#but there are ways to curate your internet experience and that is really what im tryna say. people make solutions and push back

[applejuiceyjuice-art]

i’m replying to this on my personal blog because i do not want to address this on the cloutchase blog. normally, we would delete an ask like this, but it bothers me too much personally.

it sounds like your brother is subscribed to “dead internet theory” which is a fringe conspiracy theory and total doomer talk. it basically proposes that the internet "died" in 2016/2017, and is or will be only made of bots that are generating content for other bots to engage with eternally, and that bot content makes up a majority of the internet in order to manipulate people. it is hyperbolic, using language like "everything online is generated by a bot and you are alone."

idk where he got the idea that it started with discord users, and we aren’t just going to take this information as fact for the sake of making content for our silly website gijinkas. it would be incredibly depressing and irresponsible of us to spread potentially dangerous conspiracy information like this, even if we somehow twisted it into the form of a joke (which we can't). cloutchase is moreso a celebration of the unique environment of the internet. (REMINDER: these are just funny ocs, and while there are serious conversations to be had surrounding actual problems with these sites, cloutchase is NOT the space to be doing so. read the FAQ.)

people believe in this theory because it “feels” true, the internet now feels fake and algorithmically produced and that nobody here is a real person. that’s why many people have nostalgia for “old internet,” where we remember a time where everything was seemingly user run.

but really the main difference between old internet and new internet is commercialization. inevitably, websites grew into businesses and businesses must generate profit. algorithms, advertisements, and ai are much more prominent than ever, flagging algorithms with human bias censor actual people, and so on. seeing and experiencing these things makes it kinda feel like nothing matters or whatever.

what’s actually important to YOUR experience online is asking this: is the majority of content you engage with generated by bots? no!!! you make it your own! the internet is massive, but we still find each other!!! there are REAL people behind this project and receiving your messages. we read everything, you know. WE aren't bots.

bots have always been around the internet, it isn’t a new thing. sure, we didn’t have sophisticated ai generation back then, but spam bots have always existed. malware spread through bots, some ARE bots. in some far off circles of the internet now, there are content farms and viewbotting, but here we are, meeting on this tumblr blog.

the internet will only die when its users decide to stop using it. is this not unlike the y2k scare?

#unreality #i think #do not send us asks like this #i will probably delete this later #i didnt mention this in the post but there are hints of truth in the dead internet theory #its fair to be mad at ai art clogging up google search results and things like that #but there are ways to curate your internet experience and that is really what im tryna say. people make solutions and push back #also viruses are not as threatening anymore because we have improved cybersecurity and 40 years of progress on accessibility #most people now only use a few select popular websites and don't have to worry about protecting themselves from viruses even tho they shoul #if you do get a trojan horse or anything it is far worse than any ai slop you might stumble across now

[softcitrus2345]

Hello! This may sound a bit weird, but do you have any advice or recommendations on getting into this niche? I've kind of been watching from afar on several blogs, and I really want to try and test the waters! But I'm not really sure how to go about it, and I'm super scared that I'll end up just talking to a brick wall, having my mutuals find out, or have people ridicule me :')

Thank you for any and all help - I love your art!! Been hanging around for a while now and the progress you've made is so cool

- Clueless Anon

Oh I totally getcha! That's not a weird question at all! /gen /pos

Starting out with this kinda thing is really difficult, I know from experience. It took me months to hype myself up enough to even create this blog, let alone start posting on it, and I had (and still kinda do) those same fears you expressed, they're all very valid but hopefully what I share can help a bit with making your experience more manageable :3

The information I'll share here consists of opinions based on my personal experience posting on this blog, and getting into the belly kink community in general

I'll break it up into steps from what I sorta did when I started out so it makes a bit more sense.

STRUCTURE YOUR BLOG - Make an introduction post with general information about what to expect from your blog, and some other information about yourself if you want to. I like to include a few other things like some of my hard boundaries and leave it as a PINNED POST so that anyone who comes across your account will see this information

BLOCK YOUR MUTUALS - I have the same exact fear of being "found out" by people im close to or just know outside of this space, so once you set up the bare essentials on your blog, look for your mutuals accounts and block them. If you think a mutual of yours might have a blog but you're not sure, ask them! (Something I did was I asked my mutuals to send me their blogs so I could check them out when in reality it was so I could do this exact thing) Don't see blocking as something inherently malicious or bad, it's just a protective measure and a way to curate your experience on the internet in a way that is comfortable for you!

INTERACT WITH YOUR FELLOW ARTISTS! - I know it may not seem like something super important, but interacting with other artists is a very good way to establish yourself in the community, reblogging, tagging and replying to posts you like with nice comments have the potential for others to check out your blog or interact with you as well! I got lucky enough that I found similar communities outside of Tumblr beforehand, but it's still an effective way to get yourself out there and seen!

START POSTING! - Besides my intro post, my first post was something that I wanted to curate in a way that would encourage conversation. I shared several of my ocs that I planned on posting here and some basic information about them, and opened up asks! It's always gonna be a pretty slow start, but as long as you put the time into your work and are passionate about what you want to share, people will find your stuff! It's hard sometimes, especially when comparing yourself to others is such a common thing for people to deal with (including myself sometimes) but everyone's gotta start somewhere!

Starting out anywhere is difficult in itself, but with things like this that are more sensitive subjects for people, I completely understand your uncertainty and nervousness about sharing this kind of content online. But as long as you're not hurting anyone or sharing harmful content, I don't see why people should be so stinky about others just trying to explore different parts of themselves and their interests.. Kinks shouldn't inherently be seen as something to be ashamed of just because someone doesn't understand it. I've been lucky enough to have close friends in this community who have helped me become more comfortable with myself and with sharing my chonky art, and I'm incredibly grateful for that.

