#because like yes it would improve their experience. i have all 3 of those things and i love them

[imaginespazzi]

Nivi....how are you? You haven't said anything about the game. I think UConn fans on every app were rightfully crashing out. Would love to hear your thoughts when you feel up to it.

Hi lovie, I'm good just busy as per usual but I actually have not been crashing out as much as everyone else. Was it hard to watch? Yes but did I, despite all my cautious optimism, still sort of expect it? Also yes. Here are my thoughts:

Every single thing that we've seen this team do wrong, they did last night. How many times have we been harping on about our lack of 3-pt-defense? How many times have we called out the overhelping? How many times have we complained about a stagnant offense? Literally, all of that happened last night and honestly? I think they needed this loss. So far the team and coaching staff have been able to get away with this without any improvement because we've been winning in spite of this issues and they got complacent. Now they know for sure that they cannot win big games with these flaws, I expect to see this change in our next games.

I'm not sure why there's so much chatter about Paige when she wasn't the problem last night. By all means, she had a good game. The main issue I had with her was her lack of assists but that was team-wide problem because as I pointed out before: stagnant offense. She also did a really good job defensively with Sonia. Could she have played a better game? Statistically maybe not (well I guess she could have scored 40) but what I think Paige lacked, and the team in general lacked, was a spark of some sorts? I am not a proponent of she should force shots (and she took a fair amount of shots imo) but there was flare missing from this team last night and I was waiting for the leader of this team to inject something into them. And it never came and of course that's not all on her, but yeah that's the one thing she could have done better and there's no way to really explain how, just that I know she's done it before.

Actually before I got onto other plays let me talk about that a little bit more because everything else aside, WHERE WAS THE ENERGY? These people went into your house, on your alumni night and EMBARASSED the living fuck out of you on your court. You should be lived, you should wanna do the exact same thing to them and yet, it still seemed like ND wanted it more. And I think of everything I saw last night, that's what annoyed me the most. There was a certain laziness at some point, a lack of fire from everyone (that really showed up in rebounding) and it was in stark contrast to ND who just in simple terms, played like they wanted to win.

I would really love to congratulate KK and KC on what were solid offensive performances. However, it doesn't matter that they combined for 21 points, because I have since realized that they gave up 27 points, and that's only based on how many 3s they gave up so it very well could be more. Egregious work from two guards who are supposed to be our best defensive players.

Sarah looked a little bit like a freshman again but I will say, the couple of "energy" runs that we did have? Those were absolutely spearheaded by her but she just doesn't have the experience yet, where she can start them and then continue them. But it's games like this that will start to get here there and I'm excited to see her against ISU and USC.

Jana had the highest +/- on the team in the sense that she was +5 and she was a huge part of the run that lead us to cutting the lead to one so of course, OF COURSE, grandpa had to go ahead and bench. WHY WAS SHE ON THE BENCH FOR MOST OF THE FIRST HALF?? What was the gameplan? What was the reason? All of it pisses me off so much because why would you not play your tallest player when we were shit on rebounds????

Ice girl, I haven spent the last couple of week saying girlie was starting to look soid and first big game, she goes ahead and makes a liar of me because she was terrible last night. Why she was on the floor instead of Jana, I will never understand.

I have about as many good things to say about Ash as she had points last night. ZERO??? SERIOUSLY? For all KC and KK gave up on defense, at least there was something on offense but Ash gave us nothing. A complete non-factor if not a complete liability. The only right decision Geno made last night might have been benching her in the 4th. But I will say, some players, especially shooters, you needa run a play or two, to get them going. Just one play for her and on the off chance she hits it, you never what that could have done for her confidence and our chances.

Morgan deserved more minutes last night. Girl played nie minutes less and only had one less rebound than Ice. She had hustle and we needed hustle so bad but of course, of course grandpa would bench her.

If y'all haven't realized yet, my main gripe with last night is directed at Geno because I think he made every wrong decision her possibly could and quite frankly got outcoached like nobody's business by Niele Ivey.

Despite all of this, once again, I'll reinstate that I am not crashing out. Everything that went wrong is fixable and I do believe that this team can fix them. Especially because 2 of the biggest things that fucked us over will start to get fixed by two of our players coming back. Azzi will help with 3 pointers and Aubrey will help with defending them. Overall, this was a respectful loss to a good team in December. Championships are won in March. You lose and you learn and you keep on living.

[elftwink]

"nobody is even buying things because of ads" factoid actually a statistical error, tumblr users on firefox browsers with ublock origin and a VPN installed are outliers and should not have been counted

to preface this post i am anti-advertising i think we should explode the entire industry but it's sooo funny when you people make posts like "and they don't even work!!" like. sorry to be the bearer of bad news but yes they do. that's why we have to put up with so many despite everyone hating them and thinking its annoying. because they actually work really well and make a shit load of money

[shkudss]

Weakened by Eywa Pt. 5

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

Masterlist

Summary: Ao'nung finally realizes that his actions have consequences

Warnings: curse words, bullying, mental breakdown, English isn't my first language

Author's note: guys I’m so sorry that I didn’t tagged those who voted in the poll😭 I had no idea that it’s anonymous and you can’t see those who vote🥲 I’m really really sorry!!! Please, text me or comment if you want to be tagged. I hope you won’t get upset by this

Yawntutsyip - darling, little loved one

Yaymak - foolish, ignorant

Tsmukan - brother

Sa’nu - mommy

Metiyawn - love (plural)

“Now you can’t call me helpless, water boy.” After finally learning how to ride ilu, you were really playful, swimming with Ao’nung.

“Yeah, that’s because I was your teacher. Otherwise you would be helpless.” Light smile was on his face as he was talking to you. “Hey, who first reaches that stone will be the winner!”

It was really sudden game, but you managed to react fast. Even though your swimming skills improved significantly, you still were far from Ao’nung’s skills. He was way faster and was already standing on that huge stone and looking down at you. His skin was lighter on the sun.

“Come here, I’ll help you” you were about to thank him, but then he added “Loser” and chuckled at your unpleased face.

“Hey! You’re stronger than me and you are water na’vi. I’ll look at you running on the trees and trying to keep your balance with that thick tail!” You pushed his shoulder a little when he helped you to climb up.

“Yeah, I would probably be loser in the forest. I remember you almost killing me that day, I didn’t even recognize you at first. You were in your element and I understood that you’re actually strong. Surprisingly, not really loser.” Ao’nung laughed at last sentence and you pushed him again, but also had fun.

“Yeah, forest is my home. I don’t know how it is possible for people to claim that sea is their home. We’re actually different as you said before.” You sat on the warm stone and looked at the sunset.

“Yes, but we’re still all na’vis, children of Eywa and I didn’t understand it before.” Ao’nung joined you, you were so close that your shoulders were touching each other. “Y/N, you know I’m really sorry what what I did and said. Even though you said you forgave me, I, myself cannot forget it.” His aquatic eyes were looking far at the horizon.

“You don’t need to forget it, you must forgive yourself. I forgive you, but I will never forget about it and that’s not bad. You need to learn from your and others’ mistakes. It is your life and experience. But it is also your choice how to react on all these things happening to you. I could choose not to forgive you and I would be a lifelong burden for both of us. You could choose to be blind and not see anything wrong in your actions and it would break me and my family more and more. But we made our decisions and we’re here now, being friends and having this conversation. It is because we choose peace. Inside us and around us.” You placed your hand on his chest, explaining your thoughts and forgetting about boundaries.

Ao’nung didn’t respond to you, but placed his hand over yours on his chest. You looked up at him and met his gaze. It was so intimate, you could feel the whole atmosphere between you changing vitally. You wanted to remove your hand, but he didn’t let you do this, holding it solidly.

“What are you doing, Ao’nung? Why are you looking at me like this?” All your confidence and playfulness disappeared.

You could feel him examining you. Your eyes, your hair, you lips, your hands. Ao’nung wanted to look at you all day long. Enjoying your beauty and wisdom. You captured his heart, his soul not even knowing about it.

“If you were the Sun, I would burn my eyes but keep looking at you every day. If you were a bird, I would spend all days in the forest listening to you.” He took your other hand, stroking it softly. “I know I hurt you deeply and I know it might be too early to say that as we’ve recently just came to peace. But I don’t know how I can live another day keeping it inside. You told that it is my choice how to react on things happening to me. This thing has been making me crazy for so long and I finally made my choice, Y/N.”

You felt your heart blowing inside of you. You didn’t know what to do or to say. Ao’nung was looking at you for a couple of seconds and then his face got as close to yours that you could feel his warm breath. Your knees felt weak at that type of closeness. One second and he leaves a little kiss in the corner of your lips.

