#rebuild their communities as best you can while also getting out of the way when they ask you to!

[snekdood]

naw i gotta say something bc this specifically is dumb.

whats the plan to "get rid" of "settlers" in america? bc usually ppl mean white ppl generally and conveniently they apparently forget not all white ppl came here as settlers. are we gonna do DNA tests to see who is distantly related to whichever settler? even though yall already think DNA tests are flimsy? so then what, is the plan to "get rid" of white ppl generally, ignoring the fact theres white ppl who came just bc of immigration? ignoring the fact that white ppl have mixed with even native people so theres native ppl out there that would predominately be read as white? do they leave too? does a mixed persons white parent have to leave too? to me, "land back" has always meant putting native ppl in positions of power, not "getting rid" of whoever ppl wanna label as settlers. bc if yall really feel this way, and im talking to the white leftist americans here, you might as well kill yourself now if you think you're such a scourge by default of being white and in america, esp since you probably dont even know who your distant relatives are and whether or not they were actual settlers or immigrants, might as well do it "just in case". like be real, when tf did land back mean "get rid" of "settlers" bc i hate to tell ya but none of those original settlers are still alive today, so who are we getting rid of and how? are we gonna put all american white ppl in europe (as if they'd let us to begin with)? so we're gonna enable the whole white ethnostate shit bc you got all your opinions from a black nationalist who hates white people and wants a Very Different-From-White-Ethnostates and Very Special Non-White Ethnostate? and ig you're gonna ignore how much black nationalists buddy up with neo nazis bc its an inconvenient fact for you to swallow? personally, I believe in a world where everyone can coexist regardless of race/ethnicity/etc. personally, i choose to ignore the opinions of hateful ppl no matter where they fall politically. personally, i dont believe in any ethnostate that would by definition require a mass killing of any race/ethnicity, but in general, human beings, esp since race isnt that cut and dry anyways and ppl have been mixing together since the conception of murica' in the first place. so genuinely, whats the plan?

#if you genuinely walk around like a dipshit going 'its cool if native ppl or black ppl wanna kill me!!!' put your money where your mouth is #bc i really dont believe any of yall who say this. or you're literally so indoctrinated into these weird ethnostate cults that hate you and #you've decided to take it??? like wtf is wrong with you have you absolutely no self preservation or are you like an incredible bottom #or something like??? is this a kink?????? explain yourself bc i just dont believe you lmao. #idk who needs to hear this but you Do in fact have a right to live in spite of whatever your ancestors might've done #the good news is- you're NOT them! #simply educate yourself on the ways you might be contributing to the harm of marginalized people of color and try to help them #rebuild their communities as best you can while also getting out of the way when they ask you to! #that doesnt mean you have to support the radical minority within those demographics who want fucking ethnostates! #ask yourself this- if everything this person says sounds like the same shit a nazi would say if you replaced 'black' or 'native' #with 'white' then maybe you shouldnt be listening to that crazy fucks opinion!

[jewishconvertthings]

Do you have any advice on how to cope with antisemitism online? I’m really overwhelmed by the sheer amount of it, it’s just so much worse than I ever imagined. I also feel weird talking to jews by birth about it bc they had to deal with this for their whole lives while I’m first experiencing it as an adult. Still, it’s got to the point where it’s really affecting my mental health

Hi anon,

I'm going strongly encourage you to do a few things:

Take a step back. No one benefits from you stressing yourself out to the point of it affecting your mental health in a significant way. Find someone you trust to keep you up-to-date on anything that actually has a bearing on your immediate safety, and otherwise block it out. Set a specific amount of time within which you are going to avoid looking up news or reading articles or posts about antisemitism. This isn't even my suggestion: I learned this from a rebbetzin who had her husband keep her informed of any immediate safety issues but otherwise intentionally stepped back from secular news and social media entirely for a full year during 2020. She said it was one of the best choices she made, because she was stronger and ready to deal with it when she started tuning in again. You don't necessarily need to take it to that extreme, but taking a step back can really help.

Take comfort in your immediate community, and be intentional about seeking out the company and companionship of other Jews. We have so much strength together, and it helps get you out of your own head. It also really helps to remind yourself of all the people, communities, traditions and culture that you love and are why you're here. Be intentional in finding joy in the Jewish life you are building.

Take solace in the fact that Am Yisrael Chai: the People Israel Live. The Jewish people has survived persecution and unrelenting horrors since practically the beginning, and we're still here. You are part of or joining something eternal and indomitable - a people that many have tried to break or destroy in a multitude of ways, and it has never worked. Never. The persecution is unlikely to end, and yet we will outlast them. We always do.

Think about the best possible outcome: that we will receive peace and justice speedily and in our days, and you will be there to share the simcha. Now consider the worst possible outcome: our persecution will increase to the point where we have to flee for our lives, and many of us don't make it; perhaps you survive alone, or perhaps you don't. Now consider the most likely outcome: things continue much the way they have, with fluctuations that come from the ebb and flow of politics. You stick with our people in our joy and sorrow, in terror and in peace. We survive and our Judaism is passed l'dor v'dor. Now. Even in that worst case scenario, history says that some of us will still make it. Judaism and the Jewish people will continue and rebuild. Your name is forever tied to ours, your fate a collective one that is greater than your individual life or mine. And that is something that will survive.

Remember that you don't have to personally end antisemitism. I know that sounds obvious? But part of the overwhelm that comes from the burden of oppression is feeling like you are individually responsible for solving it. You are not. In the words of Rabbi Tarfon, "Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

Anon, I hope this helps. You are not alone. B'ezrat Hashem you find some comfort here and with your community, and may we all merit to see the day when the hard work of generations comes to fruition in peace and justice.

[kojandra]

Idk how they're supposed to communicate and rebuild their relationship when one of them has diminished mental capacity? I'm so confused is HI acting like this part of her character development where she'll realize she was just as responsible for the mess of their marriage as he is or is the writer actually acting like the entire thing is on HW? bc why is she acting like she was an amazing wife and he just betrayed her rather than she treated him awfully and let her family do the same. He's always the one reaching out and apologizing and I'm starting to think this is the way it's gonna be for the entire show

From how I interpret the plot right now, Hae In will go through cycles in her "present-ness". She will forget recent memories and be as innocent as she was before she got angry about recent events then discover the current state of her life (divorce, betrayal, etc.) and do it all over again. I definitely think there will be events that open them up to each other whether it's when she's aware of current events (angry) or forgetful of those (gentle). Hyun Woo will be suffering continuously because he has to watch his wife get hurt in cycles whereas she will only be hurt when she rediscovers the betrayal from him (in cycles).

I can defend each character to a certain extent. For Hae In, she thinks she was a good wife mainly because (I mean, look at the way her family is...) of the way she was brought up. To be cold, calculating, cut-your-losses type business woman. But she wasn't always like this! She used to care openly and be warm towards Hyun Woo. We used to be a society!! Hae In was trying to deal with her loss of the child by moving things out because she didn't want to be reminded of them. (I seriously think they should have talked at this point). But then Hyun Woo, I assume wanted to keep the things while he mourned, was the one who instructed the housekeepers to move his things out of the master bedroom without explaining anything to Hae In. She thought he needed space to mourn and that he will come back when he's done. She always waited for him to come home, and she always stood on the other side of the door. He didn't know she'd welcome him in, but she always wanted to. (again, this couple.....does not know how to talk to each other...). She also defended him from Soo Cheol in episode 1 ("don't disrespect my husband ever again") so I feel like she was doing that all this time.

The cyclic nature of her memories will trigger something in Hyun Woo to initiate change (I hope!) to address this. I hope her memories of her "present" state will carry over into her next cycle of presentness so that she will be kinda living in two timelines. I know and believe Hyun Woo will find a way to talk to his wife in rationality. And more so, taking care of and finding those windows of rationality of your feisty wife who is also a patient is not easy. They are both trying their best.

I do have a theory that Hae In is getting poisoned at her home because when have we ever seen Hae In hallucinating in Germany??? (That semi truck scene does NOT count because she was out of it from all the shock and wanting to die because she has nothing to live for anymore). And wtf is a cloud cytoma???? (I tried looking for it online and it's a made up disease....the plot can literally go anywhere and I'm terrified!)

I feel like Hyun Woo definitely wears his heart on his sleeve more than Hae In, which is where we see their differences in their approach to reconciliation (in the present, at least). But as seen in episode 7, Hae In can show emotions too! In her state of forgetfulness of recent events, she said "I love you" to him the first time (that we've seen). And talked to him a lot more openly than we've seen before. Hae In definitely realizes she’s the problem too. In the epilogue scene for episode 7 she says “no wonder he married me when I said I’d make him happy.” Then her FACE after…yeah I definitely think she knows.

I believe this drama will be the journey to finding that communication and love and trust between the two (while dealing with all the shit in the world).

I hope we get a full arc for these characters! They're so complex with lots of push and pull and deserve some good angst and development.

(but please....let them be happy in the end).....

