#hat's rants

[hatterthethird]

I still think a lot about how insanely queer and trans-coded venom is.

Like, the whole aspect of Symbrock being an extremely non-traditional relationship dynamic, the fact that Venom is coded to match the identity of its host, and the fantasy of being literally transformed by the relationship

And this may be reading into it too deeply, but I'm also obsessed with the thought that the monster form, the fusion of the two of them, is in a way euphoric to Eddie's physical presentation. I am married to the headcanon that the longer their relationship continues, the less it feels like Eddie is putting on and taking off the symbiote and the more it feels like they're hiding it behind a human shape.

[hatterthethird]

it's sterile horny where you want sex for the literal biological need and not for the deeper human connection to a very specific person

i seriously cannot comprehend the sex drive that makes one exclusively horny for captain america looking movie hunks or the victorias secret angel archetype of tall underweight women with generically pretty faces in bikinis. that shit is like carbon monoxide or infrasonic noise to my libido like my sexual senses cant even clock it

[queerdraws]

projecting on luffy again. get bited.

[bixels]

Always an experience watching the leftism leave FNAF fans when someone mentions that Scott Cawthon financially backed fascist politicians.

The switch from posting hardline leftist tweets about boycotts and signal boosts and critical takedowns of politicians and celebrities to ‘ohhh, well. everyone makes mistakes. who can blame him, listen he. he donated money to gay charities too. that makes it ok! a millionaire in his forties is allowed to have political beliefs. does it even matter? just let it go!’ is whiplash inducing. The antivaxxer celebrities have got to go, but this one horror dev who quietly handed wads of cash to antivax lawmakers? He’s chill, he can stay.

The charity thing is so funny too because suddenly utilitarian positive-negative point counting is the way to go. Maybe an abacus would help calculate the net good of donating to the Trevor Project minus donating thousands of dollars to Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump. -10 points if I push a kid in a lake but +11 points if I help an old lady across the street, so I’m chill. You can’t judge me. Hey, maybe. Just don’t push a kid in the lake period. How fucking low is the bar when we’re excusing maxing out the possible dollar amount of donations to Mitch fucking McConnell. That should be like. Default you’re a bad person.

[hatterthethird]

I still feel like people don't appreciate just how cool of a game it is honestly.

Like, name another sandbox game that works as digital building blocks, a survival exploration game, a dungeon crawler, pvp combat game, and a circuit logic simulator all at the same time in a way that gets all of those ideas to mesh together that effortlessly! And that's just what I can think of, not counting the numerous things in the mix on top of all that!

i keep getting recommended videos about how minecraft isn't fun anymore and it's mojangs fault. i think its such a fascinating phenomenon because i think at least 70% of that comes down to anything getting a little stale when it's all you do for years and years. of course you're going to not feel like something is as fun as it used to be, you started playing minecraft when you were 11 and you are 23 now with a job. things change and you are experiencing it.

[tagidearte]

Who?

(Can't do digital art again yet. Traditional has been fun, though. Click for not blurry quality)

[touchyluffy]

part one

In the days it takes you to heal from your injuries, Luffy comes to your bedroom to sleep next to you every night. He does try, the night after the first, to sleep in his own bedroom but he can't. Usually sleep comes easy to him, especially after a long day of adventure but not now. He closes his eyes, trying to think of your wounds healing, your soft breathing, your warm hand holding his, but he can't fall asleep. He huffs in irritation and rises from his bed, sulking across the ship to knock on your bedroom door and opening it slowly. You put down your book, you were also struggling to sleep, and open the covers for him. You smile at each other as he excitedly hops into your bed.

And so it becomes routine for you two. Even as your injuries heal completely, as the sunsets and the crew walks off to their separate bedrooms, Luffy follows you into yours and you let him. It becomes normal to roll over in the middle of the night and snuggle into his warm body, to wake up in the morning with his arm wrapped around you, to feel him pull you closer in his sleep, to giggle at his sleep-talking, to hear your name in his mumblings. You offer to let him keep his toothbrush and some clothes in your room, he accepts.

