#because of all the nonsense happening in the world

[itsrlymine]

Ignoring Reality Makes No Sense When You Are Reality

Pay attention to the 3d because what you say about it tells you where you are in consciousness. If you know the outer world is based on your inner world, you don’t need to ignore it. If anything you should laugh bc Mrs. 3D really thought she was doing something like girl bye. 

This notion that you need to "ignore reality" in order to get what you want is wack asf and it pisses me off honestly. Why would you ignore reality when you are reality itself? When somebody calls you by your favorite nickname, are you gonna ignore them because you like that name or will you answer since it’s your name???? 

The 3d is a reflection of old and present thoughts and your state of awareness. How you respond internally is what determines what is happening externally. Change the meaning to what you “see” with your physical eyes and see with your mind’s eye that which you are now choosing to experience. Are you gonna ignore your sp, new money, house or car now bc they are in your 3d???

Your reality/3d only becomes real when you are getting what you want? Are you serious? Who told you that? You need to stop listening to that person. The 3d is you. So if reality isn't real, that means you aren't either boo. How can you be reading this post right now if the 3d isn't real?? Are you dreaming right now or something? Don't take people's advice just because they might be popular or get a lot of attention. Listen to what they say and actually see if it makes sense. Most of the times it doesn't. If you want to ignore reality, go ahead and ignore yourself for a week and see how that goes.

There were times people would tell me I couldn’t have something or do something because it’s too expensive or whatever and every time I’d respond back in my mind like “no wtf. It’s cheap asf actually.” I used this to lower my rent (somebody pays it for me now) and medications costs and ofc flights. Literally anything I want because I have come to understand that it’s just me. 

Similarly, it’s just you in your reality. The 3d is you and you shouldn’t fear it. Let it remind you of who you now are— the creator that has everything they want. Giving her power and trying to act like she isn’t there makes zero sense. Now that you have all your desires, are you gonna act like they are not real because you can “see” them in the 3d? No. That would be stupid and nonsensical.

[dekariosclan]

Just a silly question if no one has asked yet! How would Gale celebrate GN Tav's birthday? Thanks!

Well Anon, I can attempt to describe the lengths that Gale “Grand Gestures” Dekarios goes to when celebrating his beloved’s day of birth, but I don’t know if I can do it justice.

You see, in Gale’s humble opinion, Tav’s birthday is more sacred than any religious holiday. It’s the day that the world was blessed with a soul brighter and more beautiful than any star in the heavens. It’s the day that the other half of his heart came into existence.

So now, every year, it’s a day where Gale is hell-bent on making his adoration for Tav known—regardless of any city safety regulations, noise ordinances, or even his own HOA’s restrictions on ‘large fireworks displays or other nonsense originating from a certain wizard’s tower.’

He simply pays them no heed—because pish-posh, everything he’s doing is an illusion! There’s no cause for alarm when it’s all an illusion! The flying dragons carrying heart-shaped banners, the ships carrying giant birthday cakes, the stars spelling out ‘I love you,’ the ferocious lovemaking with multiple copies of himself pleasuring Tav on the balcony all just an illusion! So what if it all happens to be viewable city-wide?!

(If and when there are complaints, Gale’s simulacrum will dutifully be sent off to city hall to beg forgiveness and cheerfully reassure the council that It Will Not Happen Again 😄😄😄!)

Of course there’s also the lavish gifts from Gale, the sumptuous dinner, even more lovemaking on the balcony, but I truly cannot do it all justice via words alone. Just trust me when I say that Tav has never felt more loved and cherished than when their wizard wakes them up with a gentle kiss on their birthday.

Which, by the way, goes something like this:

Gale: *kissing Tav’s hand* Good morning, my love. It’s your birthday!

Tav: *pulling Gale into a hug* It’s my birthday!

Every other citizen in Waterdeep *suddenly waking up to the booming sounds of 1000 illusory fireworks*:

OH GODS OH F*CK IT’S TAV’S BIRTHDAY

[meanderingstream]

Living through the Next American Political Order: Institutions Will Comply, and You Will Be Made Complicit

I woke up this morning to see that Donald Trump had been elected president again. Like roughly half of American voters, this is not the outcome that I had hoped for. Politics, like history, is chaotic and uncertain. Yet the victorious party in American politics last night has campaigned for years on a clear platform and a coherent vision of America’s future. Voters chose that party, and institutional guardrails will not constrain the next government. American life will change accordingly.

