#and I don't generally donate to individuals

[five-rivers]

Hey, listen. I've been posting donation asks lately, but there's some stuff that I'm just. Not going to post. Like, if you spam my inbox by sending several exact duplicates of an ask within minutes of each other, or if you send something that's just a straight up guilt trip about people not responding to your asks, I'm not showing that to my followers. I am also not going to post anything with pictures from people I don't know, because I don't want to play the 'does this blurred picture contain graphic medical procedures, open, untreated wounds, dead bodies, etc. that I'm going to regret seeing if I click on it' game. This is a fandom blog I do as a hobby, not a donation or activism blog, and if this gets too stressful or annoying for me, I'm going to just stop posting this kind of thing and close my inbox altogether.

[dimiclaudeblaigan]

Just as a heads up, I’m locking all my fics on AO3 to registered users only due to the Elongated Moosk incident and his scummy fanfic thieving bot. I know some people read fics without an account there and I’m sorry to anyone who doesn’t have an account. If you want to get one, it’s super simple but there’s a queue you have to wait in so you’ll have to wait a couple/few days or so to get your invite emailed to you by their staff.

I’d like to take them off private at some point since I really do not prefer having them locked to registered users, and hopefully the AO3 staff can do something about this (they’ve been informed about it), but I don’t feel like having my hobby’s work stolen by stupid, shameless straight rich white men’s AI bots.

Also, they’re planning to profit off their fic theft, so... yeah.

[necronomeconomicism]

Ok gotta talk about it.

As a Jewish historian, I fucking hate Israel in ways most probably will never be able to comprehend. I'm going to try and explain it anyways. The central creation myth of Israel is that it is Jewish, and then consequently, that Israel is a part of Jewishness. Its easy to simply state this is false, but fully comprehending this and putting it into practice in thought and deed seems rare to me.

The evil at the heart of this violence predates the recent acceleration of genocide. Israel is a colony, and more than that, an antisemitic fraud itself. After WW2, when Israel was being founded, the Jews of Europe generally did not wave goodbye to their neighbors and head to the promised land. Many were expelled from their homes. Zionism itself, as an action, was a false choice at the time. A mere excuse to place an ally in the middle east, and an excuse to complete the expulsion and destruction of the European Jew. The Zionist Jew is more than complicit in this, they actively seek the destruction and assimilation of all other Jews.

Many fail to realize, and largely because of Israel, that Jews are not inherently white, Ashkenazi, European-descended people. Our faith and culture has an immense variety that is spread all across the globe. Jewishness, in population and volume of culture, exists more so outside of Israel than within it. Israel is for a very specific kind of Jew. The kind that lets Yiddish die, that attaches themselves to European things, that makes themselves and their practices as white as possible.

And they have the nerve, the fucking belligerent GALL, to frame themselves as the necessary saviors of our people. To the Zionist, questioning Israel is to question Jewishness itself. They bake adoration for the colonial machine into their very prayers, and push them on us even as children. To *not* oppress, to *not* kill, to *not* genocide, is to invite death. This is the core of fascistic thought, of course. "Kill them before they kill us." And they KNOW this too, they really do. The truth of that irony does not matter, because as is true for all fascists, the truth itself does not matter to them. They wanted this, they wanted this even before the British saw it in their best interest to give them the land. Any excuse to RETVRN, as the neo-nazis say of Rome, or the German Empire, or whatever the fuck stupid country they want to poorly animate the corpse of. Some select Zionists even *sided with the fucking Nazis* in agreement they should abandon Europe to colonize Palestine. (Haavara Agreement)

My people have proved time and time and time again you don't need a nation state to have an enduring culture. We have protected ourselves for thousands of years without the help of these spiteful, doom-saying maniacs. I was going to post something like this on Passover, but that would be hypocritical. The state of Israel doesn't actually have shit to do with Jewishness. Hear Israel (the state and supporters, Israel the icon) I should outlive it long enough to bury it. (old yiddish curse)

Free Palestine. Donate what you can, they need it right now.

[zorthania]

A piece about survivors guilt.

This comic isn't perfect. I started it back in October 2023, and every time I picked up my pen, I wept.

I bring this to you today, on 9/11, in hopes that you reflect on this day a little differently than how most Americans would. Let it move you to continue to boycott, protest and challenge your family, friends and colleagues. You have a bigger impact than you would believe.

Thank you for reading this with an open heart.

From the river to the sea...

I'd like to bring to attention the fact that the figures depicted above are a gross undercount of the actual number of deaths. I scoured the internet high and low to source my findings and not a single one could break down the devastation that befell an individual ethnicity. Instead, they lumped a bunch of ethnicities together, provided a general timeline, and called it a day, reinforcing the sheer scale of dehumanization propagated in the west. The only consistency between all the articles I looked up was the 4.5 to 4.7 million figure I've included above, and even then, they were all published by western media news outlets... the very same that have been so unreliable and complicit in the genocide of Palestinians today. So I have to take everything they say with a grain of salt.

We are not just numbers.

All of us have ambitions and desires and lives worth living.

With that said, this is your friendly reminder to:

Donate an e-sim

Donate to PCRF to provide Palestinian children aid

Donate to Pious Projects to provide woman with feminine hygiene kits

Donate to CareForGaza to provide food to displaced families in Gaza either through their Gofundme or their paypal

Donate to any of the vetted gofundme campaigns on GazaFunds to help Palestinians trying to flee Gaza.

And if you or someone you know sees or experiences a hate crime and can afford it, SUE. This is a more effective use of your money than most realise. The reason zionists act with impunity is because of the normalization of white supremacy and oppression of ethnic minorities. Challenging that in any capacity tells them that there are consequences to their actions and makes them think twice before engaging in hate crimes and helps raise all of us up against the systems currently in place that let them get away with it.

If you can't donate or spend any money, you can:

Do your daily clicks.

Boycott targeted companies on the BDS list (if you're like me and you don't want a single dollar to go towards anything supporting Israel right now, you can use Bdnaash to double check what products are okay to buy, but the BDS list is sufficient as it is a strategic attack and proven very effective thus far)

Flood your representatives emails and voicemails with how you won't be voting for them unless their politics align with an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Attend a protest, be LOUD.

Challenge your circle of friends, family and colleagues with conversations about Palestine. (THIS IS THE MOST UNDERRATED AND MOST EFFECTIVE THING YOU CAN DO)

and if you're really up to, be disruptive in any capacity that you can think of towards major corporations benefiting from this onslaught. (i.e. halting military manufacturers from production + shipments, sticking boycott stickers on products at your market etc)

And finally, if your country wasn't mentioned in the above excerpt, it was no deliberate omission on my part and I encourage you to come forward and tell your story about the suffering of your people so that this may be a learning opportunity for everyone.

You are seen.

You are not alone.

Thank you again if you've read this far.

From the river to the sea...

[anistarrose]

Please don't tune out when you get to the non-partisan section of your ballot this November. First off, where state Supreme Court justices are elected, Republicans are trying their darndest to elect candidates who will destroy reproductive freedom, gut voting rights, and do everything in their power to give "contested" elections to Republicans. Contrast Wisconsin electing a justice in 2023 who helped rule two partisan gerrymanders unconstitutional, versus North Carolina electing a conservative majority in 2022, who upheld a racist voter ID law and a partisan gerrymander that liberal justices had previously struck down both of.

Second, local judicial offices will make infinitely more of an impact on your community than a divided state or federal legislature will. District and circuit courts, especially, are where criminalization of homelessness and poverty play out, and where electing a progressive judge with a commitment to criminal justice reform can make an immediate difference in people's lives.

It's a premier example of buying people time, and doing profound-short-term good, while we work to eventually change the system. You might not think there will be any such progressive justices running in your district, but you won't know unless you do your research. (More on "research" in a moment.)

The candidates you elect to your non-partisan city council will determine whether those laws criminalizing homelessness get passed, how many blank checks the police get to surveil and oppress, and whether lifesaving harm reduction programs, like needle exchanges and even fentanyl test strips, are legal in your municipality. Your non-partisan school board might need your vote to fend off Moms for Liberty candidates and their ilk, who want to ban every book with a queer person or acknowledgement of racism in it.

Of course, this begs the question — if these candidates are non-partisan, and often hyper-local, then how do I research them? There's so much less information and press about them, so how do I make an informed decision?

I'm not an expert, myself. But I do think/hope I have enough tips to consist of a useful conclusion to this post:

Plan ahead. If you vote in person, figure out what's on your ballot before you show up and get jumpscared by names you don't know. Find out what's on your ballot beforehand, and bring notes with you when you vote. Your city website should have a sample ballot, and if they drop the ball, go to Ballotpedia.

Ballotpedia in general, speaking of which. Candidates often answer Ballotpedia's interviews, and if you're lucky, you'll also get all the dirt on who's donating to their campaign.

Check endorsements. Usually candidates are very vocal about these on their websites. If local/state progressive leaders and a couple unions (not counting police unions lol) are endorsing a candidate, then that's not the end of my personal research process per se, but it usually speeds things up.

Check the back of the ballot. That's where non-partisan races usually bleed over to. This is the other reason why notes are helpful, because they can confirm you're not missing anything.

