#but Taylor is a good example of this NOT being true

[itspileofgoodthings]

my least favorite thing is a controversial pop culture sensation of one kind or another where the conversation surrounding it falls into only two camps and every time the issue/person/couple comes up you hear EXACTLY one (1) of two (2) arguments about it and nothing else and it’s so stale you know exactly what will be said before it’s said and deviation from the script on either side simply never happens.

[fallstaticexit]

Prev / Next / Beginning / Pillowfort

AN: Just so no one is confused, I turned Summer Holiday into an official Landgraab. I needed another legendary blonde to play as Nancy’s yapping bougie cousin (her father’s niece) and she was casted immediately.

Transcript under the cut

Malcolm: [wails]

Geoffrey: [grumbles] I got ‘em.

Nancy: [yawns] I’ll get him. Need to feed him.

Geoffrey: [murmurs] Won’t fight you for it, dear.

Nancy: [snorts] Oh, I bet.

Nancy Narrates: [Malcolm was the polar opposite of Jonathan in every way. He cried relentlessly through the night. He could never keep anything down. His tiny body always wound so tightly]

Nancy: Ok, Malcolm. What would it take to for you to allow me one full night of sleep? That’s all I ask.

Malcolm: [grunts, hiccups]

Nancy: [softly] Oh, come on. What could possibly be so bad that you must cry like this?

Nancy Narrates: [Most nights, I cried with him, fearing he inherited my melancholy]

Malcolm: [whimpers softly]

Nancy: [sniffs] There. See? Calm. Easy. I know that’s asking alot, coming from me. We’ll get through this, together-

Jonathan: Mommy wahhh!

Malcolm: [cries]

Nancy: [sighs]

Nancy Narrates: [There was no time for tears, when they needed me to be stronger than that]

-

Malcolm: [babbles]

Nancy: [gasps] Are you happy? Are you smiling at me?

Malcolm: [coos]

Nancy Narrates: [As I learned more about Malcolm, I began to notice just how alike we were. The same curious and thoughtful nature that was in his eyes was in mine too ]

Nancy: You’re so beautiful. Geoffrey, look! Malcolm is smiling!

Geoffrey: Of course he is! He loves looking at you. See, Nance? Things just take time. You’re doing great.

-

Nancy Narrates: [And as I learned more about my sons, I was beginning to feel like I could be a mother they deserved]

Malcolm: [coos]

Jonathan: Hi Mommy!

-

Summer: It’s so good to see you, cousin! You’ve been such a shut-in lately! And wow, you look amazing for having had two kids. Although... If you ever want a referral to my guy down in Del Sol Valley, he does wonders. You’d never believe I had a cesarean.

Nancy: Thank you, but I want to avoid going under the knife. I know that’s all the rave now.

Summer: Good for you, hon! Wow, he sure has a set of lungs on him!

Nancy: [sheepishly] He prefers me to hold him, it’s why I haven’t hired a nanny for the boys yet.

Summer: Not many women in your position take such attentive care of their children as you do, cuz. It’s admirable. I think you’re doing a wonderful job.

Nancy: You really think so?

Summer: Oh, of course! Look at me, for example. I’m the definition of a great mother. I raise my boys to be model citizens while my husband runs his own law firm.

Summer: If there was anyone that understands the sacrifices of being a mother, it’s me, Nancy. Landgraab women are built for it, believe it or not.

Nancy: I suppose that’s hard to believe at times considering my mother-

Summer: Oh. Well, Aunt Queenie isn’t a true Landgraab now, is she? She probably wishes she were you, Nancy.

Nancy: What?

Summer: You can’t compare a common woman who married into wealth to born royalty, cuz. Just saying.

Collin: Mom! Taylor pushed me in the mud!!

Taylor: I did not! He FELL!

Collin: No, you pushed me, dickhead!

Taylor: You’re the dickhead, loser!

Collin: SHUT THE HELL UP!

Summer: Ugh! The both of you, zip it! Maria! Maria!! The twins, por favor!

Summer: Summer: My god, I have to do everything! Nance, trust me, motherhood is a thankless job. It really is. My boys would be lost without me, you hear me? Yours are so lucky to have you. Nancy?

Nancy: [inhales sharply]

Nancy Narrates: [Don’t. Please don’t. I’ve worked so hard-]

Summer: [snaps fingers] Hello? Please clean this filthy child, Maria! Rápido! Anyway, what were we talking about?

-

[giggling]

Geoffrey: Then, the big dinosaur came and gobbled up all the little dinosaurs with his big, nasty dinosaurs teeth! Chomp chomp chomp!

Malcolm: [squeals]

Jonathan: He eat all of them, daddy?!

Geoffrey: Every. Single. Last. One!

Geoffrey: But then, the even bigger dinosaur came and ate him!

Malcolm: [gasps]

Jonathan: And then I eat him, Malcolm!

Malcolm: [giggles] Me too!

Geoffrey: Hey, save some dinosaurs for daddy!

Malcolm: Mama! Mama!

Jonathan: Hi Mommy! [whispers] Mommy can eat dinosaurs too, right? Even though she’s a girl?

Geoffrey: Everyone can eat them, especially mommies. [laughs] Hey, Nance. Rough night, huh? Come to bed. I’ll read another story.

Jonathan & Malcolm: YAY!

Nancy: What will you read us?

Geoffrey: How about I tell the story of the handsome king and his beautiful queen and their two silly, little princes?

Nancy: Does this story have a happy ending?

Geoffrey: [grins] It sure does.

[arcadiabaytornado]

Max Caulfield is an unreliable narrator. The game provides many examples of Max saying/thinking something that isn't particularly true, such as Max swearing up and down that she's a loner who might as well be invisible to her classmates.

We see a lot of evidence to dispute this idea. While she might not have as many friends as someone like Dana does, she's only been at Blackwell for a month, and she's already made three friends. We see in texts that Max and Kate have gotten tea together a few times, and it's implied that she hangs out with Warren during science class. She also seems to friends with Dana, though we get less details about that relationship.

Most of her other classmates know who she is as well. They address her by name, and most of them speak to her like this isn't their first conversation. They may not know her well, sure, but Max a has only been at Blackwell a month. The fact that so many people are familiar with her show that she's not nearly as much of an invisible loner as she thinks she is.

There's a few other things that back this up: A: Max has 81 friends on her social media profile. That's a pretty big number. B: Max has made an arch enemy in Victoria after only being at school for a few weeks. C: She's left an impression on Stella and Taylor even though it's said that she's never really spoke to either of them before the events of the game.

Max is an unreliable narrator. She's a good example someone who has a perspective of themselves that necessarily translate into reality, and she's also a good example that we're often much harsher on ourselves than other people are. She thinks no notices her, but most of Blackwell seem to think of her fondly. It's a good reminder that people don't get themselves from a 3rd person view, and if we did, there's a good chance a lot of the negative perceptions we have about ourselves would look differently in another light.

[taylortruther]

also re: the racial component of TS/fan base, if you haven't you should watch Alex Avila's video on Taylor Swift, I think it was really well done

this is SO good. thank you SO much for this recommendation.

i really liked how avila noted how masterfully taylor blends authenticity and social normativity - "the reason taylor swift seems so authentic to young girls is because she's conforming to an image [of white patriarchal girlhood] that young women internalized from a young age." similarly, the popular feminism of 2014 (when 1989 was released) was flimsy and did not challenge patriarchal norms, and we see how she made feminism part of 1989's branding.

and he asks a question i often pose: is there anything subversive in idolizing the most popular cultural object? does poptimism (the critique of pop music as a serious form of art) simply reinforce existing power structures??

taylor swift and whiteness

understanding how someone becomes a legend and icon means understanding how they challenge, but also reinforce, the biases in society, which includes race, class, gender, and so forth. and "there IS something deeply white about [taylor's] image" (1:18:33). her image is cultural whiteness! taylor swift's relatability (which is and has always been part of her brand), her social capital, her social normativity, is directly tied to the neoliberal racial philosophy that, instead of calling whiteness superior, establishes whiteness as the norm (1:21:23).

millennials want celebrities to be morally pure. this is a mistake.

also - LOVE that he points out that millennials don't judge female celebrities by their sexuality or modesty anymore, but instead they judge based on political awareness, which is just another way of continuing the "patriarchal history of regulating narratives around women's actions" (1:42:39). avila focuses specifically on millennials here, cautioning us not to consider this a a sign of true political engagement from millennials. as he points out, systems of oppression adapt to our ever-changing culture. when we try to 'cancel' or 'hold a celebrity accountable' for their ideologies or missteps, sometimes it's because they're truly terrible, and other times it's because we hold women to "unrealistic standards of purity." ie, this isn't necessarily real political engagement, it is just another example of judging women. often it's both (pointing out missteps, and also being sexist.)