#some thoughts #let's trust the process *cries* #tvn queen of tears #queen of tears

[chi-the-idiot]

Im sorry, I lied, we aren't watching Netflix tonight. Let me tell you my ideas for an Amulet by Kazu Kibuishi rewrite

Lemme start with wasted character potential #1, mother herself, Karen.

The reason

It is not common at all in fantasy books for parents to participate in their children's adventures. For obvious reasons, really: parents would not allow their kids to be put in any danger, thus it is easier for them to not appear in the story at all, or even be the thing that the kids are chasing after in the first place.

That last one is exactly what happens in book 1, Karen is kidnapped and the kids need to save her. But unlike other stories, where "saving mom" is the end goal, Emily and Navin end up saving Karen in book 2 out of 9. And not only that, Karen insists on staying with her children in Alleida until they finish what they started.

Let me explain why this is so important, aside from the general subversion of the genere: Amulet, at its core, is a tale of grief. A family rattled by the tragic and horrific death of a father. The three of them are broken, in many different ways, but they insist on staying together no matter what.

If the topic was tackled properly, this could have been a story that explored all the different facets of grief and how a family tries to overcome its hurt. How you can rebuild yourself up from what may appear as the bottom of a well if you reach out for those who love you for support. How you don't need to suffer alone.

With Karen, this could have been especially interesting. If Kazu hadn't based his story on the idea of "kids parenting their parents", an interesting point could've been made. After all, Karen shouldn't rely on her kids to provide her emotional support at such a young age. She could, however, learn to open up about her pain to make them understand that they are not alone, while she also makes her own connections to the world around her.

So. How exactly would I do that?

Focus a little bit on Karen's past. Make her have a personality and purpose outside of "Mom"

Give Karen her own storyline and character arc paralel yet separate from her kids

Focus on Karen's own grief and loss, how she has carried the burden of her guilt for so many years, yet put on a front of strength for the sake of her kids.

The Idea

Just as Emily is "The Stonekeeper" and Navin is "The Recistence's Leader", Karen should also have a role. Personally, I decided to give her that of "The Messenger".

Karen, in the books, has been characterized in a way I can only describe as stereotypically "motherly": she's caring, understanding, and tries to offer support whenever she can. She might not be very open in the begining, but once she talks with a character a bit more she has been shown to become more trusting. These ideas are not expanded upon any more, so we dob't really get much information about her character aside from that.

I, personally, chose to take that idea and reshape it into Karen being the more "friendly/comunicative" of the group. Although yes, Navin is shown to be more charismatic, there is something to be said about friendship that is formed due to a building up of trust over time.

As a result, I have come up with the following concept:

Karens journey is one in which she learns to rely on other friends for help, that she doesn't need to carry her burdens and face the world on her own while putting on a mask for her children.

On the other hand, Karen also learns that her children are growing up, and they will need to know that they are not alone either. It is her job as their mother to teach this to them.

And in my opinion, the best way this could be potrayed was if Karen started writing to those she met on this journey. Sharing their experiences with those they left behind, communicating the situation in far away nations to others. Being the conection between locations.

And so, in the end, when the battle is about to start, she writes one last message to those old friends, asking for support in the conflict, thinking that she will recieve no answer. Only to be then met the following evening with entire towns worth of troops waiting to help.

Because Karen may not have powerful magic. Or the knowledge to pilot entire ships. But she does have the written word and the ability of forming conections. And that power, sometimes, is as strong as an entire army.

#amulet series #amulet graphic novel #Karen Hayes #im sorry if this barely makes any sense #its 2 am here and im dying of sleep deprivation #but it was worth it tbh #i didn't know where to add this one so i'll add it here: #Karen in this version is a journalist because it fits really well with this storyline I feel like #i like to think she inhereted it from Silas

[m-u-n-c-h-y]

Preston/Gage is a really interesting dynamic - It's hard not to notice that they have a LOT in common, but stand on completely opposing sides especially when it comes to morality. Seeing as you're the only person I can find who actually ships these two, I just wanted your thoughts on how those two might work in more than just a hatefuck/bad-time situation? Especially considering Preston's history and trauma relating to raiders. Even if it's not a romantic/sexual way, just both working for Sole and not tearing each other apart?

Oh you sweet summer child, you have opened the flood gates lmao

In all seriousness, the similarities are by design. My friend and I (we're like the only two people that actively ship them), noticed a while ago that Gage and Preston are written to be narrative foils. They're very similar in their over arching goals, wants, motives, backstories, etc. But they're complete opposites when it comes to their morals and personalities. And that's on purpose. They're differences contrast each other to highlight them, and make them easier to spot and see, usually for the main character. In this case it's us, the player.

Basically, my friend and I often say that they both believe that community is the best at surviving. But for Preston it's about working together and helping to rebuild and defend, while for Gage it's about power and taking what you need (survival of the fittest, but community style).

In terms of working together? Oh boy, I've got a lot of thoughts.

Particularly, I have a bunch of AUs where Preston is forced by Gage to become the Overboss, and AUs where Gage is forced to work under the Sole Survivor. A lot of the time, their working together is due out of pure necessity. Mostly because Gage is threatening innocent people either outright or just by his presence alone (plot related stuff).

It's always very tense and usually there's a major threat if one lets the other die, forcing them both to behave. Preston and Gage in terms of actually fighting and working together is interesting. Preston is used to a more long ranged, structured, and defensive style, while Gage is more close quarters, chaotic, and aggressive (which is actually reflected a little in their companion perks). And both of them seem to prefer planning strategies and working with teams. So, they actually compliment each other. When they're not arguing over everything that is.

But in terms of... expressing themselves, actually talking to each other? It's a bit of a toss up. A lot of the time, when they aren't arguing or insulting each other, both like to slap down truth bombs every once in a while. Making the other see a new perspective, even if they don't want to. Preston pointing out Gage's unwillingness to trust anyone, while Gage points out that trusting no one got him this far in the first place. Gage being the first in line to criticize setters for always needing help, making them weak and unable to defend themselves. Preston in turn, criticizes raiders for their overzealous belief in taking rather than building, growing, stabilizing, which just makes them just as weak. Both not realizing that the other is working towards trying to change that. Trying to get their respective factions to grow strong enough to be self sufficient.

I also think, weirdly, they would be willing to defend the other when it comes to people criticizing their work ethics. They're both hard working, they both get shit done, they're competent. And to question that of either man, sets the other off. They may hate each other, but both of them have a willingness to put work in, to (excuse the language here) pull themselves up by the bootstraps and get shit done. It's a weird respect they both share.

In terms of trauma... it's hard. So damn hard. They were both betrayed, horribly so, basically left to die. Gage took away the idea that he can't trust anyone, but also still looking for people to just listen to him. While Preston was left with so many feelings of worthlessness and bitterness, yet he still wants to find a way to help.

In many of my AUs, I like to imagine a scenario where both of them, being forced to work together, have to confront Clint. And it always ends with Gage taking Preston's side. Not because most of my aus involve them being in some kind of fucked up relationship, but because Gage would HATE Clint. On principal. Which, I think says a lot about Gage's character.

I could go on and on, but that's just my present thoughts atm. I'm thinking of making a general Fallout discord server that focuses more on lore and fandom, so if anyone would be interested in more of my ramblings about my specific AUs and weird little ships, I'll definitely be posting an invite link soon. In the mean time, feel free to just poke my brain about Preston/Gage (or Preston/Maxson cause I ship that too lmaoooo), or any of my AUs. I've got a lot of them.

#fo4 #fallout 4 #preston garvey #porter gage #porston #headcanons #fan theory #ramblings #ask #thanks for poking my brain about this btw #I freaking love these two down to a narrative level #got the munchy's?

[cyazurai]

Goldie MacLeod is our third misfit, and an ex-Lawless.

Born in the fall of 2030, she is one of the youngest members of the group, and the most recently joined. She has no memory of a biological family, and in fact, her earliest memories don't include any adults at all. She was raised by some kids and teens that were orphaned by the war, and as the war raged on, they did what they could to survive. Eventually, when the war ended and everything settled, they'd already settled into their way of life, and ended up joining the Lawless. Why rebuild society when taking whatever you want when you want it is so much better? For a long time, that's how Goldie thought too, and she worked as a courier for different Lawless factions. She only realized too late there was no future in it - not for those she truly cared about. When she discovered that her closest friend had been murdered simply because they annoyed another member of the Lawless... she knew she couldn't stay there.

Because of her upbringing, and staying so long within the Lawless, she has taken a few bad habits with her, but she uses them to the advantage of her new community. Specifically, she's got incredibly sticky fingers, and quiet feet. She can quietly slip into a place, get what she needs, and get out, without alerting a single soul. Some of her new friends aren't big on that, but Nymphe knows sometimes certain things need to be done to survive, and Goldie is their best bet.

She also has a bit of a temper, because she didn't exactly have an upbringing that taught her ways to control her emotions, being raised by teenagers who struggle with their emotions enough themselves. Thankfully, it's a quick to light, but quick to die sort of temper.

Another skill she came away with after living with the Lawless is baking. Baking, you might ask? Yes, she was often on kitchen duty when she wasn't sent out to steal things, and she learned that she was both very good at and really enjoyed baking.