Your eyes widened, breath is our of control. He looks right into your eyes, trying to catch your emotions. Ao’nung is also nervous, but he can’t show it to you since he is a future warrior, Olo'eyktan of the Metkayina. He wants to look strong and mighty in front of you.

“Y/N…”

“I… I need…” all words left your mind “I need to think it over.”

And you left him, running away from that stone. You didn’t even notice how you ended up riding ilu back to your marui. Your heartbeat was going crazy every time you remembered his lips on yours.

“What’s going on..?” You placed your hand on your heart trying to calm down. “Why my heart is beating so fast?”

“Y/N, are you okay?”

Mother’s voice distracted you. She knew something was wrong, you looked shocked. Even your hands were shaking a little.

“What happened? Someone annoyed you?”

“No, I just… I think I have feelings, but I’m not sure.” Neytiri led you to the Marui, looking at you worried.

“You mean feelings to a boy?”

“Yes, he kissed me.” It was hard for you to tell the truth, especially to your mom. You were embarrassed.

“Who was that?” Neytiri was actually excited to know that you’re getting used to the life here. You build your own story here.

“I’m not ready to tell it yet. But I don’t know what to do. He kissed me in the corner of my lips and I ran away. Is he going to hate me?” Helpless look on your face made your mom feel the wave of love. You’re still a kid who is getting through first romantic feeling.

“It’s okay, don’t worry. If he had true feelings to you he won’t be mad.” Her words easined your heart. “But you have to talk to him and explain everything, if you really value him.”

“Okay, thank you sa’nu.” You hugged Neytiri. You really needed it. “I will go for a walk. I need to think about everything.”

“Okay, but don’t be out for too long. You better be home before the eclipse.”

***

You’d been sitting in your place in the forest for the past 2 hours and trying to understand what you feel. That kiss put you out of your stride completely. You wouldn’t even think about having feelings to Ao’nung if he didn’t do this.

These days, every time you got physically close to each other you felt a little awkward and shy which is unusual for you. This never happened with Roxto or other guys.

“Do I like him?” As you asked yourself you felt your heartbeat increasing.

“Y/N, what are you doing here? We’ve been looking for you.” You saw Neteyam coming out from the bushes.

“Sorry, I was just thinking, this place is peaceful.” You moved a little to let your brother sit next to you. “I thought it’s my secret place, but I guess it’s not.”

“Yeah, sorry.” He looked at you apologizing. “What are you thinking about? I see you’re worried.”

“I don’t think you would like to hear it.”

“C’mon, I’m your big brother. I won’t get mad, promise.” He patted you on the head, waiting for your speech.

“I think, I have feelings to Ao’nung.” you were really cautious when revealed the truth. “He kissed me today and I don’t know what to do.”

You were afraid to look at him. Silence made you nervous.

“I see.”

Neteyam looked thoughtful. You had no idea what’s going on in his mind. For you his opinion on this was the most important. You really needed his support as an older brother.

“Talk to him.”

————————————————————————

A/N: Heyyy! I hope you liked it! I’m so happy for their developing relationships and that everyone is so supportive🥹 I’m really excited about next part! I think it’s going to be the last one, but we’ll see! I have ideas for some one-shots and I can’t wait to finish think work and write them🙈 Also, sorry for the delay, I’m really busy at school these days🥲

Taglist: @elegantkidfansoul @ijwsbdinp @universal-s1ut @myh3artt @lynbubble @jjkclub @kenzi-woycehoski @marvellover4 @ssc7514 @stvrligghtt @johfaam @simplecole18 @flavaliz @chrisbelle @bajadotcom @jak3suiiyscvmslvt @a--1--1--3 @roxannedaybreakermidnight @aonungmyaddiction @neteyamsmate4life @boilingpots @fanboyluvr @zilena9 @maxiel4life

I couldn’t tag those, whose nicknames are in red:(

[oodlyenough]

arcane s2 act 1

alright might as well collect my thoughts for posterity

first and foremost: obviously the triumphant cackle i was doing the entire hexcore scene. huge W for me, personally. did it always feel like the most logical and narratively satisfying extension from s1? sure. do i trust television to do the most narratively satisfying thing? no. especially not after fandom spent years of the hiatus trying to convince me otherwise

really all the jayvik scenes were, more or less, exactly what i expected/wanted and very satisfying lmaooo. i knew jayce wouldn't give a fuck about the shimmer or unethical experiments. i win!

other stuff i liked:

in the hiatus i've now seen all of yellowjackets and it has made me fonder of ella purnell and by extension jinx, lol. i love sevika and i think their grudging alliance in the wake of silco's death is a fun direction. jinx finding a random dumpster baby and adopting them immediately, silco would be so proud lmfao

i love caitlyn's dictator arc. i have to be honest i found her disney princess schtick in s1 pretty boring, so this is finally something more flawed and dynamic for me to invest in. yes girl get worse

ambessa rules. i was a little rolling my eyes at the "wow she was pulling the strings all along" reveal, bc it was so obvious and i was sort of hoping they'd do something more interesting with her. but this show has never been subtle. either way it still seems ambessa believes she's protecting mel? so i AM curious about how that plays out

i don't know shit about the league lore around the black rose stuff and don't want to <3 knowing league lore has never improved my arcane experience. but those sequences were very cool and took me by surprise. some good body horror with elora. good luck in the nightmare labyrinth mel!

stuff i liked less:

i think the stylized music video sequences are being a little overused. maybe s1 did them as frequently and I forget? anyhow, the police brutality one really worked for me, because it's the kind of info that def needs to be montaged, and the style was cool and engaging. cassandra's funeral ... i understand why they did it but i didn't like the regular arcane models mixed with the charcoal bgs, i found it distracted me from what was meant to be the emotion of the moment. and the jinx montage i found kind of mid.

i do think the pacing feels as breakneck as ever, to its detriment. i said above the jayvik stuff all played out basically as i wanted, which is more-or-less true, but viktor just be like I Have To Go Now was a bit abrupt. i can excuse a lot of that on the basis that i don't think viktor is really himself anymore because of the hexcore -- very flat emotionally, etc. and i assume we'll see them butt heads again later in the season. but still, the hextech weapons, the nonconsensual hexcoring, etc, would've expected something a little more explosive lol

plus, then we shift from that scene to the Furby Comedy Hour and jayce and heimerdinger having like a nonreaction to each other despite how acrimoniously they parted or how emotionally charged jayce must be sleeping next to viktor's empty cocoon etc... felt whiplash-y to me. but i hate heimerdinger and ekko teaming up to begin with lmao (and ofc ekko directs his frustrations with piltover to jayce, and not the 300 year president furby he has no beef with for some reason)

this extends to vi's decision to pick up the badge, etc. stuff just happens really quick and the fact that the passage of time in the show isn't very clear doesn't really help. i can understand why riot didn't want to spend two decades making five seasons of this show, but 2 seasons will probably feel too short imo.

[madfantasy]

New 3 things that happened:

*I got my new ID, my id expired and to renew it I had to get photographed, and since I just opened my bank account a year ago it depends on it so already I was giving up on the idea to keep the account but by miracle a photographer agreed to picture us at home, and it turned to us cuz I wanted all my sibs to have theirs taken with me too and because I had to argue first time to get my ID forever, so i didn't have the energy to keep doing it for the rest of my sibs so now it was the chance. The day of the photographer coming I was shaking with fear and I thought I would never leave the bathroom gotten ill. I fear seeing people more than dyin so I don't know how I held it together, I literally don't remember how it went or how I did, but I recall my sibs looking the same as I felt but it was finally done. parents too taken their shoots and because one needed their passport renewed to renew their id, them alone costing 1k$ and the appointment was set 6 months ahead, we R now close to it anyway, and the thought of how we have to pay to exist some more costly made me think of my worthlessness and helplessness even more, making me ashamed of still living.

The thing that blinded me, me the first to be tested on lo

*my eye is better, I still see a dark spot looking in a certain direction, getting an eye mask surprisingly helped keeping my eyes less dry cuz they be the most when I wake up and I had the driest time before it got infected and swelled, and already I'm used to the spot and can ignore it..

