#hopefully it's entertaining for others

[lulu-the-bugaboo]

I've seen this be talked about on tumblr more than once so the actual text isn't what I'm gonna focus on. I just wanna point out that this is a great example that shows Oda thinks deeply while writing his characters and things aren't as surface level and shallow as some people think they are. It could have been just an easter egg but Oda put so much thought into the emotional and realistic aspect of it that he didn't even notice the similarly to the hat design. And this is just about two tiny panels.

[alienglowgarden]

misc IWATEX drabbles

Hi, so I've been writing a certain fic and have amassed quite a bit of different random scenes which I may or may not use... and I thought,,, it might be fun to share some. N if people like them I'd certainly love to do/share more uwu

1. In which Sol suffers a bad case of burn-out after facilitating peace with the gardeners and decides to take a sabbatical.

Anemone hears it from Tangent, who says it as matter-of-factly as anything: Sol has disappeared. To be fair to them, it was a planned, voluntary disappearance. Anemone hasn't seen Sol in 3 years, and yet the pang of hurt she feels is as fresh as the dew on her boots. Already impossibly far, they have moved into some new to her unreachable realm, drifting ever farther and farther away.

Sym never quite learns to lie outright, so he cannot tell them honestly if Sol is happy or not. Only that they are getting better. They are trying. They are trying to get back to everyone and themself. Even if to all of them it looks like doing the opposite.

Once, Sol uploads a 20 minute long soundscape to the holonet. It is entirely taken up by the sound of crashing waves. Something about it makes her realize its not an old recording of Earth- its Vertumna. Sol is at the ocean. Their voice hums underneath the nature sounds, going in and out at various intervals as it follows one pattern, then loses it only to start trailing another, lulling one into a sense of calm and just the lightest sting of loss. Reminds one, gently but insistently, of the vast distance between her and Sol.

Their voice is salt-cracked and hoarse. Now a stranger to language, their tongue bends only for the small, simple sounds.  Are they eating well? Their mouth cannot answer. It must be inferred from the thinness of their breath.

  Does salt crust the corners of their eyes?       There is no way of telling.       Are they cold?      Do they sleep?      Are they shivering?     Do they think of her?    Are their pets well-fed?       Do they miss their mother?     Are there holes in their shirt that need mending?      Does the scar still itch?       Have they shelter?  A home?     Does it get lonely?    Is she at fault?      Will they ever talk to her?        Did they catch Echinacea's first steps?       Do they watch the videos and follow along life at the colony?      Is their knife still sharp?      Are they drinking enough?     Do they sleep better now than they had before, at home?    Is it enough to keep them from the nightmares?

2. Dys & Sol

Where Dys was fearless, emotional, Sol was calm, always measured. Their conflicting natures again grinding against each other until they finally ground each others edges smooth. Eroded enough to stand beside one another. Shoulder to shoulder. A protrusion laid into the groove, spike fitted against spike closing into a gapless vice, puzzle piece in puzzle piece. Still not smooth enough to play well with the others.

Sol always wondered about that. How these two unlike objects could come so close and find what was lacking and what could be given in turn.

Belief the chiefest among those necessities. Belief was hard to come by from anyone else who was not the playground seer or the cryptid of stratospheric. They traded it between each other like tokens, like currency which once their ancestors had sought just to be able to survive. The stakes here were just as dire.

Belief was a powerful thing- it could make or break you. It could make you whole or leave you forever unfulfilled, left to feel around blindly for every shadow of its shape as it eludes you time and time again, as it is buried down deeper by the disappointment and the falsities.

"Fine, don't believe in the colony. Believe in me."

"I do, Sol. But you're just one person."

3. ...and another one why not.

He finds Sol balancing on the edge of a wall near their lookout tower. They grin at him, they're in a good mood. This might be bad. They  waggle their eyebrows in challenge, then extend one leg over the edge of the wall.

“Dare ya,”

They start and don't even finish the sentence. There’s no need. They already have Dys’ undivided attention.

He smirks and scoffs. “As if I’ve never jumped off the wall, please Sol. That’s baby stuff.”

For a moment he watches them  pause and look out across the Vertumnan wilds, tensing imperceptibly. Or, no, not quite. It looks more like they’re frozen in place, like none of their limbs were ever designed with movement in mind. Their pupils don't even twitch, they don't blink. The action is both painfully familiar and alien, as if they’re one of…

Then all at once, they’re alive again, interfacing with the physical world. Their body careens forward and their grin goes down, down, down…

He rushes forward. He’s just in time to jump off the ledge as the toes of Sol’s shoe leave solid ground. There's no way he can be outdone by Sol. Sol who by all accounts should be capable of experiencing fear but does not only on account of that they're totally and irreversibly insane. There’s nobody he’d want to be with more in this moment.

