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[scatteredcloud]

22:50 5/1/22

Centaur Lore as requested! ty for asking @ernikerr​ (also I prommy I haven’t been ignoring your message I just didn’t get the chance to put this post together until now. I’m just going to give a broad overview of some of my inspirations and motivations in this post, I’ll dive more into it in other posts because this is already going to be long lmaooo

This lore was originally for a player driven ttrpg that @nolandspy​ was dm’ing, but as is the tendency I got up to my neck in ideas and couldn’t stop spinning about horses and also cultural anthropology so here we are

This is the character I played! Her name is An-tessalonika, or just Tessa for short. Her having just a real world ass name was mostly played for laughs, I chose the name very deliberately. I’ve decided the centaur naming system goes like this:

[honorific]-[given name][surname]

So her given name is Tessa, she’s of the herd Lonika, and her honorific is An. I’ll get more into the honorific system when I’ve actually figured out how I want to do it in a later post.

There are 4 herds (Lonika, Trakehn, Abarda, and Marwai; again, more info to come) and each hail from a different part of the highlands. As this isn’t part of any specific world I don’t really have a map to point to where each herd is geographically, but think Asian steppe. A lot a lot a LOT of the visual design is based on western asian cultures (think like Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, Southern Siberia that whole area)

I think the anatomy of centaurs alone sort of lets you infer a lot about what their culture would be like. They aren’t going to be able to live in cities, or at least not any that a humanoid would recognize. Just from playing as a centaur, even though most of the campaign was being out on adventures, my character had a really hard time dungeon crawling, walking up stairs, getting supplies from shops etc. With that in mind, I reasoned that centaurs probably live away from other other humanoids just because of differing needs for physical infrastructure. So it made sense to make them nomadic, (which is also why western Asian cultures were such a big influence- the Mongols were known for their horsemanship, and live in a place that horses are specifically adapted to)

I had an idea early on that one of the most notable features of centaur culture was their headwear. This is a take that developed after seeing how gorgeous some of the traditional garments of this area are, and before I realized that they’d also likely cover their hair because they don’t want it whipping around in their face as they run. I also borrowed the idea from many cultures around the world about the sanctity of growing out your hair, and only cutting it symbolically. This way I could sort of incorporate all of these ideas in one, and have an excuse to draw and research beautiful scarves and head pieces.

(Left to right, Armenian, Buryat, and Russian ? I did some quick internet detective work but and google translate tells me that it’s from a collection of photos taken at (what I’m pretty sure is) a Russian ren fair essentially. Link to the original blog post about the fair HERE if anyone can read russian)

All of these ladies are from very different cultures but are all generally from places (geographically) where centaurs would be good at living, which is the main principle guiding me in building out centaur culture

I think there’s not enough hair coverage rep in fantasy generally, and I’m not entirely sure why, (At least in the US, I can’t speak for other places, I have a sneaking suspicion that it might have to do with mounting islamophobia as fantasy started coming to public attention in the 80s/90s/2000s hmmm)  Headwear has been a feature of clothing since society existed and despite the general trend away from it in the modern day, I think that it should still be considered when designing fantasy societies

[codenamed-queenie]

#BatsInQuarantine

I am going insane. So I poured my restlessness into one long and very detailed post and got super into it. Please enjoy this hot mess.

The Justice League, being the well-meaning virus-proof Super Friends that they are, took one good look at the news, one good look at their non-powered friends Ollie, Bruce, and their families, and collectively decided that these normal humans must be Protected At All Costs.

Now, keep in mind, Bruce is never one to roll over when it comes to being benched. 

However, he understands the importance of social distancing. He knows he needs to set a good example for his kids, and keep up appearances as Gotham’s Most Responsible Multi-Billionaire. 

So. Quarantine it is. 

But how are his kids handling it?

Dick - 

100% on board in the beginning. Gotta do the Responsible Thing. Gotta set a Good Example. Besides, guys, this is gonna be Fun. Quality Family Time is always a Must.

He lasted 2 days. 

Then he started to get twitchy. 

And as everyone knows? A Trapped Dick Grayson is a Feral Dick Grayson.

He bounces off the walls.

Literally.

“I have to climb.” 

“Dick, no.”  

“I have to climb everything.”

Has scaled the manor 16 times already. Has climbed the chandelier. The banister. Bruce. The roof. The Cave. Anything in the house that’s been bolted down and especially anything that hasn’t. 

Duke found him clinging to the wall 10 ft off the ground like Spiderman and screamed so loud it shattered glass. 

Desperate for news of the outside. 

He thrives off of it like a starving man. 

Was the one to suggest he and Barbara take a break to Social Distance from each other (”Sorry, babe, kissing spreads germs”) and experienced Instant Regret(TM) approximately 5 minutes after. 

The Family has labelled him a Flight Risk Level 1 (Most likely to say f**k it and make a break for the outside world)

Jason - 

Accidentally got trapped inside the manor with the others when Bruce called Shutdown. If he had his way, he’d be chilling in his favorite safe-house right now, binging The Witcher with Roy and Artemis, and not worrying about finding a stray brother in his sock drawer.

But he’s nothing if not an opportunist. 

The way he sees it, Jason has 3 options:

Self Improvement

Self Isolation (See Duke, Cass, and Damian)

Descension Into Madness (See Dick and Steph)

And, well, he always wanted to try a few things. Now he’s got the free time to do it.

So he settles on baking. 

Alfred’s got enough food and raw ingredients stored up to feed an army. (Not because he’s a Panic-Buying-Hoarder in times like these. But because he’s a Panic-Buying-Hoarder all the time. Just try feeding 11+ teenagers sometime.)