*I'm still drawing, literally it's making me live love and laugh, I don't care about improving or drawing my best constantly, ai can get poisoned for all I care as it continues to dehumanise the whole point of art-- keeping humanity alive ( btw use glazing ❤️🖤)

I realised that I don't have any physical collection of my art & since I can't look at the screens forever just to browse, nd printing all my stuff isn't feasible, then I came across those mini albums Nd I got the idea to just print one sheet = 9 pics! They look good too for trashy quality, I love it 8' and yes, purple and silver is the 10% obsession to my 90% red and black pallets, thanks to remembering Freeza c'x

But as usual posting my drawings never cease to eat me alive with anxiety, but I think I'm slowly becoming indifferent to it, even if the thought of that no one actually sees my art but me, which is the main case cuz I am living in isolation and being drawing in secret till few recent years because of my conservative surroundings, I feel much calmer when I'm not seen and maybe it's self destructive in a way cuz to stay posting I need to be commissioned cuz net bill, but it became irrelevant cuz I accepted that i can't have the mental capacity to be a social media person or chase anything that I already knew I can't maintain, I had an art block for a year I almost believed that was it for my art drive and me cuz it my sanity— cuz burning out so bad. If my post has a description it was in my drafts for months cuz I plan for every piece I share, but if can't form words I allow myself to let it be captionless, I draw faster than I form words and that's why art is important to me on a personal level, it's my first way of express even if its indirect, the only bit of human Mani left to live in me to put through lines and paint splodges. Even if no one sees it, and to be honest with myself, have very weak chances of being seen on a level that benefits me financially, I'm on the other side of the world, never seen the sky beyond my schooling days, nonverbal irl and know that I can get taken advantage of easily in social manner because it either I don't get the social cues or can't say no..

I'm grateful that at least I got the chance to experience being in a loving nurturing fandom like Sev's that made me experience genuine human goodness and care I never thought possible, made me have some self worth, personality beyond a made for marriage caretaker, and allowed me to get art tools and clothing that I was never allowed or could afford, and many first time small life pleasures like perfumes, food and toys, even if I only recognise 5 or 10 of you dears now, by DP liking my posts- (I suck at remembering names sorry)

I'm also grateful to have a room after endless years of couch and house movings, I have a safe space to still be able to draw and be cool under an AC in this 50° weather..

I think realistically that's the best it can get having spent all my life trying to get anywhere but isolated, and nothing working. At least I'm indifferent and fine of being the caretaker of my disabled guardians and siblings, I need them as much as they need me, even if it caused me the same cycle of mental anguish and earth leavings hehe

Wish U all the ease and peace and yummy peas 🫶🏽

4 am, sleep deprived

[p-oisn]

let's get positive ! (⁠ʃ⁠ƪ⁠＾⁠3⁠＾⁠）

(the content below the cut contains mentions of sensitive topics such as implied su*cide & sh so pls scroll if you're uncomfortable w those !)

this is a long rant about life basically .. 💩💩

i was going to make a post like this sometime later anyways bc i felt .. like a nice person ... but i made it a bit earlier than i expected bc i saw a post from oomf that really made me think .. so here u go

this comes from my own PERSONAL experiences and this is js my point of view yk !!! im no expert on any topic HSHSJ this is js the way i cope plz dont come for me in my asks ... i am aware that it isn't the same for everyone but , i hope this message can be helpful to some extent </3

if you feel like like life is leading nowhere n you feel like giving up I PROMISE it will get better bc i felt the same for two whole years n i will say that i have improved a LOT since . yes , it took me longer than i expected but i didn't give up and you shouldn't either ! it was hard n there were times i felt like i wasn't making any progress / improvement but in the end , it still got better

be kinder (to yourself, first) ☆

i think the first step to loving yourself is to forgive yourself .. its okay to try over n over again , you're still human n i think ppl tend to forget that often bc they're so tough on theirselves . let's not forget that your body is actively trying it's best to keep u alive , your WBCs for example ! (let's appreciate these little guys for trying their best 🎉🎉) your body too , deserves to be loved back , for fighting so hard just for YOU! so pls don't hurt yourself in any way </3

appreciate yourself for achieving even the smallest of tasks because even if it wasn't something big , YOU DID IT ANYWAYS ! every small achievement of yours deserves to be appreciated . even if it's momentary happiness , appreciate yourself while it lasts . i understand that sometimes even small things could be such a hassle but you can always reward yourself later ! i personally like to buy donuts everytime i finish something (this could come in handy when you're really craving something if you get what im saying ..)

It's okay if you're going at a slower pace than other people , what matters in the end is that you get it done ! everyone is not the same so it's unfair to put yourself down for such things .. also applies to comparing yourself to someone because in the end you'll still be you .. even if you don't like it .. that makes you unique ofcourse , there's only one of you in this world so embrace yourself for that !! you're one of a kind (⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)

oh, but, life's the same, it's boring ... ☆

yes , a lot of days could end up being the exact same because like , there are 365 days in a year so you can except most of them to be similar .. but as a new year starts , ofc many things change without you even noticing it , you grow older ofcourse , and you could be starting a new year in school , you meet new people and so on ! if you compare your life from a year ago or even a few months ago to now , you'll surely notice a few differences atleast so .. life is not reaaaaally the same right .... everyday is a new experience ! literally anything and i mean anything could happen the next day , you could even win the lottery who knows 🤫

when i felt like everyday was the same , i tried changing my patterns .. (my current favourite thing to do is go on a walk ! sometimes i take my dog w me , it's super fun) i would do small things that i dont usually do like sketch ! or i attempt cooking something new .. but obviously there were a LOT of days where i did nothing , sometimes even weeks , and that's okay ! we all deserve days where we do nothing ESPECIALLY if you're someone who is working or js in school / college everyday .. you deserve that break

i think a big factor is being unproductive ? don't get me wrong , i still am my same unproductive self at times unfortunately , n sometimes they do get so bad that they lead to a terrible burnout .. n i went through a rly bad burnout not long ago n trust me you do not want to get this far :( how do i deal with this ? (let's take studying as an example here) well i always start off with small portions , even if it's just a page or two . n then i slowly keep increasing the amount of pages i read .. n yes ofc , i understand how brutal burnouts can get sometimes n that's why it's important to not overwhelm yourself by attempting to finish a big portion of your studies in one go .. just take it easy , let the information marinate in your head for a bit before you move on to the next topic .. so basically what im trying to say here is don't overwhelm yourself with big tasks especially when you're already burntout

friends .. they're great ☆

the thing that honestly improved my life by a mile is getting good friends .. I've had my fair share of bad friend groups so trust me when I say this , it's better to be alone than with people who drain you mentally because . you deserve someone who treats you the way you actually want to be treated .

"but it's hard to make friends" i completely get this because i am a very shy person myself </3 but i think you could start by trying to make friends online ! its easy to find someone with similar interests on the internet .. so when you feel down atleast you know that there's someone on the other side of the world who cares for you ..

but this doesn't change the fact that solitude is AMAZING too (tbh i could go on for a really long time on how i love being by myself but this is already getting super lengthy ...) you can be your own friend too ! (okay see now this seems insane but if it makes you happy WHO CARES AMIRITE) i personally enjoy my own company like omg .. she can get a good laugh out of me sometimes ... you can do whatever you want when you're alone ! you can dance to your favourite playlist or experiment with a bunch of stuff ! if you get bored you can watch your favourite movie or consume your favourite piece of media that no one gets like you 🤫 so , as much as making friends sounds great , let's appreciate solitude too !!

ah, life can be beautiful sometimes? ☆

one of the biggest reasons i go on walks almost regularly is to remind myself how beautiful the world can be sometimes .. (atp half of this is me convincing you all to go on walks) i live in a beautiful neighbourhood n there are a lot of different flowers and fruits that grow here and that makes me really happy . going on early morning walks especially is soo fun , the world is so quiet then and you can even watch the sunrise 🥹

another thing is buying myself things i like ... especially clothes ... if you think you would look good in something then js go ahead and buy it ! don't mind what other people think because like ... YOU are wearing it and if people around you have a problem with that then i think they should close their damn eyes and not look at you if it bothers them that much 🤦 you deserve to feel confident and comfortable in your own skin , you deserve to dress the way you want to ! so if you feel like dressing a particular way would make you feel better .. GO FOR IT !!! this applies to other things you like, maybe accessories, merch or stationary that look cute .. it's okay even if people judge you for your style because in the end they're the ones who are boring and miserable because they spend soo much time hating on others 😒

life is soo much more fun when you take care of yourself trust me ... you deserve to be taken care of !! so spoil yourself once in a while i promise it's okay as long as it makes you happy <3

to sum it all up .. yes , good times don't last forever but so don't bad times , and you and i both can get through a bad day because life is still going on (⁠*⁠˘⁠︶⁠˘⁠*⁠)⁠.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ bad times too , will pass . so please believe in yourself and hold on !! i love you

again, this is all how*I* like to cheer myself up so pls don't take anything here in a bad way 😖 all of this was made with good intentions and im so sorry if i still ended up hurting anyone in any way ..