I did not predict this outcome. I predicted no outcome, because I did not know, and what I did know made me fearful. But about two weeks ago, liberals like me started to acknowledge—quietly, privately—that we thought Trump would win again. So I am not surprised, exactly. Nor is any woman I know, including my own daughter.

But I am demobilized and discouraged nevertheless. The results confirm some of my worst fears about what Americans will support when given the choice. And now I, like others who share my views towards the next administration, must ponder how to make our way through the coming years. The threats facing Americans are not all the same, and so they will be borne unequally; people with my characteristics will face fewer risks than many others. And yet all of us will need to wake up every day and make our way through our lives, mindful of the new political world we live in, but with the same obligations as ever amidst an uncertain and frightening new future.

When I wrote “Life in Authoritarian States is Mostly Boring and Tolerable” in 2017, I was anticipating a situation much like this one. And so in the early hours of the second Trump administration, here are the implications I see.

Liberalism is Not That Popular. I am a liberal at heart. I believe in individual autonomy, collective self-determination, and political equality. I believe that this implies a certain form of politics, including the rule of law, republicanism, and proceduralism. But my values are not that popular among the voting public, and the consequences are apparent. The liberal strands (dare I say “foundations”) of American politics shall be undermined, and some dismantled. Anyone who thinks that America has never been a liberal republic will find evidence to support their position as well.

Your Institutions Will Comply with the Administration. The next administration will likely destroy some institutions, but more likely, it will work with and reshape existing institutions to suit its purposes. The mechanisms through which this will happen are legal and financial. Concretely, this is how they will direct the corporate sector, constrain universities, and shape the mass media. Electoral authoritarian regimes routinely do this around the world. Our next administration will follow that playbook. There are plenty of past precedents in U.S. history, and comparative examples around the world right now.

That means, there will come a time when the administration tells the press not to publish a story, for reasons that are transparently nonsense. The press will comply. There will come a time when universities are told what they can teach and what students can do. They will comply too. They will comply because the consequences of noncompliance are too severe, even if every single person working within those institutions opposes the actions taken in their name.

You Will Face A Choice. Many people are going to be made vulnerable under the coming administration, especially anyone who lacks a U.S. passport, women, and gender nonconforming people. Most people living in the U.S. will not be so vulnerable, but we will operate within a system in which our friends and neighbors face existential risks. And because we are embedded in institutions, we will become the agents of the administration even if we do not want to be. The institutions will comply, rendering us complicit even through nonaction, without our consent, sometimes without our knowledge.

Last week I spoke to some students who had concerns about how my institution regulates speech and protest. I told them directly: you must not assume that our university can safeguard you. You should not believe any promise that they make, because they do not rule. Our financial and legal status is contingent, and a change in government will threaten that. Make your choices fully aware of this fact.

I’ll close by spelling out the implications of this last point. People like me will face difficult, perhaps even agonizing choices about whether to comply with odious policies and oppressive regulations. Some of us will resist when we can, but others will not. It is best, in the quiet of the morning after, to sit down and think, what will you resist, and what price are you prepared to pay for that resistance.

We must all make these decisions for ourselves. I have my own values. But I also look around the world to see other countries where governments like Trump’s have been elected. And because I believe that we learn from the world around us, I anticipate that most Americans, most of the time, will choose not to resist

Thoughts on this situation, and managing it.

[libraford]

So I have a question about your outlining process for your books? How detailed do you get in your outlines?

I am trying to go back to a book I started 6 years ago but had to stop cause my daughter was born and yikes this outline is almost 40 pages long cause I got super detailed.

You're gonna hate this.

My initial outlines max at like five sentences. Really, sometimes it's not even an outline, it's a title page from Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Start thinking about the scenario that excites you the most. The situation you wanna put your blorbos in.

"The flower shop gang does a wedding."

Then add conflict

"The flower shop gang does a wedding, but the client is a bridezilla."

