#fossilized but not fully dead

[mumblelard]

one hundred forty-four leagues as a crow sails or the diabolical scientist mystified

on tuesday, i found a krewe of caesar doubloon half-buried in the mud on the banks of the chattahoochee river, a place forty years and five hundred miles from its home, but time has been so slippery lately, maybe space is getting in on the fun too

[grimm-writings]

Hi there!

I'd like to request something for the Laios party x reader where reader licks rocks like how archaeologists sometimes do to determine if it's a rock or a fossil. They just won't stop licking stuff. One moment you are just having a chat and walking side by side and the next reader grabs a rock and licks it. How would they react to their crush licking things that are certainly not food?

“stop licking the damn thing!”

…ft! touden party x gn! reader, platonic izutsumi & reader

…tags! fluff, some crack, headcanon format, grimm doesn't know shit about rocks

…wc! 342 ; 400 ; 405 ; 344 ; 303 = 1794

…notes! this ask enraptured me i had to complete it posthaste. i’m not an expert in archeology or geology, but i hope you enjoy! 

Laios

“Ooh, can I have a lick?”

His ass does NOT give a fuck.

You could do anything and he wouldn’t be fazed I’m dead serious.

Honestly, once you do it in front of him he’d steer the conversation towards your study and how you figure out each time what is a rock and what is a fossil.

He may not fully take in all the information you give him.  This isn’t a topic he’s admittedly too interested in.

Honestly he’d probably take up some of your advice and see if he tastes monster he can figure out certain things about it.  Considering most monsters are made of raw meat, he has to be held back by your fellow partymates.

Someone (Chilchuck) usually has to encourage you to not “enable his behaviours.”

Overall, Laios simply does not judge!  He’s open and welcoming, and will even take part in your study with you!

(It’s an added bonus that he really likes how you explain things to him…)

Almost like an eager dog, Laios leans over your shoulder to look at the stone in your hand.  Prepared to explain yourself, like usual, you take a breath. “May I?” he interrupts you.  You still for a second.  Does he mean…? You slowly lift the rock up to the taller man behind you.  You don’t have any words as he leans down to give a small lick. You’re almost flattered from how open he is to it. At the taste, Laios’ eyebrows furrow, and he seems to seriously try to dissect the flavour.  He hums and tilts his head to you.  “Salty?” “Yeah,” you reply, slowly growing a bit more comfortable as you get an excuse to talk about your study, “so that means this rock might contain evaporite minerals.” Laios smiles slightly, leaning back to his full height to converse with you in a more casual position.  “Which are?” Your conversation continues, with Laios taking mental notes that he’ll hopefully remember for later next time he comes across a monster. Maybe if you find a gargoyle…

Marcille

Sorry she is so judgemental.

You are so lucky she likes you or else she’ll loudly give her opinion on how gross it is.

Well, that is until she learns the context as to why.

She’ll still be a little bit unsure, wondering if it’s proper conduct at all.

Marcille is trying her best, she really is, but you can’t just end a conversation so suddenly because you saw a rock, licked it in front of her, and said “hm… sedimentary.”

She wonders every day what she did to deserve such an… interesting taste in crushes. 

Though, like all things, give Marcille some time and she’ll warm up to your habits a bit more.  It may even be that she’ll be wondering about her study of the dungeon, running her hand along the wall, and thinking that she could call out to you to taste the wall and tell her the material.

She may not try out the method herself, but she’ll at least tolerate how you do it.  There’s a science behind it, after all…

Marcille stares as you lick your lips and hum to yourself.  Her mouth is a thin line and she’s trying her best not to come out with a disapproving comment. “Any… interesting findings…?”  She stiffly asks instead, gripping Ambrosia as if you’ll try licking her to figure out the levels of Mana too.  You can never be too cautious, even if she is only made out of wood. You smile at Marcille, either blissfully unaware of her austerity or pretending to be.  You hold up the stone in your hand and outline something with your finger.  “I think if we break this, we might find some fossils inside it.  You can keep it for your research if you want.” Marcille’s ears perk up slightly at that.  “For… me?”  She asks aloud, as if there’s anyone else who’d be interested in dungeon rocks.  As soon as she processes it she’s flushed and avoiding eye contact.  “I mean, this is your field of study, not mine!  I couldn’t possibly…” But you take her hands in your own, and place the fossil in her palm.  Marcille’s breath hitches when you take her fingers and fold them over the stone. “I trust you to come up with something.”  You beam at the elf, and she thinks that she might just have to take a chance in your skills.

Chilchuck

Not exactly open to it, not entirely critical about it either…

…But you will get a bit of a look whenever you do it.

He might be more the kind to make sure you aren’t outright doing it at stupid moments.  You better not get any ideas looking at those statues!

Sometimes you’ll be about to hold the stone up to your mouth, and right when your tongue is about to touch it, you’ll hear Chilchuck sigh a “don’t.”

Honestly this guy is treating you like a dog with something it shouldn’t have in its mouth.  Don’t worry, worrying and fretting is how he shows his love.

Even if he doesn’t like admitting to it…

If you try to explain how licking things helps in your study, Chil is inclined to raise his eyebrow and say that your field must be full of weirdos.

Then again, he’s the one who likes you so maybe he shouldn’t be too harsh…

He’s willing to let you do what you need to do but that doesn’t mean you’re free from his scathing commentary.

Crouched down, you analyse some rock in front of you.  It stands out a fair bit from most of the other geodes down here.  What could it be…? You lean in, your tongue grazing the stone slightly, and you lick.  The tip of your tongue familiarises itself with the taste.  Maybe metamorphic…? “Are you serious?”  You freeze at the sound of Chilchuck’s boyish voice.  On your hands and knees licking rocks isn’t exactly the ideal position to be judged in, even as you turn to look at the half-foot, arms crossed.  “Senshi is in the middle of cooking, no need to resort to eating rocks.” You roll your eyes.  You’re used to how Chilchuck treats your study at this point.  “I was just curious.” Chilchuck scoffs, walking up to pull you by the back of your collar up onto your feet again, which you do with some coercion.  “Yeah sure,” he says, “just wanna confirm you haven’t completely lost your marbles yet.” You look up at him, and squint.  Holding back a laugh, you mutter, “was that…?” “No, it wasn’t a dad joke,”  Chilchuck sighs, leaving you to your devices again.  “Just don’t do anything stupid when no one’s watching.” He hopes even as you giggle and confirm, you won’t notice the bright blush blooming on Chilchuck’s cheeks and tips of his ears.  How embarrassing…

Senshi

Also winning the dgaf war I fear.

He’d watch you lick some of the rocks you had picked out from your travels while resting.

It comes as no surprise that it then crosses his mind if the flavour changes when cooked, which he asks if he can do with some of your selection.

You can use your imagination on how Marcille and Chilchuck reacted when told that today’s dinner is … just rocks.

(Laios is disappointed that it isn’t any cool monster rocks.)

One delightful montage later, and ‘tis finished!  Since they are for your research, Senshi insists you have the first bite.

Crunch… and oh, such unique flavours!

You gush to Senshi about how this is a major breakthrough in how different minerals react to cooking conditions, and he gives you his observations too.

Honestly, just sort of wholesome bonding!

“Aye, this one cooked easily, while this one took plenty more time.” You nod eagerly as you watch Senshi point to two different stones.  “That’s because one is an igneous rock, which is magmatic.  The other is a sedimentary rock, which carries different minerals from lakes and oceans.  Separation in cooking must have resulted in different reactions!  I wonder how different metamorphic rocks would react…” As you mumble to yourself, Senshi happily continues his meal-making, occasionally responding back to you with hums and comments about what else each observed in his experimentation. Even when you had finished up your meal entirely, you thanked Senshi with the widest grin on your face.  He couldn’t help but be just a little flattered when you go on to joke that you should bring him home with you so he can help with your research. In return, Senshi listens to you, and hangs on your every word as you explain your findings to him.  Even if not too nutritious of a meal, the minerals from the rocks provide some calcium and other such buffs! And well…  If he can keep that happiness prolonged with his cooking, then he’s doing a very good job providing for you indeed!

Izutsumi

“Why are you eating rocks?  Looks gross.”

Make way for the #1 hater…

Izutsumi refuses to listen to any such rationalities you make about your study or why you lick rocks (even though she’s the one who asked), she’s still finding it icky and weird.

You’d have to fight fire with fire when it comes to her, you’ll question why she does some habits she does in return – such as licking her hand.

She’ll look at you like you’re stupid, before telling you that it’s a way for her to clean herself and notice if there’s anything caught in her fur.

“Ah, so like how I would lick rocks to identify anything embedded in them too!”

…How dare you try to rationalise yourself with her own logic, heathen.

Jail for reader.  Jail for 1000 years.

She’s not one to so readily accept other people’s weird quirks, but eventually she has to find that she’ll look stupid if she doesn’t…  It’s a bit of a dirty scheme, but it works.