With the skills she has accumulated, she will be primarily the chef for their little community while they develop, and she is very happy to have that position. Perhaps her favorite thing to do in life is cook or bake, and perhaps someday, when they've rebuilt the world a little bit more, she can open a restaurant all her own.

#ts4 #the sims 4 #sims 4 legacy #daclegacy #deadlyapocalypsechallenge #dacgen1 #goldie macleod

[samasmith23]

Evangelion: You Can (Not) Marathon — (Part 8)

Neon Genesis Evangelion, “Episode 8: Asuka Arrives in Japan/ASUKA STRIKES!”

Continuing my Evangelion re-watch marathon with NGE, "Episode 8: Asuka Arrives in Japan/ASUKA STRIKES!" For my thoughts on the previous episode, click the link to the post below:

With that out of the way, let's dig in! And I'm looking forward to revisiting this episode since it introduces the character of Asuka, who was my best friend's personal favorite character in all of fictional media when I first met her back in university!

Considering what the specific contents of Gendo’s shipment are revealed to be by the end of the episode, why do I have the feeling that he’s lying when discussing having “already made the arrangements with the [Human Instrumentality] Committee” to have it shipped to Tokyo-3?

Lol! Kensuke truly is the embodiment of the stereotypical military otaku given both his earlier cosplaying as a soldier back in Episode 4, and his current geeking-out over the site of the United Nation’s fleet of aircraft carriers! What a dork!

And he acts like this throughout the entire episode BTW, even during the middle of an Angel attack!

Also, while it was certainly a thoughtful gesture of Misato to take Shinji’s classmates on basically a site-seeing tour of the Pacific Ocean given how confined their lives in the post-apocalyptic Tokyo mountain terrain must be, I’m curious if she got military clearance to bring two civilian minors on board a military aircraft carrier?

And here she is! The one and only Asuka Langley Soryu! These introductory shots of Asuka do an incredibly effective job in communicating the major defining aspects of her character through primarily visual cues. The first image of her silhouetted by the blinding sunlight as she looks down at NERV’s helicopter landing in the aircraft carrier’s deck helps informs the viewer that Asuka is an individual who thinks very highly of herself, has a superiority complex and wants to stand tall above everyone else.

These facets of Asuka's character are further communicated through the second shot of her brashly stepping onto Toji’s baseball cap as he frustratingly attempts to get it back on while on his knees. Asuka’s prideful personality is further reinforced through her first lines of dialogue, as she barely gives the struggling Toji beneath her any attention, instead immediately shifting focus to Misato when the latter states how much Asuka’s has grown since she last saw her, replying that, “Not only am I taller, but my figure has filled out as well.” This serves as an early indicator that Asuka wants to perceive herself as a fully-mature adult despite being a 14-year-old teenager just like Shinji, Toji, and Kensuke are. Essentially, Asuka places herself on a pedestal high above her peers, whom she looks down upon as mere “children.”

Anno is definitely a master-class when it comes to conveying important character details through visuals!

Shifting focus away from visual direction for a moment, I want discuss some behind-the-scenes trivia in relation to Asuka's voice actresses from both her original Japanese and English incarnations:

In the original Japanese version, Asuka was voiced by Yuko Miyamura, who has had a very complicated and strained relationship with the character over the past couple of decades. Rather infamously in a 2010 interview with SMASH (one year after the release of the second Rebuild movie, which Miyamura reprised her role for) she stated that, "At one point in time, I thought to myself that I would never act as Asuka again. For a very long time, I wanted to erase Evangelion." While in the interview Miyamura stated that this was largely due to the unwanted amount of fan attention her role as Asuka brought her (to the point where she was unfortunately repeatedly stalked and harassed at several international fan conventions), she later provided additional reasons in the back-up material for Volume 12 of the official Neon Genesis Evangelion manga adaptation by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto. According to Miyamura, she found voicing Asuka to be an emotionally painful experience that "was close to bullying, [that] acting the part of Asuka was lots of fun at first," but by the end of the series the character psychologically torn down and denied a happy ending in The End of Evangelion (which is part of why Miyamura said that Anno was "finally an adult" during the production of the final Rebuild movie in 2021 since he finally gave all of his characters, including Asuka, a happy ending). But it was through meeting Asuka's original English VA Tiffany Grant that Miyamura developed a newfound love and appreciation for the character, now viewing her like one of her own daughters (Miyamura is currently a mother of two IRL). Speaking of Tiffany Grant however... her performance is one of the major reasons why the original ADV dub of NGE still holds such a special place in my heart despite its flaws! You can tell that Grant was having an absolute blast in the role since she perfectly nails Asuka’s boastful arrogance and sense of pride through her vocal performance! And Grant herself has openly confirmed this, stating in that aforementioned manga back-up material that, "When I started recording this loud, assertive character who often swore in German, I knew I was having a great time in the role and that it was enjoyable for me as an actor." While I’ve seen a few fans point to Grant’s performance in the old dub as a major turn-off, feeling that it overly emphasizes Asuka’s more rude mannerisms to the point of making her too "mean-spirited" or "unsympathetic" (although to be fair, Asuka is already pretty divisive among fans in general...), I personally felt that Grant’s performance helped make the character all the more memorable and interesting for me. And unlike Miyamura, who's historically had a strained yet improved relationship with Asuka's character, Grant has openly embraced her "'inner Asuka,' [realizing] the many ways that [she] related to this complex, flawed character," since she first voiced the character back in 1998. So much so that she was reportedly deeply heartbroken when she learned that Netflix openly refused to invite her along with the original ADV cast to reprise their roles for the new English dub in 2019.

On the subject of Tiffany Grant's frequent ad-libbing of German words & phrases into Asuka's dialogue, this is one of the more notable creative liberties that the ADV dub took that I honestly feel works to the show’s advantage! Despite the Asuka’s half-Japanese & half-German heritage being another defining aspect of her character, she only spoke a limited amount of German in the original Japanese version due to Miyamura’s knowledge of the language being incredibly limited. Conversely, Grant was already fluent in German as a second language, and therefore decided to swap out several of the original Japanese text with their German equivalents when ADV dubbed the show into English. And I personally feel this additional emphasis on Asuka’s German heritage serves to further flesh her out!

For instance, when Asuka understandably slaps Toji clean across the face after he flashes her in retaliation for slapping him (along with Shinji & Kensuke) when a strong wind briefly exposed her panties to them (the slap was the “viewing fee,” lol!), Grant angrily shouting the German equivalents to “you insolent dork!” or “what the hell do you think your doing?!”, leave a much more memorable impression on the viewer in contrast to the Netflix re-dub, where Asuka’s new VA Stephanie Mckeon instead delivers a more shrill, “How dare you!”

No disrespect to McKeon, as the Netflix re-dub was apparently one of her first voice-acting roles, but the script and direction for the new dub sadly leaves much to be desired…

Also, Toji totally deserved that second slap (and to be cursed at in German) for basically committing an act of sexual harassment. Still, his one-liner of “Here’s your change!”, as a comeback to Asuka’s “viewing fee” line makes me chuckle from a pure word-play perspective. It reminds me of Spidey’s joke during the bank fight with Doc Ock in Sam Rami’s Spider-Man 2!

Also also… dang! Asuka slaps are so powerful that she actually cracked the lens on Kensuke’s video camera with just a single strike! Lol!

Asuka’s first meeting with Shinji is absolutely perfect! I love how she’s so unimpressed, summarizing him as, “Not much to look at.” It honestly gives me a similar vibe to when Kakashi first met Squad 7 in Naruto after he had an eraser fall on his head as part of one of titular character's childish pranks!

I love how Misato initally keeps herself incredibly calm and collected when dealing with the UN Navy Officer’s impatience and intolerance with NERV’s overreaching authority while dealing with the transfer orders for Asuka’s Evangelion Unit-02. Heck, Shinji even compares Misato’s composure and demeanor in this scene to that of Ritsuko, which is quite a contrast to how he’s characterized her as both immature and slobbish in the previous episodes.

It’s also incredibly interesting to see the international politics of this universe at play, as the naval officers are understandably frustrated by the ridiculous amount of military privileges that NERV has been granted. So much so that their authority supersedes that of the UN during times of emergencies (i.e. Angel attacks), even outside of Japan’s national borders and jurisdiction. We saw similar themes at play during the previous episode with the Jet Alone incident, so it's cool to see these ideas further fleshed out in order to make EVA's world feel more alive and authentic!

Sadly though, Misato’s cool-headed professionalism is cut-short by both the UN officer’s increasingly insulting remarks, along with the sudden appearance of her ex-boyfriend Kaji.

Yup, in addition to Asuka, this episode also introduces the character of Ryoji Kaji.

Oh boy, Kaji... Kaji, Kaji, Kaji...