Sleeping together becomes so routine that you have trouble sleeping without him. There were times when you two would be separated by a foe that Luffy challenged and each night you would stay awake staring at his side of the bed, worry clouding your mind and making it impossible to sleep and eventually when Luffy defeated the foe, he would be covered in bandages and it was your turn to listen to his soft, even breathing as he slept. There were times when you be working late into the night and he would come find you, curling up on the floor next to you to sleep in your presence until you eventually finish and drag him back to your bed so you can both sleep comfortably. There were times when you would get angry at him for putting the crew in danger with his recklessness and you'd slammed your bedroom door in his face and toss and turn, your anger at him turning into desperation for him to just come to bed already, eventually you get up to find him and as you open your bedroom door, Luffy's sleeping frame falls on your legs. He'd been sleeping against your door. Smiling you pull his rubbery body into bed and cuddle up next to him, his heartbeat your lullaby. He smiles in his sleep and his arms come up around you. Whenever he's missing his hat or sandals, you find them by your bed.

This new routine of you and your captain sleeping together left your other crewmates with their mouths on the floor several times. They still hadn't gotten used to you two waving goodnight and walking into the same bedroom. When they would ask, you tried to explain but there really wasn't anything to explain. You and their captain couldn't sleep unless you slept together. That's all, why do they always stare at you in such surprise when you say that? Their shocked faces didn't discourage you both into cuddling up to each other at night, finding relaxation, warmth, safety, and comfort in each others arms. What was once your space becomes "our bedroom", "our closet", "our bathroom".

[bobabisch]

side rant that probably nobody cares about or agrees with but I need to get this outta my brain. Water 7 made me genuinely upset for Usopp. he was so valid and so right and the rest of the Strawhats were so fucking insensitive and oblivious (except for maybe Nami and Chopper). but like if you seriously think about it, the Going Merry was the only part of his home that Usopp had left. everyone else had their pieces of home. Nami had her tangerine trees, Zoro has the wado ichimonji, Sanji is not only chasing his dream but also fulfilling Zeff's dream (who he owes his life to) in chasing after the All Blue, Chopper has his hat, and Luffy has his hat. you know damn well the rest of them would lose their minds if they lost any of those pieces of their lives and they would be valid in doing so. yet when it comes to Usopp and the only thing he was able to bring from home no one cares? not to mention Usopp ended up being lowkey right about the Merry. Usopp put his everything into that ship. he was the only one repairing her and treating the Merry like she was a real part of the crew and their home. without Usopp's (somewhat shitty) repairs the Merry would've been done with so much sooner than Water 7.

and I'm not saying that Luffy wasn't right about needing a new ship, but the way they went about telling him and how they treated him when he was just upset about it was plain ridiculous. I mean even Luffy was in denial about the leaving the Merry behind but they couldn't even allow Usopp time to grieve losing the last connection he had to his home?? despite all this what really pissed me off about the whole thing was Zoro saying that the only way Usopp could rejoin the crew was if he apologized first. like what??

when it comes to this I'm an usopp defender till I die. I think the crew was seriously effed up for this ngl.

however, I do agree that Usopp's insecurity problems were his own though, and he shoulda delt with that quietly and not projected his insecurities onto Luffy or the others.

[maeed2103]

People often mistake Luffys indifference for ignorance and I’m here to set the record straight:

Luffy is aware of others and their emotions and what goes on around him, he just doesn’t give a fuck outright until you see him giving one.

Throughout the series we see Luffy beating the crap out of someone who’s an ally, for what at first may seem like no reason but in reality is because they are disrespecting a core belief of his or disrespecting themselves.

A great example is when he slapped Vivi (gay on gay crime lmao). He did so because he not only wanted to “snap her out” of her train of thought but he was also so angry that him and his crew were not being seen as her friends, that he was not trusted enough to be someone she could lean on when he had been there throughout their time in Alabasta. Vivi was also being selfless to a point of self destruction, trying to push away the straw hat crew, thinking of herself as a martyr, the only person capable of saving her country. So luffy had to show her reason in classic Luffy fashion.

