handypolymath

[handypolymath]

i hate to be that guy, but the idea that gender, sex, and sexuality are ontologically pure concepts that can be rigidly defined if we simply police our language enough (our english language, because of course) is—i cannot stress this enough—a total waste of time. you may as well spend your afternoons teaching a brick how to swim

[handypolymath]

everyone hates my thin and meager stew

#i had to take stock #but when i boil it right down I'm fond

[handypolymath]

mix a lime rickey

swing the tone arm back around

I've got all damn night

On April 3rd, 1924, 23 year old Beulah Annan shot her lover, Harry Kalstedt, after an argument in her Chicago apartment, then made a cocktail and played a record on repeat for hours, watching him die.

Over the course of her murder trial, Beulah claimed at various times that she had shot Harry to prevent him raping her, that she had shot him because he became violent when she told him she was pregnant, and that she had narrowly grabbed the loaded gun first as they both lunged for it. Throughout all of this, Beulah's husband nearly bankrupted himself attempting to help her, convinced of her innocence. The day after she was acquitted she told the press that she was getting a divorce because he was "too slow." The baby never materialized.

Also in jail at this time was another murder suspect named Belva Gaertner, who had also shot her lover and claimed to have no memory of the incident because she was drunk when it happened. The two became the poster children for the supposed dangers of nascent jazz culture. Maureen Watkins, a reporter at both of the trials, later wrote both characters into a play called Chicago, which was eventually made into the musical we all know and love.

#jazz hands

[handypolymath]

art by @BottlngSunshine

[handypolymath]

One thing i've run up against when dealing with fandom and characters making less than ideal choices is that people seem to treat a character's decision being sympathetic, the decision being understandable, the decision being reasonable, and it being objectively the best solution for the situation, as synonymous. When those are 4 very different things.

[handypolymath]

[handypolymath]

Infodump incoming...

What gave me the confidence to start drafting sweater patterns to fit myself:

I recommend a few more steps, but I went from a rectangular scarf with a slightly spicy stitch to a baby sweater in a lacy stitch. It was a pattern my mom had made a ton of, so when I got stuck she'd show me in real time how that step went.

Baby sweaters make good pilot studies for tackling new techniques. I also knit a bunch of soakers, and then woolie toddler pants based roughly off those as the kiddo grew, getting a better feel for gauge and fit.

I refuse to seam unless absolutely necessary, so I also messed around shoving pieced patterns into round, getting comfortable with different increases, decreases, ways to hold live stitches aside, keeping track of where I'm at in a pattern, figuring out my taste in styles and construction methods, basically treating Ravelry as a salad bar of techniques.

Short rows are well worth the learning curve, bc you can then make curves in the midst of planes. This is handy for tailoring around boobs, frinstance. Putting the topography right into the knit gives you control on how the garment will stretch and drape.

Install life lines liberally, and don't hesitate to rip back and retry anything you're not loving. Keep notes on what you tried and how you adjusted it.

TRY IT ON OFTEN! I'll take the stitches off needles completely into a line of crochet, so I can move around in the piece. Where is the garment pulling or pooling wrong? I'll clip stitch markers into the garment and make notes like, "blue marker spot, maybe 2 more short rows?" or "end bust shaping before orange marker".

Yarn choice should primarily be enjoyable to handle; in color, texture, and wearability. It's disheartening to realize partway through a prototype that the yarn is already pilling or feels annoying.

Gauge swatches will give you indispensable info on the yarn/stitch/tension combo you're working with.

Good luck!

I have a long way to go with knitting before I get to functional clothing, but as someone who doesn’t fit into probably any if not most of the patterns out there, how do I like… do it myself?

#string craft

[handypolymath]

[handypolymath]

Is this a threat?

#that's why they call them great apes

[handypolymath]

Every night at eleven I have to choose between enjoying the sweet embrace of slumber or staying up late to do something enriching and fun that I wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to do. And every night at eleven I take the secret third option of “doing nothing on my phone until one in the morning.”

[handypolymath]

Like Bardcore is a thing and nobody was going to tell me about it?

[handypolymath]

I feel like it's been one of the benchmarks I've used to evaluate ensemble series ever since.

hey quick question why did no one ever tell me how fucking insane M*A*S*H is?? their commanding officer is a horse girl. the secretary has psychic powers. this guy walks around a 1950s military outpost in drag and everyone’s just like hey nice dress. the protagonist who is supposed to be the best surgeon in the entire korean war spends every episode strutting around drunk in a hawaiian shirt making homoerotic wisecracks and asking the nurses to step on him like some sort of unhinged bisexual jimmy buffet. guys what the hell is going on in this army doctor show

#characterization that overrides reality on occasion #misanthropes in love #community dynamics are catalytic not just trope drills

[handypolymath]

The ink bottle lying on your desk... begins to crawl away..???

[handypolymath]

For @crankygrrl

Summary: It's said the first act of Emperor Cotto was slaying a monster. In fact, they were rescuing a old friend. From the prompt, 'soulmates who are fated to kill each other'.

All Chains Rust

Vir Cotto wore the same rumpled posture and short proletarian crest. His bow was shallow but heartfelt, his smile sad.

G'kar thumped his chest, then spread his arms in welcome.

Vir lifted the alabaster box in his hands, stepping to a side table to set it down.

G'kar gripped Vir's upper arm, felt the warm tempered strength.

"A gift from the Centauri Court, I presume," he lifted the lid and laughed at the chill-packed cut crystal bowl of fresh spoo, nestled beneath wadded goldcloth.

Vir opened his mouth and then sighed as G'kar read Londo's drunken scrawl on the napkin.

~*~

#my fic #drabble #babylon 5 #vir cotto #g'kar #now I have a hankering for fresh spoo #and political assassination

[handypolymath]

"The unit voted UNANIMOUSLY - with 100% participation - to authorize a strike if management does not reach a fair new contract before their current agreement expires this Friday, April 19."

[handypolymath]

#the question design is giving me LJ “queerhet” disk horse flashbacks #none of these answers works for me

[handypolymath]

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