#Afrikaans word of the day

[afrikaans-hermaak]

Afrikaans word of the day (Day 1): Laugh.

Lag.

Past tense sentence:

She laughed = Sy het Gelag

Present tense sentence:

She laughs = Sy lag

Future Tense sentence:

She will laugh = Sy gaan lag.

[proto-language]

dissertation fatigue finally beginning to set in. i am beginning to grow tired of my beautiful baby boy.

[culmaer]

holy shit sina ken toki e so many fucking languages

i applaud you

ah, well, so about that. most of the languages in that list are supposed to be crossed out ! back when I made my blog you could do a few html things in the blog description, but it doesn't show up anymore, especially not on the app/mobile. so now it just looks like a long list of languages which is a bit misleading

I am definitely interested in all those languages, and have taken a few classes or self-studied most of them over the years, but I definitely don't speak all of them

should probably be edited/updated, but I'm not even sure I'd still remember how to do that...

[cchloset]

buster and eddie headcanons

still struggling to draw and i feel really lazy but i have to say. buster and eddie together, just the concept alone, has me giggling and kicking my legs. theyre so silly. and yes i DO think theyre boyfriends. sorry if this is hard to read its late and im not giving much attention to legibility rn. big walls of text sorryguys - i kinda flipflop between if they met in very late high school or during college because buster says to nana "we met at eddie's graduation". i think it fits better canonically if buster was already maybe halfway through/almost done with his courses and then met a freshman eddie. buster graduated first, then eddie followed. - eddie did not take college seriously at all. guy failed everything. but he locked in the last year, because from the Eddie's Life Coach short film he's shown to know how to get his act together – even if it means immediately forgetting it afterwards - eddie majored in sound design. he wanted to make sound effects for video games - these guys are HUGE morons. oh my god. dumb and dumber over here. average intelligence decreases by 20% whenever they walked into a room - buster was a lot more hyperactive and scattered back then but has mellowed out with age and got his adhd medicated - eddie comes from a spanish-speaking family. he understands spanish but can't speak a word (me with afrikaans lol) - no one at the theatre really knows who eddie is beside his name, the fact that he helps out from time to time, and that he sometimes brings in mcdonalds and coffee for mr moon - eddie smokes pot. not as much now but always used to back then - did he share with buster? obviously - buster CANNOT cook. his father always made the food when he was alive, or miss crawley would make him things, or he'd just buy microwavable stuff you slap in for a few minutes and its ready to eat. do not trust this man around a stove - the kitchen in his loft apartment is seldom used because he eats microwavable lasagna or something every single day - one time he tried making something and set the place on fire - also i think buster's dad's name is David because the Dave and Buster's pun cracks me up n makes me hysterical - as a housewarming gift, eddie gave buster his old xbox. it still works fine but he has a newer one and doesnt want the old one collecting dust. well it collects dust anyway because buster has not played any. hes too busy - buster cant see far away. hes always squinting and getting headaches. refuses to get glasses because 'theyre such a hassle' and opts for contact lenses - eddie has given buster his own keys to the pool house because he visits so often - eddie's parents don't like buster so much. the constant mooching and borrowing money (which he still hasnt paid back btw) doesnt leave a good impression. buster doesnt mind and hops the fence when they lock him out

its 3am ill write more if i think of them. and maybe draw soon. sob sob

[elliespassagerprincess]

If you’re still doing song requests I’d love if you can do bad dog by Rosie ugly it’s so loser Ellie core

Bad dog - (ellie williams x reader)

Hi anon! firstly yes this song is so loser ellie and secondly i've never heard about Rosie before and their music slaps... i hope you enjoy:)

This story is based off the song Bad dog by Rosie! if you can please listen to the song as you're reading:)

Pairing: ellie x fem!reader

requests are open again! send me your silly thoughts

warnings: angst.

Summary: in which you treated her like a bad dog

authors note: so i left again and im so sorry, anyways my person life has been kak (that's a word in afrikaans lmao, it describes my emotion the best) but I've arrived and here to spam.

masterlist

Sometimes I feel like your lover

Savor salt while I'm there

But it feels like I'm drowning in the thick heavy air

And I'm only your souvenir

You put me outside like a bad dog

And you know you're missing out

On my love

On my love

I just want another taste of you

Right there under my tongue

It gets me feeling excited

Why am I tryna hide it?

you made her feel like a fucking dog.

A dog that has disappointed it's owner and that gets sent outside to wallow in self pity.

Sometimes you made her feel loved, you made her feel like she's the only girl alive. You made it seem like you would fucking die for her but today you made her feel like a dog.

Ellie doesn't know why she feels so hurt, you did this so often. She should be used to this.

The air surrounding you, Ellie and Dina was tense.

It was suffocating.

Ellie and Dina has been friends for years, but as soon as you came into the picture suddenly all the friends Ellie had drifted towards you.

Everyone loved you.

Who wouldn't? You were perfect. There was something about you that drew people, and Ellie loved that about you.

Ellie became a shell of herself. The once loud and confident Ellie Williams became a fucking loser who follows you like a shadow.

Your laugh filled the air, as Dina told a cringe dad joke, Ellie quietly sat watching the two of you.

Your words from earlier that day made her feel sick.

"Just because we fuck, doesn't mean we're something. We're really not anything but fuck buddies. Stop trying, you're pissing me off"

stop trying.

stop trying.

stop fucking trying.

Your presence made her so excited. Just smelling your perfume had her giggling.

How could she stop trying if you were the very reason for her existence?

She couldn't focus on the what Dina had to say, your laugh was mocking her.

