#Ill dissert about it futurely

[foxmulderautism]

boys when they finish their degree at 2:48am on a friday 

doing something silly tonight

[ckerouac]

Alright, for @spaceorphan18 my list of the books I’ve read in the first chunk of this year (Jan-Apr) that I’d highly recommend. My 4 stars & above.

Fiction

Paladin's Faith by T Kingfisher

Marguerite Florian is a spy with two problems. A former employer wants her dead, and one of her new bodyguards is a far too good-looking paladin with a martyr complex. Shane is a paladin with three problems. His god is dead, his client is much too attractive for his peace of mind, and a powerful organization is trying to have them both killed. Add in a brilliant artificer with a device that may change the world, a glittering and dangerous court, and a demon-led cult, and Shane and Marguerite will be lucky to escape with their souls intact, never mind their hearts…

Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez

A young father and son set out on a road trip, devastated by the death of the wife and mother they both loved. United in grief, the pair travel to her ancestral home, where they must confront the terrifying legacy she has bequeathed: a family called the Order that commits unspeakable acts in search of immortality. For Gaspar, the son, this maniacal cult is his destiny. As the Order tries to pull him into their evil, he and his father take flight, attempting to outrun a powerful clan that will do anything to ensure its own survival. But how far will Gaspar’s father go to protect his child? And can anyone escape their fate?

Death Valley by Melissa Broder

A woman arrives alone at a Best Western seeking respite from an emptiness that plagues her. She has fled to the California high desert to escape a cloud of sorrow—for both her father in the ICU and a husband whose illness is worsening. What the motel provides, however, is not peace but a path, thanks to a receptionist who recommends a nearby hike. Out on the sun-scorched trail, the woman encounters a towering cactus whose size and shape mean it should not exist in California. Yet the cactus is there, with a gash through its side that beckons like a familiar door. So she enters it. What awaits her inside this mystical succulent sets her on a journey at once desolate and rich, hilarious and poignant.

The Pisces by Melissa Broder

Lucy has been writing her dissertation on Sappho for nine years when she and her boyfriend break up in a dramatic flameout. After she bottoms out in Phoenix, her sister in Los Angeles insists Lucy dog-sit for the summer. Everything changes when Lucy becomes entranced by an eerily attractive swimmer while sitting alone on the beach rocks one night. But when Lucy learns the truth about his identity, their relationship, and Lucy's understanding of what love should look like, take a very unexpected turn.

Nonfiction

The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party by Daniel James Brown

In April of 1846, twenty-one-year-old Sarah Graves, intent on a better future, set out west from Illinois with her new husband, her parents, and eight siblings. Seven months later, after joining a party of pioneers led by George Donner, they reached the Sierra Nevada Mountains as the first heavy snows of the season closed the pass ahead of them. In early December, starving and desperate, Sarah and fourteen others set out for California on snowshoes, and, over the next thirty-two days, endured almost unfathomable hardships and horrors.

Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism by Rachel Maddow

Inspired by her research for the hit podcast Ultra, Rachel Maddow charts the rise of a wild American strain of authoritarianism that has been alive on the far-right edge of our politics for the better part of a century. Before and even after our troops had begun fighting abroad in World War II, a clandestine network flooded the country with disinformation aimed at sapping the strength of the U.S. war effort and persuading Americans that our natural alliance was with the Axis, not against it. It was a sophisticated and shockingly well-funded campaign to undermine democratic institutions, promote antisemitism, and destroy citizens’ confidence in their elected leaders, with the ultimate goal of overthrowing the U.S. government and installing authoritarian rule. While the scheme has been remembered in history—if at all—as the work of fringe players, in reality it involved a large number of some of the country’s most influential elected officials. Their interference in law enforcement efforts against the plot is a dark story of the rule of law bending and then breaking under the weight of political intimidation. That failure of the legal system had consequences. The tentacles of that unslain beast have reached forward into our history for decades.

Ice: From Mixed Drinks to Skating Rinks—A Cool History of a Hot Commodity by Amy Brady

In Ice, journalist and historian Amy Brady shares the strange and storied two-hundred-year-old history of ice in America: from the introduction of mixed drinks “on the rocks,” to the nation’s first-ever indoor ice rink, to how delicacies like ice creams and iced tea revolutionized our palates, to the ubiquitous ice machine in every motel across the US. But Ice doesn’t end in the past. Brady also explores the surprising present-day uses of ice in sports, medicine, and sustainable energy—including cutting-edge cryotherapy breast-cancer treatments and new refrigerator technologies that may prove to be more energy efficient—underscoring how precious this commodity is, especially in an age of climate change.

Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures by Merlin Sheldrake

Sheldrake’s vivid exploration takes us from yeast to psychedelics, to the fungi that range for miles underground and are the largest organisms on the planet, to those that link plants together in complex networks known as the “Wood Wide Web,” to those that infiltrate and manipulate insect bodies with devastating precision. Sheldrake reveals how these extraordinary organisms—and our relationships with them—are changing our understanding of how life works.

Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s by Sarah Ditum

Welcome to celebrity culture in the early aughts: the reign of Perez Hilton, celebrity sex tapes, and dueling tabloids fed by paparazzi who were willing to do anything to get the shot. Toxic tells the stories of nine women who defined the hell of celebrity in the 2000s and explores how they were devoured by fame, how they attempted to control their own narratives, and how they succeeded or (more often) failed. These women come from all walks of fame—pop music, acting, reality TV, and WWE wrestling. Some of them you think you know already, and others will be less familiar, but Toxic reveals these women neither as pure victims nor as conniving strategists, but as complex individuals trying to navigate celebrity while under attack from a vicious and fast-changing media.

Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen

There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States. Nuclear War: A Scenario examines the handful of minutes after a nuclear missile launch.

UFO: The inside story of the US government’s search for alien life here - and out there by Garrett M. Graff

For as long as we have looked to the skies, the question of whether life on Earth is the only life to exist has been at the core of the human experience, driving scientific debate and discovery, shaping spiritual belief, and prompting existential thought across borders and generations. And yet, the idea of extraterrestrial intelligence has been largely seen as a joke, banished to the realm of fantasy and conspiracy. Now, for the first time, the full story of our national obsession with UFOs—and the covert, decades-long search by scientists, the United States military, and the CIA for proof of alien life—is told by bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize finalist Garrett M. Graff in a deeply reported and researched history.

[grodyego]

SOFA TALK ABOUT DOVE OR ILL KILL YOU

GEHEHE THANK YOU !!!!! glad to appease the other #1 dove fan, who isnt just Me

honestly though i dont even know where to begin. for the uninitiated dove is an oc of mine who ive had since i thiiink 2017 or so, maybe ? he's a knight from the middle ages who has been displaced in time to the distant future (extremely distant, in his case) where he is then " recruited " by a group called T.A.R.G.I.T. to deal with a variety of things, but more often than not freaky sci fi wasteland mutants.

dove is intense and tends to speak or show his emotions very little, lending him a kind of stoic severity in the eyes of others. he is quite cynical and distrustful but still finds himself bound to a kind of protective instinct he can't seem to ever fully shake. he's pretty superstitious and believes very strongly in the concept of fate but can't seem to stop himself from acting out in ways that spite that fact. hes a knight who deeply resents pretty much all authority. and hes morbidly obsessed with his own suffering, as you would kind of expect a guy from the middle ages to be. his favorite animals are bugs and horses, he can do a bunch of bird calls (and more !), and he enjoys reading and crocheting in his spare time

he might honestly be my favorite oc, i mean i tend to cycle through a "favorite" a lot depending but i always do end up coming back to him pretty frequently. i could easily write a full college dissertation's worth of stuff about him but ill show a bit of restraint and not do that, even though its my birthdayyyy

i know i said i wasnt going to make myself fret over these having images but i need ppl who maybe havent seen him to see him so here are some commissions from @abyssalzones and @neptunebeetle cuz i dont wanna post my own art. its old ok. and i need to redesign his armor but im showing it off here cuz these drawings still make it look sick as fuck

[kirstlander]

I was tagged by the wonderful @likesummerrainn tysm <33 Post ten of comfort movies and tag ten people. Also these are in no particular order.

