#Bond Price Analysis

[effectivethings]

Strategic U.S. Bond ETF Investment: Timing and Analysis

Table of contentsUnderstanding Bond Price Movements in Response to Interest Rate ChangesWhy do I invest in US bonds?1. Anticipating Interest Rate Trends: The Peak of Federal Reserve Hikes and Their Impact on Bonds2. Identifying Market Momentum: The Role of Moving Averages in My Bond Investment Strategy3. Independent Strategy: Navigating the Underappreciated Bond MarketRisks of Bond InvestmentHow…

[cosmicplexus]

Random Astrology Observations

🌻I wasn't feeling lazy today so this is a bit longer than the usual observation posts🌻

🦋And finally the pricing catalogue is here...at the end of the observations 🦋

Thank you so much my sunflowers🌻your support has been everything. I try my best to respond to your messages and requests. If you haven't received a response, I'm coming 🤍✨

And I tried my best to be reasonable with the prices. Also, I'm not yet doing full chart readings as I am a student with two majors and I'm already struggling with balancing things. In time I will do them. Free one question culture requests are still open, but please don't request for things you see on the pricing catalogue like a big three reading...

I don't want to bore you all too much so here we go🧚🏾‍♀️🦋🌻✨

Astrology Notes...

~4th house Gemini makes for someone who develops family-like bonds in friendships.

~taurus risings tend to be possessive due to the influence of their scorpio 7th house.

~pluto at angular houses 1st, 7th, 4th and 10th is a huge indicator of someone who has had intense experiences in the respective key areas of life and there's spiritual lessons to be learnt regarding that area through transformation.

~libra venus placements may find it really hard to stay single

~7° and 19° venus or moon signs may struggle with the theme of physical perfection and wanting to attain it.

~virgo moons have a tendency of creating problems if they don't have any current ones to solve

~capricorn risings really do look older in their younger days and younger when they're older.

~moon and neptune in 1st house natives may give off the perception that they need saving and may attract people with a martyrdom complex.

~sagittarius, 9th house, 9° and 21° mercuries may have an affinity to music in foreign languages while cancer, 4th house, 4°,16°,28° may enjoy music in their mother tongue

~jupiter in 2nd house and 10th house is heavy lotto winner vibes. Literally and figuratively.

~mercury in 2nd house and at Taurean degrees(2°,14° and 26°) are the born singers

~the 22nd degree is an underrated fame degree...I have a bey's🐝 fame analysis I've been sitting on for a while. That's a conversation for another day.

~pisces venus and mars are the most romantic people in the world which makes me kind of believe the astrology theory of neptune being the higher frequency of venus.

~leo moons really take their hair seriously and may feel out of loop if their hair is not well done.

~want to easily impress a cancer mars man??? Sing praises to your mom. Be dotting around kids.

~girls with 9th house, 9° and 21° Venus are so magically beautiful. Abundance of beauty.

~To a decent degree, liberation of women in society came at the expense of gemini, sagittarius and aquarius venus women being slut-shamed(This is not at all saying other women did not contribute to the liberation of women 🌻✨ That's a conversation for another day)

~neptune plays a huge role in beauty trends and that's why neptune dominant women are usually the beauty influencers which explains why beauty standards are mutable and ever changing.

~jupiter in 7th house can go two ways... extreme luck in meaningful relationships or someone who never has serious relationships and is forever on the look...

~pisces/12th house mercuries and mercury afflicted by neptune are often under fire for being the liars when the real culprit is the sagittarius/9th house mercuries and mercury-jupiter hard aspects.

~I personally view the north node as a jupiter variant. While the general consensus is that it is the purpose we're working for, I do believe that it's also an indicator of our birthrights, innate gifts and where we're lucky.

~Cosmic Plexus🌻🤍

§~PRICE CATALOGUE~§ ~PAID READINGS COMMENCE ON THE 16th of May 2024 🦋DETAILED BIG THREE READING ~ $6.00

🦋5 IN-DEPTH SYNASTRY QUESTIONS READING ~ $9.00 🦋OVERALL SYNASTRY ADVICE ~ $3.00

🦋SPIRITUALITY AND PURPOSE FOCUSED READING ~ $6.00 🦋CAREER ADVICE ~ $3.00 🦋 RELATIONSHIP REMEDY TIPs $3.00

Let me know your thoughts...

~Cosmic Plexus🤍✨🌻🦋©️

[transformers-spike]

Knockout, Ratchet, Megatron, and Optimus with taking care of a/their pregnant reader? Are they cuties?

Ohhh boy, mixed reactions all around

Knock Out has more trouble than the others. He may be a soldier, doctor and part time scientist, but he is not good at dealing with the human fluids involved. He is horrible at comforting you during morning sickness. It disgusts him and he can't shut his intake. He wants to help you obviously, but for now he's just as likely to empty his fuel tanks. So he's literally doing this:

After the first phase, it gets a little better. It truly starts to hit him how you're carrying his offspring and the mindfuckery of it all. He does care, he's just much better at checking in on you and ticking down the checklist of your needs than dealing with the gross stuff. He will cuddle you tho and give lots of praise

Ratchet is doing pretty well all things considered. It's just the stress that's getting to him. Ironically enough, taking care of you means he also needs to to take care of himself. Someone has to be here for you and the offspring, so he's going to do his best to make sure he doesn't work himself to scrap. He can be quite annoying when it comes to checking in on your wellbeing. He is a doctor dammit and he wants to make sure you're getting the necessary human analysis (government sponsored obv bc you broke all natural laws carrying his spawn) - and also his own because he's the only Cybertronian doctor around. He's going to rest with you on his chassis, holding onto his child's developing EM field, unable to process being a dad until his kid is actually born. He will cry Megatron is... very outwardly affectionate about the whole thing. Nuzzling his human and telling them how their spawn is going to lead the Decepticons to glory. He is very proud of you for carrying it, and he's very likely to stroke your growing belly with a digit for hours on end. He's got Knock Out (maybe even Shockwave if he's around) carrying out medical tests to make sure things are going well. You are held 24/7 for safety reasons, and he is not grossed out by morning sickness. He's going to rub your back while you puke and say it's only a small price to pay for what you're creating. Although, he is very irritable towards everyone else during this. He worries terribly for the birth, but he doesn't even fully realize it. Also impatient as all hell looming over you poking at his child's EM field. He cradles it and reassures his spawn it has a bright future in front of it. Megatron keeps you to his chassis at all times, right against his spark. Knowing him, he'll try to establish a spark bond with his kid even before it's born. Not sure if it works tho Optimus is coping. Maybe it's the other Primes inside of him, but he's handling your pregnancy quite well. Yes, he is very busy - but he does find the time to watch over you. He's very likely to just lie down and let you rest in his servo. Just covering him in pillows and getting comfy. He's very gentle with you. Willing to give you privacy during morning sickness or rub your back with a digit while you're dealing with the worst time of your life. He desperately wants his child to live in a world without war - and this may push him to uh... be a lot more aggressive towards Megatron. This bot is determined to protect his kid and make sure his offspring lives a happy life. He's going to press you to his cheek and just... cuddle you this way. Because he is overwhelmed with emotion and loves you so very much. He will also carry you a lot btw, especially during the third trimester.

[centrally-unplanned]

So because I tend to be described as "center-left" by the forces of all that is evil and unpure assailed against me in their limitless and merciless cruelty, the way the far-right in the US misuses economic statistics tends to find no sympathy from me - in ways that I find difficult to even engage with. (Also, for balance's sake, true libertarians tend to be the ones who make this mistake the least, a solid W for them - they average the highest on this kind of economic literacy alongside the technocratic left). I am on the other hand more sympathetic to the reasons some on the left have for this mistake - but it is still unproductively misguided.

The idea from far-left is is essentially that the US economy is and must always be broken in all ways, because that is a premise that implies the platform of reform they endorse. This is a stance that, imo, most leftists will have because they want to help the poor. They will discuss child poverty and homelessness in the same breath as "living paycheck to paycheck" and the "immiserated middle class". They see these things as united, both causally but also practically - that the solution for the homeless and for the working class are the same, the bonds that will form a united front strong enough to cut the chains of capital in one fell swoop.

This is not only not true, but it is the opposite of true. A middle class that believes itself immiserated and struggling is one least likely to support the redistributive policies necessary to address chronic poverty because they are in fact very different problems. Those people are going to ask for tax cuts! They have jobs, they don't think they need welfare checks, but they do (correctly!) think lower taxes will help them. Cheaper grocery prices means cheaper wages for workers in the grocery industry, the current economy has been really good for the lower income working classes as the tight labor market has boosted their relative wages. Which middle class white collar people haaaaate, because it raises their prices. And since you want lower taxes but the money has to come from somewhere, you are more willing to cut things like welfare to pay for them.

