#i don't know what the addition is but I wanted to tack it on

[little-annie]

T| WC 1k | Steddie | Uncle Wayne POV

"You love him don't you?" Wayne whispers, breathy, quiet, his voice cracking around the edges of something that feels like raw emotion.

It's then that Eddie turns his gaze away from Steve to look at him, the light never fading from his eyes and the smile never wiping from his face.

Steve's sitting on the trailer floor, in the middle of the living room, Eddie's clothes hanging from his body as he flips through one of Eddie's many monster manuals. Wayne knows the boy would never admit it, but he's just as interested in D&D as the other kids. He's helping Eddie plan his next campaign for christ sake.

Next to Wayne, two cans of coke in hand and a love struck smile on his face, Eddie nods, his cheeks darkening as his smile ever so slightly fades. "Is that okay?" He asks, looking all the bit nervous as his eyes roam Wayne's face.

"More than okay, Son."

Eddie's smile brightens once again and if Wayne notices the small amount of tears welling in his eyes, he says nothing about.

"You ever going to tell him?" Wayne continues, nodding in Steve's direction, the boy still oblivious to the conversation being whispered behind his back.

"I don't know if I can."

Wayne says nothing to Eddie's reply as he watches the boy return to the living room where he sits down next to his best friend. Steve smiling bright as the sun upon Eddie's return.

Months go by and Wayne gets to watch as Steve falls too. It's there and so obvious to anyone but Eddie.

His eyes linger and his smile never fades. Soon Wayne sees as he sits a little closer and his cheeks grow a little pinker.

There's moments when Wayne catches what he can only describe as a love struck expression across Steve's face. Eddie's talking, because when is he not, and Steve's there, eyes wide and locked onto Eddie's ever changing expression. 

He looks fond. Fond in a way Wayne's never seen anyone look at his nephew.

There's moments when he sees Steve hesitant. Moments when he and Eddie are so close and Steve's hand twitches like it wants to reach out. Moments when Steve looks like he wants to lean in but bites his lip and turns away with rosy cheeks.

It's nearly a year into their friendship when Steve's standing at Wayne's side and whispers, "I think I love him."

"Tell him," Wayne answers easily, leaving out the 'please' he so desperately wants to tack onto the end of that sentence.

Please, he thinks again as he watches Eddie turn to face them from across the yard, a smile so beautiful Wayne thinks it's the first time he's seen it on Eddie's face. The boy's elbow deep in his van as his cheeks grow a little pinker as he says with a smile, "Stevie, come here for a sec."

Steve leaves, but not before whispering back to Wayne, "I think I will."

No more than a week later Wayne comes home to find the boys on the couch, Steve sleeping and curled into Eddie's side, snoring with his nose pressed to Eddie's neck. 

Wayne offers his boy a smile as he stirs from the sound of the door closing. He looks tired, arms tightening around Steve's waist as he smiles back and burrows closer, kissing the top of Steve's head before drifting back off. 

"He loves me," Eddie says one evening, weeks down the road, a rare occasion when Steve isn't over, and Eddie's actually home.

Wayne smiles, his heart so warm and full as he says, "I know."

Steve's been over for a few weeks now. Part of Wayne's convinced he's moved in, what with the new additions to their fridge and bathroom vanity. The idea doesn't upset him in the least. 

He's gotten to witness their love grow during that time anyway.

He's gotten to witness the way Steve kisses a grumpy Eddie good morning until he finally smiles.

Or the way Eddie lights up when Steve's arms wrap around his waist and he whispers an "I love you, Eds," that Wayne isn't sure if he's supposed to hear.

Or the way they giggle and kiss and love one another in such a beautiful and uninhibited way.

Granted too, sometimes that means Wayne's hears a bit too much. Eddie would be mortified to know there's been far too many occasions in which Wayne's had to leave the trailer to escape the gasping breaths that occasionally pour out from under his bedroom door.

Though this time, Wayne's inside as the boys are on the roof smoking and he thanks the lord above that all he can hear are the faintest of whispers. 

There's only parts of the conversation that he catches, but his heart swells when he hears Eddie's voice so clearly say, "I'm gonna marry you someday, Steve Harrington."

Wayne cries the day Eddie shows him the ring. 

And cries even harder when Steve shows him his.

Steve's hand is shaking where the single golden band lies on his ring finger, Eddie standing directly behind him, arm around his waist with a smile that matches Steve's in the way it resembles Sunshine.

They can't marry, not legally anyways. But that doesn't stop Jim Hopper from officiating a ceremony or Joyce Byers from walking Steve down the aisle. 

The backyard to Hoppers cabin is filled with faces Wayne has grown familiar with over the years. Young and old, smiling and crying all the same.

Dustin and Robin both write speeches, both as rambling and as funny as they are beautifully heart wrenching.

There's not a dry eye in the house.

The boys move into an apartment where they build a life together.

Wayne visits often for meals or a cup of coffee in the mornings, still delighting in the way his Eddie seems so wonderfully overcome with love and affection. 

He'd thought he'd shed enough tears for his lifetime at the wedding, but one evening, sat at the table with Robin Buckley and his boys, Wayne finds out he's gonna be a grandpa. 

Elaine Birdie Munson is her name.

Sunshine, they call her instead.

[athletearrhythmia]

Needles coming up again

First wanted to reference back my thoughts on this from awhile ago:

but I also wanted to say some of the comments I'm seeing around aren't oriented to harm reduction, they're just tearing down people who engage in needle play and post it. Which is not going to save anyone. It's going to galvanize and sequester folks which will cascade into riskier behavior.

I guess what gets my goat about it especially is why I've pulled back from a good number of folks, which is engaging in dark cardio play as a means or extension of self harm. People know this stuff is dangerous and stupid, you don't need to remind them. That's not going to "wake them up". Some people by comparison just... like doing it. Neither case will respond to this approach.

I don't offer a definitive solution, i just don't vibe with yelling at people. I appreciate things like folks declaring that they'll disengage from the content: that I think does something.

