#for idk. spite? superstition?

[lovesodeepandwideandwell]

Put your hands together in prayer for me, ladies--I'm about to submit my first application for a full-time permanent grown-up academic job

[scarlet--wiccan]

Idk if you know anything about Ice from dc, but I believe she is also a Romani character? Since you’ve shared thoughts on Dick Grayson and Zatanna, I was wondering if you had any on her.

I do have thoughts, and they're not kind. With DC Comics, it seems like Romani identity is something that is only ever applied retroactively to validate a character's exoticness, mysticism, or sexualization-- sometimes a combination of all three. I'm not going to say that Marvel is necessarily better, but their inclusion of Romani characters is definitely founded on a better understanding of our realities, particularly in the Silver and Bronze Age. When you look at characters like the Maximoffs or von Dooms, you get a sympathetic portrait of European Romani history that actually makes valid and helpful points, in spite of the problematic imagery. Characters like Ice, Zatanna, and Nightwing generally only make shallow references to a gypsy heritage that confirms certain stereotypes about their upbringing, but has no bearing on their adult lives.

DC also has a stronger tendency to portray portray Romani groups as organized crime families, as we see in Ice's revised backstory, first told in Justice League: Generation Lost #12. In my mind, this is a much more dangerous stereotype than the usual witches and fortunetellers. Romani communities are heavily impacted by racial profiling and over-policing, in Europe and in America. It's one thing for media to present gypsies as a fictional race of fairy-tale spellcasters; it's quite another thing to validate very real state violence against a very real people by parroting racist propaganda.

Anyways, Tora Olafsdotter, formerly known as "Icemaiden", now known as simply "Ice," was originally depicted as a member of a reclusive tribe of magic wielders from Norway. I don't know how overt this is in the original material, but I would hazard that she is actually based on stereotypes about the Sámi people. "Fixing" this backstory by making her Romani-- just in time to maker her family into overt villains-- is very similar to what happened with Magneto in the 90s.

The Romanifolket are a real Romani group, based primarily in Norway and Sweden. DC gets points for naming an actual vitsa-- most Romani characters don't have one at all, or if they do, it's fictional, like Doom's "Zefiro clan." The name "Is Bygd" is made-up, though, as are the clan politics of Tora's family. DC loses what little credibility they'd earned by representing the Romanifolket as an extensive crime ring who uphold scamming and thievery as a cultural practice. That's completely fallacious, and extremely harmful.

In her revised origin, Tora is a metahuman, meaning her powers are a genetic quirk, similar to that of X-Men's mutants. Her fanatical forebears believe that she is a reincarnated goddess, and they wish to use her powers to, you guessed it, do more crimes. This reinforces the narrative that Romani people are ruled by their arcane superstitions and pagan beliefs, as well as the pervasive notion that we abuse children and force them into early labor and/or marriage for profit. Sound familiar? Everyone's favorite X-Factor writer loves that one. [x]

Ultimately, Tora denounces her entire community as "very bad people." Generation Lost frames her Romani upbringing as a traumatic experience Tora wishes to distance herself from, and Romani culture as an inherent evil for which she seeks redemption. In that regard, she's not unlike Marvel's Amanda Sefton, but unlike Amanda, Tora's story is told without an ounce of nuance, and it was written recently. In the age of digital research, there's no excuse for this level of ignorance. The story of Ice is probably the worst Romani narrative I have ever witnessed in a superhero comic.

[sweetmage]

#ANDERS WAS RIGHT#ironically enough Cullen is the only advisor who offers the option to support guard captain Aveline to resist Sebastian's forces#If I remember right Leliana's option is to support Sebastian and Josephine's is to diplomatically stay out of the conflict entirely#This has been said many times but you're totally right OP#DAI did Anders so dirty#They used him as an escape goat for the conflict that was brewing way before he exploded Kirkwall's Chantry#And decided to focus solely on the collateral damage to avoid discussing the social issues that expand beyond the mage rebellion#The Orlesians Chantry exerting power through force and by controlling the collective discourse against mages using superstition#Meredith stalling the process for electing a new viscount in Kirkwall and turning the city into a military state#The tranquil being used as the Circles' main source of income#...#Anyway#Fuck the Chantry

YES, YOU GET ME!