Your harsh words were still replaying in her mind. They were suffocating her.

stop trying.

She meant nothing to you.

She should stop trying to win your love. You literally told her to stop.

Even though you made her feel like a fucking dog, the love she felt for kept her going and Ellie wasn't willing to give up.

Remember that song that you wrote me

It wakes me up in the morning

And it feels like I'm drowning in the memories I've been avoiding

And I cannot stop destroying

You put me outside like a bad dog

And you know you're missing out

On my love

On my love

I just want another taste of you

Right there under my tongue

It gets me feeling excited

Why am I tryna hide it?

Jesse told Ellie that you didn't deserve her love. He said that you were missing out on the best relationship of your life.

Jesse was right. Ellie knew she couldn't keep following you around, she knew she should stop hoping you'd fall to your kness and tell her how much you love her.

No, she had to face reality.

He was right.

All Ellie had to do was to go to your apartment and she had to tell you to fuck off. But when she tried she suddenly lost her ability to speak.

As soon as you smiled at her and asked "what's wrong baby?"

She couldn't.

She couldn't break her heart like that.

How can someone say something so hurtful and pretend like it didn't happen? You told her she meant nothing but yet you're calling her baby?

You were a fucked up person.

She wanted to hate you, but she couldn't.

Dogs are loyal to their owners. She wasn't going to leave. She was pathetic. A loser.

A loser who believes a girl who didn't see her as more than a fuck buddy would love her.

Ellie hopes you'll fall for her.

She hopes you listen to love songs and that you'd think of her.

Maybe the memories the two of you have created would consume you. Maybe you'd finally fall for her.

She tries to forget those memories, but she can't. The thought of you kills her.

You showed her love. You fucking cared for her when she was sick.

Surely it all wasn't platonic.

Maybe deep down you love her. Maybe you making her feel like shit was all apart of your plan to suppress your feelings for her.

Everything is a possibility at this point.

I'm all fucked up 'cause

I'm missing pieces

I'm all fucked up 'cause

I'm missing pieces

Ego dying

Loner island

I untied when

We went silent

Showed my colors

Stained the carpet

Not another

Fucking artist

Ellie is a puzzle.

She's incomplete without specific pieces.

Without her guitar, she felt empty. Without Joel she was lonely. Without you she felt like she had no purpose.

No matter how complicated Ellie was, no matter how fucked she was in the head you'd always show her love. Her dark thoughts went quiet, and her once dull life was filled with color because of you.

Ellie started drawing again after she quit years ago because you convinced her to try again.

You were the reason for her very being at this point. That's why she held on for so long. That's why she couldn't let go even though you made her feel like shit.

Ellie thought that she was going to stay in this toxic cycle for the rest of her life, and yes she would've if that meant a life with you.

But one day she woke up and everything around her was dull. There was no more color. No more excitement. When she was around you she felt tired. Drained.

You showed her the world but you destroyed it too.

She hated everything.

As much as she loved you she's had enough.

She has to take Jesse's advice and do what's best for her.

Here Ellie sat in front of the love of her life, telling you that this wasn't going to work.

"Ellie please" she heard your voice plead.

"I love you" Ellie muttered

"prove it" you said, frustration building up in you.

"Stay"

"I can't"

You were almost in tears. You were losing someone who helped you. You didn't love Ellie but she was of convince, she was there when you needed a quick fuck.

If she was just a quick fuck, then why does this hurt so much?

"Ellie if you love me you would stay"

"I love you i truly do, but i love myself too much to let you treat me like a bad dog"

<3

my pookie (the taglist): @hellorai

[halfbakedspuds]

I often hear English speakers proclaim in exasperation that [Insert slightly less screwed up Germanic language here] has such long, awkwardly specific words but they fail to understand that most of these are created on the spot to satisfy a specific context, and because of how the language works they remain understandable despite maybe having never been uttered before.

Recently, a Polish friend of mine found out about the longest word in my language (Afrikaans), being:

"Tweedehandsemotorverkoopsmannevakbondstakingsvergaderingsameroeperstoespraakskrywerspersverklaringuitreikingsmediakonferensieaankondiging" (Yes this is an actual word), which means "issuable media conference’s announcement at a press release regarding the convener’s speech at a secondhand car dealership union’s strike meeting"

Let's do a step-by-step with my language, Afrikaans, slowly adding meaning to create a completely new word as an example.

Wys (Show/to show)

Verwys (literally 'To show toward', this would translate to 'Reference' as a verb in English)

Verwysing (Reference as a noun)

Cool, now we have a word made from scratch, let's add a little more complexity.

Verwysing + Indeks (Index) is Verwysingsindeks (An index of references)

Alright, now let's make another one.

Prys (Prize)

Digter (Poet) + Prys is Digtersprys (The poet's prize)

Digtersprys + wenner (Winner) is Digterspryswenner (Winner of the poet's prize)

One more time:

Onder (under, or in a more archaic form 'among')

Onder + houd(An archaic word for 'hold/to hold) is Onderhoud (An interview. Literally 'held among [people]'

Pers (Press, as in the news people) + Onderhoud is Personderhoud (Press interview)

Personderhoud + e (Plural suffix. This gets slightly complicated so I won't elaborate on why 'e' is used instead of 's' here despite both being plural suffixes) is Personderhoude

Now let's get a little bit mad, shall we? Let's put all these together.

Digterspryswennerspersonderhoudeverwysingsindeks

This singular word that won't exist or be used in any other context means "Index of references to the press interviews of poetry prize winners".

