#AND I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVEN'T POSTED IN OVER 2 MONTHS I'M SO SORRY

[minty-mumbles]

Linked Universe Survey 2023

The long awaited results of the survey. Sorry it took me forever, making graphs is hard.

There were 452 responses to the survey as a whole, which is almost double what we got last year, so thank you to everyone who participated!

If you want to see the raw data, you can find that here. I had thoughts about the data, but compiling that into another post would be too much of a hassle. Feel free to send me asks about it though!

The rest of the post will be under a read more as it it large

Demographics

Other: Demigirl (4), Transmasc (3), Grey genderfluid, Unlabeled, Demiboy, Demiagender

Other: Omnisexual (4), Poly (2), Trixic, Abroromantic or Bellusromantic, Demisexual

General Questions

Other: Quotev, Discord, their own google docs

Other: Discord, Variations of "I haven't posted yet, but I pan to" and "I haven't posted my fics in ages",

Other: Wattpad, Deviantart, Discord

Other: Crochet dolls, Custom dolls, Roleplay blogs (2), Fan translations, Headcanons (2), Piano music

The purple section in the “Warriors vs Warrior” chart is supposed to read “Warrior.” I made a typo.

Favorites and Least Favorites

Selected Free Response Answers

im sorry warriors i just can't play your game (it is very very hard. i am stuck very early on in the game)

I love cats meow meow meow

was extremely tempted to put twilight for least favorite. unfortunately he is my favorite to write from the perspective of (he has taken over most of my wips. help) and that probably counts for something. WILD on the other hand. hooo boy how the hell do i characterize this gargoyle. why is he Like That. least favorite it is

Twiddy

very good fandom to be in :) everybody is very nice

It's a straight up crime that Wars lost the aesthetics poll so quickly. He has such a peak Link design with the best colors. Ugh I'm getting wistful.

FROGS. FROGS. FROGS. ALSO HAPPY PRIDE MONTH. FROGS. FROGS. FROGS. FROGS. FROGS.

I will fight Hylia herself and the next person who implies Twi can't handle spice. If we're going to lean into him being southern/Midwestern, which is an alright stero type for our rancher, please keep in mind the culture you're basing him off. The south and midwest can handle their spice, I assure you. Have you ever had authentic Louisiana gumbo? It will melt you tongue off. Or some good old fashion spicy fried chicken? I promise the real stuff has quite a kick. (In all seriousness, though. It's more important that you're having fun. And even I can admit the idea of Twi being an Ordonian who can't handle his spice is more than a little funny.)

I am an OoT Link edgelord and have been since early 2017. So, in September of that year, when an artist by the name of jojo56830 puts out a lineup of nine different Links and the Hero of Time is there – the oldest, no eye, Hero’s Shade armor? I saw that one sketch and just thought “oh this is gonna be bad.” Yeah of course he has the coolest design. By the way, it’s only a matter of time until Fierce Deity shows up in the comic and I have reason to believe it could be this current Dawn arc. Dawn … Dawn of a New Day … and who brought about the Dawn of a New Day? Fierce Deity. Twilight is recovering but still injured and what will happen if he falls again? Fierce Deity is coming and we need to be prepared. In this essay I will—

Remember that time when someone put the whole script of the bee movie in here? I’m not that dedicated, and I don’t have that time, but let us remember and hope someone else does it again this time. Cause someone is bound too. We’re all crazy enough to do it. Alright, love you and stay hydrated pls!

Hi! I joined this fandom really recent but i’ve always seen LU stuff on pinterest and elsewhere. Only recently have i actually took the time to understand the fandom and get back into LOZ stuff and i adore the characters and story! The more and more fanart, fanfics, and comics i see about the different Links the more i love them all. It’s such a pain to pick just one i like or one i don’t like because they’re all so unique. I love this fandom and hope to get more involved!! Have a wonderful rest of your day :]

Epona is an underrated queen

your mom

I really don't get why Zelda is called Artemis. Athena makes more sense???? It perplexes me

Anyone seeing this should check out Breanna’s E!Wild AU

Something something queer every Link into oblivion!

[fromdarzaitoleeza]

Ahh it's the last day of 2023 already?

I am expecting a call from a friend although the possibility of this happening is very slim it always felt nice to hear the voice of an old friend ( I'm not a text person I've realised this over time but I am stuck to be a text person) .

I can't wait for spring to come in 2024 , spring provides an intense amount of healing to my soul.

The next four months are very crucial in my life if they go well I can survive the rest of the year, I have died a couple of times this year and I am amazed that I am alive i didn't honestly thought i would make it to the end of this year ( especially in the last 3 months , I badly needed help but i didn't wanted others to pity me so i spoke to none about it ) anyways I don't want to talk about it , i don't want to make it sound blue than it already is,a i am really sorry about the fact all my posts are blue I sincerely wish it wasn't that way( altho i haven't posted anything here with as much as devotion I use to do , partly cuz i created an Instagram acc but that's not all reason I ve been sad nonetheless) and sorry for all the "anon/asks" that i haven't answered

I have made no achievements this year and there is little to no progress towards my self love or self growth, but I think that's okay I can do it in the upcoming year, time flies so quick i can't believe Its been so many years since I was 16 I miss being 16 honestly I had more in me back then than i have now , i have lost of confidence my vision and my smile over the years it's as if I am very different person now , i certainly wish I wasn't this way i really thought i would be so much more and better in my early 20s but it is what it is , acceptance is haredest of all emotions in my opinion , you know things are harder to accept when you know you could have done better .

Just like in the last 2 years even this year I didn't make any real life friends with whom I can hang out with i think it's partly due to the fact some people are destined to be alone and I am afraid to admit I am one of them , I did make 2 online friends this year .

I don't want to share any life lessons i learnt this year but if there is something i would love to share is choose yourself one more time each time you feel it's the last time you are doing it , choose one more time to live,one more time to hope, one more time to have faith , one more time to start again [ the fact I am the one telling you this is rediciculosly funny ] .

Unlike most people i don't have a lot of goals for the new year I just got things i want to avoid ( idk if that's the same thing?) Avoid my leftover heart's heartbreak, avoiding what takes away my peace, avoiding what can cause me discomfort, avoiding things that make me question myself ( in any negative way) ,i think that's a little too much but that's it .

As I was writing this Google photos sent me a notification saying " 3 years back today with a photo of mine " and it broke my heart a little, now I am questioning myself how did i let so much happen to me , I wish I treated certain things as the last time instead of always stupidly believing in future ( my worse trait yes).

There is a lot to say as always, i wonder if I open my mouth i would never stop sharing things that go inside my mind , but i also know there is no use of it if i can't find people who can understand it , maybe that's how I end up ranting here .

Not to mention I love people who are patient, i believe in the near future i would only like to talk with people who could be patient with me and with my silence . I believe everyone deserves people who can be patient with them .

Nothing really matters in the end but at the same time everything you do matters ❤️‍🩹

[moldybonessmell]

// TUA season 4 SPOILERS

This season was absolutely horrendous, not gonna lie.

My scientific diagram regarding something that used to be my favorite show:

There's absolutely nothing I like about new season.

Now, more specifically, things I hate:

Klaus being traumatized for no reason and having no character development for 2 seasons straight (see rant).

Ben preaching eternal love and hooking up with a girl he met like a day ago while people around puke venom cum😃.

Right away, adding the "comedic gore" which is a sin for so many recent shows and TUA went the same annoying and overplayed route. Bloody scenes were cool when it was Five killing people with an iconic background music and stuff, but not the gore for the gore's sake.

By the way, music game is so weak this season, they literally took out the best part of the show that has become its trademark, what are creators doing???

Storyline with Diego thinking Lila is cheating and them being drowned in family life would have worked if it was in a different show, but it's TUA and it's boring as hell, sorry. (Maybe dont get like 3 kids if it's so difficult??? idk man)

Luther is stripper? Seriously? Completely unprovoked. Made for comedic sake once again, and I don't respect that. They didn't know what to do with his character and made him into comic relief, how unexpected /sarcasm.

Tension between Lila and Five, really? You took the best platonic dinamic, them actually being sibling-coded, and made it into romance? I have zero respect left. I do not care it was 6 years for them, I truly don't give a fuck. I cringed so hard. I just wanted to turn it off completely. Episode 5 is VILE, especially RIGHT AFTER Diego recognising family is more important than work. These scenes being one after other is diabolical. Also, Five hiding "the way home" for 5 months?? OOC as hell, if you ask me. You know what even more OOC and dumb? Five fighting Diego over Lila when The Cleanse is the bigger problem at the moment. (How did Five even end up on the floor, he's like the best killer in timeline??)