When the problems are real they can align - like yes the housing market in the US is pretty busted, "everyone" will benefit from just making more houses. But even then, the "everyone" doesn't include all the incumbent upper-middle class housing owners, and it particularly doesn't help new home owners who have a mortgage to pay off that are banking on rising real estate prices. All these policies have real tradeoffs. Opportunities for solidarity do exist, don't get me wrong, but its not the default state. You think America won't raise taxes on the rich just to expand the mortgage tax deduction? In your heart you know we would.

Obviously none of this applies to you if you think the world is corrupted root to stem and only the blood of the capitalist class can water the soil of revolution and birth the flower of a new age, or whatever. But unless you want that you are gonna need accurate policy analysis to actually solve the problems within the system, and they will have tradeoffs. And a middle class that thinks itself too poor to help is not an asset in that.

[demelzathemer]

I'm watching the Doom Patrol episode for the first time ever and LOSING MY MIND, why didn't anyone tell me this is GOOD??? It's written by Steve Yockey and it SHOWS because the dialogue is absolutely the same as in the netflix series

Crystal is so catty and Edwin is fed up with people while Charles mediates, they're the same characters just played by different people?? I'm gonna add some shitty screensnaps here to yell about it

Obviously spoilers if you care about that;

Crystal <3 She looks closer to her comicbook self but has the same amount of sass as her netflix self

I swear I'm so normal about this bit of dialogue. Crystal telling Edwin Charles will protect him (with a baseball bat, mind you, they're in the States!) and their responses, I wish I could see Jayden and George act this part.

(I can hear "I'd do it anyway, won't I?" in Jayden's voice... weeps)

Edwin sassing out little girls again??? I lost it with the pose and voice

WEAK FOR THOSE BIG BROWN EYES

(Jayden's voice again. I know you hear it)

He should've been allowed to drape himself over Edwin like this too. Why would Netflix do this to me

"Love this." EDWIN??? He's way too happy that they're gonna smack their client with a shovel.

And CHARLES (pulls it out without anyone asking, he knows what's going to happen next) HANDS IT TO CRYSTAL so she can be the one doing the smacking???

And she's way too eager as well. What is happening here. Though I love how seamlessly they work as a trio now. Even if it's for the purpose of knocking out their unsuspecting client

"The price to open the door to afterlife is pain, and I'm the only one who can do it."

With the door handle being a BABYDOLL HEAD. With HELL FLAHBACKS. What the actual fuck?

I thought the doll spider was netflix original character??

And Charles immediately being "you don't have to do it, we can find another way in" I might be crying

Charles is afraid of water??? That's CANON?? It has to be, nothing has been changed about the characters so far!

Charles (with red-rimmed eyes): "I'm not scared! Just so you know."

Edwin (lying to make Charles feel better): "We know."

They're so in love. But what do you mean with "I'll make sure he's fine"? What are you gonna do, Edwin? Hold his hand on the boat ride? (They didn't show that part, so that's probably what happened.)

They had ONE episode and they still had to make sure that we know Edwin's gay.

I'm OBSESSED with this line and this repressed version of Edwin, I don't have the words right now but I read someone's brilliant analysis about it. (Pls link if you find it)

"I used to think that, too. But it's not 1916 anymore, you know?"

"Well, I'm not like you. But thanks for the concern."

Edwin, oh my god that is so sad. What makes you think you don't deserve happiness? I need to study him under a microscope

...Then STRAIGHT INTO death flashbacks??? They didn't leave anything out, watching this one episode spoils 7 out of 8 episodes of the netflix series?!

"She's good." Edwin appreciates Crystal! I love that they genuinely are a trio here and the boys know about her quirks like they know each other

Also David lore is unchanged too and Crystal bonding with Dorothy was so sweet

...THE NIGHT NURSE IS HERE TOO?? I thought she was a netflix original character too (Cat King, Tragic Mick and Jenny are, at least?)

AND SHE'S RUTH CONNEL??? ALSO WTF JUST HAPPENED

Her character is pretty different alright, and played very differently by the same actress??? And Charles just WENT FOR IT unprovoked?! Do they know about her in this universe, is she like a monster that's actively hunting them down and can be alerted by killing(?) I literally don't know anymore this is crazy

(Edwin was so cute jumping up and cheering lol. A bit jarring how much more he curses here though)

This is actually an insane episode, the trio with their huge amount of lore just drop in in the middle of already established group of characters and their lore and then, they're never seen again after this??

And they had flashbacks to both of their deaths without explaining ANYTHING about what the hell was that. Just five seconds of "being chased and covered in blood", teasing something about their relationship, Crystal dropping her goal of beating her missing memories out of a demon, no conclusion of wtf was "spider-face lady" aka the Night Nurse, etc etc. They needed their own show really badly huh

So netflix hurry up and give us a second season! After seeing this I'm blown away by the execution of Dead Boy Detectives and how Jayden and George really brought the characters to life. I'm so thankful we have that. Their chemistry really is what makes the show.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Some Science Vocabulary

for your next poem/story

Word — Science Meaning; Public Meaning

Bank - land alongside a river/lake; a place where people store money

Bar - unit of measure of atmospheric pressure; place to drink alcoholic beverages

Belt - collection of asteroids in a disc shape; materials worn around waist to support clothes

Bonding - electrostatic attraction between atoms; making an emotional connection

Charge - force experienced by matter when in an electromagnetic field; demand a price for rendered goods/services

Code - software/computer language; encrypted message

Crust - outermost layer of planet; edge of pizza/pie

Current - water or air moving in a direction; belonging to the present time

Cycling - flow of nutrients or elements; riding a bicycle

Dating - determining age of site/artifact; initial stage of romantic relationship

Driver - influential factor; someone who drives a vehicle

Dwarf - celestial body resembling small planet; characters from Snow White

Fault - fracture in a rock with movement; responsible for accident/misfortune

Fetch - distance traveled by wind/waves over water; go far and then bring back something/someone

Force - strength/energy of action/movement; make someone do something against their will

Grade - gradient/slope; level of proficiency

Hertz - the SI unit of frequency; rental car company

Jet - gas stream ejected from an accretion disk surrounding star; an aircraft powered by jet engines

Mantle - planet layer between crust and core; important role passed from person to person

Matter - physical substance in general; be of importance, have significance

Model - computer simulation; promotes fashion/product

Mole - SI unit used to measure amount of something; small rodent-like mammal

Plastic - substance that is easily shaped/molded; synthetic material

Pressure - force per unit area that gas/liquid/solid exerts on another; use of persuasion to make someone do something

Productive - creating organic matter through photo/chemosynthesis; busy and efficient

Sample - to take a sample for analysis; a small part of something

Scale - system of marks used for measuring; device used for measuring weight

Shear - difference in wind speed/direction; cut wool off of

Shelf - a submarine bank; a surface for displaying/storing objects

Stress - pressure/tension exerted on a material object; mental/emotional strain

Submarine - existing/occurring under the sea surface; a ship that stays submerged under water for extended periods

Surf - line of foam on seashore from breaking waves; riding a surfboard

Swell - sea movement in rolling waves that do not break; to become larger in size (e.g. a body part)

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists

[machveil]

I would love to hear about your cod x pokemon thoughts 👀👀👀 do you have pokemon teams for any other characters??

nemjun, marry me💍✨ I have so much to say— also, happy Spooky Month, this actually took so long to write. I thought this was going out, like, Sept 28th lol

[note: I think having a full team is overrated, no need for filler when you can just give them Pokémon that feel right, yeah?]

