#(I know what the term means but I legit don't know what qualifies)

[chipped-chimera]

Every day I open a dating app is a day it becomes very apparent to me - I have no fucking idea what I'm doing.

[bapple117]

Velvette Slang Masterlist: for the fandom

A gift from a humble Brit to anyone (not from the UK) wanting to write Velv convincingly ~

Hello you wayward sinner!

Are you looking to write Velvette into a fan fiction, comic, roleplay or something else? Would you like to make her sound legit but you have no idea about British (or indeed, South London) slang? FEAR NOT! I, Bapple, am here to hold your hand and guide you through the wonderful world of British slang so you can have fun making Velv sound legit. Let's proceed!

Not all of this will be limited to the UK, of course, and it's not an exhaustive list of ALL British slang either - it's just the kind of things Velv WOULD say as someone from South London.

Insults

For men: bastard, prick, wanker, knob, dickhead, wankstain, bellend, git, tosser, sod, cock, pillock, numpty, codger (means old man)

For women: bint, bitch, slag, wench, slut, tart, trollop, scrub

For anyone: arsehole, arse, twat, sket, muppet, minger (means ugly), bugger, gobshite, cretin

The absolute worst thing you can call someone else is cunt - this is very strong and isn't used in casual conversation, unless you are in VERY informal company, in which case it's thrown around like it's nothing at all. (Come here you cheeky cunt - playful)

Terms of Endearment

Babes, hun, luv, darlin', sweetheart, mate, sweetie, mucker, pal, blud, fam, dear, dearie, honey

Eg: "Alright babes? How's it going darlin?'"

British people often use insults affectionately, too, especially with close friends as a way to tease / banter. (You silly sod, you useless prick, you cheeky git, you daft muppet, etc)

Slang Words

Drunk: trollied, smashed, pissed, wasted, legless, hammered, sloshed, battered, bladdered, merry, shitfaced, arseholed, plastered, lashed

Good: banging, well good, mint, the dogs bollocks, ace, blinding, cracking, brill, fab, neat, beast, fresh, hench, jokes (that's jokes innit), lush, peng (good looking), sick, wicked, peak, wavy

Bad: grim, naff, shite, shit, crap, tat (useless old tat), minging, rank, dry, nasty, humming (means gross)

Pleased: chuffed, buzzing, tickled pink, sorted (I'm sorted mate)

Annoyed: gutted, miffed, pissed off, fucked off, fuming, raging, ticked off, well annoyed, bovvered (used more sarcastically eg: I aint bovvered), vexed

Curses

Bollocks, fucking hell, bloody hell, bugger, piss off, any of the insults used above

Other random words

Bare = a lot of (eg bare money)

Chirpsing, grafting = flirting

Garms = clothes

Lips = kiss (are you tryna lips me?)

Peng ting = good looking person / high quality thing

Standard = of course, yeah no duh (Yeah that's standard mate.)

Tight = cheapskate (Don't be so bloody tight!)

Yard = your house (Come over to my yard)

Banter = conversation that's funny, casual, playful (S'just banter innit)

Convo, chinwag, chat = conversation

Defo = short for definite (Oh he's defo up to something)

Other random phrases

Are you taking the mick? = are you mocking me?

Stop faffing around = be serious and stop messing about

That's mad = wow, I can't believe what you just said or that's amazing

Allow it = just leave it, it's no big deal (Whatever mate, allow it)

Other helpful pointers

When British people (who talk like Velv) swear angrily we do so many times in a whole sentence and add a lot of qualifiers, eg:

"Fuck off you fucking prick, you absolute fucking useless arsehole!"

"Don't piss me off babes or I'll fucking end your shitty little life!"

Making a crude observation about something nearly always a curse in-front of it, eg:

"That's fucking rank."

"It was fucking buzzing mate!"

The Magical Use of Innit:

Innit is a wonderful word that can be used everywhere, especially for someone from South London. It basically means "isn't it?" but it has MANY uses. It can be used to mean an agreement, like "I know right?"

"That was well good innit"

"He's a right twat" - response: "INNIT!"

"It's fuckin grim in here" - "Innit mate"

Adding "well" to words

That was well good - that was well bad - that was well grim

(You get the idea)

That's about it for now!

If I think of anything else I will edit this masterlist and if anyone has any questions please feel free to pop them in my inbox. Happy writing!

[illegiblewords]

Serious talk about meta under the cut.

I don't know who might need to hear it, but fwiw mental flexibility is a huge part of analysis (and interacting with other humans lol). You need to be able to account for multiple possibilities when examining a work, or understanding a social exchange. You need to be able to separate what is objective fact from your own subjective interpretation and judgment. The most negative interpretation is not automatically the most worthwhile or true. Someone throwing accusations around in-line with their own worst interpretations does not guarantee those accusations are warranted. You are not a bad or stupid person for disagreeing. Shit needs to withstand scrutiny. I don't always strike the right balance myself. I do the best I can but I'm definitely not perfect. Tbh I'm not beyond pettiness either--although I try to keep that out of actual analysis lol. There have been times I've griped to friends privately or blogged about how I felt (sans tags, with spoiler blocks so people can opt out). I've griped recently. I'm bound to gripe again in the future. Some level of griping is inevitable imo and I figure no one is 100% immune.

