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arashi-no-saxlphone · 18 days

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whats your opinion on asuka r kreutz

Buddy. Oh man. Either you know me and went on anon to enable me (in which case, thank you) or you're newer here and haven't seen me cry about Guilty Gear's saddest wettest cat yet.

I fucking adore Asuka R Kreutz. I think he's one of the most tragic and complex characters in Guilty Gear. I was gonna put "Well-written" too buuuut... it's hard to track down clear answers for some of the stuff that covers his time with Freddy and Aria as scientists and so I generally extrapolate what feasibly happened to the best of my ability based on what we have. (I am by no means a full-on expert, but I know enough to tell you this man does not deserve all the flack he gets).

In general, I find Asuka to be an immensely tragic and complicated man who at his core, just didn't want things to change and didn't want to lose his only and most dear friends in the whole world. Every single thing he has ever done was fueled by one of two things - his curiosity (which you can consider a flaw, as it often by his own account causes him to neglect right and wrong) or his deep love for Frederick and Aria (I find this to be his driving force for most of his actions in the story of Guilty Gear, right up until shit becomes so absolutely fucked that he has to spend most of his time trying to fix everything that goes wrong and banking on Sol to come through for him as a warrior). Asuka is the embodiment of the phrase "The road to hell is paved with good intentions" and that's probably why in lore he's labelled as "The Devil" in addition to "The Gearmaker."

When Aria gets sick, he suggests putting her in cryosleep until they can cure her disease. She refuses because she doesn't want to miss out on her time with Frederick. "Ok," he says, "well I can do something about that so please agree." And she agrees. And Asuka makes Sol a Gear and fucking immortal without telling him. Then all that crazy bullshit that kickstarts the crusades happens and Sol has to kill Aria because Asuka made her into Justice. This part is fucked up. It's a major fuckup on Asuka's part. In a drama CD, it's highlighted how important Aria's humanity and personhood is to her, and Asuka takes that away when he turns her into Justice. "What's the justification then?"

When Asuka found out that the government was going use their research to create gears as weapons and use them for war, he did EVERYTHING he could to try and stop that. Asuka isn't stupid - he's smart. He's a scientific genius. He could've easily taken the sleeping Frederick and Aria and fucked off, but he wanted to right a wrong. And it just... didn't work. He turned Aria into Justice, and though I think he probably intended to turn her back (after all, we see him demonstrate the ability to undo what he did to Sol at the end of strive) he never got the chance. Because the Universal Will overloads her and Justice just starts the Crusades.

In Overture's story, Asuka makes it clear to Sol that he needs him to be a warrior in order to be prepared for more horrors to come. Asuka realizes after the crusades that he can't fix it alone - everything he's done to solve a problem has so far ended up with him making things worse. Sol hates him. He knows Sol hates him. You know what's fucked up though?

He wants Sol to hate him. He feels like he deserves it.

I feel the need to point out that the crusades last over a century - Sol is immortal because of the gear cells and flame of corruption, but Asuka was just a normal guy - why/how is he here? Asuka created a synthetic body for himself that would not age, and transferred his consciousness into it so that he would not change. So that no matter what, Sol would recognize him. Knowing Sol wouldn't forgive him, knowing that he would always be able to find him, he didn't care - he never ever wanted to lose Sol.

Asuka clearly cares about people. He realizes the consequences of his actions, and he's clearly capable of feeling guilt over them. Look at what he does while working with I-No and Raven: He builds the Jack-O unit in the hopes that he can bring Aria back. He builds the Happy Chaos unit in the hope that he can help I-No regain her full self without going insane. He's Raven's only friend, a man who has been cast aside countless times and used for his powers. Those aren't the actions of a selfish or wholly callous man. If he was callous, he wouldn't try so hard to make SURE he could never escape Sol's anger by making himself permanently recognizable.

"Well maybe he just selfishly didn't want to let go of Sol." This is a legitimately fair point. However, let's recall what happens in the strive story: Asuka offers Frederick a choice between letting him remove the gear cells and flame of corruption from him, or letting Sol kill him.

I need you to look me in the eyes when I tell you I can't handle this part. I can't. Well over a century of fuckups and shit going wrong while Asuka desperately tries to make a million things right that weren't even entirely his fault to begin with - he didn't want to make Gears as weapons, hell he didn't even want to be a scientist! He laments about not having any control over his life and certain decisions. In all of that though, he fucking loves his friends Frederick and Aria. Now one of them's dead because of him, and the other one hates him, and after over 100 years of planning and thinking and work-

Asuka R Kruetz has no idea how to look Frederick Bulsara in the eye and tell him he's sorry. He only knows how to fix it, and also how to offer Sol a chance to feel better about it - I think he truly believes that after everything, if Sol killing him will make Sol feel better, that that's what he should let happen. I'm so fucking ill. Asuka thinks the fucking WORLD of Frederick - listen to this bit of his Strive theme, "The Gravity:"

"As the universe turned black / did the sun ever defy fate? / beyond it all do you recognize me?"

In case you aren't familiar with how Sol Badguy got his name, the government gave him the codename "Badguy" while he was running around wrecking gear compounds. "Sol" is a name given to him by Slayer, because he "shone brightly like the sun."

Now look at that snippet from Asuka's theme again - that line about the sun defying fate? That's about Sol. That's about how much he loves and values Sol, someones he repsect and looks up to, and the only person he had left to count on to fix the world that he feels like he fucked up.

As we know, Sol chooses to let Asuka just un-gear him, but after that Asuka just... leaves. He goes to the moon with the tome of origin to protect it from falling into the wrong hands. Do you know how fucking badly it fucks me up, that after everything, Asuka just ends up alone? He spent over a century trying to fix the world, nothing he did worked, and when it finally did everything was different. Everything. Aria is gone, Frederick is happier but not in his life anymore, and Asuka is alone. Everything he ever did started with his love for Frederick and Aria, and at the end of it all he's alone. And he feels guilty.

His Strive arcade Story rips me to fucking pieces - Asuka clones himself and when he does, the clone Asuka R # mentions specifically that Asuka made him "Chattier." He mentions that Asuka "Doesn't like himself." I read that as Asuka making an idealized version of himself - a self that wouldn't fuck up, a self that wouldn't be hated, but also

A self that would carry on his work.

This is where it gets heavy, but I personally believe Asuka intended to kill himself initially. He has no idea how to say sorry to Frederick, no idea how to atone, and no idea how to exist in a world that so far, he feels he has only ever fucked up in. Another snippet from his theme: "does existence have meaning? / the reality or the truth, the reality of the truth / what fact should we accept? / The reality or the truth? reality" He's trying to figure out if he can still live, if even if he wants to live, does he even deserve to? Have the right to? How can he atone?

The clone states, though it dances around it, that it's worried for Asuka - worried that he's hoping he'll lose the fight, hoping he'll die. But two of the possible outcomes (as strive arcade mode dialogue tends vary based on performance) are listed below:

In both of these conversations, the clone cites a desire to exist - which to the clone, since it is also Asuka in way, means that the original Asuka wants to exist too - and therefore that he can, and is trying to figure out how to.

I think Asuka, like a lot of Gear characters, is about trying to find a place in the world - even if the whole world feels like it's not built for you. All Asuka has ever done is tried - and failed. But he's still here. He DID manage to unfuck everything, and he did it because he DID still have Sol. Another bit of insight his clone dumps on him:

that bit there: "I know you can't affirm yourself. But at least tell me you’ll keep walking. Even if you lose your way. As long as one person out there cares about you… It’s worth it just to try to keep them happy." This is a common theme in Gear: relationships, both romantic and platonic, saving people; connections to others giving people a reason to go on or to see a new perspective that makes life worth living. Jack-O found Sol, who treated her like her own person and made her realize she was more than just a replacement for Aria. Dizzy found Ky and vice versa, changing Ky's perspective on Gears and having Dizzy realize she could be happy even in a world that treated her like a monster. Here on the moon, creating Asuka R# to talk to, Asuka is trying his very best to see and understand the world through Frederick's eyes - a world that Frederick saw as worth fighting for:

Asuka is a character who hasn't found his way yet, but all that matters is that he keeps looking.

Uh so to answer your question, I love Asuka R Kreutz - maybe you can tell by the fact that I dumped an absolute trainwreck mess on you after one small ask. Sorry! I apologize about this being a little all over the place and not having as much cohesion as I would've liked but this character is very dense and complicated and I did this kinda quickly so I had to sort through a bunch of weird feelings as I typed - I hope you found at least some of it interesting.

Thank you for the ask!

Ah, and a big fat huuuuuuuuge thank you to the stellar and amazing new Gear wiki, which is where I pulled those screenshots of his arcade mode script from! It's really a wonder how fast the wiki was put together and just what a fantastic resource it is for stuff like this; it saved me having to watch a video or, god forbid, try and do Asuka's arcade mode myself. Below is a link to the wiki page I pulled Asuka's stuff from - please check it out cause I didn't even come close to covering the full depth of what's talked about in his Arcade mode story and also because the wiki is glorious and deserves love:

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theboytatu · 9 months

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anon back from a week ago re: bbh being a messy bitch who likes drama and his ability to shape his fans opinions. still would love your take on this topic if you don't mind

i am sooo sorry omg i have the attention span of an alcoholic toddler!!!! yes ok so I don't have that many examples on hand because i'm not a library of exo content, all my bookmarks on twt are a mess ugh

but re: manipulation and what i would actually call being an expert at exploiting an atmosphere but everyone else calls being an attention whore

exhibit A: him "drunk texting" fans on bubble during exo fanmeet in april. mind you this was right in the middle of the legal battle with SM which we had no idea about at the time. fans were so emotional - first exo performance as a full group in over 3 years, baekhyun fresh off his military life, yadda yadda yadda - he was pretty drunk from the post concert dinner the group had. yet later we found out idols need to review messages THREE TIMES before sending anything on bubble lmao 😭 i'm not saying he was faking it - i'm saying even drunk he knew exactly what these texts were gonna do to the fans. he is that good at riling people up like that + preemptively digging his parasocial nails into the fandom cause he knew shit was about to hit the fan.... I love his mind

exhibit B: the most recent example and something that had me crawling up the walls. i'm not saying he faked it or that he planned to fall asleep on purpose during a livestream, i completely believe baekhyun is careless and overworked enough to do that. what makes me scream into a pillow is the way he was UNFAZED by that shit when he woke up. had his manager blowing up his phone asking him to wake up and +40k people hearing him moan in his sleep and he woke up and stayed in the livestream. FOR 30 MORE MINUTES. he laughed it off and started joking teasing people etc etc like he genuinely dgaf.

might I add this pattern of starting twitter lives early in the morning only started after the comeback which i think is very interesting. i dont think its a coincidence at all but i need to gather my thoughts on that

exhibit C: not manipulative per se but this fucking clip is so insane to me i love how the worst things happened to exo completely unprompted it's like seeing an episode of the office. anyway baekhyun taking one for the team and distracting fans with his silly little dance.. THAT'S RIGHT HE'S THE GUY THAT STEPPED UP. and i think it showcases his quick thinking and social skills perfectly cause the rest of these men were frozen in place with half their asses out but baek just took it like a champ lol. he just wants to be seen <3 and told he's done a good job <3 give him all the praises please

exhibit D: this horrible fucking live. just baekhyun as a whole in superm.... like he's not dumb he knew nctzens were eating him up and shipping him w taeyong and what did he do? he went ahead and gave them exactly what they wanted.. while wrapping taeyong around his little finger might I add. now i think irl baekhyun and taeyong aren't that close, they're like those friends from work that you genuinely like but it's not someone you would seek out outside of pretty specific social settings. but baekhyun isn't fucking stupid he knew nctzens were a segment of kpop fans he could tap into and either turn into his own fans or he could get slapped in the face by exols turning on him.

anyways this is so fucking long im sorry to ppl following me i'm on mobile and can't make a read more. no one cares about the weird things i only notice about baekhyun but yes there's more to it i just dont have links for most things... but there's not a lot of specific examples idk once you notice it you just watch content with baekhyun and it becomes pretty clear.

#asks #baekhyun

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oldcoyote · 3 months

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thetimesinbetween replied to your post:

(1) please feel free to utterly disregard any/all of this!

(2) i saw this and my heart & soul squeezed because that fucking SUCKS, that breaks my heart, and i want to. like. stuff you in a burlap sack and throw you over my shoulder and take off running. GET OLDCOYOTE OUTTA THERE <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

(3) your brain might be straight-up, like, panicking/sabotaging your happiness in hopes of re-establishing whatever emotional state it has decided is safe. (the vibe: “oh, you’re feeling HAPPY? don’t you know it’s NOT SAFE to be happy? if you’re HAPPY, what NEXT? if you’re HAPPY, then you’re CAPABLE, you’ll have to DO [SOME SCARY THING]. AND you’ll have to do [WHATEVER] and in order to do [THAT THING], you’ll have to BE VULNERABLE.” and so on and so on.)

(4) to be clear, i could absolutely be wrong about this!!! it’s your brain!!! *my* brain loves to do this shit and in my opinion IT IS THE FUCKING WORST.

