#essay about decisions

[writersbeware]

Being a Teacher

            When I was placed in Kindergarten, I didn’t much care for my teachers. They seldom helped me, instead giving me very simple tasks such as coloring shapes with the correct crayon, cutting on dotted lines or tracing letters and numbers. Granted, those were the skills I most needed, but it was humiliating when I saw what my classmates were doing: learning to read and do…

[fridgrave2-0]

hehe ghost-turbo haunting felix au

turbo is connected to the last piece of his code in the whole arcade - a trophy he gifted to felix in mid 80s as a symbol of him genuinely caring about their relationships on par with being the best racer. felix also gave him one of his medals and both kept their gifts next to other rewards, but when roadblasters and turbotime were unplugged, the medal was gone with everything else

now, after burning in cola-lava turbo is basically dead, but scraps of his code still were intertwined with the trophy (after all, it was his first winner's cup, but felix never knew about it), giving turbo an opportunity to exist as a shadow incapable of interacting with anything and anyone besides felix, who kept the trophy even after the roadblasters incident

also I went crazy in tags, feel free to check them out

[trans-androgyne]

TERFs feel ownership over transmasc bodies. We already know they think we don’t deserve to make our own decisions about what to do with them, that we’re mentally ill or delusional or autistic or just trying to escape misogyny. But I also think they look at us and see nothing but themselves. They see their pain, their trauma, what they could have become if only things were different. And they conclude that, therefore, they know better than us. They know what we really need: to be converted to TERFism and detransitioned. After all, we’re ruining our poor, beautiful, fertile “female” bodies that they so covet.

This happens a hundredfold when the transmasc in question is their own kid. My transphobic mother would tell me my body is hers and therefore she could do whatever she wanted with it. She was joking until she wasn’t. TERF moms act as though it’s their own breasts being “cut off,” testosterone being put in their own bodies, their own uterus being removed, without their consent. They’ll tell you to your face they know you better than you know yourself, their words dripping with manufactured sympathy, because after all we’re the same: we’re both “female.”

If you haven’t already, please familiarize yourself with how radical feminism looks and how to spot a TERF beyond them saying they hate trans women. You don’t want to see these people around for any longer than it takes to block them.

[dootznbootz]

Do y'all ever think about how it's possible that Zeus' first verse in Thunder Bringer is about Penelope and his second is about Odysseus?

She's a "Damsel in Distress" (She's cool af, she just needs some help and misses her idiot), the suitors are prideful and hope to do what Zeus is singing about to her. Pressuring her to choose. Her "true nature" is revealed when her trickery with the shroud is found out .

The 2nd Verse about how Zeus is also the God of Justice and punishing them for the crew's crime of slaying the cattle. Odysseus saves himself to see Penelope again, meaning his crew/people will die. They died for touching Helios' cattle. Odysseus also saves himself AND Helps Penelope by killing all the suitors for their crime of flirting with/bothering Penelope and making her cry, while also bullying and eventually planning to kill his son. Many of Ithaca's men are killed for their pride too. Thinking that they're worthy of Penelope when Nobody is. Flirt with the Wife, you get the knife.

Penelope and Odysseus DO take each others' suffering away when they reunite as well. 🥹

[novelconcepts]

When i think about how Van Palmer was developed in a lab to get me in a goddamn chokehold.

You got a lesbian. You got a butch lesbian. You got a comedy-prone butch lesbian. You got a comedy-prone, movie-obsessed butch lesbian. You got a comedy-prone, movie-obsessed, haunted-by-a-rough-childhood butch lesbian. You got a comedy-prone, movie-obsessed, haunted-by-a-rough-childhood, hidden-pragmatic-depths butch lesbian.

You put that lesbian in survival hell situations. You put that lesbian in survival hell situations with her girlfriend. You put that lesbian in survival hell situations with her girlfriend as the romantic heart of your show. You put that lesbian in survival hell situations with her girlfriend as the romantic heart of the show AND make them both unkillable.

You put that lesbian in two timelines. You put that lesbian in the storyteller role. You put that lesbian in scars and silver rings. You put that lesbian in a position to explore the darkest side of loving someone. You put that lesbian on my screen, and you cast Liv Hewson. You put that lesbian on my screen, and you cast Lauren Ambrose. I mean. I mean.

Any ONE of these things would have been enough, and yet. Here we are. Watching the unkillable, complex-ass, funny, scary, heartfelt, fireproof lesbian get her face torn off by wolves, commit cannibalism, fall in love, move to fucking Ohio, and come back for more?? And you expect her NOT to move into a penthouse apartment in the very center of my heart? Be serious, dude. Be so serious.