[andscene-if]

Move over, LIs, I am all about MC here! Big MChead over here and I have QUESTIONS!!

How old is MC?

Do they have siblings?

Did their parents keep them out of spotlight or was MC always around at premieres, red carpets, etc.?

Did MC willingly get involved in their parents' films? Or did they try to avoid appearing in them first before realizing no one else is willing to hire them for (insert reason here)?

Related to #4, did MC have a say in appearing in the family films?

Did MC have non-acting experience, like modelling, singing, backstage work?

Does MC use their normal name when acting or do they have a stage name?

Did they go to a performance/filming school?

Did they act in indie films?

How will MCs that normally wouldn't fit into the mold of a "Hollywood Movie Star" be treated? Like queer MCs, trans MCs, male MCs who are small and/or feminine, female MCs who are muscular and/or butch etc. Or for the sake of the story, will such things be ignored, which is more than fair?

wait, we're kinda in sync cause i've got an MC article queued haha

i imagine them in the 20-22 range, so relatively young

yes, one older sister and their age gap is 8 years, so you had slightly different childhoods. when MC was only 1/2 years old is when things really started picking up in your parents' careers, so you've never really experienced the "struggle life" per se. bc of this age difference MC and their sister tend to clash, especially if you're someone who parties 24/7. but your relationship can improve or worsen even more over the course of the story

they did take you to premiers, events, galas, and such. MC quickly got used to that, because they raised MC at the beginning/height of their career, so that's definitely a world MC knows very well

all their film creds were in their early/mid teens, so i'd say MC was pretty excited to be invited onto their parents' set as a legit actor, just bc i think lots of kids would be. and it was a calculated move on their parents' part to get MC's foot in the door. so, it's not bc people wouldn't hire them, they actually got plenty audition interest, but your parents were adamant on finishing school first + it's not like they were dependent on MC for money

maybe some films they were less ecstatic about, but it's not like they were casted as the lead/main ones. it was kind of like the Apatow family with their kids, where you play a minor role, get your name out there, and then have something to show off your acting experience

they received lessons in the big 3 (modelling, acting, and singing) during their childhood!

you can decide but that doesn't mean the media/public will respect that! (lots of them drop your parents' name when reporting on MC)

nope, the nearest performing arts private school was too far, so they decided on weekly lessons, and a private school within the area, so that their busy schedules didn't put too much of a strain on family time together

yes, a couple, after highschool. some they made with friends, unpaid and for fun, and others they were hired to do. but people don't really care about all that; they hear "nepo baby" and see the family production creds, and immediately stamp you as "undeserving & talentless". so only very few people know of those films in which MC actually performs quite well in

tbh, there might be a few comments here and there, but majorly it will be ignored for story purposes, as it would be very hard to add something unique to every person!

hope this gave much more insight!!

[tc-doherty]

Sword Fighting for Writers (New and Improved!)

This is not about modern fencing, this is about historical battlefield sword fighting. My credentials are that I studied Bolognese fencing (a northern Italian style from the 1500s) for several years and was preparing to take my black belt ~equivalent~ exam the year that I was injured and had to quit. Naturally, I started taking those lessons to learn more about sword fighting because I write about battlefield fighting a lot. This is information that I learned that should be helpful for other authors who haven't taken classes like that. (It's very long)

The very first point is one that I have spoken about multiple times and mentioned above. Historical fighting is not fencing as we know it today. Modern fencing is a sport. Historical fencing existed as a way to kill your opponents. These moves have the potential to kill someone, they are dangerous literally by design. This is a foreign attitude to us today but it's very obvious once you have completed a set of moves with a sword and think "oh yes, that would kill someone absolutely".

The point is, if your characters are sparring please, please make sure that they are in protective gear. These moves are still dangerous with blunt steel, they are still dangerous with wooden swords. I got bruises like you wouldn't believe moving at one quarter speed without gear on. Even with gear I've heard about all kinds of gnarly accidents including the time my classmate went to a competition got an entire blunt sword shoved through his hand. A sparring match should never be full speed without gear, and even with gear it probably still shouldn't be.

Sparring matches tend to go to a certain number of points rather than one continuous duel. They're quick - the longest match I ever saw was maybe 3-4 minutes and the quickest was over in 45 seconds. Once a point was scored they would reset to the beginning and go again.

Now that that's out of the way, let's go!

The anatomy of a blade!

Typically a European sword is sharpened at the top and blunt at the bottom. In Bolognese these are referred to as the "weak" and the "strong". You want to make sure that whatever attack or defense you're doing, you're at the right distance to use the correct part of the sword. If you try to block an attack with the weak, your sword will get smacked out of the way. If you try to land an attack with the strong you won't have the momentum to land it meaningfully (plus it'll take you dangerously close to your opponent).

Swords are not particularly heavy. I have two one-handed swords and one two-handed sword and they are all between 1.5 and 2.5 pounds. But you can definitely tell a difference based on how well a sword is balanced. My steel sword is almost a pound heavier than my synthetic sword, but the steel is much easier to use because it's better balanced. Of course it weighs on you over time but if weapons are too heavy to carry and use effectively for several hours, then they're more danger than they're worth.

Sword fighting isn't just sword fighting!

We love swords because swords are cool and the rule of cool is important, but historically a single-handed sword wasn't the weapon of choice for the battlefield. They would be your backup weapon in battle and the weapon you carried while traveling. The point is that these are schools of fighting. Any character who studied under a master would not just know one-handed sword. They would know two-handed sword, polearms, dagger fighting, cane fighting, grappling…they would know all kinds of different things because the school is built off the same principles and they apply to any weapon you happen to pick up. Excluding archery. I have no experience with that so I can't speak on it. I will be referring specifically to sword fighting, however this post applies to everything that would be contained within a single school.

Example illustrations from Bolognese treatises with different weapons:

All sword fighting is not created equal!

Bolognese sword fighting has a lots of quirks that are not present in other styles, such as the idea that our sword is in front of us 99% of the time. Yes, really! Surprisingly that's not actually universal. Bolognese fencing can start with either leg leading whereas a lot of styles have you use only your dominant leg and arm. It's also unique in the fact that every single stance is a usable defensive guard, and every attack you make is a logical conclusion of moving from one guard to another.

The overall motto of Bolognese sword fighting is that it's better to lose than to win without elegance:

Bolognese was not only functional, it had to be beautiful as well. The national style can be used to inform the personality of your character's sword fighting and it's always a good way to create tension/danger if you have characters who have studied different styles come up against each other. There was a joke among the Bolognese students about going up against German fencers because they had a nasty habit of running onto our swords and breaking their ribs, because they simply didn't expect the sword to be in front. Muscle memory is your friend, but it can also get you pretty good if you rely on it entirely.

Another unique feature of Bolognese fencing is that they don't encourage you to move first. It's very much about trying to trick your opponents into making a mistake. It's heavily based on feinting and baiting and all kinds of tricks because sword fighting is primarily reliant on muscle memory. Some styles would consider this cowardly, but Bolognese takes the opinion that it's foolish to move first and give your opponent so many options:

I just want to give people the perspective of how different styles can be and how you can really put a lot of thought into what kind of country or area your characters come from and what their sword fighting might be like as a result.

Okay, so how does sword fighting actually work?

It's all about control. You try to control the distance between you and your opponent and you try to control what moves your opponent can make. This is basically too obvious for people to really think about if you haven't done it.

Every weapon has a range that it works best in and in order to fight effectively you need to make sure that you are making the best possible use of that range. If you get too far away you won't be able to attack, but you can bait your opponent because you have just that little bit of extra distance to move if they fall for it. If you get too close you get within grappling range, and that's a whole other kettle of fish. I never ended up making a post about grappling and I personally hated doing it, but it is something that I'm willing to talk about if people are interested.

As for controlling the movements, that's what the guards are for. If you stand in a specific posture, you can drastically limit how many moves your opponent is able to make, which makes it much easier for you to retaliate. It's not one to one of course! Any guard that you stand in might have 2 or 3 options that your opponent can use, and each of those options might have 3 or 4 responses that you can make. But it's much better than the nine (at least) options that your opponent can make to begin with if you aren't standing in a way that makes some of them impossible:

Cuts in Bolognese:

Specific sword movements!

