#I've been on TV already several times too lol

[self-indulgent-paw-patrol]

I WENT TO MY FURRY GROUP MEET TODAY AND ACQUIRED MY FIRST EVER PAW PATROL MERCH I'M SO HAPPY THE TRUCK IS BIGGER THAN I EXPECTED IT TO BE AND PRETTY WELL DETAILED IT WAS SO WORTH IT

They didn't have Zuma nor Marshall... I was planning to buy one now and the other two on my next pay. Guess I'll still buy the other two later, but online, as they don't have them here at this mall. Maybe I could check the other malls in the city but aaaaaaa I'm lazy MAYBE, WE'LL SEE

[unexpectederawhilesubmitting]

I'm thinking about making video essays exploring the history of Doctor Who, especially the weird lore and queer storytelling of the wilderness years.

After my post about how *60TH ANNIVERSARY SPOILERS* biregeneration ties into pre-existing lore surrounding The Watcher from the classic series got over 6,000 notes (not bad for one of my first ever posts, lol), I've realized that lots of people don't know the wacky history of Doctor Who.

For instance, this is of interest to me as a queer person: did you know that in 1997, Russell T Davies wrote an official Doctor Who novel where the Doctor's male companion gets head from another man in the back of a taxicab (and, in doing so gives the guy the cure for HIV in the process because he's from the future and he's already been cured???)? And, to top it all off, it's wrapped in a story about a drug dealer who rose from the grave and is basically giving everybody alien cocaine, so it basically rules.

The thing is, this is far from the only story like this during that era. After the original series went off the air in 1989, we went into what's informally known as "the wilderness years". During this time, there were no new episodes of Doctor Who being broadcast on TV, and so the story continued across multiple different mediums, novels, audio dramas, etc. As it also was no longer a flagship BBC title anymore, the executive oversight got extremely lax, enabling creators to start exploring themes that would normally have been rejected for being "too dark" or "too gay" for a normal BBC production. In some cases, this led to some deeply messed up edgelord fanfic being published officially, but in other cases, it led to some of the coolest and most experimental years of Doctor Who's history.

It's also the time period where we start seeing more and more queer representation, as well as several instances of

(because for real there's one audio drama where the Eighth Doctor's companion gets transformed into an insect broodmother thing and it's very, uh...the writer of that one is certainly an interesting person)

(The Creed of the Kromon if you're interested)

(don't be interested, please)

BUT all that is to say, there are so many absurdly cool moments in the show's history pre-2005 that I feel most modern fans haven't had the opportunity to explore!!! That's not in a neckbeard "uh, you're not a true fan unless..." way, that's in a "oh my god you're so lucky you get to experience this stuff for the first time!!!!" way.

Going back and looking at those things also makes the modern show have sooooo much more depth, because many of the writers and behind the scenes folks of the revival series worked on the expanded universe projects during the Wilderness Years. As a result, they pulled a lot of their ideas from their old projects into the show! For instance, Human Nature and The Family of Blood, and the whole concept of Chameleon Arches?

That entire episode is LITERALLY an adaptation of a preexisting novel from the 90's, Human Nature:

The only difference is that they changed a few details to make it fit into the continuity of the 10th Doctor's storyline.

All that is to say, there's so many cool Doctor Who things out there, and so few people going in depth with them. I think I might start producing some video essays about some of these (like Faction Paradox, my beloved <3), if anyone's interested.

[anotheruserwithnoname]

Some thoughts on Daredevil & Wolverine

On Sunday I went to a matinee screening of Daredevil & Wolverine - the first time I'd seen a film in a cinema since MEGAN back in early 2023. The tl;dr is that I loved it, and I had some general thoughts. By necessity I have to go full spoiler so here's the spoiler break (and if by chance you don't see a break, now's your warning to run away screaming in terror).

I wasn't a fan of the first Deadpool movie. I felt it was a bit pretentious and "R-rated for the sake of being R-rated" rather than telling a good story that happened to hit R (these were my initial thoughts and except for the R-rating part I felt similarly about the first Avatar). As a result I've never actually seen Deadpool 2 (or its PG-13 edit, Once Upon a Deadpool), but I liked Deadpool 3 a lot. It didn't feel pretentious and it had heart which i wasn't really expecting. It had somewhat of the same vibe as Free Guy, which is a good thing. (And just to complete a thought from earlier, I found myself greatly enjoying Avatar 2).

My only concern (though it isn't hurting the box office any) is in some respects the film hits on one of the biggest criticisms of the MCU and other franchises: it is NOT a jumping on point for anything. You need to have at least a passing familiarity with the past Deadpool films, the X-Men films, the MCU films, at least one of the TV series, AND several of the non-Disney/Sony franchises (Blade and the Affleck Daredevil/Elektra, the Fantastic Four films of the mid-2000s) in order to get some of the jokes and for some of the moments to resonate. There are two characters who play key roles in the final act of the film who have absolute no relevance to anyone who hasn't seen Deadpool 2 (like me) and the Loki TV series. The return of X-23 might have also meant a bit more had I seen the Logan movie, as opposed to Elektra and Blade's return, as I had.

BUT - all credit to the writers - while there is a level of "continuity lockout", it's not enough to damage the film. And when I did see a moment related to a film I knew (I somehow managed to avoid being spoiled about Chris Evans reprising Human Torch), it hit a bullseye.

I'm going to have to watch the film at least once more because a few references landed when I was thinking back on the film hours later (like Deadpool joking about getting a boner watching Gossip Girl, which wasn't a random pop culture reference - his wife, Blake Lively starred in it.)

Speaking of, I loved the way Ryan Reynolds had Blake and his kids play some of the Deadpool variants (though I was disappointed to learn Blake only did the voice of Lady Deadpool). Nathan Fillion is also in there somewhere, making this the 3rd time I think that he's done a cameo in an MCU film. Reading the cast credits is a must (yes, that IS Henry Cavill as a Wolverine. I wonder if he was ever considered for the part? He plays a somewhat super-powered Wolverine too. Super, get it? LOL)

Jennifer Garner was already over 50 when she reprised Elektra and looks amazing. She could do an Elektra film now (or an Alias revival) if she wanted to.

Hugh Jackman has aged well into the role of Wolverine. I hope we get to see another one with him (now paired with X-23, played by Dafne Keen, a rising star who I know from the His Dark Materials TV series in which she co-starred, coincidentally, with James McAvoy of X-Men fame).

Channing Tatum as Gambit was a real surprise. The point about him appearing is that film starring him as Gambit (an X-Men spinoff) was planned but cancelled, so he finally gets the chance. Although played mostly for laughs (and reminiscent of Tatum's cameo in Reynold's Free Guy), he kicks ass. If a Gambit movie isn't announced down the line I'll be surprised.