The way I’ve witnessed other people’s perceptions about Kaji's character evolve over the past couple of years has been incredibly fascinating, since a lot of modern EVA fans have admitted to really disliking this character, possibly even more so than FREAKING Gendo "Worst Father Ever!" Ikari! Now I’ll admit that learning about this initially shocked me at first since I personally remembered liking Kaji’s character perfectly alright when I first watched the anime and read the manga. His relaxed & cool demeanor made him significantly stand out in contrast to the rest of the troubled main cast. Additionally Kaji also served multiple important roles in EVA's narrative, ranging from his reemergence into Misato's life serving to graudally push her Elektra Complex back up to the surface, to serving as somewhat of a mentor/surrogate-father figure to Shinji by offering him some seemingly helpful wisdom, to him understandably brushing off Asuka’s childish crush and inappropriate advances towards him as a counter to her unhealthy obsession with wanting to grow-up too fast. Plus, there was that whole intriguing double/triple agent game Kaji was playing between Gendo, SEELE, and the UN. Heck, back when the Internet annoyingly thought it was in-vogue to constantly dismiss Shinji’s character as nothing more than a “whiny b*tch,” I noticed that a lot of these detractors seemed to conversely prefer both Misato and Kaji’s characters (describing Kaji as the least psychologically-damaged of the entire cast). However, I’ve recently discovered that a lot of more modern EVA fans tend to be rather creeped out by Kaji’s womanizing behavior, with some even going as far as to describe him as being borderline to outright predatory, citing two scenes in particular from future episodes which I'll definitely discuss when we eventually get around to them. The critical reevaluations of with womanizing characters from older media are not uncommon, especially in the Post-#MeToo era. We've already seen it with other beloved fictional characters like Han Solo in Star Wars, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and James Bond throughout his entire filmography, and Kaji is not immune to these criticisms either. Personally speaking, while I do still think that Gendo is a far worse scumbag due to being both a neglectful father to Shinji as well as him openly manipulating female characters like Rei & Ritsuko to fullfill his own selfish-desires (even up to the point of heavily implied sexual abuse), I can definitely understand and even agree with a lot of criticisms directed at Kaji. I will at least argue that Kaji's behavior doesn't come across as creepy in hindsight as Han's or especially Bond's (seriously, there's a scene in Goldfinger that is downright disgusting in just how blatantly misogynistic & homophobic it is...), and that he does have his more noble and redeeming qualities when it comes to his relationships with Misato, Shinji and Asuka.

I love how from the moment Kaji first appears on screen, we start getting hints about his and Misato's past romantic history together! This is evident through not only Misato’s embarrassed reaction upon seeing Kaji in the command deck, but also by them awkwardly playing footsie underneath the barrack tables (implying that they’re physically in synch with each other).

And if that weren’t enough, Kaji drops this bombshell of a question when he learns that Shinji is currently Misato’s roommate, asking him if Misato is "still wild in bed" shortly after asking Misato if she's currently seeing anyone else (which does lead to one of my personal favorite Misato moments ever)!

I've honestly lost count of how many times I've used that quote of Misato's as a reaction gif on Twitter, I love it that much!

As someone who was already pretty invested in Misato's character so far when first viewing the series, this revelation made me want to learn more about Misato's past and what exactly happened between her and Kaji which led to them eventually breaking up. And the answer was certainly one which I was not expecting at the time!

Still though... while the fact that Kaji feels comfortable asking this question to Shinji, who is still 14-years-old, is really inappropriate on his part, it does at least underscore Misato's struggles to form meaningful non-sexual relationships with other people due to both her love/hate relationship with her deceased father, and her stunted childhood development & trauma as a survivor of the Second Impact.

Also, this scene in the barracks gives us some early foreshadowing to not only Asuka's obsessive teen-crush on Kaji given her horrified reaction to his earlier bombshell drop, but also to the mentor-role he'll later provide for Shinji when he rebukes Shinji's downplaying of his EVA piloting experiences as "simply luck," informing him that luck is a talent that will get him far in life. AndShinji can't help but find this to be a somewhat reassuring thought given how incredibly low his self-confidence is...

I love the contrasting impressions that Kaji leaves upon Shinji and Misato respectively. Shinji can't help but find Kaji “pretty interesting” due to his cool-headedness and wisdom, whereas Misato’s angrily replies, “He hasn’t changed at all that chauvinistic pig!”

Lol! Misato's words there are unintentionally reflective of how a lot of modern viewers feel about Kaji’s character nowadays. Also, she'd fit right in with Black Widow & Valkyrie on the classic cover of Avengers (1963) #83!

I love the re-occuring visual motif throughout this episode of Asuka constantly standing on higher ground in contrast to Shinji, as it perfectly plants the seeds for the complicated rivalry and relationship between these two characters. While the opening silhouetted shot of Asuka was incredibly effective in regards to conveying Asuka's inflated ego in relation to everyone else, she sets her sights on proving her alleged "superiority" to Shinji specifically as soon as she learns from Kaji about Shinji's unnaturally high-synchronization ratio with his EVA Unit.

Yup! Asuka definitely took Obi-Wan Kenobi's famous words from Revenge of the Sith to heart!

Also, although she tries to hide it, you can tell that Asuka can't help but perceive this news as a significant challenge to her pride, which leads to her commadering Shinji in the escalator so that she can show off her own EVA Unit to him. I love how she attempts to desperately excuse away his high-synchronization status as the result of a "design flaw" due to EVA Unit's 00 & 01 being test-types while her EVA Unit-02 is a combat-oriented "final production model!" It's mostly implied through body-language and mannerisms, but you can definitely tell that Asuka is overcompensating or trying to mask some hidden insecurities whenever she's attempting to show-off or boast about her skills as an EVA pilot!

I love the contrast in Asuka's reactions when she discovers that the 6th Angel, Gaghiel, is attacking the Pacific Fleet. When she first sees the Angel sink several battleships she gives a sneaky smile and head-turn while in close proximity to Shinji, excitedly proclaiming "Now's my chance," in German. However, when she's alone changing into her plugsuit inside the stairwell, she's a lot more quiet and reserved, whispering to herself, "Let's go... Asuka," inferring that Asuka pilots her EVA not only to prove her talents to others, but to herself as well! Excellent bit of character development and foreshadowing on Anno's part there!

And Asuka immediately deciding to commandeer EVA Unit-02 without asking Misato permission first is another nice touch in emphasizing how far Asuka is willing to go in order to prove herself (although Misato does inevitably approve in a hilariously childish confrontation with the obnoxious admiral)!

Speaking of the plugsuits though, I feel this is a good opportunity to mention how while many other fans have commented on how form-fitting these flight-suits for the EVA pilots are (especially for Rei & Asuka), one thing I only recently just noticed in relation to this fact was how Shinji's plugsuit has these weird rectangular-protrusions which somewhat resemble breast-plates. And considering that this episode also famously has Shinji being forced to wear Asuka's spare Unit-02 plugsuit when she forces him to hop into the Entry-Plug to watch her fight Gaghiel up close, I can't help but wonder if these factors have help contributed to the popular fan-readings of Shinji actually being a closeted trans-femme egg?

Returning to Gaghiel however, I love how in addition to this Angel having a really awesome hybrid design of a white whale, a shark, and a sting-ray, Gaghiel also represents a suspicious change in the Angel's pattern of behavior. Whereas all of the previous Angels directly targeted Tokyo-3 and more specifically the GeoFront and NERV HQ underneath the city, Gaghiel instead appears in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and is destroying several battleships in what appears to be a random yet systematically targeted manner, which Misato speculates means that it's actively searching for something. Is it EVA Unit-02 onboard the fleet, or something else entirely? And questions are further raised by Kaji's suspicious behavior, since he not only calls Gendo about this sudden attack, but Gendo sounds like he expected such an occurrence and even shipped "a spare EVA pilot" to support Asuka as backup support (once again reminding me of why I hate Gendo's guts so much as he treats his own son like cannon-fodder)! Also, Kaji fleeing the aircraft-carrier mid attack by hitchhiking a random fighter jet to Misato’s annoyance is an excellent way of allowing the viewer to begin questioning Kaji’s true allegiance…

Additionally, according to Wikipedia "the name Gaghiel (Hebrew: גגיאל), also called Gagiel, Daghiel or Dagiel, in Judeo-Christian folklore is the angel of the fish. Its Hebrew name can be translated as 'roaring beast of God', and has been interpreted by writer Will Raus as a possible allusion to its appearance, which is similar to that of a beast fighting in the water." So this Angel's whale-shark appearance is definitely fitting in that regard!

Also, Misato’s sarcastically condescending, “Hello, NERV delivery! Would you like to order data on this enemy and countermeasures to use against it,” come-back retort towards the rude Navy admiral when Gaghiel begins sinking battleships is absolutely priceless! Allison Kieth is an absolute treasure, and it’s a darn crime that neither she or Tiffany Grant were offered a chance to return for the Netflix re-dub…

Lol! The scene of Asuka scolding Shinji for his "thought-noise" interfering with Unit-02's signal, him hilariously trying and failing to think in German, and Asuka calling him a "dummkopf" before switching the EVA's language patterns to Japanese is yet another iconic gag in this series that NEVER... EVER... gets old!

Holy crap, did I almost forget just how epic and badass Asuka's entry into battle is! There's a reason why these two images of EVA Unit-02 both posing in the tarp on the battleship deck and pulling out its progressive knife have become so iconic!