All that said, even if someone’s take isn't canon AND even if it's something I really dislike--I'd personally rather people follow their passions anyway. Hands down. I could be in the middle of a rant and my answer would still be that the subject of my frustration gets to exist. I'm not the boss and odds are we're going with different versions in our own heads. Discouraging another fan from creating due to my preferences or narrative approach would horrify me. I've seen fandoms where gatekeeping like that killed the creative community and it was fucking awful.

Not everyone is confident in their own judgment. Not everyone faced with a pissed off person trying to use lore and accusations like clubs will feel okay continuing with their own vision. Elitism and manipulation (especially through rhetoric) can be present within analysis. People are not being taught how to recognize those things properly. Analysts aren't always aware or invested enough to even be careful. It’s legit easy to get caught up in ideas or feelings to the point of forgetting about other people’s, and adjusting to account for alternate approaches takes some work. For me at least, I think having a 'no insults' policy and being super careful when it comes to absolute claims (assertions not qualified by 'I think' or 'it could be argued') helps.

Anyway. Just because a person calls something ‘meaningless’ doesn't make it meaningless. Someone pooh-poohing an observation you made doesn't make your observation less true or important. Employing a literary term doesn't mean that individual actually understands the term, how it works, or how to apply it. Which is to say nothing of romantic chemistry or whatever. I encourage readers to extrapolate on this. ‘Shallow’ could apply as much as ‘meaningless’. Denying parallels exist by itself doesn’t actually negate those parallels. Your version of a character may not be the same as the fan next to you’s and that difference doesn't have to detract. There's more I could say on the subject (I've edited out a lot) but basically--just because another fan isn't into what you're doing doesn't automatically make what you're doing wrong, immoral, shoddy, or otherwise less.

Seriously, vet shit. Question the entire premise an analyst tries to establish then decide for yourself if it holds water. Turn over word choices and assertions in your head before deciding if they're appropriate. Do it to me too. I don't care if someone is the holy goddamn emperor of analysts. Just because a person says something is good or bad, true or false, whatever the hell doesn't make it so. Just because a person uses a technical term doesn't mean they're discussing it effectively. Quality of argument matters beyond the packaging it’s wrapped in. It's important to protect yourself from people whose priority is enforcing their own preferences, including dismissing things they aren't partial to.

I just don't want anyone shamed silent man. Not even people whose takes drive me up the fucking wall. Neither I nor any other analyst is an authority here. And there are people who are absolutely ready to take advantage of other people’s insecurities to assert themselves. Might not even be malicious, just indifferent.

For me, analysis feels kind of like uncovering a dinosaur skeleton. I want to share the cool and exciting things I find with other people. Sometimes I might be sorting out what my own thoughts and feelings are. It's also possible to examine why you're uncomfortable with something, or why you love something another person hates, while making very clear what is YOUR READING and not THE READING. Offering a variety of possibilities is very different from presenting yourself as the only correct one. One note at the end when everything else was insulting and intolerant is like a band-aid over a wound.

EDIT: As a last point, that I'm throwing in just-in-case. If anyone reading this thinks they may have overreached and done stuff I've mentioned + feels shitty about it… that's still not the end of the world. It’s okay. This is hard stuff to learn and I really don't think anyone's perfect at it. Worth the effort though. Just gotta take a deep breath, acknowledge you're a fallible human same as everyone else, and do the best you can going forward. Life goes on.

[starmora]

Thank you for saying something about posts/comments that keep insisting vol 3 is about falling out of love. I'm typically all about you do you, but some of the takes are honestly starting to border on being dismissive of Gamora's importance. Yes, Gamora from the past can't be exactly what Peter knew before but so much about her is Gamora no matter the time or place and just because she has new experiences doesn't mean she's not worth trying to get to know in a new way. Worse for me though is how this take is also being used by some people to push the idea Gamora's not a real guardian. Like what the what. I don't know what movie people watched. But really while the falling out of love stuff angers me I'll legit not stand for any Gamora's no longer important to the guardians rhetoric. I'll go to the mat and fight people on that. The woman had poured herself into that family only to have some purple piece of crap throw her away like trash and then she got dealt a crap hand again being pulled to the future because the same purple piece of crap wanted to do even more damage to the universe. She took a stand against him again, and despite all that emotional upheaval made her way in the future and managed meet back up with the guardians to get to know them again. So she is a guardian. Which is exactly as it should be because without her future self guardians wouldn't have become a team or family in the first place.

Bro I’ve been SO mad about these posts I’ve been unhinged about it for days and I’ve actually been trying to hold back 😭 my friends on my priv twt are probably SICK of me

100% it all feels so dismissive of her and her importance to the team. Peter literally even says at one point in the movie that she is the one who formed the guardians but sure, let’s just ignore how important she is so we can make up some poetic but ultimately bullshit post about how wonderful this movie is for making it so the guy and the girl don’t stay in love 🙄 the movie IS wonderful but I genuinely don’t know how this is the conclusion sooooo many people have come to. Like I just don’t get it.

