#and then there are the more normal examples of like. people who are just allergic to a lot of common vegan substitutes

[fuckingrecipes]

Do you have any healthy snack suggestions for someone who isn't a huge fan of nuts and dried fruit?

FIRST: A 'Snack' is just a small portion of food. It is a signifier of quantity. 'Snack' does not exclude any type or form of food - it just means a lil' bit of food.

SECOND: "Healthy" is entirely relative to every individual.

'Healthy' is just 'Supportive of a complete nutritional profile, taking into account a person's existing diet, dietary needs, and habits of energy expenditure'

For example:

A small, greasy hamburger is an EXCELLENT snack for a highschool athlete who needs to consume an large amount of calories every day to maintain their body. It has lots of fat and protein for muscle recovery and long-term energy, carbs for immediate energy, and some lettuce/tomato/onion for some extra fiber/vitamins/minerals.

On the flip side, if someone already eats a fair amount of of meat and carbs already but has a lower-energy lifestyle, a healthy snack for them might entail leafy greens, beans/legumes and vegetables, because they need more fiber and nutrients in their diet that plants have in abundance.

--

If you are allergic to or hate eating something, then it's not healthy to force yourself to eat it anyway. Find a different food, or a different way to prepare it that doesn't cause physical or psychological distress!

Don't like peanuts, but peanut butter is good? Eat peanut butter instead! Hate the texture of whole tomatoes, but tomato sauce is good? Eat tomato sauce instead!

Don't be afraid to finely mince or blend your ingredients into a sauce or smoothie if you feel you need or want to eat something for the nutrients but hate chewing it.

--

I'm a big fan of probiotic stuff in general, like fermented foods (kimchi, pickles, sauerkraut, miso, mustard and yogurts), since a strong bacterial colony in the gut has a positive impact on wellbeing for most folks. More importantly, I love the taste.

Buuuuuuuut~ some people are extra sensitive to compounds that are concentrated in fermented foods. Those people should not eat a lot of fermented foods. It's not healthy for them.

--

If you're munching snacks out of boredom when you're not actually hungry, something low-fat but satisfyingly crunchy usually does the trick for me. Something I can keep devouring for the sensory delight, gives some good nutrients, and won't make me feel overly full afterward.

Carrots, bell peppers, mung bean sprouts, apples, pears, jicama, radish, pretzels, sweet onions, green papaya, broccoli, popcorn, cucumber, water chestnut, seaweed crisps, coconut chips, any of those fermented foods I mentioned... hell, coleslaw is mostly cabbage with oil and vinegar - plow through that and have a great time!

--

If you want a snack because you're hungry, but you just want to tide yourself over until the next meal, eat something that is high in fat and fiber. Fat & Fiber makes you feel full.

Cheese, Yogurt, Butter. Olive oil. Guacamole. Tinned fish. Cream. Fry up an egg. Olives, Hard-boiled eggs - These are all relatively high in fat.

Beans, Legumes, Oats, Leafy Greens, and most Berries are pretty high in fiber, and can pair up with any of the fatty things.

Hell, a slice of cheese pizza is also fine! Buttered toast is fine! A small portion of roast beef from last night's dinner!

Eat a little bit, wait 20 minutes, and see if you're still hungry after that. A normal stomach takes 20-30 minutes to register feeling satiated. (Some people's stomachs don't really feel the difference of hunger vs satiation. Those people need to be more mindful of the quantities of food they eat - both eating too much, AND eating too little!)

--

If you want a snack because salty snacks in particular sound fucking amazing, but other fatty and high-protein foods sound kinda gross, Try chugging a glass of water.

If water doesn't resolve the feeling after giving it a few minutes, try something with salt.

Dehydration and not having enough salt in your body both cause salt cravings. Acute thirst is often mistaken as hunger.

Honestly, you can have a handful of chips. Eating a whole family-sized bag of potato chips in one sitting is probably too much salt & fat for most people, but eating a handful here and there is fine. It's just as morally neutral as eating a carrot.

Eat some rice with soy sauce. Eat some pickled okra, or pickled onions. Eat some miso soup. Drink some soup broth. Have some salt-cured meats.

--

So: A Healthy Snack!

Ask yourself: Am I hungry, bored, or thirsty?

Ask yourself: What have I been eating lately, and what has my diet lacked, or had in excess? (Fats, Protein, Carbohydrates, Vitamins/Minerals, Water, Salt)

Ask yourself: Am I trying to provide my body with a complete nutritional profile, including fats and carbs - or am I focusing on an imagined 'purity' of food and assigning moral value to eating what diet culture calls healthy so I can be 'good.' (Aka: Do you think instances of eating candy or fatty food is 'being bad'? Stop that.)

Ask yourself: Am I able to rely on my body's signals for hunger and thirst, or do I need to manually track this?

Sometimes a snack is a small portion of leftovers from yesterday.

Sometimes a snack is carefully sliced, cooked, and arranged on a cute plate.

Sometimes a snack is gnawing through half a head of cabbage doused in vinegar.

Sometimes a snack is a handful of shredded cheese eaten from your own palm so you become both the gentle horse and the stablehand feeding it, and that's all okay

[beifong-brainrot]

One thing I'm realising about a good chunk of the avatar fandom is that they need to be hand held through every development in the entire franchise. Like I've had my suspicions for a while but the reactions to the new Mai comic really cement it for me.

There's this odd aversion to understanding that characters will grow and change. And even if the building blocks for a character's growth are set up earlier, so many people seme unable to extrapolate that potential + time = change.

I think part of the reason to this is that the most prominent character growth arc in the franchise is Zuko's. And it's a very well crafted storyline, but it is also very much spoonfed to us. Not just by us getting to go into Zuko's pov but even having Iroh helpfully narrate and explain what the fuck is going on in Zuko's world at the moment.

And I think this is why a lot of the fandom expects changes to the characters to be these explicitly shown, overtly prominent, dramatic affairs, perferably narrated by a conveniently placed old man. But Zuko's arc was quintessential to a deeper plot, and it had the drama and structure one would expect of a solid storyline. But this won't ring true for all characaters.

Taking Mai's character growth from the apathetic teenage girl who is resentful to the more established young woman who possesses more agency and seemingly has developed more radical views for example.

I've made a long ass post on this, so I won't bore you with the details, but the crux of Mai's character is that she was restricted and handled for most if not all of her life for multiple different reasons.

