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itineraryblog · 27 days

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Underrated Summer Travel Ideas: Discover Hidden Gems Around the World

When it comes to summer travel, popular destinations like Paris, Bali, or the Caribbean often come to mind. But what about those hidden gems that offer unique experiences without the crowds? This year, why not try something different? Here’s a list of underrated summer travel ideas that promise adventure, culture, and relaxation — all in off-the-beaten-path locations.

1. Georgia — The Jewel of the Caucasus

Tucked between Europe and Asia, Georgia is a country that offers a stunning mix of landscapes, from snow-capped mountains to rolling vineyards. During summer, the weather is perfect for hiking in the Caucasus Mountains, exploring ancient monasteries, or enjoying Tbilisi’s vibrant arts scene. Don’t miss the chance to taste Georgian wine — some of the world’s oldest!

2. Faroe Islands — Nature’s Best-Kept Secret

Located between Iceland and Norway, the Faroe Islands are an archipelago known for their dramatic cliffs, cascading waterfalls, and rugged coastlines. With fewer tourists compared to Iceland, the Faroe Islands offer a tranquil experience for nature lovers. Summer is the ideal time to hike, bird-watch, or simply soak in the serene beauty of the fjords.

3. Ljubljana, Slovenia — Europe’s Green Capital

Often overshadowed by its more famous neighbors, Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana, is a charming, eco-friendly city with a rich history and vibrant culture. Stroll along the Ljubljanica River, explore the medieval Ljubljana Castle, or relax in Tivoli Park. With its lively outdoor cafes and summer festivals, Ljubljana is perfect for those who love a blend of culture and relaxation.

4. Salento, Italy — Beyond the Amalfi Coast

Italy is famous for its well-trodden tourist spots, but the region of Salento, in the southernmost part of Puglia, offers a more laid-back alternative. Think crystal-clear waters, white sandy beaches, and charming towns like Lecce, known as the “Florence of the South.” The region is also known for its delicious seafood and rustic countryside.

5. Svaneti, Georgia — A Hidden Mountain Paradise

For adventure seekers, Svaneti in Georgia is a hidden gem waiting to be explored. Nestled in the Caucasus Mountains, this remote region offers stunning hiking trails, medieval stone towers, and breathtaking scenery. The summer months are perfect for trekking, mountain biking, and exploring the traditional villages scattered across the region.

6. Isle of Skye, Scotland — Mystical Landscapes and Cozy Hideaways

Scotland’s Isle of Skye is renowned for its rugged landscapes, misty mountains, and dramatic cliffs. While Scotland might not be the first place you think of for a summer vacation, Skye’s mild summer weather is ideal for hiking the Quiraing, exploring the Fairy Pools, or visiting the iconic Eilean Donan Castle. The island’s cozy inns and local pubs add a warm touch to the adventure.

7. Kanazawa, Japan — The Lesser-Known Cultural Hub

While Kyoto and Tokyo steal most of the spotlight, Kanazawa is an underrated gem that offers a glimpse into traditional Japan without the crowds. Known for its well-preserved Edo-period districts, samurai houses, and beautiful Kenroku-en Garden, Kanazawa is perfect for a cultural summer trip. Don’t forget to try the local seafood, especially the fresh sushi at Omicho Market.

8. Gdansk, Poland — Baltic Beauty

Gdansk, located on Poland’s Baltic coast, is a city rich in history, culture, and architectural beauty. With its picturesque Old Town, maritime museums, and proximity to sandy beaches, Gdansk is an ideal summer destination. Enjoy a leisurely stroll along the Motlawa River, visit the historic Westerplatte, or relax at the nearby resort town of Sopot.

9. Cape Verde — Africa’s Tropical Oasis

For those looking for a tropical getaway, Cape Verde, an archipelago off the northwest coast of Africa, offers beautiful beaches, crystal-clear waters, and a unique blend of African and Portuguese cultures. Whether it’s hiking the volcanic landscapes of Fogo Island or lounging on the serene beaches of Boa Vista, Cape Verde provides a relaxing and exotic summer escape.

10. Kotor, Montenegro — Adriatic Beauty Without the Crowds

Kotor is a charming coastal town located in Montenegro, surrounded by stunning fjords and mountain scenery. Unlike the crowded cities of Dubrovnik or Split in neighboring Croatia, Kotor offers a more peaceful Adriatic experience. Explore the medieval Old Town, hike up to the Kotor Fortress, or take a boat trip to the Blue Cave.

11. Matera, Italy — The City of Caves

Matera, located in the Basilicata region of Italy, is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. Known for its “sassi” (cave dwellings), Matera offers a unique and off-the-beaten-path experience. Wander through the ancient cave churches, enjoy the local cuisine, and take in the views from the Murgia National Park.

12. Valletta, Malta — Mediterranean Magic

Valletta, Malta’s capital, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with a rich history, stunning architecture, and a vibrant cultural scene. The city offers beautiful views of the Mediterranean, bustling markets, and a variety of summer festivals. Enjoy a boat trip to the Blue Lagoon or explore the historic streets of this underrated summer gem.

13. Guatemala — Central America’s Hidden Treasure

While Costa Rica and Mexico attract much of the attention in Central America, Guatemala offers equally stunning natural beauty and rich cultural experiences. From exploring the ancient Mayan ruins of Tikal to relaxing on the shores of Lake Atitlán, Guatemala is perfect for a unique summer adventure.

14. Alentejo, Portugal — Tranquil Countryside Retreat

Portugal’s Alentejo region is a hidden gem known for its rolling vineyards, medieval towns, and serene beaches. Unlike the crowded Algarve, Alentejo offers a more relaxed pace with plenty of opportunities for wine tasting, exploring ancient castles, and enjoying the unspoiled beauty of the Atlantic coast.

15. Bhutan — The Land of the Thunder Dragon

For a truly unique and off-the-grid summer destination, consider Bhutan, a small Himalayan kingdom known for its stunning landscapes, Buddhist monasteries, and commitment to Gross National Happiness. Summer is a great time to explore Bhutan’s lush valleys, trek to the famous Tiger’s Nest Monastery, and immerse yourself in the country’s rich culture.

Conclusion

While popular summer destinations have their appeal, there’s something uniquely rewarding about exploring lesser-known places. These underrated travel ideas offer not only stunning landscapes and rich cultural experiences but also the joy of discovering hidden gems. So, this summer, dare to venture off the beaten path — you might just find your new favorite destination.

Best Regards

With Itinerary Plans

#Itinerary Plans

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floridafoundationpro · 2 years

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Union county Florida foundation repair

Union county Florida

Union County, Florida is an often overlooked haven of natural beauty, with its diverse ecosystems, unique wildlife, and ample outdoor recreation opportunities. Located in the North Central Florida, Union County is bordered by Bradford, Alachua and Columbia counties and the Santa Fe River, providing a beautiful and diverse landscape to explore. From the rolling hills, to the stunning springs, to the rivers and lakes that dot the landscape, Union County has something to offer everyone. Whether you are looking for a quiet getaway, an outdoor adventure, or a place to simply explore and observe the natural beauty of Florida, Union County is the perfect place to visit. With its friendly and welcoming people, Union County is one of Florida’s most underrated gems. In this blog post, we will explore the many elements that make Union County Florida a great destination for both locals and visitors alike.

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Should I buy a house in Union county, FL? The decision to buy a house in Union County, FL should be carefully considered. It is important to assess if the area meets your needs in terms of lifestyle, job opportunities, and affordability. Homeownership can bring a sense of stability and pride, and Union County has a strong housing market with a mixture of new and established neighborhoods. The cost of living in the area is generally lower than the national average and the county has seen steady job and population growth in recent years. With its access to arts, culture, and recreation, Union County could be an ideal place to buy a home. However, it is always wise to invest in research and speak with local experts before making any major decisions. Ultimately, whether you decide to buy in Union County or elsewhere is a personal choice. What are the house foundation problems in Union county Florida and how can they be repaired? House foundation problems in Union County, Florida can include issues such as shifting, cracking, settling, and bowing. These problems can be caused by a variety of factors, such as soil erosion, water saturation, or inadequate drainage. To properly repair house foundation problems, an experienced contractor should be consulted. The contractor will need to assess the severity of the issue and develop a solution tailored to the individual needs of the property. Repair options may include underpinning, releveling, or replacing foundation walls and footings. Utilizing the appropriate solutions can ensure that the foundation problem is repaired in a safe and effective manner. In conclusion, Union County, Florida is a great place to live and invest in real estate. There is plenty to do here and it is a wonderful place to raise a family. It is important to be aware of the potential house foundation problems in Union County and to take the necessary steps to ensure that these issues are addressed properly. With the right knowledge and guidance, Union County provides an excellent environment for anyone looking to purchase and enjoy their own home. Read the full article

#floridafoundation #FloridafoundationPro #Floridafoundationrepair #FloridafoundationrepairUnioncountyFlorida #UnioncountyFlorida

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ebitchwriting · 2 years

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Josh Stone Headcanons

Since there's literally nothing out there for this guy, I'm gonna supply some headcanons for this underrated character.

Josh Stone was born in South Africa to a military father and a nurse mother. He had three sisters.

His parents made sure that he and all of his sisters would recieve not only primary and secondary education but also tertiary education. Vocational training wasn't an absolute must as his parents did believe in letting their children choose what career they wanted, but it was unspoken that it was preferred.

Regardless, when Josh completed secondary education and was 18, he decided he wanted to attend college in the U.S. (as it was the early 90's, the U.S. was regarded as an actual land of opportunity, at least more than the embarrassment it is today). As worried as his family was, they were very supportive and only wanted him to check in and let them know he's safe and that everything is well.

After Raccoon City, and the threat of bioterrorism became more and more prevalent, he wanted to join the American military since he genuinely saw bioterrorism as a world-ending threat. Unfortunately, he kept running into snags as he wasn't a U.S. Citizen. Luckily for him, through, when the B.S.A.A. formed in 2004, their qualifications list wasn't nearly as picky and he was able to join shortly after their formation.

Purposefully picks missions in either the Middle East or Africa, because he knows the MO of rich companies like Umbrella is to use the poorer countries with little military defense and little global respect as testing grounds for their bioweapons.

Josh, while being a very focused, almost workaholic, type of person, is also very intuitive to his needs and the needs of his comrades. He doesn't allow himself or his comrades to obsessively work to the point of exhaustion. He will drag a person away to take a nap, eat, anything that constitutes a proper rest.

Very good at reading a person. You cannot lie to this man about anything. You can try, but he will give you the most disappointed sad dad look ever until you tell the truth.

Never loses his temper. His parents taught him better than that, plus after having three younger sisters, you can bet he has the patience of adamantium. Though just because he has unending patience doesn't mean he's a doormat. In fact as patience as he is, he is as equally intolerant of intolerance.

Also as a result of having three younger sisters, he may as well have eyes on the back of his head. You can try to pull whatever prank you want on him, or funny faces while he isn't looking, he knows.

Despite what a lot of B.S.A.A Delta Team members believe, he really does only look at Sheva as a sister figure. Sheva is far too similar to the eldest of his sisters, who became a pilot technician. It genuinely grosses him out to think of Sheva in any other light.

He looks at everyone in Delta Team as family, and regularly writes and calls back his family about Delta Team and their shenanigans.

Whenever one of his team members is in distress, or he finds someone in distress, he can quickly figure out what is going to pacify and calm them down the fastest.

I can't think of any other headcanons for Josh, if I do I'll just make a part two post.

