#I'm fully rooting for you and your grades

[queen-penelope-of-ithaca]

The gods are horrible. Life is bleak./silly

WHERE HUSBAND??????

WHERE????

- Penelope

[charmedreincarnation]

I’m kind of in a similar situation to your college indecisiveness post bc I want to shift but never have the time cuz all this studying. I’m really hating life rn. I’ve tried shifting a few times and managed to detach my awareness from this reality for a few minutes at a time, so i know what works for me, but I never have time to do it. I feel kind of drained that I could be achieving so much but I’m stuck not even having the time cuz I’m not smart enough to get done with all this HW fast enough

TLDR how do I be cool like you and too smart for school to be a big concern? Do I just say f**k it and do a shifting attempt when I’m supposed to be studying?

This was such a sweet ask 😭😭💖 I'm overwhelmed by the sweetness of your words, and I assure you, I'm far from being as cool as you think. In fact, I found myself facing the very same dilemma in the past! Now, I'm not sure if you're looking for some wisdom from Loa or valuable studying tips, so ill share a little bit of both? Also college-related questions/asks have been pouring in lately, so I've decided to address them all right here. I should probably just make it a post but I’ll use this ask as a reference.

Pre law perspective:

So my senior year, was when I really started my journey. It was during this time that I learned about shifting and manifesting (kind of law of attraction) so I naturally attempted everyday and had my focus to that. However, I basically spiraled into burnout and indifference towards school. Tbh It's still a mystery to me how I managed to do fine in school when I basically stopped attending classes mentally and barely did my work.

I've always had ADHD, anxiety, and procrastination issues throughout my high school years, But senior year took it to a whole new level. The boredom and disconnection from my studies were unbearable. I went through the motions, completing my homework, but for classes I didn't enjoy, I mindlessly attended without caring or understanding the material. It was a year filled with academic mediocrity, and certain subjects like AP Calculus and AP Biology, which I didn't even need for my future plans, were absolute torture.

And at the time I didn’t even fully understand what shifting was, But I clung to the notion that school no longer mattered in the grand scheme of things. Looking back, I realize it was a detrimental mentality to have for my well being. If there's one piece of advice I can offer, it's this - find a balance. Avoid burning yourself out completely, but don't neglect your mental well-being either. You are still here, whether you're shifting or not, whether you’re god or not, and whether you're actively manifesting or not. Diving deeper into a negative mental well will not benefit you in any way. Trust me, I learned this the hard way.

As my burnout intensified, I reached a point where I no longer wanted to be alive in this boring ass reality. It became so severe that I almost didn't apply to college. My entire focus was consumed by shifting, and I simply didn't care about anything else. It was my friends who came to my rescue, pushing me to apply and offering unwavering support. Without their guidance and nurturing, I honestly don't know where I would be today.

Eventually, I grew tired of being tired. I began diving into my subliminal journey, creating playlists that combined affirmations for school,success, and luck. I learned the importance of dividing my time wisely. During the second semester, I continued this approach, focusing on school-related practices during the day and dedicating my evenings to shifting attempts.

Affirmations and scripting became the root of my routine too. Miraculously, my grades improved, even when I skipped classes for an entire month or neglected to read the lectures.

I was able to graduate high school with honors, which in itself proves that success or whatever isn’t even just about being naturally "good at school." I worked smarter, not harder and knowing about manifesting really helped with that!

So I really advice you to find a balance in your journey. Don't pour all your energy into just school or just manifesting. Embrace the plethora of easy methods available - scripting, subliminals, binaural beats - and integrate them into your study routine. Make it work in your favor. Treat shifting like a cherished hobby, something that complements your academic pursuits rather than overshadowing them.

Also, set realistic standards for yourself. In high school, I used to obsess over achieving straight A's, disregarding any grade below perfection. Looking back, I realize how misplaced my priorities were. As long as you maintain a mix of A's, B's, and even a few C's, you'll be absolutely fine. Set a goal of achieving a GPA of 3.0 or whatever scale your institution uses, and celebrate every success along the way.

Loa perspective

Ok, now let's talk about the power of the Law of Assumption!

Now that I'm in a place where I give only about 20% of my time and effort to school and still do very well, I can help and reflect on my journey properly. Back in high school, like said I struggled with anxiety and ADHD, and I thought these challenges would hold me back.

Test-taking, deadlines, remembering information it all seemed overwhelming. But you know what helped me? Subliminals.

Listening to subliminals for intelligence and confidence made a significant difference in my life. They boosted my abilities and gave me the belief that I could excel academically. And that belief was everything.

As you probably know the Law of Assumption states that whatever we expect and assume to be true will become our reality. So, I decided to apply this principle to my studies. I assumed that I was capable of achieving great grades with ease. I assumed that school life would be manageable, and I would continuously improve my skills throughout the semester. I always visualized seeing As, revised my past grades, teacher giving me the grade I know I deserve no matter what.

And guess what? It worked! My mindset shifted towards greater productivity, and I started using my time more efficiently. As a result, my grades improved, and I had more time to focus on the things I genuinely enjoyed. It was a game-changer, and it accounted for about 70% of my success. Just imagine that - simply switching my mindset and accepting the positive results from my previous subliminal experiences.

I understand that college can be more stressful and demanding than high school. But it's still the same principle at play. You don't have to drastically change your study habits if you don't want to. Instead, use general resources during the day to aid your studying. And while you're at it, listen to subliminals that align with your goals. Instead of imagining and affirming to yourself that you're a failure and worrying about all the things that could go wrong, shift your focus. Imagine the grade you want, affirm and visualize that no matter what happens on your test, you'll still pass the class with flying colors. Remember, it's just one test, one assignment, and there are so many more opportunities ahead.

General school tips

* Stop checking your grades every day. Seriously, it's only stressing you out. Grades can fluctuate randomly, especially in college (and honestly, even in high school). Instead of obsessing over the numbers, focus on staying on top of your assignments. Keep up with your work, put in your best effort, and trust that alone will reflect in your grades.

* Say no to all-nighters. Trust me, reading the same material for 12 hours straight won't magically make you understand it. If something isn't clicking, it's probably an internal issue. There's no need to spend an entire night alone trying to grasp a single concept. Look for alternative resources like recap lessons on YouTube or seek help from a tutor or classmate. Remember, it's okay to acknowledge what doesn't come naturally to you and instead focus on your strengths.

* Realistically, doing your homework and attending class means you're probably not failing. Even if you're not getting the grade you want, it doesn't mean you're headed for failure. Those big tests that carry a significant weight in your grade may impact your GPA, but they don't define the trajectory of your life. Take a moment to reflect on all the times you thought a single grade would ruin everything, yet here you are, still alive and thriving. You've been through challenges before, and you're stronger than you think. Breathe, remind yourself that you're not alone in these thoughts and stresses, and keep pushing forward.

* Make friends and join class group chats. Trust me, these connections are gold. Joining group chats on platforms like GroupMe or Snapchat allows you to ask questions, collaborate on study guides, and realize that you're not alone in this journey. Even if they're not your closest friends, having a support system within your classes can make all the difference.

* Use EFT tapping for anxiety, especially before tests. Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) tapping is not only useful for Law purposes, but it can also work wonders for managing anxiety. Check out my pinned guide on how to use EFT tapping. It has personally helped me immensely, and I hope it does the same for you.

* Work smarter, not harder. The truth is, those who seem to breeze through school while partying every night still manage to graduate and pass just like everyone else. The key is finding shortcuts, utilizing the vast resources available on the internet, and working smarter, not harder. Embrace technology, explore online study tools, and leverage the power of the internet as your greatest friend in this journey.

Here are some free recourses:

Math and Science

1. MathMagic Lite: This app lets you write any mathematical expressions and various scientific symbols easily

2. Equatio: A powerful equation editor that makes it easy to create digital, accessible maths

3. Microsoft Mathematics: Can be used to write mathematical expressions, solve equations, and plot graphs

4. Desmos Scientific Calculator & Graphing Calculator: Utility apps for students and teachers for calculations and graph plotting

5. WolframAlpha: A computational search engine that can solve a wide variety of problems, especially useful for math and science

Article/Video Summarization

6. Smmry: A website that summarizes articles for you

7. TLDR This: A browser extension for quick article summarization

8. Inshorts: An app providing news in 60 words or less

9. Listenable: Converts articles into short audio files

Note-Taking

10. Evernote: A note-taking app where you can jot down thoughts, save things you find online, and even scan physical documents with your phone's camera

11. Microsoft OneNote: Allows for free-form information gathering and multi-user collaboration

12. Notion: An all-in-one workspace where you can write, plan, collaborate, and get organized

Concept Explanation

13. Khan Academy: Offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom

14. Coursera: Provides universal access to the world’s best education, partnering with top universities and organizations to offer courses online

15. Complexly: A YouTube channel that produces a variety of educational content, including the series Crash Course which covers many different subjects in depth

16. citation machine: you never have to make source citations by yourself. This gives your both in test and citations for your essays and research.

Lastly I’m gonna put all the free resources most colleges offer for free!

Academic Resources

* Online Study Platforms: Websites such as Khan Academy, Coursera, and edX offer free or low-cost courses on a variety of subjects that can supplement your coursework.

* Academic Advising Centers: Most colleges have an academic advising center where students can get guidance on course selection, degree requirements, and academic planning.

* Writing Centers: Writing centers provide assistance with writing assignments, including proofreading, editing, and helping with citations.

* Library Research Databases: Your college library likely subscribes to a number of research databases (like JSTOR, EBSCO, and ProQuest) that can provide access to academic journals, books, and other resources.

2. Career Resources

* Career Centers: These centers offer career counseling, resume reviews, interview preparation, and job search assistance.

* Internship and Co-op Programs: Many colleges have programs that help students find internships or co-op positions in their field of interest.