Similarly, Wesley Snipes makes a strong case (no disrespect intended to Mahershala Ali) for continuing to play Blade. He even says this in the movie!

It is no secret that recent Marvel movies have been controversial and not universally loved by a long shot. D&W does not shy away from this - which may make some people uncomfortable, but at the same time respect to Disney for allowing it. I'm surprised there was no dig at Star Wars' expense, though; I guess Disney only allowed the biting-the-hand humour to go so far.

There is a female counterpart to Charles Xavier in this film. Played by Emma Corrie, Cassandra Nova is one of the best villains the MCU has had for a while. Much like Sylvie, the female version of Loki in the TV series, I appreciated that they didn't just make Cassandra a copy of Charles but made her a unique character. I wasn't aware she originated in the comics until after I saw the film. Too bad they killed her off. Or did they?

Kudos for making D&W the first-ever MCU film to reference Saskatoon (though maybe not in the sense the city would like! LOL). There were a few other Canadian references in the movie - the CN Tower makes a notable cameo on The Void. Which, if you've ever been to Toronto ... (I'll leave that joke there LOL)

The dog. Nothing else need be said. Part of me hopes Ryan Reynolds saw her up for adoption and wrote the entire Dogpool subplot just to get her in the movie.

The closing credits, aside from having one of the best stingers of all time, also includes a retrospective video of the non-MCU movies with behind the scenes and interviews. It's in keeping with the fourth-wall-breaking concept of Deadpool and at the same time it's a touching tribute to the older films, including some that were under-appreciated by audiences at the time.

I do have one major criticism (and this is legit the only part of the movie I did NOT like): considering the film is in part a sequel to Loki, and the fact so many MCU characters are referenced, including a cameo (using manipulated stock footage) of Chris Hemsworth as Thor, it actually makes zero sense that the film did not have an appearance in some form by either Tom Hiddleston as Loki or by one of the other Loki variants (Sylvie, Richard Grant's version, or even a new one). Instead we have an appearance by one of the agents from the series and one name drop of the Loki TV series itself (which means Reynolds & Co. would have been aware of the Loki variants including the quite-popular Classic Loki played by Grant). Also, it's unclear if it takes place before or after the events of Loki the series. I think it was a lost opportunity (maybe there's a deleted scene). But as criticisms go, that's still pretty minor.

The gag reel on this is going to be glorious.

[riaaanna]

Eurovision 2023: ft. Roger Taylor

A little bit not-Queen, but the best part is: it kind of is!

I've given up on trying to make a detailed post about Eurovision 2023 (tried to do it before the next one rolls in this year) but this here is about Roger freakin' Taylor in Euro freakin' vision 2023.

And I haven't shared these here specifically, but here are Roger-cams from first audience rehearsal on 12th May 2023. These are not what (little) you saw on TV, which was live on 13th May 2023. I am also not telling you whether or not these videos are mine. lol.

Here's the rambling part. I've been a Eurofan since like 2012, growing from casual to following each countries' national selections in the past few years. I'm also from Indonesia, so never in a million years could I ever imagine attending Eurovision itself, at all.

So it was insanely lucky that I happened to be in the UK, during the year that Eurovision will be hosted in the UK. Not only that, the host city was LIVERPOOL of all places (God it was nearly going to be Glasgow at some point)! It's like not even an hour train or bus from Manchester! Hotel prices went to HUNDREDS of pounds per night when that was announced, but all I had to do was just take a train to and back every day! So convenient.

Needless to say Liverpool did an incredible job. Here are some images from when I first arrived, in awe.

And the stages! On the left is Eurovillage, the free-entry stage for side performances and watch alongs. On the right is M&S Bank Arena Liverpool, which I went into several times for several shows!

Eurovision is actually a long marathon of nine audience shows. There are Semi 1, Semi 2, and Grand Final. For each of those there are Jury show (first rehearsal + when Jury cast their votes), Family show (second rehearsal during daytime, hence "family"), and Live show (for TV + audience votes). Before each Jury show there is a press-only rehearsal too without audience.

Getting tickets was a drama! I was in class! Sat on front row cause your lecturer wouldn't suspect the front row unless he peeked down at your screen (he didn't). With two seatmates and their laptops and my phone I queued on four devices. Got some tickets, and follow-up with a long and suspenseful resell tickets scavenger hunt grind on Discord which went on for weeks. Long story short, I got tickets for SF1 Jury, SF1 Family, SF1 Live, SF2 Jury, and GF Jury.

I know. A lifetime worth of luck and savings. But literally... when and where else was this going to happen to me if not then and there??

Anyway it was already an insane week. My agenda was going back and forth between Manchester and Liverpool for ten days (4-13 May). Jump to the GF Jury show on 12th May, I was queueing outside the arena and scrolling on my phone. A news article popped up. Breaking news, spoilers from the press rehearsal.

Y'all..... it took all of my life strength to not crumble to my knees and break into confused tears in the middle of a crowd outside the arena. I was shocked. I was thrilled. I was Hannah Montana twirling in a wig singing Best of Both Worlds mentally. There is no multiverse crossover event ever topping this. The stars aligned just for me. What do you mean I'm going to walk in with my Eurovision ticket and I'm going to see Roger Taylor and live my best life??

(I adore Sam Ryder too, for the record! A breath of fresh air to UK in Eurovision, rooted for him and his bright attitude waaay before the bookies rooted for him and way before he won second place. I saw him live at his own gig too and he was incredible!)

Mind you this was one day before the live show on TV, it took so much strength to not spoil this even further especially with a lot of Eurovision mutuals on Twitter.

To be fair, there were teasers of a "famous person appearance" for the Grand Final, and knowing Eurovision it could have been literally anyone. Truly I was talking shit when I tweeted this a month before the Grand Final, but I guess I sort of manifested it:

So that happened. That was. an unforgettable experience that I'll never get in any other Eurovision, if I ever get the chance to go again. I had my eyes on him the entire time and it was so wonderful. And if you've read this far down, thank you for bearing with me!

A footnote re: Eurovision 2024 - all the real Eurofans aren’t supporting it unless they ban ******. We’ve been keeping up with national selections, we know which artists are pressuring their broadcasters to step up. I’ve said it here before that because of this my interest in this (and QAL… it’s been difficult) has been fading. So I want EBU to take action, I truly hope they do, but until then I probably won’t watch this year. Never supported ****** in my history of being a Eurofan and never will. Let’s do what we can and donate.

