#don’t get me started on Pottermore quizzes lol

[lavendarneverlands]

Ah yay!!!

I joke that I’m a Grytherinpuffleclaw cause I have a lot of each house depending on who you ask😂 but if I have to pick one I say Gryffindoor (cause that’s my lil sibs vote and they know me best).

How did I not know you also like Harry Potter!?!💕

What house are you? 😊🫶

AHHH omg we have so much in common!!!! I'm a ravenclaw through and through (with a little bit of slytherin mixed in)! Wbu?

[faeriesthrall]

ok so this is literally just for @wearetoobusydancing-swift and @falling-chandeliers but anyways , there’s literally no theme whatsoever except for the fact that i love all of these,  also i have no memory as to how i found any of these so you may have taken some of these already but that’s life for you sometimes lol, also feel free to rec any you enjoyed lol i’m literally just picking randomly from quizzes i’ve taken in like the past 2 days

1.  ok, prefacing this one w fuck jkr and everything she stands for(we love and respect trans ppl in this house), quizmaker said the pottermore quiz deserves no rights and i felt so seen so here’s that

2.  anyone else wanna know what type of plague doctor they are?  no?  here’s the quiz anyway

3.  this quiz about what type of “gentle affection” you are and it was cute as hell, it also confirmed that yearning is my one personality trait so yay!

4.  this quiz tells you how many brain cells you have and honestly, it was a quality vibe check

5.  this just reminded me that i’m so very single but i got a cute date description out of it so i see that as an overall win

6.  this one tells you which “-core” aesthetic you are and it somehow guessed i was horny on main for vampires so really it’s clearly very accurate

7.  i’m a sucker for the “design a love letter and we’ll tell you x” type quizzes and this one tells you what type of mythical creature you are so really, my two loves in one quiz

8.  ngl i thoroughly enjoy a good ya prince and this quiz tells you what type you would be 

9.  this one tells you what bad thing that dark academia romanticizes you are, i literally got my vice of choice which i found a lil too funny tbh

10.  this one tells you what/who watches you while you sleep so do with that what you will

11.  have i mentioned that i like mythical creatures yet?  well this one tells you what kind of angel you are

12.  this one tells you what gay yearning song you are, literally no need for any further explanation asdffg

13.  i literally didn’t even know who the oh hellos before taking this but this quiz tells you whether you’re a soldier, poet or king, you’ve probably already come across this one bc it keeps getting suggested to me on the site but i’ve literally taken this quiz more times than is strictly necessary, also don’t listen to the song before you take this if you haven’t heard of it either lol

14.  i started listening to the magnus archives recently and this is a product of that, this tells you what entity you are from that, obvs i don’t think this’ll do anything for you if you don’t listen to the podcast but i just had to include it 

15.  this one tells you what goth lit monster you(it includes dorian whose only crime was being a lil too gay if we’re keeping it 99+1 but still a great quiz)

16.  “get vibechecked you yearning gay disaster”

17.  this one tells you why everything will be okay which y’know, the year is 2020 and sometimes you need a pick me up

18.  this one tells you what gay repressed protag you are

19.  another pick me up but this one describes you in a cute way!!!

20.  this one tells you what wlw ship you are, i was suitably called out by it so i had to include it asdfgdf

21.  this one tells you what’s wrong with you and oh boy was it right about me burning out lmao

22.  this one called me a closet furry which ohmygod i hate it here but it assigns you a childhood character that should have been gay

23.  this one tells you which character the quizmaker has projected onto you are, does that sentence make sense, no clue, i can’t read

24.  this tells you what devastating taylor swift song you are and also recommends a song to you based off what you get.

25.  this one tells you which shakespeare character that the quizmaker likes you are, i’ve literally put only this one in because i may have taken like 20 of these in one go the other night but that’s between me and my insomnia

lmao i’m literally going to stop now bc i literally planned to rec like 10 and go but here we are

[pascalisthepunkest]

ask game

tagged by @giajiaaa @whyisgmora thanks for tagging me 😄✨

rules: tag 20 followers you’d like to get to know better and wrangle them into answering the questions below

nickname: let’s say it’s “dj”

gender: female

astrological sign: virgo

height: 1,65 cm which i think is around 5'4 😬

sexuality: pansexual

hogwarts house: i’m not really a potterhead but pottermore and other quizzes said i’m a hufflepuff

favorite animal(s): cats ✨

number of blankets: right now four

where i’m from: buenos aires, argentina 🇦🇷

dream trip: probably europe lol

when i started this account: this month, i think

why i started this account: wanted to share my love for pedro with more people 😋

tagging @x-wingwarriorbbpoe8 @cyber-nya @goldenhour-goldenboy @icantbearsedtothinkofone @miller-benny @otherthingsinhead @soylaprincessa i’m quite sure it’s the 362727th time y'all have been tagged but i don’t know that many people lol