Sol, of course, knows they will be fine. They were careful, they checked. No bad feelings, no premonitions. Just tuck and roll.

4.[COULD YOU HELP ME RELAX?] (Sol x Sym)

"I'm just so tired Sym. I feel so old; barely like a person at all."

He pulls them down as he habitually does, using his arm as their headrest.

"No matter what, you'll always be the one I love," he says soothing.

"No, I know- its just-" they groan rubbing their face in frustration and exhaustion.

"Oh, should I be offended? Am I not enough for you, sugarbug?" Sym teases.

Sol grins in a kind of half-defeat, half-relief that he won't make them actually get into the meat of it. They're far too worn for that now.

"You know what I mean." This, they say with the smile still in their voice.

"I think I do. I'm sorry I cannot do more at this moment. But, when the time comes, you will make the right choice, I know it. I believe in you, my love."

Sym finds himself not for the first time feeling guilt over the clarity of purpose he has as opposed to his chaotic human friends.

Though maybe that's not the issue with Sol at all, maybe it's the opposite. Because they do have a purpose coded into them. It's simply too much for one person to bare. He knows he is part of that issue as much as he'd wish to remain a truly neutral party.

He can't do anything more than kiss their temple as he smooths back their hair, his helplessness expressed in this gesture oddly human. For all his vast knowledge, the soothing motions of a social pack animal is the best he can offer.

"That was just what I needed," they say too soon, tension pulling them up like a whip, as if the words themselves were some sort of trigger. They kept going regardless. Before he could have ever even administered his Gardener magic to them. Does this mean they don't feel its effects at all anymore? Could they not tell the difference between a comforting word and supercharged chemical reaction?

[rainparadefromhell]

this is what would happen if manuel ever came out to dante probably like 10 mins later

[jecook]

i just wanna say that it was so refreshing to see Matt Stone get to talk about the rise of antisemitism rn. like yeah start the season off on that!!! it was angry! scathing! yet funny! Matt Stone deserved this episode, you can tell he's fed up and it's unequivocally against antisemitism and nazism, so hopefully the episode hits a lot of people well, ik how sometimes south park can be... interpreted very oddly by some viewers of the show, but I think it's angry yet sympathetic enough to say that people can choose to deny/leave behind violent and bigoted beliefs. It was a good season premiere and I am really excited to see what's next

[lavenderjewels]

my only general predictions for jjk is that Yuuji will be able to target the different souls in Sukuna’s body to be able to reach Megumi’s suppressed soul and attack sukuna’s. Im actually interested in how this will all go down, especially with Higuruma in the mix, since these fights can’t be as simple as two overpowered characters with the loss of multiple special grade sorcerers. With the potential of a court trial domain or Yuuji’s knowledge of the soul, I imagine it’ll become more psychological or metaphysical in the fighting, with a lot of good insight into sukuna and/or yuuji, megumi, etc. As for Kenjaku, I have NO idea where their story is going (apart from Yuuta wanting to kill them), but i enjoy that part of the story being unpredictable—it fits their character

[firendgold]

🥂, 🚓 and 🧸 for the cute ship ask game! :)

oh no I think someone beat you to every one of those emoji :') but I'll do them again! Might have different answers this time.

🥂 - what would happen if they got drunk together? I thought some more about this and decided that you and the prior anon deserve a more concrete answer, or an answer more about actions than feelings. So, I think that Harry and Albus would probably cause an international incident together if they got drunk. Like, a "bowling with magic in front of Muggles, Apparating away from the cops, and accidentally destroying an ancient magical artifact" type of international incident. XD

🚓 - which one is most likely to get arrested? I still think it's Albus. I thought about this some more too, and I think Fudge technically, kind of sort of did arrest Albus in Order of the Phoenix. I distinctly remember him saying Albus was going to be remanded to Azkaban to await his trial in the US version. (Look at you, Cornelius, accomplishing the wet dreams of prior Ministers for Magic!) By this logic you could probably also argue that the trio getting caught in the forest in Deathly Hallows was Harry's version of getting arrested, but I am American and I associate "arrest" with custody/jail, and I maintain that Harry's version of jail was going to be painful murder.

🧸 - which one is the little spoon & which is the big spoon? My answer remains unchanged here too! Albus is the big spoon and Harry is the little spoon. This doesn't mean I couldn't see them switching places though, like if, say... Gellert was up for parole, and almost got it, and Harry could tell that Albus really just needed someone to hold him and stroke his hair and pretend like the world didn't exist for a while.