I've seen some misconceptions in the reblogs, so an addendum to my point about bringing notes on the candidates: I strongly suggest making those notes a physical list that you bring polling place with you. Many states do allow phones at the polling place, but several states explicitly don't — Nevada, Maryland, and Texas all ban phones, and that may not be an exhaustive list. There may also be states that allow individual city clerks to set policies.

You should also pause and think before you take a photo of your ballot, because even some states that don't ban phones still ban ballot photographs. But whether it's a photo, or just having your phone in general — in an environment as high-risk for voter suppression as the current one, you don't want even a little bit of ambiguity about your conduct. Physical notes are your friends.

[bijoumikhawal]

Hurricane Helene Relief Funds

Brother Wolf Animal Rescue operates out of Asheville, which has been hit aggressively by storm and flood damage

The Asheville Survival Program is reaching out. They appear to actually be the ones who use the Cashapp $Streets1de, and they just got put with Appalachian Med for convenience.

Beloved Asheville is reaching out. www.PayPal.me/belovedasheville and venmo.com/beloved-asheville

Homeward Bound helps the homeless in the Asheville/Buncombe area

Theres a fund for smaller rural communities around Asheville. It's close to its goal, but I really wish they'd set it higher considering what people are gonna need. Someone make sure they surpass it!

Charlotte NC is reaching out. Charlotte Mutual Aid: Helene Disaster Relief. CashApp: MutualAid704. Venmo: MutualAid704. Open Collective: Helene.cltfnb.com

Olive Branch Ministry is reaching out from West NC

Josh Griffith is fundraising for his efforts to deliver food in WNC

Breathitt County in Kentucky is fundraising to help NC through the Rousseau Volunteer Fire Department, as well as asking for physical supply donations. Their paypal is jrousseauvfd, put "for NC flood". Jaxon Flower shop in Jackson KY will also take physical donations. They aren't looking for clothes, moreso cleaning supplies and other items.

North Durham Mutual Aid is reaching out.

Eastern Kentucky Mutual Aid is also reaching out for funds. There looks like there might be two orgs with similar names, but if so both are helping. There's PayPal.me/ekymutualaid, Venmo - @ekymutualaid, or Cashapp - $ekymutualaid. There's also a Facebook group where individuals are posting requests for aid.

There's a fund for relief in Erwin, Tennessee

Helbender Harm Reduction is collecting physical supplies in Knoxville alongside First Aid Collective Knoxille, whose Cashapp/Venmo is: $firstaidcollectknox. If you're nearby they're looking for clothes, blankets, shelf stable food, rain gear, flashlights, and batteries, which is what most other groups asking for supplies are looking at too.

The TriCities Mutual Aid group is mostly asking for volunteers and supplies in the Tennessee/Virginia area. However, they may shift to donations, and you can reach out to them to see if they would be welcome either way.

Food Not Bombs Tallahassee has a cashapp: $fnbtally2022. They and Mutual Aid Athens are also boosting any community calls for funds, labor, or supplies in various states on their Instagram pages

Taylor County FL is reaching out. Paypal: Mskatonic138@gmail.com and Venmo @Mskatonic138

The Footprint project's Florida team is asking for people to support their response by texting HELENE to 44-321

Since I don't know if the post I made late last night will get traction I'll reiterate that Mutual Aid Disaster Relief is a trusted org. You can send funds at the linked site, or via Paypal: MutualAidDisasterRelief@gmail.com Or Venmo: @MutualAidDisasterRelief

Appalachian Med is another trusted org I shared last night. They have Venmo: @AppMedSolid. Put Flood Support in the description

Animal Disaster Relief Coalition is helping people make sure their animals are fed.

A list of Mutual Aid groups can be found here

A friend of mine, Vyn, is asking for help since he'll be out of power for around a week in Southeast GA

Other physical supplies people will be looking for in flood impacted areas include:

bottled water, potentially water filters

personal hygiene items: wipes, camping showers, tampons/pads/other menstrual products, handsanitizer, mosquito spray, laundry detergent, washboards, toilet paper, diapers, and especially any products safe for sensitive skin

medications- ibuprofen, monistat and other meds for yeast infections, cold and cough meds, any diabetic meds that can be safely shared, etc

individually wrapped low or no prep food items, baby formula, and Gatorade

duffel bags, backpacks, heavy duty storage totes and trash bags, 5 gallon buckets, coolers

Fans, dehumidifiers, moisture sensors, generators, gas and gas cans, solar charging items and battery banks, first aid kits

chainsaws, crowbars, hammers, air filters, respirators, 2×4 planks, bleach, roofing nails, heavy duty gloves, and potentially waders.

and board games or other non electric activities for children

Double check if you can before you donate these items to make sure whatever local drive you're headed to wants them and can distribute the more specialized ones where they're needed

And please! Add any funds you know of, especially for South Carolina and North Georgia since I wasn't seeing many funds for those areas! I know South Carolina is in desperate need and there's definitely parts of North Georgia in need too. Atlanta saw some bad flooding so keep an eye for them too!

[mahmoud0qassas]

Allah is the Provider and He is the one who blesses the provision, and Allah is more generous than all

And you are absolutely certain that what you give to God, He will multiply it for you many times over, so do not despair, for you are working and donating for yourself and the hereafter.

Yes, we need you because we are a large family. Yes, the amount is large, but it did not arouse your feelings, and my daughter is asking for your help

Don't raise your feelings while my family lives with humiliation

It did not arouse your feelings, and my friend asks you to help us in order for us to travel as soon as possible to treat my brother in a clean hospital

My brothers and sisters in Islam

Every day I beg you to stand with us, and the abundance of hope made me ashamed of myself, and this particular displacement, in which we moved from Rafah to the city of Zawaida. We faced the cruelty of humiliation and humiliation from the camps, and they allowed my family of 42 individuals to set up only two tents out of four.

This is a final appeal to you.. My family needs you.. My disabled brother needs you.. And my daughter dreams of living in safety.. Do not break our thoughts.. And the size of your donation will determine our path.. And the greater your donation, Allah will honor you in this world and the afterlife, for Allah is more generous than all.

If you want to enter Paradise, look at our condition, and be sure that Allah will admit you to His Paradise, and whenever you are good, Allah will give you according to your goodness.

[copperbadge]

Hey Sam! Since it's currently AO3 donation time, I'm wondering what your thoughts are on it? I'm asking because you've written RPF and it's one of many "anti-AO3/anti-AO3 donations" people's favourite things to bring up when they're complaining about AO3 getting so many donations that it continuously obtains an excess of its donation goal whenever donation time rolls around? (Wow, how many times can I say "donation" in an ask?) Sorry if this question bothers you! I don't mean to offend or annoy.

Hey anon! Sorry it took a while to get to this, I don't even know if the drive is still going on, but the question came in while I was traveling and I didn't really have the time for stuff that wasn't travel-related. In any case, let's dig in! (I am not offended, no worries.)

So really there are two issues here and as much as some people who are critical of AO3 want to conflate them, they are different. While some criticism of AO3 may be valid, rhetoric against AO3 tends to misinterpret both in separate ways.

First there's the issue of what AO3 hosts -- RPF, yes, but more broadly, varied content that some people find distasteful or think should be illegal, which is a misunderstanding of the purpose of the archive and more broadly a dangerous attitude towards the concept of freedom of expression.

Second, there's the issue of AO3 generally outpacing its fundraising goals while not allowing monetization, which is a misunderstanding of the legal status of AO3 and to an extent a misunderstanding of philanthropy as a whole.

The longer I watch debates about content go on, the more I come to the conclusion that I was fortunate to have a teacher who really wanted to instill in us an understanding of free speech not as a policy but as an ongoing dialogue. It's not only that freedom of expression "protects you from the government, not the Justin" as the meme goes, but also that freedom of expression is not a static thing. It's an ongoing process of identifying what we find harmful in society and what we want to do about it.

Should the freedom to shout "Fire!" in a crowded theater be restricted? Should the freedom to yell slurs at drag performers? Should the freedom to teach prepubescent kids about gender, sexuality, and/or safe sex? Should the freedom to wear a leather puppy hood at Pride? Who gets to say, and why?

I was nine when my teacher did a unit on freedom of speech and the intersection of "harm prevention" and "censorship", which is (and should be) a discussion, not a set of ironclad rules. This ambiguity has thus been with me for over thirty years, and I'm comfortable with the ambiguity, with the process; I'm not sure a lot of people critical of AO3's content truly are. Perhaps some can't be, especially those affected by hate speech, but RPF is not hate speech. It's just fiction. Or is fiction "just fiction"? This is a question society as a whole is grappling with, although fandom seems to be a little out ahead of society in terms of how explicitly we discuss it.

The idea that prose can incite violence or cause harm is both valid to examine (witness the rise of fascism on the radio in the 20s, on Facebook and Twitter in the past ten years; they're very similar processes) and a very slippery slope. Because again: who decides what harm is, and what causes it, and what we do about it? Our values align us with certain beliefs, but those are only our values, not universal truths. So AO3 is part of the ongoing question of harm and benefit both to society and individuals.

AO3 itself, however, has a fairly defined policy that it is not meant to police content; it is an archive, not a bookstore or a school board. AO3 refines its TOS and policies as necessary, but the goal is always open access and as much freedom of expression as possible, and if that's uncomfortable for some people then that's a discussion we have to have; ignoring it won't make it go away. But it has to be a discussion, it can't be a unilateral change to the archive's TOS or a series of snaps and clapbacks, and I don't see a lot of people ready to move beyond flinging insults. Perhaps because they were taught a much more binary view of freedom of expression than I was.