[ambitioncunningpridemieczyslaw]

Update:

I did update my blog if anyone noticed or cared at all which you probably didn't lol

Anyway I started a Tumblr because one of the writers who I liked, which is now many, mentioned to follow them. I left a comment on the fic, on Ao3 btw, if I should create an account or not. They said yes. I followed a few more writers I liked I in return gained a few 13 which isn't that many. I don't really know how to make progress I guess with expanding a platform on Tumblr. I want to. It's just I want to write, but I think I'm shit at it lol

I've been in a routine for most of my life basically. I'm only 19, soon to be 20 in March, this gives me something to focus on other than work and keeping the people around me happy before my own happines I guess

I just don't want to live in a box. I try to post often, but to me it really isn't that often. I mainly just come on to tune out everything and stay updated with the writers I care about and scroll lol

Anyway I saw something about people telling there followes what their URL means. Mine was just my Ao3 username, but I thought I should change it to something more meaningful so get ready ambitioncunningpridemieczyslaw was born. There were dashes, but apprently that made it long by one fucking character which was irritating lol

Anyway I chose that because my mom loves Harry Potter so I had to grow up loving Harry Potter as well, which means a lot of Harry Potter merch and when I turned 16 it also meant a lot of Slytherin merch since my mom had me and my friends take all of those quizzes on Pottermore and that's the house I got. I was the only Slytherin out of my group of friends and so there were a lot of jokes about me being the "villian" of the group, but I ended up reading the history and all books that dealt with the Slytherin House and I'm proud of who I am which includes being proud of being Slytherin so yeah... That's where ambition, cunning, & pride come from.

Now Mieczyslaw is the name of a TV Character that is very dear to my heart Mieczyslaw "Stiles" Stilinski from Teen Wolf. The reason why he's so important is because he was so relatable. Growing up I played sports because that's what every guy did in a small town so I soft of fit in, but didn't because a lot of people thought I was annoying. When I was around 8 I was diagnosed with ADHD. I could never sit still, always talking or singing just making noise in general, and there was a lot of research of random things I would find interesting. Seeing Stiles made me feel... Normal because I saw someone like me for the first time in my life and he's been a part of me for so long. Those 5 characters post I did all 5 are so near and dear to my heart, but Stiles is probably the most like me mix in Cheryl's attitude, Jeremy's empathy for those important to him, Carrie's development cuz like her I'm still developing, & Xena's walls that people have to break through. You probably get all of me. Anyway nice TED TALK I guess lol bye

[quinintheclouds]

I found out im a ravenclaw! It doesn't feel like it fits me but hey, what are you gonna do about it. Can you tell me stuff about ravenclaws?

Yay, I’d love to! Quick aside though, what do you mean by “found out?” Your wording seems to indicate it was something shown/told to you rather than a conclusion on which you’d arrived yourself. If you took a quiz, those can be fun but aren’t reliable. I can take the pottermore test 3 times in a row answering with complete honesty and get sorted into 3 different Houses. The quizzes are all just someone else’s perceptions of what innocuous details might pertain to each House, and a few years ago I conducted an analysis of the different options/choices and the Houses to which they led, and… a lot of it’s kinda irrelevant and arbitrary.

If I’m misinterpreting and you DID come to this realization for yourself, I’m curious as to why you feel it doesn’t seem to fit you. but WELCOME to Ravenclaw! :D Keep in mind though that everyone has aspects of every House, and aspects of themselves that aren’t contained by Houses at all!

Okay, initial ramblings aside… sorry :P Ready to hear some bomb info about us Ravenclaws that often isn’t talked about? Let’s go! [Bear in mind that these aren’t exclusive to just Ravenclaws and also won’t apply to every Ravenclaw! Some of these are just my personal experience/thoughts]

So first, Ravenclaw’s canon defining characteristics: intelligence, creativity, wit, imagination, love of learning, uniqueness, originality, individuality, curiosity, open-mindedness, and acceptance. 

We are largely a compassionate bunch that stands against ignorance of all kinds and will fight by informing others. Ravenclaws can often be found organizing protests and the like for important causes (akin to Hermione’s S.P.E.W.)

A lot of Ravenclaws have trouble settling on our House, because we can have the inclination to look at every angle of a scenario so that we can at least attempt to more objectively weigh the options. This is why I used to think I was a Gryffindor/Hufflepuff for long stretches of time.

Another reason some of us hesitate to sort ourselves as such is because of the misconception that Ravenclaws always make great grades or are dutiful with schoolwork. Not true. Intelligence comes in many forms!

