#but also translation as a connection because you get to be exposed to so many great works and connect with it

[momosane]

10 people i’d like to get to know better

tagged by @macbethwitches thank you and you have a wonderful blog.

last song: checked and it’s ma vision du monde by 2bal 2neg. rn i have essence by tems and wizkid on loop. I think I’ll be listening to the eusexua album later.

last book: the last book i finished was transcendent kingdom by yaa gyasi, and i’m now reading winter in sokcho by elisa shua dusapin. i have a few options on my tbr of what to read next but not sure yet.

last movie: nosferatu and before that was all we imagine as light. both are movies I really liked.

last tv show: I was wondering about this because it’s been a while then I remembered I watched like 2 episodes of squid game s2 with a friend so that but i just started severance.

last thing i googled: distance of a place.

favourite colour: generally green but this fluctuates.

sweet/savoury/spicy: spicy always, but nowadays leaning more towards savoury. sweet is occasional, and depends like recently I had a lot of really sweet stuff out with a friend and I was like this makes me want to fast the next day.

relationship status: somewhere in between

looking forward to: local football match i’m going to tommorow!

current obsession: the kittens that randomly showed up and started living near my place. cardamom tea and masala chai (drinking iced coffee in winter was fun till my throat didn’t agree), do long walks count? my day generally consists of a lot of walking but recently I’ve been taking out an hour or half out of my day just strolling and especially when you’re with someone while at it, it really makes you think wow life is really worth living.

[kfcmurderchicks6]

Jimmy Zare and il Capitano — a comparison

Commedia Dell’Arte is an early form of professional Italian theatre (the name translates to “comedy of the arts”), which featured a cast of stock character in short comedic scenes or skits. While there are many different characters in Commedia Dell’Arte, each with their own traits and ‘lazzi’ (gags/jokes), one particular stock character that I would like to pin your focus on for right now is il Capitano.

Il Capitano is a braggart and narcissistic military captain that was probably never actually a captain, and rather forced himself into the role. Sound familiar? Good, because theres a hell lot more where that came from.

I was thinking about Swansea calling Jimmy “Capitano” in-game, and then it got me pondering all of their similarities, so heres me talking about that.

Capitano and Jimmy have so many similarities that I’m 99% sure he was based off of him. One of their similarities is that they both want, and get into, a position of power that they’re not actually qualified to be in by their own manipulation. Capitano constantly boasts about how manly and brave of a captain he is, but in reality, he runs away with his tail between his legs at the first sign of danger. We can see this in how Jimmy slowly crumbles under the responsibilities he gains as Captain (which HE WANTED in the first place), and since he cant physically escape his predicament, he decides to escape it by killing everyone and himself. Anya’s pregnancy also contributes to this danger that he feels he needs to escape from.

The strongest connection i noticed between these two characters is how Capitano most likely forced himself into the role of Captain rather than earning it naturally because he likes to feel powerful and above everybody else. Capitano does things that he thinks will benefit everyone, but they really only benefit him. Jimmy shows this trait a lot while being captain, but especially when he persuades Daisuke into climbing into the vent for his own wants (despite Swansea’s warnings), and then also proceeds to use mouthwash as an impromptu disinfectant (despite Anya’s warnings). Jimmy is so narcissistic that he thinks his opinion is always objectively correct and the best decision, so he only listens to himself.

One final point I’d like to make is that Capitano’s role on stage is to quite literally be exposed or “de-masked” to the audience as the coward that he really is, and not the snooty better-than-everyone captain he wants to be seen as. This just seemed similar to the whole “take responsibility” thing with Jimmy. Over the course of the plot (linearly speaking), he slowly gets revealed as the psychotic, insecure, selfish mess of a man that he is.

edit: I forgot to add how both Capitano and Jimmy abuse their power as men/confide in their masculinity to feel better about himself.

Anyways thats all im writing because im such an Eepy gal….. hope you guys enjoyed hit the bell. No im not writing a conclusion fuck off

[sgiandubh]

Chère Madame Connasse/ Dear Mrs. Fuckwit

First of all, please excuse the length of this answer (you have also been blocked, incidentally speaking). This deserves its own audio. In French, since the French connection is so fucking tenuous:

Here is the English translation, since I am pretty sure Madame Connasse does not speak any French:

'Dear Mrs. Fuckwit,

Oh, well - how may I put it? I also find interesting that such an idiot would lose her time sending such enormous things to a page she hates and which, in return, cordially tells her to go fuck herself.

I usually am entitled to some pretty mighty garbage, but you do have enough vocabulary as to use words like 'hubristic' and 'vortex'. That makes you, by the way, very vulnerable and also more exposed than Uganda's current budget.

But why not you, after all, like so many others? The more, the merrier and you do write, not without some chutzpah, that my French connection is tenuous, as is my legal expertise and that I make you laugh, along with all the rest of the shipper community. Which, to be honest, is as untrue as possible. But it must be such a pain in the ass for you to see that people read me, that people like what I write and that, who knows, all those people (of which there are many), have a better day, in this bizarre environment.

I have already shown you some pictures of myself, including at official events. It was not enough.

I have already shown you my car, my office, my desk and my diplomatic passport. It was not enough.

With just one click you could have checked all the (very transparent) clues I have patiently scattered in my posts, in order for you to find me. Some did. They know perfectly well that you lie and you know it, too.

So, here's the deal, you stupid bitch: your cackle will turn sour when you'll see this very official paper:

This is just one of my law degrees - my Public Law BA at the Paris II University, in June 2001, as you can see by yourself. I have worked so hard and so passionately to get it, that I don't give a flying fuck about the fact that a nobody, and a coward to boot, doubts me. I have nothing to prove, nothing to demonstrate and I owe you nothing. However, sometimes one must set the record straight and I am a very impulsive person, after all.

I shall spare you all the rest, dear Mrs. Fuckwit. There is much more, but I am afraid your self esteem could never bear it. That being said, think twice, the next time you'd try to humiliate someone you do not know. Internet is so wonderfully sketchy that you never know (pinky promise: like never, ever know) to whom you're really talking. People lie very easily in here: I find this ridiculous and useless, in 2024, when one can find more or less everything about anyone. In no time at all, provided one knows exactly how to do it (between you and me, it's not even that complicated).

You and your posse of Pointless Underlings have insulted and intimidated dozens and dozens of people of our community, with an absolutely revolting ferocity. You have been doing it for years, with complete impunity and the strong belief that you were protected by a particularly perverted context, by some obscure agendas and by the indifference of the Two Main Characters. I am here to tell you I am not afraid and also that I couldn't care less about whatever you'd write or think. You will do it again, of course, because I think your obsessive universe is limited to the tiny window of your delusions.

But don't worry, dear Mrs. Fuckwit: until further notice, I shall make mine what a distant descendant of Irish Rebels, marshal of France Mac Mahon, said during the Crimea War - I am here and I am here to stay.

Also, you know: she who laughs last laughs the best.'