So here's my additional thoughts to tack on to my last post:

If your perception of reckless behavior is that it doesn't matter because your life is so bad or meaningless that the consequences can't make it worse, you're depressed and you need help. Getting help isn't easy. But you need it.

If you feel a strong desire or need to do this for sexual gratification, you need to find healthier outlets. I struggle with this immensely myself. I'm open about liking and engaging with this content and some of its creators. The best I can do for myself is dark roleplay or using already existing content, and playing with generally safer dark play (which will always carry its own risk). The ideal would be to not find it gratifying. I don't know how to.

You should never engage with someone whose relationship to you is conditional on risking your health-- people you actually talk to or "fans" of your content. Anyone pressuring you to play with needles, especially when you're on the fence or have expressed you don't want to, doesn't have your best interests in mind. If you walk back wanting to do it, regardless of if you ever have done it, avoid the people who don't support your decision.

I'm never not going to end a public discussion of needle play without reemphasizing its danger. The possible bad outcomes are catastrophic and there's almost no way to mitigate the risk.

I'll add as well that the community has an obligation (IMO) to make sure newer or younger participants know how dangerous this kind of play is. Don't allow people to stay naive.

[doberbutts]

@quark-nova it's already a really long post because I blabbered on for a hot minute but I did want to keep talking so I seperated your tags out I hope that's ok

I have actually seen people do this about trans fems too and honestly I think it is exactly what you're saying- that people lack the idea of intersectionality and instead want to view oppression as additive or subtractive. I see people doing this the most when they are trying to frame something as progressive, when instead it is filled with a lot of bigoted language.

Like the example given of Blue Eye Samurai and a group of people claiming it's a racist and sexist problem of white trans mascs, ignoring the trans mascs of color (and even asian and *Japanese* trans mascs in their notes disagreeing with them), while the posts are filled with genuinely fairly TERF-y language. They say "no no I can't be a TERF I love and support my trans brothers and also I support trans fem Mizu headcanons" while also saying "trans men are stealing women's resources and making everything about them". They just tack "white" onto the second statement so you don't think too hard about the transphobia of that sentence.

I find this most transparent when someone asks for an explination of how a trans masc seeing themselves in Mizu is racist, because instead of an explination it's "oh my god white people always ask people of color to do the work instead of researching it themselves, why do you always want us to explain ourselves why can't you just listen to me". I understand where the frustration comes from because I've been on the receiving end of stupidass white people who refuse to actually absorb anything they've been told about racism, but also... don't start a discussion about race if you aren't willing to, you know, discuss. Because then it just becomes obvious that you're using it as weapon and shield and you're not actually interested in anything except an echo chamber that agrees with you and accepts anything you say.

[manic-sapphic]

~~absolutely love that adora kinda looks insulted when she demands prime let catra go and his response is "i'll give her to you - if you want her.."

i hear the look on her face saying "oooh you mf'er how dare you - ofc i want this btch why else would i be here ?? i want her and only her tbh - (i just don't know it yet but i will def doomslay ur entire flagship if u don't gimme this kitty fr")

- (every time i watch catra hold herself, just tryna keep from falling apart - i fall apart. just a teeny tiny bit. itty bitty shred of my jagged stone heart chips off, but idc tho - she's worth it <3)

( also - the way adora tries to stand but her legs give way beneath her is just another addition to the list of reasons it's all so heart breakingly gut wrenching [yee i combo'd the phrases - it feels warranted fr] cause the fact she can't stand tells the audience she's gotta be in a lot of pain too that is only healed after she suddenly transforms- and she's ignoring that pain, so focused on catra that we don't even see her react to it aside from being unable to stand.. damnit adora <3 )

~~sooo the promise moment really is just - ahhh. gets to me. i read it as this unspoken question that catra knows she doesn't need to explain - she just needs to say one word and knows adora will understand what she's truly asking -

"promise?" - i read this as catra not just asking if adora promises to take her home - but asking for a much deeper, broader hope of reinstating their first promise. to stick together and look out for each other.

a promise that was broken by both of them tbh but at this point catra decided to keep it for what she figured would be her last chance to do so in corridors, and then here in save the cat adora comes back and holds up her side of their promise as well.

after all that time apart as enemies, they each risked their lives and more and fulfilled a promise that seemed long forgotten. and i see catra here as putting forth a desperate, hopeful plea to agree on renewing that promise for good- and not just taking her home, but acknowledging that what home really means is the two of them staying together, no matter what.

and without hesitation, adora replies, "i promise."

she understands what catra's really asking; imo there are so many words that pass between them during and just after save the cat that are never actually said - thank you's and apologies and explanations that they mutually recognize and know the other feels and genuinely means w/o ever needing to make each other say it.

mistakes were made on both sides & they've both realized by then that sticking together was and always had been what they needed to do, cause they were finally starting to admit to themselves that what they both really needed all along, more than anything else, was each other. <3

ps i thought i'd tack on my previous rant about adora choosing to jump down after catra in save the cat cause that moment makes my heart implode every time~

(& cause when she does that - it's her keeping the promise that she had just restored. it's her determined refusal to ever, ever break it again - no matter what. even if it kills her - just like catra in the finale, fighting the monster and refusing to leave when adora tells her to. these lovelies would much rather die w each other than live without the other - and they definitely figure that out the hard way, but the only thing that really matters is that they do figure it out~~)

---jump in save the cat rant---

when adora chooses to jump down after catra, the fact that she is, innately, she-ra is still something adora has almost no clue of whatsoever. her expression lingers in the frame just before she throws herself down after catra, recalling the fixed look of equally determined resolve we see on catra’s own face in corridors when the decision to save glimmer (and, yes, most importantly to catra, save adora by extension) is cemented in her mind; a decision catra makes, mind you, not expecting to survive it. and imo, same goes for adora & this moment in save the cat.

adora chooses to follow catra into the darkness, despite her currently regarding her connection to she-ra as gone and having no expectation of manifesting the nearly invincible power she could rely on from being she-ra in the past (and therefore lacking any way to heal catra, even if she could get them both to safety, there’s no way she’s unaware that catra’s body is pretty much guaranteed to be broken beyond repair after the shock her nervous system got from prime when disabling the chip, coupled with the long fall.)

