#although there is still a lot to be learned

[random2908]

Ok, I have a lot to say about scientific glassblowers.

First, luckily, there are a lot of them in China who are very good. If, like me, you work in private industry, the government has rules against buying Chinese components. But there's at least one American company (FireflySci) that launders Chinese custom scientific glass components, so you can still get them. If you're in academia you can buy direct from China and save a ton of money, if you or a colleague knows enough Chinese to be able to find these glassblowers on your own.

Within America, you have to know, the quality varies immensely. Scientific glassblowing is one of those trades that takes like 20 years to master. So there is a huge tension between the old masters who are really really good but have significant limitations in their capabilities because they're using old techniques; and the younger glassblowers who are learning or inventing new techniques but don't have the hand-skills to pull them off successfully. In larger shops, you can have a mix of ages, and so get around this a bit--but larger shops mostly don't do (serious) custom work. And often these larger shops are an in-house shop within an even bigger company.

For a lot of things, though, any scientific glassblower will do. In which case, you can still find them scattered all over the country. When I was dealing in glass a lot at a previous job, we had a long-standing contract with a glassblower about two hours away, who did all of our simpler stuff. There was a closer one, too, 20 minutes away, I'm not sure why we didn't go with them, I think because they had too much work already to take a long-term contract with us. So, yes, you can still find glassblowers, although not in large quantities.

But sometimes you need something really precise. This is science, after all. And your local glass shop just can't do it.

So then you have to find an old master using newer techniques. (I recommend Mike at Spectrocell in Pennsylvania, careful of the spelling--there are many similarly named companies--but he sounds very old over the phone.) (I know a lot of scientists will say Jay at Precision Glass Blowing in Colorado is the only guy they will go to for serious work, and I have some rude things to say to such scientists; not that Precision Glass Blowing does a bad job (...at the glassblowing part, that is--buyer beware if you ask for extras from them, but their willingness to offer extra services, such as chemical handling, is why everyone uses them in the first place), but they're not the only, or best, option out there.)

Get talking with an old master, and they'll constantly complain about how they've run out of apprentices. It is a real problem. It is a dying art, within the United States. (And, despite "scientific" in the name, it is very much an art; "scientific" refers to the customer base.) When I was collaborating with the University of Michigan at a previous job, the Chemistry Department's glassblower, Roy, was complaining that he was in his 70s and it had been several decades since he last had an apprentice, and he was going to retire any day now and the university would have no one to replace him with. (It wouldn't at all surprise me if he's retire by now, and if you could no longer get custom glass in-house at the University of Michigan.)

The irony is that there's still significant demand! Not as much as there once was, because you can buy mass-produced beakers now, you don't have to go to your local scientific glassblower for some of the simpler components. But for anything at all custom? For anything at all delicate? That's still done by hand. There's still a glassblower, somewhere, probably in China, whose handicraft that is. But like all trades, scientific glassblowing in the US has been almost entirely undercut by the availability of cheap labor (even cheap skilled labor, even cheap mastery) in other countries.

the world is running out of glassblowers and yet you want to become a fucking doctor

[pillowspace]

Could you share more about your modern no loops au?

Oh, I'd love to!!!! So I have a 10k word draft currently. Haven't touched it since December because I've been writing other things, but I'd like to return to it when I'm done. I didn't actually know what I was writing until I started. I decided to go for the first line I could think of, which was:

So I had to build an AU off of that from that point onward.

It's a bit of a "post-canon" setting in a sense, except neither Siffrin nor Loop have met the party yet, and the two live together in an apartment. At some point, Loop's attacked, and they begin to bleed out in an alleyway. Odile catches sight of them and rushes to help. They appreciate her efforts, but they die anyway.

They've died plenty of times before though...! So they wake back up. They still have the stranger's coat from when she was trying to help, so they hide within it and head back home, feeling bad for having likely traumatized a random person with the sight of them dying.

A few months go by after this though, and Odile stumbles upon Loop at the library. Loop doesn't recognize her at first, but Odile recognizes THEM, and proceeds to accidentally corner them which freaks Loop out.

