ladymurasakiii

[ladymurasakiii]

If you see this on your dashboard, reblog this, NO MATTER WHAT and all your dreams and wishes will come true.

[ladymurasakiii]

Reblog or your mom will die in 928 seconds.

I love my mom.

I am risking nothing

I AM SORRY FOLLOWERS, I LOVE MY MOMMY

Will not risk.

sorry followers :(

[ladymurasakiii]

So, I played Deus Ex: Human Revolution for the first time and fell in love with the game instantly. After I was finished I wanted to drag a piece from it into reality. The design for the patch is the menu icon for the augmentations, painstakenly recreated from a stupendously tiny screenshot with Adobe Illustrator. I only wanted a patch for myself but since every vendor I contacted had a minimum order of at least 20 I now have some left. Golden thread on black background with a velcro backside (but can be sewn on as well). Dimensions: 7 x 6 cm (2.75 x 2.36 inch). Available from my shop http://sarahkastrau.limitedrun.com/products/799696-deus-ex-human-revolution-patch.

[ladymurasakiii]

Want to learn something new in 2022??

Absolute beginner adult ballet series (fabulous beginning teacher)

40 piano lessons for beginners (some of the best explanations for piano I’ve ever seen)

Excellent basic crochet video series

Basic knitting (probably the best how to knit video out there)

Pre-Free Figure Skate Levels A-D guides and practice activities (each video builds up with exercises to the actual moves!)

How to draw character faces video (very funny, surprisingly instructive?)

Another drawing character faces video

Literally my favorite art pose hack

Tutorial of how to make a whole ass Stardew Valley esque farming game in Gamemaker Studios 2??

Introduction to flying small aircrafts

French/Dutch/Fishtail braiding

Playing the guitar for beginners (well paced and excellent instructor)

Playing the violin for beginners (really good practical tips mixed in)

Color theory in digital art (not of the children’s hospital variety)

Retake classes you hated but now there’s zero stakes:

Calculus 1 (full semester class)

Learn basic statistics (free textbook)

Introduction to college physics (free textbook)

Introduction to accounting (free textbook)

Learn a language:

Ancient Greek

Latin

Spanish

German

Japanese (grammar guide) (for dummies)

French

Russian (pretty good cyrillic guide!)

[ladymurasakiii]

[ladymurasakiii]

what comes after level 0? like, level 1; 2; 3; 4; 5; etc.

Level 0 is getting yourself to a base level of daily self discipline, taking care of your health and appearance, and having things to do besides scrolling all day. The bare minimum of feeling good about yourself long term and being a functioning person.

Level 1 is to figure out what’s wrong with your life and come up with a tangible and measurable plan on how to fix it. What to cut out, what to invite in, how long it’ll take to save up for xyz, what credit score you need for such and such, what habits need to be dropped immediately, etc. Figuring out how to go from who you are now to the early stages of who you want to be. Level 1 is coming to terms with who and are and what you want, doing the research, and making a game plan. It's making sure you don't keep sliding backwards. Why is this level 1 and not level 0? Bc when people are in a subpar place, taking an audit of how they’ve failed themselves leads to more despair and a feeling of hopelessness. People who have gotten themselves to a semblance of health and daily discipline will do this and feel revved up for a challenge.

If you’ve been working out every day, eating well, taking care of your looks, enjoying your hobbies and taking 30 minutes to build a skill you’ve always wanted to learn, you’re gonna be feeling great. And when it’s time to sit down and apply for new jobs it won’t feel as daunting. When it’s time to sit down and write that essay, it won’t be as hard. When you decide to start saving $200 a month, you’ll be excited about it instead of feeling deprived. Level 1 is a very short level and you shouldn't be here for long at all.

Level 2 and up will vary greatly from person to person as it's about putting your money where your mouth is and really putting in work. No more info hoarding, no more restless nights trying to figure out what you want. It's go time. It could include more schooling, working, rebranding yourself, putting yourself out there, not buying new clothes or eating out bc you're saving money hardcore, ramping it up at the gym, or whatever else you planned out. You stfu and do the work. It's uncomfortable bc you won't allow your brain to sabotage you into stopping. You're becoming a new person. Level 2 will likely last a long time since rome wasn't built in a day and whatever you're trying to accomplish will probably take a fair amount of work.

Level 3+ is simply when you are reaching milestones and you are able to assess where you are and see what lies ahead. You have to replan, reformulate, and get back to work. You have to decide if you should keep this job or accept that new offer you just got and weigh out the pros and cons of each. You have to push a bit harder to firmly cement yourself into the next area rather than remain a newbie. At this point, you're a bit of an authority figure. You know what you're doing and you've been at it for a while. This is totally your new normal. This is just your life now.