I'm flattered you came to me for advice, I hope some of that can help you on your journey, and thank you for sticking around for so long, it means a lot to have your support ;;w;; 💖

I hope things go well for you! I'm cheering you on anon!!

#softcitrus asks #clueless anon #niche blog #rambles

[cupcraft]

I just think it needs to be said that adults have to regulate themselves in online spaces in a way that is responsible for minors in fandom spaces. This will be long im sorry.

And im not specifically talking about adults with lists of DNI minors and block anyone at or under a certain age as well as make it clear their blog may not be safe for minors (ie spaces with a lot of nsfw content). Though curating an experience is a big part of being responsible of course. This post though is mostly delving into adults' behavior and how you need to be aware of your behavior.

For example, if you're an adult who purposefully curates a blog dedicated to fandom discourse, harming other people in the fandom, vagueing, and just having general toxicity about people ESPECIALLY when the targets of said harassment and toxicity are often the youngest in the fandom this is something you really need to reevaluate yourself about for a million reasons but including how this harms and serves as a poor example to younger people what a fandom space is meant to be. Like when I see minors involved in these types of toxicity, not to say they shouldn't be informed or held accountable or the ppl harmed should forgive them, but as an adult I mostly feel sad. I feel sad because I hope they're going to be okay when they're my age and look back on themselves. I hope they're safe esp when the adults around them act like this kind of behavior is normal and okay even though they've long graduated high school (even though ot wasn't okay then either for the record). Like does it not bother you that you're an adult who feels superior sending hate campaigns and ask box harassment and cyberbullying to minors on the internet because you're insecurities are that large and you've no ability to regulate them healthily? Does it not bother you that you teach young ppl in the fandom to do similarly by your actions, and affect their experience? Does the harm not bother you?

Because it should bother you. When you grow up especially in online fandom spaces you do need to be more aware of not only your words in general, but how many people may look up to you and use you as example and that you have a responsibility to be healthy online for the sake of yourself, others, and esp the youngest of the fandom.

Because it hurts to think ppl can grow up in fandom to think "oh sending kys and gore and dead animals over [insert discourse] plus potentially bigotry is normal because everyone around me does it and I want to fit in and I also fear speaking up against the adults who do this because you know the harassment".

And you might say "well cup im just gonna block all minors the end I get to harass people forever hahaha haha!" And well okay, but for another post (plus ones I've made before) there's still a million reasons this is fucked up you see but I'm just focusing on one aspect rn in this post.

And then there's the adults in fandom who all of a sudden hit my age and all they do is belittle kids and the way they act and there is all of a sudden a Certain Maturity that needs to be upheld for Everyone but Especially Adults.

So on the first point this includes adults who are like "I hate kids!!!! They are so [insert anything negative]" and it includes any comment to meta/writing/art/etc that is like not allowing a younger person in fandom to grow. Like the way I talked as 11 years on the internet was incomprehensible and frankly would've been subject to "omg kids are so cringe ew!" For sure these days, ig I was lucky my online friends were also 11 at the time. Looking at my old fandom Meta posts when I was 15, like I could imagine the way I see adults talking about takes like "oh shit I was worse!" Which is just a bag full of insecurity for me, but I also can't imagine being young in fandom and directly experiencing such critiques all the time. Like does it not bother you, once again? That you don't want to see kids in fandom grow into their creativity and co-exist safely in fandom as they do in public and experience overall and public joy? Why do you hate I mean hateee kids as an adult and why does their joy spark hate and misery in you (you might need therapy or to work that out srsly). And do the effects of your actions not bother you? What do you think you're doing other than silencing the creativity and joy in people and invoking ways to people please or for minors to Act Mature (in reality acting the way these adults want to avoid harassment ofc!) Instead of of course just experiencing joy and fun and community as they would normally.

And that brings me to my last pt of the effects of you hit [adult age] and must Act Mature and not Care About Cringe Fandoms or Watch Cartoons and do anything that would indicate you god forbid Don't Have a Real Job. This is the reality for growing up in fandom its finite once you're 19 no more Cringe of course /s! Because I've been subject to this take before as a criticism, and I've seen essays about how adults who watch Bluey are destroying the world forever, and I can take it because I go to therapy and I'm secure in my own maturity where it matters and joy where it matters. But imagine how younger people in the fandom feel. Like you're basically telling kids "btw once you're at Adult Age you must stop having fun forever and you must have a Real Job (or Education) and stop enjoying Immature things like fandom (even though I am in fandom btw im not a hypocrite saying this) or you're a freak immature adult who will never grow up". Like wow.

Like the conservative and near unnuanced take of to be Mature you need a real job (whatever that means) and to only watch adult shows in a normal manner (again whatever that means) aside, like you're really telling kids to grow up and be insecure. I'm serious! Like of course as you grow up it's important to mature no duh, but with real maturity means realizing there are times to be serious and there are times to enjoy things. Maturity doesn't mean I can never watch bluey god forbid else I have a not real job or become media illiterate as a consequence (esp when actually marketing wise a lot of kids shows are meant to also be entertaining for adults watching with their kids... and lo and behold your media literacy doesn't go away magically the moment the show starts). Like you really want younger ppl in fandom to be miserable and grow up miserable and create a cycle of miserable lest they become Cringe Adults that watch a harmless cartoon and enjoy it.

I'm never good at ending rants like this but conclusion. Get a grip on yourself and insecurities and be really careful how you foster fandom community for yourself but also to those that grow up in these spaces too.