Odile, a complete stranger, instantly wants to know everything about Loop. How their life has gone, how they're alive, etc. So Loop decides that they DON'T LIKE ODILE, but that they'll at least find the time to bring her coat back to her to repay the favour of when they had died.

After Loop returns home, Siffrin reveals to Loop that he's... worried about them. Loop's been entirely dependent on him the entire time, and he thinks that they should have friends. Loop denies needing anyone but them, all the while struggling with bottled up trauma they want to talk about but are unwilling to go to Siffrin for.

This sticks to Loop though. Next time they see Odile at the library, they get to talk to her now a bit less freaked out, and return her coat to her. (This isn't art directly of the fic but I did draw this after writing Loop returning the coat). She reveals some of her curiosities about Loop, and although Loop still doesn't want to answer, they're curious what she means by the word "explore."

Loop makes a bit of a mistake though. They accidentally give Siffrin the impression that they're friends with Odile now, and Siffrin's happy for them!

Loop doesn't want to correct them though, so instead accidentally snaps at them for pestering them for the details on this totally real friendship.

There's a lot of hints scattered throughout the fic of Loop having very bad trauma. A large star-shaped scar on their chest. Implications that they're very familiar with Siffrin's blood. Having nightmares and waking up feeling like they have to kill Siffrin. Being so used to panicking whenever they wake up without Siffrin being there that they already know how to try and calm themself down.

I haven't gotten to writing the interview itself yet, but I want for Loop and Odile to actually start to become friends. I want for Loop to finally agree to an interview. And perhaps in an Interview with the Vampire (2022) style of things, start off completely contradictory and rewrite how it all started based on their own outbursts of emotions. Odile would catch onto this though, and get them to stick to the truth or not answer at all.

And thus, through much trial and error, Loop would eventually tell the story of meeting King. A nice man who Loop had once been friends with (it takes a LOT to pry that out of Loop), before they were ever Loop, but rather Siffrin. Loop would talk about how they had grown close over being from the same forgotten country, but that they'd come to learn that King had... other motives in wanting to get close to another Islander.

King had been studying something called Wish Craft.

King wanted to immortalize the Island's memory. Or at least, the memory that something existed from it. Perhaps somehow, some way, King could use Wish Craft to make things right again.

So what better way to try than to immortalize Loop?

Loop was betrayed and made to be a personal test subject. They weren't the first person to be a test subject, but they were the first success to survive it. Loop died very frequently those days, and after a long enough time, they reached a breaking point. They didn't want to suffer alone!! They wanted company!!! They wanted Help!!!!

Which tore Loop's strength out of them to create Siffrin.

Loop cannot regret Siffrin. But they regretted it at the time, as the experiments... lessened... on Loop, while the focus instead shifted onto Siffrin. The two were all each other had, so it pained Loop to have their burden fall onto him. Another regret was that Loop had become significantly weaker after Siffrin came to be, giving them less of a chance to fight back and escape. Loop was very protective of Siffrin, all the while wondering if they should just permanently kill him to get their strength back and escape. Towards the end, they almost went through with it.

They didn't though. The two eventually escaped together, sticking close to each other and occasionally moving from town to town while keeping their past secret.

I imagine that Loop will need... a lot of time and effort to tell Odile about all that though. They're very hesitant to even tell her that Siffrin exists, still wary about trusting her.

So between interviews, Loop and Odile just hang out, and Loop will come home to Siffrin who continues to live his own life. Loop will find themself healing just as Siffrin manages to.

If I do finish this fic, I would like for Loop and Siffrin to wind up friends with the whole party in it.

[gremlin-girly]

Valentine's Night

Pairing: Bucky x f!Reader

Tags/Warnings: FLUFF, established relationship, petnames (dolll)

I don't want to spoil the story with the last tag but it's all Fluff I promise.

Not beta'd and I do not give permission for my work to be reposted, copied, translated or put through an AI Machine.

Summary: Your boyfriend is determined to ensure you have a good Valentine's day.

Word count: 752

Dividers by: @/enchanthings-a

Navigation | Valentine's Masterlist | Bucky Masterlist

Bucky used to be a romantic. Emphasis on used to be.

It's not that he wouldn't buy flowers or do romantic things but more the mindset of life being lovey-dovey, sunshine and rainbows after living 70 years as a ghost was seemingly pointless.