So, self-evidently, I support AO3 and I don't have a problem with RPF. Whether other people do is something we're going to have to get to grips with, and that's likely to be a process that is still going on when most of us are dust. I'd rather have a century of ambiguity than a wrong answer tomorrow, anyway.

But whether AO3 hosts RPF is truly a separate issue from its donation drives, because it's a criticism some people level at the site which exists whether it's fundraising or not. So people can criticize AO3's open policy and they can give it as a reason not to support the site, but it's just one aspect of the archive and the fundraising as a whole should be examined separately.

I think AO3's fundraisers are deeply misunderstood (sometimes on purpose) because even people who are anticapitalist get a little crazy when money gets involved, and this is, to fandom, a lot of money -- a few hundred thousand, reliably, every fundraiser. To me, a fundraiser that pulls in three hundred grand is almost quaint; my current nonprofit pulls in better than ten million a year and my previous employer had an endowment of several billion dollars. At my old job I didn't even bother researching people who couldn't give us a hundred grand.

On the other hand, AO3 is an extreme and astounding outlier in the nonprofit world, because basically it's the only one of its kind to work the way it does. It is entirely volunteer-run on the operational side (ie: tag wranglers, coders, lawyers, etc) and has no fundraising staff (gift officers, researchers, outreach officers) as far as I'm aware. To pull in three hundred grand from individual one-time donations, without any paid staff and without even a volunteer fundraising officer? That's insane. That doesn't happen. Except at AO3.

What people misunderstand, however, is the basic status of a nonprofit, which is a legal status, not simply a social one. (I'm adding in some corrections here since it gets complicated and the terminology can be important!) The Organization for Transformative Works, the parent of AO3, is a nonprofit, which indicates how it was incorporated as an organization; additionally it is registered federally as tax-exempt, which carries certain perks, like not paying sales tax, and certain duties, like making their financials transparent to a certain extent. (Religious nonprofits are exempt from the transparency requirement.) If you're interested in more about nonprofits and tax-exempt status a reader dropped a great article here.

Nonprofits, unlike for-profit companies, cannot pay a share of their income to stakeholders. Nonprofits don't have financial stakeholders, only donors. They can have employees and pay them a salary -- that's me, for example -- but if a nonprofit pulls in $10M in donations, my salary is paid from that, I don't get a percentage and nobody else does either. That's what it means to be a nonprofit -- the money above operational costs goes back into the organization. The donations we (and AO3) receive must be plowed under and used for outreach, server maintenance, further fundraising, services expansion, et cetera. You can see this in the 990 forms on Guidestar or ProPublica, or in their more accessible breakdowns on Charity Navigator. Nonprofits that do not put the majority of their income towards service provision tend to get audited and lose their nonprofit status. So nobody's getting paid from all that money, and the overage that isn't spent goes into what is basically a savings account in the name of the nonprofit. (I'm vastly simplifying but that's the gist.) Using that money for personal purposes is illegal. It's called "private inurement" and there's a good article here about it. The money belongs to the OTW as a concept, not to anyone in or of the OTW.

So the biggest misunderstanding that I see in people who are mad at AO3 fundraisers is that "they" are getting all this money (who "they" are is never clearly stated but I'm pretty sure people think @astolat has a special wifi router that runs on burning hundred dollar bills) while "we" can't monetize our fanfic. But "they" get nothing -- nobody even earns a salary from AO3 -- and you can easily prove that by looking at the 990 forms they file with the government, which are required to be made public. You can see the most recently available 990, from 2020, here at Guidestar. Page seven will show you the "highest compensated" employees, all of whom are earning zero dollars or nonmonetary perks (that's the three columns on the right).

Either AO3 is entirely volunteer-run or someone's Doing A Real Fraud. The money the OTW spends is documented (that's page 10 and 11 primarily) and while they may pay for, say, the travel and lodging expenses of a lawyer going to DC to defend a freedom-of-expression case, they don't pay the lawyer for their time, or give them a cut of the income.

Despite what you've read, the reason "we" can't monetize our fanfics on AO3 has nothing to do with the site being the product of volunteer handiwork or AO3 having it in their terms of service or it being considered gauche by some to do so; it's because

IT'S ILLEGAL.

I cannot say this loudly enough: It is against the law for a nonprofit to be used by its staff, volunteers, or beneficiaries to earn direct profit from the services provided by the nonprofit.

You can be paid to work at one, but you cannot side-hustle by selling your handmade friendship bracelets for personal gain on the nonprofit's website. If the nonprofit knowingly allows monetization of its services, it can lose nonprofit status, be fined, be hit with back taxes, and a lot of other unpleasant bullshit can go down, including prosecution of those involved for fraud. If you put a ko-fi link on your fanfic, you are breaking the law, and if AO3 allows it, they are too.

Okay, that was a sidebar, but in some ways not, because it gets to the heart of the real complaints about AO3 fundraising, which is that people in fandom are sick or unhoused or in some form of need and other people in fandom are giving to AO3, a fan site that is financially stable, instead of giving to peoples' gofundmes or dropping money in their Ko-Fi or Paypal. And while it is a legitimate grievance that there are people who are in such desperate need while we live in an era of unprecedented abundance, that's not AO3's fault. AO3 doesn't solicit actively, there's no unasked-for mailings or calls from a gift officer. They just put a banner up on their website, and people give. (Again, this is incredibly outlier behavior in the nonprofit world, I'd do a case study on it but the conclusion would just be "shit's real, yo.") You might as well be mad that people give to their local food bank instead of someone's ko-fi.

You cannot lay at AO3's feet the fact that people want to give to AO3 instead of to your fundraiser. That's a choice individuals have made, and while you can engage with them in terms of why they made the philanthropic choices they did, to blame an organization they supported rather than the person who made the choice to give is not only incorrect but futile, and unlikely to win anyone over to supporting you. We know from research that guilt is not a tremendous motivator of philanthropy.

It is also not necessarily a binary choice; just because AO3 gets a hundred grand in $5 donations doesn't mean most of the people giving don't also give $5 elsewhere. I support the OTW on occasion, and I also fundraise for UNICEF and the Chicago Parks Foundation and BAGLY and others, in addition to giving monthly to several nonprofits that I have longterm relationships with -- my alma mater, the animal rescue where I got the Cryptids, my shul. And I give, occasionally and anonymously, to fundraisers that pass through Radio Free Monday, which are mainly individuals in need, because I was once in need and now I pay it forward. These are the choices I have made. Nobody twisted my arm. I respond poorly to someone making the attempt to do so by attacking places I've given.

I think the upshot is, after all of this that I've written, that we cannot begin to come to grips with questions of institutional inequality in philanthropy, or freedom of expression and censorship, until people actually understand what's going on, and too few do. So all I can do is try and explain, and hopefully create a forum for people to learn and grow when it comes to charitable giving.

Archive Of Our Own and the Organization for Transformative Works are products of our community and as that community changes, we will necessarily continue to re-evaluate what aspects of it mean and how AO3/OTW express the community sentiment. I hope that the ongoing discussion of support for AO3 also leads to people learning more about their philanthropic options. But criticizing AO3 for fundraising by attacking it for fulfilling one of its stated purposes is silly, and attempting to guilt people into giving in the ways one thinks they should give rather than how they do give is just going to make one extremely unlikable.

As members of this community, we have to be a part of the push and pull, but it's difficult to do that competently in ignorance. So, I do my best to be knowledgeable and to educate my readers, and I hope others will do the same.

[ezrazone]

you probably see a lot of fundraisers on your dash. highlighting these individual campaigns is not a great system; it means necessarily that many people are left behind. however, this criticism is not a reason to tune out the cries for help that you come across. i made a commitment to my friend @save-mohamed-family and it is my responsibility to him to keep generating interest in his fundraiser. while his gofundme campaign is temporarily stalled due to a technicality, it is more meaningful than ever that people send money via these app options. mohamed lost all of his sisters and his father. all he has left are his three young children and his wife, manal, who has been in and out of a coma for months. please give them hope that they can survive this genocide as bombing continues overhead. they are battling weather and sickness and starvation. your donations do more good than you can possibly imagine. cashapp link (for americans)

venmo link (for americans - please do not indicate anything having to do with palestine in description)

paypal link (for everyone outside US - please make sure your donation is listed as “personal” and not business)

mohamed’s fundraiser is vetted #192 here!

thank you thank you thank you. please vote & circulate.

[unrelaxing]

From a country where voting is not a choice, but a duty, it's interesting seeing American discourse every four years on whether or not voting matters. This year there's an added layer, because Joe Biden has been supporting Israel's genocide against Palestine. Now there's a pervading sentiment - both in and out of the US - that voting for Joe Biden supports Palestinian genocide, and it's an American's moral duty to withhold their vote in support of Palestine.

I guess the question I ask is: how is withholding your vote effective activism?

If you don't vote, and Trump wins, he says he will deport pro-Palestine demonstrators. He says he supports Israel's right to defend itself. If you vote independent, and Trump wins the same thing happens.

If Biden wins, he will continue his support of Israel.

So: Is voting really the battleground for the Palestinian genocide, when either outcome leads down the same road?

And what other battles are being fought in this presidential race?