Cut, a slashing attack which is generally delivered to the head and limbs. You can do a cut to the torso but given how thick clothing was at the time (not even counting on armor or shields) you generally wouldn't be able to do enough damage to make it worth it. On a related note, dagger work in the past was not a cutting style the way that knife fighting is today, they were mostly used for stabbing because the clothing was just too thick to do anything else.

Thrust, a stabbing attack which is generally delivered to the torso.

Bait/invitation, to stand in such a way that encourages your opponent to attack you in a specific manner. Pulling this off successfully is harder than it sounds, if it's too subtle they might not notice and if it's too obvious they'll probably realize it's a trap. You have to make your invitation seem like an accident, a weakness they can exploit, in order to lure them into doing what you want them to do.

Feint, pretend to do one action in order to take advantage of your opponent's response. When you feint an attack you won't commit fully. You might start from half a step further back than what would usually be useful or not attack as deeply or both. You need the attack to be shallow so that you can regain control quickly and do the attack that you actually intend to do. This can often be in response to a bait, if you recognize it. You trick the opponent into thinking that they're tricking you, and take advantage of that!

Stringere, (this one might be specific to Bolognese idk but it's fun) could also be called something like a press or a constraint. Basically you slide your sword slowly down the length of your opponent's sword and apply pressure to it, this can force a hesitating opponent to move. And if they don't move, you can just stab them super quickly. It's fun to do, and scary to be on the other side of.

Beat, hitting an opponent's sword with such force that it completely throws it out of the way leaving an opening for you to exploit. For this you would want to hit the weak of your opponent's sword, and it will generally push the sword off to their dominant side or down. Pushing an opponent's sword right in front of their chest obviously isn't going to make things easier for you. If you beat upwards, it's fairly easy to gain the momentum to turn that around into a descending attack.

And that's basically everything that you would do with a sword. A duel between two people would be give-and-take, as some moves bring you closer together and some moves take you farther away and cause your opponent to chase you. Some things like a bait or a stringere (or a beat, occasionally) would be used at the beginning of a duel, when you have room to do them safely. But they could also be done in the middle if your characters end up breaking off somehow and backing up. It's also not uncommon for a duel to end up in grappling if the moves just bring them too close and that becomes a more viable strategy.

Swords compared to movies!

I was not particularly surprised to learn that yes, you absolutely do feel a strong hit and it can make your hand or arm go numb, that made sense. However, I was surprised to learn how much of sword fighting really is just sword on sword because I had often heard people talking about how that is flashy for the movies but not actually accurate. But it is accurate! Sometimes you would have a shield, dagger, or cloak in your other hand (anything in your other hand is generally used for blocking, not really dual wielding as such) but a lot of time it is just two people with swords whaling on each other and your sword is both your weapon and your shield.

Naming sword moves!

I don't really know that you need to do this but if you are writing a fantasy story and you want to make the sword style seem more established you can.

In the case of Bolognese most of the names are extremely literal (head guard, face guard, the attack 'fendente' just means 'to the teeth') but a few of the guard names are more poetic.

Like the guard of the unicorn, where your sword is pointed down from above like a unicorn rampant. There's the iron door guard which is "harder to get through than an iron door", and its cousin the iron door wild boar guard which is similar but allows you to attack from the side like a boar with its tusks. Literal or poetic, you can do whatever you want so go nuts!

[black-flag-if]

So just some things I am seeing in my inbox. I'm glad that everyone is enjoying it. I'm glad for that because I was worried. I'm still not satisfied with it so I will change some things for my peace and hopefully less stress and frustration when I try some new things with codes.

With that said, some answers from some questions/comments in my inbox:

Black Flag is not aro/ace friendly. You can try to play but it's very romance based so if you aren't into that, you might have a very short experience. I do offer friendship routes, but the story becomes very short without the romance. If you find it okay even without the romance, awesome! Just know what you're getting into.

Jacques/Phoenix/Riley I don't see this as a issue on the coding side but someone said they got Phoenix at the party even if they don't romance them. You can get Phoenix to come on the romance path only. You can invite them as a friend but they won't or shouldn't come. Is anyone else having an issue? Jacques should also not comment on you flirting with others if you don't flirt with anyone. I played a messy route and played a loyal route. Both end up fine and work as intended so I'm not sure, but if others are having an issue too maybe I can get a better idea of what's going on.

Ryder kiss is only available on the bold path . So if you got it once but not another time, that's why. Should you replay it for bold? I wouldn't since there'll be a kiss only meant for the shy route, too. Ryder as flirtatious as they are actually doesn't like making the move first, hence why they hold back on the shy path. F!Ryder is bolder and she would make the move first but only when certain conditions are met.

Riley has a small crush on MC and the only one, too, but I don't know if it's romantic as it is that they just think MC is just really cool and someone new on the team. If you don't romance them, they'll just be a good friend. If you do flirt, and you see them being more friendly, it's because of that. So if you see some things on one playthrough and not on another, that's why.

Someone mentioned having clues which paths are flirty/romantic. I think the choices are pretty straightforward but if it's something you'd like, I can implement icons next to the choices. Are you finding the choices difficult to distinguish?

No, you don't have to improve friendships with others or your team. Yes, it will have consequences, and a different ending/path. But negative relationship with the team will not stop you from having a happy ending. You'll just have a different ending. And no, I don't know how many endings there'll be yet. So far, I have three but that is bound to change and because I plan to take into account how MC actually does in the competition.

No, you don't have to know about racing. I did add vocab for those that might not be familiar. There will be choices when we get to the driving in Chapter 3 that will have an affect overall on MCs capabilities but I will also try to give those answers either a chapter before or earlier in the same chapter so you just need to pay attention.

I think that's all for now.

[earl-grey-teacake]

How’d you get into writing? I have a few general ideas but have no idea how they would come to fruition 😭!

I got into writing fanfic because I really wanted to see certain things written out and to read them. I just felt this overwhelming need to write just so I could read it. It is very much "if you want to eat something, you have to make it yourself."

I know you are just asking how I got into it but I thought I would include my process in case you found it helpful. For background, I've been writing fanfic for 7 years. For a very long time, I was not good at writing. I learned English very close to the end of my critical period for language learning and struggled for over a decade before I got my footing. Through my own experiences and what I learned from school, I figured out how I prefer to go about write.

I am going to use First Fight from the Baby!Loscar AU as an example since it took me the longest to write. I came up with the idea in April but did not manage to finish it until August but I felt I improved my writing process a lot more.

The idea- which is the stage I think you are at. You have an idea and maybe a scene figured out but you haven't worked it out how this scene connects and how everything forms a whole story.

My idea was just " Logan and Oscar having their first big fight and not handling it well."

2. Write the most imperfect draft you can- I don't say rough draft because it makes people think that the next draft has to be a final draft. I genuinely mean imperfect. Grammar and punctuation? Does not matter. Formatting? Doesn't exist. Logic and cohesive timeline? Irrelevant. What you want is for all your thoughts and ideas to be on a page and it can be in any way you want. It can be bullet points, written scenes, summaries. Doesn't matter.

My imperfect draft was just this section of dialogue and it sat on my computer for months

“We are not friends! Go away!” Oscar had yelled.

“I don’t like you! I hate you!” Logan had yelled back.

“I hate you too!” Those were the last words spoken between them.

3. Know what you want to get across- This is your Northern star, it will guide you when you are lost. Dialogue, timelines, plot- all of those things are subject to change. What isn't going to change is the message you wanted to get across. What is your theme, your core?

For First Fight, it was "these kids do not handle being separated very well. They love each other, they had a misunderstanding, and now they refuse to apologize to each other. As a result they are suffering."

4. You write the roughest draft known to man- I mean very, very rough. Expand a a bit on your imperfect draft, write a couple more scenes you would like to see. They don't need to go together yet, they just need to be on paper. Write out every scene you would like to see play out.

This was Oscar and Logan refusing to play together, Oscar playing alone with Charles, and the ending where they reconcile.

5. Polish up those sections- I know people say to polish at the end and I also do that but making the scenes you wrote look nice will help you feel confident in your work. Include the descriptions, the formatting, the add that bit of sparkle to the dialogue. Figure out the writing style you want to write in and edit all the sections to fit that.

6. Lock in- This is the not so fun part. Pick a free day, get a drink. Now is the time to write everything in between. The boring dialogue, the paragraphs that transition the reader from one scene to another, the scenes that are just lead up to the bigger, funner, more impressive scenes. They don't need to be perfect that just need to be on the page. By the end of it, you will have a some what cohesive plot. Will it be perfect? No. Will you enjoy reading it? Not really. Does it make you want to give up and write something else? Yes, but do not do that.