“Come on, Izu, just give it a try!  I promise it just tastes like water.” “What kinda water?!”  She shoots back. You pause.  “W…Water?” This is how the argument between whether or not water has a flavour comes to be.  Izutsumi insists that some water tastes icky while others taste nice.  You have to explain that this pure water simply doesn’t have a taste.  She doesn’t believe you. In fact, Izutsumi makes you give the sedimentary stone another taste before affirming, it just tastes like water.  She’s about to grab your shoulders and shake you.  What kind of water?! It takes plenty of encouragement and an immediate failsafe orange juice Senshi squeezed out for her to ‘get rid of’ the taste when you get Izutsumi to taste the stone. She still hasn’t forgiven you… 

[probablybadrpgideas]

100th level spells

Abjuration: Protection from physics. You are no longer affected by gravity, inertia, temperature, etc.

Conjuration: Summon literally every demon (10ft radius)

Divination: Detect whether you are actually a fictional construct taking part in a semi-improvised game narrative or not.

Enchantment: Mind control people so effectively that they were already doing the thing you wanted them to do before you mind controlled them. Some might say this is just you taking credit for people doing things they were gonna do anyway, but what do martials know?

Evocation: BLOW UP THE FUCKING SUN.

Illusion: Send yourself into a fully realistic dream world so you never need to bother with existence again. Good luck with the lich army fuckers!

Necromancy: Animate dead but on all the world's fossil fuels.

Transmutation: Transform the entire multiverse into a no-magic high-tech humans-only world where the real world only exists as a reasonably popular tabletop RPG line.

Universal: Maximum counterspell. Cast on a wizard they forget everything after the day they started wizard school, cast on a cleric or warlock it kills their patron, cast on a druid it causes a global mass extinction and cast on a sorcerer to make all their blood fall out.

[punkeropercyjackson]

Punk Percy Jackson headcanons but by an actual punk instead of someone who thinks skateboarding is an aesthetic

A remaster of an old post now that i've learned even more about how to be punk!!Posted for @sillycathorrors who when i asked if he wanted me to through with this post since i was debating wether to or not said yes♡This will include my Pjo s/i named Lex de los Santos so if that'll bother you,just don't read this and reminder that punk Percy is actually canon as per his writings so this is just letting him fully participate in the subculture!!

Percy is afrosolarpunk because he's monoracial black but multietchnic(american/dominican/greek)and the son of Poseidon so he's naturally deeply caring about enviormentalism and drawn to nature based aesthetics(and people,as seen by Lex being a Demeter kid)

He got into solarpunk because of Sally.She'd take him to the beach every other weekend to clean the beach with a group of her friends(and end each trip with lunch at the beach)

Thalia was his first real experience with the subculture head on and that's a huge reason he admired her so much and was lowkey jealous of her along with a bit of gender envy

Knows how to diy things that don't even exist(i'm sorry i'll never stop making this Percy joke,it's literally so fitting)

Straightedge(Smelly Gabe trauma)

Transfem bigender and uses any pronouns + a bunch of neos and was on estrogen but for a short amount of time compared to full transitions.Autistic too and that's a huge reason he's punk,both because of facing ableism and autism giving him punk personality traits

Radicalized Nico and Hazel,who are now goth punk and pastel goth punk respectively.The three of them and Lex are known as 'The Outcast Godlings' because of the usual treatment Hades/Pluto kids get the first two were no exception to and Percy and Lex's feelings of isolation and otherness even after getting to Camp Half-Blood,all of which were thankfully resolved by the end of Hoo and the beginning of Tods(Tales of Dead Seas,my sequel to it that happens instead of T.oa)

Owns a pair of colbat blue and black demonias that were a gift from Beckendorf and they're a little tight on him now but he still wears them to remember him by

Goes on petty crime sprees for fun,letting frustration out and as dates with Lex

Rachel,Lex and him are 'The Loser Trio',a nickname they got at Goode High they reclaimed for themselves,and Rachel is canonically punk like him since she's an activist and a huge weirdo(affectionate).Rachel is also nigerian yoruba and afrosolarpunk like Perce and Lex with Lex being pastel punk and blasian too(chinese-dominican/black-greek)so they all go to protests/riots and do charity/activism together starting all the way back to freshman year and Rachel uses Mr Dare's money to give reperations and buy gifts for her besties(from punk bussinesses ofc,otherwise what's the point?)

Intentionally travels via Blackjack,foot,Argo ||,etc so as to minimize fossil fuel usage,taught Rachel how to properly dispose of her paint water,teaches younger campers how to mend and alter their clothes so they last longer and attends mosh pits and underground parties on the regular with Lex on his arm and Nico and Hazel following behind

His favorite musicians are Mcr,Teezo Touchdown,Megan Thee Stallion,The Cure,The Misfits,Alt Black Era,Direct Hit!,Meet Me @ The Altar and Korn.Some of these aren't punk but punk is black so ofc he listens to rap and also blues and Lo-Fi Beats courtesy of LFB enthutiast Hazel!!He's a guitarist himself because Lex taught him how to play as they used to take lessons as a kid and gifted him for his 19th birthday,a sea blue diy'd guitar stacked with stickers they knew he'd love

He's 6'4 by the end of Tods and his hairstyles per book were:Baby dreads(TLT),wicks(TTC),twists(TLO),afro for most of SON because he didn't remember what he styles he likes but gives himself dreads with muscle memory by the end,makes sea material based beads for them in MOA and his hair is so long by the beginning of Tods he switches to locs

^^^Unmythologizably accurate Percy Jackson.She also loves flowy hemp pants and skirts and dyes them fun colors too,makes shawls and wraps for herself and her punk loved ones(including Sally!!)and she loves hair charms sooooo much and has a special sparkly pink sunflower one that's meant to represent Lex she saves for special occasions!

Very involved with the Demeter Cabin thanks to growing up best friends with Lex since The Lightning Thief-They were the first friend she made at camp,in fact!!Rip Annabeth's pick me ass but Lex is different-and Perlex actively try to get them involved in the camp garden

Almost entierly only weird/niche interests.She's obsessed with obscure podcasts,indie games,underrated cartoons,cult classic movies,non-corny musicals and less popular kinds of toys.The Outcast Godlings have matching Aquapets and Percy has the Beach Party Polly Pocket♡

Harrasses Poseidon into giving her money for Nico's chronic pain meds and mobility aids and helps Hazel rizz up girls as she's a baby transbian.They go to a Special ED school at Percy's convicement because she was supposed to be a Special ED kid but melted down so bad at overhearing Sally planning it she nevet tried to get her in properly and she regrets it to this day so she's making sure they get to live the happy childhoods she didn't.Nico is known as the outspoken activist nerd boy(affectionate)and Hazel is the pretty popular IT Girl who radicalizes her classmates with easy knowledge and encouragement and she does art that matches her beliefs

Including grafitti as she defaces public property with her familia y amigos y eventualmente su novia!!

Huge fan of energy drinks but his favorite is Cotton Candy Bang and Sally learned how to make punk themed blue food for the bit

Shark kin and catkin,specifically whale shark and calico cat(who're 99% female,tgirl Percy is her canon event).Lex is calico cat kin too for them soulmateisms and they discovered they're therians together by looking stuff up online together on Lex's bed at the dead of night and kept it a little them secret they provided tons of validation for too.Lex is also dragonkin,ghostkin and plantkin!

Percabeth is a cautionary tale to abuse survivors and intellectually disabled people about cutting off toxic normies.Lex hadn't seen much of Percy's relathionship with Annabeth until Hoo when the Eight Half-Bloods Shall Awnser The Call prophecy was spoken and it was inbetween then and Percy going missing that they learned the full details as reluctant camp co-leaders with her and realized she's abusive to her,planning to tell Percy when the time was right.The time turned out to be the MOA pre-climax when they were discussing everything that had happened over the years and Percy had a pit in his stomach as Lex and Hazel fell into their own pit afterwards too-That is to say,Tartarus.Hazel gets to unlock her true powers down there,as the Princess of The Underworld and The Unknown,and Lex does their best to care for and protect both of them while up on the surface Percy still hasn't broken up with Annabeth because too much was happening but the last straw is when she insulted Lex out of jealousy and she's so angry she dumps her on the spot and walks away despite it being the middle of a meeting.She also got the Hecate Mist storyline and no Nico relathionship retcon as symbolism/motifs for her finally making her own choices,including Lex,who she only didn't earlier because he didn't think he was allowed to

This follows up to Tales of Dead Seas,a year later Hoo sequel.The plot kickerstarter is Percy killing Zeus in a fit of rage and thus causing the greco-roman mythos world revolution Luke lied about wanting to do like the fascist he was,Luke also having been killed by Percy at the end of Pjo.The other mytho beings that're 'lesser' on the system than the gods gladly followed her and did their own things too and the mcs are Percy,Lex,Nico and Hazel in the four books of the last Percyverse series.'Elysium on Earth','Petallic','Arcane Rot' and 'Unmythologizable' are the titles in order,Sally opens up a family bussiness under 'Familia Jackson Beach Shack' in it and it chronicles Perlex's dating dynamic and Nico and Hazel as teens over the course of 4 years for that og Pjo throwback,including the chapter titles and the return of Rachel as an mc who basically lives at La Residencia Jackson at this point