" - Why did I wait to take the shot.. - Maybe because you're a good man after all." No the fuck he's not. Reginald Hargreaves is not a good man. In neither timelines. The way the show tries to make him a gray character and make us like him is cringe as hell, just stop.

When I found out last season is only 6 episodes long I was upset, but at the time I finished episode 4 I just couldn't wait till the season is over.

(I had to finish it tho, for a slight possibility it's gonna get better and my rant posts to be relevant you know).

Honestly, I'm just glad it's over. The less seasons the less possibilities for the show to get even worse.

"I think we're alone now" as a closing song was a good choice tho.

Edit: I haven't checked the tags before posting and can't believe like 20 people have already used the horse meme before me guess we all thought the same bruh

[khruschevshoe]

Jim and Oluwande got the worst end of the deal. I'd even say they regressed as both characters and partners and anything they had built up in s1 was almost completely stripped away from them. The way they're portrayed together and apart in s2 is not only unlike the characters we saw in s1, but their rich storyline was reduced to extreme side characters used only as plot devices in a way they absolutely did not have to be used. I LOVED them in s1, and I was so disappointed by what s2 did to them and their potential growth, which I think applies to pretty much everything in s2, not only them.

Mind if I piggyback of this ask to go into all my critiques of the handling of Jim/Olu in Season 2? Thanks!

OFMD Critique: Tealoranges, Dropped Storylines, and Wasted Potential

God, the issues I have with the writing of Season 2 extend in so many directions. Jim's character, I felt, was well-handled for at least the first two episodes but then slowly starts skewing wrong as early as episode 3 (I am still chewing glass over the way their reunion scene with Oluwande was written- or, rather, NOT written). Episode 4 was good, but everything after that? Someone said that Jim in the back half of the season feels more like Vico than Jim, and though I do love and appreciate Vico, it's completely true. Jim doesn't feel like the same character we've come to know, whether from Season 1 or even what is set up in early season 2.

And yet, I STILL feel like they're written better than Olu, if you can believe it? So, I haven't talked about this much, but I feel like Olu is done dirty from almost the moment he is introduced in Season 2. At least Jim (through editing alone, but hey, we'll give the show the smallest benefit of the doubt) gets an acknowledgement that they miss Olu during that flashback sequences while they talk to Archie- Olu doesn't even get that. I read about a deleted scene that would have had Pete and Olu desperate to reunite with Lucius and Jim in episode 1 and I feel like that was DESPERATELY needed to make the Season 1 finale -> Season 2 jump make any sort of sense. I like Zheng, but for the love of God, her romance with Olu (which I had my own issues with for the disservice it does both their characters) is not worth destroying the tealoranges build up from Season 1. Just cut something from the first episode or one of the Zheng/Olu scenes from the second episode to make it make sense.

Then, moving onto later in the season- I've posted about how Olu and Jim deserved the grand, epic reunion otherwise 1x10 and everything set up with them in Season 1 doesn't make sense. Could the writers of the show have possibly redistributed some of the glorious cinematography from Ed and Stede over to Jim and Olu? All I need is one shot of their reunion (a proper, emotional one, not played for laughs or friendship or whatever) framed by the sun to parallel Ed and Stede's being framed by the moon and I would have been happy on that front.

And then later in the season...I was down for the poly elements if they could have been executed better. Fanfics have shown that the Archie plot could have been executed well. But the fact that Zheng is straight up NOT MENTIONED until 2x7 by Olu? And then Jim says that he's been pining for her the whole time? I'm sorry, but it doesn't compute. Show, don't tell. There's a reason why I'm down for Jim/Archie/Olu (if executed well), but can't see Zheng/Olu at all.

But of course, 2x7 comes along and we get the "family who fucked" line. And the implication that Olu could have ever left the Revenge without Jim, when in Season 1 he became a wreck because Jim left for A FEW DAYS, much less was FORCEFULLY SEPARATED from him for MONTHS. Then in the finale, at the lupete wedding, they were separated out, him with Zheng and them with Archie, and, well, at that point...I was tired. I'm not gonna lie. Because this wasn't questionable or problematic writing, it just fundamentally DIDN'T MAKE SENSE.

And this is just on a romantic relationship POV. I hated seeing Olu lose his leadership arc from Season 1 and his loyalty to Jim and his nuanced emotional level-headedness/sense of logic. Season 1 really felt like it was slowly building up the idea that the ideal Captain was neither Stede nor Blackbeard but someone a bit more rational, a bit more grounded, a bit more communicative with his crew- someone like Olu. And he gets shoved into the back in Season 2 and reduced to the guy who can't sort scrolls or know that the BOATS ON A MAP MATTER. He gets no influence on plot or major decisions when he was often the voice of reason in Season 1 (we all remember Lucius being a romantic voice of reason in Season 1, but rarely remember that Olu was a major supporting deciding factor in a number of decisions made on the Revenge).

And as for Jim, I wanted more exploration or even just acknowledgement of their trauma post episode-4. I wanted an actual organic continuation of their character arc post-vengeance quest and post-Blackbeard, not just them getting defined by "funny knife thrower with a girlfriend and an ex-boyfriend who they want to get with his crush." They were so much more than that, and it killed me to see the two people who were basically main character 3 and 4 in Season 1 get shoved aside for unneeded subplots about Ricky and Zheng or Gentlebeard's three separate breakups when Jim and Olu's plotline had so much more potential than any of that. They weren't just star-crossed lovers- they were a slow burn ship built of absolutely interesting, complicated, and well-developed characters who brought out the best in each other with a DEVASTATING midpoint to their arc and it honestly would have made a better season not just for them as characters, but for the show overall if someone had just realized that the parallels between a couple that fights and claws to stay together no matter what (tealoranges) and a main ship that was still figuring itself out (Gentlebeard) would have SLAPPED.

(I am now picturing a version of this season where instead of the Izzy fakeout death/Gentlebeard reunion in the beginning of the first episode, we get an Olu/Jim reunion in episode 3 to parallel whatever reunion the writers wanted to slap together for Stede/Ed. I would have actively cried over the Olu/Jim reunion and it would have drastically improved the season.)

[totaldramafan-lauri]

Make Use Of Me (chapter 1, preview)

Dec. 7 EDIT: ONCE MORE, WITH BRAVERY THIS TIME. No more chickening out. You can read this thing FOR REAL now. Sorry for being weird, and now....sorry if this wasn't worth it. XD

O-OK...here goes....

First thing's first: I am not expecting a lotta people to read this. I'm not asking people to read this. At this point, I'm making this mostly as a passion project, and if anyone enjoys it, it'll be a really cool bonus. My writing style isn't gonna be for everyone, and the characters I write aren't the most....popular characters in the CRK X Reader community, and I imagine this isn't really something a lotta fans'll be demanding more of.

This is LONG. This one chapter is 56 pages long. I am a VERY wordy writer,

So......why'm I posting this preview? Well....partially as an interest gauge for people who WOULD wanna read it, but...mostly as a motivator. As something to remind myself of whenever I get lazy. After all....I can't quit after I made the first chapter public, right? By doing that, I put myself out there...And, hey, I even tagged it, so, if by the off chance, someone did read it, I'm basically promising them more eventually.....

But, again, I'm not forcing anyone to read this.

Not only is it long, but.....This first chapter is probably my least-favorite thing I've ever written. By posting this chapter by itself, I'm testing to see if it does its job of making people wanna read the rest, cuz....right now, I'm not so sure how well it succeeds at that.....

This is the boring part of the story. It's a bunch of setup, and me jumping through hoop after hoop after hoop to just get everything started. I know setup is important and all, but....I'm already a very wordy writer, so....oof....There is some interesting stuff that happens, but it takes a while to get there.

I-I....kinda hate it, actually. The only reason I didn't scrap it is that I didn't realize I hated it until I was about halfway through it and the "good part" hadn't started yet. And I still spent a month writing the thing, so....I finished it.

I'm tagging this...as an experiment. If you wanna read this, go ahead. W-well, read my tags first, THEN go ahead. XD

All I can really say in this chapter's defense is that....I do try my best to salvage it. It's just setup, but I TRIED to make it interesting. And everything that seems like it didn't go anywhere, will later. This isn't the whole story, it's just the beginning of what's gonna be a BIG story. Anything that seems weird in this chapter, gets explored in the other chapters. This does set up a bunch of stuff that becomes important later (The friend character shows up later, the Colosseum becomes relevant later). This chapter is boring, but I tried not to make any of it pointless.

For the future: I'm aiming for five chapters. Chapters 2 and 3 will be a series of smaller vignettes that take place over the course of a few years, chapter 4 will be the climax, and chapter 5 will be something of an epilogue. After that, there will be two endings to choose from (which will make sense when we get there).