#resident evil #resident evil 5 #josh stone #headcanon #josh stone headcanon #resident evil headcanons

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delusionalbubble · 2 years

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Top 10 Most Underrated Cities in Africa

Looking for the top 10 most underrated cities in Africa? Tourists and residents in stunning and well-known cities tend to have the opinion that the only locations worth living in or visiting are those with larger map dots. Instagram is flooded with images of tourists climbing Table Mountain in Cape Town, wandering through Chefchaouen, Morocco, or posing in front of the Giza Pyramids, but the…

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#best resort in Malindi #Is Africa safe to travel #is burkinafaso a real country #is Durban worth visiting #is Malindi Kenya worth visiting #is ouagadougou a real city #is Sekondi-Takoradi one city #Kigali most underrated city in Africa #Most underrated African cities #most underrated cities in Africa #overshadowed cities Africa #reasons to visit Rabat morocco #things to do in Ougadougou #what is the most underrated city in Africa?#where is Sekondi-Takoradi

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iamtryingtobelieve · 2 years

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africa, born in the u.s.a, you spin me round (like a record), like a virgin ☺️☺️☺️

africa: favourite 80s music video? A real tough question. An underrated one I quite like is Maid of Orleans by OMD. Then of course there's Sledghammer by Peter Gabriel even if those dancing chickens still haunt me. Then you got the sheer lunacy of Dancing In The Street by Bowie and Jagger. Oh there's too many to choose from.

born in the u.s.a.: what’s your home town like? The state I live in called Cumbria is absolutely beautiful. I like in what we call The Lake District where most of England's mountains and lakes (of course) are. It's quite rural and nothing like a big English city really. However my hometown is a bit of a wreck admittedly. Nothing wrong with the people here (for the most part) but it's a town almost left to time as a lot of our industries have shut down/struggling. We had mines and steel plants until Thatcher came along. There was a bit of a shit show when the UK Tory government tried to market themselves to us and used "Workington Man" as their slogan in the last election

you spin me round (like a record): favourite modern cover of an older song? Placebo's Running Up That Hill I prefer more to Kate Bush's version. Controversial opinion but it's the truth. Also I quite enjoy The 1975's cover of Only You by Yazoo they did for Live Lounge a few years back

like a virgin: share a controversial opinion Not too controversial (don't want anyone hunting me down or anything like that) but I really enjoy the pop punk/90s revival we've gotten recently. Good4U hitting number one in the UK charts really but a smile on my face and the amount of guitar based groups/artists getting more recognition recently too I really have enjoyed.

Thanks for asking Alica :)

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non-sequitura · 4 years

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Non-sequitura Disney in-depth analysis (after making a tier list)

Warning: SUPER longform. If you don’t know a movie well, you should skip the summary. I tried to be light on spoilers, but they’re there.

I went chronologically from favorite to least favorite. So S tier is, in order from fave to least fave, The Incredibles, WALL-E, then Zootopia.

S tier (Something I consider high quality AND a movie I greatly enjoy. I would love more Disney movies be like this.)

The Incredibles - one of my favorite movies of all time, possibly THE favorite. Rockin social commentary, epic action scenes, memorable characters, not a minute of screentime wasted, great take on the Fantastic Four, hilarious parts for both adults and children, an interesting villain, etc.

WALL-E - I love how social commentary was done here. Also skies above, what a beautiful love story. Really blazed a trail in non-verbal storytelling (especially given it was an animated kids film!) Robot animations are particularly delightful.

Zootopia - another social message delivered excellently and entertainingly. I love Judy and her persistence, I love the expressiveness of the faces and the epic city setting. I love Judy and Nick's banter. This movie deserves to be remembered longer than it has been so far. Admittedly, not one of my fave villains, which makes it my least favorite of the Ss.

A tier (either super high quality or something I greatly enjoy and deem of at least reasonably good quality)

Mulan - this movie did everything right. Truly feminist protagonist, an icon for strong Asian women, fairly culturally accurate (tho Mushu confuses me), GORGEOUS and iconic music. Lets a relatively natural romance develop. I frickin love the action scenes, I love the emporer. Sadly, this movie just didn't lodge its way in my heart as well as Pixar did. Pixar just has some magic, yo.

Cinderella - my gosh what an underrated protagonist. Her family straight-up abuses her and she never loses sight of her goals for a better life. Iconic visuals helped bring Disney out of bankruptcy. A gorgeous alto singing voice.

Wreck-it Ralph - alright alright ppl don’t crucify me for this. I honestly can’t think of much wrong with this movie. Vanellope and Ralph’s vitriolic best buds relationship is adorable, her forgiveness of him is heartwarming and (relatively) deserved, rockin’ Owl City song, epic visuals that mix together bc of all the different games. ALSO ONE OF THE BEST DISNEY VILLAINS NO CAP. One of the only twist villains I like. And we stan the romantic pairing.

Tangled - I’ve talked about this a lot, but Rapunzel deserved the whole world after what she’s gone through. That being said, Gothel is not some shallow monster she needs to escape from, but an intelligent, well-defined monster with backstory. I could totally see this story happening if the world of Tangled existed. Epic love story, hilarious dialogue. Music is… good but much of it is less memorable to me. Visuals are good but not quite at the level/creativity of many other disney films.

The Lion King - they really put Hamlet in Africa and pulled it off lol. But in all seriousness, no one took the premise of this film seriously at the time and it became sooo iconic. I love Scar and his eventual downfall, I love how Simba grows emotionally, I love the sad moments that don’t overpower the overall feeling of light goofiness. And music so memorable it was one of the first Disney musicals.

Coco - not a super unique story premise. But an incredible culture to explore with such creativity and sensitivity. I love the themes of death not being the worst and music being so central to the story. Twist/twist villain was memorable and not expected. And yeah, it did make me cry, so props there.

Ratatouille - the most recently watched of these films for me. This movie is soooo unique! Back when Pixar was truly super out there with their concepts. Super Parisian visuals and soundtrack. It somehow starts goofy (THE OLD LADY TRIES TO KILL REMY WITH A SHOTGUN WHILE WEARING A GAS MASK) but really drives home the message that you can truly do what you want regardless of who you are. Colette can get it. And the monologue by Ego at the end is one of my favorites in film.

Frozen - Anna is one of my favorite Disney protagonists. She’s so resilient and loyal. Elsa ain’t bad either but she experiences… less character development. The film is a tad too pleased with its own self-awareness for my taste, but there’s no denying how iconic the music and visuals were.

Inside Out - Alright, this movie hits home for me bc I tried to run away after moving. A super thoughtful, heartfelt depiction of (potentially depression? imo) with great moments of humor. Riley’s inner world is so creative and lovely. Also realistic depictions of Minnesota/California culture.

Tarzan - Jane! is! smart! and! adorable! Her scientific curiosity makes her very endearing. it’s so cute to see her and Tarzan learn from each other. Also Tarzan’s “found mother” is epic. Solid score. Solid film all around. To quote Lily Orchard, “This film is what Pocahontas tried to be.”

B tier (one of my favorites but has a few significant flaws that bring it down (or not quite as memorable to me, but consider good quality))

Peter Pan - Haven’t seen it in a hot sec, but I remember being super charmed by this as a kid. Just going out, having incredible adventures, and returning to a warm home at the end of the day. Tinker Bell is hilarious and beautifully drawn. Gets major negative points for the depiction of Native Americans tho.

Big Hero 6 - I was super charmed by the protagonist, his family/friends, and the setting. The plot/villain’s motivations are a bit of a mess, though.

Princess and the Frog - This movie has so much flavor to it! The visuals/music are lovely and unique. Tiana is incredible but it’s kinda annoying how EVERYONE keeps trying to shoehorn her into romance. The thing is, her goals are entirely reasonable. Focus on her restaurant, then look to settle down. But they’re like “nooo you’re ignoring the important things in life” smh. Also, epic villain, woohoo! The movie dragged significantly for me when they were in the bayou. Charlotte is delightful.

Winnie the Pooh - don’t remember it super well, but I think it was charming and occasionally dark, which is an addictive concoction.

The Little Mermaid - MAN ppl roast Ariel way more than she deserves. Visually, it was… fine. idk. This movie is good. I don’t have much else to say about it.

Snow White - the one that started it all. Visually, super impressive. Musically, lovely. I find the romance a bit… off. Well, more than a bit. What is it with Disney and kissing sleeping people?

Alice in Wonderland - a nerdy acid trip. Right up my alley! I also like films where ppl go on incredible adventures and return to the status quo, but THEY changed bc of it. Epic. SUUUUPER creative visual interpretation of Carroll’s book. Brave - gosh I loooove films where a parent and child learn to understand each other. Never got why ppl hated this movie so much. The Scottish flavor is present and fun. Merida made one mistake and made it up. The arrow scene is iconic.

Cars - a fun ride! (hahaha puns.) We love seeing Paul Newman as a car.

B-minus tier? (same as B, but problematic, or weaker story-wise.)

Hunchback - man… settings-wise, this film might be my favorite. I also love Esmeralda and Quasimodo as characters and as a duo (though the sexualized depiction of Romani ppl is not epic.) I also don’t find the discrimination against Esmeralda/Quasimodo jarring bc it matches the time period. Frollo is super interesting as a villain. The gargoyles are… def not necessary. Basically, this film doesn’t know what it’s doing with tone.

Sleeping Beauty - Aurora was my favorite when I was younger because I thought she was the prettiest, and that still defines how i feel about this, basically. Visually lovely - everything is kind of elongated and gothic. Maleficent is spiteful and epic. I have no issue with the fluffier parts of the movie, like the music or the fairies. RIP for lack of consent being a plot point, though.

Hercules - Megara is incredible. one of the only Disney “princesses” who acts like an adult and has cynicism as a major part of her personality. I love her and Herc’s progression where she learns to trust him (yes, he is genuinely that sincere, it’s not a front.) Muses are unique, whoever came up with them was high on something and I’m living for it. I just think the plot itself was somewhat unrealistic/ weirdly-paced. There are some memorable songs, some less-than-memorable songs. Art style is cool but I’m personally not a fan. EXTREMELY inaccurate depictions of the original Greek gods.

C tier (entertaining, but I don't consider it a great movie)

Bolt - I watched this like 11 years ago. It was fun! A cool concept about those put on a pedestal learning their worth even without celebrity boosting them up. Animation was… fine I think. not super memorable to me.

Frozen 2 - They really took any scrap of character development Elsa had in the first movie, threw it in the garbage and set it on fire. Anna deserved so much better. Songs are bombastic and impressive, have the occasional interesting lyric, but are really weirdly placed and none are quite as iconic as the first movie’s (except Aurora, she does great work here. Also the song Anna sings after she thinks Elsa died.)

Not a big fan of the vaguely homeopathic theme. Not a big fan of Olaf’s WEIRD character development. Not a big fan of the suuuuuper awkward dialogue and the animations that imply not only that Kristoff is into his reindeer but that Elsa and Anna are into each other (if you’re questioning if they did that, yes, they did, I can find screenshots of some really weird expressions/moments. THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO PANDER TO YOUR WEIRD FANS, DISNEY.)

The voice actors did great work, the animators did great work (look at the details on their clothes! Look at how Elsa’s posture changes to be more confident! look at how they're animated while they're singing!) Some weird costume/makeup choices that make Elsa look like an aging starlet, but she also has some gorgeous moments so eh. It’s a wash for me.

They really did not know what to do with Kristoff this movie, huh. The only thing that happened to him was singing a cheesy 90s ballad and marrying Anna, both of which were admittedly epic. Also, the trolls got 0 appearances despite being literally psychic. Probably could have helped with a lot. I'm not a huge fan of lore/worldbuilding, and thee was a lot of it here. Overall neutral on it.

Also a big theme in this movie I don’t love - **** TANGIBLE CONSEQUENCES TO OUR ACTIONS!!! The danger is Elsa’s death, the elements, colonialism, and Arendelle literally being destroyed. None of those end up playing out, so I was left at the end going “this film had literally no stakes.”

Monsters U - same as above - entertaining at the time! Not super memorable. The ppl we were supposed to dislike kept switching. Doesn’t really match the canon of Monsters Inc (I thought they were supposed to have known each other since childhood so why did they meet in college?)

Cars 3 - so apparently, everyone HATED this movie! Fun! I never watched Cars 2 (yes watched Cars 1 if you haven’t been paying attention to this list), but I didn’t think this movie was bad at all. Well-acted, some fun chase scenes, the scene where Lightning fails at driving in the simulation is genuinely hilarious, and some interesting perspectives on teachers getting the spotlight for their skills for once.

