#also within this particular timeframe

[karkatmybeloved]

It’s his fucking expression that has Vox’s full attention, a masterpiece of honest distress. “After all these years, and I’m finally the one to make the Radio Demon crack his smile. Holy shit. How proud of myself should I be right now?”

Alastor’s eyes are full of anguish. His fingers wrap weakly around Vox's wrists, giving a few ineffectual tugs, and he lets out a small, dismayed mmf sound that makes Vox bark a laugh.

“You’re a riot act, Al, seriously. Hey, come on, no need to look so sad. I just said I’d take care of you, didn’t I?”

Art for @spoondrifts incredible fic i want your violence, your silent sedation, featuring attic wife Alastor who, after 7 years, can no longer keep up the smile. This story and this scene have lived rent free in my head for the better part of a week and I’m glad to finally have the image out on paper. Might come back and color/detail render it later, but for now I think it captures the helplessness I was going for. Cheers.

[anhonestdaysworkcomic]

i've done so much research on medieval farming and all it's gotten me is more questions

[threeacttragedy]

Entry 2 – The One About the Likes

As you will soon figure out, I will be bouncing around from topic to topic. It will all be Lukola-related, of course, but the information and speculation I discuss may not be in any particular order. However, I will add in dates of reference to help organize your thoughts.

In my first post, I mentioned our three fan-types. Because this is only my second entry, I will touch on them again.

The Sincerely Ignorant are those that follow blindly. We all know a Sincerely Ignorant. If you’re the type of person who spirals uncontrollably at the hint of bad news, I’m sorry to tell you this, you’re likely a Sincerely Ignorant. But, don’t run! I want to help calm you the fuck down.

The Conscientiously Stupid are the people who push a narrative without considering other evidence being provided to them. We’re all Conscientiously Stupid from time to time, but this category – at least in my blog – is typically reserved for the Jakholes, the A-Holes, the Anti-Lukes, and now apparently the Anti-Nics. That’s not to say Lukolas are not also Conscientiously Stupid. We are human after all.

The Fact Finders are those that collect information and share it. They may speculate on it, but they do not manipulate it. We simply argue our case and provide the evidence in support of our arguments.

Now jumping into what I wanted to discuss today –

The likes.

The motherfucking likes on Instagram.

My disclaimer today: I am only discussing the likes between Nicola and Luke in this post; however, I will use a third party to put things into perspective. This is intentional. The “adjacent” (I hate that word, by the way) likes are a separate post all on their own – but I’ll summarize it for you because, on the surface (speculation aside), it’s quite black and white. Jake likes Nicola’s posts; Nicola likes Jake’s posts; Antonia likes Luke’s posts; Luke likes Antonia’s posts. Let the meltdowns begin.

Done?

Okay. Back to the likes between Nicola and Luke…

It’s the same old song and dance.

Every.

Single.

Time.

Nicola post to her grid.

Jake likes it within a small timeframe.

Luke – maybe he likes it, maybe he doesn’t.

The Conscientiously Stupid attack and the Sincerely Ignorant spiral. And the Fact Finders take a deep breath and prepare themselves to walk the Sincerely Ignorant back on board the USS Lukola. I’m mean, it’s exhausting for everyone.

Do Luke’s likes really matter? No, in most instances, they don’t.

Do Jake’s likes really matter? Same as above! No, in most instances, they don’t.

Let’s take Nicola’s BFF JVN for example. He usually likes Nicola’s posts, right? In fact, some days, he’s just as fast as Jake. And, what about Dylan Brady? Talk about a friend who puts an instant-like on Nicola’s posts! And, another thing – both JVN and Dylan have been known to repost Nicola’s stuff to their own stories. However, no one cares about that or considers any of these “side characters” because they’re not Luke or Jake. I get it. But, let’s consider a few things.

First, JVN has liked most of Nicola’s posts except for the “NY Rats” one [which I will not speculate about right now]. But, let’s use the “NY Rats” post as a reference point. Nicola posted that October 17. Did you know that JVN has posted 14 times on his own grid since then? And, did you know that Nicola has only liked two of those 14? Holy shit, they must despise each other, right? Or, is it more likely that (a) Nicola is busy or (b) so close to JVN she doesn’t feel the need to like every single one of his posts? Now, I want you to answer this question with all honesty: Based on this information, do you have any concerns about Nicola’s relationship with JVN? If you answered yes, why?

Now let’s consider this next part, which is in the same vein as the above. Did you know that Nicola has liked most of Luke’s grid posts? Did you know that out of the last 14 posts made by Nicola to her grid, Luke has only liked eight? That’s barely over half (but, hey, better than Nicola’s average with JVN!). If you go back even further, you’ll find this is Luke’s modus operandi. He doesn’t like every goddamn post Nicola throws up.  Even throughout the World Tour, he wasn’t liking all of Nicola’s posts. Did this bother you then? Is it possible Luke is (a) not that into social media, (b) busy, or (c) so close to Nicola he doesn’t feel the need to like every single one of her posts? Let me ask you the same question I asked above: Based on this information, do you have any concerns about Luke’s relationship with Nicola? If you answered yes, why?

Okay, I’m going to assume some people are bothered by this Luke-Like bit so let’s keep discussing it for a moment.

Did you know that since January 1, 2024, Nicola has made nine IG grid posts that relate to a political viewpoint? Did you know that Luke has only liked one of those nine posts? In fact, I was quite shocked that Luke liked Nicola’s October 15 post of her Time100 speech (if you haven’t watched her speech, it’s on her IG grid). In my opinion, Luke liking this post is far more significant than Luke liking, say, her third grid post about her Time cover. He’s seemingly agreeing with her political stance.

This was a change in modus operandi. A small change, indeed, but interesting.

[7grandmel]

Rip of the week: 11/11/2024

Radical Halation

Season 2 Featured on: Rips of Christmas Past Also on: Now That's What I Call Quality!

Ripped by wheel able, wolfman1405, David Morales Boroff

Birthday Special!

Anniversaries, anniversaries...how they come, how they go. This week in particular is a pretty special anniversary, not just for the release of hit game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, but for the release of ME: My birthday!