I love the progressive insanity of the fight with Gaghiel! We start with the most dangerous game of hopscotch ever conceived as Asuka jumps from deck-to-deck over the Pacific Ocean to plug in her umbilical cable within the short span of one minute whilst avoiding the Angel ramming into ship after ship! And then the battle transitions to a literal fishing sport as the Angel drags Unit-02 down into the water while it's still attatched to a ridiculously long umbilical cable!

The attention to detail as Gaghiel drags Unit-02 underwater and repeatedly bounces off the sea-floor admits the sunken ruins of an abandoned city is amazing! I love how you can still see all the various submerged buildings and streets here (I wonder which city this was prior to Second Impact?)!

I like how as soon as Asuka realizes that Unit-02 is completely immobile underwater as Gaghiel is swimming directly towards them, she immediately defers to Shinji for help due to him being “the famed Third Child” (even letting out a suppressed shriek of terror when the Angel opens its jaws wide open to try and devour them)! For all of Asuka’s boasting she’s way in over her head, which continues to be a reoccurring character flaw that she struggles with over the course of the series!

And the madness of this fight is not over yet as Misato conceives of another ingenious yet ludicrous plan to defeat the Angel as she has the navy deliberately sink their remaining two evacuated battleships and time their downward trajectory just right so that that they'll land face-first into Gaghiel's maw after Unit-02 forces it open, firing a barrage of missiles via-remote directly into the Angel's core and forcing it to self-destruct! Just like the fight with Ramiel back in Episodes 5 & 6, this plan is absolutely bonkers and is a thrill to watch unfold!

So… this moment where EVA Unit-02's eye's briefly glow as Asuka (along with Shinji) desperately struggle to gather the stregnth to open the Angel's jaws before the battleships arrive at their position! While Misato later comments to Ritsuko that this was an unusual high-burst of synchronization between the EVA's and their pilots, I can't help but wonder how much of said-ratio boost was due to Shinji or Asuka? I ask because a major defining element of Asuka's character development as the series progresses is that despite her prideful and boastful nature she never actually wins a single Angel battle solely on her own, only doing so with the assistance and teamwork of others (which consequently causes her to gradually descend into a depressive downward spiral).

Also, was this an example of EVA Unit-02 almost entering bersker mode? If so... that's a neat bit of foreshadowing there!

Oh boy! Our official introduction to the Seed of Life for all the other Angels, the 1st Angel… Adam!

I honestly remember getting some serious chills when I first saw Kaji unveil Adam as a cryogenically-frozen fetus-like creature to Gendo & Fuyutsuk, although his description of it as “the first human” in some translations always confused me (the ADV dub simplifies this to instead have Kaji refer to the Adam fetus as, “the key to the human instrumentality project”).

Also, interestingly the “Fly Me to the Moon” ending credits segment has a red filter overlaying the usual animation this time around! That feels like a neat extra detail to signify Asuka’s arrival into the show!

So that was NGE, "Episode 8: Asuka Arrives in Japan/ASUKA STRIKES!", and overall it was another solid banger and a powerful introduction to Asuka’s character, establishing important traits about her character while setting up for future developments for her as the series progresses! And with that we finally have our main ensemble cast for NGE in the form of Shinji, Rei, Asuka, Misato, Ritsuko, Gendo & Kaji completed!

Next up is Episode 9!

#Evangelion: You Can (Not) Marathon #neon genesis evangelion #evangelion #nge #eva #hideaki anno #shinji ikari #asuka langley soryu #misato katsuragi #ryoji kaji #toji suzuhara #kensuke aida #NERV #Gaghiel #Adam #yuko miyamura #tiffany grant #spider man 2 #sam rami #spider man #tobey maguire #alfred molina #star wars #revenge of the sith #obi wan kenobi #george lucas #ewan mcgregor

[carefree-cafe]

Goodbye, Pelican Town

We just wrapped up several months of streaming Stardew Valley, once per week. It's been a wonderful time, getting to hang out with my friends on Sundays, having a little structure in my life while I'm between jobs, visiting this wonderful little fictional town and helping the little digital inhabitants to live their best lives.

It's a bit bittersweet to leave (even if it's only until 1.6 comes out) but we completed everything we set out to do! We completed the Community Center, got four candles on Grandpa's shrine, unlocked basically everything on Ginger Island, reached the bottom of all four dungeons (well, level 100 of Skull Cavern), got married, opened a movie theater, tracked down a witch...

Stardew Valley is a power fantasy. It's the fantasy that you can move to a totally new place and single-handedly improve the lives of every person you meet. It's a lovely sort of fantasy, I think, for two reasons.

First, it's a kind fantasy. It probably says something about me that I open up this cozy community-building story and wait anxiously for the moment I can grab a sword and dive into a monster-filled dungeon, but I love that the game isn't ABOUT that. I love that the game IS about bringing out the best in the people you meet. It's about putting in a little effort to help fruit fairies rebuild a community and bring everyone together. It's about self-actualizing so hard you help a whole town self-actualize, one person at a time.

Second, it's not a totally unrealistic fantasy. You probably won't evoke change in an entire town's worth of people through direct action. But it's so, so possible to leave someone's life better than when you walked into it. It's so possible to inspire people, especially by doing exactly what the Farmer does - seek your best life and your best self. Even if your best self is a silent man in a skeleton mask handing out pretty rocks.

I started streaming games back in July, just as something to look forward to after coming home from running an underfunded and understaffed summer camp. It was part of a larger ritual of "washing off the grime of the day" with a shower and skin care, making a cup of tea, and settling in to play something cute.

It was also a way of "putting myself out there," something I've struggled with for a long, long time.

But I've said for years, years before I started streaming, that what I really wanted to do was stream games for charity. Charity streams are some of the only streams I tune into, honestly. I love seeing people come together around a silly game to raise money and support for a very serious cause. It's so incredible to see that sort of community.

So, you see, I have community and kindness on the mind as I come out of Stardew Valley, the power fantasy about community and kindness.

I think it's time to actually realize that dream of charity streams.

So, starting in February, Carefree Cafe will be hosting regular charity streams. I have a platform, small as it is, and I want to use it for good.

I'll be on the lookout for good causes, good foundations, good places to raise money for. If you have suggestions and ideas, please PLEASE send them my way. I'd love a big 'ol list of reputable charities to draw from.

I haven't quite figured out the schedule we'll do it on, but I'll be recovering from surgery this week and will have plenty of time to think about it.

I'm so, so excited about this.

Thanks y'all.

Have a great night.

#twitch #lgbt creator #stardew valley #streaming #queer #gaming #charity #good cause #charity stream #fundraising #fundrasier #sdv

[viridian-tay-leaf]

Pick a Pile:

Pile 1 💛 -- Pile 2 💞

Pile 3 💚 -- Pile 4 🧡

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pile 1 💛:

So what were not gonna do is go past that like you didn't just say what you just said- seriously how are you still underestimating yourself. Look at where you are right now and how far you've come. You're in your zone babe, keep on going. Big virgo & capricorn energy. 🎶 Money money ain't it funny in a rich man's world 🎶~ You're already there babe, just a little more resting, testing, and putting some more work into sharing your passions and it'll all be good. The universe is working for and with you so why are you fighting. "The girls are fighting". Let go loves it'll work out, it always does for you. Take some time to enjoy the little things today and you'll be a okay little loves~

Channeled Songs:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pile 2 💞

Ouuuuuuuu Someone's in looveeeee. Who are they? Are they someone you've known forever or a new person that just gives you the butterflies? Ignore my interest in the gossip- You guys are down bad and when I say that I mean you're gone loves. This person is someone you can really trust and depend on. They are someone who is down to ride and thrive with you for the long run. Just be sure to keep communication open, respect each other & your boundaries, and be honest all the way through. Keep up these basic ideals and you'll be a love for the pages. I'm getting dancing/kissing in the rain. Library dates, walking in the golden hour, amusement parks. Y'all are an adventurous couple who bring out the best in one another, just be sure to acknowledge and work through the worst as well. A relationship can't work unless you both split it 50/50. Remember that you are your #1 priority and then consider them as your #2 priority. You guys are like a storybook kind of love though. Love songs all the way. Getting Pisces, Taurus, Leo vibes. Overall, whether it lasts a week or a lifetime, enjoy one another and the experiences you have as they will be some of the best memories you have when you go.