[jimmyandthegiraffes]

Fic Writing Review 2023 🌈

Thank you sm @itwoodbeprefect for the tag!!!

I hardly published anything this year so if u wanna skip to 'projects for 2024' that's gonna be the most interesting bit >.<

Words and Fics (on ao3) 📚

words posted: 714 💀 but many more words were written, just not posted lol fics posted: 1 first fic/last fic 😅: King of the Eyesores - Doctor Who (1963)

Ships and Fandoms ⚓

Doctor Who - no ships really but KotE is Mike Yates-centric.

Top 5 Fics by Kudos 🏆

It's KotE again lol which is at 6 kudos. Of all time, tho:

After the Hour(glass) - Night at the Museum (Jedtavius)

Less Than Ideal Circumstances - The Man from UNCLE (TV) (Napollya)

When They Sleep - The Man from UNCLE (TV)

Dismiss Your Fears - Back to the Future

After All, I'm Only Sleeping - Doctor Who (1963)

Top 5 Favorite Fics 💖

KotE......... I do actually rly enjoy KotE I think it has potential in terms of where it's going. But since I only posted one fic in 2023, I'll do my top 5 of fics I've ever posted. Apart from the first one this is in no particular order

tickertape - The A-Team (TV) it's my baby it's all I thought about for months of my life, it's like an iceberg (i.e. most of it is in my WIP doc, and only a tiny fraction is published so far), it got me thru a difficult time, it's an exploration of mental illness and complicated messy relationships expressed in epic format (i.e. it's probably gonna be novel length when it's done)

Bullet Number Six - Starsky & Hutch (TV) it received criticism for being obscure and hard to follow bc it switches pov briefly halfway thru but idc i love it anyway

I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues - The A-Team (TV) it was my first A-Team fic and I still think for a beginner it nailed some p realistic in-character dialogue and addressed an undertone I wished I'd seen addressed in the ep it's a coda to.

When They Sleep - The Man from UNCLE (TV) it's kind of riddled with certain mannerisms of my slightly older writing which I personally find a bit annoying and have worked to iron out for the sake of elegance over the years. but I still think it's a cool little exploration of all my sleep headcanons for the pair of them in one place

King of the Eyesores - Doctor Who (1963) see it made it to the list after all! I kinda like it more for its potential than for what it is right now butttttt who cares.

special mention to Unbereft (Starsky & Hutch) which I really really like but I wrote it in one frenzied sitting and only remembered after I'd posted it that it was very like someone else's fic I'd read several years previously. I don't think it's too much like to be taken down and I've since mentioned the writer of the other fic (it was dawnwind, hello!) in the notes. that's the only reason unbereft isn't in my top 5 because I'm otherwise really proud of how well it's written. Not to tootle on my own trumpet.

Fandom fic events

none RIP but maybe this year!!

Projects for 2024

Okay here we goooooooooooo

priority 1 is to finish the unfinished works that I've already half posted: King of the Eyesores, Every Line A Comedy, OUTATIME, The Windhover, tickertape, The Hanoi Bank Job and Other Misadventures, 38 Hours. Bolded are my top priorities.

other works that I'm writing but which haven't seen the light of day at all yet:

Dear Mike - an epistolary between Jo Grant and Mike Yates following her marriage to Cliff Jones.

The Lark/Behind That Locked Door (working titles) - a 30-chapter 2/Jamie fic about season 6B in which Jamie suffers permanent memory problems after the War Games. It explores grief, social ostracism, feeling abandoned, undirected anger, guilt, and acceptance that healing sometimes is a process that is never complete. I've been working on it since about 2016 lol but I'm lazy I just need to press on.

hell valley au - as yet untitled lol. In which the Hell Valley!Marty (who is never seen in BTTF2 as he is in Switzerland) and Hell Valley!Doc (who has been institutionalized) break out of their respective situations and go on the run together. But there's a problem - they had to leave Einstein behind, and when they get information that Einie is to be used for a dogfight, they make the risky decision to go back to Hill Valley to rescue him. However, going back to the place they just escaped by the skin of their teeth also brings them face to face with the last person they expect to meet.

a changed man (working title) - a Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) fic from Jeannie's pov. mostly it's about their picnic excursions but it's also about Jeannie wishing Marty wasn't such an elephant in the room

mfu/rahd xover (untitled) - the first chapter of this is almost ready to go tbh. it's what it says on the tin lol, Napoleon and Illya go to London and get help from a rather eccentric private detective who has uncanny powers of solving impossible cases but also they think is probably clinically insane

to see him happy - VERY weird rahd fic. it's smut but its also about grief. might never post it because several of my family members have access to my tumblr and therefore my ao3 lol they dont need to see that

the winter of '62 - a study of jeff and marty's life when they lived together in a grotty bedsit and couldnt afford to put the heating on

star wars (untitled) - set during ROTJ, han pov. han's lost a lot of time and now everyone is one step ahead of him which isn't a sensation he's used to

skyrissian - what it says on the tin lol

the older gen (untitled) - jeeves fic about bertie's aunts and uncles and parents as they were as they variously grew up, got married, had children, died (or didn't), fell prey to alcoholism or insanity or petty crime, went to war, prospered (or didn't)... This is pretty unlikely to be finished this year tbh as it's very detailed but I can dream

a couple of long form fics about starsky & hutch and mfu respectively (the s&h one is set post sweet revenge, the mfu one takes place at various moments throughout the show)

x-files series - canon compliant until paperclip and then gradually diverges into how i think the show should have gone lol. another biggie

and a handful of tintin fics that im protective of and might never post but we'll see - one where tintin and chang go on holiday in london after picaros, one where the gang encounters rajaijah one last time (featuring a letter from didi, chang making a very daring crossing at the songolese border, and tintin taking about ten years to chop up a clove of garlic), and one where tintin gets shitfaced at an embassy ball and accidentally starts an Incident. haddock looks on, appalled.

i knoooooooooooooooowww this is a lot but i'm not realistically hoping to finish it all this year but it's nice to have lots of things to play around with lol.

unfortunately i have the eternal problem of not ever knowing which of my mutuals write fic and which of those havent already been tagged but imma tag @theteaisaddictive and genuinely if u see this and u write fic ur tagged i want to knowwwwwwwwwwwww <333

[albonoooo]

what is your comfort media? like a book, show, movie, a race ect. (ps, i liked ur suggestions too!!)

amazing question, i've got a whole list anon!! i'll try to sort this into categories so it doesn't get too chaotic.