* LinkedIn Learning: This platform offers courses on a variety of career-related topics, including networking, resume writing, and job interviewing.

3. Mental Health and Wellness Resources

* Counseling Centers: Most colleges offer free or low-cost mental health services to students, including individual therapy, group sessions, and workshops.

* Fitness Centers: Regular exercise is important for both physical and mental health. Most colleges have fitness centers that offer a variety of workout options.

* Mindfulness and Meditation Apps: Apps like Headspace and Calm offer guided meditations that can help reduce stress and improve mental health.

4. Financial Aid Resources

* Financial Aid Office: Your college's financial aid office can provide information on scholarships, grants, work-study opportunities, and student loans.

* FAFSA: The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the key to accessing federal financial aid, including grants, work-https://www.tumblr.com/charmedreincarnation/712878654521262080/everything-eft-tapping?source=share funds, and loans.

* Scholarship Search Engines: Websites like Fastweb and Scholarships.com can help you find scholarships that you may be eligible for.

Other questions I got

Q: How did you manifest graduating early?

A: Graduating early was always a desire deep within me. I didn't realize it was on track to manifest until I had a meeting with my advisor. Interestingly, when I found out it was happening, I wasn't as ecstatic as I thought I would be. It made me realize that desires can change as we grow and evolve. So, if something you once desired doesn't bring you the same joy anymore, it's perfectly okay. Life is all about evolving and embracing new desires.

Q: What affirmations do you use?

A: Since I had a multitude of desires in various aspects of my life, I found it tiring to have a separate affirmation for each one. So, I opted for general affirmations that encompassed all areas of my life. For example, I would affirm statements like "I am the luckiest person alive," "Everything works out my way," and "I always get my desires." These affirmations can be applied to all aspects of life, including school. The key is to find affirmations that resonate with you and create a positive mindset.

Q: How do you manage the law/shifting and school?

A: As I mentioned earlier, integration is the key! You don't have to view manifestation or shifting as something separate from your school life. Instead, incorporate these practices seamlessly into your daily routine. The goal is to make it a part of your lifestyle without feeling like it's an extra burden or sacrifice. For example, if a certain method, like wbtb lucid dreaming, is disrupting your sleep schedule, consider switching to other methods like subliminals or reality checks. You can still set intentions before going to bed, which will be effective without compromising your sleep. Find what works best for you and strike a balance between school, manifestation, and your mental health

Q: What to do if affirmations don’t work:

A:maybe you don’t think with words. I’m more of a visual person and will always believe and like images more than words. I would just imagine my grades always being an A. No matter what, no matter if I failed a test or forgot to submit a homework even if I failed everything I still got an A! If you don’t like to visualize then change your wording to how you naturally speak. Maybe you don’t even like affirmations, it’s really different for everyone.

Q:I don’t want to go to this college but I still have to apply, is that affecting living in the end:

A: nope I don’t think taking action or not taking action affects anything If you’re living in the end. Just because you apply doesn’t mean you’ll get in simply because you took the action. Do what you have to do it doesn’t matter if you’re living your 3D life but know imagination is your true reality. If you’re a billionaire and sleep in a homeless shelter that doesn’t take away from the fact you’re a billionaire. Who knows why you’re at a homeless shelter and who knows why you’re applying for college. It doesn’t dictate anything.

Q:I needed to get into the void before college but now I’m here without my dream life and I hate it. What do I do:

A: well it’s happened so take a deep breath. You can still master the void, in fact you already have you’re just being silly and want a funny humbling story. There is no better time than now to be delulu. When you’re trying to escape something and it passes accept it and make it your bitch tbh. honestly keeping busy definitely helped me in my journey anyways, but I did provide tips above so you have free time because you shouldn’t just be immersed in school. For example when I was poor, it was because I needed a humbling back story because no one likes people born into wealth. I’m assuming you still want to be in college, and yea, it’s just cool to have started from the bottom before you become that It girl. That’s your choice and your truth but now you’re done with being humble so go tap into the void.

Q: what’s your perspective on manifesting a perfect life. like nothing bad ever happens but also having a good life with just minor challenges (nothing too big) and I don’t wanna normalize suffering bc who wants to suffer?

A: ok this had a school ask but that was just the gist of it. anyways not that my opinion matters first and foremost. But I think that’s great. Who wants to suffer… exactly. You know I like being human, but I did not like my human experience before Loa. I do like challenges, I like growth, I like not being perfect, and I like being happy and getting what I want too! you can still have all those human aspects and manifest everything you desire. Mary Sues do don’t exist because humanity exists. Don’t worry about it. Your life won’t feel stagnant or unreal or something, I promise

Ok sorry this came out longer than I expected but I had a lot to say. I hope that answers all the asks I’ve been getting ! You all got this, college, your manifesting journey, your anxiety, all of it. All of your dreams & desires are within your reach (right in front of you !!!) so go for it and still live your best life <3!

[frostgears]

twice as Still

the doll that brought you to this cheery cottage kneels gracefully at its owner's feet. "you could join this one," it says. "the way you are is… familiar. like it used to be."

the witch lifts an eyebrow at you.

"oh," you babble, "no, i'm fine, there's been a misunderstanding. i think dolls are neat and all, but i wouldn't really want to be one."

"that's just fine," the witch says. "really, i'm sure Marigold's lonely with just itself around the house, but before it became Marigold, it was a quite distinguished person, with an extensive set of skills. i couldn't take just anyone into my service…"

"wait. you're saying i couldn't be a doll?"

"well. no. i'm sure you could… it's just that i wouldn't start with, hmm, material of this grade, i suppose you might say?"

well, now you're mad.

"listen, lady, you should be so lucky! i cook, i hunt, i fight, i sing, i paint, i sew, i can serve the hell out of dinner… i'm sure i could be twice as Still and three times as obedient as your doll here, easily! i'd make an incredible doll!"

she sighs. "the fact that you need to boast about it only makes me more sure that you wouldn't… hey!"

you've already grabbed her wand hand, forcing the tip of the gnarled black root to your forehead.

"what's the matter, scared i'd be too good—"

there's a noise, as if the world has been drawn taut, and then plucked.

something changes.

"oh," you say, in a newly high and monotone voice.

"oh," the witch agrees.

you can remember why you were so worked up, but suddenly, you're just not feeling it any more. you fall to your knees. you feel now-strained fabric split at your side.

"no, no," the other doll tugs at your wrist. "like this! knees together, hands folded."

"i'm…" you begin, and then more comfortably, "this doll is…regardless… going to be… did it say twice as Still?"

"it did," the witch shrugs. "and it said 'three times as obedient'."

"it already regrets its competitive nature, but words were said…"

and now that glands are apparently no longer involved, the words seem even more important.

"…so may this doll serve, Mistress?"

"Marigold," the witch says, "go find it a uniform. leave it at the door."

the other doll rises, turns, curtsies, and disappears.

"two times Still is just ever Still," she continues, "but three times as obedient… oh, silly little thing. you're going to be the perfect toy."

even in your new form, your eyes would be about level with hers, but suddenly, she seems very large, and you, very small.

"you may serve," she purrs, and your clothes almost come off on their own.

your mind is no longer involved. her touch is command. her gaze is law.

you wonder afterwards (there is no time during) if the other doll knew that this would happen to you.

when you pass it in the kitchen, the up-down-up flick of Marigold's amber eyes tells you: it knew.

in a few weeks, you learn to decode the expression fully: it is pleased that you made such a good doll. but three times as good as it? keep trying.

the witch, for her part, does not play favorites. but she does occasionally make a wanton face and mouth "three times!" at you. □

[dendrophalaen]

my thoughts on godzilla minus one

tl;dr i had a religious experience (positive) and it may be my new favorite godzilla movie

i'm going to try to organize my thoughts lmao i have never done a film analysis or review

story

i went in knowing next to nothing, so i was very afraid this was going to be heavy on the imperialist propaganda and reminiscing on the "good old days" of the japanese military

however i was pleasantly surprised to see that it was quite anti-government :]

loved the delivery of the themes of "all lives being precious" and "living on for yourself as well as for the sake of others" – not hammy or blunt!

FORESHADOWING OF THE EJECTION SEAT? chef's KISS we love picking up what the movie is putting down and getting to see the payoff

speaking of foreshadowing:

dr. noda: [takes noriko's picture]

me: oh no she's going to die

i spent like the last quarter of the movie with a headache because i was clenching my teeth and holding in tears after noriko's death ("death") AND koichi planning to blow himself up and orphan akiko

and all the ex-navy guys rallying together to defeat godzilla

i am not immune to classic story beats

semi-related i thought noriko would be covered in radiation burns, but then i realized a depiction of that would probably be insensitive

also the guys measuring radiation in plastic costs? come on now i know we weren't fully educated in the risks of radiation but there must've been some sort of better ppe

characters

i enjoyed like every character which is rare for me in a godzilla film

koichi just can't catch a break. this man gained so much trauma in a short amount of time, like he doesn't have ptsd because the trauma is ONGOING. i think he's my favorite and it's very easy to root for him

his introduction is of him as a shaky baby-faced pilot and then you find out he was supposed to be a kamikaze pilot like goddamn

i liked noriko's assertiveness ("hey i'm staying in your house now :)") and her ability to see kindness in koichi and sumiko

her struggle of wanting to become independent is very relatable. you could see the bittersweetness in her eyes showing that she felt guilty yet grateful for koichi's support........