7. Read it and mull it over for a day- Do not touch the rough draft. Just read it and think about it. Do you like how the plot is? Do you want it funnier? sadder? Do you like how the characters are speaking? Does it feel natural to you? Is it giving what you want it to give? Is it following your Northern star?

8. Change everything you don't like- Delete everything you don't love. If it bothered you enough to stick with you for a day, you can toss it out. You feel like you need permission to delete it? Here's your permission, delete it. I have deleted half of a fic before. Nothing is sacred because none of it is perfect. Toss it out. Replace it something newer. Do you feel better when you replace it? Yes, then that's great. You don't feel better? Put something else in.

9. Do you love to read it?- It is not would other people love to read it. Is it not "is it perfect?" It is do you love to read it, if you were to come across this fic in the middle of the day on AO3. Would you be excited to see it? If the answer is no, repeat step 8 and 9. Do it until the answer is yes or until you cannot change anything else in it.

10. Polish it- Now that you love your work, it is the time to make it easier to read. Separate out your paragraphs, throw it into a grammar checker, format (bold, italicize, etc.). This is where you make it look pretty.

11. Post it- Congratulations! You posted your work on AO3! You did it! Pat yourself on the back and treat yourself to some boba. The work is your baby. You worked hard on it and you should be proud.

FAQ

I wrote all of this and I love it but what if other people don't love it?

They will. None of us writing know for sure if people will love or hate our work before we post it. So until someone outright sends a 500 word count rant about how much they despise it, assume everyone will love it.

What if it isn't perfect?

Many things in this world aren't perfect and we love them. A plushie that was sewn wrong or is missing an ear is still picked up and loved. A puppy missing a leg or an eye is still a beloved part of the family. Writing isn't about being perfect, it is about being human. It is your words, your emotions, and your imagination all on a page and like all humans, you writing will improve as we all do. I don't consider any of my writing perfect and yet, I continue to write because I want to get better and because I love it.

What do you use to write?

You don't need any tools to write but some make it easier for you than others. I recently spent money on Bsun Tuzi switches for my keyboard and it had helped me write a lot quicker but a mechanical keyboard is an investment and a pricey one.

I use Apple Pages to write since I like how clean their format it. I also organize my work on Notion or Obsidian,

I started off writing on Google docs and Word so you don't need the fancy stuff.

I don't know how to write dialogue.

Since I mainly do F1 and Indycar RPF, my biggest recommendations is to listen to Grill the Grid and podcasts. I don't usually be press interviews since I find the drivers to be more stifled and are likely saying what their team wants to say. They tend to be a bit more human on Grill the Grid and podcasts.

I just listen and see what each of them like to talk about, how they talk, etc.

I hope this helps. If you want me to elaborate on something, let me know. Feel free to ask me more questions.

[boringbones]

A DAY IN A BUNCH FAMILY: (With Social consequences mod)

I'm making some improvements to Social Consequences to include more interactions between parents and children, thereby strengthening family ties while allowing Sims to build or end marriages. This mod aims to make the gameplay experience richer and more dynamic, while at the same time giving the Sims (along with all my other mods) total autonomy to live.

This is a brief account of what happened one day at the Bunch family's house! (without me needing to control anything, everything was autonomous)

(As this is a test base, I didn't use my filters so my game should be darker than usual, since my lighting mod was made to be used together with my filters. Ignore that. Focus completely on Gameplay)

A DAY IN A BUNCH FAMILY:

I opened the center and the sons began to interact with their parents, while the daughters went on to do their independent activities.

Soon after, the youngest son invited his father to an American football match.

The mother took the opportunity to watch TV with her daughter and strengthen their bonds. Meanwhile, the eldest son felt snubbed by his sister

The family got together for lunch (although it was too late for that, but it was a Sunday, so it was okay)

Catarina Langerak's father got in touch to see if he could take his daughter to play with the children, something to which I promptly replied yes :D

Then they arrived (and here I had to welcome them because sims don't do it themselves even with the itunes/xml tweaks (so if anyone wants to make a mod for this, I'd be happy to share and use it) so I invited them in.

The father told his daughter to behave and remained in the house to interact with the other parents

He discovered that he had a trait in common with his mother Bunch! What a coincidence!

And yes, the game already informed me that they would have chemistry, that is, danger in sight for the Pai Bunch. But do not worry. Potential suitors exist in droves for those who are married. However, it is the character of the person that defines where this goes (and if it goes)

The girls went to play on the swing in the meantime

Katarina's father upgraded my kitchen sink (actually started and never finished) while the family had a snack.

Bunch's youngest son asked for a bedtime story. He asked many family members until his father answered him. I wonder if I should tune the Get Out Project to make autonomy a little slower to make the sims more consistent. But I like the way things are going (so I'm waiting for feedback, or for someone to come and complain about it)

Then the youngest daughter discovers a monster under her bed and runs out of the room. In the end, a lot of things that I didn't even show happened. They've progressed relationally, they've progressed in terms of skill, they've progressed in terms of making friends with their neighbors. There was progress and it all happened in a single day without me having to do anything (except answer the door)

What was your favorite part of this story? Want to try out your game with my mods, Social Consequences is in early access right now, and you can find all my other mods on my website! <3

I recommend combining all my mods for a complete experience. Each of them operates in different segments of the game and when combined they enrich the variety and gameplay possibilities that The Sims 3 delivers!

Thanks for watching!

[h-didanart]

How do you feel about TSAMS ships? All the way from Earth x Monty (canon/generally liked ships) to Sun x Bloodmoon (not canon/rare or generally not liked ships)?

Don't ask how I know Sun x Bloodmoon exists btw

Ooh, SAMS ships eh? I’m gonna list all the ones I know about, if I miss one you’re curious about just let me know, k?

Again, I will list the ones I know about.

(This is gonna reveal my lurking habits on ao3 god fuc—)

Mearth, Monty X Earth - cute, I like the dynamic they have.

KidsCove, Foxy X Sun - I like this one. I do. I understand the vas are sick of the jokes tho, bit ironic considering they’re still dragging the jokes around, but oh well. It could be cute to see develop, and lead to improvement to both characters general health. At least I’d like to think it would

GlitterGolf, Monty X Sun - in SAMS? No. Monty is a jerk towards Sun, I don’t like it when Monty is too rude to him. Generally hate that type of thing anyways. In canon Security Breach however…… Ye :3 Is my otp.

Lumini, Lunar X Gemini - I feel neutral. It’d be cool if it happened, but after all these three have gone through it probably won’t. And I’m fine with that

EclipseXSun - I think this is the most popular one. I don’t know how to feel about it. On one hand, there’s canon, and canon says Eclipse is and always was horrible to Sun, and that makes it an immediate no. I like my ships healthy. But then comes in Eclipse Redemption stories, and I suppose it’d kinda make sense in those? I don’t know man

BloodySun, BM X Sun - iiiii don’t knooooooow. See, BM has done a lot of shit, they’ve traumatized the family so much. Sun hates them. It would never work out. But then there’s this one fic, this one, where Sun finds Original crying in the vents over his twin, and he helps them. And— and— and it’s a BloodySun fic, and it establishes character parallels so well, it shows their feelings so well, it makes it make sense! I- I don’t KNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW

SolarMoon- ……………. I’m scared of saying anything about this, I don’t want to get death threats

MechShark, Solar X Ruin- YEEEEEEEAHHH CANON CANNOT HURT ME WHERE IM GOING— uh— ahem— I like it. I cannot explain why but I’ve shipped them since Ruin started messing with the arcade machines. I like to see people still shipping it even through the doomed angle, there’s just something about this that makes it click, y’know. I myself have an au where MechShark is somewhat canon, it’s one sided and stays one sided, with Solar telling Ruin he’s aro when it confesses, and then they stay friends. Because I don’t care if they’re lovers or friends, I just like the idea of them being buds.

Eclipse trio, Eclipse X Solar X Ruin- this is actually kinda funny? I don’t know, this feels like a crackship, no offense to anyone, that’s just the vibes I’m getting. Don’t feel in any particular way about this one

Earth X Nebula- interesting, I guess. We haven’t really seen much of Nebula and I can’t really build a concrete profile for her from what we know, but I guess it’d be cool?

KillCode X Sun- I don’t like the sound of this one. KillCode caused (and helped cause) Sun a lot of trauma, it just wouldn’t feel right. That said, there is a fic that has this ship and develops it in a healthy way, and that one I like.

PumpkinGuts- next question

KillCode X SolarFlare- I can see it, kinda. Don’t hate it, but also don’t love it

Eclipse X Moon- no. I don’t care what you say about enemies to lovers, this one just doesn’t vibe with me.