[fleshadept]

since i played disco elysium the only way i've been able to describe the feeling it instills is "shrimp emotions" because i really just have no words for it. none do it justice. melancholy, catharsis, hope, regret. there's so much and it's so interwoven

[callixton]

i especially like that david tennant got the 57 academics just punched the air line w shakespeare bc i know abt the longass romeo essay he wrote in 2005ish and the not insignificant part of it about mercutio's unrequited crush on romeo

[elvenbeard]

What if we kissed under the bigass neon Christmas tree at Corpo Plaza surrounded by virtual snowfall?

🥺👉👈😘🎄🐟❄️ (<- the emoji combo Kerry sent Vince to start off their date, probably)

Fantastic neon tree prop by @lokiina (you don't have to scale it up to 3000% like I did, but you can, and that's awesome!) 💚

Snowflake props, comfy sweater (Kerry), scarves, and pullover (Vince) by @pinkyjulien💛

Some headcanons and behind the scenes pics below the cut xD

I wasn't sure if I'd manage to do wintery pics still in time cause the last weeks I was ill and also busy as hell, so yeah XD But then, as I was playing around with the Christmas tree, knowing that it's scalable, I had the spontaneous urge to see just how big you could make it... and we'd been talking about how utterly decked out NC has got to be in colorful lights and shit around Christmas (because, yay, consumerism!). And since there are virtual cherry blossoms everywhere, there's gotta be virtual snowfall too!

This is what it looked like from afar :D

Now, headcanon time!

I think, as someone who grew up in the 90s and poor-ish, like me, Christmas must've been a special and magical time for Kerry, even if it's probably lost its charm as he grew older. I still think though, since I interpret him as someone very nostalgic who tends to linger in the past, he'd definitely be into decorating the house and having at least a small fake tree or something set up. He probably did that with Louise and his kids as well (cause yay, giving presents to make up for the guilty feelings of being a probably otherwise not very present parent - ba-dum-tss), and in the following years it brought back too many bad feelings and memories for him to really look forward to it. But with Vince he'd wanna make new memories, he'd probably be in the holiday spirit again for the first time in a long time... but little does he know that Vince is a little Grinch ("What the fuck is a Grinch?" - ".... movie night, right now!")

Vince's family *never* celebrated Christmas in a big way. His mother thought the decorations tacky and didn't want them in her house. Culture-wise, with his dad's Japanese background, Christmas is more a romantic couple's holiday than the traditional family or even religious thing we have in the west. So he doesn't have strong feelings about Christmas apart from "hm, yeah, the lights are pretty I guess". But I'd also like to think that Kerry does manage to get him in the holiday spirit at least a little bit too xD Cause in the end, it's about spending time with your loved ones and giving a shit about the rest imo XD

[eosofspades]

okay i meant to make this post forever ago but my personal opinion on why so many people were so dissatisfied with lightfalll (disclaimer: i am not one of these people, i love lightfall SO much), is that lightfall was kind of subjected to a really aggressive marketing campaign.

like, stick with me here, i feel like almost all the lightfall release content (the trailers especially) were so focused on battling the witness, how this battle has been centuries in the making and this is the Second Collapse Finally Finding Us, only for there to be,,, no real resolution. the end was left on such a severe cliffhanger, but not only that, there was NO battle with the witness. the witness didn't even seem to be having a hard time at all with what we WERE throwing at it.

and for narrative reasons *i* am obsessed with this ending; in terms of storytelling i adore practically every creative decision that was made in lightfall, but i think the reason that so many people were so upset about it is because lightfall had such intense marketing and was rooted in the implication that this was the End of Days, only for us to get almost no closure, and instead so many more questions.

(there's also something to be said, i think, about the fact that the people who ARE most upset about this are like, the youtube gamer dudebros who's content is very very often rooted in the aggressive, violence-and-warfare, pvp-centric, no-interest-in-lore approach to destiny, and that the people i've seen primarily ENJOYING the narrative decisions (or at least being understanding about it) are the artists and writers and loremasters of the fandom, but i'm not quite sure,,, how to expand on that point.)

[fluffydice]

I'm bored so I'm bothering you. Do you have any Saiki K psykickers headcannons you feel like sharing? It's ok if not 🥰

What have you done,,,

I don't have any specific headcanons, but I can talk a bit about their dynamics because I've thought (and written) about it more (and we'll inevitably get headcanons mixed in!)

The Pyskickers are interesting characters all on their own, but when you put them together, you get a mess that really shouldn't work as well as it does. Which is. The same for most ND friend groups asdfghjkl

A big thing that's important to me about them is that they have to be able to work without Saiki. Maybe not be functional, competent humans—especially because, like all of Saiki's friends, the more they group up the more braincells they lose—but they need to work as a friend group. Saiki, unlike with his other friend group, doesn't always feel the need to babysit the Psykickers. Toritsuka, maybe, but he's in a weird spot since he joined so early. Saiki and him were the only ones for a while, so he's kinda an in-between. But for the most part, Aiura and Akechi are usually actively helping Saiki with something. Toritsuka, too, even if 7/10 he's being threatened and/or bribed, 2/10 he's trying to help but failing—him succeeding that 1/10 already puts him in a separate category than most of Saiki's friends.