It's surreal how vividly I still remember when I wrote Your Silent Reality for my last birthday, covering a SiIvaGunner rip that's sat with me long since I first heard it due to the emotional ties I have to the material it utilizes. I began this entire blog as a way to give me writing practice, and I'd like to think I've grown a fair bit as a writer in the time since; but nevertheless, even a year and a half since the blog's begun, my emotional attachment to Season 2 of SiIvaGunner remains as firm as ever. The channel's output has grown to be more impressive than ever before, and last year's Season 7 in particular has had me in a chokehold with rips like Beautiful Dreamer (late but- happy birthday Minindo!) and The Paragoomba and the Wiggler...and yet, I will always keep coming back to the rips of that second season, to the rips that defined my ride-or-die fixation to the channel, and to the season that more than any other gave me feelings for things I didn't even know I was capable of caring so deeply about. Indeed, in direct contrast to last year's birthday rip, Radical Halation was the kind of gift I never knew I needed, yet one I will never stop treasuring.

Way back when I covered the rip Eterna's Cocoon, I wrote about how special it is to me to know that rippers on the team will continue to champion the works which have long since faded from public consciousness. Sure, SiIvaGunner leverages then-current events for comedy a fair number of times; a previous post on the blog's covered one such example in Lagplane, and one of the channel's most revered events back on Your Best Nightmario only came about as a result of a viral meme from that same timeframe. Yet just as often - if not moreso - the channel operates within its own bubble of time, with no care in the world for relevance or target audiences, a team making rips in huge part just for their own enjoyment. Take, for instance, the 1999 SquareSoft JRPG Chrono Cross; a game that, six years before its remaster in 2022, still existed as nary but a memory to many. Nevertheless, it was a memory treasured by two rippers in particular, a duo who had already impressed me time and time again throughout the channel's first two years. Be it Sog-Gee Ambiance, voiceless, Kass' Theme, or their previous collaborative work on 28 Saves Later, wheel able's stellar touch for arrangement and wolfman1405's unbelievable talents as a jazz performer are both some of the absolute highlights across the channel's early run. When the time came for one of the most important anniversaries relevant to the SiIvaGunner channel, the two took the opportunity to also honor a forgotten classic they both cherished – and in doing so, Radical Halation ironically became one of the first times I ever engaged with Chrono Cross. With the game's anniversary also just two days away, and the rip lying so close to my heart, I see no better time than to reciprocate that passion all these years later.

The sheer quality of Radical Halation should be made evident just a few seconds into listening; this is, as Wolfman1405 in particular specializes in, a ground-up cover and performance of the original Radical Dreamers ~ Unstolen Jewel theme from Chrono Cross. The original theme already had a shockingly acoustic sound to it for its era, really plucking at the emotions just a few chords in; that emotional rawness in the track may well have been the core reason why it was chosen to celebrate this anniversary in particular. Indeed, the anniversary I alluded to beforehand as being one of the channel's most crucial is that of the very song the rip title alludes to, the song that sits at the very emotional core of SiIvaGunner's entire being: Snow Halation from Love Live. I wrote back on Waluigi Pinball (Beta Mix) that the Grand Dad meme is like the beating heart of SiIvaGunner's creative spirit, being the core that created the entire channel; by that same logic, I feel as if Snow Halation is like SiIvaGunner's *emotional* core, its "soul" for lack of a better term. Grand Dad may be the spark that sets new rippers into action even all these years later, but Snow Halation was the first thing that people got EMOTIONALLY attached to on SiIvaGunner – it was the core behind its first story arc of SiIvaGunner: Rebooted, it continues to effectively serve as the "protagonist" to the Christmas Comeback Crisis storyline – and its use throughout the channel continues to feel like a reminder of that same attachment, the one that the channel has to all of us. It's an openly sappy, almost overbearing song, yet one that represents so much about the love of remixing and rearranging that SiIvaGunner continues to focus on all these years later.

You take that emotionally-charged melody, put it in the hands of two stellar arrangers, and inject it into an arrangement of an emotional melody the soundscape of which said aforementioned rippers already appear to hold a close attachment to, and the end result is exactly what Radical Halation shows us. Throughout 2016, throughout the entirety of Season 1 of SiIvaGunner, we as the audience had gone on such an emotional rollercoaster regarding out attachment to the channel, its creatives, and its memes, with Snow Halation at the very center of it all; with the channel returned just in time for the holidays, it also happened to return just in time for Snow Halation's anniversary on December 22nd, ever so coincidentally aligned with the time upon which we were all wholly, earnestly in love with everything the song had come to represent. Many months before Season 3 and beyond would begin feeding irony into the discussion of appreciation for these melodies, right as the Christmas Comeback Crisis was just kicking into gear, and just long enough after the channel's return had occurred to make us truly accept that it was back, Radical Halation's release window struck gold in a way only truly comparable to the rips of the Season 1 finale a la Tupac's Empty House and THANK YOU FOR RIPPING.

I'm of course not aiming to frame Radical Halation as just being "the right thing at the right time"; beyond that emotional attachment, the simple fact of the matter still remains that its a hauntingly beautiful arrangement, even close to 8 years later. Radical Dreamers ~ Unstolen Jewel's beauty sinks in just from the acoustic guitar lead-in, and is only emphasized by the time the rip's true "twist" sets in, of its lead melody being that of a Snow Halation arrangement played on violin. The two halves form an incredible, inseperable whole; not confined by the restrictions of a mashup, the hand-made nature of this arrangement means that both the guitar and violin segments are free to fill in for one another, to emphasize the sounds of Radical Dreamers ~ Unstolen Jewel or the melody of Snow Halation to different degrees on a moment-to-moment basis. I particularly love the section after the Snow Halation melody first plays - at around 0:47, the violin seamlessly leaves the Snow Halation melody and instead takes cues from the source track, yet never stops feeling as if its all from the same arrangement, even upon returning to Snow Halation at 01:10. The rip throughout has the same feeling as the best and most carefully-constructed mashups of today a la Eazystep or Maroonbound whilst in reality being a completely new arrangement and performance.