Lex cracked Percy's egg via starting to date her with their own transmasc genderfluid and bigender but super femme identity making it kinda impossible for it to not happen and ofc she came out to them first and they showered her in affection,lended clothes that were too small on her she refused to not wear anyway and diy'd estrogen by their boygirlfriend.Percy's mermaidcore hair dye was spurred on by her transfeminism and Lex did it for her in an intimate moment as she nervously gripped their waist out of dysphoria she'd look ridicilous and they talked her down and kissed her face to help.Lex dyed their hair too in the final chapter of BOO,their bangs forest green as a self-love metaphor for their completed character development arc

Also Lex is a DC Comics fan and has Jason Todd as their favorite Robin and a crush on him so they told Percy she's a lot like him as a compliment and she got super offended,hand over her heart and everything,because she thinks Jason sucks(denial isn't just in The Kane Chronicles i see)

When it comes to makeup,she usually goes for glittery blue eyeliner tears,black glossy lipstick and edgy blue aquatic nails

Lex is the Team Mom to Percy's Team Dad when it comes to Nico and Hazel and befriended Nico in TTC too as his 'new older sister' by their offer when they found him crying over Bianca after meeting him briefly when Percy was showing him around and Hazel first thing they met in MOA as Hazel approached them onsight by recognizing them from Percy's talks of Lex,her not remembering anything except Sally at the start but Lex slowly came back to her when she eat a Camp Jupiter strawberry and noticed it didn't taste quite 'the same',sadness she didn't understand washing over her.Cute lil black punk found family sitch and Sally is the gilf-I mean abuela

Percy has the cocky flirty punk guy thing going on but it's a Lex exclusive

Perlex is also blue x pink,skateboarder x rollerbladder with Percy's board being ocean blue with black designs and Lex's skates are ultra girly and kiddy and huge x pint-sized.Lex has a raspy voice to match their rocker girl personality and Percy finds it so enchanting and they wear eachother's battle jackets and bought matching Ichigo Kurosaki and Orihime Inoue/Ichihime from Bleach figurines by store thrifting because they assigned their relathionship since they're just like them individually and together

Perseo 'Percy' Isadore Jackson:A punk legend

[theriverbeyond]

THE ANTICAPITALIST MESSAGING IN HADESTOWN TOOK ME SO COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE IN SUCH A GOOD WAY AND I HAVEN'T SEEN ENOUGH PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT IT BECAUSE ITS SO GOOD AND IT WORKS WITH THEIR STORY SO WELL

YEAH EXACTLY Im like... is it all just so obvious everyone decided it's redundant to mention or??? HELLO???

And I was sitting in the audience as one does and Chant was actually the song that reframed the entire show for me -- up until then I was like "aw :') theyre falling in love and are doomed, I should google all these lyrics later" but that song just... I felt like I was being hit in the face w a fish, honestly!!

"In the coldest time of year/ Why is it so hot down here?/ Hotter than a crucible/ It ain't right and it ain't natural"

"In the darkest time of year/ Why is it so bright down here?/ Brighter than a carnival/ It ain't right and it ain't natural"

Persephone's lyrics here are so specific -> a "crucible" is an ancient tool that can be used to create art but also industrialized into mass production, a "carnival" something that is inherently about celebration and festivity and joy but it is also a thing that can be commercialized almost beyond recognition. Capitalism is ravenous and will never be satiafied or sated, it will steal & exploit every scrap of art and joy that it can, then corrupt it all into hollow immitations that it then sells back to you on websites like SHEIN and Disney+.

"It ain't right and it ain't natural" hits so hard in this song because nothing is as natural, or as "right", as death -- so obviously Persephone is NOT talking about the literal underworld to the literal god of the dead. She's talking about how we need to stay warm and safe and dry in the winter, but we don't need fresh summer fruits imported from thousands of miles away. We need to stay cool and safe and hydrated in the summer, but we don't need to steal water from another state to keep the golf courses green. The winter is natural, the cold is natural, seeking warmth and light is natural. What is unnatural is this overconsumption, this never ending, never satisfied hunger.

And then of course you have Hades' parts,

Here, I fashioned things of steel/ Oil drums and automobiles/ Then I kept that furnace fed/ With the fossils of the dead

And wasn't it electrifying/ When I made the neon shine!/ Silver screen, cathode ray/ Brighter than the light of day

And obviously "fossils of the dead" is a reference to Hades being the literal god of the dead, in the ground, in the underworld, and it is also a reference to the modern dependence on oil and fossil fuels, but TO ME it is also about how capitalism relies on the exploitation of workers. In this show, the "fossils of the dead" are literally Hades' subjects. They're the workers of his factory town, and he both exploits them and is fully dependent on them, just like how the furnance of industry/capitalism relies on YOUR body, YOUR labor, it eats you when you're alive and it often continues to eat you when you're dead.

And then like "wasn't it electrifying" -> it's EXCITING what technology and industry does, but the problem is the overconsumption and the overproduction ("Brighter than the light of day") beyond what anyone actually needs or even wants. It ain't right and it ain't natural!!!

Every year, it's getting worse/ Hadestown, hell on Earth!

And the wind is so strong/ That's why times are so hard/ It's because of the gods/ The gods have forgotten the song of their love

Lover, what have you become/ Coal cars and oil drums/ Warehouse walls and factory floors/ I don't know you anymore

And it all keeps building in this song, re-emphasizing that Hades is not who he once was, that he has changed. Which again is not only commentary about consumption vs overconsumption, and how so many things started as wonderful ideas that could save people and help people and help make the world better were corrupted and turned into profit machines, killing machines, etc. "The gods have forgotten the song of their love" UGH

I also think the Themes are magnified because this is presented extremely directly alongside Euridyce's growing desperation, especially with the context that Euridyce DOES, in fact, "sell out" to Hades' promises.

There is no food left to find/ It's hard enough to feed yourself/ Let alone somebody else

Desperation forces her hand, she turns to Hades because he offers salvation, and she ends up just another nameless worker turning the gears of his machine. And I feel this is so similar to how when rich people are like "Just do XYZ", or telling people to bootstrap, or selling quick fixes to desperate people, when the reality is they got where they did due to a combination of luck, pre-existing social/monetary capital, etc, and buying into their promises of wealth will only make them richer and you more dependent and vulnerable.

[weirdmageddon]

some thoughts on dave lalonde

so note this isn’t a kidswap au, just a strilonde guardian swap au; a plausible au wherein dave’s meteor(s) are set to land in upstate new york and rose’s in houston tx where they are discovered by mom lalonde and bro strider respectively. so it’s not even really an “alternative universe” so much as “alternative circumstance” because that’s literally all that changes

their interests aren’t swapped; their interests are a natural result of a mix of what they were always predisposed towards (we can look at their post-scratch versions for constants) combined with their living environment. rose strider is still gothy and writes, knits, and has an interest in the zoologically dubious. perhaps rose might handcraft some delirious puppets for her brother-slash-ectofather’s enterprise as a “gift” in one-upmanship. probably has good rapport with the crows that fly into her ironic knockoff disney-princess themed bedroom (see the post i linked above) and get them to fuck with bro passively in exchange for peanuts. she also keeps all the things the crows gift her, pickpocketed shiny things and whatnot

dave lalonde is still the knight of time, still makes sbahj, likes photography, still loves cooking up unbelievably ill jams, still into post-ironic expression, however he’s not irony-poisoned by bro so he’s more comfortable being genuine. his interest in dead things and paleontology comes more to a forefront because of mom’s predilection towards science and genuine encouragement from her. after all she’s made many a mutant kitten herself

i feel like since dave fell to earth with maplehoof, crushing the pony instantly on impact, instead of using its hide to make a bib like a fucking weirdo, mom would paradox clone maplehoof. so dave has a pet pony with a ribbon and little pink heart on it. a knight needs a loyal steed. and hes been attached to maplehoof since his literal first few minutes of existing. so maplehoof wouldnt be bought anywhere, it would originate from itself

i mean he’s seen with the pony at his side in the post-scratch universe so…..

would make sense if the pony mom gifted to rose in canon was more of an involved thing with dave in this circumstance

the only issue is maplehoof cant become his sprite, otherwise that would break the timeloop (they need to come unaltered to earth with dave on the meteor in the first place during the reckoning). also [S] Ride with dave and the scarf would absolutely be a thing at some point

i was thinking maybe instead of a crow, since they aren’t as “everywhere” in upstate new york as they are in that high rise in texas, dave has something more prehistoric put into a sprite. like a parave theropod. can you imagine parave davesprite. maybe an archaeopteryx or something

i guess mom would indulge in a living museum/zoo for “domesticated” ancient organisms all jurassic parked like a weird ongoing experiment but the ectobiology wouldnt be perfect especially because the dna wouldnt be able to be fully read from fossils and specimens. i feel like jurassic park should be dave lalonde’s sort of in-universe media reference the way con air was with john and putting the bunny back in the box. like his friends would just rip on him for living out jurassic park in an imperfect domestic way

and he accidentally kills it through some fetch modus shenanigans. dave still has the bladekind strife specibus but not because he does rooftop battles but because swords are unironically cool, and flings it out the window by accident and it strikes one of the parave theropods in the enclosed zoo below outside his window and dave feels kinda bad

when jade sees it as his server player shes like “oh nooooo :(“ and dave is like “oh god no dont put that in the seizure kernel while i take a piss in one of the many fancy bathrooms this household has”

[rjzimmerman]

There Is No Climate Haven. We All Live in Florida Now. (New York Times)

Excerpt from this New York Times Op-Ed from Margaret Renkl:

In the aftermath of Helene, more than 225 people are confirmed dead, with hundreds still unaccounted for. And new research suggests that the death toll will continue to rise for years, long after the immediate losses have been fully tallied.