This probably won't be my favorite thing I've ever written, but it will be the most ambitious thing I've ever, and probably will ever, write. I haven't written something like this before, and it's all to flesh out this story and make it believable.

Right now, I.....I want to finish this. I'll probably still be writing this in February at the rate I'm going, but...at this point, I've put too much into it to give up on it. However, I'm STILL not completely ruling out the idea of my motivation dying before then. It COULD happen. So, what I'm planning to do is...setting a short-term goal of finishing chapter 3. After I do that, I'll post the first three chapters on AO3 together, and work on the rest. That way, even if I don't finish it, I'll at least have it over half done, and chapter 3 will end on a somewhat high note.

So, yyyyeah....Not a lotta people will read this preview. Overly wordy writing style + boring setup part of story + 56 pages long + assumed lack of interest for X Readers of this character (At least, I haven't SEEN many simps for her, m-maybe I'm wrong, I might be, I-I haven't checked any tags cuz I've been nervous, b-but it doesn't make my writing any better. In that case, this is my first time writing her so I'm trying super hard to do her justice >//////<)

I-if you wanna read this, and see if this first chapter does a good job of making you wanna read the better chapters, then...Go ahead.....

Some notes:

-This is still not the final draft. It's finalized enough for me to share, but I'm still not considering it finished. Even tho I'm working on chapter 3 right now, I STILL go back and edit this, even very recently. So, chances are, even if the story is finalized, small details and sentences are still subject to change. I know for a fact that there are still SOME placeholder bits in here that will change after I get some stuff cleared up. Recently, I even considered chopping off an entire section to make it shorter. I decided not to, but hey, it could still happen. I don't wanna waste anyone's time. The first chapter of a story, even if it's boring, is still very important, and I wanna make sure it's the best version of itself.

(A-and yes, this means that I've finished chapter 2 as well. The reason I'm not sharing it is that, unlike chapter 1, it was finished VERY recently, so I might still need to give myself time to edit it. From what I have, tho, I do like it a LOT more than chapter 1. There are some parts of chapter 2 that I'm legit proud of.)

-Even tho this first chapter is completely clean, I-I should mention that....this fic is for adults. The full version, at least. Chapters 3 and 4 are gonna contain some light N/S/F/W moments (the "fade to black" variety, so nothing explicit) and there'll be other slightly racey comments here and there. Just a heads-up. I'm gonna be uncomfy with minors reading this.

Th-that's all? I-I think that's all.......O-OK, so......h-here goes..... E-enjoy....

[darkanddirtyknb]

Important Notice

I want to give a warm hello to all of my beautiful like-minded freaks, creeps, and horny little toads. We have had quite the journey together. It's hard to believe I started my blog and Patreon so long ago. Sometimes it's painful to reflect on because I was in a much better place when I started my blog. But we learn to live with the hand we receive in life, and that's what I'm doing. Which brings me to the reason I'm posting this today. This has been a long time coming, and I suppose I've been putting it off because I haven't wanted to admit it to myself. I've been in such a period of stasis. But I kept trying to convince myself that I could return to how I used to be—putting out content like the wind, writing commissions, having deep discussions and long conversations with my supporters, and so on. But the truth is, I just can't do it anymore. My body has taken a toll on me, and my fire has burned out. My physical health (and sometimes mental) has taken its course, and this is the path I have no choice but to follow. However, despite the war I'm waging with my body, there is good news. I won my disability claim. I'm not making much, but it's enough that I can support myself monetarily. So, I will be closing my Patreon. I'll also no longer be writing commissions for the foreseeable future. I've been delaying this part of my announcement because I hate letting people down. My Patreon aside, I made a lot of promises to people that I couldn't keep. For that, I'm sorry. I never accepted any money for work I didn't start, so I owe no one anything in a monetary way. But I will be letting people down, and that truly bothers me. If you were in line for a story, I give you my sincerest apologies from the bottom of my heart. If you feel like I let you down in any way, I'm sorry for that too. That said, to be fair, I didn't know this was going to happen to me. I hold no control over the turns my health takes, and if I could change it, I would. I will still post from time to time. I'm not giving up on writing. But what once took me one to two days now takes me weeks, sometimes months to finish. I will still be around, and I will still engage with my followers. I'm not disappearing. My health may have won this round, but I won't let it take me down. I've come too far to give up what I love. I actually have a very detailed story in the works, and come hell or high water, I will finish it. I want to thank everyone who has stuck by my side. To everyone who has supported me, shared talks with me, read my works, liked my stories, and left comments—thank you. These things have helped me through some of my darkest hours. As for my Patrons, hopefully, by closing my account this month, you'll be able to have some extra money after the holidays. I want to give a special thank you to you. You kept me afloat by helping me pay for necessities like my medication, food, gas for medical appointments, and more. Without you, I truly don't know how I would have reached this point in my life. I hope there are no hard feelings. I'm doing what I need to for myself, but also, what I feel is best. If I get a second wind, I might write those stories still jotted down on my whiteboard. You never know. Lastly, I want to share another piece of good news. My parents surprised me with a new friend. I will post pictures of her below. Her name is Luna. (Not after Luna Lovegood, but our Lord and Savior, The Moon.) She has certainly kept me on my toes, and I'm not sure she's been the best thing when it comes to my disabilities, considering I can barely keep up with her. But I'm in love, and I know that ultimately, she'll be well worth the hassle—which she most definitely is right now. She's a right pain in the ass. I'm pretty sure she's a quarter Gremlin, a quarter Audrey 2, and two-quarters Piranha. I'm sending all my love to everyone. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season. If you have any questions or just want to shoot me a message please don't hesitate. Please take care of yourselves. It's dangerous business out there. Much love, Kai

[compassionatereminders]

With the caveat that it's impossible to give truly good advice based on only a few paragraphs of context, and I realize that:

Should I try to reconnect with an online friend who ghosted me not out of malice but because they were busy and burned out with work, and spent their free time with new friends they'd made?

I used to care about them a lot and I thought it was mutual, they called me their best friend at one point. But it became the kind of friendship where we'd only have conversations if I kept reaching out to them to them, again and again. Sometimes I'd send them things 2-3 times without any reply for weeks, but the times we did talk were still good. But for the past two years they have forgotten my birthday (I haven't brought it up), and I haven't talked to them in the last six months because I got too busy to keep badgering them into contact and they never reached out in turn, and this time I just let them. I'd been keeping things going for a year or two at this point, it was miserable to feel like we only had a relationship at all when I'd prod them into it. The only reason I kept doing it so long was because they assured me they wanted to stay friends with me and still cared and loved it when I contacted them even if they didn't reply. But over time, it became very hard to keep believing that. If that were true, wouldn't they choose to spend time with me over their new friends or newest videogame? At least once in a blue moon? But they didn't. So I stopped.

I'm considering sending a Christmas card but I don't know. It is sooo so hard to tell when my feelings of hurt and resentment originate from my insecurity and abandonment issues, and when they're a legitimate reaction to mistreatment, and one I shouldn't talk myself out of. For the longest time I believed that if I stopped trying to be friends with them just because their stressful job and busy schedule made them too burned out to keep up their end, I'd be a bad friend. That if I was a good friend, I'd stick it out and try to keep being a source of support for them. I did this for several years, but it never got better, only worse. When they did have free time, they'd spend it with other people, and I don't think they even think about me anymore. I feel like a sucker. I feel taken advantage of. Whether I give up on them for good, or try to reconnect, I have no idea which one I'll regret more, and it hurts that this painful dilemma I'm in isn't even on the radar for them.

Sorry for long post.

I personally think there's a difference between ghosting because you don't care, and ghosting because you don't have the energy required to maintain a relationship. Don't get me wrong - both are allowed to be deal breakers for you, and you're not obligated to put up with either. It sounds like you've really tried to make this work for a long time without results and I completely get it if by now you can't or don't want to keep trying. That's valid and understandable. I don't blame you. But I also think that "if they don't do xyz then that means they don't care about you at all" can be an oversimplification which isn't necessarily helpful. So you gotta figure out if it's a deal breaker for you that they haven't done their part regardless of the reasons why. Either choice is a valid choice.

[tj-dragonblade]

WIP Share tag game

Tagged by @honeyteacakes - thank you!

Rules: Post snippets/screenshots/etc. from three of your WIPs!  Art or Fic!

Late Mer-Hob AU for the Dreamling Week prompt 'ocean'

In the depths below, a flash of orange.  Then, rising nearer, a very human face takes shape, coming to a stop half a meter below the surface.  Brown hair floats like kelp around his friend's head, dark eyes crinkle with delight at the sight of him, and then his friend is arcing backwards into a happy loop, the bright orange of his tail with its vivid blue spots curving gracefully after.  The sunny yellow of his primary fin rises out of the water smoothly, barely making a splash as it follows back under, and then his face is breaking the surface, tipped up, smiling like the sun.