I too was surprised about Cullen. My last DAI playthrough was a nobleman from Starkhaven who was making some very questionable choices due his background but was also making some very questionable choices due to romancing Cullen so that threw him for a bit of a loop😅 Anyway, my only guess is that maybe they did that because Cullen was actually there at the time, though it's really hard for me to believe Leliana and Josephine were so chill about it compared to other war table missions? Plus, being present on the scene didn't exactly change other people's opinions (re: Hawke and Varric) so idk 😅 I like DAI but I think there was so much missed potential there in regard to the narrative setup in the first two games. I also felt like choices had more impact in those ones. Of course, I personally sided with the mages through and through in DA2, but there was a wider variety of opinions portrayed and the dialogue choices you made had more interpersonal effects and some people's opinions could even be swayed. I felt the need to consider my choices more carefully and I felt it even more when I did something my companions didn't approve of. Doing a mage route felt very powerful to me! Like I was going against the grain and truly standing up to an oppressive system in spite of opposition from friends, NPCs, and the chantry. Of course it wasn't a perfect game and still took a middle ground in places where there really shouldn't have been any middle ground (like the ending, for example), but in comparison, I think it did better. DAI literally put you in the highest position of power a DA protagonist has ever been and provided you with the ability to choose sides in what should have been a big, impactful, and visible way, yet I felt less like a lot of my choices mattered than ever. Of course, I understand this is a game with a scripted narrative and it's not possible for every single choice to have a huge result, but I at least wish the surrounding world held more nuance and that the opinions of your companions were more varied and opposing like the DA2 cast. I felt like many opinions (companions, advisors, or otherwise) only ranged from "support the chantry/mages are dangerous!" to "well, this situation kinda sucks but what can ya do? I want no part in it." and there was a very strong "BOTH SIDES ARE BAD!!!" sentiment that I felt really didn't address what they had set up in DA2. Anders was unfortunately caught in the crossfire and made the poster child of "mages are bad." Yet despite that sentiment, there also isn't as big of a negative reaction as you would expect to siding with the mages, being a mage, etc. save for a few inconsequential lines of dialogue here and there, or companions approving or disapproving but not really commenting on it. It's like they just didn't want to touch or address the established issue at all. When I play DAI I end up muting my TV and making up a lot of dialogue in my head. I want my mage/mage supporting protagonists (and non-human protags too!) to be able to put their foot down in the face of people who are spouting chantry propaganda to their face. I want them to face opposition head-on and still find the strength to do what they think is right, accepting whatever consequences might come from it because they have the power to change things for the better even if it makes some enemies along the way. I don't want to make all sides happy and appease oppressors at the war table just to maintain their image. I want my mage opposing protags to feel the weight of their actions outside a few little "[character] disapproves" on the side of the screen when they make a mistep or commit an outright atrocity. I don't want the world patting them on the back for being a good inquisitor who doesn't fall too far out of line. And what happened to companions leaving when they get tired of your actions?

This got really off-topic, but yeah, I think the in-game Anders slander is just a symptom of a wider narrative issue. Perhaps they thought the prior game (which, as I hear, was not positively received at the time) was too black and white and severely overcorrected when making DAI. Whatever the case, I do hope the next game is better in this regard and addresses those things more carefully, but we shall see! I really do love this game and this series, but that makes me want better things from it all the more!

I was talking to my friend about DAI's treatment of Anders the other day and how it drives me INSANE. This game is SO cruel and uncharitable to him! Firstly, the only time we EVER see his manifesto in canon (as far as I know) is in the house of a crazed murderer with a pile of bodies in his basement. Every single mention is placing the blame firmly on his shoulders. I know some people subscribe to the "Varric is distancing himself from their actions for his/their safety" which I subscribe to as well simply for my own sanity, but it does sometimes become hard to swallow when it's been revealed that (assuming you romanced him) he knew where Hawke and Anders were the entire time yet he continues to let others trash Anders while he chimes, etc. And I DO understand and sympathize with Varric in a way, Kirkwall was his home and when the war broke out there was mass death and destruction and he had to leave. Anders did play a role in that, but he only sped up the process, he was not the root cause and they were heading that direction anyway. Also, he saw Meritdith's red lyrium nonsense firsthand, he saw the cruelty that preceded it, and everything she did aligned with what Anders was so concerned about. The Thedas-wide fighting is not "blondie's mess". I originally had my imported Hawke set to "supported Anders" but I had to change it to "didn't support Anders" in my next playthrough because the supportive Hawke straight up calls him a "monster" so I found the alternative to somehow be the lesser of two evils. In the end, I guess that's more accurate to my Hawke anyway because he was upset that Anders went behind his back and didn't tell him first, he would have liked the time to prepare for the aftermath and all that. But yeah, the "I don't know if there ever was an Anders" from a conflicted but still loyal Hawke is easier for me to roll my eyes and ignore than "he wasn't a hero or a monster, maybe he was both" from a supportive Hawke. But ugh, I digress... As for the other main characters, I do understand that none of them knew Anders personally, they only know him from the big action he took with the chantry and nothing more. So I think it makes sense that they don't necessarily have a favorable view of him, some of them seem rather confused if anything. Not to mention a lot of them did not personally endure the circumstances that led Anders to do what he did. But I really would have loved for there to be more NPCs that supported him, especially when DA2 introduced "The Resolutionists" who seem to align pretty damn well with Anders.