Nevertheless, the usual chorus of blame erupted on social media even as the rain was still falling:

Why didn’t those people just leave? Why do they keep living in places where rivers repeatedly flood, or where forests routinely catch fire, or where hurricanes so often make landfall? Why don’t they just leave drought-prone areas where rivers don’t carry enough water for the people who already live there, let alone for those who continue to pour in?

I understand the impulse to believe that Southerners bring such misfortunes upon themselves by voting for scoundrels who deny the realities of climate change. When Republican officials routinely vote against measures that increase climate resilience, or when they support unchecked development on the very wetlands that protect human communities from storm surges, or when they gut legislation that would require new construction to be storm resistant, and when they then tell outrageous lies about the federal government’s disaster response — it’s very hard not to believe that we deserve what we get down here.

But a hurricane or a flood or a deadly heat wave or a forest fire or a drought can befall anyone. Climate change has stacked the deck against all of us. Even before Helene made landfall, Appalachia was already saturated. Rivers were at record heights, and hot, wet soil could absorb no more water. Worse, such conditions gave the hurricane new fuel.

Take a look at a map of “disaster prone” areas in the United States. It’s a huge chunk of the country. Already there’s no realistic way to crowd everyone into the places that are currently somewhat safe. Even the safe places aren’t really safe, or won’t be safe for long. Last year, Vermont got hammered by catastrophic flooding. Buncombe County, N.C., among the areas hardest hit by Helene, was until very recently considered a “climate haven.”

There’s no such thing as a climate haven anymore. We all live in Florida now.

Even the few remaining Americans who still dismiss climate change outright must surely know this. They simply choose to parrot the talking points of Republican politicians and right-wing media figures who are paid by Big Oil — or Big Construction — to lie to vulnerable Americans and leave them ever more vulnerable.

There’s no denying that we would be in much better shape today if utility companies and the fossil-fuel industry had not launched a huge disinformation campaign to cover up the truth of climate change decades ago, and if the Republican Party and right-wing media had not embraced it.

Yet they continue to embrace it even now. Climate disinformation frequently runs rampant in the aftermath of climate-related disasters, but ridiculous rumors and conspiracy theories have reached new levels in the wake of Helene. “I have been doing disaster work for nearly 20 years, and I cannot think of another acute disaster where there has been this much misinformation,” Dr. Montano told The Times.

[contemplatingoutlander]

Interesting proposal by Nate Loewentheil in a guest column in The New York Times. Not only was his proposal thought provoking, but two of the comments regarding it by readers were also worth contemplating. Below are some excerpts from the column, followed by the two comments.

Here is a proposal for the environmental movement: Pool philanthropic funds for a day, buy a small plot of land in Washington, D.C., and put up a tall marble wall to serve as a climate memorial. Carve on this memorial the names of public figures actively denying the existence of climate change. Carve the names so deep and large, our grandchildren and great-grandchildren need not search the archives. This is not a metaphor. The problem with climate change is the disconnect between action and impact. If politicians vote against construction standards and a school collapses, the next election will be their last. But with climate change, cause and effect are at a vast distance. We are already seeing the consequences of our past and present greenhouse gas emissions. In coming decades, those emissions will wreak their full havoc on the climate, and it will take hundreds, possibly thousands, of years for those pollutants to fully dissipate. But in the short term, the most immediate burdens are borne mostly by the poor in America and distant people in distant lands. Misaligned incentives are at the heart of why some political and business leaders deny and delay. [...] I would first nominate those who have sown confusion over climate science, like Myron Ebell, who recently retired as director of the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Center for Energy and Environment, where he sought to block climate change efforts in Congress, and served as the head of Donald Trump’s transition team for the Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Ebell has argued that the idea that climate change is “an existential threat or even crisis is preposterous.” Then there are lawmakers who have consistently stood in the way of federal action, like the recently retired senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma, the author of the book “The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future.” [color emphasis added]

Below is the first thought provoking comment to this article:

There is, in Iceland, a memorial to a dead glacier - the Ok Glacier. It reads: "Ok is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a glacier. In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it." [color emphasis added] --Chris D., Colorado

Photo of the plaque at the at the Okjökull (OK Glacier) memorial.

Here is the second thought provoking comment to this article:

For reference this graph https://i.redd.it/ljifc828iui31.jpg is from the Exxon internal scientific report on climate change, 1982, produced by scientists working for that fossil fuel corporation. Look at what their graph predicted for 2020. Approaching 420 ppm CO2 and a rise of 1.2 C degrees above pre-industrial temperature - very close to what we actually got in 2020. Then look at what the graph shows for later this century, based on not reducing emissions. Very serious temperature rises, that could make agriculture very difficult in many countries. Yes, and then Exxon, having seen this, got involved in PR campaigns to "cast doubt" on climate science, to protect their assets. [color emphasis added] --Erik Frederiksen, Ashville, NC

1982 Exxon graph depicting average global temperature increases over time correlating with increases in atmospheric CO2. NOTE: Graph color was modified for greater clarity.

Fossil fuel companies like Exxon, and fossil fuel oligarchs like the Koch brothers should be included in any "Climate Wall of Shame."

[arminreindl]

"Paleontology can be really petty and stupid"

In 1898 Santiago Roth discovered the armored tail of a large turtle in Patagonia, which he showed to British paleontologist A.S. Woodward. Recognizing it as the remains of a meiolaniid, Roth was told to go on an expedition to find more material, which he did. This material, which included an almost fully preserved skull, was initially published on in a brief communication in 1899.

Strangely, also in 1899, Florentino Ameghino published his own communication claiming that his brother Carlos had found the almost fully preserved skull of that same kind of turtle, a meiolaniid he dubbed Niolamia argentina.

It is curious how both Ameghino and Roth seem to have found the exact same material of a meiolaniid in different localities at the same time, but weirder things have happened. Tho it is further pretty weird how Ameghino rushed to get a name out, but didn't bother describing what defined the animal nor designated a holotype. Hell he didn't even illustrate his skull. But lets give him some time.

Two years pass, its 1901 now. Woodward publishes a proper description of Roth's skull, illustrating the animal in detail. Having heard that Ameghino found a remarkably similar fossil, Woodward assigns the Roth skull to the same species as the Ameghino skull. Although he doesn't carry over the genus Niolamia, instead placing the fossils in Miolania (a misspelling of Meiolania, described a few years prior from Australia). Ameghino didn't seem to mind or disagree, tho he still hadn't properly described nor figured his skull.

1938: Ameghino is dead at this point and weirdly, his Niolamia skull is still nowhere to be found. Since his initial description was wholy insufficient, George Gaylord Simpson (yes thats his actual name) decides to declare the Roth skull the type specimen for Niolamia (the neoptype). Meaning that the genus is now defined on this skull rather than the one Ameghino had when coining the name.

Fast forward to 2011. It is now generally accepted that Roth's skull is the fossil that defines what Niolamia is. Of course Ameghino still gets credit, after all he described the first remains, even tho nobody has ever seen those...ever really. Over a 100 years passed and far as anyone could tell, the last person to have seen those bones were Ameghino and his brother, after which they just disappeared. But we still got the Roth skull, and Juliana Sterli and Marcelo de la Fuente could readily redescribe Niolamia based on that.

But Sterli seems to suspect that something very fishy is going on. Remember, Ameghino just happened to find a perfectly preserved skull at the same time as Roth did. Ameghino made sure to get a name out before Woodward got around to fully describe it. Ameghino only vaguely compared the skull to Meiolania, but didn't specify its unique features nor did he actually illustrate his material. So Sterli said out loud what I'm sure many people must have been thinking. "Did Ameghino just make it all up?"

In 2015 Sterli comments on the matter by noting how awfully convenient the whole situation was. Although no concrete evidence exists, Sterli suggests that Ameghino may have found out about Roth's skull, lied about having found a similar one, and named Niolamia not on a fossil he actually had but based on what little he knew about Roth's discovery.

This is just a basic summary of a rabbit hole I recently went into and my god its so frustrating on so many levels. Again we don't have concrete evidence that Ameghino's skull didn't actually exist, but the way the timing lined up and the fact that he was in a feude with Francisco Moreno, which has been likened to an Argentinian Bone War, means that this suggestion isn't that out there. It really doesn't help that his supposed skull was only ever mentioned by him in 1899 and never again. Ameghino never claimed it was destroyed or stolen, hell, far as I could find he even agreed with Woodwards research.