CoD Headcanon: Pokémon Teams

to set up each part I’ll talk about each character minimally, list their teams, and then any amendments based on lore/skins/personal thoughts. characters include: Simon “Ghost” Riley, John “Soap” MacTavish, Captain John Price, Phillip Graves, König, and Sebastian Krueger

Simon “Ghost” Riley:

character analysis - as a Pokémon trainer, Simon already has some good motifs going on in his design. like any good trainer, we’re going off details and vibes. Simon gives me Dark and Ghost type Pokémon vibes, more so given by his skull balaclava and skeleton patterned gloves, not to mention his usually black colored clothes. thematically, I like to think a handful of his Pokémon know Destiny Bond - if Simon’s going down he’s taking you with him

Pokémon team

Dusknoir (caught as a Duskull when he first joins the army) - his ace Pokémon! honestly, Dusknoir is purely chosen off vibes, this man screams owning one. Dusknoir has been with Simon since the beginning of his military life, and subsequently is his first Pokémon. Simon trusts this spirit eating Pokémon with his life. I think it’s move set would be Destiny Bond/Mean Look/Payback/Shadow Ball with the ability Pressure

Polteageist (Phony) - it’s not just because he’s British… it’s also a Ghost type. it’s mostly to be funny, but I have a headcanon reason! I think Simon is a big tea drinker, loves a good cuppa, but he specifically likes black tea. from Pokémon Shield, “Leaving leftover black tea unattended is asking for this Pokémon to come along and pour itself into it, turning the tea into a new Polteageist.” - Simon leaving his tea unattended to get something only to come back to a Pokémon? he caught it while grumbling. I think it’s move set would be Strength Sap/Withdraw/Shell Smash/Shadow Ball with the Weak Armor ability

Gengar - the classic Pokémon fan in me wants Simon to own a Gengar, so he will. thematically, it’s not too bad. Gengar is the Shadow Pokémon, Simon gives off ‘moving around in shadows’ vibes. Simon “dad jokes” Riley is a dry comedy king - stay with me, Gengar usually lurk in shadows laughing… please imagine Simon cracking terrible jokes that his Gengar finds funny. the move set would be Destiny Bond/Night Shade/Spite/Dark Pulse and the ability Cursed Body

Houndstone - I was debating on this being in his team or an amendment Pokémon, but I think the skeletal vibes are too good to not be a main party member. fits Ghost’s vibe, that’s about it haha. from Pokémon Scarlet, “Houndstone spends most of its time sleeping in graveyards. Among all the dog Pokémon, this one is the most loyal to its master.”, and now we all ‘aww’, a loyal dog? give that to Simon right now! has the ability Fluffy and knows Rest/Dig/Destiny Bond(Egg Move)/Phantom Force

team amendments

Alone/Cerberus!Ghost would definitely have a Hydreigon, are you kidding me? looking past the obvious three heads, Hydreigon is the Brutal Pokémon! from Pókemon Shield, “The three heads take turns sinking their teeth into the opponent. Their attacks won’t slow down until their target goes down.” - does that sound familiar? I think it’s move set would be Scary Face/Work Up/Outrage/Body Slam, ability Levitate

Ghost Punk skin - Ghost would definitely own a Toxtricity (Low Key). we’re talking punk Simon Riley here, maybe Rockstar!Simon? the organ on it’s chest sounds like the strumming of a bass guitar, now just imagine Simon singing punk rock/metal. move set would be Scary Face/Overdrive/Boomburst/Shift Gear with the ability Punk Rock

John “Soap” MacTavish:

character analysis - we’re going purely off John’s personality and vibes with his Pokémon! John strikes me as a loyal, energetic man - his team should reflect that. Electric Pokémon would be up his alley, but Pokémon that are generally described as energetic would work too

Pokémon team

Boltund - off the bat, the first Pokémon that came to mind when I thought about Johnny. in my humble opinion, the perfect ace for Johnny! I headcanon Soap going on morning runs and - from the Sword Pokédex - Boltund can run for three full days nonstop, aka it can keep up with John during his morning runs. move set wise, I’m thinking Electric Terrain/Charge/Wild Charge/Crunch with the ability Competitive

Luxray - while it sleeps for long periods of time, his Luxray would be helpful on deployments. from Pokémon Sword, “Luxray can see through solid objects. It will instantly spot prey trying to hide behind walls, even if the walls are thick.”, and, while it mostly sees field time, I think a Luxray would balance Johnny out. while his other Pokémon are amped up, he can take a break with his more relaxed companion. I could see the move set being Thunder Wave/Scary Face/Roar/Volt Switch - I’d imagine his Luxray being a pivot/set up Pokémon, used for status conditions. Luxray’s ability would be Intimidate

Jolteon - are we sensing a pattern with dog-esk Pokémon? anyways, Jolteon is purely me wanting Johnny to have one - that’s it haha, I look at that man and go ‘hmmm, Jolteon’. move set would be Agility/Thunder Fang/Thunder/Last Resort with the ability Quick Feet

team amendments

I don’t particularly have any team amendments for Johnny

John Price:

analysis - this man gives me the vibe that he hunts game as a hobby. rather than focusing on his career, I’m focusing on that headcanon aspect. I think Price would have a lot of Normal type Pokémon, he just seems like an average Joe sort of guy off duty. Price strikes me as the type to always have a plan B, so a handful of his Pokémon know Last Resort

Pokémon team

Stoutland - Price owning a Stoutland just feels right, you know? definitely his ace, and as a partner for hunting game, if Price were to hunt in the winter… from Pokémon Y, “Being wrapped in its long fur is so comfortable that a person would be fine even overnight on a wintry mountain.”, it’s also a rescue Pokémon, so if someone needed help then Price could send Stoutland out. also, Stoutland just looks like it was made for Price, anyways, move set! Work Up/Retaliate/Reversal/Last Resort and the ability Intimidate

Unfezant (female) - back on the hunting theme, I think Price found a wounded Tranquill while he was out. after it healed up, it wouldn’t leave Price alone/return to the wild so he caught it. I think a female one would be better because, compared to the male, they can fly better. Price lets his Unfezant scout the area from above for any dangerous wild Pokémon (Ursaring, Trevenant, Bewear, etc). move set would be Tailwind/Roost/Steel Wing(TM)/Sky Attack and the ability Big Pecks

Dubwool (Shiny) - I like the shiny better, sue me. anyways, this is another one that just feels right. I look at Dubwool and go ‘hmmm, give it to Price’, if anything, maybe Retired!Price lives on a ranch with his fluffy friend. move set, I’m thinking Cotton Guard/Defense Curl/Double Kick/Last Resort, ability Steadfast

Skwovet - I think Price needs a critter, just a little guy. a low level, tiny pal - maybe Price just got attached to this fella that wouldn’t leave him alone, cue them bonding and Price feeding Skwovet some berries. move set would be Tail Whip/Bite/Stockpile/Swallow with the Cheek Pouch ability

amendments

I don’t really have any amendments for Price’s team, I just want the man to have some Normal type buddies to relax with

Phillip Graves:

analysis - Graves actually started this thought process for me because I thought it would be funny if he owned a Braviary lol, so here we are. for Graves I’m going off vibes and the rule of cool - I’m picking based on Pokémon I think he’d have in my opinion. also, I think Graves, out of everyone, would teach his Pokémon TMs the most

…don’t think too much about the move sets and abilities I gave his Pokémon

Pokémon team

Braviary - American king, give this man the fucking eagle Pokémon lmao. that’s it, that was my thought process, it’s his ace. move set would be Hone Claws/Aerial Ace/Rest(TM)/Shadow Ball(TM), yes, I’m giving it Shadow Ball purely for the Shadow Company, his entire team is a joke to me I’m sorry. anyways, ability is Defiant

Rotom - I feel like the tech aspect of Rotom being able to take over devices/appliances would be helpful to Graves? maybe not, but I also like the vibe Rotom gives off and my gut says to give it to Graves. move set would be Trick/Substitute/Eerie Impulse(TM)/Poltergeist(TM) with the Levitate ability

Drakloak - my brain says to give this man Drakloak (that will eventually evolve into Dragapult). I feel like, out of a handful of CoD characters, Graves would own a pseudo legendary. move set would be Lock On/Dragon Dance/Dragon Rush/Phantom Force and the ability Infiltrator

Mightyena - look! an actual headcannon! I feel like, if this were in the Pokémon universe, the Shadow Company would make for a good ‘evil team’. with that in mind, maybe it’s just Team Magma bouncing around inside my head, but I feel like Mightyena would be a good pick for Price. not just with the color scheme and general vibe from Mightyena, but when I think of evil teams in Pokémon Maxie’s Mightyena always comes to mind first. I’m thinking Moxie for the ability and Yawn/Roar/Double-Edge(TM)/Shadow Ball(TM) for the move set

team amendments

purely because it’s the Shadow Pokémon… maybe a Gengar? it’s only because of the Shadow Company connection, but I think it’d be funny. move set would be Spite/Shadow Ball/Shadow Punch/Imprison(TM) with the Cursed Body ability

König:

analysis - are we ready for some König bias? I am! sweet boy, I think he’d be a Ghost and Grass type trainer. I headcanon him being super into nature - hikes, camping, ect. also, he has a ghillie suit skin so… Grass type methinks. the Ghost type is also a little forest-y, haunted woods where he finds himself at home among the Grass and Ghost type critters. maybe he can empathize with the Ghost types because people deem them scary and not approachable? hmmm?