And we got a character that supported Loghain which is a 10+ year old topic but not a single one that supported Anders who seems to be a hot-button issue atm? At the very least, I wish there were at least some people that questioned the whole "Anders did this, this is all his fault" narrative (especially once DAI itself revealed that the war did not, in fact, start because of Anders) or at least SOME differing opinions on him?? As far as I can tell, the only person who has been remotely charitable to him is Solas in this conversation (the thing my friend sent me that got me talking about it):

And the only other mention I could find of people that may have supported him is in the Annexing Kirkwall wartable mission where Sebastian mentions "Anders's associates" who he believes might know where he is. But then again, this is coming from the man who wants to march on a city of innocents for to find a man who probably isn't even there so should be taken with a huge grain of salt.

FWIW I now play with the mod that makes Aiding Kirkwall trigger every time because it better aligns with my HCs for Seb and I will never in my life kill Anders so... I actually like Sebastian even though I don't agree with him most of the time. I get his immediate hurt and betrayal at the end of DA2 because he effectively lost his family again, but I'd like to after 3 whole years of being prince he'd have cooled down enough to uhhh... not march on a bunch of innocents??? Which seems very antithetical to his character and development in DA2?? Annexing Kirkwall is silly, so I do not see it. But I digress, this is an Anders post!!

Anyway, I know I am not saying anything that hasn't been said to death by this point. I love each and every DA companion in their own way, regardless of whether or not I agree with them. But I feel like this is less an issue with them and more an issue with how the writers chose to frame the narrative. I do have to wonder if the fact that so many people hated and were averse to Anders made them think that this is what the people wanted. I have quite a few issues with Anders's writing and handling in DA2 as well, don't get me wrong, but at the very least I enjoyed the ability to support him all the way through.

[dankovskaya]

I beseech you for your Garth insight, wht personality of his do you like? Bc every version of him I've read is a little alienating to me (part of the reason why I prefer Jackson is bc Idk which Garth I'll get or wht even his backstory is now) so if I started to try and get invested in him wht stories or version would you recc?

Okay for absolute full disclosure here I’m currently getting into Aquaman comics chronologically. Primarily through the lens of Garth. And there are some things I had already read at some point, but in my current venture I’m just a little bit post-Crisis, so my knowledge of the Aquaman side of things in general is still relatively limited. 

But I can definitely talk about Garth.

First things first, absolutely anything featuring a man calling himself Garth from any point later than the year 2011 is a completely different person. I can say that with full confidence even having read, like, no more than 2 comics including the Rebirth iteration of his character. It’s just not the same guy on seemingly any level, which can definitely account for the alienation aspect, and it’s very disappointing.

But on the topic of OG Garth. Let’s discuss his personality.

Something that stands out to me immediately about Garth is that he is very emotional. (Apparently a common theme among the characters I like.) But more than that, he’s emotional in like a shockingly healthy way? He does not bottle things up, if something hurts or upsets him he makes it known, if he feels betrayed or disrespected by someone he takes it up with them, and he’s not at all afraid of direct confrontation if it’s warranted. 

But despite that, he remains consistently reserved, sensitive, and gentle, which is kind of a miracle among male comic book characters. He can have a temper too, but it only really comes up if something is stopping him from helping someone in trouble, or if he feels mistreated past a certain limit, and it never really feels like he’s lashing out unnecessarily. His continual willingness to stand up for himself in spite of his “softer” personality sticks with me.

And tying into all of the above he’s textually acknowledged for his talents in communication and later diplomacy, which, again, not usually traits emphasized in Superhero Men. This example is very cute:

Not that he doesn’t enjoy fighting. He definitely does. In fact, a few of his notable outbursts have been explicitly about his beef with pacifist philosophies LOL. Although he notably doesn’t go out looking for fights or starting them without good reason by any means. (I think this is a point of diversion between him and his imposter-self. Maybe. From what I’ve heard.) 