On that note, neurodivergent Ravenclaws may struggle to feel we belong when we see so many our peers excel in school. 

On the brighter side, Ravenclaws like these will somewhat unknowingly wind up banding together. We’re the ones who accidentally miss class because we’re so engrossed in researching some big new interest. The ones who annoy the others by testing out new spells/potions of our own creation and consequently making a mess and ruckus. We’re the ones who forgot to study because we got confused by one of the points in the book/lecture and wound up writing an essay trying to debunk the error instead of doing the actual assignment. Here’s to us lol

A bunch of us DEFINITELY waste time gathered outside the common room (or CAW-mmon room!) just solving the door’s riddles. (If you didn’t know, the door only opens after you answer a different riddle every time) 

The vast majority of us LOVE puns. Ah, wordplay… the toy of language.

Starting a million projects and never finishing them whoops

Having a million journals you’ve written in so you have no clue which is which at this point

Buying way too many books but rarely finding time to actually read

OUR HOUSE COLORS ARE BLUE AND BRONZE, DAMMIT! THE MOVIES CHANGED THE BRONZE TO SILVER AND I’LL NEVER BE OVER IT (lol I’m totally chill about this, can you tell?)

We are HUGE daydreamers! We pride ourselves on imagination, and luckily for us, we’re in one of the tallest towers of Hogwarts (bc we represent the element of air) so we have beautiful windows out of which to gaze while letting our minds wander 

Also the cawmmon room ceiling is magically designed to always look like the night sky, so we love to lie on the floor and watch the stars, moon, planets, etc.

WE FRICKIN’ LOVE SPACE, OKAY???

NEVER leave your stuff behind in the dorms! You’ll have to answer a riddle to get back in, and by that time you’ll be late to class (fellow ADHD Ravenclaws, we know this pain all too well)

We’re an adventurous bunch, contrary to some belief. But our adventures aren’t purely for external enjoyment — the excitement arises from the stimulation of our minds. Curiosity killed the cat, as it were, but feeds the eagle. We’ll sneak out of the dorms to go to the library or steal some ingredients from the Potions classroom for an experiment. The Restricted Section is our playground. 

We’re artists, writers, poets, performers, musicians. People overlook this too often, but these are so important to so many of us. I create, therefore I am.

We’re pretty weird and eccentric a lot of the time, but embracing that helps us gain understanding about what makes us passionate, and we’ll work hard for things we care about.

Side Note: I’ll never not be bitter that Fred and George were in Gryffindor. They were such Ravenclaws. They were impish lil pranksters, and very clever about it, and only did so when there was something to be learned from it (i.e. testing their numerous inventions). I could even see Slytherin more than Gryffindor. *Sigh,* I digress… for now.

I’m one of the Ravenclaws who discusses philosophy and theoretics for hours on end, and the annoying one who asks random questions for the sake of asking questions, just as a game to test myself and see if I can come up with possible answers. (The embodiment of the “do you think pigeons have feelings?” meme).

We, uh. Have terrible sleeping habits. And eating. And showering. And we forget water exists sometimes. We kinda have problems remembering we have corporeal bodies with needs or whatever. Lame.

Some of the more rigid, stereotypical Ravenclaws can be defensively competitive for top of class, and that can turn a bit sour, but I like to avoid that drama altogether.

We notably broke into the Astronomy Tower to watch a meteor shower, and lost so many points we came dead last in the House Cup that year.

Many of us have ALSO snuck into the Forbidden Forest to study creatures and explore deeper.

Yeah we don’t win the Cup often.

Muggle-born Ravenclaws get together in secret to teach the others about math/science/literature/etc. because the purebloods BEGGED them to and they were happy to oblige.

Interviewing the paintings to learn magical history from a firsthand account bc Professor Binns is too detached and boring

According to the wiki, we’re the House most likely to dismiss social conventions and unspoken rules in the search for satiating our curiosity. We’re full of quirks and often won’t stand for playing by unnecessary or flawed rules of any nature.

As hyper and Extra™ as some of us can be, we also love to chill by the fire with a book, a blanket, some music, and maybe too much tea

In general, we’re “well-known for being welcoming and encouraging of creativity, eccentricity and individuality and being very accepting,” as stated by the wiki.

Okay, I am physically forcing myself to stop now. As you can see, we also tend to just dump information all over the place lmao XD Anyway this was fun to write and I might make a post about neurodivergent Ravenclaws in particular… Let me know if you have any updates on your House, and if you ARE a Ravenclaw, we’re happy to have you!!!