Then add details.

"The flower shop gang does a wedding, but the client is a bridezilla and a series of complications with the project creates friction between friends, and they have to resort to shenanigans to make things right."

Add another layer.

"The flower shop gang does a wedding, but the client is a bridezilla and a series of complications with the project creates friction between friends, and they have to resort to shenanigans to make things right. But little do they know that the venue is targeted for a heist."

Start with a broad strokes statement of the plot and then narrow it down. When you go through the outline you have, ask yourself questions like "is this part of the plot or is this character development?" "Plot or world building?" "Plot or magic system?" "Plot or in-world politics."

Then take that broad strokes description and add some Pratchett asterisks.

"The flower shop gang* does a wedding,** but the client*** is a bridezilla and a series of complications¹ with the project creates friction between friends, and they have to resort to shenanigans² to make things right. But little do they know that the venue³ is targeted for a heist."

*a demigod, a thief, and a jack of all trades (see character sheet)

** high-stakes celebrity wedding

*** beauty pageant queen, see character sheet

¹a volcano eruption in Peru cuts the orchid supply

²some magic nonsense, see world building section C

³a huge public garden that includes a hedge maze, but also a historical landmark- see map on page 10.

Like, I totally get having a ton of world building. I have a binder full of random info that fits into my fiction worlds. But for the sake of sorting out the plot and actually getting to the actual writing part- keep the outline vague.

At least that's what works for me. Truthfully, Damn Good Party started because I wanted to see my gang of losers steal copious amounts of cake at a wedding expo and see what happened next.

[skeletboi]

Part 17 of the Intridmensional AU!

This one starts right at the end of the last part, so I'd suggest reading the last few lines of part 16 before diving in here!

First /// Previous /// Next

________________________________________

“Would you believe I told ol’ Fordsie here to keep his idiot brother away from his project after what happened last time, yet here you are! HAH!”

“Ford…?” Stan asked, taking a step back.

“Sixer isn't home right now! Please leave a message after the beep! BEEEEEEPPPP!” Ford said before breaking out into laughter.

“Stanford… what in tarnation…” Fiddleford asked.

Stan grabbed Fiddleford's arm and took a step back.

“Didn't I just say he wasn't home?!” Ford said, tilting his head and smiling painfully wide.

“I don't think that's Ford…” Stan said, dragging Fiddleford back another step.

“DING DING! The idiot gets one point! I figured you'd be the one to catch on first, Fiddlesticks! How disappointing! You'd think you'd be better at recognizing the man you left your wife and kid for! Hilarious! How are they, by the way?! Or did you forget them?!”

“What- Stanford…” Fiddleford said, his voice barely a whisper.

“Fidds, something is seriously wrong, that is not my brother!” Stan said.

“‘Fidds?’ Damn, lesser twin, that's cold! Ruin your brother's life then steal his ex boyfriend, too?! Hah! No wonder he hates you!”

“What are you?!” Fiddleford asked, his voice shaking.

“Haven't figured it out, specs?! Hah! I thought you were supposed to be smart! What would Fordsy ever see in you?! You noticed his ‘sleepwalking’ and ‘weird behavior’, but even when I'm right in front of you you still can't put it together!”

“You're the one who came up with the portal idea.” Fiddleford said slowly, dread sitting heavy in his stomach, freezing him in place even as not-Stanford stepped closer to him.

“DING DING! Another winner! The name's Bill! It's a displeasure to finally meet you! You humans are so stupid! Once Fordsy finishes that portal your world will be mine! And another thing-”

Stan didn't wait to hear the rest. He grabbed a wrench from a nearby work table and swung, watching in horror as Ford crumpled to the ground.

“That was still Ford.” Fiddleford said, looking seconds away from passing out.

“What else was I supposed to do?! Let him keep sayin’ nonsense?! I mean-fuck! What the hell have you two been doing?! What is this portal you keep mentioning?!”

“It's a transuniversal metavortex.” Fiddleford said quietly. “A gateway into another dimension.”

“Why in the sci-fi hell would you want to build that?!” Stan asked.

“Because! He asked me to!” Fiddleford suddenly yelled, making Stan jump.