Pokémon team

Shuppet - Shuppet physically reminds me of König’s sniper hood. it’s why I originally was like ‘yup, give it to him’. from Pokémon Violet, “It feeds on the dark emotions of sadness and hatred, which make it grow steadily stronger.”, Pokémon Scarlet expands on that by saying ‘envy and malice’, I think König holds a lot of negative emotions from how he was treated in his childhood by his peers - fellow students making fun of him and generally tormenting him. I think Shuppet tries to cheer him up even though it’s primarily feeding off those emotions, it’s still his companion Pokémon, and one that recognizes the hurt he’s gone through. move set would be Curse/Spite/Shadow Sneak/Shadow Ball with the Cursed Body ability

Mimikyu - speaking of unapproachable, Mimikyu! König feels for the poor thing, trying to be liked by fitting in as a beloved Pokémon. they just get each other, maybe he found the little thing stalking the halls of KorTac (how’d it get in? who knows). while not his ace, König is very attached to his Mimikyu. move set would be Charm/Hone Claws/Shadow Claw/Play Rough with the ability Disguise

Eevee (will evolve into a Sylveon) - give this man comically small animals, please. he loves this Eevee, it will evolve into a Sylveon and he will pamper it even more if that’s possible. I just think that, if anyone gets a mascot Pokémon - let alone Eevee, it should be König. is it generically cute and fluffy? yes, and he eats that up. it’s move set would be Baby-Doll Eyes/Copycat/Bite/Yawn(Egg Move) with the Adaptability ability

Sawsbuck (caught as a Deerling) - please give the big man a deer!! he loves them - they’re dainty, extremely agile, the opposite of his towering build. a go-to hiking buddy for König, not that he doesn’t hike with other party members, but Sawsbuck really likes walking with him. move set would be Sunny Day(TM)/Horn Leech/Solar Beam/Zen Headbutt and the ability Chlorophyll

Trevenant - gut feeling, I just want König to have the big tree. he’s a big man, he can totally rock owning a big tree. anyways, another ‘König likes the forest’ Pokémon, and it’s a Grass and Ghost type, perfect. it would have the Natural Cure ability and know Forest’s Curse/Sunny Day/Burning Jealousy(TM)/Phantom Force

Decidueye - saved his ace for last. Decidueye is basically a sniper, you feel me? it has the bow and arrow situation going on, it’s Hidden Ability is Long Reach - sniper shit, it doesn’t make physical contact with any move. Grass/Ghost type? A+, perfect, astounding. you need to read both it’s Sun and Moon Pokédex entries because they read as ‘it’s a sniper’ and ‘it’s König’. from Sun, “It fires arrow quills from its wings with such precision, they can pierce a pebble at distances over a hundred yards.”, and from Moon, “Although basically cool and cautious, when it’s caught by surprise, it’s seized by panic.”, I rest my case. plus, plus, it’s literally a hooded Pokémon, it pulls on the ‘drawstrings’ of its hood to focus. literally made for König, I’m telling you it’s perfect. it’s move set would be Synthesis/Shadow Sneak/Spirit Shackle/Leaf Blade with the ability Long Reach

team amendments

during his time as an Insertion Specialist, I could see König having a Bewear. I feel like having it be a permanent member of his team wouldn’t fit - not because it doesn’t match him, it does. I just think Bewear would be… I don’t know, specifically for field work? it’s move set would definitely cater to busting tough stuff down, so, Strength/Thrash/Superpower/Double-Edge with the Fluffy ability

I think that, as a child, there was a stray Glameow in König’s neighborhood. not that he caught it, but I think he definitely hung out with it a lot CatDad!König bias. at some point, during his teens, it stopped coming around though. he still thinks about it, I think that it was decently low leveled so it’s move pool would be Scratch/Growl with the Own Tempo ability

Sebastian Krueger:

analysis - I feel like he’d be a Dragon and Grass type user, just me? I just look at his base design and see a Dragon and Grass trainer - you can fight me over it, I’d also except Bug or Poison type Krueger

Pokémon team

Tangrowth - I’m right end of discussion. give this man the big wad of sentient vines, it feels right in my soul. Krueger already uses that camouflage veil and dresses is greens, might as well give him some mobile cover too. Stun Spore/Poison Powder/Grassy Terrain/Power Whip with the Regenerator

Gloom - let me preface by saying all his team members are gut feelings and going with vibes because Gloom? Gloom just feels like a Krueger Pokémon. it’s a stunner/poisoner, I feel like Krueger can match Glooms energy, fucking people up— and other Pokémon, but like… fucking people up mostly. it would have Sunny Day(TM)/Sleep Powder/Petal Dance/Moonlight with the Chlorophyll ability

Carnivine - do I just want Krueger to have some James and Jesse type shenanigans with a Carnivine? …yeah. yeah, I do. but it also matches his vibe in my heart, a freaky little plant for a freaky little man. move set would be Leech Seed(Egg Move)/Leaf Tornado/Power Whip/Crunch with the Levitate ability

Haxorus - okay. tell me I’m wrong. do it, you can’t - Haxorus was made by Nintendo for Krueger. an armored dragon with axes made for… axing things down? perfect for Krueger, destruction buddies. has the ability Rivalry and knows Iron Tail(Egg Move)/Dragon Dance/Guillotine/Outrage

team amendments

Druddigon is another dragon that screams Krueger. it’s all rough n’ tough, a little cave dweller for the man? methinks it’s be an okay match. has the move set Glare(Egg Move)/Iron Head/Dragon Claw/Outrage with the ability Rough Skin

does Goodra necessarily have Krueger written all over it? no, but I want the man to have a gooey guy. Krueger is so freaky and aggressive and Goodra is so friend shaped, this is a classic duo if I’ve ever seen one. has the ability Hydration and knows Life Dew(Egg Move)/Rain Dance/Muddy Water/Power Whip

follow up thoughts:

I’m not sure if this would take place in the Pokémon world or if it’s just Call of Duty… but Pokémon exist. I’m not going to think too hard about that because it feels like opening a can of worms lol

these were just fun, I’ve been thinking about CoD x Pokémon for a couple weeks and it was nice putting this out here

I have my own Pokémon OC (Beatrice) and it was wild thinking of how she’d interact with them if this were in the Pokémon world

[angstydisaster02]

An analysis about why Bakudeku is one of the most inspirational relationships. (Manga spoilers)

First part : my thoughts

Tbh, I really have this impression the manga is coming to an end very soon, which breaks my heart because I don’t know what I’ll do without my daily leaks. However, I trust Horikoshi about the rest of the story and I do think he’ll make an open ending about which “ship” is canon, even if we all know that the biggest and most developed relationship in the manga is bkdk.

It would be interesting to see the “after” of this war, the hospital beds, the tears because they lost people, the relief because it’s over and the final conversation beg the ending. Knowing Horikoshi until now, never made things randomly because everyone is thinking in advance, including the conversation between Izuku Midoriya and Katsuki Bakugo.

You can’t tell me the author of this manga who always did things with a smart brain will put aside such an important detail about the dynamic between his characters.

A part of me hopes we’ll have the bkdk talk at the hospital or somewhere else because there’s no way these two idiots keep living their lives as if nothing happened. I have high expectations due to the fanfics, but I’m pretty sure I’ll never be the same once the chapter with the bkdk talk comes.

Second part : the analysis feat manga panels

looking forward, it’s incredible how Izuku Midoriya and Katsuki’s relationship started in the worst way (I’m not including the childhood memories) and…Ended up being something like that.

I’m emotional when I think about everything they’ve been through, the many realizations about losing each other, the development of their relationship after an emotional scene such as Deku Vs Kacchan 2, the way they need to push each other’s up to be the best version of themselves in any situation.

It’s not a surprise if these two are mean to be canon (in a platonic or romantic to way, depends about your opinion !) and each little moment highlights this statement.

Think about it : they all learned one of few important things with the other’s presence by their side, on purpose or not. Their dynamic is something unique you can’t find in others shonen or mangas, because they have this specific bond, the one getting stronger though the years because their mistakes became a reason to improve and be a better person for this childhood friend they knew since the early days.

Izuku Midoriya needs Katsuki Bakugo like Katsuki Bakugo needs Izuku Midoriya.

You can’t take away this part of their soul, and even when people like AFO tried, they ended up paying the price by revealing how much they care about each other.

Don’t startd with the Heroees rising thing because I can write an entire novel about them, but this is another proof of how they’re made for each other. Their relationship improve though the years and it’s only the beginning, I can’t help but imagine how future bkdk will have an amazing relationship once they figured out everything and untold truths.

They’re each other’s pillars, holding the other up to do the best and watch from afar their other’s improvement.

That’s why the hospital conversation might be the peak of their relationship: the moment when they’ll both break their shield, welcoming the tears and listening how life is a fragile line on a thread.

None of them refuse to break this meaningful thread, because this is something they’ve built for years, and it’s their biggest strength (and biggest weakness like Shigaraki pulled out)

In conclusion: they’re driving me crazy and I have no regrets following their journey because it’s probably one of the best relationships I’ve seen (and I watched a lot of anime/manga, read a lot of books and they’re still superior !)