Incredibles 2 - I liked this film at first, but then it was… just okay in retrospect. I love me some good family dynamics. The plot here makes not a lot of sense. THEY BUILT UP THE UNDERMINER FOR NOTHING AND THEN FORGOT ABOUT HIM. I was surprised by the villain swap, but it happened so last minute I never really understood their motivations even after they explained them. Tried to tackle waaaay too many messages.

D tier (I didn't enjoy these or consider them mediocre)

Finding Dory - Maybe I should have put this higher? Like C tier at least. Ah well. Wasn’t a huge fan of the body/physical comedy (not my thing), but it was entertaining and awww finding family is heartwarming.

Finding Nemo - I remember nothing about this movie.

E tier (this film has significant problems)

Beauty and the Beast - *sigh*… I want to love this movie. The score is gorgeous. Visually, they could have made it more distinctly Rococo-era France but didn’t (why?) The voice actors did good work and I think Paige O’Hara is SUPER underrated here.

The Beast is emotionally manipulative with an awful temper that (for MOST of the movie. He doesn’t change.) That’s the main reason this is in E tier. This movie shaped so many generations of people thinking they can change the behavior of someone who treats them badly through the power of love. But you can’t. She learns to “love” the beast under coercion. It’s not Stockholm syndrome - it’s a trashy romance novel. Big fan of Gaston as a villain. He’s an archetype ppl can recognize and it’s so satisfying to hate him.

F tier (I think this film actively harms the industry and would rather it not have been made. Both the one in E tier could be considered harmful to the industry, but I think they had significant enough artistic accomplishments to scrape above that. I'm also generally a fan of "lack of censorship bc it's better to teach what not to do.")

Pocahontas - this movie took real historical events and romanticized them AND sexualized one of the only Native princesses they’ve had. Boo. Nothing wrong with animation!Pocahontas as a character, it’s just people put her in a story that doesn’t represent history well at all (and these historical events, unlike those in say, 14th-century Germany, had super relevant effects on people alive today.) And they portrayed the Native Americans and colonial settlers as equally in the wrong. (though I like Governor Radcliffe as a potential villain and love the line “see how I glitter.” I can’t NOT laugh when I hear it.) Lovely music, though. Nice animation, but the colors are weirdly… muted?

Bad Garbage (I don't wish this film had never been made, but I wish I never had to see it.)

Planes - this movie was ridiculous. I remember not much about it except that I kinda hated it and that it was super cheesy with tension one could see right through that immediately resolved itself via one twist or another.

Haven’t seen tier: Recess, A Bug’s Life, A Goofy Movie, DuckTakes Movie, Lilo and Stitch, Pinocchio (actually i have seen this but I remember nothing about it), The Nightmare before Christmas, Toy Stories 1, 2, and 3, Up, 101 Dalmatians, The Great Mouse Detective, Cars 2, Moana, The Good Dinosaur, Pete’s Dragon, Fantasia, Peter Pan Return to Neverland, Fantasia 2000, The Black Cauldron (read the book, though!), Bambi (or I did and remember nothing about it), The Rescuersm, The Rescuers Down Under, Planes Fire and Rescue, Bambi 2, The Fox & the Found, Oliver and Company, Atlantis, Treasure Planet (I want to, though), Piglet’s Big Movie, The Jungle Book, the Emporer’s New Groove, The Jungle Book 2, Chicken Little, Brother Bear, The Three Caballeros, Pooh’s Heffalump Movie, Dumbo, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Aladdin (seen parts but never the whole thing), Strange Magic, The Sword in the Stone, James and the Giant Peach, Frankenweenie, Lady and the Tramp, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Doug’s 1st Movie, Monsters Inc. (want to, though), Meet the Robinsons, Dinosaur, The Aristocats, Robin Hood, The Tigger Movie, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, that pooh movie at the end without the title on it

-11/21/20

#blog #non-sequitura-blog #11/21/20 #november #2020 #longform #analysis #disney

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slinglouis · 4 years

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september fic rec!

this one is coming at you all very late, but here are my favorite fics from august that i think you need to read this september! i read a TON of fics last month so these are the ones i absolutely loved! (** my FAVORITE FAVORITES)

mine would be you by crinkle-eyed-boo, 115k

Louis blinks his eyes open, his eyelids fluttering as the room swims around him. He takes several gulps of beer once he confirms that he’s definitely not hallucinating, that the very first portrait Harry Styles ever painted of him is hanging on that wall.

Louis stares at the wall, his heart jackrabbiting in his chest as he realizes that there’s not just one painting of him, there’s five, the portraits lined up like they’re some sort of storyboard depicting the rise and fall of his deepest love. His greatest heartache. A pain that cut him so deep that he left the fucking country, severing all ties with his life in New York, now suddenly surrounding him as if he’d never left.

Fucking shit motherfucker fuck.

Louis returns to New York City five years after he left it – and the love of his life – behind. He didn't intend to see Harry again, but fate has a funny way of pulling them together, whether they like it or not. After making a begrudging truce, they both start to wonder: Would it be so bad if history repeated itself?

robbers and cowards by louistomlinsons, 33k

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d almost think that you’re enjoying yourself.” The familiar voice immediately gets Louis’ blood boiling, shoulders tensing as he calmly spins around, trying not to draw any suspicion to the pair. “You don’t know me at all,” Louis spits, managing to maintain the polite smile he’s been wearing all evening. “You’re just some asshole who always ruins my nights.” “If I keep ruining your nights, why do you keep going home with me?” Harry asks, taking a sip from his own wine glass. “I don’t go home with you by any choice of my own,” Louis says. “I think you’re annoying and I have no idea how I keep ending up in your bed.” “You end up in my bed because you knock on my apartment door at two in the morning.” Louis wants to punch the smirk right off of his face. “Maybe you should move,” is what he says instead. or a modern day robin hood au where louis and harry (don’t really) hate each other but they hate greedy billionaires more

Need So Much of You by lululawrence, 47k

“Alright, I’m just going to get right down to it,” Jess said. “We were contacted yesterday by Harry Styles’ team with some information regarding his own schedule and promotion that is going to have some bearing on Louis.”

“Me specifically or all former members of the band?” Louis asked, confused.

“You specifically,” Jess said, looking at Louis with a heavy gaze. “Harry’s going to start his own promo for his second album in the coming months, which is going to include a coming out.”

“That’s great,” he said, nodding. “Is that it? Or is there more?”

Mark shifted in his seat and Louis watched his expression change. “We’ve discussed it and we think it would be best if you came out as well and had a promotional relationship with Harry for the album drop through both of your tours next year.”

Louis started laughing in surprise, but no one else joined in. Shit, they were serious.

Or the would-have-been canon compliant, fake relationship, friends with benefits, friends to lovers fic where Louis wonders if this thing going on with Harry is going to break him or change everything for the better.

waiting for the tides to meet by nauticalleeds, 60k **

Louis lets out a deep breath, thinking about Harry’s soulmate. Thinking about how Harry’s soulmate is probably as beautiful as Harry, some person that Louis cannot compare to, and how the universe has chosen them to be Harry’s. Fuck the universe. “Fuck you,” he calls out to the universe. He’s aware of how crazy he sounds.

Maybe he is crazy, with how he’s falling for Harry. And fuck that, too.

Soulmate AU. Everyone is born with heterochromia — one eye is their own eye colour, while the other is the colour of their soulmate's. It's only when they meet their soulmate for the first time that their own eyes match properly. After a hazy night at a frat party, Louis wakes up to blue eyes and the shocking realization that he had met his soulmate, without any sober recollection. Seven years pass where Louis comes to terms with the fact that he'll never know who his soulmate is. Then one fated summer, a beautiful green-eyed photographer arrives at Louis' workplace, with promises of endless laughter and a familiar feeling in Louis' heart.

Featuring a lovely cup of OT5, a road trip down the coast, and a scene where Harry eats a whole head of lettuce. Don't ask why.

Spirit to a Dove by alienharry, 97k **

For as long as it’s been on the air, Harry’s been an avid watcher of Trivialities. He’s always imagined what it’d be like to compete on the show himself, and when the opportunity arises, he’s fast tracked to join the new cast for the show’s eighth season.

Alliances are formed, strategies are planned, and Harry finds himself with his very own nemesis. Between trivia and physical challenges, Harry’s making the most of his time in the house, but nothing could’ve prepared him for Louis Tomlinson.

Stranger Stars by shaylea, 212k **

Five years ago, Africa offered a grieving Louis Tomlinson an escape from an England he couldn't tolerate. Now it's become home as he leads overland tours across the continent with his best friend and driver Zayn Malik. What's meant to be just another ordinary six-week trip from Cape Town to Nairobi turns into anything but, when future lawyer/current photographer and songwriter Harry Styles and his friends join Louis' latest set of passengers.

another hazy may by deLILah, 41k **

louis is a terrible poet and harry lives in the now and they have six weeks to fall in love but, really, it only takes six seconds. bookshop meets military meets summer romance au ft. marlboros, the backstreet boys, and underrated literary devices.

Anonymous Said by alivingfire, 21k

When Harry was sixteen, he reached out for someone, anyone, to help him through the hardest days of his life. When Louis was eighteen, he answered. While they didn't know each other's names or faces or lives at all, really, it didn't stop them from falling a little bit in love.

And when Harry moves to Manchester for uni two years later, he meets a boy in a bookshop named Louis and wonders why it all feels so easy.

Or: two boys, two blogs, two years of anonymous messages, and a bookshop where it all comes together.

kiwi by fondleeds, 24k

With a stuttered mixture of a laugh and a groan, Harry lets his head droop, pushes his forehead against Louis’ chest and leans into him, fingers curled around the railing.

"You’re driving me crazy,” he breathes.

Louis lets out a puff of laughter, and when Harry lifts his eyes, the look in Louis’ gaze is one he knows too well, so distinctively coy and mischievous and gently charming, his lips quirked up with a smirk. Harry’s heart falls into the palms of his playful hands. “You’re into it.”

AU. Harry plays on Saturday nights at The Motley. Louis bartends on Saturday nights at The Motley.

It’s a thing.

True Love’s Gold by alivingfire, 28k

Gemma starts responding to every single one of Harry’s texts—regardless of subject—with i don’t care, talk to louis. Liam lets Harry complain to him for hours on Skype, pretending he’s not doing other things while Harry whines about his problems. Niall thinks the whole thing is hilarious, texting Harry links to articles titled So, you want your man to propose? and 15 ways to get him ready for the aisle! and follows each of these up with page upon page of laughing emojis. Harry tries everything, literally everything he can think of short of grabbing Louis by tattooed forearm and yelling, “PROPOSE TO ME BEFORE I COMBUST.”

Or, it takes a village to arrange a proposal, but that doesn't mean it's going to go as planned.

When It’s Late At Night by Rearviewdreamer, 26k

Louis has zero interest in an ex-boybander turned solo artist when his appearance on the show gets announced, but that's exactly who he gets stuck with when Harry Styles shows up at the Late Late show to promote the release of his debut album. For an entire fucking week.

you’ve set on me by lissome, 31k

Harry’s been completely blindsided, is the thing. Like a car without headlights crashing into him. It’s not that he thought he’d never see Louis again in his life. It’s just this. He wasn’t ready for this.

au. louis' in an obscure band. harry's an international popstar. their paths aren't meant to cross, not like this, but when louis' band signs on as harry's opening act, both harry and louis are forced to confront the open wounds of their shared past.

#plz boost!#fic rec

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pepsi-writes · 3 years

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it’s underrated organization time

UN: United Nations (The entire world except Palestine and Vatican City) EU: European Union (I'm not naming them all) NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Still not naming them all) EFTA: European Free Trade Association (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein) V4: Visegrad Group (Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia) COE: Council of Europe (All of Europe) AU: African Union (Basically all of Africa except Morocco) they are all non-binary, they just prefer specific pronouns.

"D-dad?" V4 whimpered. "There's a monster under my bed. It's smelly and scary and huge and scary!"

He heard something shift under him. His heartbeat increased and he started to sweat, the liquid dripping down his face. "D-dad! I-i think I h-heard it m-move! H-HELP ME!" he desperately screeched.