As always add on/send asks/correct me/add nuance/etc. ❤️

#my musings #discourse #long post #you can rb this

[intheholler]

ive been noticing this for a while but i just gotta say that the way ppl act on this blog, gettin all defensive and vitriolic all the damn time over EVERY lil thing u say, i swear they must think ur gonna take away their appalachian card or somethin. as if u arent just a person with a tumblr account.

anyway, as a born and raised eastern kentuckian, i love your blog so so much. its my lil slice of internet home.

right. i actually really appreciate you saying that because i am actually incredibly bothered by those responses and woke up still thinking about them. so i hope you don't mind me using this ask to talk about it.

it kinda sucked to read the one ask, because never have i told any of yall the way you experience appalachia is invalid. if anything i have tried to go out of my way to help yall feel more connected to it, no matter how distant your connection may be.

i have expressed several times in different ways/places that i do not think of myself as, and do not want to be thought of as, some authority on the region. my opinions are just that--opinions.

how many times can i say 'i'm just an asshole with a blog' before it resonates? (or as this anon put it more politely lol 'just a person with a tumblr account')

it means a lot to me, how much weight yall seem to place on my opinions, because it makes me feel heard and validated, but it can feel like a lot of responsibility at times, and results in things like this.

this blog was never meant to gain this sort of attention, and while i am so, so grateful it has become what it is and hope i never have to leave, my intention here was always simply to process my individual appalachian identity--originally through curated pictures, but now much more.

i'm going to keep doing that. if you like what i have to say here im so touched and love to talk to yall, but if following me makes you mad or something when i goof around, you really don't have to follow, u know.

and in retrospect i suppose i am not obligated to answer every ask i receive criticizing me for it, either.

anyway, love kentucky and i feel like i learn new reasons to love it every day! thanks for being here <33

#asks

[smiggles]

I want to start by saying that I really like your art & I dont mean this disrespectfully ;;;;; What you make is unique but I think that I'm too squeamish now but I dont want to unfollow because I dont want you to think its because I think what youre doing is bad or that I dont like you or something. I'm sorry if this is way out of line or uncomfortable.

oh bro 100% dont feel obligated to follow me if it makes your internet experience uncomfortable. Im not someone who cares about mutuals or anything like that.  In the end Im just some stranger online. You dont owe me anything. Curate your timeline to your benefit.

#people who get uptight about these kinds of things are super weird #so if anyone ever gives you shit for unfollowing them #thats a huge them issue #you can unfollow whoever the fuck you want #its no ones business #smigglesask

[freaky-flawless]

wait what did cupid say that was fatphobic im so confused? /gen

They basically made a post complaining about how it's become more popular for people to draw Draculaura fat, equating it to "promoting obesity"

An their main defense for saying this is "Draculaura isn't even fat!!! She's just curvy!!"""

And like for the record.... yes Draculaura's doll is in no way fat, but that doesn't make it morally wrong for people to draw her that way... Thus far, she, along with Bloodgood and Iris, are the thickest characters in the show. People have been projecting onto these characters for years, in harmless ways, and this is no different. And that's not even mentioning the fact that people have been drawing her fat for a while, hell even I did before we even saw her new design in gen 3.

I get what it's like when a character is often portrayed in a way you don't like by the fandom, I think we've all been there, but if there's nothing wrong with it it's really your own problem. People have to curate their own experiences on the internet, and ruining other's isn't the way to do it.

#im not putting this in the mh tag #but yeah #i would still recommend finding the post yourself and coming to your own conclusion #i would have posted it here but i blocked them immediately after reading it #its just baffling to me tho... #like anecdotally....i dont like dracudeen #and its a REALLY popular ship #sure ive seen it portrayed in ways that aren't great but overall theres nothing wrong with it #i just dont interact with those posts and engage in the ship art i do like #blocking tags and people is a powerful tool that a lot of people take for granted #hell if someone draws a character in a way i dont like ill just #drawn them myself the way i see them #ask #anon

[greyeyedmonster-18]

Hey Dr. Grey. Do you have any tips for coping with anxiety in fandom spaces please? I would really value your advice.

oh, hello, anon.

i am...going to respond to this but i am first going to say its felt like the past few days my asks have gotten a bit nosy in regards to my...personal boundaries with fandom/who i talk to in fandom/why i do, why i don't etc etc etc etc. and that is fine, but will respond in a way that maybe is perceived to be more on the rude side. i am likely to be way more personable in DM's and asks i can respond privately to. this admittedly feels like its fishing for information and i'm not sure why? but, we shall respond.

--i don't know what...part of the fandom is bringing you anxiety, sweet anon, and i am sorry it is. fandom should be fun. i repeat, fandom should be fun. but sometimes it just straight up isn't, and im sorry. i'm...going to address this generically? because i honestly need more information about...the anxiety source to provide any sort of tips.

i am also going to be disclaimer this as: i'm generally not a person who gives to fucks what other people think of me. like if someone wants to talk? okay, have a nice day, so glad i gave you something to talk about. and i care....very little what a group of internet strangers, who are just here to read about gay wizards, think about me based on what i post. but here are...some tips that i use for having a better...online experience?

uhm...first tip is curate your experience. if there are people here causing you stress and anxiety (it might be people you follow, people who don't follow but see on your dash, certain ships, certain groups? idk) filtering and blocking. im very liberal with the block button, and i have no qualms about it. if someone is stressing you out/making you anxious and you're not sure why-- block them. if someone cares that i have blocked them, i have never gotten feedback about it so uh...i think people can move on, ya know?