[ladymurasakiii]

hey guys, hope your skin is clear and you get a text from someone you like real soon.

also that your lunch tastes good, you find twenty dollars on the ground, and that thing coming up that you were dreading turns out not so bad

[ladymurasakiii]

Reblog or your mom will die in 928 seconds.

I love my mom.

I am risking nothing

I AM SORRY FOLLOWERS, I LOVE MY MOMMY

Will not risk.

sorry followers :(

[ladymurasakiii]

okay now i’m sure this book and i are going to be friends

[ladymurasakiii]

due to personal reasons i refuse to open up to anyone anymore :) :)

[ladymurasakiii]

💗 Self Care Tips 💗

Give yourself at least one day of rest. Sleep in, stay in bed, watch a TV show, stay away from your phone, eat something yummy and just spend some time with yourself.

Turn off the notifications on your phone. I swear this is a game changer. It is such a good feeling, because it takes away so much pressure and you automatically spend less time checking your phone.

Make a list of things that you are grateful for/that make you happy. It ultimately puts you in a better mood.

Ask for help if you need it. Call a family member or a friend when you are hurting and feeling low. Asking for help is not weak, my love.

Do something nice for another person. Write a letter to a friend, buy a little something for your roommate, help a stranger on the streets - acts of kindnesses are so needed on this planet and they make the other person feel loved and valued, which gives you a sense of purpose and makes you feel happier.

Stay away from gossip and complaints. As Vex King states in his book Good Vibes, Good Life, conversations that hate on other people lower your vibrations and leave you feel down and blue. Stay away from negative people as much as you can and start surrounding yourself with radiant beings.

Stop negative self talk. I have said it before and I am never going to stop repeating it: The way you talk to yourself matters. What you tell yourself ultimately becomes your reality. So, try your hardest to fuel your mind with positive thoughts and watch yourself bloom, my love.

Give yourself time to do absolutely nothing. It is important to have down time and just sit with your thoughts for a while. Sit in silence and remind yourself that everything is going to be alright. You are capable of so many things and everything is working out for you. Repeat this whenever you have some time for yourself.

I love you so much. Take good care of yourselves.

[ladymurasakiii]

Spencer Wan, ex-Castlevania animation director, tweeted regarding a funny glitch with Richard Armitage's voiceover that he accidentally created during the animation process:

Throwback to the time I made Trevor say "dicks"

I accidentally trimmed the audio at the beginning of the word "six" and for some reason it became a "dicks"

[ladymurasakiii]

I am a self-described “connoisseur” of the internet. I am a part of the generation who grew up with the technology evolving and reaching its heights that are seen today. And because of this, I feel like our generation has some of the most tech-savvy people on the planet, just because we were there with all of this experimental tech and learned how to manipulate it/work our way around it. But also because of that, a lot of our lives have been altered because of this. Due to the Internet fueling the need for self-presentation, to show others just how awesome and cool we and our lives are so that we can have the validation of millions that we don’t even know. Because of this, there has been a huge issue with mental health in our generation because of that. We see people post their immaculate lives on the internet--a 17-year-old preforming at Coachella or a 20-year-old being able to attend the Met Gala--and compare that to our rather average and often “bland” lives and it affects them terribly.

https://youtu.be/OX_Bini29kU

Instagram vs. Reality by H3H3 Productions talks about this double standard in deceiving your followers to seek validation

I was aware of focus groups and their impact on advertising, but I did not know about just how deep the research can get. I know that brands will have targeted ads for specific people, like of a certain age or race or socio-economic status, but I was unaware of how many companies rely on focus groups to ensure that their advertising is not only effective, but can become an integral part of the group and how that group operates. For example, a lot of cigarette brands started advertising in poorer black and Latino communities, to the point where menthol cigarettes have become such a huge part in those areas. Focus groups played a huge part in that too, where the companies would target those people so that their invasive advertising would work. Advertising has become almost a staple annoyance in the modern day, with us being bombarded non-stop by commercials and ads on your phone or computer about brands that you see everywhere including your own home. It is an endless stream of information and it is one of the worst byproducts of modern-day society that I can think of. Advertising in and of itself is not bad, but the influx of it is something that gets very old very quickly.

Newport targeting black communities with their ads, with the bottom one using AAVE to appeal to black people more

I believe that the media is both unaware and very aware of the influence that they have on what goes on in the world. None is ever more prevalent like perpetuating stereotypes and making it harder for minorities to be properly treated in the world. Black people are often portrayed as poor and violent criminals, Latinos as poor drug dealers, Asians as the mysterious smart nerd, gay people as the weird, sassy best friend, trans people often as the punchline (often the “man in a skirt/dress” joke), and women with a slew of stereotypes. Pretty much every group has some harmful stereotype that was mainly perpetuated by the media and has become a centerpiece of entertainment. Even with these assumptions finally being challenged and circumvented, there are still many who base their entire perceptions of a group of people based off of what they see from the media. For example, Americans often joke about the British loving tea or having terrible teeth or having terrible food. This was all instilled from the media constantly showing us these in the news, or seeing them in movies and TV, and we all went along with it because we didn’t know any better/anything about the country. America, in turn, is made fun of for being ultra-conservative gun-lovers who eat apple pie and hamburgers and love not having universal healthcare. Every group has something harmful towards them and the media has not attempted to try and fix this. Only people from those groups who have gotten into the media are the ones who are actively trying to change this, and even then it is very limited and gradual.