Now backpedaling a bit, part of why all of his fairly healthy emotional and communicative traits are so charming to me is that he definitely is NOT without his issues. Idk how much you know about his backstory but for starters, he was abandoned and left to die as a baby, initially thought to be due to an Atlantean superstition regarding his purple eyes, surviving (mostly) on his own for a while and eventually being found by Arthur. Due to this, as well as the ambiguous and changeable state of his relationship with Arthur (whether they see each other as friends, brothers, or a father-son duo is. Complicated to say the least. It’s almost like a Jedi-Padawan type thing if you’re into star wars LMAO), Garth is kind of a walking hotbed of abandonment issues, theoretically at least. Like I said, he’s pretty healthy when it comes to expressing his needs and feelings. He's definitely more well-adjusted than Arthur ends up being.

Loneliness and a lack of belonging/identity are also huge themes with him as well. This is why the Titans are so important to Garth, even if his responsibilities and limitations prevent him from being a consistent member of the team. During maybe the first period where he genuinely doesn’t know where he stands with Arthur anymore, he goes off on his own to seek out his (purple-eyed) people and try to find his parents to give himself some sense of personal identity and find out who he is--as it turns out, he has immense trouble relating to them or even being civil with them at points, and ends up feeling like as much of an outcast with them as he does in Atlantis, ultimately realizing that his identity and who he fundamentally is are things that only he can decide for himself! Go Garth!

Some other issues he deals with are general insecurity and anxiety--these are mostly shown within the context of the Titans, where he’s often the odd one out as an Atlantean and severely limited in his abilities and effectiveness outside of the water (i.e. nearly suffocating to death all the time.) At the end of the original Teen Titans, Garth quits the team because he felt so deeply inferior and useless to them that it was making him actually severely physically ill to the point of passing out multiple times and people genuinely worrying he was going to die. That is a lot of anxiety. Though he doesn’t have nearly as much insecurity when he’s in the water, he's still shown to be A Worrier, and Tula makes fun of him for being too vigilant or in his own head, unable to loosen up and so on. Also, in his very first appearance, he is deathly afraid of fish!!!!!

Now for recs. First of all, if you’re insane or plan on being so in the future, this is a link to a complete reading order, which is what I’ve been loosely following. More specifically, Garth’s first appearance is in Adventure Comics #269. I would also recommend Adventure Comics #270 and #278. It’s some of the cutest shit ever, but it has little bearing on his later appearances.

From then I would go to Aquaman v1 (1962). Specifically #17-18, #23, #25, #33 (Tula intro!), and #40-47 (this arc is really drawn out and silly and Garth’s segments are mostly separate from the rest of the plot so after the first one you can honestly just skip through most of it until you see Garth or Tula LOL). He’s also in Teen Titans v1 during this time, I would read the first issue and then skip to #19, #28-29, #30, #40 (kilt moment), #45-53. Also, The Brave and the Bold (2008) #10 is a very cute story that focuses on Garth and takes place during this era.

Sort of concurrent to the Titans appearances is maybe the first major Aquaman storyline which you can find as a trade paperback (on readcomiconline lol) called Aquaman: The Death of a Prince. Basically Arthur is put through a meat-grinder of facing a bunch of his villains back to back, being deposed as the King of Atlantis, losing Arthur Jr., and as a result, becoming estranged from Garth and Mera. This is where you also find the first real expansion of Garth’s backstory.

Then he pops up in New Teen Titans (1980) #23 and #33. Tales of the Teen Titans #45-47 + #50. New Teen Titans (1984) #6. And then Crisis on Infinite Earths happens wherein Tula is killed. It’s very minor and not worth reading the whole thing just to see that if you’ve never read it before. He sticks with the New Teen Titans (1984) team for a spell when almost everyone in the usual team is gone and/or going through a mental breakdown from #19-26 I believe, and the grief makes him very quiet and distant, but he breaks through it by the end. Basically right after that are the events of Teen Titans Spotlight #10 with a very odd psychedelic story where he has like a telepathic battle with Mento lol, and later in #18 of the same book. 

Congratulations, you are now caught up with me. This has also gotten disturbingly long, so I’m going to cut it off here. If you actually make it through all this and would like more recommendations for Garth past this point feel free to ask again. Or if you get sick of reading these older comics and don’t care about skipping ahead/potentially not understanding shit, he shows up pretty consistently in Aquaman v5 (and the excellent Tempest (1996) miniseries where he makes the moniker-switch takes place after I think #25 of that), and Titans (1999).

[tinybookgirl]

Mormon Onion Family Part 6

Part of the reason Amethyst ends up liking going to church with Vidalia is because she really likes the idea of someday being able to see Rose again.

When a Gem is shattered their consciousness remains in the shards, so I’m not actually sure how they would fit into the plan of salvation.

If Gems were real I’m sure they would but idk how.