and to me - the most poignant thing this tells the audience about adora making this choice is that she didn’t leap down after catra because she was clinging to the hope that, somehow, she could still save her.

instead, she willingly fell to depths unknown, the landing completely obscured by shadows that she just watched consume catra, simply because she knew that catra would be down there all on her own, and there was absolutely no fucking way that adora wasn’t going to make damn sure she was there to hold her. even if that meant jumping after her and possibly dying down there together. it just meant that much to adora for catra not to have to face the end alone... i mean, wtf dude, it's jaw-dropping in the best way ever <3

[bimboficationblues]

2024 was a mixed bag. I spent a lot of it malding about my job, but fortunately I am no longer there and have a new one (family lawyer for DV survivors). Idk if I want to keep being a lawyer long term but rn I am making more money, doing more interesting (but potentially taxing) work, and hopefully it will level out to something either tolerable or useful.

long distance with my love is still sad, and we found that polyamory did not really alleviate those pressures, but we have taken some good steps towards a different approach, starting with a monogamy trial run. I found dating around mostly unpleasant despite some exciting possibilities throughout the year - very few people seem to really know what they want and act accordingly. ultimately poly started to feel like I was chasing after an ideal, and I do believe I’d enjoy that ideal. but when the process of pursuing it is so exhausting and unfun and crazy-making it just doesn’t seem worth it. the lesbian connections I found frequently ended because the other person started acting like an avoidant abject meow meow and I simply don’t have the patience.

as far as bringing the long distance to a close, I'm not sure how that’s gonna happen - I love Chicago and I don't want to leave my people. for the first time since maybe high school I do not feel fundamentally lonely and I think that's a feeling worth taking seriously. I've been really overjoyed by my various friendships, both near and far. but I miss my gf dearly. she has my heart. I don’t feel like I’ve ever loved or been loved like this. It’s a difficult situation.

I did get to travel a lot which was nice - this year in addition to regular Washington visits, including one to Olympic National Park, I also went to Barcelona, Toronto, Montreal, Cleveland, and Philadelphia. I am visiting my love's hometown currently and while I was kind of dreading it a bit it's turned out to be overall very pleasant and comforting and nice to see where she came from. Plus I did some visits to the family in SC.

speaking of which, I am feeling generally at ease with my parents. I feel like I've been able to accept that they are limited people, but not to such a degree that it makes being around them impossible, and they have also generally gotten cooler about a lot of things. we have a lot in common and it is generally fun to spend time with them despite their foibles. being able to do drugs together also helps. my dad turned 60 this year and my mom has been having health issues, which I do think has made entropy be on my mind a lot more to a troubling degree. dunno how I’ll handle that when it becomes a more pressing consideration but I guess that’s a problem for the future.

last January I made a conscious effort to approach my passions and hobbies more intentionally by making a daily schedule that roughly looked like this:

MONDAY - fiction reading; TUESDAY - history studies; WEDNESDAY - philosophy/political theory studies/writing; THURSDAY - working on music; FRIDAY - watching movies.

I also tried to get some daily activities going on top of all these - listening to at least one full album a day, regular walks, practicing guitar, yoga. keeping to this was inconsistent - sometimes I was locked in and sometimes I'd get derailed by other priorities (spending time with the love, seeing my lovely friends, getting stoned, travel). sometimes certain activities are just easier (reading comics is always fun and also minimally demanding of my energy, social media and doomscrolling is a tempting time-sink). I might try and revise this approach in some ways - I might want to take a harder tack with how much time I want to spend on each activity - but I do think that even just being deliberate and structured about how I spend my time made my mental state significantly stronger. so that is a positive development.

artistically I've made progress on the album, but I never feel like I have enough time to dedicate to it with work and everything else. but I also think my approach of trying to write all the songs first before recording them was the wrong one. so instead I think I'm going to start trying to get what I've roughly finished into a recorded form and in the process a stronger vision of the project will emerge which will help with future songs. this will require me to learn some new skills - I've always worked with a producer before - but that's not a bad thing. my friends and I are also doing a writing workshop so that will be nice to get feedback from people I love and trust.

social media has been real bad for me this past year in a kind of emotionally masochistic way - I found myself hatereading a lot more, which is bad. I’m hoping I can adjust that this year and stop getting brain damage from pissing myself off.

part of the reason for the above is that the political situation domestically and globally is dire and basically I just see cope or rationalization everywhere which, considering the urgency and scope and existential weight of what’s happening, is really infuriating to me. I feel like after a year of some of the most depraved inhuman butchery imaginable, as the ruling class takes refuge in obvious bad faith that is “all the more odious because it is less and less likely to deceive,” and with Hitleritis running rampant through civil society, we need a sober reflection on the challenge ahead of us as socialists. I do not want the ruling class to annihilate the rest of us with them or for capital to find new, intensified, and more insidious methods of shifting crisis around. this is partly why anti-intellectual, regressive forms of Marxism have been stuck in my craw lately, because it feels like psychological palliatives masquerading as politics. I’m not sure what the move is to really turn the tides of the war we are in, but doing away with self-deceiving political impulses seems like a start.

[room-surprise]

Dungeon Meshi Anime Review, Season 2, Episode 19 review

Izutsumi arrives! And Marcille has a nightmare.

This is an interesting episode but I know my spouse and I had desperately hoped that they would re-organize things somehow. Marcille's plot in this feels painfully tacked on and unrelated to Izutsumi's introduction, and the concept of the nightmare is so good, it could have easily been expanded to be an entire episode on its own. I wish they'd done that. They could have paired Izu's intro with the ice golem story to have one all-Izutsumi episode and then one all-Marcille episode... alas.

Those are changes I would have LIKED to see, but here's some changes I didn't like:

(MAJOR MANGA AND ANIME SPOILERS BELOW THE CUT!!!)

Trigger removed Laios' mother's only speaking line in the manga. It would have taken SO LITTLE to have someone read this single sentence, and removing it, in my opinion, has a negative impact on the story as a whole.