i was surprised how quickly sumiko agreed to taking care of akiko? but it makes sense since she was (is) a mother and could not bear to see another child suffer, and akiko gave her life a new purpose

i would've liked more focus on the female characters and i don't think it's fair to just blame it on the era :playdead:

i really liked the chemistry between dr. noda, captain akitsu, and mizushima

dr. noda in particular felt like a nice foil/parallel to serizawa from the 1954 movie; he's also a scientist but he's much more personable(?)/"human"

dr. serizawa was my favorite in 1954 but he was very anguished and set on making reparations by killing godzilla (and koichi could be a parallel to him in that regard)

noda focused on protecting the living, not avenging the dead

ough mizushima. being a Youth who feels useless sure hits home

i'd say tachibana is my least favorite just by comparison to everyone else, but he's honestly so valid for his whole deal

visuals and sound

very elegant color grading, costuming, and set design!

i don't know film girl help

GOOD SOUNDTRACK the music set the scenes so well

i joked about getting my eardrums blasted by godzilla but he really was that loud. as he should be

godzilla (design, abilities, etc)

SWEET JESUS THIS IS THE SCARIEST GODZILLA BY FAR

godzilla: [shows up in the first 10 minutes with blair witch shaky cam]

me: the filmmakers are not messing around they mean BUSINESS

the rampage on odo island was rightfully terrifying

i love his texture and face. the scrunkliness of heisei with the horrifying pain of shin

i think his head is a bit small for his body, like if it was 5% bigger it would be perfect

loved the visuals of his scales flaking off after getting bombed

the nuclear fallout when he used his atomic breath in tokyo was awe-inducing

great use of godzilla as a war allegory

i saw the movie in d-box so the shotgun-blast of heat ray was intense

also coolest godzilla death. sick decapitation

the plan to imprison him in bubbles and give him the bends felt a bit silly in the moment but highlighted how desperate everyone was for ANYTHING to work

really liked how godzilla was more like an animal or unstoppable force of nature without a clear motive

i mean the only emotion you could ascribe is probably RAGE

sidenote i did think it was a lil funny whenever an object was flung through the air from offscreen. there goes godzilla having another tantrum

[animeloverskylarmoon]

Jujutsu Kaisen Fanfiction- Chapter 11

"Until recently I was a virgin, and now.."

You blush.

"I'm having more sex than a freaking porn star."

Gojo left marks all over your body. Just thinking about it was getting you worked up. You shake your head profusely, slapping your cheeks.

This was a bit embarrassing. At least you were done with work for the week.

It's one of the more relaxing days.

School had let out a while ago. Adjusting your bag on your shoulder, your eyes shift to the sky. More pressing matters had started to flood your mind.

"Be careful. There's been a lot of activity. We still aren't sure of their affiliation with all the special grades."

Principal Yaga was right to worry. Gojo acts like he's unaffected, but you know he must be at least a little worried. You turn down a corner, and your eyes grow wide at the male that walks past you. The second you turn around, his body seems to disappear in the crowd.

"It couldn't be.."

You race down the street evading bodies as you chase the flow. A sharp turn down the street, and you stumble before you gather your footing. You're at a dead end.

"What a nice surprise."

You look up, and there he is.

"Geto..."

He waves with a smile.

"Nice to see you again (Y/N)-san, you really have grown." 

He jumps down from his spot on the roof, landing right in front of you.

"I'm shocked you were able to find me so quickly. Then again, there is so much even you don't know."

"W-What are you talking about?"

Why was he acting like this? You hadn't seen him in years and he was acting so strange.

"Geto why are-"

You flinch, because a body appears right next to him. The energy hits you almost immediately, and when it looks up, you see the white armored body and the two roots protruding out of where it's eyes should be.

"GETO!! RUN YO-"

All you do is blink, but it's right in front of you. You're not sure your body has time to fully react, its hand reaches out, and it all feels like it happens in slow motion.

"What's going on..."

You're positive that it's moving at a natural speed. It must be, but your eyes are tracking everything slower than it should. You look down at your hand in awe.

"Did it hit me with something?"

You contemplate that maybe this was its attack, some kind of time warp. But that doesn't seem likely, it's still coming for you.

"You have a lot of potential, but you have to chase after it.

Gojo's words are the ones that flash through your mind at that point.

You reach out your hand slowly, opening that palm and facing it at the cursed spirit. Time somewhat speeds up, and the hand you have outstretched touches it's head. It flies backwards, right into the building and you just stare. Geto's eyes open.

"I underestimated her."

You mean to question him, but Geto just sends you another smile, folding his arms into his coat.

"I'll be seeing you (Y/N)-san." 

There's no explanation. 

He's gone. 

The energy of that special grade is also gone.

Your body shakes slightly, and you take a few breaths, hand moving to grip your chest. You needed to get to the school, report that incident immediately, but how can you do that? If Geto was in alliance with cursed spirits, then who could you really trust.

"You can trust them."

It's a fleeting thought that raced through your mind. Clenching your palm, you take off.

~~

"(Y/N)-chan called us both here, how mysterious~" 

Nanami didn't make a comment, just pulled out the chair that Gojo had planned to sit on. His butt hit the ground and he frowned.

"Oii, Nanami!!"

Usually he wasn't so childish, but Gojo tends to bring out that side of people.

The door to your apartment opens, and Nanami lifts his head. So does Gojo. They expect to see a lighthearted expression, but the tears are the first thing they process. You look up at them, and the droplets cascade down without warning. Nanami and Gojo are at your side in an instant.

"What's wrong!" 

They ask urgently.

You wipe at your eyes, shoulders shaking.

"G-Geto-senpai..."

You force out. It was all they'd managed to get out of you before you started to tear up again. You didn't say much after that, just wrapped your hands around both their necks as you pulled them into a hug. You held on as if they would disappear the very second you closed your eyes. Nanami's head lowered, hand rubbing soothing circles on your back and Gojo stroked your head.

"It's alright." 

He muttered.

Even he couldn't say if that statement was true.

[the-oracle-of-the-lost]

Section 31 liveblog

time for a liveblog i guess?

as a disclaimer to this i've been in a Real State for the past week or so and am having really bad brain fog (this is the first day i've felt good enough to watch something with a plot all week) so if i say something stupid or miss something please forgive me, i'm so fried right now and words are very hard.

i also have not been looking forward to this movie that much and was not a huge fan of the trailer and some of the reviews i've heard but i'm going into this with an open mind! i love Michelle Yeoh & Emperor Georgiou and i've heard a few mutuals say that this ended up being a fun heist movie which i'm 100% down for.

spoilers under the cut.

the little mirrored intro is very fun

unfortunately i am a sucker for movies that begin with a quote

one of the parts i was excited for from the trailer was showing more of Emperor Georgiou's backstory & the Terran Empire pre-Disco so i'm glad we're starting out with this

so was young Georgiou in the Terran Hunger Games or something?

or a competition to become emperor? hm. that doesn't feel like it really fits in with the whole Terran ethos of "you can only advance by killing your superior and taking their power" but sure i guess.

yeah the whole competition feels pretty contrived on a worldbuilding basis

also i understand why we had to make Emperor Georgiou a more sympathetic character (and i love the more nuanced sympathetic look at her we get in Disco s3) but ngl i would have liked her having a harsher more unsympathetic backstory so that her growth in Discovery isn't her coming back to her roots but her genuinely growing as a person in a way she couldn't in the Mirror Universe and having her be redeemable because she was in love is... not my favorite trope.

canonical map!!!! i love looking at the maps people create for Star Trek and i know we get so little canon information about whether things are located

(okay super nitpicky but on the map why is there a demilitarized zone near Cardassia listed when the Cardassian DMZ wouldn't be there until the start of DS9. i guess it could be another DMZ but i like nothing if not to hyperanalyze things)

(Trill is not in the Federation right now (or at least is beyond the Federation border whether or not they were a part of the Federation before this treaty) and interestingly is pretty close to Cardassia!! marking this for possible DS9 worldbuilding and how Trill might have been more directly affected by the Dominion War than other Federation planets)

okay back to the actual movie

is there going to be a yellow filter over the whole movie? i mean it's better than Discovery's aggressive blue lighting but i'm begging Paramount to invest in some decent lighting and color grading

over ten minutes in and i'm getting the sense that this is going to be a fun enough space heist movie but there's just no reason it needed to be a Star Trek movie (or that we needed to continue Disco's track of ruining what Section 31 was meant to be)

these costumes are very fun!! i'm glad we're getting fun fashion again and not just the same mostly modern human fashion we see in so much of new Trek

yeah this is continuing my Section 31 complaints from Disco as i knew it would.... i'm not as against exploring them as some people in the fandom are (i think the idea that there is a bad arm of the Federation working under the table is interesting and true to life) but Section 31 shouldn't be a fully fledged division with clear operatives and resources, it should continue as it was in DS9 – a few lone morally corrupt agents who manipulate Starfleet officers & anyone else relevant to gain control on Federation society in a "the ends justify the means" way. i honestly think part of the issue is thinking that the "section" references a division or department when it actually (iirc) refers to the section in the Federation founding document that allows for extreme measures to be taken in the interests of security and the fact that it was never a fully fledged division and didn't have physical resources was part of the point.

who wrote "Deltan sexy time charm" and thought that was a good line to keep in a movie?

tbh i wasn't a huge fan of the editing style in the trailer but in situ it's fun in a camp way. idk if others agree but it's fun for Star Trek to branch out into new types of style & tone instead of just doing epic space action flicks all the time.

okay what's with the singer just singing like three words at a time in between scene cuts? i know i just said i was kind of jiving with the editing but? not that? (also... just never a huge fan of putting modern music in future/alien settings.)

okay the mech design is kind of stupid (and i really wish Star Trek would be consistent about cyborgs & cybernetic enhancements!!)

they were really trying to go for the Suicide Squad vibes huh

not sure about any of these one off characters (too Suicide Squad-y) but i appreciate they were trying to go for some new styles of characters and not just the usual Vulcan, Klingon, etc.