movies

die wilden hühner (trilogy). i have seen these films countless times, i've laughed and cried at them countless times and they make me immeasurably happy. i rewatch them at least once a year. i can't put into words how much i love them. (the third one lacks a little bit of the magic of the first two, but it's still amazing.)

vorstadtkrokodile (trilogy). a very close second, i saw them for the first time in primary school and have rewatched them many times since. the theme song used to make me feel invincible and hannes was one of my first ever crushes (i think i already said this in a tag game some time ago). (the first one is definitely the best!! the third one especially kinda doesn't have the same feeling to it, but i still love them all.)

sherlock holmes movies (the ones with rdj and jude law). something about them just tickles my brain right and i could watch them on a loop.

shows

deadliest catch (reality tv). there's nothing inherently comforting about it, quite the opposite actually, but i was obsessed with this show as a kid and if i had the opportunity now, i'd still be watching it all the time. it's so fascinating to me and just the right amount of engaging to not be overwhelmed, but also not get bored. that being said, as with all things, i did get very attached to the people in the show and cried several times over the course of it when some of them passed away.

books

the gemstone trilogy by kerstin gier. my most reread books by a country mile. are they perfect? no. are they perfect to me? yes. i gobbled these up the first time around and they're my go-to remedy for a reading slump. the only thing i don't like is the ending 💀 there is a movie trilogy that was made based on the books and they rewrote the ending, but it's still bad lol. (the second book, sapphire blue, is my favourite out of the three!)

youtube videos

the man, the myth, the legend, mike's mic. specifically, his appropriately unhinged recap of pretty little liars. top tier rewatch material. he's hilarious and i could listen to him speak for hours. have i ever watched pll? no. everything i know about it, i've learned from mister microphone and i'd like to keep it that way.

this performance of swan lake. i don't know anything about ballet and i'm not really that interested in it, but something about this is so soothing and relaxing to me. and, obviously, the music fucking slaps. tchaikovsky really ate with this.

honourable mentions

carlos sainz's interview on the 'p1 with matt & tommy' podcast has helped me fall asleep more times than i'll ever admit.

yakari was probably my favourite show as a child. it's been many years since i've last watched it and it would possibly bore or even annoy me now since it's tailored to small kids, but i can still recite a worrying amounts of episodes' content by memory.

from the bottom of my heart, i am sorry this got so long lmao. thanks for the ask, this was a really fun one!!

[boreal-sea]

Moving update:

The U-Box arrived and my roommate came downstairs right at the same time so I was able to get the huge TV stand moved in right away, which meant I was able to get a TON of other stuff loaded.

I keep finding more things. It feels unending lol. But I've got all of tomorrow too, and it's only 2:30 PM today so that's still tons of time to keep loading. I am taking a lunch break right now <3

Kitchen disassembly kicked into high gear today. I sorted through another two cabinets for food. A lot of this is leftover from the two prior roommates. A lot of it is VERY past the best-by date. I'm donating what I can, but some of it is too old to even donate even though it's never been opened, so that just has to get thrown away.

The main floor of this townhouse is actually the second floor, so I've made it a rule that I can't go downstairs without taking something with me and putting it in the pod.

I'm trying to use a Pomodoro timer with longer breaks, which is helping. I've collected all the glasses and all the plates. I still need to go through several cabinets for appliances. And the pantry... I don't know anything about all the various items in there. I really don't.

I'm trying to cull as much as possible so I'm not leaving it all for the remaining roommates to deal with because that's how I ended up in this situation in the first place. It's kind of hard when I don't know who owns what stuff in the cabinet. Same for the tea/coffee cabinet; I've already taken everything I want, so the rest is up to everyone else to decide if they want it.

[thislittlekumquat]

7, 14, 15, 16, 30 for the book meme :D

THANK YOU SO MUCH THESE WERE SO FUN!!! And some of them were really tough. <3 <3 <3 I gave nonfiction and fiction responses for some of them!

7. ur least fav book trope?

two tropes for the price of one: body swap stories usually are not my thing, and also miscommunication tropes that aren't character studies but more like "character A overhears character B saying something out of context to character C, character A runs away and half of the plot ensues due to this one moment of miscommunication that could have been easily avoided"

14. an overrated book?

NF: 'Sapiens' by Yuval Noah Harari. everything wrong with the "reactionary centrist parading as liberalism" movement. he taps into the idea that because we've made "progress", that things are fine now, actually, and that even a lot of the bad stuff of the past was for the greater good, actually. and we will definitely keep "progressing" towards being "better" as a species without any further effort. very popular in liberal circles and it's annoying because at its core it's quite conservative.

F: 'The Night Circus' by Erin Morgenstern. interesting concept with 3/5 star execution and mid-tier prose. the ending was a cop-out, and it took a turn towards orientalism at the end. also fridged the major queer character after she revealed her queerness as part of the orientalism. lol.

15. an underrated book?

NF: Going to take this opportunity to plug a book that I've never seen anyone else talk about but that I think everyone with even a passing interest in archaeology or cultural heritage politics should read. 'Lords of Sipan' by Sidney D. Kirkpatrick is about the discovery of Moche royal tombs (in Peru) that had been untouched by grave robbers, and had to be defended upon its discovery from grave robbers. It's part action adventure part archaeological exposition. It's an immensely enjoyable read and it's a story of how an archaeological dig was mostly run by and stayed in the hands of the people who were descended from the long-dead. I saw an exhibition of some of the finds at the Met in NYC several years ago and they were stunning.

F: Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard (my spouse suggested this one and I agree). Should be waaaayy more popular than it actually is. If you like necromancy and sopping wet protagonists, definitely check this out.

16. the book that made u fall in love with reading?

THIS IS ALWAYS SUCH A FUNNY QUESTION FOR ME. When I was 5 or 6, there were already about 8 cousins on my dad's side of the family, including me and my two brothers. My grandparents ended up with little magnets with each of our names on them, and a little illustration for our interests or personalities. They were customized; my grandparents picked the illustrations. It was mostly airplanes and baseballs for the boys and flowers for the girls. I had a book on mine. My favorite game when I was in first grade was being asked by my parents to spell complicated words, and mostly getting them right. Reading is like breathing to me, even if I manage to not find enough time to do it as an adult with bills to pay. I truly could not tell you the first book i read that made me go "wow i love this shit" because i was too young and it was way too long ago LOL. it was probably literally like dr seuss or berenstain bears or some shit.

30. give any 3 book recs to ur followers!