The visuals of the rip are of course just the cherry on top of it all. Viewers are made immediately aware that the rip is going to be something special not just through its audio, but from the cold-open visuals of pitch blackness fading into a view of the ocean from underneath the surface, the logo fading in just as the melody's played its first few notes. These visuals only change once Snow Halation is first quoted in the audio, changing from the undersea depths to the view of a beachside in winter, a quite literal mash-up of Chrono Cross' dreamy seasides and the snow-covered comfort of Snow Halation. None of this visual detail is particularly "necessary", it's not here to further a punchline; rather, in the spirit of rips like i love(d) you, the visuals serve to punctuate the emotional core of the rip. Visuals in any rip are a surprise, an often-time momentous occasion, and Radical Halation combines that knowledge with its purpose of celebrating Snow Halation's first-ever anniversary celebration on the SiIvaGunner channel to create a rip that, even with no ties to Chrono Cross at the time of watching, I just KNEW would be special back in 2016 just three seconds in.

All these years later, and a rip as special, profound and heartfelt as Radical Halation still manages to feel...forgotten about, in many ways, sitting at less than 25K views as of writing. In that sense, Chrono Cross may have been a more apt game to use for this tribute than its rippers initially thought; all these years later, despite its clear emotional core, the passion that went into it and the release of its remaster, the game remains a jewel swept away by the tides of the industry. We're soon nearing nine whole years of the SiIvaGunner channel's run, and with every day I run this blog I'm made all the more aware of how many gems just like Radical Halation continue to slip by the cracks, how much joy and love the channel's team crams into so much of its output despite never having any sort of guarantee that its audience will reciprocate that love.

But, even all those years ago, Radical Halation did reach me. And even so many years before the idea of this blog was even a consideration, before I was knee-deep in thought about the channel's existence and the people involved in its upkeep...I knew that I wanted to thank its creators. I knew that it was a rip that could only have been made out of outpouring love; love for a game years old, love for a channel that was still standing shakily, love for a leitmotif and its impact on an audience...and most of all, the love of creating and performing music outright.

I held onto those thoughts, kept them stashed away in the back of my mind – yet I feel as if subconsciously, they were part of why wolfman1405's arrangement and performance of Sunday Morning, three years later, hit me as hard as it did. The song was different, the subject was different, the context was different, the "joke" was no longer there; and yet it was as if Wolfman1405's creative, emotional spirit, that I'd felt so prominently years past, had never left. Put simply, beyond its inherent qualities that I'll forever applaud wheel able and wolfman1405 for, I feel...indebted to Radical Halation: it may well just be one rip, but its one of the most core pieces I can think of for why my love for the channel continues to this very day.

[bantarleton]

It's both funny and sad seeing online (and in this case anonymous) "journalists" scrambling to get a hold on who "redcoats" are in the wake of a recent inflated faux outrage about a café in Edinburgh. This article in particular is a wild one.

"The uniform was used by British soldiers from the 16th to 19th century in several conquests on behalf of the the British military around the world."

No, unless we're counting some niche Scottish and English retinues in the 16th c. it was used from the 1640s by the English and the 1660s by the Scottish (almost half a century before the Act of Union). Nor did the uniform stop being worn in the 19th century, it only ceased being battlefield dress - it's still ceremonially worn today (by Scottish regiments as well).

"For those unaware (take note, Edinburgh Castle), from 1725 onwards, garrisons manned by government soldiers or "redcoats" sprung up all over the Scottish Highlands, most notably at Fort William and Inverness."

I love the condescending tone of this part, with the anon author totally schooling Historical Environment Scotland for their lack of history knowledge. But no, garrisons didn't suddenly start appearing from 1725 onwards. Prior to 1745 Scotland was not an "occupied" country. The redcoats being talked about were mostly Scottish regiments holding the Scottish garrisons they'd occupied for decades (the basic problem with the premise of this article is people think "redcoat" = "English." Ironically for at least half of the historical timeframe the English were a minority of "redcoats").

"Redcoats took an aggressive hand to Scots across the country who did not support the king and attempted to cling to their national identity."

Which king? The exiled Stuart king? The "Hanoverian" king? This "national identity" stuff is also fabricated hokum, again, there was no effort at repression in Scotland by "redcoats" prior to the 1745 uprising, just the usual service performed by the 18th c. military. Scotland had one of the lowest ratios of soldiers-to-population in Europe during the period! These soldiers were almost all Scottish themselves. The author is just writing what they vaguely think is the case as fact.

"The government army, clad in red, massacred Scots at the Battle of Culloden Moor, marking not only the defeat of the Jacobite movement, but the destruction of clan and Gaelic Highland life. From 1745, Highlanders were forbidden to carry weapons – including the famous broadsword. The playing of the bagpipes was banned. Tartan and highland dress was outlawed."

The clan structure was dying a death before Culloden and the battle didn't mark its final "destruction" (people seem to also think the redcoats were responsible for the Clearances, so at this stage anything's fair game). The bans on the things mentioned as outlawed were barely enforced and largely repealed within a few decades.

"And clansmen who dared to defy? Fines, imprisonment, exile, and death at the hands of... you guessed it, the redcoats. However, as one user wrote, "history is complex", highlighting that Scots wearing redcoats were on the side of the British army on the moor."

They finally managed to mention that "redcoats" aren't just the English. In fact most of the "fines, imprisonment, exile and death" being meted out was by fellow Scots against the Jacobites, who didn't have the support of the majority of the country. And this wasn't just a lowlanders vs highlanders thing, highlanders were behind repressing *other* highlanders, as has been the case throughout history.

The best part of all this is the café has been operating under that name for 32 years without comment, but they've only just noticed so now it's become a thing.

tl;dr

[claypigeonpottery]

sooooo

kiln date on the 17th! pottery should be out by the 19th and ready to ship by next week after I take pictures, glue magnets and clean everything.

y’know, if things survive.