But at the end of the show, most of those reasons are removed. And this would, as you can imagine, trigger a change in the charcter.

But Mai's change wouldn't be like Zuko's, wouldn't involve wandering a foreign land, running a teashop and having allergic reactions to good decisions. Mai's arc would be her going about a normal life in that flowershop, learning to see the world from a different perspective and looking back at events and systems from her childhood and going "huh. That was fucked up."

And with the comic book format being much more streamlined, this just wouldn't cut it as a compelling plot, because it would basically be a less dramatic version of Zuko's deprogramming. But it doesn't have to. Because we have all the puzzle pieces. Hell, even the comic preview spells it out for us with this obvious metaphor.

I'm just surprised how many people seem to have such an averison to not having every plot point spelled out witg big bold letters. How many people won't go through the simple process of engaging with a piece of media rather than just consuming it.

And I don't mean to grandstand or act like I'm better than the fandom for doing something as simple as not reacting negatively to a slight shift in the fictional status quo.

[watarfallar]

Desert Duo treats because it's a week until Christmas

Grian: I’m going to get so much done today. Scar: I’ll hold you to that. *8 hours later* Scar: So how much did you get done? Grian: One thing. Scar: Well, that’s one more than usual.

Scar: So my therapist was talking to me and she said that I really just need to break down my walls and let people in. Scar: So I’ve decided to break the fourth wall. Scar: *looks at camera* Hi there. I use humor as a coping mechanism.

Scar: Hey, are you alright with swearing? Asking for a friend. Grian: Yeah? Scar: Bitch.

Grian: *Gives a bouquet to Scar* Scar: You know I'm allergic. Grian: That's the point.

Grian: Is this mistletoe? Scar: Uh, no, no, that is basil. Grian: Too bad cause if it was mistletoe I was gonna kiss you. Scar: Yeah, no, it’s still basil.

Grian: What have I done wrong?! Scar: Everything. For your entire life.

Scar: If it’s any consolation, they got me here on a very misleading text message. Grian: Technically, you are about to be screwed in the biology room.

Scar: What is wrong with you? Grian: Many, many things… Grian: And most of them are your fucking fault.

Scar: Live fast, die young, leave behind a pretty corpse! That’s what I always say! Grian: You should say something else.

Grian: My back hurts. Scar, walking into the room: Take the spine out.

Scar: Everything will be ok. You can not stop it. Scar: Everything will be fine. You have no choice. Grian: What the fuck kind of pep talk is that? Scar: Ominous positivity.

Grian: Scar, what did you just do!? Scar: I took your advice. I stopped running from the problem and I tackled it head on. Grian: I meant try emotional honesty, not murder!!

Scar: I’ve become a bread crumb dealer to four crows at the lake. They pay me with a bit of everything. Like shiny things, fabric, or pens. But recently they paid me with a 20 dollar bill they found somewhere. So I decided to buy them some more expensive bread. They loved it. So they understand what to do. Give me money. I’ve probably racked up about 200 dollars at this point. Is it morally wrong though, I mean. They’re the ones who steal the money from others. Or perhaps they just have a big pile laying somewhere. Should I keep on doing this? Grian: You sound like the start of a Batman villain.

Scar: Detective! The man belonged to some kind of cult that worshipped a divine forest creature with antlers and that’s how he met his end. Grian: Dear God! Scar: Yeah! Exactly!

Grian: You've got to act tough, Scar! Show 'em you can't be pushed around! Show 'em they can't mess with you! Scar: Right. Yes. Tough. Got it. Scar, standing up on their stool and slamming their hands down on the bar: I'LL TAKE A CHOCOLATE MILK.

Grian: Fight me! Scar: gets on one knee and pulls out a ring Scar: Fight me for the rest of our lives.

Grian: Don’t preach to me about romance, Scar. I had a three-way in a hot-air balloon.

Scar: What’s sexting? Grian: I'm not having this conversation with you.

Grian: If I ever had a child, I imagine they would be a lot like you. Scar: Aww, thanks— Grian: Which is probably why I’ve never reproduced.

Scar: What’s your greatest weakness? Grian: Interpreting the semantics of a question, but ignoring the pragmatics. Scar: Could you give an example? Grian: Yes, I could.

Scar: Okay, but what if we went to dinner not as friends this time? Grian: AS ENEMIES?! Scar:

Scar: I desire moisture. Grian: Please just say "I want water" like a normal person.

Scar: Babe, you're so funny! Grian: We have 1492 days until your tragic premature death. You will break my trust three times before that happens, but I forgive you. Scar: Awwww, that's sweet of you!

Grian: I didn’t want to do it, no one else wanted to do it, so I made Scar do it!

Scar: You got a date yet Grian? Grian: No… Scar: Well you do now! Get your ass up and hold my hand!

Grian: Dammit, you ruin everything! Scar: You're welcome.

Scar: They called me the B-word. Grian: Motherfucker doesn’t start with ‘b’.

Scar, talking about Grian: WHAT THE FUCK I WAS ARGUING WITH HIM AND I SAID “OOH YOU WANNA KISS ME SO BAD” AND GUESS WHAT? HE DID. HE KISSED ME. WHAT THE FUCK WHAT DO I DO.

[nattikay]

this was originally a response to another post but it seems OP blocked me for it so idk if people can still see/interact with said response but heck it i spent a fair while collecting the panels/typing it up so i'm just transferring it over to a new post for anyone else who might be interested in readin'

"Neteyam has to act like a full grown adult [and we should feel bad for him because of this]"

No. Neteyam acts mature because that's his personality, not because it's been forced on him. He chooses to. The idea that he is forced against his will to "act grown-up" and is miserable about it is fanon, not canon.

James Cameron on Neteyam (from the WoW bonus features): "Jamie Flatters plays Neteyam, he's the older brother. He's kind of the guy who most wants to be Jake. He wants to be that warrior."

Jamie Flatters in that same clip:"He just pretty much wants to walk in the footsteps of his father. He's constantly seeking approval [from Jake]"

Note that neither of these, nor anything from the movie or comics, mention anything about external "expectations" or "pressure". Any "pressure" Neteyam experiences to live up to Jake's legacy comes from himself, not from external expectations that have been forced on him. Neteyam WANTS to be a warrior. He WANTS to be like his father and do brave mature grown-up things.