'The Name of the Rose' by Umberto Eco

'A Marvellous Light' by Freya Marske

'Entangled Life' by Merlin Sheldrake

ask memes here:

[libratxt]

it’s that time of year again… 🎄🎅🎉🎊 no. the highlights of your 2023 media consumption of course! just like last year, i want to know your top 5 films, books, tv shows, songs/albums, pop culture moments if that’s your thing, and as a bonus: any favourite personal moment/achievement in the last year? new to you, new in release, either works! can’t wait to see your response and wishing you a happy new year! 😁🩷

yay!! i was so excited to receive this in my inbox again this year 💖 overall i feel like i consumed less media than last year? but here's a roundup of some of my favorite things this year:

movies

so most of the movies i really really enjoyed this year didn't actually come out this year lol but i really enjoyed:

skinamarink - i love horror and while this one might be too much of a slowburn for people, it really filled me with dread so yay!

birdman (or the unexpected virtue of ignorance) - i'd been meaning to get around to this one for a while and finally did! totally worth it. the writing and acting: immaculate!

stop making sense - one thing about me is i will enjoy a music doc. the energy in this is so so wonderful. i love david byrne, i love talking heads. left the theatre in a great mood

saltburn - a controversial pick probably. but i had fun! don't really care for the criticisms that it fails at being class critique. it's about being a little pathetic freak and wanting to crawl into someone else's skin for me.

crash (the cronenberg one) - another one i'd been meaning to get around to for a while. i've seen most of cronenberg's stuff and i deeply deeply enjoyed this one. it's about sex, it's about violence, it's about desire, it's about all the weird things the human body can do. i love cronenberg and this one was perfect to me. mwah!

music

crash (charli xcx) - i know, i'm a little late. i listened to this religiously this year. having seen cronenberg's crash this year also added a little extra flavor. obsessed. love it. several songs are on my spotify on repeat as we speak.

this is why (paramore) - ahh so much fun! i love paramore, love getting a new paramore album. the remix album is great too. i also got to see them this year and had a blast! paramore was the first concert i ever went to so getting to see them again is full circle for meee.

desire, i want to turn into you (caroline polachek) - fun!! i do prefer pang but i had fun!

skylight (pinegrove) - sleepy, twangy indie album. i enjoyed! it was soothing this year.

joy as an act of resistance (idles) - the opposite of a sleepy, twangy album! i'm hoping to catch idles in the new year since they're stopping in town :)

tv

not a great tv year for me tbh

succession - succession my beloved! banger of a final season. it will go down in the annals of my favorite tv shows for the rest of all time. kendall roy you will always be famous.

adventure time - revisiting adventure time for the first time in forever. it's fun, it's sweet, i have a soft spot for it. i'm on its final season but have yet to finished because i'm emotionally attached at this point.

video games

baldur's gate - all i've done with my time lately is play baldur's gate. eat, sleep, breathe baldur's gate. i have not touched my sims in months because i have no space but for baldur's gate on my computer. finally got a ps5 and immediately got baldur's gate so that i can finally play it properly because my mac can only barely run it!!! i'm emotionally attached to my little tiefling cleric. i am already fantasizing about my next playthrough.

top me moment!

lol as for personal successes this year: i got a fellowship with a really well-recognized poetry organization in my city that i have so much love for and that truly does so much good work for our community. i have been slowly working my way through the ranks. i started as a mentee last year, taught some poetry classes for them, and this year helped run their month-long festival, and am now working directly with them to help plan their month-long festival for next year. it feels so aligned with the kind of career i'd like to have in my life. next goal is to hopefully lock-in some kind of permanent position with them once my fellowship is over. hopefully i will have good news about that in next years wrap up! thanks again for asking this, i truly get a kick out of it!!

[lovelylotusf1]

Got tagged by two lovely people @borntogayz and @wisteria-wisteria!

star sign: Sagittarius! Born in December so I have to wait veeery long to celebrate stuff but then I can have two celebrations almost back to back with christmas coming up.

favorite holiday: German/Austrian carnival/Fasching! It's the time before the last 40 days before Easter holidays. There are several comedy shows to watch both live and on TV, everyone dresses up and it's generally a time to joke around!

last meal: made by my awesome grandma: spinach with potatoes, fried eggs and sausages.

current favorite musician: I like to listen to comedy music a lot and it's pretty much the only thing I listen to (that's not video game music). So I'd have to go with Tom Cardy.

last song listened to: "Wigglytuffs Guild" from the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon - Explorers of Sky soundtrack! It's my alarm :D

last movie watched: Frozen 2 lol. It played on TV before Christmas.

last tv show watched: Honestly don't know, I haven't really watched any shows recently. Either Good Omens season 2 when it came out or The Dragon Prince.

last book/fic finished:

Book: Scum Villain's Self Saving System Volume 4. I was deep into the danmei trenches before f1.

Fic: don't take too much (off of me) by the amazing @wisteria-wisteria! Highly recommend, it's short, funny and a perfect mix of angsty pining and fluff.

last book/fic abandoned:

Book: Probably a Warrior Cats book. Two years ago I had a sudden spike in interest in reliving this part of my childhood, bought a lot of the books I had missing and stopped reading in the middle of... season 3 I think?

Fic: "Entirely out of spite" by bgtea. I loved it but I fell out of the Genshin Impact fandom a while ago.

currently reading: Too many things open in my tabs to say exactly.

last thing researched for writing/art/hyperfixation: Lots of things for my planned Lestappen AU. You can probably guess what it is based on the google history:

Dutch sweets

Ontbijtkoek recipe

Daily schedule of a baker

When do shops open in monaco

Rent prices in Monaco

favorite online fandom memory: I've only been active in fandom since I started writing for f1! The amazing people I met through F1blr and got to chat with will be my most treasured fandom memory for sure!!

favorite old fandom you wish would drag you back in/have a resurgence: I'm content with being where I am right now.

favorite thing you enjoy that never had an active or big fandom, but you wish it did: The Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series have a pretty active fandom but not a very big one (I think). It's my favourite game series of all time so I think it deserves a big fandom.

tempting project you don't have time for: Sooo many AU ideas. I have sunk my teeth into two, one interesting one and a rather niche one, which I will both finish someday, but the poor rest will probably end up abandoned :(

don't really know who has already done this, so feel free to ignore the tag!

I'm tagging @laura1633 @ravenrage27 and @charlclerc ! <3

[marshallfan99]

Happy 10th Anniversary, PAW Patrol!!!

Wow, I can't believe it's already been 10 years...it feels like it was just recently that I was sitting there in the living room of my family's vacation rental home in front of the TV and watching the premiere episode with my brothers...and then spending the rest of the week in front of the TV watching new episodes every day because I couldn't do anything else with a giant cast on my dominant arm. Marshall and the other pups kept me occupied during that otherwise painful vacation, and I've stuck with PAW Patrol ever since.