[unmistakablyoatmeal]

11 question meme x 2

I was tagged a long time ago by @carpemermaidtales with 11 questions and I totally slacked off on answering them (mainly because I didn’t know what 11 questions I’d ask anyone else, haha) and now I’ve got 11 more from @dewitty1! So I’m gonna try to do this and not get even more further behind!

(This is really long so it’s all under a cut)

from @carpemermaidtales

1. Would you embark on an exploration expedition in space or in the deep sea? These are both terrifying and exciting prospects! Today I’m feeling the deep sea because I’ve been craving shark movies. Is that a good enough reason? IDEK.  

2. What are three things that make your day brighter? Waking up with @lqtraintracks and knowing that she doesn’t have to go home soon because now we share a home! My doggies and kitties. And today? that Gal Gadot gif I reblogged earlier, haha.

3. Do you have any goals for 2018? Nothing super specific, only continuing on working on things I started in 2017 - write more (which uh, I failed at in 2017 spectacularly, but 2018 is going much better in that regard!), read more, give away/donate all the clothes I do not wear (I’m working on it!) and continue to eat better, stay on top of housework and the like, and explore all aspects of my creative passions. 

4. Top song(s) that get you pumped up to take on the world? This is probably going to out me as a big dork but always “Roll With the Changes” by REO Speedwagon. But also “Her” by BlockB and “The Beat” by Topp Dogg and “Fire” by JYP (with Conan O’Brien and Steven Yeun) and well, lots of other kpop tbh.

5. If you had to pick five, what would your favorite tropes be? OOOH. Okay. Fake Relationship/Fake dating; Friends with Benefits; Mutual Pining; Rivals to Lovers; Accidental Bonding 

6. What’s something you’ve done that you’re proud of? Pass? Can I pass on this one? Gah. (Okay the gf said I could NOT) so I guess I’ll say, once I co-produced, co-directed All in the Timing by David Ives (a collection of One-Act plays), basically because I read it in high school and loved it and decided one day to do it and built the whole thing from the ground up--no theatre company backing, no money to start out with, etc. And I’ve got some mixed emotions about the whole thing because of unrelated stuff, but by itself, that was a pretty huge accomplishment. 

7. What’s something you’ve been meaning to try/do that you’ve been putting off? Well...write 50K+ fic, lol, but I am doing that with @lqtraintracks this year! Does that count?

8. Dance party in your underwear or late night swims? Dance party all the way! Unless I suddenly had a pool in my backyard, and then both. ;)

9. You’re stuck in the apocalypse: pick your team? Can I choose Glenn and Michonne from The Walking Dead? :D

10. You see a dog in the street, do you hug it? YES ALWAYS.

11. What’s the next dream vacation on your list? I really want to go to a wlw-only beach resort. Does that sort of thing exist? 

From @dewitty1

1. How often do you real “real books” over fanfiction? Never? lol I mean, I have several that I’ve been meaning to get to, but I haven’t been reading a whole lot of anything, and my fic list-to-read is just more tempting atm! 

2. Should dogs be higher in the ratings scale than cats? Try to convince me. Haha! As a dog and cat owner, I love them both. They both bring a different joys and different headaches. I’ll leave it at that. :)

3. What is your worst habit? Procrastination. 

4. Would you change the Hogwarts house colors or keep them the same & why? I think the colors are fine? I guess! Well, maybe I’d give someone purple because that’s my fav color. And since I’m a Hufflepuff, I’d be tempted to give them purple, but yellow is so fitting and yellow and purple -- nah.

5. Did you take the Pottermore quiz & do you think it was accurate? I did it a long time ago and got Hufflepuff, which is super fitting. Though the gf has commented that I’m probably more Slytherpuff that pure Hufflepuff, haha.

6. Do you believe astrology is fairly accurate, or is it just nonsense, and the stars have no bearing on your emotions/personality? Oh gosh--I mean I will look at that stuff from time to time and sometimes it can be so accurate and sometimes I don’t relate at all. I definitely wouldn’t let it drive my life or base decisions on what astrology says--for example, @lqtraintracks and I have looked at couples compatibility based on our signs and it basically said we’d be better friends than a couple and that’s just a bunch of bs right there. ;) 

7. What magical theory that is never explained in the Harry Potter books would you like to explore more fully? since @lqtraintracks and I have had many many discussions about privacy spells and Muffliato and how that works--do you cast it on yourself, do you cast it on other people and it fills their ears with buzzing? Can you cast it just on one person or is it a whole group thing--basically how the f does that work? So maybe that? I know that’s a super boring answer, but I mean, there has to be a better privacy spell than Muffliato, is all I’m saying.  