*the rest is below the cut to avoid dash spam

second, "people aren't thinking about you the way that you're thinking about you"-- so here's the deal. im not going to sit here and be like "yah fandoms don't talk shit about other people in the fandom!" because that would be a lie.

we absolutely do. in our own separate little discord servers, but the thing is its usually about fandoms that don't...interact. example: i talk shit about the Pro-Snape fandom all the time! I don't get them! Ship and Let Ship but also what the fuck was hot snape summer. (and im not going into their asks and their pages, and being like WHAT THE FUCK), i am just ???? in my own little crew. and they're probably over in their crew being like "have you seen Grey's page, they don't even write snape ever." and its HORRIFYNG to them, but like....whatever? I don't care what they think.

but, people aren't thinking about you and your works and your blog the way that you're thinking about it. another wolfstar writer or page is someone we cheer on. we're all too wrapped up in our own unfinished WIP'S and silly little headcanons and lives to be concerned with what someone else is doing. if someone is shitting on my wolfstar or moonchaser or whatever in their own private little servers, good for them. again, so glad i gave them something to bond over! i'm building community through hate and i love that! but i love my wolfstar. and my 11 friends do too (or if they hate it, they're not telling me to my face, which is alright by me). that's all i can care about.

third, i love a good boundary. i really and truly do. and i know there is a pressure on tumblr and in the fandom communities to be like WARM AND INVITING AND CHATTING WITH EVERYBODY AND GETTING TO KNOW EVERYBODY all the time, but like...that's fake. you don't have to do it, if you don't want to! have two friends, have 8000 friends, whatever you want. if the people and the pressure and the NOISE is whats bringing you anxiety....tone it down.

you don't have to talk to everyone. you don't have to update every week. you don't have to respond to all your comments. you don't have to write a novel in the authors notes. you literally don't have to do anything you don't want to do. it is your space. you make your home however you want to make it. fandom is supposed to be fun.

make it fun again anon.

(also, i will reiterate that if you DM me, I will not bite. and can respond to this more appropriately.)

#asks #grey answers

[demadogs]

Everyone’s been talking about byler vs others shows lately and can I just say I can’t scroll for 2 seconds without seeing a post about “Heartstopper” or “The Summer I Turned Pretty” on any of my socials and I’m getting really annoyed? 😭 The cast of both shows seem so sweet but I don't care to hear about it! And I don’t want to be a hater but it feels to me like it's really hard to curate experiences anymore. Ik its the Internet so you’re going to see things you don’t want to see and both shows are pretty popular right now butttt post after post?…broooo those fucking cartoon leaves are going to haunt me atp but I'm glad to know I'm not completely alone.

And I know this might seem so stupid but I’m really tired of seeing heartstopper in particular discussed in the Byler tag. I don’t have a problem with people who enjoy that show trying to find other bylers who watch it or necessarily talking about moments on that show they want to happen with byler I mean ppl can do what they want but yeah. I prob come across miserable but this hiatus is just sucky and people will probably feel this way about Byler/ST when S5 comes out so 😂

lmaoo i recommend filtering your tags for what you dont wanna see. you can do that here and you can mute specific words on twitter. not sure if you can on instagram, and for tiktok if you see something just hold down and hit “not interested” or even block them if their whole page is edits for a show youre not into. i do this and i rarely see heartstopper stuff anymore and i never saw tsitp to begin with bc all my algorithms have figured out im gay and dont show me the super hetero shows lmao.

i understand about the cross tagging thing. if you do filter heartstopper you’ll be able to scroll past those without clicking on them but i think people treat the byler tag as more of a giant groupchat with things most of us would be interested in. like if im talking about lumax i usually tag byler bc so many bylers also love lumax but i dont tag lumax when im talking about byler bc those tag followers may only be interested in lumax you know what i mean? i dont think theres any stopping those kinda posts but again, filtering the tag will help.

#‘those cartoon leaves are going to haunt me’ made me giggle #i hate all the doodles too #my two friends literally hate me for hating this show BUT I LIKE SHOWS THAT DONT MAKE ME EXCRUCIATINGLY CRINGE OK #my friend told me to finish watching rwrb but i dont think i cannn #i haaaated the way they filmed all the phone calls before their first kiss like why was henry in the room with him it was so over the top #i think they took inspiration from heartstopper just bc of the numbers it had and that makes me upset #eden answers

[mikoriin]

I want to dissappear from the internet but I also want to start selling commissions for a little back-up-plan money for Reasons... idknoww what to do 😔

thats rough im sorry :((( the internet can be a very stressful place with....literally everything going on all the time haha but i think whats important to do to curate your own online experience is to:

use the sites u actually like and prefer. i use tumblr primarily because i can manage my social media experience the way i want to.

shape your page/timeline/feed/dash into what you want. unfollow people who dont post things you like or even want to see, block people freely even if u just dont agree with something they said in their post or for just rubbing you the wrong way. you control your experience and if you dont like what youre seeing and not enjoying yourself, then u can always find something new or get rid of the things u dont want to see. for me, i dont like using twitter because its got a lot of weirdos on it and then some and i dont like seeing every horrible political event going on at all times. not because i dont care, but because its so much all the time that it gets so draining and overwhelming. with sites like tumblr, you cant necessarily avoid it depending on how big or impactful the news is (i mean ofc, we're a social media site after all) but at least if u dont like seeing a bunch of real world events that upset you then u can always block those tags or posts or unfollow the people who put it on your dash.

remember that the internet is a place to escape. yes it is a place to store information and knowledge, but it is also full of so many wonderous dangers because it is so vast. dont take it too seriously, dont get too invested in things that are out of your control, and i honestly dont think its healthy to be chronically online either. so just remember, be safe, be mindful, and have fun.

if u wanna start some commissions i also have some advice for u there!!

keep posting your content! and make sure you tag it! exposure is the BEST way to get traction and attention.

keep your commission sheet pinned to your blog. its good that its the first thing people see when they visit your page

DO NOT underprice your work!! do not do not!! u are creating something from your mind with your hands and your creativity alone, your art is special and unique no matter your skill level! never charge under $20 for even your most simple art. (ik ik my kofi comms are only $9-$12 but thats different i have a job that brings in steady money haha...and i also am a hypocrite that doesnt value my art enough) but i am SO SERIOUS when i say that every art piece is worth so much! if $15 or $10 makes you more comfortable to charge people then i encourage it, just as long as you dont go below double digits and are getting some money in!

if your commissions are lower than say...$30 or $40 then make sure you get them done in a timely manner. i know im DEFINITELY not one to talk about being quick on commissions, im so slow, but i try to get smaller pieces done first. i dont go by first come first serve, i do what it easiest to me in the moment because i have horrible time management skills thanks adhd but really just do whatever works for u! but from a money and business standpoint, i would try to get the smaller pieces done as fast as you can. bigger pieces have more leeway to take longer.