Gun laws - Biden passed "the most significant gun safety legislation in more than two decades", the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It includes enhanced background checks for gun purchasers, and prohibits individuals convicted of domestic violence towards a romantic partner from purchasing a gun (wherein the past a 'boyfriend loophole' had existed, wherein the law only applied if an individual was convicted of domestic violence against a spouse or cohabitant). Trump has promised to overturn Biden's new laws.

Healthcare - Uninsured Americans are at an all-time low under Biden's administration, with only 7.6% of Americans being uninsured in the second quarter of 2023. The number of people who signed up to Obamacare in 2024 is at 21.3 million - and Trump plans to repeal it.

Climate change - Biden's Inflation Reduction Act invests 300 billion dollars towards clean energy. Electricity generation from renewable energy sources — including wind, solar and hydropower — surpassed coal-fired generation in the electric power sector for the first time in 2022, making it the second-biggest source behind natural gas generation. At a recent dinner with oil executives and lobbyists, the Republican promised to eliminate Mr Biden's new climate rules and environmental regulations if they donated $1bn to his campaign.

Much has been said about Trump's second term beyond the above three points. @batboyblog posted a very clear and concise graphic on Trump's plans for his second term.

The BBC has also posted about Trump's plans for his second term, which I'll screenshot:

Trump is now a felon, but I was really shocked to learn about how little impact this has on his ability to run as president. His supporters are likely to stay by his side, because they believe in these policies.

Biden does not have the same luxury. I don't think he should have the same luxury. Still, I feel like it's important to point out that Trump and Biden's opinions on Israel and Palestine align, but there are a plethora of other issues they do not align on. As a voter, as an activist, when given two political parties, why would you choose based on the similarities as opposed to the differences?

Ways to help Gaza.

Vetted gofundmes.

Other links to help Palestine.

[grunckle]

Qualia and Ascension in Rain World

(To clarify I'm mostly talking about base-game lore and not including Downpour, but honestly most of these things can transfer over)

Qualia

One thing that’s relatively hidden in Rain World’s text and subtext is the concept of qualia. Qualia is described as being, “sensory experiences that have distinctive subjective qualities but lack any meaning or external reference to the objects or events that cause them.” It’s a personal sensory experience that cannot be comprehended by another person other than the individual themself, and are often hard to convey via language.

Qualia is a reoccurring motif in Rain World, but what’s more important is the way in which it’s conveyed to the player. The picture that’s painted is that of a world or civilization that placed a great importance on the individuals’ experience, and it’s shown through pearls or environmental details.

Here are some examples of qualia appearing in the text through pearls.

“It's qualia, or a moment - a very short one. Someone is holding a black stone, and twisting it slightly as they drag their finger across the rough surface. The entire sequence is shorter than a heartbeat, but the resolution is extraordinary.”

“A memory... but not really visual, or even concrete, in its character. It reminds of the feeling of a warm wind, but not the physical feeling but the... inner feeling. I don't think it has much utility unless you are doing some very fringe Regeneraist research.”

“This one... is authored by Five Pebbles, when he was young. There has been an attempt to scramble the data, but it's sloppily done, and most is still somewhat legible. It's written in internal language, or thoughts, so it is hard for me to translate so you would understand.”

But the most prominent examples of qualia and it’s importance in this world are the Memory Crypts and possibly ancient naming conventions. The deep purple pearl (shortened) found in Shaded Citadel states,

“In this vessel is the living memories of Seventeen Axes, Fifteen Spoked Wheel, of the House of Braids (…) Seventeen Axes, Fifteen Spoked Wheel nobly decided to ascend in the beginning of 1514.008, after graciously donating all (ALL!) earthly possessions to the local Iterator project (Unparalleled Innocence), and left these memories to be cherished by the carnal plane. The assorted memories and qualia include:”

Ancients likely mutated their own neural tissue into the cabinet beasts we see in Shaded, which were used to store their memories and qualia before ascension. Even james said once "how 5 pebs got the rot is a good hint here" in response to someone asking how cabinet beasts work, and how they're made.

Adding on to this, ancient (and iterator) naming conventions seem to be built off of the concept of qualia, with them focusing on individual images or experiences.

Nineteen Spades, Endless Reflections

Droplets upon Five Large Droplets

Two Sprouts, Twelve Brackets

Looks to the Moon

Generally, this all points to a world focused on the expression and preservation of the individual experience. You could even consider some of the echo dialogue as more evidence for this running motif, but I already have too many quotes lol.

Ascension

So now time to talk about my interpretation of ascension. In short, you turn into a worm, but I should probably explain more than that.

So its been surfacing on rw-tumblr that the light in the end of the game is called the egg in files. Although file names shouldn't be taken as fact or canon, it is pretty obvious given the birth imagery.

But something a little lesser known is what happens to the worm that takes us down to the void-sea depths. Void worms normally have a bright glowing effect, on their body, which is present for ours as well. But after it unhooks us, it swims down, and when it passes us on it's way back that glowing effect is gone.

To be honest, I don't really think this can be interpreted in many ways, but the most obvious one and the one I personally subscribe to is that the worm laid the egg. Biology and spirituality really aren't that different in Rain World, it's implied that karma is stored in the brain through Five Pebbles's slideshow. Adding on to that, we see voidspawn after eating an iterator neuron. One's spiritual state is innately tied to their mental state, and that dictates what and what they can't perceive.

And for that reason I decide to take a more biology leaning approach to what happens in the ending. At face value, we are fertilizing the egg of a void worm to be reborn into a voidspawn.

Not only do void spawn and void worms have multiple characteristics in common, (worm like bodies, tendrils/tentacles, glowing heads, void spawn look microbial and void worms are likely some of the oldest "life" in game)

but voidspawn are seen inside egg-like coverings and share the same egg light seen in the end of the game, confirmed to be the same thing by Videocult in a livestream they did.

I believe that all this points to ascension being re-birth into a voidspawn, which eventually undergoes metamorphose into a worm. Higher-dimensional beings, who manifest and give birth to a new world.

So how does this tie in with qualia? Another thing you might know is that the area in which void spawn are most plentiful is Shaded Citadel and areas in Shoreline near Shaded. And shaded is absolutely packed with Cabinet Beasts, even outside Memory Crypts. I believe these qualia-storing creatures are what manifest voidspawn.

From what we see in ascension, it still looks physical and largely based around the real world. Hunter still has his scars and see's an iterator, survivor sees the slug tree in a more mystical and formless state, and monk sees survivor frankly just looking like a normal slugcat. I think that ascension is a product of qualia. We transcend our earthly knowledge via the egg, and our own qualia is used to give birth to a new world. This is why voidspawn appear most in Shaded Citadel.

Now I won't be getting into Void-Worm theories too much here, I'm mostly focused on ascension but I can't ignore the Gnosticism parallels. For those who don't know, Void Worms heavily resemble the Yaldaboath from Gnosticism, along with sharing some similar celestial motifs.

and running with that some people theorize that, like the Yaldabaoth, void worms are responsible for manifesting the material world. Ascension seems to be a mix of the concepts of Gnosis and Nirvana, but I believe it might lean more on Gnosis.

From my limited knowledge, Gnosis is a few things, some of which being a state achieved from experiences or intuitions, and an essential part to salvation is personal knowledge. While researching a bit, I came across this text by Peter Wilberg called "From NEW AGE to NEW GNOSIS" which brings up some comparisons between Gnosticism and qualia as well.

"Gnosis is subjective knowledge of an inner universe made up not of matter, energy, space or time but of countless qualitative spheres or ‘planes’ of awareness – a knowledge obtained directly through inter- subjective resonance. It is the subjective science of this inner universe."

One thing though that has been brought up when discussing this is how this can be consolidated with the tone of the ending. It is pretty un-ambiguously happy, but if we're going with the Void worm Yaldaboath theory then that would put a bit of a sour twist on it right?

I agreed with these for some time, but now I actually think it ties in perfectly with Rain World's core themes as stated by the devs, "overcoming differences and finding empathy." I don't think the void worms are "evil" or malevolent, but I think they (and subsequently us after ascending) play a key role in demonstrating this theme.

By manifesting the physical world, we allow these souls to experience life and develop their own qualia so one day they can ascend themselves. We are shown compassion, and pass it forward.

[stayconnecteed]

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀“ no nut november. ”⠀⠀───⠀⠀sigma kappa zeta.

⠀⠀𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗈𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.⠀( november event , 𝟦.𝟤𝗄 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗌. )⠀the bet.

1.⠀⠀PAIRING⠀⠀:⠀⠀each member individually x f!reader.

2.⠀⠀GENRES⠀⠀:⠀⠀non!idol au, college au, sigma kappa zeta au⠀; stablished relationships, brother's best friend trope, idiots to lovers / best friends to lovers, started dating recently ( first time together ), friends with benefits to lovers.

3.⠀⠀WARNINGS⠀⠀:⠀⠀not much. swearing, alcohol consumption, comedy. jisung is a menace, hyunjin's just curious ( and a simp ) cameo of three idols hehe try to discover who they are. this is just the intro of the no nut november event.

4.⠀⠀AUTHOR 'S NOTE⠀⠀:⠀⠀i'm sosososo sorry for updating this again but i wanted to re do the aesthetic and change a couple of things- i'm a perfectionist :(( this is a little comedic introduction to the hot mess that this no nut november event is going to be!! hope you like it 🤍

5.⠀⠀IMPORTANT⠀⠀:⠀⠀if any under 18 or ageless acc interacts with this series they will be blocked. the content presented throughout the event might be comedic, but it's mostly for adults. that being said, if you're not comfortable with the kinks or the plot, please leave. read under your own responsability.