8. What do you do to get yourself out of a funk/depression? Watch something stupid or something I’ve seen a thousand times. Like comfort food, but tv. Usually something Star Trek or I’ve been going back to The Good Place a lot! But honestly, if I’m feeling down, sometimes the best way to cope is just to accept that I’m having a sad day or a down day and if I just let myself be okay with that and not try to force myself to adult or cheer up or be happy, that can really help. That and sleep.

9. If money were no object, what would you do with your life? I’d probably still be doing what I’m doing right now, but start a foundation for LGBT youth and something to support the arts, and just try to do some good with the extra $$.

10. Was Harry really oblivious as they say, or was he actually observant when he needed to be? My initial thoughts on this is that--he’s both. And that he’s oblivious about maybe social things and has some social awkwardness but that yes, he’s observant when he needed to be about a whole host of things? But honestly...I need to reread canon, lol. I feel like I’m a bit more influenced by fanon!Harry and I do love an oblivious!Harry when it comes to a certain blond pointy bloke fancying him. :DDD

11. Do you enjoy doing these quizzes, or are they as difficult for you as they are for me? lol… Haha omg these are so hard. I don’t particularly enjoy talking about myself, but I do love to be tagged and included. it’s my introvert-self versus wanting to be included and such. Push and pull! Also, I’m crying at the thought of coming up with 11 questions and tagging other people. Haha.

OKAY now I’m tagging @omarandjohnny @untilourapathy @bixgirl1 and @lqtraintracks (yes yes, I know you hate me now) but only if you want to and I apologize for the sucky questions I’m about to come up with off the top of my head! (Also anyone else? Please have a go if you like!)

1. What is your favorite meal of all time?

2. What’s the first movie you ever remember watching?

3. Write a two sentence story for me. (my gf made me ask this and she’s a big cheater.)

4. What is your absolute favorite trope of all time?

5. What’s something that scared you but you did it anyway?

6. It’s Sunday. It’s raining. What do you do?

7. What is your favorite way to procrastinate?

8. What’s your favorite way to tell somebody off?

9. What are you listening to right now?

10. “Friday, I’m in Love” - A great song or the best song?

11. What’s the most annoying question you’ve ever been asked on a meme?

[drarrymylove]

Rules: 

post the rules

Answer the questions given to you by the tagger

Write 11 questions of your own

Tag 11 people

I was tagged by @dewitty1, but she tagged my main blog.  ((I only have like 25 followers over there and most of you don’t know me by that blog, so I hope it’s okay I’m answering on this one))

1. How often do you read “real books” over fanfiction?  I read a lot actually.  I go through phases.  Sometimes I read more ff, but last month I read six books and at least started 3 more.

2. Should dogs be higher in the ratings scale than cats? Try to convince me. No, they shouldn’t.  Both are precious and wonderful and serve different companionship needs for different people.  

3. What is your worst habit? being mean to myself

4. Would you change the Hogwarts house colors or keep them the same & why? I wish they had kept the bronze in Ravenclaw for the movies...the merchandise I buy is sometimes blue and silver sometimes blue and bronze.  I’d just like consistency

5. Did you take the Pottermore quiz & do you think it was accurate? oh, yeah.  I’m Ravenclaw af...and that’s what the quiz gave me

6. Do you believe astrology is fairly accurate, or is it just nonsense, and the stars have no bearing on your emotions/personality? I give it the same value as I give any other form of entertainment I enjoy.  My astrological stuff is often very accurate, but you can find bits of truth anywhere if you look hard enough.  I enjoy it, so I like to see it positively. It’s like your Hogwarts house.  You’re not going to have every single trait of that house, and you’re likely to have traits from other houses, but if you like it enough, you’ll just roll with it. 

7. What magical theory that is never explained in the Harry Potter books would you like to explore more fully?  literally everything

8. What do you do to get yourself out of a funk/depression?  ugh, nothing...just wait, I guess.  It’s something I struggle with.  I spend a lot of time putting on a happy face for someone who stays sad and lonely all the time.

9. If money were no object, what would you do with your life? I’d be an author/illustrator or a chef

10. Was Harry really oblivious as they say, or was he actually observant when he needed to be? I think he may have had a hard time interpreting certain emotional aspects due to his crappy upbringing, but I think he was aware of situations and circumstances more so than fandom gives him credit for

11. Do you enjoy doing these quizzes, or are they as difficult for you as they are for me? lol…  Answering them is easy and I enjoy them, but coming up with questions???this particular quiz is more difficult for me.  I worry my questions will suck

Ok, so my new questions for the people I’m tagging: 

1. Is there a pairing you hated but now are okay with, or even enjoy?

2. If you could choose the meal served in the Great Hall on your birthday (or other special day if you have a summer birthday) what would you like to have served?

