#Which south africa is trying to do

[sassypotatoe1]

I got myself a big tub of fruit for lunch, because I need more fiber (we all do) and I couldn't finish it, fruit is so filling?? But now I can feel I need salt and I'm completely satiated. Full. Stuffed. I can't fit a little bag of crisps in there is no room left. So I'm waiting it out til I can have the crisps and hoping I don't start feeling like shit before then.

[oneofthosecrazycatladies]

Okay a couple weeks ago I started this post trying to keep track of all the stuff going on in order to help remind us of everything that’s happened when the next election comes around. Well, because there’s just so much going on, I’ve realized trying to cram it all into one post isn’t going to work. So I’m going to do a new post every month and include links to the previous ones.

So here goes…

January 2025

February 2025

Donald Trump has enforced his tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China. [x]

Donald Trump has put Mexico tariffs on hold for one month. [x]

Donald Trump allowed Elon Musk to begin dismantling USAID. [x]

Congress is voluntarily giving up its power and allowing Trump to make unilateral decisions. [x]

Darren Beattie has been made Under Secretary of State. [x]

Everything that Donald Trump has done so far lines up with Project 2025 [x]

The White House is drafting an executive order to eliminate the Department of Education [x]

Elon Musk, who nobody voted for or elected, has, essentially, hacked the government. [x]

El Salvador has agreed to take US deportees of any nationality. [x]

US Representative Andy Biggs is proposing a bill to abolish OSHA. [x]

Pam Bondi has been confirmed as Attorney General [x]

Donald Trump doesn’t think Palestinians should return to Gaza. [x]

Donald Trump says he’ll use US troops to “take over” the Gaza Strip. [x]

A federal judge has blocked Donald Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship. [x]

Donald Trump has banned trans women from women’s sports [x]

Donald Trump sanctions the International Criminsl Court. [x]

A judge has paused the federal “buyouts” [x]

DOGE: Member of DOGE resigns [x]

DOGE has been given access to the Department of Energy. [x]

Miscellaneous news about Elon Musk [x]

DOGE is using AI to infiltrate the Department of Education [x]

Russell Vought, author of Project 2025, has been confirmed as Director of OMB [x]

Democrats in Congress have introduced the Taxpayer Data Protection Act [x]

Donald Trump has flagged the words “women” “diverse” and “historically” from studies done by the National Science Foundation. [x]

New Mexico Representative Melanie Stansbury has introduced the Nobody Elected Elon Musk Act [x]

Democratic Congressional leaders have introduced the Stop the Steal Act [x]

Donald Trump has called for a review of funding for the United Nations [x]

Federal agencies are barred from celebrating Black History Month [x]

Donald Trump has frozen aid to South Africa and accused the South African government of racism against white South Africans [x]

Donald Trump wants to use Leavenworth Prison as a migrant detention facility and have it run by a for-profit company known for its numerous human rights violations. [x] [x]

Trump has told the Treasury to stop making pennies. [x]

Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI) proposes the E.L.O.N. M.U.S.K. Act (which stands for Eliminate Looting of Our Nation by Mitigating Unethical State Kleptocracy) [x]

Employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau were told to stop all work and are now being told to stay home. [x]

Trump will impose 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum. [x]

Trump says Palestinians won’t be allowed back in Gaza if the US takes it over [x]

Tulsi Gabbard has been confirmed as director of national intelligence. [x]

Representative Buddy Carter (R-GA) has proposed a bill to change the name of Greenland to Red, White & Blue Land [x]

The DOJ has dropped the corruption charges against New York City mayor Eric Adams. [x]

An AP News reporter has been banned from the White House for using Gulf of Mexico instead of Gulf of America in its reporting. [x][x]

Senators Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Angus King (I-ME) are pushing for a tax credit that would encourage businesses to offer paid family leave. [x]

Representative Sara Jacobs (D-CA) has introduced the Protect US National Security Act [x]

The State Department (taxpayers) is paying Elon Musk $400 million for cybertrucks. [x]

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been confirmed as HHS Secretary. [x]

Trump is conducting a mass firing of the federal workforce. [x]

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) is creating a list of all the ‘woke’ science he wants to get rid of. [x]

References to transgender have been removed from the Stonewall National Monument. [x]

A 71 year old refugee living in Thailand has died because of the USAID freeze. [x][x]

Trump’s proposed tax cuts will add trillions to US debt. [x]

Trump is defying the court order to reopen USAID. [x]

Trump has stopped the CDC’s flu vaccine campaign. [x]

Trump is suing Brazil’s Supreme Court because of Brazil’s battles with Elon Musk over Twitter/X. [x]

Kash Patel has been confirmed as FBI director. [x]

Trump orders FEMA to stop their work with making homes better at withstanding natural disasters. [x]

Kash Patel will be named chief of the ATF [x]

Trump has tried to make independent agencies no longer independent [x]

$200 million of taxpayer money was used on a pro-Trump anti-migrant ad [x]

The House of Representstives passed a bill that gives more than $4 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy and cuts the budget for Medicaid by 80% [x]

Here’s a summary of Trump’s executive orders so far [x]

The Trump administration has issued travel bans for trans athletes [x]

Trump administration is telling federal agencies to prepare for more mass layoffs [x]

Elon Musk joined Trump’s first cabinet meeting. [x]

Trump is offering “gold cards” to wealthy foreigners [x]

Kash Patel names Dan Bongino as Deputy Director of the FBI. [x]

Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) has proposed legislation for the US to leave the United Nations [x]

Judge rules mass firings of federal workers is unlawful [x]

The Pentagon orders all transgender people to be removed from the military [x]

Representative Victoria Spartz (R-IN) was going to vote against the budget bill that would cut nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid; then she got a phone call from Trump who apparently screamed at and threatened her; she then voted yes on the bill [x]

Trump administration has cancelled boot camps for women training to become Wildland firefighters [x]

Here’s a link to the Project 2025 Policy Agenda that Donald Trump claimed he didn’t know anything about.*

*He only claimed he didn’t know anything about it after it proved to be deeply unpopular with the general public.

I’m also including directories for both the House of Representatives and the Senate. That way, if you’re so inclined, you can also track the individual actions of every Senator and Representative.

Miscellaneous News

Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC) repeatedly uses a transphobic slur on the Congressional floor. [x]

Clarence Thomas is…being Clarence Thomas *sigh* [x]

Donald Trump fired the Chair of the Kennedy Center and named himself as the new Chair [x]

Trump said that no group of people in the history of America has been treated worse than the way the January 6th insurrectionists have been treated. [x]

Some people are impersonating ICE agents and harassing & assaulting people of color [x][x]

Trump’s mass deportation is hitting a wall [x]

The Trump administration’s incompetence is coming back to bite them. [x]

Target has been facing backlash for rolling back its DEI initiatives. [x]

Donald Trump Has Already Spent $10.7 Million Of Taxpayer Money Playing Golf [x]

The Kennedy Center cancelled a performance of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington DC [x]

21 DOGE employees have resigned [x]

Musk’s new conflict of interest [x]

Trump posted an AI-created video about his plans for Gaza [x]

Here’s a Washington Post story about the migrants sent to Guantanamo Bay and the conditions they’re facing [x]

Trump supporters are calling for “processing camps” and private militias to go after migrants. [x]

Representative Cory Mills (R-FL) has been accused of assault and the Department of Justice is refusing to investigate [x]

A child has died in the measles outbreak in Texas [x]

China and Russia are trying to recruit disgruntled federal employees [x]

Elon Musk is trying to force the FAA to get rid of their contract with Verizon in favor of a contract with his company, Starlink [x]

Elon Musk makes $38 billion in government contracts [x]

Trump thinks that Andrew Tate is a totally okay guy [x]

The director of the Defense Health Agency abruptly retired [x]

March 2025

Once again, please feel free to let me know about anything I’ve missed. With this era of constant news we live in, it can be easy to forget so let’s give our future selves a little help!

[dresshistorynerd]

Historically Accurate Jasmine

Another remake! I remade Jasmine for my series of "Historically Accurate" Disney Princesses. I honestly don't like the first version of Jasmine I made five years ago. It's not well drawn, I don't like the design, it doesn't look Jasmine and I incoherently mixed elements from different time periods. I also made some embarrassing blunders in history while explaining my thought process, since back then I was much less familiar with the history of Middle East and India. So I definitely wanted to redo her.

I do like Aladdin a lot, but let's be real, it's a very Orientalist film. Orientalism is the colonial lens through which the west looks at Asia and North-Africa, or the so called "Orient". It's dehumanizing and fetishistic lens - the west at the same time despises and covets the "Oriental" body. The "Orient" is flattened as one single entity and it's all savage and exotic, backward and mystical. Orientalism is fueled by jealousy and entitled superiority. In Aladdin it's very visible in how the setting blends a lot of very different Asian cultures, flattening large parts of a very diverse continent. It's set in sandy desert, but a lot of the elements of dress especially are much more Indian in aesthetic. Certainly fitted bodices and exposed stomachs are not practical clothes in a desert climate. The characters too are frequently exotised and fetishised with most female characters including Jasmine dressed and posed to appeal to the colonial gaze that covets brown bodies. Jasmine is sexualised much more that any of the white Disney princesses.