Thanks for reading my analysis because it’s one of my guilty pleasures when I’m passionate about something, especially my comfort ship ! Take care of yourself <3

[hellsite-proteins]

What the fuck did you just fucking say about me, you little bitch? I'll have you know I graduated top of my class in the Navy Seals, and I've been involved in numerous secret raids on Al-Quaeda, and I have over 300 confirmed kills. I am trained in gorilla warfare and I'm the top sniper in the entire US armed forces. You are nothing to me but just another target. I will wipe you the fuck out with precision the likes of which has never been seen before on this Earth, mark my fucking words. You think you can get away with saying that shit to me over the Internet? Think again, fucker. As we speak I am contacting my secret network of spies across the USA and your IP is being traced right now so you better prepare for the storm, maggot. The storm that wipes out the pathetic little thing you call your life. You're fucking dead, kid. I can be anywhere, anytime, and I can kill you in over seven hundred ways, and that's just with my bare hands. Not only am I extensively trained in unarmed combat, but I have access to the entire arsenal of the United States Marine Corps and I will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable ass off the face of the continent, you little shit. If only you could have known what unholy retribution your little "clever" comment was about to bring down upon you, maybe you would have held your fucking tongue. But you couldn't, you didn't, and now you're paying the price, you goddamn idiot. I will shit fury all over you and you will drown in it. You're fucking dead, kiddo. /copypasta

i did recognize the copypasta by the second sentence or so but i do appreciate you clarifying as well, because this is how the notification first appeared:

and i was worried that i had put out a truly despicable hot take on one of my terrible structures

letter sequence in this ask matching protein-coding amino acids:

WhatthefckdidystfckingsayatmeylittleitchIllhaveyknwIgradatedtpfmyclassintheNavySealsandIveeeninvlvedinnmerssecretraidsnAlQaedaandIhavevercnfirmedkillsIamtrainedingrillawarfareandImthetpsniperintheentireSarmedfrcesYarenthingtmetstanthertargetIwillwipeythefcktwithprecisinthelikesfwhichhasnevereenseenefrenthisEarthmarkmyfckingwrdsYthinkycangetawaywithsayingthatshittmevertheInternetThinkagainfckerAswespeakIamcntactingmysecretnetwrkfspiesacrsstheSAandyrIPiseingtracedrightnwsyetterpreparefrthestrmmaggtThestrmthatwipestthepatheticlittlethingycallyrlifeYrefckingdeadkidIcaneanywhereanytimeandIcankillyinversevenhndredwaysandthatsstwithmyarehandsNtnlyamIetensivelytrainedinnarmedcmattIhaveaccessttheentirearsenalfthenitedStatesMarineCrpsandIwillseittitsflletenttwipeyrmiseraleassffthefacefthecntinentylittleshitIfnlyycldhaveknwnwhatnhlyretritinyrlittleclevercmmentwasattringdwnpnymayeywldhaveheldyrfckingtngetycldntydidntandnwyrepayingthepriceygddamniditIwillshitfryallveryandywilldrwninitYrefckingdeadkidd

protein guy analysis:

in light of my recent post about intrinsically disordered proteins and aggregation, i am trying really hard to ignore the instincts that are telling me how terrible this looks. the loops aren't even pretending to interact with each other, and the secondary structures are small and scattered. the good news is that this probably can't aggregate since it can't stick to anything, but it still has a long way to go. to me, the suspiciously straight loop around the front of the structure is also an immediate red flag, as it matches a row of cis bonds, but given that this thing would not have a stable crystal structure anyways, it doesn't actually matter

predicted protein structure:

[realmermaid333]

Tigris character analysis ramble LOL

I'm not sure if someone has already pointed this out or if this has been discussed before, but I was thinking how maybe Tigris turned herself into a tiger via body modifications, and chose to eat only raw meat to cope with past cannibalism and sexual trauma. We hear Coryo speak a lot about cannibalism in the Capitol during the war, and how much it disgusted him. I mean, the boy can't even look at Persephone Price without thinking about it. Part of me thinks maybe Tigris secretly took some meat off of the bodies in the street as well and ate it so Coryo could eat the lima beans and stuff that they got from Pluribus, and other food they scavenged.

I feel like she would have avoided having Coryo eat it, and would have instead wanted him to be able to eat normal food to "maintain his dignity". Though there is the scene where Tigris says he must be "too young to remember how bad things got" when he insisted that she never did anything disgraceful for survival. She did seem to hint that they all did disgraceful things- including Coryo. But Tigris would have thought poorly of herself for eating a human, and we know that being forced into cannibalism is very traumatizing. Maybe she thought of herself as a "beast" or a "monster" for it so she chose to turn herself into a tiger. And eating raw meat would fit into that persona. Maybe she did it as a form of self-punishment after she decided to be a tiger and succumb to being the beast she thought of herself as. Or maybe it was soothing for her to relive eating the meat in a more controlled way. Like with raw steak rather than human meat.

We know that her and Snow had a falling out, and there are many different factors that could have played into it. Like Snow sex trafficking victors, shaming her for her body modifications, or just him being generally cruel to others, etc. There is another theory I saw online that maybe Snow forced Tigris into the body mods to make her seem less "weak" or "easy to abuse" like how he'd described her early on in TBOSAS. We know that he could be very possessive of her, so I could see this being a possibility.

Though I think it is more likely that her body mods were her own doing, especially since eccentric body mods like hers were becoming more normalized in the Capitol. Like how Katniss's stylist, Octavia, had green skin in the first book and she changed the color of her skin somehow throughout the trilogy. But then again, we know that whatever happened between her and Snow was bad enough that she was pleased when Katniss said she was going to kill him.

But maybe Tigris also saw herself as "having a sweetness that welcomed abuse" so she thought making herself look "scary" would protect her from experiencing sexual abuse again, as it's somewhat implied in the books that Tigris had to turn to prostitution for food as a teen.

I also think Snow may have used Tigris's change in appearance as an excuse for firing her from her stylist position, when in all reality it was for other reasons, like her disagreeing with his actions. I like the theory that Tigris was Finnick's stylist. It would make sense that maybe Tigris would end up being a stylist in the games if she didn't have many other options, we know she was pretty against the Games so how she even got that job in the first place is something I am so curious about. Maybe she became numb to it, or hopeless and bitter. Maybe Snow offered her the position and expected her to take it. She could have done it to avoid further conflict with him because she still loved him. And maybe Tigris figured that she could at least bond with and comfort the children before they inevitably died in the Games. There are many possibilities.

But I could see her being Finnick's stylist, and maybe she really liked him and bonded with him. And when he won, she of course maintained that bond with him, and would have seen him on his Victory Tour and every time he was in the Capitol. Maybe he confided in her when he was being sex trafficked, or mentioned it nonchalantly, and that was when Tigris realized that Snow was doing this to literal children, and it wasn't just the older, adult victors choosing to go into sex work or something like Snow could have led her to believe.

This could have started a big fight between her and Snow and led to her being fired from the Games. This would especially make sense since she was a stylist long enough that Katniss remembered seeing her on tv, but also enough time passed that it took her a while to recognize her. Finnick won the 65th Games, so Katniss would have been seven the last time she saw Tigris on screen (assuming Tigris was fired before the 66th HGs) but it still wouldn't be hard for her to remember seeing a tiger lady.

[atopvisenyashill]

can you rank the great houses? 😊

obviously this is just my opinion on them, etc etc also thank you for this ask i love lists alskjdfj

9. House Arryn

Constantly dying off but they had a lesbian and a milf as rulers once so they have that going for them. House Royce is cooler, GIVE ME MORE BRONZE YOHN I'M READY FOR HIM!!!!

8. House Lannister

I’m sorry but They Are Just Fine. When I’m reading their chapters I feel something and then I mostly forget about them after I'm done. I wish we had a real Dance era book mostly for Joanna and Tyland tho.

7. House Tyrell

I think it’s really funny that they are upjumped stewards and the whole Reach has been pissy about it for generations. Mostly exist for other characters to project onto but by god do they reflect back in fun ways. I want to meet Willas so bad but I’m positive if we meet him he’ll die soon after so rip me!!

6. House Targaryen

Interesting villain house that George gets too distracted by too often. Lots of fun historical characters, the cyclical doom is amazing to read but Dany’s chapters drag so bad to me at some points and F&B just pissed me AWF. The best ones are usually tied to her magic (prophecy chapters, fever/vision dream chapters) or her dragons in some way and the dragon bond is also what I tend to find most interesting in her ancestors as well.

5. House Greyjoy

I haven't reread Victarian in years but damn Aeron, Asha, and Theon are all as great as I remember so I'm making the decision to put them this high on memory alone. But this family is just a group of the most delusional people ever, struggling in a culture that doesn't allow room for struggle, and the way Euron acts as this black hole of terror for all of them, until finally, finally, there is Asha, not only knowing and understanding that the way she's lived is wrong but going home and dragging everyone else through the dark and into the light with her. Also, their culture is just really fun and cool.