Channeled Songs:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pile 3 💚

I actually got the songs before the message this time. Yall are in a me myself and I mood, huh? It's giving "I'm feling myself, feeling myself, feeling myself!" While dancing in the mirror. Okayyyyy you guys are vibing. Y'all are either in love with yourself right now or learning to love yourself again and I'm here for it. You go babe, you deserve it. Someone went through a bad breakup(romantic, familial, or platonic) and it took a hardship on you. It was really tough since you've put so much into this relationship and it hurt you alot to get out of it. But! You did it for yourself cause you knew it wasn't going to change and that you deserved better. After going into Hermit mode for a while, you've decided fuck that I'm the shit, they don't deserve my tears so I'm going to be the best version of me I can be and I'm going to do it unapologetically! Major Pisces and Libra energy. Also getting Capricorn for some reason. Either way im proud of you honey. Yesssss 👏🏽 ahhh I love you're energy. Here's to rebuilding and renewing ourselves! Drink that wine 🍷, Dance in your mirror 🎶, Hang out with people who bring you joy 😂. You are someone who loves hard, but the universe loves you harder ;)

Channeled Songs:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pile 4 🧡

Are you guys okay? I'm getting a lot of anger from y'all. Some of you are upset that something hasn't worked out. Others are just mad at the state of the world and how it's going. I'm getting alot of pessimistic vibes here and I'm hearing that it's not gonna work for either of us babe. So right now I'm gonna need y'all to go into self-care or what I call Hermit-Magician mode and take care of yourself big time. You may be the healers we need for our future. So take a breather cause you definitely need it. I'm hearing burnout big burnout even if it's something you love. Too much of anything is never good for you. Take a cleansing shower. I'm getting protection and maybe some of yall have been cursed/hexed by someone else's negative energy/envy. Get that person out of your environment or life as soon as possible loves. They are not good for you and your friends seem to think so aswell. Be gentle with yourself because you're still sensitive. Take your time refilling your energy and your passions. You can't give pour out an empty cup darling. So as someone who's been there before, rest, rest, rest 👏🏽. It sucks but it'll be worth it. I've found that depending on which sign you are, it helps to go be around your element. For example, I'm a Scorpio (sun) and whenever I feel like this I usually shower, swim, or stand in the rain. It's like a little refresher. A reminder that I'm here for a reason and that reason is to exist and guide others to enjoy their experience aswell.

Channeled Songs:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Be good, be kind, be safe~💜

#pagan witch #higher vibrations #witchblr #artists on tumblr #self love #love and light #gay witch #paganblr #deity work #message from spirit #general reading #channeled reading #tarot reading #tarotblr #wiccan tumblr #viridian rambles #viridian channels #be good #be kind #be safe #witchcraft #witch community #Spotify

[beboped1]

Guards, Guards

This was one of my formative pieces of literature, so I've been excited to get to it. Still a great book, through and through, one of Pratchett's very best.

Guards, Guards

First Read: High School

Verdict then: Wow, I need to get my hands on every book this person has written. Vimes is the best.

Verdict now: Definitely my favorite so far, and I'd argue the best written so far also. While there are some cultural things that don't hold up in the current environment, this is still a shining example of Pratchett's ability to communicate with deep compassion the complexities humanity, all while producing genuinely inspired madness like L-space.

Before I dive in, a disclaimer:

In the modern US, a book about good cops will always play weird, due to the utter and complete failure of our police institutions across the nation. I read Guards, Guards a bit like Plato's Philosopher King - yeah, if every police leader was Vimes, then maybe ACAB wouldn't apply. But that simply isn't the case in reality in the US right now, and we really do need to tear the whole thing down and rebuild.

Ok, with that out of the way, y'all, Guards, Guards is so good. I was hoping this one would hold up, and it really delivered. What starts as a fairly straightforward parody of "outsider chosen one" type fantasy quick turns and morphs into something much stranger and more human. Pratchett's deep compassion and belief in the goodness of humanity here gets sharpened to a razors edge, directly challenging the reader to be a Vimes, not a member of the crowd.

At the center of it all is Vimes himself. We meet a non-functional alcoholic at the beginning, someone who has lost all hope and purpose in his life. But when an inciting incident in the form of the hyper-innocent idealist Carrot appears, he is pulled out of his myopia and drunkenness, and reminded of who he can choose to be. And by the end, Vimes is a man restored, someone who has found again his place in the world, who has carved out a place in this world which rejected him again and again.

But the journey to get there isn't straight and it isn't easy. One thing I'd forgotten is that Vimes goes back or tries to go back to the bottle several times over the course of the book. That struggle felt so real to me, where even when things were going well, still, he drank. The triumph at the end, the acceptance of Sybil's offer, the ultimate rejection of the drink, all of that feels so hard won.

Speaking of Sybil, oh man, such a great character. We get a lot less focus on her body than with previous female characters, and so much more focus on her as a person. Sybil is the first non-witch female character in the series who feels fully real to me - and whose story arc works. Even with the limitations created by sticking with Vimes' 3rd person limited perspective, everything about her makes sense. She's not a joke given some human traits - she's a real, fully human.

Ok, I'm rambling at this point. I really could just go on and on and on about this book, but I'll restrain myself to just one more paragraph on the characters - the "rank and file". Carrot, Nobby, Colon, and even the Librarian are just so phenomenally well sketched, given simple but clear core characterization, and then developed with such a light touch that you don't even realize how much you've fallen in love with them until the end.

Guards, Guards is so much more focused than any of the prior books in the series. The core theme is the power of self definition. Each and every core character - Vimes, Sybil, Carrot, Colon, Nobby, Librarian, Wonse, even Errol - goes on a journey in this book, a process of deciding who they truly want to be. Colon & Nobby decide that they don't just want to be the ones who run slow. Carrot finds his way to nuance, developing from an idealist who memorized the law book into a real community watchperson. The Librarian chooses to live up to what others expect of them. Vimes decides to stop forgetting, stop running into a bottle, and instead to fight for what he knows is right. Sybil decides to join the world, to look outside the safety of her dragons. Wonse becomes exactly who he chooses to be - someone ruled by the power they accumulate, rather than ruling with it. It's just so consistent, so beautifully sketched in so many ways. Even Errol and the Dragon exemplify this core of self definition. They are who they want to be, who they will fight to be.

The line-level writing continues to improve book on book, and he's got just some beautiful sentences in this one. The humor hits hard, not just non-sequitur or situation based, but really diving into character-centric humor. L-space is one of my favorite ideas ever. But the real jump up in craft over Wyrd Sisters and Pyramids here is the focus on the central thesis, and the way everything in the book exists in service to that central thesis.

I love this book. I will still suggest it as a starter to anyone who loves traditional fantasy. Revisiting it was just pure joy, through, and through.

#terry pratchett #book review #books #discworld #fantasy books #guards guards

[speliviya]

Okay so walk with me,

Whether Spencer and Olivia break up or not, it doesn’t change the fact that Olivia still plans to expose Coach Garrett. So that is not the solution to the issue at hand. This is not an issue of loving each other or wanting to be or not to be with each other, this is about not sacrificing what’s important to you and your future just for the sake of maintaining the peace in your relationship? Ngl, not gonna pretend like I completely understand the statement they’re trying to make here but stay with me.

Let’s be real, Spelivia does need some space. Where their relationship is right now is not healthy for either of them. But I don’t think a break up is required to make the space thing work while Olivia still gets to pursue the Garrett story. They should distance themselves publicly; she not go to his games, they’re not seen with each other around campus anymore, not even sleeping over every night. They both should take the actual space that they need but still maintain contact. At the end of the day, they’re still family and best friends outside of their romantic relationship, it will be difficult and unnecessary to completely cut each other off. At first I wanted a full out sneaking around scenario until everything blows over but honestly I don’t think Spencer is the type to do that or even want to do that in a way that feels like lying and tricking people. Wade is one thing and because Liv hid the information from him it didn’t really matter until it did but I can’t picture Spencer being okay with sitting in his coach’s face knowing what he did or silently knowing that he’s about to be exposed without saying anything. That’s just not him. So in compromise of them both getting to pursue their respective careers without direct conflict, they need to keep a healthy distance but plan significant moments to be with each other and rebuild trust and communication. So this way, we get to kind’ve see a changed dynamic of their relationship just for now and it gives them a chance to restructure what their relationship will look like moving forward. So instead of scenes of just them waking up or getting ready for bed every episode, we’d get more phone calls, car dates, maybe another trip to the cabin etc. That probably means less scenes of them together every episode but it will give us more meaningful interactions and conversations that will be better for their development as a couple than what we’ve been seeing the last few episodes of season four.

Something has to eventually shift. We shouldn’t want them to stay the same forever; we want them to grow and progress while still getting more of their personal perspectives, especially Olivia’s. I want her to focus on herself for once, focus on college, and to have more fun outside of Spencer, work, and the Vortex. Even Spencer, as cute as weee think it is, it’s not actually healthy that he can’t focus on his game when Olivia is not there. He needs to be able to focus regardless of whether him and Liv are on good terms or not if he wants to be successful and make it to the NFL. He also needs to take a step back and gain some clarity because tbh he’s definitely fighting for this relationship more than she is at the moment so he needs the space so that he can reevaluate what he needs from her and have a tough conversation acknowledging this problem. Space is definitely necessary at this time but I also don’t want to see Spelivia alienated from one another either. I just want them to get back to a healthy place where they both can love on each other freely while still maintaining the personal boundaries that they need to establish their own careers and futures.

In my opinion, that’s the only scenario that I can think of that will be a win-win for both the characters themselves and Spelivia shippers without making their relationship even worse and damaging it even more than they left it in the finale.