[ave-on-main]

Hello, I hope I'm not bothering you! I also hope that you're doing well! I want to start off by saying that I adore your fics, particularly the ones that you write about Brudick. They're really great, and I often reread them on occasion. The many different ideas you have for them, along with your grasp of their characters, are so fun to read and feel so accurate honestly! I love seeing your comments as well even if its on your own fics or others with your analyses about them, and it genuinely brings me joy to see. Thank you for writing stories about them! 🖤💙

I also have a question that kind of popped into my head in regards to them that made me wonder if this is a thing that mostly or only Dick has the privilege of. It's often been pointed out how Dick usually can be physically affectionate with Bruce in comparison to anyone else, like he can touch him freely without Bruce getting upset for the most part or being on guard, and I was wondering if that's the case within canon. I feel like it is, but I'm not entirely sure, though I do know for sure that Dick is someone extremely special to Bruce regardless of whether it's platonic or romantic.

Hi! I hope you're doing ok too! Thank you so much for the ask and the kind words. I always appreciate people commenting on my writing. 💕 And these two are undoubtedly very dear to me!

How physically affectionate Dick and Bruce are in canon changes a lot, tbh, which means people's opinions on it really depend on what panels someone has been exposed to. Often there can be a wall between Bruce and Dick, but they grow most affectionate when they are grieving (and that doesn't need to be a person). Bruce has given out hugs to other Bats, but canon does give the impression that Dick can initiate physical contact more easily and often than others. I think specifically for ship purposes, tearing this wall down further is a lot of fun.

How I see their physical affections comes down to their fighting style. They are very much in tune with each other, and Dick would be used to a kind of physical connection given he is a trapeze artist.

Fighting for them means contact. Sometimes painful, othertimes not.

We have a lot more hands-on a shoulder or other body part panels than hugs. Maybe because the panel from Tec #38 is so iconic, but more likely because they are guys. There are a few instances of Bruce hugging others, but Dick remains a source of comfort for him too, which is different from the role others play in Bruce's life.

The hand on heart is a newer thing, but I'm not complaining about it.

A lot of it is interpretation, of course, but I think it says something that when Dick played the role of the Joker in Batman 2011 #1, the way he was exposed to be Dick to the readers (before the true reveal) was by him touching Bruce a ton, lol.

And, of course, Dick was carried to safety a lot when he was younger. Sometimes he even did the carrying himself.

Dick can, very easily, be in Bruce's bubble because he isn't an intruder. They share 4 to 6 years of living together depending on canon and crime fight together for even longer on top of their shared trauma. That doesn't automatically translate to physical contact = good, but it helps.

[cirilla-fiona-riannon]

Heart, Exposed by an Aphrodisiac 2

This is simply a fan translation and is not intended as a replacement for the game. Expect grammatical errors.

Isaac asked me to prepare a variety of snacks for the many people who would eat them the next day.

(Sandwiches, quiche, financiers, and cookies—maybe I went a little overboard?)

As I packed the snacks into lunch boxes, I suddenly wondered.

(I wonder what Galileo likes.)

If I deliver the snacks to his students, there might be a chance for him to have some as well.

(I'd be happy if he tried at least something.)

After delivering the snacks to Isaac, I went to the front of the neighboring lab and took a deep breath.

(Alright.)

I knocked, and the door opened.

Student: "Yes? Oh, you are..."

Mitsuki: "Um, Professor Ayscough asked me to bring these for everyone."

Just as I said that, a voice exclaimed from inside.

Student: "Thank you! Please come in!"

(Eh? Is this really okay?)

Despite my doubts, I stepped inside to find the students and Galileo.

Student: "Actually, we all got through the crucial moment yesterday, so we've decided to have a little celebration with the snacks we received."

Mitsuki: "I see. Well done, everyone."

As I placed the lunch boxes on the table, the students began chatting and enjoying the food.

(I'm glad they're happy with it.)

While watching them with a smile, I suddenly made eye contact with Galileo.

Mitsuki: "I apologize for barging in like this."

Galileo: "It was the students who requested the snacks. There's no need for you to apologize."

Galileo: "However, I can't quite comprehend your thoughts on preparing these foods for students you have no connection with. Your dedication goes beyond mere conscientiousness."

(Ugh. He's as strict as ever, but...)

Mitsuki: "It's true that I don't have a direct connection with them, but I've seen them working hard every time I come to the university."

Mitsuki: "I'm just glad to be able to help in this way. You're welcome to join us if you like."

Galileo: "Unfortunately, I don't have an appetite."

I felt disappointed inwardly at his curt refusal. Then—

Galileo: *coughs*

Galileo suddenly let out a small cough.

(Huh? What was that just now?)

Mitsuki: "Could it be that you're not feeling well?"

(He does seem a bit pale.)

Galileo: "No, it's nothing."

Galileo: *coughs*

Despite denying it, he coughed again.

Mitsuki: "I think you're sick."

Galileo: "I'm fine. Don't concern yourself with me."

Mitsuki: "Okay, sorry."

(I might have overstepped again.)

Feeling rebuffed, I couldn't help but be concerned about his apparent poor condition.

On my way back from the university, his face popped into my mind again.

(Despite his denial, he did seem unwell.)

(If he's been staying overnight for several days, it wouldn't be weird for his health to suffer, but…)

Maybe he was pushing himself because this is the most important time for the students.

(If that's the case, maybe there's something I can do to help him feel better.)

(Oh, I know! Maybe I can get something if I go to Faust.)

I immediately visited the church where Faust was.

Mitsuki: "So, do you have anything that can help him feel better?"

Faust: "I have just the thing."

Faust: "Some of the children are not feeling well, so I concocted a liquefied herbal remedy that even children can drink."

Saying so, he handed me a small vial of liquid.

Faust: "You can mix it with any non-alcoholic beverage."

Faust: "It also has preventive effects, so you might want to give it a shot."

Mitsuki: "Wow, thanks."

(Galileo should be able to drink this even if he has no appetite.)

I put the vial I received into my bag and headed back to the university.

I tried knocking on Galileo's research lab, but there was no answer.

(The students said they were already done with their work, so maybe Galileo has already left.)

Thinking so, I reached for the doorknob, only to find it unlocked.

Mitsuki: "Excuse me. Um, Professor Maury, are you here?"

A little nervous, I peeked inside and saw Galileo leaning on the chair.

Galileo: ".........."

He was clearly in an unusual state and breathing heavily.

Mitsuki: "Galileo?"

Mitsuki: "Um, are you okay?"

Concerned, I instinctively touched his body.

(He's hot!)

Galileo: "Mitsuki, I told you there's no need to worry about me."

Mitsuki: "This isn't the time for that! You're running a fever."

Galileo: "I said it's fine. I just need some rest. You should go home."

Mitsuki: "But..."

I felt a pang of loneliness at not being depended on, even in such a situation. But more than that, I was worried about him.

Mitsuki: "Then let me at least make you some tea."

Part 1 ╎ Part 2 ╎ Premium ╎ Epilogue

[kurayami-no-ko]

A review of Mashle's second light novel (Mashle: Mash Burndead and Resurrection Spell)

A general review:

This light novel was co-authored by Hajime Komoto and Hoshi Kiyoko so it cannot be considered a Komoto's work. However, I still consider it sub-canon considering Komoto probably had to supervise it right?

It is a light read. All the short stories are simple stories with minimal action and conflicts so they are rather slice-of-life. However, they can be fun and interesting because we barely see many of these characters in the manga so it is nice to see another side of them and watch them deal with their problems. The short stories are all choose-your-own adventure so you will be able to choose what path each character will take.