And for the most part, he's pretty good at it too. He's the "golden child" who "excels in all things", the youngest Omatikaya warrior to ever make a clean kill on a sturmbeest. He's strong, smart, brave, noble, and highly skilled for his age.

He knows this, and he wants to do more. Neteyam seeks out more responsibility, especially where fighting is concerned, and it's actually Jake who is hesitant to give it to him, because naturally he fears for his son's life (a very fair and well-founded fear, all things considered :P).

In fact, on the rare occasion that Neteyam does disobey orders, it's in this context of wanting to be part of these adult matters.

"he's too busy training and patrolling instead of acting his age" He is acting his age. His age is "cusp of adulthood". He's not quite there just yet, no, but he's getting close and is eager to get there. He trains and patrols with his parents because HE WANTS TO. He begs to participate in warrior's work.

And if by "act his age" you meant "do teenager things like tease his brother, snicker about immature things, hang out and goof off," etc., guess what he does that too

[originally had a list of relevant GIFs here but tumblr decided it was allergic to them apparently; anyways you can find them all here]

As for looking after his siblings, as a certified Oldest Sibling™ myself, I can assure you that parents expecting you to help look out for and set a good example for your younger siblings is very normal and nowhere near the mountain the fandom seems to make of this molehill.

There are valid reasons to feel sorry for Neteyam—he, like the rest of his family, had to leave his home and start over in a new unfamiliar place among a new clan of strangers with unfamiliar customs. He—not unlike Lo'ak!—desperately wants a chance to prove himself to Jake, and is frustrated when his dad doesn't want to let him participate in battle. And, of course, the big one—his life was tragically taken far too soon.

But "overworked little sadboi who just wants to Be A Kid™ but can't because his meanie parents force him to act like a Grownup™ because he's under Pressure™ to be the perfect future olo'eyktan" is not one of those reasons. That's pure fanfiction and a fundamental misunderstanding of his character. Neteyam is not "wannabe-carefree kid trapped under the crushing weight of expectations forced upon him against his will"—rather, he is "talented noble young warrior who wants to live up to his legendary father of his own volition and strives to do so".

[causticflower]

A Ship Template!  

a shipping template (a fancy + a simplified/more readable version) that I made for fun

so here! have fun too :3

originally inspired by @awfulalignmentcharts and [their ship chart]; I borrowed the general layout and some of the wording, otherwise the graphics & rest of the words is me ^^

more + explanations down under vvv

> a general note: you can fill this thing out any way you want; you can write the answers, draw them, you also don't have to fill out everything, and you can even delete/replace stuff you don't like (it's not like I'd be able to stop you lol) ((also the title, you can edit the [--] or the whole thing too))

> you don't need to tag me or reblog the post if you fill it out

> if anyone wants a different combination of the graphical parts or different font or something else let me know, I'll see what I can do <3 

= Explanations =

(I explained everything just to be sure, feel free to skip parts)

Top part – Introductions:

the big squares → you can put their faces or profiles or whatever of theirs there

the small square (“describe their vibes”) → what their dynamic is like, what vibes do they give off when next to each other etc; for example, are they a cat-person & dog-person kind of duo, or it's a scary dog privilege kind of situation, or do they look like enemies, etc

ship name → their ship name, or their ship names if they have multiple

age+difference → what are their ages + how big their age gap is

height+difference → what are their heights + how much is one taller/shorter than the other 

fandom(s) -> what fandom are they from, or fandoms if it's a crossover ship

name → their name, full or nickname or other

gender → their gender

sexuality → their sexuality; you can specify if it's a romantic, sexual, both/neither type of attraction 

alignment (of your choice) → what the character’s alignment/personality is, up to you if you want to use the classic DnD alignment chart (good/neutral/evil x lawful/neutral/chaotic) or if you want to use whatever else (like add in bastard/fish/pirate etc)

Left Column (the many sliders): 

big spoon <--> little spoon = when sleeping or cuddling; who is the one hugging <--> the one being hugged

actually functions <--> messy mental wreck = how well they are doing mentally; are they mentally well adjusted/stable <--> are they a mess/have mental issues

ball of stress <--> YOLO = what their general attitude to life is; are they stressed/worried about things constantly <--> are they carefree/careless/going with the flow

hermit <--> social bee = how social they are; not social at all <--> very social

scaredy-cat <--> fears no god = are they afraid of everything <--> do they fear nothing

bleeding heart <--> then perish. = how sympathetic they are; almost too sympathetic <--> don't care at all

incompetently competent <--> competently incompetent = basically: their attitude x their actual skill (with the middle being “normal”); look clumsy/careless but are very competent <--> look competent/confident but are actually useless

the world is ending (I fell in love) <--> blushing giggling kicking feet = what their reaction is when they realize they have a crush/fell in love; is very upset/miserable about it/hates it <--> very happy/giddy about it

allergic to PDA <--> sickeningly affectionate = how they act in general situations/around others; acting like they're strangers <--> constantly holding hands/kissing/complimenting each other

wants to get matching things <--> would rather die than change their style = they want to get something (very visible) to signify they are a couple <--> they like their style and won't change it no matter what

cuddles<3 <--> the table is broken again = the horniness meter; they have little to no sex (or it’s an ace/qpr ship) <--> they have sex as often as physically possible

has zero game <--> has insane game = how attractive they are to other people; cannot get a date no matter what <--> everyone wants to date them no matter what they do

crime doer <--> crime stopper = how likely they are to engage in 'bad' activities (either actual crime or just being a nuisance/prankster to their friends); constantly doing something nefarious <--> is actually more likely to stop crime/pranks from happening

watcher <--> meddler = are they more passive in conversations/situations <--> do they have to take part in everything

doomed by the narrative <--> blessed by the narrative = how much has the universe fucked them over (in canon or fanon); their life is/was pretty miserable <--> they are/were doing very well

Questions pt.1 

what brings them together? → what do they have in common / what might have brought (and kept) them together in the first place

what keeps/kept them apart? → what is/was preventing them from getting together (themselves, outside forces, etc)

Right Column:

Questions pt.2 

(badly) describe their meetcute → describe how they met, you can make it funny if you want

what are their fandom tropes/their ship appeal → what are their most common fan depictions (whether they are canon or not), or what about their ship dynamic is appealing to you/everyone