The general rule is "One concept, one word", and although the rules behind how to do this get a little complex at times, especially if you're still learning, but there's no rule in any Germanic language (as far as I'm aware, at least) saying that you can't pull an English and just say it as a sentence instead.

The beauty of Germanic languages (excluding the three wombats in a trenchcoat that is English) is that even with a toddler's knowledge of what's going on, words describe themselves to such an extent that you can get the meaning of fairly high-end concepts just from hearing the word.

Of course, this an extreme example. In most cases you won't have more than two or three or at most four words strung together, but the point stands.

This has been your ADHD driven linguistics lesson for the day.

Edit: Forgot to translate the first long word. Oops

[reddragon-cowboy]

PSA

CW: Anti-blackness, Racism.

I usually don't make posts of this nature, but something had to be addressed since it involves my racial identity as a black women. This involves my experience in the server with one individual.

This is a post to share my experience concerning an individual who displayed direct and indirect racial prejudice towards me in the @bebopcrew server. First and foremost, I must say that the Bebop crew is an amazing server and, although I am particularly shy as it can take me awhile to feel comfortable enough to socialize in groups, the members there made me feel welcomed and supported me, as well as many writers/artists alike.

But one member in particular, @/Drasino, stood out to me that treated me differently than the rest. I thought I could put the situation behind me and let it rest, but due to seeing them on my dash often continuously calls back to mind what occurred.

This happened when I had begun to try to come out of my shell, attempting to socialize and engage in conversations in certain channels. I left a compliment on some insight they shared in a channel, but I never got a response that showed he acknowledged me. I also tried to engage in them again, but he didn't acknowledge me and proceeded to ignore me. Interestingly, he would engage with other people in the server and their stuff, but nope, not me.

Ironically, a day or so later right after, Drasino posted an image where he outwardly mocked the Afrikaan language. That was the first red flag for me. I asked one of the admins about what they posted, what his intention and motives could be about the crude image. The admin got right on it and confronted Drasino about it, to which he acted oblivious and played innocent. But after that incident, the admin updated the rules to emphasize how racist and other toxic content, comments, or memes are not allowed.

Afterward, there wasn't no more images of that sort again. However, he proceeded to deliberately ignore me and my stuff while engaging and initiating conversations with other people. I also tried to involve a few people in a channel where he and other people were talking, which he easily could've engaged with me as well, but instead, he proceeded to switch over to another channel to try initiate a totally other conversation, again, deliberately and willingly trying to exclude me from his presence. There was also a comment a admin told me where Drasino made a joke about monkeys as well.

All of these things began to pile up. Even though he acted oblivious about the picture he posted, you have to remember, Drasino, ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS. THE WAY YOU TREAT OTHERS IS ENOUGH TO KNOW THE TYPE OF PERSON YOU ARE. I am not stupid; I knew exactly what you were doing, and your actions towards me further proved my case. I do my utmost best to extend kindness towards others, try to make others feel welcomed, and I don't like it when others feel left out. I extended kindness towards and courtesy towards him in the same manner as I try for anyone else. But he didn't for me; the fact I'm the only black person ( plus with the only black oc) in the server who he outwardly and deliberately chose to not give me the same courtesy and respect as he gave other people stuck out like a sore thumb. Plus, that image was all I needed to know because he knew exactly what he was doing and proceeded to downright ignore me.

This type of behavior something I wouldn't expect to experience in this type of community, but here we are. Shinichro Watanabe created a show with a diverse cast of characters; Cowboy Bebop is abundant with diversity of different languages, cultures, ethnicities, and nationalities-it is an element I love about the show. Anyone who is a fan should understand and appreciate the message and vision that Watanabe delivered for us. If Watanabe appreciates and respect others, no matter their race, culture, or language, a fan of his work should share that same openness. With that being said, showing racial prejudice, anti-blackness, xenophobia, or any other type of prejudice towards another person is completely unacceptable here.

I decided to make this post to make others aware of my experience with this individual, and for others who look like me to be wary of their company, so they don't also have to go through the same thing I experienced.

[madamlaydebug]

{🙌����🙌🏾💭🏹🪓💥🗺🏕🛖🇲🇦🚯}🇺🇸}

The melinated people in America today indigenous to the Americas your answer would be yes. History would want you to believe that all of the melinated people you see in America are offspring of millions of people who were bought here on a ship, that is a lie and not true. First of all, they never bought millions of people here from Africa, at best they bought 25 actual Afrikaans twice a year at best ? And this is documented in the US archives, how do you think that these Europeans gathered 10,000 Afrikaans on a ship with only 10 of them as the the person in power… once you understand the transatlantic slave lie and research it then only could you understand how all of these melinated people whom you call Afrikaan Americans today are even on the continent to begin with, because we were already here and are indigenous to this land. At this point in time the elite colonizers who benefit off of all ethnicities lacking this information don't even care to hide it anymore, you can Google this stuff. In Egypt they found cocaine and tobacco in the stomach of mummies and these mummies obviously predate the “Indians" & you can only get these items from America. So with that fact being an actual TRUTH, any person who has the due patience to read can put this stuff together. Hence why their are so many pyramids in America, Mexico & South America. Even these elite people allow you to know in school that all life started in Africa, so if you have something originally created in Africa on another continent, it's obvious the first one built in America was built by the people who built the only other pyramids on the planet at that time which is where…? Afrikaa, the truth is melinated people are indigenous to earth and Caucasians are mutations of melinated people which is also common knowledge in today's time and was proved by an Asian scientist who was studying mutations in zebra fish. The best way to win a war is to make sure the losers never realize they were in a war to begin with. Why do you think “coloreds" weren't allowed to read & write, why do you think they killed the fathers and separated the women from children, they were psychologically breaking our connection whilst at that same time intermixing with us and rewriting history. Ever heard of a 5$ indian ? Now you know why they exist, the government obviously had many indian treaties and they didn't uphold any of them and when they finally decided too they had spent at least 100 years classifying people with their census and coming up with new words like mulatto and mixed, because you had to be an Indian to get the benefits of the peace treaty, so why not just make the indians forget who they are so they'll never even think to claim the land or benefits whilst whitewashing the ones who would sell out and controlling the image of said people all the way up untill this day ? If you ask me the shit is GENIUS cause it's still working unfortunately. I'm a melinated aboriginal of America