It SOUNDS like a generic thing when she asks Laios "When will you give us grandchildren?" But this is actually really important. Laios is afraid of being forced to make a family and participate in society. This is unusual because he's a man, most men in a historic time period of this don't really care about such things, but Laios is so afraid of it, it's a recurring nightmare!

This is also why he acted so weird seeing a loving father/baby scene in the magic paintings chapter. He hated seeing a father talk about how much they love their baby.

Laios is named after a story about murdering your children before they can hurt you. Like an Oedipus Complex supposedly means that a son wants to have sex with his mother, a Laios Complex means a man wants to kill his sons. Kui did not pick this name and then have Laios repeatedly be uncomfortable with children, marriage and fatherhood for no reason.

Obviously Trigger didn't make any of these connections and so they didn't think it was necessary for Laios' mom to speak this line out loud, but I vehemently disagree.

This is similar to my beef with them removing Yarn Floke's only dialog in the story and removing her from the scene with the Island Governor. That moment told us that Mr. and Mrs. Floke were equal partners, and now anime watchers assume she's just his wife who doesn't do anything. That sucks.

The addition of paintings of Marcille's father in the nightmare. Woof. I really don't care for this, if they wanted to do it i would have preferred it if they'd obscured the paintings somehow so it wasn't obvious that Marcille's father wasn't an elf.

I think this makes the later reveal of her half-elf status WAY less surprising.

Also, in the manga, the complete silence around her father created a strong subtext that Marcille's mother was her only parent that mattered. They could still accomplish this but I think it won't be as shocking.

People reading the manga probably thought "her dad was an elf and he died young and that traumatized her" (this is what Laios assumes I'm sure)

People watching the anime will think "her dad was a tall-man and his natural death of old age is what traumatized her" which is true, but they aren't supposed to actually know that yet...

Overall the episode was good aside from these issues. I liked that the nightmare sequence was in black and white, and the transition to color at the end was spectacular and very impactful... But part of me wishes they had done something else to differentiate the nightmare state from the normal animation. The black and white was good, but almost too subtle because the DM palette is already so desaturated.

[cheezeybread]

Back to our regularly scheduled Alice-asking with Anon McGee.

After playing the game for a few hours and getting through some stuff, I have some thoughts. None in particular for any sort of request [although, at the time of writing this specific part, I am unsure of if I'll tack one onto the beginning of this ask [I did not]. I am also unsure of if it will be related at all], but they're still interesting and maybe can be used for this stuff going forward [for as long as I keep requesting such self indulgent things].

1. Teeth are a currency. Not a whole lot to do with that one, but it is incredibly strange to me even still.

2. Many of the enemies are made visibly of this black, ink-like ooze. Not all of them, but a good majority of them. I feel this means overblots may cause additional layers of stress because of the implications it might cause [something to do with the fact that this inky substance was what corrupted Alice's wonderland, it sounds like it COULD be taken as a physical representation of that same kind of corruption, and the overblotter going literally insane. Could be good oneshot fuel?]

3. Alice is actually SUPER chill in the environment of the wonderland aside from when it's actively trying to kill her [although the reaction does not necessarily have to apply to the reader character we've been using as a stressball for these scenarios, I think it's pretty interesting and likely means that the initial reaction to the students of Heartslaybyul would be void should I have known prior to this that wonderland was actually pretty alright and fine for the most part]

4. Another minor detail that doesn't really mean a lot, but in the Hatter's domain, there's flamingos all over the place. While I was exploring, I saw several just sort of Around. In cages, hung up on walls, some- upon entry- were on those like.. Spitroasters or whatever they are. Many were on wheels being forced to run to give power to some machinery. They all looked pretty... Not alive, though. Also, they were strangely dodo shaped, but that's neither here nor there.

That's all I have for the moment regarding that! Feel free to take it and run however you want, I can't think of any specific request I can give relating to any of these except for the overblot one

Dang, this game sounds absolutely vicious, I love it XD

I need to take your mind and put it in a little glass jar filled with water to observe it (meant in a positive way). Maybe shake it around some to see what kinda scenarios pop out.

But the best I can come up with are some *. * ·imagines*. * · to keep your brain occupied for now

Imagine an MC who- in every single fight they get dragged into (which is an awful lot in the game lmao)- stays behind for a moment to collect some of the teeth punched out by spells and fists. The broken ones that are cracked aren't worth much, they say to their friends who ask what they're doing, but the whole teeth can buy you a lot of good things. Much to the horror of the Twisted Wonderland students, it's eventually realized that MC thinks that teeth are a currency here. They don't know why, but can only speculate that it's from the same issues from before... Riddle eventually ends up begging (or as close to begging as he can get-) for Azul to tell you about Twisted Wonderland's currency. Horrified yet intrigued by your grotesque idea of money, Azul teaches you about merfolk economics, as well as the thaumarks people use on land...of course, he's going to try and get you to explain the whole "teeth currency" thing to him, and what makes one tooth worth more than others.

The inky enemies would actually make for a KILLER oneshot, I might have to write something along the lines of it one day... Maybe Twisted Wonderland (or at least, the part that held the Queen of Hearts in it) and Alice's Wonderland are two sides of the same coin...? While they're both in different dimensions (maybe even parallel to one another!), they're both similar. The main difference was that Alice's Wonderland is isolated from the rest of the world, while "Twisted Wonderland" had different cultures and societies to expand with? The isolation caused some in Alice's Wonderland to "Overblot" (or, at least, some form of it) and become enemy bosses. So maybe Overblots are slightly different in each world, but they're still present!

Imagine an MC who (after having a few breakdowns at first regarding Heartslabyul) eventually calms down...to the point where everyone gets extremely worried about them. Riddle accidentally says "Off with your head!" to an unruly student within their earshot, but MC is so chill that they look...almost zoned out, their eyes glazed over. Like they're in a completely different world. As the overblots go on throughout their stay in Twisted Wonderland, MC's calm demeanor only gets worse. They don't seem to react hardly at all to- well, anything. It's like they've just accepted where they are and the danger they're in.