Uses recipes he finds off Google.

His first few attempts are, in a word, ‘tragic’.

Alfred slips him a few of his recipe cards, and Jason suddenly starts seeing Results. 

Turns out he’s pretty good at this baking thing once he gets the hang of it. 

Hope everyone’s okay eating nothing but pie, macaroons, biscuits, and whatever else Jason whips up. 

Cause that’s gonna be the only food left by the time he’s done. 

Barbara - 

Self-quarantined with her dad. 

They’ve been binge-watching classic black and white movies together.

It’s a fun time, but she’s started to get a little antsy. Loving her dad and wanting to be around him 24/7 are, understandably, mutually exclusive. 

Calls the manor to video-chat every day.

For her sanity just as much as theirs. 

Gives everyone little challenges to film on their phones and send in. She makes compilations of everyone’s submissions so they can all watch and laugh together. 

Bonus points for Creativity

One comp shows the family trying to drop Mentos into coke bottles. 

Dick did a handstand, and dropped his Mento from the second story balcony. 

Tim did it wearing the Batman cowl. The soda exploded into his face, and the rest of the video is just Bruce’s Shrieking.

Stephanie tried it, but the bottle tipped. Everyone on camera screamed as the bottle rocketed through the front window. 

She spends most of her calls having one-on-one convos with Dick.

They’ve come up with little code phrases so they can be Cheesy even with family members lurking in the background. 

She thinks the way he clings to the monitor is cute. 

Almost like he’s giving her a hug through the screen. 

(It’s easier than letting herself worry about his mental state, at least)

Tim -

Oh this boy.

Freaked out for the first five minutes before he decided ‘hey wait, Bruce is letting me stay in my pajamas all day? Noice.’ 

Now he’s just vibing.

The rest of his family is Low-Key shielding him.

He Has No Spleen, you see.

Steph: “Someone could cough on him and he could die!”

He just goes about his day, playing Animal Crossing like there’s no tomorrow, tinkering on projects, taking naps, etc. Living his best life.

Meanwhile there’s always someone lurking behind him, keeping watch, keeping him safe. 

Dick sneezed within 5 feet of Tim once (the fact that he was on top of the dusty bookshelf Tim was perusing is irrelevant)

Jason still full-body tackled him the second Tim’s back was turned. 

No one with any symptoms--

Like, any symptoms. They don’t even have to be Corona-related.

--is allowed within 10 feet of Tim. 

Tim has been wandering the manor for weeks, now, without seeing another human being. 

(He sees Dick on the ceiling sometimes, but that doesn’t really count)

He’s been trying increasingly drastic pranks and shenanigans to draw someone, anyone, out. 

But it doesn’t matter how many times he steals Damian’s sword, or sets fire to Jason’s brownie bites.

Nobody wants to risk it. 

Cass - 

No one has seen her since quarantine started.

Everyone is approximately 87% sure she’s somewhere in the manor though

Because she does eat the meals Alfred leaves out for her.

Or at least someone does, at any rate. 

(Jason and Santa top the running suspects list)

Santa was Steph’s suggestion. For some reason it snowballed. 

It’s assumed that Cass misunderstood the meaning of ‘social distancing’ and took it too far. 

But no one knows for sure. 

She is Tim’s Guardian Angel. 

People who so much as clear their throats a little too loudly anywhere near him suddenly wake up on a different floor of the house four hours later. 

Duke came closest to spotting her while he was up in the attic. 

Either that, or there’s another Creepy Sister everyone forgot to tell him about living up there.

She is silent, and watchful, sticking to the shadows, but she does leave the occasional note out to brighten her siblings’ day. 

Things like ‘helo i love u’ and ‘hop u ar ok’  mostly. 

She is bound and determined to protect her family from this invisible threat, no matter the cost. 

Steph - 

Like Dick, she was Super Pumped at first. 

(Just kind of showed up at Wayne Manor before quarantine was enacted. The original purpose of her visit is unclear, but regardless, she’s Trapped.)

Also Like Dick, her descent into madness was swift.

She is impossible to pin down. 

Not like Cass or Damian, who’ve stayed off the grid, and are therefore Untraceable. 

No. She’s impossible to pin down, because she never stops moving. 

Switches seamlessly between Zumba on top of the Giant Dinosaur in the Batcave, and furiously knitting Alfred (the Cat) a sweater with a pair of Tim’s used chopsticks. 

Braided everyone’s hair while they were asleep.

Even Bruce’s. 

She tried to do Tim’s, but somehow blacked out and regained consciousness in the attic. 

When she woke up with a scream and a furiously twitching eye, she startled Duke out of his Makeshift Fort he built out of old cardboard boxes and antique furniture. He’s had to resort to finding a new hiding place. 

Sometimes, on the rare occasions she does sit still, staring off into the distance, she’ll suddenly start laughing hysterically. This may last between thirty seconds and thirty minutes, depending entirely on how long it’s been since she’s knitted a cat sweater or done cartwheels through every room in the house.

Blew up the greenhouse out back, somehow.

Everyone has agreed not to talk about it.

Some people were built to handle prolonged time inside their homes.

Stephanie Brown is not that way.

Damian - 

Damian Wayne Cannot Be Contained.

At least not inside the house. 

He took off thirty-six hours into quarantine. 

Thanks to the security equipment around the borders of the Wayne Estate, he can’t escape the grounds. 

(He’s tried and failed multiple times. Jason and Bruce have a running bet on how many times the perimeter alarms will go off per day.)

(Jason is winning.)