Hyunjin hummed the Latin song that was playing and leaned his head against the door as soon as it closed behind him, sighing. He had said he needed to go to the bathroom, and he hadn't lied, but the truth was that all he wanted was to sit on the cold tiles of the room and rest for a moment. He had started drinking alcohol earlier than usual that night, and it had crept up on him too quickly, as it always did when he had a bad day. They had only been in class for a few weeks, but Professor Park, with his indifferent gaze and rude language, had already announced all the projects they were going to have to do that semester. And Hyunjin hadn't liked any of them.

So he had left you dancing in the middle of the fraternity hall, with your friends and some of his members, after whispering to you that he would be right back. There was a queue in the downstairs toilets, but since it was his house after all, he hurried upstairs and locked himself in on his own. He peeled himself away from the door, feeling the sweat slide down his back, and considered taking off his oversized shirt, but there was no point. He would probably catch a cold, and he had to go downstairs again in a few minutes anyway. He poured the last of his vodka down the sink, and rinsed out his plastic cup before filling it with water from the tap, emptying it instantly.

He felt it go down his throat, and he smiled. At last some coolness on that disgustingly warm night. From the bathroom annex to his room he could barely hear the sticky, deafening atmosphere where friends and strangers were enjoying that October night, and he was grateful that Changbin's parents had donated a generous amount of money to renovate and improve the old house they now lived in. He refilled the glass again and left it by the tap, unbuttoning the sleeves of his shirt to splash water on his face and the back of his neck. He rested his arms over the sink without drying off, and let the cold creep into his bones.

But he had to go downstairs. He knew that if he took too long you would start to worry, because he was aware that he had looked a bit overwhelmed when he had left. He couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips at the thought of you, and with his plastic cup back in his hand he headed down the stairs two at a time, trying to remember where exactly in the hall he had left his friends. He bumped into an entangled couple looking for some privacy, and lowered his head apologetically, even though it wasn't really his fault, and then he heard it.

Before he reached the bottom steps, three boys he didn't remember seeing in any of his classes, talking in whispers somewhat elevated by alcohol, joking around with amusement.

“I don't think anyone's been able to make it to the end, really,” one was saying, the one who had his hands hidden in the sleeves of his dark jacket, as if he was embarrassed to talk about the topic.

“Oh, I think so,” replied his friend, his tanned skin sparkling under the glitter he had smeared across his bare arms, “it's just that no one talks about it. But you know someone who has, I can tell you that.”

“One of our hyungs?” replied the one who had intervened the first time, his eyes widening comically. Instead of offering an answer, the boy cracked a wolfish grin, some of his moles disappearing into the crooks of his skin, his eyes narrowed.

“Don't mind him, Sang,” interrupted the third, in the striped crop top, resting his elbow on the shoulder of the one who had turned his grin into an unbelieving scowl. Hyunjin stood on the stairs with his back to them and picked up his phone, pretending to answer some messages, curious. “He’s making things up. Again.”

“Yah! I'm telling the truth!” the guy protested, uproariously.

“Yeah, whatever you say, Woo,” the one who had spoken was the last one, with his orangish hair, probably rolling his eyes. It was a classic interaction between some of his friends, Hyunjin knew, and he supposed some dynamics were quite similar even in different groups. “I'm just saying that people might be able to make it to the end of the challenge, but it's extremely difficult in college.”

“Unless you're a virgin.”

“Unless you're a virgin,” the ginger repeated, agreeing with the one they had called Sang.

“Seems to me you're wrong,” the dark-haired man in the black tank top countered. “It's true that at uni people are very horny, but No Nut November is a challenge that anyone can do.”

“Dude, you're in a state of denial,” they replied, bursting into laughter. “And you of all people would be incapable of making it to December without touching yourself.”

“What the fuck would you know?”

“Walls talk,” replied the one in the striped top.

“And drunk San talks too,” Sang added again, hiding a chuckle behind his hand.

Hyunjin lowered his head as they ended the conversation and walked past him back to the party, his gaze glued to the screen of his phone, their laughter fading into the music and the crowd. He realised he'd been randomly opening and closing apps, and ended up looking up the name of the challenge they'd been talking about on Naver. He had never heard of it, and it seemed odd, especially since he lived under the same roof as Han Perv Jisung.

The first page that popped up was Wikipedia, of course (not of course, he didn't really expect something like that to be on an official website, he would have gone straight to the Urban Dictionary if he wasn't worried about anyone seeing what he was doing on his phone). He turned down the brightness on the screen until he had to squint to read the text clearly, and processed each word with a blush on his cheeks.

“No Nut November, often abbreviated to NNN, is an annual internet challenge of sexual abstinence and not masturbating during the month of November. [ ¹ ] It originated in 2011 and grew in popularity among male users of social media during and after 2017. [ ² ] Destroy Dick December serves as a counterpoint.”

Specifically male users, because females were way too smart to challenge each other to such stupid things. Sounds about right for him.

“HISTORY. Although No Nut November was originally intended to be satirical, some participants claim that abstaining from ejaculating and not watching pornography has health benefits. [ ³ ] [ ¹ ] An Urban Dictionary entry for No Nut November was published in 2011, …”

See? Urban Dictionary. Hyunjin chuckled. He knew it.

He felt his phone being taken from him before he was really conscious, and just as an angry exclamation was about to slide off his tongue he saw that the one who had stolen it was Jisung, one hand occupied with a cup of what he knew to be a soda ーhe didn't tolerate alcoholic beverages wellー and the other with his precious phone. Hyunjin frowned, turning to his friend with the intention of getting it back, but began to worry when he saw Jisung's eyes dart greedily across the screen, reading the web page Hyunjin had failed to hide.

Shit.

“Oh God” he whispered, slowly raising his head until he painfully made eye contact with Hyunjin.

“What?” asked Seungmin, who was coming after Jisung, and Hyunjin felt his heart sink in his chest. The mix of Jisung and Seungmin messing with him at the same time was strange, because normally they took turns making his life miserable, but the two of them together was lethal. And Hyunjin needed a good night's sleep and less alcohol in his system to deal with them.

“No,” he warned Jisung, pointing at him with a threatening finger.

But that word alone set Seungmin's eyes on fire, curious, as he tried to read over Jisung's shoulder what was on Hyunjin's phone. It wasn't necessary, however, because Jisung had no hesitation about announcing it out loud.

“Hyunjin wants to do No Nut November!” he basically shouted out.

Great. Just great.

“For real?” Seungmin asked, surprised.

Did everyone know what the challenge was about but him?

“No I do not,” he answered, sighing in surrender and taking his phone. He exited the Naver app and locked the screen, putting the phone in the pocket of his jeans. He would try to explain politely that no, he was just wondering what it was, that he wanted to be left alone, and then he would go find you and get the hell out of there. “Some dudes were talking about it and…”

“Well, you wouldn’t last anyway,” Jisung stated, a smirk plastered on his face.

“The hell I wouldn’t,” he defended himself, frowning in confusion. If there was someone that wouldn’t last, it was Jisung. No doubt.

“You’re glued to your girl, man.”

“Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?” he retorted, cocking an eyebrow. “At least I have a girlfriend.”

“Oh, wow,” Jisung exhaled, nodding ironically, “wow. Just because I don't, it doesn't mean I can't.”

“Hate to break it to you,” started Seungmin, leaning into the handrail of the stairs, curving his lips, “but he’s right. You’re bitchless. In fact, you still wouldn't last because you have the urges of a dog in heat.”

“I should feel attacked.”

“The fact that you don't just proves my point,” Seungmin chuckled, crossing his arms.

“And you actually can't because you only have eyes for your pretty friend,” added Hyunjin, anticipating Jisung's response. “What was her name…?”

“Oh, stop,” uttered Jisung, frowning towards his friend. “Don't bring her into this.”

Hyunjin was about to mock his tone, as he always did when Jisung's best friend topic came into the conversation, but got interrupted by Seungmin's sly words.

“You know who wouldn't last at all?” he asked, and Jisung hummed a faint ‘Who?’, both of them following Seungmin's gaze into the crowd.

Bang Chan. The leader of their fraternity. Seungmin's eyes glowed with the spark of mischief that always rolled off him when he wanted to tease him, and Hyunjin didn't have to wonder why that time. His Chan hyung was not the soul of the party, instead just popular on campus and surely a social butterfly, but he was pretty reserved when it came to his private life. He was near the speakers and Changbin's mixer, ready to hop in if the DJ needed him ーself proclaimed DJutdwae for whatever reasonsー but holding onto his girlfriend for his life.

It was not a rare vision, Chan clinging to his girl, more often that not with his arms around her shoulders or their fingers intertwined, but they somehow turned the crowded room into their own bubble, looking into each other's eyes with overflowing love, her hands in his curly hair, his on her soft waist. Like they were totally alone, moving their hips to the lively beat, whispering into their ears. It was disgustingly adorable.

“Oh, no,” Jisung spoke, relieved, “we're safe.”

“Yeah,” Hyunjin chimed, still looking at his hyung. “And he's doomed.”