“I thought he forgot about me, Stanley.” Fiddleford said, quieter now. “I couldn't say no ta him after he called. I reckon lookin’ back now, I shoulda said no, but he was so excited-”

“Fidds!” Stan said, drawing Fiddleford from his quiet rambling. “Blaming yourself isn't going to do anything. All three of us have made some fucked up mistakes! Right now we need to find out what the hell that thing using my brother as a puppet is before he tries to turn on that sci-fi death triangle over there!”

“Triangle.” Fiddleford mumbled.

“Yes, a triangle. Glad you caught that part.” Stan deadpanned.

“I hafta dismantle the portal.” Fiddleford said, looking across the room at the machine. “Stan! We gotta stop this! We have to stop that demon!” Fiddleford grabbed Stan's arm and dragged him towards the portal.

“Missing leg, Fidds!” Stan said, trying to keep his balance on the dirt floor as Fiddleford pulled him.

“Right, sorry Stanley. I jus’ need yer help, There’s an emergency shut off. We can shut the whole thing down, but it takes two people!” Fiddleford said quickly, letting go of Stan's arm to rummage in his pockets for a set of keys. “Take this.” he said, pulling a key off the ring and handing it to Stan. “There's a spot in the control panel o’er there. I'll count ta three, then we both gotta turn the keys. Got it?”

“Fiddleford!” They heard Ford yell from behind them.

“Shit.” Stan swore, putting the key in his pocket and turning towards Ford. “Fuck you, you weird ass demon! Leave my brother and Fiddleford alone!”

“Demon?! Stanley, what are you talking about? What the hell happened?! The last thing I remember was you and Fiddleford fighting! Did he use the gun on me?!” Ford asked, panic rising in his voice.

“You happened, asshole! Don't play dumb with me, Bill!” Stan yelled back.

“Bill?! How do you know that name?” Ford asked, dumbfounded.

“Because he possessed ya! He told us his name, Stanford! How could ya trust a demon?! What happened to the idea for this darned portal bein’ ‘hard work’?!” Fiddleford yelled, finally joining in on the fight.

“He's not a demon! He's a higher being! A Muse!” Ford said. “I gave him permission to possess me as he saw fit, I just didn't expect him to do it now!”

“He possessed ya, Ford! That sure as heck sounds like a demon ta me!” Fiddleford responded.

“He- no- he…. he's my friend!” Ford said.

“You have got to be fucking with me!” Stan yelled. “Friends don't let you possess them and then shout insults at your actual friends!”

“Insults? He- he was joking. He loves joking, that's all.” Ford said frantically, taking a few wobbly steps towards Stan.

“Goddammit, Ford. You're too smart for this!” Stan said, turning away. “We're shutting this sci-fi nightmare down.”

“No!” Ford said, running down to meet them. “Stan, you can't!”

“I'm sorry, Ford.” Fiddleford said, making his way back to the machine on the other side of the lab.

Ford grabbed Stan's arm and yanked him backwards, miscalculating the amount of force he used and accidently throwing him against the control panel. Stan glared at him and lunged, grabbing him by the collar and pushing him backwards.

“Goddammit, Sixer! We're trying to help you!” He yelled.

“Help me? You have no idea what you're doing! You know nothing about Bill!” Ford said, sounding a bit unsure and pushing Stan back.

“Uh- fellas, careful ‘round that ‘quipment, there!” Fiddleford said, but the twins ignored him.

“I know enough! I know a con man when I hear one, Ford, and that demon is the ultimate con man!” Stan yelled, trying to walk away from Ford before he hurt him again, but Ford grabbed his arm and tried to drag him away from the control panel.

“How much of a con man can he be?! He was right, after all! I should have done better to keep you away from my project!” Ford snarled.

“Fuck you, Ford. If you want to believe that fucking monster over us, than fine, but we're shutting this down!” Stan said, pushing his brother as hard as he could, sending him falling backwards onto the lever in the middle of the room.

“No!” Fiddleford yelled, but it was too late. The portal crackled to life, filling the dark lab with an eerie blue glow.

“Oh shit.” Stan said, taking a step back.

“It works.” Ford said, smiling up at the light. “It works!”