Until he met you.

Re-learning to be a romantic was probably one of the hardest things Bucky had re-learned to do. Turns out, what used to be normal in the 30s was now one of many things; misogynistic, toxic, too fast, desperate, archaic, or bordering on stalker behaviour.

He hadn't wanted to come on too strong but your patience with him and slowly fanned the embers deep within his soul and now flames soared in their place. You'd only been dating a short while, although Bucky had been pining after you for some time, and when he'd mentioned Valentine's Day (hoping to gauge your thoughts on a romantic dinner) he was surprised to find that you despised the holiday and all that it (currently) stood for.

"It used to be a celebration of love," you said, scrunching your nose in disgust as you stab at your food. "Now it's commercialised by companies to make a major profit."

Bucky smiled half at your cute expression and half relieved that it wasn't something he had to plan for in too much detail.

"So, what would you want to do doll?" He'd asked, testing the waters.

You blinked in surprise, faint splash of pink gracing your cheeks. "Oh. Well. Erm... I'd like a quiet night in with some wine."

Bucky nods, taking a forkful of food and chewing thoughtfully. If a quiet night in was what you wanted, it was what you'd get. However, Bucky was determined it was going to be a night to remember.

Bucky had set up everything perfectly. A dozen red roses (because he couldn't help himself), wine, ice cream, blanket fort and a good movie.

Nothing over the top, no glitter, no hearts.

But Bucky was still nervous when you came over after work. He wrung his hands and raked his hair every two minutes, completely restless. Moreso when you handed him a card and a bar of his favourite chocolate.

He hadn't gotten you a card, he felt awful. But every card had "I love you"'s plastered all over them and Bucky didn't want to scare you off, even if he really wanted to give you one.

You, on the other hand, were also a nervous wreck. You'd tried to downplay your expectations for Valentine's Day, not wanting Bucky to feel pressured to do anything extravagant given how early you were in your relationship, but you'd be lying if you said you didn't want anything at all. Despite being concrete in your stance that Valentine's Day was now a horrid money-making scheme, Bucky had exceeded your expectations by miles and you were struggling not to blurt out something that could potentially tank your relationship, and ruin your card, in mere seconds.

Bucky gently opened the red envelope, muttering an apology for not getting you a card, pulling out a card covered in red hearts and two cartoon bears hugging eachother.

The front of the card read "To the one I love on Valentine's Day" and the inside of the card had a message scrawled in your handwriting, and a printed Happy Valentine's Day in red slap bang in the centre. It read as follows;

"To Bucky,

Happy Valentine's Day!

I know I said I didn't like Valentine's but I couldn't not get you something. These last few months have been amazing and I look forward to many more together.

Love you lots,

Y/N xxx"

Bucky's breathing all but halted, his blue eyes scanning your message over and over again. You shifted uncomfortably, wondering if you'd been too forward, if he was scared by your very roundabout declaration of love for him.

"Listen if it's too much too soon I-"

"I love you." Bucky blurts, flushing red. Your face follows suit as heat rolls up your neck and your heart thuds happily. "I mean, too. I love you too."

"I love you too, Buck." You reply, a giant beaming smile appearing over your face. "And happy Commercialised Heart Day."

Making your first declarations of love on Valentine's Day took the sourness out of the day itself, and replaced it instead with a tradition of wine and ice cream every year from then on - with plenty of kisses and "I love you"'s to make any Valentine's card jealous

End

Taglist

Add yourself here

@awkwardgiraffe726 | @irishhappiness | @disneyprincessbuffyannesummers

[acexsmhking]

Poly!Brim x GN!Reader

╰┈➤ General Head-Canons for Brian & Tim

Summary: General Head-canons for our two lovely older men

Warning(s): 18+ content, sexual content, GN!Reader, Canon & non-canonical content, personal adaptations

SFW!!