(5) ok i am currently in a DBT skills group. (this is where me and like 8 other people who are also Severely Struggling and #mentallyill all get together and learn from our 2 intrepid and deeply gay instructors how the fuck to cope, in practical ways, with being alive. and perhaps even. like. build lives we enjoy.) anyway, so, in this group, i learned about a (frankly sort of mindblowing) mechanism called “opposite action.” which is basically a way to decrease the intensity of an emotion.

important caveat: opposite action only really works when (a) you yourself WANT to decrease the intensity of the emotion in the first place, (b) the emotion in question isn’t, like, totally aligned with reality in the first place OR, even if it is aligned with reality, acting on it still wouldn’t help you. (like, imagine this sort of thing: ’ugh it totally makes sense that i feel this way, and it totally makes sense that feeling this way makes me want to do X, but doing X is really REALLY not gonna help me right now, fuuuUUUUUCK.’)

wow. i am not an expert. this is hard to explain. i looked for youtube videos on this for like. half an hour minimum. and they all sucked. YIKES. ✌️sdfsas;kjsasdfs. so, if you are fascinated and/or this seems useful, here is a uhhh fuckin pdf full of charts and bulleted lists: static1.squarespace.com…

if you start on p. 251 of the PDF (“Overview: Changing Emotional Responses”), that should actually properly explain what i’m talking about. I wish I could beam knowledge that I have directly into your brain bc opposite action is very cool actually, and i have done it multiple times and found it helpful, but i am literally linking you to a textbook rn i am so sorry lmao. again please feel free to ignore this :’) <3 <3

(6) in conclusion, absolutely fuck anything sabotaging your joy. you were HAPPY!!! you LOVED doing this thing!!! i want to be like, “i bet you are not stupid actually and also i remember liking your writing, way back when, and i bet it is not bad so THERE,” but like. that doesn’t even matter!!! you could write and then never reread it and never share it, and if it made you enjoy being alive, that’s already Everything.

loving something you are doing while you are doing it…that’s the juicy fucking meat of life!!!!! i am glad you had that & i hope you will have it again & i trust that you will. and just generally i’m rooting for you <3 okay goodnight <3 /end

bless you for all of this, and for the link, i will absolutely check it out and see if it works for me! it sounds SUPER useful and god might be exactly what i need because these emotions are Not Serving Me at all and i want them taken out and shot fjkdls i just want to feel like i used to feel about all this but i don't think that will come until i can write, and publish, and have people read it and be like This Is Not Awful Actually but in order to get there i have to be brave enough to put it out there and I am NOT right now i am a snivelling mess

anything that can help me get out of the snivelling mess stage is more than welcome <3 and beyond that, just, thank you so much for taking the time to say all this it made my day and makes me feel so much better already

#thetimesinbetween #replies

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shellsinadune · 1 year

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How I clean myself while chronically ill

For reference: My main disabilities related to hygiene are POTS, ME/CFS (moderate-severe), and cognitive/executive functioning disabilities (due to ME/CFS, autism, and a dissociative disorder). This is not universal, it's just how I do it. You might or might not find this helpful, I've just found that it is for me specifically.

So, you've recently found yourself unable to shower the way you usually do. You've just been finding yourself overwhelmed every time you think about getting in, even with a shower chair. That's rough, buddy. Fortunately, you're not the only one, and while I am by no means an expert, I have experience with this. So here's how I do it, free for you to adapt as you like.

Are you ready? OK, let's begin.

[TL;DR: Use shower wipes, micellar water, and a fine toothed comb to keep your body as clean as possible without needing to get out of bed or using water. This contains a list of what I use, steps for ordering things, and a completely opinion-based section on haircare. The most important point is to use different wipes for the following: (1) torso, (2) left arm, (3) right arm, (4) left leg, (5) right leg, (6) genitalia and butt - front to back.]

Editing to add something I forgot, but it's important enough to put above the read more: make sure to seal your wipes and put your caps back on. Just spilled the micellar water on my bed.

Step 1: The Supplies

Shower wipes. Getting specific ones for showering (brand doesn't matter) is preferred, but any body safe wipe will do. Make sure at least one type is antibacterial, though.

Deodorant. I recommend nuud because I don't do this whole thing every day and this one works for up to a week (depending on what I'm doing), but again, use whatever works.

Micellar water. Any kind, as long as your skin likes it.

Cotton pads. If you're more able to do things like laundry and don't have memory problems that might cause you to forget them in the washing machine and run out, use reusable ones, but I use disposable.

Moisturiser. Again, whichever you want. (At this point, add whatever other skincare items you like to use, I just want this to be over as quickly as possible.)

A fine toothed comb. Ideally a wooden louse/nit comb if you can find one. (Only applies if you want to follow Step 4.)

Any extras. For me, that's lip balm, lotion, wide nail clippers, and antibacterial hand wipes.

Bonus round for doing this in bed: a container to put all this in, a rubbish bin near your bed that you can reach while sitting in it.

Step 2: Cleansing

(It doesn't matter whether you do face or body first. I do body first, so that's the order I'm writing this in.)

Get the shower wipes out and open the container. If it helps to get them all out at the same time, take out 6. One is for your torso and neck, one is for each arm (do the actual arms first, then focus on the armpits), one is for each leg, and one is for your genitals and butt (in that order, wipe front to back). It's going to be a wipe-down, obviously, but try and be as thorough as possible. For me, the armpits are the biggest issue, so I hold the wipe on for up to a minute each before scrubbing until there's no smell.

I use two cotton pads for my face and neck, one for the left side and one for the right. Really, this one is just washing your face so it's up to you how you do it, but make sure to get behind the ears (I always forget with the shower wipes).

Step 3: The Leave-Ons

(For this one, order does matter, but only if you use the same deodorant as me.)

Do the rest of your facial skincare routine. For me, that's just moisturiser and lip balm, but if you want to use other stuff that's your prerogative.

I don't use lotion every time I do this because mine is really thick, but I always move my joints around with their full range of motion to see if anywhere feels tight and use it if I need to. This saves on energy.

Deodorant is always the last thing I put on because it's a finger-applied product. Ignore that if you use something else.

[Step 3.5: Get Dressed]

Step 4: Hair (or, the opinion piece)

This is probably the most out-there advice I have. If your hair is unrelaxed type 4, sorry, I can't help you.

So I'm describing a product-free method that was used in the middle ages to keep hair clean(er). If your hair is long, you might want to have hairbands, bobby pins if you want, and, if we're being really historically accurate, some kind of cap made out of cotton or linen. I don't use any of those, though, and it works, but mine is short so I have no idea how your hair will react. I don't do this often, only twice a week after at least two weeks have passed since washing my hair. Do this as often as your energy and comfort permit.

Take the comb and brush each piece of hair from directly at the scalp to the very ends in one motion. This takes the oils away from the scalp and gives moisture to the ends at the same time, so unless you have very dry hair, you won't have to use conditioner. It also exfoliates the scalp, if that's something you care about. Do this for 15 minutes or as long as you have the energy for it. (Fun fact: this practice is where the idea that 'brushing your hair with 100 strokes a day makes it silky and smooth' comes from.)

For long hair: braid/plait it to avoid tangling. If you want to put it up, pin it to your head in whatever configuration you want.

The cap lifts things like sweat off your head and makes sure dust and stuff doesn't get on your hair, which keeps it cleaner. A completely optional step, but it's nice so I thought I'd include it anyways.

My hair is type 3a, so I know this sounds very counterintuitive to a lot of type 3 people, but we aren't going for looks, we're going for feeling cleaner (for me, it kind of just goes wavy, not frizzy at all, but I do wait a while before doing it). This is based off a European practice (AKA designed for white people's hair), so if you know of a different way to keep hair clean that works better for your hair, do that instead.

I don't use dry shampoo because it's messy, and honestly unless I'm doing the above, I just wait until I'm well enough to shower.

The End

OK, so that's how I do hygiene. If you're going to take away anything from this post, please let it be the areas of the body each shower wipe should cover. Any less than that (at a stretch you could combine the leg ones) and you could be at risk of getting germs where they shouldn't be or just wiping them around without cleaning them.

Happy not-showering! I hope the rest of your day goes well.

#i don't usually make formal posts like this i'm nervous #but i thought it could be helpful to someone #disability tag #chronic illness #hygiene tips #spoonie #chronic illness tips #ask to tag

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theres-a-bea · 2 years

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Dimonds are a (material) gworl's best friend pt.1

a.k.a. engagement ring slander with the tot boys ft. the round brilliant diamond cut and the slander it DESERVES

tw!: swearing! very hot takes on how the rings should've looked like, because i've seen thousands of engagement rings to keep my mouth shut about the rings mihoyo just gave us + swearing!

link to pt. 2 - here!

ok maybe i lied when i said i was "completely satisfied cos they're all pretty", and yea sure they were pretty but Vyn's and Luke's rings were done dirty.

Listen, I know jewellery. I have years of experience of sticking my nose against glass displays in pawnshops and antique jewellery stores, and I was pissed at the lack of creativity on the diamond cuts on their part so Vyn's ring ended up looking basic as fuck and Luke's only minutely slayed instead of the full slay it was supposed to be giving, so here's a tumblr post version of a fix-it fic but for rings instead of characters, and which diamond cuts would've done their chosen ring designs justice:

note: based on personal opinion, i am no design expert, this is simply just a hot take because i'm TIRED of seeing beautiful designs being fucked up by the round brilliant cut when there are literally 108302840293 ways to cut a mf diamond like okay it's classic, sure, but that doesn't mean it looks good with every single design there is.

Vyn Richter

Now this, was the one design that pissed me off the most.

A little cliché, but beautiful, if not for the goddamn round brilliant cut that made it look like every other motherfucking flower-themed engagement ring you could find within two seconds on pinterest. Try it, i'm not shitting you. The base design pops up on the top two results. It pisses me off because it's giving tumblr 2014-2016, basic bitch trying to be quirky era with the round cut. Rosa's marrying into royalty, for fuck's sake, there should at least be some variety.

This design's saving grace:

Duchess cut (l), Spike cut (r). Right in the centre, maybe a little asymmetrical in positioning, with a silly lil tilt (like miss ariana's engagement ring), 100% would've improved it with the flowers to the side of the diamond. The cuts give off Vyn's vibe for some reason. I know he'd pick these to go with the ring's design and not the round brilliant cos he has taste. Also change one or two of the sidestones to teeny little emeralds, if Luke and Marius could add coloured gems to theirs, why not add some? Those little diamonds as leaves? swap them with marquise-cut emeralds. Adorable.

Lick Luke Pearce

Cutest motherfucking design. the sentiment, the symbolism, slay. The round brilliant cut?

Minute slay. Not even a half slay. A minute slay.

At this point it is well established that I am a round brilliant cut slanderer. As I should be. Like come on, look at the design, this is ADORABLE, yet the round cut ruined it. I also don't get what's going on to the side, but if we're going to make this a mock tension-traditional hybrid ring with the key to one side and whatever the hell it is on the other side, then we better do it right.

The Full Slay factor givers:

Asscher cut (l), hexagonal step cut (r). for the full slay. As an Asscher cut whore, I personally think tension-type mounts are uglee when paired with the round brilliant cut, but with these cuts and their pointy sides pointing upward and not to the side, they would give what they're supposed to be giving with Luke's tension type-looking design. Plus, they remind me of cute little clocks.

edit: just woke up, turns out i was delirious and luke's isn't actually a tension mount. The diamond cuts stay the same tho i think they'd look cute with the initial design

pt. 2 coming up with Marius and Artem because i have a lot more engagement ring slander up my sleeve.

#tears of themis #2nd anniversary #engagement rings #diamond cuts #engagement ring slander #vyn richter #mo yi #yun noa #moritsuki rei #lick pearce #i mean #luke pearce #xia yan #gang hyeok #minase natsuhiko

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mumblesplash · 2 years

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in your opinion, which american sunscreens are the best for defeating the sun then? i honestly don't even know where to start when looking for a daily sunscreen

sO firstly, disclaimer: not an expert, just kinda hyperfixated on sunscreen rn for some fucking reason

but ok with that out of the way the thing is there's a few layers to this.

there's two main categories of sunscreen, physical and chemical.

physical sunscreens include inorganic filters like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. these are FDA approved, photostable, and provide broad-spectrum UV protection*. however, these ingredients tend to leave a white cast behind on your skin and in my experience feel disgusting. if you're not bothered by these drawbacks and/or need a cheaper option these types of sunscreen work perfectly fine and are available in basically any drugstore in the US

chemical sunscreens (usually) leave no white cast and can be much more comfortable to wear provided they don't irritate your skin, but are more likely to contain ingredients that aren't photostable. this list covers most of them and how stable they are if you want to really inspect the ingredients list on a sunscreen you're trying out.

however this page from the skincareAddiction subreddit has a very handy list of resources for finding the right sunscreen and a list of recommendations to look through (pictures included bc i literally never click links in posts lmao)

a lot of these recs are imports and do contain some ~fancier~ chemical filters the FDA hasn't approved yet, but obviously they tend to be more expensive for it. my current favorite sunscreen is the Nivea Sun Protect Super Water Gel. i may have to order it all the way from japan but it feels like Literally Nothing and i am therefore actually willing to put it on my face every day. i’ve learned from years of trying that my brain simply will not allow me to form a sunscreen wearing habit if wearing sunscreen makes my face feel gross. is this picky and high maintenance of me? who cares, there's no reward waiting at the end of discomfort and self-discipline is a myth peddled by the bourgeoisie to sell more oligarchs. at least i actually use this stuff

*another big gripe i have with US sunscreens is that they're not required to specify their level of UVA protection. something labeled 'spf 50' is only referring to UVB protection and doesn't cover UVA at all unless the label specifies 'full spectrum', which tells you there's at least some UVA protection but not how much

#Topsy Mumblesplash Becomes Suddenly Passionate About Sunscreen: the saga #new episodes every time i learn of a new disgusting injustice plaguing the sunscreen world #splashasks #anonymous

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lmelodie · 1 year

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I have only one (1) thought about fusion AU that's been replaying in my head for a while. A very specific plot bunny that I probably won't write in full but it has captivated me, so i’m going to tell you about it!