Beautiful, Dream thinks, and again thanks whatever cosmic force he may or may not believe in that his near-drowning six months ago had led him here.

"Hello, my friend," he says, and the other beams at him, shakes water from his hair and smooths it back again.

"Hello to you, Dream," he says, dimpling prettily, crossing his arms to rest on the edge of the cave floor, tail fin flicking lazily up out of the water behind him and splashing gently back.  Tendrils of wet hair fall loose to frame his face despite the smoothing-back he gave them, and Dream likes to think that perhaps one day he'll be bold enough to reach out, tuck them behind his friend's ear affectionately.

But today is not that day.

Tentatively titled Inspiration (Smune day 2 prompt 'paper')

"Guys…I'm so sorry, not tonight, I can't.  I have to get this paper done."  Hob pushed up his glasses and dragged his hands over his face, the picture of academic exhaustion.  "The deadline for submission is noon tomorrow and I've been working on it for ages, and it's almost done but I just.  I can't get the conclusion to come together right and it's making me absolutely bananas."

A frown creased Calliope's brow; leaving Dream to shut Hob's front door, she moved across the room to hover over Hob, glancing at his laptop screen.  "How long have you been working?"

"Hours.  All day," Hob groaned.  "I'm so close but I just can't get there and it's driving me mad."

"Perhaps a break—" Dream started, but Calliope held up a hand to cut him off; when she spoke, it was still to Hob.

"You are favored of one of the muses; you struggle to capture your thoughts in inspiring words, yet you do not call upon her for her gifts?"  Her tone was somewhere between teasing, disappointed, and disapproving, and Hob blanched, just a little.

"I—no!  I would never!  You can't possibly think I'd presume to take advantage—?"

"There is no presumption in accepting a gift freely offered, Hob."

Ambrosia (Dream appreciating Hob's messy humanness/born of several Smurch and one Smapril prompt) (mildly spicy)

"Ugh," he says, poking at the wet smears on his chest.  "Wow.  That's…a lot."

Dream smirks from where he’s laying atop him.  "I enjoy the sight of you wearing it."

"Clearly."  Hob makes a face, wiping his fingers clean in a bit of chest hair that's still dry.  "Well, if we're going to make a habit of it.  Maybe I should shave all this off."

Dream stiffens, pushes up further, gives him the most affronted look possible.  "You will not."

"Oh, I won't?"

"Hob Gadling.  I will not allow it."

Hob is ready to say something lightheartedly over-dramatic about 'you DARE presume to tell me what I can or can't shave', but something in Dream's tone stays him.  There's a note of flagrant alarm underneath the imperiousness, and Hob smirks as the lightbulb goes on.

"Got a real weakness for body hair, haven't you."

Tagging, no obligation, but I would love to see if you feel like sharing:  @galacticstingray , @rooftopwreck , @chaosheadspace , @staroftheendless , @teejaystumbles

[ratralsis]

Sorry I still haven't written anything that I promised a couple of weeks ago. I'm still working on the ol' novel, and the thousands of words I spent writing about Tina after her death might count for something. I dunno.

If I can manage to get my sleep schedule back to something resembling its previous normal soon, and get a little further ahead of schedule on my progress on the novel, I'll try to write what I hoped to write earlier for this blog.

Tina used to be pretty demanding that I go to bed before 10 PM. I actually had a decent handle on it for a while. I'm gradually getting my bedtime slightly earlier again now, but after she died, I was definitely up pretty late for a few days because I wasn't looking forward to going to bed without her. Which I realize is absurd, but it's still the truth.

If you missed the earlier posts on the subject, Tina was my cat. She wasn't, like, a human lady I lived with who dragged me to bed every night and slept next to me. She was a small cat who demanded I go to bed every night and then came and went several times throughout the night but almost always was there when I first fell asleep. Now she's not, because she's dead, and I let the vet who came to my house to euthanize her take her away for cremation and to scatter her ashes. I do still have Max, but he has never been good at sleeping next to me at night and, at fourteen years old, I don't think he's likely to learn now. He might, though! He's also never been the only cat in the house before. He and I are both still getting used to that.

I spent the last few months playing Xenoblade Chronicles 3 on my Switch off and on. Much like I did with Pokemon Legends: Arceus, I finished the game and then figured out a way to grind for resources without actually needing to play the game, which inflated my playtime by over 100 hours, but I still put over 200 into the game. That includes all the DLC. I liked the gameplay, though I honestly never really connected with the characters that much. I don't have a specific reason why not. I just didn't like them or care about them nearly as much as I did even in Xenoblade Chronicles 2. But the game itself was fun, and I really did enjoy the postgame Archsage Challenges and learning how to build party compositions that could tackle the hardest challenges. It took me a lot of tries to finish the 140th stage of the Gauntlet on Hard mode, but I did it, and then I did it again, and then I bought everything I wanted from the store where you use the currency you earn in those challenges and I realized I was done playing the game.

Since I did back it all the way back in 2020, I've decided to try playing Eiyuden Chronicle. I started it yesterday. So far, I don't like it much, but I said the same about Xenoblade Chronicles 3 when I first started it, too. But Eiyuden Chronicle has two big things working against it: I hate the way it looks, and it has really bad performance issues on Switch. Neither is a surprise.

I've always, always, always hated the way it looks when 2D sprites are in a 3D environment. That was true from Xenogears back on PS1 up to Octopath Traveler. I just think it looks jarring and bad. The camera moves slightly and the background moves and the character sprites can't and it just looks dumb to me. I can't get past it. I'm not at all looking forward to the HD-2D remake of Dragon Quest III (and possibly the first two games, as well), but I'll probably get it, because I love Dragon Quest III enough to have played nearly every version of it already, even the untranslated Japanese Super Famicom version. My Japanese is probably at the level of a 9-year-old native speaker, but believe me when I tell you that that's good enough to play Dragon Quest III, because I did it.

It's also good enough to tell you that the localization for Eiyuden Chronicle takes some pretty serious liberties in its translation of the Japanese dialogue into English, but I honestly don't mind that part. I think it goes a good job of turning the subtext from the Japanese dialogue that would be understood from context and tone and turns it into text that an English reader can understand, which is the most important thing. Anybody who complains about the localization would be better off spending that energy studying Japanese themselves.

Anyway, I got sidetracked. Point is, I'm still around. I'm feeling better than I was a week ago. I'm still writing, just not here, and I'm holding down my job and doing everything I need to do and playing video games on the side and so on.

[fa-by]

Hiiii babies and dear Anons 👋🏼🤗. I'm back with a new Q&A post. Those who follow me already know that I haven't been well for quite some time now, and therefore also know that this is the reason for my delays in posting 😭.

Oh and, I apologize again to those Anons of the songs' analysis 😅. They're not even in this post 😅. Please forgive me guys 🙏🏼. Analysis are long and it was a mess to even post this between work and my bad health 😭. I'll make sure to have them ready for the next Q&A though. Sorry again 🙏🏼.

Now let's move on directly to the answers. Enjoy 🙃.

Hi to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. Thank you so much 🤗 and yeah, of course you can DM me. I never appear to be online, but you can write to me whenever you want. I'll answer you as soon as I can 😉.

You can find the answer in the last ask https://fa-by.tumblr.com/post/717423115134779392/hi-to-you-too-dear-anon-and-thank-you-very. Have a great day too, Anon.

I'm slowly getting better, Anon. I hope you're doing well.

Sorry, but the answer hasn't changed. In case you didn't see it in that post: ---please, please, please guys, don’t ask me to tell you the sites because I won’t. I don’t want any problems.

In addition I can only tell you that many sites get shut down or changed (or both) over the years, especially with the too much word-of-mouth. So I'm sorry but you have to find them on your own. Like I said, I don't want any problems.

Hiiii to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄 and I hope you're having a beautiful day too.

As for your question, I'm sorry, my dear 🥺. I'm so so sorry, but I don't understand what you're asking me. I really tried 😅 and forgive me 🙏🏼 but I just didn't understand. Could you please formulate the question better or give me an example?

Again, I'm sorry, I really am 😭.

Hi to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. My girlfriend and I aren't having much luck with health lately 😅, especially me 😅😅, but I hope you are (healthy) 🙃.

To answer your question, no. All In My Feelings screams Camila in every letter 🤣😜.

Hello to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. A little better, you?

And nope. I personally disagree with that theory I saw around a long time ago. That is Mila's point of view for me.

Hey to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. Thank you so much for your kind words and rest assured that I'll say hi from you to my gf live since she'll be staying here with me for 2 months 🥳.