#olivia baker #spelivia #spencer james #olivia x spencer #spencer x olivia #writers help me help you #Permission to steal #askallamerican

[editorialsonlife]

Grief is just like, the wildest ride ever on so many levels and I'm so so so struggling to articulate anything meaningfully at the moment. But here's a brain dump anyway coz it's been a shit 24 hours and my heart hurts and frankly so do my eyes after so much crying. It's v rude.

~ I feel like I've lost so much connection with people because I just don't even know what to say anymore. I don't wanna be the girl who's like oh my dad died adn now my life is a mess but also I am the girl who's dad died and whose life is an absolute fucking mess and it's like, how long can I sit here and cry about it but really it's only been 2 months and of course I'm still crying over it. AND I would literally not expect that standard from anyone else in my life. Someone close to you died unexepctedly? you best believe you live your best messy life and I'll be here until it's done ya know. I'm not going to expect them to be over it in two seconds flat that's just ludicrous and not a standard I should be holding my own self to. it's just dumb.

~ it's really hard to acknowledge and give credence to the absolute weight of everything I am carrying right now and if I sit down and list out everything that is on my plate right now it's simply overwhelming. Work is massive, home life is massive, mum is massive, grief is a ridiculous weight dragging me down, and there is absolutely every reason in the world why I get home and cocoon myself in bed every night and just shut down on every level because I literally cannot process any more. I do not have any more to give to people and that's really hard for someone who prides herself on showing up for the people in my life. It's hard on my ego who wants to be a success at this job and be able to create change and rebuild this fucking team when I'm working with a group of people who are fighting it every damn step of the way. It's hard on my soul because it absolutely sucks listening to someone else sobbing on the other end of the phone and knowing there is literally nothing you can do to change anything apart from sit there and bear witness to it and hold as much space as you can for them.

~ this is really reinforcing the absolute worst of my individualistic, we live alone and die alone tendencies on a level I can't even explain. And I know withdrawing to manage it all and trying to hold it all in is my go to coping mechanism anyway but jesus freaking christ it is rough. and yet, I will never not stop going on about community care and showing up for others and being with them and surely part of all of this is learning to lean on others as well even if it is rough. I just don't know where the answer and the boundaries sit and like whats the point in talking about it because Dad died and it sucked and sitting there and watching that for a month has destroyed me and like, cool?

~ the absolute wildness of how 'back to normal' people expect is bonkers. Like sure we're now in back to back meetings again and trying to sort things out and talk to finance teams about dumb fucking systems and here let me schedule 30 minutes for my mental breakdown in here because when else is it going to happen? like, the world will not acknowledge that everything has changed and I don't know how to integrate everything that has happened into day to day life and like so. many. other. things. society simply does not allow space for the fact that not everything is perfectly fine all the time? I still have to pay bills and the mortgage and function as an adult all while feeling like I can't breathe because my world is so beyond fucked and it is ruthlessly, exhaustingly hard.

~even while it is ruthlessly exhaustingly hard, it is also beautiful too, and isn't that part of the hardest contradiction of all? my cherry tree is blossoming and it's gorgeous. The cat has become a snuggler and I'm 100% the favourite and she curls up in my lap every night. Dave gives no end of hugs and wipes my tears away for me. We spent the weekend with Lynaire and Hayden and Izzy and even though she won't talk to us she still made us go down the slides with her. The trees at the river are all green again. Spring is well and truly here and summer is on the way as well.

I turned up to counselling today and Anne just wrapped me in the weighted blanket and sat there and said I will sit with you through all of this for as long as it takes and there's no need to pretend to be ok here and I just sobbed because it's so hard. It's so fucking hard.

There's no answers, and there's moments of respite and relief, but there's just getting through it and it's rubbish and I'm so existentially tired.

[hello-delicious-tea]

The Wall

He carved on a stone stela all of his toils, and built the wall of Uruk-Haven, the wall of the sacred Eanna Temple, the holy sanctuary. Look at its wall which gleams like copper(?), inspect its inner wall, the likes of which no one can equal! Take hold of the threshold stone--it dates from ancient times! Go close to the Eanna Temple, the residence of Ishtar, such as no later king or man ever equaled! Go up on the wall of Uruk and walk around, examine its foundation, inspect its brickwork thoroughly. Is not (even the core of) the brick structure made of kiln-fired brick, and did not the Seven Sages themselves lay out its plans?

The Epic of Gilgamesh, trans. Stephen Mitchell

So, this wall. This wall is the crowning achievement of Gilgamesh's reign. It's obviously good because it protects the city and the temple, but if you look at what the text focuses on, it's not the impregnability of the wall, but the skill, craftsmanship, care, and even community that go into it. It gleams, and every detail of it is meticulously planned and executed.

In the beginning of the story, Gilgamesh has just started working on the wall, but he's kind of fucking it up. I'm going to use the Mason retelling because it's right next to me:

Sometimes he pushed his people half to death With work rebuilding Uruk’s walls,  And then without an explanation let The walls go unattended and decay,  And left his people dreaming of the past And longing for a change.  They had grown tired of his contradictions  And his callous ways.

A wall of this caliber requires focus, direction, planning, consistency. Good leadership requires the same.* Gilgamesh, though he is meant to be the best king ever and may ("left his people dreaming of the past" suggests he used to be good at his job, or, alternatively, that the previous king was pretty rad), is currently really falling down on the job. TBH, it sounds like he's depressed to me: sudden bursts of energy where he tries to get on top of things followed by getting overwhelmed and letting it all fall apart again.

And why is he depressed? Because he is impossibly, terribly lonely. Being 2/3 god and 1/3 human (again, weird) means there is nobody with whom you can have a meeting of the minds. Gilgamesh is both terribly drawn to that meeting and terrified of it; he dreams a number of somewhat ominous dreams of being overthrown, mastered, by a stranger. His mom is like, OH THANK GOD THIS IS YOUR SOULMATE SHOWING UP, MAYBE THEN YOU WILL STOP THE BULLSHIT** Gilgamesh is not convinced, but lo, Enkidu shows up and promptly tells him to stop his bullshit, they fight, they realize they are perfectly matched, they fall into each other's arms <3 <3 <3 and begin the process of becoming human together. I know this sounds like a tangent but it is not.

We then basically forget about the wall till the end of the cycle, when Gilgamesh returns home from his attempt to SPOILERS resurrect Enkidu END SPOILERS, and he is, again, SUPER DEPRESSED. But he gets home, and he meets this old man who tells him, you know what? We all lose our soulmates, the loves of our lives, and we go on. It sucks but you're not special. And then he sees the wall, and it's like, oh. Maybe this is what's worth living for when you've lost everything else: what humans can accomplish together, beauty and craft and strength and community, that's what makes it all worth while.

And that's how you know he finally shares the human condition: every man is his equal, and he knows as a bone-deep truth that glory can only come from community, not from asserting power over others.****

*Also not fucking every young woman on her wedding night, that is also not good leadership and leads to dissatisfaction among the citizens.

**Wandering around the city at night beating up any random young man you see to try and find someone who can equal you, also not great leadership, also maybe not very bright***

***That said, both of these (fucking and fighting) are attempts to find someone who can match him and just, um, let's be clear that he stops both of these things the moment he meets Enkidu

****There is a lot, and I mean a lot, of yelling at people before he gets that, and he does yell at the old man too initially, but the old man yells back - just like Enkidu did <3 (but there is no epic fight here)

#gilgamesh #epic of gilgamesh #classics #retellings #sorry if it sucks a bit I've been working on this for three nights after BabyTea goes to bed #here's that Gilgamesh content no one was really asking for #you get it anyway

[swanqiu]

hi ess, i can’t help it but i always feel suckish whenever i come back after a hiatus :/ like all the friends i had here before are part of new groups now or there’s a feeling where i’ve sorta been replaced and i don’t really have the interactions levels i had before. it just feels awful but isk i notice that you always seem to have a decent amount of people who still interact with you whenever you end a hiatus. how do you do it?? what are your tips for not feeling this gross sucky feeling?

lmao i’m so sorry this has been sitting in my inbox since august OF LAST YEAR and i’ve vaguely answered it here and there over the last few months with the intention of maybe one day giving you a real, proper answer but like

i genuinely don’t think i could sum it up any better than the last few tags from this post

alt text* + a longer, more in-depth answer below the cut!

building genuine connections and friendships with your mutuals is gonna mean so much more than only caring about them for their writing/muses if a sustainable friendship is what you’re looking for?? being able to have ic/dash/writing/rp interactions that vibe well and can pick up again after long periods of time is just a byproduct of being friends ooc, tbh. 

but i mean... elaborating on that and to more specifically answer your second question, i would also say to set boundaries (if you haven’t already!!) or even healthier boundaries between yourself and being online, or between yourself and the people you write with. like if you’re feeling these feelings you describe of being replaced or, god FORBID, being jealous that people you thought were your friends are now... getting along better with other people or are doing what’s best for themselves and building spaces where they can be more comfortable.......... maybe you should reevaluate whether being in indie rp/writing space (which is very fluid and always subject to tons of new relationships or drifting-aparts) is the best space for you and your emotional/mental wellbeing.

tying it all together: when you view your mutuals only as transaction machines who are there to just write with you or talk about your muse(s)/plot(s) with you and you’re quantifying your relationships with your “friends” based on in-character things? especially if you’ve been the one gone for a while on hiatus and expect people to still want to connect with you (for ic things) on the same level when you return?? i’d very kindly ask you to reevaluate how you view and cultivate your rp space and expectations for it bc. that does not sound healthy NOR does it sound like a good time for anyone. in my very honest, very straightforward opinion.

also, if you’ve been on hiatus and not keeping in touch with anyone while you’ve been away, it’s normal for people to drift apart or lose connection for a little bit. how much are you willing to invest into rebuilding and re-sparking that friendship? if you haven’t even tried reaching out to people yet and are jumping to conclusions about being replaced (which, to an extent, could be valid), then i think you’re underestimating the effect even a “hi hello i missed being on here and missed you!” can do to kickstart that reconnecting process.

anyway i really hope this message somehow finds its way to you, anon, or that my two cents is of use to someone else who’s lurking but like. yeah. sending this out into the void and hoping it does what it needs to do!! message me off anon any time or just chat me up if we’re mutuals tbh. my discord is esscapekey#3726

anyway i really hope all of this isn’t just me blowing smoke up my own ass or sounding like i’m the know-it-all/fix-it-all go-to for this topic specifically bc i really am not but. best believe if u approach me and sincerely ask me for advice then yeah sure absolutely you bet i will do that to the best of my ability.