Originally the story was going to be more focused, though I can't imagine it ever lacking in Orientalism. It was supposed to be set in Baghdad, but during the production the First Gulf War happened, so they tried to distance it from the original Iraqi setting by setting it to the fictional city of Agrabah. Would there have been less Indian elements? Probably. It is pointed that in the wake of American forever wars in the Middle East, to not cause a stir Disney elected to make the movie more Orientalist. Orientalism was the inoffensive option.

Deciding on the historical setting to ground the redesign in was not simple considering the mess that the movie's setting is. One Thousand And One Nights is a collection (or many collections) of Islamic folktales from Northern Africa to Central and South Asia. So India (especially Mughal India ruled by Muslim dynasty) wouldn't be an incorrect setting and certainly neither would Middle East. The problem is that the film seems to imply there's no meaningful difference. Rather than trying figure out what is the most fitting place and time period for the film, I looked to the origins of the story of Aladdin. Apparently Aladdin’s story was added to One Thousand And One Hundred Nights by a French translator in 1709. He got the story from a Syrian-born Maronite storyteller, Hanna Diyab, who might have come up with the story himself. Most of Syria (at least Aleppo where he was born) was at the time part of Safavid dynasty Persia, so I decided to set my version of Jasmine in 17th century Persia.

I basically based the design on the illustration from 1702-3 by Mu'in Musavvir first below. The more fitted and tailored style with wider skirt likely influenced by European fashion it represents became fashionable in mid 17th century, so it still fits the time period I'm aiming at. The colour is simply perfect for Jasmine and I really like the overall desing. I did look at other art as well to get a better understanding on how the cut of the dress works, so here's couple o more references: second one is "Two Lovers with a Servant Woman" from 1696 by Mu'in Musavvir as well, third and fourth are details from paintings in the Chehel Stoun palace in Isfahan from 1646. Eyebrows grown together was considered especially beautiful feature so of course I gave Jasmine brows like that.

I of course gave her a crown, since she's a princess and depictions of Safavid princesses seem to always have a crown. I found that usually in art women had a white veil with their crown which is why I made her veil white, even though with the scarf band, which was the more typical headwear for women, colourful veils seemed to have been much more popular at the time. The veils in 17th century were also very long. For the crown and jewelry I wasn't as concerned to be using references from mid to late 17th century specifically, since these tend to change slower than other fashions. I based the crown mostly on the first illustration below from c. 1600 by Muhammad-Sharif Musawwir of a Seated Princess and the earrings on the second illustration from c. 1540 by Mirza ‘Ali of a Seated Princess with a Spray of Flowers.

Most of the images I found on this very useful blog which had gathered A LOT of Persian illustrations and paintings in handy timeline. A lot of the information of Safavid fashion I got from this MET Museum write up by Nazanin Hedayat Munroe.

[spacelazarwolf]

i really do wish gentiles understood how utterly decimated the jewish diaspora was by the end of the 20th century in the wake of the wave of pogroms in eastern europe, the shoah and its aftermath, and the expulsions across north africa and south west asia. in the early 1900’s, around 50% of the world’s jewish population lived outside of eretz yisrael or the us. today, that number is 13%. there are countries who had large jewish populations at the turn of the 20th century that now have no jewish presence. there has not been such a large wave of expulsions and fleeing since the spanish inquisition — which is another horrifically traumatizing series of events that gentiles don’t understand the enormity of.

during the spanish inquisition, almost half a million jews were forced on pain of death to convert or flee. thousands were killed, hundreds of thousands fled. until the shoah, it was the single most massive trauma in jewish history since the siege of jerusalem and expulsion from judea. jews made up nearly a quarter of spain’s population and had been there for centuries. some of our most important texts were written there. ladino developed there, sephardic music, culture, and identity. and then it was gone. everywhere the inquisition could reach, from spain to naples to sicily to malta to the americas, the jewish populations were brutalized, genocided, and expelled. it changed the course of jewish history forever.

in the 20th century, within the span of 50ish years, hundreds of thousands of jews were killed in or fled horrific pogroms in eastern europe, a third of the entire jewish population was systematically murdered within the span of a few years, centuries old jewish communities weren’t just expelled but almost entirely wiped out which led to the loss of centuries old diaspora languages and traditions, and nearly a million jews were expelled from places they’d lived for hundreds or even thousands of years.

like. do you understand? do you understand the kind of communal trauma that kind of massive global upheaval has on a people? the expulsion of 300,000+ jews from spanish territories was enough to leave a centuries old mark on the jewish community. do you understand the impact that the murder of over six million and violent displacement of over 2 million jews will have on the jewish psyche and on jewish history? do you have any idea how earth shattering the last century has been for the jewish people? do you have any idea what we’ve lost? what’s been violently stolen from us? can you try?

[wordsofwhimsy]

𝘚𝘏𝘈𝘛𝘛𝘌𝘙𝘌𝘋 𝘈𝘍𝘍𝘌𝘊𝘛𝘐𝘖𝘕𝘚 - 𝘗𝘈𝘙𝘛 𝘛𝘞𝘖

Pairing: Mohawk!Mark x Reader | Sinister!Mark x Reader

Warnings: none

a/n: i definitely planned to do more with this chapter but when i tell you this dialogue fried my brain 🫠 poor reader doesn’t even show up. i really do love all the variants tho they’re so fun. more reader x mark interactions in the next one - promise 🤞

→ 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙊𝙣𝙚 ←

It had been a very long and slow process of rebuilding public image for all the Variant Marks. Understandably so, when considering the storm cloud of chaos and destruction they’d originally drifted in on all those months ago. But even with that in mind, things had seemingly gone from bad to worse for the poor citizens of Earth. Every day there was numerous reports of villains across the globe; albeit mostly weak, but enough to keep the lower level heroes more than occupied.

And it was in this light that the population was collectively getting over – possibly even forgetting – the heinous acts committed by the gaggle of Invincibles. Which lead that very group to where they stood today, circled in the Guardians of the Globe HQ with Cecil and this worlds’ Invincible heading the pack. Cecil had just given a rundown on the plan, designating each variant to a certain part of the planet.

As was to be expected the conversation wasn’t without its hiccups – namely the lensless Invincible who seemed to have a snarky quip or challenging statement for everything Cecil said. And typically, the edgiest of all the Marks – the one with the most daring hairstyle – would be right along side him. Those two had come to be the closest out of the group, not to anyone’s surprise.

But today, the usually rebellious Mark felt more rigid, his charcoal eyes more or less remaining focused on the variant who dawned the black and yellow suit. This tension wasn’t lost on Cecil, but in all honesty the man was tired – exhausted, to be exact – and as long as nothing was coming to blows he couldn’t be bothered to speak on it.

This universes Mark, however, wasn’t quite as lenient with what he would let stand when it came to his variants. Just the sight of them still put a bad taste in his mouth. “This isn't going to work if we all try to take on everything. We need to split things up. I’ll start by taking North America—it's the biggest responsibility and I’m the original, after all.” S.Mark grinned at this, rolling his head back and to the side as he eyed his mirror image.

“You think you're the "original," huh? That's cute. I’ve seen how this plays out. Trust me, the real work happens in places where the action's happening. I'll take the major cities in Europe. Less of the “nice guy” heroing, more actual power. Maybe the United States can be your playground while I actually get results.” The Mark who proudly still wore his Viltrumite uniform responded back coldly,

“Don’t kid yourself. You act like this is about being nice or having fun. This is about survival. I’ll take the more dangerous territories. Africa and the Middle East. The kind of places where the people really need someone with... teeth.” The variant who kept his face hidden behind his black mask now spoke up, his tone laced with seriousness and sincerity.

“We’re all focused on the wrong thing. People need more than just saving from disasters and villains. They need better systems, cleaner energy, more food. I’m taking responsibility for Asia and the Pacific Islands. I’ll focus on sustainable practices and infrastructure. Trust me, I’m the only one here who knows how to actually help the world.” The lensless Invincible interjected sharply at this.

“Hold up. You're seriously telling me you're going to sit around handing out kale smoothies while the Earth burns? You’re wild for that.” He tried to exchange a look with M.Mark, but his stare was still fixed on S.Mark. Uncaring of this lack of reaction, however, he continued, “I’ll take South America, handle some of the hot spots there. I’m more than capable of cleaning up after the messes you’re all too soft to handle.”

The Invincible who wore no mask, and seemed to be the most oddly polite of the group, spoke up. “Everyone’s talking about big territories, but no one’s thinking about the real problem: people. We need to work on the long-term emotional damage. I’ll take all the places suffering the most from war and famine. We can’t just punch our way through everything.” The main universe’s Mark sighed, running a hand over his face.