3. You’re going to Hogwarts!! Which five non-school required items are you taking with you?

4. What was the last published book you read?

5. Would you rather have a time-turner, an invisibility cloak, or a pensieve?

6. What was the last song you listened to?

7. Ignoring canon, as one does, what occupations do Harry and Draco have as adults?

8. What other fandoms are you in?

9. Last thing you ate; have you had a glass of water today?

10. Is your favorite color *in general* the same as your favorite color *to wear*?

11. Choose and answer one (1) question from the previous set.

@unicornsandphoenix @synonym-for-life @maqicool @gnarf @drarry-with-a-side-of-harry @assassinsdragons @harryanddracoarehusbands @aelys-althea @gcjh2002 @lower-east-side @chapter11freak  ((and as always, no pressure if you’ve been tagged, sorry for any retags, and if you want to do this and haven’t been tagged you can say I tagged you))

[skyler10fic]

pellaaearien replied to your post: pellaaearien replied to your post “pellaaearien...

THAT GODDAMN SMIRK and he says he’s not a heartthrob like ?????? (ps let’s talk about houses sometime, I’m pretty sure I’m Ravenclaw but I almost never get sorted there when I do the quizzes - Pottermore gave me Gryffindor, for instance)

lol the man is just too humble and geeky to admit he’s, well, I think this says it best. 

And honestly, that’s so much more attractive that he’s so demure about it than other male celebrities that think they are sex gods and act like it. *eyeroll

Hmm interesting about the houses! I don’t place a ton of stock in the quizzes. I think it’s more about examining your motives/behaviors/thought patterns. Like, obviously Ten is brave, but he’s not solely driven by the need to be a hero. He just explores and wants to know what’s out there, and often the TARDIS takes him to places (whether he intended to land there or not) where he can help. Rarely does an adventure start from the need to save someone. Usually it’s just straight-up curiosity or impressing his companion with a good time and some entertaining education. Then, of course, they stumble into trouble. :D  

[ddrkirbyisq]

Lots of things going on!

Music Stuff

Music music music.  Finished up a commission, and will need to try to quickly knock out two more (short) ones in the early part of December.  Also, ~Monthlies 2018.11~ is released!  Was really fun drawing the cute quail for that album cover.

Pottermore Stuff

I forgot to mention a long time ago that I got around to taking the Pottermore sorting quiz -- previously I had only taken the Patronus and Wand quizzes.

My Patronus ended up being a Brown Hare, not too much I can really say about that.

My wand was a bit more interesting, "Ebony wood with a Phoenix feather core 14 ½" and Unbending flexibility".  It's pretty spot on, as Ebony is for people who hold real strong to their beliefs (yep) and aren't afraid to be non-conforming because of it (yep).  Phoenix cores are rare and difficult to tame, which I don't think is particularly surprising either, makes sense that I would get something tricky and complex.  The wand is pretty long and skinny, but so am I, haha.  And do I even need to comment on "unbending flexibility"?  Of course...

I ended up sorting into Hufflepuff, yay!  I always knew it'd be Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, but didn't know which one.  I don't think I could stand either of Gryffindor OR Slytherin, so as long as I'm out of those two I think I'd do just fine.  Ravenclaw was my initial thought since I'd be with a bunch of nerdy bookworms, but in hindsight, Hufflepuff is probably the house for me.  I'm no Hermione, that's for sure, and I think I'm set apart from Ravenclaw a bit by my focus on the practical and pragmatic...I think I would get into trouble if I'm around too many intellectuals who strive for knowledge and debate just for the sake of itself (speaking from experience...).  And I would prioritize my consistency over my intelligence in a heartbeat -- I've always been more Green than Blue, after all (in regards to Magic: the Gathering).  I think Ravenclaw would be more willing and ready to change themselves in order to do things more efficiently or just adapt to changing circumstances whereas Hufflepuff is more content with things just comfortably staying the same.  I think that also speaks to my Introverted Thinking being tertiary rather than primary or secondary; I definitely have an interest in understanding the logic and systems of how things work but I'm more than willing to sacrifice that when it comes into conflict with the tried and true.

Game Stuff

Hollow Knight - My completion percentage is climbing quite more quickly than I anticipated -- I'm already at 97%!  I feel like that's a bit of a misleading number though, as there's definitely a lot more than 3 more things I have left to do.  I've just gotten the other half of the Kingsoul from the White Palace and am now ready to go through that door and get the Void Heart.  I've still got some charms to go find in random places as well, and I still have a ton of geo to collect in order to get more of the unbreakable charms, etc etc etc.  But it's still been fun so far!