whiteness again

avila goes on to discuss how white women have long been held up as virtuous, moral centers of american families - and while this is a racist and sexist practice, given that woc aren't seen as virtuous, it also lays the foundation for why white women in particular dominate conversations about politics in the public sphere. it is an Event every time a white celebrity frames their political awakening as a personal, spiritual journey of self-realization. yes, this act is important, because women must learn about their own oppression, and talk about it, in order to educate others.

but when taylor (or any other famous white woman) frames politics solely through the personal, it relieves her of the obligation to critique systemic issues. her own political awakening is all that matters - she must prove her own political purity (instead of sexual purity, as before.) there is a deep problem in society demanding this, rather than larger systemic change, but we'll get to that later.

this personal political purity awakening earns her a lot of goodwill, but her resistance ends with herself. and this is a pattern that we see happen all the time, in what robin james calls "neoliberal resistance discourses" in pop: someone is damaged by oppression (sexism), she overcomes it brilliantly with an awakening (miss americana/lover/denouncing trump era), and she absorbs this goodwill into her brand. these individual damages and awakenings supposedly symbolize society's own awakening and resilience(!). (1:52:48)

🚨 some readers might be getting tired/annoyed at this; i can hear y'all saying "well, what do you even WANT from her omg!!!" just stay with me here. 🚨

she holds a mirror up to society, tho

what avila so brilliantly points out is that... this cycle of damages and resilience isn't helpful. it goes nowhere! and we are all at the mercy of the same patterns as taylor. it's not about taylor, it's about us, and how capitalism commodifies everything, including social movements! including personal 'goodness'! a neoliberal system wants individuals to care about their individual choices and looking like good individuals; it encourages the use of "purity tests" and "commodified algorithmic social movements" to discourage challenges to systemic issues (reminds me of the celebrity blackout situation earlier this year, and conversations we have about politics, well, daily on here.) and the pattern of a person failing politically as an individual is part of this machine. if we're too busy policing individuals for their purity, we won't ever organize together for shared material goals. unfortunately, unlike taylor swift, most of us are not extremely powerful, wealthy, and influential as individuals. she does have more power than us in this regard.

taylor as cultural hegemony

anyway, avila goes on to talk about how taylor had this musical renaissance with folklore, and became more honest about her masterminding her own career in midnights. she has shown herself not just to be a musical chameleon, but a cultural one as well, positioning herself as white teenage purity when the culture called for it (circa 2008-2010), neoliberal pop feminism (1989 -> lover), pandemic escapism (folkmore) - and the culture has become part of her brand, part of her music. music that is already heavily wrapped up in her own life. she is the brand she is the culture. of course she put the work in, and not just anyone could do this. but imo, her whiteness (which, again, gives her this "default" "neutral" background to work with) is part of this success. "sure, she's challenged the institution but all in the effort to become the new face of musical hegemony" (2:06:25.) she challenges systems to assimilate into them, or create them in a way that requires assimilation.

of course, this is all based on her REAL experiences, her REAL life. she is living her own life, and also living it in this metacognitive way that mirrors culture.

but we don't have to hate taylor, actually!

and MOST interestingly, avila closes out by suggesting: it's not actually super healthy to always be suspicious and critical of art (2:17:24.) yes, there is a long political history of "paranoid reading," of critique based on marx, freud, and nietzsche's philosophies. it is the basis of A LOT of our frameworks for thinking about the world, including art.

as i've said before, it's interesting to discuss taylor or celebrities because they hold a mirror up to society. but we can't just relentlessly critique ourselves - after all, the critique is supposed to protect us from being bad! the critique is what keeps us good! and it's why we project so much onto them (the celebrities, or "bad" people.)

this video dove into a term that may be new to a lot of people (i only learned of it recently) - "reparative reading." rather than relentlessly critique art or what-have-you, engage with it in ways that is "affirmative, creative, and caring." this does not mean you toss out critical readings - reparative readings can coexist, and give us hope, optimism, feelings of beauty/appreciation, and affirmation.

for example, it's why -while i enjoy critiquing taylor (or what she Represents) - i am also here to just... have fun. i don't want to linger 24/7 on her emissions, or what she hasn't done, or who she's friends with. it's also why, as a fan of color, i hate that she is often dismissed and minimized to "white musician making music for white women." i find affirmation in a lot of her music, regardless of her race; i find optimism and hope in the way women so deeply relate to her, and how queer fans (also like myself) relate to her! (which avila points out too 2:21:00.) it's why i stopped debunking stuff, because queerness - like any other aspect of the fandom - is such a critical, significant part of why her music is beloved. it's so important for people to recognize that she is more than just 'music for straight white heterosexual cisgender women.'

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Jasper's Guide To Energyforms

The various categories that any given energyform may fall under.

There are innumerable names and ideas for energyforms. This will merely go over my own categorizations and definitions of them. These are not universal, but they’ll hopefully provide a good starting point for your own understanding! Ultimately, this is all my own understanding, and all “sources” are meant to encourage you to look around and explore this subject on your own!

What Is An Energyform?

An energyform is any entity made of energy, often your own. I use the term as the catch-all category for servitors, thoughtforms, and so forth, because having a catch-all term for them is very helpful to me. The term is derived from “manaform” from Magic: The Gathering, which is a being that is made of pure mana. [1] I altered it to energyform for my own practice.

Types Of Energyforms

Egregore: An energyform created by an entire group of magical practitioners, typically more than 4. Three or fewer magical practitioners working together on an energyform will still produce a servitor. An example of an egregore is GOFLOWOLFOG. [2]

Pop Culture Entities: One theory for the validity of pop culture magic is that the pop culture entities – including deities, heroes, spirits, and more – are egregores. This is not a universal approach to pop culture magic.

Godform: The image or incarnation of a god. [3] Not quite an energyform of its own, but an energyform can be made to be a godform or to channel parts of a god’s power. [4] A godform energyform can fall under any other category.

Living Spell: An extremely basic energyform that is only a step above the basic spell by way of being given a form to deliver the said spell to its intended target. These typically fade away or are automatically destroyed once they accomplish their goal.

Servitor: A servitor is the “default” type of energyform, lacking in “sentience” and being focused on one or a handful of very specific goals. Extremely simple to make and often look more like “people” (humans, animals, demons/angels, et cetera) than a living spell. Most servitors are best described as magical computer programs.

Viral Servitors [5]: Servitors that have automatic ways built into them to copy themselves to continue doing their job so that there are many of them. One example of a viral servitor is Fotamecus. [6]

Sigil: Most sigils are symbols created for particular purposes and are more often connected to energyforms rather than being energyforms in and of themselves. However, certain animist approaches [7] may see sigils as spirits in and of themselves!

Chao-Mines [5], Energy Store-House Entities [4], Linking Sigils [8]: Functionally the same thing, these are particular sigils or energy points that you can use to draw energy from a place, another energyform, or a thing.

Hypersigils: The term was coined by Grant Morrison and elaborated upon by Aidan Wachter. It is a work of art, such as a novel, journal, or piece of art, that functions as an elaborate sigil. [9]

Sigil Shoals: A collection of sigils that are led by one that is guaranteed to happen, thus forcing the rest of them to come true as well. [10]

Thoughtform: A thoughtform is a “sentient” energyform, though the definition of “sentient” is up for debate. Typically, thoughtforms can think for themselves and do not need to be specifically directed around obstacles keeping them from accomplishing their goals. Thoughtforms are often compared to the type of “artificial intelligence” found in science fiction.