Anyway-

Amethyst tells Pearl and Garnet about it, Garnet just thinks it’s a nice idea, and if it makes Amethyst feel better then that’s fine.

Pearl thinks it’s a silly human superstition and at one point she and Amethyst do fight about it, but it mostly gets left alone.

After the fight Amethyst kinda starts thinking about actually asking Vidalia about getting baptized but decides against it.

Half her reason was to spite Pearl.

And she feels like if she did it would involve giving up all these Gem aspects of herself that she barely understands as it is.

Sour Cream uses his DJ skills to make the best version of the EFY medley you have ever heard.

He’s also played around with the concept of turning every primary song/hymn possible into dubstep

Some turned out better than others.

If I’m doing the math right, Sour Cream is definitely an adult now.

He doesn’t go to the singles ward much but he goes to FHE and the other YSA activities.

He wants to bring Jenny and Buck sometimes, but he never does cause he’s worried about what people will say if they find out he’s dating them.

It’s partially why he doesn’t go to church much.

He’s figuring out how to feel about everything and Vidalia is helping as much as she can.

Yellowtail always takes his boys to the father/son campouts and activities.

He also volunteers to take any girls in the ward without fathers to the father/daughter campouts and activities.

When Onion was a baby he drove the nursery staff wild

Where is the baby?

No one knows!

Usually could be found hiding in a confined space, or wherever his Mom and Dad were.

How did year and a half old onion get to the chapel during someone else’s sacrament meeting when all the nursery doors were shut?

It’s a mystery.

Why is he sitting on top of the drinking fountain?

Also a great question.

You think regular sunbeams are wild?

The Primary presidency was not ready for Sunbeam Onion.

If my math is right Onion isn’t actually twelve yet but

Tiny Onion passing the Sacrament is just a really cute visual.

Just imagine that and let it clear your soul for a second.

Vidalia gets side eyed by a lot of the other moms in the ward because she’s openly Bi and her kids are weird and Sour Cream was conceived in a van.

Vidalia doesn’t care and all the young women love her so the moms have gotta suck it up.

[shinas-spicy-chicken-leg]

Character Development

BASICS

Full Name: Shina Mizushima Nicknames: I don’t … think she really has one? There isn’t really a whole lot of nicknames you can get out of ‘Shina’. Sex/Gender: Female Right or Left: She’s actually left-winged Age: 28(Though she turns 29 in May) Height: 2'6"(So smol, though truthfully, this is actually due to me bumping UP her height. REAL Satsumadori hens are only 1'6") Eye Colour: Pale gold Hair Colour: Chickens don’t have hair silly. But plumage-wise, she’s mostly black and silver, with salmon coloured chest feathers Distinguishing Marks: She doesn’t … really have any, I don’t think. Paragraph Of Physical Traits: Um … chicken? She’s built like an Asian gamefowl(since that’s what Satsumadori chickens are), so, long legs, lean build, small pea comb. Beak and legs/feet are yellow. Sides of her tail fan out, similar to a peacock’s train. I know everyone makes fun of her for her size, but honestly, she’s only considered short in comparison to other species. By chicken standards gamefowl are considered tall breeds. She isn’t even the smollest of the smol.

FAMILY/RELIGION

Parents: Isamu(father) and Hatanaka(mother) Mizushima Siblings: None. Siblings are rare in her people’s society. Marital Status: Engaged(In one of her ship!verses anyways) Significant Other/s: Mainly @ishdarosieposie’s Angelo and @blizzardbones’ Hanleng. Children: None currently. She may adopt eventually in the future. Other Relatives: Her only other living relatives are her cousin Minako, and Minako’s parents, who don’t have names yet because I’m a horrible dirty procrastinator. Pets: Friends: Aside from Satoshi and Tatsuo, mainly Rose and the Soothsayer and … Fung and Gahri, I think. Oh yeah, and Sing Sing. :3 Enemies: Uuuh, I don’t think she currently has any, really. Unless you count her weird frenamy relationship with Shen? Ethnicity: Japanese Religion: She likes exchanging stories about the mythology from her country, but I don’t think she really follows any set religion. Beliefs: Kind of hard to pinpoint any of her beliefs because her moral compass flip-flops so damn much based on circumstances. For the most part though I think she’s mostly a neutral character with a slight inclination towards good. Superstitions: Shina herself isn’t superstitious, though superstition is so ingrained in her culture that she may subconsciously partake in superstitious behaviours out of habit(I.E., not sleeping with her head towards the North, not sticking chopsticks upright in her food, etc.) …. Diction/Accent: The dialects in Kyushu are more distinct than in Eastern and Western Japan. Because of her place of birth she would probably have a Satsuga(Kagoshima) dialect.