He wanders the grounds with Titus as his only companion. 

The two of them run laps, practice drills, and find ways to occupy their time. 

No one’s entirely sure what those ways are. 

In fact, nobody knows exactly where Damian is at any given time. 

Only that he is Out There. 

And he’s the best security system Wayne Manor’s ever had. 

So far, he’s stopped five groups of civilians scaling the perimeter walls before the lasers and electric nets even have a chance to deploy.

They were trying to break in and steal supplies. 

(Even ones they already had in surplus. Like Toilet Paper.)

He’s also stopped Dick from escaping twelve (12) times.

Drags him back by his shirt collar and deposits him on the welcome mat. 

Usually with a note for Alfred/Jason, requesting more fruit tarts. 

Duke - 

Did not leave the attic for two weeks. 

Then Steph discovered his hiding spot (read: was dumped there by Cassandra) which forced him to relocate to the basement. 

Yes, it turns out Wayne Manor does have a basement. 

This was a surprise to Duke, who always thought that the Batcave was Bruce Wayne’s basement. 

Alfred keeps him supplied with all the necessities:

i.e. food, magazines, assorted pastries from Jason’s latest batch, usually straight out of the oven.

Duke also snagged the Manor’s Alexa. 

She has become a sort of ‘Wilson’ to Duke’s ‘Chuck Noland’.

She is his only comfort. His only ally. 

He’s determined to wait out this quarantine, doing his best to avoid the others. 

Duke has seen these people under pressure. 

He knows exactly what he’s dealing with. 

Duke: “Alexa is the only motherf****r in this madhouse I ever respected.”

*offended butler noises from the other room*

Duke: “And also Alfred.”

[miraneko19]

One Piece Theory [Spoilers]

No seriously, I mean SPOILERS. Big ones referring to the latest chapter 967. So if you have not read it yet, or haven’t gotten to Wano in general yet, you might want to sit this post out unless you're like me and actually enjoy spoilers. But this is also more on the “crack theory” side of things, so those who DO read don’t take what I say too seriously.

Due to the recent chapter 967 of One Piece, some stuff came to my mind that I've been thinking about for a while. Now this could ALL be entirely off, like, laughable in that regard. But at the same time my brain keeps chanting "but whAT IF THOUGH??" and because of that, there are a few things I want to lay down here before I get to the conclusion I have almost unwillingly come to.

So first, a few things about the series that we know: a group of people in the early life of the Earth went up to the moon, these people lived on the moon until they ran out of resources, and then they settled down into Birka, Skypeia, and Jaya, where Jaya has Shandora founded on it. After building these places up, they became thriving locations during the void century. Sometime around there, ALSO during the void century, the Great Kingdom came to be. 

Here are where things get even more vague, and any connections made here on out are undoubtedly a stretch of some form. Basically, after looking through the One Piece timeline and some theories going around, I found it very strange that apparently, Shandora and the Great Kingdom were taken down at around the same time. Not only that, but after the Alliance was formed to take down the Great Kingdom, the Alliance had also taken down Shandora with the Great Kingdom. This could be because Shandora and the Great Kingdom became allies, or this could be because Shandora WAS the Great Kingdom (which is unlikely for a couple of reasons). Or at least a part of it somehow. It's been generally accepted that Raftel/Laugh Tale is the remains of the Great Kingdom, but we also were reminded in chapter 967 that Roger was the one who had named the island that. We find out that he did so after reading Joy Boy's story (or some similar process). 

Now, Joy Boy played a HUGE part in the creation and distribution of the poneglyphs. It's pretty safe to say even that he had a huge connection to the Great Kingdom itself. This would further cement Raftel ALSO having that huge connection, and likely being where the Great Kingdom once stood in general. 

We also have yet to find out where Shandora, the original, once stood. A while ago, I had heard Tekking make a good point about the fact that Doctor Clover from Ohara had to be silenced when he was about to speak the Great Kingdom's true name for a reason. If the World Government didn't want the name of the kingdom to be spoken, it must've been because the name would be recognizable, right? If it was a name COMPLETELY wiped from history, to the point where no one would know about it anymore, then hearing the name wouldn't exactly shock anyone or raise controversy. Therefore, it would make the MOST sense for the name of the Great Kingdom to have had a name that people would mostly recognize. 

This would mean that Shandora, or even Jaya for that matter don't seem like they would be candidates for having been the Great Kingdom since their names aren't that well known. On top of which, as far as we know, even the original Shandora would have been rather far from Raftel since it was founded on Jaya. So until more information is given, Shandora and the Great Kingdom at the very LEAST had to have been close allies for the Alliance to want to destroy them both. Them being the same kingdom in general is still possible, but not necessary for the question I want to pose. 

So, after Shandora was destroyed, the Shandorians fled and made a new Shandora which was eventually shot up into the sky by the knock up stream, ultimately banging the gavel on Noland's fate. Years have passed, and it looks like all of the moon people who have either began living in the sky islands directly after coming back to earth, or later came to the sky islands via the knock up stream, all have kept their wings. However, despite the moon people having also settled on Jaya, not a single person there is mentioned to have wings. Sounds to me like it was a thing that simply ended up going away for the moon folk on the ground through evolution and the gene pools mixing. That said, any moon folk whose descendants grew up on the ground eventually evolved to not have wings anymore. 

That opens a whole new can of worms for Eneru, who I will be questioning thoroughly later. But for now, I want to move on to the Will of D. Those that bear the initial D are said to be natural enemies of god, of the celestial dragons, and by extension, the world government. It sounds like something that would certainly come about if the ancestors of those who bear that initial had originally come together during the great war of the void century and became enemies of the alliance. I don't think everyone who bears that initial is blood related or anything. More like, during the void century, a group of people might have gotten together and formed a clan, claiming that initial for them for some reason, and declaring their opposition against the alliance.  