I’m getting into that usual terrified excitement that surrounds kiln time. yay. 🙃

hopefully I’ll have enough space in the kiln but if not I’ll do my best to get everything with dibs finished

if you have dibs on something

I would love it if you’d dm me your full shipping address and email, so I can calculate shipping cost once everything is packed, and send out paypal invoices.

if I can get those before I start the whirlwind of packing pottery, I would really appreciate that, it’ll save me time and effort during The Packing.

if you’re particular about sharing that info here on tumblr, you can email it to me at theclaypigeonpottery@gmail.com -but please include your username and/or the piece you have dibs on so I know who belongs to what

thanks!

also, I’m going to reiterate my dibs policy here

you have no obligation to buy the piece

I have no obligation to re-create the piece if it doesn’t survive the kiln

I will send you pictures of the piece before anyone else

you have up to a week to decide if you want it or not. if you don’t respond within that timeframe, I will send you a message to let you know I’m moving on/posting it to Etsy.

I will hold a piece longer if you communicate that with me, but I need an end date. I can’t hold things indefinitely

and here’s my cat, because she wants attention

grabby paws

[doshmanziari]

Hey, everyone.

In 2022, I wrote and illustrated a short comic book which I published and sold copies of at that year’s MICE. Entitled Adyton, it was a brief exploration of what I'd very loosely call the close encounter phenomenon, with an emphasis on the abduction aspect. Since then, I’ve wanted to expand on the book; but, as is usual for me, I have to ruminate on something for a long while until embarking on the project feels right. This recently happened, and I’ve decided to entitle what I intend to be my first complete and long-form graphic novel Can You See Behind the Moon? I’m not going to say where the title comes from, and will leave it to those who are more familiar with some of the paranormal literature to recognize its origin.

Over the years, I’ve made sputtering attempts at other graphic novels, but the lack of a clear narrative direction for one doomed it to oblivion (Underbrickers), while the creative momentum of the other seemed bound to a very particular timeframe (Grim Synergy). Differently, I see this project as encompassing ideas which, to varying degrees, are present within my mind every day, or every other day, and I do think it can be sustained by that persistence. If I were forced to speak in very general and perhaps reductive terms about Can You See Behind the Moon?, it is my attempt to explore possibilities implied by close encounters in a way which emphasizes a deep and occulted relationship humanity appears to have with itself, the cosmos, and what one might term the evolutionary impulse.

The first four pages you see here (not counting the cover) are recreations of Adyton’s first six pages. As should be apparent, the narrative is not linear. Like Adyton, the plot sometimes progresses according to visual resonances which can also be interpreted as conceptual resonances. For instance, the as-yet-unnamed young man’s finger-gun gesture becomes the transitional point for a reference to the so-called Kelly-Hopkinsville encounter, wherein guns figured prominently, and unusually.

To be clear, this work has been done very quickly, in the interest of submitting it to relevant publishers as proof-of-concept material, and so that I’m able to maintain a pace of a couple of pages every two or three days (while also producing “fine art” for gallery shows, to say nothing of various other side projects). But I also like the roughness of the drawings, and the color of the newsprint paper… so, the making of these has also carried with it pleasure and occasional surprise at the results. Since I’ve decided to work within a limited palette, I’m relying heavily upon the linework.

For Christmas last year, my partner — somewhat regretfully — got me a comic book about UFOs published the same year by Dark Horse. I write “somewhat regretfully” because she didn’t really like the look of it; and when I received it I had to agree: the art is so simplistic, mundane, and ugly that I don’t think I’ll ever do more than skim some of the pages (the author also seems to have only done the bare minimum of research regarding Betty and Barney Hill’s case). But I’ve used the book as a point of motivation: surely, if something that bland could get green-lit by a fairly well-known comics publisher, then my work stands a chance.

Another one of my particularities is that I tend to get through projects more quickly when I don’t assign their completion an arbitrary date, and also when I don’t make myself beholden to publicizing all of the progress. I don’t intend on making a Kickstarter or anything for this — unless it becomes necessary — so I’m not sure when I’ll be prepared to share more. But, the time will come.

Anyway — even if there’s not much here yet, thanks for looking!

[commsroom]

heres an essay prompt: how do you think hera engages with the passage of time? especially milestones e.g. "in case you've forgotten, i am four" or "happy birthday officer eiffel" . speculation is more than welcome; youre not restricted to canon.

okay!! good question!! there are tons of factors there, so i'm going to try to just... touch on some of them. first, obviously: she's only ever been in goddard labs + space, so she has no real first-hand concept of day/night cycles, seasons, etc. in the way those mark time on earth. their "year" orbiting wolf 359 is only about two and a half months, but obviously they keep track by earth's calendar + they use military time, so... even in smaller ways, she's used to these methods of timekeeping.

there's also the consideration of time as distance ("somewhere, 13.7 light years to the left...") and overlapping time, how she experiences any given length of time simultaneously many times from multiple perspectives, etc. as part of how she might perceive it.

re: milestones in particular, of course the big thing is still going to be... what the writers said, how hera cares about holidays because the people in her life invite her to care about them. she cares about eiffel's birthday because it matters to eiffel, and she cares about him. she feels left out from thanksgiving because she can't participate the way the others can. etc. and i think she might have some complicated feelings about her own birthday, or maybe even want to consider a different day her "birthday." since, unlike most people, she can remember the earliest days of her life, and that's not a pleasant association.

which ties into the next part, "in case you've forgotten, i am four" is one of those lines that frustrates me so much in how i feel people misinterpret it. like, yes, it's important to realize she only has four years of life experience. it's equally important to realize those are four years she has lived as an adult woman with an adult perspective and responsibilities. it can't be dismissed as just "she's an AI" because so much of what hera experiences directly, intentionally parallels the effects of real life trauma. it is extremely common, as a sheltered adult who has recently escaped trauma, especially with the additional limitations of being disabled, or neurodivergent, or trans (all things i think hera either directly, canonically experiences, or can be drawn in close parallel to), to feel that you've only been alive for a few years, that you've been thrust into adult life without the necessary formative experiences to make sense of it. that your peers all have some shared experience or understanding that you missed out on. i hate so much to see her infantilized for that; i don't think a lot of people fully realize how real or how painful that can be.