SCHOOL/WORK/HOME

Education: Academic education isn’t considered high priority to her people, so she really only grew up learning the basics of reading, writing, math, etc. Anything else she learned after she came to Gongmen. Otherwise most of her education is in fighting and military training. Degree(s): Occupation: Spy for hire and thief(sometimes also for hire). Own or Rent: Technically rent, since her home in Gongmen is actually owned by Satoshi. Living Space: Aside from having her own room, she mainly shares a kitchen and dining/living space with two other people(and sometimes three if Shen decides to drop by … usually unannounced). Work Space: Varies given her job is less than legal and requires her to travel sometimes. Main Mode of Transport: Her legs. :U

PSYCHOLOGY

Fears: Thunder(the main big one), mannequins, may have some low-key abandonment issues. Secrets: She tends to keep her career a secret from most people since it’s kinda … less than legal. I don’t know if she’s even told Rose or Angelo. As an extension to that the Soothsayer is not yet aware that she was never an ACTUAL servant in the Gongmen tower and Shina plans on keeping it that way and just kinda … low-key stresses over it(I think she kinda just expects Goat Mom to just barge in and start whopping her with her cane one day if she ever finds out hahaha). IQ: I don’t know the exact number, nor do I care since IQ tests are flawed and really not a good measure of intelligence at all … but as much as I yell at her for pissing off dangerous people with reckless abandon, she really isn’t all that stupid. Just … lacking in common sense. I tend to think of her as more wily than book smart though. She can articulate herself fairly well when need be can lie/manipulate pretty convicingly, which is essential to her job since spying is basically just one big act. She has to be able to convince other people that she is actually who she’s pretending to be. Eating Habits: She mostly eats whatever she’s in the mood for. Because of the way bird metabolisms work she eats pretty frequently. Food Preferences: She’s mostly a veggie eater, but she also has a thing for hot/spicy foods. Not … really a common palate in Japanese culture but a dare involving wasabi back in her childhood kinda fucked up her tastebuds I think. XD; Sleeping Habits: She tries to maintain a fairly regular sleep schedule. She usually sleeps with her legs tucked under her body and head under her wing(so … like a bird basically), though sometimes if she’s really tired or drunk she’ll kinda just … flop onto her bed and fall asleep in whatever position she lands in. Book Preferences: She doesn’t read much, honestly. She enjoys stories and folklore though. Music Preferences: She mostly prefers instrumental music. Usually something light and cheerful. Groups or Alone: I wouldn’t exactly call her a loner, but she generally prefers to hang out in small groups, like maybe two people total. Large groups make her uneasy. Leader or Follower: She can go either way, honestly. Planner or Spontaneous: She needs some level of planning for her job but as far as personality and personal life overall she’s gung-ho spontaneous. XD; Journal: She doesn’t keep one, no. I don’t think she considers her life exciting enough to record any of it. Hobbies: Cooking, art, SEX …. How Do They Relax: Alcohol She likes to draw mostly. What Excites Them: …. I’m sorry I can only think of ‘excites’ in the sinful way goddammit brain. Uuum, she tends to be pretty exciteable during festival season though. What Stresses Them: Shen, all these damn secrets she’s keeping from people about what her job is, and recently wedding plans. Pet Peeves: You had better chew with your goddamn mouth closed or she will straight up shank you with a chopstick. This isn’t a ‘sea/see food’ restaurant nobody wants to see your food while your mashing it up in your gross facehole. Prejudices: Honestly fuck this question because I can't think of a damn answer. I'm sure she has them but she gives so little of a fuck about sticking her nose in other people's lives that nothing is coming to mind. Attitudes: ??? I’m not sure what this one is referring to exactly but like, Shina basically IS an attitude? Covered in feathers?? She’s all about the sass life. Obsessions: Money, Angelo, food Addictions: Sex, alcohol Ambitions: *Loud shrugging* I think one of her main character flaws is that she’s really not all that ambitious. She’s pretty complacent with her life as it is now. Much to Shen’s aggravation lol

ASTROLOGY/PHISIOLIGY

Birth Date: May 10th Western Astrological Sign: Taurus Traits Associated with Western Sign: Persistent, tough, sensual, realistic, loyal, generous, friendly, loving, reliable, but also stubborn, jealous, resentful, possessive, spiteful, materialistic, inflexible, and lazy. Chinese Zodiac Sign: Rooster. *Bricked* Okay I don’t actually know since she’s not living in a specified time frame so I picked the most fitting choice. :U Traits Associated with Chinese Sign: Observant, hard-working, resourceful, courageous, outspoken, frank, open, honest and loyal. Can be overzealous, egotistical, and abrasive. Handwriting: Her handwriting is not that great ahahaha. It’s readable, but kinda sloppy. Sexual History: Extensive. *Wink wink nudge nudge* …. Okay I’ll stop. No but for real uh … she lost her virginity when she was 15. To another girl. She realized shortly afterwards that she swung both ways. She had a couple other partners after that but the nonstop casual fuck-fest didn’t start until she came to Gongmen. General Health: Physically speaking she’s pretty healthy. Mentally/emotionally is a whole different can of worms Allergies: None that she’s aware of.