We don't exactly KNOW how many allies the Great Kingdom had, or who they all were. All we really know, is that Shandora and the Great Kingdom had a huge connection of some sort, and that the Celestial Dragons hate the "Will of D" which basically implicates their bloodlines having their OWN connections to the Great Kingdom as well. So many thoughts have swirled through my head over this since the recent chapter, and these just had to be the first ones I write down. 

Okay, now that I have all of this context explained, it's time for the confession. All of this was just a very long-winded way of asking: Wouldn't it be great if the D people are Moon People? I want the D people to be descendants of the moon people. 

By extension, once again, this makes me EXTREMELY suspicious of Wingless, Scarless Eneru, especially given that he has been on the moon for a while now doing god (so, him) knows WHAT with all of the information he has at his disposal. So, in the words of one of my greatest friends: "ENEL, WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME YOUNG MAN"

I have a few more thoughts and more serious theories I’d like to iron out as well, but I’ll see what I do with them after this.

[lanamemories2]

clip clops in on horseback wearing a pointy little dunces hat n sipping frm a rly long crazy straw tht says ‘goblin’ w all of the swirls. Hlo. i’m nai n it’s rly nice to meet u all!!! 23 n she/ha pronouns. i’m one of the three admins here (cleo lazuli on the main) n i’m literally So Excited to get started i cld honestly beat my chest like caesar the ape over it. more abt lana under the cut!!! also like this or hmu if u wna plot n her pinterest is here 👺🌚 

『KRISTINE FROSETH ❙ CIS-FEMALE』 ⟿ looks like LANA JAMESON is here for HER JUNIOR year as a DANCE student. SHE is 21 years old & known to be VIVACIOUS, ALLURING, CHILDISH & IMPULSIVE. They’re living in NOLAND, so if you’re there, watch out for them. ⬳ NAI. 23. GMT. SHE/HER.

AESTHETICS: 

scalding your fingers in shower water until they glow like rudolph’s nose, cherry red gym socks tugged high and nothing else, stepping out into a cold breeze in just spaghetti strapped silk, a red lightening stripe painted over your eye like a new take on the scarlet letter, crowning each finger with a miniature raspberry, hugging a knee close to lick a stripe of fruit juice off the bruised cap, doodling penises in condensation instead of sitting still, a water pistol topped with rum and covered in glittery pin-up stickers, believable smiles that feel more like baring teeth, playing where’s waldo with your lipstick in the crowd of a party and finding red on at least six people’s mouths, a bumper sticker on the back of a convertible cadillac that says ‘SCRAPPY DOO IS A FILTHY SLUT’, prancing around in your underwear to a vinyl record with the curtains open. 

HISTORY:

lana grew up in a big house in albany, NY. i picture it w dark oak floors n lots of light furniture. albums framed on walls. mayb some rolling stone covers too frm way bk when of the bands her dad’s label signed. kind of like… a rock star palace w no evidence of children at all. i think i described it best in one of lana’s self paras once when i said the garden ws “as big as it was unloved”

lana’s mum victoria (vic) ws a music journalist w a pretty fruitful career ahead of her when she met lana’s dad richard (rich). his record label ws jst starting out, founded on the coattails of his rich best friend’s (jensen peters) investment w his other best friend (who he jst calls knoxville). it rocketed to success when they signed poppy injects, a rock band w an electric stage presence, n victoria ws drawn to the glitz n glamour of a man tht ws at the helm of his aspiring industry. their love ws very impulsive, all or nothing right frm the start, n it ws almost like she ws mre in love w his accomplishments n what he represented than him. jst a leetle bit Fractured in its intentions.

anyway so jameson records repped a few big rock bands bk in the eighties, altho poppy injects r who they’re mostly known fr, namely bc of hw brightly they crashed n burned. they were a big chart success bt the lead singer hd quite an intense struggle w heroin (wsnt rly subtle abt it either while he ws in the public eye as u cn probably imagine frm such an on-the-nose band name) n he ws always in n out of the papers. it eventually brought down his career n it ws a big publicity nightmare

lana pretty much… grew up around figures like this throughout childhood. rly troubled characters who wld kind of… b extremely volatile n destructive abt their troubles. the jameson house was kind of an open one as welcoming clients went n a lot of parties took place there. a lot of the time musicians wld b snorting lines in the kitchen when she wnted to grab a bowl of cereal fr breakfast n it was just. a very strange environment fr a child to grow up in

her parents always kind of jst… didn’t like her much. her older brother caleb ws unplanned bt they sort of welcomed the surprise more bt… quickly realised they weren’t cut out fr parenthood n then when lana came as another surprise 3 yrs later they didn’t even try to hide their resentment abt the situation. her mum ws actually booked in to have an abortion bt cldnt go through with it at the last minute. once when lana asked her why shes so cold towards her she jst turned her head frm her dresser, looked at her, told her abt this n said “idk why i didn’t go”. lana didn’t kno wht to say to tht so she jst left her room n closed the door