I went on a tangent there; point being, Saiki isn't constantly mother-henning and helicopter-ing them. Ergo, Saiki can't be the only reason they stick together. I don't want Saiki to be the only reason they stick together in my writing, mainly because I do like reinforcing the fact that not everything is about him—even if it's subtle. Things happen around him that Saiki is not always privy to, and this includes his fellow and honorary psychics' dynamics.

Akechi and Aiura are easy for me. Funnily enough, despite likely having the best relationship, even including Saiki, I have little to say about them. It's likely because they lack a lot of the complexity the others have: they're just really fucking cool with each other, and get along swimmingly. Honestly, when I write them, it's often with at least a hint of a romantic undertone. They're comfortable with each other physically and emotionally. Akechi trusts Aiura's judgement on when he should keep it short out of necessity, not because he's being annoying. Aiura thinks Akechi is wicked as hell, and also trusts his value judgements on people and situations.

From a literary standpoint, Aiura as a character tends to get in over her head and overly emotionally-invested in things—Akechi can provide a good counterbalance to ensure things can remain on track in the story, as well as help avoid any potential mini-conflicts that might arise from characters clashing due to simple communication incompatibility.

Speaking of communication incompatibility, Toritsuka and Aiura are full of it. Despite them seemingly being the most similar on the surface-level, their motivations, intentions, and moralities conflict. A lot. Take this scene I wrote of them, for example:

“Of course they were mad! You can’t just act like you don’t have emotions whenever you feel like it. Or, if you do, you can’t get depressed when they start treating you like it.” “If you don’t shut up,” Aiura hissed, grabbing a fistful of his sleeve. Toritsuka yanked his arm away to no avail, then settled for glaring at her. “I’m gonna—"

Here, we have Toritsuka actually making a good point about something; it's his wording that muddles it up. Aiura is quick to defend against him because she's protective of her loved ones, and is also aware that their beliefs differ sharply. Neither are quite in the wrong here; or, neither of them are any more right than the other. Aiura is right to assume the worst because that's typically what Toritsuka shows. Toritsuka is right to point things out about the situation. These are the mini-conflicts that Akechi smooths over by being essentially a bridge between their ways of communicating:

“Wait, Mikoto,” Akechi piped up. His fingers were in front of his mouth, his thumb cupping his chin, in a classic sign of thinking. “The wording was harsh, admittedly, but Reita is, in fact, not wrong.”

At the end of the day, though, they are friends. Aiura might be a tiny bit more willing to admit it, but both her and Toritsuka do care about each other. When they work together, big things happen. They just need a bit of oil to help smooth things along between them. Most of their dynamic, however, comes from their utility in stores:

From a literary standpoint, Toritsuka helps balance out Aiura's optimism to a reasonable point. Saiki's cynicism is often a big contributor to conflicts in my stories—he's unreliable, both in dialogue and in narration. Toritsuka is a milder version of that cynicism (albeit rough around the edges). Aiura can't always be right about the way of things, but Akechi is too prone to taking the middle ground; essentially, pointing out all the benefits to her way of thinking while also providing the downsides. Sometimes, though, it's necessary to just have someone completely shut it down, and fast. That's where Toritsuka comes in.

Also, Toritsuka and Aiura often act as the representation of the doubts and hopes of Saiki, respectively. They're essentially foils to each other, which is helpful when your main character is a hot-and-cold tempered little bitch. A sort of good-cop bad-cop for him, if you will. By having them verbally duke it out, it helps guide the reader a bit about what's true about Saiki's view and what's distorted by his way of thinking. Chances are, if they manage to agree, it's a lesson he's going to have to learn.

And finally, Akechi and Toritsuka. Though they're comfortable with each other to an extent, they lack the romantic undertones I put in for Akechi and Aiura. Akechi makes Toritsuka uncomfortable: it's hard to argue with him, for one, and he often calls out Toritsuka in a way that's hard to hide from. Akechi is the most successfully mentor-like to Toritsuka out of the rest of them—Aiura is too automatically competitive and Saiki can smother. There's also the fact that Toritsuka can sometimes trigger his trauma in certain ways, so Saiki tends to lash out. Akechi, however, is patient and steady. Anything Toritsuka says rolls off of him like water. Akechi is hard to catch off guard with words or actions, and deep down, Toritsuka really does need stability and an unwavering personality to help him grow as a person. I think Toritsuka is fascinating to Akechi as well, as I don't think Akechi is a naturally sexual being. He's not averse, but the kind of brain-rotted attraction and horniness that Toritsuka often exhibits can teach Akechi a lot about other people. The biggest thing that Toritsuka offers Akechi is a better understanding of other people. His down-to-earth nature can help Akechi connect his practical knowledge about psychoanalysis and anthropology to actual people.