Luffy is aware, he’s not just some kid playing pirates like everyone often thinks he is. Luffy strives for true freedom, he challenges the world government, he sees how corrupt the government is and denounces them entirely. He punches a celestial dragon because he doesn’t believe in power structures and believes every asshole deserves to be put in place.

Luffy is an anarchist. To be against the government and to start revolutions requires critical thinking.

[orengejoshi]

Pregnancy as a kink makes me uncomfortable so man am I glad your pregg Flug stuff is explicitly not kink oriented!

yeah I... don't wanna judge anyone... but it's more than that, it's downright terrifying to me. Blame my hormones bc I'm expecting irl but wow... I'm very sensitive and it feels dehumanizing. but ig that is kinda the point of the kink(?)

it's so common in fandoms!

I'm completely vanilla anyway tho, so not surprising.

I've tried to pretend for a super long time that I'm into kink, but most of them are off putting and I consider them intrusive thoughts, not fantasies. I'm kinda fluctuating between sex-repulsed and neutral (aroace) even fictional... ig kink just isn't for me. I tried so hard to get over it. I know some people in my asks/requests are gonna be disappointed but I'm sorry💔

I'm slightly ashamed of how boring I am and I have serious trouble connecting to anyone in fandoms due to this actually🤕 feel like the most NT autistic person ever.

anyway here's a doodle!

[titikookieslyth]

Everytime someone says that Ace's death was not that sad and only Luffy's tears and reaction were, I am shaking 'cause they don't understand Ace like I do. This Guy Always thought his life was meaningless. He thought he should have never been born. His mother died birthing him. Every person he encountered had something vile and cruel to Say about his own existence. He thought he had no right to live at all. And it resulted in him downplaying his own will to live. And only during the war in Marineford, he realised he wanted to live. Because he was so loved and has so Many people who loves him. And he wants to be with them. And then, his father figure is about to sacrifice himself and some dude still insults him. It is so normal to fall for Akainu's provocations in this situation. And he died in the arms of his brother, while protecting his brother. And he's still happy to be able to give his life that he FINALLY love and wants to live, for his brother. All of this situation is tragic. For Luffy of course, but also for Ace. And I am so sad for the two (three including Sabo) brothers.

[evren-d]

EDIT: definitely turned into a massive rant about Vander's politics, I tried to not be petty and I failed, I can't fix it with another draft, he drives me nuts. In this unassigned essay I literally will...

Vander criticism incoming because I re-watched the Sevika rematch in the last drop and holy moly did he do Vi dirty (What his guardianship style meant for Powder, Mylo, and Claggor all deserve their own posts) and I can’t think about Vi’s struggles without thinking about VanderLand™. Not saying he didn’t do good, not saying he couldn’t have been worse, just that…:

Vander preached against fighting, but lived (comparatively) large off of his reputation for fighting AND through the exchange of a blind eye from the enforcers in return for keeping his own community under heel. Grayson saying, “I keep out of your business and you keep your people off of my streets” or whatever, suggest to me the passes that Vander has enjoyed in his interests over the years.

His thriving business, the life he projects, no fighting oppression, only bar-keeping, but we see him throw his reputation around as a favor to to his friends, like Huck and Babette. Would the undercity merchant/business owner class want your protection if they knew what was up? Maybe, Benzo was on board. What about the rest of the undercity that aren't enterprising? Silco saying, "Not JUST for the Lanes, but for the whole of the underground," is huge.

It pays to be Vander’s friend, but no one else could possibly realize the success that I think he pretends he did. The lifestyle he's trying to get Vi to subscribe to (VanderLand) doesn’t actually exist. Everyone is seeing that but him and Vi is boiling over in confusion and frustration and self-doubt and anger.

If any other kids had caused the damage in Piltover that made Marcus go all ham, their parents would not have had the luxury of negotiating with Grayson, and I honestly don't believe that Vander would have turned himself in to protect them. When Vander or Grayson die, the little pocket of safety that he's carved out for the lanes will be lost, this only benefits a select few for as long as Vander can pull it off.

Bless you Sevika for leaving him behind, my god. The way he claims all responsibility for the day of ash is honestly just insulting. If you hadn’t led them across that bridge, maybe someone else would have, my guy.