(dissociation tw) bc of this growing up lana adopted this weird like…. she didn’t rly kno what it ws bt it ws a delusion of sorts where she thought she ws a ghost. she’d jst sort of… drift around the halls w noone acknowledging her n sometimes she ws jst convinced she wsnt actually there or they cldnt see her n she ws jst haunting the house frm a previous family

the one saving grace tho tht sort of?? gt her thru this n made her feel Seen ws caleb. lana quite genuinely hs always thought the sun shines out of her older brothers ass like she jst thinks. hes the best person in the entire world. wld b rly bewildered if anyone questioned tht. he wld always look out for her in the zoo they called a home n cut the crusts off her sandwiches (he’d cook fr them most of the time bc their parents were too busy/didn’t care to) n sometimes wld even sleep at the bottom of her bed curled up like a guard dog. it ws always lana n caleb n his best friend tommy against the world in tht house (tommy lived next door n was always over bc he had very strict parents including a military father tht he found suffocating)

SO when caleb n tommy announced tht they’d signed up to the army lana ws understandably…….. completely blindsided. she ws rly upset tht they were leaving bt she tried not to b mad at them n made them promise theyd b safe n back as soon as possible. she even asked if they cld somehow take her w them n they were jst like :/ it doesn’t work that way luv x

(death tw, ptsd tw, grief tw, trauma tw, hospitalisation tw, drugs tw) anyway caleb ended up getting discharged under grounds of severe ptsd when he witnessed tommy die in an explosion tht took place in a shock raid. caleb returned home sans tommy bt he was never the same after tht. he’s been in and out of hospital twice nw n he’s currently dipped off the radar after starting to use. lana kind of felt like two of her brothers died out there in a way n jst like tht it wasn’t them vs the world any mre, it was jst her. she doesn’t talk abt this tho. when she feels the urge to cry she usually jst smiles

ANYWAY whew tht rly…. took a dark turn there….. chuckles nervously at hw sad lana’s life is bt it’s fine it’s all fINE!!!!!!! ok. so on a mre lighthearted note the jameson family r pretty well off n bc of her relation to such a big music industry figure she’s hung out w a fair few relatively high rep ppl thru her teens. mostly kids of celebrities n stuff like tht. she amassed kind of an instagram following mainly fr her style (v penny lane-esque in some aspects aka lots of fur cuff trimmed jackets bt then also jst…. a wild combination of everything honestly. pastel faux fur coats, seventies style platforms, flame red cowboy boots, pink fishnet tights n glitter used like highlight Everywhere) n bc she’s undeniably Very Pretty

(trauma tw) after caleb got back he was rly withdrawn n depressed. he shut lana out n was kind of harsh to her a lot of the time, always telling her to leave him alone or pushing her away. it didnt help either tht lana had a rly traumatic experience w some of her dad’s colleagues at the label when she ws 16 n he was away n she cldnt even tell him abt it once he was bk bc of his own traumas. she kind of jst shut it all in n kept it to herself

(hypersexuality tw) this obviously?? made her spiral a lot. she was already a girl tht loved sex (she’d only rly done foreplay before tho) but since her trauma it got…. completely out of hand. it got to a point where she couldnt rly go 2 days without it, probably not even 1. her lowest point has probably been scrolling thru craiglist for anonymous encounters n meeting up w strangers on there fr a quick fuck jst for the thrill even tho it’s insanely dangerous n she cld wind up getting herself killed. it’s v clear at this point tht she has a sex addiction whether she’s ever admitted it or not. it kind of… almost mingled w tht same feeling she used to get when she ws younger of being a ghost?? like she jst. only rly feels Real when she’s being touched

(violence tw) a mre recent point of history is her involvement w danny nielsen (an evil npc of mine who is possibly the antichrist??? pending investigation). he attended radcliffe n lived in a house w a group of guys near campus. it wsn’t a registered frat bt he essentially…ran it like one it ws kind of a weird set-up where he ws the King Of The Roost. essentially he found out tht lana n a guy called zeke slept together n he ended up beating him to near death in front of her bc his pride ws rly bruised since they were meant to be dating (if u can call it tht bc danny’s idea of dating is very Warped). ANYWAY he ws found guilty n sent to jail so it ws like Intense n a gd example of the kinds of disastrous relationships she gets herself into. perks of being a wallflower voice: We Accept The Love We Think We Deserve.

PERSONALITY:

always smells vaguely of wild cherries or strawberry starburst or jst the candy aisle in general. if she ws a vinyl record she’d b this one n she’d only play good vibrations by the beach boys, dancing on my own by robyn, play that funky music by wild cherry, femme fatale by the velvet underground n (i can’t get no) satisfaction by the rolling stones 

growing up lana was always a huge social butterfly. knew everyone n everyone knew her. she ws one of those girls tht ws kind of impossible to ignore or forget. very animated, always made u feel like u were the centre of the universe whenever she spoke to u, always made it feel like u were best friends even if ud only spoken to her once. 

deliberately puts on tht kind of Magnetic Alluring Act tht femme fatales wear in movies w most ppl. kind of…. is always playing A Role of the person tht she wants to b seen as. chameleons to situations. feels like she’s performed as the vivacious n fun loving Lana Jameson fr so long tht she doesn’t rly kno who she is beneath tht bt she isn’t too keen to find out

she’s always been rly spontaneous n adventurous. always doing something weird n wild every weekend. she has ten thousand ridiculously absurd n chaotic stories

uncontrollably flirty. boundlessly confident. cld make a joke out a paper bag n her comedy is sometimes surreal / absurd. she tends to laugh when she feels like crying n has a smile brighter than a ray of texas sunshine. 

always dapples her fingers thru the breeze when she’s driving in a car w the window down. she almost always has some sort of sweet on her, whether it’s sour haribo cherries or strawberry lollipops. 

she adores david bowie n prince n madonna n anyone tht’s a vintage style icon w little care fr what ppl think. 