In the bottom of the bunk bed, EFTA sighed and covered her face with a mountain of blankets.

"Why do you hate me, brother?"

-----------------------------------

EFTA studied a grinning V4 with a quizzical expression on her face. "You look overly happy." she said, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "Did something good happen, or-"

"Can't I smile whenever I feel like it?" V4 replied, still smiling. NATO walked by with a disconcerted look on his face. He leaned towards EFTA and pulled her away from V4. Slowly but softly, he whispered, "EU tripped in the parking lot."

--------

Of course, EFTA's phone just had to die at the best times; now she couldn't even look at the time. Writing a hundred-page treaty by hand proved to be quite a challenge for her, but at least she used to have her phone to entertain her. It was like when EFTA had some music playing in the background, it seemed like she got the most work done, twice as fast as she normally would. Now time seemed to fly fast wherever she even set her pen to paper.

She looked up from the kitchen table to see a squinting EU, dressed in nothing but a flimsy robe and slippers.

He narrowed his eyes even more than he had before. "Why are you awake?" he rasped. EFTA ignored his question; it was probably best that she didn't answer. "What time is it?"

EU, now wide awake, shrugged. "I dunno, hand me the trombone."

"Aight." Weird request, but okay. EFTA leaned back into her chair, searching for a certain cabinet. Once she found it, she gripped the handle and pulled it so a trombone came tumbling out. Skillfully (this was second nature to her), she caught the trombone by its bell, and threw it at EU, who caught it without looking.

He held the mouth piece to his mouth, inhaling deeply. The trombone bellowed, almost making the ground shake. Through all this, EFTA heard a rustling from upstairs. V4 stormed downstairs, fire in his eyes. "WHO"S PLAYING THE FUCKING TROMBONE AT TWO AM?"

EU, nodding, turned to EFTA. "It's two AM."

------

"Fun fact," NATO announced. "When you try to eat pineapple it tries to eat you." EU gasped yet again. He was already at a loss of words from V4 almost dying, and now this? "Whahahahhahwhwhaha?" "Fun fact: M&M stands for Mars and Murrie." NATO continued. He barreled out the facts, one by one, like a cannon blasting out cannonballs. "Fun fact: The first ever oranges weren't orange. They were green." "Fun Fact: Scotland has 421 words for snow." "😀," EU said, holding his hand up to shield himself from NATO.

-------

A younger country, must have been about Weimar's age, burst into the room, screaming his lungs out. A name tag adorned his chest, 'America' printed sloppily on it. He took AU by the shoulders, shaking him vigorously. "Your classmate is repeating everything you say!" Someone snickered from the back.

A nonchalant America continued. "ME! ME! ME! He's eATING ME!"

EFTA had to cover her mouth with her hands to muffle her laughs. All the while, AU was laughing hysterically, even though it kind of hurt to be shaken as hard as this. In the back of the class, EU leaned over the desks to reach COE and whispered, "Is he ok? Is he-" "Probably." "Oh, my bad."

------

EU raised his hand. "Yes?" UN asked. Their eye ever so slightly twitched. He pointed to the whiteboard. "If the mom has red hair and the dad has brown hair, then why does the kid have blond hair?" NATO immediately replied without missing a beat. "I don't know, the mailman." EU looked at NATO with confusion written across his face. Then he gasped. "Wait, wha-"

------

EU raised his hand once again. "I have a question." "Yes?" "What would happen if you ate a snail?" "W-what?" "What would happen if you eat a snail?" he repeated. "What would happen if I ate a snail- what?" UN paused. "I'm at a loss of words. How is this relevant to what we're talking about?" They chuckled to themselves.

------

EFTA sighed, observing the debate that was unfolding in front of her. "I should have never brought up the metal tacos."

"They just hurt the teeth," V4 argued. "That's the downside."

"Thanks. Visegrad." NATO said, almost sarcastically.

V4 ignored this and continued to discuss the metal tacos. "Yet wooden ones give splinters. Which hurts more."

"We would have splinters all over." AU pondered.

"Iron efficiency," EU cracked a small smile, chuckling at his own joke, and placed his hand on his head to make a point.

EFTA looked over at UN, who, as always, had that large grin stretched across their face. However, their left eye was beginning to twitch ever so slightly, more than had ever before.

"Um, guys-"

------

AU stared blankly at the clock, bored. Like, extremely bored. "5 minutes," she said, right when EU was about to speak. "No, my job," the other whispered, ice lacing his tone. "5 minutes :)," EU then announced to the room, a smug smile framing his face. AU groaned. "Well, I took your job." "No, my job is my job." ">: )," AU smiled. EU's face morphed into one of worsening distress. ":(," he replied.

#countryhumans #countryhuman #writing

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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Best War Movies to Watch: A Complete Streaming Guide

https://ift.tt/32Bbpxh

Sadly, the human race has pretty much never not been at war. We remain an ever violent, combative crew. Hopefully one day that’ll change and we’ll enter an era of unprecedented peace. Until then though, we have the movies!

War might be hell, but war flicks can be pretty great at times! Armed combat and all the other various theaters and forms of battle makes for high-octane drama and gripping backdrops. And that’s pretty much exactly what we are looking for out of our drama films.

What follows is a (mostly) comprehensive list of all the war movies available with a streaming subscription on the major streaming services. If you’re interested in paying per movie, options like Amazon, Google Play and YouTube should help broaden the field. Otherwise, scroll below because the films here are all free with a log-in subscription to Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, or HBO Max.

‘71

Available on: Hulu (US), Amazon Prime Video (UK)

An underrated British thriller from the last decade, ’71 turns “the Troubles” in Ireland into a pseudo-horror movie. At a mere 99 minutes, this is lean, economical filmmaking with a barebones premise about a British solider (Jack O’Connell) who gets separated from his unit during a Belfast riot in 1971—the height of British-Irish tension. His plight to survive the night is riveting filmmaking and a grim look back to still fresh nightmares.

The African Queen

Available on: Amazon Prime Video (purchase only in UK)

An unlikely war movie at first glance, The African Queen is very much the story of two middle-aged people caught up in the chaos of the First World War. It’s also a crackling adventure yarn about autumn romance between a drunken river boat captain (Humphrey Bogart) and a Christian missionary (Katharine Hepburn) who’s brother was just killed by Germans in colonial Africa. Both set out to get down the river, and away from the Germans’ reach, in this charming John Huston classic with still stunning location photography.

The Alamo

Available on: Hulu

As an ironically little remembered version of the Alamo siege from director John Lee Hancock, The Alamo (2004) is still the best film version of these events. With a refreshing eye for historical authenticity instead of Texan mythmaking, the movie unpacks the lives of David Crockett (Billy Bob Thornton), James Bowie (Jason Patric), and William Travis (Patrick Wilson) with a warts and all approach. It also relays the events of the battle in its actual context at night, and in grim chaos, and gives needed attention to the overlooked contributions of the Tejanos to Texan independence.

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But most significantly, it has a bittersweet soul as expressed in Carter Burwell’s score, which is at its most beautiful when Crockett climbs a parapet to serenade both sides of the battlefield with his fiddle.

A Bridge Too Far

Available on: Netflix (US Only)

The last of its kind, A Bridge Too Far is one of those old-fashioned all-star war epics about World War II that came into vogue between the 1950s and ‘70s. But this nearly all-British production is not about one of the Allies’ greatest triumphs, but rather one of their most disappointing defeats: the failure of Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands.

Director Richard Attenborough and screenwriter William Goldman try to squeeze it all in, which will honestly be exhausting to some viewers. For others, seeing a historically accurate (if too lighthearted) rendering of this battle with the likes of Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Gene Hackman, Anthony Hopkins, Ryan O’Neal, Robert Redford, and more will be enough.

Casablanca

Available on: HBO Max

Another Bogie movie where the war is adjacent to the central conflict, Casablanca is the best wartime melodrama ever produced. Some even consider it the greatest American movie for that matter. Actually made during the Second World War, there is a great rush of patriotic idealism and anxious uncertainty about its vision of a seedy Moroccan city that is ostensibly under free French rule, but is not-so-secretly being occupied by the Nazis. There everyone goes to Rick’s, a café run by a disillusioned American (Bogart) who sticks his neck out for nobody.

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But Rick must soon pick up the fight again after an old flame named Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) walks into his gin joint, bringing with her a French husband, a freedom fighter who has the Nazis breathing down his neck. All three are going to make some tough choices, as will complicit French police officer Louis (a marvelous Claud Rains) as the forces of World War II finally start pulling.

Cold Mountain

Available on: HBO Max

An attempt at an old fashioned sweeping wartime epic, Cold Mountain still brings modern historical insight to the oft-mythologized Civil War. The film is about several people from North Carolina’s Appalachian region. Like many Confederate soldiers, particularly from NC, Inman (Jude Law) has no slaves and no real reason to fight for the Southern cause. So after hellish battle, he deserts and attempts to make a sprawling trek back home.

Elsewhere, however, his sweetheart Ada (Nicole Kidman) must make hard decisions of her own with the leering eye of the Home Guard peeking over her shoulder, especially as word of Inman’s desertion reaches the mountains. An odyssey of the Civil War from the vantage of the impoverished it rolled over, Cold Mountain is a refreshing melodrama.

Da 5 Bloods

Available on: Netflix

Spike Lee’s latest joint is also one that opened up wounds from the Vietnam War that never really healed. Set more in the 2010s than 1960s, Da 5 Bloods follows four Black veterans who’ve ostensibly returned to Vietnam to find the remains of their fallen brother (Chadwick Boseman in one of his final roles). But they’re also here to reclaim gold that was stolen back in ’69.

Something of a heist movie, Lee mixes genres yet never loses sight about the anguish of those who fought in a war, and the legacy it leaves even decades and generations later.

The Dirty Dozen

Available on: HBO Max

Even if you haven’t seen Robert Aldrich’s epic 1967 adventure, the term “dirty dozen” and the basic premise of the movie have found their way into popular culture over the decades and influenced recent movies like Suicide Squad.

A grizzled (as if there’s any other kind) Lee Marvin leads a team of prisoners–including Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cassavetes, George Kennedy, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland and more–on a suicide mission during World War II, with full pardons as their reward if they survive. The results are explosive and, at the time of release, controversially violent. They also make for one of the great war movies of the era.

Enemy at the Gates

Available on: Netflix, Amazon (US Only)

Sniper versus sniper; eagle versus eagle. That is the basic appeal of Enemy at the Gates, the rare Hollywood World War II drama where America is not even present. Rather this is a film about the war of attrition between the German and Russian forces at the Battle of Stalingrad, the nightmarish conflict which began turning the tide against the Third Reich. The movie features an all-star cast, including Jude Law, Ed Harris, Rachel Weisz, and Bob Hoskins, but it’s the chilly environs of hell on earth which make this worthwhile.

Five Came Back

Available on: Netflix

A film told in three parts, Five Came Back tracks the singular, and now fairly astonishing, choices made by five A-list Hollywood directors: John Ford, Frank Capra, George Stevens, John Huston, and William Wyler. They all chose to leave Hollywood either at the peak of their careers, or at the beginning of it, to make films about the Second World War. Each ultimately served as an officer, and several were in the actual thick of combat to capture war footage (and propaganda) for the first time in history. It was a patriotic and revealing choice then and now, and it’s examined with insight by the likes of Mark Harris and Steven Spielberg here.

Flags of Our Fathers

Available on: HBO Max

Not as good as director Clint Eastwood’s companion film told from the Japanese perspective, Letters from Iwo Jima, Flags of Our Fathers is nonetheless a worthwhile film. A rather skeptical look at the lives of American marines who were turned into an inaccurate legend by the U.S. military when they were photographed raising the American flag above the sands of Iwo Jima, the picture tracks the home lives of soldiers who did their job only too well and were then asked to return home as glorified heroes… and then live an ordinary American life.

The Four Feathers

Available on: HBO Max

One of the great British adventure films of the pre-war era, The Four Feathers is director Zoltan Korda’s sweeping reimagining of the A.E.W. Mason novel. Set during Britain’s colonial wars in Egypt and Sudan during 1882, the film tracks an English officer who only took a commission in the military to honor his family’s ancient war record. However, when the call of war comes, he fears he would not do his duty in battle and resigns his service… so his three friends and even a fiancée give him four white feathers: white for cowardice.