And you’re definitely right, I’ve been seeing those posts floating around too and it’s just like. I didn’t even know we were revoking guardians cards to begin with ? Ignoring all of the complicated aspects of it, at the end of it all this IS still Gamora, she WAS instrumental in forming this group and this family and now, because she has some other friends she just doesn’t get to be counted as a guardian anymore?? She was a key player in the movie, she can understand Groot by the end, she has a clear line of communication open with Nebula, and she’s on good terms with Peter and everyone else in the guardians so… why exactly does she not qualify as a guardian??? Is yondu not a guardian because he’s dead? Are Peter and mantis not guardians because they left?? I’m just curious because it seems a little bit like a double standard 😐 yall are just mad because she has new friends now

[floaromatown]

do you have any tips about getting PR in canada, i'm trying to figure this out with my gf who lives in america (also idv edaters. unfortunately)

WE WERE NOT IDV EDATERS SCREAMMMMM you should have just kicked sand in my eyes. i begged him to play idv with me he wouldnt cos he was scared. anyway.

unfortunately my tips are very limited as ive been 'done' with the bullshit for over a year now. and like immigration lawyers literally get paid thousands cause its so complicated :( like not in a 'pay me' way but like its an insane feat to pull off without professional help. that and pr shit is changing all the time so im sure a lot of what i experienced is outdated

i spent like 1.5 years no exaggeration in the pr RESEARCH mines (mostly on r/immigrationcanada) and honestly i still felt like i was learning new shit right up until the day i submitted my application. and then more and more after i had submitted it. its really really hard unfortunately. i really advise asking/searching for questions on that subreddit whenever possible, there are a lot of people who can help when youre unsure.

if it wasnt clear you have to be married to apply for the spousal sponsorship, which as far as I understand is pretty much how most american to ca prships happen. if you (when i say you i mean your american girl bc thats the perspective im coming from) happen to have a skilled job (the canadian gov website has a key to determine if your job classifies as skilled) then I believe there is another route, but I wasn't eligible so idk shit about that. dont bother looking into whether you qualify as common law or conjugal or whatever bc you very very likely dont meet their standards. i got married in the states a week before crossing the border, your marriage certificate would be valid in canada

off the bat i would say, unless you know for sure your living situation would 100% COMPLETELY PROVIDE FOR YOU for 6 months to a year, then you should probably apply for an OUTLAND spousal sponsorship. if you move in together in canada and apply for INLAND spousal sponsorship then you cannot work period, there is no legal way for you to make any cent of income. you will not be eligible for provincial healthcare, so i recommend getting long term travel insurance (i rec geoblue). the border is a whole other ordeal if you don't have any status in canada, you can't look like you're moving (i.e no moving boxes no tons of luggage) you can't look like you're eloping or staying for more than a couple months and even if you do everything right they still may suspect you and deny you entry. i did inland and it was really really difficult and at times scary for these reasons, i did not exactly do some things by the book in order to get by *WINKKK*. if you can stand to get married and then part for upwards of a year then i would really really suggest the outland route. unless youll be provided for then GOOD FOR YOU *shaking fist* random but americans also have to continue filing us taxes even if they have moved out of country. so remember that.

moreso tips umm DOCUMENT EVERYTHINGGG YOU DO TOGETHER this is my biggest piece of advice. you have to prove your relationship is legit, here is a list of stuff i included in my application:

receipts/the route we took for our honeymoon

screenshots of support from relatives, like facebook or other social media posts acknowledging your relationship

we got our wills done to make each other the sole benefactor

receipts and pictures of gifts weve gotten each other

photos of both of you with friends and family is 100% required

proof of past visits to each other

receipts and pics for past dates/outings/events

letters of support from family/friends (i got these notarized)

lots of stuff from online chat logs/social media. pictures of chats, phone calls, video calls from across years. i think i included at least one of each from every month since we got together. chats should be relevant to relationship stuff like discussing moving in, getting married, relatives, etc.

a letter detailing our relationship with exact dates, locations, etc. like when we met, when we started dating, when we visited, how we got engaged, etc. you have to make a case for yourself as if you were in court.

if youre researching stuff there is honestly not a lot of resources specifically for edaters! so many people like have like children together in another country or have been established there as a married couples for years so they have a ton of foundation to work off of. canada doesnt just want to see that youre in love they want to see the work that goes into that, like shared leases and joint bank accounts and years of financial support and children etc etc. it sucks but you have to justify it in other ways when youre (im assuming) young and childless and unmarried until recently. you can get some of those things once you move in together but idk, i was rather safe than sorry an scrounged up all the 'soft' evidence i could right up until i submitted it.

i think thats about it i wish i could help more lol. its definitely one of the hardest things ive had to do like emotionally financially temporally effortfully lmfao. good luck?!

[autumnalwalker]

Another week, another Empty Names character interview. As long as this is semi-technically a tag game, consider this an open tag to anyone reading.

For the fourth week, we return to the first character to show up the story. Lacuna.

Relationship Status: Single. I just figure that I've got to get to a point where I'm happy with myself before I can ask anyone else to be happy with me, you know? It'd just be selfish otherwise. I'm getting there though.