daisies n poppies r her fav flowers bc daisies r wild n overlooked n poppies r the first thing u look at in a green field. she’s had like 8472493874 ‘relationships’ n none of them hav lasted beyond a month / hav been terrible / hav seen her being treated badly / she’s cheated on them. i dnt think she’s actually ever been w anyone she hasn’t cheated on in some form or another

PLOTS:

exes tht lana’s fucked over hideously. she’d probably cheat a lot and it’d be a whole…mess. 

mayb someone tht flipped the switch and cheated on her? 

a cousin plot cld b fun too. a friend tht lana fel out w bc she slept w their significant other.

a fake dating plot cld b fun honestly 

someone tht’s getting lana into drugs?? she’s kind of impressionable/down for anything so tht’s a likely scenario she’d get into tbh

an unrequited crush!! (either way is cool)

someone tht is just hanging out w her/using her bc she has a lot of instagram followers or they want to b signed to her dad’s label

someone in a band!! she’d probably make like penny lane n b their groupie/sleep w them all fgjkshgkh

umm a good influence too mayb? 

oh and a past summer romance/fling tht cld either have meant a lot or not have meant anything at all. bonus points if both of them hav a diff viewpoint on it. 

honestly?? anything is fine i cld ramble for days. mayb even one of the high profile kids she grew up hangin w idk. world’s our oyster fellas!

[youdecode]

Something that Seems Bad But is actually Good | Adopt 4 ‘Bad’ behaviors

Aren’t you tired of being too good? I am. But, you are also shy to be bad? Why? Society will punish you — with actions, words, and stares.

Imagine you’re Noland from Castaway, locked in an island.

In the midst of a solitary life full of uncertainties, you wish to get a tattoo, drive on the road’s the wrong side, smoke inside an elevator, play awful pranks, and party till late — only if you could go back where existence is.

But what if you’re not as lucky as Noland — who actually got a chance to relive? What if you spot angels before adopting so-called “bad” behaviors and depart with “I wish”?

Pity.

“We live, or we die by the clock!” Noland shouts. “We never turn our back on it, and we never, ever allow ourselves the sin of losing track of time.”

So, time is all you have.

Doing what society wants you to do, often, devoid you of real fun, wasting your precious time, stealing the joy of weird experiences.

So, there is no harm in being a little naughty and doing things which, otherwise, are seen as threatening.

Yes, to be polite is suggestive; to be productive is appreciated.

But today I’ll advise you to be bad because being “bad” doesn’t take much. Don’t trust me?

See for yourself, as unappreciative social behaviors peppered in this post suggest violating some restrictive social expectations. Let’s dive:

  1. Let Your Tongue Twirl

I have never sworn in public, like never. In third grade, I called my class fellow “stupid”, and that mama’s boy complained to the class teacher, destroying my image partially.

From that day, yes, life traveled a great deal — but the incident remained precisely in its place. I ensured to always maintain animosity against badmouthing.

Especially, swearing. But, as of writing now, my brain is nudging to change this hostility — all credit to the studies confirming how swearing helps one overcome frustration.

I used to roll my eyeballs on people who when stuck in traffic swear at others — but now I’m sure it helped them, as according to recent research, swearing helps people cope with anger.

Further, Richard Stephens of Keele University (UK), in his study published in Neuroreport, explains,

“There are many well-documented benefits of swearing, including improving pain tolerance, boosting physical strength, and helping social cohesion.”

Stephen carried out an interesting experiment where swearing helped in reducing and enduring pain.

People were asked to put their hand in an ice bucket; those who swore all the while were able to pull the challenge for two minutes, nearly double the time, than those who remained good mouth.

But, Stephen also explained how mainly occasional swearing helps alleviate the pain.

So make it only a casual habit, strategically deployed. Logic? Well, over-swearing will make it lose its emotional power, making it less effective in alleviating pain — after all, swearing is a dynamic language.

Don’t you think we need more such studies? Caught you!

According to another study published in the Leadership and Organization Development Journal by Yehuda Baruch of the University of East Anglia, swearing enables employees to channel frustration and develop strong social relations.

Take away: Swear, but strategically. 

  2. Get Disgusting

This one is probably the most disgusting. Weird. Strange. You name an awful feeling, and it is it.

But there has been research, so it’s worth a share. In 2008, Friedrich Bischinger, an Austrian lung specialist, explained how eating snot helps strengthen the immune system. He goes on telling,

“People who pick their nose and eat it,” he said, “get a natural boost to their immune system for free. I would recommend a new approach where children are encouraged to pick their noses. It is a completely natural response and medically a good idea as well.”

What is science?

Well, research says bacteria deposited on the nose when it hits the intestine acts as a medicine.

Bischinger was not alone. Even biochemist, Scott Napper of the University of Saskatchewan, shared a similar viewpoint, theorizing how hygiene improvement boosts allergies, so eating snot may strengthen the immune system by ingesting a few harmless germs into the body.

Interestingly, the same idea can be deployed on a lesser level of disgusting activity: nail-biting. I never had a habit of biting my nails.

Like never. But I had ample friends, always angry at their fingernails’ crooked appeal and stunted growth — clearly, they were nail-biters.

No matter how biting nails may appear displeasing socially, but medically, it’s right for you.

How so? Well, the biting inject germs directly into the orifice. Bringing in newer germs into the body strengthens your immune system as it repeatedly then fends off bacteria.

Additionally, according to Amy Standen of npr.org, nail-biting is now considered an act of “pathological grooming.” Amy interviewed Carol Mathews, a psychiatrist, who explained to her how nail-biting acts as a reward.