The Mummy (1999) This is THE ultimate comfort movie for me and my favourite movie of all time. There are no downsides: the cast, the action, the soundtrack chef's kiss. I've lost count of the amount of times I've seen this but it's been on the regular since I was six so take that as you will. Also, the first time I saw this movie, I had a really bad fever and hallucinated the scarab beetles were chasing me.

2. The Mummy Returns A solid sequel, lots of fun, and so much more Ardeth. He truly was on one of my first loves. Really set the scene for future Kirsty to develop a Type.

3. Howl's Moving Castle My first Ghibli film! Do I 100% understand the plot of this movie? No but that's irrelevant. Stunning and so beautiful. Every time I hear the music I feel so safe and happy. I recently watched this on a flight from Prague to Amsterdam and had the best time.

4. Overlord A weird tradition where I often watch this when I get ill. It's an intense horror movie set in world war two and there's nazi zombies. Non-stop action right from the beginning. Also made me fall in love with Wyatt Russell a wee bit.

5. Insidious Saw this in the cinema when it first came out and it was like they made a horror movie exactly how I would make it. It's not perfect but it's really fun and I love the aesthetic.

6. The Conjuring I think at this point we can establish the fact that Patrick Wilson is a babe. Again, very easy and fun and I love the dynamic of a husband and wife ghost hunting team that love and look after each other.

7. The Lost Boys Do I know this off by heart? Yes. Top tier vampire movie and incredible soundtrack. There is nothing bad about this movie other than it ends. I had the biggest crush on Alex Winter because of this movie (and still do let's be real). Thanks to my mum for showing me it when I was little.

8. Rocknrolla I went through a weird period in 2015-2016 during my last year of uni where I would watch this movie constantly. I think it became a genuine hyper fixation as a result of stress and keeping on top of my academic work and dissertation so it became a "safe" movie. Underhyped Guy Ritchie movie.

9. Pride and Prejudice True love is real. The soundtrack, the cinematography, the yearning, the hands!! Ugh, I love it so much.

10. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) You cannot tell me this movie is not good. I wanted to be Lara so bad (and still kinda do). I think people look down on this because they're seeing it from a more modern lens but it's really fun and FEELS like a Tomb Raider movie. It still holds up tbh.

Okay so I don't think I'm going to tag anyone just because I've been tagging people quite a lot recently and don't want to bother anyone! However, if you do want to do this, PLEASE DO and tag me so I can see because it would be so much fun to see what other people have put.

[quodnonnecatemunit]

"De Rerum Natura" (Latin: [deː ˈreːrʊn naːˈtuːraː]; On the Nature of Things) is a first-century BC didactic poem by the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius (c. 99 BC – c. 55 BC) with the goal of explaining Epicurean philosophy to a Roman audience. The problem was that Epicureanism had already been exported to Rome but it wasn't accepted by the higher social classes, leaning towards stoicism, that thought Epicurus' philosophy was a lame invitation to the pleasures of flesh. Nothing more wrong! Epicurean philosophers wanted to prescribe moral antidotes against the major fears of humanity, leading it to happiness: the first four Principal Doctrines from Epicurus, called "Tetrapharmakos", are recommendations to avoid anxiety or existential dread. 1) Don't fear god

2) Don't worry about death

3) What is good is easy to get

4) What is terrible is easy to endure In fact: 1) A happy and eternal being has no trouble himself and brings no trouble upon any other being; hence he is exempt from movements of anger and partiality, for every such movement implies weakness

2) Death is nothing to us; for the body, when it has been resolved into its elements, has no feeling, and that which has no feeling is nothing to us.

3) The magnitude of pleasure reaches its limit in the removal of all pain. When pleasure is present, so long as it is uninterrupted, there is no pain either of body or of mind or of both together.

4) Continuous pain does not last long in the body; on the contrary, pain, if extreme, is present a short time, and even that degree of pain which barely outweighs pleasure in the body does not last for many days together. Illnesses of long duration even permit of an excess of pleasure over pain in the body. To the Greek philosopher Epicurus, the unhappiness and degradation of humans arose largely from the dread which they entertained of the power of the deities, from terror of their wrath. This wrath was supposed to be displayed by the misfortunes inflicted in this life and by the everlasting tortures that were the lot of the guilty in a future state. Lucretius's task was to clearly state and fully develop these views in an attractive form; his work was an attempt to show through poetry that everything in nature can be explained by natural laws, without the need for the intervention of divine beings. He explores the principles of atomism; the nature of the mind and soul; explanations of sensation and thought; the development of the world and its phenomena; and explains a variety of celestial and terrestrial phenomena. Why through a poem? Because he knew that philosophy dissertations, and especially atomism and epicureanism, were hard to understand, comprehend and grasp. So, philosophy is like a medicine: life-saving, but often unpleasant. In order to make someone ingest that medicine, you have to sweeten it, thus the use of poetic form in Lucretius' "De Rerum Natura", which I'll directly quote: "Sed veluti pueris absinthia tetra medentes/cum dare conantur, prius oras pocula circum/contingunt mellis dulci flavoque liquore,/ut puerorum aetas improvida ludificetur labrorum tenus, interea perpotet amarum/absinthi laticem deceptaque non capiatur,/sed potius tali facto recreata valescat/sig ego nunc, quoniam haec ratio plerumque videtur/testior esse quibus non est tractata, retroque/ vulgus abhorret ab hac, volui tibi suaviloquenti/ carmine Pierio rationem exponere nostram/ et quasi musaeo dulci contingere melle " "But as when doctors try to give children the disgusting absinthe, they first sprinkle the rims all around the cups with sweet and blond (liquid of) honey, so that the inexperienced children are deceived to the lips, and meanwhile they drink to the bottom of the bitter juice of absinthe and, though deceived, they receive no harm, but rather regenerated in this way they regain their health, so now, since this doctrine seems too difficult to those who have not dealt with it thoroughly, and the common people flee from it, I wanted to expose my reason to you with the harmonious song of the Pierides"

[junebugwriter]

Disabilities I

Since I have some time, I'll tell you all a bit about what the deal is with my disability, and why I am writing about disability in my dissertation.

Back in 2012, I got into a car accident. My girlfriend (now wife) was in the car with me, but I bore the brunt of the impact, and as a result, got some moderate spinal damage. That resulted in me going to physical therapy for a few months, but the lasting damage resulted in fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia isn't so much as a single disease, as it is a cluster of related symptoms that don't neatly fit into one classification or particular syndrome. It's more like, "you don't have x, y, or z, but you have all the same symptoms, so we're going to put you in the big bin that's labeled TO BE SORTED LATER." This is gross simplification, of course, but it's close enough for jazz.

Fibromyalgia is mostly related to a conjunction of hyperactive and inflamed nerves, chronic fatigue, and chronic pain. My body thinks I have an infection or an injury, but there is none there, so I get all the lovely side effects of my body fighting off or healing itself without the benefit of actually healing or fighting off an illness. It's not great! It's often comorbid with depression and anxiety, which I also have.