Questions pt.3

who fell first? → which one of them was the first to fall in love with the other

who first Realized (they're in love)? → which one of them had The Realization happen first, when they actually realized they are in love with the other person (basically the Oh. Oh. moment)

who confessed first? → who was the first to confess their love

who cleans up more messes? → who takes care of the mess they make/the trouble they get into more often

who is the first to apologize (after a fight)? → who apologizes first if they had a fight (where both of them might’ve been at fault)

who steals the bed covers? → who ((un)consciously) takes all the pillows/blankets/etc during the night/when they're sleeping together

who's the headrest? → example: A likes to rest their head/chin on B's head/shoulders/chest/etc, so B’s the headrest

who's the chef? (what they cooking?) → which one of them makes their food (and what the food is)

who takes charge of home decor? → which one of them is more likely to set up/design their home (pick the house, furniture, decor, etc)

who's the 3AM texter? → who's more likely to text the other in the middle of the night (for whatever reason)

who randomly brings home a new pet? → who's more likely to adopt random animals as pets / bring animals home to help them / etc

who's more likely to just straight up trip and die? → who is more clumsy/accident prone

“The Touchzone”

no touch <--> yes touch = in general circumstances, how do they feel about others touching them

the figures → you can draw on them or replace them with the characters, then you can color/otherwise indicate where and how they feel about touch on their body (either from their partner or in general, up to you)

you're dead → “I despise this”

do not → “I don't like this / I hate this”

not really → “I'd prefer no touch but it’s tolerable”

…eh… → “I have no strong feelings about this”

mayhaps → “I don't mind this, actually maybe even like it”

yes please → “I like this a lot”

YESss moreE → “I love/adore this”

note for the uncolored version of this: you can put your own colors/symbols/etc in the -[   ]- square next to the words

…and that's it, let me know if you have any more questions <3

[belladrawschstuff]

When your shitty 13 colonies become the world superpower

General info

Nicknames: Ame, stars, the Phoenix (ThEn IlL rAiSe YoU lIkE a PhOeNiX) He's friends with a lot of people, he mostly likes you as long as you respect him. He really is just his dad.

HCs

Because he's older than most countries he's kinda known as a lot of peoples mentor and some see him as an older brother

Speaking of mentors America was taught by a lot of old empires. People like Prussia, Russian empire and all his uncles along with a lot of other countries who taught him about their culture and language. But America did learn how to fly because of Prussia.

He has a few gifts from people, the sunglasses were originally given to him by Scotland but when America was taking care of west Germany, he got weirded out about the fact he couldn't see his eyes, so he made them have an eye tracker, the guitar was given to America by Britain as a way to say sorry for the revolution and war of 1812

He loves fluffy and soft things which is why his coat is fluffy despite the fact he can warm himself up by his fire

His personality disorder is mostly the reason he acts differently in certain situations than others. Its not that he doesn't know how to act its just he needs to have that experience to know how to act. An example is when he 1st started to date Russia because the only affection he knew how to put on other people was to Either act like a child like he was when he was younger or act like a guardian because he was an older brother and also because he's a father. France had to explain to Russia to take it slow and show America what to do.

The choker around Americas neck is from when he was younger. Because he has fire powers, he's kinda allergic to water so he gets burned by it so Britain made a little gem to keep him immune to water, so now he can talk underwater with no consequences.

America is forces to go the presidential debates but he doesn't really care anymore cause he knows both of the people are gonna be shit so he just uses that time to make fun of them.

To torture America Canada makes him watch Hamilton. Like imagine there was a musical about reliving you least favorite time in your life and also the story of how your friends died.

He hates his singing voice so he'll go outside to the forest and play his guitar on the edge of a nice cliff and blast music through his headphones.

America has extreme Arachniphobia. every time Australia loses one of his spiders America says you better find that spider before it finds me.

When his siblings were younger he used to sing to them because he didn't want Britain and France to have to wake up and deal with it.

After 9/11 America has to wear a hearing aid because new York is technically his brain, he covers his ears because of it

Idk how I forgot this one but Americas eyes changes colors depending on his mood. Blue and red is normal, only red is mad or ticked off, green is protective or wary, yellow means he has his eagle wings out and purple means he's bout to nuke you cause he's really mad like lvl 5. His eyes show not only his mood but also which persona is in control at the time ( which I figured out is called split personality disorder

He can also talk to the ancients and dead countries, so he just talks to them when he's bored, Canada can do the same since he is a ghost. If America doesn't have pupils and it's just fully white or black he's talking to them, but its more his internal thoughts that talk to him. he doesn't just start mummbling luckily.

Hes immune to most of the different abilities of other people, he doesn't get frozen in time which came in handy during the cold war, he can still see Canada even if he is a ghost, though Britain can still use magic on him, bad magic like cursing him doesn't work, France can still see his memories, but its mostly because their his parents.

(I know I'm making him over powered but like you should've expected that, I do live in America and America does have the best military by a landslide, so L)

Oh also meme of the day ( don't expect this to be normal)

[cross-my-heartt]

I planned to make one big post about Kenobi but I think I'll have to tackle that show bit by bit.

Normally I focus on how they mishandled Obi-Wan, however that show did so much damage to other characters as well. Like Lea for example. A show that was meant to develop and expand on her character fumbled a big part of what made her so great, all in an attempt to replicate a tried-and-failed formula of shaming a deadbeat protagonist out of their depression and I don't think I'll ever forgive them for that.

Because if you look at what they did to Lea for the sake of a contrived plot, it takes away so much from her story. Lea was never meant to be the damsel in distress. Neither was her struggle against the Empire meant to be some kind of response to a scary personal experience she had with the bad guys as a child.

To me, Leia was always meant to be a character raised in power and privilege, who chose to use that power to fight for the defenseless instead of protecting herself. Her position as a princess meant that she could have had a comfortable existence cooperating with the Empire or even getting more privilege in exchange for lending it to them.

Instead she chose to take up the fight. The position we find her in at the beginning of ANH isn't that of a damsel but someone who has repeatedly challenged the Empire and used all the means at her disposal to undermine them, to the point of being unable to escape the repercussions any longer.

What I'm getting at is that Leia always had power and was supposed to be safe from the Empire (because canonically even Palpatine could only do so much against the Senate, as evidenced by the fact that he only dissolved it completely when the DS was complete). But she willingly threw that safety away in order to fight for those who needed it.

Compare that choice to that of someone who has personally suffered at the hands of the Empire and witnessed how corrupt they are as a child. Suddenly it becomes much less impactful.

And do you know who else made the same difficult choice of swapping privilege for justice? Leia's mother. That was the whole point.