Favourite Colour: Black's kind of a safe, comfort zone color for me. And it goes well with everything, especially when you've got just one vibrant color to pair with with it as an accent. ... Although... if I'm being honest, as much as I'm terrified of sounding like or reinforcing a bad stereotype, if I were braver I'd probably have more pink in my life. At least to try it out for a while and figure out if I really like it or if I'm just looking at it with longing as something I couldn't have before.

Favourite Food: Poutine. I know it's kind of gross, but I've got a bunch of nostalgia wrapped up with it. I had it this one time as a little kid on a family vacation with my parents and my aunt, loved it, and then went back home far enough south that I didn't encounter it again for years. So for the longest time it always felt like a big deal whenever I happened to come across it again. And yeah, I'm an adult now and could just make it anytime I want it, but it wouldn't be the same, you know?

Song stuck in their head: This is gonna sound weird, but, I swear I heard Bridgewood humming the Hamtaro theme song the other day. The old anime with the talking hamsters? I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since, but I'm kinda afraid he'll stab me or something if I ask him about it.

Last thing they searched on a BBS: That's like a predecessor to modern online forums, right? I haven't used one myself, but lately I've been going through some message boards nearly as antiquated to search for possible supernatural incidents we might be able to help with. Anything I find that looks likely I run by Road and Bridgewood so the two of them can make the call on if it's legit and actually needs our intervention.

Time: Time... for me to get a watch. Looks like that last test glyph fried my phone. Again.

Last Thing They Read: A simulation readout telling me that glyph only had a one percent chance of frying my phone.

Last Book They Enjoyed Reading: Nona The Ninth. Sure, that's not really how necromancy works for any of the major magic systems in this local cluster, but it's still a good story. A good series. And the characters are great even when they're kind of terrible or dumb, but it's a good, funny kind of dumb. Okay, that probably doesn't sound like much of an endorsement and I should probably say what it's actually about. It's just I... Sorry, no one needs to hear me ramble on about stuff. It's bad enough that I put Eris through that and she actually seems to tolerate it. Sorry that went on so long without saying anything of substance. Next question.

Favourite thing to cook/bake: Pizza from a box mix. It barely qualifies as baking, but it's easy enough for me to do without messing it up while also being involved enough that it forces me to take a break from whatever thing I've currently gotten myself into and think about something else for a while. And with a significant enough cook time it means I actually have to plan to set aside time to eat and not forget about it.

Favourite thing to do in their free time: Eh, I don't know. Reading, games, the occasional show. Basic nerd stuff, you know? I'm not that interesting or unique. Not that I have much time for any of it these days anyway, between work and bouts of obsessively researching for my... uh... side project. Oh, what kind of research? Just looking into how transmutation and transformation gets handled by various magic systems in this world cluster. Specifically for long term effects. Not for anything nefarious or mad sciency! Just a... personal interest.

Most niche dislike: I considered just sort of vaguely gesturing at myself, but that's not really niche these days, is it? Not really a good joke either. So, yeah, real answer time. Poor documentation, especially when the documentation or instructions are just flat out wrong. I don't think that one needs any elaboration.

Opinion on circuses: I think I prefer the more modern shows that are mostly acrobatics and theatrics over the traditional animal acts and carnie stuff. The classic aesthetic can be visually fun sometimes though, I guess.

Do they have any sense of direction: An embarrassingly bad one. It's one of several reasons I don't get out much. Not one of the biggest ones, but it's definitely a contributing factor. Especially since GPS doesn't really work in pocket dimensions.

GET TO KNOW A CHARACTER FROM MY WIP (A Tag Game)

Thank you for the tag, @cljordan-imperium.

I'll pass on the tag to: @fearofahumanplanet, @ryns-ramblings, and @tc-doherty. And the usual open tag.

The first character that came to mind for this was The Archivist, but our eponymous narrator is having a bad time right now, so I'll be grabbing someone from Empty Names instead. Ashan, you don't talk much; get over here.

Relationship Status: Single. I have never understood the driving need to pair up that most seem to experience.

Favourite Colour: White. Pearl white, if you wish for a more specific shade.

Favourite Food: While I try to keep my diet strictly healthy, I will admit to the occasional nostalgic indulgence with churros.

Song stuck in their head: Something Lacuna had playing the other day. She said she was not sure of the song's title, but it clearly said "Lisa Frank 420 / Modern Computing" on the screen. Odd. Both that she did not know the title and the sound of the music itself.

Last thing they searched on a BBS: What is a BBS?

Time: I suppose I ought to acquire a watch now that I am back on this world. Such preoccupation with precise measurements of a fluid concept here.

Last Thing They Read: A tome out of Bridgewood's private library whose name I fear I lack the mouthparts to pronounce, even with a translation charm on my person.

Last Book They Enjoyed Reading: "Melisandre's Musings on Multiversal Magic Mechanics." An interesting and useful text if one does not mind sifting through meandering personal anecdotes to decipher the author's theories on spellcraft.

Favourite thing to cook/bake: The aforementioned churros. They do not have that dish on Orthon, and teaching my teacher how to make them the way I had seen my real mother do on a number of occasions was an adventure in and of itself.

Favourite thing to do in their free time: Meditation in less-touched natural areas. The density of urbanization on this world still gets to me at times now that I am back.