Really, the only reason I was able to get the fibro diagnosis was because my partner ALSO has fibro, and the only reason she knows she has it is because her sister has it! No one thing causes it, but it is often related to genetics or physical trauma. She saw all the signs of it in me, got me to see a rheumatologist, and sure enough, I have all the signs of fibro.

What I struggle most with is with the nerves and the exhaustion. I have chronic fatigue, and the rest I get from sleep isn't all that restorative. Whereas most people tend to wake up rested, I wake up more or less the same amount of tired a regular person feels before going to sleep.

I'm relatively lucky, to be honest. I'm able to manage my pain and such with medication. I'm even able to go to the gym a few times a week, energy permitting. But that takes a lot of effort, and I probably don't see all the benefits a regular person would get from exercise because of a cluster of reasons, related to my thyroid, fibro, and other things.

Oh, and just this past year, I've gotten serious about addressing my latent ADHD. I've had it all my life, but the difference now is that I'm trying to write a goddamn book, and that takes a lot more mental energy and organization than I usually have. This may be needed to addressed in another post, but the fact of the matter is, I'm taking a lot longer to write this thing than most people, partly because I'm working full time, and partly because my brain simply does not work like most neurotypical brains and requires a lot more effort to simply write one page whereas others might be able to knock out much more in a night than I would with the same amount of effort.

So there's my disabilities as they stand. I'll probably try to talk a bit more about them in future posts. It's an ongoing conversation, but having been diagnosed with disabilities like this has given me a much greater focus on the issues disabled folks face in society, and in my case, the church.

Writing about disability is both freeing but also complicated. Nobody experiences the same disability the same way, and can be affected by comorbidities that result in different experiences. I'll try to be as honest about my struggles with disability as possible, because it's good to get these stories out into the world and out of my brain. But also? We shouldn't be afraid to talk about our disabilities. In all statistical likelihood, you will be affected by a disability, either in your life or in a loved one's life. So it's good to be honest about struggles and joys related to disability, because if we can normalize it, we can understand each other better and work together to form a better community. One that treats each other as co-equal humans, worthy of love and respect.

[solrika]

Somewhere there’s a psych/soc dissertation around the experience of being a whatever-gen immigrant kid and being taught that a) your family has sacrificed everything to get you these opportunities, and b) you are an INVESTMENT. for the entire family’s future. and you are expected to return on that.

…and then what happens to your brain when you end up with a random untreatable chronic illness that means you can’t work. Bonus that the family already spent the money on your art degree.

Whoo.

In related news, I am absolutely hating the spirals my brain is getting into. To family’s credit, no one is harping on me about all that everything NOW, but. Yknow. The damage has been done.

Usually I can ignore it but I haven’t been able to take my stimulants due to stupid heart stuff. My already-small energy reserves have shrank miserably. I walked the dog around the block twice, folded two bags of laundry, and that is the sum total of my day. :| Anyway. I’m going to sleep now. It’ll be better in the morning.

[michaeldeem]

The Biological Sciences as a Career

The biological sciences are an excellent place to start whether you're considering career possibilities or have just begun your job hunt. The subject has many different professions, from research scientists to wildlife conservationists.

A bachelor's degree in biology, chemistry or a closely related discipline is often required for work in the biological sciences. Nevertheless, a master's or doctorate may be necessary for higher roles.

A research scientist designs and executes lab tests in a particular branch of biology. In a business or government organization, they may also help create products or procedures.

A bachelor's or master's degree in a specific subject, such as chemistry, computer science, environmental science, biology, or medicine, is usually required. They could also hold a Doctorate in the subject matter.

Some research scientists also have academic positions where they instruct future generations of scientists about a particular field of study and conduct studies.

Pharmaceuticals and medical research are two fields where research scientists are employed. The region and industry have an impact on these occupations' pay.

Medical researchers design and carry out experiments on illnesses and disorders to advance scientific understanding of issues relating to medicine and public health. Companies frequently use this research to create new medicines or healthcare items.

A bachelor's degree in a scientific discipline, such as chemistry, biology, or biomedical engineering, is required for those who want to work as medical researchers. Also, they must obtain expertise in research, grant writing, and laboratory work.

They generally then seek a Doctorate in a related branch of science. Students in these programs complete dissertations presented before a committee of experts, concentrating on laboratory work and original research.

Medical scientists can work in academic institutions or the business sector on research projects accepted by the employer after earning a Doctorate. They often need excellent oral and written communication abilities to communicate their results to doctors and other healthcare professionals.

To address issues with the production or usage of chemicals, fuels, pharmaceuticals, and food, chemical engineers employ the concepts of chemistry, biology, physics, and arithmetic. They are employed in manufacturing facilities, research labs, and pilot plant establishments.

Chemical engineering is the area of engineering that develops machinery, methods, and procedures for blending, compounding, and processing chemicals to create valuable products from raw materials. The fundamental concepts include material and energy balances, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, separation technologies, and chemical reactor design.

Chemical engineers have a wide range of career options and can choose to work in various sectors. Examples include the production of ammonium nitrate at a fertilizer plant, converting crude oil into gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel, and lubricating oil in a petroleum refinery, or blending several chemicals to create shampoo or body lotion at a personal care product maker.

Biomedical engineers create and develop devices that aid doctors in patient diagnosis and treatment. Examples include medical imaging equipment and tools that enable remote medication or surgical patient treatment.

The discipline of biomedical engineering is ever-evolving, making it a great fit for those who appreciate the challenge of developing novel solutions to new issues. These advancements immediately enhance the health and quality of life of patients.

Work environments for biomedical engineers include hospitals, research centers, educational institutions, and governmental organizations. They create brand-new gadgets, evaluate their performance, and offer technical assistance for already-available goods.

[aboutnavi]

Another Sunday, another update: A few words about my (lack of) updates, being diagnosed and trying to survive hour by hour

My last housekeeping on Tumblr was almost two months ago and, to be honest, I can barely recognize my two-old-month words, because so much has changed it seems I've been living a completely different life. I'm trying - with the help of God, prayer and therapy - to be fair and kind to the old version of myself who started things and had future plans and who had no idea the reality I would be living right now.

My almost weekly hospital visits for my "emotional chronic pain" turned out to be - after months of feeling insane, and not enough, and as if I was truly making things on my mind - a diagnose of a chronic autoimune disease that has been affecting me in different degrees for so long I had no idea all those different symptoms were related. I'm in that weird phase where I'm trying to emotionally handle the fact that I'll have to live with this illness for the rest of my life, while not being able to live a full day without pain and struggling to keep up with the bare minimum of everyday life. I haven't seen my friends in months, I had to let go of one of my jobs in a moment where money for exams and doctor appointments are extremely necessary and I'm starting a process to see if I can have a few more months to write my dissertation because right now I cannot focus on anything beyond will-I-feel-pain-in-the-next-hour-or-will-I-be-able-to-get-out-of-my-bed. My diet has been extremely restricted and I'm eating more meds than food, which led my body to lose more weight than considerate healthy in three weeks all the while I barely have the strength to sit and type on my computer. An auto imune disease also means I cannot try and strength my autoimune system or else it will make my already bad phase of this illness get worse.