[nightmare8-420]

i feel like a part of my soul has been ripped from my chest and i dont know why.

[chocolate-cream-soldier]

//

[danielnelsen]

there’s so much i wanna do this week/month/etc but i’m just too sick, i have no energy, i can’t sleep, i’m constantly nauseous and headachey and on the verge of a migraine, i’m stressed and irritable and impatient and panicky…….how tf did i survive nearly 5 years of high school untreated if i can’t even manage this when i don’t have any major obligations rn

[always-a-joyful-note]

Reading Toma's 16 idol story is great because once again we get possessive Zool over their leader.

[shiraishi--kanade]

hi feel free not to answer this but you're one of the only chronically ill people i know and i probably need to get my blood drawn because i am having Many Issues but i am. super afraid of needles. so basically the question is are needles that draw blood like,, really big? do they hurt a lot? sorry this is probably a dumb question im just terrified auhfguhgahhf

No worries! And in my experience, no not really! My blood draws never really hurt; it's about the same feeling like if your leg falls asleep pins and needles sensations, but only for a split second when the needle comes in and out. If done correctly, you won't feel anything during the actual process, maybe just a bit dizzy & numb. It may sting for a while after the draw (mine still does) but it's really really minor, you probably won't even notice it much. It may also bruise; it's pretty normal too.

The size of the needle varies, though, so here's a word of advice: search out for a more modern, accomodating hospital/lab, and a nurse who works with pediatrics patients, if you can (regardless of your actual age, they are just chiller about anxious people in general imo). Fear of needles is super common and is absolutely nothing to be ashamed about (I actually do well with blood draws but I'm Not Good with IVs and injections, the latter ones moreso than the former), so there is a solid chance they can accommodate you by using a smaller needle or/and local anesthetic (thought I think the last one is... Rarer. My dentist did it, but that man is a force of his own. I don't know how many of his practises are like... Normal).

Getting a good nurse that puts you at ease is so, so important. I cannot overstate it. I don't mean to make this sound bad but I can't lie either, if they mess up, can't find your vein, or just generally suck & rush you & make you feel stupid for asking for accomodations, get up and Leave. Because messed up draws do hurt (not too much, though! I'd say it's comparable to like... Accidentally biting your tongue kinda hurt). I only had one bad experience and I never went to that nurse again.

In general though: the needle probably isn't as big as you think it'd be, it's smaller than the injection ones usually, and you can ask for a smaller one; it doesn't hurt! Actually when I first got my blood drawn from my vein at 10 or so, I was like, wait, that's it? Because of a stupid policy my hospital usually only took blood from the fingertips for kids (don't ask. I don't get it either), and oh god, that hurt Much More than the "adult" one. I was so relieved after being scared out of my mind three minutes earlier. You don't have as much sensation in that area as you for in your fingertips, so if you ever had a papercut and want to compare: papercut hurts more & for longer than the blood draw does.

Good luck to you!! I hope you figure whatever's going on haha. Remember to drink water before the draw to make everyone's lives easier if it comes down to it!

[usagimen]

Honestly, I can't think about Sayuri as a child too much or it's just heartbreaking. Since she was raised by her biological aunt who was grieving the loss of her sister, the only person who protected her, but could not stand their clan life. They were two abandoned souls, Hatsuko was far too young to raise Sayuri but that's all she had of her elder sister. She was not understanding nor was she kind, she used Sayu as a political hostage while oddly setting her free. It's very much a story of love being there though overshadowed by the intense grief they shared. If Sayuri's father, Minato, raised her she'd be 100x different. Kinder, more confident, she'd still carry the sun within her && not view herself so monstrously. Sayuri is Hatsuko's only daughter, Hatsuko is the only link to a very shut part of Sayuri's past && the one who cursed her. She taught her everything about becoming Geiko, including her own renowned art of dance, though it can never change the bitterness in Sayuri's heart for deciding a fate that she did not want.

[doodlingwren]

Hiatus

I am going on hiatus for a bit more. I really really hoped the stuff that have been going on lately were already "sorted out" but, uhm... they aren't. I need to take a bit more time offline once again, and try to work things out.

Thank you for your patience ❤

Wren

[antlerknives]

currently working on the early stages (ie. user research) of a spotify user interface redesign as a personal portfolio project and i am ridiculously excited about it

[eec713]

Sometimes, I like to enhance the writing process by leaving ridiculous comments on my document as I write. Then, when I go back through to edit, I get the added entertainment of being reminded of whatever clownery popped into my head as I was writing.

Some of my favorite examples from the chapter of TLWHAHD that will be uploaded on Monday are below the cut :)

[possum-tooth]

housewarming party today. wish me luck bc im STRESSINGG