i'll reiterate the "no one in Starfleet is supposed to know about Section 31, that's the point!" again but i'll stop going on about it now. it's not fun to watch a movie where i'm disagreeing with the point of it the whole way through.

the phase pod is a cool tech idea but man it's overpowered if it's used again

yeah mystery guy with a mask? definitely Georgiou's love interest from the beginning who she scarred right?

interested to see what could possibly be the plot justification for him turning up in another universe.

disclaimer that i'm fully turned away from the screen during any fight sequence because they're gonna give me a headache if i look at it so i will not have much to add about any of the fighting (other than pleading Hollywood to change their currently favored quick cut fight scene style so i can watch action movies again)

oh or masked guy isn't San i guess? (or he lived but i'm struggling to work out how)

oh so very interesting canon info if this movie is sticking with the idea of the Eugenics wars happening in the late 20th/early 21st century a la TOS and not pushing it back like SNW to keep up with our present. honestly giving more credence to the theory that SNW is a completely separate timeline (but mildly confusing given that both SNW & this movie are based off of Disco and there aren't really any timeline divergent points i can think of?)

i am actually glad to see a character from our present (ish) who've time jumped to the Star Trek future, i always thought that was a really underexplored concept that was brought up a few times in TOS & TNG but never fleshed out.

okay yeah "guy who lived through the Eugenics Wars but was forcibly turned into an Augment and hates himself because of it" is a really solid character base.

however a lot of the other side characters are... not my favorite.

okay calling a character "Dada" pronounced like the alternate pronunciation of Data is a good bit

i was going to be a little annoyed by how common the crossings between universes seems but honestly it's pretty fucking easy in DS9 to go between the Federation and the Terran Empire so i guess this is just how it is. honestly it's funnier that way.

this is the third time i've had to refresh paramount and i'm not even halfway through the movie. please fix your fucking website.

Zeph, Quasi, & Fuzz are so insufferable, can we just kill them all already? sorry not sorry.

yeah Garrett's definitely the mole.

mmm i just realized that Alok's backstory with being adopted by a warlord and forced to be like her is exactly what Georgiou did to mirror!Michael. that's tasty actually. (on second thought it's probably meant to be paralleling Georgiou & San but i care about mirror!Michael a lot more than San tbh)

(thank god he's dead)

ok ok i think it was Fuzz who possessed Garrett and made her murder Zeph.

i'm starting to like this movie and then they'll write "chaos goblin" into the script.

okay well i was mostly right.

and masked guy is San! who would have seen that coming!

kinda digging Georgiou & Garrett's relationship here.

okay i wasn't sure about having one of the characters sympathetic to the Bomb That Destroys Everything but the justification that it allows microbes like him to live makes sense!

we truly only see Rachel Garrett on the definitive two worst days of her life. i hope she gets to like. take a nap sometimes or something.

ooh alien kid's toy is very fun.

we only have 10 minutes left how is this supposed to be wrapped up?

yikes that's a nasty place to be stabbed

yeah i don't necessarily dislike the Georgiou/San storyline but the emotional beats are not really hitting for me. love the potential for this fucked up dynamic though and i'm sure some fanfic writers are gonna have fun out there.

yeah if that bomb was meant to destroy quadrants, there is no way anyone is surviving being that close

Georgiou should have kept the cool scar on her face!! i know they have dermal regenerators and everything but have you considered that scars are sexy?

eh not a big fan of this ending. i was starting to forget about the reasons i dislike Section 31 and now i'm remembering again.

JAMIE LEE CURTIS?????

okay we're all done.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

it was fine. idk people are review bombing the movie & kicking up such a fuss about it but other than the concept of Section 31 being used this way (which. again. Discovery led us down this path, it isn't unique to this movie), it was a fine & fun movie. some of the side characters were annoying, there was some cringe dialogue every once in awhile, the plot was a little contrived, and i wish the emotional beats hit a little bit more but there were some moments i really liked! i thought Alok was a very good character and will be Thinking about him. i liked Rachel Garrett a lot. obviously Michelle Yeoh was great. and ultimately, it doesn't really touch any part of the Star Trek canon that i care about so there wasn't anything to ruin or anything that i could super latch onto.

ultimately i do think it might have been a better movie if it just... wasn't Section 31 and it was just a group of vigilantes unassociated with the Federation but i think the powers that be were soooo obsessed with getting Section 31 back into Star Trek despite literally no one caring about it.

so yeah – it's a fun movie, i genuinely had a pretty good time watching it aside from the occasional cringe dialogue. like the way people were talking about it, i was expecting Nemesis levels of bad movie (which was a movie so bad that i had to take a walk in the middle of the night after watching it) or Into Darkness but it was Fine. i honestly had a better time with it than the AOS movies and would encourage people to watch it with an open mind. overall, it's like a 6/10 for me.

[hyperfixingfr]

I just had a 2 x Cree shipper try to follow me on main so I'm gonna say this bullshit again since grown ass adults can't get the damn point. Content warning for some mentions of weird proshipping stuff. Not in depth.

2 x Cree is a proship/comship. Aside from the disgusting age gap and role Cree has over Hoagie (most likely having babysat him and/or kids his age), she ASSAULTS him. With no reasoning behind it or comedy/playfulness to it. That's two different types of proship: abusive x abused, and authority x controlled. If you wanna say it for what it really is, much younger x much older.

I. Do. Not. Care. What. You. Change. NO ONE WITH A BRAIN DOES. You can't say, "but I made them adults", "but I made Cree nice" and expect people to take you seriously. The fact that you go as far as to change the canon character just to attempt to justify a disgusting ship should make you stop and think. If you need to change an aspect of canon to make it look better, your ship is disgusting and probably wrong. I don't know why you 2 x Cree shippers keep insinuating this makes it okay, because it doesn't. You don't look at siblings and decide, "how about we make them just really close friends so I can ship them!".

Cree is, as far as the canon has told, unwilling to change. She has no intention of it. She has "nice moments" with her sister, but that means nothing when you think about how people who act like that irl do it. They can't be all evil, or else no one would let them into their lives. It's completely unreasonable to change the very key villain aspect just for some stupid ship. If something were to happen in canon where she has a change of heart, then I would retract my statement. But she hasn't. And it doesn't seem like that will EVER happen, because Cree is supposed to be the villain of the Lincoln family. Her tendency to assault him alone makes it weird, but him being a very obvious abuse victim almost seems like a sort of non con justification/abuser support message. He has been hit and berated by his grandmother for at least since Tommy was a baby... His "feelings" for her in the show are most likely a trauma response at most (similarly to how S/A victims suffer from hypersexuality) and at least, they're just because he's confusing his feelings for Abby with Cree.

And that's just one reason why it's a disgusting ship. What makes it even more concerning is the gap. Look, if they met as adults with fully developed frontal lobes (aka 25+), I'd raise an eyebrow but I'd let 4 years slide. But they didn't. They met as little kids. Hoagie had been in the KND for a long while and most likely knew Cree ever since first grade - when she would've been in fifth grade. She has been there to watch him grow four years behind her ever since he was 7 (estimate). Not only that but the one episode implies that Cree frequently babysits for children of Hoagie's age, if not for Hoagie himself. Betty seemed to be extremely familiar with Cree and extremely trusting in her capabilities to babysit, implying it wouldn't have been her first time. Yes... I get that it was a dream. But the dream was also rooted in reality at the beginning. Hoagie thinking of her as someone to babysit him alone should make you feel weird about the pairing being together, even when they're adults. Because even as adults, they'll still have the same connection they had back then. Those connections don't go away. Normal people tend to always think of their babysitter as, well... Their babysitter. They would remember feeling that sort of connection with their babysitter, and vise versa. But even if she wasn't babysitting him, it would still feel weird. They have four years between them (for all we know, it could be closer to five due to uncounted months). That would make Cree in 9th grade (high school) while Hoagie is still in 5th grade (elementary school). That's such a big gap that Hoagie isn't even in the school level behind Cree, which would be middle school. He's so young, he'd still be in elementary school by the time Cree finally goes to high school. And to remind you once more... They know each other very well during this period. I'm sure they see each other frequently due to teens clashing with the KND. That, or visiting Abby and seeing Cree there.

I'm just gonna say it... It's ridiculous to ship them and try to justify it. If you're just proship and like pedo ships go ahead and just say it. I'm not gonna think of you any differently, but saying it out right is better than trying to hide it. There is NO REASON to want to ship them unless you like the problems the ship has. Abby is right fucking there, and she isn't abusive nor too old for him. It's the same family too - come on! If you personally don't ship 2/5 that's fine. But trying to ship 2/Cree instead is almost blatantly saying, "I wish 2/5 was more problematic". Cree is the older, more malicious counterpart of Abby. Aside from that, they're very similar. Cree is literally Abby's foil. There is no reason to think 2/5 isn't your flow, but 2/Cree is... Unless, once again, you like disgusting ships. And none of you hit me with the "but I ship Abby with someone else" because I don't recall anyone in this fandom bashing multishipping or polyamorous relationships. A matter of fact, most people in this fandom think of Sector V as polyamorous. Don't you dare use the fear of a harmless thing such as multishipping to excuse a creepy ship.

The maturity of you 2/Cree supporters/neutrals is shown very clearly through the amount of bashing and hatemail I've gotten from grown ass adults. None of you have acted any more mature than me and that says a lot.

To sum it up... I'm not a shipping wars person. I'm someone who has very reasonable evidence to support my feelings of disgust towards this ship. There's no reason to want to ship it unless you're proship with the existence of a near identical, canon, within normal age range, much more kind and loving character.

[neurotheascars]

I'm going to write about a complicated memory time I'm having as an endogenic non human alter, for science, and it's not nice, but I'm being vulnerable here so I can unpack this a little. Feel free to chime in if you have had a similar experience or know what causes this sort of thing.