Citations, Resources, And Further Reading

[1] “Mana” on the MTG wiki, compiled by Fandom users, through a Breezewiki mirror: https://antifandom.com/mtg/wiki/Mana

[2] “GOFLOWOLFOG” on the Paranormal wiki, compiled by para.wiki users: https://para.wiki/w/GOFLOWOLFOG

[3] “Godform” on Wiktionary: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/godform

[4] Creating Magickal Entities: A Complete Guide to Entity Creation by David Michael Cunningham with contributions by Taylor Ellwood and T. Amanda R. Wagener “Servitors as Links” specifically can be found here: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/763362873038782464 “Energy Store-House Entities (ESHEs)” specifically can be found here: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/763362842589151232

[5] Condensed Chaos: an introduction to chaos magic by Phil Hine “Chao-Mines” specifically can be found here: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/763430369816182784

[6] “Fotamecus” by Fenwick Rysen: www.chaosmatrix.org/library/chaos/texts/fotamec1.html

[7] “Sigils: Scribbles to Forget or Spirits to Remember” by witchofsouthernlight on Tumblr: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/762793274388938752

[8] “Create Your Own Linking Sigil” by Jareth Tempest on The Shadow Binder: https://theshadowbinder.com/2019/02/22/create-your-own-linking-sigil/

[9] “Hypersigil” by writingdirty on Tumblr: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/710434325688123392 “Hypersigil” by windvexer on Tumblr: https://jasper-grimoire.tumblr.com/post/700376884034355200/hello-chicken-can-you-share-your-thoughts-on

[10] “Sigil Shoaling: A Chaos Magic Tool” by Cristina Farella on a personal website: https://www.cristinafarella.com/astrological-magic-tools/sigil-shoaling-a-chaos-magic-tool “Sigil Shoals and Robofish” by Mahigan on Kitchen Toad: https://www.kitchentoad.com/blog/sigil-shoals-and-robofish

“Jasper’s Servitor/Thoughtform Resource Post”, compiled on Tumblr by jasper-pagan-witch: https://jasper-pagan-witch.tumblr.com/post/762988504970100736/jaspers-servitorthoughtform-resource-post

[the-offside-rule]

Clement Novalak (Mathiesen) - So Poetic

Requested: yes by DeliF1 on wattpad

Prompts: 7) "She is my other half as the poets would say"

Warnings: you may turn into a Clem girly

Another day, another Screaming Meals podcast. Today, the trio had found themselves with a rather special guest; Y/n Y/l/n, the motorsport journalist found herself on the sofa next to her boyfriend. As Marcus scrolled through questions on Instagram, the four joked around as the camera and microphones recorded their interactions; from the pouring of their wine, to the innapropriate jokes being made and it would be edited accordingly.

"Oh, I've got a good question." Marcus said, looking to the couple across from him. "You said before on the podcast, that you're scared of your girlfriend. In what way are you scared of her?" Marcus asks. "Is she into some-"

"I am going to stop you right there!" Clement interjected, making the room erupt into laughter. "I need more wine." Y/n joked, pouring more Pinot into her glass. "No!" Clem said, lunging forward to grab the bottle. "We talked about this." Y/n laughed. "You're making me sound like an alcoholic!" She managed to get out in between the laughs. "I have never felt like such a third wheel." Marcus said. "Is this how you felt when Lissie was on the podcast?" James nodded. "Now it's just me that has to sort out a girlfriend appearance." He joked. "But back to the question, why are you scared of Y/n?" Marcus asked. Clem sighed. "See, I'm not scared of her. I don't think she's capable of hurting me. I think I'm just scared of her determination." Y/n looked at him confused. "What?" She asked.

"I'll give you an example. For the 24 hours of Le Mans, she had to write up a report for the day it finished up. So she stayed up the whole 24 hours and wrote her report as it happened. And spent the few hours after that correcting bits and bobs. Then!" He paused. "Then she went to a bloody pirates class, like who does that?!" Marcus looked at her, jaw hanging in disbelief. "No way." Y/n nodded. "It's my job. I take it seriously. As Clem said, I'm determined in it and I am dedicated." She smiled. "Well I'm happy you took up journalism and not world domination." The four laughed again. "She could take the place over if she wanted, Jesus."

Marcus leaned in, grinning, "Now Clem, this isn't a fan question but more of a me question but what does Y/n mean to you? I know you've struggled eith women before." Y/n shook her head, laughing quietly. "That's so rude." Clem said to Y/n as she laughed to herself. "No, its- just answer the question!" Clem chuckled, glancing at Y/n with a twinkle in his eyes. "I don't usually get so romantic like this but I suppose she's my other half, as the poets say." Y/n placed her hand on her chest and looked over at him adoringly. "Does she feel the same? She seems very fond of that wine there, mate." Clem laughed and put the wine down. "I don't care if she doesn't feel the same. It's unconditional love, isn't it? You have to love them even if there comes a day they don't love you back." Y/n looked over. "There is no way you just quotes Taylor Swift." The room erupted in laughter, but Clem's gaze never wavered from Y/n. "No, seriously. Y/n completes me in ways I never thought anyone could ever. Like it's crazy how I managed to even wake up in the morning before I met her. Its maddening for me to think about."

Y/n blushed, playfully nudging Clem. "I didn't know he could get this sentimental, my goodness. This is the kind of stuff you'd see in movies." Marcus grinned. "That's true love, right there." Y/n nodded. "He got very sappy." James joked. "This man used to be so fun on nights out and now he's all responsible." Y/n covered her face, laughing whilst Clem tried to defend himself. It just all got too funny to be honest. The conversation flowed effortlessly, mixing personal anecdotes with motorsport banter. As jokes and laughter echoed through the podcast, Marcus and James couldn't help but notice the genuine connection between Clem and Y/n. They felt like they were third wheeling.

Towards the end, Marcus raised his eyebrows. "So, any plans for the future, you two?" Clem exchanged a knowing look with Y/n. "Well, maybe a pit stop at the wedding chapel?" James teased, "Will it be a fast wedding, or will you take it slow?" Clem shrugged his shoulders. "Not sure yet. I assume we'll be stopping off at that wedding chapel I Vegas." Y/n joked. "Oh, can we actually?" Clem asked. "No!" Marcus and James laughed as the concluded up the podcast. "Half your soul? You got awfully poetic, love." Y/n remarked. "He always talks about you like this. Don't mind him." James said, picking up the empty wine glasses. "Oh really?" She asked amusingly as Clem turned more and more red. "What? I love my girlfriend? Is that a crime?" Y/  threw her arms around him and placed a kiss onto his cheek. "You're the sweetest person I have ever met."

"Now look that you've done, guys." Clem said annoyed. "Oh shut up. Let me have a cute boyfriend." He chuckled and hugged her back, kissing her cheek too. "You can have a cute boyfriend

I'll help you look for him." Marcus said. "Oh fuck you, mate!" The three others sat laughing at the annoyed Clement whilst he held his girlfriend in his arms.

[daniclaytcn]

the ‘sunshine personified’ / ‘he makes everyone around him happy’ thing is sooo interesting because i don’t think we’ve really seen that from buck, have we? and by that i specifically mean in the fanon context of buck being the social PTA dad at all of chris’s school functions while eddie broods in the corner and only wants to talk to buck. if anything, we’ve seen the opposite behavior with eddie — he’s clearly good friends with chris’s friends’ parents, he was so happy and glowy when he first met the 118, he befriended may and linda so easily at dispatch, and i could go on and on.

he just seems to connect with people so easily, and i think a lot of that genuine friendliness is lost on people because he also has a tendency to get casually snarky with people he isn’t so fond of, whether it’s annoying temporary coworkers or selfish people on calls or opportunistic reporters. the same thing goes for his private nature vs. buck’s bleeding heart — it’s assumed that eddie isn’t a people person because he likes to keep his innermost feelings close to his chest and it’s also assumed that buck is good at instantly forming connections bc his feelings spill out of him at all times.

and like. it’s not that buck isn’t a kind and friendly person, but i do feel like his specialty is deep acts of love for the people he loves. idk if i’m articulating this right but i’m trying to point out that he’s never more ‘sunshine personified’ than when he’s with the 118 and co. he would do anything for them and he lights up around them in a way that he doesn’t really do with anyone else. and we haven’t seen him be so casually close to people outside that friend group.

when we got a glimpse of connor and buck’s friendship, it seemed more about what they could do for each other than about true connection. when we got that episode about buck and red, a lot of it was projection on buck’s part re. his fear of abandonment and his desire not to let his future turn out like red’s and it was also about his need to fix things for everyone else so he can feel like he’s needed. when he met lucy, he was desperate to fill a void and not feel as hollow as he felt going home to taylor kelly every night with his sister and his brother in law and his partner gone.