OBJECTS KEPT IN

Purse/Bag: Mainly money, maybe a few random trinkets/charms she likes to carry around, some notes and a shopping list. Wallet:N/A Fridge:N/A Medicine Cabinet: She … has no idea. Usually whatever medicinal crap Satoshi has stored in there. Mostly things for everyday ailments and common sicknesses. He does technically have their names and uses labelled on them though because he honestly doesn’t trust the other two to figure it out themselves. Especially not a drunk Shina. :P Glove Compartment: CARS ARE NOT A THING YET. N/A. Junk Drawer: She mainly keeps art supplies and sketches there. Maybe some old family portraits and a few cool rocks or seashells she’s found. Backpack: If she’s backpacking then she’s probably traveling a ways and therefore would mostly be carrying survival supplies. A sleeping mat, non-perishable food items, etc. Desk: That would be where her junk drawers are. :’D On top of the desk is generally where she writes notes and letters so she most likely has her stationary supplies there. The top of her desk is surprisingly tidy in comparison to the rest of her room. :U Clothes Pockets: Her clothes don’t usually have pockets. That’s what her bag is for.

OTHER

Halloween Costumes: IDK knowing Shina it would probably be some sort of monster from her own country’s lore. Talents: Art(I guess that’s technically a learned skill but meh), cooking, tessenjutsu, acting. Politics: Uuuh, in general she tends to be pretty progressive-minded, I guess? But for the most part her outlook is ‘stay out of my business and I’ll stay out of yours’. For social politics anyways. As far as country/provincial politics she really doesn’t give a shit. Flaws: Stubborn, impulsive, alcoholic, flip-floppy, jealous/possessive, hot-headed, blunt, doesn’t know how to process her emotions in a healthy way. Strengths: Loyal, reliable, affectionate, will feed you(Yes I consider that a strength shush), everybody’s mom. Drugs/Alcohol: I don’t think she has much interest in a lot of drugs. Except for alcohol. It’s already kinda been established that she’s an alcoholic. She’s not really picky about what she drinks but plum sake is her favourite. Passwords: Nnnnooonnneeee?? What would she need one for computers don’t exist yet?? Prized Possessions: Her war fans, the kimono she wears for special occasions, old family portraits, pretty much anything she brought over from her homeland. Time and Place: Song Dynasty China, according to my own headcanon. Though since she’s Japanese in origin … Heian/Kamakura period. I don’t know the specific time she currently exists in and both eras came about during the Song Dynasty time frame so I just kinda … mashed the two periods together cause fuck it. Special Memories: The wasabi dare has been mentioned before but it will always have a special place in Shina’s tiny chicken heart(and in Chicken Mun’s as well). Exploring the beaches with Minako and Obaasan, looking for shells and other cool ocean stuff. Most of her happier memories center around those two.

[for-the-outliers]

so I just saw Annabelle: Creation. I want to slap someone... oh my gosh!! ok...ok i’m hella salty. if you don’t mind i’m just gonna yell into the void for a little bit. k?. k. spoilers and a giant rant under the cut. 