HAVE BOUNDARIES WITH UR CUSTOMERS! if you are uncomfortable drawing something, say so. decline the commission. its not worth the money if u are bothered by the content, you clearly dont want to make it therefore the art wont be satisfying to you anyway because your hearts not on it. also its better for your mental health. if a customer is being too friendly or too comfortable for you, make sure you keep it business. let them know it is just business. you do not owe anyone your friendship just because theyre giving you money. theyre paying for a service, its just as an other transaction at the store. if they are asking you to draw something youve already stated in a commission sheet that you wont draw, block them. they clearly dont know how to read or respect your boundaries because they asked you for a service you already stated you could not provide. not a good customer, move on.

uhhh i cant rly think of anything else at the moment but i hope this helps!! this has gotten pretty long so ill leave it at this, but also if you genuinely just wanna take a break from the internet to live life and decompress from it all, i say go ahead. do you. do what makes you happy.

#sorry its so long! #wish u luck tho anon <3

[mooifyourecows]

my mom is super pissed and super dissapointed BUT knows i wasnt involved and understands why i didnt act differently so i think ill be okay with her. my sister who wasn't involved (my older sister) is super pissed, but again not so much with me but mostly with my other sister because she did participate , but my older sister did scream at me for a few minutes, which made her a little less mad, and i desereved it. she also cant yell at my other sister because shes actially fucking crazy when she has to face the consequences of her actions and would likely do something irreversable because she feels like shit about what happened nd my older sister knows that, which kind of pissed her off more, but i think itll mostly be okay.

ive also decided i will not see any of those people aside from my sister outside of school, and will not speak to them or interact with them unless they initiate, and i will keep it short. im tired of being dragged into shit that i dont wanna be a part of. also that boy did take responsibility for one of the things used being his, so hopefully my sister and i will not get drug charges , but my 'friends' literally said they lied to the police. i dont know if thats true or if they just dont want everyone to think they snitcehd , but i refuse to be involved with people who think its okay to break the law and when they get caught, to do it again. theyre stupid and i cant deal with that. especially when half of them are shitheads who dont like me anyways.

ive also decided to see if i can tutor after school and also write handwritten letters to the officers superintendent and principal to attempt to get my reputation back. i know you said it doesnt matter, and its probably pointless to even worry about, but i do really care what these people think of me, and i want them to trust me and believe in me and support me. i am nothing without my reputation and intelligence at this school. all these people have known each other since diapers and have lives to fall back on. they have family farms and loyal friends and support from their community. i dont have that so i want to earn support and loyalty and this is the only way i know how.

i really appreciate the support through all my struggles ive shared with you. even thought you arent in my life physically and youre just some cool person i know from the internet who writes silly stories i like , its nice to feel like someone cares about you. ive always found it difficult sharing my thoughts and feelings, especially with adults mostly because i didnt want to be judged, and i dont feel judged with you, and i can get advice from someone with more life experience. thank you for that. i hope youre doing well, especially after your surgery(?)

I'm proud of you for setting up new boundaries and distancing yourself from those people. But I hope you also know that its not fair for your older sister and mom to use you as a scapegoat because your other sister isn't mentally stable enough to take her fair share of the punishment. Just because she can't handle it doesn't mean you should have to handle double the dose of yelling and anger. That's not healthy, especially since you were already an unwilling party to that whole experience.

And I hope you realize that you have worth and value outside of what people think of you! It's okay to be concerned with your reputation but keep in mind that nobody will truly understand the real you because they're not in your head all the time. They will judge you on only what they see and believe about you so it's impossible to curate a perfect image. But that's okay! People aren't meant to understand one another to such degrees anyway. It's alright to be flawed. We are all just works in progress, trying our best to make the most of what we've got

You'll understand this more and more the older you get. And your desire to be seen in a good light by others will fade as you realize that yours is the one true opinion that REALLY matters. Once you start liking and respecting yourself, everyone else can take a long walk off a short pier 😌

Stay positive! Things can and will always get better 🖤

[tyzzieee]

im going to uni in september & my little brother doesnt have a phone so im really struggling trying to figure out what social media i should encourage him to get so i can stay in contact w him

#tumblr is probably easiest to curate your experience? #but also hes an artist & i want him to be able to share his art on a platform that will care #on tumblr its incredibly hard to grow as an artist. on twitter and instagram its still hard but like SLIGHTLY easier #actually i havent used insta in ages im p sure that sucks ass now #but twt is really toxic & i dont want to expose him to that #but tumblr can get super weird & i dont want to expose him to THAT #maybe i should just get him an email. we can deal w his art posting later. #hes turning 13 like as soon as i leave btw so hes gonna be on the youngest end of whatever site it is #ugh #but regardless im gonna be supervising him the whole time. he is NOT getting unsupervised internet access like i did. #i will be closely monitoring what hes posting & who's interacting with it for at least a few years. no way am i letting him end up like me. #summary: he doesnt have a phone or an email (yet). ideally i want him to be able to post his art. i also need to be able to keep an eye on- #-him. which social media would be best suited to this.

[olderthannetfic]

also idk man, I actually find the fact that minors (as in like, teens) can find "mature" content if they so choose a good thing? I don't think porn really shows up on google images anymore, at least so long as you have safe search on, but a lot of the stuff ppl get their panties in a twist about kids seeing is like... tits or dick. Which isn't that traumatizing for most people (though there are exceptions). Once again, it shouldn't be shoved in anyone's face, let alone teens or tweens, but it's normal for teens to want to check it out. God knows I did. Ao3 is an adult space in the same way a library is, the bad stuff isn't being shoved in your face but it's still there. It's accessible. A lot of it is labelled better. And I think that's a good thing.