When met with anxiety, biting the right nail feels good. Mathew explains how it is an advantageous relief method over vices like smoking cigarettes.

I might be on the verge of losing my pretty nails — as the study of it being a stress reliever, illuminated me.

Take away: It’s alright to bite your nails for strengthening your immune system — but, occasionally. 

  3. Turn Into a Dull Useless Soul

Have you ever been subject to self-pity when boredom sucked the soul out of you?

After digesting this research, you probably would not, as boredom is psychologically useful.

Van Tilburg, from the University of Limerick, tells the Guardian:

“Boredom makes people long for different and purposeful activities, and as a result, they turn towards more challenging and meaningful activities, turning towards what they perceive to be meaningful in life.”

Interestingly, Adrian Savage, an editor at Lifehack, adds,

“Boredom stimulates the search for better ways to do things like nothing else does.”

Another study made people watch dull, boring videos, resulting in their increased performance in creative tasks.

So next time, when you feel an utterly useless person in boredom, think twice — as you are doing nothing but triggering your creativity.

Now I reflect why all the creative ideas always land in my mind when I have absolutely nothing to do — and the very reason why people’s random videos made during boredom go viral.

Takeaway: No matter how much society labels you as a useless couch potato, get intentionally bored for your next inspiration.

  4. Become that Rude Movie Character & Chew

Why in every movie is a shady character always chewing gum?

I don’t get why people don’t consider it a pretty sight and associate it with mannerless.

An interesting study, instead, showcases how it has cognitive benefits.

Chew it before performing any cognitive task to increase the blood oxygen level. In the book Senescence and Senescence-Related Disorders, Kin-ya Kubo expounds on how chewing gum helps with stress-related disorders.

I can vouch for this.

Even if I forget to keep a gum with me, my best friend always carries it with her because it wonders for anxiety, stress, nausea, nervousness, and whatnot!

Studies have also proved how chewing gum boosts thinking and alertness by 10% as nearly eight brain areas get affected, mostly concerning movement and attention.

Andy Smith of Cardiff University sums up:

“The effects of chewing on reaction time are profound. Perhaps football managers arrived at the idea of chewing gum by accident, but they seem to be on the right track.”

Takeaway: Ditch the etiquettes and smack the gum in.

Final words for Something that Seems Bad But is actually Good

Why adopt any of the techniques laid above?

It’s always good to have a change. Life is short. Tasting “not so acceptable” behaviors frequently add spice to your life — even if momentarily.

Remember good behavior exists because of “Bad”, so do not dismiss the idea of bad behaviors completely.

Rather explore bad behaviors, which sometimes can be good for you.

Violate some outworn social behaviors classified as bad and be intentional about it.

Remember, it’s good to be bad with awareness rather than being good without awareness.

So next time when your brain requests you to try something terrible, give it a thought, at least — before rebelling.

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[southeastasianists]

For many people, the idea of Cambodian architecture begins and ends with the lotus-inspired sandstone towers of Angkor Wat—the medieval temple complex that is considered the largest religious monument in the world. Mid-century modernism, on the other hand? Perhaps not so much.

However, in the 15 years that followed Cambodia’s independence from France in 1953, the capital of Phnom Penh transformed into one of the foremost outposts of modernism—largely thanks to the vision of a single man, architect Vann Molyvann. On September 28, 2017, Molyvann passed away from natural causes in Siem Reap, the gateway to the ruins of Angkor Wat, which had inspired much of his work. But rapid construction and changes in the capital city now mean that Molyvann’s legacy—which already survived coups, purges, and wars, barely—is under threat.

“Before the term ‘green architecture’ was thought in anyone’s mind, he was already designing buildings really creatively to integrate natural light and airflow,” Canadian filmmaker Christopher Rompre, who directed The Man Who Built Cambodia, a 2014 documentary on Molyvann’s life, said in a recent interview with Cambodian magazine Voa Cambodia.

Rompre, who has been based in the Southeast Asian nation for several years, turned his attention to the architect’s work after spotting some “really interesting, unique buildings” that were slowly being enveloped by Phnom Penh’s construction boom. These encounters sparked his curiosity into the work of a lesser-known giant of modernism, a man whose career and vision were deeply entwined with the turbulent history of his country.

“I was trying to understand the origins of the Cambodian people,” Molyvann, then 87, said in the film. “Cambodians have a very spiritual understanding of the world.” After earning his degree from Paris’s École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, where he studied with famed French-Swiss architect Le Corbusier, he returned to his newly independent country during a cultural renaissance that is considered by many to be modern Cambodia’s “Golden Age.” Then-ruler Prince Norodom was eager to let go of the country’s colonial identity and project a modern face to the world. His plans included remaking the appearance of what had been a sleepy provincial capital. He picked 30-year-old Molyvann to do it. 

Molyvann served for 13 years as State Architect—1957 to 1970—during which time he worked on nearly 100 projects, including signature creations such as the National Olympic Stadium, the National Theatre, Chaktomuk Conference Hall‚ and the Institute for Foreign Languages. His works represent a unique combination of modernism and elements of the architecture typical of the Khmer Empire, which ruled the country from the eighth to 15th centuries. The style has became known as “New Khmer.” 

“This was not inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, not a European clone, but an authentic style that arose independently in Cambodia,” wrote urban planner Helen Grant Ross, coauthor with Darryl Leon Collins of Building Cambodia: “New Khmer Architecture” 1953–1970, in a recent interview with reporter Ron Gluckman.

As Molyvann himself explains in the film, he wanted to draw from the past to create something entirely new: “Why did I study Le Corbusier? Because he used to built his ‘unites des habitation’ on stilts. Houses on stilts had been existing since prehistoric times in Cambodia. So I only adapted his vocabulary to Khmer architecture.”