Dark Souls - Not too much to report, but we've cleared out most of the rest of Sen's Fortress (minus the annoying Titanite Demons in the tar pit, but I'm thinking maybe to do those after another trip to the Undead Asylum to grab the Rusted Iron Ring).  We've started going through the very first part of Anor Londo with the huge knights, which were quite intimidating at first but are a lot easier once you figure out how to best tackle them (just tightly circle around them and stay near their butts).  At some point it might be a good idea to try and farm some more sunlight medals to get access to Great Lightning Spear, though that does require 30 Faith so I've got some time before that'll even be possible to cast (we're at 25 faith right now, guess I should start investing more into faith -- the last point was into dex).  We're still swinging around the Iaito +10, which has been serving well, though we'll see if we open up any other useful weapon choices once we meet the giant blacksmith.

Xmas Stuff

Surprise!  I thought I was done with xmas letters but I actually got another mailing address, so I just finished my =32nd= (and final?) xmas letter.  I still need to figure out a few more gifts but I've actually already handled a lot of them which is nice.  Shopping online via Amazon is definitely making things easier this year...

Coding Stuff

In addition to having LoopMuse updated and running again, I've also gone and rescued/updated RelentlessWaves!  Huzzah!

Cooking Stuff

I did it!  I made prime rib! (not actually "prime grade", but let's just say a rib roast is considered "prime rib")

I got way too much meat from the butcher (I seem to have a issue panicking in these sorts of situations!), so I split it into two and cooked it twice.  This is definitely the most money I've ever spent on meat before...made sure to enlist help making it go to good use...

Made sure to apply liberal salt and pepper and stick them uncovered in the refrigerator beforehand.  I kept on thinking I had been too heavy-handed with the salt, but that didn't end up being an issue at all.  I guess you really do want to season it super well when it's a piece of meat this big.

Here's how the first slab turned out.  I used a reverse sear, meaning low and steady oven heat to cook the roast all the way through to medium-rare, followed by a short blast in a blazing hot roasting oven to brown the exterior.

The slices looked (and tasted) great, and they're mostly medium-rare throughout.  I had it with a bit of simple store-bought horseradish cream which I enjoyed.

The second slab (which I don't have photos of) was sort of more interesting as it had been in the fridge for around 4 days before I roasted it.  I decided to trim off a bit of the exterior since I reasoned it had probably gotten TOO dried out (or possibly even gone bad) during its fridge time.  I'd like to think that was the right call given that 4 days is beginning to creep up into "I'm dry-aging this meat" territory, but I can't really say for sure.  It turned out just fine either way, though I got a bit impatient and used 180-degrees instead of 170-degrees for the low roast, so it was probably a bit less evenly cooked.  It ended up being a mistake as the roast was ready way before the correct eating time so I had to reheat it.  Not the end of the world certainly, but the first one probably ended up being better.

I'd say it was a success all around.  Having a better cut of meat would probably increase the flavor, but there's only so much I'm willing to splurge on something like this (I guess it is once a year...).  Maybe getting a higher grade / more marbled piece, but way smaller?  I also know to not worry about oversalting next time, too.  Once other thing is that I think I can shorten the high heat browning step a little bit.  I think the exterior crust ended up being browned well enough and there's a tiny bit of grey banding near the edges of the roast.  I'd rather sacrifice some of the browning to get rid of some of that grey, I think.

Anyways, hooray!  Now to stay light on red meat for a while...speaking of which, it's been forever and a day since I've just cooked a plain ribeye steak, so that may probably be the next real red meat item to try?  I haven't actually done the whole sous-vide followed by blowtorching in a hot cast iron pan thing yet, so I could definitely try that.  ....maybe after the holiday season is over, lol.

Oh, cornbread happened too:

It was pretty....fine.  Not super delicious by itself, but I mean, cornbread isn't naturally super delicious?  It was a bit overcooked because I had totally forgotten I was using the convection setting on my oven, so whoops!  Could have probably been more moist if I had not made that mistake.  The bottom side definitely got burnt:

But the middle was pretty alright, so phew.

Oh, also, pumpkin pie happened:

Lol turns out I don't have a photo of the ACTUAL pie so you just get a photo of the "leftover filling" pie, which was much scrappier.  It still tasted fine though!  There wasn't really too much to mess up here, just blend all the filling ingredients together and bake it...simple and effective, and it definitely tasted like....good pumpkin pie.  Would I make it on a regular basis?  Probably not.  The apple crumble thinger that I make is probably a bit more exciting.  But if I am making a pie, this might be the one!

Ludum Dare 43

Starts tomorrow!  Wish us the best of luck! =D  I've updated to Unity 2018, which hopefully should not cause any issues.  (also updated to the latest of LeanTween and SInput)  Unity 2018 has its own pixel perfect camera implementation (currently a preview package), which I might play around with once I get back to Rhythm Quest development as a replacement for the other pixel perfect camera scripts I use.  I don't see anything in the changelogs about fixing seamless audio in WebGL though =(  Bleh.