“You still wouldn't last.”

“Oh my God, Jisung, drop it already.”

“You two talk like we're even going to do it,” Seungmin sighed, taking Hyunjin's cup and drowning it in one go. He grimaced. “You have water?”

“I needed a break,” he voiced, shrugging.

“Can't even keep up?” Hyunjin was going to punch Jisung before the night was over if he didn't stop, he was sure of it.

His phone vibrated over the wooden nightstand, in the warm darkness of your room and he flinched in his sleep, swollen eyes narrowing to turn it off before it could wake you up.

But then it vibrated again.

that's not very noice [ today, 12:35 p.m. ] from: the "rapper" sooo we doing nnn or what??

Hyunjin scoffed, running his hand over his face when he read Jisung's message in the frat group chat, trying to shake the sleep off him. He should had killed him when he had the chance. It was Saturday morning and all he wanted was to cuddle his girl and have a day in with delivery food and a cute TV show on the screen. 

And all he had to do, at the moment, because of Jisung, was to deal with his apparently damaged brain cells ーor even nonexistent, at that point.

from: me omg drop it already

from: seungminnie ji's still drunk, you guys

Seungmin was quick to add his part, and Hyunjin thanked him mentally for defending him. He wasn't going to choose to support Ji, at least on this occasion.

from: chan hyung do i want to know what’s “nnn”?

A breathy chuckle escaped Hyunjin's lips when he read his hyung's message, and he stopped, his body tense like an bowstring, when he felt you shifting in the sheets, the mattress lowering under your weight as you unconsciously seeked Hyunjin's warmth, even asleep. You were going to wake up, and he would hate himself if that happened. 

Hyunjin stood up, leaving the phone on his pillow while he tucked you into the bed, brushing a soft kiss on your forehead before getting out of the room.

Felix had texted the group chat as well.

from: lixie who the fuck gave him the idea?

from: the "rapper" chill it’s hyunjin who wants to do it

Hyunjin scoffed again. He couldn't believe it. He walked softly over the wooden floor until the living room, and locked himself inside while typing his answer.

from: me no the fuck i do not? what is wrong with you?

from: chan hyung what’s the nnn?

Well, at least he wasn't the only one that didn't know about it. He waited for Jisung's answer, sitting down on the couch, but it never came.

from: seungminnie you wouldn’t last anyway, hyung

from: innie seungmin ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

from: the "rapper" [ @ chan hyung ] it’s a challenge

from: minho hyung you know what? i’m in

Oh my God. He was doing it to annoy him, he was sure. Jisung had probably texted Minho already, to plan it together and make him lose his mind. Orー wait. Maybe they truly wanted to do it, and they were using him just in case the rest of the group didn't really want to. It sounded like them, to be honest. Those freaky bastards.

from: me nobody’s asking

from: seungminnie [ @ minho hyung ] wow feeling confident, huh?

from: minho hyung [ @ me ] you didn’t ask ji did [ @ seungminnie ] are you not? think you can’t last?

Okay, confirmed then. Minho wanted to participate, and probably Jisung too. That was the typical sentence everyone had said sometimes to rile someone up. Inverse psychology. The challenge before the actual challenge.

from: chan hyung what does this challenge involve?

from: the "rapper" you’ve had enough time to check it online, hyung

from: chan hyung do i want to tho? who knows what could appear

from: lixie it’s the no nut november, hyung

changbinnie hyung but we’re in october?

Hyunjin couldn't suppress his laughter when he read Changbin's words, his head thrown back towards the backrest, leaning over the cushions. And then he covered his mouth, eyes wide open. He had to keep it quiet.

from: the "rapper" you're stupid

from: changbinnie hyung and you're a pain in the ass don't you have something more productive to be doing?

from: the "rapper" like what? study for finals? those are in 3 months i rather focus on nnn

from: seungminnie omg you're completely serious

The sound of ringing startled Hyunjin out of the conversation, and he stared at the door, completely flabbergasted. It was past noon on a Saturday morning after a party. People should be resting. He checked the conversation while he wandered to the door, eyes rolling back with every answer from Jisung.

from: the “rapper” ofc i am why wouldn't i

from: me because it's not fun?

from: the “rapper” yes it is?

He sighed, stuffing his phone in the pocket of his shorts. It was clear that they were not going to stop until they got everyone to agree to participate. He had just seen Minho typing. He felt the device vibrate against his thigh. Just to get them to stop, they would comply. He glanced through the peephole, and discovered his fraternity's maknae waiting in the hallway with a large plastic bag in his hands, his eyes focused on his phone.

He opened the door.

“What are you doing here?”

Jeongin peeled his gaze from the screen, smiling like he couldn’t believe what was going on. Well, Hyunjin couldn’t either. But he watched as Jeongin passed him through the corridor, ignoring him while reading the chat, doing a bee line until he reached the couch, and he sprawled there.

“Who even gave him the idea?” he whispered, leaving the white bag in the floor.

“Well, some random dude named Woo, I think,” he answered, avoiding his eyes.

“You know you blush when you lie, don’t you?” Jeongin asked, unimpressed. “It was you.”

He didn’t formulate it as a question, so Hyunjin didn’t deny it. Just nodded.

“Why are you here?” he repeated, fighting back.

“Your girl invited me over, remember?” Jeongin rolled his eyes, like it was not the first time that happened. “I brought lunch.”

“Right.”

Hyunjin’s gaze returned to Jeongin’s phone, the texts still coming in, and fetched his own to check them.

from: minho hyung it could if we did it

from: the “rapper” see? minho hyung approves

from: minho hyung ji as much as i appreciate you you're the first losing if we do it and you don't even have a gf

Jeongin laughed out loud, and Hyunjin frowned at him. It was always funny, Minho teasing Jisung, but you were sleeping right at the other side of the wall. And they had already made so much noise. He quickly typed “told you” to Jisung, and shushed his maknae.

But it was useless, because he saw you peeking through the door, sleepy eyes narrowing at Jeongin, sliding your socks over the floor on his way, your arms finding home around his waist, back hugging him. He smiled, humming, and you nosed into his naked shoulders, falling asleep against him. He gave Jeongin a dirty look for waking you up, but he was looking at the chat again.

from: chan hyung “No Nut November, often abbreviated to NNN, is an annual internet challenge of sexual abstinence and not masturbating during the month of November.”?

from: changbinnie hyung are you crazy?? i'm not doing that

from: the “rapper” boo

from: seungminnie why? can't last a month without touching your gf AND yourself?

from: changbinnie hyung why would i want to suffer like that?

from: minho hyung for a prize

from: innie you've thought this through, huh?

from: me a prize??

“What are you guys texting so seriously about?” you murmured against his skin, suppressing a yawn, and dragging yourself to the couch, placing your legs over Jeongin's thighs.

“Hyunjin gave Ji the idea to challenge all of us into No Nut November and we’re talking about it,” the maknae explained, not even looking at you, focused on the screen of his phone. You raised an eyebrow, curious, and glanced over his shoulder, sighing as Hyunjin sat down next to you.

from: lixie you're seriously considering participating just for the prize??

“Are you?” you asked, turning to your boyfriend.

He shrugged.

from: innie wouldn't you??

“You too?” you asked again, in disbelief.

from: lixie no??

from: chan hyung but are we considering this?? like, at all??

from: seungminnie seems like it

from: changbinnnie hyung aren't we going to fight for our freedom??

Hyunjin heard you giggle, and he smiled.

from: the “rapper” ooh c'mon binnie hyung 🥺

from: me what's the prize?

“Hyune, baby, are you sure?”

He turned to you, phone still in his hands, and his features switched to a more serious demeanour when he saw the doubt in your eyes.

“I’m just playing around with them,” he said, resting his hand on your thigh. “We will probably do it, but if you don’t want to, I’ll just be the first loser.”

“Maybe you change your mind after reading what they’re proposing as the prize, guys,” Jeongin chimed in.

from: minho hyung it has to be something big we can spend some money on it and the one that wins doesn't have to pay

from: seungminnie like a weekend in a hotel or smth?

“Do you like it?” he questioned, head tilted to his side and worry tinting his eyes.

You shrugged. “Could be fun, I guess.”

from: the “rapper” hyunjin's finally contemplating it i can feel it

from: innie he's discussing it w his gf which you can't because you're bitchless

from: the “rapper” that's not very nice

from: chan hyung no but hyune is right the ones w gf should discuss it w them before agreeing to anything

“You don’t look like you could have fun, pretty girl,” he retorted, insisting. “I’m not agreeing to something you’re not comfortable with, jokes aside.”

“I’m still sleepy, Hyune, don’t mind me,” you whispered, curving your lips in a shy smile. “It could be fun, really.”

“And we can win a nice weekend alone,” he added, resting his head on your shoulder, his nose brushing the skin of your neck.

“Yeah, we can,” you accepted, feeling his lips on the hollow between.

“But you guys have the brain cells of a 5 year old kid, I swear to God,” you exhaled, throwing your head back.

“Yah!”

“No, she’s right,” Hyunjin said, “and Wikipedia agrees.”

from: lixie you can always offer them the prize as a reward

from: innie that's literally what hyunjin's doing

from: seungminnie are you w them?

from: innie yeah i brought take out

from: changbinnie hyung are we really, really sure we’re doing this?

from: me changbin hyung, just accept it jisung has convinced almost all of us

“And their girlfriends,” you add, hiding your smile in Hyunjin’s skin.