About your question, I would very much love to help you and solve your doubts, believe me, but I'm sorry I don't know how 😅 because I don't have a specific context. Mila has been to Spain a looot of times, so if you could tell me specifically when and send me the pics of the phrases maybe, just maybe I might be able to help you 😄.

Good morning to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. This good morning I don't know why I swear but it's so new and refreshing, I love it 😍! Thank you, my dear Anon 🤩.

Anyway, the answer to your question is: on purpose of course 🤣.

Hi to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. I'm sorry, my dear, but you must have me confused with someone else because I never said anything like that.

I hope you're having a beautiful day too 😄.

Hi to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄 and thanks, I'm trying. Short summary on the Camren songs you say? Okay, I'll do as I did with Prelude.

All In My Feelings: 2014

Always Love: 2016

Trust Issues: 2017

The One: 2018

My dear, who said I can't do the analysis?

Hi to you too, dear Anon 👋🏼😄. I'm sorry I can't be as present as before, but shouldn't you be happy that, even if not always, I'm here? Focus on the positive 😉.

1) [If, Lauren's new PR is ONLY to cover up camren-] and the songs (old and future ones), and their private life, yes.

[-why would Lauren do it again (she has denied it thousands of times camren)?]

Why would Lauren do it again, what? Why have a PR or why deny Camren? Sorry but I got confused 😅.

In any case, you can find the answer here in the first ask https://fa-by.tumblr.com/post/717423115134779392/hi-to-you-too-dear-anon-and-thank-you-very.

2) [How long approximately do you think this PR of Lauren will last?]

I hope they've made a basic contract for at least one year's duration with no possibility of extending it beyond that, but I don't know. It'll depend on whether things go as planned or not.

3) [And how do you imagine the PR to end?]

I honestly don't cause I don't care 🤭🤣. No seriously tho 🤣. I see two possible roads connected to those indirects. **For those who don't know, I saw that there are people who think they broke up because of what they assumed were indirects of a breakup on IG.**

Road n°1: that was all PR bullshit as usual. Sasha's on tour with Madonna again and the two of them (L&S) can't see each other, ergo, they can't be seen together to the public like before. Ergo x2, there are other ways to publicize. People need to learn to remember that PRs feed and thrive on speculation and gossip. So ergo x3, nothing has changed because it was one of the many ways to get people to talk about the PR. The PR is still on.

Road n°2: a merge of everything I said in road n°1 + what I said in point 2). Let me explain better.

If my hope that they've made a basic contract for at least one year's duration with no possibility of extending it beyond that can be the reality, then it means that they're running out of time. Why? Because as I explained in my Laucy 2.O post, Lauren and Sasha supposedly got together on the night of December 18, 2021 (unless we’ll have anniversary posts in the future) but officially, the relationship was announced on February 14, 2023, on Valentine's Day.  February 2024 is not that far away. If that's why, December is right around the corner if they want to go ahead with that 🤣. But anyway. This means that they could've used the indirects both for publicity and to generate speculation as I said in road n°1, and to initiate the future official break-up. They could very well use the distance as an excuse for the breakup.

But again, who knows in the end 🤷🏻‍♀️. This could be an idea 😏.

Hello to you too, dear @camilalauren0327 👋🏼😄, and thank you.

It can be both, although it's rarer. It's usually the inside people who've worked on it with her in a personal way who are the ones looking for potential buyers. By inside people I mean producers and writers by the way. I'd also remind you tho that this is only possible if Mila is super sure she doesn't want a song anymore. Because if she's attached to it or just wants to reuse it in the future for lyrics or whatever, then the sale isn't even a thought.

You’re welcome, my dear 🤗, anytime.

Hello again, my dear @camilalauren0327 👋🏼😄. My health is improving a little and I hope yours is waaaay better than mine 😊.

1) Chronologically speaking, no. Neither Lauren nor Camila have ever released songs in order. It's more evident with Mila because we have a lot more of her songs, but they both release songs about different situations that happened even in different years. If they were to release them in chronological order, the lies would be all too obvious even to the general public. Instead, in this way, it's easier to hide the truth and mix it with the narratives and their PRs. It's simply up to us to put the pieces together.

2) In the AMAs interview (Oct 9, 2018) with Chelsea Briggs for Billboard, Laur said she'd written 40 songs. Of those 40 songs, and taking away the ones she'd already released, 5 were chosen for Prelude. In December 2021 in the interview with Zach Sang, she said she still had about 50 songs done. In the interview with People (May 26, 2023) (https://people.com/lauren-jauregui-on-working-with-ex-ty-dolla-amid-new-relationship-exclusive-7504696) she said: “I haven't really written a lot since 2020” and explained that In Between “It’s in between the time of Prelude and the actual official debut album”. And in the one with Galore (Jun 20, 2023) (https://galoremag.com/lauren-jauregui-releases-her-newest-ep-in-between-and-talks-about-new-music-love-whats-next/) she said: “These songs have actually been sitting with me since 2018/2019”.

Now what do I want to tell you with this? That Prelude and In Between are the same thing. They're part of the same era. Imagine them together as one album and not as two separate projects, also because that was her initial intent. Even the album we'll get will most likely be part of Prelude and In Between as a whole.

3) It may be as it may not be, my dear 💁🏻‍♀️. We're still getting pieces of their story from both of them, and Laur has basically just started, so 🤷🏻‍♀️.

I hope I've helped you as you wanted 😉.

Hi again, my dear K 👋🏼😄.

[Hi faby sorry to hear u were ill again I hope ur feeling better now and are taking care of yourself. Glad u remembered me and I also send a virtual hug back ❤️]

🤗🤗🤗🤗

[So the reason I’m not adopting another cat is bc my cat that died Rocky I have her brother still as I adopted them together and he won’t accept another and honestly he’s a little shit 😂]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 By the way, if I'd known that you have the brother, I'd never have advised you to adopt a new one, especially since he's a little shit and I dare not imagine what he would do to the newcomer 🙈🤣. 

[but I will again I also would love to adopt a dog bur again can’t with him and where I live my landlord don’t allow dogs 🙄]

Let's hope that one day you will also because as a dog lover, I can tell you that having a cat and having a dog are two completely different things 🤣. You'll see hopefully someday 🤞🏼🥰.

[Ur thoughts “🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Oh yeah? And who told them that? Lauren or Camila? Or both of them? Over text, call, or video call? 🤣.” Was exactly my thoughts when I read that theory 🤣🤣 they must of read too many fanfics 😂 then 🙄 this is why we get called delusional 😂]

Yeah, unfortunately 🙄.

[Ur right about fans leaving L she has always been like this just maybe when she was in 5H their team controlled what she posted/says in a way but I am curious as to why she hasn’t changed her image yet and thought she would now being independent she could show more of her true self and stop coming across as a hypocrite but again I never really thought until u mentioned it that’s she comfortable doing what she is and she knows sexualising herself sales. If I’m not mistaken I believe she even posted in her caption b4 how when she posts sexy pics etc it has triple the likes then her music etc does.]

Exactly 😎.

[I also found it hilarious how C’s fans act when she spent all that time in New York getting papped multiple times a day everyday with yoghurt then they split then C disappears from earth and they complain🤣🤣🤣 I don’t understand how they can be so stupid every single time it happens and don’t even get me started on his fans 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ saying C’s the attention seeker and she needs him to be successful 😂 like he wasn’t papped walking shirtless conveniently on a hiking trail completely empty but somehow a pap just so happens to be there🤣🤣🤣🤣 u can’t make this shit up]

Yeah sure, she's so much attention seeker that I can count on the fingers of one hand how many times she's been papped since they ‘broke up’ again 🤦🏻‍♀️. Contrary to mister please give me attention that three people's fingers wouldn't be enough 🤣. But anyway, you said it yourself: people are stupid 💁🏻‍♀️.

[Also have u heard the AI songs of Camren that shit is good-]

I've listened to them since day one and I keep progressively doing so as new versions come out 😍. And yep, you're absolutely right.

[-and makes me wish they would do a song together better yet a whole ass album can u imagine that?]

Wouldn't that be a dream for all of us 🤣?

[Do u think Camren have heard them? I’m also surprised they haven’t done anything about it.]

Heard or not, they can't do anything about it 🤷🏻‍♀️. Exactly like all the other singers this is happening to. It's still publicity if you think about it.