[catdotjpeg]

The Nova Music Festival Exhibition, described on its website as an “in-depth remembrance of the brutal October 7th attack,” is currently installed at 35 Wall Street in NYC. Pictured above are two cards written by patrons, left at the end of the exhibition, calling for the genocide of Palestinians. Text on the first card reads:

Our unity will let us heal. The Gazans are all Amalek. They should be wiped off the face of the earth.

“Amalek,” a reference to the enemy nation of the Israelites from the Tanakh, has been invoked by far-right israeli politicians and settlers alike as a rallying cry and justification for the murder of Palestinians. It should be noted that it was also used by Europeans “to justify murdering Native Americans, and Hutus used it to justify massacring Tutsis… quoted by Afrikaaners, Germans, and other European colonial powers against those who resist colonization.”

The second card reads:

I am struck by the hope and beauty of the will to survive. I am filled with shame and embarrassment that Muslim people are our cousins. I can’t comprehend an Allah who is proud of his children and Mohamad’s descendants. May the love of life of the [??] of israel overcome the evil of the [??] of Islam.

A demonstration held by Palestinian-led organizations outside of the exhibition on Monday was consequently denounced by local politicians such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

On Monday, we led thousands in a day of rage for Gaza after the Nuseirat Refugee Camp massacre, bringing the rally to the genocidal Nova Exhibition [in New York City]. We are proud to protest one of the most egregious zionist propaganda projects in our city. Read more here: http://wolpalestine.com/protestnova

This traveling apartheid apologia serves the same goal as the false claims of 40 beheaded babies, the weaponization of sexual assault, and other projections from the zionist entity about October 7th that have been widely debunked.

For so-called allies of our movement to align with the most ardent zionists in condemning us for protesting this spectacle makes it clear that their sympathies extend as far as their pity for our people’s annihilation.

WOL strongly reiterates our call for sustained action against any institution facilitating or justifying the genocide of the Palestinian people, including the Nova Exhibition, for as long as it is in New York and in any city it will travel to next.

We call on the supporters of the Palestinian people to heed the call from Palestine and escalate – both in words and in action. We are proud of our people. Any institution that facilitates our nation’s destruction will be met with action.

-- Within Our Lifetime, 12 Jun 2024 1:21pm EDT

[riveramorylunar]

Music Professor

Pairings: Music Professor Charlize Theron x Student Reader

Warnings ⚠️: Professor x Student relationship, height difference, age difference, jealousy, teasing & Charlize speaking Afrikaans

Pet Names/Nicknames: Oulike meisie(Sweet girl), Darling, Charlie

Word Count: 1,458

A great song should lift your heart, warm the soul and make you feel good. That's what Colbie Caillet once said. Y/N became fascinated with music right after she turned 9. She had learned to play the Violin, Flute and Guitar. She was learning to play on the piano now but just couldn't get it right. At the age of now 18 her parents enrolled her into an art school where she could take piano lessons as well as dancing since she also loved to dance.

She walked up to her new school and looked up at it. The school had four floors one for Freshman, Sophomore, Juniors and one for the Seniors. On each floor there was a room for all of the different forms of art like music, dance, literature, poetry, painting/drawing, sculpture, architecture & theatre.

Y/N walked into the school and was awestruck at how beautiful it was. As she walked through the halls she was roughly shoved to the side causing her stuff to drop to the ground. She looked up to see a boy running down the halls causing her to roll her eyes before scoffing. She bent down and reached for her music binder when someone's hand touched hers. She looked up and locked eyes with a green eyed woman who had short brown hair. The woman smiled before picking up Y/N's stuff. She stood up and Y/N stood up as well before grabbing her things from the woman's hands. "T-thank you" Y/N stuttered out not daring to look at the woman. "It's no problem better be careful next time though these halls can get chaotic at times" the woman said in a thick African accent causing Y/N to gulp. "Got it" Y/N said before she watched the woman walk away. Y/N let out a sigh before continuing her way to the principal's office to get her schedule.

The day had gone by quickly and lunch had just ended. Y/N walked through the halls and back up to the fourth floor. She walked through the long hall before stopping in front of an open door. She had heard the piano playing from all the way down the hall. She stepped into the doorway and saw the same brown haired woman from before sitting at the piano playing a song. "You can come in Dear" the woman said in that hot accent of her's. Y/N's face flushed as she stepped into the room as the woman turned around. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you" Y/N said causing the woman to chuckle before standing up and making her way over to her desk. "It's fine you didn't disturb me" the woman said as Y/N looked at the Name Plate on the desk. Ms. Charlize Theron was across the plate and Y/N smiled. "You have a beautiful name" she blurted out and her eyes widened in shock realizing what she just said. "Oh thank you dear" Charlize said and Y/N saw a faint blush on the professor's face. "N-no problem" she said as she was over and took a seat on the bottom step. "You're Y/N Y/L/N right" Professor Theron said and Y/N nodded. "Well I saw that you sighed up for after school piano lessons" Ms. Theron said and Y/N nodded right before students started walking in while chatting.

