roxas776

[roxas776]

In 1990, the high school dropout rate for Dolly Parton's hometown of Sevierville Tennessee was at 34% (Research shows that most kids make up their minds in fifth/sixth grade not to graduate). That year, all fifth and sixth graders from Sevierville were invited by Parton to attend an assembly at Dollywood. They were asked to pick a buddy, and if both students completed high school, Dolly Parton would personally hand them each a $500 check on their graduation day. As a result, the dropout rate for those classes fell to 6%, and has generally retained that average to this day.

Shortly after the success of The Buddy Program, Parton learned in dealing with teachers from the school district that problems in education often begin during first grade when kids are at different developmental levels. That year The Dollywood Foundation paid the salaries for additional teachers assistants in every first grade class for the next 2 years, under the agreement that if the program worked, the school system would effectively adopt and fund the program after the trial period.

During the same period, Parton founded the Imagination Library in 1995: The idea being that children from her rural hometown and low-income families often start school at a disadvantage and as a result, will be unfairly compared to their peers for the rest of their lives, effectively encouraging them not to pursue higher education. The objective of the Imagination library was that every child in Sevier County would receive one book, every month, mailed and addressed to the child, from the day they were born until the day they started kindergarten, 100% free of charge. What began as a hometown initiative now serves children in all 50 states, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, mailing thousands of free books to children around the world monthly.

On March 1, 2018 Parton donated her 100 millionth book at the Library of Congress: a copy of "Coat of Many Colors" dedicated to her father, who never learned to read or write.

[roxas776]

[roxas776]

“So, I’m on a plane today. Here’s what I did to prepare to fly as a very fat person. (Thread.)” by @yrfatfriend

(…)    

I brought my own seatbelt extender, so I wouldn’t have to ask for one. Sometimes my extender is confiscated by the TSA. Today it wasn’t. I’m not worried about the embarrassment of asking for a seatbelt extender. I know I’m fat. I’m worried that hearing me ask for an extender will prompt others to complain. If they do, it starts a domino effect of trouble for me. Passengers complaining to flight attendants will get me reseated, charged double, or escorted off the plane, stranded without a way home.

Over the last 2 yrs, about 50% of passengers in my row complained about me. So, my body is regularly discussed in my presence w/o my input. Some policies don’t include a refund or rebooking policy. So I could be out $1300 & still stranded. That’s a risk I take every time I fly. And no matter what happens, if someone complains, my body will be discussed loudly, with open revulsion, without regard for who hears it. As a very fat person on a plane, I am treated like luggage–a cumbersome, exasperating inconvenience. Inanimate & unfeeling.

I also checked my bag so I wouldn’t give any other passengers another reason to be irritated with me. I bought a first class tickets bc they’re a bit wider, but mostly because there are partitions between seats. So complaints are less likely.

Although I bought a first class ticket, and despite being ~60 lbs smaller than I used to be, the tray table doesn’t fit around me. Without a tray table, I can’t work for the full six hours. I also won’t be able to eat the first class meal that comes with the ticket. I also won’t request anything so the flight attendant doesn’t have to reach over me, again prompting my seat mate to complain.

So I’ll sit silently, arms crossed, so I don’t encroach on my neighbor’s space.

Today, I was lucky–I boarded & the flight took off without incident. I hope I’m so lucky on my return flight. No one likes flying. It’s not comfortable for anyone. But for some of us, it’s a major physical, financial & emotional risk.

And this isn’t about emotional fragility. I’m vulnerable, but I’m tough. This is about airline policies, and about what happens when others decide to make an issue of my body.

I was complained about for the first time about six years ago. I will never forget it. I was on an oversold flight, moved to a middle seat. The man sitting next to me became increasingly agitated. I said hello, asked how he was. He didn’t respond. He got up several times to talk to a flight attendant, pointing angrily back at me. My stomach sunk as I realized what was happening. When he returned, he gathered his things and said sharply, “this is for your comfort. It’ll be better for both of us.” The FA looked at him blankly and said “no it’s not. Someone else will be sitting here.” He scowled at her, then me, then moved to his new seat–directly in front of me.

I spent the rest of the flight with my arms & legs crossed, humiliated and alone. No one spoke to me or made eye contact. The flight attendant didn’t speak to me, but gave free food and drinks to the others in my row–rewards for tolerating my presence. No one said anything. No one interrupted him or reached out to me. I was invisible.

At the end of the flight, as we filed into the aisle, the man who asked to be reseated spoke to me. “I wouldn’t do that to someone who was pregnant or in a wheelchair,” he said. “I know,” I said. “That’s what makes this so awful.”

I didn’t fly for a year and a half after that. Refused travel for work, didn’t see my family, only traveled where I could drive.

I fly now because I love my family, who live about a thousand miles away. I don’t know what my life would be without my niece & nephew. I fly because I value my job, & I’m good at it. & bc advancing my career means traveling. People bigger than me may not have that option. I fly because my life is my own, and others’ preconceptions of me & my body won’t control it. But they can make it much, much harder.

If you learned something from this thread/think others might, please RT. It would genuinely help if others knew where their complaints lead.

[roxas776]

As much as I want to support ethical farming practices I will be buying the cheapest bag of frozen chicken thighs as much as the next frugal/poor person which is why animal welfare needs to be legislated, not left up to the invisible hand of the free market or some bullshit. Invisible hand of the free market finds itself around a lot of throats.

[roxas776]

the funniest thing to me rn is seeing transphobic women going into bathrooms in transphobic states and then being shocked that trans men are in there and actually (gasp) look like men?!?! (shocking i know /s)

like you guys forced people to go to the bathrooms of their “biological sex” but now when they do it’s disconcerting that men look like men. (yes even if that man has a vagina.)

Transphobes are shocked to realize trans men aren’t all “uwu soft boiz” and HRT does what it’s supposed to. It’s so mind boggling to them that trans people don’t look like their bigoted characatures.

Anyways here are some men that will be forced to use the women’s restroom in states like florida, texas, kansas, etc.

[roxas776]

[roxas776]

“Do you follow current events?”

Hell yea I do

[roxas776]

Ziggy the Zigzagoon and Zaggy the Galarian Zigzagoon! (lovingly named by Delia)

Two lil guys Delia and Jessie managed to rescue from a poacher!

[roxas776]

seiya explaining his gender: haha yeah im ftm…………………..tf……………….tm…………..tftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftmtftm

[roxas776]

[roxas776]

Ocarina of Time Masterpost

The all-time classic, Ocarina of Time! The comics here will be organized by the general story arcs like “Kokiri Emerald” and such. If you’d like to read all of the OOT comics in the order they were posted (which is not necessarily chronological!) click here!!

Keep reading

[roxas776]

Link might have buffed up thanks to Magic but you can’t tell me he’s not still 9 at heart 

Click HERE to view a masterpost of more Ocarina of Time comics!

Commissions Info | ko-fi | Patreon | Check out my patrons!

[roxas776]

Unrealistic

[roxas776]

The spiderverse crew knew what they were doing

Inspo:

[roxas776]

It hasn’t even been a week yet inspo: x

—

Instagram | Twitter | Etsy | Shop | Ko-fi

[roxas776]

I love to animate Yoichi Kotabe’s artwork!

[roxas776]

Pikachu comes around to Jessie rather quickly after realizing she’s not really a threat and finding out how good at head scratches she is (she has nice long nails)