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To redeem himself, he travels to Sudan and helps the British cause while posing as a local. Filmed on actual African locations and in glorious Technicolor at a time when American movies were afraid to leave California, The Four Feathers is a classic (and politically incorrect) throwback.

Gallipoli

Available on: Amazon

Australian filmmaker Peter Weir has directed just 13 films, but probably 10 of them are classics, and this 1981 drama is one of them. A 25-year-old Mel Gibson stars as one of several young men who enlist in the Australian Army during the First World War. They eventually find themselves on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey, site of a costly and lengthy battle that ended in defeat, but marked a turning point for Australia’s perception of itself and its place in the world and a seemingly disinterested British Empire. It’s a harrowing tale about the loss of innocence, national character, and the price of war for both.

Glory

Available on: Netflix (US Only)

Arguably the greatest film ever made about the American Civil War, Edward Zwick’s Glory continues to shine like one gallant rush. Based on the lives of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry regiment, the film tracks the hard fight for respect—and freedom—endured by the first African American regiment in U.S. history.

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With a still crackling ensemble that includes Morgan Freeman, Matthew Broderick, Andre Braugher, and Denzel Washington in his first Oscar winning role, the movie both mythologizes and humanizes the 54th’s struggle as the American struggle. It also soars with James Horner’s most transcendent and ethereal musical score.

The Great Dictator

Available on: HBO Max

The rare comedy on this list, The Great Dictator was a film of political courage by writer-director-producer-and-star Charlie Chaplin. Filmed in 1940 when much of the world was already at war, but the United States was not, this Hollywood film made a farce out of the hatred and fascism of the Third Reich, with Adolf Hitler being especially skewered.

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In the film, Chaplin plays both a fictional barber and Hitler-like dictator who switch places in a Prince and the Pauper styled mix-up. Chaplin thus makes a still hilarious deconstruction of Hitler’s madness and insecurities at a time when most Hollywood studios chose to pretend there wasn’t a war going on. The film also concludes in one of the greatest anti-war speeches in cinema history.

Hacksaw Ridge

Available on: HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video UK

The rare film that is told in merely two acts, director Mel Gibson’s World War II drama is fairly underrated. The film follows the remarkable true story of Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), an unlikely U.S. Army corporal since he was also a conscientious objector who refused to hold a gun. Nearly court-martialed for his defiance of orders, as a medic Doss insisted he could serve his country well by saving lives on the battlefield. He got his chance at the Battle of Okinawa when he pulled 75 lives out of the carnage, which is captured in grisly detail by Gibson. Likely the bloodiest WWII movie since Saving Private Ryan, Hacksaw Ridge is also one of the best.

Hamburger Hill

Available on: Amazon Prime Video (US Only)

This 1987 film set during the Vietnam War recounts one specific mission: a 1969 assault by the U.S. Army’s 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, known as the “Screaming Eagles,” on a well-fortified North Vietnamese position near the Laotian border. Dylan McDermott, Don Cheadle, Courtney B. Vance, and Steven Weber all make early career appearances in the film as young soldiers thrust into a situation where victory almost seems more like defeat—as good a metaphor for the Vietnam conflict as any.

Hostiles

Available on: Netflix

Director Scott Cooper did the rare thing with Hostiles: He looked back at American history with nuance and sincere contemplation. This film is ostensibly about a U.S. Cavalry officer on his final mission, which is to escort a family of Native Americans across the last remnants of American frontier. But when that officer (Christian Bale) knows he’s escorting the dying Cheyenne war chief (Wes Studi) who led the doomed side of American Indians in previous conflicts—and alongside a woman (Rosamund Pike) who just lost her family to Indian attacks—the ghosts of America’s sins and recriminations walk with them.

The Hurt Locker

Available on: Hulu, Netflix UK

The film which won Kathryn Bigelow the Oscar for Best Director, The Hurt Locker is the first great movie about the War on Terror in the 21st century. Boiling down the madness of war to being like “a drug” for some soldiers, the film essays the high-stake tension—and adrenaline—of being an officer in the Army’s bomb squad who is responsible for disarming IEDs, bomb vests, and other hidden weapons of death.

It’s terrifying… and exhilarating as personified by Jeremy Renner’s addicted Staff Sgt. William James. Also with a career-making performance by Anthony Mackie and a pseudo-journalistic script by Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker gets under your skin.

Platoon

Available on: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video (US Only)

There were plenty of Vietnam War movies before Oliver Stone’s Platoon, but what shook audiences in 1986 is that this was the first time one was made by a Vietnam veteran. Not that Stone didn’t take liberties: He makes his soldier’s eye view of the generation-defining conflict a fever dream of America’s darkest moments in the shit.

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But his lament for the soldier also brought a renewed sense of sorrow and regret to how veterans were treated in the aftermath. With a heartbreaking supporting performance by Willem Dafoe, whose demise in the film has become iconic, there’s a reason for many this remains the only Vietnam War movie of consequence.

Red Tails

Available on: HBO Max

Here is executive producer George Lucas and director Anthony Hemingway’s well-meaning but so-so aerial war epic about the Tuskegee Airmen. The real-life Black pilots, mechanics, bombardiers, and more made up a segregated flank of African American airmen (as well as flyers from Haiti, Trinidad, and other Caribbean nations) in World War II. This film attempts to honor them with a cast that includes Terrence Howard, David Oyelowo, Nate Parker, and Cuba Gooding Jr.

War Machine

Available on: Netflix

David Michod (Animal Kingdom) wrote and directed this Netflix satire set during the ongoing war in Afghanistan, eight years after the 9/11 attacks. Brad Pitt stars as four-star general Glen McMahon (loosely based on real-life general Stanley McChrystal), whose bleak assessment of the situation on the ground puts him at odds with President Obama and others. Like other less-than-reverent films before it, War Machine is interested in the sheer insanity of war: doing the same thing over and over again while hoping for a different outcome.

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juvenilehousefinch · 4 years

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Birds, Bonapartes, Biological Nomenclature

The more that I learn about the Bonaparte clan, the more I realize that the family most famous for Napoleon I, the emperor and military genius, had connections to basically everything in the 1700s and 1800s. One shocking connection to me was that Tarrare (that hungry guy during the French Revolution who ate basically everything) worked under Alexandre de Beauharnais, who was married to a woman known as Rose Tascher de La Pagerie. After Alexandre de Beauharnais perished during the Reign of Terror, Rose remarried to a young general named Napoleon Bonaparte and adopted the name of Josephine.

Pictured above: the curl-crested aracari, photographed by Lonnie Huffman

Just as I never expected the Bonaparte clan to have a connection to the infamous hungry guy, I also never expected them to have a real impact on ornithology. It seems so out there, so disconnected from the politics and conquest that are usually associated with their name. While reading about birds in the past, I’ve frequently stumbled upon the name “Bonaparte” or “Beauharnais” (Josephine’s martial name by her first husband, and the last name of both of her children, who became instrumental in Napoleon’s securing of power throughout Europe)[1]. I always assumed that the names simply came from people wanting to honor monarchs that hailed from the Bonaparte-Beauharnais clan, as naming new species (well, new to western scientists) after monarchs was trendy during that time. One such example is the curl-crested aracari, whose scientific name is “pteroglossus beauharnaesii.” I mention this specific example because the curl-crested aracari is awesome and vastly underrated compared to better-known species in the Ramphastidae family, such as toco toucans.

I recently learned, however, that the Bonaparte family’s influence on ornithology is more than just symbolic! I decided to dig a little bit deeper into learning why the name “Bonaparte” appears so frequently in bird information, and I found out that Napoleon’s nephew and the son of his brother Lucien, Charles Lucien Bonaparte was a prominent ornithologist who was the authority on 165 genera, 203 species, and 262 subspecies. Learning about this was really cool for me because two of my primary passions in life are Napoleon and birding, and I find it really exciting that there’s this unexpected and kind of random intersection of the two.

According to the IOC World Bird List, among the species studied by Bonaparte are a subspecies of oriental turtle dove of Europe and Asia (Streptopelia orientalis erythrocephala), the blue-winged goose (Cyanochen cyanoptera) endemic to Ethiopia, and the Pel’s fishing owl (Scotopelia peli) endemic to Africa.

Pictured above: the blue-winged goose, photographed by Dick Daniels

Among Bonaparte’s notable contributions to ornithology is also his naming of the New World dove genus, Zenaida, after his wife. Bonaparte married Zénaïde Bonaparte, who was his cousin and the daughter of Joseph Bonaparte, older brother of Napoleon and Lucien Bonaparte. This was incestuous and nasty, but what can you really expect from European nobility? The Zenaida genus notably includes the Zenaida dove (the type species) and the mourning dove. Mourning doves are common where I live, and from now on, whenever I hear its iconic call of “hoo hoo hoo,” I’ll think of the Bonaparte family.

Pictured above: The mourning dove. “Dove by Almaden Lake” by Don Debold

Bonaparte also was an early supporter of John James Audubon, who was then relatively unknown as a naturalist. I would also like to note that Audubon grew up in France[2], and used a fake passport to flee to the United States so that he wouldn’t be conscripted into the Napoleonic Wars. (I can only imagine what Bonaparte must have said if/when Audubon told him, “Yeah, I came to this country as a draft dodger because I didn’t want to die in all those wars that your uncle keeps dragging us into.”) Bonaparte recommended him for the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (now a part of Drexel University) while living in Philadelphia, where he and his wife moved after getting married so that they could be with Joseph Bonaparte, who lived in exile in the city. Unfortunately, Audubon’s bid for membership because George Ord, an ornithologist and member of the academy, disliked his style of painting. Well, George Ord isn’t the one amongst them who has become basically synonymous with ornithology and bird conservation in the United States, so evidently, Audubon got the last laugh.

On a slightly different note, a fascinating aspect of biological nomenclature that I had never considered before learning about Bonaparte was the frequency at which people named species after their own political leaders, like the afore mentioned curl-crested aracari. Now that royalty and monarchies aren’t nearly as relevant to most people’s lives as they were during the time of the Bonapartes, the trend has evolved so that people name species to honor celebrities and other pop culture icons. (Though, whereas before famous people had birds named after them, now discovery of a terrestrial vertebrate animal is uncommon enough that people only get bugs and worms unless they’re lucky.) Take, for example, Aleiodes shakirae, Aleiodes gaga, and Aleiodes colberti, wasps that are named after Shakira, Lady Gaga, and Stephen Colbert, respectively. There’s even a whole Wikipedia page dedicated to listing the creatures whose scientific names take after the Harry Potter series. (There’s a whole dinosaur named Dracorex hogwartsia, which translates to “dragon king of Hogwarts”! I’m jealous! … Also, read another book, smh.)

Anyway, anyone who complains that people are making everything political these days clearly hasn’t read their history. One of Bonaparte’s notable contributions to ornithological nomenclature was his naming of Wilson’s bird-of-paradise, whose colloquial name comes from Alexander Wilson, a prominent American ornithologist who laid the foundation for ornithology in the United States. The scientific name for Wilson’s bird-of-paradise is “cicinnurus respublica,” with respublica commonly being translated as “public affair” or “commonwealth.” Bonaparte wanted to deviate from the tradition of naming species after royalty and royalty-adjacent people, and instead honor the concept of the republic. In my opinion, this is disdain for royalty was entirely performative, given that Bonaparte was a descendant of an imperial dynasty, was a prince himself, and was afforded his privilege in life by the fact that his uncle seized power in France, installed himself as the country’s leader, and eventually crowned himself emperor.

Pictured above: Wilson’s bird-of-paradise, photographed by Serhan Oksay

I’m always taken aback when I learn about just how connected the world was [for wealthy white men] before modern technology, and the influences that people from completely different geographical backgrounds could have on each other. It is important to acknowledge that so many of the naturalists from this time period were able to make such developments in their fields not because of their intrinsic talent as biologists and ornithologists, but also because of their immense connections and lucky circumstances that paved their way to success. Also, the “discovery” of many New World avian species wasn’t true “discovery” at all, because the indigenous people of the Americas had lived with those species for millennia. It was only “discovery” for westerners, who placed their mark of colonization on those species by naming them after rulers and other prominent western figures.