Okay so… this is a.. very weird, complex yet not complex situation

Brian and Tim’s very individual relationship is… unlabeled. It’s so platonically romantic that there just wasn’t a label to fit them

Best way to describe them is soulmates, they just are what they are.. and it’s kinda gay

Brian and Tim have been together like this for years, almost two whole decades. Since back in their college days they’ve been inseparable

You most definitely meet them sometimes after Brian resurrects (he is not dead!!! As they drag me to a padded room)

At first everything is just friendship, it takes awhile to gain their trust, especially Tim’s as he some.. heavy survivors guilt

The romantic part of your relationship starts happening very… uhhh natural?? Not rlly talked about kinda way

At some point those cheek kisses and friend dinners just had a shift in them and none of yall addressed it

It wasn’t until you took them home to meet your family and introduce them as your boyfriends subconsciously that you all had “ohhhhh” moment

I literally cannot explain to how absurdly healthy a relationship with Brian and Tim is. Like it is so emotionally, physically, and spiritually fulfilling

Like whether poly or individual they are so Jowwnoanswn

Ahem. Pardon

Brian is most probably the tallest one, since he is 6’4 and he EATS it up. He just loves when you or Tim call him to grab something that he may or may not have placed too high

Don’t be fooled though, Tim is definitely the strongest one out of pair. He can hold you and Brian

That one couples TikTok

They BOTH spoil the ever loving shit out of you. Like it’s just constant. They come home with flowers or trinkets or something

Brian is the most likely one of out the two to bring you things like rocks and shells

It goes without saying Tim is.. incredibly socially awkward. Although not nearly as bad as when he was younger

When he’s talking to new people he has a nasty habit of picking his fingers, Brian always holds his hands when he’s there and you pick up on this habit. Also holding Tim’s hands

Tim is the middle sleeper. A duty bestowed without his knowledge

He’s just soo cuddly and Brian really likes his leg space

You and Tim both collectively steal Brian’s cloths. His jackets, hoodies, shirts, boxers, pants, shoes. The man can’t even defend himself

You are now Toby’s mom.. figure.. kinda. He’s a little hostile towards you at first (more like a lot) but he warms up to you.

You very much so live an American dream type lifestyle. Gated community, pretty houses, wrap around porch. Whole shebang.

Again I mean… being possessed by a white.. tentacle.. static entity isn’t fun and you miss “basic” forms of living

Meeting Hoodie and Masky though was… well.. something.

Occasionally Masky would just front to hang out with you and Brian. Of course early in the relationship you never knew these “behavioral changes” were him and only Brian did

Hoodie typically only fronts on occasion when Masky is around. He’s still a little mad at Tim and likes making him beg for it

However, seeing them in their clothes that you had once noticed shoved into the corner of the closet was.. scary

They don’t hurt you, but I mean just walking downstairs for water one night and seeing two masked men in your home?? Yeah you reached for the gun

Of course it was a weird confrontation, they can’t talk so they could only give you hand gestures until Hoodie calmed you down enough to grab a piece of paper and pen

Safe to say… you were pissed. In a way. And that’s when you learn about everything. Who they are, what they’ve done, what they do and what Toby is

It bridges a lot of unanswered questions. Questions you never really asked cause again they make you feel so safe and secure your mind kinda just.. goes dumb around them

Hoodie is the most physically affectionate. And I mean.. rlly affectionate. Masky is very.. shy. He has to warm to you a bit before even sitting on the same sofa as you. But once he feels comfortable oh boy

It can be a bit… suffocating

Sometimes Masky will just come and lay on you. And while Masky/Tim aren’t super tall they ARE big boys with some hefty muscle and fat(dad bod Tim<3) … like their cocks OMG WHO

Date nights with Hoodie and Masky then become a thing. Typically at home dates since they feel more safe in their masks, like a barrier from the outside world and anything that can harm them

Masky is now the one bringing you rocks, sticks and shells

Hoodie brings you little flower crowns/rings

The boys LOVE seeing you in their clothes. Masky especially.. try not tease him too much

Jessica is definitely you’re bff, you both have scheduled girls dates to relax and just vent/rant about things and gossip

You also meet Jay but it’s very rare as Hoodie and Masky like to keep you away from them, ESPECIALLY Alex.