Look at the lengths Sevika and others go to to fight YOU so they can have another chance to fight the real enemy without you protecting your cushy life (and kids, yeah, yeah, but it’s still painfully short sighted. People had kids the first time around, some people in the bar calling to fight back with Sevika surely also have kids. That’s -why- they want to fight) all over the conversation. He talks to vi like he opened and closed the book on revolution - get out of the WAY OLD MAN.

To Vi he’s like, Yes, I live a better life for myself, my family, and my friends leveraging just the sheer -memory - of when I used to fight, but you can’t.

There's a difference between self-defense in dangerous streets and planning a heist to steal your way through life, but he seems to lump them together. Then in the same conversation telling her that fists aren’t the answer, he checked quality assurance checked that she kicked Deckard’s ass, because ultimately that is what he expects from her. Attacking the root cause of gangs like Deckard's is immature and selfish, but you better be a good enough fighter to beat the shit out of them on call. WHAT a moving target.

What I saw in Vi’s delirium in the bar in the Sevika rematch was Vander dissing her guard and telling her she has no choice but to keep fighting, that she’s needed, whether she’s wanted or not. And yeah, it’s not Vander that said that, it’s in Vi’s head, but it's reminiscent of things we did see him tell her as a teenager, that message of “you are the only hope that the people you love have, you're responsible for everything that happens when you interact with them, you're not allowed to not interact with them, in fact you must -lead- them. Also, you're stupid.”

For that to be what her brain cooks up for her mentor to say to her to stay conscious and in the game, the way that she accepts it with a huffed laugh and it actually HELPS HER is so gaahhhhhhh.

Fundamentally, (in the admittedly very little we saw in act I of uniquely stressful time,) I feel that he offloaded the effort and responsibility of mentoring, nourishing, and raising all four kids individually, to Vi. He literally made the others leave the room before giving the soft side of his lecture in the basement, then barked at, confiscated from, and threw stuff at the Mylo and Claggor on his way back upstairs. To expect Vi to take his guidance in, make sense of it (impossible), and redistribute it to the others is not cool, and that's why he makes me grump.

[dxxtruction]

"Louis acting like a pimp to Armand" And what is a pimp exactly? Quickly. And, oh so sexual trauma survivors can't engage in kink now without it being all about that? Pet names? They can't be submissive anymore? Consensually? Sexually healthy? Be serious. I'd hardly say there's much power difference between them during all this anyway, except that Louis is freer than Armand and it's been putting a strain on their relationship. Louis wants more from Armand, and less of this 'being his past' for them both, and so helping Armand with this could fix that. It's healthy to want to help your partners get out of a rough patch?

I mean, the whole exchange was very clearly set up as a "I want to help you" after such a great moment of vulnerability Louis feels just how much Armand is desperate for it. Louis called Armand so they could work out a plan together.

And the bit with the umbrella was Louis' way of asking 'are you willing to listen to me?' and Armand said yes by unfolding it. Louis goes on and explains, Armand is allowed to argue against it, but Louis makes his point. And then he gives Armand a way to make his own choice in it too. Armand's already decided 'I want you, more than anything else in the world', but Louis still asks after if he's sure of his choice, and with a name, Arun, that is the one of his fullest agency, running the point home. Honoring the situation Armand calls Louis Maitre - as a way of being like 'I'll do as you've said then'. To make this work he's going to have to give Louis some of the control, yes. But it's the first time such a role is ever established, and it was his choice to do it. So so what if they do it in a very suggestive way? They can't like doing that? I think it's them having fun.

I struggle to find how Louis is being overly domineering here when really he's giving and offering Armand the most agency he's ever had. Same with finding it manipulative. The manipulation was more earlier in the episode I think, when he was stringing him along, giving mixed signals. He's no longer toying with him like that. Louis might be pushing Armand, leading him on to make a decision, but he doesn't mean bad by it.

But back to this pimp thing. I find it frankly offensive that this is where people are going with this. I get it, but to run with it being the case is, on many levels, wrong.