don’t get me wrong, i’m not trying to ascribe selfish motivations to buck bc i do believe he always tries to do the right thing, but when it comes to people outside of the 118, with the way it’s been written in canon, i feel like those dynamics have always been more about his own issues than they’ve been about actual friendship. and this isn’t even getting into how he acts when he feels like someone new is encroaching on his territory (see: eddie in 2x01 and lena). idk….i just think that kind of casual connection comes so much easier to eddie for whatever reason. maybe it’s because his abandonment issues are a whole other flavor, or because eddie’s upbringing was so different from buck’s. either way, it’s so interesting and ppl blinded by fanon are really missing out. i apologize for the long ass rambling and i don’t think i really articulated this well, so TL;DR — fanon sunshine buck and broody eddie do not exist in canon and i’m Very excited to see the way that mr. possessive, jealous, broody evan buckley acts when eddie meets someone new this week :)

no, you're so right about all of this, though! buck genuinely does light up and is at his most comfortable and golden retriever-like around the 118, because he sees them as family and trusts them so much—and i think people get carried away and attribute the same thing to everything else (like, for example, the social PTA dad thing). when in canon, buck on multiple occasions has not dealt with new people too well—whether it was eddie, or lena, or ravi...and now, as it looks like, tommy. and you kinda hit the nail on the head about how most of buck's relationships outside the 118 being very transactional in nature up to this point, it's sad, but it's true.

eddie is the complete opposite in this regard, though, like, the guy goes around collecting new friends like they're pokemon. lol. he is so wildly different to the fandom portrayal of him as this anti-social loner that i struggle with understanding how people even got there in the first place (i mean, i know why. but still).

anyway, buck's issues with jealousy and insecurity are sooo interesting to delve into as character flaws and so much more compelling than fandom's portrayal of him as a perfect angel baby who's never done anything wrong, but 🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️ at least i have canon giving me the stuff i want lol

[comradekarin]

are fans not allowed to prefer Taylor over Beyonce? why do you people always use the race card like do something else its getting tiring atp...

You are definitely allowed to prefer Taylor Swift over Beyoncé for… whatever reason that may be god bless your unseasoned soul. What you shouldn’t be doing is diminishing the work of Beyoncé and other black and queer artists in order to prop Taylor up. The fact that it’s the year of 2023 and we’re having these weird ass conversations of can Beyoncé even sing, dance, or put on a performance? You don’t even have to be a fan of Beyoncé to recognize the immense talent and impact that woman has on multiple demographics of people. Whether that be the Black community, other POC, or the LGBTQ community, Beyoncé has made an impact. And she actually does her research too and doesn’t use minorities as brownie points in her work (cough taylor’s vogue dancer cough). Beyoncé’s work only continues to improve, mind you. And to either deny or downplay that talent in order to prop up a mediocre white woman and her mediocre lyrics and her mediocre production is insane.

Prefer Taylor over Beyoncé? Ok. Love both? Ok. There is nothing wrong with that. As I stated in my previous post, I don’t like comparing female artists; it doesn’t do anything for me or those artists (especially since, from what I understand, they’re on good terms). However, if you expect me to believe that what’s considered the standard for Taylor is the same standard for Beyoncé (or, the standard for white artists vs the standard for black artists), it’s not going to happen. If you want an example, Beyoncé preparing for Coachella is more than enough proof; she had to destroy and completely reset her body after giving birth to twins in order to give the best show she could possibly give. Being the first black woman to headline the festival meant she had literally everything running on the line. We see this sentiment true with other black artists, too, like Halle Bailey, who had to undergo death threats, racism, bullying, and harassment despite having a perfect performance on the big screen and during her live performances. Halle had to prove she deserved to be treated with human decency, and had she even had a strand of hair left out she would have been crucified. I can even go on about the treatment of darker skinned vs light skinned/mixed women (those in closer proximity to whiteness) in the rap industry. We would be here forever talking about this.

And it’s not me pulling out the race card, it’s me simply recognizing that white women are celebrated for their mediocrity and black women are not. It’s me saying that Beyoncé’s fans calling out Taylor’s whiteness is in no where comparable to them calling out Beyoncé’s blackness, especially since Taylor’s whiteness benefits her in contrast to the way Beyoncé’s blackness punishes her. We can no longer pretend the struggle of white women are identical to the struggle of black women. Because, as we’ve seen with Taylor, her ally ship is performative, something she can hang up in the closet and forget about when she goes home at night. When it comes down to it, she will always adhere to her white womanhood to get her out of the shit she places herself in.

If you want to be ignorant and play colorblind to these issues, that’s on you. But don’t expect me to pretend that there isn’t an issue here—an issue that has always been here.

[allwormdiet]

Extermination 8.4

Armsmaster: I'm a genius! Armsmaster: Oh no!

Everything they do against Leviathan is insufficient. It's fucking horrifying.

Skitter just like "ehh, I don't think Parian's hardcore enough tbh"

Also, God, it's just getting increasingly dire just in terms of who's standing, huh? They're down most of the forcefield users at this point, the Triumvirate is down or handling other shit.

Also also I'm so sad that Purity didn't drown in the middle of the street like she deserves

Taylor is so fucking funny, she's like "I'm not brave like these other capes, I'm just standing and working to combat an Endbringer even though my power does absolutely nothing offensively or defensively against it. oh I'm not an adrenaline fiend or anything, I don't live for the thrill of battle, I just have an unreasonably high pain tolerance and not a whole lot of care for whether I live or die"

So her power gets stronger in especially high-stakes situations. Something about her emotional state, or something about an innate response to extreme threats?

Taylor's life seems to involve constant rapid-fire vacillation between predator and prey. It can't be helping with her stress levels, regardless of how good she is at being both of those things.

So this is a tactic that will slow Leviathan down, but if he gets to keep moving for too long then it will immediately turn around and bite them on the ass. Dunno how good of an idea that is tbh.

Fucking automaton freak of a superhero, truly

Also does the wider world never find it alarming that the order goes "parahumans < Endbringers < Scion" because I feel like that would prompt questions about Goldilocks on the regular

New Wave is at 75% strength and the invincible Ward just got fucking vincibled. God that's rough.

Wooo! Nazi down! Yeahhh!

WOOOOOOO NAZI DOWN!

Hope the water slide chaps your legless ass on the way to Hell, Kaiser, you rancid fuck!

Also haha whoops I sure hope that dead armband isn't indicative of some kinda foul play

Well yeah, fuck, I guess it's a good thing she had those decoys after all

Credit where credit is due, if it was possible to actually kill an Endbringer, which I fucking doubt, this would probably be the best show of doing it.

According to Wikipedia, "hubris" describes a personality quality of extreme or excessive pride or dangerous overconfidence and complacency, often in combination with (or synonymous with) arrogance.

According to studies, hubris, arrogance, and pretension are related to the need for victory (even if it does not always mean winning) instead of reconciliation, which "friendly" groups might promote. Hubris is usually perceived as a characteristic of an individual rather than a group, although the group the offender belongs to may suffer collateral consequences from wrongful acts. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence, accomplishments, or capabilities. The adjectival form of the noun hubris/hybris is hubristic/hybristic.

The term hubris originated in Ancient Greek, where it had several different meanings depending on the context. In legal usage, it meant assault or sexual crimes and theft of public property, and in religious usage it meant emulation of divinity or transgression against a god.

Hesiod and Aeschylus used the word "hubris" to describe transgressions against the gods. A common way that hubris was committed was when a mortal claimed to be better than a god in a particular skill or attribute. Claims like these were rarely left unpunished, and so Arachne, a talented young weaver, was transformed into a spider when she said that her skills exceeded those of the goddess Athena, even though her claim was true. Additional examples include Icarus, Phaethon, Salmoneus, Niobe, Cassiopeia, Tantalus, and Tereus.

These events were not limited to myth, and certain figures in history were considered to have been punished for committing hubris through their arrogance. One such person was king Xerxes as portrayed in Aeschylus's play The Persians, and who allegedly threw chains to bind the Hellespont sea as punishment for daring to destroy his fleet.

What is common in all of these examples is the breaching of limits, as the Greeks believed that the Fates (Μοῖραι) had assigned each being with a particular area of freedom, an area that even the gods could not breach

In its modern usage, hubris denotes overconfident pride combined with arrogance. Hubris is also referred to as "pride that blinds" because it often causes a committer of hubris to act in foolish ways that belie common sense.

Anyway I guess Armsmaster has to be called Armmaster now, s- oh, what's this?

Congratulations allwormdiet! You are the 4,000,000th Worm reader to make the "Armmaster joke!"

Oh boy what do I win

Nothing!

O-oh.

Tfw the teenager you deliberately attempted to sacrifice in order to get your moment of glory soloing the raid boss still tries to save your stupid ass

Fucking remarkable that Skitter is still contributing at all considering how hard she's been rocked through all of this

And she's gonna keep doing it, too.

Tfw the teenager you deliberately attempted to sacrifice in order to get your moment of glory soloing the raid boss is the only thing saving your life

Current Thoughts

Colin, Colin, Colin. We'll get into it more once the fight's over but you truly fumbled on this already rancid day. I hope like Hell this will finally get you to be a little humble.