... which is a bit of a tangent off the point re: time, but i think it's relevant. since she has... both a very limited life experience, but also so much overlap within that timeframe, there's a sense of urgency about it. i think hera has always felt that she's running against the clock to live some type of life, anything at all. she thought she was going to be left alone up there and had a few years at most. and while a lot of sci-fi presents AIs as long-lived... in the context of wolf 359, where they're a product constantly under development, where the timespan between rhea's series and hera's was only a few years... i think the average AI in that universe probably has a much shorter expected lifespan than the average human. and since hera is very much in uncharted territory re: living an autonomous life... maybe that's getting into a different topic, but i do think time is something she thinks about a lot.

[the-final-sif]

yeah agree with your opinion all the way also it is really weird how it came out days after Dream said they are friends. Like this is just the perfect opportunity to “show” that Dream is “delusional” about the friendships and make fans sceptic about who else could be a “backstabber”

Oh 100%, the timing is not accidental. Also, you'll note that all the screenshots except the Paris one are marked as "Today" implying that for some reason over a 24 hour span, Karl was talking about one of Dream's singing tiktoks, quitting banter, Tales of the SMP somehow being Dream's fault because of the face reveal??? Despite the fact that Dream wasn't even really involved in Tales aside from playing XD? And then also doing damage control for things mods were going leaked that day, like, earlier that day? All supposedly in one day? Like he just woke up and decide he wanted to talk shit and this was the most damning stuff the person could get out of it? And then within that timeframe, he decided not to remove that mod and not to do anything to deal with the issue?

The alternative would be that this person was taking screenshots the moment that Karl said something they thought they could use to smear him, and compiled whatever they had to make this smear, which honestly isn't even a great smear? I don't trust that person to be honest even if the screenshots are real. They're filtering everything through a very particular perspective, and they aren't actually trying to do anyone any good. They're trying to smear someone for whatever reason.

Also, again, even pretending for a moment that the screenshots are real, context is completely omitted, both temporally and even just a broader context of the conversation. There's no way to read tone, there's no way to tell how private the convo is meant to be, etc.

Like, again, if someone took discord screenshots of things I've said out of context, they could make me look like a terrible person. They could make it look like I hate close friends or any number of things. It's very easy to do when you cherry pick things out of context that were meant to be said in private to people you trust. And again, that is making the huge assumption that these screenshots are real, and not just faked which is still entirely possible.

[lieutenantselnia]

Davy Jones' Origin

Some time ago I’ve started to wonder if Davy Jones possibly spoke Scottish Gaelic besides English, or if it could even be his actual first language. Although he is never shown speaking it or having a particular connection to his homeland besides speaking with a Scottish accent, I think it would make sense, given Scotland’s history before and during the 18th century. Therefore, I thought this could be an interesting topic to examine. Mind you that I’m not a historian, and not an expert on those topics, I merely love exploring and extending the backstory of one of my favourite characters.

Spoiler: I don’t even get to discuss the initial topic itself in this text, this serves more as a setup where I try to sort my countless thoughts that I have about Davy. I plan to talk about it in another text some time in the future though.

Before looking at the language topic, I think it makes sense to look at Davy’s general background. His origins and his life before he fell in love with Calypso are largely unknown. It can only be estimated for how long he has roamed the seas ever since, but I think it is safe to assume that it has been multiple decades at least, though more likely centuries already.

The official wiki states that he and Calypso met and fell in love at an unknown date – and under unknown circumstances – between 1600 and 1660. It is not known for how long their relationship lasted before Calypso made him captain of the Flying Dutchman and put him in charge of ferrying souls to the afterlife. It could have been mere weeks, but also months or even years. In case of the latter, they probably saw each other on a semi-regular basis, as Davy would visit her during his voyages. All in all, it leaves a lot of room for interpretation (and fanfictions).

However, it is known that as Davy felt betrayed by Calypso when she didn’t show up to meet him, after he had fulfilled his duty loyally for ten years, he convinced the newly formed Brethren Court to bind her in human form. For some reason, the German PotC wiki states that the First Brethren Court convened presumably around 1640. Although there are no sources cited to back up this claim, there is no explicit contradiction to be found either. Assuming it is true – after all, it would be within the given timeframe – , Davy would have taken up his duty around the year 1630. By the time the movies take place, he would therefore have captained the Dutchman for around 100 years.

In a few instances of the official wiki, Davy is described as a “young sailor” when he meets Calypso. In other instances, no indication on his age is given. “Young” could supposedly mean he was in his 20s or 30s, which would therefore set his birth date around 1600.

On the other hand, he already looks significantly older when Calypso reveals his human form (the actor Bill Nighy was in his late 50s at the time the movies were produced). Of course he could simply have aged, however – though this is just my personal opinion – I like to think that he was already on the more mature side when he became cursed – possibly somewhere between the age of 40 and 60 – and that the curse either stops or at least alters the natural aging process of any person affected.

There is barely any specific canon information on this, but as shown in the movies, both Davy and the rest of the crew have maintained excellent physical strength and agility (in fact, it’s even enhanced compared to regular humans). This makes me assume that the curse either just stops their aging process and they stay at the same level of physical fitness that they had when they first fell under the curse, or that their transformation into sea creatures somehow slows down or alters the process, for example by balancing out their age-related physical decay by adopting more and more features from animals or other marine life.

Assuming he was already a middle-aged man, possibly around age 50, Davy would have been born in the late 1500s. On a personal note, I could also imagine that the story as a whole took place even earlier, and that Davy could have been born anytime during the 1500s or even the late 1400s. As the whole story around Davy Jones and Calypso is held very vaguely and even treated as a legend, there aren’t many concrete contradictions. However, as the First Brethren Court and Calypso’s capture are said to herald the start of the Golden Age of Piracy – which historically took place roughly between 1650 and 1730 – , it makes sense for those events to take place at a later date to connect everything (somewhat) logically.