I haven't started treatment yet. I'm paying way too much in a medicine to control my pain for a few hours a day until my biopsy gets back from the lab and my doctor can initiate a treatment that - hopefully - will work. Hopefully is the only word I've right now, because finding the right treatment for an incurable disease is impossible and we can only find the right meds to put the illness "to sleep" until it, eventually, gets back. And it will. That's the only certainty any doctor has to give me right now: that I can fight all I want, it will never go away.

So physically, I'm in pain. Emotionally, I cannot even start to describe how much of a rollercoaster I'm going through.

All my fanfic-related projects are in hiatus right now. Trust me, if time was the only thing necessary for me to write, I would type right now 20k of words and give endless updates, but I have almost to none energy to do more than pray that I will have a good night of sleep and that in the morning the pain won't be too much. I have zero creativity juices going on for me right now - and it's not even for writing. It's for reading, for talking online with my friends, for being present and full in any situation.

I cannot wait to come back with good news that the treatment is working, and that my life is going back to a semblance of normalcy and that I'll be updating soon. If God is willing, this day will come sooner than later. Until then, if anyone has any prayers to spare, it will be highly appreciate it!

& to everyone who has not given up in any of my fics, know they will be back soon, I promise!

I'll see you guys then 🩵

[lo-kom]

End of week 4 recap

Heard about Nicki's practice Monday morning and had my dissertation tutorial with Dana Monday afternoon [see previous post]

was my birthday on Tuesday and then woke up ill on Wednesday :')))

visited East Street market, Borough market and Canary Wharf. Was going to go to Camden but got tired and then it started raining

worked on our proposal for the group exhibiton identity and pitched on Friday. We named our exhibition identity the Conservatory Collection inspired by the space that the work was going to be displayed in (the windows and bright light that always forms a backdrop to the work in the space). This was something we wanted to carry through into the design of our exhibition publication, so we designed a grid system reflective of the shape of a window that each of the captions. In regard to image treatment each image would abide by this grid system, and for the type treatment we decided on a Gothic-style typeface paired with a more neutral serif typeface. We liked the contrast between the typeface and I think we had some really great feedback afterwards discussing how the scale of the image paired with the typeface didn't feel like they were quite fitting together. Kaiya suggested that instead of trying to balance the two, that we could lean into the two components by exaggerating the difference in scale, or the thickness of the lines etc. which I thought was really interesting to take forward with me in the future. We also suggested in our pitch that we would have bookmarks that would be displayed next to each piece, and that viewers could use to briefly describe any references they would recommend and therefore encourage some form of knowledge exchange within our graphic design student community. This was one of the things in our research that was well received in our feedback from the tutors, and I think was an outcome of productive negotiation within our group (how do we design for a given public- ie. a room of graphic design students, how much were we asking of them as viewers and what seemed like a suitable level to ask for vs. where might this be asking too much as a viewer)

had a discussion with Kaiya about ideas for personal exhibition collection so far. How can I combine text and image (allude to meme format ???) Drawing on visual languages. Receipt- proof of exchange. Opportunity to explore new print output??

[djpachipikachu]

prompted by no one at all /j HERE WE GO DISSERTATION ON ROTTMNT LEO’S AROASEXUALITY plus how it fits into graves leosagi bc theyre not romantic

alright so Already previously seen we know he gags and finds romance and pda and the idea of people dating to be gross and Sure maybe thats just a teenager thing (although his brothers never reacted the same way really) But heres my detailed description of his aroaceness that will barely be brought up in any art or writing ill make (maybe. it might be brought up in my fic but itll be a while)

- he rejects romance from a young age , his repulsion being brushed off as just being a little kid thing; he hates romantic plot lines in lou jitsu films, he is disgusted when they kiss on screen, he finds randomly interjected romances in the jupiter jim comics Insanely boring and very forced and unappealing

- growing up thru the series , romance has never been a focus for any of them at all bc like who cares But even when it wasnt a big deal he . still had that disgust . perhaps its just cause he wanted to be a stinky little rebellious teen ? perhaps he just found it funny to annoy ppl by fake gagging at romance movies ? his brothers also thought they were pretty stupid and cliche, he never rly needed anyone but his family anyways, he couldnt imagine somehow finding someone that was more important than any of them

(although when he’d discuss fictional crushes with donnie , he’d just pull up his favorite characters honestly. he didnt realise donnie was actually Attracted to atomic lass or cheery tomato or whatever, he rly did just choose the fake guys that made him happy to think about, isnt that just what all love was? they were fictional, so it doesnt reallt matter)

(its not like romance was ever important before but splinter keeps making jokes about all of them gettinf married sometime in the future and it fills leo with dread at the idea of it being inevitable)

- ALLONORMATIVITY !!! he and his brothers grew up mainly consuming media to know about society outside !!!! and almost Every media has romance somewhere in it. it’s exaggerated and conventional and flowery and unrealistically explosive . he knows hes aroace somewhat, he wasnt so sheltered from the outside world that he didnt figure out himself, but those Doubts wriggle in , all the “maybe you havent found the right one”s got to him sometimes

- he cant imagine being away from his family for any reason. romance cant be that good. (psst! all tmnt families grow up codependent on each other due to knowing nothing else aside from their family and fear of beinf discovered !)

- but as irrational as it is, hes afraid of his family and friends outside of it (not that he rly has any,,,) being split away from him bc romance takes priority. it always does in movies at least.

- heres where my fic comes in , him and usagi are an unlabelled relationship but a qpr if a label Had to be given (they dont label themselves) and leo is openly physically affectionate with usagi (but he is affectionate with everyone in the same way) and Doubt crawls in

- fear that usagi sees his affection as romantic bc romance repulses both of them , fear that his usual affection isnt Big enough to show his Big Feelings bc he knows it isnt romance but like? surely just platonic feelings cant be this strong? surely he has to show it more? does he have to kiss him on the lips to show it? go on grand dates and outtings? does usagi expect that? (they both think kissing on the lips is gross, leo still has trouble unlearninf that platonic love is not inherently lesser than romantic, most of their hangouts are mundane and domestic errand running, usagi expects nothing more bc hes content with what they have)

- basically leo has only ever grown up with romance being shown as the end all feelinf above everything else when He Personally prioritizes his family so much more . so when he gets a feeling thats Just as big as how he feels about his family, but its obviously not a familial feeling, he just. Doesnt know if what he does is enough to show how important usagi is to him. he tries to follow what they do in movies but it feels unnatural and gross and uncomfortable and he doesnt Like it !

smth smth queer platonic love here have a writing snippet that can say it better idk

gestures loudly at him hes aroace he has big feelings and hes so freely affectionate with everyone he knows and everyone he loves is so important to him but its not that big of a deal really bc of course he loves his family more than anything of course he loves his best friend he loves a lot of things love isnt restricted to romance

born to infodump about aroace rottmnt leo and his rejection of romance while also suffering allonormativity forced to listen to a conventionally romantic song and interpret it as aroace

[fanfiction-artist-prototype]

Blood Mistakes AU!

Since I’m already on a hit list for some uncompleted works I’m going to put this AU here instead of discord so hopefully the assassins take longer to catch me. Also if anybody wants to ask me about this AU I’m happy to chat about it.

Basic premise :

- Inko is a quirk researcher, she was top of her class at the top university in the country and despite everyone thinking it’s a waste of time for ‘someone like her’ she decides to go not into the improvement of quirks but rather researching how quirks have effected the human body post quirk.

She wants to know what physiological differences there are, what biological components might have changed because of the sudden evolution ect, rather than studying how quirks will change in the future.