Luke grew up defenseless in the desert until the Force gave him the opportunity to shape his own fate, as well as that of the Galaxy, just like his father. Padme grew up a queen and politician who could have ignored the hardships of others for her own sake but chose to wield her privilege to fight for them. (The only time she allowed herself to be selfish, to have something for herself, was in her relationship with Anakin which is another great theme for a separate post.)

Again, that is much more different from someone who has a personal motive for fighting the Empire instead of taking up arms because of other people's suffering. You could argue that show canon Leia could be motivated by both but that's still not as impactful as a personal choice no matter how you look at it.

Another thing the show does to undermine Leia's position of privilege is make her the victim of bullies and put her legitimacy under question. Which is such a superfluous element to begin with in addition to further undermining what I've already talked about. It gives her story more of that 'underdog knows what it's like to be oppressed and fights back' angle that distorts the original purpose of her character.

I know it's hard nowadays to imagine a person of privilege standing up for the underprivileged out of the goodness of their heart. Yet I hate how we stubbornly keep forgetting just how central the idea of hope was to Lucas' stories. We might not see it in our world, in fact we're so allergic to the idea that we've begun to pounce on every seemingly privileged character or group of characters in an attempt to prove that they're somehow corrupt (ie what the Acolyte tried and failed to do with the jedi). But I don't understand why people are content with being so cynical as to erase the legacy of characters like Padme, Bail, Leia, Chuchi and even the jedi order.

Yes, you can have characters in power who fight for the right things. Because you can have anything you want in a story about hope which is meant to teach you something.

In summary, I prefer a Leia who didn't have a firsthand negative experience with the Empire. I much rather one who empathized with the people the Empire oppressed, slowly adopted her father's values and mission of her own accord and in doing so unwittingly followed in her mother's footsteps. At the end of the day, that's a far more meaningful character to me.

[shsl-heck]

So because I've seen it compared to Worm, I started reading The Boys by Garth Ennis. It's bad! Like really bad! It feels like what would happen if you let an edgy anti-feminist atheist youtuber from 2015 write a comic book. I finished the first volume of the omnibus in large part because it was a train wreck I couldn't look away from, and am debating starting the second since I hate myself. The most interesting parts are actually the little forewords. Through them I learned both that it was supposed to be a comedy, and also a critique of the military industrial complex/police (or at least that people read it as one). This was surprising to me since it is neither funny nor incisive. Anyway, now I want to ramble incoherently about my problems with it because this goddamn comic broke my brain.

Okay, so one of the most common ways it shows you which characters you aren't supposed to like is by having them do comically "gross" sex stuff. Notable examples include cocaine fueled orgies, mentions of shitting during sex, bestiality, masturbating in public to the sight of disabled people, and a little person using sex toys. One that shows up repeatedly in this context is characters being bisexual or gay. Now, I don't wanna get controversial, but I think any claims that your work is a critique of capitalism, police, the military, or whatever are rendered moot when your villains are a group of secret hedonistic sex-freaks. Like we can't pretend that doesn't sound a lot like regressives and their obsession with "degeneracy". Sexual assaults, misogyny, and slurs also appear pretty often, mostly as the punch line for jokes. Victims are rendered down into objects and denied any sense of interiority so we can instead focus on what really matters (gore porn, and middle school 4chan posters' sense of humor). Never once does Ennis deign to explore the actual impact and trauma of these things, or ask why he views these things as material for jokes.

That incuriosity is I think the real problem with The Boys. There is no actual coherent thought about why things are bad. Superheroes hurt people and are wrong because of their personal moral failings as selfish perverts, not because their whole job is to violently enforce the will of the state. It's like if someone agreed that all cops are bastards, but only because all cops just so happened to be "bad apples". The main characters literally work for the fucking CIA, and yes, I know the titular Boys are at best meant to be anti-heroes a la the Punisher. My issue here isn't that they're hypocrites who are frequently also horrible. It's that this premise for is absolute nonsense if you think for half a second. Superheroes do not function without the legitimacy granted to them by the state and it's monopoly on violence, so why would the CIA need these 5 randos with zero oversight working to take out the supers? Is the force Homelander and the others can bring to bear so great that even the apparatus of that state can't deal with them? If so, why does this group of assholes change that? Normally I'd be willing to give the story a lot more of a pass when it comes to questions like this, except I'm being told that this story has things to say about systemic problems involving the government and corporations! So I have to ask, where? Where is the commentary? What does it actually have to say about the state of the world circa 2006-2012? The only answer I can come up with is "not a whole lot". It's a story which dares to ask the tough questions like "what if the world was made of pudding" and then ignore answering those questions so it can instead recite Ellis' favorite slurs in alphabetical order while showing you a woman's tits.

On a lighter note, it's also just not very good. The plot (as mentioned) falls apart under any amount of scrutiny, pacing is bizarre in a bad way, the characters aren't compelling, themes remains stubbornly unexplored, and Ellis is allergic to doing anything interesting or creative with the premise he's decided to base a whole comic around. I genuinely do not know what people enjoy(ed) about this comic.

[literaltrashforeverything]

I'm gonna die on my deathbed explaining why Ghost is actually a normal person outside the military and he's extremely mischaracterized.

You will never be able to convince me that Simon "Ghost" Riley doesn't do normal person things outside of his job. Sure, his information his top-secret, but that's all the more reason for him to be a normal person outside deployments.

💀

Here's examples of Ghost being domestic:

- He goes grocery shopping every Thursday at 2:30PM because it's when the store is the least busy.

- He wears a black fabric surgical mask when he's not at home. He's more comfortable covering his face but it's not an issue if he's somewhere where he can't have a mask.

Was strangely comforted when COVID happened because it normalized wearing face masks.

- He sits in the mirror of his bathroom every two weeks so he can chop his hair when he grows too long.

- He's a phenomenal sniper but when it's time to shave his face then suddenly his hands are shaking and he's cut himself at least 4 times. (Prolly that sharp jawline 🤭)

- Loves dogs. Will ask people if he can pet their dog. (They're shitting themselves bc this giant masked man just asked to pet their dog in the most monotone voice)

- Has called Price to ask for advice on dating. He's got a crush on the girl from the coffee shop down the street from his flat and he needs some help on asking her out.

- when he's not on a deployment, he's probably at home eating pocky while watching Top Gun. Ends up falling asleep on the couch and snores like a dad.