So, some more bad losses in this chapter obviously, sad to see Aegis go for all he was kinda bland and I'm sure New Wave is going to feel their losses something fierce.

But hey, two more dead Nazi capes, so it's not all downsides!

[charlesswife]

times that charles and y/n showed they are couple but keep saying they are not - video

pairing: charles leclerc x f1 driver! reader

summary: after their public kiss, fans went crazy, one of them made a youtube compilation of your favorites formula one drivers being a wholesome couple but saying they are just friends

lowercase indeed

[intro with monotone voice]

hello friends, in this video i'm going to show you how charles lechair and my queen y/n y/l/n are a couple, they can't really deny it, they are so obvious they make me sick, specially after the kiss they had on tv.

[cuts to the video playing in slow mo with the intro of careless whisper]

anyways here we go

we start at the 2022 Met Gala, where our queen decided to bless us with her presence, and who is a few feet from her? Charlito. They both looked stunning as how it is and absolutely angelical together.

they both approach one of the interviewers and while the interviewer was asking y/n about what she was wearing, charles was only giving y/n heart eyes, only looking at her.

you ain't fooling anyone charles, you love her.

"We are here with celebrity icon and Formula One driver y/n y/l/n" the interviewer started, "alongside her, it's Charles Leclerc"

"Hello" I greeted her.

"So tell us a bit about your outfit, who are you wearing?"

I said what I had memorized before the MET, explaining about the dress, the collaboration with the designer, and what the theme means to me. typical questions with typical answers.

"I see you came with Charles Leclerc, was that planned?"

I wasn't surprised about the question, I knew people were gonna ask about Charles, but she was so bold for it. I looked at Charles, who was already looking at me.

"He begged me to come," I said, "he almost cried like a baby," I laughed. Just as I did that, a piece of my hair got in front of my face, before I could fix it, Charles' hand was already doing the job.

"Well, we are glad you did. You guys definitely look good together"

[cuts to second clip]

if you thought that pierre and charles were the gossipers of the grid, you are wrong. it's y/n and charles. whenever they are in the same room, they just look at each other and the telepathy starts.

"it's crazy the way Charles and Y/n understand each other" Lando said to his twitch chat, "like they just know what the other is thinking it's scary."

The comments started to flow, chat wanted examples.

"Like the other day, some of the drivers, we were all talking and out of nowhere Charles just hands her like a hair tie? no idea where he got it from but apparently y/n made this 'face'" he quoted with his fingers, "that she was hot, he's such a simp, he says he always has one for emergencies"

after a few seconds he started ranting again about Charles and Y/n

"they like to judge people too, they might laugh and deny it but it's true-- last week Carlos was doing this dance move thing and immediately charles and y/n look at each other and it looked like they were having a mental conversation, mate they are crazy together," he reads the chat, who was asking more about their relationship, "I don't think they are just friends as they say, but whatever"

[cuts to third clip]

In the picture of Formula One first day, Y/n said her favorite song is Ready for it? by Taylor Swift.

The social media person in charge of Tiktok, Sarah (idk their names this is just made up), followed Charles with a tiny mic and asked him

"Excuse me, what are you listening to?"

Charles took out one of the headphones and asked, "What?"

"The fans want to know what you are listening to"

"Oh! I'm listening to Taylor Swift" he giggled as he showed the screen to the camera. The song being Ready for it?

There is a speed up walk to Y/n in her red suit drinking water. She sees Sarah with camera in hand and waves at her.

She repeated the same question from before, "Excuse me, what song are you listening to?"

"I'm listening to my girl Taylor! Look What You Made Me Do from the Reputation album," as she showed the screen, a message notification could be seen 'Charles ❤️ - iMessage' she turned her phone back to her to take out the notification, "Oops" she turned the phone back to the screen, "Here we go" she said with a smile.

The caption of the video was 'Our ferrari drivers being Taylor fans is a big slay'

[back to main screen]

i rest my case, but we cannot forget about this iconic moment from charles and y/n, this moment lives rent free in my head.

"So for today we are going to give you boards, and we are gonna go who's most likely"

As Y/n got her board, she said, "this should be fun, we know each other pretty well,"

Charles nodded, "I think I know more about you than you about me"

"Is this a challenge, lord Perceval?"

He laughed, "I mean that's the whole point of the video."

"Bring it on, big boy"

The camera was recording the whole interaction. As Charles was doing the intro for the video and explaining what they were doing, Y/n was doodling in her board and erasing stuff.

"I am so ready to crush you," she said.

"Let the best racer win"

"Who's most likely to want to do something spontaneous during the weekend"

Y/n started writing her anser, "Guys, this is pretty obvious," she turned her board around and the words Charles were on it. Charles had the same answer.

"Me. 100%"

"Charles is always wanting to do something over the weekend, I just wanna chill at home with my cat," she explained as she erased the board.

"So true, I have to drag her out of her house sometimes"

"Which reminds me that I need to change my lock or take away your key," with her comment, Charles rolled his eyes.

It went on like that for a few more rounds until the game was other.

"I think we did a good job," Y/n says.

"I think so too," Charles agrred.

"High five," she put her hand up for him so high five her, as he did, he grabbed her hand and pulled her chair closer to him.

The scene was repeated in slow motion with Careless Whisper in the back again.

[outro]

i really need charles and y/n to confirm their relationship so i can be have a nice good night sleep.

dont forget to share, like and comment for more videos of charles and y/n.

----------------------------------------------------------------

is this...? a new series...? anyways, enjoy this while i start to write the new chapter of UNEM, which i'm hoping to upload by monday.

let me know what you think about this imagine and if youd like to see more of charles x f1 driver! reader! because it is definitely fun writing about it.

@fandomxs1 @teti-menchon0604 @moonclaine @amsofftrack @fandoms-stuff @mac-daddy-210 @bisexual-desi @miureiz @diasnohibng @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @im-just-here-toread @tyskills @rafaaoli @heavengirls111 @lighttsoutlewis @leclerc13 @c4ssi4-luv @ynbutbetter @marigoldgasly @vita-di-moda @sbrn0905 @leclercsbae @bhiees @empathypostsf1 @marauderlover22 @ushygushybaby @zendayabelova @lord_leclerc @itsmesofia @sebbybucky12 @notleclerc @dicaprio-leo @starkeyellow @spngi @mskeisha69 @prrttyposts @vex-et-soleil @dessxoxsworld @thesurielscheesecake @severenswife @livsans @67-angelofthelordme-67 @booksobsess @buckleyverse

[hazbingirliexoxo]

“The Archer” Angel Dust Analysis

A/n: ALRIGHT YALL❣️ it’s been a hot minute (literally a whole month lol rip☠️) but I have FINALLY written this and am ready to share it with everyone!🤩 So I’m a huge Swiftie and I absolutely love Angel😭💕 so listening to this song: “The Archer” instantly made me think of him. I think the lyrics really highlight how his experiences with love have shaped the complexities of his true feelings and while we still have so much more to discover about his and Husk’s developing relationship in the show, I truly think that this song just “screams” them. If you haven’t listened to the song before, I definitely recommend to!😊 Anyway, lez get into it!😎

Note: For reference, I primarily used this article: https://gwtimes.org/1625/music-books-movies/the-archer-taylor-swift-lyric-analysis/ to organize all of my thoughts and opinions on why this song suits Angel so well. I think this author did an excellent job at explaining the real message of the song in regards to Taylor’s life, but this analysis is solely based on my OWN interpretation of how Angel’s character fits this song. Just wanted to clarify. THANK YOU AND ENJOY!!!❤️❤️❤️

Combat, I’m ready for combat

I say I don’t want that, but what if I do?

Cause cruelty wins in the movies

I’ve got a hundred thrown out speeches I almost said to you

Okay so, with these first few lines, we can think about how much Angel has been through, both in life and death. Like anyone else, he’s made mistakes and fought with many people he’s cared about before, whether that be with his birth family (ex: Arackniss, Molly) or his newfound family/friends he’s made at the hotel later on (ex: Charlie, Husk, Niffty, Sir Pentious, etc). But in terms of his actual familial background, Angel was born and raised in the mafia, meaning he’s used to seeing the indescribable horrors and violence associated with that lifestyle. He has no choice but to conjure up this metaphorical shield of “armor” in order to not only protect himself but also, survive. This ultimately makes it very difficult for Angel to form and develop good, healthy relationships, whether that’d be platonic or romantic, because as much as he craves genuine love and affection, isn’t that going against everything he’s known? To not care about what anyone thinks of him because at the end of the day, everyone leaves regardless? Angel Dust is a perfect example of being conditioned to this toxic, negative mindset he’s built for himself every day and we especially see more of this when it comes to his work with Valentino.