To conclude this little examination and sum up the numbers: Davy Jones was presumably born in the second half of the 16th century. He and Calypso met before or around the year 1630, and around another ten years later, after their mutual betrayal and Davy abandoning his duty as a result, the curse started to take effect. Up until the events of Dead Man’s Chest, he has already captained the Flying Dutchman for almost a century, and reached an age of about 150 years – although due to the curse, this number doesn’t have a particular meaning in relation to his health or physical condition.

Of course, in the end this all is just my interpretation based on the rather sparse information that the official canon gives us. But it was certainly fun to finally bring some of my countless thoughts about Davy onto paper (trust me, there are a lot of those whirring around in my mind, but it’s not always easy to get hold of them). I haven’t even touched on the topic I actually wanted to talk about – that being Davy Jones’ relation to the Gaelic language and his homeland Scotland, but I really hope to do so in another essay.

Sources: https://pirates.fandom.com/wiki/Timeline_of_Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_series https://fluch-der-karibik.fandom.com/wiki/Zeitlinie_Fluch_der_Karibik

[beaumontmanor]

Progress Update #1 - Character Sprites!

Hello everyone, I’m here to give you the first update on the development of The Mystery of Beaumont Manor! Over the past two weeks, I've made significant strides in several areas. I've been working diligently on drafting sprites for each character, which has been both challenging and rewarding. Simultaneously, I've been fleshing out the storyline, adding depth and intricacy to the plot. To keep everything organized, I've set up a dedicated Google Drive folder for the project, which has greatly improved my workflow. I'm pleased to introduce you to some of the key characters that will feature in the story. The main character is Lyra, a curious and clever individual who finds herself at the center of our mystery. Supporting characters include Dominic, a stoic bull butler; Sylvie, a charming moth maid; Barry, a diligent beetle groundskeeper; and Mavis, a secretive blue anole researcher. Each character brings their own unique perspective and backstory to the narrative. Looking ahead to the next two weeks, my focus will be on developing expressions for each of the characters. This process is crucial for bringing their personalities to life and conveying emotions effectively throughout the story. I'll also be revisiting and revising certain aspects of the storyline to ensure coherence and engagement. My goal is to complete all the character expressions within this timeframe, which will allow me to transition to working on backgrounds and in-game items in the near future. The development process has not been without its challenges. Barry's design, in particular, proved to be quite difficult. Creating an anthropomorphic insect character while maintaining believability and appeal required numerous iterations. Additionally, I've encountered some ongoing difficulties with anatomical accuracy across various character designs. However, these challenges have provided valuable learning experiences and opportunities for improvement. In terms of my project timeline, I acknowledge that there is still a substantial amount of work ahead. Nevertheless, I'm pleased with the current pace of progress. If I can maintain this level of productivity, I believe I will remain on schedule for my projected completion date.

[darkmaga-returns]

The Bogus Iranian Assassination Plot and My Conversation With Tom Luongo

14 November 2024 by Larry C. Johnson 29 Comments

My chat with Tom Luongo, author of Gold, Goats N’ Guns, is posted at the end of this piece and is sparking some controversy and anger over a brief comment Tom made with respect to the Palestinians and Iran. While I don’t agree with him, I still find him a very smart, contrarian analyst. Some of the folks commenting on YouTube are losing their minds. They are judging an 80-minute conversation based on just five minutes. I don’t want a world in which I only talk to people who agree with me or think like I do. Part of my intent is to demonstrate that two adults can have a civil conversation and disagree without accusing the other of sexual activities with one’s mother.

Which brings me to the alleged Iranian plot to kill Donald Trump. This thing stinks to high heaven. It sounds like something the FBI cooked up to create a meme prior to Trump’s election, with the goal of portraying Iran as the ultimate empire of evil. In my opinion, if you buy into this, you’re being played for a chump.

I’ve pulled three key paragraphs from the Department of Justice press release on the plot:

Farhad Shakeri, 51, of Iran; Carlisle Rivera, also known as Pop, 49, of Brooklyn, New York; and Jonathon Loadholt, 36, of Staten Island, New York, were charged today in a criminal complaint in connection with their alleged involvement in a plot to murder a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin in New York. Rivera was arrested in Brooklyn, New York, and Loadholt was arrested in Staten Island, New York, yesterday. Shakeri remains at large and is believed to reside in Iran. Rivera and Loadholt made their initial appearance in the Southern District of New York yesterday and were ordered detained pending trial. . . . Shakeri is an IRGC asset residing in Tehran, Iran. Shakeri immigrated to the United States as a child and was deported in or about 2008 after serving 14 years in prison for a robbery conviction. In recent months, Shakeri has used a network of criminal associates he met in prison in the United States to supply the IRGC with operatives to conduct surveillance and assassinations of IRGC targets. Two members of Shakeri’s network are his co-defendants, Loadholt and Rivera. At Shakeri’s instruction, Loadholt and Rivera have spent months surveilling a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin residing in the United States (Victim-1). Victim-1 is an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime and has been the target of multiple prior plots for kidnapping and/or murder directed by the Government of Iran. In exchange for Shakeri’s promise of $100,000, Rivera and Loadholt repeatedly sought to locate Victim-1 for murder. . . . In addition, according to statements made by Shakeri in recorded interviews with law enforcement agents, the IRGC has also tasked Shakeri with carrying out other assassinations against U.S. and Israeli citizens located in the United States. In particular, Shakeri has informed law enforcement that he was tasked on Oct. 7, 2024, with providing a plan to kill President-elect Donald J. Trump. During the interview, Shakeri claimed he did not intend to propose a plan to kill Trump within the timeframe set by the IRGC. He also stated he was tasked with surveilling two Jewish American citizens residing in New York City and offered $500,000 by an IRGC official for the murder of either victim. He was also tasked with targeting Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka.

[couturetrendsblog]

The Psychology behind Fast Fashion:

Fast fashion has revolutionized the retail scene, providing the masses with the hottest styles available within lightning-fast timeframes and at breakneck prices. But what makes the phenomenon tick? Behind the thrilling aspect of fast fashion lies a complex interplay between emotions, social pressures, and cognitive biases.