[I am excited for C’s new music and I hope they give her more freedom where she can really show of her writing and don’t know about u but I would love for her to do some rock/edgy songs. Her NBTS is still one of my favs]

Absofuckinglutely! NBTS as well as Shameless which is one of my favorites, although Shameless is more pop punk rock with a darker edge. I'd love it if she continued to do that and also to re-explore other genres. Like, for example, something trap like in OMG, or electropop like in Crown, or even afrobeat, something new that as a former dancer literally knocked me down, like she did in Ku Lo Sa. *Can you tell that I love everything she does? 😅*

And don't get me wrong, I love love LOVE that she’s primarily a pop singer. That's the main reason why I discovered 5H in the first place in the far back March 2016. I'm just saying that along with pop, I hope she continues to explore other genres and not focus solely on Latin songs like she did for the most part with Familia. Again, don't get me wrong. I love and adore her Latin songs as well and I also understand that she wanted to integrate her culture more into the last album, and I loved them all. I'm just saying that I'd like her to continue to integrate and explore genres in a more varied way (including the Latin ones) as she did before Familia. That's all 😄.

[Hope ur having a nice day/night and are feeling better 😘]

Thank you so much, you're always super kind 🤩. I hope you're doing very well and I hope you're having a nice day/night too 😘. Virtual hug 🤗.

[HIIII Faby!!! 💜💜💜 ​Me again :P I hope u feel much better and healthier since last time .]

HIIII to you too, my dear purple heart Anon 👋🏼😄. I actually do, thanks 🤗. I'm unfortunately still not 100% yet because it's a long healing process, but I'm better 😊.

[1THANK U SO MUCH for exposing Lauren and Sasha's fake relationship like I asked u to!!!! I'm sure you'll have made many people in doubt happy and u made me laugh a lot as always🤣 .]  

1) It's always a pleasure to help you guys when I can 🥰 and I'm happy to have made you laugh as you hoped, my dear 😉.

[2Wha do u think of the Camren AI images? Aren't they the most beautiful thing?]

2) I obviously loooove them 😍🤩😍🤩 and yeah, they're beautiful 😍🤩😍🤩.

[And of course Camila stays silent while Lauren blocks CS 🤣 .]

Well 🤣 that hasn't changed from the past, right? At least it's a great way to get people to talk about them and keep the fandom alive and they both know it 🤭.

[3Did u see Lauren's last zoom cause OMG 🤣 I thought of u! She was talking about divine energies and said "we all have masculine and feminine within us , we all have to balance these energies in order to be in a space of clarity within ourselves". I rememberd that an anon told u the opposite in an ask and I went to look for your answer because I remembered that u proved them wrong and u were right as always🤣 I mean guys Faby said this 2 years ago and Lauren confirmed it now 0.0 .]

3) I did see it, my dear 😁. I'm surprised you remembered that 🤣. You have an excellent memory!

For those who don't know, the purple heart Anon refers to the LimeWire Zoom that occured on Sep 28, 2023, while this is the ask I answered  https://fa-by.tumblr.com/post/669510575975546880/hey-babies-and-dear-anons-welcome-to-a-new (third to last ask, the one before the two analyses).

[I don't know how u do it honestly Faby . It looks like u have a special and deep understanding of both Camrens as people and I'm always blown away by how u get it right. That's why I trust u completely :D .]

Thank you so much for trusting me completely, my 💜 Anon. It warms my heart 😍😍. And honestly? I think I have it (the special and deep understanding of both Camren as people). And I'm absolutely not saying this to brag or anything like that, I swear. I like to think that I have it because of my personal experiences, because of how I see life, and especially because I love them and have studied them and have always paid attention (even before Laur said so in that tweet).

[For this I wanna thank u .]

No, my dear, THANK YOU ❤️.

[Thnk u for always being available to answer our asks and for always being kind to us.]

I'll always be (unless someone is disrespectful).

[Thank u for always being objective no matter what even when it goes against Camren & their being together and what other CS say .]

I don't lie and I'm pretty realistic as you've perfectly noticed. If something didn't happen, I say so. If something is just a made-up fantasy, I have no problem debunking it. If delusional shit is said just to get attention, I have no trouble telling it like it is.

I don't care. I don't care about any of that. I don't care about the fanfiction imagination that lots of CS unfortunately have of them. I mean, do I want them to be end-game? Hell yeah! But I know there's a chance they might not be. Just as I know that they've both been and that there's a chance that they'll be with other people in the future as has already happened in the past when they broke up.

I just care about the truth, because they're people. They're two flesh-and-blood people with their own lives and their own feelings, and a lot of people still don't understand that. So thank you, my dear. I'm happy that there are people like you who also appreciate my objectivity ❤️.

[Thank u for always being truthful in what u think and always showing proofs of what u say.]

Always ❤️.

[Thank u thank u thank u so much in general I don't know what we'd do without u and your posts. At least me :P .]

And again, no, my dear, THANK YOU ❤️. Thank you for always being kind and polite to me. Thank you for your concern for my health. Thank you for all the ‘HIIII’s I know you write on purpose to distinguish yourself from those you know who don't even greet me before asking. Thank you for all the asks you've been sending me over the years. Thank you for believing in me because, honestly? It's thanks to you and those like you that I'm still here. So THANK YOU in general!❤️

[Have a beautiful day be safe I love u and say hi to your gf. 😘]

Have a beautiful day too 🙃. I'll say hi to my girlfriend when I'll let her read the post live 😄. I love you too, be safe too and take care of yourself 😘.

🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍

Aaand I'm done 👅. Thank you all for your asks and I hope I've been helpful this time too 🙃. As usual, I'm always available for those who have questions, so ask away 😄.

Remember to be nice. Always. Both with others and with yourselves. Be a good example. Be patient. Be safe and take care of yourselves. Don't let our ship sink. Keep shipping them, but please respectfully 🙏🏼. Sending you virtual love and hugs 🤗🤗🤗. I love you, babies. Always with love, F ❤️.

[fuck-customers]

⚠️ SORRY; LONG POST ⚠️

How the fuck can I get my dumbbitch managers to STOP scheduling me for 3 hour (or less!!) shifts?

I have repeatedly asked multiple management members over and over and over again to NOT schedule me 3 hour shifts, schedule me only 4 hour minimum + ideally one 8 hour vs. two 4 hours (which never gets respected, of course) only to be ignored. I mean, I have talked to Every. Single. Manager. And lead. Anyone who might even TOUCH a schedule, I have repeatedly expressed my displeasure with 3 hour shifts. I have open availability and I never call out, it's not like I need limited hours due to school/another job/disability/etc. And I have two fucking 3 hour shifts this week!!

I'm sure I will get comments on this post that suggests that they're trying to get me to quit. I agree. I've wanted to quit this job pretty much as soon as I accepted it. However, I have many issues in my personal life that are preventing me from doing so, which I will not go into detail about. The good news is, it seems like I might be able to get things resolved in my personal life soon and will be able to relocate to the area that I wanted to and will ideally quit this job and get another one at that time. The problem is that I'm unsure how long it might take. I might be stuck here for a few more months, but I honestly do not know how many.

I don't want to tell my work about that, because I'd have to explain in detail my personal life and I do not wish to, and I would like to wait to tell them that I am quitting/thinking of quitting once it's more of a reality and I've actually gotten another job. At this point, I haven't even interviewed anywhere.

I spoke with the SM before she quit and after that talk, we appeared to be on the same page and she assured me that she would instruct the leads who were taking over scheduling duties to not schedule me 3 hour shifts. (I also would call out for nearly every 3 hour shift.. hint, hint, bitch, but I have since stopped due to concerns about being fired for being unavailable/uncooperative/abandoning my shifts/etc bullshit)

Well, that was a fucking lie. I got my new schedule this week and I have not one, but TWO 3 hour shifts!! I have been at this stupid fucking job for almost 4 years. (I am 2 months away from my 4 year anniversary, not that I get a bonus or review or any kind of recognition when my anniversary comes around, but that's another story) Even the current management hasn't been there that long. The longest one has been with the company 2 years at another location. (Oh btw that's another issue- all current management is not from this location, they've all transferred from other locations or are straight up new hires from other companies and I believe they are discriminating against employees who have been under previous management to force them to either quit or conform to THEIR way of managing. Which is wrong, by the way. I have read the store handbook...which has mysteriously disappeared after the arrival of the new SM 🤔 and a lot of what they say is the way to do things are simply not correct)

I am considering filling out an availability form and putting down "no 3 hour shifts" and photocopying it, however there isn't really a space for something like that. The availability forms only have spaces to fill hour which hours each weekday you are available. (So if you're available on Mondays only from 1-5, you would fill in the blanks with 1:00 and 5:00) But it's something in writing? Maybe? Idk. I have also considered contacting HR, but we don't actually have an on-site HR person, I'd have to call or email them and I'm already worried that my current scheduling issues are a form of retaliation against me (for what, I'm unsure of) and even though I know it's illegal, I fear my hours might get worse if I contact HR, but I feel I can't PROVE retaliation or unfair treatment, because I am not the only one with low hours. HOWEVER I am the only one who's been there for multiple years and I am the only one who spoke to the SM about it and was promised better hours. (But she wouldn't put it in writing, of course) Also, the shitty hours are not consistent. I'll have 3 hour shifts this week for a total of 6 hours this week and then next week, I'll be asked to stay late/come in early and have 2 or 3 8 hour shifts. Which I also feel is purposeful, so that management can go "ohh NOO we're not punishing or discriminating against her, see? She got a FULL SHIFT that day."