Also we know what else often gets lumped in with not safe for kids and I want that stuff accessible for anyone who needs it as well, regardless of age. Sex education, content with mature themes, controversial speech, ect ect. If the internet as a whole is more restrictive on the basis of minors maybe seeing some stuff then we also potentially sacrifice a lot of the internet's use of sharing lots of information and experiences. We do need more kid-only spaces, both on the internet and in real life tbh, and the loss of carefully curated online spaces for minors in favour of 5 sanitized no boobs but not nazis free websites for all of us it a travesty, but if some 13 yr old wants to read really kinky porn... im more concerned if they also aren't getting the necessary sex education to temper their fantasies and curiosity, not that they're reading intense erotica. Idc if they're listening in on the adults talk like adults either so long as they aren't getting involved directly.

Not to say I wouldn't keep an eye on a kid if they were in my general online vicinity but scary fictional content existing online in general doesn't, in my experience, really traumatize kids that often. If it's real life footage of somehow getting beheaded for sure, or if they're forced to interact with the content or if it triggers trauma from something else maybe, but someone's noncon incest pwp isn't traumatizing kids by existing where their hands might be able to reach it. Also if a kid is purposefully seeking out content that does traumatized them that might also be its own problem.

--

Agreed. I was a kinky little perv at 13 and actively sought out all kinds of horrible stuff. I have no clue why I liked violent snuff erotica so much. Nothing was wrong. I just liked weird shit. It was just fake stories people posted to usenet, not videos of real life atrocities, and it wasn't a symptom of anything, so I was fine. Trying to keep me out of the nasty stuff would not have been successful.

If some teenager reads my kinky fic because it interests them, more power to them. Passively consuming content while you figure yourself out is one of the safer ways to explore.

[stagefoureddiediaz]

Kym thank you for your wonderful answer to anon. I think a part of fadom freaks out easily because the reporter scared everyone for a lifetime. Last year we were all here celebrating how good for buck would have been having a friend outside of the 118, and we got a terrible friend then and an horrible gf now that basically monopolized 2 entire episodes of 5a, probably she'll be gone soon but her presence is still to much compared to others So yeah I don't think lucy will be a LI but who knows

Awww Nonnie 🥺🥺🥺 tysm

Tay Kay is definitely scarring!! I'm gonna be upfront - I have never ever liked Taylor and I never saw her as a friend to Buck (idk how anyone could tbh but maybe thats just me!!), so I never joined in the celebrations of Buck having a friend outside of the 118 - I've only ever viewed her as a narrative device- her character has always been selfish and self serving and if the writers wanted me to feel differently about her they would have invested the time and effort into showing character growth - addressing all the bad choices she made previously. The fact that they didn't, and actually went the other way - showing how much of a hypocrite she is on top of everything else - spoke so loudly to me.

If, like me, you've spent years working in the industry, and studying how film and television is created and developed, I guess you spot things a mile off. I do think they wasted a lot of time and energy on giving her a back story and using it to fill time that could've been better spent elsewhere, but I'm also of the view that theres a very good chance that we'll see what we learnt coming back into play in the first part of 5b.

I think the writers have spent time creating that backstory for a reason - because it's what they've done historically and if it wasn't important they would've used the time elsewhere - showing us more of other characters and doing further world building. The entire season is planned out at the beginning - the arcs will have been decided- even beyond just the season - and they will have spent a lot of time figuring out how to get the characters from a to b - what needs to happen, what road blocks to put in their way etc.

That is why I'm sure that there are plans to make further use of what they have chosen to give us (and why ghost stories got such a drastic rewrite) and I expect it all to come into play in 5x11 and 13 with repercussions further into the season as well. Im actually looking forward to the summer hiatus so I can really look at how it all plays out in more detail - when we know where it all leads to - only then will we truly know if they short changed us and put in a load of unnecessary filler we could've done without!

For the most part the section of fandom that freaks out over this kind of thing tend to be young with little experience of the real world who will (hopefully) learn as they get older - I don't tend to see to much of it in my little corner of the internet as I curate my experience - I'm here for a good time, to have fun and for healthy debate, Im not here to stress myself out or make myself miserable. Its also easy to forget that many of these people freaking out have grown up in a world which has always had internet and so they are not used to being made to wait for things in the same way as those o us who existed before the world was at our fingertips - when binge watching was only possible if you recorded each episode every week or bought the vhs/dvd box sets!

Sorry Nonnie - i've got up on my soap box again 🤣🤣🤣 I've never bee none for brevity!!! As always great to have you appearing in my inbox!

#kym answers things #nonnie asks #kym rambles #have soap box will stand on it! #911 on fox #911 fox #911 #911onfox #911 spoilers #911 fandom discourse #anti taylor kelly #anti buck taylor

[wiltking]

Hey king. Sometimes when I see a younger artist still in their teens making amazing work I feel really angry; not at them, but at myself. I have been at it for over twenty years and my work still looks really elementary. Do you ever feel this way, or do you have any suggestions on how to deal with this? I truly try not to be discouraged and remind myself almost daily, "quality comes from quantity" as you say, but sometimes it gets under my skin. Hope you are having a great day btw

hi! honestly i would suggest unfollowing these artists if they get under your skin that much. im a huge proponent of curating your internet experience. if you dont get any enjoyment out of looking at their art just.. dont look. maybe spend less time on social media in general and focus on yourself for a while. if youre comfortable with yourself and you enjoy what you do and find value in it, you wont care as much about what other people are doing. thats true for life in general, not just art.

these kids are just having fun. theres also the fact that they might be growing up with many more resources for how to make art, at much higher quality and variety than we might've had access to at their age. the internet is rapidly growing and the art world is no exception. all i had growing up was the wild west of deviantart and my shitty How To Draw Manga book. Nowadays kids can download entire pdfs on color theory or search up youtube tutorials on any specific topic.

ive also been making art since i was straight out the womb and i also feel vastly mediocre compared to artists both older and younger than me. but thats not anyone's fault! everyone learns things at a different pace. art is a special category because creativity isnt something that can be measured in any quantifiable way. all you can do is ask yourself why you think any artist is better than you. identify the specifics. if those qualities are things you want to improve on in your own art, focus on that. remember the carefree joy you mightve had when making art when you were their age, and try to find that again. that's all i can say.