“Look,” he started, giving each of his variants a steady gaze to make sure they were all truly engaged in what he was saying. “I get that we all have our strengths, but we need a unified plan here! Are we focusing on taking out threats or building a better world? We can’t do both if we’re all going in different directions!”

“You think that by holding hands and singing kumbaya, the world will be saved? You all sound ridiculous. I’m not here to be everyone's friend. The world needs a heavy hand, not a weakling’s hope.” Of course this response would come from S.Mark, his arms folded tightly over his chest.

“You’re missing the point,” retorted the full masked Invincible. “It’s not just about taking down the bad guys or fixing the infrastructure. It’s about healing. You can’t just come in with brute force, you’ve got to help people rebuild from the inside. Have you considered what your violence does to the people you’re "saving"?”

Lensless Mark rolled his eyes, his body hunched forward slightly in a dramatic show of annoyance. “We are rebuilding, but first we need to deal with the fun—I-I mean bigger issues! South America is crawling with dangerous factions. If we don’t stop them, all the rebuilding in the world won’t matter.”

For the first time that morning the Invincible who replicated Omni-Man spoke, his voice somehow simultaneously stern and soft. “You’re all missing the bigger picture. Even if we defeat the bad guys, there’s always someone stronger and more dangerous waiting around the corner. We need to be training to make sure we’re all at out our peak and ready, for whatever that might be.”

The original Invincible sighed, holding his hands up as if in admission. “Okay, okay! Fine! We’re not getting anywhere like this. Let’s just agree that we all have important parts to play.” He paused a beat, and surprisingly no one had anything to say. For a second Mark thought he could smile just from the sheer relief of feeling like they were finally more or less on the same page. He continued,

“So you’ll take the long-term stuff,” He gestured towards the full-masked Invincible. “But remember you still need to keep the bad guys off the streets.” He moved his attention to S.Mark. “You can handle Europe—keep it under control, but don’t go too far.” A part of him anticipated a challenge but by some grace of god none came. Moving on, he looked to the lensless Mark. “You’ll go to Africa, but don’t burn the place to the ground.” An excited smile lit up the variants face, clearly pleased with this decision.

Main Mark looked now to his maskless counterpart. “You can take care of Asia, maybe put some focus on the emotional fallout. And you—” he turned next to his wanna-be-dad variant. “You can take South America while you—” his gaze moved to the Viltrumite loyalist. “Can handle Central America.” His stare finally landed on M.Mark. “That leaves you with North America.”

“And what about you?” Lensless Mark asked, head cocked slightly to the side in childish curiosity.

“I’m going to work on the smaller nations and islands, but really I’ll be making sure you idiots stay on task.” He took the time to once again meet the stare of all his variants, just daring one of them to challenge his directive. Miraculously, no one did.

“I’ve gotta say kid, I’m impressed,” Cecil stated, speaking for the first time in awhile. “Spoken like a true leader.” Mark shot him an irritated look, knowing full well he was still lingering on the idea of him becoming the new leader for the Guardians of the Globe. Not missing a beat, Cecil continued by addressing the group. “I don’t think I need to remind any of you, but in case I do: I recommend you all keep in mind the wastelands we saved you from. And then remember it’s nothing for us to send you back.” The energy of the room fell serious, all of the variants suddenly stiffening in discomfort or anger.

After letting his words sit with them for a moment, Cecil turned to Donald who was stood near the entryway. “Is everything ready?”

“Yes sir,” Donald answered promptly. Cecil nodded, turning his back on the group before lifting his hand almost dismissively in the air.

“Let’s do some good today,” he finished dryly before all the variants teleported in a blink to their designated areas. When the room was at last cleared of everyone outside of himself, the original Mark, and Donald, Cecil let out an exhausted sigh.

It had been a painfully long day, and it wasn’t even noon.

→ Part Three ←

[inspired-lesson-plans]

This is a very long post. If you do not have the time, then please at least do the quick activity up top. The lesson plan that took me 4 days to write will follow the ⁜ symbol.

HW Due Mon:

Open https://mysolartime.com/ in a new tab and allow the website to track your location.

Open https://www.utctime.net/ in a new tab.

Reblog this post the current UTC time and your local time, using the following format:

21:00 UTC, 4:00 local

4. Vote in the following poll.

⁜

Social Studies, Grade 5, Geography 6.1.5.GeoSV.3: Demonstrate how to use digital geographic tools, maps and globes to measure distances and determine time zones, and locations using latitude and longitude.

Do Now:

Provide students with a paper copy of a population density world map and 2 minutes to fulfill the following instruction:

Draw lines on the map in order to separate the world into 24 time zones. Try not to separate dense population centers into different time zones.

⁎

Class Discussion:

Use the projector to share and discuss the maps of any students who are willing to share. Have fun with this, there are bound to be some good ideas and bad ideas because 5th grade is like that.

Then, project the official world time zone map, and discuss the good ideas and bad ideas present here.

Exemplary discussion points:

The 0-point of the timezone map is the Prime Meridian, which cuts right through England. Why do you think it's in England?

How come some countries like the US and Brazil are cut into multiple time zones, but China isn't?

Why do you think the lines are pretty straight in Europe, Africa, and North and South America, but so confused in Asia and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans?

⁑

Direct Instruction:

Long ago, nobody really cared about the exact time. All you really needed was sunrise, sunset, and noon, and you could figure those out with your eyes. If you wanted to be fancy, you could put a stick in the ground and trace its shadow over the course of the day to measure out hours.

Perhaps the first recorded complaint of time-keeping technology comes from Rome in 250BCE.

The gods confound the man who first found out how to distinguish hours! Confound him too Who in this place set up a sundial To cut and hack my days so wretchedly Into small portions! When I was a boy, My belly was my sundial: one more sure, Truer, and more exact than any of them. This dial told me when it was time To go to dinner, when I had anything to eat; But nowadays, why even when I have, I can't fall-to unless the sun gives leave. The town's so full of these confounded dials, The greatest part of its inhabitants, Shrunk up with hunger, creep along the streets. [x]

In other words, "Kids these days are always looking at their sundials. Back in my day, there were only three times, Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. All we needed to tell the time was our stomach!"

Please note this was a satire, so if it sounds funny, you are correct.

But for 18th century British sailors, accurate timekeeping was no laughing matter. These sailors used fancy math (called trigonometry) to calculate their latitude. So long as they knew the angle between the sun and the horizon, and the time when that angle was measured.

Ship's captains would keep logbooks of these measurements. That way, another ship's captain would be able to reference the logbook in order to replicate the journey, much like replicating a science experiment.

Now... think about this... how can you do that unless the next captain is using the same time as you. We take this for granted today, but how can you be sure that two clocks are synchronized?

Scientists in the town of Greenwich, England (pronounced gren`-ich) recorded the solar noon every day of the year and calculated the Greenwich Mean Time. By keeping an accurate and exact time in one exact place, GMT eventually the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) for everyone in the world. That's why in the time zone map, the 0 runs through one specific part of England.

This is important. For the first time in human history, the clocks in different places were synchronized. Solar noon happens at a different time in London than it does in Greenwich, but if they both use GMT (otherwise known as UTC), then they can coordinate their schedules. This was very important for railroads, where exact, coordinated schedules are very important.

Soon, the entire country of England existed within a single time zone.

When the United States built railroads that spanned vast lateral (East-West) distances, they needed to create different time zones for cities that were far apart from each other, such as New York and Chicago. Thus, the US became the first country with multiple time zones.

As the rest of the world industrialized, they needed to pick their time zones. You can see this on the map. Each time zone is, at least in theory, as wide as 1/24 the circumference of the Earth. It's like the space between the numbers on a clock! Most countries are smaller than this, so they can comfortably fit within a single timezone. Others, like Brazil and Australia, divided their landmasses into two or three time zones.

China did not have widespread industrialization until post-WWII dictatorial communist rule. This was a very uncaring and inconsiderate government, to put it mildly. Suffice it to say that for Chinese farmers in the far west, having to get up 2-3 hours earlier every day would have been the least of their worries.

⁂

Modeled Activity:

Show students how to use this Day and Night world map as a way to visualize the day and night cycle across the world.

Additionally, show them how to use https://mysolartime.com/ to find their current time where they live.

Give students a moment to calculate the difference between their Local Time and the official time in their time zone, and what that means.

(I am currently in Philadelphia, which is 11 minutes East of New York City)

Finally, show students how to use https://www.utctime.net/ to find their exact, current UTC.

Have students calculate the difference in minutes and hours between Local Time and Official Time.

00:41 - 19:30 = -5:11 (Philadelphia is 5 hours and 11 minutes East of Greenwich, England)

Explain that every internet connected device in the world uses a service like this one, then adds or subtracts hours to fit the time zone of your current location.