So like, body has autism, I've accepted that that means I have autism, but like... My ASD symptoms as a child were very much me "being an alien" in my memory. And even to this day, logically, I know it's an autism thing but it still feels like an alien thing.

So when I was in 1st grade, I'm sure I was not the only one in the body at this point, but I remember doing this (very mean, I'll admit) thing in elementary school at least once day.

As other kids would pass by in a line or when we were waiting for something where we could see a lot of people or even when I would look at my year book, I would look at each person, one by one, and privately (thank goodness) think to myself about how ugly everyone is.

I hate your nose. I hate your eyes. I hate the way you smell. I hate the sound of your voice. Everyone around me I thought was ugly in so many different ways because I thought humans were ugly. I still kinda do, but to a much much much lesser extent. I was an outsider in a strange place with strange rules and I thought everyone looked unfamiliar and gross. I don't feel like this anymore but humans are still an acquired taste in my mind. I'm the only alter in the system like this.

I say this was probably an autistic thing because it had to do with facial features specifically and I've heard that we struggle to look at faces or recognize them, so I can only imagine this pushes the same brain buttons. I can't be asked/forced to draw human faces without melting down totally. I can draw the body perfectly well. So this isn't a skill issue either.

Now, this wasn't and isn't "everyone is ugly but me" this was very patently "the human form is awful. Who did this. Why me." It is the root of any un-aliving urge I've ever had. That I can't escape being human around so many humans with an existence completely dictated by humans.

I still to this day, will get so upset and angry when people talk about how figure drawing is mandatory for art students. Figure drawing triggers me.

You must draw the human form because so much art worships the human form. Which isn't.. bad. It's the mandatory part that is. I did it though, I chewed and swallowed that lesson reluctantly only to hack it back up and out later like a cat refusing to take a pill.

It did not help that my figure drawing prof was going through some mental health issues (her tutorial grad students were warning people that she wasn't acting herself)

This manifested as her saying a lot of fucked stuff she could have just kept to herself. Like telling me I needed Xanax because I couldn't bring myself to draw a face. Acting disturbed and confused by just the kind of artist I was. She treated me like a leper.

But the worst thing was by far this:

My human body is a little chunky, but my species is very slim biologically. That's just what we look like. We can be fat, but it's something we have to try really hard to do. I don't care that my human body is fat. I just eat what I can and try to stay alive. I'm not really thinking about weight discrepancy between my forms because I don't consider it an important detail past finding human clothes I enjoy wearing.

We have been drawing our species as a manner of spiritual reconciliation with the concept of self. We didn't fully actually decide the features of our species but instead based details on astral experiences and childhood dream disturbances.

This wasn't a secret to this prof and she basically said that we needed to overcome our body dysmorphia and stop slimming the life models down. Basically if you accidentally drew the model even a little skinnier by accident she would jump all over you.

"it's just habit because 90 percent of my art is tall gangly alien bodies"

"no, you just worship skinniness. You made your aliens skinny because you have an ED" no exaggerating, she said this.

Like excuse me? I didn't know how to report her but she needed to retire because she said this inappropriate shit constantly.

And her vibe influenced all my peers to think I was copping out by only drawing aliens (that I will remind you, are MY RACE, MY SPECIES, MY HOME PEOPLE. ) This isn't about weight. This isn't about "skill" I hate humans. I hate the human body. It is poorly designed and YOU worship it. It's not my fault I dislike it. I'm not a bad creature for disliking it.

Figure drawing doesn't help my art because I'm not fucking drawing humans like everyone else.

"but you can apply some of the anatomy to-"

SOME. I'm convinced that drawing specifically a living person having an improving effect on your drawing skills in general is myth brought on by the art worlds sick obsession with "old master" artists and copying their methods. It's drawing from life that improves you, not just specifically drawing naked people, unless you are an artist who wants to draw humans, which I am not.

All the "greats" drew naked people to practice their own subject, which was people, so now every art student has to, even if that's not their subject. "You MUST draw the naked person" is one part useful lesson, two parts art school hazing. If you wanna fight about this, just know I have already died many times on this hill only to rise again. You cannot change my mind in a way that matters.

I had to unlearn things from figure class. I had to re teach myself how to draw the extremely specific digitigrade legs my race has. I had to keep reminding myself to draw our spines longer.

Because there is real speculative anatomy in there. It's not just for looks. We have long torsos because we are marsupials and the baby needs enough pouch room. We are slim with long bouncy legs to outrun giant worms. These aren't just aesthetic choices. This isn't "skinny is prettier" I just have no biological need to store fat like I do as a human.

Figure drawing harmed me without helping me because of anthropocentric ideas about form. I learned more by studying furry artists and augmenting reference photos.

There were always ways figure drawing could have worked for me if the human form wasn't treated like the most important thing to draw. I maybe also would have been in a better headspace if this profs lectures weren't pointed spitefully at villainizing people who have no desire to draw the human body.

I don't have to deal with this any more but I feel like being malignantly nonhuman in human figure drawing class is an extremely niche and strange horror I needed to talk about.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

Artemis Fowl and That One Time Opal Koboi Went Full Disney Villain

Ah yes, the book that explores the aftermath of trying to mind-wipe Artemis Fowl and the consequences of assuming that just because your archnemesis is in a coma, they're not plotting their revenge. It's no secret that we stan Opal Koboi in this house, but uhhh...not gonna lie, she makes that REALLY DIFFICULT in the early chapters of this book. Let's talk Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception.

*As per usual with sequels and books that aren't the first in the series, spoilers abound below the break.*

Opal Koboi being hated by her entire engineering class in college--Foaly included--is most easily and canonically chalked up to systemic fairy sexism. I'm not here to dispute that charge, because there was absolutely airy sexism involved, but I submit to you, dear reader, that the fact that Opal had matered cleansing comas by age 14 and could literally study in her sleep might have also had something to do with it. Although if it had, Foaly might not have been so lackadaisical about letting Opal rot in the J. Argon clinic.

Let's just take a minute to appreciate that cloning herself and plotting a breakout from a stupid secure mental health facility with ADDED LEP SECURITY is the BACKUP plan. Because hot damn honey, replacing yourself with a clone requires a level of planning that is like, fourth-level chess master with a flair for the dramatic--and we'll get back to that flair for the dramatic in a second, because it is fully on display for every single one of Opal's three main plots in this book.

Her first main plan is to get revenge on Holly and Root for disrupting her plan to become Empress of Haven by framing Holly for Root's murder by tricking Holly into taking a practically impossible shot to disarm an explosive device that was strapped to the Commander's chest and broadcasting video but not audio of the whole event to the LEP. Like, Opal. My girl. That is simultaneously brutal and dramatic of you.

And the thing about the entire scene is that it's really, really damn well written. I got this book on release day, and bawled all the way through this and I think the next couple of chapters. The extra cruel thing that Opal did here was choose a murder weapon that there was precisely ZERO hope of coming back from. Holly may have managed a four-minute healing for Butler in the last book, but as (I'm pretty sure) Foaly says, "magic doesn't work on melted slop." The bomb Opal strapped to Root's chest doesn't just kill him, it collapses the chute tunnel behind Holly as she makes a desperate bid to escape in time to rescue Artemis from another bomb. There was no way to bring Root back from this, and because Opal is a high-drama nemesis, Root is of course suffering the whole way down. The bomb is strapped to his chest using octo-bonds, and Opal spends the entire scene remotely tightening them, slowly crushing Root's chest while Holly stands six feet away to stop the proximity sensor from blowing them both to kingdom come. Root's death is brutal, painful, and Holly spends the entire rest of the book mourning him. It is HEARTBREAKING for a middle grade death scene, and really hella extra for a middle grade villain.

Opal's plan for revenge on Artemis is a bit less moustache-twirling, but not by much. She has clocked that Artemis is really into art theft since his mind wipe, so she gets to The Fairy Thief before he does and plants a bio-bomb tracker in the painting tube that will activate once the tube is opened. So her plan was for Artemis to die in a moment of ironic triumph while Holly looked on. Because oh yeah, Holly bails on the explosion in the Haven chute just barely in time on the hope and prayer of saving Artemis. Unfortunately, Holly gets to the hotel just in time to see the bomb go off. Artemis is fine because Butler is just that damn good, but Holly is having arguably the worst day if her life.

As she collapses to the roof of the hotel trying to process the fact that three of the most important people in her life have just been murdered in front of her--and the niggling worry that the sweet spot might not have been real and she might have just flat-out killed Root herself--who shows up to gloat? Opal goddamn Koboi. In tow Opal has a second bio-bomb for Holly that she barely escapes by containing it with her helmet. As a bonus side effect, Ark Sool and everyone in the lower elements thinks Holly is dead now, because all her vitals flattened simultaneously as the bomb fried her helmet. So now Foaly is also having a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.

And in a brief sidebar: Opal might be a dramatical cats villain, but we love her. We DO NOT love Ark Sool, because his ass made Foaly go over the footage of Root's death with a fine tooth comb to try to prove Holly's guilt, and even Foaly almost breaks because he literally has to slow-mo through the footage of Root being blown to hell multiple times. Like, Foaly just has PTSD now. That's just a thing that Ark Sool casually did to the centaur who is almost single-hoofedly standing between humans and the People. NICE GOING, ASSHOLE. We hate Ark Sool.

Now, Opal's track record for successful plans in this book seems to have begun and ended with cloning herself and having the Brill twins break her out of the Argon Clinic, because her revenge plan is 1 for 3, and her backup revenge plan just gets WILD. On discovering that Holly and Artemis suvived, Opal captures them and drops them in a defunct theme park that was human wonders of the world themed and is currently overrun by trolls. And the really wild thing is that Opal had to have either done this before or else has the best freaking team in the world, because the exits are newly blocked and there are little screens with gloats on them scattered throughout the whole park. Holly and Artemis do escape, but it would have definitely easier if the LEP hadn't mind-wiped Artemis, because he was definitely not working with a full deck and kept trying to just *wait out the delusion* instead of actively running from trolls with a taste for human flesh. None of that is ideal, but thanks once again to Butler and Mulch, Artemis and Holly live to foil Opal's big main plan.