4. House Baratheon

Started by my number two enemy, Orys Baratheon, but damn do I love basically everyone else in this stupid ass House. The House as a whole really plays with masculinity; what it is, the damage you do when you measure up to your role, the lengths they will go to in order to pretend the fault lies elsewhere, craving the pleasures but refusing to deal with the consequences, and all of that fallout landing on their innocent children, dooming them for the next generation as well. I need more Baratheon women tho jfc.

3. House Tully

I literally love that the Tully’s are in canon known as being huge bitter bitches. The most fucked up idea of what family is in the world but by god do these people try, they all try so hard to live up to those words but the price of duty and honor is always the sacrifice of their children for The Family, and not actual protection of their family, and while Hoster recognizes this far too late, his children become determined to do Every Single Thing Wrong in order to be loyal to both The Family and their family. Unpleasant people, I love them so much.

2. House Stark

Taught me what family is!!!! The whole series for them is an examination of the family unit under pressure and how their attempts to stick to their assigned roles (The Mother, The Father, The Heir, The Dutiful Daughter, etc) just makes them completely break under the stress so they discover what's under that - AND IT'S LOVE BITCH. I HATE the analysis that their stories are about rejecting love or overcoming emotion because it all comes back to that moment with Ned in the dungeons, remembering how he chose Lyanna, Jon, and love over honor, the way he chooses Sansa over honor, THAT is the point, for all of them, trying to keep these impossible oaths of honor and ignore love but in the end, the father they venerate chose love because it is not just okay to yearn for love, it is human and natural and good to love others.

1. House Nymeros Martell

LISTEN. WHO ELSE COULD IT BE.

If the Starks are a family desperately trying to find each other again, than the Martells have long been lost. A House defined in its modern day by the violating loss of one of its daughters in a society that doesn't put much worth in losing daughters. It's the themes of justice and vengeance, waiting on the system that is not meant to help you to bring you peace, on the people who are at the outskirts of society finding the line between the overthrow of power and keeping the cycle going, it's STANDING AS AN ACT OF LOVE. For Doran to his Arianne, for Oberyn to Elia in the face of Tywin, for Elia to her children in the face of the Mountain, for Meria and Nymor and Maron and Loreza and Nymeria and Mors, the point is not just to stand up and fight but to stand up and fight for something, to fight for the people who depend on you because there is no one else to do it. A responsibility, a calling, an honor, a horror.

[posttexasstressdisorder]

WhatMatters

Your guide to California policy and politics

By Lynn La

January 29, 2025

Presented by Dairy Cares, Uber, California Water Service and Alibaba

 

 

Good morning, California.

Federal funding freeze prompts chaos, confusion, lawsuits

President Donald Trump speaks during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. on Nov. 6, 2024. Photo by Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

President Donald Trump has called for a temporary freeze on certain federal aid — sowing confusion and concern among California’s state officials and advocacy groups. 

As CalMatters’ reporters explain, a memo from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget directed federal agencies to pause financial grants and loans that could be “implicated” by any of the president’s prior executive orders. 

The directive does not include Social Security and Medicare, as well as “assistance provided directly to individuals,” such as food stamps, Pell grants and rental assistance. It does, however, target “financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.” 

Despite the two-page memo’s sweeping breadth, its few details made it unclear which key programs will be affected and for how long. The administration later requested federal agencies to send budget details for 3,200 federal spending programs, and information about whether the programs support undocumented immigrants or promote abortion, “gender ideology,” or “diversity, equity and inclusion” efforts.

The administration intended the directive to go into effect Tuesday, but a federal judge temporarily blocked the order.

Reactions by California’s elected Democratic officials ranged from cautious to dire. Gov. Gavin Newsom said, “We could react to all this or we could have a more constructive wait-and-see.” While California U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman said to CalMatters, “This kind of destabilization is the way authoritarians seize power. ... I think it’s dictatorial.”

California is expected to distribute $168 billion of federal grants and other funding in 2024-25, according to Assembly budget advisor Jason Sisney.

Read more here.

 Focus on Inland Empire: Each Wednesday, CalMatters Inland Empire reporter Deborah Brennan surveys the big stories from that part of California. Read her newsletter and sign up here to receive it.

How will Trump’s second presidency affect your corner of California? CalMatters is working with public radio partners to gather perspectives across the state. Share your thoughts here.

Wildfire newsletter: CalMatters is teaming up with PBS SoCal, LAist and KCRW to offer a free newsletter that delivers new and accurate information about the Southern California fires. Read an edition and subscribe.

 Other Stories You Should Know

 Paying utility shareholders

Power lines in Sacramento on Sept. 20, 2022. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters

When you pay your utility bill, there’s a baked-in cost that you won’t see in any line item. Known as a “return on equity,” this amount goes toward shareholders for the risk of investing in utility companies, writes CalMatters’ Malena Carollo.

The California Public Utilities Commission is responsible for determining the state’s rates of return, which play a big role in companies’ profits. In 2024 the approved shareholder return rate for Southern California Edison, PG&E and San Diego Gas & Electric were around 10% — more than double the rate of 10-year U.S. treasury bonds, which is used as a benchmark.

A CalMatters analysis of return rates dating back to 2020 found that the rates cost California customers hundreds of millions of dollars annually. This comes during a time when Californians pay more than twice the national average in utility bills, with costs nearly doubling within the last decade. 

Some of the price hikes are due to wildfire prevention efforts. Edison equipment is currently under scrutiny by investigators who are looking into the cause of the Eaton Fire that killed at least 17 people.

Read more here.

 

The price to attend CA private college

The Loyola Marymount University campus in Los Angeles on Jan. 17, 2025. Photo by Jules Hotz for CalMatters

Among California undergraduates, about 160,000 pursue degrees at private, nonprofit universities. Private institutions have many benefits, such as smaller class sizes and specific academic programs. But for low-income students, the costs to attend these schools can be exceptionally high, explain CalMatters’ Mikhail Zinshteyn and College Journalism Network reporters. 

A CalMatters analysis found that on average, a low-income freshman — defined as a household income below $48,000 — paid around $21,000 to attend private campuses for one year in 2021-22, the latest year information was available. In comparison, the net price to attend California State University is around $6,000 a year on average, and under $10,000 at the University of California.

There are some exceptions: Stanford, for example, ends up being nearly free for freshmen whose family have incomes below $100,000. But part of the reason why private colleges are expensive is because other than state financial aid for their students, they don’t get the state subsidies public universities receive, which is about $10 billion annually.

Read more here.

 

And lastly: Undercover video

Anti-abortion activist David Daleiden, who recorded clandestine tapes of Planned Parenthood officials, outside a San Francisco courtroom on Feb. 11, 2019. Photo by Jeff Chiu, AP Photo

After nearly a decade, a criminal case involving anti-abortion activists and a controversial video of Planned Parenthood executives in California has concluded. Find out what happened from CalMatters health reporter Kristen Hwang.

 California Voices

CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: The Southern California wildfires will turn California’s chronically unbalanced budget from bad to worse.

 Other things worth your time:

Some stories may require a subscription to read.

 CA regulators deny Trump’s claim that military ‘turned on the water’ in the state // AP News

Edison denied causing 2017 fire, but Feds say utility suppressed evidence // Los Angeles Times

Starting wildfires would be federal crime under CA congressmen’s bill // The Sacramento Bee

Where are the hazardous materials from the LA-fires going? // LAist

Can the Central Valley’s agriculture industry survive Trump? // Los Angeles Times

CA farms fail as land values plunge amid groundwater crisis // The Mercury News

Trump cabinet nominee says she’ll work to kill CA pork law // San Francisco Chronicle

Californians in Congress struggle to counter Trump // Los Angeles Times

Protesters rally against El Cajon proposal allowing city police to assist ICE // The San Diego Union-Tribune

Bonta took donation from casino operator under investigation by his own office // San Francisco Chronicle

 

See you next time!

Tips, insight or feedback? Email whatmatters@calmatters.org. Subscribe to CalMatters newsletters here. Follow CalMatters on Facebook and Twitter.