Mmm short and squat dodo-like flamingos. I like to think that our poor MC, after first seeing the flamingos in Heartslabyul, didn't actually see them, but saw their not-quite-alive bodies wandering around, some being roasted over a fire, others lurking ominously behind bushes, some in cages. All some form of injured or deadish. It would most definitely take a while until MC could see the creatures as they truly were (that is, alive and well, and most definitely not so creepy), but until then, they take it in stride. No one even knows how MC sees the flamingos until they offhandedly mention it one day, and Cater's just like "....no?? Why would we be roasting flamingos???"

[fuck-customers]

This is kind of an overly specific but also vague one at the same time but idk what to do abt it lol so I figure I'd ask here if it's even illegal before escalating or contacting OSHA or whatever place I'm supposed to for this.

Okay so background my store is a big chain, and they got in trouble a few years back for how they did "on call" shifts. They'd have ppl scheduled for "on call" or "call in" which meant u call before heading in to see if they need u or not. If yes u go in and work the shift, if not u just don't work that day, no pay or anything.

They switched to a slightly different way for it now, where they tack on the "call in" hours at the end of a shift instead of it being the whole shift. So u don't know until partway thru ur shift whether it's a 6hr shift or an 8hr shift. They'll come up and be like "we're keeping ur extension today" or "we're not keeping ur extension today".

Idk if it's still illegal cause it's 1)partial shifts r affected rather than the entire shift and 2)they inform u at work rather than u clearing ur day and calling before even heading in and 3)they do adjust relevent breaks based on whether ur extension is kept or not (6hr u get a 15, 8hr u get an additional 30)

Is this illegal? I don't want to try to report it and end up wasting OSHAs time or worse getting fired

I'm honestly not sure. It doesn't sound right but I would suggest you call your local labor board and ask them if that's legal.

-Rodney

[cleonap]

Gauntlet at the Garden Tix

Hello everyone! I recently was able to get closer D20 tickets, so I will be selling my old ones for the original presale price, no fees involved. I'd rather not just put them back up on TicketMaster, as I want to make sure they do not get any additional fees tacked on top of them. They are Section 218, Row BS6, Seats 21 and 22 (unfortunately I do not think they are wheelchair accessible as they are seemingly stool-top seating, but it does look like there is a table in front of them if that is a plus for you). Please DM me if you're interested; if you only need one seat, I also am open to selling them one apiece!

Here's a link to what the view might look like (though I obviously don't know how Dropout is staging it beyond the central circular stage): https://aviewfrommyseat.com/venue/Madison+Square+Garden/218/BS6/

[moviewarfare]

A Review of “Squid Game Season 2 (2024)”

In 2021, Squid Game became a cultural phenomenon. I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought it was a great addition to the Battle Royale genre. The story does end on a mild cliffhanger that feels like it was tacked on because Netflix wanted to make it a franchise. Now here we are in 2024, with another season of Squid Game. Does it live up to the hype?

Despite feeling like the creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk was forced to make more seasons of Squid Game, he does not half-ass it. He does push this season in new directions and adds new elements to make the story exciting. For example, they added a new rule to the games by making it so they can vote to leave with the current money after each game. This new rule is a fun addition as it creates an exciting rift between characters who want to go and those who don't. Turning Gi-Hun from a scummy guy in Season 1 into an all-good hero sounds bad on paper. However, it adds a new layer to the games as Gi-Hun now has new challenges with his knowledge. He faces ordeals such as convincing others to stop, knowing what agendas the higher-ups intend for them and figuring out ways to escape with the others.

Of course, there are new games in season 2 and they are still very entertaining to watch. I also appreciate that the games this time aren't as focused on physical strength and more on skill. I also appreciate that there is some new world-building as well. We get to see more about what the recruiters are and how one ends up being a pink-masked guard. The set design and costumes are mostly the same as it was in season 1 but it is great that they were still able to replicate the same feel from season 1. Jung Jae-il returns as the music composer and he continues to deliver a great score.

Unfortunately, my biggest gripe with season 2 is that the contestants just aren't as likeable as those in season 1. We got to see how many contestants lives were like outside of the game and even the reasons why they were entering the games. This made us care about them and it was why it hurt when they died. This is not the case in season 2 because the only characters we spend with outside the games are Gi-Hun and the police officer, Hwang Jun-ho. We never get to spend much time with the other contestants and at times when they mention their reasons, it is usually in a small quick dialogue. The show also does a jarring thing where they introduce an interesting character that you want to know more of, only to kill them very anti-climatically. On that note, I genuinely believe that the wrong characters died in this season. These characters would have been more interesting if they were kept alive.

In terms of story, I do have some gripes. There is a subplot with one of the pink guards which ends up going absolutely nowhere in season 2. Additionally, the police storyline continues to be dull and predictable like in season 1. Furthermore, there is a loss of meaningful messages and themes. Season 1 had interesting social commentary on inequality but season 2 tosses all of that in favour of good guy vs evil corporation. The story in season 2 also feels like half the complete story with an extremely jarring ending. It feels like they split the full story into part 1 with season 2 and then part 2 with season 3.

Despite it all, I do still find season 2 entertaining to watch. While it isn't as good as season 1, I do think it is an enjoyable enough sequel. Hopefully, season 3 will be a satisfying conclusion.

For more reviews like this visit:

https://moviewarfarereviews.blogspot.com/

[hedgiwithapen]

Blue Valley metakitties?

Set in season 3 Mike and Jakeem brought the box to the Pitstop, because this was a Justice Society Issue to handle. 

"And because I don't think Buddy would like having his house over run," Mike tacked on to the explanation. Pat peeked in the box and sighed. 

"So we can overrun the pitstop instead? Mike, where did you even find this many kittens?"

Beth frowned. "Illegal dumping of feral cats in the woods has decreased 25% over the last three years, but--"

"Yeah, no, I didn't find them in the woods," Mike interrupted.

"Thunderbolt brought them to us!" Jakeem added helpfully. 

Pat took a step back. "He what?"