Life

In general is going pretty well, with the notable hiccup/bump here and there that I'd rather not get into.  But yes, in general I'm doing well!  Keeping busy with a bunch of good things, while not getting =too= stressed out.  Every so often I will have days of existential crises about the past, but that's something I feel is part of my very being, so I don't really think that's something I would even try to reconcile...

Anyways, I would say 4 out of 5 mostly* (?) right now, which honestly is what I'm happy with.  I'm not one to need a 5 out of 5 all the time...

[surveysonfleek]

292.

x1 Give one fun-fact about the last person that called you?: he named his boat after me. x2 Would you ever lie in bed with the last person you texted?: yes, just last night.

x3 Do your parents know you have a Bzoink account?: nope, i don’t have one. x4 When is your Bzoink anniversary (One year of having an account )?: -

x5 How often does your computer lose internet connection?: hardly everrrrr *touchwood*

x6 Does the number 666 mean anything to you? Does it bother you?: i know it’s the devil’s number etc but it means nothing to me, there’s 666 in my phone number lol. x7 Is there anyone you are displeased with at this time? Why?: nope. x8 Is there anyone you wish you could apologize to? Who?: nope. x9 Typically, do you like being asked a lot of questions?: hmm it depends on the topic. survey-wise i don’t really care, i hate surveys over 100 questions though. conversation-wise it’s fine as long as i’m not being interrogated or something. x1o When first meeting someone, do you let them do most of the talking and topic-picking, or do you try to lead the conversation where you like?: i’ll do a bit of both. if i can tell they’re a bit shy i’ll steer the conversation. x11 Is there a generally-viewed-as-yucky food combination that you like?: none that i can think of right now. x12 What do you think of wearing make up to school?: i honestly never wore makeup to school. maybe senior year i started doing powder and bronzer but that’s about it. x13 How about wearing make up in the work place?: i do really simple makeup at work. i wear primer, foundation, eyebrow pomade and blush. x14 Were you interested at all in the last person that flirted with you?: sure. x15 Do you like to take online personality quizzes?: haha sometimes. x16 If so, what was the result of the last one that you took?: it was a hogwarts one but not on pottermore. i got fkn hufflepuff omg hahahaha. in pottermore i’m a ravenclaw. x17 What is the most depressing book you can think of? Movie? Song?: haha i’m so blank right now. x18 Does your current group of friends mean a lot to you?: yes, they do. hopefully it’s for life. x19 Can you trust your friends? Why or why not?: yes and no. i can trust them with personal issues but gossiping is a bit of a dangerous territory lol. x2o Do you put up with more in friendships than in relationships?: at times yeah. i’m completely comfortable with my boyfriend after all these years so the drama is usually with my friends. x21 What do you normally do on a Saturday morning?: i usually catch up with my dad. x22 Do you know/like any songs by Weird Al? Which is your favorite?: ummmmm. i remember loving his real slim shady parody but i honestly forgot the title haha. x23 Do you feel better sleeping alone, or with someone else?: in my bed, sleeping alone is ideal coz it’s small. but i do enjoy sleeping next to my boyfriend in a bigger bed lol. x24 What was the last thing to come close to your face?: hair. x25 When was the last time you were poked in the eye with something?: idk. x26 Do you enjoy applying make up, if you wear it?: yeah i enjoy it. it’s slightly therapeutic for me. x27 Help build a house, or get to help tear one down?: build. x28 Did you ever go ice-skating as a kid? Were you good?: yes. i’ve been once in my life and i was a kid. i was 6. and i could fucking ice skate. i wonder if i still could. x29 Have you ever felt like you were going to drown? : yes. x3o When was the last time you were nude in someone else’s presence?: last night. x31 Do physical exams make you uncomfortable?: yes. x32 Would you rather wear shorts, or pants?: pants. actually depends on the weather. x33 How about short sleeve shirts, or long sleeved ones? Why?: either or. x34 What do you think of feet? Do you paint your toenails?: i hate the thought of feet. i don’t paint my toenails often unless summer. x35 If you could say one thing to your favorite celeb, what would you say?: you are a bad bitch and i love you. x36 Would you rather do difficult math problems, or write a long essay?: essay. x37 Who was the last person to distract you?: phi. x38 What is your favorite thing to do when you are single?: i haven’t ben single in 8 years. but tbh i probably miss buying shit for myself alllll the time the most. x39 How about when you are in a relationship with someone you like?: having company i guess. x4o What do you think of teen relationships? Have you had one?: yeah i have. they’re good. if you’re both in it for the right reasons they’re great.