*photo text:

@anon asking how to retain a community after being away or on hiatus for so long— this is how!!

develop genuine ooc friends with ur mutuals!!! care abt their interests off the dash and outside of their muses!!!

tbh if you only care about their muses it is not a sustainable friendship or writing relationship at all!!!! imho!!!!!

anyway sorry i was going through my inbox and saw an ask from *checks notes* a million years ago (*lmao once again.......... i am so sorry)

#don't look at me i'm doing a deep clean of my drafts and inbox i do not wish to be perceived rn #lol oops this went on a lot longer than i though it would but. hope this helps. all the best! #i also did not think i was the most qualified to give an answer to this bc uhhhhhhhhhh impostor syndrome i guess but like #i really do sit here on the dash sometimes or on disc mainly nowadays and it's just like. WHAM i really have..... so many people to love on #and they love on me BACK god what a time to be me so i guess ur right #love really is stored in the *checks smudged writing on hand* mutuals blasting me with shitposts at 2am <3 #( OOC. ) — this is an ESS OH ESS.

[reallygreatblogname222]

The Ones Who Live opinions

In an effort to keep my blog Mostly Cegan, I’ve compiled my The Ones Who Live thoughts into one post that no one asked for! I’m open to discourse so let’s discuss 🗣

First off; WOW. It was incredible and everyone should watch it - even if you gave up watching TWD, TOWL is for you!

The Civic Republic and the CRM are SO cool. We see them a bit in World Beyond, and I’m so glad they expanded that part of the universe further in TOWL!!!

Six years really isn’t that long in the grand scheme of things; I think consignment could be fun for a while – plus, you’ll be in great shape when you’re let into the city 😉

Yeah I’d love it if Jadis/Anne could simply not exist please and thank you.

I hope there’ll be a limited series from the perspective of the Civic Republic and the various CRM-guarded safe zones/secret cities with a more in-depth view of them. World Beyond shows you how incredible the CR is, and why the CRM has to do what it does… To get meta with it, there isn’t a lot of rebuilding society in zombie shows/films; usually they either show the before or the after, but the TWD universe is showing the during 👌

What the actual fuck did poison gassing Michonne’s group do for the CR?? The CRM gained *nothing* from that; why did they do it??

Noooo Nat!

In episode three, the first time Michonne and Rick talk after he tricked her, the way she took his helmet off, threw it, and just glared at him is unintentionally hilarious. Like ‘this love is about to get conditional after what you just did’. He knows he fucked up, and he’d do it again in a heartbeat because his mind is Made Up.

Excuse me. Passive aggressive Michonne is my favourite person ever. Their snippy ‘heart’s not really in it because I love you more than life itself, to the point of detriment’ arguing while in life-threatening situations is adorable. “Commando, really?”

The Roomba! Hahahaha, love it. Rick and Michonne’s interactions feel natural, idk how to explain it but Michonne laughing and saying “that explains why it’s so spotless in here,” feels domestic and normal in a way that throws you right back to season five.

If these characters weren’t so well-established, their back-and-forth would have eventually crossed the line into being annoying, but because we know them and their journey so well, I was hanging on every word, man. Damn.

Not Rick shoving a knife through the fandom’s communal heart by dreaming about Carl… 

I appreciate that quick lift make out, then that quick car make out. Gotta get a smooch in while you can 😂 Also let me tell you, Rick wearing a plain jumper is *doing it* for me for some reason…

Uh. Hello Gabriel? I guess it makes sense because of Jadis but… didn’t expect to see him here…

Okay how is Rick tied to the bed - he has ONE hand??? Surely the tie would just slip right off? Unless he’s wearing his fake hand, but why would he be wearing it while sleeping? Is he faking?

Jadis/Anne/Bitchface was already an irredeemable asshole, but then episode five happened and OH MY GOD there’s a spoiler for Huck’s death! (I haven’t got to that episode of World Beyond yet and I’m dreading it). Though as much as Jadis is unpalatable, it’s difficult not to feel bad for poor Gabriel. He saw the best in her so he was ultimately the only one to lose her.

I was on the CRM’s side until that last episode – man, the Echelon briefing really shines a light on everything. But it’s good to know that the Civic Republic lives on!!

Rick, my man, why did you leave your insanely awesome hand behind? What was that about?

THE REUNION! I have no words.

#Spoilers for TOWL and World Beyond

[bugoutpest]

Termite Inspection Morayfield

A termite inspection is an important step before purchasing a property in Queensland. Your inspector will thoroughly check the immediate surrounding area of your home and garden. They will look inside small spaces like kitchens, bathrooms and crawlspaces.

Make sure you clear these areas to allow for easy access by your inspector. They will also check for signs of termite activity on the outside walls of your home. To know more about Termite Inspection Morayfield, visit the Bug Out Pest Solutions website or call 0426263320.

The warm climate of Australia makes it a great place to live and work but it is also a perfect environment for termites to thrive. These pesky pests will attack homes, buildings and properties if left unchecked and cause extensive damage resulting in expensive repairs.

The first step to taking control of your home and property is conducting a thorough inspection. This is a good idea for homeowners as well as those who are planning on purchasing properties.

All houses in Queensland are required to have a termite management system installed when they are constructed. This is to help prevent termite attacks. While these systems do impede and discourage concealed termite entry they do not prevent it altogether. Your building and pest inspector will provide a detailed report on the termite management system of your prospective property as well as make recommendations regarding conducive conditions that are likely to attract termites. They will also advise on construction methods that are considered to be effective against termite attack.

In Morayfield, properties offer a range of options and are highly desirable due to their affordability and close proximity to schools, shopping centres and a variety of facilities. There are also plenty of over 50s lifestyle communities, such as Thyme Lifestyle Resort Moreton Bay, in the area that are appealing to retirees looking for a quiet and relaxing lifestyle.

With a house median price of $620,000 and unit median of $390,000, it’s no wonder that Morayfield is a sought-after location for both buyers and investors. The suburb boasts a healthy rental market, with houses in the area renting for around $520 per week and units offering a return of 4.7%.

Buying a property is an exciting venture, but it’s important to have the right financial guidance to ensure your budget aligns with your goals. Bribie Island Lending can provide you with personalised financial guidance and help you find the right home loan for your needs.

Termites can destroy homes and other buildings by chewing through their soft interior wood to access life-sustaining cellulose. They are one of the most destructive pests in Australia and cause billions of dollars worth of damage each year. The best way to protect against these destructive pests is to regularly perform termite inspections.

A termite inspection can identify any visual signs of termites as well as any conducive conditions. A termite inspection can also reveal whether or not a property has a current termite management plan. It has become common practice for Queensland sellers to have a building and pest inspection done prior to listing their properties.

Termites are attracted to warm, moist climates and can invade homes from the outside or through plumbing leaks or cracks. Ensure that your home has adequate drainage, is not positioned too close to trees or shrubs and is well-sealed to prevent leaks and cracks. Also, regularly inspect and re-caulk any areas where pipes enter the home.

Termites are destructive wood-eating pests that can damage homes and commercial properties over time. If you suspect a problem, it’s important to contact a termite inspection company to get the situation under control. Otherwise, you could end up paying for costly renovations or even a total rebuild.

In order to ensure a thorough termite inspection, you should clear your home or business of clutter. This includes stacks of paper, clothing and book piles, and other items that can provide favorable hiding places for these pests. You should also remove any structures from touching walls or other structural elements in order to allow your inspector easy access to every part of the property. To know more about Termite Inspection Morayfield, visit the Bug Out Pest Solutions website or call 0426263320.

Your inspector will check both the interior and exterior of your home for signs of infestations. They’ll also look at any external timbers, retaining wall fencing and drainage around the property. They’ll also scan your roof voids, checking for any potential problems or evidence of termite activity.

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