“That ain't good, Stanford!” Fiddleford said, running over to try and drag Ford away. “We need ta shut it down!”

“We are not shutting it down!” Ford said, pushing Fiddleford away.

Stan tried to pull Ford away from the machine, but forgot, in all the commotion, about Stan's new peg leg. He grew up with Stan. He had seen him stand his ground against bullies twice his size. But that was back when he had two legs to stand on, so he was thrown off guard when Stan didn't stay standing. They both slid across the ground, over the yellow line where the portal could reach, and suddenly started to float.

“What the fuck?!” Stan exclaimed, flailing his arms and looking for anything to grab onto.

“Stanford! Stanley!” Fiddleford screamed, grabbing some spare cable from the ground and running towards them. “Grab on!”

“Tie it down!” Stan yelled, as he caught the cable and grabbed Ford's arm, holding on for dear life.

“I can't!” Fiddleford said as he started to slip.

The twins were much heftier than him and his shoes were not grippy enough to keep him down. He wrapped the cord around his wrist and reached behind him, trying to grab the lever to hold himself back, but his fingers just barely grazed it.

“Do something!” Stan yelled as Ford disappeared through the blue light. “Fiddleford!”

Stan melted into the blue after Ford as Fiddleford's feet lifted from the ground.

“Well, shit.” Fiddleford said, as he fell through the portal after them.

___________________________________________

This feels a bit like a cheesy movie scene. That's all I could think while I was writing it... but hey! We made it to the portal!

There is probably some serious plot issues with this scene, like was the portal even ready? Sure it was! It's January and they were going to test it in the next day or two, so... sure it was!

Would Bill leave Ford's mind if he was unconscious? Probably!?

Does Stan not hit very hard, because Fidds and Ford were both hit, and not out for very long?! Well, he was probably subconsiously holding back a bit- this is his brother and his new friend he met a whole day ago and would fight a literal god for.

Why does Stan immediately trust and want to protect Fidds?! He just be like that, okay? Fidds is someone important to his brother, therefore worth protecting.

Okay, I'll stop now.

I start a new job tomorrow, so the updates on this might slow down a bit... sorry. I need to survive in this failing economy.

[churino]

Design for autobot sisters roulette and silhouette

I think you can see where this is going, but i believe it's a natural direction to take

Roulette and silhouette are elite misdirection and hit and run specialists. As far as they believe, they were built by the autobots under optimus prime's command to bolster their numbers as a tactical decision,

their first memories being jazz giving them the context of the autobot decepticon conflict, then requesting their help, letting them decide whether or not to join the cause, and it just so happens they did. personally trained by jazz in the use of sonic weaponry, jazz also influences them to socialize and get into music and art, but they find that the other autobots get noticeably more depressed around them for seemingly no reason, they can see that even jazz is affected by this and just masks it better due to his usual disposition, this wall between them and their comrades has greatly affected their development

Roulette, counter to her name, doesn't like to leave things up to chance, especially her future, and she believes if she acts just like their big beloved leader optimus prime, she will gain enough favor to counteract this nonsensical miasma around her and her sister. Jazz and Silhouette shower her with love, but everyone else keeps her at arm's length. She has always been loved, but she's never been liked and tries to fill that hole by making more people love her, trying to make herself useful, grow her skills, and put the interests of others ahead of her own.

In the process, she's broken the autobot landspeed record set by hot rod and become a sharpshooter that can rival moonracer, but because the trottlebots are around the world all the time, she rarely gets to show off these skills to the bots she's trying to impress, and its not like she'll learn enough medicine to rival ratchet any time soon, but because of her dedication she's one of if not, the most effective autobot at everything she does.

Silhouette, on the other hand, is something of a slacker she sees Roulette's attempts to people please as a waste of time and has religated herself to being treated the way she is, but she loves her sister and joins her in her efforts to improve herself, just to hang out with her, in the process inadvertently gaining the same skills as her, she has something of a cold disposition but has taken to jazz's influence to get into art more than Roulette, and often adds some flare to her life whenever possible.