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[goonmaxxed]

⠀⠀annyeong! ━━━★ it would seem you have found @pervcoded's ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀sideblog!

welcome to goonmaxxed! this is my handy dandy before you follow post. before you read it tho, you might wanna check out my dni first.

hello! i'm luka, dog, blair, what have you- and it's nice to meet you 👋🏾! i'm a college student from america, painfully scatterbrained and puppy eager to talk to you guys. sorry in advance if i come off as strange in my interactions- you can rest assured i am trying my best to be normal LOL!! i adore a lot of things! i'm big into music, dungeons and dragons, critical media analysis, cats! sanrio! fashion! philosophy! art! and more- but let's get into the fun stuff first!

i'm (surprise!) a writer and roleplayer and have been doing both for many many years. this isn't my first run around the tumblr block, but i decided it was time for something a little different; my writing is majorly comprised of dark content starring fictional characters. i have a largely animanga focus, but some of my interests (and favs) at the moment are: fallout new vegas arcade, veronica jujutsu kaisen gojo, geto, yuuji alien stage dewey, isaac, ivan, luka chainsaw man denji, kishibe, quanxi, aki gokurakugai alma... kimetsu no yaiba sanemi... my hero academia izuku! slashers (horror villains)... games like boyfriend to death, price of flesh, and dol

and i'm likely to add more in the future. beyond that however, i'm a huge writing nerd! very obsessed with the craft, though i've only (extremely) recently became interested in reading and growing my technical knowledge on what it means to be a good writer. i'm most interested in gaining a sense of community, making friends, and bonding through writing - over egregiously horny anime characters, of course.

there are not many topics my blog won't touch on, though certain kinks: scat kink definitely/certain kinds of emetophilia/throwing necro in there too, why not, will not be explored on my page. i'm not interested in writing loli/shota/underage content on my page, and it can be assumed characters are 18+ unless otherwise states. i also will not be exploring real-world racial discrimination/raceplay in a sexual/pornographic context, this isn't the place for that. if any more no no's come to mind, this blurb will get updated.

as for what i am willing to write:

gn! and male! readers, trans readers, afab/amab readers, non-con, feral/unhinged/yandere tropes, a/b/o + hybrids (feral and humanoid traits, love body hair and fur), size difference. scent kinks/musk/marking/scenting, hands, feet, general body worship (sigh....<3), dub-con, incest (step or blood relatives), dom top characters, bottom reader, uppity readers, powerful readers, bimbos..., fantasy plots, action plots, porn with plot and porn without, feminine men, feminization + force fem, masculinization, masculine women. drug paraphernalia/drugging/aphrodisiacs, etc. and more to be added in the future. you can also just ask- if i don't want to, i'll let you know.

i hope it was fun getting to know me! i'll be seeing you over at @pervcoded!

[jfashioncen]

How Kamikaze Girls (2004) Revolutionized Lolita

INTRODUCTION

Kamikaze Girls is a Japanese dramedy film released in 2004 based off of the 2002 light novel written by author and fashion designer, Novala Takemoto.

The story revolves around the unlikely bond formed between two high school girls: Momoko Ryugasaki, a lolita who is the daughter of a ex-gangster whom now gets along by scamming people with fake name brand items, and Ichigo "Ichiko" Shirayuri, a ヤンキー (Yankii, a young delinquent) from a motorcycle gang whom Momoko considers to be something of her antithesis.

They come to befriend each other after Ichiko gets impressed by the skills of Momoko's father's "business" as Momoko decides to sell some of her father's product off in order to be able to afford a dress from her favorite brand, Baby the Star's Shine Bright. The story itself follows the development of their friendship and their journey of self-discovery.

DESCRIPTION

In my opinion, the entirety of the story hinges on the fashion aspect. Momoko's ambitions begin from the fact that she lives in a small town known as Shimotsuma with around no one else her age or any interests like her--namely her obsession with the Rococo fashion era and thus lolita itself. She longs to not have to travel so far and extensively to reach her favorite brand's store and someone to share her interests with. This alongside her want of obtaining a new piece brings Momoko to meet Ichiko and what subconsciously makes her want to keep her around even though they appear opposites. The scene where Momoko twirls around in Baby the Star's Shine Bright's Elizabeth one piece in the red colorway really stood out me with the way it's had an outlasting on the lolita community.

To add a little bit of context, the way that lolita works as a fashion industry is that usually a new line/design is announced and preorders open for a limited amount of time, usually around 2-3 days. From there after preorders end and the dress is released, if they're extras that weren't preordered they go live on the website and placed within the physical store.

The thing about this process is that lolita lines rarely ever get a second drop, and if they do, it is usually on a strictly made to order basis for their most popular products. This causes the second hand market for lolita to really thrive and when people either move away from lolita as a fashion or are looking to make space in their wardrobe, they turn to second hand websites such as Mercari to sell them. And due to the process I described above, people are very eager to buy because that way they get access to releases from years ago that they weren't around for. With Momoko's almost entire wardrobe consisting of various classic Baby pieces, people are always eager to look for the pieces she has worn but especially so with the Elizabeth dress. Due to this, it rarely is sold off unless the person is looking to leave lolita. And if it's in the signature red as she wore it, it tends to price for large amounts.

Not only has she altered the way second hand items are valued and sold, she has also immortalized what's known as the classic and sweet style of lolita. With the rise of various new subgenres of lolita, Momoko's influence via the various coordinations within Kamikaze Girls keeps the original style of lolita fresh and attractive for many newer lolitas to still appreciate and enjoy. Just like Momoko, my favorite brand is also Baby the Star's Shine Bright and I'm a huge fan of the princess style that lolita encompasses. This connection that we share allows me to understand not only her feelings about isolation with how hard it is to meet others like her, but also the way she expresses herself via her identity as a lolita. Particularly, how much it means to her to be able to at least project parts of her personality onto others just by walking next to them. And even the way she's able to catch the attention of her first friend, Ichiko, from it as well.

ANALYSIS

Kamikaze Girls perfectly captures the feelings of isolation people feel when they're stuck in the small town they were born in, with no one around them that understands them. In this particular angle, Momoko uses her love of Rococo era fashion in order to let herself be heard--even if the only people hearing her are the older people in her town that coo over her eccentric style of dress.

Lolita has a subtle feminist aspect to it as it's meant for the wearer to embrace their own identity and reject the harsh stereotypes of what beauty is for a woman as defined by the patriarchy. Kamikaze Girls as a movie centering around lolita is no different. Although there are a couple of male characters around, it becomes clear that not only are they not the focus but neither is the hypothetical male viewer as the story is about the ways in which Ichiko and Momoko grows as individuals and use their fashion to express themselves and that growth.

CONCLUSION

Momoko's whimsical yet strong nature is portrayed through the shape of her dress, the lace of her parasol, and even the rocking horse shoes she walks miles in just to reach Shibuya from her small countryside town. However, with the way she stays true to herself and the voice she's crafted for herself through fashion, she befriends Ichiko. From there, her strong sense of self even helps Ichiko gain a stronger sense of self to the point that Ichiko begins modeling for a lolita brand herself by the end of the film. I 100% recommend the film, especially as a fun way to introduce yourself to lolita and japanese fashion subcultures as a whole. It's campy, it's funny, it's inspiring, and a pretty quick watch !

[khruschevshoe]

OFMD (fic) analysis: The Power of Names, Agency, and Creating Yourself

So, this is going to be Part 1 out of who knows how many analyzing different aspects of @aletterinthenameofsanity 's magnum opus OFMD fic series "made a promise when I left for the coast (made a life out of chasing a ghost)." Now, the series is divided into three sections, "Season 2," "Season 3," and "Extras" (which includes missing scenes, AUs, and post-canon "special episodes"). This first essay will be addressing the symbolic/thematic meaning of characters choosing their own names in this series throughout all parts (some of these metas will only tackle one section/season/ or even fic).

It is clear in this series that names take on a particular meaning, due to the multiple times it is emphasized, such as in part 15 of the series (the "pilot" of "Season 3"), when Captain Olu says, "Everyone's entitled to choose their own name on my ship." Names, when taken on a ship, allow someone to both shed their precious life and claim one for their own. I'm going to go through the various ways this is presented in series and how letting characters choose their names on the Revenge allows them to gain agency within their lives and world.

1): Name as Gender: Jim and Pete

Early on in the series, Jim and Pete's friendship is established from Jim's POV, where we discover that before the Blackbeard-Kraken-era, Jim and Pete bonded when Pete revealed that Pete is also trans, which in the series is often referred to as "the power of creation" (there's an essay analyzing the religious implications in the works, I swear). This is a point of connection and pride between them, and is the foundation to a great and enduring friendship and place of trust that often gets both of them through low points.

This friendship is further emphasized in part 13, Pete's internal monologue echoes previous assertions by Jim's internal monologue that "they have things in common that go beneath everything, a connection that threads itself across the sea, through razors and potential top scars and names left buried on land."

2) Name as Family: The Jimenezes and the Spriggs

A) The Jimenez Matelots

During their wedding reception in part 9 of the series, Olu and Archie both make it clear that they are going to take Jim's last name due to the importance of becoming Jim's family. Olu will trade in his last name, and Archie will take on a last name for the first time, as a sign of loyalty, loved, and comfort, because for Olu and Archie, "What price is a last name when it comes to making Jim feel comfortable and loved?"