From a literary standpoint, Akechi acts as a milder reign for Toritsuka. Aiura may be right to disagree with him, but sometimes a defter explanation is needed than Aiura's often emotion-driven responses. This is where Akechi comes in, especially because Toritsuka's language and laziness can make it seem as though he's not to be trusted as a rational view. He is, and Akechi helps uncover that.

Also, Toritsuka can sometimes act as the audiences natural reaction to Akechi's tangents. Akechi obviously likes to ramble, but Aiura won't interrupt him and Saiki won't confront people. Toritsuka cuts through a lot of that easily and naturally, which helps keep them both in character while still allowing the story to move on.

Overall, it's kind of easy to see what utility I get out of these characters. Akechi is an intermediary who bridges gaps of understanding, both between characters and the audience and the happenings of the story. Aiura is the outgoing one, the one to get things started. She provides a force against Saiki's heavily biased world-view and acts as a moral compass for her group. Toritsuka helps cut through a lot of bullshit and acts as healthy dosage of reality these personalities need to keep their heads on straight.

Plus, I think they're in an unofficial QPR. So.

[writersbeware]

No Regrets

            When my mother slipped into the depths of dementia to never return to her former self, I didn’t cry. In fact, I struggled to control my glee, to hold it inside whenever I spoke to my siblings or was around my dad.             Finally, after years and years of manipulation and emotional abuse, her voice was silent, her disapproving glare gone. Never again would I hear all the ways in…

[im-still-watching-anime]

kakashi: sorry kids gotta go, i’ve got a date with gai

naruto: but you guys just went on a date for lunch

kakashi: yeah honestly you guys just seem to be in a particularly devious mood and i’ve determined my chances of getting in trouble by association are lower with him today

[deadqueernoldor]

Thinking thoughts about those from Cuivienen and how they later treated the Valar, especially after Cuivienen was destroyed.

I imagine a foundation of sorrow and a layer of betrayal and pettiness. They had promised safety. And how did it turn out? Kin of Tata and Tatie their first leaders, slain in Valinor by the Dark Hunter from which the Valar promised protection in Valinor.

And then, the War of Wrath comes and with it the destruction of Cuivienen.

If any of those were re-embodied in Aman, I wonder if they make it a point to always turn their back to Valar and Maiar. I wonder if they only speak in the tongue they had first devised all those millennia ago and spoke in Cuivienen before time and different kindreds changed the tongue, not Sindarin or Quenya from the Great Journey's time or later. I wonder if they sing songs in their ancient tongue, songs about the beauty and unsullied health of Cuivienen every time any of the Ainur are near.

I wonder if the Valar feel any shame when those who they once looked upon in wonder and love gaze back at them with indifference or disgust.

[aroacesigma]

so many bsd characters seem to have a lot of their characterisation and experiences centering around their ability, but sigma seems mostly apathetic to his own ability - he doesnt list it as his strength in that one character profile that came out recently , he just says hes a hard worker and mostly useless at everything else . and hes always describing himself as pretty ordinary. which really is the exact opposite of how pretty much everyone else sees him as just the thing that comes along with his ability

[theroyalsavage]

i'm only 20 mins into netflix's atla but oh BOY do i already have thoughts

showing the genocide of the air nomads on screen raises a really serious challenge that this scene doesn't attempt to wrangle with at all: the air nomads were committed to nonviolence. like the tibetan buddhist monks they were modeled on, the air nomads' teachings surround the sanctity of life. throughout the original show, aang's fighting style is primarily evasive, when he does end up having to fight rather than settling a conflict another way. the air nation's commitment to nonviolence is also an absolutely key part of aang's arc in the third season, as he desperately searches for a way to end the war without killing ozai

so, like..... hang on???? would a people whose central teachings involve nonviolence leap into Ready-For-TV-Combat as quickly as the air nomads do in this show?? would they try to flee?? shield themselves??? reason or negotiate with the invading army?? would the air nomads even TEACH combat-focused airbending? would the average non-avatar air nomad be able to go toe-to-toe with a fire nation soldier in a battle like this????? why was their first response to immediately leap into a fight???

when the genocide takes place off-screen and we only see the horrible fallout through aang's eyes, what actually happens is left to the imagination. with the netflix show, we're left with an action scene that makes the air nation feel so thin - they start to feel like props rather than a rich and unique culture. one of the things that made the og atla special was its worldbuilding and i'm just. truly left SOOOOOO baffled by this adaptation already

[butterflieswhisper]

beast sonic ....