But, in her extra time spent inside her own head, she starts to think about their situation, and she gathers all the information she can on the autobot's history on earth to trying to figure out why it is that people are so uniformly unsettled by them. And all she finds.. are mising names.

In truth, roulette and silhouette were once lifeless vehicon robots that came to the autobots in hopes of becoming truly alive, but sadly, the process to make a transformer proved incompatible with their machine minds, the spark overwhelming and replacing data, rather than give the existing robots life, it put new life into their bodies, for roulette and silhouette to be born, they first had to die, and their original names were struck from the record, and erased from the minds of all autobots but ratchet who carried out the procedure. A procedure the other vehicons, the autobot brothers would not undergo.

[mooifyourecows]

my mood has plummeted the past few days because of various anxiety reasons and so ive once again uninstalled twitter on my phone and i can already feel things getting Infinitely Better™️

[icewindandboringhorror]

Lineup of all of the characters that appear long enough to need a visual representation of them in the game lol

[solace-seekers]

screaming into the void <3

[flufflecat]

Can someone explain what the narrative stakes are even supposed to be anymore in jjk. All the characters are essentially guaranteed to die, the current cast is comprised almost entirely of characters who showed up 2/3rds into the story and we're supposed to care about them for some reason, and I do not even know what the threat is supposed to be anymore. The apocalypse? Destruction of an amorphous innocent society? Like has ANYTHING been shown of "here's the regular world that apparently needs to be saved" or are we just supposed to assume "this society is just Real Life+, so you're REQUIRED to care if some guy threatens to kill all humanity, because one of those humanities may be... a child" or something. Can you spare two seconds to show anything other than some magic randos fighting, or is it just a superhero story all the time now, minus the fun. Remember when yuuji had friends.

[anarkhebringer]

I woke up to this and am really thinking about this

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Sea Of Broken Glass

fantasy

two sisters who live on a floating village in a shallow ocean are exiled when one develops magic and can’t hide it like her sister does

they travel to the land, trying to survive searching for their mother who was exiled 20 years ago, through the wilderness and magical caves

crystal/mineral magic, magical creatures, sister relationships

[dewitty1]

Saturday Six (Stuff)

Hi, hi I have done one of these in a while. Sorry. I just felt like I haven't had much to talk about, or I've been busy with the Farmer's Market. But here we go!

(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

@astutesnow'gf has been here since the 6th. At first she was going to stay until the 12th (I thought), then I guess she told her mom the 17th so, yeah. No worries. I love having her her. Too bad our house is too small for it to be permanent. (´ ▽｀).。ｏ♡

I have started to do food blogging on on my Instagram! I've done two posts already, here, and here. Check them out if you'd like.“ψ(｀∇´)ψ

Business has been slowwww. Only one project last week. Not good.Σ(-᷅_-᷄๑)

My vegetable plants are looking good! Hopefully the veggies will be great!(❁´▽`❁)*✲ﾟ*

The kittehs are all doing well. Reggie out there catching rodents, thanks to our terrible neighbor. And Leeloo will already be a year old next month!₍˄ุ.͡˳̫.˄ุ₎ฅ˒˒

I fear it's going to be an interesting Father's day tomorrow what with two trans girls in attendance at a very misogynistic & homophobic man's house. I guess we'll see what happens. Oh, not to mention the terrible meal plan of: grocery store oven baked chicken, mom's Miracle Whip macaroni salad, possibly burnt air fried tator tots, & old, out of the freezer brownies with plain vanilla ice cream. Whoooo...(ᅌᴗᅌ* )

[hungersauce]

I just do not understand the prevalence of identity policing. I just do not. It reeks so badly of insecurity. An army of teenagers pretending to know more about the human brain than any scientist on earth and spouting transmed rhetoric in system paint is never going to fail to flabbergast me. The groups are so in-policing of themselves they fail to see that they're the only ones going around and doing the one thing they don't want done to them. It's so.

[cherrysnax]

the fear of being absolutely incomprehensible is a big one

[peridots-pixiwolf]

ah. seems the special interest i've now had for 23 months, the only one that still consumes a portion of my mind at all times, just turned six today, and not a single one of the several lists I have to keep track of such anniversaries bothered to warn me of this early enough that I could actually draw something for it in time