B) The Spriggs Siblings

The choice of the last name "Spriggs" by Mel and Lucius has almost the opposite backstory of the Jimenez matelots- rather than keeping a last name to honor a family, the Spriggs siblings keep their last name to spite their abusive father. When Mel is asked by Roach in part 18 of the series as to why she keeps her last name when, as a pirate, she could have easily dropped it entirely when starting a new life, she tells him that she kept it because it connected it to her brother. Her internal monologue explains that "She stayed Mel Spriggs, damn the consequences, not because the last name gave her protection, but because it connected her to the one person who, at any point in her life, had protected her." It has nothing to do with "the lily-livered douche" that was her father; it as to do with her connection to Lucius. And as the series progresses, even after Lucius gets married to Izzy and Pete, we see that he keeps his last name while Pete picks up the last name "Hands-Spriggs." As much as his matelots mean to him, shown by the rings they share (objects as symbolism will be another analysis), his relationship with his sister is just as important to him.

3) Name as Intimacy: Frenchie and Zheng Yi Sao | Ching Shih

So, this one is not as startling or connected to character agency as the others, but I really like what this relationship does with language. Zheng Yi Sao literally translates as "wife of Zheng Yi" and is used almost as both name and title, the name of the Pirate Queen and Emperor of China, while Ching Shih is her Cantonese name, within the language she grew up speaking. Historically, Zheng Yi Sao had to learn Mandarin to fit in with upper crust society, and it makes sense that the name she rules the seas with (even in OFMD) is within that more "elevated" language.

But here's the kicker: Frenchie doesn't call her Zheng. He calls her Ching Shih, honoring where she came from, acknowledging that he gets a far more intimate side of her than the rest of the world do. In part 40, in the moment of their engagement (which comes after years of a really fun half friends-with-benefits, half-long-distance-relationship that they have going on), Frenchie accepts Zheng's proposal with the line "I’d love to be yours, Ching Shih, as long as you- not your title, or your power, or whatever, just you - would be mine.”

4) Name as Agency: Mel and Roach

When Mel first joins the crew of the Revenge, Olu calls her "Miss Spriggs" and she asks to be called Mel instead. It is made clear that to her, her first name is a gesture of identity and agency as she begins a new life, a fact that is emphasized in part 39, which covers Mel's life leading up to the moment she murders her parents and leaves home. This part refers to Mel exclusively by the name "Melanie" until the moment she leaves Anguilla and takes her agency back into her own hands, paralleling the death of "Blackbeard" and the freedom of the crew with the line "Melanie Spriggs dies along with her parents; Blackbeard dies along with Izzy’s love for Edward Teach."

In part 18 of the series, we see Roach explain that his choice of name was a similar act of agency, a moment when he chose the name thar embodied his own survival instinct with the lines ""Being a pirate is about creating a life for yourself. A name, a family, a home. I picked Roach because I refuse to let anyone kill me.” He gives her a toothy grin that she can’t help but return. “I’m an invincible little fucker.”"

5) Name as Family (Part 2): Femi Boodhari and the Jimenez Matelots

Finally, we return to the theme of names being used for chosen family. When the Jimenez matelots visit Femi, Olu’s mother, in part 41 of the series, at first Jim is worried that Femi will be disappointed that her son traded away his name for theirs, Femi gives Jim and Archie a way to honor and carry both the Jimenez and Boodhari names and legacies: as a blacksmith, she makes Jim a knife and Archie a new axehead with the Boodhari name in the side so that way the family, their culture, and her own legacy of escaping slavery and starting her own business and family can be honored. Though it's not as straightforward an example of "choosing a name" as the others, I think it is a nice endcap in this series for the theme.

(Also, as a note: these metas/analysises take a lot longer to write than it took me to make moodboards. So they'll probably come out a little less frequently, even if they are just as much fun to do!)

@blue-b-bro @possumsmushroom @yuenity @bricksbloggyplace @cosmicquill @a-pessimistic-swiftie @polikate

[karnesada]

Ghilan'nain Lore

Codex pdf download: DAO DA2 DAI DAV

Dalish myths

mother of the halla - Ghilan'nain was captured by a "hunter", and prayed to Andruil for help. Andruil's hares bit through Ghilan'nain bonds, and Andruil turned her into the first halla so she could escape 

this is apocryphal and refuted in Veilguard - Ghilan'nain made the halla when she was young and first started experimenting with creating beasts gandalfs_alt's analysis of this story & fen'harel and the tree (pre-veilguard - i put it into text but it's all her work)

halla - The halla are not servants or pets, and Ghilan'nain was not soft. She was once a huntress of the people. 

the dales: a promise lost - warriors invoked the names of Elgar'nan and Mythal, and Andruil and Ghilan'nain, before a fight.

World tales

constellation equinor - a Tevinter constellation that they suspect was tied to Ghilan'nain (like the others suspected to be tied to the gods and fen'harel).

constellation eluvia - once thought to be a constellation of Razikale, and the constellation was the source of many superstitions involving the granting of wishes.

exploring the ossuary - in excavations, Calivan discerned this was a temple to Ghilan'nain. The tales of her creating woodland creatures is not superstition, but supported y the remains of unidentifiable animals in the holdings cells and cages.

lake calenhad - the Tevinters believed that the waters of Lake Calenhad were blessed by Razikale, god of mysteries, and that those who drank from them were granted special insights

the lost city of barindur - the priests of Razikale dreamed of dark omens.

the horror of hormak - an outfit of grey wardens stumble onto one of twelve ancient labs where ghilan'nain experimented with the blight.

Ancient legends

the ascension of ghilan'nain - (found in the Temple of Mythal) Andruil hunted Ghil's beasts for a year, at which point Andruil offers apotheosis, but only if Ghil destroys all of her monsters. Ghil complies, but spares the halla and the creatures of the deep sea at 'Pride's' urging.

ancient elven writing (dirthamen's sinner) - Ghilan’nain allegedly urged a “sinner” that belonged to Dirthamen to take wings, which was treason as it was considered a divine shape. 

this forms the substance of the theory that there’s a connection between Dirth and Ghil. much of this post is disproven by veilguard, although the mosaic pairings are interesting. this is a better read on this story imo, that Ghil's "urging" of the sinner was a manipulation to weaken Dirthamen's position with Elgar'nan (and by extension, Falon'din, who waged a civil war against Elgar'nan). this lines up with the constant Evanuris infighting Solas and the Veil Jumpers talk about so much. but in sum, aside from the mention of her in this codex (the mention itself is hearsay), there is no lore connection between Dirth and Ghil beyond the title of 'Evanuris'.

pantomime theater mask of ghilan'nain - "In narrative, she is the price and acceptance of purpose, and the becoming that allows no return. Betrayal and devotion became equals to her."

Solas' dialogue

Ghilan'nain is "brilliant, ambitious, and unconstrained" by morality. She was Andruil's servant "whose skill in making monsters earned her a promotion to the Evanuris."

The archdemons’ life force is bound to the evanuris as both power and protection. each archdemon is shaped by the whims and ego of its master. in a kinder world we’d never see what she did to her archdemon, but it’s bad enough that solas says “i only hope you kill it quickly.”

She may see the darkspawn as new subjects for her "modifications."

Primary sources (letters, dialogue (not from Solas), etc.)

solas' letter to ghilan'nain (Elvhenan-era) - Solas urges her to turn away from the Evanuris, but claims to understand that her brilliance with creating things makes her feel like a god - and that she's doing this for love of Andruil.

ghilan'nain's reply to solas (Elvhenan-era) - Ghilan’nain doesn’t care about the title of ‘god’ - she cares that they’ll give her magic beyond what she has so she can create new things. Though she declares this is not for Andruil, she notes that Andruil “supports me, always, in everything.”

elgar’nan’s handwritten account (Veilguard-era) - Elgar’nan considers allowing Ghilan’nain to experiment on Lusacan, to “move her from listlessness” after the death of Razikale.

note to elgar'nan (Veilguard-era) - Ghilan'nain refutes Elgar'nan's advice that she "spend time to mourn" Andruil. she also claims that she was not upset by the Venatori's blood sacrifice of a halla, but sees as a sort of justice Elgar'nan's killing of all the Venatori there (in reference to the Blood of Arlathan mission when Lusacan rises).

note on the nature of griffons - Ghilan'nain found griffons in the oldest parts of the forests, and questions their nature. She is vexed that they have an antipathy "towards what Fen'harel insists on calling 'the blight.'"

Modern studies (Veilguard analysis)

an improved blight (bellara) - the modern blight is crude and simple. Ghilan'nain describes her process of perfecting it after waking. Bellara theorizes that Ghilan'nain may not remember what she looks like, or that she grafted on extra bits to herself before getting blighted.

dragon-crossroads revenant (taash)- Ghilan'nain made changes to the revenant dragon through the glowing blight warts. Ghilan'nain's changes weren't killing the dragon, they were changing her. The dragon could breath fire, lightning, and cold.

elven gods and tevinter gods - Ghilan'nain (halla, navigation, monsters) = Razikale, Dragon of Mystery.