Most niche dislike: Slugs. Silly I know, but somehow early in my training they just kept showing up in unexpected places at unexpected times with unexpected size. I do not care for their presence.

Opinion on circuses: I went to one once as a child and found it wonderful, but now that I know more about them they mostly make me sad.

Do they have any sense of direction: Alas, it is not as acute a sense as it had been on Orthon. The lack of ambient background magic here outside of isolated pockets is disorienting. Funny to think I did not even possess that sense as a child when now I feel its lack like the loss of an eye. Or perhaps the loss of my nose might be more accurate.

[firespirited]

TIL that Audrey Plaza's "transphobia" was a joke about making up any rumours so how about she has a penis? in an interview in a European magazine once. She also has had two strokes and is socially awkward. I like her now.

That Lindsay Ellis' "racism" was comparing raya and avatar for their mishmash cultural approach and *not* talking about the Quileute's mistreatment in her Twilight hate fits a pattern of teen girl's interests being cringe to society because she didn't feel qualified to speak on it and it was a short form video.??? Dxllxghful I understand how she was asked certain specific things for years and didn't do them (and her apology video was tacky but that's besides the point)

I'm going to need people to use qualifiers because receipts are really hard to find. I want to trust folks but there is a difference between this person is racist (donates to the right and believes iq is genetic for example) and this person is not in tune with the racial intersections of feminism (made a video about twilight without a mention of the appropriation and desecration of Quileute culture), there are a few people i follow that i just can't trust anymore to give an honest assessment. Because we've got legit benevolent and malevolent bigots put in the same box as people who are still working on being better people who said something mildly off colour or badly phrased once. By those rules I'm racist, transphobic, anti prono and deeply ableist. And since I'll double down on my usage of 'crip' which can be both racist and ableist. You can consider me bad forever.

I don't want to unfollow anyone yet but I'm going to need people to think twice about reblogging callouts unless there's nuance or the receipts are present so we can decide for ourselves if that's offensive or just something inconsiderate. People I thought were ableist and could distress me, turns out they believe in chronic illness and mental illness but use the term cray cray and language isn't a deal breaker for me, attitude is. I want to be among fellow lefties and tag for correct triggers but I need nuance and honesty in my life. If you're likely to drop me for a mistake, let me know now. If you're going to miscategorize people who don't show patterns of behaviour and are essentially not the enemy, i'd like to set boundaries. I'm ND and have hyper honesty that I'm working on mitigating constantly, to be polite and protect myself but it also means I feel strongly about being misled and getting the most accurate information possible to the point of pedantry. That means I spent an hour explaining in detail how mga left hayden williams between a rock and a hard place not just MGAe bad. I don't know what I'm trying to say except I'm messy and sick of being scared of messing up further. And I'd like clarity from the people I trust not just blanket statements, by all means point out the terfs but don't say i dunno that Anthony Mackie is a homophobe because he word saladed about FatWS.

[probablygoodrpgideas]

In what way does a Warforged not fit the definition of a golem? I'm looking at the Wikipedia article but if you or your followers could make it clearer I'd appreciate it, I legit didn't know it was a Hebrew word! Very cool, though I don't know why using it would be more offensive than say angel, devil or other religious concepts coopted for fiction? I'm not being intentionally obtuse, I promise.

A Jewish person could probably explain this better, but the way I understand it, a Golem is a construct built to protect the Jewish community. It’s a story told in times of oppression to spark hope.

But Warforged in Eberron aren’t built to defend vulnerable people, they are built as weapons. And while I don’t know why Warforged are built in your setting, if they’re adventurers, they’re probably in a more proactive role than the typical Golem. And more importantly, they are capable of evil.

D&D borrows a lot of terms from a lot of different faiths and often changes what they mean. But I think it’s different for Golems because we shouldn’t take a symbol of hope of a group that has been oppressed countless times throughout history and twist it beyond recognition. But like I said, a Jewish person is a lot more qualified than me to talk about that.

I already had a discussion about the use of Golems in D&D here

[sol1056]

It seems like the more the EP's try to get rid of Shiro the more backlash they get (Apparently Shiro's VA hinted that Shiro is going to stay on Earth for S8. If true then I don't want to be around when shit goes down for the fanbase ). Do you think by now the EP's are aware of this or they just don't care because they're getting what they wanted from the start? I used to give them benefit of the doubt when it came to their writing but now I just don't know what to think of them anymore.

Who knows. It’s possible the EPs, even now, are quite certain there’s a core contingent of fans who are thrilled to see the original lineup heading off to the stars together, leaving behind Guy Who Was Supposed To Die In Episode Eight. 

Which, sure, if any of those fans were still around. Most of the ones I’ve seen around — who wanted Keith as BP, who wanted Lance in Blue, who wanted the original series echoed and explored — aren’t actually around anymore. I mean, a lot of them seem to have thrown in the towel somewhere in S1/S2, ‘cause the story obviously wasn’t going in the direction they expected. 

(note: this is NOT a sideswipe at those fans, or anyone who stops watching a show or reading a book. Oi. Sometimes you get into a story and say, okay, I was expecting an action thriller and I think I got country-western instead. This is a completely legit reason to move onto the next story on offer.) 