Of course it's BlackIce centric, Julians time to shine is now!

Jack and Jacqueline went out on this mission but just happened to stumble upon Killian cause he was just there.

But a vague magical threat ambushes them, Jacqueline nearly gets swiped so they both try and save her at the same time resulting in Julian. Who doesn't actually know he’s fused for a while cause he’s taking care of the immediate threat.

And after the fight, Jacqueline has TO TELL THEM that they are currently fused.

Julian: Mind equations meme

Julian: OH FUCK!

They promptly have a little freak out about it, literally arguing with himself, only saying how much he literally doesn't wanna be here.

But when they try and unfuse, multiple times, it doesn't work.

Jacqueline’s like, can you unfuse?

Julian: Nope. Looks like we can't. Don’t worry this always happens whenever we fuse it's fine.

And Jacqueline is like, What? That doesn’t sound right, even Jack himself knows that unfusing should be the easy part??

And Julian is like It’s fine, when I say this happens all the time I mean it. Whenever I get stuck the only thing we can do is just kinda wait it out until the components are too physically exhausted from sustaining the fusion and they break apart and pass out. Jack usually does a sprite sleep afterwards.

And Jacqueline is like >:O WTF?? THAT'S NOT HEALTHY! There's gotta be an easier way to untangle yourself.

And Julian is like, nope. Haven't found another way to do it. Just gotta wait it out unfortunately.

But Jacqueline isn’t having it and is like Ok what if i try and tire you out myself, and speed run the process. I mean you’re the epitome of two middle aged men stacked together in a trench coat (literally) how hard can this be? So she tries to fight him.

But surprise surprise, it’s harder than she thought considering that he has the raw power of TWO legendary figures. So when that doesn't work, she tries taking him back to frost manor to get the fam's opinion on how to unfuse them.

(I am not a Jacqueline expert and i don't know who she would most likely call in for a fusion problem, so this could all be replaced with another option besides the frost fam)

But the whole time he’s trying to leave for the city to cause CHAOS.

Julian: As long as we're going to be stuck like this, we might as well make it worth my while. I got a giant snake demon to unleash on the streets!

But even so, she takes him back to Frost Manor and is like, Help me fam idk what to do.

(Enter prose about how Julian can't fit and gets stuck in the doorway)

And Winter is like, hold on real quick gotta message your dad. Now that Julian is here he’s gotta call ahead to the fire department, law enforcement offices, mother nature. Just to give them a heads up, just in case.

Jacqueline's next idea is to get someone ELSE who has even MORE ENERGY than her to try and tire him out faster.

GET HIM FIRE!!

So the twins fuse and Fire tries their best, but I think them and Julian cause even MORE damage to the yard than ever thought possible. Julian tries to see how much ice they handle before their flames get put out.

Julian: Hey as long as you're gonna be on fire, make yourselves useful and light this will you? (offers cigarette)

But we have two options for possible endings:

1) Fire actually works their magic and wears him down enough for them to unfuse (with still a lot of difficulty) but they’re not even as worn as they usually are by the end!

2) Using Fire doesn't work and they have to call in fucking BLINTER to beat his ass into the ground. This is the more violent option and one that does require the Jack sprite sleep afterwards, in essence forcing them apart.

The entire time while they were fused, both of them tried not to peek into the other's mind. But these thoughts are hard to get rid of when you're sharing a headspace with someone else!

So coming unfused they now know, very unwillingly, just a little more about the other, and his point of view. (Maybe even like a feeling or two idk)

#nonart #text #cs au #fusion au #they both swear that they will never do that again #and then they promptly do that again at some point #plot bunny

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ajahan4321 · 2 years

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I am Afreen jahan.

Why would anyone want to blog? There are plenty of reasons. And it’s still a great time to get started. Check out this list and see some of the reasons why.

1. It’s fun and rewarding

Blogging is fun. I get to write about things I enjoy and I meet people online who share similar interests.

I spent most of my career sitting behind a computer. At one of my jobs we worked in a room with no windows that we called the cave. Don’t get me wrong – I love being behind a computer. But there isn’t much social interaction.I was going to flip my life on its head and do exactly the opposite of everything I’ve ever done:

• help people with their problems

• go to conferences and meet people

• talk to people (you don’t do that much as a programmer)

my entire outlook on life changed. I get to help people with their finances. I’m making a difference.

2. You’ll make new friends

I have made so many new friends I wouldn’t have met otherwise. It’s amazing! Relationships might start out as comments on a post, replying to a Tweet, or an email.

My virtual friends end up becoming people I hang out with who live close by, or people I see at conferences. I have a whole bunch of new people I’ve met that I consider friends.

Often you might feel alone –

Am I the only person out there that likes Tonkinese cats?

But if you start blogging about Tonkinese cats, suddenly other Tonkinese cat lovers find you. And because of your common interest, you quickly form a common bond.

Blogging is a great way to meet like-minded people that share your hobbies, beliefs, values, and goals.

3. You’ll learn new things

I am a life-long learner. When I lived in Atlanta, I would visit the library once a week, check out the new releases, and pick up any book that looked interesting.

The reason I love writing about personal finance is that there is so much to learn. From extreme couponing to 403(b) annuities to tax deductions through conservation easements (haven’t heard of that one, have you?)

No matter what subject you pick to write about – even if it’s you – there are new things to discover. Writing is just putting your thoughts to paper. You can have an opinion, observation, or just ask questions.

There is no need to become a research specialist when it comes to learning. Everything you could want to know is available online.

4. You’ll challenge yourself

I am an introvert. What was surprising to me at the last conference I attended were how many people stood up in front of a room full of people and said:

• I am an introvert.

• I am shy.

Blogging is a way to break through the limiting beliefs that are holding you back from experiencing your best life.

If you want to remain behind the scenes and write for the pure joy of it – that’s ok too! Nothing says you have to do a road tour and meet all of your readers.

But everyone I’ve heard from and talk to say the same thing:

Getting out of my comfort zone and putting myself out there was the best decision I ever made.

5. You can grow a business

In just 18 months of blogging here is a list of the amazing opportunities I’ve had:

• Speaking at a big financial conference

• Being interviewed on the radio

• Being interviewed on dozens of podcasts with a reach of hundreds of thousands of listeners

• I’ve been quoted countless times in online publications, including Forbes and U.S. News & World Report

All of these help build my brand and grow my business.

6. You can save on taxes

You won’t find this reason mentioned except on a personal finance blog.

Blogging is a business. When you make money from it, you become a business owner.

There is a different tax code for business owners, and the benefits are HUGE.

Now I do not claim to be a tax expert (I am probably compared to you, but I’m not going to do your taxes). I’ve been a small business owner since 2000. The number of deductions you can take if you own a business compared to a non-business owner is incredible.

If I find a relevant business conference in Orlando (Disneyworld!) I can write-off all my travel expenses (not for my kids, but my food, plane ticket, lodging, etc.).

Because I have a home office, I deduct 10% of all my utilities as a business expense (my office makes up 10% of the size of my house).

If you run your business expenses through a credit card, you can accumulate points for free benefits. My wife and I have flown to Hawaii and stayed one week at the Four Seasons – for free. It was paid for with credit card points we accumulated from legitimate business expenses.

You can end up with thousands of dollars in deductions.

I do want to point out there are IRS rules for having a legitimate business. I won’t get into them here. Bottom line – if you start a blog, and your blog starts making money – you have a business.

Seek out a tax expert so you can take advantage of the tax benefits of being a small business owner.

7. You have something to say

That’s right – you have something to say! Everyone does.

Right now you might be wondering – what should I blog about?

Tomorrow I’ll give you a sure-fire way to find the one thing you’ll love to write about.

8. To have financial freedom

While this guide is about how to make money blogging, money is just a tool to achieve your goals in life.

People can tell in your writing if you are passionate about something. You could make a lot of money blogging about fashion for example. But if you aren’t fashionable or don’t care much for fashion, you’re much less likely to succeed. And you want to succeed, right?

There are dozens of things I could have blogged about and made a lot more money, but I like helping people with their money. One guy put it appropriately –

You’re going to start a business that helps broke people who don’t have any money to pay you?

Yes. Because for me, the opportunities to build a profitable business extend beyond helping those who may be broke.

Blogging is a path to financial freedom. Like any other job, it will take time and effort. However being a blogger, you’re in the driver’s seat. You’re the boss. You work as much or as little as you want.

Action items

Every part in this series includes one small, manageable step. So are you ready to get started?

All I want you to do is write down the reasons you want to blog. You can certainly pick more than one!

Writing for writing’s sake (journaling) is great to record your life and events. But if you want to be a successful blogger and achieve some of those things in the list I mentioned, you need to know your Big Why.

Knowing your Big Why is what’s going to motivate you to follow through and take each daily action.

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smallfrenchstudyblr · 3 years

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hey! you seem like you're a really good TA (? idk if that's the right term but you seem to have some prof/teacher tasks?) and i was wondering how you got the confidence to do that? i'm basically on your level of education but i wouldn't think i was smart/capable enough to judge other students' writing and stuff, i feel like one of them more than one of the teachers if you get what i mean. do you have any advice?

Hello !

That is such a thoughtful question - and I am sure all postgrads who suddendly have to start teaching feel the same at the beginning. In my opinion, it is a fairly healthy mindset to have, as long as it does not inhibit your own teaching and remain just some healthy awareness that, hey, you are still learning many things yourself.

I am very touched you think I am a good TA - I hope I manage to be a helpful one at least.d I definitely still often wonder "am I qualified to teach this ? To... grade this ? Who am I to say whether this is good work or not?" But here are a few thingsm coming both from my experience so far and my discussions with other TA, which could maybe be of help to you (each developed under the cut)

1. You know more than your students, and that will be enough to help them.

2. Teaching is a two way street : you are not lecturing to them, you are working with them.

2bis : Give constant verbal feedback to your students !

3. Your own experience of being an Undergrad may not be the best point of reference

4. Talk to other TAs ! You all face the same issues !

5. Try out things, and if they do not work, it's fine.

6. Organize your session alternating moments where you take the lead, and moments where students take the lead.

7. Help, My students are not talking !

8. Grading is tough, but we can make it easier.

I hope they will be of help, but no worries, it takes practice, trial and errors, and time will help you figure it out. Do not hesitate to come back here if you have any question or something you want to discuss ! (And tell me how your teaching went, I would love to hear it!)

1. You know more than your students, and that will be enough to help them.

It means you do not have to be an expert in the topic you teach. You may even just be familiar with it. But by virtue of being a postgrad student, you know how to do the reading effectively, you will get very quickly what is important, what to retain from this or that reading. And you just need to know more than your students. Which you absolutely will.

I think being passionate, showing that you are excited about what you are teaching, giving them this energy, this interest, is much much more important than being a full-blown expert in your area.

2. Teaching is a two way street : you are not lecturing to them, you are working with them.

And that is not me being vaguely pseudo-inspiration ; it is something I have learnt and truly realized when I took a course on teaching. There is much literature on this, but the take-away is that especially as a TA, it is helpful if you see your job as working with students. Engage with them, offer them different options to choose from during the session, explain that you are here to support their learning, and give them some space to have some agency over what happens ! Trust them to at least try their best - many are!- and they will trust you in return, and will be more likely to give you some feedback.

2bis : Give constant verbal feedback to your students !

This does not come easy to me, but students NEED to be told when they said something good ! Because if you do not tell them explicitely, how would they know that, hey, this was a pretty cool comment !

But also, be clear when answer or a point raised is not relevant or wrong, because it also guides their understand of the topic. "Ok, I can see why you would say that, but it's actually abit trickier...". "Ah, yes, it is very interesting that you raise it, it is a common misunderstanding and I am glad you are pointing it out, because it is an interesting discussion to have!"

3. Your own experience of being an Undergrad may not be the best point of reference

When I started teaching, I made the mistake of thinking "ok, what sort of TA/tutorial do I wish I had, in Undergrad?", and went with what I know I would have enjoyed. Except I am a passionate nerdy introvert who hated talking to my peers and doing group works, and wanted a TA who was no-bullshit, clear, professional. Most of your students are probably not, and may indeed enjoy group work, or the opportunity to connect with their peers during your tutorial. Most of your students will appreciate a TA who is more forthcoming, friendly, and may crack a joke or two. And it is a weird role to have, it may clash with your personality (it definitely clashes with mine), but it's ok if it takes time to find the right zone for you ! It is absolutely part of the process !