- Because it’s an incredibly niche area of research and requires SO MUCH funding the people involved snap people up for jobs incredibly quickly. If it was any other field you’d be suspicious! (That’s something to hold on to)

She wants to research as much as she can though, because quirklessness is becoming a thing of the past and really she’s 200 years late to the party and time is only ticking onwards!

- Given the nature of the subject she ends up working under Dr.Garaki. And in the beginning nothing is amiss, a surprising feat for All For One’s doctor, and Inko enjoys her work; learning about how the quirked body is actually stronger in some areas as a baseline than the pre-quirked body is so interesting!

But then she starts to learn about some... adverse effects on the human body due to quirks; like the fact that studies have shown that the quirked brain is over prone to stress and that some cognitive skills take longer to master than they used to. For example in the quirked world you don’t hear of young children being at university level work anymore. And then she learns about how the human body’s genetic code is wrong after quirks. 

It doesn’t make sense anymore,, there’s no way to make sense of how there’s different classification of quirks and there’s so little to explain MUTATION quirks or even how animals are developing quirks.

And then when she’s realising how little quirks make sense and how almost... parasitical quirks are she begins to notice that not everything is as it seems.

- For one where’s all this data coming from? She hadn’t questioned anything at the time but some of the data? Looking back on it’s really sketchy; everything they know about the manifestation of quirks simply doesn’t apply to half of the cases- there were never any recorded cases of people developing their quirks at 30 or above and it makes even less sense how they’ve got most of the data any way! Everybody knows that the Japanese Government lost a majority of the pre-quirk files in a cyber attack by an anti-quirkless group (who didn’t take kindly to the ‘tainting of our countries records with that filth’) at least fifty years before she was born! But she’s never even seen ANY of the files she’s working from and considering she had to trawl the deep recesses of the internet and try and access defunct websites just to get information for her dissertation where she referenced over two hundred different records it’s not NORMAL.

The she realises what’s all this research going towards? Their lab nor their company have released anything in regards to the research and they haven’t been told what it’s even FOR.

- Eventually because she’s too curious for her own good and goes looking she finds out about the Nomu project, which is seeing how multiple quirks effect the quirked body. It doesn’t explain how the project will get it’s results or what it will be for, it doesn’t even say where they’re getting participants but everything just seems WRONG. The project is desperately searching for a quirkless participant. They want to see if the pre quirk body is the same as the quirkless body or if it’s different. Her name is listed on the possible researcher transfers list.

She feels ill. A large percentage of her family is quirkless, she’s the only one in this generation to HAVE a quirk, both her brothers are quirkless and so is her Father. Inko can’t help but feel that it wasn’t her work that got her here.

- She catches the attention of another competitor researcher not soon after, they meet at a conference that she only went to because Dr. Garaki would be there and if she didn’t turn up the boss would know something is up and she can’t let that happen. She CAN’T. 

Inko knows she has to be careful, she’s already on edge because of what the implications of project Nomu could bring, but she’s in her early twenties and this other researcher is nice, and he starts their interaction by saying how her dissertation on quirk studies was what helped him write HIS dissertation! She can at least humour him...

But it isn’t just humouring him after awhile. They keep in touch after the conference. She goes on a few dates and in what seems like no time at all she’s engaged and has a baby on the way!

- It’s the day after she finds out she’s pregnant that she’s put onto the Nomu project.

She throws up within minutes of being in the facility; her co-worker tells her she’ll have to get used to it. She’s here now, and the only way off the project is death. And well, she’s got a baby on the way and a fiance to keep in the dark secrecy will be all she has at her disposal.

- Izuku’s second birthday party is cut short when she’s told she MUST come into work because the Doctor wants to speed up the Nomu’s tests.

The Nomu known as Kurogiri shares a birthday with her son, and she has to ask Hisashi and Mitsuki to plan future parties because she’s never able to treat the day the same way.

- When her son turns four he’s diagnosed quirkless by someone she can say hand on heart *is* Dr.Garaki even if he’s using some stupid mirage quirk and using a different name she KNOWS.

That night when her son asks if she can be a hero she cries and tells him she’s sorry. She’s sorry because he’ll probably never get the chance to, he’ll probably be some body in a case that she has to experiment on because she’s managed to hide her family away from work but she won’t be able to hide Izuku. Everyone knows about her son. Someone will ask.

- Hisashi comes home that night and he already knows Izuku is quirkless and that’s when the blinkers come off on the relationship and she realises how WRONG it all is, how he managed to get so close to her and so engrained into her life when it’s all so clearly a façade she doesn’t know. But she digs and digs that night because Hisashi has to go on a ‘business trip’ that she’s fairly sure Izuku will be gone by the end of and hunts for what information she can find.

- She eventually stumbles upon All For One and the pieces just fall into place.

- Two days later she phones an old University friend who she’d kept in contact  with who worked as a police-mortuary correspondent but had never called in the massive favour they owed her. She asks them to help her fake Izuku’s death. They have a phoenix quirk, except it’s listed as a simple resistance quirk.

They’re appalled at her until she explains that her son’s in danger and she knows how to get him out of it but for that she NEEDS people to think Izuku is dead.

Two days after that Izuku is dropped off at All Might’s Tokyo tower with a stack of folders in his favourite rucksack all detailing information about All For One and his research facilities with the hope that the number one hero will understand from her letter WHY she’s doing this and a couple hours after that the news are reporting of a devastating car crash that has killed four year old Midoriya Izuku after someone with a grudge against the driver planted a car bomb; it was only due to the drivers quirk that they survived.

Nobody ever finds out it isn’t the real Midoriya’s body, mostly because there isn’t much of a body to recover besides a burnt scrap of his favourite All Might hoodie and a single clump of hair that is incinerated after being used to identify the body, though aside from the main coroner nobody even knows that that much survived. The friend makes sure of it.

- Hisashi doesn’t come back after that, only turning up for the funeral and to give her documents to divorce her stating that he can’t be in the relationship anymore because all it is is a reminder of the son they’ve lost. Inko is glad; if he wasn’t who she thought he was she’d find a way to get rid of him herself so All For One removing himself from the picture once his perfect subject is ‘dead’ works for her.

- Inko is about to try and pull off all the favours she’s amassed over the years to fake her own death when she’s removed from the Nomu project and placed as Shimura Tenko - now Shigaraki Tomura’s ward and his Nomu Kurogiri’s handler.

She thinks it’s intentional, after all she’s a griveing mother so of course she’d want to look after a child only a few years older than her own. Ten year old Shigaraki is already twisted and spiteful and takes cheap shots at her by saying she’s only there because her own son died - and that it only happened because he wanted to be a hero.

If her son wasn’t alive she’d probably have tried to do something to herself by that point. But she perceivers and eventually Shigaraki warms up to her. She is forced to raise the next symbol of evil and the back up vessel of All For One for the next eleven years.

She despises every second of it.

And she hates herself even more for growing to actually care for the boy who is supposed to be a cruel reminder of the son she’s ‘lost’.

- Izuku grows up for the next eleven years hidden away from most of the world, hopping from All Might’s side, to Sir Nighteye’s, to Gran Torino, to I-island and to everywhere in between, he’s All For One’s son - supposedly. And the mother is apparently an unwitting accomplice to some of AFO’s worst experiments but she has done everything she can to try and save her son so they’ve got to try and at least help. 

Nighteye doesn’t like it at first, because how do they not know that this isn’t some elaborate long con? But after he uses his quirk on the boy and sees him get almost seriously injure himself trying to ‘help’ him later in the day he decides that perhaps it is just an innocent child caught up in a hellish situation.