Louis told us episode 1 this was the only sustainable line of work to support his family and keep their standing, at the time. It was never his choice to be doing this either but his blackness allowed no other options. He did what he did so his family could stay in that house and maintain all their same comforts. It gave him privileges most black men didn't have at the time that he wanted to maintain and even have more of. Anyway, it doesn't and had never defined him the way 'being good at running things' had. And in that case he just likes having that kind of control where he can get it, which makes sense.

The world is what placed that kind of role onto him of what he was allowed to be able to run, not himself. And on that he actually treated the sex workers he employed well and respected them enough to give them more opportunity.** He recognizes they don't have much in the way of options either.

Louis employed sex workers, yes, but he didn't subject them to abuse, (like how Armand was)*. He didn't oversee things in a way that would go against their consent (see; episode 1 again)**. Sometimes a job is just a job. And Sex work is work.

Armand's particular past with sexual abuses may strike a particular cord with Louis, given all that, but the very last thing either is thinking is that Louis' pimping Armand out here. This is merely their decision as companions, and had nothing to do with adding another line in a laundry list of selling Armands body out to people at the command of someone else. Armand rescinds some of his control to Louis' wishes, because he wants him, and he trusts him, that's all.

If you aren't allowing Armand that choice, and are doubtful it's fully his, you're putting him right back in the box of being defined by his abuses. Putting him back into that space where he isn't given any agency over what he does. (Which is exactly opposite of what the intent of this scene is for)*.

*: (edit) added for clarity.

**: (strike through) numerous people are saying I'm misremembering these points so disregard it. (Thought he was siding with Bricks, it was the other way around). (Technically one aspect of those opportunities were for getting around the law). I don't have a perfect memory, it happens. Let's not get mad about it. Doesn't change much of the point which is that Louis, now, Louis then, was always considering more about the running things and for stated purposes. So I guess I'd say he may only have respected the SWers enough sometimes for what allowed him to do that, and there are moments he certainly expressed remorse over the fact, but he has a great deal higher respect for Armand that is genuine. It's incomparable. Please read my added notes in the tags, it should address most other concerns.

[bebemoon]

look for the name RANT (requested by @junk--bones) | la perla black sheer and lace bodysuit, lip service floor-length faux fur panther print duster coat, maison margiela black leather tabi platform pumps w/ ankle straps, anatole lebreton "l'eau scandaleuse" eau de parfum (bergamot, peach, davana, tuberose, ylang ylang, leather, castoreum, cypriol, oakmoss), vivienne westwood "venus" black wool beret (s/s 1988)

[anghraine]

This is probably my most "born and raised in the rural western USA" post ever, but there really is a kind of annoying white dude who shows up in the western states at times, and occasionally even comes from them, who I keep encountering. This kind of guy might not be an obvious bigot (though sometimes he is), but regardless, is one of the most irritating creatures on the face of the planet. Common traits:

goes around in full wannabe western cowboy (21st century edition) cosplay and never shuts up about the plight of the rural poor and his own history of poverty in small town rural America. he understands in a way that these city elites never will.

turns out to be from a comfortable middle-class family in Missoula. (as one example; there are lots of variants of this)

affects an obviously fake drawl in no way characteristic of the actual region he comes from to go with the cosplay.

the hat is pristine, the boots are unscuffed, the belt buckle is ... wrong, and the obligatory truck was bought new and couldn't pull a Toyota out of a mud puddle or make it up a moderately steep hill in half an inch of snow.

assumes everyone he professionally interacts with has no more experience of actual rural life and/or poverty than he does himself, especially if he's in the arts in some capacity. The poors don't care about Art, you see (sometimes stated, usually strongly implied with little comprehension that he's saying it).

relatedly, has intense food+social class opinions and appears to think that cheap food for the proletariat is, like, the Olive Garden.

throws around his red state creds while giving the distinct impression that it's been 20 years since he saw a cow.

the more liberal versions talk a lot about awareness of their privilege and positionality as white men, but don't really do anything to support marginalized colleagues. unless "picking on younger and less powerful men who haven't done anything wrong" counts.

[namtanlovesfilm]

THE BLACK NOT ME FIGURINE MADE IT ONTO COOKING CRUSH OMG!!!