4. Talk to other TAs ! You all face the same issues !

Pooling experience with other TAs is fantastic. Because no matter what issue you are facing, one of them faced it already. How do you teach in the shitty Room 605 where the computer does not work ? How do they deal with students who do not do the readings ? How to they handle lack of motivation from students ? What sort of group work do they organize ? Who sort of online tools do they rely on ? How do they deal with all the emails they get ? And on that note...

5. Try out things, and if they do not work, it's fine.

Do not be afraid to try things. I tend to stay away from "complex" activities which can confuse students, or rely too much on technology. But group work ? There are so many types of group work ! Why stick to just the "think of this question in group of 3 for 5 minutes", when you could do a syndicate, snowballing, 2-minutes essay, fishbowl, think-pair-share, buzz groups...

And sometimes, it will not work. Just... a bad session. And you feel that it's on you, that you did not manage to do your work, that you are a bad teacher... And refer to Point 2. Then, calmly, talk about it with another TA. Explain what you did, and try to get their opinion on it, reflect on it. But it is never all on you.

6. Organize your session alternating moments where you take the lead, and moments where students take the lead.

Teaching is exhausting, learning is exhausting, genuinely, so balance out moments where you do the heavy work, and moments where they do. I like to have a rough session plan with all the activities I have planned, and indicate for each if it is "ME", "STUDENTS", "ALL". And also ensure that your students are given the opportunity to really take an active role, which is way better for learning !

7. Help, my students are not talking :

This will happen. You will ask a question, no one will answer. Big, awkward, heavy silence. You reformulated the question, but clearly it is not working. Here are a few ways I have reacted to it :

- Show of hands 1 : for a quick diagnosis. "Can you raise your hand if you have done the reading for this question ? Just so I know if this is maybe the problem". Encourage the ones who have done the readings to explain it to the others.

- Show of hands 2 : "Ok, there are two ways to answer this question X and Y. Can you raise you hand if you think Y, and lower it if you think X?". Encourage some who picked Y to explain why, then same with X.

- Show of hands 3 : "Ok, let's lower the pressure. Who thinks they kind of have an answer, but is not sure about how to word it, or properly argument it?". Ask whoever raise their hand to start, and pick up yourself from there.

- Switch to think-pair-share : "Ok, how about we think a bit about this on our own for a few minutes, and then you can compare your own answers with your neigbour"

- Collapse the classroom : "Ok, I can see that this is not working. It's ok, can you tell me if it is because the topic is not super interesting, or the reading ? Are the questions not what you expected?"

- End of the session clear-up : [once everything is over] "Ok, so now that the session is over, can I ask you guys why it was difficult for you to talk today ? Just so I can make sure I can come up with questions that are useful to you, next time. If some of you want to stay a few minutes to talk about what you would like to change for the next tutorials, we can talk about it now ; you don't have to, of course"

8. Grading is tough, but we can make it easier.

Especially if you are grading things like essays, we can often feel uneasy, unsure how to grade them, how legitimate we are to grade them, especially with the sheer impact grades can have on students. Ideally, you want to have a list of things that are PLUS POINTS, and perhaps some that are MINUS POINTS, and have those strictly guide your grading, to be fair to all students and assess them similarly. I also found that it is helpful to grade the paper, only the paper. When there is a really, really bad essay where clearly the student barely tried, it's easy to get frustrated, because you did your best, and clearly the student did not care ? But you never actually know what happened. Real examples of students submitting absolutely terrible work include : a student who was grieving her mother, a student who had been in hospital and did not know she could ask for a delay, an adult student whose child had gotten sick the days before, a foreign student with a poor grasp on English... When you are grading the 78th essay of the week, it is easy to forget that each of them is from an individual, and we get to judge the work they do, but not why they did it. Even in your comments and feedback, always be compassionate.

#life as a TA #teaching #University #phdblr #gradblr

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the-seas-song · 3 years

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Richard Armitage and Astrology

Hi! I find astrology fascinating, and am an armchair expert on it myself, so I found Richard's comments in his recent Total Film Magazine interview very interesting. This is what he said:

I’ve been incredibly lucky. I’ve dabbled with having my celestial chart looked at every couple of years, just for a little tune-up. Every time, the guy sighs, and goes, “What can I say? You’ve just got a sprinkle of luck.” And I say, “That’s good, because I don’t have the talent, so I really need the luck!”

[cut]

There is a naughty, dark side to me. I am quite strongly affected by the moon. So if there’s a full moon I’ll go a bit crazy. (source)

This isn't the first time Richard's mentioned astrology – he's mentioned being a Leo, reading his daily horoscope, and finding out he was born in the Chinese Year of the Pig; but these were all informal twitter comments. He has also mentioned the effect the moon has on him before, in February 2020:

“Everyone has cycles of positive mental and emotional feelings and negative mental and emotional feelings and I know that I am profoundly affected on a monthly cycle. I always look at the calendar when I'm feeling particularly low and check the lunar cycle to see if it's a full or new moon.” (source)

However, what prompted me to write this is that Richard's personal put-downs were even more direct here than usual; and the connection that has to his natal, or birth, chart.

A little disclaimer: Personally, I think general horoscopes (like the ones you find in magazines) do far more harm than good. They are based solely on the twelve sun signs, and your sun sign is just one puzzle piece out of 25+ pieces that make up your natal chart. This is why many people don't relate to their horoscope or it's personality description.

Your natal chart, however, is a whole different animal. It's an intricate puzzle created by the exact date, time, and location you were born; which is why most people find their natal charts to be scarily accurate.

Back during the Hobbit days, a fan blog reported that Richard told a NZ fan that his birth time was just after 4 a.m. I used 4:05 for this post, and being off by a few minutes doesn't really make a difference.

Richard and self-esteem

I really feel for and relate to Richard's self-esteem struggles, because our charts mirror each other. We are both Leo suns; but I have my moon in Aries with my MC and Chiron conjunct each other in Virgo and sextile my North Node; while Richard has his moon in Virgo with his MC and Chiron conjunct each other in Aries and sextile his North Node.

What on earth does that mean?

Each planet represents a different part of you. The sun represents your ego/conscious self; the moon your emotions, mercury your mind/intellect, venus love and beauty/aesthetics, mars passion and drive, etc.

On top of the twelve planets, there are specific points and asteroids that are also important. Your MC, or Midheaven, represents your career and public persona. Your North Node describes your inner journey and life purpose. The asteroid Chiron describes your major soul wound, that you will be forced to deal with throughout your life.

A conjunction and a sextile are two of several different kinds of aspects. The different kinds of aspects are the different ways your respective puzzle pieces can interact with each other. Some are 'easy/positive' and some 'difficult/negative'. A sextile is considered easy/positive. A conjunction means two things are next to each other and overlap with one another, and is usually considered positive.

Leo and Aries are both fire signs. Fire signs are generally playful, warm, passionate, confident, and optimistic. Virgo is an earth sign. Earth signs are generally practical, grounded, sensual, and logical.

Richard's personality is dominated by an almost equal amount of Leo and Virgo influence, with both his sun (core self) and venus (love and beauty) in Leo and his moon (emotions) and mercury (mind) in Virgo.

Aries and Virgo are said to be the most difficult Chiron signs, because they are the wounds tied directly to your self-worth (Aries is the wound of Self and Virgo is the wound of Perfection). With Aries Chiron you feel a core sense of worthlessness, like you're missing a fundamental piece of your core self. This deeply felt lack of self-worth leads people to be people pleasers and have issues with confrontation and conflict.

Aries rules the planet mars. It is the warrior planet of passion, drive, and combat. A conventional Aries is confident, outgoing, impulsive, and strong willed. Aries and mars are definitely the rowdiest sign and planet in the zodiac. However, with Chiron here the traits are inverted, and so someone like Richard is much more likely to be scared of his inner passion, confidence, and willpower – depending, of course, on what the rest of his chart is like.

That leads us to Virgo. Chiron Virgo feels impure, like there is something fundamentally wrong with them. This kind of low self-esteem makes you feel like you have to constantly try to 'fix' yourself so people will love and accept you. It's an OCD type of perfectionism that only ends in failure and heartbreak.

A good example of how this works is when I talked to my therapist recently. I hadn't quite succeeded in meeting my goals, and so my automatic response was to condemn myself for failing. My therapists immediate response was to congratulate me on how much progress I had made.

Ironically, unlike with Aries, this isn't an inversion of the conventional Virgo. Conventional Virgo is meticulous, detail-oriented, focused, patient, efficient, practical, perfectionistic, systematic, and pessimistic with high expectations. If Aries is the official warrior of the zodiac, Virgo is the official nit-picker.

This means that Richard's subconscious intellectually (mercury) and emotionally (moon) expects and demands perfection, whilst simultaneously feeling fundamentally worthless. In short: ouch.

Interestingly, a significant number of celebrities have their Chiron conjunct their MC. Personally, I think Richard hit the nail on the head as to why in his essay on the Human Condition for Cybersmile:

The answer in my humble opinion, (and believe me it is humble, to a point of taking 43 years to be shared) is actually something which applies to my work as an actor. It’s why sometimes actors are called in to work with therapists, in large corporations, in schools. It’s why drama therapy is fantastic to understand what we do, how we do it and what the outcome might be, and in an improvisation where we aren’t playing ourselves sometimes we explore avenues that are too frightening or unacceptable in our own lives.

[cut]

So going back to my very first point, the “social media society” in which we’d all like to feel safe, supported, excited, creative, spontaneous, innovative, courageous, is really in our own hands. And back to acting, it’s taken me a long time to shake off the effects of bullying in school. That people were always laughing behind my back. I was always looking out of the corner of my eye. I now have incredible peripheral vision which is so useful, (as is Kinesthetic sense…Google it) but try being a brave, experimental, uninhibited actor with all of those hang ups. Wasn’t happening.

So here is the thing, and it’s key to my work and I think ours as a community. When we speak or write, we ultimately desire to ‘affect’. If we aren’t watching the destination of that affect, then how do we know our words have landed and the ‘effect’ they have caused?

[cut]

If I have a strong opinion about something which I want to express I really task myself with backing it up with the ‘why do I feel that?’

Again it’s part of my work building a believable character, and actually part of building a believable ‘me’ outside of my work. Just.. “because that’s what I feel” is a bit of a cop out.

[cut]

As for Bullying, it’s like the moment the pot boils over, or it’s the poisoned stream that can’t be cleansed, so why bother. Well I think that’s what art is for. It’s can support the best and the worst of ourselves. We can ‘attack’ a canvas with black angry paint, we can ‘savage’ a piano keyboard, we can dance until we drop, we can read about a Puritan society who executed elders, we can explore the psychology of a serial killer, and when we can’t do this ourselves we can experience it, and witness it through others.

It’s more than being nice. Edward Munch’s “The Scream” is far from nice. Francisco Goya’s “Saturn” is horrific, Metallica, Die Antwoort etc etc. But then there is Monet, Faure, Renée Fleming, Peter Jackson, Ariana Grande (ok it’s getting a bit eclectic I admit) but when we look, listen and empathize, we tune in to the Human Condition.

We are all part of The Human Condition, whether we like it or not. Social Media. Expression. The Human Condition.

Us human beings are wired for emotion and connection. For actors, their career gives them a way to safely process and explore their personal wounds through the characters they play. For Richard in particular, his mars is conjunct his North Node. So, his mars and North Node are sextile his Chiron and MC.

Remember, Aries (the sign of Richard's Chiron and MC) is ruled by mars. Mars is the warrior planet, like Aries is the warrior sign. This means that Richard's spiritual journey/life's purpose (North Node) deals directly with healing his soul wound so he can accept and embrace his inner confidence and willpower. This explains why he ends up playing a lot of ultra-masculine characters – mars/Aries are the most macho of them all.

This isn't to say I think Richard should change who he is! I wouldn't be interested in him if he was ultra-masculine or macho. However, for his own sake, I would be overjoyed to see him gain more self-esteem and inner confidence.

Extrapolating from my own personal experiences, the constant criticism and judgement I received during my adolescence from my peers and various authority figures (like family members and teachers) for being unconventional and 'over the top' caused me to turn on myself and repress my passion and will-power for several years. I think it's highly likely that Richard experienced this too.

Here are some quotes from Richard that illustrate everything I've been talking about (emphasis is mine):

Armitage is still notably handsome, but, within minutes of meeting him, it’s apparent how incongruous it is that this bookish, sensitive, self-described ‘melancholic, philosophically-minded softie’ and ardent fan of The Great British Bake Off was cast as beefcake killer totty for a considerable part of his career. ‘It’s ridiculous. It’s the complete opposite to who I am. I’m such a pacifist,’ he laughs. ‘But then, part of me always felt: “Well, isn’t that why we’re actors?”

[cut]

'I think the turning point was losing my mum,” he says. “Up until that point, I felt like I mustn’t put a foot wrong, that if I said the wrong thing or revealed too much about my personal life, it could all come crashing down, and it would come down on my parents, and they wouldn’t be proud of me anymore.” He shrugs. “Now that I’m past that I’m actually much more carefree about the choices I make.” (source)

Richard Armitage puts his head in his hands and emits a noise that's somewhere between a sigh, a laugh and a groan. “Oh no! Why would you want to pin this up?” he says with a horrified whisper.