#sorry if this is harsh. wishing you all the best

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

tuesday again 8/10/21

got a bunch of followers (many of you are Cool Teens, so also a reminder im 26 and an adult and you’re responsible for curating your own internet experience) anyway there’s a bunch of new folks since the last time this was a regular series, so i am going to pre-answer some things that popped up in my inbox last week.

a quick reminder that this is empathetically NOT a recommendations or review blog series. this is a quick snapshot of what i’m thinking about with regards to mass media this week, and sometimes i’m funny about it and sometimes i also do interesting diy shit

a work can be culturally or historically relevant and important in the history of a genre AND be extremely difficult to recommend unless i know you very well due to. hm. let us say many pitfalls due to the inherent nature of the genre or the time it was made in it any number of other factors that make it unpalatable to modern audiences but still worth knowing about. doesthedogdie dot com will be your friend here for anything i talk about ever

being critical of a work doesn’t just mean pointing out its flaws- was it successful in telling the story it wanted to tell? were the techniques it used effective? were the emotions it elicited in me probably the ones the creators set out to elicit? these are key components of a good review and often help me break down what i want to say about a particular piece of media in any given week, but this isn’t a review series of blog posts either.

i am literally just some guy and you should question everything i say

listening i’m gonna wash that man right out of my hair (from the musical South Pacific) brought to you by a random mix of classic movie musicals bc apparently im that kinda gay this week.

like a lot of other fifties media that aged like milk, i have fond memories of watching this with my grandmother. this isn’t even my favorite song from the musical (that would be bali hai’i) but i think it is one of the more technically interesting non-solo ones. specifically, the faint siren-y dissonance on “ahoy, ahoy!” has really been stuck in my head. the melancholy “ah fuck we’ve broken our hearts again” vibe on “rub him out of the roll call/and drum him out of your dreams” with all the girls singing is probably a result of a soprano-heavy cast, but it’s almost chimey in a way? the rhyme scheme of those lines has an excellent mouthfeel. ms gaynor singing “cancel hiiiiiim” has a very different vibe in 2021

two (really three? maybe four? the world is large and mysterious) things can be true at the same time: i don’t think i could watch this musical again as an adult because i don’t think there’s a good way to salvage or update it. the very qualities of this musical that make me go “fuckin yikes” as adult were the very qualities that made my grandmother love it so much. i can hold a bittersweet memory of a rare late movie night with a complicated lady and at the same time wish she were a better person. the dead never leave you with answers.

reading yet another fallow week. this field is turning back into forest

watching i often say “AAA video game (derogatory)” when talking offline about the bad batc/h, but this was a real bioshock ass lookin episode. i don’t think this show is succesful at making or having a point. mostly because it cannot contradict any existing lore in one of the most traversed time periods of this franchise, even with the expanded universe reboot. it falls into the uncomfortable realm of most starred wars media: this is a franchise for children but it also has to cater to legions of grownup fanatics with lots of money. but by god does it “feel” like starred wars. something not all the sequel trilogy movies or much of the clone wars series were successful at.

as a sidebar to that last sentence. the most memorable (imo) scene of the fucking sequel trilogy is the back-to-back battle couple thing in ep seven, which i have just rewatched, and it simply does not hold up. there are too many cuts to other sideplots, which kills any tension dead, and it’s mostly fighting on opposite sides of the room in frantic desperation instead of what i wanted, which was more than five seconds of synergy. it’s a bad rhyme of the final throne room fight in rotj and my memory of the thing is so much better, which is always disappointing.

back to the main point, i think a big part of something “feeling” like starred wars is big setpieces and fights that make you go “HAHA YES FUCKIN SICK WHY NOT!!!!” like, nobody ever Just gets shot in the head and temporarily incapacitated, they get half-vadered by the engines of a derelict ship trying to go to hyperspace while it’s grounded. this franchise has never met a location it couldn’t destroy in a beautiful and awful shower of light while the string sections of three combined orchestras play their hearts out.

this franchise is so fucking stupid and i am so invested in it

playing got my hands on the death trash early access, very hype to play it, have been too busy turning this apartment into a functional and comfortable space to live in for three separate people with their own separate toiletries and groceries and work from home/school schedules

making related to the above, the fucking kitchen table and chairs are done.

things wot i did friday night/saturday morning:

new rubber feeties on everybody

wrapped the legs that structurally couldn’t get new rubber feeties in jute to be kinder to my rental linoleum

bolted the legs back on the table and rebalanced it bc the jute wasn’t quite even

did a very halfassed job of fixing the drawer rails on the table

bolted the chair tubing back together

took all the old decorative tacks out of the backs of the chairs

scrubbed the seats and backs and the pieces the tacks were holding down with mild detergent (partially effective, it still has some patina but is sanitized)

re-covered the bottoms of the chairs in remnant black polyester to replace mildewed black canvas

put in new decorative tacks on the seat backs

bolted the vinyl parts to the chrome tubing parts (a long and frustrating process since there were two sizes of decidedly non-standard nuts and bolts)

wiped everything down again for idk good luck

sitting at my kitchen table in the sun eating a breakfast sandwich and some terrible iced tea on sunday morning was very nice. i lived in the south just long enough to get Opinions on iced tea and how the north can’t get it right. shouldn’t be gritty. shouldn’t be bitter. how is this even happening

some very very halfassed “during” pics

#tuesday again #tuesday again no problem #Spotify

[ziracona]