Although Bonaparte definitely had the passion to contribute so much to ornithology, he came from an incredibly powerful political dynasty that could bankroll his studies. He could travel wherever he wanted to and obtain any specimen that he wanted to obtain because of who his family was. Similarly, although Audubon certainly had a passion for birds and talent as an illustrator, he was only able to develop those skills through meeting the right people and having the generational wealth to do whatever he wanted in life. That’s not to say that every single ornithologist came from a position of wealth and power — the aforementioned Wilson, for example, was a weaver who lived in poverty in Scotland before emigrating to the United States and working as a schoolteacher. I don’t think that that makes the contributions of people like Bonaparte and Audubon less important or meaningful to the field (I’m also not an ornithologist so I don’t have that authority), but, as with most fields even today, it’s worth thinking about that the people who made these contributions reflect only the people with the access to the most resources.

NOTES: [1] Although Josephine is frequently referred to as “Josephine de Beauharnais,” she never actually went by that name during her lifetime. When she was married to Alexandre de Beauharnais, she went by Rose, and only adopted “Josephine” after having married Napoleon, because he liked the nickname. [2] Audubon was born in Haiti, where his father owned a plantation that he sold in 1789 when tensions began to rise between white slave-owning colonizers and enslaved people of African ancestry. The elder Audubon had a number of mixed-race children by a mistress who had ¼ African ancestry, but only the younger Audubon and his sister, who were both considered white, were moved to France alongside him.

#birds #birding #history #birdblr #napoleon #bonaparte #ornithology

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mrsrcbinscn · 4 years

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Franny’s 30 Day Cover Challenge

Playlist

Franny’s 30 Day Cover Song Challenge: (categories are mostly from here, and here, with some from here, and a couple I made) in September 2020 one of her musician friends challenged her to do the thing and she was like “It seems like a fun way to show everyone what kind of music has influenced me as a musician, singer, songwriter, and just like, person. So I’m going to do it.”

In reality, she recorded most of them in 1-2 days to distract her from how sad she is because Wilbur hates her and he’s sad lmao

It helped a little.

(If you want me to drop the playlist she mentions in #24 let me know, I have it started I can finish it)

TW: mentions of Franny’s political beliefs so tw: politics, an allusion to suicide though the word isn’t directly used, mention of 9/11 and the subsequent invasions...nothing graphic with any of these triggers but worth a forewarning

Day 01 - A song that makes you happy

Honey Spiders by The Parlotones

“The Parlotones are this fantastic indie rock band out of South Africa. And I actually thought about doing their song, uh, Stars Fall Down for day sixteen, but I’m going with Honey Spiders for day 1. There were lots of Parlotones songs, I mean. Push Me to The Floor, We Call This Dancing, Should We Fight Back...but ah, Honey Spiders always puts me in a good mood.”

Day 02 - A song that helps you clear your head

Light of a Clear Blue Morning by Dolly Parton

“I grew up on Dolly, and it’s funny because for the longest time this song wasn’t really on my radar as much as it is now. But when I was twenty-two I was going through something really difficult, and my then-fiance now husband was abroad for work, so I was alone in our apartment and just. Really, profoundly sad and lonely. So I put on a Dolly Parton record and just laid on the bed and Light Of A Clear Blue Morning played and I had a good long cry and felt so much better after that. When I need to think about how to solve a difficult problem, or I feel overwhelmed, I just listen to that song.”

Day 03 - Song you love from a band/artist you hate

Should’ve Been A Cowboy by Toby Keith

“Honestly, he’s called me a nasty lady to my face and I’ve called him a facist enabling pig to his, so I have no qualms openly saying I hate Toby Keith. That being said, Should’ve Been A Cowboy is one of the best country songs of the 90s, undeniably. I loved that song when it came out when I was thirteen, and I still love it.”

Day 04 - A song about drugs or alcohol

Whiskey Lullaby by Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss

“This is probably cheating, because my lovely best friend Daniel and I cover this a lot at Dara & Danny shows. But today look who I have! My friend Max from Seoul Hanoi’d! Max the Korean Scot who can’t hide his accent to save his life, so let’s see how it sounds in a Scottish accent.”

Day 05 - A protest song

Talking Vietnam Blues by Phil Ochs /// and Here’s to The State of Mississippi by Phil Ochs

“This one was hard because I. Fucking. Love. Protest music. I could have done a whole 30 days of protest music - wow, let me know if I should do that and give my husband a heart attack with all the twitter threats I’ll invite. Huh. Right, so I was going to do Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven by John Prine. But I decided to do two Phil Ochs songs because I don’t think Phil Ochs is talked about enough. It’s a shame we lost him so young. Ochs’ sardonic humor and honesty in his writing has influenced me as a songwriter deeply. When I write political songs, I don’t hold back, and it’s because of Phil Ochs’ writing that I have that courage. I’ve been singing Love Me, I’m A Liberal since I was in college with constantly updating lyrics. It was so hard to even choose which songs of his to do because for his fairly short career his songbook is lengthy and full of gems. I’m Going to Say It Now, Draft Dodger Rag, Spanish Civil War Song, I Ain’t Marching Anymore...I couldn’t pick one so I’m cheating and recording two.”

Day 06 - A song you wish you wrote

When I Think About Cheatin’ by Gretchen Wilson

“I will forever be pissed off that I didn’t write this song. I’m absolute trash for my husband, so it’s never -- I’ve never had to be in a situation to ever consider -- but this song gets me every time. It feels like I could have written it. Because we do spend a lot of time apart travelling for our work. And the sentiment expressed in the song is a little too real.”

Day 07 - A song in a language you don’t speak

Khattar by Khine Htoo

“This will either be a charming attempt to sing in Burmese or I’m about to offend a lot of people. Which, being a politically outspoken woman on the internet, I’m used to anyway. So. 1, 2, 3, okay here goes.”

Day 08 - A song by an artist no longer living

Phop Samnang by Sinn Sisamouth (inspiration)

“Haha, you thought I’d see the name of this category and not do a Sinn Sisamouth song? You were wrong.”

Day 09 - A song you want to dance to at your wedding

Devoted To You by The Everly Brothers

“I’m already married, so this was actually our first dance song at our wedding. Day three of our wedding, like the more Westernized wedding ceremony day. We had a three day long traditional Cambodian wedding and I felt like a princess. An-y-way!”

Day 10 - A song that makes you cry

Borrowed Rooms and Old Wood Floor by Emily Scott Robinson

“Unfortunately, Emily Scott Robinson and I aren’t related. Sad, I know, because she’s so talented. Almost her entire album Traveling Mercies is...sad as hell. The record reminded me of early Dolly Parton, and my second solo album. You know, all those sad-ass songs. The Dress is honestly the song that makes me the saddest but I can’t even listen to it without crying so.”

Day 11 - A song that you love hearing live

Prove My Love by Violent Femmes

“There is nobody I have seen in concert more than Dolly Parton, but Violent Femmes and George Strait come incredibly close. The Cranberries, the amount of times I saw them in the 90s and early 2000s...close fourth. Probably. The very first concert I dragged my husband to was a Violent Femmes concert, he was not prepared for how hard college me went.”

Day 12 - A song from before 1960

There Ain’t No Sweet Man That’s Worth The Salt of My Tears by Libby Holman

“This song is from 1928. I came across it when I was in grad school and it’s, as the kids say, a bop.”

Day 13 - A song you think everybody should listen to

White Man’s World by Jason Isbell

“I think perspectives of people of color should of course take precedence in these conversations. But I find this song to be a good faith attempt of a white man coming to terms with the institutional racism and sexism in the world around him. And I think this song can be a useful tool to explain certain concepts of racial justice to ignorant but well-meaning folks. As a woman of color I think Jason Isbell did a great job not centering himself even though it was from his perspective. This song is great musically and necessary socially.”

Day 14 - A song from the 1970s

You’re No Good by Linda Ronstadt

“Linda Ronstadt is grossly underrated, that’s all I have to say here.”

Day 15 - A song people wouldn’t expect you to like

Racists by Anti-flag

“I mean, I’ve talked about how much I like punk in the past, and I remember a video of Seoul Hanoi’d doing Spanish Bombs at a San Antonio show made the rounds, but I don’t think I’ve talked about how much I like Anti-flag. People don’t expect me to like punk for some reason. But I agree with...everything punk music is all about.”

Day 16 - A song that holds a lot of meaning to you

Blue by LeAnn Rimes

“It’s silly, but I won a county fair singing competition with this song in high school and it really fueled my passion for music, that win. It’s also the first song Cornelius heard me go full Georgia on, with the yodels and all, at the little bar in my hometown on his first trip meeting my parents. The song doesn’t cut to my very soul ot anythin’, but it’s special to me.”

Day 17 - A song attached to a memory

Supernova by Liz Phair

“I remember buying Liz Phair’s Whip-smart album when I was eleven. And in college, when I was getting ready for dates with Cornelius in my dorm room, I would dance around to a CD I burned and wrote on it with a sharpie, ‘Pre-date Movie Scene Music.’ God, what was even on there? I’m about to expose myself as the most basic 1999-2001 bitch. I remember Head Over Feet, I mean, Alanis Morisette? I was a young woman in 2000, obviously I loved her. Mm, Dreams by The Cranberries...oh, Kiss Me, Sixpence None The Richer...yeah, anyway, Supernova was on there.”

Day 18 - A song from the year you were born

Call Me by Blondie

“...I can’t believe Call Me is as old as I am.”

Day 19 - A song that reminds you of someone you miss

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing (yes, of course she does a cover with banjo)

“This was my late best friend Molly’s favorite hymn. And I sang it at her funeral at her husband’s request. Molly and I grew up together in the small town of Payne Lake, Georgia and Molly was the most devout Christian...but she was also the first person I came out to as bisexual when I was a teenager, and she said that Jesus taught her that love was the greatest commandment and that meant I was automatically twice as good at it as her. Her faith guided her every action but she never talked down on her two best friends - Dan(iel Maitland) and I for not sharing it. Molly was doing the whole emulate Jesus thing beautifully. I miss her every day and it’s been seven years. If you ever think that people won’t miss you...you’re wrong. All right, let’s see if I can get through this without crying.”

Day 20 - A song by an artist you discovered this year

Hello, Anxiety by Phum Viphurit

“I just discovered this quirky Thai-Kiwi singer and not to be dramatic, but he’s my favorite thing in the world right now.”

Day 21 - A song with a city or country in the title

Oh! Phnom Penh (track 20)

“This song was written after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, and after people began to make their way to what was left of their homes, alone, or with what was left of their families. If you want to learn more about what that was like to actually live it, my cousin Reena Boran has a video interviewing her parents and paternal grandfather and uncle about it. Reena is a journalism student currently studying in London but she lives in Cambodia. Her mother is my aunt Malisruot, my mother’s youngest sister. The video is English subtitled on her channel, I’ll link it in the description box below.”

Day 22 - A song from the 1960s

To Sir, With Love by Lulu

“I didn’t actually discover this song until I heard it covered at a 10,000 Maniacs concert in the 90s. My friend Allison was standing next to me and I just started crying and she’s like ‘are you okay?’ and all I just blubbered out ‘My dad!’ For the uninitiated, my dad married my mom, who’d raised me alone until then, when I was six and he adopted me when I was eight. My dad didn’t have to adopt me, he didn’t have to call me his daughter, he could have just been like half of my friends’ stepdads and give me a place to live and nothing else. But my dad was my biggest supporter from day one. He convinced my mom to let me join the dance team and show choir instead of science club, he was the one that talked my mom down from probably killing me when they found out I was only studying music and not music and political science at NYU. I am who I am today because he is my dad. And this song just says everything I��ve always thought about him.”