“True,” he agrees, “we have to give him that.”

from: chan hyung what did your gf said?

“Chan’s the sweetest,” you commented.

Jeongin glazed swiftly towards you two, and then typed.

from: innie “you're going to lose anyway”

He smiled when he heard your giggle, and Hyunjin did too, writing his defense.

from: me shut up, she did not she said it's unbelievable and something about how we act like toddlers and then she agreed the hotel has to be a good one

from: chan hyung hotel choosing is on me dw

from: minho hyung i want it to be a camping weekend

“God, he’s obsessed,” Jeongin complained.

from: seungminnie you're not going to win

from: minho hyung watch me

from: chan hyung my girl said it's up to me

“She’s the best, too,” you whispered.

from: lixie ohh you're fucked

from: chan hyung not like that, genius i have the last word because she trusts me if seungmin's and changbin's agree, we do this

from: seungminnie no problem

“Of course she said yes,” Jeongin had a smiled plastered all over his face. “Seungmin’s going to suffer. She will not make it easy for him.”

from: the “rapper” are you sure she said that?

from: seungminnie think you know her better?

from: the “rapper” she's a menace

from: seungminnie yes she is still, she said we're in

from: lixie okay my bad seungmin's fucked

from: seungminnie why it's true she likes to compete just leave us alone [ @ changbin ] what about you

from: changbinnie hyung i guess we're in too

from: the “rapper” OKAY OKAY WE'RE IN

from: me that sounds pathetically similar to you trying to convince yourself

“Leave hiim,” you murmured, “he’s panicking now, poor thing.”

from: the “rapper” shut up

from: seungminnie hey at least it's the only way jisung can prove that not having a gf is a good thing

from: minho hyung he still has to last a whole month w 31 days without touching himself

from: lixie good luck, mate

from: innie yeah, good luck you're going to need it

from: the “rapper” omg this is bullying chan hyung [ @ chan hyung ] do you see this?

from: chan hyung suddenly i'm blind i can't see

from: minho hyung good luck to our simp soldiers too a month without touching their gf is going to be hell

from: changbinnie hyung do not remind me

from: seungminnie we still have 15 days to enjoy before it starts

“That’s true,” Hyunjin uttered, his lips glued to your skin, “we will seize every second, mm-hm?”

from: chan hyung good luck to everyone!!

“If you’re going to fuck in this couch I’m fucking leaving,” Jeongin whined, covering his eyes.

“We’ll let you eat in peace, baby,” you reassured him, laughing.

“But then you’re leaving,” mouthed Hyunjin, squinting his eyes to emphasise the threat.

𐙚˙⋆.˚ 𝑡𝖺𝗀𝗅𝗂𝗌𝗍.

@skzms , @starlostastronaut , @rylea08 , @atinyniki , @jazziwritesthings , @manuosorioh , @hanjsquokka , @linosssss , @babybearcubbs , @kayleefriedchicken , gnabnahc097 , @caitlyn98s , @reignessance , @starlostseungmin , @bbokari711 , @nebugalaxy , @nxtt2-u , @strawberrysworld26 , @catiuskaa , @lyramundana , @jisunglyricist , @jisuperboard , @choixlia , seungminniez , juuh-07 , ayyonoona , @seolarzone , @my-neurodivergent-world ( + )ㅤㅤ @dearalice , @hyunjinhoexxx , @jisungsbff01 , @highlydestiny ( + )⠀⠀ @ruth-odyssey , @paborachaslvt , @straykidslvr , @tirena1 , fantasicalmagical , @unhxlyim

ㅤㅤ© stayconnecteed 2024 ★ do not copy, translate, repost or share this work as yours on other platforms ! consider leaving a comment or reblogging.

[youremyheaven]

Random Mini Astrology Observations: Vedic Edition

Warning: This is just a string of random thoughts lol, don't compare it to my best work on here. It's a bunch of stuff I've had in my drafts and I'm trying to clear it all out

Before I get into this, I just want to say, that whether my observations are positive or negative, it won't apply to every individual who has these placements. 8 billion people exist on this planet, and not everyone will exhibit the same good or bad qualities. I hate having to put this PSA because some people don't get it but yeah "not all Lunars/Venusians/Nodals/Solars/Jup/Sat are going to be the same".

Jupiter influenced men are known for being introverted cutie pies who kinda have that mature-dilf-y vibe.

Obviously, another category of Jupiter men are often loud, extroverted and very outgoing but I've noticed these placements heavilyyyy in celebrities "known" for being private and introverted. They are also often known for being generous and kind hearted.

Prabhas, Vishaka Stellium (Moon, Mercury and Venus)

He is known as "darling star" and brings food that he has prepared at home for everyone on set (he is an actor). He is known for being very shy and introverted but also super sweet, generous and kind.

Sidharth Malhotra, Vishaka Moon

Sid is known for being extremely lowkey which is RARE for a Bollywood actor. He's also quite gentlemanly and charitable

Ratan Tata, Vishaka Moon

He is an Indian billionaire entrepreneur who lives in a small 2bhk apartment and has donated most of his personal wealth to charity. He is known for having led his company in a very humane way (there are lots of controversies and im aware of them but compared to the work culture and quality of life that most other indian companies offer its employees, TATA is in a different league).

Keanu Reeves, Punarvasu Moon (and stellium)

i dont have to explain but Keanu is the king of kindness and generosity

Mads Mikkelsen, Vishaka Moon

unlike his characters, Mads is actually a sweet guy and very private

Adam Driver- Vishaka Sun

he's so private that nobody even knows he's married with a kid

Tom Hanks, Punarvasu Sun

known for being a gentleman and quite modest. the OG nice guy and obviously very private

Ethan Hawke, Vishaka Sun

another lowkey, private guy who is known for being nice

2. Rashmika Mandanna and Surbhi Jyoti, Swati Moon

I find their eye area to be kinda similar?? I know they don't look alike but there are some overarching similarities between them and I think its bc they have the same moon nak.

3. I came across a comment that Akshay Kumar made about Asin and her CEO husband Rahul Sharma.

“He is madly in love with his wife, his child. It’s like he treats her like a goddess.

and guess what?? Rahul is a Purvashadha Sun 🥺😌😌

4. Ashwini natives often have post-apocalyptic dreams

Since its the first nak and is ruled by Ketu and is in complete darkness, symbolically representing the stage before creation (which happens in Bharani), the subconscious mind is susceptible to having really strange, fcked up, war-like dreams/visions. Also bc Aries rashi is ruled by Mars, God of War.

5. every Venusian man I know kinda has a voice kink

6. Many Punarvasus crave for a simple, rustic, relaxed type of life. In fact many famous Punarvasus live on a farm

Kaley Cuoco- Punarvasu Moon

Bretman Rock - Punarvasu Sun

MS Dhoni- Punarvasu Sun

Dennis Quaid, Punarvasu Moon on his ranch

7. Jupiter and Venus are 'Brahmins' or priestly, the Sun and Mars are 'Kshatriyas' or warriors, the Moon is 'Vaishya', or a trader, Mercury is a 'Vaisya', Saturn 'Shudra', or a lower caste and Rahu and Ketu are outcastes.

This is not an observation but just an astrological fact that I thought I'd mention

8. Magha girls are often the spoilt daughters or come from very bougie families where they're the princesses. They might emotionally suffer but materially and otherwise, they're very comfortable

Shruti Hassan- Magha Moon

she has spoken about how rough her childhood was bc of her parents' tumultuous marriage and subsequent divorce but that doesn't change the fact that she's the daughter of Kamal Hassan, one of the biggest stars in the history of Indian cinema

Kiara Advani- Magha Moon

Kiara is from a very wealthy and illustrious family, and she grew up as a much loved, spoilt ish daughter<3

Wonyoung- Magha Sun

Wonyoung is from a filthy rich family and she has said that she grew up very pampered. And that she didn't have an allowance bc whatever she asked for she got. However she became a trainee at 12yrs of age and that journey could not have been easy. Despite being born rich, she's had to go through a lot in life to be where she is today

Aditi Rao Hydari- Magha Moon

she's of actual royal lineage so she's a real life princess but her parents divorced when she was a kid and she grew up with a single mom in delhi and not in a palace

9. DMX- Mula Sun (dog yoni) was obsessed with dogs

The late rapper DMX's relationship with dogs, which seems almost mythical. He was born in 1970 - the year of the Metal Dog, and in his teens he ran away from his abusive household and befriended stray dogs while vulnerable on the streets. He began to gather dogs for protection, intimidation and family, and was sent to prison for stealing a dog (a neglected dog chained up in a scrapyard). In prison, he wrote a lot of his early songs, in which he came up with his "dog" mythology, in which he imagines himself as a monstrous dog-themed gangster who barks and howls. He had a huge tattoo of his favourite dog Boomer on his back. In 2008, his 12 dogs were taken from him by cops after there were reports of animal cruelty - DMX had paid a negligent caretaker to look after the dogs while he was on tour. (The dogs lived out the rest of their lives as therapy animals in a women's prison)

I think its interesting how our yoni animal influences our life

10. As Vighati graha, male planets are: Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Rahu; female planets are: Moon, Venus, Ketu whilst two eunuch planets are Mercury and Saturn. All the standard rules for determination of the sex of the child are applicable, female signs are: Taurus, Gemini, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn and Aquarius; male signs are: Aries, Cancer, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius and Pisces. Exalted planets indicate male issue and debilitated planets indicate female.