Instant Gratification

The biggest psychological factor is the demand for instant and immediate fulfilment of a person’s needs or desires . A world that applauds in immediacy ensures fast fashion delivers exactly what people want: fast rewards. The shopper rushes with new clothes, lifting their mood temporarily. And this impromptu satisfaction fosters an addiction; sooner than later, more purchases might lead to buyer's regret.

Social Identity and Peer Influence

Thus, as a means of self-expression and social identity, fashion can also present a crucial role in defining who people are. Associating with fast fashion can be a means of creating the perception that wearing the latest trends "heightens" the individual's social status. Social pressure is at a great level to avoid FOMO through keeping abreast with peers, influencers, and even celebrities. The cycle leads to the fact that one needs to change the goods in his or her wardrobe continuously "to keep up," causing overconsumption.

Cognitive Dissonance

Fast fashion consumers experience cognitive dissonance, which occurs when values clash with practices of purchase. The consumer on one hand may preach sustainability and ethical responsibility, but low prices and fashionable items can justify a one-stop shop at fast fashion. This can cause guilt, but social acceptance usually drowns out these thoughts.

Marketing Techniques

This fast-fashion company uses many psychological tactics in its advertisements that play tricks in the consumer's mind. Scarcity-based marketing, where limited stocks, sales, or low quantities are offered as time-sensitive forces the buyer to shop on impulse. Consumers keep coming back due to a new collection each month that convinces them to shop because it's new and is the 'thing' at that particular moment.

Conclusion To put it in a nutshell, the psychology which defines fast fashion reveals how emotional wants, social influence, and marketing manipulation blend together into a notable shopping experience. Understanding these aspects will empower the consumers to make mindful decisions that will lead to a far more sustainable approach towards fashion.

[obiwanwhumpminibang]

FAQ

What is a mini bang? How does this work?

This event is mainly a form of collaboration between fandom artists and writers. The event will start with writers creating a summary of their fic and a short excerpt which participating artists will then make artwork inspired by these fanfictions in return. During the reveal timeframe, these works will be made available to the fandom.

You might have taken part in a big bang event before, but this event is intended to be a scaled down version of this. Our word count minimum for participating writers is 3K words and the upper limit will be approximately 20K words. This event will also only span the length of three months in total.

Who can participate? How do I sign up?

Anyone (18+ though)! We do not have any requirements other than age for writers or artists, but we do ask that you join the event in good faith. 

Sign-up dates and links to google surveys are listed in the Event Information post pinned to this blog. If you wish to confirm you have successfully enrolled in the event, please contact the mods and will make sure you are. 

What level of complexity is expected for art pieces? 

We welcome any skill level for this event! All we ask is that your piece is fully complete at the time of posting and is more than just a sketch. 

Can I sign up as both a writer and an artist?

Absolutely! In fact, we’re encouraging it! As many of us in the Clone Wars/Prequels/Obi-Wan fandom circles are likely aware, there are not as many artists as there are writers in this particular fandom. We want to ensure all the writers participating are able to get artwork to go with their fanfic.

Can I sign up to make art for multiple fanfics?

Yes, we are also encouraging this! If you are an artist willing to make more than one piece for the event, we would love to be able to use this as an option in the case our writers outnumber our artists (which is very likely). When filling out your sign-up, please answer the prompt regarding how many pieces of art you are willing to make for the event. 

Keep in mind, even if you are willing to make multiple pieces, there is a chance this will not be necessary based on the sign-ups from other artists. 

Will I need to fill out two sign-up forms if I am planning to be both an artist and a writer?

No, please just indicate on the sign-up form you would like to be both when prompted. 

Are the mods planning to participate in the event?

Yes, we are both participating.

What is considered to be “whump?”

We would like the fics and artwork to be whump-centric. What do we mean by that? Well, you just need to hurt Obi-Wan really. It’s up to you whether you want to comfort him or not. We aren’t looking to limit your creativity, just as long as Obi-Wan gets some good old fashioned pain & suffering. 

Consider some of the following tags on Ao3 if you want to get a better idea of what we’re looking for: Hurt/Comfort, Whumptober 2023, Chronic Illness, Sickfic, Major character injury, Major character death, Injury Recovery, Whump, Disability

Is shipping permitted?

We would like to keep the primary focus of the event on whumping Obi-Wan. Can that include a relationship? Sure, but we encourage participants to keep this as a secondary aspect of the fic. We want to make sure artists are able to find fics that match their interests and it will be more difficult if most of the fics include ships and our artists are not interested in those particular ones. 

Can fanfics and art be NSFW? 

Yes. Artists will need to ensure writer prompts and fic information fit within what they are comfortable with during the claims process. 

Are there other rules regarding what can/can’t be written about?

No, as long as everything is tagged appropriately. Go buckwild. We encourage violence and crimes (committed against Obi-Wan, of course). 

And because it needs to be said, the mods subscribe to the “don’t like, don’t read” policy. 

How do artists pick/claim writer prompts?

Before the claims period (exact dates TBD, but the first week of February or January 31st) writers will be required to submit both a summary of their fic, as well as a short excerpt that helps to give artists a good idea of the content of their fic. Additionally, writers will list what rating their fic is planned to be and any warnings artists should be aware of before choosing to work on the fic.

During the claims period, artists will review the writers submissions (which will be anonymous for the sake of fairness) and report which prompts they would most like to work on. From there, mods will match artists to prompts based on their votes. 

How long do writers have to finish their fics?

Writers will have approximately 11-12 weeks to fully complete their fics. However, there is an expectation that a summary and excerpt (100 to 500 words) are finished in time for the artist's claims. Currently, the due date for the summary and written excerpts is January 31st. The remainder of the fic can be worked on continuously up until the reveal week. 

How long will artists have to finish their pieces?

Artists will have approximately 7-8 weeks to finish their pieces. 

Will there be a discord server for the event and is it mandatory to join?

Yes and yes. Sorry dudes another discord for another event. Mostly, it makes it easier for mass communication purposes and will be the main way us as mods will communicate with participants. You are required to join the server and the mods will send a link to the server to you once your sign-up has been approved. 

As an aside, we will not be communicating via email throughout the event other than to send a link to the discord server if you would like to receive it this way. Though the sign-ups will require an email address, our expectation is all event communication will take place on discord. 