Now Angel is a celebrity, the most famous porn star in all of hell. Of course, due to his natural charisma and good looks, all eyes are drawn to him. He’s expected to essentially “put on a show” and show off what he’s “good for” because who could resist the seductive, charming Angel Dust? But that’s the cruel irony behind it all. Angel’s perception of his pornstar persona overshadows the reality of his true self, which makes it easy for him to push people away and not let anyone see the real him. He’s bred to allow people to chase after him, lust after him, because that’s the embodiment of who Angel Dust is, not who Anthony is. Angel Dust doesn’t care if people “leave” him because he knows that one way or another, there’s always someone else who will appreciate him for his “talents”, who will shower him with the desire and attention he so desperately seeks, despite it being superficial. But Anthony? No one knows who that is nor anyone would care to know who Anthony is in Angel’s mind, so rather than reveal his true thoughts, he decides to remain silent and keep them hidden from the public view as a way to protect himself.

Easy they come, easy they go

I jump from the train, I ride off alone

I never grew up, it’s getting so old

Help me hold on to you

Now, these second set of lyrics go a little more in-depth about Angel’s personal life and relationships. The first line expresses how easily he attracts people and yet still drives them away. The second one, however, can be explored through both a platonic and a romantic perspective. In a platonic lens, Angel struggles with making real, genuine friends (other than Cherri) because he’s afraid no one will be interested to get to know him. The same thing can be said in a romantic point of view. Angel loves to flirt, yes, but with his pornstar persona, he over-amplifies it and makes it seem like he’s “on board” in the beginning, but in the slightest sense of any seriousness or vulnerability, he “jumps off”, going his own way because he knows he’s unable to commit. This third line takes a look into how Angel is associated with being the “black sheep” of his family. Despite his somewhat childish nature, Angel’s always causing trouble and has never been the more focused, responsible type like his older brother: Arackniss. But due to these specific family dynamics, this shows how Angel feels like he’s never taken seriously with his true self. And because of that, he doesn’t understand how to grow and mature enough as a person to handle long-term relationships. The last line here can be portrayed as Angel’s inner thoughts and feelings towards his future love interest in the series: Husk. Angel is so used to giving up and running away from the idea of real love because of his own sexual abuse and trauma from Valentino. But throughout his whole afterlife, Husk is the only good man who respects and values Angel for who he truly is and despite how nice yet unfamiliar that feeling is, Angel’s terrified of losing it. Therefore, these lyrics can imply how he’s pleading for Husk to help him stay grounded and focus on exploring and pursuing this new relationship with him.

I’ve been the archer, I’ve been the prey

Who could ever leave me, darling? But who could stay?

In the chorus, we can start to see the lyrics become even more personified towards Angel’s life. He’s been hurt by so many people, yet he’s also his own worst enemy because he’s done the same thing to those who he cares about too, ultimately straining or damaging the relationships as a whole. He wonders why no one would want to stay in his life, but deep down, he knows that he doesn’t make it easy for people to love him either. So in order to change that, he needs to believe in himself and trust that he can make a positive effort towards becoming better.

Dark side, I search for your dark side

But what if I’m all right, right, right, right here?

And I cut off my nose just to spite my face

Then hate my reflection, for years and years

Within the next verse, we can connect back to how Angel’s toxic mindset has made a profound impact on himself and his relationships. There’s a big part of him that’s always subconsciously searching for the negative aspects of letting people into his life, and that in itself, is what overpowers his psyche into not recognizing and acknowledging the positive facets as well. These next few lines can be referenced to how he strives to maintain his pornstar persona. The whole concept of Angel Dust is for him to be as appealing and desirable to everyone no matter what because that’s what the public likes to see. But unfortunately, what Angel doesn’t comprehend is that he doesn’t need to overemphasize this “mask” of his because the real, genuine people in his life (such as Molly, Charlie, Cherri, Husk, etc.) love and accept him for who he is internally rather than externally. This lack of understanding can also drive him to act impulsive with his emotions and lash out towards the people he deeply cares about, thereby causing him to feel hatred towards himself and regret the decisions he’s made later on.

I wake in the night, I pace like a ghost

The room is on fire, invisible smoke

And all of my heroes die all alone

Help me hold on to you

The metaphorical meaning behind these next lyrics can connect to how empty and restless Angel feels when he’s by himself. We know that he suffers intense nightmares and drug hallucinations from Valentino, but in this next line: “The room is on fire, invisible smoke”, this allows us to dive deeper into his inner troubles and the emotional turmoil and chaos he’s experiencing from it. He’s known to “burn bridges” and “start fires” with others because like I stated previously, he believes everyone will leave him eventually, so as a result, he shuts people out as a way to cope with this depression and loneliness, knowing that it’s still his fault.

I’ve been the archer, I’ve been the prey

Screaming, who could ever leave me, darling? But who could stay?

Here we have the main chorus again, but what’s different is that the word “screaming” is used. This allows us to really see and feel the intensity behind Angel’s emotions. It can almost be viewed as if he’s “crying out for help” and begging for someone, ANYONE, to reach out and stay there with him.

Cause they see right through me

They see right through me

They see right through

Can you see right through me?

They see right through me (2x)

I see right through me (2x)

This next sequence of lyrics is pretty self-explanatory, especially regarding Angel’s famous reputation. Based upon his story arc so far, the internal struggles and hardships Angel has faced throughout life and death have definitely taken a toll on him. Even though he aims to portray this glamorous, charming pornstar personality, characters like Husk can see right through Angel pretty easily and have no issue in calling him out for how fake he’s being. This not only makes Angel very hyper-aware of his mask “slipping away”, but also adds on an extra layer of anxiety and panic he’s feeling from losing control of that facade.

All the king’s horses, all the king’s men

Couldn’t put me together again

‘Cause all of my enemies started out friends

Help me hold on to you

The first line here is a clear reference to the nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty, but the next few lines are what really emphasize Angel’s character even more. Angel is not an easy guy to get along with. He knows he can be an asshole and because of that, he’s made many enemies who could’ve potentially stayed as friends in his life if he didn’t push them away. But that doesn’t make him feel as if he’s alone right? After all, Angel Dust is fulfilled with receiving “love” from clients, fans, and Valentino all the time, so that has to mean something, right? This particular mindset is what fuels Angel to continue craving that form of infatuation and attention because it’s what he surrounds himself with every day. However, once that “high” dies down, who does he have waiting there for him at home? No one, because in reality, he IS alone and that terrifies him even more due to the fact that he’s the reason behind these self-destructive tendencies.

I’ve been the archer, I’ve been the prey

Who could ever leave me, darling? But who could stay?

(I see right through me, I see right through me)

Who could stay? (4x)

You could stay

Combat, I’m ready for combat

These final lines of the song play a significant role in how Angel’s perspective on love can change for the future. Like I’ve said prior, Angel has never had anyone show real, genuine interest in him before, that is, until he met Husk. Husk has made it very clear in the beginning that he doesn’t like putting up with anyone’s bullshit. While his gruff, no-nonsense exterior may be off-putting to others, Angel is very attracted to how real Husk is in expressing how he feels and that is exactly the kind of person Angel needs in his life right now. Over some time throughout the series so far, we start to see a closer relationship develop between the two as well, how fond and comfortable they are of each other. This scares Angel because like all of his other relationships and his current predicament with Valentino, he’s afraid that Husk will voluntarily leave or be taken away from him forever. So in order to avoid that, Angel is determined to do everything he can to keep Husk a permanent part of his life.