"Alright class I'll see you all tomorrow oh and Y/N can you stay behind I need to talk to you for a couple minutes" Ms. Theron said and Y/N nodded as she watched the others get up and leave after packing up their music sheets. Ms. Theron shut the door after the last student left before walking over to Y/N and sitting down on the step beside her. "So when do you want to start your piano lessons" Ms. Theron asked as she crossed one leg over the other. "I don't mind" Y/N said as she kept looking straight. Ms. Theron hummed before grabbing Y/N's chin and turned her face so she was looking directly at her. "Look at me when I'm talking to you understand" Ms. Theron said making Y/N gulped. "Yes professor" Y/N said making Ms. Theron smile before letting go of her. "How does tomorrow sound" Ms. Theron asked as she looked Y/N in the eyes. "That's fine" Y/N muttered out and Ms. Theron nodded. "Tomorrow it is then" she said before standing up and walking back to her desk.

It was after school the next day and Y/N made her way to the music room but stopped when she heard talking. "Oh come on Charlize just cancel the lesson you can do it tomorrow she won't mind" Y/N heard a man say making her furrow her eyebrows in confusion. "Mr. Jones I'm not going to say it again the answer is no" Ms. Theron said and Y/N stepped into the doorway causing the two teachers to look over. "Right on time Y/N please come on in" Ms. Theron said and Y/N stepped in before setting her bag down near the doorway. "Now if you'll excuse me Mr. Jones I got a student to help" she continued and Me. Jones huffed before storming out of the room almost shoving Y/N out of the way. "Come on let's get started" Ms. Theron said and Y/N followed her over to the piano. Y/N sat down on the bench as Ms. Theron stood beside the piano.

It had been a couple months now and Y/N was getting better at playing the piano. "Would you like to try and play a song" Ms. Theron said and Y/N nodded. Ms. Theron walked behind Y/N and reached out for Y/N's hands. "Can I" Ms. Theron asked and Y/N nodded. Ms. Theron grabbed Y/N's hands and put them in position. "You don't talk much is it perhaps that I make you nervous" Ms. Theron whispered into Y/N's ear causing her to shiver before blushing brightly. "N-no" Y/N stuttered out and Ms. Theron smirked before pulling her hands away. She rested them on Y/N's shoulders and squeezed slightly. "Well I think you are, you barely talk when it's just the two of us" Ms. Theron said as she stroked her hands up and down Y/N's shoulders.

After Y/N finished she pulled her hands away and looked up at Ms. Theron to see her already smiling down at her. "That was amazing Y/N you're a fast learner" Ms. Theron said and Y/N smiled. "Thank you Professor" Y/N said as Ms. Theron patted Y/N's shoulders. "You're welcome and please when it's just the two of us call me Charlize alright" Ms. Theron said and Y/N nodded. Y/N looked down at Charlize's lips before looking away and back at the piano. Charlize saw it and sighed before she carefully took Y/N's face in her hand. She turned Y/N's face so that she was looking straight at her. "Y/N I can't stop thinking about you ever since the first day I met you you've been on my mind since then" Charlize said and Y/N kept quiet as her heart started racing. "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen and you're the absolute sweetest" Charlize continued before she sat down next to Y/N. "P-professor I don't think we should be doing t-this what if we get c-caught I could get expelled and you could get fired and go to jail" Y/N stuttered out as she tried to calm her racing heart but it wasn't working. "We won't get caught I promise Oulike meisie" Charlize said as she leaned in slightly. "A-alright" Y/N said as she took a deep breath in. Charlize smiled before leaning all the way in and kissed Y/N on top lips. Y/N closed her eyes and immediately kissed back.

Charlize pulled away from the kiss first before pulling Y/N into a hug. "I like you very much darling" Charlize said and Y/N hugged back resting her head on Charlize's chest. "I like you too Charlie" Y/N said and right before she felt Charlize's heart quicken at the confession and nickname. Y/N smiled at that before tightening her grip around Charlize. "Do you want to play another song" Charlize said and Y/N pulled away before nodding her head while smiling. "Sure why not" Y/N said and Charlize turned around and the two began playing a song together.

[cin-cant-donate-blood]

Palestine is not a real country. Palestine is a Bantustan. Allow me to explain what that means and what can be done about it.

Below the break: a brief history of apartheid, an overview of the geopolitical reality in Israel and Palestine and possible future peace scenarios, and then an unwarrantedly impassioned criticism of nationalism.

Following World War 2, the newly fully independent country of South Africa started pursuing a number of policies that would come to be known as apartheid, that's Afrikaans for "apartness" or "aparthood." Often the details are brushed over with only the inevitable, de facto consequence – black South Africans becoming second-class citizens – being mentioned. I'd like to poke a little at the details, though.

Turns out, actually declaring a population within your country to be second-class citizens was not a very tasteful thing to do when the nuremberg trials were only two or three years ago, so the strategy pursued by the South African government was not to strip black people of full citizenship, but to declare them citizens of another country entirely, making them foreign residents without any citizenship at all.

Enter the Bantustans. These were ten, tiny, impoverished enclaves, most of them entirely surrounded by South Africa and with no meaningful ability to conduct independent foreign policy or trade. South Africa would eventually declare four of them to be fully independent countries, while six remained "autonomous." Mind you, they were quite independent internally, with their own governments that South Africa, frankly, didn't give a damn about. All the same, the international community called bullshit, and refused to recognize any of them as real countries: pretty much the only time a sovereign country has ever freely given a part of their territory independence to international condemnation.