[cut]

Never has a man seemed more ill at ease with the heartthrob label. He squirms with embarrassment in his chair every time the subject comes up. He is grateful for the loyalty of his fans, he says, but worries that “there is this thing of, 'Is he just totty?' Because the industry will sometimes write you off as a serious actor if they think that. I have always been conscious of that and fought against it, because I don't really see myself like that at all.”

[cut]

This brings us back to Astrov, who looks so relentless towards the future that he can't see the truth in front of his eyes. “It's interesting that he's an outsider in the play. I've often felt like that myself in life. I'm quite a solitary person. I enjoy my time with me, and sometimes it's not necessarily healthy, because I can talk myself into quite a dark place.

I'm an optimist, but at the same time, there's a discipline in me that will attack me for not working hard enough, not achieving enough, not being good enough. You always think, 'I'll grow out of that. With success, those voices will disappear.' But they don't, they get louder. I suppose I'm learning a bit about myself through Astrov.” (source)

The answer in my humble opinion, (and believe me it is humble, to a point of taking 43 years to be shared) is actually something which applies to my work as an actor. … And back to acting, it’s taken me a long time to shake off the effects of bullying in school. That people were always laughing behind my back. I was always looking out of the corner of my eye. I now have incredible peripheral vision which is so useful, (as is Kinesthetic sense…Google it) but try being a brave, experimental, uninhibited actor with all of those hang ups. Wasn’t happening. (Human Condition essay)

So I kind of travelled on that line for a while, and I was bullied for it as well. The problem with me is that as soon as you try to push me down or say “you can’t do this” and “I don’t think you should do that”, I immediately push back. So I did – I’d decided really young that I was going to try to make a career out of it.

[cut]

Actually, there was something I wanted to add to what Shaun said, about inclusivity, is that um, no matter how – how much confidence you have or how, in my case, lack. Y’know, I always felt like a misfit, or an oddball, or that I didn’t belong. But I always – I always told myself that ‘you exist in the world, so therefore there’s a place for you in this industry’. I think anybody who feels like, “I can’t become an actor because…” – you exist. And, y’know, the job of filmmakers is to write about our life and society, and if you are a part of that, then there’s a place for you in the industry. (source)

I'm a bit of a brooder. I don't like confrontation, so I think I suppress things. When my temper does come out, it goes all the way – the kind of temper you can't apologize for. Yep, the chair getting thrown out of the window. Those emotions are scary, but hey, they come in useful when you're acting. (source)

Armitage is a noticeably calm presence but he talks with passion.

[cut]

In the past, he has described himself as a shy person. “Not any more,” he says forcefully. “I mean… if I’m very, very honest, I’m a big guy, I think I’m at times quite a frightening person.”

In what way?

“I think I’m quite uncompromising. I can’t bear bulls---. And in a way the shyness is me protecting other people from that. I can feel that there’s an intimidation that can happen if I own my full height, and speak at my full volume. So I’ve learned over the years to just tone it all down a bit.” (source)

I've become one of those actors who find it difficult to say no when things are offered. I think if I had come out of drama school and been an instant Hollywood superstar I would be taking long, leisurely holidays. But I always feel somehow it's going to be taken away from me so I work when I can. When you struggled with work as I did when I left drama school you make hay when the sun shines. There was a time when I thought, and my agent thought, it wasn't going to happen for me. We both sat down and I actually said I don't know if I can stay in this state. The interesting roles have only come since I got into my 30s. But I didn't know that was going to happen. I'm a bit of an all or nothing kind of guy. To be honest, I had no blind faith in myself. I don't think I could have stayed around as a jobbing actor. I would probably have quit. Who knows? I think I would have found that too frustrating. But at the moment when I thought I was going to quit, something happened and it all changed again. (source)

[talking about being cast in the Hobbit]

There was a little bit of guidance as to what they were looking for. I felt that I was too young for the character, too tall for that character, so I thought, you know, ‘I’ll just look at the scene they’ve written’. And then I realised the essence of the character that they were aiming for. So I went to meet Peter and Phillipa and we read some of the scenes. I think we spent an hour-and-a-half talking about the character and what their vision was, and I sort of explained who I thought he was, and that was it.

[cut]

Yeah, my first instinct, whenever that kind of thing happens, is to say, 'Well what's wrong with the part? Why did nobody else want it'? Which is kind of the story of my life really. When I get offered something, I'm like, 'Well there must be something wrong with it if they're offering it to me!'

[cut]

But you know, the thing is, you talk about all of this: ‘How did you get the role? And how did it feel when you got the role?’ And once all that’s died down you start to think, ‘I’ve actually got to go and play this now’. They’ve trusted me. Everyone’s happy, everyone’s celebrated, the phones have gone down and the deal’s been done. Now it’s over to me to make the role work. And that’s the scariest moment, because you do have that elation and then the work begins and you think, ‘How the hell am I going to do this?’ (source)

How was it for you taking on this beloved role, this character that has such a huge responsibilty on his back? Could you relate in some ways?

Richard Armitage: Yeah. There is always building within him this paranoia that he’s not a good enough leader, and that weighs him down. I have experienced that same feeling as an actor in this role. And I was aware of taking on the responsibility of that character, so there was something I could latch onto there, as one of the people who loved ‘The Hobbit’ book and had envisioned that character. It took me a while to be convinced that I could do it, it wasn’t until I saw some sketches, this one particular pencil sketch….there was something about this characters eyes and the way that his hands are crossed, I thought, “I think I can do this, I can pull this off.” (source)

Q: I wanted to ask you about what your Arkenstone is. For you personally.

A: Me personally?

Q: And I meant for this to be materialistic. What's the thing that you covet so much that it makes you mad that you don't have it?

A: Well, it's actually not material. It's not material, and it's – (laughs) You want a comedy answer, don't you? But it's respect. It's the thing that always eludes you, you know. You have to fight for it and when you get it, your arkenstone, the thing that crowns you, is respect.

Q: And also a sweater.

A: And a sweater. I do have this little natty number.

Q: It's a good one man.

A: Tom Ford made this personally. But hey, he can have it back. I don't covet wealth and material. (source)

Q6: You’ve done a variety of different roles, I wonder what influences you to pursue those roles?

R: More often than not, you go where you’re wanted. So getting hired is still kind of a revelation to me, a shock and a surprise. Sometimes you have very flat periods, where I don’t really care what comes next, I just want to work on something. I feel like I’ve got a little cloud of luck over my head so the right thing always seems to come along. But again, I’m easily excited about literature and stories, so I’ve always said I don’t really pursue glory, I’d happily do acting for two people in my living room if it was a role that I really enjoyed with a story I’d really like to tell. So it’s chance, I would say.

[cut]

Q8: Once in an interview about Thorin, you were asked what your arkenstone was and your answer was respect. I like this answer a lot. So I was wondering what’s your red dragon? As you said yesterday he’s a character who sheds his skin, improves, and becomes something. I was wondering if there was something you’d like to improve, become?

R: I guess the antithesis of that is disrespect. Do you mean in myself?

Q8: Yes.

R: Yeah I try not to be too disrespectful. I guess I value the truth. I think we’re living at a time at the moment where the truth is warped and there’s a word that’s been in my head for a long time, and particularly recently it’s come to the surface. When I was studying Macbeth, at the RSC, I read a long thesis about the gunpowder plot, which was one of the things they thought that Shakespeare (or whoever Shakespeare was) was stimulated by to write Macbeth. And the word equivocation was used in this thesis, it was actually about equivocation and what equivocation is. And if you look it up in the dictionary, at the moment most politicians are equivocating. When you don’t answer a question, or you bend the truth to make it seem like you are answering the question, and in fact you’re telling a lie. So I would say my red dragon would be equivocation.

[cut]

Then there was the physical form that I was studying and observing, but also, I do sometimes enjoy locking myself away in a room and reading a book or just doing something alone, and you sometimes can go a couple of days without speaking to anybody. I don’t know whether anyone else experiences this or whether I’m just a weirdo. But I find that when that happens my voice changes, and I always forget how to make a noise, I have to do a warm-up before I go into the world and start speaking again.

[cut]

Q15: I was wondering if you ever had to pull out of a project because it felt wrong or something, and what is the point where you say “nope I can’t do this”?

R: Um, no. But that’s partly to do with the fact that I have a lot of loyalty, probably too much loyalty for my own good, really, and there’ve been moment when I’ve been on board a project, and actually it happened this year with The Lodge, I was already on board that project and something else came along which was bigger and better and brighter and more money, and your agent says “look we can pull you out of The Lodge, they can probably recast it,” and here I think “I’ve already started this process, I don’t want to let people down,” and I don’t have a problem with that at all, I never have any regrets over the things that you miss or the things that you decide not to do, I think there’s a strong enough reason why you’ve decided not to do it, but in general no I haven’t ever pulled out of something. There was one television show I remember, I’m not going to say what it is, but after the first readthrough, I did call my agent and asked, “can I get out of this?” And then he quickly got back to me and said, “don’t do it. Don’t build a reputation built on disloyalty.” So I try not to.

[cut]

Q18: I think you are very handsome, but your character Francis hated the way he looked, how did that make you feel?

R: Francis hated the way he looked? Yeah. I guess there is something we relate to in that. Without getting too personal, I don’t always enjoy looking at myself in the mirror. I don’t do it very often, to be honest. I do it just to be sure I don’t have food on my face. I do it in character, actually. I do spend a bit of time studying my own face when I’m playing a character, which is interesting because your face does change. (source)

He cannot see the handsomeness: “I think I am odd-looking. I have big lines on my forehead.” I squint, looking for them, but he is talking over me, sounding slightly panicked. “I shouldn’t draw attention to it, because then everyone else will see the oddness.”

[cut]

Laziness is what makes him angry: “Laziness in myself. Laziness in other people. And dishonesty. All things I feel capable of myself. I have a propensity to be lazy and lie about it. Fear makes me rageful. There are words in The Crucible I actually find it quite hard to say.” I beg for an example — The Crucible is in the public domain. “No,” he says, “you’ll see it in the play.” I tell him it will make no sense in print if he will not tell me. But he won’t. So I change the subject. It works. “OK, I will give you a line.” He inflates a little and says: “Is there no good penitence but it be public?” And then: “Were I stone I would have cracked for shame this seven month.” (source)

Q: How would you describe your evolution as an actor since you started?

A: I think everything has to do with the fact that today I’m not afraid anymore. At first, I was embarrassed to do something wrong or do things badly or make myself ridiculous. Today, I am almost looking for opportunities to be ridiculous or vulnerable or to make as much of a mistake as possible. In a sense, it’s now the opposite of being undercover.

Q: Are you the actor you dreamed of being when you started?

A: Not yet. I am not yet fearless enough. It’s in waves, actually. But I have already approached this dream. There were moments, especially during Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, which I performed on stage, where I felt I had no control over things. That’s what I’m looking for: to lose control.

Q: You often play bad guys. What do you like in these characters?

A: I like disobedience. I like the fact that you can be disobedient thanks to your creativity. As a person, I must always be polite in life, be careful and correct so as not to hurt anyone. In a fantasy world, I can be as offensive as I want. It’s an outlet. (Laughter)

[cut]

Q: Many actors are moving to directing. Is this also your goal?

A: I would like to, but I do not think I’m smart enough. I am good when it comes to working with another’s vision. I do not think I have that creative spontaneity that creates a vision from scratch. But the future will tell. (source)

I applaud Richard for being so open and direct about his fears and insecurities. It takes a lot of bravery to do so. And while I've seen some fans get annoyed with his continual self-deprecation, I think his honesty and openness is much more significant, and shows his inner strength. He doesn't try to pretend to be someone he's not.

He recently described himself as “patient, obsessive, and silly” (source). The patient part is classic Virgo, and the obsessive part comes from an element of his natal chart that I have not mentioned.

The silly part, however, is classic Leo. Like I said above, he has an almost equal amount of Leo and Virgo in his personality. Personally, I'm proud to be a Leo, but I also know we get misunderstood a lot of the time. I wrote the following for an essay of mine on Leos in Disney:

Your sun sign represents your core identity. Just like the physical sun is the center of the solar system and its energy creates life, the astrological sun is our consciousness and life force. Each of the twelve sun signs are ruled by a different planet and element.

Since Leo is the fixed fire sign, we don't inherit the reckless and impulsive nature of fire, but instead are a steady flame. No sign is more reckless and impulsive than Aries, because they have the double combination of being a cardinal sign and a fire sign. Meanwhile, all four of the fixed signs struggle with stubbornness and admitting when their wrong.

Leo's are well known to be natural leaders and the rulers of the zodiac. We are ruled by the sun and our animal is the lion. We dream big and are born with big personalities, and we can't help but be theatrical and dramatic. This means we are always self-centered in the sense of being strong-willed and having a strong sense of self. It does not mean all Leos are egotistical.

Unhealthy Leo traits all revolve around the ego: attention-seeking, egotistical, selfish, bossy, controlling, pushy, jealous, possessive, lazy, vain, arrogant, aggressive, and obstinate.

Healthy Leos, however, are known for our fire-based traits – being animated, theatrical, happy, outgoing, independent, competitive, charismatic, creative, open-minded, open-hearted, confident, assertive, playful, warm, social, courageous, idealistic, affectionate, romantic, optimistic, and adventurous.