"He said they were highly recommended as problem solvers! I don't think they can help us solve the murder, though." Jakeem stuck his finger in the box and yelped as an orange kitten bit his finger. 

"No, I don't think... kittens.... can help with that. Look, Jakeem, why don't you just take them--"

"Awwww," Courtney peeked in the box and without waiting even for a moment scooped up a fuzzy tabby kitten. "You're so cute! Yes you are! Yes you--wow!"

The kitten wriggled out of her grip, but instead of dropping to the cement floor, she did not do that. 

"Right," said Pat. "The Thunderbolt kittens can fly. Because of course they can. Beth?"

"Sorry, Mr. Dugan. Chuck's never seen anything like this."

"I'm keeping her," Courtney said. "I'm gonna name her Sparkle." 

Mike pretended to gag. 

"I think technically she's Jakeem's," Beth pointed out. Jakeem shook his head emphatically, "No, no, keep her. My parents say I'm not responsible enough for a pet. Everyone can have one. Are you sure you don't want the orange guy? He keeps biting me."

"I'll pass," Courtney said, scooping up Sparkle again. Sparkle wiggle free again and climbed to perch on Courtney's head. "Oh, you like to be tall, huh?"

"Hey Mike?" Jakeem asked after a moment. " Weren't there more kittens?"

"Awww, shoot."

They found one of them at the Shade's house, chewing on a shrubbery. Another,  possibly the same bitey orange kitten, Yolanda managed to grab off the bridge before a car came. She scolded it gently, and it returned the favor by trying to steal her hairtie. 

 A third turned out to be Sparkle, again, who'd gotten herself stuck on the roof, and wouldn't come down, floating out of reach even when Courtney went up there on Cosmo. 

"What is this?" Cindy asked them when Jakeem and Mike turned up at her house to let her know about the Recent Additions to the Young Allstars. She pointed down. The tiniest kitten, a black fluffy thing that looked up at her with enormous eyes, sat on her shoe. It was roughly the size and shape of the pom-poms on winter hats worn by people like Beth Chapel. 

"Uh... a kitten?" Mike said. "Jakeem wished for them."

"I did not! I wished for assistance! The Thunderbolt decided that meant kittens, not me."

"I know what a kitten is, I'm not stupid," Cindy said. "Why is it on my shoe?"

Mike reached down. The kitten hissed at him and climbed up Cindy's skinny jeans. Automatically Cindy shifted her arm so it wouldn't fall and shred her. The kitten had Teeth.

"Why is it vibrating?" she asked, suddenly concerned. "Did it break?"

"I think that means she likes you," Jakeem said, beaming. 

"Yeah, she's purring. it means she feels safe."

"Why?" Cindy asked again. She pet the little kitten’s head with one finger. "If anything happens to her, I'm burning this entire town to the ground."

"Noted," Mike said.

The orange kitten wriggled out of the box again, and took off down the street, tail high.

[little-annie]

Watching You Fall in Love (is My Greatest Achievement)

Steddie Fic | Wayne POV | Little_Annie | Ao3

---

"You love him don't you?" Wayne whispers, breathy, quiet, his voice cracking around the edges of something that feels like raw emotion.

It's then that Eddie turns his gaze away from Steve to look at him, the light never fading from his eyes and the smile never wiping from his face.

Steve's sitting on the trailer floor, in the middle of the living room, Eddie's clothes hanging from his body as he flips through one of Eddie's many monster manuals. Wayne knows the boy would never admit it, but he's just as interested in D&D as the other kids. He's helping Eddie plan his next campaign for christ sake.

Next to Wayne, two cans of coke in hand and a love struck smile on his face, Eddie nods, his cheeks darkening as his smile ever so slightly fades. "Is that okay?" He asks, looking all the bit nervous as his eyes roam Wayne's face.

"More than okay Son."

Eddie's smile brightens once again and if Wayne notices the small amount of tears welling in his eyes, he says nothing about.

"You ever going to tell him?" Wayne continues, nodding in Steve's direction, the boy still oblivious to the conversation being whispered behind his back.

"I don't know if I can."

Wayne says nothing to Eddie's reply as he watches the boy return to the living room where he sits down next to his best friend. Steve smiling bright as the sun upon Eddie's return.

��

Months go by and Wayne gets to watch as Steve falls too. It's there and so obvious to anyone but Eddie.

His eyes linger and his smile never fades. Soon Wayne sees as he sits a little closer and his cheeks grow a little darker.

There's moments when Wayne catches what he can only describe as a love struck expression across Steve's face. Eddie's talking, because when is he not, and Steve's there, eyes wide and locked onto Eddie's ever changing expression. 

He looks fond. Fond in a way Wayne's never seen anyone look at his nephew.

There's moments when he sees Steve hesitant. Moments when he and Eddie are so close and Steve's hand twitches like it wants to reach out. Moments when Steve looks like he wants to lean in but bites his lip and turns away with rosy cheeks.

—

It's nearly a year into their friendship when Steve's standing at Wayne's side and whispers, "I think I love him."

"Tell him," Wayne answers easily, leaving out the 'please' he so desperately wants to tack onto the end of that sentence.

Please, he thinks again as he watches Eddie turn to face them from across the yard, a smile so beautiful Wayne thinks it's the first time he's seen it on Eddie's face. The boy's elbow deep in his van as his cheeks grow a little pinker as he says with a smile, "Stevie come here for a sec."

Steve leaves, but not before whispering back to Wayne, "I think I will."

—

No more than a week later Wayne comes home to find the boys on the couch, Steve sleeping and curled into Eddie's side, snoring with his nose pressed to Eddie's neck. 

Wayne offers his boy a smile as he stirs from the sound of the door closing. He looks tired, arms tightening around Steve's waist as he smiles back and burrows closer, kissing the top of Steve's head before drifting back off. 

—

"He loves me," Eddie says one evening, weeks down the road, a rare occasion when Steve isn't over and Eddie's actually home.

Wayne smiles, his heart so warm and full as he says, "I know."

—

Steve's been over for a few weeks now. Part of Wayne's convinced he's moved in, what with the new additions to their fridge and bathroom vanity. The idea doesn't upset him in the least. 