(That's only ONE of the MANY Marshall moments that cheered me up and made me laugh during that week.)

(And here's another one...also relatable since I'm always falling down stairs and stuff 😅)

This show has helped me through so many tough times in my life, like depression, anxiety, etc. It acts as a great escape from reality, an amazing source of comfort, something that's easy to just turn on and watch when I need to unwind or want something I can have lighthearted fun with, it's easy to just turn it on after meltdowns or when my brain is fried and veg out to it since it's harmless fun that doesn't cause intense emotional responses from me, and I even binge it during nights where I have insomnia! It's so important to me, and it even saved my life a couple times...yep, that's right, the pups have saved me too, that's how much of an impact they've had on me. They've taught me so many things as well, from the importance of teamwork, to never giving up when things get "ruff" (hehe, sorry I had to, that's my inner Marshall at work 😅), to always looking out for your friends and helping them whenever you can, to "Do my best, and forget the rest!", to the very important message of you don't have to have superpowers to be a hero (this one was WAY before Mighty Pups was a thing).

(Seriously this is one of my mottos, thanks for that lesson, Marshall!)

(Had to put a Mighty Pups GIF in here after ending the paragraph by mentioning it lol)

I never stopped liking PAW Patrol even during the time I had to take a break from it for my mental health reasons, and I actually missed it so much during my time away from it. Eventually I decided I couldn't stay away any longer and came back to it with the goal of using it to help me overcome my severe PTSD siren phobia, which is why I had to step away in the first place...and it's working! I can actually watch it now without freaking out and going into panic mode which is great because now I can watch my favorite show with no problems, just like I used to!

When PAW Patrol premiered back in 2013, it VERY quickly became a special interest for me even though I was NEVER in the target age range for it, being in my early teens when it premiered, and I'm also actually afraid of dogs in real life...cartoon dogs like the PAW Patrol pups are cool though, and Marshall is my favorite cartoon dog of all time, and he's actually tied with a Pokemon (another special interest of mine) character for my number one favorite fictional character of all time! He's so relatable, adorable, funny, and has a truly PAWsome personality! Also the fact that he is TWO THIRDS of 911, BY HIMSELF is pretty amazing too in my opinion. Unfortunately his skills aren't needed much anymore in the newer seasons, which makes me kinda sad. I wish he got more screentime in the newer seasons...but instead it's always Chase and Skye now. I am still hoping for him to get his own focus movie though. I'm holding myself back from going on and on about Marshall this time, I've done that enough in my Marshall appreciation post and this whole account already and this is supposed to be about PAW Patrol as a whole anyway, not just him 😅

(The most PAWsome team ever!)

My parents don't really approve of me getting and playing with the toys and merch, but I can still get it thanks to my grandma who knows how important PAW Patrol is to me...in fact, I just got a couple of Mighty Pups t-shirts (because of the upcoming Mighty Movie) thanks to her, one of them featuring a huge image of Mighty Marshall (of course, that one is my favorite), the other one featuring an image of Mighty Chase, Marshall, Rubble, and Skye with the text, "Mighty Pup Power!" I was so thrilled to learn that there are officially licensed PAW Patrol shirts in adult sizes and had to get some! If anyone else wants to get some PAW Patrol shirts in your size, Amazon has plenty of adult-sized PAW Patrol shirts to choose from, with some PAWsome designs too! I'm so happy that the creators know that this show has a strong teen/adult fanbase, and acknowledge us by making shirts that fit us! And I'm so happy that this show exists!

(This is my favorite part of the opening theme!)

(Cute dancing pups from the movie!)

This has been a long rambly post, but I really wanted to post something for PAW Patrol's 10th anniversary, and talk about how much it means to me. Growing up autistic and with no friends, just bullies for the majority of my life because of it, made me turn to the TV for comfort, and I often saw the characters on TV shows I watched as my friends. I had a very lonely life and when PAW Patrol premiered, I found seven new friends in the pups and Ryder (with Marshall being my best friend), and I tuned in for every new episode when I could, to watch their latest adventures. Starting with Everest, each time a new pup (or cat) has been added to the team has felt to me like I also gained a new friend as well, even though I do have actual friends now, the PAW Patrol still feel like friends to me. It wasn't a "phase" like my parents had always said, it still isn't a "phase"...it's a HUGE part of my life and I'm extremely grateful that PAW Patrol is still going strong even after 10 years and 10 seasons.

Happy 10th, PAW Patrol! And here's to many more years and adventures to come in the future!

[weirdthoughtsandideas]

I do think Silver Fang/hopeanouli was more popular for the 90s kids, as back then everyone got VHSes and it got sold/rented in every store that had videos. So it got a cult status for those who grew up with it. Then it depends for the 00s kids. Some people I know born in the early 00s know exactly what it is, others have never heard of it.

I think you should do a survey if people know about it or not, I think it can be funny.

I know in Sweden too there's been so many shows in the 80s/90s that they dubbed but never aired on tv, and only released on vhs, so those shows got to be cult classics for those that happened to own them, while others never heard of them. With animes especially it seems like in the Nordic countries, they all dubbed a handful of eps of several animes and released on VHS (because, I know in Sweden's case, the television network "didn't understand" animes back then so they never aired them on TV, so you only could get them on tape. They have aired Moomins, Sailor Moon and Pokemon on tv ofc, but that was not until later), and the dubs are often hilariously bad but charming.

I do wonder if your knowledge also has to do if you like animes or not. I mean, as kids we might not have realized it was animes and just thought of it as "animated shows" (didn't know 90s moomin was an anime until really late lol), but I think if you're more into anime you're more likely to know it possibly.

I've asked my swedish friends born in the 00s, and lots of them have heard the name Silver Fang but fewer has watched. But when seeing people online, the 80s and 90s kids from Sweden seem to talk about it like it's very well known, just like finnish people who grew up at the same time. Apparently in Finland they have also translated the manga, so it seems to be the most popular there since they didn't translate the manga anywhere else in the nordic countries.

Anyway! Yeah! Let's do a poll!

"European" includes all european countries that is not the 4 already mentioned. I know Iceland is a nordic country too, but I realized I had clogged up the polls lol (and I think most people voting will be from Finland or Scandinavia, so they got the most options), so now Iceland is included with the rest of Europe.