Higher Order Learning:

Students work in small groups to look up the local time in different major cities around the world, recording their data on a worksheet. As they do, they should discuss the following questions:

Are time zones still relevant in our always-online society?

If you can know your Local Time and the UTC any time you look at your phone, then what purpose do time zones still serve?

How would it feel for schools and businesses to use UTC instead?

How would you feel if your school day went from 4:20-10:50 UTC?

Finally, each student must individually write at least 3 sentences responding to the following question:

Would you advocate for or against your school district dropping references to the time in your time zone and instead referring to UTC and Local Time? Why or why not?

[little-miss-dilf-lover]

Tan breaking the bed?? So now we have to both sleep on the couch.That's it, that's the whole smutty request. It must be Horny for Tan season or something (when is it not?) 💺 anon

loving where your head is at😌 always horny for tan season on this blog. thanks for requesting, hope you like it💌 inspired by the suggestive text convos. and the image has no relevance to the fic but his arm and hand??????????? help

MONEY WHERE HIS MOUTH IS.

tangerine x fem!reader

word count. 498

warnings. 18+ only!! unprotected pinv, mating press, breaking beds. minors dni

Tangerine has been away on a two-week-long mission in South Africa, and the extent to which you missed each other was always incomprehensible. The distance and time apart isn't an uncommon part of your relationship - it was simply a kink in the road you've grown to be become comfortable with.

This time, while he was away, he filled you with an insatiable want for him, a thirst that couldn't be quenched with the hundreds of miles of distance between you. It was need he fed regularly with his filthy texts and voice notes.

So when he returned home safely to you, he put his money where his mouth is - fulfilling every one of those promises he made to you during your late-night calls.

He had you on your shared bed within minutes of being back, your naked self lying desperately under him. His weight balanced on the backs of your knees, pushing down onto your thighs as he continuously drives his cock into you - holding you in mating press. 

The wind of his hips urgent and erratic, the deep need to feel you wrapped around him being the only solid thought in his brain. His strokes precise and intricate, every move made with intention - as if there's preparation and thought behind each thrust he gives you. 

Every drag of his cock rips out broken noises from you, his weight knocking strained sounds from the pits of your stomach. The only other sounds in the room being his soft grunts, the hasty creaking of the bed and the slapping of sticky, wet skin. All of the lewd sounds merging together.

His expression is primal and desperate, staring down at you with that carnal look he often wears - curls falling from his usual pushed-back-do, stray hairs danging across his forehead as he vigorously fucks himself into you. 

Just as you feel another high rise to the surface, you hear the cry of help of the bedframe from under you - the creaking getting louder and louder. The wooden slats sounding mere moments away from giving in. 

He brushes away your cautious expression, shaking his head as if to quieten you - putting off that thought like he was trying to concentrate. The throbbing of his cock inside you alluding to his close release. 

"Shush. It don't matter," he coos, his voice hoarse. "Will get a new one, just— just focus, love."

You do as asked, nodding up at him as you reach for his wrists, wrapping your fingers around the thickness like you were trying to keep him there - getting back in the zone and distracting yourself from the inevitable break of the bed. 

You feel Tangerine tense up - his body stilling above before you feel a dip in the mattress beneath you, the frame caving in from under. He shakes his head frustratedly and readjusts his position, fucking you into the broken bed until you're both gasping and blubbering from your climaxes. 

sorry it’s kinda short and shit

[elbiotipo]

I'm trying to develop my worldbuilding but have run into a problem. I don't want to do what usual fantasy settings do where specific "races" have very specific personality and cultural traits, so I'm trying to make a setting with different anthropomorphic "races" coexisting to different extents. The problem is, anytime I question myself on how somehow could've happened or how the different species ended up in their current sociopolitical climate, I don't know when to stop. If it were for me, I'd go as far back as the discovery of fire. How do you know when to stop?

Ideally you never stop, but I understand that sometimes you want to get on with a story. And that's another thing about worldbuilding, once you start creating a world different from Earth, you start asking yourself... well, why this world had the same evolution as Earth, wouldn't different geography result in different species? And then you go into speculative biology and speculative evolution and that's a rabbit hole you will never get out of. And more, you can say, why should this world have the same day length, year length, axial tilt, size as Earth... and THAT'S when you do worldbuilding for real, the worldbuilding never ends.

But here's a tip to make it easier. If you don't know something, if you don't know how to stop, you can always draw from real-life Earth. For example, let's say that you don't want to do the entire evolution of life. You have a cheat sheet; you can use the Biogeographic Realms, and mix and match fauna and flora, and you can assume evolution took a relatively Earth-like turn since your world's continents formed. You have all the life you would expect from regular Earth, and you add your own twists as needed.

For example, in one project, I wanted a Southern hemisphere vibe, so I created a world where the flora and fauna are Neotropical (South American) and Australasian, with some extinct creatures from those places, which is totally justifiable because many species can stay alive for a long time even extinct elsewhere. I just assumed that evolution followed roughly the same path there, which for a fantasy world with actual gods is more than fine.

If you are stuck in certain places on how to create your civilizations, you have literally all of human history and culture to draw from. If you don't know how civilizations in jungles develop, for example, it's time to learn about the Maya and wider Mesoamerica, Srivijaya and Majapahit, the kingdoms of Western Africa like Dahomey, Benin, Oyo, the cultures of the Amazon... Every place in this planet is full of vibrant history, culture and solutions to problems that make for great worldbuilding. You have to be careful about taking inspirations from real life cultures, but it's better that you learn about them rather than not doing research at all!

This is why I insist that people learn about real-life geography and history. Not because CINEMASINS DING, but because once you do, worldbuilding becomes easy and fun. Once you learn the rules about how the real world works, you can twist them and break them as you wish.

[abslvrs13]

“HI OFFICER” synopsis: after jj's plan goes wrong, you have too watch the two boys tackle like children after an argument.

pairing: jj maybank x quiet!pogue!reader

warnings: harmless fighting, swearing, and mentions of drugs.

a/n: based off this scene and this scene! also, not much talking from reader idk it just turned out that way, i actually do not really like this one, honestly- i could do better, i wrote this at 12 am last night and i dont wanna rewrite it soo.

"YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT'S IN THE BACK OF THIS TRUCK?" John b asked, staring out of the U-Haul's windshield. You on the other hand? Your head faced forward, jaw clenched and eyes looking at JJ like he'd just ruined every single thing in one hour! which he did, actually. last time you checked.

yes, he did just get offered to drive a u-haul that is currently full of drugs.  no cops have come blaring his lights at the vehicle, yet. the whole situation was that we, as in pogues, had to find a way to get to South Africa without passports, airplanes, and money to get John b's kidnapped dad and maybe a few bits of gold.

Luke used to work for a drug smuggler, that man he worked for did happen to have a plane that could transport everyone to South Africa, but it's not that easy. It takes a whole lot of convincing while you sit there and listen to the conversation. but, jj was very persuasive as always. 'we'll help you unload the plane' was basically what he was saying from what you heard.

the Mike dude changed plans when you all got there. Mike asked all of you to deliver the drugs in the  u-haul, so that's how you got here. "yes John b, I know what's in the back of the truck right now, it's gonna be fine, it's gonna work out okay?" JJ spoke, trying to convince him that it-would-be-fine, wasn't really working for neither you or John b, but JJ never listens. No point in trying.

you sighed audibly, looking at JJ with narrowed eyes. This job is dangerous, risky and you three are already in danger, well, with a few cops and kooks after John b sorta knocked topper unconscious. yeah.

"I am so sick of your bullshit plans, JJ" John b says while leaning forward to look at the side of JJ’s face, his eyes connected to the road. "goddamn" JJ gritted through his teeth, your eyes flicking between him and John b. you looked forward and wondered, where in motherfucking hell are we going?

"JJ, do you even know where we’re fucking going?" you asked in confusion and disbelief. He opened his mouth to speak, hesitating before John b reached behind you and grabbed the paper map. "ah, yeah- get the map out, uh- can ya hold it, baby?" JJ said and looked at your hands holding the map then the road again.

You sighed and cleared your throat, holding up the map so he could see it without crashing the car. John b peeked over your shoulder. "alright, we needa get to one fifty eight." JJ squinted his eyes and looked at the roading on the map.

"oh Jesus, there's a cop." John b said while looking ahead towards the cop, the tall man stood outside of an anonymous cars window, notepad in hand. "shit, be cool, okay?- cool." You said like he didn't know the world cool, honestly? he pretty much didn't. didn't know how to act cool in these situations. "shit," he whispered, eyes trained on the officer. Once again, you had drugs in the vehicle, amazing.

"I'm- I'm as cool as it gets, alright?" JJ picked his two fingers up, hesitantly trying to find out a situation, you raised a brow but leaned back into your chair like you totally weren't in a vehicle filled with illegal items.