When not!Shiro arrived in S3 — combined with two seasons of only getting a single enemy mech — those in the prefer-a-remake camp got fed up and moved on, it seems. (I don’t know for certain, but I suspect the damage of S4 was a dual whammy: fans who liked Keith and were frustrated at his absence, fans who liked Shiro and were getting tired of wondering where he was and/or waiting for the aggravating clone-shoe to finally drop, fans who liked Lance and hated seeing him turned into a possessive jackass, and fans who got tired of waiting for Sincline to do something. Put it all together, and… a lot of different fan-groups were left unsatisfied by S3-S5.) 

My point is, it’s been anywhere from 13 to 26 episodes (after 26 episodes of extended prologue, from that perspective) those fans have been waiting for the og lineup. If I were in that camp, S7 rolling around probably would’ve been too little, too late. There are plenty of other fandoms out there that don’t make fans wait 50-something episodes to finally experience what they came for. 

And of those who are left? This is my guess, but if you came for the og lineup and then got to see them outshone, repeatedly, by a bunch of latecomer secondary characters constantly stealing the screentime… uhm. I just don’t think that qualifies as finally seeing the og lineup chewing gum and kicking ass. Especially if you were hanging on to see Keith finally show his stripes as a leader — since his leadership in the first half seemed to consist of barking orders, and the second half of doing whatever Shiro told the team to do. 

So who’s still watching, at this point? The completists in the bunch, of course. Probably a contingent waiting for confirmation on canon relationship(s). Fans willing to hold onto their faith that somehow the story will pull out a solid ending. And then some spread of fans across each major character, who just want to see their favorite get something resembling a satisfying, even happy, conclusion to their journey — even if that means swallowing disappointment on all other fronts. 

Josh isn’t stupid. He knows what Shiro’s fans want, and unlike the EPs, he’s compassionate enough to gently signal so people don’t go into the season hopeful, and come out even worse than they went in. I haven’t heard what the other VAs are saying, but I’d be curious if their interviews also contain hints to as to what the season may hold, in terms of disappointments. 

If the EPs manage to do the same at NYCC, it’ll be because PR finally shoved a script in their faces and told them to read it or they’ll never have lunch in this town again. Considering everything that’s happened since S7 dropped — and the entire fiasco of everything since S3, really — it’s entirely possible we’ll see some very well-behaved EPs come NYCC. 

But don’t think for a minute they’re anything but thrilled that they finally got to push the story they wanted to tell, even if it meant wrecking the story they were hired to tell. 

[bitchesgetriches]

(Part 1 of 5) Please help. I don't know what to do. It's a long story, but I was hired at a job in a desperate time where we agreed on 15/hr in the interview. Then when I started, my boss informed me she would start me at 14/hr and then raise it. Then her husband became seriously ill and she left the office, so it was never raised and I never had the opportunity to talk to her about it. It's a tax firm, and after the tax deadline my hours were drastically cut.

(Part 2 of 5) She’s still out of the office and I’m pretty much the only thing keeping the office going as the receptionist, but it’s eating into my savings. I can't afford to work there anymore. I emailed her, explained, and gave her the opportunity to either increase my hours or raise my pay or I would have to search for another job. She took a while to answer and finally responded by telling me to apply for partial unemployment.

(Part 3 of 5) Well, I just found out I make too much money to receive partial unemployment benefits. The obvious solution here is to find a new job, but there’s an added complication: this week my long-term serious relationship ended. Since everything we had was my girlfriend’s, I have to move out and start over. I can’t afford to live in this area on my own, and so I’m moving out of state (going somewhere more affordable and closer to my best friend). So I can’t job hunt in this area.(Part 4 of 5) To summarize: I have a month to find a new job and apartment in a new state, and for the last couple months I’ve been slowly depleting my savings and I still am. I also have a puppy I adopted last month to take care of (he’s an emotional service animal), and I don’t know how I’m going to take care of both of us.

(Part 5 of 5) Please offer any advice you can. I’m so lost and freaking out and having a lot of panic attacks. Is it possible for me to find an apartment before I have a job? Then I could move and continue job hunting while I have a place to sleep. Otherwise how am I going to find a job that will be willing to postpone my start date until I’ve found an apartment and moved? Is there any financial assistant I can qualify for? Help me.

Ok honey. This is a big problem, but it’s not insurmountable. The first thing you need to do is take care of yourself. Without your mental and physical health, you’ve got nothing. Certainly not the power to dust yourself off and climb this fucking hill. So here’s some advice on that:

Ask the Bitches: "How Do I Protect My Own Mental Health While Still Helping Others?"

Our Master List of 100% Free Mental Health Self-Care Tactics

How Mental Health Affects Your Finances 

Econ Nerd Review: Kurt Vonnegut’s Galapagos and Your Big Brain 

Everything Is Stressful and I'm Dying: How to Survive a Panic Attack 

You are very nearly at rock bottom. Shortly you’ll have no home, little savings, and no job. Forget your current job---you have to move, which means you’re quitting it anyway. So it’s time to start applying for help on the basis of zero employment. To that end, here are some resources:

How to Start at Rock Bottom 

http://www.bitchesgetriches.com/resources/

Lastly, you need an ally or an advocate. If ever you were to call in favors from your family, friends, community, school, or church... this is the fucking time. See if you can find temporary housing in your new city that will allow you job hunt without utterly depleting your savings. Can you crash on someone’s couch? Can someone house your puppy for a time? Can you borrow a car or another vehicle to sleep in? 