- he's probably in his late 20s-early 30s and owns a flat somewhere in Manchester. (He was never able to fully separate himself from where he grew up)

- has a pet beta fish named Toes that the old neighbor lady takes care of while he's on deployment.

- He secretly pulls pranks around base when he's stationed somewhere. Nobody knows it's Ghost secretly leaving tiny plastic babies from Amazon around the entire base. He never gets caught and it's still a mystery where these babies keep popping up at.

- drinks milk, probably

- Will get violent if he watches an American microwave tea in front of him.

- Like Price, he WILL correct the word "soccer" into "football" like he's got some type of vendetta against the audacity.

- Sneezes like a fucking dad

- He's severely allergic to cats so the second he sees one, he will instantly abort mission. It's a whole scene watching a 6'5 skull-masked man jerk back the second a cat steps in front of him while he's on a mission.

- Hates spiders. He's not the spider killer around the base. Will not go into a room if he's seen a spider in there unless someone else killed it for him.

- He listens to Queen, you can't convince me otherwise.

- (Killer Queen is his favorite)

- He actually has an entire tattoo sleeve on his left arm, not just a forearm sleeve. If you look close enough, you can tell that it's actually just the most cliché military tattoo sleeve that's ever existed. He didn't even care what the tattoo was, he just wanted one to look cool.

- Bad Santa is unironically his favorite movie.

- Plays first-person shooter games with Gaz sometimes and always loses.

- Is the guy who brings beer to literally any event ever. Without fail. And it's always a beer that only he likes so he can have it all for himself. Everyone else started drinking them despite how disgusting they are just because they figured out that he was trying to hoard it for himself.

- Sucks at playing Monopoly. Absolutely no strategy.

💀

I can keep going lmao. I have ideas for days lmaooo

[huebris808]

trying to break out of my shell and post madcom hc shit aka Look At My One Of Many Weirdass Hank Ramblings, Boy

hank you know them. they're six-foot-something and wanted to try volleyball. they dont get sarcasm and refer to stuff as "thingys". they're the autistic power fantasy of throwing bricks at those who view you as subhuman. their bedroom's apparently just a mirror to practice cool poses with and a blanket and their favorite drink is eggs now according to the streams. and they are your new nonbinary president

im constantly fluctuating between Animation & MPN Are Two Different Timelines/Universes or They're The Same, But He’s Testing Which "Hank" Is More Favorable/Useful To Others

wasian hank truther baby. (jp+filipino-american)

this guy would probably use わたし/私 (ive seen a lot of artists use オレ/俺 for him though but i feel like its a bit?? much)

definitely had to pick up sign-language after [Vague Gesturing] All That

has autism in the way that they have No Clue they got it. like "damn i got [Specific Autistic Issues]. sucks that im so so normal and yet i must endure The Problems everyday"

speaking of autism, enjoys confined spaces sensory-wise. vents and boxes and shit like Come On Man. Do You See The Vision.

gonna be honest like half of the shit (Understatement) i got for hank is projection but what's madcom without that in some aspect!! that's the POINT man!!! [ON KNEES WAILING] that's the POINT

working in real estate and as a mercenary since The Incident made their self-worth go to SHIT; in a world that dehumanizes you, you are quick to dehumanize yourself. this is where the power of lesbian friendship comes in

subconsciously puts doc on a pedestal over time, leading to (See Bullet 1); this dissipates after they somehow reach a conversation of Bitch We Are Both Equals And Fighting For Our Fucking Lives Out Here THEY SOLVE SHIT TOGETHER MAN!!! THEY SOLVE IT

sorry. sorry. im trying to delete it

out of nowhere maybe its the Autistic Projection maybe its cause im allergic to Sadstuck Shit i dont dig negative stuff with 2bhank it just feels Wrong :-( i wish i could word this better but like. i need these little chesspiece fucks to learn to communicate

what i will refer to as the Newspaper Era (aka the time before we got doc characterization from arena mode) caused people to make some weirdass depictions of their relationship and im glad its phasing out. The Horrors

main 4 are all butch lesbians btw. not sorry about that one

also POLYCOMBAT TRUTHER this dude would HATE how vulnerable these three would make them feel at first. they're the first to actually treat him like A Guy and that fuck him up a bit initially

i think eventually they all reach a point where they're able to do stupid shit together like fireworks or breaking chairs over each other heads. you've seen how doc is don't exclude him from doing dumbass shit

"erm… actually they wouldnt be friends or have fun or date theyre ruthless criminals and madcom is cruel :/" L + ratio + the rule of The Funniest Thing Is The Answer in madcom prevails + That's The Devil Talking, Boy

shit at technology. if they had a blog their lack of skills would loop back around to make them the most powerful shitposter on earth

there's definitely more that im missing here and takes that Don't Suck (for example people need to put out more hankford content. Cmon Man) but my brain has this shit Queued Up in a way so. Yeah

[grayintogreen]

I really have to say that in the wake of the quip post going around and me rewatching LOST, there is really nothing funnier than a scene that isn’t supposed to be funny, isn’t even set up to be funny, but through the absolute absurdity of the situation is hilarious. To wit, there is humor in playing an absurd scene completely straight without trying to draw attention to how absurd it is.

To use LOST as an example, there’s a scene where two characters meet on an abandoned ship in the jungle (which is funny on its own) that goes like this:

In one corner we have John Locke, currently playing with a knife while the guy he manipulated into coming into the jungle with him on a convoluted quest to get HIM to kill their mutual abuser because he couldn’t do it himself is banging on the door to the brig because Locke is allergic to explaining things as all the island mystics tend to be.

In the other corner, entering the scene, we have Danielle Rousseau, local island crazy lady that everyone has accepted as just a staple of the experience and is deemed an Ally despite the fact that she doesn’t join their group, lives on her own, and has death traps strewn throughout the jungle that are just commonly referenced as a thing that happens.

The two of them regard each other. “Rousseau.” “Locke.”

(And now it’s already funny to the Philosophy Major crowd but wait there’s more.)

Rousseau looks at the door where there’s still shouting and banging. Locke doesn’t explain anything. “What brings you to the ship?”

(Keep in mind that Rousseau is the one who showed the survivors the ship and makes frequent trips to it. LOCKE is the one acting weird. Locke has decided that the only way to make this situation Not Awkward is to just roll with it. He is legitimately Bavarian Fire Drilling his way out of what would CONCERN MOST PEOPLE.)