Day 23 - A song from your childhood

Una Lacrima Sul Viso by Bobby Solo

“But Franny, aren’t you a Cambodian raised in the US? Yes, but you were fooled. My very white father is also an immigrant. He is from Switzerland and while he didn’t teach me to speak Italian and German growing up, he played German, Italian, and French records all the time. My parents often spoke to each other in French and I picked up some French but properly studied it starting in high school, and I didn’t study Italian until college -- and my German is still …. [points to a spot on the screen where she later inserted a card linking to a video on her cousin Köbi Framagucci’s YouTube channel titled ‘Can My American Cousin Speak German?’ where he tests her Standard and Swiss German speaking and comprehension]. But hell if I couldn’t sing every one of the songs from my father’s French, German, and Italian record before I knew what the words even meant.”

Day 24 - A song that gives you chill vibes

Glorify by Ivan & Alyosha

“Dan(iel Maitland) and I actually have an entire playlist on my Spotify accounts of songs to listen to to get us out of writers’ block. And one that I often will put on repeat and just absorb through my headphones with my eyes closed is a song called Glorify by Ivan & Alyosha. I think it touches on a lot of the themes I include in my songwriting. Christian mythology, the darker side of humanity, it often reminds me of what I love about songwriting. If you say please I might drop a link to that playlist.”

Day 25 - A song that’s your signature song

Long Gone Lonesome Blues by Hank Williams“Right, so I chose this instead of a Kitty Wells song or I Get A Kick Out of You (her being

featured on a 2005

recording propelled her career majorly) because if you’re familiar with me you might have seen a video that went around in like….2017? 2016? of Dan(iel Maitland) and I doin’ the song at our hometown bar in 2014. I posted it in response to some tweets because hoes mad when a WOC calls out racism and sexism in the Nashville music industry. ‘Bet she don’t even know Hank’, really? You think I wouldn’t know the history of one of the two music industries I work in? Please. Anyway, she knows Hank and nails the incredibly technical yodel -- the

most difficult

one in Hank’s songbook - in Long Gone Lonesome Blues. Mm...Lovesick Blues though, that also strikes fear into my heart. Anyway stay mad I guess?”

Day 26 - A song by your favorite band

Gun Shy by 10,000 Maniacs

“10,000 Maniacs was one of my favorite bands when I was in like 5th grade through 10th. I listened to them for a little while after Natalie Merchant left for a solo career, but the Natalie Merchant era was really what resonated with me the most. Gun Shy was a bit too advanced for my little 5th, 7th grade ears to really appreciate when I first discovered the album In My Tribe. Merchant’s voice -- because like, I don’t have a very conventional voice either, so her and Dolores O’Riordan really changed my entire perspective on what a woman’s voice can sound like in rock music. Um, yeah, so her voice more than the lyrics just wowed me. And as I got closer to graduating high school and especially in college I actually understood what What’s The Matter Here, Hey Jack Kerouac, and Gun Shy were talking about. Gun Shy...really became a significant song to me because...being born in 1980 I grew up in a relatively peaceful time. The Cold War was all but thawed by my tenth birthday. But I was getting ready to leave my then-boyfriend-now-husband’s apartment for class at NYU on the morning of 9/11. We stood in line for hours to donate blood. And then my government invaded two completely unrelated countries and jingoism and terrifying, fervent nationalism, and xenophobia just smacked me in the face. And friends of mine from high school were convicted to drop out of college and join the Army, and died, for an unjust, imperialist war, and suddenly Phil Ochs, John Prine, and Bob Dylan lyrics hit a lot different, and I understood what Gun Shy was really about.”

Day 27 - A song you hate by an artist you love

Mrs.Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel

“Paul Simon is one of my favorite songwriters ever, um, and I actually used to like Mrs. Robinson….until I got married and everyone sang it at me. It’s kind of my fault, I did choose to take my husband’s last name. And I leaned into it by making my social media handles all Mrs. Robinson...but still. Only play the song around me if you want to die.”

Day 28 - A song that a younger you would have loved

Mean by Taylor Swift

“I’m so genuinely glad that I am older than Taylor Swift. Middle school Franny did not need Taylor Swift to enable me and fuel my ego. Some of her singles, while not really 35 and 40 year old Franny’s cup of tea, young me would have played until my mother hid the record or cassette from me. Although - fuck if Tim McGraw didn’t immediately give my happily married ass flashbacks to my first love and make me bawl like a baby? Right, so when Speak Now came out and I listened to it, Mean, while not a song that adult me has listened to maybe more like ten times, I immediately thought ‘wow, I needed this song when I was in middle and high school.’ I could literally picture 7th grade me with my little guitar and my little cowboy boots my dad bought for me singing this at the talent show making eye contact with the kids who bullied me as if it was some kind of own when it’s not. I could still, almost thirty years later, name them if I really wanted. So, for 7th grade me, Mean by Taylor Swift.”

Day 29- A song that reminds you of your partner/spouse

ផាត់ជាយបណ្តូលចិត្ / Phat Cheay Bon'dol Chet by Sinn Sisamuth (translation) (female singer covering it) (modern, studio recording of a male and female singer dueting it) (a cool violin cover) (another female singer) (cool guitar cover)

Feat. some members of Seoul Hanoi’d. Andy Chaiyaporn (violin), Max Cho (piano), Jodie Batbayar (cello), Aisulu Niyazova-Li (percussion) and Franny has her guitar

“The song, lyrically, only reminds me of my husband a little bit. But Phat Cheay Bondol Chet has several memories with my husband attached to it. The first time he heard me sing in Khmer was at my mother’s house in Atlanta when I had him visit the first time to meet my parents. My mom had a little dinner party at our house to show him off, like Asian moms do when they think their daughter snags a good one, and I was hand washing the dishes while my mom and the other Cambodian parents were listening to Sinn Sisamuth records. I’ve always loved the song I’ll be showing y’all today, like I’ve always just stopped what I was doing and -- so it came on and I just started singing along without really being aware of it. And then at a different diaspora get together that summer, that song came on and I just kinda. Pulled him aside to the side yard of that person’s house to look at the stars with him and translated the song. It’s one of the Khmer songs he instantly recognizes now, so it’s special.”

Franny did NOT say in the video that college her 100% had him sit in the grass with her outside that person’s house, where nobody could see, so she could makeout with him

Day 30- A song by one of your favorite songwriters

Reincarnation by Roger Miller

Feat. Seoul Hanoi’d, done more in the style of the Cake cover

Also instead of singing the lyric “you’re a girl, I’m a boy” she goes “you’re a girl, so am I” because she doesn’t ever change pronouns, she just makes it gay because she is a bi-con

“Roger Miller, to me, is as important as Dolly Parton, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, in the American songbook. He’s not as talked about which is a shame because his discography is iconic. Getting to be a part of King of The Road was one of the highlights of my career.”

#&&...hc

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shadowron · 5 years

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Harlequin: The Immortal Elf Metaplot-Railroad Adventure (1st Edition). Part 0: Introduction

Finally, after long last, we arrive at Harlequin. If these early adventures of Shadowrun were a television series, then Harlequin is the two-part season finale.

Wait, not two. Eight. EIGHT.

Figure 1 (above): eight.

There are eight mini-adventures in this one book, consisting of a set of linked adventures about a centuries (millennia?) long feud between 2050’s answer to Richard Dawkins, Ehran the Scribe, and 2050’s answer to The Joker, the eponymous Harlequin.

For those readers about to make a Batman reference, this adventure predates by two years the existence of the character of Harley Quinn, so frag off.

While only danced around in the early material, it was later confirmed that, yes, these two elves are Immortal and were around at the time of FASA’s perpetually underrated yet in some ways superior to D&D game, Earthdawn, set thousands of years in the past.

Do you even quench, bro?

Incorporating metaplot into adventures is always risky, especially in a game like Shadowrun, which has a rich, thick metaplot – like slabs of crunchy peanut butter on freshly baked bread. You cannot write a cyberpunk/fantasy game in the early future without considering the consequences such transformations will have on society, and it’s easier for players to make an instant connection to a known race/culture/profession than it is to absorb such information whole.

Looking at you, Exalted.

Adventures will always have connections to the larger game world, but too much connection and it starts to feel like a Choose Your Own Adventure type story – the players only have the illusion of free will, because in the end, whatever Happens in the world will Happen. This was the route Shadowrun took with many of its later full adventures – publishing a location sourcebook (always good) along with an adventure that requires that sourcebook – and it’s annoying, because if any supplement requires too many other books as prerequisites, that’s going to shut out a huge chunk of players who simply don’t have the money to invest.

The perfect format, I think, was what they did with the Native American Nations Vols. 1 & 2 – each book was half adventure and half sourcebook. Maybe will have to talk about those next.

Lightning bolt! Lightning bolt! Lightning bolt!

But back to Harlequin – which while not having a requisite accompanying sourcebook, does put the players on a Plot Railroad that choo-choos them through eight (EIGHT!)-

Figure 6: Still Eight.

-linked adventures. The overall plot is simple: Harlequin is seeking revenge on Ehran for the former cutting off the latter’s ear several hundred years ago (you know, back when Magic wasn’t present in the world and there shouldn’t be elves in the first place). The connections between them are invisible at first, but by the end, the players are outright TOLD they’re pawns:

"Everything you have been asked to do has struck at some basic part of Ehran's existence. His Past, and Future, Loves and Hates, and Physical and Spiritual selves. By striking at each of these, I have proved his vulnerability to my power.”

-Harlequin, being kind of a douche

It would be one thing if the players were able to pick up clues along the way, so that they have the chance to piece together the story, but…

This refrigerated container holds the collection of "Elven" ears the runners obtained in the previous adventure, but don't tell them that.

The GM is explicitly told not to do this. And did I mention the railroading?

Without a word of greeting, the man on the other end plunges right in. "You have the flower? That is very good. Mr. Johnson would like to meet with you for one more run…”

You stare at the ceiling as the line goes dead. It looks like you're in this one whether you want to be or not.

Are your players unhappy with this? Too fragging bad!

By now the team may be a little upset with their employer. If they are hesitant to take the job, conspire against them... Make sure the team is hounded, no matter what they do or where they go.

“That's what I love about role-playing games--being told exactly what to do,” Hank Hickey.

Okay, so I probably need to change the tone of this post right now, because you’re probably getting the impression that I don’t like the adventure – which is FALSE! I had a BLAST going through this as a player (in a previous cycle of magic), and think it stands up well. While being honest about its above faults, let’s talk about what it does well:

Mini-adventures

Some places have called Harlequin a “mini-campaign” since the included mini-adventures (as they are called in the book) are not meant to be all run back to back, but instead interspersed with other missions, so that the tenuous connections there are between them are that much harder to pick up on. If you were to run the other published adventures that came before, supplemented with a few scenarios from Sprawl Sites (which contained, using this scale, micro-adventures), you easily could run for months before reaching the conclusion.

The mini-adventures are good for another reason: they’re necessarily short, so that they hopefully could be completed in a single gaming session, as opposed to many for a full-blown adventure. They also contain what should be at the heart of Shadowrun anyway: complete and self-contained jobs that aren’t (at first glance) connected to anything else. They get hired to steal a rare flower, they steal the rare flower, deliver the rare flower to Mr. Johnson, end of mission. No one double-crosses them, the Mr. Johnson isn’t killed, the flower doesn’t animate and eat them Little Shop of Horrors style. Do the job, move on to the next one.

Getting out of Seattle

Seattle is my favorite city that I’ve never actually visited, thanks to Shadowrun. The first adventures were wise to stick to that locale, to establish a place that feels like home, but eventually you’re going to want to go out and visit the rest of the Sixth World. By Third Edition there were “Shadows of (insert place here)” books for most of the globe (notably absent: Africa and Central/South America. There was a mostly written Shadows of Latin America that was never officially published, so that’s something), but this was the first exposure to rest of the world, where the players get to jet off to…

…the castle of a mad troll noble in Bavaria, Germany!

…the deep dark darkness of the Awakened Amazonian rain forest!

And…

Columbia, Missouri!

Fraggin’ exotic, the Show Me State is.

