick and easy for reclusive North Korea to ruin its own nuclear arsenal promptly, regardless of whether it would like to, provided its weapons programs were therefore established. Moon-quakes are actually felt to develop in the moon's lower wrap occasionally as a result of tidal effects in between the earth as well as the moon. Chrome or Web Explorer, that conserves any sort of data coming from the internet webpages you explore Whenever you use a mobile browser like Safari.

Coming from there old individuals devised and spread out lunar folklore and also the belief is currently so wide-spread that individuals feel the moon is capable of impacting the whole entire human population at the same time. This inevitably brought about predisposed hearing problems in Pete Townshend's one ear, heightened by a presented stunt where Keith Moon blew up his drum set as well as used a lot of dynamite. Rather than Facebook making money right here, organisations are eager to pay out prominent local individuals with a high level from on the web social authority. Cancer cells - A water indication, utilizing this during the course of a polishing moon is your best alternative for growing. As for your rulers, Mars as well as Pluto, they are actually accommodating in a volatile setup at the New Moon over the weekend break so points can obtain detrimental or mad if you typically aren't mindful. Conserve time as well as sanity through looking for your kid and child outfits internet If you want your summer to be hassle-free and stylish, allow our team help you perform the purchasing. It is actually achievable that 3.8 to 4.2 billion years ago, around 3 little moonlets were actually orbiting the moon but once they reached the Roche limitation, gravitational pressures took all of them apart as well as the parts from all of them influenced the moon and formed the maria that we currently observe. According to a scientific research dictionary, Anorthosite indicates a molten rock consisting virtually completely of plagioclase feldspar, specifically the labradorite range, and also these have actually been identified among the stone samples accumulated from the moon.

[alisonfloresus]

The reality concerning the Erbalife company is actually a legitimatw organization or perhaps a scam?

It truly is challenging to locate a great Herbalife review in the distributor stage of see due to the fact they’re written by primarily ex distributors who failed to generate any income while in the enterprise or they can be written by those that are actively trying to sponsor you to the company. You will find also several Herbalife reviews that insist they had been by some means misled and ripped off.

There is certainly usually likely to be a massive failure price inside of multilevel marketing and Multi level marketing companies, particularly when some organizations and sponsors guarantee pie-in-the-sky commissions. And in the event you shell out interest to almost all of these on the internet Herbalife review – over-promising looks to get a serious issue with all the Herbalife chance.

Signage for Herbalife might be identified on telegraph poles on the large amount of street corners and so they declare you’ll be able to make $ 1500 portion time and as much as $ 5500 total time. That is real. You will find usually individuals in any firm who produce a full-time revenue operating part-time hours… but what these indications fail to inform you is there is certainly lots of time, vitality and in investment concerned to provide people varieties of benefits. However the guarantee of producing great income isn’t incorrect in itself. But we truly ought to get a significantly closer search to uncover the reality.

Behind the net Herbalife Review

Herbalife has become all around for some thirty 12 months now and 85% on the company’s $ 3.five billion bucks in commissionable product sales is distributed to about 15% of their best producers. The remaining commissions are shared from the other 15% in the area. But this earnings disparity is real for just about any company proprietor or specialist. As an example, the best 15% of all property agents make one of the most cash. The remaining 85% barely produce a residing. It is just the way in which factors are due to the fact only about 15% in the folks who get involved with any enterprise or occupation are really ready to shell out the cost essential to develop accomplishment.

A swift search on the cash flow disclosure offered through the firm reveals the typical yearly earnings for an regular distributor comes out to lower than $ 300. So does this imply the organization isn’t a viable choice? Naturally not. Everybody has exactly the same chance to make the massive funds. Only not everyone will do what’s needed to make that come about.

Just punch the phrases “hate Herbalife” right into a browser and you may get pages on pages of stories from ordinary people that have misplaced their financial savings and their sanity looking to produce a achievement together with the Herbalife Multilevel marketing method and one particular word you are going to see a whole lot is “lie”. I contact these herbalife review – disgruntled distributor review. They truly feel they had been misled… and so they may possibly are already. But who misled them? The business? Their upline sponsor? It is hard to understand for certain. However the bottom line actuality is You happen to be accountable to your very own accomplishment and if there exists any individual who’s enjoying achievement with Herbalife – then you definitely can take pleasure in achievement also should you commit to generating that occur.

Past the Herbalife Review

Every single multilevel marketing enterprise may be created part-time. You really do not must quit your occupation to acquire commenced. But that does not not suggest the enterprise will construct itself. It will take time for you to create any company towards the degree of creating a revenue. Any organization. Does not matter. You’ll be able to open a sizzling canine cart enterprise and it’ll nonetheless consider time, cash and work to display a revenue.

In multilevel marketing the key to good results all boils right down to your comprehending and willingness to produce a product sales and advertising machine. You may need to very first learn the way to make prospects through promoting or attraction advertising and marketing techniques after which convert individuals prospects into item clients and signal ups. You then should lead your new staff into taking exactly the same verified actions.

So really do not fret about each of the unfavorable Herbalife review you discover on the internet and do not pay out also considerably consideration on the good review. Simply because the truth on the matter is you can find hundreds, possibly even 1000’s, of individuals creating a full-time executive revenue advertising and developing their dietary companies. When they can get it done, you are able to get it done, should you are prepared to discover ways to promote and market your online business.

Will YOU be the subsequent Herbalife accomplishment story? Only you’ll be able to solution that…

But when you might be critical about creating your network marketing organization, there exists just one plan I can advise which has stood the check of time and that’s MY Lead Method Professional. It offers you each of the resources you will need along with a ton of insider innovative instruction you are able to use to produce visitors for your web site, create prospects on demand, and encourage your online business. They are able to even assist you to make some significant funds appropriate off the bat to have into fast revenue. Plus, it’s the excellent remedy that will help you along with your staff begin – irrespective of one’s ability degree.

from JournalsLINE http://journalsline.com/2017/06/03/the-reality-concerning-the-erbalife-company-is-actually-a-legitimatw-organization-or-perhaps-a-scam/ from Journals LINE https://journalsline.tumblr.com/post/161378868755