He's gotten to witness their love grow during that time anyway.

He's gotten to witness the way Steve kisses a grumpy Eddie good morning until he finally smiles.

Or the way Eddie lights up when Steve's arms wrap around his waist and he whispers an "I love you Eds," that Wayne isn't sure if he's supposed to hear.

Or the way they giggle and kiss and love one another in such a beautiful and uninhibited way.

Granted too, sometimes that means Wayne's hears a bit too much. Eddie would be mortified to know there's been far too many occasions in which Wayne's had to leave the trailer to escape the gasping breaths that occasionally pour out from under his bedroom door.

Though this time, Wayne's inside as the boys are on the roof smoking and he thanks the lord above that all he can hear are the faintest of whispers. 

There's only parts of the conversation that he catches, but his heart swells when he hears Eddie's voice so clearly say, "I'm gonna marry you someday Steve Harrington."

—

Wayne cries the day Eddie shows him the ring. 

And cries even harder when Steve shows him his.

Steve's hand is shaking where the single golden band lies on his ring finger, Eddie standing directly behind him, arm around his waist with a smile that matches Steve's in the way it resembles Sunshine.

They can't marry, not legally anyways. But that doesn't stop Jim Hopper from officiating a ceremony or Joyce Byers from walking Steve down the aisle. 

The backyard to Hoppers cabin is filled with faces Wayne has grown familiar with over the years. Young and old, smiling and crying all the same.

Dustin and Robin both write speeches, both as rambling and as funny as they are beautifully heart wrenching.

There's not a dry eye in the house.

—

The boys move into an apartment where they build a life together.

Wayne visits often for meals or a cup of coffee in the mornings, still delighting in the way his Eddie seems so wonderfully overcome with love and affection. 

He'd thought he'd shed enough tears for his lifetime at the wedding, but one evening, sat at the table with Robin Buckley and his boys, Wayne finds out he's gonna be a grandpa. 

Elaine Birdie Munson is her name.

Sunshine, they call her instead.

---

Ao3⤵️

[space-specs]

Your Guide To Voting in 2024

Yes, you may feel like everything is horrible and hopeless, and you don't want to vote. I'm here to not do that, and give you tips and info on why. Ultimately, I do not care what you actually vote only that you try to go and fill out something.

Make Sure You Are Registered to Vote

Check your registration status. This site has a drop down to select your state, which will link you to the website to check and see if you're registered.

Not registered? Go here. This site will tell you how to get registered in your state and will link you directly to the online registration if your state offers it.

Make sure you have a government issued photo ID. Driver's license, state ID, passport, etc. Many states require to you to present some form of ID to vote. Find out what counts in your state (and exceptions and provisional ballot rules) here.

Know you'll have difficulty making it to the ballot box? Check the rules for voting by mail/absentee voting in your state and see if you qualify.

Look up your sample ballot ahead of time! Lots of places provide a sample ballot which allows you to see what all the issues are ahead of time. Since this will vary by local elections, the best way to this is to look up "[your county name] sample ballot", possibly with the year tacked on to the end of the search. This may not be available until closer to election day, but it is a great way to get prepared for voting.

Other Voting Tips

This is where I get into the bit where it matters more to me that you vote than who you vote for. This is a personal principle of mine: everyone has the right to vote regardless of if I agree with what you choose to do with that vote.

You do not have to fill out every box on the ballot. You can leave some blank! Don't want to vote on President this year? Fine! Only want to vote on President and don't want to research other issues? Also fine. In fact, you can turn in a completely blank ballot if you want, and that is a political action, too. (Tip: parties note a blank box on issues because it indicates to them you were dissatisfied with your options)

You can bring notes with you! Too many issues to keep track of? Write yourself a note, print out a sample ballot and fill it out in advance to copy over, finding a voting guide and print it. As long as it is ON PAPER, you can bring it with you. (I verified this is universally allowed here)

Don't know where to start on research? The sample ballot is a great place to start just looking up candidates, but I also recommend checking out your local chapter of League of Women Voters. They put out a voters guides for each election that list pros and cons to various issues on the ballot.

The most important and most neglected elections are your local ones. Real grassroots change might be possible in your city, if you pay attention. Too overwhelmed by all this? Pick a few local issues to focus on, like the school board or city council. My city passed a trans-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance in a red state because people rallied around a handful of progressive city council members that swayed the vote. Even if everything feels hopeless, you make things better for yourself and your loved ones by actively engaging in your local politics.

Remember it's voting AND not voting OR. I know a lot of people are extremely dissatisfied with their options for this year's election, especially at the national level. Don't stop doing what you're doing. Don't stop protesting and boycotting and donating and talking about the things that matter to you. Get involved in your community. Find ways to make a difference. But also, go vote. Please.

Thank you for reading this. I hope something in here was helpful for you, and if it was, please consider reblogging this so that others can find it as well. If I've forgotten anything important, I welcome any helpful additions and will do my best to reblog those or add them to the original post as needed!

[olderthannetfic]

If I plan for a ship to become a thing in the story 60 chapters in (it's 70), it's not the main focus and it's mostly going to built up to as a friendship prior, should I tag it? I feel like people who want to read about the ship are going to be disappointed by it if they click on the thing and there's 0% ship content. And while I don't know a ton about tagging etiquette, I feel like false advertising is definitely in bad taste. At the same time, if people want to avoid that ship, not tagging it seems like a dick move. You're much more knowledgeable about these things than most - what's the correct move, here?

--

I would typically tag it since the friendship is featured and the romance is endgame. People who ship a thing not as hatesex will typically see the progression of the friendship as part of the shippy vibes, not as a separate thing.

But it does depend on the fandom, the ship, and the tone and content of the fic.

If this thing is basically gen casefic with an "Oh yeah, they got married in the background" tacked onto it, I might stick a mention of the ship in the additional tags, depending on the norms in that fandom.

I would not worry about people avoiding the ship so much. I'd focus more on the people who would want to read this fic and what they'd find useful in the tags.