There are five short stories in this light novel, focusing on Brad Coleman, Wirth Madle, Rayne Ames, Lemon Irvine, and Dot Barrett. The characters that appear prominently in these stories are Lance, Finn, Abel, Abyss, Love Cute, Margarette, Tom. Some other characters that also appear are Wahlberg and Sophina (in Rayne's story). If you want to see more of these characters, I highly recommend getting on Amazon JP and buy this light novel. If you don't know Japanese, Deepl is a good option to translate Japanese into English or any language of your choice.

Underneath, I will be giving a summary of two of the chapters of the light novel for those who who are not afraid of spoilers. I also translate some small sections in Rayne's short story for those who are interested.

Chapter 1: Brad Coleman and his observation work

Like the name, this chapter mainly focuses on one day of Brad Coleman watching over Mash and his friends (Lance, Dot, Lemon, and Tom).

The story starts with Brad hearing a report about an armoured knight showing up. Because the place this armoured knight appeared is a cream puff shop, Brad connects this with Mash. Thinking to himself that if Mash's inability to use magic gets exposed, his plan of success in life will come to nothing, he decides to go out.

After encountering the knight (who is later revealed to be Dot), there are some branching paths you can take. You can take many branching paths as the story progressed. However, if you choose a wrong path, Brad will be back in his office and won't be there to observe Mash and his friends have fun.

It is hard to describe all the branching stories but basically, Brad tries to make sure Mash and his friends stay safe and have a good day. He makes sure that Mash gets to the destination to meet up with his friends either by ordering other police to push him or use cream puffs as baits.

Brad orders the shop keepers of the places where Mash and his friends play to give special attention to the group so they can have a good time. In one of the branching path, he even orders other police officers to catch anything of suspect nearby and lies to them that this is because a child of someone special is playing there. That branching path will lead to a bad ending, however, as Brad himself will be captured because he throws his cigarette butt on the ground.

During the course of the story, Brad keeps telling himself that he does all this just for his plan. However, it is obvious he cares about Mash and wants the boy to have a good time. There is some wistful thinking on his part in the good ending about youths having fun and some bitterness about not having experienced such a happy time during his student years.

Chapter 2: Rayne Ames and one day of being a Divine Visionary

To all Rayne fans out there, this story can be quite interesting. And if you are a fan of the Divine Visionaries, Sophina appears. Sadly, Kaldo does not appear, though I read these light novels just so I an catch some glimpse of him.

From this story, it is apparent that Rayne's life is very busy. He gets off at work at 17 o'clock and is happy that he doesn't have to do overtime. However, when he returns to Easton, Wahlberg has some tasks he needs Rayne to handle. Rayne needs to feed his rabbits in two hours so you are only allowed two hours to handle all the tasks.

The three tasks he needs to do are:

Learn the destruction of the "Magic Reversal Mirror".

Learn about the animal that appeared in the bamboo grove

Answer an interview that will be published in the new student guidance pamphlet.

For the Magic Reversal Mirror, obviously Mash is the one who destroyed it so you are given the option to talk with him. Mash admits to it and apologizes for his action. Then when Rayne is about to leave the room, the door is opened and Finn comes in and says, "Brother! Please wait!".

You are then given two options: listen to what he says or I have no business with my brother. I will ignore him and leave the room. If Rayne ignores his brother, only 10 minutes will pass so less time's wasted, yay! If he listens to what Finn has to say, however, Finn will only say something in defense of Mash.

I will translate a small section here because I feel bad for Finn.

Looking down at Finn who was drawing back a little as expected, Rayne said coldly.

"I fully understand it."

"Eh..."

"You are wasting my time."

Saying it over his shoulders, Rayne Ames left behind both of them and quickly left room 302.

"...Brother."

The door closes to shut away the strengthless voice.

Because of his fault, 20 minutes passed by.

I feel so bad for poor Finn in this and am kinda mad at Rayne lol. Rabbits are important to him but 10 minutes aren't a long time and Rayne should not have acted as if Finn was a waste of time.

If Rayne goes to the bureau to ask about his predecessor, he will encounter Kaise Tsukkomi (Nerey Shawn in English), who says that the previous Director of Magical Objects was injured then retired. Rayne asked whether that person was injured by Domina and Kaise confirmed it. Then it makes sense that the mirror ended up in Cell War's hands.

Then if he goes to Abel's room to talk, he gains an ally in Abel.

After finishing this test, you can go on to the next task.

If Rayne chooses to be interviewed, you can choose his interviewer to be in black or white robe. If the interview is in black robe, it is Finn. They obviously have a very tense conversation and Rayne does a terrible job answering Finn's question about what animal he likes. So Mash shows up and answers it for him.

I will translate a small section because I like these siblings.

"I didn't ask you, Mash-kun."

"That is rude."

"Then, Mash-kun what do you like?"

"Cream puffs."

"Isn't that food!!"

What carefreeness.

The reception room somehow got filled up by a carefree atmosphere.

His brother was laughing out loud.

That brother who used to cried all the time...

I cannot remain in such a carefree place. I cannot destroy such a carefree atmosphere.

Rayne Ames quietly turned his back and left the reception room.

I can't with Rayne. -Cries- However, Fin's being an interviewer is actually a bad option. You are supposed to choose the other option and Rayne will be interviewed by Wahlberg.

To the next task, he has to find out about some animal. To find out about that animal, I recommend going to the library to research about the animal first because that is the only way to get the best ending. Then Rayne will meet Sophina!

Sophina leads Rayne to a shelf as huge as a castle wall. When Rayne complains about there being too many books because he has no time, Sophina just smiles and says,

"To be satisfied with knowledge learned in a short time. You will say act as you say, but I wonder whether those words are also cheap makeshifts and not worth believing in."

"...Ku"

Rayne can either choose to read a lot of books or only a few and choosing to read a few is going to lead him to the best ending. In that branching path, he only reads three books for children.

"Is it really okay for you to only read three books?"

Rayne gave his answer carelessly to a puzzled Sophina.

"I have no intention of becoming a scholar, I only want to solve the problem at school. Besides, because these are children books, important facts are written here. Zebra in hotter regions have more stripes, penguins' black and white colors are for camouflage in the ocean, pandas' black and white colors..."

"I have enough of animal trivia."

Though she spoke out a flat refusal, Sophina understood. Rayne cultivated an intellect at the top of the magical world, which was enough to make him the youngest Divine Visionary. He was surely the kind of person that only needed to listen one to learn ten things. Though he and children read the same thing, he gained vastly more information and content than them. While acknowledging him, Sophina was proud and confident that he would not be able to surpass herself who was worthy of the title of Knowledge Cane.

Sophina kept her expression unchanged, said "Goodbye", then she left, her long, black hair waving.

Later on, Rayne finds out that the animal in the bamboo grove is a kind of animal that feeds on dreams. The dream, in this case, specifically belongs to Mash.

After finishing these three tasks, Rayne goes back to his room, feeds his rabbits and has a great time. If he finishes any task unsatisfactorily, he will not be fully satisfied and thinks about it even when feeding his rabbits. If he fails to finish all the tasks in time, he is happy but his rabbits are super hungry by the time he feeds them so make sure to feed them in time!

[fresh-orange-whispers]

Some thoughts

As a semi-amateur writer writing purely for fun and relaxation, I'm not convinced I'll ever be able to write a GOOD Maul x Qi'ra fic, and I'm not surprised at the scarcity of their content on any platform - they seem too official and too difficult to capture the right ambience and tension.