Can fics be shared outside of the event before the reveal week?

No. All fics and artwork should only be discussed with event participants until the reveal week. The only exception to this rule is beta readers, but remind them to practice discretion. 

Are there any check-ins?

There will be one check-in for both writers and artists each. This will take place about one month from the reveal week and will serve the purpose of ensuring everyone is on track to finish their work in time.

[tushar-trading-company]

When Does the Weekly Limit Reset on Cash App? A Comprehensive Guide

Cash App weekly limit for sending and receiving money depends on the status of account verification. Accounts that are not verified may only transfer as much as $250 per week and a total of $1000 per month. Cash App weekly limit is not reset on a particular date of the week. The reset time begins when you have reached the limit and continues to count down until it resets. It is therefore important to keep track of when you have exceeded them, so that you are aware of when they reset. To check them out, launch Cash App and navigate to your profile section. Let's begin and learn about the weekly limit of Cash App in greater detail and address the most important question: when does Cash App weekly limit reset?

What Is the Cash App Weekly Limit?

The Cash App has weekly limits on the exchange and transfer of funds to safeguard users from frauds, money laundering and other illegal activities. It ensures that they follow the anti-money laundering (AML) laws and remains safe for all users using the platform. The Cash App's weekly limit is the maximum amount you can transfer or withdraw within 7 days period.This limit could differ based on whether your account is verified or not. For verified users Cash App limit for a week is $250 for sending money.

When Does the Cash App Weekly Limit Reset?

The daily limit on Cash App is a continuous seven-day timeframe. It means that your limit is not reset at a set date like Sunday’s midnight, but instead seven days after each transaction. For instance, if you made a transaction on a Tuesday, at 3pm, that amount will "reset" and become available the following week, exactly one week later, at 3PM on the next Tuesday.

How to Check Your Cash App Weekly Limit?

You can check the available Cash App weekly limit by taking the steps mentioned below:

Open the Cash App on your Android or iPhone device.

Go to the Profile section.

Then click down until you reach the "Limits" section.

Here will find the total amount you have sent to, received, or removed, as well as the remaining limitations for the week in question.

How to Increase Your Cash App Weekly Limit?

If you are a verified user (those who have provided additional personal details like your full name and birth date and Social Security number), Cash App raises the limits significantly. Once verified, you can make payments up to $7500 per week and receive an unlimitable amount of cash. Here is how to increase Cash App weekly limit:

First of all, log into your Cash App account

Then go to Profile section and verify your identity

For this, you will be asked to shareall your personal information, including the date of birth, as well as the four digits that make up your Social Security number.

After your account has been verified, your limit for sending will be increased to $7,500 per week. In addition, your Cash App receiving limit will be unlimited.

What is the Cash App Weekly Limit for Withdrawals?

Cash App also putslimits on the amount of money you can withdraw from your bank account within the course of a week. In general, unregistered accounts can withdraw as much as $500 per month, and verified accounts are able to withdraw more. Like the limit for sending however, the Cash App weekly limit for withdrawals is reset on a rolling basis. The reset of every withdrawal takes place exactly seven days following the transaction.

Conclusion

Cash App’s weekly limits are designed to offer security and prevent fraud. By understanding the rolling reset schedule and verifying your identity, you can increase your Cash App’s limit and better manage your transactions. Keeping track of your transaction dates and knowing how the 7-day rolling period works will help ensure smooth transfers on Cash App.

[daisiesonafield-blog]

Hi, how are you?? I jus want to say that I work in the events industry and you’re right but not at all at the same time. It’s true that Livenation never puts all the ticket to sell and they’re selling them weeks before the shows, but canceling a show is always the last option. Like the last. And like it’s always the last option, most Artists don’t have insurance to cover the cost of a cancellation, because let me tell you that it’s expensive. So if Louis sold less tickets that they expect, they would have postponed the shows and announced a change in the venue months before the show because it’s easier and cheaper.

Also, even if Livenation doesn’t sell all the tickets at the same time, they know how an artist is doing, they’re inverting money that they don’t want to lose, so if they see that Louis’ shows in anywhere aren’t doing as they expected, they would have said something earlier than a week before so they could have postponed or made some changes, because as I said, it’s easier and cheaper.

And the last thing if that the team, the artist, Livenation or any promotor don’t think that they’re going to sell the full venue, they do two things: book a small venue and if they realise more people want to buy, they upgrade or book a venue saying that only 50% of the venue will be open and if more people ask for tickets, open another section (as he did in South America).

As I said, I work in the events industry and have friends that work in music industry and record labels so I know about what I’m talking about. Hope this can help and hope you have a lovely day! I hope Louis can tour there maybe next year, the fans and him deserve the tour! 💖

Hi dear,

Thanks for more detailed info!

Makes a lot of sense all you explained. I think some of the issues with the Asia leg in particular was that they began sale too close to the actual show dates, so they wouldn’t have had enough time to work out downsizing and rescheduling within such a tight timeframe. Tickets went on sale in February so they had about 2 months to work everything out. And that’s between starting sales, waiting to see how it’s going, noting sales aren’t good then trying to figure out next steps. I’m not sure why they only began sales so late for Asia.

I still think think that even tho cancelling is always the last possible option, they would have considered everything else. We don’t know how well tickets were selling really. Maybe it was quite low, and had the addition of the late start that ended up hurting sales. And although they would’ve tried every other option before cancelling the leg, I still think that if they couldn’t figure it out, and it would be a most empty venue, that perhaps that loss wasn’t as great as the loss would’ve been if they went thru with the tour.

I understand these things are done well in advance and way before we ever hear about it, but with the sale for Asia starting so late, perhaps that affected things too.

Also, perhaps cancelling was the only option because he already has other things scheduled for later on, so he wouldn’t be able to fit the Asia leg at a different time. I’m thinking of the LATAM leg then LT3.

Of course I can be wrong and there is an alternate reason for the cancellation, and it’s not related to sales. Tho I hope I’m right, because I fear if not then there’s something else very serious going on.