The TLDR on this plan is to throw humans and fairies into a massive war by exposing the fairies when they try to sneakily scupper a human attempt to mine the mantle for power. This involves a lot of warheads and phsyics and attempts to direct a metric ton of molten metal eating through the earth's crust. For being the objectively highest stakes plot, the book doesn't spend a whole lot of time on this, and I can't blame them. Opal going full vengeful dramatic villain is WAY more interesting. Unfortunately, Holly and Artemis do manage to thwart Opal, who has the meltdown of all meltdowns right before she spends a week as a human child on a farm--for complicated reason that I cannot be bothered to explain here, because Opal Koboi is objectively too fantastic and dramatic to deserve that...except for how she kind does deserve that for what she did to Commander Root.

Ark Sool probably also deserves it, because he doesn't let Holly attend Root's funeral, and proceeds to bury her in internal affairs investigations. We really, REALLY hate Ark Sool.

So overall, this book really marks a turning point/new beginning for Artemis and Pals, and this book is where Opal Koboi arguably shines brightest because our girl is UNHINGED and we love to watch it happen. Even if we do start watching it through tears.

[xerophylloom]

The Times They Are a Changin' by Bandtrees and Hatsunoid is absolutely amazing

...And if you can handle the contents of it. No seriously. The fic is definitely dark and if you're sensitive to MEDICAL ABUSE, GORE, AND ABLEISM—Don't read it. It's especially centered around those and unless you close your eyes for all of it, you're not going to be able to handle it.

BUT!! It's so good, I would love to erase my memory just to experience reading it for the first time all over again. The disturbing parts aren't OOC (in my opinion at least) and it's very well-written, some optional out-of-site parts too.

A Laconic Summary: Mob loses control over his powers and causes permanent brain damage to Reigen and Ritsu. This fic explores the possible effects of that

Things of Note (as tags): Ambiguous Ending, Parasites (Specifically maggots and they're not TOO important, but they're there during a somewhat important moment)

Extremely long rambling (with spoilers) below the cut

This fic is so good, I created a sideblog for my AO3 to post about it. This fic is so good, that I had to stop what I was doing even though it is probably going to be detrimental to my grades. This fic is so good, that I was nearly about to rip my hair out from its roots

It's about 100k chapters long, separated into two parts. I'm easily bored and there's been plenty of times I've read a fic with maybe half the length, gotten bored, and thought of some parts as a slogfest even when it really wasn't—I just suck at getting through longfics. But reading through this, there was never a point where I thought that. Tensions were always high, rising even when I thought it wouldn't be able to, and I would end up near-screaming

And the way it shows how different characters feel? Gorgeous. Amazing. Love it.

Obviously, we have the normal book style descriptions from one character's POV, but then we have Teru's diary and Shou's little monologues(?), and it's all really cool??!?! Maybe that's what helped keep my attention. That and the little off-site links.

Speaking of those, I think I found all of them, but I'm not that observant so I could have easily missed some. And wow. Jesus christ. The last couple ones, the ones of Shou's gallery as his phone was getting wrecked, I was. just. In shock. I'm a very sentimental person who cares about photos and things, and I don't know how Shou didn't begin loudly crying right then and there because I would have

And god, so many times did I think 'Is this fic going to have untagged MCD?'. I was constantly at the edge of my seat expecting that someone would die. Reigen, Ritsu, Mob, Shou, Teru, Dimple (especially when he confronted Mob right as he was about to lobotomize Ritsu)... Basically all the main characters in the fic had moments where I was preparing to mourn

Mob really left for the deep end in this fic. I won't say that I fully get why he was so convinced that what he was doing was right, but it makes sense for him. He's not the type to let go easily, he's someone who draws strength from his bonds, and his aspect could be blood. And almost all his life, the message to never give up was basically struck into his head over and over. The one time I can recall where it wasn't? Claw, Seventh Division, where Reigen told him it's okay to run away. But I doubt that tilted the scale into being balanced in the slightest. There's so much more I could say about him in this fic. But I'll save it for now

Teru was... Teru. I understand him more than I did Mob, I think if I were in his situation, I would have maybe stopped at a certain point but we would be very similar in most of the actions we take. In the first chapter, I went 'haha silly!' at his entries. Seeing them as a little treat between the downers surrounding it. But then after he helped 'operate' (It doesn't feel right calling it that), I guess it really hit me. Then I started questioning if I would have done what he did. Then I realised I would have. Then I spiralled until I told myself this kind of situation will likely never happen to me and if it does, I'll get to it when I get to it

Serizawa is easily one of the ones you can feel for the most. Unlike Mob and Teru, he hadn't done anything to Reigen and Ritsu personally. And unlike Shou and Dimple, he didn't say harsh words. Perhaps you could blame him for not taking action sooner, but they all can be blamed for that.

Shou... Oh my god. Shou. At first, I was ready to fight Shou tooth and nail because really? That one comment on FriendBook wasn't necessary. I don't know how or why Mob didn't block him. But then as Mob spiralled further and further, I was hoping for him to make his way back into the narrative to save Reigen and Ritsu. Then he did. And he failed and he was injured and I thought he was going to die. Then he didn't. And it's implied he could have helped them. But could he have also made it worse? Who knows, that's why I put Ambiguous Ending as a thing of note.

DON'T FORGET THE OUT-OF-LINK STUFF!!! Mixed media fics that have off-site links are truly beautiful. My friend and I love that shit. Should she ever get into MP100, I'll recommend this fic to him with a shit-eating grin on my face. I hope the word count doesn't intimidate him erogdfkg... Every single bit of the off-site links I saw was just so cool. The art of Reigen made me feel strong unease, the real videos too, and that one animated video with Ritsu and Mob and Teru. Okay basically everything gave me a strong unease. But that's the point!!! And it was done well!!!!

This fic is pure talent, skill, and effort put into something that shouldn't just be preserved via a PDF file, but should be carved into stone for future archaeologists to discover. I wish I could hold even a fraction of power needed to create something this masterful

On a more less-serious note to finish this off: Mobway. Red Mobster. I was about to lose my shit. Every single time one of the companies showed up I was about to tear my hair out (in a funny way) because it felt like falling for a prank. I ESPECIALLY LOST MY SHIT AT PSYCHOLOGIST PEPPER BECAUSE IT TOOK ME SCROLLING DOWN BEFORE REALISING. Truly, the minds behind this were geniuses

Also, this might sound weird, but I got reminded of KomaedaLoveMail while reading this. The off-site links to websites for sure helped, but I guess I just associate talk of gore in written form in this way with KLM? Or maybe I haven't quite recovered from consuming that piece of media (Can you even call KLM that?) yet. This isn't bad by the way, I loved deepdiving into KLM even though my feeble brain couldn't comprehend shit.

And and one last note- Opening the song link in the end notes was like emotional whiplash. I had to sit there for a bit to process. Good music

This is a whole mess. Even for a ramble, it's a whole mess. I don't have words or sentences or even phrases for how I feel right now. I'm a mess

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

Hello!! For the ask game: ✏️🖋️🖥️

(It’s nice to meet another sapphic aspec!)

Nice to meet another one too! Thanks for the ask!

I ended up writing A LOT about this ask! Super excited to share everything (thank you!!!) but it's super long so under the cut. But I did format a bit to make it hopefully easier to read.

✏️"what are your current WIPs about?"

The main WIPs that I'm currently focusing on are The Secret Portal and School of the Legends, the former of which with more focus.

The Secret Portal is about a group of preteens/teens who discover a portal to another dimension. This dimension is full of people with powers with a minority of those without. After decades of protests from the oppressed minority, tensions rose, and eventually turned into a war of two extremes.

Hard to explain how everything connects, but I appreciate the nuance and multi-perspective approach this needs, but man is it hard. So much brainpower to make this story work, but I'm proud of what I have.

Despite a young cast this is a YA series (think Stranger Things in terms of age of characters vs demographic. This is TV-14 so to speak). I focus heavily on young perspectives because a) I was a kid when writing this for the first time (see later this post) so it just happened but also b) it ended up working thematically with a level of innocence needed there. Bonus, c) being in education I'm fascinated with young minds.

Still a long way to go and currently in the beta reading stage (see pinned post), which is definitely needed given a wide range of topics and fully appreciated to those who have given me their advice.

Planned to be a five book series that's essentially a long continuation from each installment to the next.

School of the Legends is a much easier story to write even if I don't have everything planned yet. It deals with various legends, stories, fairy tales, nursery rhymes, etc. in the same universe, but My Version, aka, things are based on the above, but not a direct copy.

The titular school is an international school meant for those gifted (people born with powers), magicked (people learning magic as a skill), and cursed (people who have powers thrust upon them).

I have an outline for the overall plot of the series (four books are planned) but not super far into it.

Have more characters planned than I know what to do with but most will probably be in the background no matter how sad that makes me.

🖋️"what inspired you to write your WIPs?"

Hm... Sometimes it's just impulse but let's backtrack.

TSP was first conceived as a grade school creative writing project. I just went overboard. Let's get into it.

Went into more detail on my website and tiktok, but the short version is that it was loosely inspired by a stuffed animals game from when I was a little younger which was in turn was loosely inspired by (drumroll) The Rainbow Magic fairy series. Don't know how that happened, so I guess that was a huge influence despite no similarities now.

My friends all inspired parts of it, as most of the OCs have their roots being friend inserts (gone now but it's funny the fragments that are left over from this).