I generally don't like the male boss x female subordinate type of ship. For what? Because it reminds me of the unspoken rules of the workplace - having an affair with your boss so you can climb to the top of the pyramid - but Qi'ra is different. She climbed onto the roof through her own growth and skill, to get to work directly with Maul. Crimson Dawn served as her safe harbor and provided her with abundant resources. Maul later taught her a lot, seemed to trust her more, and she was able to assume leadership of Crimson Dawn after his death.

Maul was not that type of boss who took sexual advantage of his subordinates. He was more interested in their ability to carry out his plans. The dread that Qi'ra had in her eyes at the end of Solo may translate into fear of unknown risks and dangers to execute more missions with Maul, not because she was afraid of being sexually exploited by him.

Often, this type of ship is rarely written because it tests the author's screenwriting abilities. Canon left a lot of room for these two, but the remaining space requires strong logic and good writing skills to fill. Spending time researching and thinking about plots is also important to make such fics stand out.

Personally, I really like the growing sexual tension and intimacy between Maul and Qi'ra as they worked together. They were like a power couple, both intelligent and assertive. It was compelling that they schemed plans to bring down Sidious and the Sith - an interesting aspect to explore - and they grew closer to each other, day by day. She was beautiful, had all the qualities he appreciated and he was not unattractive to her, but he remained indifferent, as he always had. In the end, the sexual tension between them reached its upper limit like a fully drawn bow, it broke down and they fucked fiercely. He was capable of tenderness as well as violence while she savored every moment of his virility. But they still resumed hard work as partners in crime, not affected by this deeper connection in their relationship.

And I have absolutely no problem with Maul being bisected - I even think that being cut in half at the waist was creative and added more romanticism to this character. I believe, in the SW universe, worldview, technology and magic, Maul was well endowed with a mechanical lower body, equipped with all the sensations and synthetic organs he deserved. He could still flip, kick, fight, walk, run, jump and fuck. Zabraks have two hearts and their physiological anatomy may also be different from humans. Or, let's put it this way: the lumbar vertebrae were exposed after being cut in half, right? Wouldn't it be easier to function if the mechanical lower body was directly connected to his spinal cord? Hmmm I'm going too far.

Yes, I love the many possibilities it offers!

[forbiddentaako]

Hi, sorry for bothering you and feel completely free not to answer this if you don't want to or aren't interested in it anymore, but I just really like your Devil's Carnival AU and I'd love to know more about it so dropping some questions here 👀 sorry if they're too many!

1. How do you imagine Charlie's and Vaggie's relationship developing? They obviously meet in "After the fall", right after Vaggie's fall from grace, but when did they start dating? How did it happen? Since in canon one of the things Vaggie loves about Charlie is her kindness and compassion towards sinners, how does that translate into this AU, where Charlie is less sunshine-y?

2. Does your idea involve Lute being more like Cora or like the Agent? With this I mean whether she has feelings for Vaggie which she hides because they're "inappropriate and illegal" or if she's courting Vaggie because Adam asked her to as a way to expose Vaggie while she's internally praying for her not to do something stupid and prove Adam right. I think you kind of explained it already in your other post but I didn't fully get it 🥲

3. Slightly related to the previous one but how does Vaggie fall? Is it for the same reasons as June?

4. Have you thought of roles for characters like Husk, Alastor or Niffty?

5. What do you think would happen in this AU in a hypothetical 3rd movie?

Your art style is so beautiful btw! You're such a talented artist :)

You are literally doing the opposite of bothering me don't worry I got so excited seeing this ask in my inbox you have no idea fsgsghskbds i have everything under read more bc it turned out long but thank you so much for the compliment on my art and also for this ask !!!

1:

More or less vaggie and charlie getting together is closer to how it happened in hazbin hotel since i feel like part of it is the similarities of vaggie meeting charlie immediately after her fall and charlie still being kind and helping her which is the start of their connection, and overtime they grow closer and end up falling in love. I do like to think it did take them a while to get together but it was over the course of getting to know one another and their passions/dreams/ect that they began to truly understand who the other was and fall for them.

A little side note off of that which is relevant to understanding a less sunshiny charlie and how it translates to chaggie; with this particular role for charlie it has her mirroring aspects of both of her parents by design, but her character motivations are still very rooted in the fact that she is kind and believes in the good of sinners, heaven has just pushed her too far. Like even tho she's technically fulfilling lucifer's role from the devil's carnival, in doing so she's bearing more similarities to lilith's role in hell in hazbin in that she empowers sinners with her voice (in this case particularly any who've fallen from heaven since it seems like in the devil's carnival this was an occurrence that happened multiple times). And that kind of motivates her disdain for heaven to see how easily they cast out those who don't live up to their standards + with the obvious hypocrisy in how adam acts it makes her more disillusioned with the whole system altogether that heaven stands for and perpetuates (like lucifer hazbin hotel), which is what results in her saying 'fuck it' and just send sinners up there.

originally i was thinking the first movie didn't quite fit for charlie in lucifer's role because it does seem kind of cruel the way the sinners are tormented and it felt like it deviated from charlie's character, but i changed my mind after seeing the second bc i think it could read as a misguided attempt at redemption playing by heaven's rules of shunning what's perceived as sin (which we do see charlie try to do in the actual show) rather than her more trust exercises/team building route she goes for in hazbin. Like for charlie i think she'd genuinely think she's helping to try and get each of them to realize what sin they've committed for redemption's sake but hits her breaking point with heaven by the end. Probably from a mix of not fully believing some of the sins committed warrant eternal damnation (I feel like angel in particular with this one is especially sad because its unclear whether or not tamara ever does get sent to heaven/redeemed?) and being pissed at how hypocritical adam is by engaging in the same sins he's damning people to hell for. Charlie sending trains of sinners up isnt just a passive aggressive thing to do to heaven to shun her role as their torturer but also a statement that sinners and winners are one in the same-like she's completely giving up on trying for redemption within heaven's rules and just showing them that if they continue with this hypocrisy and cruelty, redemption is unnecessary bc these sinners fit right in as flawed as they are. I think this would also make Adam's damage control before 'bells of black sunday' especially insulting to charlie as well.

And vaggie sees that compassion in charlie when they first meet and she is kind to her in her lowest point, but realizes how much deeper it goes the more they get to know one another. In this AU also charlie knew from the beginning that vaggie was a former exorcist, but finding out why she fell was probably something that happened later on. (I do think the idea of them first starting to spend more time together by reading Aesop's fables to one another would be really cute too, like charlie likely reads stories to most new sinners to help with the transition to hell but vaggie shows so much genuine interest that it becomes a routine for them)

(Another side note; I think a scene in the actual film which supports a well intentioned charlie and works well for her character is the one with the devil and the ticket keeper towards the end of the second movie when the ticket keeper confronts lucifer about his plan. Like its vox yelling at charlie that heaven will try to fuck them up because of what she's doing, and him saying that he is the one who'll be standing on the tracks to push her out of the way, but charlie getting angry at this and saying she would never let him do that and that she will be on the tracks with him, and then she tells him her plan finally. I think this scene works well because it not only shows charlie's devotion to her ideas and to those she cares about, but also the disconnect between her intentions and her actions that could allow for the first movie's plot of torturing sinners to be born out of a want to help them. Because in this case she does have a well thought out plan and everything is done with intent, but vaggie is the only one who really knows this so to vox it seems like shes being reckless and impulsive due to how she's been acting, and heaven also isn't really understanding the message in the way she wanted.)