Suddenly, millions of black South Africans were not citizens of the land they had lived on for centuries, but of some tiny country that might be hundreds of miles away. The international community decried this as what it was, but nonetheless, under this convenient legal fiction, black South Africans were stripped of their citizenship without anyone being able to accuse South Africa of making them a stateless people.

After apartheid ended, all of the Bantustans were eventually annexed, and took their rightful place in the dustbin of history.

Sound familiar? It should. Though Palestine's origins are different, since it is older than Israel, the present-day, de-facto state of things is uncannily similar.

Palestine is in no meaningful sense of the word a country participating on the international stage. It doesn't even have a single government, and the governments it has are in no way sovereign.

The West Bank is governed by a weak and ineffectual organization called the Palestinian National Authority (or State of Palestine), headed by Fatah, a social-democratic party. If they were an independent country, Israel would not be able to set up checkpoints within their internationally recognized borders to restrict and harass Palestinian movement. Nor would they be unable to prevent Israeli settler-colonialism within their borders. No serious person can claim that they are a sovereign state. They are Israel's plaything.

The other big palestinian government is of course Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Gaza is a tiny area of land that suddenly got a very large population when millions of Palistinians were forcibly expelled from their previous homelands in what is today mostly Israel. Hamas is a bunch of jihadist fanatics who were voted into power in 2006 and have ruled Gaza with an iron fist ever since, often being equally cruel to the palestinians under their rule as the occasional Israelis they kill. They are extremely unpopular with the people in Gaza, and more than half of Gaza's population couldn't even vote at the time they seized power (on account of the appalling life expectancy in the area, as well as high birth rates). Once again, however, Hamas completely lacks sovereignty in international affairs, in spite of their ability to do whatever they want domestically. Israel (and Egypt partly) controls everything that enters and leaves Gaza, down to banning specific consumer goods like potato chips and soap periodically. If you think that's just because they're controlling their own borders, consider that they have also control ships accessing the strip. If Gaza was independent, why are international aid organizations not able to spend their own money sending boats through international waters, into what should be Palestinian waters, to Gaza, without harassment from the IDF?

Pro-Israel people might contest my assessment that Israel controlling what goes into and out of Palestine, both in Gaza and on the West Bank, are signs of Israel not treating these countries as sovereign, though usually the argument I see is more along the lines of "so what, we have to do that," which nicely concedes my main point.

"What if they import weapons?" they might argue. Unfortunately, independent countries are allowed to import weapons, or anything else they so damn well please. That's a rare W for Westphalian Sovereignty I guess.

Going back to the original topic of Bantustans, here's an incomplete list of things that are true for the Bantustans of South Africa, as well as for Gaza and the West Bank.

"Independent" countries with no ability to conduct independent foreign policy or trade in practice.

Subject to arbitrary authority from the country supposedly recognizing their independence.

Conveniently leaves millions without citizenship and voting rights in the country that actually, in reality, rules over them.

With all that in mind, what can we do about it? Unfortunately, the short term answer is "not very much" but I thought I would at least go over the long term peace options quickly.

The Two-State Solution is the thing that failed last time. The present day arrangement is what this solution developed into. All the same, many people argue that if only Israel could be convinced to stop bombing Gaza for five minutes, perhaps Hamas would lose what little support it finally has and Palestine could reunite as a sovereign country equal in standing to Israel. I find this incredibly unlikely, and in any case (and I'll be frank with my own opinion here) I don't think the crimes and the killing and the land-stealing are going to stop until Israelis and Palestinians stand under one, impartial court system as equals. Only then can Israelis be forced to end illegal settlements and stealing homes, and only then can discrimination end.

The One State, One Nation Solution is the genocide button. This means either Palestine takes over and Israel ceases to exist, or Israel takes over and what little remains of Palestine ceases to exist. Both of these options suck, actually. Israeli supremacy would inevitably lead to complete colonisation of the West Bank, and whatever would end up happening to Gaza would not be pretty at all. On the long term, complete removal of Palestinians might become a reality. On the other hand, a Palestinian State that does not grant equal rights to Israelis could end up killing quite a few innocent people too, and if Hamas has any power in such a state, it might even end up in a total expulsion of Jews from the country. Ethnic cleansing is bad when it's done to colonists and descendants of colonists too, actually.

The One State, Two Nations Solution is a catch-all for any end state where a single state rules all of Israel and Palestine, and both Israelis and Palestinians get full citizenship and voting rights. This is an attractive solution to me because, as I mentioned, it would mean a unified legal system that both Israelis and Palestinians can trust (you could have jury ethnicity quotas or something if you must, as long as everyone can trust that they're not being treated as second-class citizens). This could be done in many ways: for example, either Israel or Palestine taking over entirely but then giving equal rights would in my opinion count as reaching this solution. Other options might include Israel in the lead but with the West Bank and/or Gaza as autonomous, or as a true federation, either with two members or perhaps with more, splitting both Israel and Palestine into smaller parts. This end state seems more plausible for Israel and the West Bank than it does for Gaza, which could realistically remain unincorporated (which would suck, but perhaps the ability of this unified Israel-Palestine to discriminate against and malign Gaza would diminish with half their citizens being Palestinians). The binational solution is, however, not very popular. It is somewhat more popular with Palestinians, who are increasingly losing faith in the two state solution, but the average Israeli Nationalist is terrified of granting citizenship to the Palestinians.