What isn't often talked about is our steadiness, our fixed-based traits. Leos are authentic, steadfast, fiercely loyal and protective, consistent, persistent, full-hearted, dedicated, need to do their best, generous and selfless, honorable and moral, genuine and direct, extremely supportive, hard-working and responsible, dignified, strong-willed, and ambitious and determined.

Something that is often mentioned but highly misunderstood is our trait of courage. Having courage doesn't mean you're fearless or reckless. The definition of courage is “the power or quality of dealing with or facing danger, fear, pain, etc.” It means that instead of running away from our problems or denying our emotions; healthy Leos face them and be genuine and direct with ourselves, embracing our vulnerability.

Having a big personality doesn't necessarily mean someone has a big ego. C.S. Lewis once said, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less.” Leos have huge hearts and are incredibly generous. The sun never goes retrograde, always shines, and gives life and energy to all living beings – it isn't selective or discriminatory. Healthy Leos are like mini suns; which is why we are also irrepressibly upbeat, optimistic, and fun-loving.

We're not pushovers. We are like roses – we have both flower petals and thorns. If you mess with someone we love you're going down. We're too loyal and protective to let major things slide; and even if we forgive, we never forget. Little things? We'll try to work them out with you.

Being naturally strong-willed and assertive is healthy – it just means we usually make horrible subordinates and yes people. There's nothing wrong with having high standards and being open about them. In fact, in relationships it's far better in the long run to open and frank about what you need and what you consider a dealbreaker from the beginning.

And oh yes are we ambitious and competitive – but most often with ourselves. We're natural leaders who always dream and think big. For a healthy Leo it's not about being the best, but doing your best. We have to be grand and intense, we're ruled by the sun. It's all or nothing for us. Settling is not something a Leo does. We need to be the best leader, the best friend, the best partner, etc. that we possibly can.

Also, in astrology each sign rules a different body part, and Leo rules the heart and upper back.

Adding to this, Leos are known as the Kings/Queens of the zodiac not because we're egotistical, but because our sun sign is the sun. It's like a double amount sun. I could go into significantly more detail about this, but it involves a lot of technical astrological details; so if anyone wants to know more just message me!

Going back to Richard, having his core self (sun) and love/beauty (venus) in Leo explains why he is an actor and artist; and why he is often warm, silly, and dramatic when he feels comfortable – his long interview with The Anglophile Channel (and it's deleted scenes) does a great job of showing the synergy between his Leo and Virgo sides.

We see Richard express the heartfelt, generous, sincere, and honorable side of Leo all the time. This is why I'm sure he has the inner-confidence and strength hidden within him to overcome the deep pain his Chiron causes him (like it does to us all). I hope he continues to find projects and people that help him on his journey to heal.

Thank you for reading this, I'm wishing him and you all the best. Take care!

#Richard #Richard Armitage #Astrology #Mine

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inheritance-cycles · 3 years

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TBH I just really don't like Arya. She fits the "I'm not like other girls" Trope way too well and she even says it a few times herself, and dragging human women down because they don't fight is smth I am very mad about and could spend hours debating tbh. Maybe I'm a bit too bitter lmao

TRIGGER WARNING FOR DISCUSSION OF SEXUAL ASSAULT, RAPE, AND TORTURE

And that’s totally fair! There are several aspects of her character that are totally problematic and trope-y.

I never want to trivialize the objectively sexist and problematic things she’s done throughout the series just because I love her character, so I tend to explain it using this format: “x, y, z explains her behavior, but it doesn’t justify it.” And there’s two points I’d like to make, both which are pretty obvious lol.

The Classic: 1. Paolini was super young when he created the series, so a lot of the initial (and even later!) characterization is juvenile and immature. And that makes sense! Because the boi was barely out of fetus-hood! The “I’m not like other girls” trope is pretty cringy, but I tend to forgive it because of the context in which it was written. I’m irked by a lot of the same things about Arya as you, but I just put it in the mental category of “thats fucked up, and I recognize that, but it doesn’t change the fact that I enjoy her as a character.” I could rant for a bit on Literary Purity Culture but I don’t really want to, so I’ll just say that there’s nothing in this world that is 100% unproblematic, and it’s really important to reconcile that enjoying content that has its problems is totally ok! Enjoying such media is not a reflection on your moral standing or your character.

2. The time frame in which we see these issues in Arya’s character:

Ok, for the hundreds of times I’ve read this series, I’ll admit I still have no clue what the full time frame is for all four books. I’d guestimate, that, from Eragon to Inheritance it’s at shortest one year, and at longest maybe 3-5?

I point this out because ✨trauma.✨ we know that at the very beginning (maybe before the events of Eragon??) of the series Arya was captured and subjected to some really horrifying tortures, the least of which was at least suggested to be sexual assault and rape.

So working within that time-frame, we can reasonably state that for most of the series she’s experiencing the acute/immediate after-effects of that torture (PTSD and major trauma), even if it’s never really brought up in canon.

I think this is really important to take into account! Because a lot of the more shitty things she does, and the darker sides of her character, can be explained by her lingering trauma symptoms.

How she treats human women: I think her superiority complex / looking down on human women can be explained by almost, like, jealousy? And internalized conflict? Because the human women are mostly content in their passive/obedient gender roles, which is in direct contradiction to her personal value system... but at the same time she’s a little jealous because they will never directly see the horrors of war, something she’s already experienced entirely too much of. She takes offense as a woman of them accepting their station in life, but then she’s also aware that a lot of her problems and trauma wouldn’t have occurred if she just... gave in to that? Idk. Stream of consciousness.

How she treats human men: I think this explanation of her behavior is a lot more straightforward. She was captured by human men, who also, most likely participated in her torture, so I think it makes sense that she all around just has bad associations with men. One of the things I’ve noticed in re-reads is that several times her more explosive outbursts are triggered by a man touching her (shoving Elain’s son when he grabs her arm, asking how his mom’s labor is going, for example).

SO ANYWAYS— sorry for such a long rant. I’m not in any way trying to convince you to change your opinion and accept mine, and I totally understand why Arya isn’t your favorite. More than anything I guess I just relate to her, and even though some of her behavior isn’t justifiable, it at the very least can be explained in the context of the narrative.

Now I’m gonna yeet this over to @weirdponytail because I feel strange talking about Arya’s trauma and PTSD when they’re the resident expert on it. :)

#trigger warning #arya drottningu #inheritance cycle #arya #inheritance cycle character analysis #eragon #eragon shadeslayer #inheritance cycle books #the inheritance cycle #christopher paolini #trauma #ptsd

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whatiwillsay · 3 years

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Cammy I swear to God I'm not trolling but I really wanna know why is using rainbows or colors of LGBTQ flags queer baiting? And I'm just asking but the LGBTQ community is a minority compared to the hetties so how is taylor supposedly queer baiting gonna make her more money? Targeting a small demographic in comparison to the general public isn't the best business strategy imo, can you explain this or link me?

I hope you have a nice day and I'm sorry you had to read some nasty comments or asks, you are sweet and I love your blog, all the love my dear ❤️.

there is a lot of discourse about what is queer baiting vs idk rainbow capitalism vs gay cultural appropriation and i am not the expert opinion nor do i really care about the semantics of the argument - it all bundles up to me as “straight people or businesses run by straight people abusing gay stuff to make money/profit/drum up press without doing proper allyship or anything to help gay people (and it’s case by case some people may do allyship well and still cross a line)”

imo (that stands for in my opinion meaning this is my opinion and not something i’m stating as a fact for anyone who is confused about that - i do say it quite a lot) she’s queer herself so she isn’t REALLY doing any of it.

however it’s VERY profitable to woke and gay friendly (in the right way) in the states and taylor didnt just wear pride colors. taylor spent the entire lover era using gay imagery to promote the album. imo (see above) that’s fine because she’s some brand of gay. however if she were straight it would be a fine line she’d need to walk.

straight people waving a pride flag, taking part in pride, or even leaning on gay culture to express themselves is FINE of course. but if they’re going to enter queer spaces and make themselves the center of queer imagery and conversation they need to do it respectfully and carefully. they need to walk a fine line and be ready to put their asses on the line for us, speak up for us, and leverage their power and privilege into support for us.

yntcd is clumsy at best and offensive at worst. taylor compares hate she gets on twitter to actual violent homophobia, claims that shade never made anybody less gay - if she’s straight how would she know? “shade” (homophobia) literally can make gay people hide away, closet themselves for their entire lives, kill themselves or leads them to be killed so yeah it does make people less gay… now if she’s gay and that’s her personal experience great. if she’s straight that line is… not something i personally want to hear from someone with straight privilege - likens being poor and country to being homophobic when many gay people most harmed by institutionalized and systematic homophobia are poor and from rural areas, and aligns herself with queer people being picketed by homophobes. all of that, if she is straight is just… ew. straight people do not get to insert themselves into the conversation like that, at least not without some criticism. however since it is my opinion that yntcd is taylor’s personal experience and musing about dealing with hate and homophobia as a fellow queer person then i say “ok. fair enough. i can’t deny your personal experiences.” so it’s not really that she wore a pride flag on her head or had some queer people in her music video it’s the whole package.

and ofc that’s just a single music video! the entire lover era is chock full of gay winks, nudges, and moments and every time she did that she would get a press bump as journalists all rushed to write articles (all ofc mentioning lover - out this summer!) talking about taylor and what she’s up to with her gay little winks. and she sold records from it. and merch. and promo’d her line with stella. and sold concert tickets. and prompted spotify streams. she probably made millions off each “me! out now!” on lesbian visibility day and bi pride bracelet ig post that happened. and since i believe (believe but don’t know for sure) that she is queer i’m fine with that. queer people should be able to leverage their queerness and queer experiences and queer imagery and culture for profit. but imo straight people should not. they should be able to proudly show their support but they should not profit off of our imagery.

now let me add a disclaimer that i’m not a queer studies professor or a sociologist. these are just my opinions. i’m not saying taylor ever queerbaited or that any one individual can. i don’t mean that word when i say “profit off us” since i know that queerbaiting is a different thing. i’m just trying to respond to anon with my thoughts on taylor’s use of queer imagery during the lover era - not divulge into a semantics based argument.

#anonymous #swiftgron #gaylor swift #kaylor #of interest #lover era

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sonia7atm · 3 years

Text

BRIDGERTON BOOK SERIES REVIEW.

So here it is, before I start I just wanted to say that I’m in no way shape or form an expert in english or literature for that matter. English is my third language and I’m studying science. Having said that, I have read all eight books in less than two weeks and I have a lot of opinions that I wanted to share so here they are. Obviously: SPOILERS AHEAD

The series in its entirety

The bridgerton series is probably the best written series that I have ever read. I loved the fact that it is made up of 8 books, but also the way the books are structured. In each of the books we focus on one of the siblings and their significant others, and even when the side characters are there, they are not really a main focus of the story. This means you can pick up a random Bridgerton book without having read the other ones and you would not feel like you are missing something. I really liked this because it meant that with each book you were getting to know a different sibling, thus you are never really bored and there wasn’t unnecessary drama happening with the already established couples, which is refreshing at the least.

However, it does have setbacks. In some of the books, you find that this side characters really change from the way they appear in the background or the other novels, and it can be difficult to digest at first. Another flaw that I found is with the brothers' books. When I was reading some of the books dedicated to the men of the family sometimes I found that we don’t spend enough time with them and when you finish the books you don’t have an understanding of who they are. Maybe I’m not making sense but I’ll elaborate in each book a little bit more.

But in the end, even these little flaws, I had a great time reading the books and finding out what was happening with the family.

My favourite book - AOFAG

I know some people have trouble ranking the Bridgerton books, especially, the favourite one, but I’m not one of them. I am obsessed with “An offer from a gentleman”, I love the story, I love Sophie, I love Benedith and I love Violet Bridgerton with all of my heart. This book is great from the start, even though b, the third book you know a happy ending is what the book is leading to, it still excites you and makes you wonder. AMAZING DARE I SAY.

Sophie is one of my favourite characters in all of the books. She has a strong morals system and you get really inspired by her. All of the things she goes through are horrible, but she still remains such a calm and kind individual that I cannot help but stan. HARD. She has very strong ideas and morals and she sticks with them even when they mean losing Benedict. I found this message really important and powerful because we usually see the opposite: people changing their views for their significant other, and I don’t think it's right. So, hereby I declare Sophie QUEEN of the Bridgerton clan.

Moving on to Benedict, I heard a little bit of criticism with his actions in this book and I see where they are coming from, but I don’t share them. I think Benedict is one of the brothers that suffers from a really deep female counterpart and as such his thoughts are not fully explored. In my opinion Benedict is tormented by the fact that he is the second Bridgerton and nothing more (similar to Colin and kinda Gregory really), and also by the fact that he lost the woman at the ball. On top of that, Sophie comes along and he starts falling for her and he feels guilty that he is falling for someone else, so he doesn’t fully commit to Sophie but also doesn’t really leave her. It’s a messed up situation and he doesn’t make the best decisions but I understand his actions and I support him. The only thing that really annoyed me about Benedict is that he doesn’t recognize Sophie at all. I wanted to hit him, hard, in the head, with a fucking piano.