Much like Frank Lloyd Wright or Le Corbursier himself, Molyvann’s design process started with an attentive analysis of setting: cardinal position, prevailing winds, and the local rocks, earth, mud, and grass. “The most important is to find what the site suggests,” he says in the film, “what it provokes in the imagination.”

Phnom Penh’s National Olympic Stadium—an ellipitcal, 70,000-seat arena and associated sports complex designed in the early 1960s—is widely considered his signature creation. Moly, as his friends called him, was inspired by the way in which Khmer architects combined earth and water at Angkor Wat. Some 17 million cubic feet of earth were dug out from the site to shape the stadium’s grounds, while an elaborate system of inner canals allowed water to flow from its roof to pools, or barays, at the base—recalling the ancient temples, preventing floods, and keeping crowds cool at the same time. He intended the stadium to be an example of sustainable and accessible architecture that welcomes all for exercise, socializing, or relaxing in the cooled breezes.

The structure was supposed to host the 1963 Southeast Asian Peninsular Games but the competition was never held because of growing political turmoil. In the late 1960s, the kingdom of then-ruler Prince Sihanouk was challenged both by the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), informally known as “Khmer Rouge,” and by his own generals. In 1970, while he was on a state visit to Moscow, the prince was overthrown in a coup led by General Lon Noland. Molyvann, a long-time collaborator and friend of Sihanouk, fled with his wife and kids to Switzerland in the hopes that he could soon return.

But the situation worsened. Civil war broke out between United States–backed Noland and the Viet Cong–supported Khmer Rouge, which eventually seized power in 1975. The new state’s calendar was set to “year zero,” with authoritarian rule and mass executions to follow. For 15 years, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot set in motion his plan to “cleanse society from modern elements,” which included the forced displacement of people from cities to the country and the systematic killings of artists and intellectuals. An estimated 1.5 million lost their lives at the hands of his regime.

Pol Pot’s dedication to wiping out modernity and urbanism also took aim at Molyvann’s efforts. All of the materials documenting his works were destroyed, and his buildings were abandoned or converted to military use. The stadium he had so carefully designed as a public resource was used as a site for mass executions.

Molyvann only returned home after the Paris Peace Accords of 1991 ended the Cambodian-Vietnamese War. He found many of his buildings transfigured or deeply neglected. In 1994, during reconstruction efforts, a fire burned down his Preah Suramarit National Theatre, which had just been reestablished as a home for the artists who survived the Khmer Rouge years. It’s charred remains were demolished in 2008.

His creations that weathered those years are now facing an entirely new challenge—Cambodia’s turn back toward urbanism, and the construction craze it has created. Over the past 10 years, the nation’s GDP has doubled, and Phnom Pehn’s population grown nearly four percent a year. New residential blocks are sprouting like mushrooms. The White Building—a residential estate that Molyvann designed with Khmer architectural principles, such as exterior air vents and a partially raised floor to create a shaded social area in the basement—is now being replaced by a Japanese-designed, 21-story mixed-used building. The Council of Ministers building, with a pyramidal shape that recalls Angkor Wat, was replaced in 2008 by a Chinese-designed and -funded building that looks, well, like a contemporary Chinese government office.

The National Stadium remains intact as a place where locals can exercise, conduct business, and socialize day or night, but it had been sold to a Taiwanese developer. The Angkor-inspired drainage system was altered, so now the site frequently floods. This symbol of the New Khmer style also now sits among high-rises and construction cranes.

The problem of recognition and preservation of Molyvann’s creations centers around the fact that they are old enough to be in need of restoration—but not old enough to be considered cultural heritage in a country with such a recognized and significant ancient lineage. As Ross and Collins explain, even French colonial buildings get more international recognition as world heritage than the New Khmer places do. Further, the current government, which came to power in 1979 after defeating the Khmer Rouge, is keen to wipe out any legacy of pre-1979 history.

“The government doesn’t want to leave anything from before 1979, because it wasn’t their achievement. History is completely manipulated,” Molyvann said in a 2010 interview with the Los Angeles Times. Wiping out, by action or neglect, architecture to reshape the country’s identity is a recurrent historical theme—and one that’s not particular to Cambodia.

The father of New Khmer Architecture spent his final years trying to impart his vision to younger generations. “They [young people] should all get together and create New Khmer architecture,” he said with emotion, in one of the last scenes of the film. “No more Vann Molyvann, but a movement of the young.”

The Vann Molyvann Project, started in 2009 by Canadian architect Bill Greaves, is now working to prevent history from interfering with New Khmer architecture yet again. The project calls for Cambodian and international architects to catalog Molyvann’s legacy in paper and digital archives, and through physical models of his buildings. The team also organizes walking tours and records oral histories from people who still inhabit or use the structures.

“We took care of so many things at the Project” says Seng Chanraksmey, a recent architecture graduate from Phnom Penh’s Norton University, who took part in the Vann Molyvann Project in 2015. “I applied because I wanted to know more about his impressive design concept. We were surveying Molyvann’s buildings, making models, interviewing local people for our oral history records.”

Seng is just making her first steps as a professional architect in the booming—and mostly foreign-funded—Phnom Penh construction sector. When asked what is it about New Khmer that inspires her, she goes back to the wellspring of the style. “There are too many things that inspire me about it, but it is especially the will to combine Khmer and Western style to keep the Cambodian identity alive,” she says. “And the message Vann Molyvann left to younger generations: Learn from the past, but do not copy.”