"what are you doing?- don't, don't do that" you whispered shouted  and looked at the cop, begging his head to not turn when you pass. "I'm- yeah, m'just gonna wave." your eyes widen, "no!" but quickly shut up when you got too loud. Cops could hear you. The car inched closer and he waved his hand with a smile. "hi officer."

"JJ." John b spoke firmly, like some sort of dad. his hand reached towards JJ, nearly hitting your face in the process. the car took a swerve and hit a hanging tree branch, barely skimming off the road for a moment, and you reached for anything- JJ's hand. but, thank god, the car continued to drive down the streets.

"Why'd you touch me?" He nearly screamed at John b, his hand still in yours when he raises it. "well, don't wave at cops! Rule number one of driving in a U-Haul!" You sighed, "okay, okay-shut up! The cop isn't behind us.”

finally, they shut up and JJ continues to drive down the street; but you were wrong, the cop is behind you! Amazing, once again. "he's coming! he's coming, shit!" you tensed up when the sirens blared and the car trailed behind the 3 of you.

"shit! damnit, okay, goblin mode alright?" jj shouted in panic. you squeezed his hand and closed your eyes, head tilting up at the ceiling as the boys yelled at the top of their lungs. "goblin mode, what does that even mean?!" John b said while his eyes flickered to the lights and then to the windshield.

"it's what we gotta do. hang on, hang on!" he tightens his hold on your hand and surprisingly, with one hand- he manages to turn the wheel and pull into the green forest, the sirens still blaring behind. he stopped at the entrance and the cop didn't see you, wow. "alright, get out! Go, go" he rushed, not letting go of your clammy hand while sliding out of the vehicle with you trailing behind. all 3 of you ran into the trees and through the bushes. "dude, I swear if we get caught, l'm gonna kill you." John b pants, running behind you and JJ.

"well, ya probably won't have to because very soon, mikes gonna kill us first," JJ rasps, running with your hand. when you reach an opening, you all stop to get a breath. "okay, what the fuck? what just happened?" You nearly yell, snapping at the two after you'd been keeping it all in that whole car ride.

"listen, ba-" jjs panting voice gets cut off by john bs rant, "my dad- is probably in South America, with a knife to his through right now." He speaks through ragged breaths. "like, what are we doing?we gotta wait? In goblin mode? What-" he throws his hands in the air and you watched them while panting, legs sore from running and sitting all that time.

" how many times do i have to- I'm trying to help you save your dad!" JJ shouts mid sentence, his hand in front of him while looking straight as John b. you rolled your eyes, leaning down to grab a piece of grass, toying with it while watching them argue, not like you haven't many times, too many times.

"help is the exact opposite of what your doing right now!" John b shouts right back and JJ sighs deeply, and long. "Y'know what your right, your absolutely right, you know who's fault that is?" He takes a few steps toward him, his jaw clenched. "you and your treasure- obsessed father.”he finishes, looking straight at his eyes, you knew what was gonna happen when he speaks about his father.

Push.

John b's hands connect with his chest, pushing him back a few steps, JJ breathes out a chuckle, a bit humor, not too much. "Ohh, okay, that's where we're goin'?"

"yeah, that's where we're goin'" John b said, jaw clenched while he looked straight at jis eyes, then his stupid smirk. "yeah, and it looks like we just went there too," he pushed John b back, and you groaned, looking up at the sky, god help me.

you didn't really know who was pushing who, but they eventually ended up tackling eachother onto the grass floor, JJ speaking words of encouragement while they rolled around like pathetic animals. "y'know im right here?" you speak calmly, but irritably and JJ does hear it but doesn't respond, too focused on John b. you started humming a song while your feet dragged toward them, grunting and sounds of hitting heard, crickets chirping.

you rolled your eyes and lifted your foot, kicking him in the side, not to hurt to bad, but it made him flinch. "stop acting like children and get your asses up, or I'm gonna walk out into the woods and walk my way back to Kildare, so l don't end up in jail." Your lying, you wouldn't leave them. and, Kildare is miles from here and you know JJ would do anything to make you stay, or would stop whatever he was doing to get you to keep 'your cute self' in his sight.

JJ groaned and rolled to the side of John b, both of them panting, not just because of the run- but the immature tackling too. "fine." He grumbled and stood up, looking at you with annoyed eyes but they always soften. Like, no matter what.

"Y'know I think you'll both be fighting like that until you get all wrinkly" you grumbled and John b got up, hitting JJ's shoulder, not enough to make him fall over, but he didn't do it back- thankfully.

they both don't respond to your comment and instead- shoupe shows up! That is just great, could the day get any better?

[handweavers]

when i took a dye workshop on bali last year i worked with a traditional dye, ceriops tagal (indian mangrove), made from the heartwood and bark of the tree. it's been used as a very strong orange through russet through brown dye for thousands of years across the indian ocean world (so coastal eastern africa through south and southeast asia) and is notably used for dyeing orange through brown in indo-malay batik. it's a difficult dye to access now, though, especially if you're trying to do so ethically because the indian mangrove is endangered. there are some orgs that have sustainable grow ops across indonesia that harvest the dye only every few years and do so as a by-product of local industry, because ceriops tagal is an important tree for many villages across the region for wood and other necessary purposes. not harvesting the wood at all isn't helpful as a solution, so these orgs harvest at a sustainable pace and use as much of the trees as possible to reduce waste (and i believe they run as workers co-ops, so all workers are paid fair wages and decide their working conditions)

all that is to say that i got my hands on some of the dye extract from one of these orgs and made a dye vat a few days ago and left it to sit so the colour can improve while i prepare some cotton and silk yarns to be dyed. i started doing the actual dyeing today, and the process is a lot like working with indigo, in the sense that the dye sits cold in a large bucket and you dip the fiber for five minutes before wringing and letting it hang to dry. successive dips in the vat deepen the colour, and the vat can be used until it's exhausted (ie no more colour comes out of it). it gets stronger with age, and a unique characteristic of the ceriops dye is that the dye gets darker in the sun. the chemicals in the plant that cause this unique uv-darkening aspect are also found in unripe fermented persimmons, which have been used as a dye in japan (kakishibu) for centuries. both dyes also have a unique feature in that they create a textile that is water resistant, so the dyes have been used to create waterproof stencils and the sails of ships.

the ceriops bark is in the right cup in the top left photo; the orange dye in the other two photos is the colour typical of ceriops tagal.

[all-purpose-dish-soap]

Hey! I hope you’re doing well!! I read in one of your previous posts that things were a little hard right now. I hope they get better soon, if they haven’t already!

I wanted to ask about your TF141 mer au:

Do the shark mers like Soap, Price and Gaz go into tonic immobility if they get flipped upside down?

Cuz you mentioned they might beef with orcas from time to time, and that’s how orcas often kill great whites: they turn them upside down and hold them like that so they can’t fight back. This paper discusses the strategies used by killer whales to hunt great white sharks that have been observed in South Africa (TW: for pretty lengthy description of killer whales hunting sharks, as well as some slightly graphic descriptions of how the orcas ate the sharks). They also talk about strategies the sharks used to get away from the orcas being similar to how the sharks’ normal prey, seals and sea turtles, try to evade them! Which might mean the sharks are learning how to escape orcas based off how their prey escape them! And they hint in the conclusions that the hunting of sharks might even be a culturally transmitted thing from parent orcas to their calves! Which is insanely cool!! It’s a bit dry because it is a scientific paper, but definitely worth reading, if you’re interested!

But back to the point: If they do go into tonic immobility when flipped upside-down, how do they handle that in the case of dangerous creatures/divers doing that to them? I hope the guys are staying safe out there 😰

(Also, ps. Tonic immobility is theorized to be a sex thing, since sex underwater is hard. So I dunno if you wanna integrate that into your kinky headcannons about the shark mers :) )

yes, thank you!! wild. i have indeed been looking for ways to write in other types of mer, especially orcas. the problem is orcas are way, way overpowered in real life. even the ones that don't kill great whites for their livers are big enough to eviscerate anything that looks at them funny and smart enough to (as you mention) to develop these unique ways of hunting down prey. like… how do you introduce someone based on that without breaking the whole dang worldbuilding structure?

and the study, especially this bit--

In one case, a killer whale attempted to roll and invert a white shark into a position that would result in tonic immobility (Henningsen, 1994; Pyle et al., 1999) before biting into its abdomen just behind the pectoral fins.

so yeah. this particular group of orcas 1) noticed sharks are vulnerable to tonic immobility, and 2) weaponized that vulnerability to basically hypnotize, kill, and butcher them. and those orcas do so with this, like, insane technical precision. they know exactly where to tear into the great whites to reach their livers. iirc, they don't even eat the other parts of the shark--just the liver. all that murder just for a decadent lil treat <3

but yeah! tonic immobility. the idea of building that into a kink thing for the mer 141 is. hmm. phenomenal actually. people apparently speculate that tonic immobility puts a shark into a calm or rapturous/ecstatic (!) state of mind.

like…. cmon...... hypnosis kink.

imagine knowing how to drop any one of the 141 into subspace. you'd have a pod of horny monster men at your beck and call to bottom for you whenever you feel like it ;) shark sex isn't easy! there's teeth and claws and rutting and tail-winding and so much biting. if you knew how to turn any one of them into easygoing submissive mers instead of bitey aggressive doms, who would blame you for flipping that switch occasionally?? as long as you do with them what you want to do before that 15-minute window of tonic immobility trance time is up, of course, and they regain their senses. then all bets are off.

that would need to be a closely guarded secret indeed ( *︾▽︾)

(mer au tag)

[aria-bun]

Dead Boy Detectives: On Cat Royalty

I'm rewatching DBDA, and hearing TCK's phrasing of "Im a cat king", and i have an idea.