What's also fascinating is that seemingly, for over a hundred years, nothing was written in scientific literature casting doubt over his claim. I'm sure some people must have called bullshit on him in private, but the only resource I could find that actually goes as far as to say "Hey isn't his weird that the Ameghino skull is basically a phantom" came out in 2015. Everything in-between seemed content with just assuming that Ameghino and Roth both had skulls and just never followed up on whatever happened to the former. Then again I could just as much understand if people just didn't want to deal with this nightmare of a backstory.

[mineralsrocksandfossiltalks]

Monday Musings: Sauropod Phylogeny

I know, it has been a bit since my last post. It is preparation time for field season! I am so excited to get out and start digging again! That is why I decided this month would be all about sauropods. (And I apologize, this is going to be a long post). We might have a few at the site I work at so it seems very appropriate. Sauropods are some of the most easily recognizable animals dead or alive. Massive bodies with long necks and tails and pillar-like legs, they are often the eye-catching centerpiece of museum dinosaur exhibits.

Barosaurus at the Natural History Museum of Utah (NHMU)

Sauropods are part of the saurischian or "lizard-hipped" dinosaurs along with theropods. The phylogeny or evolutionary history of sauropods starts with a group called sauropodomorphs or "lizard-footed forms". This group includes sauropods and all ancestral forms often called "prosauropods".

Panphagia, possibly the oldest sauropodomorph from Argentina 231.4 million years ago in the Late Triassic.

Distinguishing features known as synapomorphies are used to place animals (and plants for that matter) into various related groups. For sauropodomorphs, those synapomorphies are: large nares,

Plateosaurus skull with external nares circled.

the distal part of the tibia is covered by an ascending process of the astralagus,

Plateosaurus with distal tibia and astralagus circled.

short hindlimbs compared to torso length,

Massospondylus

three or more sacral vertebrae,

Mussauraurus with sacral verts circled.

thin, flat, spatulate teeth with serrated crowns

Camarasaurus with large, spatulate teeth.

Riojasaurus with 10 cervical verts circled.

25 presacral verts (all vertebrae before the hips)

Anchisaurus with presacral verts circled.

and finally a large digit one on the manus (hand).

Plateosaurus manus.

Sauropodomorphs appeared in the Late Triassic Period and as such, are some of the oldest dinosaurs in the fossil record. They started out relatively small but as we follow the phylogenetic tree we reach the clade sauropoda itself and see a drastic increase in size. Synapomorphies of sauropoda include four fused sacral verts and a straight femur.

Diplodocus sacral verts.

Sauropod femur at Dinosaur National Monument.

These features show a marked shift in the post cranial skeleton caused by massive weight. The hind feet were broad and most species had three claws.

Hind foot of Rhoetosaurus.

The front feet were arranged in fully vertical columns with extremely reduced finger bones.

Diplodocus manus (front foot).

Next comes the clade eusauropoda meaning "true lizard foot". Synapomorphies of this clade include incorporation of the first two dorsal vertebrae into the cervical column plus two additional cervical vertebrae along with retracted external nares.

Eusauropod, Jobaria with large external nares shifting up the skull (retracting).

Mamenchisauridae is a family within eusauropoda. This family is found exclusively in Asia (and possibly Africa but that is still up for debate) and it possessed extraordinarily long necks, some making up over half the total body length and relatively short tails making them look a tad bit lopsided.

Mamenchisaurus

Following eusauropoda comes neosauropoda or "new lizard footed". This clade is distinguished by a preanorbital fenestrae (a hole in front of the antorbital fenestrae which is a hole in front of the eye socket or orbit) on the ventral side of the skull, a lack of denticles on teeth,

Ankylosaur teeth with denticles pointed out.

two or fewer carpals (hand bones), metacarpals bound to create a digitigrade posture (walk on toes)

and a wedge-shaped astralagus (ankle bone).

Neosauropoda is broken up into the superfamily diplocoidea and the clade macronaria. Diplocoidea is in turn broken up into three families: rebbachisauridae, dicraeosauridae, and diplodocidae. Rebbachisaurs appear to be the most primitive, lacking the bifurcated neural spines in the cervical verts of the rest of the superfamily.

Some rebbachisaurs even have a dental battery like ceratopsians and hadrosaurs.

Nigersaurus dental battery.

Dicraeosauridae, the sister group to diplodocidae, are characterized by their relatively small body size and short necks.

Suuwassea, North America's only dicraeosaur found in Morrison Formation in Montana.

Diplodocidae is by far the most well known family thanks to the incredible amount of material in the Morrison Formation of the western U.S. Some of the most famous sauropods belong to this group such as Apatosaurus, Brontosaurus, Supersaurus, Barosaurus, Diplodocus, and Seismosaurus. Some of their distinguishing characters include dorsally facing external nares and 70-80 caudal vertebrae giving them whip-like tails.

Diplodocus with nares on top of skull.

Macronaria is another well-known clade that has three families: Camarasauridae, Brachiosauridae and Titanosauria. Some of the synapomorphies of macronaria include crests forms by large protruding nasal bones, robust, spatulate and broad-crowned teeth,

elongate metacarpals,

and forelimbs longer than hindlimbs.

Camarasauridae currently only contains several species of Camarasaurus, the most common sauropod in the Jurassic Morrison Formation. There is some debate about it being in the African sister formation, the Tendaguru and possibly that Lourinhasaurus in the other sister formation in Portugal is also in this family.

Brachiosauridae is a distinct family that literally stands out from other sauropods. Their necks were built to be able to lift their heads up to browse treetops and their teeth could slice through tough plant matter.

Giraffatitan skull.

Finally, there are the titanosaurs. An intriguing group, there has yet to be a complete titanosaur found. This clade also has the largest range in body size. Skulls are poorly known but some resemble brachiosaurs while other resemble diplodocids. They had an average length for necks and whip-like tails though much shorter than diplodocids. Unlike other sauropods who have pneumatized (full of holes) cervical vertebrae, titanosaur cervicals are solid. Their spinal column was also more flexible than other sauropods. One of the most characteristic traits is the ball and socket articulations of the procoelus caudal vertebrae. Some even have osteoderms.

Ampelosaurus with spiked osteoderms.

And now you have a pretty good idea of how various saurpods are related and how we've put them together. Neat, huh?

[mumblelard]

knot theory or a shot and a beer and a late night ramble

[lou-writes-things]

Hello. I have again written something. ao3 link here

***

Mirror Mirror

Flynn stared at Alex’s “ghost friend” over the coffee table, watching him flip one of Alex’s drumsticks end over end, catching it in his palm with a soft smack before tossing it again. 

The others were gone, doing “band stuff,” and so here she was sitting in the studio collecting dust with a fossil. They squinted at him and his gaze flickered to theirs for a moment before he looked away again, his face screwing up slightly. Flynn just stared a little more, narrowing her eyes. 

“Um,” he finally said, pausing in his drumstick throwing to look up at them, “Can I…do something for you?” 

Flynn huffed, sitting back against the couch, “No.” 

“Ok…”

Flynn’s gaze drifted up to the ceiling for a minute, looking at the chairs hanging there, those had always seemed like a particularly inspired design choice to her, they were fucking weird, which she loved. 

“What would you do if you had tits?” She asked. Willie didn’t respond, so Flynn tipped their head down to find him staring at her incredulously. 

“...What?” 

“Like. If you woke up with tits tomorrow, what would you do?” 

Willie stared at them some more, opening his mouth a few times before closing it again. 

“Why are you asking me?” he said finally, setting the drumstick down on the coffee table with a clatter. 

“I kind of want to get rid of mine.” Flynn said, a foreign knot of anxiety forming in her stomach, “So I was wondering what you thought.” They had no idea why they were bringing this up with Willie of all people, but the thought hadn’t left her alone for a week, and they guessed that they just really wanted to tell someone about it. 

“I probably wouldn’t do anything different,” Willie answered, his voice hesitant. 

Flynn raised her eyebrow, “You’d just be comfortable walking around tits out like that?”

“No,” he huffed a little frustratedly, “Just. Nothing would change.” 

“Ok…?” Flynn furrowed her eyebrows, confused.

Willie screwed up his face again, seemingly debating something with himself before speaking, “Nothing would change because I already have them.” 

Flynn paused, “What- really?” 

“Yeah.” 

Wait.

Fynn leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table, looking at him with wide eyes, “You’re trans?” 

Willie nodded a little stiffly and Flynn grinned, jumping to their feet and rounding the table to flop down next to him, turning her body to fully face him and crossing her legs under her. “Oh my god! You should have said before, this is the best!” 

Willie leaned a little bit away from her but smiled anyway, watching Flynn practically vibrating in her seat. “Wait,” she said, “So you were trans in the 80s? What was that like?” 

Willie turned to face her, shoving his socked heels into the crack in the couch cushions between them, “It sucked.” 

“Wait,” a thought struck Flynn and they considered him for a moment, “Were binders invented yet in the 80s?” 