2:

With Lute and vaggie i think i have a clearer idea of what's going on now than when i first made the post in summary because i think lutes role is dependent on if we're talking in the plot or if we're talking in relation to vaggie. I think adam probably still wanted her to get closer to Vaggie and prove she wasn't worthy of heaven/it was a test of loyalty for lute to betray her but the feelings between them that developed were ones that Lute definitely deemed to be 'inappropriate and illegal'. I think they probably could have had their romantic moments between them still in secret but after getting found out and confronted by the watchword Lute realized because she had fallen for vaggie she was resigned to letting vaggie fall so she wouldn't have to deal with the fact that she loved her or get caught having a secret relationship with her. Like externally they present similarly to the agent and june with their respective roles in the narrative, but in terms of who they are to one another it's was closer to what cora and june had going on.

With their plot as well I feel like some of the heaven caste system needs to be examined/adjusted so it better fits them, but I haven't had the time to dig into it as it exists in the film enough that I feel comfortable deconstructing and reconstructing it just yet. Definitely working on it though !

3:

And going off of this I think when vaggie fell Lute took the opportunity to make it look like she had acted calculated and callously this whole time as to maintain adam's respect as well as prove her loyalty, when in reality that was very much not the case and she did really care for vaggie at one point but forced herself to hate her because of what loving her would mean. I also think vaggie's fall would be something tied to kindness rather than ambition because it follows more closely to what happened in hazbin and also would probably endear her to charlie more when she finds out (and make her angrier at heaven), but Im also not 100% sure what that would look like in terms of how it plays out in the film.

4:

So I have thought a bit of nifty/alastor/husk though they are more unsure in who they'd be. I am kind of stuck on the idea of Alastor as the publicist in his more positive sense because I think it fits and i think it'd be cool to incorporate more physical radio aspects into his design in the same way that the publicist has the horn attached at his ear (plus mimzy can be there too as one of the songbirds). I do also like the idea of him playing the role of the watchword to some extent (just keeping it solely to radio) bc he loves drama. Partly because I think it fits to let him be in heaven but still be an absolute menace to the general public, and partly because i think its funny to keep Al and Vox separated like toddlers who will start a fight with one another if left alone for too long. I had thought about having vox as the watchword and alastor as the publicist, but I kind of like the 'charlie works with the vees' plot a bit too much to separate vox from them. With Husk and Niffty I go back and forth on who they'd play, partly bc when i was originally brainstorming this au with a friend we thought husk could be the hobo clown but that was also when we were thinking Alastor as Lucifer's role instead of charlie (and this was before I had watched the second movie so the cast overall was very different) so im not entirely sure. If we're going with carnie roles for them i think husk as the hobo clown or the magician i can live with and niffty as one of the bayonets maybe. But having Alastor in heaven kind of throws off the dynamic so im unsure fully where to put them.

5:

The idea of what would happen in a third movie is SO INTERESTING and I hadn't even thought about it. I think part of this AU deviates from the movie to be more chaggie focussed so I imagine a third movie could focus more on their relationship as well, maybe even delving into them bonding over their shared plan to overthrow heaven and we'd get to see that development of the plan/their relationship in the flashbacks with the present being them actually enacting their plan. Like they are a power couple and share each other's passion, and theyre really the only 2 who actually know what the plan is. I think by this point vox would have been told the plan by charlie in the previous movie so he would have to also help get the carnies organized and on board. There'd also have to be some scenes in heaven with Adam losing it as his control of heaven falters, plus finding out whats going on with the sinners sent to heaven. Really theres just a ton of possibilities since the actual third movie was never made.

[skinnytuna]

I really really like that long post you did about making art. especially: 'i have somehow convinced myself that, if i maybe try a little bit, not exceptionally hard, but only a little bit, maybe i will somehow magically be good enough and worthy of critical praise.'

I spend all my time thinking about the beautiful or ""groundbreaking"" things I would make but no time actually doing it. and then when I attempt to create something the actual discomfort of physically drawing, writing or even coding is so unlike the idealised version in my brain that I have to stop because it is so frustrating. I wish I could be the sort of person who decides to spend hours upon hours perfecting a craft. but I just cant. weirdly I've come to terms with it. theres a whole world of art that exists just for me in my head. maybe one day ill be able to translate it into reality. but for now, im just going to be happy with the dual presence of my shitty real art and my lovely art thats just for me.

(also: I dont think your posts are lacking. the way you use language is unexpected and hilarious. I like it a lot.)

we should have a word for the terminal need for validation but lack of any and all discipline ... seems like a relatively new phenomena. i'm considering the strong possibility that it's a widespread result as the death of the "hobby"... however many years ago i imagine it was normal to just do something for yourself, because you love doing it. in fact i see a lot of my friends parents still doing stuff such as this.

i have a lot of friends whose dads make eps and albums for fun. for them only. no wishing on a star for it to blow up overnight. none of that. security in the quality of it. security in how far it probably won't reach. now that security, of course, could just come with age. but i suspect there's a generational parasite.

we were all raised with Numbers. the follower count, the like count, these are burned into our psyche. a neurosis coiled tightly around an objective metric of validation. a handful of years ago such a neurosis couldn't even exist! and it especially couldn't exist in a matter of seconds or minutes. your value as a person is a pair of dice that you roll and you snatch them back the moment you see snake eyes. almost all of the amateur art, music, writing we are exposed to has a number right under it. you don't get to evaluate it yourself. there is immediately a pavlovian connection, i like this thing, this thing has this number attached to it, if i can get a number like that i'm worthy of coexisting with this thing.

there's an almost instant dissociation between the craft, the skill, the time, and the FRUIT. what you get back. we are almost trained to care more about how popular something is than how good it is. not like, hollywood productions, or Columbia Records' chart topping album by a thirty something with A&R parents, but how popular someone just like you is on the internet. a plausible professional with a twitter account who draws whatever they want. someone you could relate to. someone you could be.

but because you want the numbers you skip the learning... you make something and put it out. and you keep doing this. your learning is public, your honing of the craft is documented before an audience of hopefully thousands. and you see what they respond to. and their responses steer the direction of your learning. you never have an opportunity to make something shitty. make something no one likes. experiment. you just keep feeding the computer. and it works until the point where you want to do something else, or something real, or something better, or something serious, and realize you don't know how. and you're like Fuck Shit why did I hustle instead of learning in peace.

but of course this is all by design. the numbers can't teach themselves more numbers if you doodle in your sketchbook and don't show anyone. i'm not sure if it was ever a specific person's idea to make everyone's entire life a performance, but whoever engineered it did a damn fine job. takes a sledgehammer to break out of. oh well ! in a few generations i'm sure all of our skin will have glare dampeners evolved specifically to vlog better with. and everyone will have forgotten what it's like to do something in your room, by yourself, because you like to do it

[hekateinhell]

20 Questions for Fic Writers! ✨

tagged by @monstersinthecosmos thanks babe! ♥️

1. How many works do you have on A03? 32 public, 2 anon, 1 orphaned (that I regret, don't do it!)

2. What’s your total A03 word count? 125,475!

3. What fandoms do you write for? Vampire Chronicles!

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? Shake The Disease, Our House, The Hand That Feeds, Play The King

5. Do you respond to comments? YES. I used to be so good at replying right away and now it's more like 2-3 times a year where I'll sit down and do them in bulk. Part of is I feel really nervous and EXPOSED when I post something and I kind of feel shy, and part of is I want to make sure I'm taking the time to reply thoughtfully because I want to put as much energy into my response as I'm getting from all your lovely, thoughtful comments! 💖 But I appreciate every single one—comments keep me going! I like to say "write for yourself" and I stand by that LOL I do write for myself first and foremost, but I share because I crave the feeling of being part of the community!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Make An Exception lmao. It's a short lil' canon divergent thing but it's basically Armand cashing in a favor with Lestat and asking him to "take care" of Daniel the way Armand once "took care" of Nicki. Either that or A Rusted Essence actually, I can't decide! I think the first one is angstier and the second one is more hopeless.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Any of my PWPs?