Now the best of the best: Violet Bridgerton. She was the surprise character of this book in that prison scene. In the previous book you still see her and like her but she saves the day in this one, and I felt like I really knew her after that. She is not the typical ton mother, she really values their children’s happiness and takes everyone under her wing. She knows who she is and the importance her family has and she uses her powers for good. I gained so much respect for her. A surprise character and a great one.

To sum it up, Benedict and Sophie are perfect to each other, like this mellow entity. Two kind souls, always happy, always calm. Of course they live in the countryside, they could not live anywhere else.

Top tier books - WHWW, RMB, TVWL

WHEN HE WAS WICKED

This book wrecked me, I have to admit I was a mess, I could not deal. A tragic story with so much longing and guilt and despair, I love a drama, man this is great. I went in knowing the basics of it but I was not prepared.

The poor Francesca has the most devastating story in my opinion: she suffers from infertility, her husband dies, she doesn’t feel like she fits in her family, and when she falls in love Michael is sick, WHY?!. Throughout the book you get to see how strong she is, how strong-willed she is. We are not talking about this enough. She loves with all her heart and she suffers with all of it too. She and Michel have a really strong chemistry and it translates really well. I think she was really clever to wait and think before committing to Michael, and I see how she would need to see him in danger to really let herself fall completely. In the end, she knows what losing someone you love feels like and she doesn’t want to feel that again. I understand. Also, an important part of Francesca's journey is to realize that loving someone else doesn’t diminish her feelings for John, and I love how Michael acknowledges it.

Michael is a really interesting character who falls in love at first sight with the wrong woman. He is fully aware of this fact and it is really good to see that he doesn’t doubt his love for her, but is instead aware of the impossibility of doing something about it. Even when he can do something about it, his respect for his cousin is always present. The guilt he feels for loving Francesca both when John was alive and after he died is so different but so well written. It’s eating him up and It is painful to read to be honest. However, I found that said guilt disappeared rather quickly after his conversation with Colin. I may be the only one but I was a little bit put off by it, and that’s why this is not my favourite book in the series.

THE VISCOUNT WHO LOVED ME

The bees, I could talk about the bees for days after reading this one. This one has a lot of Bridgerton backstory, and it explains so much of the rest of the bunch even if not directly. So I would say not to skip it (but why would you skip any of them?).

Kate Sheffield is one of the best written characters in this series. She is complex, fierce but delicate, confident but self-conscious. I would kill for her, she deserves it. Her family dynamics are impeccable. You feel the love between these three women and the roles they have, and you get them really quickly: Edwina is the little sister, a little naive but good-hearted, Kate is the fierce older sister and Mary is the compassionate step-mother. I really enjoyed their dynamics. The introduction of Kate’s character is by presenting her goal for the season: defend her sister. When Anthony enters the pool of suitors, she obviously opposes and their back and forth shows she is very witty. But as the story goes on we get to see her insecurities and fears, in a way that it’s so in character but at the same time so different from the start. It’s amazing and I can see why she is such a fan favourite.

Anthony is a baby.We can see how Edmund’s death really scarred him, and those wounds are deep. He believes in his own demise so blindly that it is conditioning all of his decisions.He grows a lot until he is able to share them with Kate and they bond so beautifully over it. Getting to see that, was something that I loved and enjoyed so much. It makes you really connect with both of the characters and it explains so much of his behaviour, that even if he frustrates you, you can’t be mad because you understand where he comes from.

Newton is the guest star in this one and I would like to take our time to appreciate the captain of the Kanthony ship. This little dog is such a plot device, put there to cause havoc and bring Kate and Anthony together, it is so funny. He smelled Anthony and decided he wanted a new dad. Put a plan in march, probably alerted his friend, THE bee.

ROMANCING MR BRIDGERTON

The message of this book is amazing. The journey they both go through to re-know each other is beautiful. Penelope and Colin have known each other for years, and they both have a version of the other in their minds but as the story progresses they unveil hidden personality traits about each others and I love how it is acknowledge and developed into a clear message of “people are flawed and not the perfect individual you wish them to be, and that’s ok”. It is really necessary and it made me reflect on my own relationships and how I could improve them. Colin and Penelope have to be my favourite couple of the series, but, because they were because of the show and not the books, when I finished this book I was left feeling like I wanted more, and that is why it is not my favourite one.

This is the book where readers find out Penelope is Lady Whiseldown and it is a big plot line. However, this revelation is maybe halfway through the book and until then, Penelope's inner monologue doesn’t reveal anything. I would have loved to really focus on it and know from the start how she really did it but at the same time, we get to see so much of Pen’s growth anyways. She is shy and kind but when she is with someone she trusts (in this case Colin and Lady Danbury), she is full of wit and boldness. I see myself so much in these characteristics that I cannot help but make her my favourite character in the series (totally biased but it is what it is). She starts with a sense of discontent about her, she knows her fate and accepts it but, she doesn’t necessarily like it. She is trying to change the way people see her and Lady Danbury helps a lot with it. She and Colin spend a lot of the book kind of on opposite sides in part because of their own demons, she wants to prove herself and at the same time is faced with the realization that the Colin she made up in her mind is not the real one. It really makes you wonder if it’s a happy ending at the end of it, because they both have such strong points but they are so diverse. At the end, after they talk about it, their relationship is full of devotion and you feel how they are making each other focused and better. I would die for them.

Colin is such a tumultuous character and it is a stark contrast on how we get to see him in the previous and following books. He is used to putting the charm on and fooling everybody but, of course, in this book we explore his inner workings and now we know the truth. He is just a lost puppy, looking for something to do with his life, and he is so focused on this search and runnin away for his family that he doesn’t see that there is already something that he is good about: writing. His relationship with Pen is obviously key in all of this searching because it pushes his limits and makes him think. His realization, of both his vocation and his love are slow and steady. He sometimes jumps to conclusions and rushes things *ahem*the proposal*cough* but not love, and once he commits he does it fully. The “stay, stay, stay” scene is a monumental hallmark in the book. We see Colin really deciding and choosing Penelope and Lady Whistle down with all that it entails. And later on, he opens out about his jealousy over her work, but he does it when he is ready, and Pen allows him to come to her when he needs without judgement. They are so perfect it hurts.

The lack of Eloise is an insult to my soul but we get Lady Danbury as the guest star. She is on Penelope's corner helping her navigate the ton and her relationship with Colin, as a mother figure would. I believe she at least has a big suspicion that she is LW, but I might be wrong.

All-nighter books - OTWTTW, IIHK. ON THE WAY TO THE WEDDING

Gregory’s book is full of twists and turns that you just cannot put it down. Not the fact that the main female character is Lucy and not Hermoine, like Gregory thinks half of the book, just because you don’t. It is pretty clear that Lucy is our heroine so the fact that Gregory falls for her is not a twist itself because we (and Kate) already know. But in my opinion, the fact that it starts with Gregory interrupting the wedding and then it goes back and explains the backstory to you, so it is constantly leading up to it.

Lucy is not the most interesting of the female leads but it is part of her charm. She is a normal girl, her life is already arranged, so she doesn’t feel the pressure the rest of them do, she is just enjoying herself. She doesn’t believe in love, and it is so funny how in denial she is about it, until it all explodes.

Gregory’s life was influenced by her brothers before him and his big family but he feels so alone because of the age difference. He is trying to find his place in life and, because he saw all of his siblings fall in love he wants the same thing so badly, that he confuses desire with love. He is so precious, and must be protected at all costs.

The last few chapters are action packed, there’s an urgency in everyone's actions: Lucy, trying to save her family and Gregory, trying to save Lucy. I couldn’t figure out what was going to happen and that hooked me. The fact that the wedding actually takes place is the most shocking plot of all of the books.

To conclude, Gregory owns my heart and I trust him with it.

IT’S IN HIS KISS

This story is another “all-nighter”, because it revolves around a mystery and the search for Gareth’s grandmother lost jewels. This quest brings Hyacinth and Gareth together, with a lot of Lady Danbury’s help. It’s really interesting to read about the felonies they commit, all of them instigated by Hyacinth, who, in my opinion, is chaos personified.

Hyacinth is the most forward-thinking woman of this series. She is outspoken, confident, loud and apologetic. All of these traits really set her apart, because she doesn’t play by the rules of society, she does what she pleases, and she should. She is the typical little sister, a little spoiled but with a good heart. Her conversations with Violet are really touching.

Gareth on the other side, is not in a good place with his family, and it is endearing to see how shocked he is by the Bridgerton’s closeness. He has a severe lack of self love, and sees himself as an imposter, and not worthy of Hyacinth. But when he falls, OMG, HE FALLS. His attitude towards Hyacinth’s personality is amazing because he loves her exactly as she is, and knows he will be following her orders for the rest of his life. Adorable. (He is the “That’s my wife” meme).

Lady Danbury is again the guest star and it only helps to cement her as the cool grandma that we all aspire to be. An honorable mention is Anthony getting super-duper happy that all of his sisters are married and therefore he is free (my poor guy).

However, the main issue I have with this book is that the decision of getting married is really attached to Gareth’s need to vex his father, who is a horrible person, and it makes me mad.

Not my favourite books - TSPWL, TDAI

TO SIR PHILIP WITH LOVE

In this book Eloise decides running off to meet a possible husband is a great idea. Her brain, I can’t. Obviously the Bridgerton brothers follow her and force the two to marry anyways, although they were already falling in love when they found her. Phillip, Eloise's love interest is a loner and lives outside of the ton and I think that these traits really work with her because they are polar opposites but at the same time they fit so well. The relationship Eloise has with Amanda and Oliver is so cute, because you can see that these kids just need some attention and help navigating the world without her mother and Eloise is there for them.

However, even though I loved their storyline and I wanted to rank this higher I couldn’t. The other Bridgertons are a big part of this book and when I was thinking back on it the parts that I remember fondly the most are when Anthony, Benedict, Colin and Gregory arrive to kill talk to Philip, and then when Charles is ill and we get to see Benedict and Sophie as parents. So, I like this book because of side characters and not the main ones, even though I know there is nothing wrong with them. However, I do think the book is ok and I would recommend it nevertheless.

THE DUQUE AND I

I don’t have much to say about this book. The r*pe is completely unnecessary in my opinion. Daphne and Simon have terrible communication skills, but so do Kate and Anthony, for example, but still, the repercussions are not that severe. It is so much worse in the books and it has no consequences whatsoever. Up until that point, the enemies to secret dating to falling in love is such a classic thorpe that I usually like, but I cannot separate the two of them. In fact, I would advise to skip this one.

Hapily Ever After

Thank you to the heavens for this book. It is just a little exploration of all of the sibling’s future and an extra story for Violete.

Daphne’s story revolves around her last pregnancy. A surprise one when she is quite old. I found it really sweet and it looks like she and Simon are really happy with their life so good for them. Also, Colin and Penelope visit with all of their children so I’m obligated to like it.

The TVWLM continuation is a get together in Aubrey Hall for a Pall Mall rematch. I had so much fun reading it and getting to see all of the Bridgertons interact in a “relaxed” manner.

Sophie and Benedict’s story focuses on Posy and her search for a husband. She is lovely and I do want her happiness but getting to see Sophie and Benedict interact while actually together was a treat. I feel very blessed to see them be the balls of sunshine they both are.

Then we get to see how Eloise found out Lady Whisheldow’s identity. It was fun, and we get to see Pen and Eloise being friends, which we don’t get enough of in their respectives books. Colin and Penelope leaving the wedding early, was a gem. They are a couple of horny idiots and I love to see it. After that, we focus on Eloise again and we get to see a little bit more about Amanda and Oliver.

One of the main things about Francesca in her book is the fact that she wants a baby, and it is never resolved. In this one, we get to see how Francesca and Michael become parents and it's another heartbreaking one. We get to see how worried Violet is for her and also how Michael and Francesca talk and understand each other. They are one of the best relationships on this series, I said what I said.

In IIHK the diamonds are never found, but we find them here. It is great to know they were not missing and also a relief to know that Gareth was able to rescue the family even without them. The fact that Isabella actually finds them and proceeds to say nothing is hilarious. But when Hyacinth finds them the happiness she feels is so wholesome.

Then we get to see Gregory and Lucy’s twins be born (their 8th and 9th children). It is not an easy task and for a moment I was afraid for Lucy but it all works out in the end. It was filled with great moments but the one that I like the most is when Gregory says that Katherine gave him purpose in life, because he was meant to be a dad. I cried ngl.

And lastly, we meet Edmund. He is very present throughout the book but I was not expecting to grow so attached to him with this little story. It is divided in different stages of Violet’s life and obviously we get to see her romance with Edmund. I loved the little details, his behaviour reminded me of Gregory but he eats a lot like Colin so it is great to see where they get their traits from. The later parts, after he dies, show you how much importance Violet puts on remembering him and preserving his memory. They were truly soulmates, and it is such a shame that their time together was cut short.

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fayshin · 3 years

Text

Some of my analysis of Masahiro and Rina

Here are some of my thoughts about the scene that Masahiro brought Rina to Awami Shrine in manga(Chapter 28). But English is not my mother tongue and it's been years since last time I wrote paragraph in English, hope there won't be so many errors LOL. It's just my opinion, some of them maybe just my headcanon. And of course, who reads this may have already thought about it before and had more analyses of it. If you have any other idea, let me know please!! Ok, then just start it!!