Willie laughed a little at that, “Not really. But we didn’t use ace bandages either if we were smart,” he sat up straighter and tugged at his crop top,  pulling it up to show Flynn the bottom of what looked like a wide elastic band, “They sold them for stomach control, but we figured we could repurpose them.” 

Flynn hummed in understanding, “Is it uncomfortable? How long can you wear it?” she questioned.

Willie shrugged. It’s not the worst, it’s way better than walking around,” he paused, tilting his head back and forth a couple of times “...without it. And we didn’t really have guidelines for the health of these things, at least I didn’t. Nowadays it doesn’t matter,  I’m dead anyway.” 

Flynn supposed that was true, “That’s so cool,” They said.

Willie laughed at that, “I guess so. Thanks.” 

Flynn was silent for a moment before thinking up another question, “How does it feel?” 

Willie furrowed his eyebrows, “How does what feel?” 

“Being flat, having them gone.” Flynn said, tucking her hands into her lap. 

Willie cracked a small smile, “Amazing.” 

Flynn grinned back, letting themself rock forward a little bit into Willie’s space, “Oh we’re definitely gonna hang out again.” 

“Yeah duh,” Willie said, “Let’s talk about how we’re going to fix your problem first though.” 

Flynn laughed a little bit giddily, “do you want to help me do some binder shopping?” 

“I would love to.” 

An hour later found them pressed together on the couch looking at Flynn’s laptop. Well, as pressed together as they could be when one of them was an incorporeal being. Willie’s knee passed through hers every once in a while, which was slightly unsettling.

They were on their fifth website and Flynn had a bright red binder pulled up on screen, clicking through the pictures of the model wearing it. 

“Wouldn’t it be smarter to pick something more neutral?” Willie asked. Flynn raised their eyebrows at him, looking down at her outfit. Willie huffed, “right, forget I asked.” 

“This one’s got personality you know? Yours is so plain and boring.” 

Willie raised an eyebrow at them, “Right, sorry we didn’t have bright red binders in the 80s.” 

Flynn shrugged, “I’m just saying, it seems like just the decade to like something like this.” 

Willie rolled his eyes, “Yeah sure, if we weren’t all dying from a death plague I’m sure we would have been right on that.” 

Flynn paused, “Oh shit yeah. That must have sucked.” 

“Yeah.” 

Flynn was quiet for a minute after that, debating on whether she should continue the discussion. She clicked off of the binder and found a new one, this one a pretty blue color. It didn’t seem as fitting to them, but they supposed it was fine. 

“What was it like?” she finally asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

“What? AIDS?” 

“Yeah.” 

Willie paused for a moment, considering the blank wall opposite him before he answered, “I died in the late 80s,” he started,”I was too young near the beginning to know anything, but from what people told me, they didn’t get angry for a while, they were mostly just scared. Everyone was dying and they didn’t know why. By the time I figured my shit out we had a name for it. And we knew no one cared to help us.” 

Flynn was silent for a moment, “Did you know anyone who died?” 

Willie’s eyebrows raised, “Yeah. I knew a ton of people who died. Everyone knew people who died. I attended like, a funeral a week.”

“That’s horrible.” 

Willie hummed, returning his gaze to the wall, “When I died, we were starting to get angry. Act Up was a thing. And, have you ever seen the Silence = Death posters?” Flynn nodded, “You would see those everywhere by the time I died.”

Flynn fiddled with their touchpad, “Good.”

Willie flashed them a small smile before it disappeared again, “Sometimes I wish I’d lived, just ‘cause it was stupid to have another person die, and not even of the fucking disease.” he said, sighing and leaning back into the couch cushions, “That’s a useless thought now though.” 

Flynn didn’t know what to say to that, but she did have a pressing issue she could use to break the silence, so she snapped her laptop closed, “What do you think Julie will think?” 

“About what?” 

Flynn wrinkled their nose, “Me getting a binder.” 

Willie turned to look at them, frowning, “She’s already ok with you being non binary right?” 

“Yeah,” Flynn admitted, “but what if this is too much? What if I’m not enough of a girl and she doesn’t want to be my best friend anymore?” 

Willie lifted a hand and then dropped it back into his lap, like he wanted to reach out for them, but knew it wouldn’t work, “I haven’t known Julie for very long,” he said instead, “But I still can’t imagine a world where that would happen. Julie loves you, you’re her favorite person in the world. I don’t think anything could change that.”

Flynn let out a shaky breath, running her hand down her face, “You’re probably right. It’s just hard.” 

“I know.” Willie said, and he really did. He was the first person Flynn had talked to about this who truly did understand her fear about this, and how wrong her body felt, and how everyone around her seemed to be fine in their own skin, so why didn’t they? 

“Do you want to help me take my measurements?” she asked after a moment. 

Willie smiled, pushing himself up from the couch, “yeah sure.” 

By the time the band got home, Willie and Flynn were crowded into the small studio bathroom with a sewing tape measure, trying to get Flynn’s measurements. Willie had it held up to the width of her shoulders, trying to get the measurement without touching them and having his hands phase through their back. 

They heard the studio door open before Julie stuck her head into the bathroom, “So I guess you two are getting along fine,” she said, “What are you doing?” 

Flynn turned to look over her shoulder, causing one of Willie’s hands to pass through her shoulder blade. It was a weird feeling, and she let out an involuntary shiver. Willie made a noise, stepping away and pressing his back to the wall to get out of her way. 

“Getting my measurements,” Flynn said. 

“For what?” Reggie piped up from his spot, crowded in behind Julie with the rest of the band. 

“I’m gonna get a binder,” Flynn said, more confident sounding than they felt. 

Julie’s eyes lit up, “Oh that’s fantastic! What color are you going to get?” 

Flynn smirked, hiding the relief crashing through her chest, “Red.” 

Willie huffed behind her, “I still think you should get something more neutral.” 

Flynn turned around to look at him, “Can it, ghost boy.” 

Willie just laughed, slipping behind them and out of the bathroom. He made his way over to Alex and wrapped an arm around his waist. Alex leaned down to whisper something in Willie’s ear, making him smile. They were disgusting honestly. 

“Hey Jules,” she said, grabbing Willie’s abandoned tape measure from the counter, “you wanna help me with this? Willie keeps phasing through me.” 

Julie smiled, taking the tape measure from them and stepping into the bathroom, “Of course.” 

Flynn turned away from her, catching Willie’s eyes in the mirror, as Julie started to measure. 

“Thanks Willie,” she said.

“Anytime.” 

[flower-bride]

words thoughts or advice/guidance if anyone needs or wants : <3 Happy Halloween!

it felt like Halloween the way cards were showing up like omens and messages more than usual, lol, I don’t usually use the channeled handwritten cards from years back anymore. (those are my intellectual property even though they were just me being me and talking to spirits). 🧡

Risk and reward and having faith.

Not everything is perfect, but some things actually are. If you look at things in nature and how perfectly they can be shaped or naturally made, like a sand dollar or fossil pearl, your life is similar in parts. Fate, destiny, help or making from above. There’s good with bad or ugly, but you remember that with risk and reward.

Some things are not worth fighting or working towards, other things 100% completely are. Some things just need to be approached right or differently. Maybe even the same, just with you fully preparing yourself for the outcome and committing.

You see the shiny in others and the gold in others, and they see the shiny in you and gold in you. plain and simplified.

If you wait too long to live your life or for something you want, you can end up forgotten or dead or drowning. Alternatively; not waiting can result in the same. The flip flop (🌓) not being perfectly you and how you like to be can result in that. Risk and reward means just that. Make sure you’re after what you’re after!!

Have faith and remember why you’re happy sometimes or all the time or why you’ve been before or at points or chapters in your life. Just like Halloween, life can be a bummer with the candy or apple you get, or spooky, or absolutely cute and adorable and sweet! And exactly what you want and were hoping for. And sometimes you find something even better or your more favorite. Remember that in life :) Go for it! see the good, or don’t :)

Have nice days and enjoy them! <3

[prasemvanguardgerman]

Die Fossiliensuche geht weiter !

Found some fossilised echinoderm with an handful of round amount of Aulaxinia sulcifera sponge in flint. Flint & chert are the dominant sedimented rocks here with fossil finds.

Again he and his long dead dry urchins !!

One round is fully complete with no cracks.

[theabyssinyourcloset]

The Goblin Shark

The goblin shark is a species of shark. It's also happens to be my absolute favourite.

The scientific name for this "little" creature is Mitsukurina owstoni. It's a rare species that lives in depths greater than 100 metres (330 feet for my American friends), although it can possibly dive up to 1 300 metres deep (4 270 feet) (according to some scientists). Adults usually find their habitat deeper than juveniles. They have been found in all of the major oceans, suggesting that the species lives pretty much all around the globe.

The goblin shark was first discovered around 1906 (although I'm not sure about this since my sources did not state the exact date) at the eastern coast of Japan. To this day, fewer than 50 goblin sharks have been spotted. Some dead specimens have been hauled up for research.

Studies show that the goblin shark is a pretty damn old species. It has been described as a "living fossil". It seems that it is the only surviving shark species of the Mitsukurindae family. Some fossils have been found, suggesting that other lines of species from the same family have once existed.