dude...where do I even start?! this movie man! they could have done so much with it! we could have gotten a good back story on the creepy doll. You know a how it got possessed, how evil and demonic stuff can be addictive, heck throw in some of the original legend and events around the real doll. put a big ole “based on a true story on the marketing campaign. They could have gone into how this thing gets into people's heads, put in a speal how this demon is ploying as a child, how it uses that to be a parasitic entity, how it’s cursed by bad karma, put in failed attempts to get rid of the thing, throw in some classic demonic superstition, smell of sulfur., voices, whatever. Get creative. But...no. what did we get? We got a poor excuse for a horror movie! Literally it’s like they put a bunch of bad horror tropes, jump scares, stolen bits from classics, and human stupidity into a blender then slapped it onto a screen. Not to mention how every piece of this movie is predictable! Oh gee they’re possessed. Wonder what’s gonna happen? They arnt...you know maybe gonna crab walk on the ceiling are they?! Also what is up with “the pushing the girl down the stairs” scene. What all 8 of these people have gone deaf suddenly? They can’t hear stuff crashing and the child screaming. Oh gee wonder what’s going on in the house? Idk man everyone’s gone nuts, it’s definitely not the demon doll in my addict. Oh i’m gonna let 6 orphans live in my house, maybe..just maybe you should of..i don’t know put a few padlocks on the outside of the door.  Just a thought. Oh the demon doll attacked my wife and ripped half her face off, i’m sure it’ll be fine in the attic with some bible pages glued to the wall it’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Ugh...just. There is so much! So much. I could go on. Long story short. This movie was a waste of 10 bucks. I sat in a theater for 2 hours bored out of my mind! I am considering minoring in creative writing out of pure spite and disdain for this movie. Actually no. not just this movie...just about every horror movie I’ve seen in the past few years has been like this. Screw it! I’m writing my own screenplays. Or burning the Hollywood movie business to the ground (cause you know..maybe there are good horror film writers out there that aren't acknowledged due to the nature of this industry..) i’ll decide in the car!

[psychotic-psypport]

my dad has done meth my whole life and has constantly disappointed everyone. he went to jail n stuff and was diagnosed with HPD (although I don't think that's accurate) I want to believe he can be better but don't know if I believe he really will-due to lies/the fact that a drug addiction isn't an excuse for being a shit person anyway. part of me wants him to suffer/wants him to go to jail bc of how he's made everyone else suffer. idk if we'll ever have a relationship/idk if I even want to.

same anon as drug addict dad aside from that- my relationship w/ my bff of 3 three years ended when I discovered it was all lies, my relationship w/ this boy ended bc we were both too mentally unstable, anxiety is the drive of my life, intrusive thoughts/paranoia are ruining me, my friend thinks I’m anorexic-and though I deny it I really am developing an ED. I either can’t sleep or it’s the only thing I can do. I bought some new razor blades- my legs are going to shit now. meth dad anon still my sister previously struggled w/ mental illness and had to go to the hospital. once my mom said that ‘if that ever happened again I would feel like a failure of a mother’ which made me scared/she has sorta found out in her own but hasn’t really helped me out- I think she’s in denial. my friend tells me my body is disgusting bc it’s too thin, but I love it. I am the lowest weight I’ve been in 2 ½ years but I feel fatter than ever. anyhow my life is shit idk what to do

Ok, so there’s a lot going on here (not a bad thing), so I’m going to try and divide this up into sections.

Number 1: Your dad.

Quite honestly, you don’t owe your dad a thing. If you don’t want to talk to him, if you don’t want a relationship with him, if you don’t want to forgive him, then that’s ok. Sometimes, people who share our genes aren’t our real family. Don’t feel guilty over cutting connections and moving on without him. It may be for the best. It’s also ok if you feel like you want him to suffer. He’s hurt you, and you’re allowed to be angry and spiteful, you’re allowed to hate him. Don’t feel bad because you feel this way.

Number 2: Your BFF and the boy

Sometimes, relationships end. Sometimes, it hurts like hell, but that doesn’t mean anything about you. You did not drive these people away. The circumstances weren’t right, and it was the right decision to break away if it was a friendship built on lies and a relationship that taxed you mentally. Allow yourself to grieve over these relationships, but keep moving forward. You’re probably better off.

Number 3: Intrusive thoughts are paranoia

These ones, I can relate to. My best advice is to partake in superstition to make you feel more safe, using protective sigils, wearing an evil eye bracelet and such. It makes you feel secure, like nothing can hurt you. As for the intrusive thoughts, try drawing them down. Vent art works some magic in making you feel better.

Number 4: Eating disorder and self harm:

I know how you feel, I’ve been right where you are. I know it feels like you can’t give it up, but you need to. Think of where you want to be, years from now. What job you have, maybe a partner, maybe a kid, maybe not. One thing I can tell you is that there won’t be room for these kinds of destructive behaviors in the future. They don’t have any place in your future, so you cannot let them destroy you and destroy a future and a present that could be filled with happiness. Please, talk to your friend. Get help. You will need support to get through this all.

Number 5: Your mom:

When I first told my mom I was cutting, she yelled and screamed and I cried. However, only 20 minutes at most later, she came up to my room and told me everything was going to be alright, that she was going to love and support me no matter what, and that we were going to get me help. I know it might feel like your mom couldn’t take it, but I can promise, she’d rather know, she’d rather have the opportunity to help you. She’s your mom, she wants to help you. Sit her down, talk to her about all this you’ve just told me. Let her in, she’s got your back.p