Summary/TL;DR: Work has been giving me pisspoor hours. I want hours to improve. How should I ask to not be scheduled 3 hour shifts anymore? Should I contact HR or should I wait to see if the situation resolves itself?

[addictedtostorytelling]

(1/2) Hi! I'd like to bother you a bit, if you don't mind. :P I was rewatching CSI and also guiding myself through your notes own our favorite couple, and I finally hit the 'proposal episode' ♥♥♥ what a beautiful take on them, it's so sweet, it's soo them! Also, Jorja's adorable face when Grissom's scrapping the bee's sting out of her hand, whilst she wonders about what he just asked her, I mean- gosh, I adore her! Anyways! What's your take on the proposal?

cont.

(2/2) Do you believe Grissom had been thinking about proposing to her before the events of s7e24/s8e01, or that was an out of the blue question? I tend to believe he had thought about that for a long time before making up his mind on the subject, as we know he likes to over analyze stuff. Also, do you happen to think Sara might have adventured herself with the idea of someday marrying him? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Thx! ;) I'm so sorry for the long post, please don't feel pressured to answer me, if you don't want to. Honestly. <3 😳💕

hi, @ms-machine!

you're not bothering me at all! it's great to hear from you again.

my short answer to your question is that i very much agree with you that grissom has proposing to sara on his mind long before he actually asks her to marry him.

though he can't very well pop the question during the "secret dating" phase, i think he pretty much always has the thought in the back of his mind (more or less from the onset of their relationship) that someday—when he is at liberty to do so—he is going to ask sara to be his wife.

her abduction by the miniature killer and subsequent months-long recovery prevents him from asking her immediately after they "come out" at work.

but once she's sufficiently healed and they've established their "new normal" now that their relationship is public knowledge, he wastes no time in doing what he has for so long wanted to do.

to my mind, when he actually makes the proposal, he does so extemporaneously, in a moment of sheer adoration—meaning when he wakes up that morning, he doesn't necessarily know "today's the day." rather, it's just something that happens. the right light strikes, and he finally has the opportunity to say what he has been waiting to say to sara for literal years now, so he doesn't hesitate.

likewise, i think that though sara has wanted grissom to propose to her basically the entire time they've been together, she's never been brave enough to let on to him that she has because she hasn't been entirely sure of his feelings for her or his level of commitment.

part of her has always worried that she's been more ready to settle down than he has. she's been worried about "coming on too strong" or spooking him, so she's just kept her mouth shut, silently hoping that maybe one day he'll be ready but trying not to force the issue or tip her hand too much.

while recently, since the events of late s7 and early s8, she has had a hunch that maybe grissom is trending more in that direction, since they haven't ever discussed the topic before, she doesn't really have any idea that he is just as eager to tie the knot as she.

she is therefore incredibly pleasantly surprised when he so suddenly asks her to marry him.

it's an actual dream come true for her—something she had always hoped for but hadn't had any specific expectations of.

anyway.

i've got some longer, more detailed posts on the subject, if you're interested:

this one details how grissom's s7 sabbatical serves as a prelude to his s8 proposal.

this one talks about grissom's thought process regarding marriage throughout his relationship with sara.

this one dissects the actual moment when he makes the proposal in itself and why he ultimately ends up just "blurting out the question."

the one conjectures that while both of grissom and sara have wanted to get married to each other for a long, prior to the events of episode 08x02 "the case of the cross-dressing carp," they've never had a conversation with each other concerning that possibility.

this one discusses how while sara has long hoped that grissom might propose to her, she is caught off-guard in the moment when he finally does so.

thanks for the question! please feel welcome to send another any time.

[maranull]

Hey, wanted to get an opinion from someone who doesn't straight-up hate Marika. I just answered an ask that sort of turned into a character study/lore overview on Marika. If you feel like taking a look at it, I'd be interested to hear your take.

I'm definitely not Marika's biggest fan, so I just want to make sure I've been fair. Would love to hear your opinion, but obviously no pressure if you don't feel like it.

Thanks!

Catcas22

Hi, that's a really interesting post. I will preface my thoughts with the fact that I haven't done any serious lore diving in months, and my (very Marika centric) fic tends to blur my "canon" understanding more often than not.

If anyone hasn't read the ask mentioned, here's a link, read that before this, please.

Also, tldr, I agree with basically everything, with some nuances.

Alsox2, I'm sorry if you didn't want me to go through most of your points, I just found them really interesting to comment.

I very much agree with the options given as the potential GO reign holders. I personally lean towards a mix of 2 and 3. I think Marika build the Order according to the GW command, and her calls while heading the Order were the GW's. I also think that after her imprisonment, the Order lost most of it's direct contact to the GW, only being able to communicate to it through the Fingers. A situation in which people like Ofnir and Morgott took charge following their own beliefs.

Also, fully agree that the shadows were contingency plans, and I also think they are the only creatures the GW has a more direct control over. Which is still not that strong, even then (Blaidd is evidence of that, given that even during his kill-switch-on moments, he actually defends Ranni's tower (I firmly believe that even if Ranni was there, he would had broken free of the GW's control one way or another)).

As for the following options and interpretations about Marika, I lean heavily towards no3.

This one feels the most unlikely to me. The one thing we know that Marika loves is her children (putting an asterisk here, will explain at the bottom of the text). And since the GW can't directly control her mind or body, I see no other way for it being able to control her.

I also don't think Marika didn't understand what she was signing up for. If I'm not mistaken, she came in the Lands as a conqueror, she is/was as ruthless and plain evil as conquerors are. Plus, even as she conquered and maimed the Lands, she kept small and far-fetching contingency plans (the Giants' Forge come to mind immediately). I feel like she knew how dangerous her alliance with the GW will was, and did it regardless.

And this is my fav. What makes Marika so interesting to me is that she starts as a selfish, power-hungry villain, but as the eons pass, she appears to crack at places and slowly realizes what she has build.

I actually have nothing to counter this option, just that it's too straightforward for a main character from a FromSoft game. I can't speak for Sekiro and BB, but in the DS trilogy, all main antagonists had more than a shade of grey to their characters. It just feels very unlikely she was written that way. Possible, sure, but a bit uncharacteristic of FromSoft's writing.

Asterisk point: Marika's breaking point is the death of her son and daughter. We also know that she was slowly working in undermining the GW before, but their deaths drove her into madness, attempting to brute force her dismantling of the GW's reign.

Now to explain why I agree with option 3.

At first, she is insanely ruthless, committing genocide towards the Fire Giants and conquering land after land, placing a objectively ruthless and bigoted religion over the Lands. She also allows the Omens to be hunted and even when two of her own children are born as such, she throws them in the sewers. But here is where the first crack appears, to me at least. Omens were killed at birth normally. She let them live. And later, both escaped and at least one of them was allowed to roam the Lands as a commander (Morgott leading the Night Cavalry). After, or during that, her other son formed an alliance with the Dragons, arguably the biggest enemy of the GW, given that their Outer God was in charge of the Lands before. Marika not only allowed a truce, but let the two factions merge together (Godwyn/Fortissax and the cult in her soldiers). Then, she herself (or her other self that is still her?) again joins forces with another one of biggest enemies, Raya Lycaria. Three children are born from that, and one is the favourite chosen to take her place as a god. Then, with her last three children, she allows two of them to leave, and attempt to form their own Erdtree. As with the third, she explicitly gives her the purpose of burning the Erdtree housing the Elden Beast.

Honestly, the main thing I read differently is the interpretation of this line:

Hear me, Demigods. My children beloved. Make of thyselves that which ye desire. Be it a Lord. Be it a God. But should ye fail to become aught at all, ye will be forsaken. Amounting only to sacrifices...

The way I understand this is not that she's saying she'll forsaken them if they don't become anything. The way I read this is as a warning of how the GW treated her and how she was about to end up.