8. Do you get hate on fics? In the beginning I would get a couple hate comments here and there because the only fics I wrote at the time were L/A and I guess that bothered people! Lol it was a different vibe back then (only two years ago but it was weird, I'm so glad that's a thing of the past woof!). Oh, and I really pissed off a couple puritians making Lestat fifteen years old in my mermaid fic. 🫣

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? 9/10 times my fics will be smut! I've written both guy-on-guy and girl-on-girl smut, and I find there's differences to each outside of... you know LOL the obvious! I always try to focus on the psychology behind the kinks and how things build and escalate throughout the narrative. It's much more important to me why they're doing what they're doing and how they connect through doing that, but if I can push the envelope of depravity just a bit too then I'm very happy!

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Nope, no crossovers.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not a full fic.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Not yet!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? No! I think I would like to one day but it would very much depend on the person and the story.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? Lestat/Armand! But I very much love Armand/Louis and Armand/Daniel too, and of course poly combos are always fun and I do write and read a decent mix of all the above!

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? One of the anon fics. I think iykyk. Sorry, guys.

16. What are your writing strengths? I get the most compliments on my characterization, dialogue, and smut!

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I'm also trying to get better with drawing out my fics and creating a sense of slow burn, but I have no patience and I just have to get into the smut or at least reference it somewhere within the first 2k. So I'll work on that. One day. And I can't wait to write a proper 50k EVENTUALLY. Oh, and pacing! I feel like I really struggle with pacing.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? Lord help me, I do this when I write from Lestat's POV, which I do often. Usually it's just endearments or a phrase but... yeah. Absolutely this is not how bilingual people talk lmao but when it's vampire fic specifically I think it's just corny enough to be Ricey, if you get my drift!

19. First fandom you wrote for? VC! My two year ficiversary was in March! 

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? I'm so bad at this question because I've noticed it tends to be the latest big thing I've been working on! So right now that's Drop Dead Gorgeous, a genderswapped L/A human AU! It's the first thing I wrote since I've been exploring my sexuality and it was really interesting from a creative perspective to get into the headspace of a woman obsessively attracted to another woman, and honestly it didn't take a lot for me to get there! It was super fun and horny and I really enjoyed writing it and I can't wait to start working on the next chapter!

tagging but no pressure! @rainbowcarousels @0junemeatcleaver0 @butchybats @aunteat @leslutdepointedulac @cinnamonclove @nothing-but-paisley ♥️

[thistle-and-thorn]

🍑🍋🫐🍇

awn thanks sweet pea <3

🍑 If you could make a connection between your favorite character and another work you care about (whether a crossover/fusion or a wonderfully “pretentious” literary reference) what would it be? How would it work?

okay so remember when you ruined my life by recommending till we have faces to me.

so here's the thing about cupid and psyche. i think it, from a christian perspective, is sort of a story of loss of faith. (not orual but psyche). like it's faith being shaken, being changed, being not enough.

i also believe that tyrion's story is a story of a loss of faith. his father, brother, sister are his father, son, and holy ghost. and he kills his god. he exposes the light on what his father actually is. he finds no gods there though. then he is cast out. psyche literally translates to "soul" and i just...*bites fist* it's the way he exists in a liminal space you know???????????????????????????????????? it's about him being both??????????????????????

also. in an early version of the myth, psyche's father goes to an oracle who says that his daughter will marry a dragon who is more feared than anyone including the gods.

🍋 What’s your favorite spicier trope to write?

oh this is hard! what are spicy tropes? i try really hard to make each smut unique and special for each fic. like i try to be conscious even of sex acts that i've written before? but i love writing aftercare, like the tenderness/afterglow is always easy to write.

🫐 What’s your favorite underrated thing in your fandom? (A ship that only you seem to write for, a character there’s almost no fics about, a trope that criminally hasn’t been written yet, etc.)

melisandre/selyse. literal lesbophobia in our midst. actually criminal how little fic there is for this ship.

🍇 Is there a particular scene/episode/book/etc that you want to just write a million fics about, over and over? Which one?

okay so many actually for so many fandoms. my current obsession is this one scene in doc martin (i know, i know) but there's a scene where doc and his wife's marriage is on the rocks. they're not communicating, they're heading straight for divorce. and the doc is repairing a clock and louisa sits with him and then halfway through him explaining she leaves. she gets up and walks out.

and it makes me insane.

THAT'S the moment where their marriage fails. right there. the failure of compassion.

and it's so fascinating because i maintain that he crux of the doc's character is how medicine is the only way he can show his love. it's the time when he's the most "human". and also the big shadow of his failed surgical career. it's like. by "operating" on the clocks. it's surgery. babe, it's surgery. he used to see people as clockwork and now he can't and all he's left with are clocks.

literally no one touch me.

[binniesoob]

Heyo Jo, I drop another thing into your ask box because I recently watched the Sugar Rush Ride (Japanese version) MV and I've fallen in love with this frame in particular

I LOVE IT 😭

It's so aesthetically pleasing that it can be used in a moodboard or something 🥺

But it also made me wonder in which part of the timeline we are here. In this one it seems that TxT have come back into Magic Island after "ages" so I was wondering if they're hinting the next chapter (get it? 🤣) into their storyline or not. The amount of butterflies I saw here makes me think so.

Also maybe it's a little obvious but Yeonjun keeps having that little scar/wound on his nose and he looks so adorable 🥺

I remember he had it in other previous eras so I was wondering if there was a connection to it (maybe his characterization?) or it's just a simple aesthetic detail that the visual directors keep adding on him because it's appealing.

Also I listened to Hydrangea Love too.

A soft cute ballad from them I CAN'T I love them 😭 idk if it can be included into the lore because it's an OST 🤔

Also I tried to at least finding some meaning behind the title because we don't have an official translation yet (and I think we'll get one only when Sweet will be released completely) and UGH, they should have choosed another flower instead of the hydrangea, that flower has so, so, soo many different meanings my head exploded when I tried to do some research about it.