- For those eleven years though, Izuku can only think about the mother he can hardly remember as a hero. Even if some of the people who look after him don’t agree with him. Yes she works for someone horrible and evil but she SAVED him and she’s SAVED others by giving All Might that information she told him to hand over!

He can’t think of his mother as anything less than a hero, and he wants to be the best hero he could possibly be, even if that’s as a pro hero and not a scientist. He’s not really allowed to pursue science though because all the adults for some reason think he’ll do something bad if he does.

For that he hides his quirk analysis books because he doesn’t think they’d appreciate them if they found out.

- A few weeks before Izuku turns nine a purple portal drops off another folder, this time detailing where All For One’s base is and even more information on his business’ and other secret projects. All Might uses this to have his first official confrontation with All For One.

He hopes to be able to save young Izuku’s mother and return her to her son, but she’s long gone or perhaps was never there in the first place when he turns up. And he doesn’t mention her and simply says that he’s had his eye out for years when All For One asks how he finds him.

(Inko uses a special set of code words to get Kurogiri to do what she needs him to do without actually remembering doing it at all)

- Years pass and All Might decides that Izuku would be a good successor for One For All, there’s a little bit of an objection but the kids proven himself safe and really the whole point of a OFA successor is someone you believe will be able to pass on the strength and compassion of a true hero and Izuku has that in droves!

Besides, All For One is dead so choosing his son doesn’t feel as... wrong.

- The rest of the AU continues on from UA, where we have Aizawa who can tell something isn’t right with Sasaki Izuku but can’t quite tell *what*, Bakugou being slightly traumatised by the death of his friend in childhood only for his auntie to mysteriously disappear a little while after and is sure he’s hallucinating a grown up Midoriya Izuku and a Shigaraki Tomura who knows of the little brother he was supposed to have and is convinced he meets him at the USJ.

[glitradora]

AU where Glimmer and Adora are forced into marriage but neither like each other and Adora's in a secret relationship with Catra, so Glimmer tries to help them.

(would love if we could get date stamps on asks cause i’m probably over 1.5 years late - i’m sorry)

for send me an AU and i’ll tell you my headcanons for it (no more i have so many)

( tw character death )

first things first, every arranged marriage story should follow the “this is my idea” song from the animated movie The Swan Princess. I could write a dissertation on why this scene is the most iconic thing ever animated.

“if i get lucky i’ll get chickpox” amazing brilliant never been done before uniqu-

anyways

i do think that for an arranged marriage plot to work you’d have to significantly change the world building in she-ra

mostly cause Adora isn’t a princess by birth and even if we count her becoming She-ra as gaining her title - Adora doesn’t answer to anyone after it lmao

I also can’t easily see the Horde trying to play nice and go for peace over.. fully destroying the planet and it’s cultures in a plot to control Etheria.

So maybe a world where the first ones are still around and Adora is their heir? Maybe with Light Hope as her guardian/regent. Or maybe Light Hope has the regent and Shadow Weaver has her guardian/teacher if you want to keep her character arc closer to the show.

Catra/Adora childhood bffs

Catra maybe as the heir of a kingdom the First Ones defeated in war who’s being raised there as a means of controlling the kingdom later on? (something the Romans did a lot - they controlled certain parts of the empire by “romanizing” the future leader so they would be loyal to Rome.)

So Catra grows up with a complete sense of not belonging

Glimmer and Brightmoon don’t really have to change maybe Micah’s always there tho?

Or maybe he’s dead/on beast island anyways cause Brightmoon has been fighting the First One’s if you want that initial dislike between Glimmer/Adora.

Maybe same reason Adora is the heir - some battle/war killed the main line of succession of the First Ones and Adora is who they fell back on but there was no reason the believe she would ever be close to the throne at birth.

(it’s why she’s allowed to befriend Catra has a kid.)

So Adora becomes the only heir at age like 8-9 after a big Brightmoon win (that may or may not have cost them Micah)

Brightmoon has the upper hand in the negotiations that’s why Adora spends the summers there

(unfortunately i don’t think either Light Hope or Angella would be much the singing type rip)

Shadow Weaver is NOT happy about it cause she’s banking on having control of Adora by the time she takes the throne and having her away for 3 months every year kinda ruins it.

Catra is pretty sad too obviously.

Adora and Glimmer spend every summer lowkey trying to kill each other

Glimmer is winning their unofficial game of pissing the other off the most due to her teleporting until they turn 13 where Adora hits her growth spurt.

(also Adora is not allowed to take the sword with her since the accident when they were 11 and zapped all over the castle with a real sharp blade being waved around by an over powered tween)

Bow becomes a common sight at some point in their tweens and while both of them are very good friends with Bow separately a room with the 3 of them in it is bound to be a dangerous place.

Bow is extremely aware that these two are friends - they just don’t know it. They are both very clear on where the line is at all times and that doesn’t always mean they don’t sometimes cross it, either on a moment of distraction or one of anger. But they know where the hard limits lie and they know when they’re the on in the wrong.

in the mean time Catra becomes friends with Scorpia - who is in a similar situation to her has a “unofficial prisoner/ward” of the First Ones.

Adora knows Scorpia too btw but Scorpia doesn’t trust her

Catra goes to Brightmoon for the first time when they’re all 16. Not for the full stay but has a one week guest for Bow’s birthday by Adora’s request and Bow’s invitation.

It’s really awkward for all parts involved.

Catradora not only are not together at this time but like the show Adora is completely unaware of her feelings

Catra knows but also has no hopes of it ever being a) returned b) allowed.

Glimmer can tell in .2 seconds of meeting Catra and starts mocking Adora endlessly and it’s probably their first real actual fight in years.

( it doesn’t help the awkward for the rest of the week)

The next year they don’t talk about it

Adora is expected to be crowned on her 21th birthday and so starts taking on more direct responsibilities after 18

The summers turn shorter and Glimmer visits more often for public appearances instead.

They get into a fight a little before Glimmer’s 19th birthday because Adora tells her she should stop playing with Bow’s feelings and Glimmer shots back that she won’t take advice for someone hiding her own

( They have long decided they marriage would be purely political. Yet Glimmer doesn’t want to bind Bow to a life of secret)

They’re friends at this point denying it is impossible. They fight like sisters but have know each other longer and better than any other soul on the planet.

The fact that Glimmer ascends to the throne first is a surprise.

Queen Angella was young and strong and the illness that took her sudden and cruel.

As queen Glimmer answers to no one and while Adora is ready to deal with the consequences of it on her the second Glimmer proposes it they wait

Adora get’s her own crown before long and they honer they agreement - the two kingdoms shall never again be at war

The pack doesn’t involve wedding, they know the other to well to ever need such things to bind it. They will fight in the future like they did has children and decide things between themselves.

It’s not immediate for either of them

Glimmer chokes a couple of times on trying to tell Bow and Adora avoids Catra for a full week after she decides to tell her before Catra grabs her and shakes it out of her.

I don’t have ... a more complete ending? sorry i really tired to get more into how glimmer helped like your ask said but this was the best i could come up with

[x-x-just-a-little-witchyy-x-x]

The History Of Witchcraft In Britain

The belief in magic and magical practices has been documented in Britain all the way back until antiquity – the belief that people could have influence over or make predictions about the natural world did not arise only in the 16th century.

Alleged practices

There were thought to be many types of witchcraft that one could practice, such as alchemy; the purification, perfection, maturation and changing of various substances, and astrology; the reading of the heavens to predict one’s future, however in the early modern period the most concern was over that which involved dealing with the devil. Witches were said to make pacts with the devil in exchange for powers, belief and prosecution of witchcraft in Scotland was especially focused on the demonic pact.