[imaginedmelody]

please feel free to talk about any of your middle aged gays wips I would LOVE to hear about any of them 👀💖

Beloved, this is literally my love language and you KNOW that 💖💖💖 A few of these are either not quite middle-aged or only one of the two members is, but here we go:

Allen Hynek & Michael Quinn, Project Blue Book- Listen, I know Allen Hynek was a real person, but the version of him in this TV series is very fictional and my version is even more so 🤣My top WIP right now is an aromantic-Allen fic which I am going to tentatively say is ALMOST done. It's what I'm usually working on in sprints (and I'm going to say something bold here: there's one passage in this that may be some of my favorite words I've ever written.) This pairing has the cocky fighter pilot/nerdy professor dynamic we've all been waiting for. The show is enjoyable if not outstanding, cancelled 1 season before it should have ended, and the fandom is not nearly big enough.

Irving & Burt, Severance- The ULTIMATE canon yearning! I've been working on a fic about them for months, but the fact that there's so much mystery associated with this show means that trying to write a romantic interaction with them outside of Lumon is proving complicated, lol. I've written pretty much all of it except the part that requires any explanation of the logistics of this show's universe. IDK, I am just deeply drawn to the vulnerability of two people whose knowledge of each other is confined to this very limited existence, stepping outside of that place's boundaries and discovering each other in the process. This fic has Irv and Burt flirting over classical music as well; between pieces I'm going to mention in the fic and other non-classical pieces that remind me of the pairing, I'm tempted to include a playlist along with this when I publish it.

Ted Lasso & Trent Crimm, Ted Lasso- Okay, okay, I don't have any solid WIPs about these two at the moment (there's one I started a long time ago that is in sleep mode until I figure out what I want to do with it), but Season 3 premieres March 15th and Trent Crimm apparently plays a "significant role" in it, so you KNOW I will have ideas in the very near future. I enjoy writing these two so much; they have such unique voices and that is so much fun to play with as a writer. Plus this trope is like grumpy/sunshine if the sunshine was secretly a clinically anxious mess of a human and the grumpy's harsh exterior was only a facade and he was unexpectedly very willing to have an open mind and see the good in someone.

Murray Bauman & Alexei, Stranger Things- (Alexei probably isn't quite "middle aged" here, but I'm including this anyway) Another underrated pairing, but I love their dynamic. Two people on opposite sides who could very easily be bitter enemies, but who (in the show, in canon) instead bond with each other so quickly! They snark and sass, but Murray is quite literally the only person who speaks Alexei's language, in personality as well as in actual words. I've already written fic for them, and I thought that was gonna be it, but I have more to say, lol

There are so many more middle-aged gays I love but haven't written for too! Truly we are in our best era with all of these wonderful pairings.

[srslybusiness]

No, go ahead and poke that hornet's nest, because there are so many moments in the Good Omens miniseries that are so so much 'That certainly was A CHOICE' or 'No one pointed this out?'. The book isn't perfect, there's several bits and pieces that were not in best taste or didn't age too well, but they are not unfixable neither are they essential to the plot so they can be polished. But the show? The casting was already very... 'ummm' in cases, and then there's new bits and changes to characters and stuff, that really leave a bad taste. And it's not just on the topic of race. It's just... wth.

God, honestly I'm just.

Look, I understand the reaction to how when a character is depicted as bad/turning bad they suddenly not white/pale anymore. I've seen this plenty of times in plenty of media, I get the initial reaction.

But if you read GO you'd *know* that Crowley is never depicted like that. He's not a cartoon evil character, he's depicted very human. He questioned about how is it fair to ask for the same standard from people when they're not all born with the same advantages in life.

He believes that we are more than how/what we're born as.

Like, I just don't get how making him not white when talking about book design is *bad*. He's literally the one who convinced Aziraphale to save the earth. He's the one who don't even stopped even when the odds are against him. Beyond the initial reaction I just don't get it I'm sorry. I don't see what's so bad about it.

And idk I first see those type of post after the TV show but at the same time it's like, some of the complains I've seen about don't even talk about the other castings like, Ligur? Uriel? That minor demon who's basically a comedic relief who dies repeatedly? Like, so those are ok but if you make the demon protagonist not white it isn't?

Yes, I do think it's weird if you're doing that to the TV casting bc DT is a white guy, but if you're coming up with a design for book version I don't see what's so wrong about that. The point is that angels and demons are more like each other than you think. It's not just Good vs Bad. They're 2 sides of the same coins not 2 separate things.

Ugh sorry this is going everywhere. Anon, you honestly raised the same issues I've been thinking about so thanks for laying it all out but yeah sorry my reply is a mess lol

[jennawynn]

Chronotrek: Disco Season 2 Part 4?

Episode 11

mmm body horror. exactly what i like over my mac and cheese :joy:

I really like this kind of intro where there's a bunch of images that you can contextualize differently as the season goes on. it's like a scavenger hunt.

Michael's face journeys are always such a sight to see. Her indignance when she hears that her mom doesn't want her to come down.

lol "Hamlet. Hell, yeah."

Mom's like 'I feel nothing about you because all life is going to die.' Michael's like 'I will feel for both of us.'

Did they have to flashback the "unacceptable risk to the larger mission"? They don't trust us to remember the 'unique turn of phrase' we just heard in the last scene?

As soon as Mom did the UNO Reverse and started talking about how much she was there with Michael, watching, I knew she wasn't going to come back any time (haha) soon.

Episode 12

I feel... I dunno, disappointed? in the direction this went. There was time fuckery and everything... and it just boils down to Evil AI? An Evil AI that was supposedly already killed, but 'not really because I said so'. With a hefty dose of 'nothing you're doing is working because I said so'. Maybe I'm just feeling frustrated like Michael is :joy:

The biological imperative of protecting a child is... idk, I don't like it in pretty much any context. It feels lazy and reductive. Add it to Ash's story, a story I'm already unenthused about, and it only makes me dislike it more. "This child I've never met is my child and I would do literally anything to protect them because they are made of me." Ugh. Like. I think I don't like it because of the assumed elevation of biological parenthood and procreation over everything else, the assumption that bio parents are best parents, that all parents feel this way. The way it's lumped in with 'you might not want kids now, but if you have one, you'll connect and change and feel it later'.

I remember seeing somewhere that God does not exist in Star Trek. But that's at least twice now "God" has been referenced by characters in this show. Did they slip, or did they make the active choice to go against the old standard?

This whole 'capture it in a cage of a new system' thing doesn't feel like how computers work. Or why they're getting under the floor to do things. It feels forced like so much of this arc. Now... Gant being 'infected'? That I saw coming.

I don't know, maybe they just needed to make it a threat that could be seen and interacted with because 1) TV is a visual medium and 2) it might be hard to understand what's happening without it.