Overall, Angel is well aware that he’s not an easy person to love, but with Husk, he feels as if he could be the one to truly understand and accept him for who he is. That maybe, and hopefully, Husk will be the one to stay for good❤️

A/n: yalll,, this is soo fucking long I’m so sorry😭 but I absolutely love these two with all my heart, literally on my hands and knees like this ��‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️ but anywaysss I really hoped you enjoyed it just as much as I loved writing it🥰 PLEASE give me all the feedback you have! I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts and opinions, it would really make my day🥹 Thanks for reading loves!!🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼

[blindbatalex]

bruins hrpf recs from the server #5

Hello again! The theme for this week was ✨ a fic that broke your heart ✨ Below are our recs:

rec lists so far: || week 4 || week 3 || week 2 || week 1 ||

A (Little) Slice of Heaven by Anonymous || willypasta || 11,541 words || reccer's notes: this fic rewired my brain. I read it months and months and months ago and I have yet to recover. 11/10 I come back to it way more than I probably should

(and i’ve got a plane to catch) you drove me all the way back by @fvcking-damage || mcgryz || 2,862 words || reccer's notes: this is some self-indulgent mcgryz angst i wrote a couple of years ago, idk what i was writing out with this one but. yeah

and turns to dust by adjacently || Jordan Eberle/Taylor Hall || 2,130 words || reccer's notes: i can eat taylor hall angst for breakfast, lunch, and dinner

between your love and mine by @blindbatalex || willypasta || 6,360 words || reccer's notes: This is a story about trying to reconcile two sides of your identity that are at irreconcilable conflict with one another, and what having your wings clipped like that at a young age does to a person.  I certainly broke my own heart while writing it.

dancing by @rasksmoustache || marcheron || 1,111 words || reccer's notes: This fic is so vivid and visceral and sad, it permanently altered my brain chemistry.  Unrequited (but is it really?) marcheron which gets the feeling of loving someone and being just a little too late so so well

Done & Undone by @ghostgeno || marcheron || 14,428 words || reccer's notes: 2023 Game 7, the aftermath. Fair warning: I don’t reread this very often because of how effectively it puts you in Brad’s headspace immediately after the game, in brutal, excruciating detail. And yet. And yet. If you feel like being taken apart and then put back together, if you want to feel all the loss and tenderness and love that remains despite the loss, read this fic.

good at secrets by @fridgefishwrites || prefix boys; mcgryz || 4,017 words || reccer's notes: this fic meant (and means) so much to me because it just gets what trying to live your life and build something beautiful while faced with unrelenting homophobia is like.  I love the non-linear narrative and the prefix boys but it was always Matt who stole the show for me in this story

like a stranger by blindbatalex || marcheron || 13,142 words || reccer's notes: not a fic alex hasn't read before (sorry bud) but i'm Obsessed with fics where the characters talk past each other and the angst compounds and this fic is a perfect example of that, amongst other things!!!

make no apologies by @sphesphe || marcheron || 3,757 words || reccer's notes: Brad gets himself suspended before the Winter Classic and Patrice takes it harder than he thinks he should.  He plays it off as fine, things happen, just be better Marchy but it isn't true. He's angry. After the game, Brad stops by, they have a talk and lo and behold, feelings emerge! (And much more!)

Sixth Borough by bookhousegirl || Jimmy Hayes/Frank Vatrano || 3,067 words || reccer's notes: The third in a trilogy of fics featuring this pairing. This is a very quiet little vignette featuring two former Bruins who were not stars and did not end up experiencing great success in their time here. It exists entirely in the gray of adult complications and disappointments, and refuses any easy catharsis, and is beautiful for those reasons. For those of us who cared about the Bruins in the (relatively) dismal era between 2015-17 it may come across as a tiny time capsule; for everyone else, I hope the delicate way it honors the hopes and dreams of those who don’t become hometown heroes, who don’t get the happily everafter ending, stays with you.

Westward Expansion by bookhousegirl || Jimmy Hayes/Frank Vatrano || 3,625 words || reccer's notes: Jimmy stares out vacantly at the coaster climbing the track. “Just because we’re from the same place doesn’t mean we’re from the same place.” When Frank takes Jimmy to Six Flags, he expects it to be a fun day, showing Jimmy all the rides he used to love growing up. Jimmy is distracted though, melancholy because Frank has so much promise and Jimmy took so long to get to where he is.

Wolverine Feed by @sphesphe || swaymark || 10,659 words || reccer's notes: fic that makes me ill each and every time i think about it

[sugasiren]

🌷 VENUSIAN ENERGY PT 1 🌷

Venus Energy is POWERFUL. Captivating. Erotic.

It inspires love AND envy in others. It can drop a man to his KNEES. Its beauty (inside & out) is a healing force.

So let's discuss Venusian placements and some famous examples of its influence. 💕

------

⚘ Indira Varma in Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love

Indira is a Libra Sun with Libra Moon conjunct Venus in her chart. She also has Taurus Mars opposite her Scorpio Venus. 🔥 She was a true Goddess personified in this film! A real work of art from beginning to end.

⚘ Marilyn Monroe in EVERY damn film she ever did.

Marilyn had Taurus MC conjunct her (Aries) Venus. And her Venus was trine Neptune - truly blessed with otherworldly beauty & sensuality meant to be on FULL display.

⚘ Liz Taylor in EVERY damn thing she ever did.

Liz had Libra MC opposite her (Aries) Venus. Her Venus was trine Jupiter & her ASC. She was destined to be a Beauty Icon in a HUGE way! Her beauty is universal & appeals to the masses. You rock, Ms. Taylor.

⚘ Catherine McCormack in Dangerous Beauty

Catherine has her Taurus Venus conjunct Mars & opposite Neptune. She's a graceful & ethereal being. But as seen below - her Femininity will DEVOUR you. 😋😋

⚘ Lana Del Rey in Chemtrails Over Country Club

Lana has Taurus Venus opposite her Scorpio ASC and sextile her Mercury. Her songs are filled with smoky feminine charm. Her essence is earthy & luscious. She stands out at a time now where many women are hardened. 💕 And I love it!

⚘ Pam Grier in Foxy Brown

Pam has Taurus Moon conjunct her Taurus Mars. Also 7H Venus sextile Pluto & trine Neptune. She was sexy, sassy, sensual & capable of kicking your ass. 🔥 A true 70's Sex Symbol for good reason!

Thanks for reading Darlings! 💕 Stay tuned for more.

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

Good morning RTA

I love you blog i learn a lot about how everything works about rumours and pr. i learn something new everyday. thank you

(Also, i enjoy the messyness with the suxx because they give me the chance to learn from their mistakes haha)

but i want to know if there is a book you can suggest or recommend about communication, PR and/or politics? i want to learn more about that. seeing everything about them and how they play with the media help me to learn in real time And i want to learn more about that.

and if you can give any tips about this topic i will really appreciate

thank you

Ask from August 7th

So I’ve sat on this post for awhile, trying to think of resources to share and unfortunately, anon, I’m coming up blank. I’m going to babble for a bit and hopefully some ideas or recommendations will come to me

I didn’t read any books or get a formal education on this. A lot of what I know about PR and media comes from being online, watching things happen, and a curiosity to dig when things don’t match up or there’s way too much coverage than normal.

I should probably disclose here that I’m a millennial who came of age on the internet in the TMZ/Perez Hilton-Britney/Lindsay/Paris-Bennifer-Brangelina-TomKat era of the mid-00s, which is when celebrity PR as we consider it today started and where I learned a lot about celebrity PR management and media relations. I don’t know if or where an equivalent culture might exist today - I thought maybe Travis and Taylor, but it’s not as lawless, if you will, the way it was back in the 00s.

So first, if you’re in college or you’re working somewhere with a training program, definitely consider taking classes on communications and marketing. You’ll learn a lot there and some of it may be relevant to understanding PR. Particularly with communications, you’ll also want to read up on nonverbal communications (and if you’re working somewhere that gives you free training, you can even do this on work time!) as that’s half the battle with PR, as we see all the time from the Sussexes - if you’re verbally telling one story but your body language and your behavior tells a different one, you got a credibility issue.

I do read a lot of political memoirs and nonfiction so that’s an option too. If you go this way, you’ll have to read from all walks of political affiliation. Meaning if you’re a left-leaning liberal, you need to read books or articles from the right/conservative side and vice versa. The goal here isn’t to change your political beliefs but to recognize media spin. How a liberal sees something will be very different from how a moderate sees it which is different from how a conservative see it, and they’ll all spin the facts differently. If/when you do this, then focus on what’s the same and what’s different in each story.

(To figure out where a media company or publication is in terms of political affiliation, check out this website. It tracks media bias and I find it to be pretty consistent. The tool doesn’t work as well on mobile as it does on desktop - you might have to download an app for mobile access. And also, most of the publications being tracked by the company are English-speaking publications. If that isn’t relevant to you, then definitely consider doing your own research into any media bias oversight in your own country.)

If you have three different stories on the same thing from three different affiliations (say the Daily Mail, who’s very conservative/right-leaning; NPR, who’s close to the center/moderate; and Mother Jones, who’s very liberal/left if politics or CondeNast, Dotdash Meredith and Hearst if entertainment, for example) - the things that are the same in each story are the facts that are most likely to be true and consistent. The things that are different in each story is the PR gamesmanship and the spin.