Witches no longer were seen as healers or helpers, but rather were believed to be the cause of many natural and man-made disasters. Witches were blamed for troubles with livestock, any unknown diseases and unpredicted weather changes.

The first witch condemned in Ireland, Lady Alice Kyteler was accused of such practices as animal sacrifice, creating potions to control others and possessing a familiar(an animal companion often thought to be possessed by a spirit which aided a witch in her magic).

Prevalence of belief

It was not just common folk that believed in the existence of witches and magic, but Royals and the Church as well. Henry VIII changed the face of religion in Britain, and it was common belief that this allowed for dark or satanic forces to arise. As a result a law was passed which defined what it was to be a witch and how they must be prosecuted.

However, not everyone was convinced. A member of parliament in England called Reginald Scot wrote a book called The Discoverie Of Wi;tchcraft which in part presented his belief that Britain had been fooled into believing in witchcraft by easily explained tricks. The book's success was widespread, but his scepticism in regards to magic was not what drew in most of its admirers: The Discoverie of Witchcraft also contained details regarding the belief in and practices of witches - it held sections on alchemy, spirits and conjuring, much of which is thought to have inspired Shakespeare’s descriptions of the witches in Macbeth.

Another book which was thought to play a part in the creation of Macbeth was Daemonologie by King James VI of Scotland. A stark contrast to that of Scot, King James VI was a firm believer in magic and the role of demons in its practice. His book acts as a dissertation on the practice of necromancy, divination and dark magic and how demons seek to influence weakened men and women and convince them to take part in the unholy practice of magic. It was in essence published to inform the general population of Scotland about why witches must be hunted and prosecuted.

Witch hunts and trials

Wales

Compared to the rest of Britain, Wales had relatively few trials or hunts for witches during the early modern period. Many accusations were made, but finding proof made convicting women as witches rather difficult. The first witch to be trialled and executed in Wales was Gwen Ferch Ellis of Llandyrnog. She was accused of using a poppet (a figurine fashioned to look like a specific person, used for spell casting) and casting a destructive charm. Charms were common in this time and often used for healing, an art which Gwen herself took part in, however this specific charm was written backwards and as per the traditions of the time this meant that it was meant for harm.

Scotland

Between the years of 1500 and 1700 somewhere between 4000 and 6000 people were tried for witchcraft in Scotland, a much higher number than any of the other British countries attained. This was likely due to the reign of King James VI who was known for his interest in sorcery and magic. He was even documented as having overseen trials and torture of multiple women accused of witchcraft. Following the Scotland's union with England 1707 prosecutions of witches declined as they were more tightly controlled by specific magic related laws.

One of Scotland's most notable mass witch trials occurred under the reign and supervision of King James VI. The trials took place in North Berwick between the years of 1590 and 1592, and led to at least 70 accused witches being condemned to violent torture and in most cases, death. The trials took place after the King experienced terrible storms whilst journeying by ship to Denmark where he would marry Princess Anne. King James VI, having seen authorities in Denmark accuse women such as Anna Kolding of using witchcraft to create the storms during the Copenhagen witch trials, turned to the "witches" in North Berwick to blame for this event. Most of the information we have on the North Berwick trials was found in the King's book Daemonologie, as well as a pamphlet entitled Newes from Scotland that was published in London. The trials were infamous in their time, and were known to have influenced Shakespeare's Macbeth. The play borrows the setting of the trials and draws on many of the witches confessed practices, the witches also reference the storm during King James VI's crossing to Denmark in their spell:

"Purposely to be cassin into the sea to raise winds for destruction of ships."

England

The death toll in England was significantly lower than that of Scotland, but many notable trials still occurred due to a number of self-proclaimed "witch-hunters". One such witch-hunter was a man from East Anglia, Matthew Hopkins, who called himself the "Witchfinder General". Hopkins and his associates were believed to have caused the executions of at least 300 accused men and women.

One of the more well known trials was that of the Witches of Belvoir, which implicated three women; Joan Flowers, and Margaret and Philippa Flowers, who were her two daughters. The three were known locally to be herbal healers, and following their dismissal as servants from the Castle of Belvoir the Earl and two of his sons died whilst the Countess and her daughter suffered from violent illness. It was five years after these events, and after the hanging of a group of witches in Leicestershire that the Flowers were arrested on suspicion of harming the Earl of Rutland's family through sorcery. Joan Flowers died on the way to her trial after consuming communion bread. Her daughters confessed to having familiars, to having visions of demons and to performing a spell on the Earl and Countess' children. Margaret was hung at Lincoln Castle on the 11th of March 1619, whereas her sister managed to escape, presumably by drugging the guards.

The last documented executions of witches in England occurred during the Bideford witch trial in Devon. Three women were hanged for the crime of causing a local woman, Grace Thomas, to fall ill by supernatural means. There was a great deal of other accusations that also contributed to their being found guilty, although none of which had any evidence. The women that were hanged were Temperance Lloyd; a widow, Mary Trembles; a beggar, and Susanna Edwards; another beggar.

Ireland

Unlike the mass trials and executions found across the rest of the UK, and even the rest of Europe during the early modern period, Ireland's number of prosecutions failed to reach even double figures. It has been suggested that this is due to the lack of religious upheaval in Ireland during this time, it has also been suggested by Ireland's general population that this fact may be due to their strong cultural belief in the Sidhe, more commonly known as fairies, which were known for causing trouble and general mischief which in other countries was linked to witchcraft (e.g. the curdling of milk, dying of crops etc.). Nevertheless there were still a series of notable trials that occurred, the first of which was Lady Alice Kyteler(described above) and her maidservant Pertonilla de Meath, who was tortured and forced into confessing them both to be witches which led to them being burnt at the stake. Another well documented witch trial occurred in March 1711 where eight women were convicted and sentenced to death for the practice of witchcraft in Islandmagee, an area of strong Scottish-English heritage, which Dr. Andrew Sneddon suggests may be a cause for its large scale.

Information found on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witchcraft_in_early_modern_Britain

[morihaus]

9, 24, & 35 for sapiarch lesbians >:)

ooh boy.. havent thought abt these two in a long time.

9 - Do they discuss big issues? Religion? Marriage? Children? Death?

they are both big talkers and a lot of their relationship as student peers is defined by this sense of competition, i feel like they'd straight up have debates with each other over certain matters of interest, MOSTLY their fields of study and dissertations given by other students- part of being a sapiarch is being the arbiter of tradition and the leading authority on sciences and other scholarly matters, despite the fact that they're gunning for specific positions (war magic and some type of anthropology) they sort of need to be well versed in all manner of things in order to best represent the sapiarchs

religion is VERY important to altmeri society and thus they discuss it on length, runa coming from a noble background of traditionalists and pannolaire meanwhile having an oddly more outsider view of things (they may get into topics runalenwe's relatives would consider a cheeky bit of heresy) could definitely see some kind of conversation about family, another emphasized part of life in alinor, that strays coyly into what could be considered subtext of them talking about going through domestic things together

24 - Any doubts about the relationship?

the thing is that their relationship, something very ill defined and mostly implied to one another through indirect gestures rather than defined out loud by either of them, comes secondary to their academic careers. and because that's, y'know, a very hands-off little-to-no-communication style of romance, the two often second guess themselves and what the future might bring for them. feels like they could go on and off at various times, hold things against one another, romance is all so difficult when you're in the most prestigious college in your entire culture and subject to the suffocating etiquette of high altmeri society, ESPECIALLY when you're trying to be a social climber and overachiever, and thus wouldn't dare embarrass yourself in front of everyone by engaging in some frivolous unprofessional relationship with a peer.