What inspired me to keep going, however, was actually a bit of pride. I was super proud of the original assignment (15 pages!!! Twice as much as the second longest!! I got a 100%!!) and was also super invested in the world I made.

Admittedly when middle school me decided to turn this into a more """"grown up"""" series, it go really cringe...but I was so ambitious this would be published some day (HA).

TSP became what it is today due to an obsessive amount of writing in eighth grade (age 14) and hitting a block in all projects and deciding to start it over, very different from previous drafts.

SOTL was a bit of a passion side project that wasn't meaning to be #2 in WIPs, but I like where we are and it has more broad areas of inspiration.

What started my love for fairy tale adaptations were the Whatever After series and The Land of Stories series, especially the latter. I wanted to make my own version, so had some ideas for characters once again based on my friends. No plot ideas.

In early seventh grade I wrote a dreadful draft that included a "princess school" which was inspired by...I don't actually know I think I read a lot of princess school books but I don't remember the titles. So inspiration from there of course.

Other fairy tale retellings just increased my love for the subgenre, and I got more passionate about making my own, though each draft is so different it's hard to draw connections. It was basically an idea I tried until it worked.

🖥️"what types of writing do you do?"

Well, there's the obvious novel writing.

I love it. It's so hard but I live for the thrill.

Novels are more my thing because I have Too Many Ideas. I wrote a lot of short stories in my creative writing class and found them too limiting. Some may become novels, some maybe novellas. We will have to see.

Fiction is my thing but especially fantasy (I'm using this as a broad term that means "not realistic fiction" including sci-fi and other branches - I'm actually bad at high fantasy).

TSP has annoying sci-fi elements (I walked into this as if this project needed to be harder!), but SOTL is a more relaxed fantasy.

I love reading realistic fiction, but for my writing RF is too real sometimes, if that makes sense. That's obvious...idk how to get across what I'm saying, but I find myself able to express myself through fantasy when I'm doing my own creative writing.

Even in my creative writing class, I'd always make a fantasy story, since we never were told anything had to be realistic fiction. Never intentionally, that's just where my brain defaulted to. I can't think of a single realistic fiction idea I haven't scrapped completely.

It's not that I don't like RF, I LOVE reading it. But it's not for me writing.

I also tend to write geared toward Young Adult. Maybe I'll go for MG or New Adult but I think YA is my ballpark.

Outside of fictional writing, I mainly write reviews or analyses of other media.

I don't post these anywhere attached to this pen name, they're mainly just for me and my friends.

I don't need the world to know my opinions, but I need my opinions on paper. I am a writer by nature, so I feel a compulsion, an itch, to write down my thoughts on everything and anything.

And when I have super strong opinions about X media...well I gotta write about it. Whether it's short form reviews of movies, complex reviews of TV shows, rants about X subject, I gotcha.

I'm working hard on a review/analysis right now, so haven't worked on TSP in over a month, which is awful, but I need to reach a stopping point for this project before going back to it. I do think it is a needed break, though, since I find marathoning writing for TSP before needing to take a step back before another marathon.

I also find analyzing media, why I like it, why I don't, what worked, what didn't, helps me in my writing. By examining other works, I realize how I can improve my craft, by either doing something or not doing something or learning from another media. They're intertwined, to me.

I do writing for school, too. Education major and am working on a case study. I actually like it?? Combining two interests is interesting who knew?

And that's the end of this super long post!! This was so much fun thank you for the ask and thank you and anyone who actually read this far!

[techramonic]

ALSO your reply was really interesting....not that it's the same, but for like a couple days in a row, I kept having reoccurring dreams about being in a school shooting. I only really had them once or twice, but it was so...much more scary this time?? The feeling of impending doom setting on me was just awful. Especially living in America too, where I've had a scare of it actually happening in middle school. (Also! Someone got stabbed in front of my middle school. Yay!!!) Not to shift the subject too much, but remembering hiding in a closet for an "active shooter drill" in the second grade was just..crazy to me. It just dawned on me, (not for the first time, obviously) that nothing has really changed ever since columbine happened. I just think it really started a domino effect (well, yeah, the columbine effect is a thing) and how America has really just, adapted to it isn't of addressing the problem fully and in a logical manner. you know what I actually fucking loathe? people who say "oh but this is a violation of my second amendment. Don't take muh guns1!!1!" When the topic of gen reformation gets brought up. Like holy shit, you actually value firearms over human life? And the only other topic that also gets brought up with gun reformation, is mass shootings. It's like that shit is interchangeable. so these gun loving fucks really have no regards for any other human life except their own. No one is even outright saying "Ban all AR-15s" or whatnot, but just an observation, it's crazy to me you can buy a firearm before you can legally drink/smoke in the US. it's eye opening, really. Oh, and another thing, one thing I hate is when people use the rebuttal "oh but the focus shouldn't be entirely on guns, mental health is a huge benefactor, too!" And then the same people do fuck all when it comes to young adults/teenagers getting better access to those resources. Like yeah buddy, go ahead and give the next mass shootings victims your thoughts and prayers already, cause you don't give a fuck about them at all.

If I made any grammatical mistakes, sorry. I'm too embarrassed to reread it 😭

second grade? that's awful. it's sad to see temporary fixes that do not properly adress the root problems because most of the time, the problems will just reoccur overtime. that's why a lot of people die because of gun-related violence. you're right with the adaptation instead of adressing to overcome the problem and that's the sad thing. the people value their possesions, it's their liberty after all — but when you trample and destroy someone's life trying to preserve your own selfish "freedoms", is it really worth it?

there's an unwillingness for the congress to take action and reform laws because of the significant power and influence guns have. loopholes are easily exploited, and even the media encourages consumption: military propaganda, extremists, violent and glorified media. the teenage mind is the frailest thing that's easily molded, which is why it's such an appeal to the younger audience to be drawn to them because they've been sensitized. guns are now a trend rather than an epidemic.

in tom mauser's words:

“It would be easy to simply blame the powerful NRA and all the gun lobby for America’s failure to pass federal legislation.  Yes, that’s true.  The NRA has influence that defies the fact it only has a membership of about 4 million—far from the total number of American gun owners.  Yes, the NRA pressures politicians, makes plenty of campaign contributions and does the dirty work of the gun industry.  That’s a given. The reality is that the NRA is effective at what it does: strong-arming elected representatives to respond to their “anything goes” agenda. They know how to use the democratic system to their advantage.”

not only is it the government's stuborness, it's also the various factors that encourage and influence the people to push for the unwillingness to change. if no one takes accountability and pushes for a reform, nothing will be achieved. only shallow attempts of trying to change by adapting to the problem, which doesn't allow the people true truly see the problematic effects. there's a stagnation in the process of innovation, and more or less, the temporary solutions have low stability and higher risks.

when a problem is so deeply embeded in society, you have to restructure it piece by piece and start off from a fresh start. when a problem penetrates through the system and widely affects the nation so deeply, it takes a whole reformation to make things change and make things right.

that's why i respect gun control activists like tom mauser so much, because the time you go out to a crowd of people and start talking, advocating for the hopes of better change and achieving peace, and people would rather not listen, that's the time when you truly know something is wrong.

[softpadawan]

I don't necessarily eniteley hate Saberza. Hell, I feel bad that the line about them being siblings is about to get some people hella fucking dog piled. Because the level of vitriol they're about to catch is gonna be unnecessarily bad and for a fictional ship, at that. But, I'm not gonna lie and say I'm upset that some people are gonna stop shipping it. Cause that line was music to my fucking ears.

I hate how the ship appears 98% of the time. It's so fucking boring and such a fucking Het (Derogatory) Ship, even if they're both queer. It also appeals to the group that defangs female characters so they're the correct kind of soft for shipping.

Let, Sabine and Shin Hati be Feral Queers with each other. Want Ezra with a Wren? Tristan is right there. We can be so much more interesting and fun that the flour take of Sabezra.

I feel bad that the line about them being siblings is about to get some people hella fucking dog piled. Because the level of vitriol they're about to catch is gonna be unnecessarily bad and for a fictional ship, at that.

I truly, honestly sympathize with the Sabezra shippers and hope (a fool's hope; SW fans are the Worst™) that the fandom at least has the decency to practice the "block and ignore" and "your ship is not my ship and that's ok" policies because, like you said, it's all just make-believe crap and no reason to be an ass to people online.

But yeah, nonny, I also share your sentiment about the whole "thank fuck we dodged another boring-ass vanilla het ship"—and I don't say that out of hatred for M/F ships, but more so the absolute gut-wrenching failure on the part of professional writers to build a legitimately interesting, believable, complex (not conflicted, but complex in the sense of being fully fleshed-out, built upon something other than just raw sexual attraction) relationship between a male and female character without gutting their entire development arcs and reducing them to soppy banal cliches. (Like what you mentioned about writers "defanging" female characters to make them softer and more likeable. Yeah, that shit reeks. I'm not going to fault fanfic authors for not having unlearned this subtle-yet-deeply-ingrained flavor of misogyny yet—it's going to take a while to root out something so pervasive and insidious—but I am going to hold the professionals fully accountable for delivering egregious, sophomoric drivel and telling us it's Grade-A storytelling.)

Fantastic M/F ships can be done. Look at Pacific Rim. Literally any Hayao Miyazaki film featuring two main characters of the opposite sex.

Or maybe it's time to forget the "confirmed ship" stuff altogether and leave the entire relationship open to interpretation, like what people have been doing with Sabezra for the last nine years. (And what canon queer relationships/characters have been dealing with for decades, relegated to hints and easily-censored dialogue, keeping it "toned down" and "wholesome" to appeal to straight audiences who still hate them at the end of the day. But I digress.)