GolfDrop, Monty X Moon- ehh, no. Don’t really like it, can’t see Moon wanting a relationship with them (or in general), they’re both fine as friends. I don’t even ship this in Security Breach

Forkface X Ruined Monty- I am saddened I didn’t see the content of them before the death, I wanted to experience this, I wanted to see them :(

Soppet, Solar X Puppet- sure? Don’t think much about this one

ShadowPlanet, Earth X Eclipse- I don’t really like it. I don’t like how fast it turned into a thing. I can see the appeal and what dynamic they could have, but I just don’t like this one

Solar X Sun- interesting pairing. Don’t particularly like it. I just feel like Solar’s trauma would likely get in the way. They both weren’t very close anyways, which is a real shame I would’ve loved to see them be at least friends.

Lunar X Helpy- Ehhhh? Don’t feel anything about this one :P

And that’s all I could think about and remember.

No hate to anyone who ships these, these are just my opinions, and opinions are subjective. Let’s all just have fun with these characters, yeah?

Man

AO3 scares me

[queerstake]

As a queer drawn to the faith and trying to deal with the messiness of entering into everything, I've been trying hard to read more of the Book of Mormon because I only have a very vague understanding of it's Whole Deal, but executive dysfunction, ADHD, and honestly, a million other excuses are making it very difficult. Are there any good resources for walking through the fundamentals? Childish but I feel like I'm disappointing the Lord if I'm not more on top of this.

Hi anon! I totally get it and yes, I can think of a few ideas!

If you're looking for ways to understand the BoM (or even just general doctrine) from more of a bird's eye view:

I hope you don't find this silly, but when I was a kid, the church published an illustrated children's version of the BoM that's obviously way quicker to flip through. It might be harder for you to find those exact editions I read as a kid if you don't have ready access to a church library, BUT I found this!! It's (almost) the ENTIRE BoM illustrated and summarized and it's online!

Looks like they put out videos too that summarize the BoM beginning to end. Here's a link to the video series. I haven't seen these, so I can't vouch for them, but they might be helpful! Similarly, there's a BoM in 60 seconds video you might find helpful.

If you'd benefit from a schedule, the church is currently studying the BoM in sunday school! The past few years, we've been using a study guide called Come Follow Me with weekly assigned reading chapters. I've actually been working on posts about CFM as they relate to queer mormon theology, but I haven't had much posted yet since I've been having a rocky start to 2024. As things improve, I'll be able to hopefully even establish a schedule on this blog!

I'm not sure if missionary lessons is something you're interested in at this point, and it's definitely not something you ever need to do, but the missionary lessons themselves are a pretty good doctrine intro if you're looking for just Mormonism 101 in a digestible way. The missionaries teach out a book called Preach My Gospel, which is available right here. You'll be interested in the lessons, which are found in Chapter 3. If you just scroll down, you'll see some of the links are labeled Lesson instead of Chapter--just click on those bad boys. And if you have any doctrinal questions, I'm always MORE than happy to talk about the church! You'll probably get a faster answer DMing me personally at @logans-mormon-blog, but I'll always answer asks here as soon as time permits.

If you're looking for easier ways to finish the BoM from beginning to end:

The BoM on tape. The church has an audiobook version available on the Gospel Library app and other audio apps like Spotify.

The Reader's Edition. If you can get your hand on a reader's edition, a lot of people find this is an easier way to plow through the BoM. What's special about this one is that it's formatted not like scripture but like prose, and it really does change the reading experience!

I don't know if this helps any, but I struggle with some of the same issues as you and I'm always bitterly disappointed when I'm not able to move mountains. If I had my way, I'd be the most well-read scriptorian of all time and this blog would be updated constantly. But life often doesn't shake out that way. I spend way more time than I want to with my brain entirely burned out of my head. So you're not alone, if that's any comfort. I think God gets it--he made our brains, after all, and knows how hard it is to wrestle with. It's easier said than done, but don't beat yourself up. God loves the both of us and he's the most perfectly patient person who's ever lived. He's not frustrated or disappointed with our efforts. Religion exists, in my opinion, to help improve and enrich our lives, not make them more challenging OR even to make them perfect if we only could just run fast enough. I too wish I could be more diligent and on it, but shit happens, right? And we're not on earth to be perfect, we're here to be happy and to learn. When Joseph Smith was translating the BoM, God told him "Do not run faster or labor more than you have strength and means provided to enable you to translate; but be diligent unto the end." D&C 10:4. We're doing our damndest, and that's all God even wants from us.

If anyone else has more resource ideas, please let us know!

-Logan

[darkness-falls-tarot]

The cast of Romeo and Juliet with how they feel about the criticism.

All readings are alleged and for entertainment purposes only; please take each reading with a grain of salt.

How is the cast overall currently feeling about the work: the knight of cups reversed, the hermit, 6 of swords, 10 of cups - I think they feel like their creative talents and skills are not being used to the best of their abilities with this play in particular. They are each taking some time to quietly reflect on what lead to this and how they can learn from this. They’re ready to move past the negativity and also just move on in general I believe and find some work that leaves them all feeling satisfied and confident in their talent.

What is their feeling towards the audience reception: 2 of wands reversed, the star, 8 of swords - they’re taking those remarks to heart more than they should. I think they had some hope the public would be better than the critics but once that came out it’s caused them to start thinking things over and they have some regret due to this decision of doing the play in general.

What is their feeling towards the critics: temperance, 2 of swords, 3 of swords - I think they feel the critics have tried to be as objective as they can be but like the swinging swords in the last two cards; each swing made has cut someone. They feel like some critics were overly harsh towards the actors solely and said things that were unnecessary; this in turn has made them feel like they’re not good enough actors because of the critics say they can’t save the play what good are they?

What do they feel like could be improved in this play: 5 of pentacles reversed, 5 of wands, the fool reversed - they may feel there is hope in the play if they focus on trying to better the material and not let egos and the feeling that their star power alone can save it. They all know deep down the only way they can save this is by actually working hard and making it seem like they want to be on stage.

Is there any drama or rifts happening in the cast because of all this: yes.

What is this drama: the tower, ace of swords, the empress - chaos galore behind the scenes. Right now things are not going well because of the on set drama and it’s all because they need someone to blame so they’re blaming each other. If they stop and actually act like adults (I’m choosing to ignore the irony in this statement) they would know it’s not a who’s fault issue it’s everyone is at fault. Acknowledge the issue and start to work on the best solution to resolve this. Doing so they can end this play with a better work ethic and feeling of comradely between the cast and crew overall; it’s better to go out as a team then to fight your own team.

How long will this production run because of the criticism: 9 more months approximately.

How does the director feel about the criticism: 9 of wands reversed, 9 of pentacles reversed, judgment reversed - he feels like he’s not good enough at his job now and is starting to look back at this previous works and wondering if he should even continue to do this job or find something else in the industry. The reviews and comments have made him go through his previous work and he’s seeing the similarities to them all.

Has he learned anything from this experience: 8 of pentacles reversed, queen of wands reversed, 4 of wands - he is going to start working on ways to improve his work now. He’s aware his plays have flopped and this has woken him up that it’s not the cast he had or the places he did them but it’s him as the common denominator. If he actually tries to make the effort and learn how to make his plays better he will definitely find the work more rewarding and will have actors want to work with him.

Has the cast learned anything from this: 6 of cups, 4 of pentacles reversed, 7 of wands, 2 of pentacles reversed, ace of wands - I believe they learned not to just take a job because it’s seems easy or makes them fulfil their childhood dream of doing this role; they know you have to be challenged with your work and that making hasty decisions or doing something without much though can cause them more pain and misery. They know to look for work that gives them the feeling of passion and have this energy in them to embody the roles with absolute determination to make it come alive.

Oracle card for overall feelings of the cast: revelations await - this has been a journey for them to learn what they need to do in work and what they shouldn’t. It’s opened their eyes and minds to acting in a way they didn’t think of before. Some may not have taken the work seriously and got by for whatever reason; now they know that if you want the work to actually get you somewhere, actually work.

Oracle card for the director: scales of balance - he needs to learn what works in his plays and what doesn’t, he’s starting to get an understanding of things now and he is become aware of how his lack of passion is causing a lack of love for the work.

The overall energy in getting post read is one that is like disgust and annoyance. So I’m sensing they are learning but they hate they have to keep doing the play for the duration they need to.

[sucantslay]

Natsume Sakasaki -Analysis

(from Reminiscences Selection ELEMENT)

and more?