35 - Do they bring out the best in each other, or the worst? Do they have a fatal flaw?

for all their constant fretting and overanalyzing things, sometimes when they're together they daintily brush upon genuine intimacy and vulnerability with one another and form a connection that goes beyond their callings as sapiarchs. but from their point of view, they bring out the "best" in each other because they push each other to do better, they excel because of their relationship, and it might be fucked up and shallow to say but if it didn't reflect positively on their performance, it's entirely possible that they wouldn't go through the effort. study buddies to academic rivals to lovers. as much as this is a good thing in some ways, i think it's also a bad thing, it pits them against each other in an unhealthy way and ultimately leads to them being separated for years, a period during which they realized "hm. i may have taken her for granted"

[pilferingapples]

Brick Club, 1.4 entire (retro)

Cosette's story often has such a fairy-tale feel, and it starts with this  section (what should I be calling these chunks of text? the X.X sections as a whole, not the X.X.X ones? Volumes?) .

And yet I'm not at all sure why I get that feeling quite so strongly, in terms of narrative technique.  The initial namelessness of the cast, with Two Mothers echoing the way people in fairy tales are Mothers and Millers and Eldest Daughters?  But if Fantine is presented as if she was s stranger to us again, it's not different than what happens with JVJ, and his story never feels this way.  The  Three Sisters made by Cosette, Eponine , and Azelma maybe? That's a very fairy-tale motif indeed.   Something about the way the inn itself is described..?

Augh, I absolutely cannot put my finger on it.   Still,  something about this passage feels as ominous and certain and doomed  as if the inn was a gingerbread cottage and Fantine was vowing to keep silent for seven years while making shirts out of nettles.

Notes on Various Things under the cut:

-  love that the inn sign is really badly made. I've seen several attempts at it in various adaptations and they're always a disaster and it's excellent, I want a collection.

-  the cart is covered with "the same ugly yellow mud sometimes used to decorate cathedrals".  The cart that is A Metaphor for outdated social institutions.  I see you, Hugo. 

- I will FIGHT Hugo about peasant/working class women's clothing in this era, this outfit would be super charming!  But it's definitely more about utility and practical wear than Fantine's old outfits.   There are roughly a billion dissertations to be written about the way that things working class people do and use are , through history, treated as inherently ugly/undesirable, regardless of how much art and beauty might actually have gone into it; I feel like the classism kinda speaks for itself on that.  And then,since Hugo's already drawn a huge Romantic Aesthetic defining line between the Useful and the Beautiful  in this book, I think  I can fairly just quote Gautier's explanation of the issue -- "Nothing is really beautiful but that which cannot be made use of; everything that is useful is ugly, for it is the expression of some need, and the needs of man are vile and disgusting, like his poor, weak nature" -- and leave this for now.  I suspect it will come up again. 

- Fantine has been "marked by irony" --that is, scarred by her time with Tholomyes.  I do like the way  this new line on her face sounds almost like a dueling scar. Fantine's a fighter in her own way!

- ...Tholomyes is gonna make it to at least 1828, meaning he'll outlive everyone we love in this story except Cosette and Marius.    And he'll do it while being  "always a man of pleasure"--I feel like there's an implicit suggestion that Cosette has a lot of half-siblings in the world, all of them with a story as important as hers, if only people would take them seriously. 

- ...as a Somewhat Taller Than Average woman myself, I am rather delighted by Hugo's obvious terror of women who are Not Tiny.   ( And I realize I'm probably Reaching to think that Mme T might have been much happier and more well-adjusted if she weren't trying to cram her giant self into a tiny box of Ideal Femininity?  Maybe she'd have been much more ok if she'd  been able to go into showbiz and get famous as  a weightlifter or something. )

But I do think there's a real sort of sadness to her introductory chapters.  She had an ideal dream for her own life , and it wasn't even a particularly ambitious one--just a love story, really-- and it's fallen through as much as anyone else's hoped-for Ideal in the novel. She's still trying to hang onto it at this point, but we're already given a glimpse of the future  when she'll not only have given up on that ideal, but come to despise herself for it.  This is no way absolves her of her cruelty towards others, but I think she's a more complex villain (and she is  a villain) than she's sometimes treated as. 

- Fantine does try to lie about having been married, here! ...but she also comes right out and tells people she's making a financial Deal with exactly how much money she has, and how much she's able to give over, before it's all settled.  It's  painful how ill-prepared she is to deal with this kind of economic manipulation (and I think "prepared" is really relevant; she's had no one more naturally skilled or experienced to teach her how to handle these things, and business negotiations, which this is, are incredibly complicated) . 

Seeing how much money Mme T gets for Cosette's fine clothes makes me strongly suspect that Fantine was severely underpaid for pawning her own fancy things--unless, and I guess this is possible, her "putting all her finery" on Cosette  is meant to be literal, and Cosette's current clothes are directly made of Fantine's old fancy outfits. 

- Fantine tries to lie about having been married , and the neighbors *see* her crying as she leaves Cosette, and Cosette must have been well dressed and all for that first months or so...but still, everyone believes the Thenardiers when they start telling the town that Cosette is an abandoned, illegitimate child.  They believe it because Cosette looks the part, and Cosette looks the part because the Thenardiers force her into it.  In so many ways, Fantine is never in control of  the narrative about her child, and What People Say about them does indeed matter more than anything she does--no amount of effort, no show of love, can save her and Cosette when everyone else  has decided they're socially damned. 

...but on the less thematic and more practical side,how on earth are the Thenardiers learning about her marital status? Seriously, was this freely avaialable info?  This  issue is something that comes up several times in the novel and I really have no idea what access to people's family records was like? 

- we get our first negative association with a cat , hm 

- ...workers have "generous impulses", huh?  (also I am not at all sure if the corresponding Bourgeois Respectability is meant to be entirely a good thing, but I'm not sure it's NOT , like I would be with Some Writers? Agh) 

- The Thenardiers' animal souls are : 

French: écrevisses 

Hapgood: crab-like FMA: crabs Rose: crayfish  Donougher: lobsters

Google Translate agrees with Rose, but I wonder if this isn't one of those words that was colloquially used to mean a general category of creatures in its day --Things Like a Crayfish/lobster/crab-- and has come to mean something very specific now?

-  ..y'know, what really kills me about Cosette in this every time is how everyone , *everyone*  in this town really either believes she deserves her abuse, or thinks it's BETTER than she deserves.  This is not happening in secret, behind closed doors, in a private house; it's at the public inn and very blatant. Everyone knows she's out in the cold , first up every morning, starving and beaten, in a home where the other kids somehow have more than enough (because their parents steal it from Cosette, directly).  And not one person in this discount Omelas even thinks it's bad , much less intervenes. It's a point in the Thenardiers'  favor, socially.   This isn't just the gamins of Paris being brushed aside,this is a whole town actively citing horrible child abuse as the Moral and Good Option that elevates the people doing it.  

And in this, I suppose, Cosette shares a history with Valjean-- they're  both put through absolutely horrific abuse , which is not just societally ignored, or accepted with jaded apathy ,  but openly lauded as morally correct.   I hate Montfermeil so much-- but Montfermeil is not really different from Arras, or Digne, or any other place where people think that abuse of the "deserving" is a Good Thing.