"When we become the minority, they'll kill us all," is a common sentiment that I can give at least some sympathy. My answer is: simply make a country where discriminating against any minority isn't possible. Boom. Done. You could do something with a bicameral legislature and both houses needing to approve changes to the constitution or whatever. I don't care, it's a solvable problem. Get over it. You can't delay giving people equal rights just because you're afraid they will treat you the way you treated them.

"When we give them citizenship, Israel will lose its Jewish character/The Jewish State will cease to exist," is another possible objection, which in political science can be classified as "bitching and whining." I have much less sympathy for this, because in my opinion, nations do not have the right to sovereignty. In fact the only thing that can have rights is individual people. The family has no rights, only the people in it do. Religious institutions have no rights, only religious people do. Races have no rights, tribes have no rights, nations have no rights, only people, of every race, tribe and nation, have rights. Nationalism was in my opinion a disaster in every way except in that it killed some Empires. Moving into the 21st century and beyond, it is my sincere hope that the (attempts at) homogenous nation-states will be abandoned for the brutal and ugly things that they are. For all of human history, we have intermingled, and for a brief moment in the 19th century, we tried to abolish this mixing, to assimilate all minorities and all regional variation, and I'd prefer it if all that is forgotten one day. The USA, flawed as it is, cannot seriously claim a single nation or ethnicity, and that is one of the best things about it. The countries of Africa, slow as their recoveries from colonialism have been (no thanks to their colonisers), have benefited from their arbitrary borders in that, as they rise, they will rise as multinational states. Nigeria and other future big players will show a new way for governments to relate to their people. The European, narrowminded ideal of a state for every nation and a nation for every state cannot ever become a reality, because nations are inherently fuzzy, in a state of flux, moving, migrating, mixing and changing, while states will always have written laws and fixed delimitations. A nation is incapable of having borders, while a state is incapable of not having borders.

No race, no nation, and no creed has a right to their own state, no matter what they have gone through. Certainly not when people already live there. Certainly not when a state for one means depriving a state from another. Maybe it's mean-spirited for me to end this very long ramble with words a preschool teacher might use, but Israel, you have to learn to share.

[afrikaans-hermaak]

Afrikaans Word of the Day (Day 7) Friday 1: Important words

Bathroom = Badkamer

Please = Aseblief

Thank you = Dankie

Where is the [insert thing]? = Waar is die [voeg in ding]?

What time is it? = Watter tyd is dit?

I am lost = Ek is verdwaal

I am = Ek is

We/Us = Ons

Late = Laat

How do I get to [insert place]? = Hoe kom ek uit by [voeg in plek]?

[ifjgh]

Next up is my "too cool 4 school" girlie, Lucya Kozlov.

Here's some basic info! <3

Goes By: Lucya Nicknames: Lucy, (Insert Possible Stage Name Here) DOB: Aug. 22nd, 1956 Age: 21 (Until her B-Day, which comes up early) Gender: Female, but isn't picky about it (She/Her/They/Them) Sexuality: Bi/Pan Ethnicity: Russian, French Occupation: Student (Psychology Major) Works at a Record Store, Lead Guitarist and Singer in her Band Socioeconomic Status: Living in Russia during the Soviet Union, she's not the best well off Place of Birth: Kazan, Russia Family: Very close to her Mother (French) because her Father (Russian) was rarely home due to working so much to support his family Height: 5'4“ Weight: 110 lbs. Disabilities: None(?) Possible Vertigo and/or Hearing Some Amount of Hearing Loss Fashion Style: Goth/Punk Coordination (or lack thereof): Very good at dancing on and off stage, but if it's something she's not focused on or using muscles memory for, her balance is kinda awful (possibly to do Vertigo) Personality Type/Trait: Defender - Dedicated, Protector, always ready to defend those she cares about or feels have been treated unjustly Introvert/Extrovert: Can handle people well, but would prefer to be alone most of the time, more of an Introvert Intelligence: Despite how she acts and carries herself, she's barely passing all of her classes, she'd rather work on her art and music then do her homework Self-Esteem: Average, prides herself on standing out Hobbies: Working on her Music and Art, Dancing, Singing, Smoking Skills/Talents: Creative, Imaginative, Great Singer, Good Dancer, Very Good at Reading People Loves: Music and Art, Smoking (it's a problem), Her Mother, Keeping up on latest trends Phobias/Fears: Not being able to fully execute her visions to her expectations, Bailing Syd out of Jail, Being Forgotten, Beetles (Probably the Beatles too, why not) Angered By: Ignorance, Unfairness, Hecklers, Not living up to her own expectations Pet Peeves: People who use too big of words in sentences, Boring people Obsessed With: Music, Art, Leaving a Mark on the World Bad habits: Messy, Smoking, will just leave a conversation if it's boring her, being a bit too blunt Desires: To create something that won't be forgotten to time, especially if it includes her friends, feeling like she finally fits in somewhere. To be as independent as her Mother is. Flaws: Blunt, Easily Bored, Perfectionist, Looses Interest Easily Secrets: Cries herself to sleep at least once a week over missing her Mother. Doesn't feel like she fits in with anyone here, but refuses to acknowledge it. A hidden embarrassing tattoo. Regrets: Said Tattoo, coming to this Collage and leaving her family (but she does understand this is a good opportunity), not speaking up when it would benefit her socially Accomplishments: Forming her own somewhat Popular band, standing out Languages Known: Fluent in English, French, and Russian, knows some Afrikaans slang (from being Roommates with Shelby), and some creative English insults (from hanging out with Syd)

(Things are subject to change the more I get things fine tuned, I've also kept some things secret for the time being. - Crow <3)

Bonus! Basic Profile Sheet, for funsies! X

[ashestoashesjc]

One morning late last winter, on a day as clear as spring water, a boy fell from the sky. 