7 cat royals, one on each continent where is civilization, Asia has two due to its sheer size.

all children of Desire, and each represent one of the 7 greek words for Love.

Eastern Asia: Storge (familial love)

Western Asia: Agape (Universal love for other people, nature, and a higher power)

Africa: Philia (Platonic brotherly love)

North America: Eros (Sexual love)

South America: Pragma (Practical love based on duty or logic)

Europe: Philautia (Self-Love)

Australia: Mania (Obsessive love)

some of you are probably thinking "But Honeii, Edwin wasn't allowed to leave Port Townsend!"

That wasn't explicity stated. TCK said it "keeps you here, in my kingdom"

Everything Edwin was trying to do to leave was to leave America. We never see him leave Port Townsend to elsewhere in America, just to Britain, which is not TCK's domain.

Plus, just chaotic family dinners.

ill make a reblog with ocs of the other cat kings

[markscherz]

i love trying to identify frogs, and ive made progress, for example i can usually tell if a frog is in the families of ranidae (obviously) hylidae and bufonidae, as those are the ones in my area. but i find it quite hard after outside of those families. i feel like just sort of memorizing what families have which attributes is a bad way of going about it, so do you have any tips to narrow down types of frogs, or what i could look into and research about it? i feel like you may have answered this before but i couldn't find it in your FAQ

Vibes and location my friend, vibes and location. There isn't really a recent-enough key to anatomically determine families, and even if there were, it would not work based on external appearance alone—there is too much variation within families, and also many diagnostic features are only in the skeleton.

The best way I know is to just see lots and lots and lots of frogs, and slowly puzzle together which family they're in. For me, that keys my brain into the vibe that the family has, even when the animals are diverse.

BUT, you always have to be aware of what the analogues are in other families. For instance, dendrobatids and mantelline mantellids can look extremely similar—but nothing else looks anything like them. If you know where the animal is from, you can tell which family it is.

A more challenging example may be 'tree frogs'. There are almost identical-looking tree frogs in at least six families (e.g. Arthroleptidae, Hylidae, Hyperoliidae, Mantellidae, Rhacophoridae, Centrolenids). If you don't know where the frog is, there are some traits you just have to know. For instance, arthroleptids have veritcal pupils, whereas centrolenids, hylids, rhacophorids, and mantellids have horizontal pupils. Hyperoliids have weird triangular pupils. Hyperoliids also have weird gular pads in males; some mantellids have special femoral glands. There are special bones in the fingers of some groups and not others. And the way they reproduce can differ—rhacophorid treefrogs mostly make foam nests, whereas mantellid and hylid treefrogs mostly make jelly nests over water. Centrolenids are pretty distinctive.

But this wouldn't be a problem if you know where you are: if it's a treefrog and you're in South America, hylids and centrolenids are your prime candidate. In East Africa, arthroleptids, hyperoliids, and rhacophorids overlap, but are easy to tell apart. In Madagascar, there are only really mantellid treefrogs that look like this, though there are two similar-looking groups that are not closely related. In Southeast Asia, hylids and rhacophorids overlap.

Then there are the ranid-looking frogs, and honestly, this is also where I really struggle. Most of these were formerly in Ranidae, but then we realised they were vastly distantly related, and so they were split—but those splits happened without clear diagnoses for the groups. Consequently, consistent differences between ptychadenids, dicroglossids, ranids, conrauids, pyxicephalids, many mantellids, etc. are essentially unknown, afaik. And many of these can occur together in the same place. In these cases, you get a better clue to the FAMILY if you can work out the GENUS, which is extremely counter-intuitive, but that is just how it is.

By the way, this problem is not unique to amphibians—in birds it is just as bad, and many well-known groups do not have synapomorphies

[maudie-duan]

Series Summary: Harry has been fighting to keep his relationship with Olivia afloat for nearly two years. At what point do you choose to either endure or let the strain of the world defeat his ambitious hopes of a lasting relationship? Or will a single night and a fleeting encounter be enough to change the projection of Harry’s path? Maybe our ‘Mystery Girl,’ Shiloh, will just happen to be in the right place at the right time. 

All Chapters Here <-

A/N: Shiloh and Harry are a little messy, but I think most of us are here for their bullshit, lol. Anywho...enjoy catching up with Shiloh.

Tag List: @howling-wolf97 @sassamanda77 @babegoalsreads @palmettogal508 @indierockgirrl

@lizsogolden @sexymfharriet @pologoonies

Word Count: 3.6K

Warning: Strong Language, Major Angst, Eventual Smut, Emotional.

I took your advice and became obsessed with my therapist. Maybe by the time you read this, enough time will have passed between us, and you’ll be able to forgive my previous idiocy.

Ps. I thought of you in the sun when I made this collection. I hope it brings you joy during your warm holidays.

All the love—H

I slid his note inside my phone case before leaving for New York. Now, he’ll be a secret I carry for miles, a tiny piece of him with me everywhere I go.

I guess I should clarify a few things. I, in fact, did kind of get back together with my Ex for the briefest of moments. In all honesty, it was just sex. The media chalked it up to way more than it needed to be, of course, and I got a few laughs along the way. It’s funny, even though it hadn’t been that long since we dated, a lot more of the press forgot about our past. The whole thing really put my life into perspective—it was a shit I’ve come a long way moment, and damn, life can humble you real quick.

I’ll openly admit that I did creep my Ex on Instagramz I needed to figure out where he was, and then I sent him a text pretending like I had no clue he was in South Africa, finishing up part three of a movie series I had never even watched. The question was simple:

Hey, are you still in California?

And boom, as soon as he messaged back, the door was open. He told me he was wrapping up a movie and was moving back to LA to start a series for HBO and that he would love to catch up. I just wanted to catch up with his dick because after Italy, I needed something easy, and we were still friendly, and I didn’t want to have to go through all the work of getting to know someone new, and yes, I know I don’t have to explain the details, but a lot has happened in the past six months.

It was strange hooking up with him again; a lot had changed between us, both in life and physically. I had forgotten how hot he was, tall and muscular; he couldn’t be further from Harry, but still, I was comparing the two, maybe looking back on it now, trying to fill a “Harry” void that no one else could fill.

For starters, my Ex is five inches taller. I found myself climbing his body in a manner I was too shy to act on in the past, constantly trying to push away the memory of how Harry and I fit, our bodies perfectly aligned, it would have been the perfect give and take, and there I was—laying there with my Ex, his dick buried deep inside me, yet I only thought of Harry, his face floating across my vision every time, seriously every time, it was pathetic.

It all started with my Ex wanting to see my new place and where I was planting roots. He said he had been keeping up with me, finding it effortless since I was becoming more “famous” than him, which was a joke; I thought we were at least reaching the same playing field.

The second he walked through the door, his stare was palpable, as if he knew exactly why he was there. When he bent at the waist to hug me, he wrapped me in strong arms, his big hands gripping me tight. He drew in a long breath, nestling his face into the crook of my neck, dragging a breath through his nose like he was pulling me in.

I thought of Harry the moment we locked lips, the photoshoot, that weighted breath that gave him away, a chased burst of desire that sent a tingle down my spine—and here was my ex, so familiar, and I knew it would be good. I wouldn’t have to guess at cues because he was already sending them, and when I said, “I’ll show you my room first,” and turned away, he circled his arms around my body and pressed his lips to my neck—Okay, so, it was mutual, and we would spend the next two months fucking like we were making up for old times.

It was all fast, we were both just horny. When he eventually told me he wasn’t looking for anything serious and needed to focus on work, his Aussie accent fell heavy, laced with nerves, a mournful look filling his brown eyes. I was more than happy to let him go; of course, I would miss the easy dick, but I guess I could try and put myself out there—I thought…

And then the photoshoot dropped, and what I thought would be a slow burn flipped my life upside down. I knew Harry’s fandom was loyal; I had my best friend, Annelise, to prove that.