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2018/02/17/586181350/strong-black-woman-smart-asian-man-the-downside-to-positive-stereotypes

This article talks about so called “positive stereotypes” and how they are actually more harmful than helpful.

[ladymurasakiii]

Media Tracker

I tracked my media usage for all day on Thursday, March 4. I was using a range of media for a total of 11 hours.

In the early morning (7ish), I opened up YouTube and watched about 10 minutes of videos, because it helps me get adjusted to waking up and it helps me calm down. That morning I also woke up a bit earlier and was not as tired as I thought, so I watched videos to help quietly pass time as the rest of my family was waking up. As I was using it, I felt bored, so I tried to use videos as a means to help soothe that boredom.

Later on (so about 8ish), I was still on YouTube but then transitioned onto Tik Tok, and I spent a good hour and a half on it, watching videos my friends sent to me and watching anything that was recommended to me. I was on Tik Tok because again, I was bored because I was both neglecting my homework over break and also just bored, so at least I could pass the time by watching videos and laughing.

Around lunchtime, I was making some food while I was listening to music and videos on YouTube for around two hours, as it helps keeping my brain focused if I have as much background noise as possible. During this time, I decided to hop back onto Tik Tok for about 30 minutes, as I like to watch things while I am eating. During this time, I felt bored again and I had felt a bit sad because of personal issues, so this helped me a ton.

I was watching a video on the missing 411

Later on (3-4PM), I went on a hunt for a specific meme I had on my phone, but got distracted by a ton of videos I had saved to it so I ended up watching videos I had saved for about 20 minutes. I was texting my friend (which ended up lasting for about 11 minutes) the image, which made me feel a bit happy, since it was a rather funny conversation. Watching the videos made me feel also really happy since they were pretty funny videos.

I then started reading random articles on Wikipedia, which took up around an hour of time (5-6), since I love to go down Wikipedia rabbit holes and either do a deep dive on a topic or just end up from some random place to another (like Jennifer Lawrence to pineapples). I wanted to do this because I wanted to for a while and I decided now would be a good time since I had nothing else planned for that day. I started looking up the different Greek Gods and Titans because I am in love with Greek mythology and wanted to learn more. I was feeling a mix of boredom in my search as I was sort of skimming through some articles but I also felt a sense of intrigue when I found more to learn about and see more links to click on.

Dionysus with his cult of female followers the Maenads

In the late afternoon (or night I never knew the distinction) around 7,  I decided to play Hades on my Switch so I did that for a good 3.5 hours. Video games are my primary means of entertainment, and because I recently got this game and was very interested in the game, I started playing and time flew by. Whilst I was playing, I took a break for 20 minutes to go onto my phone and look at some of the strategies of the game and text my friends. Then for the last hour I pulled out Spotify and listened to music while I was playing, which both helps me get through some stressful/tedious parts and also is just fun for me to do. Playing made me feel overall really happy and satisfied, especially since I made major progress through the game and it is just a fun game to play. Afterward however my head hurt because there was a lot to process for my smooth brain and my TV emphasized the very bright colors in the game (and probably because I stared at screens for basically the entire day).

Hades (2018)

Oops another piece of media that involves Greek mythology I cannot be stopped

I was in my bed afterward and I usually listen to soft music or long YouTube videos to help me go to sleep, so I was in bed listening to music on YouTube for 2 hours until I fell asleep at 11. While I was falling asleep, I felt really calm because of the music but I also was feeling a bit anxious because I was wondering when the next ad would come up so I could skip it. But for the majority of the time, I felt really calm and the music helped a lot with me going to sleep at a more reasonable time than usual.

I was mainly listening to Glass Animals, this is their lead singer David Bayley

[ladymurasakiii]

Duty

Hi there

Thank you for your service

[ladymurasakiii]

I love everything about movies, since they were a major part of my life when I was growing up. Because of that, I loved to learn more about them, their very complex history, and the art of filmmaking. One thing I love about film is its constant need to evolve and become something new. I knew about a lot about some of the practices that the industry would do that were EXTREMELY unethical, like exploiting women and children, favoring how much money a movie makes vs what the audience actually wants to see, or any others that may not be open to the general public, but I did not know about how much movie studios would use vertical integration to promote their movies and make them as cheaply as possible. I understand that it would have the studio rake in as much money as humanly possible, but it is super unethical. But I’m not surprised that unethical practices would arise from businesses in the early 20th century. Everything was unethical back then (and remnants remain today, but nobody really talks about that now, do we?) Another thing that surprised me was that most of—if not all—of the highest grossing movies were all in the modern-era, from the early to mid 2000s-2010s. I remember going to basically all of those films, unaware that I was contributing to that history. But I would’ve thought that other films (like Gone with the Wind or Casablanca) would garner more money, since there would be a ton of people who would go back to the theatres to watch movies over and over.