This is one of the best and the most important Masahiro and Rina's scenes in manga. But when I first read it, I couldn't understand it well -- even now I cannot ensure that I analyzed all the true meanings of this scene. It bothered me so long "What were actually on their mind? What were they trying to say?" It seemed like they said nothing but they HAD SAID EVERYTHING?

Yes AWAMI Shrine!! Where Masahiro fell for Rina!! Yes!!

To begin with, about the shrine, we all remembered that Rina had been the Miko of the shrine and assisted a lot. She took it for granted because the shrine is about the mermaid, and she is the real mermaid. But the question is, why and who invited her to be the miko? Was there anyone who knew the true relationship between Rina and mermaid? Okay just keep the question in mind and go on.

And I believe this must be haunting all Masahiro and Rina shipper. DID HE ALREADY KNOW HER REAL IDENTITY!!!???

But before we discussed this, let's think about the question I mentioned before. There must be some connection between Rina and the shrine. But now we knew more-- Masahiro is also related to the shrine!!! Awami Shrine is bulit by Masahiro's ancestor!!! So it was not coincidence that he met Rina here!!

And go back to Masahiro's confessions again. Based on his words, he thought he might be the descendant of human and mermaid after he met Rina. Before this scene, he also pointed out that Rina had something hide from him last time they dated. Connecting the two scenes, I thought it implied quite apparently that Masahiro knew Rina had something to do with mermaid. It made no sense he knew nothing but abruptly talked about a fairytale about mermaid!! Also based on the fact that they were both related to Awami Shrine, Masahiro probably knew more truth about Rina and mermaid!! Or, something like intuition about her XDD Which is also mentioned in Pure ep37~

But when he tried to talk more, Rina just broke him off. Why did Rina become agitated? What would he say if he hadn't been interrupted? I thought he almost confessed his love for her. Although they went out many times before, they still not have a romantic relationship yet. Besides, he blamed her a little bit for not telling the truth before. But maybe after that, he found the answer by himself or realized that it didn't really matter. He still cherished her no matter who she was. That's why Rina had to stop him. She was not allowed to fall in love with a human. She even burst into tears for his words. REALLY HEARTBREAKING I can't endure this I hate the setting😭😭😭 She was afraid to build a deep relationship because her fear in leaving him one day. Her sorrow is also showed in Pure ep26&30. What's more, this chapter was before their final battle with Michel/Mikeru, she was anxious for that too. She might not be able to come back to him and fall in battle. Full of agony oh my god.

Besides, what was Rina trying to say here? After she heard the story about Masahiro's ancestors, what was in her mind? Did she realize that Masahiro had already found out her true identity? Because Masahiro only hinted that he knew mermaids exist. She might try to ignore the fact that they were from different world when they were together. When Masahiro spoke of mermaid, it reminded her of their dim future.

But Masahiro didn't be confused or frustrated by Rina's rejection. He just clasped her hand to comfort her by saying that he wouldn't say goodbye to her. Ooohhh my I always cry for their sincere love for each other QQQQ He must know Rina's despair so well. In the story about his ancestors, the man eventually parted from his beloved mermaid. Masahiro knew there might be a desperate separation between them in the future, but he was also DETERMINED TO PREVENT THAT FROM HAPPENING AT ALL COST. He won't let what happened to his ancestors repeat.

OOHHH THE HUG!!! LET'S CHERISH THE BREATHTAKING HUG!!! They are so precious I am always crying (T_T)

When it came to her feelings for him, she was so fragile. She should have pushed him away to keep her distance, but she didn't. Though Masahiro had made up his mind to never bid farewell to Rina, they still might be faced with hardship in the future. He was afraid of losing her too. So he said "Even for a moment, can we just stay like this?" And Rina realized that she was not the only one in pain. So she tenderly snuggled close to him.

On top of that, there's a little question about Rina's line here "One day I will come to you". The line in Chinese version I bought was more like "Though I don't know when I can come to you". The first time I read this I was like !!!??? NO WHY SO DIFFERENT FROM THE TRANSLATION I KNEW BEFORE!!!??? And I thought maybe that's because the original Japanese word used here was"いつか(itsuka)", which can be translated into either "when" or "one day". I am not expert in Japanese so I'm confused so hard here... It would mean quite opposite if adopted different translation… If anyone knows the Japanese original line please tell me what it is... That would be more decipherable LOL. But in my opinion, I thought it would be more reasonable to translate it into "when" here. In the same chapter, Nikora said to Hippo, “This may be their very last Christmas.” The upcoming battle with Mikeru would be so dangerous, and she could not come to him until they achieve victory.

Most importantly, Rina's reaction CONFIRMED MASAHIRO’S GUESS AS TURE. If she had nothing to do with mermaid, she wouldn't vacillate about his words. I thought it won't be long before he understands everything at first, but now I rather believe that Masahiro ALREADY KNOW ALL THE TRUTH here. He knew what was on Rina’s mind, and declared his resolution to never let her go.

This was the very first time they failed to restrain their affection for each other. The embrace was not so much sweet but bitter😢😢 They expressed their love for each other, but also embrace the agony of the love. They said nothing but they had SAID EVERYTHING. They knew each other so well ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Here’s also little comparison between the anime and the manga. In the anime, Rina tried to part from Masahiro first, but they end up realizing that they can’t lose each other. Not until then did they truly share their mind. But in the manga, he just rejected the broke up even before Rina mentioned it LOL. Magnificent!! Masahiro is sssooo smart (//艸//)

This is my first time to write down my theory I am so exciting now (≧▽≦) I love them so much💚💚 I hope anyone who loves Masahiro and Rina too can see this and enjoy it!! And I admire Hanamori sensei so much!! In addition to the gorgeous art, she can tell a complete story and develop deep relationship of characters within number of pages.

Once again, welcome to ask me question or share me with your idea!! There are still some scenes I also think a lot. And other comparison between anime and manga I’d like to talk about. I will discuss them next time!! Thanks for your reading 🥳

#mermaid melody #Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch #rina toin #masahiro hamasaki #masahiro x rina

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jennibeultimate · 3 years

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I don’t know a whole lot about the technical side of figure skating, usually I choose favorite skaters just on whose performances I enjoy the most, but I’m curious since a lot of people seem to really dislike her: what do you think of Evgenia Medvedeva? since you seem to know a lot and be very invested in the figure skating world, I’m interested to know your opinion

Oh wow. I am very honored to have someone want my opinion 👀

First of all I am by no means an expert on the technical sides of figure skating - still learning - but I give it a try and your observation is correct that I am very invested in this sport and I know how (shitty) the fandom can be. And to warn you you're in for a long read. 😅

I will give my opinion on both, the aspects of her skating and the person Evgenia Medvedeva. And on why I think ppl may dislike her/hate on her.

1. About Evgenia Medvedeva - the skater

I hope you understand at least the basic terms of the technical aspects in figure skating as I will refer to them a lot in this part.

Jumps - Zhenya is a better edge than toe jumper. Her 3Loop and her 3Salchow are one of the best in the field and imo extremely pretty. Her 2Axel is usually her biggest problem, she muscles the jump. Her toe jumps have issues too. Zhenya has a wrong edge on the Lutz, called a "Flutz", she is working on it but it's still the wrong edge. She mostly didn't get an edge call on it though by the judges. The other aspect ppl often talk about is the "prerotation" in her toe jumps, especially the Flip. She does prerotate more than some other skaters. She is often criticized for it. But to make it short imo the rules about prerotation are a bit blurry (at what point is prerotation normal and when is it excessive prerotation?) and in fact judges doesn't seem to penalize prerotation at all. Some fans like to nitpick on this matter a lot. For some it's almost some sort of crime. Let's just say it's not easy to fix it and I think Zhenya improved on this matter with time. I think Zhenya definitely has some issues on her toe jumps and Axel, but I don't think just because someone has a flawed technique the person is a bad skater. So there are things you can rightfully criticize but also things to love in her jumps like not only are Salchow and Loop beautiful, but also her leg extension on landing is good and she usually has good flow in her jumps. The Tanos (one arm over the head while jumping) aren't my cup of tea but they have a positive influence the GOEs.

Her Salchow:

Her Loop:

Spins - I think she has beautiful spins, but they are not the fastest. And I think her spins were better in the early senior years. The back that is bothering her is making the Bielmann spin not doable for her anymore, which is a shame.

Programs and performance - I think Zhenya does portray characters exceptionally well. Yes some ppl don't like the excessive pantomime in her earlier programs and I also think less is more, but she always captures the audience with her charm and personality on ice and her programs always have a concept she can bring across (even sometimes with questionable theme). She has some very beautiful programs, I recommend her "Anna Karenina" 2017-2018 program and her "Memoirs of a Geisha" 2019-2020 program. What stands out of Zhenya and also has been a reason she has earned high PCS - especially in her first senior years - is that her programs are full of difficult transitions between the elements. I don't want to pick all of the PCS categories apart, just that I think she is selling her skating exceptionally well. (She doesn't have thousands of fans for no reason. 😉)

Scoring - I think this is actually the main point why some skating fans didn't like her in the first place. She emerged to a scene with extremely high scores for being a first year senior, scores that matched past heroes of skating like Yuna Kim and Mao Asada. Even though Zhenya never skated against Yuna and shared only few competitions with Mao, ppl always referred to the old scores of them. (which were former world records) Zhenya's consistency made her get world record after world record and flaws in jumps have often been overlooked like not calling the Flutz and her PCS seemed super high in comparison to other skaters of the same level. Even though the scoring is hardly her fault, she got the flack for it and tbh the way she was scored was also turning me off for a while but Zhenya captured me with her performance. Her high scores also have some justification. Zhenya had the most difficulty in her programs in 2015-2017. She was the skater to start the trend to backload the jumps to the 2nd half to get the bonus points (rules have been changed after 2018 because of this). Her PCS being high can also be justified to some extent, like she does have a lot of transitions and her skating is clear (turns and steps are recognizable and mostly of high quality) etc. I still do think especially after her coaching change to Brian Orser that her scores have been worth a discussion and I think that in comparison her scores were too high, but I don't think there is any doubt that she deserved the world titles she got. (Just look at those comps and tell me who was better?) Also her consistency between 2015 and 2017 is unmatched and is admirable. I think Zhenya has been overscored in her career a lot, but not to the extent that made her "unrightfully" claiming the titles and again that's hardly her fault.

I actually like Zhenya's skating a lot. I wasn’t a fan the first time I saw her but she grew on me a lot, especially in the last two years. She can create magic. 😊

If you want to know more about Zhenya and the technical aspects of her skating you can go through the Evgenia Medvedeva tag on @the-real-xmonster (the blog is not active anymore but has tons of technical explanations)

About the person Evgenia Medvedeva

I personally admire Zhenya for her guts to keep competing in a country where a lot of ppl think she is "too old" for the sport. I also admired her for the coaching change to Brian to go a different way (I hate how she had to return to Eteri because of the pandemic). I like that she is speaking up towards online bullying she and others received. She keeps on sharing on Instagram though she has been harassed there a lot. I think in her interviews she is thoughtful (she is speaking her mind, which I like), but she can also be goofy and funny and her love for anime and being an "Otaku" is making her relatable.

Her Sailor Moon exhibition is such a fun program I can recommend to everyone.

(GIF by @the-real-xmonster)

About the "hate" towards Zhenya:

Some of the criticism Zhenya is receiving is understandable in my opinion. For example lately traveling during a pandemic to another country is something worth talking about or her mother letting a fan into TCC or some of the statements towards media can be criticised. But some "critic" is not criticism but hate for example when she changed to Brian Orser, calling her a traitor, badmouthing her for being ungrateful or being an attention seeker or making assumptions about her relationships with other skaters to the extent she deleted all the pictures with Yuzuru Hanyu from her Instagram etc. (especially when Eteribots or some Fanyus are involved things can turn ugly in the fandom) I also don't think ppl should put all some media is reporting as truth and stalking her Instagram backgrounds to see if she violated her quarantine is crossing personal boundaries. I think these are things that are not ok at all. (and to hate someone for their scores is really stupid imo)

However I think part of the problem why ppl dislike/hate her is her popularity (She has 700k followers on Instagram) . If she would be a no name skater her actions or scores wouldn't be discussed across the fandom. But actually most of the time you can follow the hate back to a few accounts...

Just to be clear it's totally fine to not get into Zhenya's skating, to point out flaws in scoring and in her technique, to not like some of her actions or criticize them, but I don't think it's fair to hate on her or make fun of her injuries or bad performances, she is human and deserves respect. The tone is important. Be kind and respectful! We don't know any of those skaters personally, so what does it cost to be a bit kind? Figure skating is a small fandom and believe me skaters see what ppl write. And it can hurt an actual human being. So please be considerate.

I am not sure if this is the kind of answer you were looking for anon, but here are some of my opinions on Zhenya 😊 You're welcome to ask more if something is unclear or you want to know something about another skater.

Anyone who read 'til the end should have a cookie! Have a good day! Thanks for reading!

Let's end this long read with a happy Zhenya!

#evgenia medvedeva #figure skating #anon #replies #i can't do short answers sorry #the reason i hate Twitter i can't keep it short 😅

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