Maybe they hinted something in the concept photos by putting some hydrangea there but I suck on recognising flowers so 😅🥲

End of this stream of consciousness for now, I think some of this rambling can help a little for the future posts about the lore ig

I tried to be vague because I don't remember if you like being spoiled of things or not BUT if you don't mind spoilers maybe next time I might come back on your ask box and making longer ramblings 🤣

finally answering this too!! 😭

MOOD!! THAT FRAME IS GORGEOUS!! they made a very good use of the CGI!! also perfectly delivers how txt are inside an illusion crafted by the devil!!

for the timeline, in the beginning we see yeonjun in his car that got away at the end of gbgb jap ver! he has an incident and gets transported to magic island/neverland. all of the others get transported too from wherever they are and they are able to reunite. so i think srr jap fits after gbgb jap that goes after loser=lover 👍

yeonjun with that scar on his nose is indeed adorable 😔 this frame especially is majestic likeeee look at that 🤯

tbh i think both? it's like the aesthetic of having a band-aid over your noise bridge! but yeah, it's also an occurring theme for yeonjun 😮 honesty i didn't investigate if having a scar on your nose has a meaning 🤔 (if anyone knows feel free to explain it to us <3), anyways, the fact that he always has scars connects to his impulsive and risk-taking nature. and he's also a fighter! in the star seekers his weapon is a sword so he is definitely more exposed to being injured in combat than soobin for example, who is an archer.

Hydrangea love is such an heartfelt song 🥺 it's so pretty!!! soft rock too!!! i love it!!! i honestly didn't have time to analyse the lyrics and see if i connects to the lore 😭 but i have a feeling it does 👀 it sounds like a goodbye song to their first love from freeze and minisode 2..

i suck at recognising flowers too lol 😭 if you found out anything about this pls let me know 🙏

all the ramblings and asks and comments ALWAYS help for the lore so thank you so much!!! and it makes everything more fun and interesting 🥰 it's my fav part eheh

i'd love longer ramblings 👀 and spoilers are okay, anyone can drop them anytime, at most I will reply later if at a specific moment I prefer to see something with my own eyes first and try to understand it ;)

sorry again for answering this SO LATE 😭😭😭 and thank you so much for sending this ❤

[seewetter]

I really need Robert Pfallers book "Erwachsenensprache" (Adult Language) to be translated into English.

As frustrating as the book can be for some of the author's hot takes, it goes into this dynamic in great detail: how there is an increased desire to make all personal matters explicit both in couples and in families or on the internet. And how the outcome of this transparency is on one hand more scrutiny and judgment, on the other hand an expectation of not being judged.

Pfaller argues that a neoliberal society increasingly cuts jobs and deprives people of the means to improve their future -- but that this taboo of hiding personal details and this encouragement to "be yourself" ends up refocusing people's attention from their external material problems to inner immaterial problems.

In interviews around the book, Pfaller points out this may be by design: film festivals like Berlinale and art exhibits like Documenta run based on sponsorships by large banks: and lo and behold, while these cultural events have existed for half a century or longer and love discussing serious topics, they never discuss things their sponsors might be directly responsible for, like the distribution of wealth. Meaning that when the interested public goes to art exhibits and film festivals and other cultural events, they are exposed to issues where individuals or cultural mindsets are to blame, but certain economic issues are not given sufficient and necessary attention.

I hope people can make the connection to antishippers and purity culture.

The facade of purity among celebrites is of course an outcome of "family friendly Disney" and of YouTube's censorship of sexual matters via algorithm and many other business decisions like that. Plus maybe internet attacks against celebrities cause them to think twice about revealing anything that could be used against them? It can damage their careers after all.

But that antis are incapable of separating celebrity ideal from mortal shortcomings of the average tumblr user, it might be due to what Pfaller is discussing.

If cultural events can only present "cultural problems" with great urgency and provide cultural explanations (in China TCM involves ivory, so elephants have to die) rather than economic explanations (markets have the money to create new desires for products or to keep old desires alive. It is ivory traders that keep themselves in business) then that also applies to every moral judgment people make.

Antishippers perceive their crusades as having the highest urgency because (for example) they attribute real crises of abuse as the outcome of bad media. They think that individuals who enjoy the fantasy of something are the key factor for that thing existing in reality. If this were true, the main people hunting elephants in Africa would be private Chinese citizens, hoping for a cure. But that's not true -- an elaborate market advertises these cures, just as an elaborate market advertises hoola-hoops or supersoakers to children. No child has a natural need for hoola-hoops, markets generate that need. People don't read and enjoy disturbing fan fiction as the first step in becoming an abuser. These are two entirely unrelated groups. Abusers in corporate environments are often people who are tacitly given permission to abuse (think of how abuse works in the Catholic Church if you need an example: when the church finds out about abuse, they cover it up, prevent law enforcement from getting involved and occasionally move the abuser to a new location with new potential victims).

Not just antishippers but moral crusaders in general think of these actions of individuals as meaningful because they have not been able to connect the dots better. I always think of the case of a transgender employee of a major arms manufacturer (Lockheed Martin) who was genuinely a terrible person. Now that the moral crusade against this trans man is over, Lockheed Martin has one less employee and is otherwise unaffected. The crusade "won" but the thing they found so reprehensible isn't affected in the slightest. Because their victim was immoral enough (he was) they don't scrutinize themselves. Worse, they worked with transphobic right-wingers to gather information about their target. None of this was thought through.

In a culture where the idea of deepening a relationship is synonymous with disclosing all secrets and where people seek online relationships for comfort...that is also a culture where people want all these cultural and individual failings to be addressed, even though they have been deprived the institutional and economic context that would give them real tools to start thinking about genuine solutions... in such a culture, we have a huge quantity and diversity of confessed secrets that make the public uncomfortable. And in such a culture, the discomfort is unbearable, because people tie the discomfort to the real struggles in their lives (to past abuse they experienced, to parts of their lives destroyed or threatened in one way or another).

Basically, people are pouring out all their secrets and other people are trying to be open-minded but having difficulty when they are suddenly morally scandalized. And since moral scandal is likeliest where censorship is thickest, the stuff that YouTube won't show or Disney won't show (etc.) is the likeliest fodder for an outburst of moral outrage.

The thing that is both hopeful and sad is that "the culture" keeps moving on and changing its values. What is morally reprehensible to the antishippers of today will be fine in a few years, replaced by some new fad of things considered wrong and bad then. Negative attitudes towards age gaps between adults for example are currently in vogue in some parts of the internet, while perhaps in 30 years people will all laugh at it...but maybe makeup has become unacceptable then.

My hope is always that when either politics or climate disaster causes society to radically change, the incentives to pit people against low-hanging fruit will vanish. But I don't hope for climate disaster (that would be a bitter hope) and it's possible politics never sufficiently affects change in this direction.

Whatever happens, it matters that we talk about this and try and fix it. There is value in sharing what makes these crusades bad and in working to understand the causes better. Thanks for reading.

I can't be the only one that wonders about the correlation between antishipping and... modern parasocial relationships, for lack of a better term?

Like, maybe this is just my perception changing, but it really felt like a decade ago, most people understood that most celebrities and people on the internet weren't being open about every facet of their lives, and that was okay!

But now, hiding anything seems almost taboo, even when its required for your career.

And a lot of antis seem to think that you can get a complete sense of someone's personality from their tumblr. Its like antis are incapable separating "your average tumblr user" from "celebrity that is expected to put up a facade of moral purity for cash" (if celebs should have to do that is a whole nother debate)

Someone else can probably phrase this way better, but idk. Its something to think about. Would be really curious to hear other opinions.

[letterslaura]

Intercultural dimension as an articulating axis and practices involving Educational Technologies.