You learn to cook for Toby. He surprisingly very specific about very certain things. Not picky. Just specific (he’s picky)

Yeah Brian and Tim don’t let you 20ft from a forest. You are told to stay VERY clear from those and if you hear static not to look up

You learn basic first AID from Hoodie/Brian as Masky/Tim is the one that usually comes home the most hurt

NSFW!!

WOWZA.

Bro, you ain’t getting out of bed LMAO imma be so fr

CAN WE TALK ABOUT BODY-WORSHIP. like these boys will spend at least two fucking hours just worshipping you

Kisses, biting, eating you out, massaging you

THEY ARE SO

Crashing our sorry

First of all, they’re both the kind to like wining and dining first but, if you have those real needy needs, especially after they’ve been gone a while? Yeah you gon find out today

You are 100% between them in some way, shape and or form. And god are you getting CREAMPIED. Tim is definitely more open to cumming without a condom with Brian influencing him

Like the devil on his shoulder LOL

they’re just perverts with an unspoken cum fixation

WHO SAID THAT OMG

Now.. threesome with Masky and Hoodie? May you rest in piece. It’s Masky’s turn to influence Hoodie, making him a little more rougher and uncaring than usual. Wow do y’all have a lot of outdoor sex

PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE

Having sex with Tim and Brian is actually so loving it’ll like make you puke. Ugh. #needthat. But also they’re both more than open to uhh.. exploration

HOODIE RECORDS EVERYTHING

Like I mean he edits that shit he is INVESTED

When they’re gone Hoodie will fr just send you videos un-announced a little “thinking about you<3” type thing

Perv

The aftercare; dude. No cause like it’s top tier

Candles, food, shower then a bubble bath afterwards. It’s godly. They will actually DoorDash whatever the fuck you want, spend that money babes they don’t care

That thang is worth every penny to them

LMFAOOO

They lovvvveeee cuddles, so much. Tim/Masky can actually be quite clingy and since Brian/Hoodie are so used to it they fr just encourage it. Sigh imagine laying between them<3

SOMEONE SEDATE ME😭

Brian will never admit it but he loves it when you get your nails done, loves seeing them all pretty wrapped around his cock

Tim lovvveeeessss hair, loves any and all new haircuts you get. Want to decide on a hairstyle? He’s your guy. He will wank that shit too if you have like even the smallest inch

Ngl, Tim’s usual spot is between you and Brian but after sex they both just love cuddling you, like I mean Tim will literally lay you on him and Brian will just be wrapped around you both. Good luck trynna breath

Brian is hiding sex toys that he’s too shy to bring up to you and Tim. Once you find them you actually tease the living hell out of him. Yeah, good luck using those on both of them

HELLO BRIAN/HOODIE PUTTING A REMOTE CONTROLLED VIB IN YA WHILE YOU GUY EAT OUT OR SOMETHING.

Please tell me I’m not the only one.

The mixture of praise and slight degrading/bulling between these two is actually chefs kiss. Delicious

All in all, being with these two is the highest form of honor really and your holes are definitely satisfied LOL

: ̗̀➛ Bro I wrote this forever ago and just like deadass got distracted LMAOOO @an-3moia this is for you pookie. Also y’all Tim will be getting his own fic soon. This will prob be the last fic I post for the day while I work on other things in my bat cave here. Good day my loves — Ace

[ginger-commander-is-tired]

EoD era of Michael.

Learning how to be Catalyst... although that's much deeper than just learning a new "cool" elite spec.

I will elaborate more under.

At the start of EoD, it's been a long time since Michael's elemental powers were gone and replaced by "useless" mesmer magic he never learned how to use. In IBS, a loss of elemental powers and uncontrolled mesmer magic drove him insane. It made him a much worse version of himself - a version which he loaths and feels deeply ashamed of.

When he ended up in Cantha he was no longer driven insane but he felt like a shell of what he used to be. His emotions all gone. Nothing evoked any emotion him, he didn't even feel much about arrival to Cantha or facing another dragon. This emptiness was unbearable initially, but he got used to it and often acted out of habit or obligation. Everything was dull and colorless to him. Nothing really mattered, either. Michael felt like an empty husk - with no powers, no feelings. Nothing. Void.