Honestly, more exciting than any of those places is just the idea of the Street Samurai trying to sneak his Uzi onto the plane. Because you know one of the players will try.

Multiple Writers and Artists

In keeping with trying to throw the players off the scent of how these mini-adventures are connected, they were written by 8 different writers and 7 different artists, so that even if you needed to copy some artwork to show the players, there would be no reason to suspect they were from a single source.

Each mini-adventure was based upon a particular Theme, as alluded to in Harlequin’s douchey description above, so let’s get through them…

#shadowrun #harlequin #missouri

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bornitereads · 5 years

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The Golden Rhinoceros - François-Xavier Fauvelle

Read: May 2019

So after I read The State of Africa, I was really interested in pre-colonial Africa. This was where the most interesting parts of African history lay for me. So when I say The Golden Rhinoceros on the shelf at the bookstore I hesitated only a second before buying it. And truly I was not disappointed. In my opinion Fauvelle did a great job and this book is a great jumping off point for those who wish to go deeper into the mysteries of pre-colonial African history. As Fauvelle notes, for the Middle ages (that is, between ancient times and European “discovery”) most of the sources are from the Sahel in northern Africa, just under the Sahara Desert. This is because this is the area most visited by Muslim traders, adventurers, and ulamas. But the pictures painted by what sources of information we have are very interesting. Like the Empire of Mali, or the Swahili city states in the east, old Ghana. The Golden Rhinoceros, like The State of Africa before has really just made me thirst for more knowledge about African history. Truly such an underrated part of world history.

Info: Princeton University Press, 2018. Translated by Troy Tice. Original French edition: Alma éditeur, 2013.

#the golden rhinoceros #françois-xavier fauvelle #history #african history #africa #non-fiction #african middle ages

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micsopenpha1986-blog · 6 years

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frontproofmedia · 3 years

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Manny Pacquiao's Five Best World Title Victories

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By Hector Franco

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Published: August 07, 2021

Later this month, on August 21st, the city of Las Vegas will host one of the most anticipated fights of the year as Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) makes his return to the squared circle against unified WBC and IBF Welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 KOs).

The bout will also be for the Ring Magazine Welterweight title. Pacquiao has been the Ring Magazine champion at Featherweight (126), Junior Lightweight (130), and Junior Welterweight (140).

The fighting Senator will be coming off a two-year hiatus, the longest of his career, and at 42-years of age, will face height, reach, and overall size disadvantages against Spence.

Given Pacquiao’s name and stature that he has earned over a nearly 27-year career, he could have faced any opponent, including participating in an exhibition contest. However, the eight-division champion feels that he has more to accomplish and prove in the sport.

"There were a lot of opportunities for me to pick an easier fight than this,” said Pacquiao at a Los Angeles press conference promoting the fight with Spence. “But I picked Errol Spence Jr. because I want a real fight and a great fight for the fans.

“I’m a fighter, and boxing is my passion.”

At this stage of his career, Pacquiao has been fortunate not to have found himself at the hands of beating like many Hall-of-Famers before him. In this era, fighters have been able to stay at an elite level for longer due to advanced technology and new measures of rest and recovery.

However, this isn’t to say that he won’t meet his impending end at the hands of Spence. The last thing fans want to see is a scenario similar to when Muhammad Ali took on Larry Holmes in 1980 and was thoroughly dominated in a fight that was hard to watch.

Boxing isn’t a forgiving sport, and if Pacquiao overstays his welcome, he could end up the victim of a beating.

Throughout his career, Pacquiao has defeated 16 opponents with eight knockouts in world title fights and holds a 25-6-2 record against former world champions.

He has won the lineal crown in five separate weight classes and is the only fighter to win a title in eight divisions. One accomplishment that has escaped his grasp is successfully unifying titles in a division. Should he come out victorious against Spence, he will be the unified Welterweight champion, and it would arguably be his most significant title victory.

We will examine five of Pacquiao’s most notable title victories. There will be two victories that won’t be included, but are just as crucial to the eight-division champion's career.

In 2003, Pacquiao defeated Marco Antonio Barrera for the Ring Magazine and lineal Featherweight crown. No sanctioning body title was on the line for the fight with Barrera as he was stripped of the WBC Featherweight title following his second encounter with Erik Morales.

Almost six years later and 14-pounds heavier at Junior Welterweight, Pacquiao scored his most famous and emphatic knockout over Ricky Hatton in May 2009 to claim the lineal Junior Welterweight crown.

Although these victories will not be included in this list since there wasn’t a sanctioning body title on the line, these are two of Pacquiao’s best achievements and are arguably more significant since they established him as the number one fighter in the weight class.

5. Lehlo Ledwaba (36-6-1, 23 KOs) WTKO6

IBF Super Bantamweight Title – June 23, 2001

Pacquiao at Super Bantamweight had a near-perfect record of 11-0-1, with 11 knockouts with a draw against Agapito Sanchez in a unification bout being the only blemish.

Following a third-round knockout to Boonsai Sangsurat after losing his WBC Flyweight title on the weight scale, Pacquiao decided to move up to the 122-pound division.

The move to Super Bantamweight eventually brought him to the United States, where he was fortunately placed in a position to fight for the IBF Super Bantamweight title after Lehlo Ledwaba’s initial opponent Enrique Sanchez pulled out of the fight.

The fight with Ledwaba was Pacquiao’s first in the United States and was the first chapter of the meteoric rise of his career. Pacquiao dominated Ledwaba to a sixth-round stoppage putting the boxing world on notice.

Although the late Ledwaba, who passed away earlier this year due to contracting COVID-19, isn’t viewed as one of the elite opponents Pacquaio faced in his career, he made five defenses of his IBF title. He had previously had a career-best performance against Carlos Contreras on the undercard of the first Lennox Lewis-Hasim Rahman Heavyweight title bout in his native South Africa.

“We recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of my US debut where I beat Lehlo Ledwaba to win his IBF junior featherweight title,” Pacquiao stated in a recent interview to The Sun. “That was certainly special because it was also my first fight with Freddie.”

4. Keith Thurman (29-1, 22 KOs) WSD12

WBA Welterweight Title – July 20, 2019

Pacquiao’s most recent title victory was one of the greatest of his career from a historical perspective. The win over former unified and then-undefeated Welterweight champion Keith Thurman gave the Filipino the distinction as the oldest Welterweight champion in history at 40 and the only four-time Welterweight champion in history.

The win over Thurman doesn’t rank higher as the Florida native had been somewhat inactive before facing Pacquiao and has yet to step back in the ring since losing to the fighting Senator.

Ultimately, the knockdown Pacquiao scored in the first round, along with a dominant showing in the first half of the match, led to him receiving a split decision from the judges.

There is a saying in boxing that every fighter has one last great showing. Pacquiao certainly showed his greatness against Thurman, but will this be the last time we see him in elite form?

3. Miguel Cotto (41-6, 33 KOs) WTKO12

WBO Welterweight Title – November 14, 2009

For all intents and purposes, Pacquiao’s victory over Miguel Cotto in 2009 should claim the top position. Not only was this one of Pacquiao’s best overall performances, but it also secured him winning the Fighter of The Decade award for 2000-2009 and won him his seventh title in seven weight classes.

What holds this victory back slightly is an unnecessary catch weight of 145-pounds imposed on the match.

The first four rounds of the fight with Cotto rank as some of the best in boxing PPV history. Pacquiao scored knockdowns in the third and fourth rounds leading to an eventual stoppage in the 12th and final round.

This was Pacquiao at his peak and not only solidified him as a Hall-of-Famer, but as one of the top two fighters of the era along with Floyd Mayweather.

2. Timothy Bradley Jr. (33-2-1, 13 KOs) WUD12

WBO Welterweight Title – April 12, 2014

The most underrated title victory of Pacquiao’s career came in his second match with Timothy Bradley in April 2014. The two first fought in June 2012 and ended in a controversial split decision for Bradley that caused a massive public outcry.

Following the first fight, Pacquiao would be famously knocked out in the sixth round in his fourth bout with Juan Manuel Marquez.

Bradley would go in 2013 to have the best year of his career, first by participating in the Fight of the Year against Ruslan Provodniov and then winning a split decision over Pacquiao’s conqueror Marquez in a fight that Bradley arguably put on his most outstanding performance.

Often forgotten is that at the time of the Pacquiao-Bradley rematch, Bradley was rated as one of the top three fighters in the world pound-for-pound and was rated as the number one Welterweight by Ring Magazine.

The Palm Springs, California fighter’s work at Junior Welterweight as a unified champion and earning the number one position with a win over Devon Alexander in 2011 gave him distinction as an elite fighter. Add in holding victories over Marquez and Pacquiao although controversial for the latter, Bradley was on top of his game heading into a rematch with the Filipino.

Bradley was able to do something Pacquiao never could in clearly beating Marquez.

Due to the controversy of the first match with Pacquiao, the man known as the “Desert Storm” was arguably at his most motivated to prove fans and pundits wrong in the rematch.

Pacquiao-Bradley II would be the most exciting of their three fights, with Bradley choosing to engage and brawl with the fighting Senator through 12 rounds. Pacquiao would end up winning a unanimous decision and the WBO Welterweight title.

The victory over Bradley in 2014 not only established that Pacquiao was not a damaged fighter from his knockout at the hands of Marquez, but also made the eventual fight with Mayweather viable again.

The second fight with Bradley is Pacquiao’s highest grossing PPV since the fourth Marquez fight, besides the record-breaking fight with Mayweather.

Through three fights, Bradley was competitive, but he could never quite figure out how to deal with Pacquiao.

“I never got used to it at all,” Bradley stated on the 3-Knockdown rule Podcast. “His herky-jerky style is what makes him innovative inside the ring. This guy keeps you one edge. You think he’ll attack you, and he’ll foot feint you, feint you with his hands.

“You’re just constantly burning energy standing in front of him.”

1. Juan Manuel Marquez (56-7-1, 40 KOs) WSD12

WBC Junior Lightweight Title – March 12, 2008

The fight that began the run that made Pacquiao a worldwide superstar was the second match with rival Juan Manuel Marquez in 2008.

It may be problematic to put such a contentious bout on the top of this list; however, Pacquiao-Marquez II had everything you could want in a boxing match.

It featured two of the best fighters in the world, pound-for-pound fighting in a rematch of a disputed first encounter. The winner would be the number one fighter in the Junior Lightweight division holding the WBC, Ring Magazine, and lineal titles.

Rivalry, elite skill-level, and world championship glory all encompassed Pacquiao-Marquez II.

The match itself was one of the best in boxing PPV history, with both men battling to the brink of their talents. With numerous swing rounds that could have been scored for both pugilists and momentum swings occurring every few rounds, there was no telling what the judge's scorecards would look like once the final bell rang.

A third-round knockdown ended up being the difference on the judge’s scorecards. Duane Ford scored the fight for Pacquiao 115-112, Jerry Roth had a 115-112 scorecard for Marquez, and Tom Miller scored 114-113 for Pacquiao.

Media scorecards were looked at from members of the media that were not based out of Mexico and the Philippines, with 32 scoring for Marquez, another 32 for Pacquiao, and the remainder having the fight a draw.

At the time, Pacquiao-Marquez II was the highest-grossing PPV event at 400,000 buys for a fight below the Welterweight limit. That record would be broken a year later when Pacquiao faced Ricky Hatton at Junior Welterweight.

Throughout the history of boxing, there have been numerous fighters who have had storied and legendary careers. But Pacquiao's journey stands on its own as an odyssey through different eras.

All the millions of dollars Pacquiao has made in boxing did not change him from being grounded with legacy at the forefront of his thoughts.

“It is almost like I have had several careers in boxing the one I am in now makes me think,” Pacquiao said in an interview with Boxingscene.com. “If I can keep winning against elite-level fighters, perhaps I can be in the discussions of being one of the greatest fighters of my era.

“Of course, that is not for me to decide, but I would like to make my case before I do retire.”

(Featured Photo: Stephanie Trapp/Trapp Fotos)

#HF #Manny Pacquiao #Errol Spence Jr.#PBC on FOX #Premier Boxing Champions

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