These sharks are usually a colour of pink. They have 26 sharp teeth in their upper jaw, and 24 in their lower. (Their jaw is unique, but I'll explain more later on in this post.) The goblin shark also has a long snout above its mouth.

Unlike most other deep-sea sharks, the goblin shark has a fully working iris. Its pupils can dilate and contract when the tiny amounts of lights are detected down in their habitat. This is most likely to help them locate prey.

This shark can grow to over 3,7 metres long (12 feet), with the estimated maximum around 7 metres (23 feet). Usually it stays between 3 and 4 metres.

The maximum weight recorded was 210 kilograms (460 pounds). I think it's pretty safe to say that these are not that small animals.

Now, what makes these creatures unique (and my favourite) is the goblin shark's jaw and hunting technique. The goblin shark hunts by thrusting its jaw forward with a velocity of 3,14 metres per second (I don't know how to tell the speed in any other way, sorry), the fastest recorded for any shark species (also faster than most cobra strikes). The jaw can extend to a length of up to 7,6 centimetres (3 inches) with an angle up to 111 degrees (for comparison, the average human can open their jaw to about 50 degrees). Pretty impressive, right?

In conclusion: The goblin shark is a deep-sea shark species that hunts by thrusting its jaw forward. We don't know much about them, since only a little under 50 specimens have been spotted within the 118 years after the first discovery at the coast of Japan.

Below I have provided pictures and a couple of gifs of these creatures. I own none of the pictures, and I made sure none of them are copyrighted.

(Please view pictures with your own risk, this creature isn't that nice-looking)

The goblin shark.

Goblin shark eating a fish.

Goblin shark trying to bite a human's arm.

Goblin shark head from below.

Goblin shark face from up close. Eye can be seen clearly.

This post was just a random idea that popped up in my head during the car ride to visit my grandpa. I decided to actually write it (despite having way better things to do). I think I might write about other sharks too. I kinda wanna write about the mako shark, the great white shark and the hammerhead shark as well. At least about them. Possibly about the megalodon. Feel free to ask any questions or request a post for any specific species of shark :)

I also want to share awareness about how misunderstood sharks are. I'll write a separate, short post about it sometime. Not here because this post would get way too long. I'll talk about the movies "Jaws" and "The Meg", because it's important to understand how these have affected our view on sharks.

Edit: guess who forgot to cite their sources *insert a skull emoji*

So then, SOURCES:

Goblin shark - Wikipedia (not the most reliable source, but I don't care)

Goblin Shark: Key Facts, Lifespan, Habitat and Information - Discovery UK

Goblin Shark - The Australian Museum

The goblin shark's slingshot jaws are the fastest of any shark species | How it works | Earth Touch News

All read on 21st January 2024 by me, The Abyss In Your Closet.

[bethanythebogwitch]

I enjoy analyzing the real-life origins and inspirations for Pokémon. Because I’m a marine biologist, I have so far covered the origins of all fish Pokémon and all other aquatic Pokémon, but I did not cover starters. That’s because I’m going to go over them separately. Welcome to the first of a three-part series analyzing and explaining the real-life origins of all the grass-type starters.

Gen I gives us the template for all grass starters going forward: Bulbasaur. As the first Pokémon line in the dex, it introduces a lot of trends, such as the concept of evolution and how the different stages appear to be more mature versions of the ones before them. Bulbasaur and its evolutions are most directly based on frogs, but they also take influence from a number of other creatures. In fact, what the -saurs are supposed to be has been a matter of debate amongst the fandom for quite a while. Given that Bulbasaur’s Japanese name can be translated as “it seems strange”, the ambiguity seems intentional. The biggest thing people seem stuck on when it comes to the frog origin is how their legs are so short and don’t take on the classic frog leg pose. The stubbiness of their legs is similar to those of the genus Ceratophrys, also known as dwarf frogs or pacman frogs.

(image: a roundboi dwarf frog from the front)

The line also has similarities to extinct species like pareiasaurs or certain dicynodonts (therapids notable for protruding tusks, similar to the exposed teeth of the Bulbasaur line). Given that the early generations did often make some obscure paleontology references, it certainly isn’t beyond the realm of possibility that these were intentional.

(image: paleoart of the dicynodont Dicynodontoides. Art by Dmitry Bogdanov)

Of course the Bulbasaur line are both plant and animal. The bulb on its back matures while the animal evolves, going from a bud in Bulbasaur, to an almost mature flower in Ivysaur, to a fully bloomed flower in Venusaur. The leaves on all three look like palm fronds and Venusaur’s flower looks like the real-life Rafflesia arnoldii, the largest flower in the world.

(image: a Rafflesia arnoldi being measured by a human. Each petal is wider than his head)

Mega and Gigantamax Venusaur don’t stray far from the original, just being exaggerations of Venusaur rather than incorporating new influences. I found conflicting accounts of the line’s designs. One interview with Ken Sugimori and Atsuko Nishida states that Venusaur was designed first with the other two being designed backwards from it. Another source states that Ivysaur came first, being included in Capsule Monsters, Satoshi Tajiri’s original pitch to Nintendo that would ultimately develop into Pokémon. 

Gen II gave us probably the most-maligned grass starter, Chikorita. People give it shit for having the worst gym matchup of possibly any starter in the franchise in its debut games and for the line remaining cute all the way through. I like the design personally, but that gym matchup really shot it in the foot. The whole line are based on sauropod dinosaurs, the famous long-necks like Apatosaurus and Brachiosaurus.

(image: a fossil reconstruction of a Brachiosaurus)

The combination of plant and dinosaur could be a reference to Nicolia aegyptiaca, a type of fossilized wood that was initially mistaken for a piece of dinosaur jawbone. While Bayleef and Meganium have the classic sauropod neck, Chikorita’s is shorter, making it look kind of like a pear or a Belgian endive. The endive origin is more likely considering it is a type of leaf chicory, which is the origin of Chikorita’s name.

(image: a Belgian endive)

Bayleef’s name is a dead giveaway that the leaves around its neck are bay leaves. These are aromatic leaves used for seasoning and aromatherapy. Specifically it is based on a bay laurel, the most commonly used bay leaf. Bayleef having a very strong, spicy odor references the aromatic nature of bay leaves and their use in aromatherapy. The flower petals on Meganium’s neck are probably based on geraniums, the origin of Meganium’s name. In addition, a ring of flower petals with a long, green stalk in the center is reminiscent of Amorphophallus titanium, the corpse flower. Meganium’s antennae are based on a flower’s stamen.

(Image: the mighty corpse flower)

The Treecko line are based on leaf-tailed geckos, who have flattened tails that look like leaves. These are used as a form of defensive mimicry, making predators overlook the gecko by mistaking it for a leaf.

(image: a leaf-tailed gecko with focus on the leaf-like tail)

Grovyle and Sceptile gain features from therapod dinosaurs. Specifically bird-like dinosaurs like Dromaeosaurus, with the leaves acting like the dinosaur’s feathers.

(image: paleoart of Dromaeosaurus. Art by Fred Wierum)

Sceptile meanwhile gets the twin head crests of Dilophosaurus.

(image: a fossil reconstruction of a Dilophosaurus skull. If you draw paleoart of one of these with the neck frill from Jurassic Park I will personally come to your home to beat you with a paleontology textbook)

Grovyle and Sceptile having red underbellies/lower jaws most likely comes from male lizards who have colorful dewlaps used to attract mates, such as green anoles. Sceptile’s tail looks like a fern or a yew tree. Both fit with the orbs on its back, could be a fern’s spores or yew’s berries. Mega Sceptile’s tail looks a lot like a Christmas tree and the ability for it to be fired like a rocket launcher references autotomy. This is the ability of an animal to shed a body part and regenerate it later. The most famous example of autotomy is arguably the ability of multiple lizards to shed and regrow their tails in response to predators. The anime also gave the whole line ninja-like behavior, with them engaging in swift surprise attacks. 

The Turtwig line is my favorite grass starter line and Torterra is my favorite of all the final-stage starters, so I’m excited to get to talk about them. The line are based on terrestrial turtles and tortoises. Turtwig seems to be a box turtle while Grotle and Torterra take on snapping turtle characteristics (though actual snapping turtles are amphibious). Grotle and Torterra also take inspiration from ankylosaurs, especially the twin spikes on their heads and the longer, thicker tails, though they lack an ankylosaur’s thagomizer.

(image: a plastic model of an Ankylosaurus)

Finally, the whole line are based on myths of the world turtle. These myths occur in cultures around the world and state that the earth rests on the back of a giant turtle. The most famous of these myths is the Hindu version in which the turtle is named Akūpāra and is another name for Kurma, an avatar of Vishnu. It is this version that inspired most modern depictions of the world turtle, most famously the version seen in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.