Even giving this advice is fucking depressing, because... you have been failed. You should not be in this situation. Your boss should have paid you what you agreed on, and they should not have cut your hours. You shouldn’t be “too rich” for unemployment assistance when you literally can’t pay your bills. The system is broken, and it’s not fucking fair. Which is why advice like “borrow a car to sleep in” is legit in these United goddamn States. 

Obviously this is something we rant and rave about a lot. But it doesn’t make it any easier to respond to questions like this with ineffectual advice. I wish I could swoop in and be your fucking Captain America and make everything better, but I can’t. I can’t even direct you to one surefire path out of this mess. And that pisses me off. 

Other than reapplying for assistance and reaching out to your community for help, I don’t have much more to offer. Once you’re settled in a new home and a new job, you’ll be able to rebuild. But getting there is going to fucking suck. 

Just remember that we care about you. And that surviving this turmoil will make you tougher, more adaptable. There’s a reason we forge steel in a fiery furnace. 

[wellhalesbells]

If you have the time and if you don't mind, what are some books you really recommend? Doesn't have to be all time faves, but anything that pops into mind that you want more ppl to read and love, Extra points if lgbt+ , i got the whole summer with little to do and i wanna spend it reading some good quality writing and honestly so far your recs have introduced me to so many faves its unbelievable

[blushes profusely] oh wow, thank you!!!  i’m so glad you’ve trusted me enough to check out some of the stuff i reblog; that is like the ultimate compliment, i can’t even???  i don’t mind at all(!), fair warning though: i only started recording what i read partway through last year and my mind is like a sieve so i’ll do my absolute best to remember what’s sang to me in the recent past.  warning number two: i’m in an open relationship with absolutely every genre out there so i’ll try to note which belongs where so you can avoid those that hold no interest for you.

LGBT+

i’ll give you the sun.  i loved this book, the writing is fucking transformative and all the characters are so damn likable, while still being realistically flawed human beings.

the raven cycle (tetralogy).  definitely my favorite series since harry potter.  the writing, the world-building, the characters, it’s all on top-form.  i wrote a little, mini non-spoilery review of it: here, back when i was better (worse?) wordly-wise and my feels were brand new.

more happy than not.  i’m still not sure how i feel about this book.  it was hard, but it felt very true to the characters and the lingo and style matched the ages of the players and i have a lot of respect for that.

the watchmaker of filigree street.  woooow i loved this book.  i admit ‘historical fiction’ kind of makes me cringe.  it never precludes me from reading a book but it does knock it down the list by a book or five because they’re often very dense and very clunky and end up taking me ages to get through.  but this one was gorgeous.  i loved the plot, the attention lovingly placed on every character and the historical elements.  the surprise gay in an already brilliant book felt like winning the lottery honestly.

captive prince (trilogy).  okay, truthfully, i’m only putting this on here because the second book is such a high point for me.  it was never bad at any point but it had unfortunately been hyped far too much for it to live up to my, admittedly, very high expectations.  hopefully it’ll fare better with you?

everything i never told you.  i go back and forth on this one.  i like the writing a lot, i like the LGBT aspect a lot, and i like the mystery aspect a lot but there are definitely characters i would cut out entirely for sheer predictability if i could and that killed a lot of my enjoyment at the time (but i think much more highly of it in retrospect?).  so, take that as you like.

aristotle and dante discover the secrets of the universe.  if there’s a book that handles its characters with more care or respect or consideration then i haven’t run into it.  i love the way this is written and the people it’s populated with.

flying lessons & other stories.  a bunch of uber talented authors writing a bunch of uber diverse and LGBT-focused stories and, yes, that is exactly as awesome as it sounds.

the song of achilles.  it is utterly heart-breaking but so rich, honestly.

FANTASY

the diviners.  (also has a minor LGBT character, who may play a bigger role in the sequel?)  fair warning, i have not read the sequel, lair of dreams, because it is somehow still not out in paperback (yes, i read physical books, yes, i pretty exclusively read paperbacks so i can lug them everywhere with me, YES, I PRE-ORDERED THIS ALMOST TWO YEARS AGO AND IT’S STILL NOT OUT, NOT THAT I’M BITTER ABOUT THAT OR ANYTHING) so i can’t speak to that one finishing on a high note as i don’t know.  but this was the first historical novel i managed to like in a long while.  it does such a good job of fusing in 1920s lingo and dress and aspects that i couldn’t help but love it.  add in the fantasy elements and i can admit i’m the perfect sucker for it.

the scorpio races.  i’m not sure why but it took me a long-ass time to get into this book, i wasn’t flipping pages with gusto until well towards the end but - especially as i was reading so much YA at the time - i really appreciated coming across a romance that lets both people come into it as themselves and stay themselves, neither puck nor sean were ever smashed or crumpled or shaved away to fit into their relationship, which was so refreshing.  plus the water horses were fucking cool.

the night circus.  the writing, the atmosphere, the circus.  just… it is all very whoa.

all the birds in the sky.  i loved this writing style and these characters and the magical elements.