The thing about it was that when they revealed a sneak peek, you couldn’t even see my face. They only saw my tattoos, my brown skin, and curly hair. I could have been anybody, but the one thing that sent them pecking away at their keyboards was a close-up of Harry’s hand on my hip, his fingers spread, gripping my flesh with a pang of obvious hunger, and there peeking through was the tattoo of the word ‘Honey’ inked into my skin—They loved that one the most—It only took them a couple of days to figure it out—Now, cue the flood of new followers.

But what got fans the most was that Harry recorded a new song specifically for that campaign. It give the world a sample of his upcoming album, and with this, he could have played it off as, you know, just fun, just fucking around in the studio, and that’s where the magic began, but then, he had to go and slip up.

An interviewer asked him about the photoshoot shortly after the buzz started swirling, then he had to go and blab his mouth—and this part truly threw me for a loop because I’ve watched many of the interviews he’s done in the past, and he’s usually good at skirting around questions, always inconspicuous—a poster board for Aquarius’s everywhere, always aloof in the many plans and projects he has in the works, and I applaud that…I do.

So when said interviewer asked, “So where did you draw inspiration for this new song?” He literally said:

“Hmmm…don’t know, really. My last trip to Italy was really memorable, and I remember doing that photoshoot and feeling really inspired afterward…” a corky, lopsided smile playing at his lips the entire time, an unmistakable shift in his mood. It was like he was recalling a pleasant memory of the past.

And let me tell you. I’ve watched this interview every night before bed for the last four months straight, no lie—Then someone clears their throat in the background of the video. Harry’s face drops ever so slightly like they’re bringing him back to the present, keeping him in line, and the way his eyes shift to the person off the screen, with that, Oh shit, kind of look on his face is so apparent it aches, then he attempts to play it off with one of those charming smiles, and he changes the subject in seconds, barely covering his ass, except he didn’t.

Because fuck, everyone was on my ass after that, shipping us even before he and Olivia had even officially split. It made me want to stay as far away from him as possible and be even more vigilant with what I said or how I reacted in front of the camera. It made me hate him and want him at the same time, and yes, I do want him. I always have, but look at where we are, and after that stupid drunk dial. I wanted him even more, to be able to pick up my phone and hear that fucking voice like velvet, the way it crept up my spine and wrapped itself around my insides like a warm hug.

The thing is…I’ve had full access to Harry this whole time. I could have picked up the phone and called him whenever I wanted, but I wanted to rid him from my system. Yet, it was nearly impossible. I thought maybe if I put myself out there, all of the “Harry noise” would die down, but it seemed to only make the fan more stir-crazy.

I guess I’m not free of blame if we’re being honest. After I shot that live with Timothee, I followed ‘Pleasing’ on Instagram, which I thought I could preface with me just being supportive; they did send me merch after all but on the other hand. I know Harry had to have sent them dilerabately, to get my attention, the handwritten note, not only did he create a new launch with me in mind. There was also a song floating around, one that was really good actually, and as I’m shoving my headphones into my ears right before the plane takes off, it’s the first song I play, and now ‘Daydreaming’ has become my theme song, and somehow I can’t even be mad about it.

New York would be fun. I was only there for a few days, and everything was already lined up. There would be more free time than business, and I wanted to fit in as much as possible because I had only been to New York once. This time, I could actually be part of the hustle and bustle of everything, or at least feel that way, having a purpose to be there. I also got to spend more time with Timothee.

The first day was the only business I had on my schedule. I had a guest appearance on The Howard Stern Show, which I was looking forward to. It wasn’t as painful as I thought, and although he did ask a shit ton of questions about Harry—I think I managed to sideline them easily—The only thing that tripped me up were his random questions about Timothee, and how Howard seemed to be unusually intrigued by him, becoming more interested by Timothee than me toward the end of the interview and I was his guest.

That night, I had dinner with Timothee and his family, and somehow, we managed not to be photographed, not a single picture floating around. I did get pictured with his sister the next day when she took me around the city, showing me all her favorite vintage/thrift shops scattered about, hooping on the subway, and filling our stomachs with junk food. Even though she grew up here, Pauline took on the role of a tourist, which was greatly appreciated.

That night, we hung out with T at his place, ordering takeout and binge-watching Sons of Anarchy, starting from season two because Timothee insisted it was the best season. He ended up explaining more of the show than necessary, which resulted in me missing more essential parts, so we turned the show off to turn on a movie.

When Pauline left part way through the movie, I took to the internet. I was trying to be polite and stay off my phone, but all night, I could feel my finger twitching to be on my screen. The cast of ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ was spotted landing in NYC yesterday, and I wanted to see if there were any new pictures of Harry out on the town.

This was the first time we had been in the same country, in the same town, since London, and the feeling of seeing his feet hit the pavement on a street I might have walked on only hours before had my heart racing every time I pick up my phone and typed in ‘Harry Styles’ on every platform that made my life easier to track him.

Yes, I think I’m obsessed, but I have a feeling it might be mutual.

“What is that look on your face?” T asks, smiling over at me. I’m sprawled across his sofa, Timothee on the floor with his back resting against the couch, and every time I shift my knee, it nudges the hollow space in the middle of his back.

“Nothing, I’m just—” I trail off because that clip of Harry acting dodgy toward Olivia at their Venice premiere is all over my feed, and the site of the two of them makes me fucking cringe.

The whole situation is odd. I’ve been keeping up with all the gossip, taking it with a grain of salt, but shit, a lot of it seems creditable, and it’s not a good look for either one of them, not that I’m judging by any means, but hell, I would not want to be either one of them right now or be stuck hanging around the other. Harry almost came off as childish, which kind of turned me off, and I wish I could call him up and be like, bro, what was your deal? But something tells me that would be embarrassing for both of us.

Timothee’s head falls back on my leg, and I shift my eyes from my phone to catch a yawn forming at his mouth. Then I yawn, reaching forward to tassel his curls, eliciting a soft smile as his eyes drift shut, and I fight the urge to caress his cheek.

As I pull away, he opens his eyes, and we both smile. “Did Flo text you?” he asks, slicing through the silence. Then, he stands to gather the dishes. “She said they’re having an afterparty tomorrow, and we should come.”

I force myself to lock my screen and focus on the conversation, “She called me, but I didn’t answer…”

“Oh, I bet that’s why she was calling—” he shouts from the kitchen.

I ponder this for a few seconds, thinking of all the possible outcomes of me showing up at their cast afterparty: First off, Harry will be there unless he doesn’t show, but wouldn’t that be highly unlikely?

I would be showing up with Timothee, and that might look weird. Harry and I are both single, and while he might be in close proximity to his Ex right now, they don’t seem to be interacting very much, but I can only see what everyone else sees. I’m sure I could ask Florance, but she’s not really a fan of either one of them right now. It seems like they were even lucky to get her there in the first place—The whole thing is one big shit show.

Plus, if I go, I want to be there to support Flo, not be another girl getting googly-eyed over Harry right now. He has had enough of that already. I mean, they must have known that was going to happen when they hired him. It was smart on their end, but damn, I really want to go, just to be in the same room as him, and I would be on my best behavior, not even giving him a single glance unless he was in my line of sight and by that, I wouldn’t be able to avoid him, and I could just think the heavens later.

I, for one, don’t want any chance of us being photographed together; I have no intention of stirring the pot unless my pot is getting stirred…

“We should go…” I smile, and then T matches my smile, and I feel like I know what he’s about to say.

“You just want to see Harry…” He laughs, lifting my legs to plop down onto the couch, and I scoot myself up, drawing my knees to my chest.

“I mean…I would be there to support my friend. I can’t help that he’ll just happen to be there…” And I know my smile is giving me away, but I’m just so excited to see him, just a glimpse, just to know that, yes, he was real, and that maybe I’ll see that look in his eye—the want, the need—even if it’s fleeting, it would be enough.

I need to know if this is real or if I’m so caught up in the rumor mill that maybe I’m starting to believe the chatter.

“Have you talked to him since that photoshoot?” he asks, and my heart drops, the memory causing a dull ache in the pit of my stomach. I haven’t told anyone about the drunk dial, not even my best friend. I didn’t want to tarnish Harry’s name for her.

I exhale, my lungs heavy with gloom, “Honestly…umm…he kind of drunk dialed me one night, like after the shoot…” And it’s spilling out of my mouth, and the thing about Timothee is that I trust him. He’s already trusted me with so much of his private life, so it feels safe and freeing at the same time.

“Okay…so you saw that note the other day, right?” I pick up my phone and pop the case off, the note falling in my lap. “That day when you read this…that was the first time I had heard from him since that night.”

“He called me after the photoshoot, I think…maybe the next day or the day after…I don’t know, I’ve been trying to forget about it, but he kind of confessed his feelings for me…”

Timothee sits up then, “Wait, what? I thought you didn’t know him?”

“I don’t—I guess…ummm…I mean it’s kind of hard to explain, I guess it’s like a feeling or something. I saw Harry at the Gucci Show, then the next day, we did that photoshoot, randomly, and there was just this crazy connection…”

He laughs, “No shit, dude, look at you both…” And I shake my head, smiling down at the note.