Casablanca is widely considered to be one of the greatest films of all time

Music also plays a major part in my life, since I listen to it every single day and have been for years, being exposed to different genres and artists from family, friends, and even anime. Music is one of the major influences in my life and I love how it can influence others as well. I wouldn’t have this without the radio, which I have a profound love for. Not only with things like radio plays or shows but also just the ability to do whatever you want—the airways are owned by the public, after all. I am a part of the school’s radio station, and I love it. I am able to talk about the music I love and share that with my friends and parents (I’m on Saturdays from 1-3, shameless promotion). The radio was the true way that people were able to express themselves, having their voices heard by the masses with little-to-no restriction. The radio was the thing that truly gave us freedom.

Podcasts are the newest wave in radio, since it’s easily accessible and there are millions of them out there

Television is something that I am rather out of the loop on, but I was a connoisseur of children’s TV when I was younger. I knew that Lucile Ball was a massive game-changer in the television industry, but I never knew that she was that big of a game changer that one woman led to the overhaul of an entire multi-million dollar industry. What I love about television today is that it is now becoming more accessible to the masses, like radio and film in how anyone can create the content that they want to see, and hope that they could be picked up by a major studio like how the hit animated shows Helluva Boss, Hazbin Hotel, or Bee and Puppycat being made and distributed on YouTube, who are either going to be picked up by a studio or already have been. Globalization has led to more and more people picking up a camera (or a pen) and creating what they want to see, and that leads to more choice in the market, which to me is a great thing.

Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel created by Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano on YouTube

Bee and PuppyCat by Natasha Allegri, picked up by Frederator Studios

[ladymurasakiii]

Even though rather “old” types of media such as newspapers, books, and magazines are slowly dying out/becoming rather obsolete in our modern world, I still am a rather large consumer of those types of media. Books to me are a great way to, like the textbook described, “escape” from the outside world and get lost in a world of the author’s own imagination. To me they are basically the lifeblood of society, since anybody can write one. Anybody is able to come up with what they want to say and they can share that message with the rest of the world without having to bow down to their corporate overlords. With the rise of technology comes more and more self-publishing, which means more people can easily share their values and views, and with the rise in globalization comes the rise in various types of people sharing said values and views. I see this everywhere now, especially on the reading and writing side of YouTube (affectionately named “BookTube”) where I constantly see young authors reviewing books and giving out their process on how to start writing and how to self-publish their own books. YouTubers that I actively follow like Jenna Moreci and ReadwithCindy are readers turned authors and have experience/experimented with the self-publishing route (and when it comes to Moreci, actually becoming a rather famous indie author). Books are now becoming a rather common thing, as basically everyone can think back to when someone told them that they were writing a book, or maybe have even thought of making one themselves.

readwithcindy’s reviews help promote books being read and indie author’s platforms grow

Other types of media I consume on a regular basis are newspapers and magazines, but when it comes to newspapers, I am more so a casual fan, only using some of the most reputable/well-known sources such as The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal. While I do casually read these newspapers, I am a greater supporter of journalism in general, and it just so happens that newspapers are the medium that helped journalism spread. I do support organizations such as ProPublica, but they are way more digital than other newspapers currently in circulation. I rarely read physical newspapers, seeing as how we barely receive them anymore—our neighborhood has slowly but steadily become more and more digital-friendly. In this age, I much prefer digital newspapers, since I am able to read them wherever and I can read what I want (and killing fewer trees is a great bonus).

When it comes to magazines, I am a bit more knowledgeable in the magazines that I choose to read. The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and Time are all great magazines that I constantly read, since I love the articles and the deep dives into certain aspects of culture they all share, like how The New Yorker tends to be more culturally-based, whilst The Atlantic covers more political sides of life. My house also tends to receive those travel-based magazines that the textbook covers, since we will sometimes use United Airlines and are in their targeted demographic. What shocked me about magazine readers was that more minority groups tended to read more than any other group. Racial and queer groups would read more magazines than their counterparts, which makes some sense when I thought about it more. Since magazines can be used to have a specific group of people read it, then it would make sense that there would be certain minority groups that made their own magazines to cater to their own groups of people. Also advertising can play a part into the rise of specific groups wanting to read, especially if the magazine comes in different languages like most do nowadays.