Eventually, he met local Catalysts, who can be described as similar to monks. Their approach to elemental magic was focused both on elementalists' mental connection to the elements but also the physical bond with it. Their slight inspection of Michael's condition made them comment that they could still feel elemental power's presence in Michael but it ended up deeply disturbed and buried. Michael felt hopeful for the first time in a long time and decided to join Catalysts in their Sanctuary.

He delegated his siblings to fulfill his Commander duties in Cantha and spend a few months among Catalyst's monks. Their teachings helped him recover his power, but it was only possible through deep introspection into his own thoughts and emotions. It was definitely emotionally taxing to dig up things, which he buried for the sake of being the Commander, being strong for others. He faced the shame he felt for what he was in IBS and got to forgive himself for how much an awful person he was then, as that wasn't entirely under his control. A lot of tears were shed, which he had always held back to appear strong.

His elemental powers began to return, just like his emotions started to appear again, but his magic was still weak and wobbly. It needed a little support, which came in a form of jade spheres normally used by Catalysts. To assist Michael's condition, his jade sphere not only stores his magic but also stabilizes it by releasing it when it's too weak or absorbing it if it gets too volatile.

After these months, he left much happier and stronger to face what was coming - Soo-Won and Void corruption.

[jedi-enthusiasm-blog]

Kind of a vaguely tangential to Jedi meta comparison for you - I've been reading a lot of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels recently. It's canon in Discworld that wizards don't have sex or marry. The sex thing is partly bc an active sex life makes it hard to care about and practice magic. It's also implied that performing magic can be as good as sex anyway. In The Light Fantastic, Rincewind performs magic successfully for the first time: "Magic! So that's what it felt like! No wonder wizards didn't have much truck with sex!" In Mort, Wizard Cutwell hooks up with Queen Keli and implicitly never really does magic again. The no marriage thing is bc magic can be hereditary, and if a wizard who is the youngest of eight sons then himself fathers eight sons, the eighth runs a risk of being a sourcerer, a being of godlike magical power (Sourcery)

I basically thought it was an interesting point of comparison to the Jedi bc it's kind of just a fact in Discworld canon that wizards are celibate by choice and live exclusively in single sex communities (though that gets challenged as early as the third book in the series, Equal Rites), and no fans really freak out over it, or talk about how the Unseen University was wrong for having such restrictions. It's not a 1:1 obv, bc Pratchett was writing comedy, but clearly some fandoms can handle the idea of people living monastically and asexually for supernatural power reasons. Maybe celibate academic spiritual communities are only good for making fun of. Idk.

I haven't read any of the Discworld novels, but there is something similar going on with the Avatar (the last airbender not the one with blue people) fandom.

Air Nomads are inspired by Buddhist monks just like the Jedi (although the Jedi have a heavier philosophical inspiration). Air Nomads give their children to the Temples, children are raised communally and they are given to a mentor when they reach a certain age so they can learn airbending. Likewise, the Air Nomads focus not on obtaining earthly pleasures but spiritual enlightenment. Their similarities with the Jedi are stunning, but the hypocresy that gets me is:

If I posted an anti-Jedi argument with the names swapped about the Air Nomads, I would be skinned alive.

And the Air Nomads have more shady things than the Jedi going on! We have seen in all three other nations that not everyone is a bender and meanwhile all Air Nomads are airbenders? How is that possible? Do they commit eugenics or something? This is probably poor worldbuilding on the creators part, but still.

And yeah, if sex does impact your magic negatively, it makes perfect sense that you'd either have no magic or be celibate. And if magic is as good as sex? Count me in, goodbye sex you won't be missed.

[ilynpilled]

the thing that keeps me huffing the Jaime Lives copium fuel is that killing him would be way too fucking boring (& easy). Oh he fights in the long night? Back to back with his sword's twin? Having these two warriors complement and mirror each other? Having learned that it's not the law that dictates what deeds are good? That it's following your morals and humanity that do? And then he DIES???????? i sleep. He needs to live with his shame forever, actually (or maybe get the fuck over it like an adult but hey we can't ask everything of a 35yo teenager). also narratively blablabla it's more interesting if he lives and has a relatively good life when it comes to the whole "bUt HaS he BeEn RedEemeD?!?!" shit. If he's dead it's a fucking pointless conversation. Mic drop i guess although this is all over the place lol. ps: brienne also needs her trophy consort-husband.