11. Mercurial men and Jupiter men are soooo flamboyant, sassy and gender non-conforming

RuPaul- Vishaka Sun & Moon

Elton John- Jyeshta Rising

Jeff Goldblum- Jyeshta Moon

Prince- Vishaka Rising

Jimi Hendrix- Mars in Vishaka atmakaraka

[fairytale-poll]

PALESTINIAN GOFUNDMES FROM MY ASK BOX!

As of August 30, 2024

I've gotten many gfms in my ask box over the past few days. Usually I post each one individually but because I've gotten so many, I decided to compile them all into one post. I tried to find verification so I could divide this post between verified and unverified. I don't have the power to verify gfms, but the unverified ones I list here seemed legitimate enough that I felt comfortable posting them.

If you find any verification for an unverified post, message me with a link & I will add it on here. And, in general, if you find any information or see any errors in this post, just shoot me an ask or DM me with the info and I'll edit this to include it. (Though please, if you are going to message me saying a gfm is illegitimate you better have some proof to back it up because if you message me to say it's a scam based solely off vibes I will at best ignore you and at worst block you.)

VERIFIED FUNDRAISERS

@ahmedomer9 [Link] [€1,681 out of €50,000] [VERIFICATION]

@lina-gaza [Link] [€37,003 out of €45,000] [VERIFICATION]

@ahmad-syam-blog [Link] [CAD$2,622 out of CAD$40,000] [VERIFICATION]

@ayoosh-gaza [Link] [$3,580 out of $20,000] [VERIFICATION]

@ashraf-baker [Link] [€20,554 out of €25,000] [VERIFICATION]

@rehamjawad33 [Link] [€21,752 out of €70,000] [VERIFICATION]

@nedaapalestine [Link] [£8,372 out of £25,000] [VERIFICATION]

@yazan-familyy [Link] [€12,381 out of €50,000] [VERIFICATION]

@mohammedaldeeb [Link] [€39,531 out of €55,000] [VERIFICATION]

@a-ss-123 [Link] [£487 out of £55,000] [VERIFICATION]

UNVERIFIED FUNDRAISERS*

*Unverified, and I do not have the power to verify, but in my personal opinion these all do look legitimate

@hanaa-2006 [Link] [€5 out of €30,000]

@wajihmadi [Link] [€7 out of €50,000]

@kareeem-sd [Link] [€1,705 out of €50,000]

@nadoosha-sd [Link] [$70 out of $25,000]

@emanabosedo [Link] [$280 out of $50,000]

@farah-2005 [Link] [€5 out of €8,000]

@m8hammed [Link] [€9,817 out of €25,000]

DONATE TO ANY AND ALL IF YOU CAN, REBLOG IF YOU CAN'T!

[mysticheathenn]

Is Your Next Partner a Karmic, Twin Flame, or Soulmate?

Hi, Hexlings!

This pick-a-card reading is for my Patreon All Tiers. This pick-a-card reading is all if your next partner is a karmic, twin flame, or soulmate.

This is a general reading, remember to take what resonates and leave what does not. This reading does not supplement your need to seek professional help.

Take your time when choosing your pile. Ask yourself the question and choose the picture that you can’t stop looking at. Listen to your intuition.

Extended Patreon Includes:

What can you do to avoid or bring this person in?

What will you learn from this relationship?

Extra Messages

MasterList

Patreon Link

Ko-Fi Donations

Pile l: 

What label is your next relationship? Tarot: Knight of Swords, Queen of Swords, 7 of Cups, Queen of Wands, 8 of Pentacles (all Reversed), The Chariot (Upright)

KARMIC. Pile l your next relationship is showing up as a karmic relationship. Now before you start denouncing the devil back to his corner office, just know that karmic isn't always a bad thing just like everything in life has a polar opposite of good and bad karmic is the same...except when it comes to this person. I hate this energy for you. I pulled a few more cards from an oracle deck and this person will disguise themself as your soulmate I'm hearing Taylor Swift "I'm a nightmare dressed as a daydream." At first, you are going to believe that this person is the one and will be over the moon but slowly over time this person will start to do the "Breadcrumb method" on you. For those who don't know what the breadcrumb method is "when you give an individual just enough morsels of attention to keep them or hooked into the relationship (or situationship), without any intention of really committing." for those who want more in-depth here's a video from TikTok https://tinyurl.com/4688bus3 . This person just wants your attention as well as the idea of being with you but does not want to be with you for a long-term commitment that goes anywhere. The Song Keep Me Hanging On by Kim Wilde is this situation "Set me free why don't you baby..you don't want me. You just keep me hanging on." I see a few of your friends will point this out to you or some of you won't mention it to your friends because you know what they will say but your guides want you to reach out to your friends and let them help you see the light to get out of this situation. Patreon Post Link

Pile ll:

SOULMATE. I love the energy of your cards pile ll. It's very peaceful, calm, and healing about this energy. You're next relationship I don't know why but for a lot of you this is something that was a long time coming. Maybe you have been used to karmic after karmic, aka lesson after lesson and now life has seen your growth because the sun is coming out to shine a blessing over your next relationship. This next person coming in for your love life will be about healing what other people have broken in you. For some of you, your previous relationships may have broken your trust in specific genders or even the types of people you tend to go after. You can relax your head with this person coming in because that is all they want you to do is relax, trust in them, and heal what I am hearing your feminine energy. If you are the masculine reverse the role of your next partner all you want is for someone to relax and trust you without you having to apply to boot camp to even get a name out of them. Your heart chakra will be singing with nothing but pure love with this person. You may have trouble opening up at first but when you do you will look in the mirror not sure of who the person is in the mirror you're looking because this person is meant to transform your life, mentally, emotionally, and for a few of you financially.  Patreon Post Link

Pile lll:

What label is your next relationship? Tarot:   The Tower, The Hermit, 9 of Cups, 8 of Swords (reversed), The Chariot, 10 of Cups. 

TWIN FLAME. Britney Spears - Chaotic popped in my head as I looked at your pile's cards. This energy is beautiful but also a bit intense in a way like most twin flame connections are. I just kind of hate how TikTok has made Twin Flames out to be. It's not this lovey dovey relationship, even though it can be but twin flames you are basically walking mirrors to each other. I am hearing this quote from Twilight movie: Eclipse (3rd movie) from Bella's mother when she meets Edward and she says

"Renee: The way he watches you. It’s like he’s willing to leap in front of you to take a bullet or something. Bella: Is that a bad thing? Renee: It’s an intense thing. You’re different with him. He moves you move, like magnets. Bella: I don’t know, we’re just… Renee: In love. I get it." Link to clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6bWmjbXpiw 

Twin Flames are chaotic. They show you parts of yourself that you didn't even know existed as well as the parts of yourself that you may hate about yourself because technically you are one split from the same soul. But don't let this scare you because this connection is actually beautiful overall you know this person is your 10 of cups, your fulfillment, your person, your "everything" It's going to feel as if there is no one else in the world who is meant for you and other days you are wanting space you will second guess things but not enough to where you think about breaking up for good maybe a small break but leaving each other alone isn't an option because this person is it. They are your Yang to your Meridith Grey from Grey's Anatomy. Patreon Post Link

Thank you for liking and reblogging my readings. I always appreciate you guys on here and on Patreon.

Stay safe and be blessed

[an-ruraiocht]

something about having a viral post about not every space being centred around the horrors causing a huge uptick in the number of donation request messages I've been getting that's. idk. proving the point. i donate as much as i can, when i can, to organisations and individuals that i trust that i learn about from reliable sources. i do not do any of that via tumblr

tumblr is not a space through which i discover donation channels or make decisions about them. this is a choice i have made for various reasons, not least because if i tried to do it here i would be constantly having to decide *which* messages to ignore and which to act upon, and i do not have the spoons or the mental stability to be making that call multiple times per day. it is more manageable and more sustainable to periodically look at my bank account, gauge what I can spare, and *then* go and make a lump sum donation, often to a campaign or charity i have been supporting for a while

as such i have a blanket policy to delete all such messages. not because i don't care, and not because i have a no-donation policy in general. i absolutely don't. i have given hundreds of pounds over the last few months. but i categorically do not do this via tumblr posts and sources. that is the boundary i have set in search of a balance between helping and avoiding complete emotional burnout (and, you know, bankruptcy)

i am not making this post because i think it will make any difference to how many of these messages i receive. i know that the askers (legit and otherwise) just go to the OP of popular posts or anyone they can find and message without reading the blog, because of course they do, who has time for that. i just find sometimes it is helpful to reassert what my boundary actually is, possibly for the benefit of others struggling to know where to draw theirs

you do not have to do everything on every platform. tumblr does not have to be your One Stop Shop for every aspect of your life – activism, charity, fandom posts, venting, cute animals, whatever. you can do some things here and not do others

i am not sure if there is a sustainable way to engage with tumblr donation posts due to the sheer speed and quantity of them that makes meaningful decision-making impossible (even if you take them all on trust and don't do any further vetting, which obviously would take extra time and mental energy). maybe if you were rich and didn't have to choose between them, which i am emphatically not. but there are sustainable ways to donate and support people – they just might not be found here. they aren't for me.