I couldn't explain it if I tried. "The crystals cause things to age fast." There, explained it :joy:

Episode 13

Those evacuation corridors were hot. lol I love seeing the way they bring the science to life. Though the folding/unfolding thing would be very.. questionable to me. Lots of stress on the joints.

You know... even though I knew they go to the future (which is why I don't get to watch Disco season 3+ until after I watch everything else), I somehow didn't see this coming?? Like. I don't know why? I assumed it was some accidental thing or something (maybe because I thought there were still several episodes left in this season). Even though again

I knew Disco season 3+ is in the future

I know that the plan was originally to send the data with the suit into the future

lmao Georgiou: simply find a nova and fire an antimatter torpedo into its core. Saru: We'd be responsible for the loss of life through dozens of light years Georgiou: Uh... yeah. Michael: We're not doing that. G: I thought there were no bad ideas. Pike/Admiral: That's a bad one. That's a lie.

Which genius built that? My mom. I had a special mom too. Georgiou: Ugh.

That was like three sentences and it still made me want to cry.

Listen I just want to repeat every line Georgiou has. 'like a galactic rubber band with a martyr complex.'

Oh no, now I am crying at this Sarek, Amanda, Michael scene.

And everyone standing with her :sob: But god leave Ash behind please.

Oh yay! lol ....ugh.

Oh no, all the going away messages :sob: They're just trying to wreck me.

Wait, Spock can't go. He's in the other ones.

So weird that 'parade rest' is the kind of informal salute of respect for Starfleet.

The cage is slowing things down, so Tilly calls for help, but not from Po? Who made the cage? Who already said she's not leaving? And was verified to not be back on her planet yet? Where's she at?

God I'm stressed. I'm almost glad I have to go back to work and can't watch the finale yet.

4 hours later... seriously i think i cried so much i gave myself a headache that is STILL HERE.

Episode 14

"Leland! We were just talking about you. Everybody hates you. Congratulations."

Man... I gotta say I'm kinda surprised that they were surprised that the 31 ships were nano-botted into micro-ships by Control.

At some point the people on Discovery have to realize that they're actually more likely to survive this battle than the folks on Enterprise, right? Like... yeah, they're going into the future and leaving everyone they've ever known behind, but at least they'll be alive.

Going to give my usual 'evasive actions and attack patterns being prescripted is silly' speech... like chess moves being memorized, especially playing against an AI. The only way to win is to be surprising. Anyway.

They're surrounded (but still in planar orientation, like a disc, not a sphere) but they still say all power to forward shields??

Get off my ass! Sir. Get off my ass, sir!

"Starboard shields..." and then they turn 90 degrees and show their whole topside against the enemy like a shield. Wish they'd like... use the terminology they're showing.

This cocoon thing is stressing me out. It's so well designed to explain exactly what's happening, and it isn't confusing like a lot of action scenes can be.

The DOT 7s are adorable.

Shouldn't the two big ships also be moving? Like... they're sitting ducks. Go up or down and move. Space is 3 dimensional.

You're my home. :sob:

Such a cool way to portray going through the time wormhole, with time turning into a static image on a plane of glass, seen from behind with the textured hole around emptiness... In other jumps, it looks like a CD.

Ok as much shit as I give them for making stuff up to make it sound scientific, this fight on the walls and ceiling is fun.

Why are captains so goddamn self-sacrificing? _You don't sacrifice the queen or king without good goddamn reason._

Are they really asking how she's gonna guide them through DURING THE FIGHT?? Shouldn't this have been figured out before?

And why aren't the people working on the torpedo in EV suits just in case they get ripped out into space? I guess it's faster that way.

Why was the effect of that torpedo so much worse than normal ones? Don't they fire those all the time?

Ah, so that's why Spock stays.

Y'all. _People are dying._ Hurry this up. lol

Fuckin Enterprise looks like someone took a bite out of the cookie.

Number One's name and rank is "Number One" :joy:

lol how convenient that "we have sworn to never speak your name with others' to explain why Spock, who is so central to TOS, never mentions a sibling.

He looks so different all cleaned up.

And that's it for Discovery until I get through all 1000 hours of the rest of the entire fucking series of serieses! lmao

looks like I have a couple short treks to get to before we move on to Strange New Worlds.

[moraxsthrone]

Violet, Crocus (ehe), Bluebell and Tigerlily goooooo -w-

ohhhhkay...you asked for it!

violet— do you like to cook or bake? if so, what is it that you like to make?

i do like to cook! it's one of the few things i'm good at lol! my favorite is japanese cuisine (esp rice bowls and chirashisuhsi), but with the drought in california (the us's main sushi rice supply source) it's been so difficult/expensive to get any and you kinda need rice to make most japanese dishes lol? so i've been making italian food instead (and it shows in the way my clothes fit tighter 😩). not so much into baking, but i will sometimes.

crocus— do you have any significant dreams that you remember? what were they about?

bruh. all my life, i've had crazy ass dreams. and i remember a lot of them. probably the most vivid/profound was one i had 15+ years ago. i was a little girl (in the dream; i can't remember if i was late teens or early 20s irl) and there were 2 snakes: one red, one black and they were kinda wrapped around each other? they were HUGE but i wasn't scared of them. in fact, i was sliding down their backs, laughing and having a good time. i got the sense that they were protecting me? i came to learn much later on that what i dreamed about was a double ouroboros, which looks like this and is a very powerful symbol with several meanings:

bluebell— do you have any pets? if so, what are their names?

nope, no furbabies. but i do have a lot of plant babies! probably close to 50 of them. between them and my son, i don't need anything else to take care of lol.

tigerlily— do you have any favorite quotes from any movies, tv shows, books, or poetry? (or from people in real life)

gahhhh so many! here are a few...

"repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability to lift an eye to heaven, conscious of its fleeting time here" - lyrics from the song "right in two" by tool (fave band ever)

"build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day. set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life." - sir terry pratchett

"light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. no matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." - sir terry pratchett (again)

"great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." - albert einstein

"i am not what you think i am. you are what you think i am." - the buddha

"someone i loved once gave me a box full of darkness. it took me years to understand that this, too, was a gift." - mary oliver

+ listen, buddy wakefield is my favorite poet. there are so many of his that i love so much, but here are my faves:

"i no longer need you to fuck me as hard as i hated myself. make love to me like you know i am better than the worst thing i ever did."

"...the moon...it did not have to be full for us to love it."

"we can stretch van gogh paintings from seattle, washington to binghampton, new york and you still won't find the brilliant brush strokes it takes to be a single mother."

"it takes a long time to make love with someone who hates themselves."

...there are so many more, but i've already listed too many!