CONTEMPORARY

i’ll meet you there.  there was something about this and i just… ended up liking it way more than i expected to.  i might’ve just read it at exactly the right time, i’m not sure, but i really enjoyed it.

the invoice.  this is honestly just hella cute and so freaking surreal.  swedes, man.

NON-FICTION

why not me?  i like mindy kaling a lot.  i make no apologies for that.  plus you can read both her books in about five seconds, haha.

SCIENCE FICTION

station eleven.  i loved this book.  the way the narrative is woven is so refreshing and i wish the comic book miranda was writing in this book was a real thing more than anything else in the woooorld.

illuminae.  hot DAMN this book was cool.  the plot was rock solid, the characters were hilarious and badass and the graphics made out of text and spiraling words and just the way this thing is put together?  shit, it’s worth your money and then some.

a robot in the garden.  okay this is just cute as hell.  i can’t even with tang, he’s the most adorable robot to ever adorable.

annihilation (southern reach trilogy).  (LGBT minor characters.)  okay, honestly?  i don’t know.  this was freaking zany but i was invested as fuck in all the kookiness for reasons i can’t articulately elaborate on.

the martian.  hilarious, engaging, SPACE.  what more do you want?

HORROR

things we lost in the fire.  this is more atmospheric than anything but, damn, could this get me wishing i wasn’t reading this in the dark or looking over my shoulder to make absolutely sure no one was standing behind me.  it’s a book of short stories (by the way, i love books of short stories and i definitely realize that is not true for everyone) and each one is so well-delivered and stylized.  i really enjoyed reading this.

let the right one in.  okay, this is legit horror so definitely stay away if you’re easily squicked out but it is harrrrrd to find good horror (at least in my opinion) and this definitely, definitely qualifies.

horrorstör.  i honestly had such low expectations for this, a horror story set in a wannabe-ikea, but it ended up being so ridiculous and strange and funny that i was won over by the finish.

the girl with all the gifts.  holy unique and well-executed zombie idea, batman!

SHORT STORIES

the bigness of the world.  there were definitely ones here that hit better than others but the ones i liked, i really liked!

GRAPHIC NOVELS (i read a lot of these so, um, prepare yourself)

saga.  (LGBT minor characters as well.)  this is world-building to a degree that i’m convinced did not exist before.  just, i can’t say enough amazing things about this series and the staggering amount of imagination that regularly goes into it.

ms. marvel.  heart-warming as fuck.  it’s definitely really easy to lose faith in the world these days, luckily kamala is there to remind you that people are primarily and genuinely good.

black science.  this is another one that took just an insane amount of imagination to cook up.  i got off to kind of a rocky start with this one but the gray-ness of all the characters really speaks to me, and that doesn’t really blossom until later in the series.

spider-man/deadpool.  this was very satisfying for my super duper spideypool-shipping mind.  joe and ed did us so good, and joe basically said in his sign-off: i made it absolutely as gay as they would let me, haha.

the wicked + the divine.  (LGBT minor characters that you’re going to get way too attached to, and retroactively.  it’s awful [sobs].)  the concept for this, gods reincarnating into teenagers before they burn up their hosts after a predetermined set of time, is so fucking cool.  the humor and the characters and the plot is all just aces.

iceman (LGBT MAIN CHARACTER).  okay, so this just started.  like issue #2 was only released days ago but 1) i am liking it so far and 2) marvel did it so dirty and barely advertised bobby - an openly homosexual superhero - was getting his own series, like, i found out about it the day before it went on sale and i keep my ear fairly close to the ground (not as close as some BY A LOT, but closer than the lay person i’d say) so if you can support it, please do!  pre-orders mean a lot in terms of numbers. :))))

descender.  admittedly, this starts out rooough.  because the main character, TIM-21 (and his little dog too), are annoying as hell.  he’s an android so there’s no dimension to him so he’s booooring as all get out but i am so glad i stuck with it through to the next trade because, probably picking up on the unsustainability of him as a main character, he gets shuffled off and the side characters get the stage and they rock so hard.

paper girls. (LGBT main characters.)  i’m kind of just convinced that brian k. vaughan can do no wrong at this point.  his plots are so tight and mind-blowing and badass.

monstress.  here’s a little tid-bit about me: female comic book writers are 100% more likely to get my money and my time because they are so damn rare and this series is unique, badass, and eye-opening.

black monday murders.  i’m a little premature with this since there’s only one volume and i usually try to wait until there are at least two but i check up on a volume two a lot so that definitely means something intrigued me!

nailbiter.  okay, i haven’t read the final volume yet ‘cause i’m reluctant to let it go but, so far, a series about multiple serial killers all being from the same town has me VERY HOOKED.

i wish i could remember more but this is honestly way better than i expected to do, haha.  they’re definitely not all my all-time faves but they’re ones that have stuck with me for one reason or another and that i didn’t feel i wasted my time on, so that’s something, right?  i hope this helps get you started and that you don’t think too awfully of me when you inevitably run across ones that aren’t your cup of tea!