Bottom line, I think if writers spent more time focused on the story and individual characters instead of trying to set the boy up with the girl, it would do wonders for the quality of storytelling as well as preventing this caustic Pavlovian reaction we (I) are starting to have any time we're offered male/female romance onscreen. That's my opinion, anyway.

[arget-star]

He literally spoon feed us about umemiya, tsubakino, kaji and suzuri backstories. Their backstories were so detailed in centric chapters. Their lore is more interesting and rich than the mc which is awful thing. Sakura's trauma root isn't explored enough. We need a centric arc about his past before bofurin

I, for one, would make the distinction that Nii-sensei wasn't spoon feeding us those backstories so much as providing context for the character--and how their experiences, in some way, shape, or form--related to whatever Sakura's going through at that point in the story.

Take Kaji, for example. During the KEEL arc, Natori hinted at Kaji's past by taunting him during their fight. We, as the reader, can then clearly inference Kaji wasn't always this restrained when fighting. But! We don't see actual backstory until much later, during the Noroshi arc in chapters 123-124!

So the hints we get from the KEEL arc are meant to serve that specific moment in the story--namely, Sakura learning how to prioritize who to fight (and protect) and not get caught up in the taunts.

Then there's Ume. Sure, we got an entire arc dedicated to his background, but there was a reason. Ume didn't want Sakura to walk into that Noroshi fight blindly. Sakura is an outsider, so of course he doesn't know anything about what happened before Bofurin's formation. But to my original point, we, the reader, are given Ume's past at this certain time in the story because Sakura--wether he can really admit it or not--is fighting to save Makochi, which is the exact same reason why Ume formed Bofurin. Both Sakura and Ume love this town.

As Ume even says, he and Sakura are the same, so it's important Sakura knows the history and what exactly he's fighting for. After all, Sakura was singled out to fight Endo--wouldn't you want your friend (or little brother, to use Ume's terminology) having not just the history, but the proper motivation to fight?

I could go on using all the examples you gave, but this is already a long post and I'm afraid it's not as coherent as I want it to be.

I'll leave you with my final thoughts: Sakura's lore is rich. It's subtle, but we know everything we need to know about why he's in Bofurin, why he's a little tsundere about positive interactions, and why he is absolutely scared out of his wits about being seen as a leader (grade captain.) That's pretty rich to me! We even see him leap off the metaphorical tight rope he was walking along and fully embrace his life in Bofurin.

I don't need (or want) to see chapter after chapter of child!Sakura experiencing trauma. It was enough to see the look of absolute shock on his face when he got invited to Class 1-1's summer break beach party in chap 169. (As a personal aside, I was also bullied and ostracized from my peers as a child, for reasons outside my control. I don't need to see any of that spelled out on the page for me to understand how Sakura feels.)

Not to say I'm not curious about his past! But i'm more interested in knowing other things: what happened with his family? Did he ever try changing his looks to fit in? How, exactly, did he hear about Furin, and when did he decide he'd take over?

WBk is a perfectly enjoyable manga to read without knowing every single detail of the MC's life. Sakura himself has even admitted there are secrets people don't want to talk about, so it means he's not ready to reveal his past! Either in his own head (the way we saw Kaji's past) or out loud (like how Ume explained his story).

I totally understand that reading is subjective and everyone has different tastes. I hope that my answer helped you understand a bit more why I, personally, adore WBk's story and don't believe the lack of insanely detailed fleshed out backstory for the MC is an awful thing. We'll get that arc when Sakura himself has reached the point he can tell others about it.

[benefits1986]

weeekedd wicks '14

Dearest Darlingest Soul Sis, I have a thing for unsent letters and since today is your Year 38, let's roll. Super timely because we watched the first run of Weekeddd in MNL back in 2014. You flew back from SG and we don't have funds for the best seats, so we settled for the balcony. Remember how we felt a little dizzy when we saw how steep the seats were in Nicanor Abelardo. I even kidded you that you were crazy because for sure, the SG seats are more decent. I don't remember what your response was but, what I know is that it's one of our core memories. Dammnnn. Since we're not mushy (then), we didn't even get a photo that "proved" that we watched that with our hard-earned dayukdok funds. However, you got a selfie with me na sobrang close up and tagged me, so yun na yun. IYKYK.

I also remember I had a string of invites to watch it, but I said, no funds. Thank you, next. LOL. Ikaw lang talaga nag-yes ako. Sabi natin, sa next noods natin, maganda na seats natin kasi kaya naman ding itawid. Hahahahahaha. The gutter girls of Kalaw are on track to defying gravity.

And so, fast forward to this day. Thank you for being my ride and die. Pero sabi mo nga, ride or die muna. We've been through so much together even when loyal ka sa first world at loyal ako sa third world. Walang time zone difference na makakapigil sa shitshow ganaps natin. Thank you for saving me so many times lalo nung naging nurse ka ni mom and was dubbed by her as her best nurse ever next to he-who-we-can-name-sa-dm (choozzz, hahahahaha). That balmy day when we talked about how death is looming everywhere especially in the halls of hospitals. I knew then that you're gonna be in my "purple people" list eternally, kahit ayaw mo. I saw how compassionate and loving you are and syempre, competent at tama nga na cream of the crap (hahahaha) ka ng Kalaw. I know you'll cringe when you come across this, pero true naman. The logic girl and the eme girl (ako) fit together so well. Thank you for prying me open without being imposing kahit it took so many years for you and me to have super deep dive sa mga ganaps ko. Ikaw, baha ng emotions, always. Ako naman, bobo lang sa gedli. Alam mo 'yan. Hahaha.

I guess this decade is us dealing with "never enough tayo". Since we're pretty much slugging shit and we're also more comfortable with who we are and who we are not, I hope you see that you are more than enough to me and all the worlds that you are in. Totoo 'yan kaya tumigil ka na. In between the crazy prompts we feed to alam mo na, to calm you down (and me too), hang onto your wins that don't come by easily, literally and figuratively. Know that you light up the darkest rooms especially those who are "terminal cases". Hahahahaha. Remember that you have come a looooonggg way and I know you'll cringe over this again, but, stop and pat yourself and slap yourself hard... because the logic, A-student is dancing through life mala-Center for Pop levels ng recitals niya. LOL.

And while we won't be able to watch our musical on the big screen together, let' watch the next run sa best seats na. I missed you nung pinanood ko sa magandang seats nung next MNL run nila, as in. Malay mo, pumunta na talaga ako sa hood mo? Hahahahahahaha.

I'm listening to the PL of the movie rn, and shemayyyy. Andaming feels. I'll try my best to hang onto your "ride or die" plea, as much as I can. Sana magkasama pa rin tayo sa Year 4.0 natin because sabi mo nga, una-unahan lang naman 'yan. Reminder na rin na 'wag ako masyadong excited at pangunahan ang 3 Fates. Emmmeee.

I wish you find more books to read. I wish your eye grade does not kill you bilang napaka nerd mo talaga. I wish you go back to your kikay drips because ikaw talaga 'yun e. Hahahahahaha. I wish Toto more healthy and happy years with you and Tito Ro. I wish you and I can spend more QT together in the flesh so that means, hustle be with us pa more. I wish you find your roots, face it, and embrace it fully. I wish you more bitchy vibes because the girl boss in you is so refreshing and wickeeddd. Hihihihihihihi. I wish you sing more live with an audience because that's where you're in your element talaga.

See you very, very soon! Enjoy your old age, aging millennial mhiemhiiieee.

To defyiinnggggrabitehhhtogether5everssss, B

PS: I don't know if it's just me, but the movie's PL is not poppin' that much for me even when I super love AVentiiiiii. Ako lang ba? I'll also send this to you para maiba naman. :p

[mapoyaj]

my constructivist teaching path 🌟📚

I've been teaching for the past eight years, and with each passing year, I've discovered more about my identity as a teacher.

When you begin teaching, it's like you're starting to uncover who you are as a person. It's a challenging journey, finding your identity as a teacher. But as I reflected on who I was and who I am now, one thing became clear – I am a Constructivist.

This revelation hit me during a workshop on design thinking. It was eye-opening, showing me how learning can be both fun and fulfilling. The workshop emphasized that students can construct their knowledge through designing schemas, and it was then that I realized I had been employing constructivist activities since I started teaching.

Let me share my story:

When I began teaching, I was a substitute advisor for Grade 6 students at a private school. There, I learned that the best way to capture students' attention was to engage them. For those three months, I made sure to include motivational activities like quiz bees, group work, and drawing activities.

After three months as a substitute teacher, I was offered a full-time senior high school teaching position and a part-time college instructor role. I carried the lessons from my first few months into these new roles. To my delight, the older students enjoyed the activity-based approach too. I adapted by incorporating stories and humor to keep them engaged, emphasizing empathy and connection in my teaching. I encouraged my students to explore topics beyond the classroom, stressing that true learning happens through discovery, not just instruction.

As I asked probing questions to start discussions, I witnessed students learning from each other while I guided the conversation. This approach made learning a shared journey, enriched by diverse perspectives.

A year later, I moved on to a full-time senior high school teaching position at a private university in Metro Manila. Here, I delved deeper into constructivism, embracing a student-centered approach. Initially, I wasn't fully aware of how my teaching strategies fit into this framework, but I soon realized the essence of what I was doing. I extended lessons to real-life situations, making learning more meaningful for my students.

Last year, I began having my students evaluate my teaching methods, gaining valuable insights into their needs and how I could better support them. This feedback loop has been crucial for my growth as a teacher.

Then came the design thinking workshop. It solidified that everything I'd been doing was rooted in constructivism. The workshop further refined my skills, though it also highlighted an area for improvement – balancing content and activities.

While I deeply support constructivist theory, I'm also open to learning and incorporating other educational theories. I eagerly anticipate what the future holds as I continue to grow and evolve in my teaching practice.