“It’s not like that…I mean, I’m sure it could be like that…but I think it’s more than that…?” I shrug my shoulders, shaking the thought from my head.

“It’s honestly so confusing, and that fucking photoshoot blow everything up…”

T shakes his head and laughs nervously, “Dude, it really did…”

“I think I get it, though… “ he says after a beat of silence. “It makes sense…your avoidance.”

My head falls back against the arm of the couch with a thud, and I force out a deep breath, “Is it that obvious?”

“No—definitely not, but I’ve been around you, and also, I could tell by the way you navigated that live the other day…you’re pretty good at that. It’s really shocking that you haven’t had media training.”

I laugh, “Yeah…it just seems like common sense…”

“But a lot of people don’t have that. I’ve had a lot of training. I feel like I was a lot more open in the past, but I feel like I’m getting better at leaving some stuff for me.” He explains.

“I’ve always liked your interviews…as long as you’re you at your core, then you’re golden. Those fans are always going to swoon over you.”

Timothee swallows, his adam apple bobbing, “Yeah…but sometimes you just want the right person to swoon over you…” Them his eyes flick to me, making my heart pick up, the comment hanging in air between us. What does that even mean?

He smiles, looking down at his hands, suddenly shy. “So..what do you want to do?” he asks, and when he looks back at me, there’s something contemplative about his gaze, like maybe he wants to say more, so I wait for him to continue, and when he swallows, his green eyes trained on me, for the first time I’m starting to second guess what this friendship might be because his face is so serious and when I say:

“I want to go…” I watch his chest deflate, a low exhale as he scoots forward on the couch cushion, and when he clasps his hands together and lets his head drop, I’m holding my breath, the sudden shift in his mood making me wonder if that was some sort of test.

Then he says, “I think you guys will be good together…” Oddly enough, it even sounds genuine and thoughtful. A smile spreads on his face, but it doesn’t seem to reach his eyes. When he looks away, pulling out his phone to end the conversation, the air is thick with questions, making me reconsider everything, like maybe Harry was just the push I needed to get myself back out there.

A/N: Hmmm...is Shiloh actually going to consider Timothee?

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[directdogman]

Hey there's someone trying to say you said you were pro Israel on discord? They're anonymous and say you blocked them before they could get screenshots so I don't really believe them, but still :[

Mhm. Nice bit of news to wake up to, this.

Yeah, so this person's a troll and they're more than likely lying on purpose in order to try to me look bad because I blocked them on Twitter for being unpleasant, something I rarely even do and they're still seething about it. The block had nothing to do with Gaza, the person was just being annoying and I thought it'd be healthier to block and move on. I'd really prefer not to have to give this person energy, but if there's a rumor going around, I'd like to nip it in the bud, since it's very easy to disprove in this case.

To explain what this person's blathering about: Earlier this week, on a Phonegingi plush advert, this random user that doesn't follow me (and actually instructs fans of mine not to interact with them in their bio) made a dramatic QRT decrying me for posting a DT advert during a strike week, which I honestly had no clue it was, especially since my own timeline was (and still is) full of accounts posting normally.

Given that the person seemingly encountered one of my posts in the wild and ended up seething because of it + likely didn't want anything to do with me on their timeline (as their bio indicated), after thinking it over briefly, I did the healthy thing and just blocked the person + moved on. Makes sense, right? I'll admit: Even if the way the person approached me was regrettable, if I'd known it was a strike week, I'd have participated (as I'd participated in the last one), so I stopped posting teasers for the week anyway, only resuming again yesterday.

I'll also say: I checked my own timeline btw and looked at the accounts posting, and nobody else had anyone acting like this in their replies, even the much larger accounts. Nor did anyone else contact/reply to me in any way stating any disapproval.

Given that I've only blocked one account recently that isn't a replybot (and ofc, given the subject matter of that tweet), I'd have to assume that this is the anonymous person spreading stuff.

I'd understand where this person was coming from if maybe I'd stayed completely silent about Gaza, (which a lot of accounts I follow have) but I haven't. I had a Palestinian aid post pinned on my Twitter for weeks, I've talked about Gaza's child population and my support for South Africa's Hague suit in my discord server, I've engaged in the boycotts, wound down posting during strikes, donated a pretty substantial amount of Dialtown revenue towards sending money/esims... I have 4 bucks in my bank account right now and when my next DT check comes in, you'd better believe I'll be giving more. That's my right as a private citizen and one I'll continue to exercise.

I feel pretty uncomfortable having to put this stuff in front of me to 'prove' myself, even if some of it is public anyway. Charity should be something you do because you CARE and if it wasn't for this person, I'd have been far happier keeping a lower profile and not explicitly calling attention to my own aid, but given this ask, I feel it'd be stupid not to nip this in the bud. The majority of this information could be easily found with the tiniest amount of digging, btw, so it's not like the user couldn't have known any of this. This is the part of having a fandom that creators seldom talk about. You block one person for being a lil annoying, next thing you know, there's rumors that you support genocides! Fun.

So yeah, I'd like you to tell this person to just move on like a normal person (send them this post if you have to) and to stop spreading incorrect rumors about me out of spite. If they insist, I'm happy to pull up receipts to prove everything I've said. If they actually thought I was pro-Israel, they wouldn't be spreading it anonymously, they'd be writing another public post about the subject matter. Also if you see anyone repeating the rumor, please correct them. Thanks.

[littlesparklight]

Okay, actually, let me do a quick, basic primer for Mycenaean fashion, if anyone would want to try this aesthetic for their Greek myth art since Mycenaean era Greece (1400-1200 is when the majority of the myths happen, and especially the Trojan war). Not claiming to be an expert at all, here, as I've mostly googled shit and screencapped images to use as ref and then read some articles, but, I figure, it might be somewhere to start!

Here's one of the panels from the Hagia triada sarcophagus, from Crete during Mycenaean control/hegemony of the island. The women are painted white, the men dark; artistic aesthetic you see in other cultures for their visual arts of the time, like Ancient Egypt.

I think the fur(?) skirts might be religious wear, but aside from that, you have one woman and one man (specifically, the lyre player, which is probably indicative of some cultural attitudes; the lyre player in the fresco from Pylos is definitely wearing a fringed skirt of some sort, similar to what women wear) wearing a long robe/tunic, and the women are wearing some short jackets on top of that. The jackets might be Cretan or merely "early" style, because here's a fresco fragment from the Greek mainland where the woman appears to wear something similar:

It's probable (but basically impossible to know) that the thing underneath is a long robe/tunic like the women above are wearing, short or sleeve-less.

Another Mycenaean/mainland Greek fresco. In this one you'd have to decide if the top halves of the women's dress is a short (but not cut-away) jacket, plus wrap-around, tiered/fringed skirt, or a long robe/tunic with really deep neckline and, again, a wrap-around tiered/fringed skirt.

Now, you don't need to make things harder for yourself than you have to! Women can wear a simpler style of dress (like what the man in the first fresco panel is wearing), basically the same as the men's, probably just longer:

It's possible these two women are wearing wrap around skirts below the edge of the chariot, but I doubt it. As you can see, their style of dress is the same as the man's above, with a plain, straight collar.

The various lines you see plunging down the sides of both the longer robes/tunics and the shorter ones are down the sides (under the arms and down) and might also/either be down the front, at least on the long dresses with elaborate bottom rim; the woman in saffron above clearly has a decorated line going down her front.

I'll put the rest of this under the cut!

Some nice art with Mycenaean-era dress and armour for some of our Trojan war characters. (Aeneas and Hektor notably wearing Mycenaean wear even if they probably wouldn't be.)

I like this site http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/index.htm for both art and a lot of pictures of artifacts when it comes to armour and weapons from the Mycenaean era.

The men don't just wear those tunics, though; you can get some (short) kilts or skirts;

(In my opinion, I'd say it's basically a given the one/two dudes painted in basically black are meant to be from further south compared to the Greek dude here. Probably not sub-Saharan Africa, however. North Africa/Egyptian might be more reasonable, despite the impossibly dark skin.)

Some examples of the clothes recreated!

This article https://www.jstor.org/stable/20627591 talks about a fresco and its possible reconstructions, and, more importantly, includes photos of some women's clothes, especially the fringed/tiered wrap-around skirts recreated, and some drawing diagrams of said skirts that might be helpful!

Hair-wise, the majority of the men have hair anywhere from around the ears down to the shoulders in mainland Greece. (The exception being, again, the Pylian lyre player.) Minoans, even mycenaean-era Minoans, might have longer hair; one of the panels on the Hagia triada fresco has a flute-player with hair down to his waist in braids (or something like that), for example.

All the women, no matter Cretan/Minoan or Mycenaean/Greek have very long hair, gathered in variously more or less elaborate hairstyles; make your best guess from looking at the frescos is my suggestion!