Overall, I think Marika is a tragic character, not because she had no say in the atrocities she committed, but because she realized her error of her ways too late, loosing everything she cared for as a result (only three of her children survive (and Godwyn but I wouldn't call that living) and from those three, two are cursed and in terrible states). Some may say she deserved it and I don't disagree with that per se, but that's a whole moral argument that I'm not touching right now, this is already too long. :P

I hope this made some sense, my mind isn't doing that well today. But this was really interesting to think about, so thank you for the ask. :)

[kairalov]

His pov:

Ring ring ring.....ring ring ring 'please leave a message after the beep' beep

"Hey, I just wanted to ask how you've been it's been sometime and I miss you. I really do, you're not answering my messages and calls anymore im worried about you; I know you told me to give you space but its been 2 months and I don't want to rush you but I just need to know your okay, please call or text me back, Love you."

-------------------------------------

"Dude its been like what 4 months now, I hate to be the bare of bad news but I think she ditched you man its time to get over her and find someone new" Dylan mentioned.

"DON'T.....don't say that please don’t say that” I whispered out loud while biting my bottom lip. “Sorry man I'm just worried shes not even posting on social media she could be dead right now and I don't even know it, I just miss her, and I can't let go, not right now I still believe she'll come back she has too" I insisted

"Honestly thats true dedication right there.” Me personally I wouldn't have been able to stay loyal after the first month I would've sold her clothes and used the money from it to go to a strip club, but that’s just me" Ares admitted with his hands up in surrender.

"Of course you would because you can't even keep the same girl for more than a week" Dylan countered.

"Not true my longest relationship lasted 8 days and last time I checked there are 7 days in a week" Ares argued.

"And that's supposed to be a flex" I said as I raised an eyebrow at him.

---------------------------------------

Text messages:

Hey, it been 6 months just checking on you again I hate to say it but I don't think you're coming back.

But if you ever do read these I just want you to know that I still love you.

Even if you might've found someone else.

---------------------------------------

Hey, again its been 8 months and you might not care considering you haven't said anything in the past 8 months.

But I found this girl we aren't together but she brings me the same joy you brought me maybe not as much but it could be due to the fact I just met her but say the word and I won't go any farther with her.

I'll wait for you.

---------------------------------------

Hey. Its me again it now been 10 months and the girl shes amazing.

I feel like its wrong to document everything to you; even about me finding someone new

But I've now found someone but she's not you

I know she'll never be you but I'm trying to move on from you but you were just so perfect for me

Its going to be hard to find someone after you set the bar so high

---------------------------------------

Regular talking:

"I see you moved on" Ares noticed.

"I won't say that yet, its like there's something in me that wants to wait for her but there's a much much bigger part of me saying to stop dwelling on the past when the girl in front of you is so amazing" I said

"I feel you man, just know whatever you choose ill support your decision" Dylan supported

"Well at least someone will if you don't choose the obvious decision I'll take your eyes because clearly you aren't using them" Ares said.

"Gee thanks for your support" I said as I rolled my eyes at what Ares said

"Anytime" they both replied

---------------------------------------

Text messages:

Hey, its been a year now and its safe to say that I'm now moving on.

You've kept me in you're lover chockhold long enough, I started dating the girl I was telling you about shes great and I really like her.

I hope you find or maybe you've already found someone who treats you well.

I wish you nothing but the best and I want you to know that even if I'm no longer in love with you I still Love you, and from here on out, I'll leave you alone now.

Goodbye♡

[megaawkwardhuman]

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last 10 people who reblogged something from you. learn to know your mutuals and followers.♡

sorry for not responding to this sooner

wrote more then I expected so just gonna put this here

1: my dog!

he might be annoying at times but at the end of the day I fucking love him and if anything bad happens to him I'm going to kill a bitch. though it would be nice if he didn't jump on me all the time since he's fucking big (he's still a puppy tho so I cut him a lot of slack) (also he's a german shepherd if you're curious)

2: art

whether it's viewing it or creating it art has always made me happy. I've been drawing since middle school and while I do have creative dry spells I haven't really stopped creating and picking up random mediums (just pencil, just pens, pixel art, sewing, kandi making, painting the list goes on and will continue to go on)

3: music

I would go insane if music didn't exist. It's always been a big part of my life whether it's my dad blasting music while cleaning the house or me listening to music while walking down to a corner store to get an arizona. Music also helps give me ideas! like I have a few fic ideas written down that were inspired by songs.

4: watching and talking about media I like

I'll take this moment to apologize to my irl friends who have witnessed me info dump over discord vcs at like 1 am without planning what I'm saying so it's all one big cluster fuck of words. I fucking love to ramble on and on about shit that I like ESPECIALLY THE MEDIA I CONSUME!!!! I've always been a nerd for details, theories, and over all over analyzing. not always but most of the time if given the chance to talk about something I like I become like one of those door to door missionaries. Only instead of talking about my god I go on about how gay something is. Also watching shit that I like! after I'm done typing all of this I'm gonna rewatch some wwdits while working on bunny art (I swear one of these days I will explain the bunnies. It's a whole thing with a looooong story behind it. I wanna share it but I think it deserves a separate post so I won't talk about it here.)

5: tumblr

is this one a bit of a cop out? probably. is it true? 100%. it fucking baffles me that my ideas and art can bring joy to others. hell I still can't believe I've INSPIRED OTHERS but somehow I have. All of y'all in the wwdits fandom have really helped me get through art block that was going on for months I think? I can't put into words how thankful I am for this site. All of the amazing artists, all of the meta posts, just EVERYTHING AH YOU GUYS HAVE NOOO IDEA HOW MUCH I LOVE Y'ALL. it kinda feels weird since at the end of the day I don't really know y'all and y'all don't really know me but still from the bottom of my little queer heart thank you all soooo much for the follows, likes, replies, and reblogs.

[nukenai]

sorry i just, do you have any idea how demoralizing it is, that i've been writing for decades and it's the only thing i can offer in terms of Creative Anything, Ever, and I had to reblog my shit 140 times to get one potential "i liked this!!" comment, and I felt so brave putting my stuff on AO3, and I was so burned out and didn't write for a couple years but started up again, and did all the same stuff I did before and i can't get as much as like, a comment or more than a single kudos, or any real feedback whatsoever,

and like, I don't want to sound so bitter. but i encouraged my sister to start writing her star wars self-insert stuff. and all she did was put it on AO3 and she got a bajillion people instantly fawning all over her story, loving her OC, drawing her fanart, begging her for updates, and it's like

what am i doing wrong??? was my writing really so fucking shitty and worthless that I couldn't get the attention of more than 2 people who would read my stuff out of pity I'm sure

like what's WRONG with me. i'd love feedback, or something, somewhere to talk to people about writing this stuff. a friend invited me to a server that's a couple friends of hers to do this exact thing, except nobody's posted anything for months

i cleared out ALL my writing from tumblr and wiped my AO3 and i had ONE person go "oh, i liked your stuff", except I never got any actual comments on my actual stuff in years!!! how can i believe anyone cared if no one ever said anything to me!!!!

i feel so fucking broken and beaten down and upset, writing is LITERALLY ALL I FUCKING HAVE. i cannot draw pretty pictures of my stories i'm fucking sorry! all i can do is write and my stuff either wasn't good enough to warrant being commented on, or people couldn't bother to read it.

i support "writing for just yourself" so much. that's what i've been doing for so long!!! but i was actively asking for feedback and for people to just PLEASE SAY ANYTHING, and even friends who have in theory been supportive of my writing can't do that!!!!! this makes me feel so petty and fucking awful but IT'S ALL I FUCKING HAVE. I CAN'T DO ANYTHING ELSE.

i've been in this HORRIFIC depression over this for WEEKS and i haven't had like a single word of sympathy or caring and it's just violently reinforcing that yeah, i was wasting mine and everyone's time and no one wants to read the things i'm writing.

when I was writing fallout stuff people really liked it! i would get regular comments and stuff! but the pokemon stuff is what i'm most passionate about and i just. i just wanted someone to read.

even an irl friend asked me, actively fucking asked me! for the link to my AO3 and I gave it to him and have not heard a single word. like why even ask. i am so fucking heartbroken.

i don't want to take this out on people. it's not people i'm mad at it's myself. i'm just convinced now that nothing i create is worthwhile and I was right to delete all of my writing (cleared a lot from my computer too) because the idea of someone missing it is a joke.

i have never felt this hopeless about the SINGLE THING I CAN DO in my entire life. i don't want to give it up entirely i have this pathetic little string of hope i'm holding onto and i don't want to let go. but just why fucking bother. because i will have NOTHING left if I don't have this. but why bother.

i feel like i've become nothing but a burden or, at most, an accessory to everyone in my life lately. i'm like everyone's third or fourth place consideration and i cannot tell you how worthless that makes me feel. i have to arm wrestle conversations out of people and i just don't have that kind of energy anymore.

i feel like such a goddamn disappointment of a human being.