But here’s where it gets funny.

“I’m here for the dynamite.”

Okay. So you have one person who has locked someone in the brig for some reason and another person who is known to be EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS to the health and safety of others because of her death traps going “I need dynamite” and none of this sounds like sane reasonable behavior and the punchline is just both of them staring at each other and NOT QUESTIONING ANY OF IT. Rousseau walks out with a box of dynamite, Locke continues to wait for a murder to occur.

THAT is funny. That is humor that requires insight into the characters, the situation, and how none of the steps taken are the steps you’d expect. Humor doesn’t have to rely on zingers and meme worthy lines- it requires you to be able to take a completely absurd situation and play it absolutely straight. No irony poisoning and SEE WE KNOW THIS IS STUPID will ever compare to watching two characters just completely refuse to react to something weird or even treat it as anything other than normal behavior.

[glitterrosesnzz]

UPDATED F/URINA HC'S

put under the cut because they're 4.2 spoilers and idk how many of y'all have finished the arc/hon quest (i did it in one day lmao)

Still hc that Furina's sneezes are mostly loud, yes. However, she stifles and forces them quieter WAY MORE than previously imagined.

the tidal wave thing?? listen. it's still true- only because sometimes when Furina sneezed, Focalors would as well, thus causing the tsunami incidents. this wasn't a guarantee to happen everytime though- and Furina never even knew it was happening. Neuvillette noticed though.

due to the way citizens reacted the first time Furina sneezed in public ("I didn't know a god was capable of such a thing"), Furina decided to maintain the act of "Well of course not- I was just mimicking what I've seen humans do to appear more like you! You should be honoured I'm attempting this at all!" and somehow this WORKED on people.

Furina has NO IDEA that gods can also get sick, so she would hide it. This did lead to her, once, briefly passing out in the Opera Epiclesse, sending people into a panic. She explained it away afterwards as just being "overwhelmed with using her energy to clean the pollution in their waters", which people bought and also brought down pollution levels for a bit.

Neuvillette of course, knows that gods can get sick, as he can also get sick, so he was the only one who would take the proper measures to care for Furina when she was ill. Unfortunately, she'd continue to protest such actions, so he had to be very discreet about it to make sure she got the care she needed.

post-archon quest, Furina doesn't have to hide it when she's sick anymore, but it's so ingrained in her that she still does it. she would admit to it now when it's called out though, but she's gotten so good at hiding it over the years that most people don't notice.

Furina happens to be allergic to rainbow roses. People used to throw them onto the stage whenever she'd choose to preform with a troupe, and it took all her strength to not succumb to the itchiness it would cause.

since she frequently cries a lot, and her normal, unquietened sneezes are quite vocal, she tends to lose her voice pretty fast. (and also her immune system isn't very good, I vaguely remember hearing that it's easier to catch something when you've been crying)

post-archon quest she continues to stifle/quiet her sneezes until someone else intervenes. who it would be that would intervene, i have no idea, but someone would have to.

after acquiring her vision, sneezing starts having genuine effects on her hydro abilities that she can notice. if she's walking on water, her concentration will be broken and she'll fall into the water, for example. She frequently ends up soaked from either this, or other hydro mishaps- like a ball of water she was playing with exploding in her face.

THIS ISN'T CANON BUT IT'S FUN TO ME- I'm pretty sure she actually just changed her outfit + cut her hair post-archon quest, but since one of her abilities is to swap forms, I think it would be SO FUN if sneezing would change her outfit colour + hair. Also causes a burst of pneumia/ousia.

in other news i am OBSESSED with her-

[therealityhelix]

Just because that first one is smiling, does not mean he's friendly.

That Swag is my darling favorite should go without saying. It's kinda funny because he is nothing like my normal type of fave, but sometimes a character is just so enjoyable that it doesn't matter.

Swag is layers upon layers of masks, operating under a fake it till you make it program that is in constant flux. He endlessly rebuilds and remakes himself, and despite certain strict rules and being a legit business owner, is one of the most fluid and chaotic characters in the group. He bucks social authority hard, and while he starts out a bit selfish and self centered, he skews far more towards trying to do what's good rather than what's legal. Meaning that, while he doesn't go out of his way to be a hero, he will try to help people who are right in front of him. He is sometimes bad at it.

Considering how truly awful he used to be, and how he chose to go about not being that, he is a rare example of a wildly successful reform. Most of the biggest name villains in his world either died, or called it quits eventually, leaving only the smaller rogues to decide if they really wanted to continue or not. I imagine his world as being contemporary to ours, but with more cyberpunk candy goth overtones, rather than the classic art deco or endless grunge feels that many other Gothams portray.

Swag is one of those obnoxiously fashionable people who you want to be mad at, but you can't because he's charming instead of insufferable. He is openly afraid of commitment, but has a deep capacity for love and care, and an almost religious (but not quite) need to put more joy into the world than he did pain. He knows he can't make up for what he did, but guilt will always drive a person to try.

Swag is agile, and the fastest among his peers, but his body just never holds much weight or muscle, so he's not as strong as, say, Arkham or Narci. He can take a lot of pain and keep going though-if all the contraptions in his bedroom closet are any indication-and is difficult to drop. He does not believe in fighting 'fair', he's just seen too many fights for that.

Swag is not to be trusted in the kitchen! Get him outta there! However, he is a very good seamster, and often designs clothing. He has a lot of hobbies to keep his mind occupied, and work off his boundless energy. He has troubles with addiction, alcoholism being his greatest nemesis, after giving up nicotine since discovering Helix was allergic to it.

When Swag was ten years old, a Gray showed him the future. There, he met Narci and Helix, and a few other people. And though as the years went on, that memory faded into a dream, then a fuzzy recollection, then nothing more than a faded impression with no details, it kept him alive. At his lowest points, when he wondered if it was really worth it to go on, he always ended up clinging to the unfounded belief that someone was waiting for him, and so he stayed alive.

Swag was an unintentionally guiding force for many of the other Riddlers, and is universally beloved. In the end, like Detective, he also eventually got almost everything he wanted.

@cardwrecks @captainbaddecisions @whocares-idont

[amynchan]

When you finally let yourself relax into a new label and look back and see "oh wow all of that makes a bit more sense lol." Except, instead of a "new" label, it's one you've been tentatively using for years because it seemed right, but now it feels a bit more right. For example,

When I was younger, I asked my grandpa if I could ride on a nearby roller coaster. He told me it "would cost a pretty penny." I proceeded to look all over the parking lot for a penny, found one that was pretty banged up, and told him I'd clean it and make it really pretty. I was dead serious.