ive said before that this was always my personal angle for my desire for him living bc this is what i would probably love the most when considering george’s intentions and the questions he admitted to be putting forth with him bc ig this is my personal answer to those questions. and you know much of that angle is seeped in this (and i really do like the whole “lifes a bitch and then u die but sometimes lifes a bitch and then u keep on living” and want that for my faves in some form)

but i do think his death works and is already set up with a lot of this idea of “legacy” and what part of him is meant to not be interred with his bones (pretty clear how brienne’s fire is the extension of his lol, and we know what she embodies thematically), and that i think is also pretty poignant w these questions. i think that might be the story george is telling w him:

atp i am just leaning towards anything thats memorable and moving and fulfilling to me personally even if it is leaning more towards tragic than just bittersweet (still my ideal) but i do not have a specific vision for it really

[darpow]

"I used to know what a lot of them meant," he admitted on a soft laugh, "and had them memorized for birth months -- one of those weird things that I learned and held on to for a long time after, you know?" Those things that you told yourself would come in handy, even if you never actually used that knowledge ever again. It was still tucked there in the back of your mind for safe keeping, none the less. Slowly grinning at the 'compliment', he shook his head, "as flattering as that may be, I think I would rather see you in that outfit, I'm kind of terrified of the sort of ideas that I might have put into your head." The kind of thoughts that she would be thinking at night, falling asleep. "Although I guess that could be Halloween sorted out already. First couples costume… two Shakiras."

She nodded. "There's a whole language associated with flowers. I bet if I looked those all up, they'd make me think of you." Her mother had been an expert on the subject, a hobby that Noa had ignored as romantic dribble. Though she wasn't feeling quite so dismissive at this moment. She pressed her smile against his shoulder, imagining those words spilling from her throat. Partner. The soft intimacy of it. "Oh, you're funny," she said, "but now I'm just picturing you dressed like her in that video. Which actually -" she paused, remembering the last time she'd seen Darrius in a bathing suit, "might not be the worst thing."

[ruporas]

i killed. i murdered. i'm nothing like these sleepy people here… nevertheless, you can actually be grateful? bastard… i’m saying… thank you. because you spilled blood, you saved all of these people’s lives. i couldn’t have done it without you. (ID in alt)

[all-pacas]

Hey, you want to go get some – No.

(chase's terrible outfits in every episode: occam's razor)

[sophieinwonderland]

I think you're being silly about the tag. I tagged it as AI art to let people know it was made by AI. Something which was requested when I posted the picture originally.

As for AI using people's art without permission... yeah... that's a problem. But solutions for that problem are complicated.

The fact is that AI is ultimately just looking at art and using that to learn how to make art similar to how artists do. Using pictures as reference is also a common practice among artists. I could look at an image you made, draw a different character in a similar pose based on that, then sell that picture and profit off of it... and it's completely legal.

And there's not really much that can be done about this issue.

Maybe you make consumer protections so that all generative AI companies in the US need to get the permission of the artists for their training data. Great! But all those pictures are still freely available on the internet, and there will be some countries that won't have those restrictions. It's the same reason pirating shows and movies is still possible despite hosting those sites being illegal in the US. Could we start banning all of those foreign services that won't have our restrictions? Sure. Although I don't personally like the idea of further restricting internet access. (For the same reason, I strongly dislike the TikTok ban.)

But even if we did that, have you considered how that's going to go?

Companies are going to get artists to sign away the rights to their art anyway!

It would be expensive for AI companies to pay every single artist whose art they use for training data. So they won't. They'll instead go to websites like Tumblr and Twitter and Facebook and DeviantArt, and they'll offer those companies money for their data. Then those companies will update their terms of service to let users know that their data will be used as training data. And most people will click the checkbox without even reading the terms and conditions, signing away their art the same way they've signed away their privacy on social media sites already.

Yes, AI companies would have to buy their training data in this universe where these restrictions are passed. But it's not the artists that will see profit from it. It's the social media companies.