[whatever-letmebe]

KinnPorsche fic rec!

Okay, so I've just spent half the night and then most of today reading this fic and it's so fricking good, I have to share it with you!

It's a Kim/Porsche, "what if Porsche and Kim met a few years before canon at university"-AU. And that would already be great. But it's so much more, y'all. It's also an exploration of childhood trauma and the trauma that comes from growing up neurodivergent, about having to come to terms with the fact that maybe your childhood was kind of fucked up actually and maybe you didn't deserve any of the shit that hapened to you? It's about complicated sibling relationships but also loving sibling relationships. It has mystery. It has romance and not just between Kim and Porsche but also Chay and Macau and maybe, just maybe, Kinn and Tae some time in the distant future? It has Kim who's very likely autistic and Porsche who's diagnosed ADHD and Chay who has anxiety and those are not traits just tacked onto the characters but things that influence every single moment of these characters lives, like this is how they are, they are always neurodivergent, not only when the plot allows or demands it. It has awesome, three-dimensional, fully fleshed out OCs that you will fall in love with and if anything happens to them, I don't know how I would recover. It's a perfect blend of angst and fluff, of domesticity and crime. (Some triggering stuff and please be aware that this is a WIP tagged as "Chose not to use archive warnings". If you're worried about anything specific, I can give you specific warnings.) One final note: I know many of us have methods to quickly determine if we want to continue reading a fic or move on to another one. If you usually dismiss stories with typos or fics that switch between tenses, you might not feel like giving this one a chance but that would be a mistake! Trust me, the characterisation and storyline more than makes up for the few missing words here and there.

So what are you waiting for??? Go and start reading it now!

in a different life (173998 words) by pierogipete Chapters: 34/? Fandom: KinnPorsche: The Series (TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Porsche Pachara Kittisawat/Kim Khimhant Theerapanyakun, Porchay Pichaya Kittisawat & Kim Khimhant Theerapanyakun Characters: Kim Khimhant Theerapanyakun, Porsche Pachara Kittisawat, Porchay Pichaya Kittisawat Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, slice of life interpersed with mafia shenanigans, character study of kim, watch kim grow from awkward moody teen to cool moody popstar, University, author gives kim a friend group because he deserves it, and also bodyguards, Author has ADHD and it shows, neurodivergent characters, Not Beta Read, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon-Typical Behavior, adhd!porsche Series: Part 1 of in a different life Summary: Kim and Porsche meet in university, years before canon. Kim is an awkward teen, stepping out on his own for the first time, and Porsche is an overworked student, just trying to make ends meet. Can Kim build the life of his dreams with his family name constantly looming over him? Can Porsche learn to let go, let someone take care of him for a change? And maybe, just maybe, can they find love and happiness along the way? (i.e. author became obsessed with the idea of Kim/Porsche and built an expansive au to make it happen. come join me in this journey of madness :) ) Chapter 34 coming July 21

[haedraulics]

I know you didn’t really like the “violence is inevitable” thing in AOT but , isn’t it true tho? The world unfortunately really is like that, no matter how many times we go back in history, look at the current world situation, I think it was pretty realistic from Isayama to depict the world of aot like that, it’s disappointing because of how much it comes close to reality imo

What I do agree with is how Eren is forgiven, especially in the fandom, like 💀💀

But I think the destruction in Paradis happened exactly because of that, because the world never forgave Eren and the Jaegerists for the genocide

Also, no hate, I just wanted to share my own view lol

helloo sorry for taking so long to reply to this, i'm ridiculously slow with my inbox 💀

i have two things to say about this, the first is that i'm skeptical that isayama genuinely wanted to tell a story about the inevitability of violence, and the second is that a theme in fiction reflecting some aspects of reality doesn't then make it interesting or well-written.

i raise the first point because of characters like kenny and gabi, who undergo major development because their dependence on violence is challenged by a show of compassion from another character (in kenny's case, from uri; in gabi's case, from the braun family). to me these characters indicate that the author wants to convey optimism about the power of human relations, regardless of how extreme or cruel the circumstances are. rather than, 'violence is inevitable', these stories convey that, 'violence is not more powerful than compassion'.

the way the epilogue goes, it renders these previous themes nigh meaningless. of course, states don't follow the same emotional logic as interpersonal relationships, but then it makes me question: what was the point of the additional pages? why did armin's final pages profess his conviction in the efficacy of communication and ambassadorship?

why, instead, wasn't his last page him getting shot and killed after stepping off the boat? if the intention was to convey 'the inevitable tragedy of violence'.

the reason why is because i don't think that was actually the message isayama wanted to tell, but rather, it was damage control for an ending that awkwardly failed to convey consequences for eren's actions. eren kills 80% of humanity, but all the main character's parents survive, and so do they. eren kills 80% of humanity, but his friends tearfully express their gratitude for his good intentions, and presumably live out long and peaceful lives.

in an ending with plot contrivances this inane, an author might want to bring some 'realism' back into his story. therefore, the civilizational collapse of paradis is not an earnest contribution to the messages of aot, but just tacked-on course correction.

in aot it's not 'violence is inevitable', it's 'violence is inevitable for you filthy side characters'. which is really sad, because ramzi was the protagonist of his own story, too.

additionally, i want expand on why a theme being 'realistic' doesn't actually make it interesting. 'violence is inevitable' is like saying 'racism is inevitable'. sure, a cursory glance at global history can prove that people have been ravaged by ethnic and national prejudice, that it's ongoing today, and it will probably persist twenty years from now. but is it inevitable? what utility does that statement have, if not to resign ourselves to making less meaningful attempts at improvement?

a story does not reveal anything truthful about the human condition by neglecting to mention our capacity for forgiveness. at times, aot is very capable at telling such a story that balances both cruelty and compassion, but for some reason is intensely clumsy at scaling up these themes to the level of states and state conflict (marley, for example, is a horribly developed setting). therefore i often feel that rather than the epilogue telling a pessimistic story about humanity, it tells a pessimistic story about statehood. but maybe that's a topic for another post hehe

thanks anon for the interesting ask!