Only, ‘fell’ doesn’t get to the heart of it, implies some manner of grace. In actuality, it was an ass-over-head plummet to solid terra firma, complete with a comet’s tail of terrified screams. 

One does not drop miles at Mach speed and do so demurely. Not without wings.

And so the boy was subject to months of intense, single-minded interest. He was talk of the town. He was on everyone’s lips. You couldn’t pick up a newspaper, couldn’t walk to a supermarket, couldn’t even open your window to let sunlight in, without hearing word of The Boy From Above. 

Where had he come from?

What did he portend? 

It was ironic then, that a word was the last thing the boy appeared to have any interest in sharing. Language experts the world over arrived to try their hands at breaking through whatever linguistic barrier separated the boy and the knowledge undoubtedly sealed in his beautiful cranium, and mankind. 

Italian, Afrikaans, Québécois, Korean, Latin, Esperanto, Morse. It was no use. He was mute, or daft, or hailed from a world without speech, or he’d landed headfirst and all the things he’d seen and heard had been concussed away. Whatever the case, he was Pandora’s Box padlocked. 

Slowly, as it became obvious there’d be no guarded secrets of the universe forthcoming, now or perhaps ever, attention dwindled. 

Of course the public wouldn’t forfeit total excitement over a possibly celestial being in their backyard, but the reporters became less frequent, other less flashy news items on political scandals and sports rivalries made creeping returns to front pages. 

This was all as well for the boy, who’d long grown bored with the adoration, the poking and prodding, the wild, hungry eyes. 

He sat in an office, cross-legged on a chaise lounge upholstered in purple velvet, forearm-deep in a cardboard bucket of popcorn. He hadn’t finished chewing before he was shoveling another butter yellow handful into his mouth. 

Each time, after each bite, he’d drag his grease-covered hand across the elegant chair, flattening the plush with dark smears. 

And each time, Dr. Nussbaum winced. 

Not only for the prospective cleaning bill, but also for his wasted hours. Days. Weeks. Months. All to no end.  

The doctor’s walls were lined with plaques for his many grand achievements. Degrees with lofty, difficult-to-pronounce titles, commendations from pleased heads of state, leaders of industry, leaders of religion. He had much to be proud of. 

Though as he stared at the boy who should’ve been his magnum opus, the thing that would have solidified his place among the academic greats, who sat now licking the salt and oil from his fingertips, ‘pride’ did not figure in. 

Only one thing laid on his mind. 

Then the boy was holding the bucket out to the doctor. A silent gesture. More. 

The doctor shook his head. “No. No more. You’ve eaten it all.” 

That was a mistake, he’d known immediately. The boy’s eyes went wide and watery. Then the lip quivering. Nussbaum wanted to look away, urged himself to, and found himself utterly, physically unable. 

Once the boy’s mouth began to ratchet open, the doctor crumbled entirely. Not that, please. 

“Fine,” he muttered quickly, grabbing the shiny, black office phone, pressing a button, grumbling directions, and slamming back the receiver. 

A satisfied smile plastered the boy’s face, the lower half slick with gluttony. 

The doctor felt himself die a little.  

[culmaer]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by TaalPolitie (@taalpolitie_)

Anglicisms in Dutch vs Afrikaans

setting aside the spelling and pronunciation of the Afrikaans words, note :

inchecken — "inklok" is when you arrive at work. to check in at a hotel etc we use "inteken" ("inteken" also means enter, as in enter a competition, or to subscribe. we don't use the gallicism abonneren)

smoothie — "gladdejantjie" is one of those cute words a language-purist editor made up one day, but noöne in real life actually uses. we say "smoothie" too, or even "vrugteskommel" (cf "melkskommel")

[best-non-english-word-torunament]

Round two: Haikea vs Sinaasapplesap

(poll at the end)

Haikea (Finnish)

[ˈhɑi̯keɑ]

Translation: A feeling of quiet, melancholic, sometimes even mournful longing. "Wistful" comes fairly close as a translation, though it's not exactly the same.

Finnish is an Uralic language belonging to the Finnic branch spoken by 5 300 000 people in Finland, where it is one of two national languages (the other is Swedish though it is less used, Finnish is the main language).

Motivation: It's one of the most beautiful words to say in Finnish, IMO; it has a beautiful flow to the vowels, and it almost sounds like a sigh. It's also an emotion often associated with a lot of Finnish art, literature, music and culture in general, and thus it's a strong part of Finnish identity.

Sinaasappelsap (Dutch)

[ˈsi.nɑ.zɑ.pəlˌsɑp]

Translation: Orange juice

Dutch is an Indo-European language belonging to the Germanic branch spoken by 16 million people in the Netherlands and 24 million total. Most speakers outside the Netherlands are from Belgium, which has a Dutch-speaking area with 7 600 000 speakers. It makes up one end of the West Germanic Dialect continuum. Dutch is also the basis for Afrikaans, spoken in South Africa.

Motivation: It's absolutely unhinged. There is no reason for it to have that many syllables for what it is. It also gets bonus points for being a very fun word to say. Go on and try it for yourself. You'll be repeating it to yourself all day.

Note: Sinaasappel is the word for orange and was originally Chinas-appel, literally China’s apple.