Artists will fight tooth and nail to not have their art taken to be used as training data. They'll get this "win" that will be treated as a huge success for artists. And the end result is that the social media companies where the art is posted will be the only ones to turn a profit from their effort. And after that "success," I expect a lot of the anti-AI sentiment will dissipate because the corporations who have been pushing it in the media will have gotten their slice of the AI pie.

Maybe this attitude seems defeatist...

My opinion is that it sucks that generative imagery is probably going to put a lot of actual artists out of business.

But I also don't think there's a realistic solution to the problem that actually protects artists in the long term. I think this is a battle that's already been lost. Fighting it is, at best, delaying the inevitable. It will be like fighting against the invention of the printing press, the loom, the automobile, or the internet itself.

Finally, generating images on free image creators doesn't support AI financially. If anything, it drains money from the AI companies that do this.

As long as you never pay for anything and just stick with the free samples, you're really just robbing them.

Side ramble about AI art.

Someone asked on the other blog if there's an image was AI generated.

It is.

And that is terrifying.

Because yeah, you can tell that this is AI. It just has that type of look. But when I was writing the prompt on Bing's AI generator, I didn't expect it to work.

It was an experiment that I was almost certain would fail.

In the past, when I have seen artificial intelligence write text, it's usually in the wrong order. You will get letters that are arranged seemingly randomly.

I had no idea it was currently possible to type in specific text and then have it create that. And not just create it, but to follow the prompt that asked specifically for that text to be "scratched into stone walls" of a ruined church.

[zerafinacss]

Preview of a site skin I'm currently working on.

It's actually supposed to be very colorful, but I made it black and white out of curiosity and actually like it almost better that way!? Oh well, I was planning on making a few different color versions anyway.

[vvitchering]

I think maybe everyone should cool it with the “weird cult” comments regarding the covert, honestly. It wasn’t that funny to begin with but now that it’s the popular describer it’s starting to become a little uncomfy. No one is forced to join, no one is forced to stay. There’s a ton of parallels between them and real world cultures and religions and I just think MAYBE we need to be a little more aware of what message we’re sending when we say “haha that group of people who are in hiding because their lives were/are at stake and who practice anonymity to survive and follow certain rules that I don’t personally understand or like are a weird cult”.

[eclaire-went-bam]

although i think it's important to acknowledge the complexities of aro & ace identities, & to be welcoming of aroace identities that may be sex/romance favourable/hypersexual & seek those relationships, i think it's still important to acknowledge that completely romance/sex repulsed aroaces are still a minority in the ace community despite being the stereotype. & we should still listen to those voices,

[svtskneecaps]

you know what i'll say it MIKE AND ROIER ARE THE ONLY ONES I RESPECT these fuckers will rock up and say FUCK english all my homies HATE english they are the only ones i trust and respect these fuckers are like you will hear me speak my language and you will LEARN IT OR DIE and i respect the HELL OUT OF IT dude THANK YOU FOR BEING ENGLISH HATERS brothers THANK YOU FOR NOT SPEAKING ONLY ENGLISH WHEN AMONG ANYONE NOT OF YOUR LANGUAGE GROUP!!!!!!!!

[andromeda3116]

first dm session went really well! everyone has a great time, and i only had a couple of minor newbie fumbles (like realizing at the table that i didn't want to use the map i'd found and so made it up as i went, which led to me not being very familiar with my own map) but they all understood that i'm new at this and it won't be perfect. but we ended up playing for like six hours, everyone really enjoyed it and said that they really like the style i'm building.

i'm glad i got advice from my friend back home who has been a dm for over twenty years, because he gave me the advice of "it's not you versus them, and if they do something that messes up your careful planning, you should be happy for them! they did something really cool!" which i think is an easy trap to fall into (and i almost did, before i remembered, dude that was a 25 on a persuasion roll against someone who is already wanting to help her, she should get the info she's after) and especially for us new dms, we (or at least i) get it on paper how we want it to go and then the players happen to it. and you can either force them back in line or roll with it and be chill/happy about them talking their way out of encounters and the like.

i definitely learned where and what i need to better plan out, so i'm not having to improv quite as much, but it worked out really well and i'm really enjoying building a story with my friends, and they all said that they really enjoyed it too.

so yeah. all-around win!