This is from something you reblogged about YouTubers, like, a looong time ago, but i was talking to a friend of mine who didn't see the issue w being a fan of YTbers/Streamers/ect. I said the problem was that often fans of said people often forget that those are..well people. And will put them on high platforms and act like they can do no wrong/ will defend them no matter what they do. They said that people don't really do that, and just wanna have someone to go to to have a good laugh w/o the hassle. And for a moment i was literally confused and i blurted out 'They don't know you. Y'all aren't friends' without stopping myself from thinking it might be mean? I didn't want it to be mean, im just honestly so confused about Streamers and their fans?

Yeah. I think it’s like with celebrities—if you enjoy a particular actor, and are happy when you see them in films, no problem, but if you start getting emotionally attached to Gwyneth Paltrow, and thinking of that as a person you like, not a person whose skill in their craft you enjoy, you get in some troubled waters, both because it’s only a matter of time before she starts making NFTs or has a scandal reveal, and because you literally know nothing about her but gossip and public persona. You have no personal experience w them. Being a fan isn’t a problem if you’re normal. But if you put a personal stake in a celebrity, they will disappoint you, and you’re also going to get weird eventually and possessive and too invested in someone you actually have no claim to. I could watch every GP movie on the planet and read every interview, every book, follow and like every tweet, and she still wouldn’t owe me anything. Doesn’t know me either.

The problem w youtubers and streamers is bigger in a lot of ways, for a couple reasons. First, YouTube is one of the most toxic places on the entire internet, and even at its inception, Famous Youtubers were a dangerous game to like because they always eventually turned out to be racist or something extremely disappointing. YouTube fame seems to really speedrun the whole ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely’ gambit. They’re more accessible 24/7 is a big own, same w streamers. You can ‘spend hours and days’ with them—which is a creepy way to look at it, but nevertheless the way I’m sure many people do. If you sit and listen to someone talk for two years, it can get very easy to convince yourself you know someone. This is not the case. I’ve heard probably a year of Griffin McElroy talk, and he seems like a really cool dude, but do I think I know that and if it came out on the news he’d just started a company puppy farming, would I refuse to accept reality and bend over backwards trying to Stan? No. I’m not an idiot. I know I haven’t been in a friend’s house for 365 days chatting, I’ve been listening to Curated choices of content one-sided. Nothing wrong w liking people and enjoying their work, but getting too invested happens like the plague. I think the other biggest reason is age range for fans of yt/stream celebrities.

Honestly, public attachment forms to celebrities have always gotten weird, but more and more w the internet, and it’s not healthy.

Your friend is crazy though if they think people /don’t/ happily go rabid for youtubers and streamers. They regularly bully and harass—even threaten or actually hurt—anyone seen as competition or an enemy, and way too many get obsessed. No clue why they can’t see how creepy it is, especially when the yt/stream person is a minor, to talk about shipping them with their real human friends, or to like spend forever talking about or giffing their clothes and talking about them like you’re their proud mother or girlfriend and commenting about them growing up or looking great and memorizing their wardrobe like it’s textbook stalker behavior. And it’s not healthy to be that obsessed w even the life or journey of someone you’ve never met. Rooting for an Olympian to take gold is nothing at all like making an 8 paragraph take every other night about an internet celebrity maturing where you analyze everything they ever said to illustrate how you think they think. You’ve never met them, and that’s terrifying behavior. Writing a thesis about Prince Zulu the fictional character whose life is presented in narrative is fine. Writing a thesis about YTBoy as a person when you literally can have no clue who he is, is entitled and dangerous thinking.

The internet has really blurred boundaries, and privacy, and fucked over relationships. Like I have /never/ seen a community ready to get just viscerally full of hate and bad blood, than Discord groups. Way too many people get ferally protective of internet celebrities. With youtubers especially like. Honey if they’re big names, they are /all/ eventually gonna come out as bad people—YouTube just seems to chew up and spit folks out. And if people want to enjoy content there’s nothing wrong w having favorite content. But way too many people get parasocial and yeah I know that’s a term Tumblr hates using like gaslight but we’ve swung too far and misuse has turned into an excuse to shut down talking about it at all, it isn’t a good thing. Tying your worth or your self or your happiness to someone you have no relationship with is setting yourself up both for tragedy, and to take actions in which you will objectively be the villain and hurt other people. God I wish people just went there for a chill good time, and I’m sure some do, but the problem is the vast and vocal majority do not. ​Also, even less rabid fans tend to refuse to stop giving people a platform and supporting them once it comes out they’re like a nazi, and that /is/ a problem. Both YT and Streams are constantly going platforms, so it’s not like watching a movie with a shit actor there. It’s intentionally continuing to keep someone at the head of their craft because enjoying their videos is more important to you than not siding w a nazi. And way too many people refuse to put any amount of politics or ethics in how they consume content.

Anyway, there’s a lot more to be said but I’m gonna stop bc I’m not even sure you really wanted anything but to vent. But yeah. Ain’t bad to enjoy content or have faves, but don’t act like it’s something it’s not. It is a casual connection between performer and consumer, where you have a seller you like. If you couldn’t accept it & then shrug it off emotionally, handle it responsibly as far as your response, and move on if it came out the person in question was a pedophile or sexist or a bigot, then you have a problem and it’s on you to fix that. And as evidenced by the appearance of 100000 teenage defense attorneys on Twitter every time a Youtuber does something awful, way too many people do.

#ask #anonymous #youtubers #streamers