It’s not always that easy, though, because the tricky part is that modern PR and media relations usually involves sending a press release out en masse to everyone and everyone publishes it. The key to figuring out if that’s what is what’s happening here is to look at who’s publishing and the content. If the stories all use similar or identical language, it’s a widely-distributed press release copypasted to the internet. If the stories are appearing in publications that have the same corporate owner (like Murdoch or Condé Nast, for example) but the language varies, that’s also a widely-distributed press release likely the result of a PR rep’s deal with the corporate company.

Now getting back to the political nonfiction - what I like to do is compare what’s being described in the book with how it was covered by the press. And by doing that, you can usually start picking out what was PR and what was real. I will warn you, it’s not always easy. But it does get easier the more you do this. And it doesn’t even have to be political memoirs. It can be history books. It can be celebrity biographies. It can be magazine articles or newspaper stories. Anything non-fiction where you can compare stories and coverage will work for this.

Specifically for the Sussexes, Plant’s archive is really good, especially in the 2016-2017 time. If/when you have time, go check her archive out and just read through everything. I made a list for Empress once with a bunch of important Plant stories that might help you narrow things down — I’ll dig that up soon and repost it.

If you do want to continue dabbling in Sussex/BRF PR since you’re already aware of that, it may be an easy way to dip your foot into the “PR analysis” pool. The best way to do that is start reading books and comparing what’s written in the books with the narratives you already know and are familiar with. Maybe start with Tom Bower’s Revenge or Valentine Low’s Courtiers (they’re not as sugary).

Oh! I just thought of something! Look up PR experts on social media or influencers who do deep dives into celebrity culture and follow them. The really good ones will explain what they see and walk you through their processes to teach you how to do this yourself.

I quit TikTok a couple months ago but a few accounts I still remember:

Molly McPherson - PR expert and celebrity crisis management.

Jalen - he’s an Aussie lawyer that got big during the Depp-Heard trial for how he covered it. His account is mostly legal coverage but his work on the Depp-Heard trial can teach a lot about celebrity crisis management. I don’t remember his last name but if you google the Depp-Heard trial and TikTok, he’ll probably pop up.

Chris - I don’t remember his name or his account but on TikTok, he does huge deep dives into celebrity scandals and controversies. He did a series on Kelly Clarkson, her ex-husband, and their divorce that went into a lot of great detail on what happened and the PR around it.

I hope this gives you something to start with, anon!

And if anyone else has any resources for the anon to learn about PR and communications, please put them in the comments!

[animentality]

How can one rival Colleen Hoover in the publishing industry? What can be done to dethrone her pointless, badly written books?

Sorry, I read “Ugly Love” around ten years ago and I have still to recover.  

Unfortunately for all of us, the literary market caters almost exclusively to cishet middle class white women, who buy and read the most books.

They have the time and money to sit around reading, and they read erotica and listen to true crime podcasts to escape the boredom of suburban house wife life/ a career in HR.

Which is why the most popular books are like. So boring. Because it's all, he grabs my throat, and whispers, "You're mine" or "I'll tell you what to wear and what to do..."

And it's like, candy to them. It gets to them like tickets to a Taylor Swift concert, even though you and I have read nastier, more fascinating twisted shit on AO3 since we were ten.

so if you want to dethrone Hoover, you'd have to write something similarly mediocre and cishet for them specifically.

one of my favorite examples of books that seem really stupid but were best sellers anyway -

Where the Crawdads Sing.

think about it.

Southern (middle class white women love some Southern wilderness settings)

Two love interests, white man with blond hair who is abusive and white man with brown hair, who miscommunicates. love triangle, baby.

Discrimination based on being white trash (both white trash women and middle class to rich white women can relate to white trash)

Murder trial. Instant best seller, every time. Especially falsely accused.

Main character is a beautiful white woman who lives in the sticks and mud, yet manages to be so hot and so mysterious and cute - no armpit hair or filth on her, except for the occasional cute smudge

Resolution is basically just, she killed the guy that she said she didn't kill. BIG PLOT TWIST.

So if you wanna dethrone Hoover, try that.

Love triangle with two white men.

Murder trial.

White trash representation.

Southern Gothic.

Good luck.

[eddiediazismyhusband]

Hi! A bit of a weird ask here, hope you don't mind. (I swear it's not meant in bad faith)

So, I'm new to the fandom. I'd wanted to watch the show for a while and I finally found time. I did like it, and all the characters, esp Hen and Buck.

Even previous to watching it, I had seen many posts about Buddie. I didn't think much of it until I watched the show. And now I can say... I don't see it. Like, from Buck's side? Sure. But from Eddie's? Not so much.

They both clearly act like Christopher's co-parents a lot, and that's where I'm like "oh, maybe there IS something". But outside of that, I actually see their interactions as mostly platonic. And when I see people talk about it, I see mostly about how Eddie completely trusts Buck with his son (which I agree with and makes a good point), but not much else.

So, what am I missing? Sometimes some characters are harder for me to "read", so I know there could be stuff that I'm missing. What interactions do you see from them that are so clearly romantic (at least more so than they are platonic)? In which ways do you see Eddie showing feelings for Buck?

Sorry about such a long ask. This might be more of a rant (oops). I just really want to understand, bc everyone's so sure... and I'm not. (Also, thanks for reading if you got this far)

So i’m obviously not going to tell you thst your interpretation is wrong- art is subjective and your interpretation of things is completely valid.

that being said, to me i see myself in eddie in a lot of ways:

- only son in the family, so i had unrealistic expectations fixed on me about what my life as a “man” should look like (im not a man, im nonbinary but i was still amab so to my parents i’ve always been a ‘man’)

- raised in a very religious household where there were certain expectations on who i would one day marry and have a family with (because not getting married at all and never having kids was out of the question)

- i was repressed for years emotionally (and sexually) due to pressure from my parents/church and thought there was something “wrong” with me for the feelings i felt

- i often revert to anger as my default defense mechanism because i have repressed my emotions for so long (which is something i am working through in therapy)

so seeing those things i relate to reflected in eddie, it is easy for me to pick up on subtext (whether intentional or not) when it comes to his sexuality/feelings for Buck.

you mentioned eddie trusting buck with christopher— to me this is one of the clearest examples of eddie’s true feelings for buck because he completely trusts the most precious thing in his life with Buck, but he has never even come close to that same kind of trust with any of his romantic partners… even shannon he was apprehensive about letting her back into chris’s life. this means he trusts buck on a level he has never trusted anyone else before— and not to get into psychology, but often when people are repressed emotionally, they find ways to feed those feelings without overtly feeding them if that makes sense. so eddie giving chris (who is practically his whole heart) to buck is essentially eddie offering up his heart on a platter.

so that gets that one out of the way.

as for other examples… i am going to state again that eddie is more repressed than buck and doesn’t show emotion as easily as buck does so Buck’s attraction/feelings are going to be more clear-cut and obvious.

but i am constantly seeing examples of eddie’s feelings for buck interwoven subtly through things:

- crying over buck after the lightning strike when we had only ever seen him cry twice before

- the hurt in his face when buck said natalia was the only person who “saw” him

- the way that he gets overly jealous and acts petty around buck’s romantic partners (the most egregious being Taylor, but we have seen it happen in his other relationships as well)

- the fact that he has never been able to fully allow himself to have feelings for the women he’s dated

- he is looking for a mother figure (second parental unit for chris) but has already effectively filled that role with buck

- he is constantly looking at buck like he hung the stars and the sun and the moon

- he has only started going off the deep end of this fixation with shannon after buck came out to him, and he is onyl actively remembering their relationship as what he wished it had been rather than what it was— something i used to do back when i was still in denial about my sexuality was imagining this dream life where i was happily married to a woman because that is what i was supposed to want, not because it’s what i actually wanted

- eddie is the only one who has shown he understands buck’s recklessness is less him being reckless/thinking he’s unbreakable, but that it’s actually buck seeing himself as invaluable enough that getting hurt wouldn’t affect anyone around him

- one of my favorite scenes is post lightning-strike when eddie climbed the ladder and instead of trying to lower buck to the ground immediately, he initially tries to pull buck closer to him while screaming for him

the list could go on and on and if anyone else wants to leave their observations on eddie’s feelings for buck in the replies by all means please do! but these are just a few ways in which i have personally seen eddie’s devotion to buck portrayed in a light that is much deeper than a platonic level.

i hope this made sense and offers a new perspective for you, and i’m glad that even though you haven’t seen enough evidence in your own interpretation, your first instinct isn’t to jump down people’s throats to tell them they are wrong, but instead reaching out and asking for other opinions to better contextualize why us buddie shippers are so invested in these two!

(and never apologize for a long ask to me… if there’s one thing about me i love to yap lmao)

i hope you have a lovely day, anon!! 💕💕