Whenever I stayed the night over at my grandparents' house, we always used the same blankets. I was told that it was polite to fold them up after we were done using them, so I'd go around the entire house and fold up every single "this is a blanket that a grandchild uses" blanket. I still do that, tbh.

As a child, I was told to make sure I rinsed all of the food off my dishes. It wasn't until last month that someone informed me that I was practically washing the dishes clean. I've always been confused as to why people don't wash dishes by hand, and now I realize that I took the instruction a bit too literally.

When I discovered meal prep, I was absolutely ecstatic. All of my food prepared at the beginning of the week, and I knew what was in store, and it was great. Still have trouble conceptualizing that people get bored with the same food every day tho.

Giving kindness is normal. Getting it is weird. What's the procedure? What do I do? Please tell me the script.

Whenever my younger siblings were in distress, that was the only time I could be affectionate to them. I had a script to follow. Figure out the root of the problem. If I can fix it, fix it. If I can't, find the person who can and get them to fix it. Everything else was straight up, terrifying, uncharted territory where everything I did was wrong somehow. Did not realize that this was confusing until much later. ^^;

I've always had a problem with people talking over each other and constantly interrupting each other. It's to the point where I literally check out of conversations for a while when I get overwhelmed. Check out, then stammer, then go utterly silent. I get the sense this is not neurotypical.

Evidently??? My therapist thinks???? That my reactions to secondhand smoke and the smell of marijuana may be an autism thing???? Hyper sensitivity to certain senses?????? Thing is, the doctors won't test me for allergic reactions, so idek. Doctors, please test me. I wish to know why I doubled over coughing my lungs out and was in immense pain when one of my students walked through the door. I literally couldn't breathe for half a day afterwards and still had to keep pushing through.

Whenever I get overwhelmed at a friend's house, I like to organize their dishes. Repetitive motion with clear progress goes brrrrrrr.

If you interrupt me while I'm doing my homework, I will go feral on you. And then I won't be able to regain my concentration. And then I'll cry.

I always have to use music to get started on projects or to time myself on them. I have timed ambiances, playlists, lofi (timed and not timed), and the Ghost Hunt OST for difficult mathematics. It helps me filter everything else out so I can focus and not get interrupted.

Yeah, no. Do not interrupt me while working. It's very frustrating. More than that, it's overwhelming, and then I gotta focus on two difficult things at once (whatever I'm working on plus figuring out how to politely interact with the Distraction while not getting mad).

Anyways, yeah. XD Autistic things. Aren't they fun.

(obviously this is just my own experience. different people look different in all of this)

[vulturesrottencorpse]

i HATE people who let their cats out

not only is it terrible to let your pet out and risk it getting hit by a fucking car or getting killed by something else, it's also just bad..in general.

Your cat is going to kill so many native species because of preydrive. I'm from Australia for example and SO MANY of our small native mammals, replies and birds are endangered because they are being hunted by feral cats. They are ruining the balance of the ecosystem

If your cat isn't desexed it could breed with other cats, making feral cat babies that will probably die or grow up just to make more babies.

They carry and spread diseases to each other, other animals and humans.

They pose a risk to people of they are aggressive or someone could be extremely allergic.

"oh but Mr tibbles wants to go outside it's abuse to keep them inside" no the fuck it's not you want it outside so bad make a cat pen "oh but he doesn't kill anything" you don't know that. Do you see people letting their dogs outside all day or night? No obviously because they can be aggressive or kill things right? So can cats.

I remember a cat that got into our yard ti attack my pt birds (they were in cages but the cat didn't care) and my mum went out to try and get it out. Unfortunately it backed itself into a corner and even my GREAT DANE X BULL ARAB (who we don't own anymore but still see) didn't want to take it on. So my mum grabbed the cat by the scruff if it's neck to throw it over the fence because that's all we could do, but it turned and latched onto her arm. I just remember seeing the amount if blood pouring out from her arm, bleeding all over the floor as she rushed to the bathroom. Looked like someone had been MURDERED. she had to go to hospital for a while night in an ambulance to make sure she didn't get any diseases. I was traumatised, I had so many panic attacks over it because even though it ended up as just a tiny scar, I saw my mum, the person I love most, bleeding EVERYWHERE. I thought she was going to die. I'm traumatised from that sight.

All of that could have been avoided if someone didn't let their fucking cat outside. You can't have any actual valid excuse to be letting your cat out. If you are neglecting your cat, posing a risk to other people and animals, and contributing to the extinction of native species by letting it out, fuck you. I cannot stress this enough. It's actually disgusting that letting your cat outside is a normalised thing. It's not normal it shouldn't be normal. Keep your cat inside or don't have one at all.

[slightlyhonest]

People for some reason started to follow this blog so allow me.

This blog is not for you if:

you get easily triggered or offended (for example mimimi behaviour)

you've spent so much time in your bubble you became allergic to other people's opinion

you expect that the world should accomodate to you, you speshl lil snowfuck

you believe everyone disagreeing with you is either a bot or a [insert silly lable here] (for example nazi, terf, clarm (not a lable yet but I wanted to make one as well to belong to the cool kids. No wonder people throw these around like confetti. It's kinda fun. Clarm btw is a person who finds clams charming in an offensive way.))

you have dni's in your blog and still interact with the groups mentioned there because this rule applies only after you have already started a fight with them. (Your bar-fight-starting ancestors would be proud of you)

you threaten people who disagree with you with rape and death (for example women who talk about their body or opinions)

you celebrate death and suicide from a person your cult -er sorry- community considered 'cancelled' (for example Robbie Coltrane)

you support lables in general (you are a biological human not a supermarket. The only lable I support is the organic one. Also you call them lables, I call them warning signs. No srsly. Who needs dni's if you can just wear you lables. Normal people who are not in that hivemind will avoid you automatically)

you hate that I basically never use tags

you dislike the fact that I might add more to this list depending on what funny people I see on here (I collect snowflakes like Pokémon cards to crunch them together and build a snowman which I then put in my freezer crush again and then put the remains in my Caipirinha so that the snowpolice won't notice that I slurp the crushed tears, dreams and mimimis of their kind)