(image: the version of the world turtle that inspired Terry Pratchett. Its thought that the version where elephants stand on the turtle is a fusion of two separate myths, one with a turtle and one with elephants)

Another variant occurs in China, where after the four pillars that held up the sky broke, the goddess Nüwa replaced them with the legs of a gigantic turtle named Ao. The world turtle also appears in the Americas, found in multiple Native American cultures from what is now the midwestern and northeastern United States and southeastern Canada, including the Lenape, Haudenosaunee/Iroquois, and Anishinaabeg cultural groups. There are many variations of this version of the story, but a common feature is the world being flooded and multiple animals trying to dive to the bottom to bring up soil so it could be placed on the back of a turtle and grow into new land. Because of this, a common name for the North America amongst those cultural groups is Turtle Island. Torterra is a small version of the world turtle, with only a tree and miniature mountain range on its back, but the intent behind its design is clear. It can even support an ecosystem, with mentions of small Pokémon living on its shell.

The Snivy line have been confirmed by the designers to be based on snakes, with the first two stages being given short limbs to make them look less intimidating to new players. Reiko Tanoue, the line’s designer, says she got the idea for them after reading a picture book that mentions snakes with the appearance of vines. There are various tree-dwelling snakes that this could refer to, though one of my favorites is the green tree python, which has Snivy’s green coloration and certainly could be mistaken for a vine.

(Image: a green tree python in its signature pose resting on a branch)

The tiny limbs of Snivy and Servine may draw from skinks, lizards known for their relatively small legs. Some species of skink have even lost their legs entirely and developed a snake-like body plan.

(Image: a skink. Note the tiny legs)

The two may also be inspired by fossilized proto-snakes, who were long and serpentine but still has small limbs, or by snakes who are born with one or more legs as the result of a mutation. If Snivy and Servine are skinks, then Serperior could be a legless lizard instead of a snake. Multiple lizard lineages have lost their legs and adopted a snake-like body plan, but can still be distinguished from snakes by a number of different features. Serperior’s ability to paralyze opponents with its gaze comes from two sources. The first is the muth that cobras and other snakes can hypnotize their prey (which is the basis for the move Glare) and the second is the basilisk. Basilisks are legendary creatures from European folklore with the power to kill anyone who makes eye contact with them. While described as “the king of serpents”, many depictions of basilisks make them look more like lizards or monstrous roosters (a result of them getting confused with the cockatrice, another monster).

(image: a 1640 woodprint of a basilisk by  Ulisse Aldrovandi. I wouldn't be surprised if this version inspired the multi-legged lizard version in Dungeons and Dragons)

Ken Sugimori has confirmed that the Unova starters were all designed with different cultures in mind to reflect the diversity of Unova. The Tepig line were given Chinese motifs, the Oshawott like were given Japanese motifs, and the Snivy line were given “western” motifs. Given that he explicitly cites the character of Lady Oscar from the manga The Rose of Versailles (which takes place in France during the life of Marie Antionette), it’s pretty clear that what he’s referring to as “western” designs are European symbols and heraldry. Specifically, Serperior’s design incorporates the fleur-de-lis (based on a lily) and acanthus leaf motifs (based on acanthus plants).

(image: a fleur-de-lis)

Chespin is the first grass starter to be based on a mammal, something that seems to have started a trend as two of the next three starters are also mammals. They are based on hedgehogs, though I think Chespin also looks a lot like a chipmunk. While normal hedgehogs have spines made of hair, the Chespin lines are made of plant material. Specifically, they are based on chestnuts. More specifically, they are based on the cupule, the green, spiky coating that covers immature chestnuts to protect them from herbivores.

(image: a branch of a chestnut tree, with multiple visible nuts, each coated in a spiky, green cupule)

Cupules are typically green, fitting the color of Chespin and Quilladin. The hard shell is much more noticeable in the middle and final stages, where it might also derive from armored mammals like armadillos and their extinct glyptodon relatives.

(image: a nine-banded armadillo)

The final forms of the Kalos starters are based on the fantasy character archetypes of the warrior, mage, and thief. Chesnaught is the warrior and its armor makes it look like a knight, fitting for a region based on France, the birthplace of chivalry. Its shell is based on medieval armor and a helmet, while its bulkiness, hidden ability of Bulletproof, and stated ability to survive bomb blasts without a scratch are based on bomb suits. These suits are used by people working with explosives to protect themselves and can be considered a type of armor.

(image: somebody wearing a bomb suit)

Rowlet is quite possibly the cutest of all the starters and is based on a barn owl. This family of owls are known for their white, heart-shaped faces that matches Rowlet’s design. Common barn owls have become an introduced species to Hawai’i.

Rowlet is quite possibly the cutest of all the starters and is based on a barn owl. This family of owls are known for their white, heart-shaped faces that matches Rowlet’s design. Common barn owls have become an introduced species to Hawai’i.

(image: a barn owl currently winning in a staring contest)

Another owl the line is based on is the pueo, which is found only in Hawai’i. I’ll come back to them later as this inspiration really stands out in Decidueye. Dartrix continues the barn owl inspiration but has also become a dandy. The dandy trope is a man who is very devoted to his personal appearance and grooming and is typically a fan of leisure. Dandies are often played for comedy as they are perceived as upper-class twits and due to gender roles assuming that caring about your appearance is a feminine trait. Dartrix certainly is the comedic dandy as the Pokedex points out how it can get so absorbed in grooming that it forgets about other stuff. Decidueye drops the barn owl inspiration in favor of the pueo and the extinct stilt-owls. Stilt-owls are extinct (hence the ghost typing) owls native to Hawai’i that had long legs and while they could fly, they spent most of their time on the ground. Decidueye also has long legs and while it can fly, it loses the flying type. Decidueye also draws from the ‘aumākua, ancestor spirits in Hawaiian mythology that would watch over their living relatives and protect or judge them as needed. They would manifest in the form of animals or inanimate objects and one of the most famous of these physical form is the pueo owl.

(image: a pueo owl currently giving a Polynesian rat a panic attack)

Decidueye’s archery and green hood and cloak of feathers is a clear reference to Robin Hood. Hisuian Decidueye also draws from mythology, being a reference to the Ainu (indigenous people of Hokkaido, the basis of Sinnoh/Hisui) god Cikap-kamuy, god of owls and the land. Hisui has a lot of references to Ainu culture. Being based on the god of the land might be why H Decidueye is a terrestrial owl, though this may just be a holdover from Alolan Decidueye’s origins. H Decidueye’s coloration is a reference to leaves turning red in the fall. Autumn leaves are also associated with Rōnin, disgraced samurai without masters who would commonly be wanderers, just like H Decidueye. The shape of its head feathers look like kasa, wide-brimmed Japanese hats that samurai are often depicted as wearing.

(image: art of a samurai wearing a kasa. Couldn't find the source)

The Grooky line are primates, with Grooky itself being a monkey. More specifically, it’s a squirrel monkey, new-world monkeys known for their small size and who have similar mouths.

(image: a squirrel monkey mother with its baby on its back)

It using a stick references how primates are the most famous tool-using animals and a stick is a pretty versatile and simple tool if you know how to use it. Macaques use sticks to drum rhythmically on objects as a dominance display, which is pretty close to Grooky using it as a musical instrument. Thwacky looks a lot like a caveman (still a primate) and wears its sticks in its hair like hair sticks. It continues the music theming. Music is a universal human trait and is used for innumerable purposes. Thwacky using its drum beats to rile it and others up indicates it might be based on music used in warfare to inspire the soldiers. Thwacky still has a tail, though it is shorter, meaning it is still a monkey. Rillaboom, on the other hand, is based on a gorilla, an ape (yes, apes are a subset of monkeys but most people think they’re different). Its drumming motif comes to the end where it is now a drummer in a band (more obvious in its gigantamax form). It takes some influence from Japanese taiko drum, but that wild 80s vine hair makes it a pretty obvious reference to rock-and-roll band members. England has a pretty big rock-and-roll culture with famous bands like the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin.

Sprigatito is a cute little kitten, likely that of an Iberian lynx, an endangered species of wildcat.

(image: an Iberian lynx rocking some serious mutton chops)

While people like to joke that it’s based on marijuana, the grass inspiration actually comes from jessant-de-lis, a heraldic symbol that is a fleur-de-lis coming out of a cat’s head.

(image: a jessant-di-lis. Artist is Di from Wikipedia)

If Sprigatito is the innocent child, Floragato is a rebellious teenager. Its bipedal stance, dark feet, and its cunning behavior make it a dead ringer for the tales of Puss in Boots. The yo-yo bud it uses normally attaches to the upper left of its chest, making it look like a flower worn in someone’s lapel. Something that fancy seems out for a scoundrel of a Pokémon, but it could be a preview of its next stage’s more upper-class demeanor. The final forms of the Paldea starters are all based on entertainers and Meowscarada is a magician. As such, it is a master of sleight-of-hand, which it uses for its Flower Trick unique move. Its mask draws from those worn in masquerade balls. The masks were used to hide the identities of the attendees and hiding identities is definitely useful for a roguish dark type.

(image: a collection of modern-day masquerade masks)

In fact, both Floragato and Meowscarada take inspirations from picaresque novels, a genre focusing on characters who survive by cunning and trickery. The mask and flower could also come from Mardi Gras and the flowers thrown during it.