DISCLAIMER + WARNING!!!

I said it before, but I'll have to say it again that this is my PERSONAL ANALYSIS. If anything feels out of place, pls, feel free to have your own thoughts on this. ( Maybe your p.o.v is different from mine )

My English is bad...sorry, but I'll continue to improve it!

I'm not good with analysis so if anything makes you confused, pls do ask. I would love to help you with any problem(that I'm capable of)

Ok~ Let's go!

For those who think the war didn't affect on Natsume much since he looked un-scratch. Then, the answer is a no and yes.

I'm not going to talk about it like, fine by physic and hurt by mental because ( except Eichi ) none character at the end of the war got any physical problem on them. Mostly came from mental then it affects their physical state like Rei or Shu.

Kanata? No, he just lost his beliefs and changed for the better good ( Chiaki saved him in time )

Rei? Got sent away and later on turned into a daunting old man. In his case, he had a bad relationship with Ritsu and his mental problem affected on him made him act and do things like a granny.

Shu, got defeated and had a mental problem after that ( He's getting better later on )

Wataru is...kinda ok actually. Since he was able to figure out Eichi's plan so it didn't do much on him.

Natsume was being protected by the 2yr members of 5 Eccentic so of course, no damage was taken either.

But the thing is, Natsume wasn't able to join the real fight, most of the time, he had to stay back and watch as all his Nii-san fell apart. One by one.

Like, when all your friends got hurt but you can't do anything but stand aside and witness their fall down.

That is why he was so angry. He feels left out.

And he blames it on himself, that he's not as good as them, and that's why he never got a chance to stand up and fight with them.

Now, let's go back in time *click click the turnback button*

He does look a bit uncomfortable when he meets Tsumugi, but most of that is after he knows that Tsumugi knew he's past.

It's like: "Oh...no no, I hate that time and I hate you for being the witness of that old me. Too bad I can't make that memory disappear out of your head so I'm just kinda uncomfortable with you for remembering that stuff."

He starts to get a little un-friendly but then later on, it gets worse, when he learns that Tsumugi is a member of Fine and watches Eichi as his friend.

He goes soft when being with the 5 Eccentric for sure.

But it is still nothing compared to the mad and hatter-like after the war ended. When he ignores Tsumugi and anyone he doesn't care or give a sh^t about. ( He does care about Tsumugi. Sometimes he just acts a little unsettled with anyone he doesn't care/know about. It's not a completely don't care but...ya know what I mean )

( From Chapter 3/ In the rose garden )

So, what made him become like this? It was the war.

It is a yes when it comes to the war's effect on him. It's not as heavy as Shu or Rei or a total change in look and understanding like Kanata but it did have some effect on him.

Hence, it doesn't mean that he's fine. He's better than most but not fine.

How you do think that THAT big of an event can't be able to do something to him. It does!

And to whoever writes his character, I wish your pillow cold on both sides! Because he is such an interesting character to look into.

It's worth pointing out that the feeling of Natsume being an outsider isn't just an experience for him but also for the reader, the viewer who watches the anime and Element 3D version.

Consider the fact that in each episode, an Eccentric was being defeated or was mentioned about their fall.

There was nothing about Natsume but locking himself in a room and keep on writing the script for a happy ending that he was yearning for.

( this is a part of the Black Bird story/ the moment when the script got burned )

Kanata was defeated, then came Shu.

At the time Natsume was writing the script, it was already the end of it all. The situation can no longer be saved.

The Eccentric Party Night? It was all Natsume's dream.

The time when he gets to be with all his beloved Nii-san is in Episode 2. Then later on in Episode 5 when the last Eccentric are being executed.

It was the beginning and the end.

And I don't think if Natsume's plan got accepted by Wataru mean they'll win either. Yes, it is bad for the school as Wataru and Eichi mentioned in Episode 6, but I'm scared for the others who have already been defeated, can they able to gather strength after all the brutal executes their been through.

Simultaneously, the students still hate them. Their anti-fan exists.

They'll have to survive another war even if Eichi's already been taken down.

So in conclusion, if we put the Eccentric Party Night scene out of the picture, then Natsume does seem to be left out.

That why he was so mad, that why he wanted revenge. Even if none of his Nii-san want to, he wants it. Not just for them but also for himself.

He wants a chance to stand up with his own two feet, defeat the bad guy, and show all his beloved brothers that he has finally grown up.

Last but not least! He feels betrayed when Wataru joins Fine. But I think he did understand Wataru's decision. That why he still call Wataru his Nii-san, that why he just a little crappy but not a totally hated form of treatment for Wataru.

You can say he has a soft spot for Wataru, but he didn't beg nor have any rejection over it, he just went: "Why did my beloved Nii-san have to stay in the same unit as that demon...now it is even harder to take him down...what a headache."

He knows Wataru well, and lets Wataru do as he likes. And I think that was a very grown-up of him. After all that begging for the plan to be accepted by Wataru. After all that panic and suffering for his older senior to win it even if there was already no redo.

The Natsume now is calmer than before. Of course, he still has a lot to learn and more room for development, but yes, he may have some improve.

That all~ That alL~ ThaNk yOU for REAding~ XoxO!

Also made one for Tsumugi in the past if you want to read another analysis: https://www.tumblr.com/sucantslay/745663127662837760/aoba-tsumugi-analysis-from-the-animation

[marumafan]

Hello, I just have a few not-so-quick questions.

First, was the novel never written with a proper plot from the beginning? Did Sensei change their mind a lot during the writing process? I heard the later novels are really dark, but in the first one, they mentioned that their main focus was humor with a touch of emotional moments. If that’s true, wouldn’t there be a lot of plot holes?

Also, I’m trying to read the novel now, but Sensei’s writing style is really hard to follow, especially in the translated version. There are many parts where the wording feels unnecessarily complicated. Because of this, the translator had to include a lot of footnotes at the end of the novel just to explain what Sensei meant, which really disrupts the reading experience and makes it far less smooth. So, I really want to know if it’s worth spending my time reading this.

Ah, yes, a side question—did the relationship between Wolfram and his mother improve as the story went on? I’m really curious to know if Yuuri’s impression of their dynamic as a “silly mother and son” ever developed into something deeper. Whether it got better or worse doesn’t matter—I’d just like to see some kind of growth. If not, I think I’ll feel quite disappointed.

Btw, if you have time, could you summarize how the relationships within the royal family change as the story goes on too? I’d love to see how their characters and bonds grow beyond Yuuri’s first impressions of them. I don’t mind being spoiled.

Thank you very much.

I'll delete this answer in a few days if there's no interest... as the questions seem to be... particular. Edit(days later): I apparently think that 11 likes is enough interest to let this stay, it stays. I hope you're all having a wonderful day. PLOT 1) Yes, she changed her mind a lot. Up until the 3rd novel she didn't know the story would be picked up by the publisher or if it was going to be a one off/ two off. Then with novel 5 on she started this whole 'forbidden boxes' thing. She wanted to kill Conrad, fans threw a hissy fit and didn't let her. She made the grand reveal about Yuuri in novel 8-no spoilers-. In 9 she started a new arc- unsure if she was prepping the end, or if because the novels started to take years instead of months to be released she conjured it during those years, but along the way she prepped an ending (Yuuri dreaming the events of the novel), but then her editor GEG didn't let her end the novel like that by novel 13 . Then she tried to kill (CHARACTER), and again fans threw a hissy fit, he had to be revived . She does forget a lot and in the 'encyclopedia' for example, she asks us to pretend the 'plot-hole' is not there because 'sensei forgets'. Her forgetfulness is addressed often when things don't make sense, especially in interviews and such. STYLE AND TRANSLATION 2) I like the writing style, so I can't help here. This is a matter of opinion. As for translations, for decades the fandom didn't have these novels available and so many fans couldn't access them. All the many translators that helped with the translations did some SOLID work of love, unrewarded. Nowadays, you have AI. Gemini, ChatGPT, etc. If you don't like the translation, buy the novels and throw them at one of these AI. You'll get fairly accurate translations from them (good luck with the cultural points and the puns.) CHERIE AND WOLF 3) I don't understand this question. Wolf and his mom seem to be all right. Cherie loves all her sons, but has a soft spot for the youngest, because he looks like her . He has strange feelings for her, on the one hand he loves his mom - as do all the brothers- and accept her as the airhead she is. On the other hand, there are probably a lot of things he disapproves of of her - ... he seems uncomfortable with her many suitors in general and the harem she had. But if this is a relationship dynamic that interests you , you can read the novels and find out. The relationship is not strained... but they're not besties.