Coucou everyone!

Today’s topic is more than interesting, we are going to explore the idea of culture and its connection to language teaching and learning. First of all, tell me, what comes to your mind when you hear the word “culture”? Let me give you a hint: it is nothing erudite-like. Rather, it can be manifested in all kinds of human expressions that translate a group’s customs, beliefs and values, such as music, religion and, of course, language. 

As connectivity increases, cultural exchange becomes easier and it leads to multicultural societies, where languages end up having many variations as well, such as the emergence of Spanglish. You might have noticed by now that language is a crucial aspect of culture and can reflect and shape our identities. For this reason, intercultural practices are intrinsic to language teaching and learning.

From the perspective of English educators, it is our job to “help learners to realize that thoughts and views of different nationalities and different types of societies about nature and human society are quite different” (WANG, 2011). Fortunately, exploring the difference between one culture and another can actually be appealing to students, because it instigates their curiosity and will to explore the unknown. In this sense, intercultural practices are great for raising students’ consciousness around the other and themselves at the same time, considering that our identities are formed by what we are but also by what we are not, as “identity and difference are in a relationship of close interdependence”. (SILVA, 2012, p. 74)

In this sense, the National Common Curricular Base (BNCC) indicates in the competency (EF08LI18) the building of a cultural repertoire by exposing students with diverse manifestations of art and culture connected to the English language, valuing diversity. This is important as such repertoire is relevant not only in the educational setting but also in students' personal development as citizens and individual beings who interact within society. Getting to know other customs and beliefs from around the world is nice but also, beyond that, it is crucial to learn to respect and appreciate such differencies.

Especially to demonstrate the manifestation of language in culture.

Furthermore, it is interesting to bring material from various countries and perspectives, in order to enrich the classes even more. Nowadays, this can be a simple job, since there are many online resources at our disposal. Youtubers and tiktokers can be an easy and relatable option to show students. there are so many people from so many different contexts with so much to say! Teachers should use this to their advantage, since regular texts or activities are usually not as engaging as a resource that students are already used to.

Thanks for your attention!

XOXO

Laura

[studio-interview-repository]

Interview -- Stacie B.

NG: As someone who has family that survived breast cancer, your work and research are deeply meaningful to me. From the input in our classes together, I get the sense that’s a common response to your work. Are you ever surprised at the number of lives touched by your topic of research, and do you consider them your audience when creating work? If not, who? SB: The number of people interested in my work seems to be directly proportionate to the amount of people Breast Cancer affects. I am always grateful that people are able to see the value in my work, but it's also emotionally heavy because of how many people this work touches (whether directly or indirectly). When I’m creating art in the vein of this research topic, I don’t necessarily think about who will see it, but I am very concerned with not overstepping my boundaries by trying to speak FOR this population. I try to keep my unique position in mind and speak my truth about what I see. Creating art this way is tricky, but creating the tattoos for these clients is much easier. The audience for the tattoo is the individual standing in front of me at the time. I try to turn off all my subjective opinions and listen to my client. My only goal is to give them what they want. Technically, I will interject if something isn’t going to translate into a tattoo well or if the design won’t age well over time, but the subject matter is in the client's control. That is part of the power of this service: providing control following an experience where one seems to have lost much of their control over things. NG: Even as you expand your practice to include new things, you still dedicate time to making paintings. At the risk of sounding very Amer, why is continuing to paint important to you even as you explore new avenues of creation? SB: Tattooing is my way of feeling like I’m doing something for someone other than myself. As I get older, I think it’s important to find ways of positively contributing to the world, and medical tattooing is the best way I’ve found to fulfill that part of my life. I feel a responsibility to take medical tattooing as far as I can. It feels like I’m driven by something outside of myself, or maybe something deep within myself that I’m still trying to connect to. Having said all that, painting is strictly for me. I’m not trying to tell anyone else’s story. It’s my time to get out all the things inside of myself. I paint because I have to. Not in a forced kind of way, but in an “I have to get this out” kind of way. Tattooing is me telling someone else’s story, and painting is me telling my own story. Painting is vulnerable, honest, liberating, exposing, and just something I must do. I can’t NOT paint, if that makes sense. NG: As someone equally fond of reading, what books have impacted you and your work recently? SB: This question makes me so sad because I realize I haven’t been able to read any of the amazing books I’ve been stockpiling. I’m dying to get into the 9th Street Women book, and I also got Judy Chicago’s newest book, which is just a bunch of quotes by her. I’m hoping over Xmas break, I’ll get to indulge finally.

[shammah8]

🕊️🌺Wendy🌺🕊️:

SPIRITS OF SABOTAGE Monitoring spirits not only seek to delay and prevent God’s plans, but they also try to sabotage them. We noted earlier that “evil communications [or companions] corrupt good manners [“character” NLT]” (1 Corinthians 15:33). However, it is important for us to understand how that corruption functions in conjunction with soul ties. For example, the Bible says:

Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man you shall not go: lest you learn his ways, and get a snare to your soul. (Proverbs 22:24–25) The Scriptures tell us that we must not enter into a friendship with an angry man lest we adopt his ways and snare our souls. The Hebrew word translated “friendship” in this verse is rā‘â, which, among many meanings, can signify “to associate with.” This word has the connotation of sheep grazing together in a pasture. Many people don’t realize that they are exposing themselves to a spirit of sabotage through wrong affiliations and connections. The word sabotage means “to deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct (something), especially for political or military advantage.”3 Remember, familiar spirits seek to undermine our lives and destinies, hindering our callings and diminishing our spiritual vision and fervor.

The apostle Paul dealt with spirits of sabotage during his ministry.

To give one illustration, Paul and Barnabas were preaching in the city of Iconium, and as they went about winning Jews and Greeks to the Lord, religious people stirred up strife:

But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles, and made their minds evil affected [bitter] against the brethren. (Acts 14:2) Eventually, Paul and Barnabas had to flee to another region, where they continued to preach the gospel. (See Acts 14:7.) The sabotage could not prevent the gospel from being proclaimed wherever Paul went.

For another biblical example, let’s return to the account of Nehemiah, who continued to face opposition from Sanballat, Tobiah, and others, even though he had refuted them.

But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very angry, and conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

(Nehemiah 4:7–9) Nehemiah discerned that Sanballat and Tobiah were operating in a spirit of sabotage to keep the Israelites from fulfilling their assignment. Sometimes, people will persist in trying to monitor, delay, and sabotage our life or work. This is when we need to stand firm in the Lord, as Nehemiah did. In Nehemiah 6:1–3, we read:

Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had built the wall, and that there was no breach left therein; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;) that Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, while I leave it, and come down to you?

Again, we see Nehemiah exercising discernment and not being tricked into an attachment with those who would do him harm and try to stop his God-given purpose. Years ago, when my wife and I were just beginning our ministry, we sought to connect with various pastors and ministries for support. At one point, we began to fellowship and partner with a few other ministries. There was one particular ministry that we were about to partner with on a deeper level when God gave my wife a dream in which this ministry gave us turtles. As soon as she awoke from the dream, she knew immediately what it meant and warned me that if we partnered with that group, it would bring years of stagnation to our own ministry.

We never partnered with that ministry, and they eventually ceased operations. Had we been connected to them, it would have hindered our spiritual progress.☕️Kynan Bridges