#i hope this helps someone <3

[thengrace]

25 things I learned at 25.

Heartbreak really sucks, but it will teach you priceless lessons.

The best way to get over something is to feel it. Don't distract, don't try to intellectualize, we have to sit with all the hard feelings.

There is still time to make friends - the world doesn't end after you graduate college.

Make time to be still - this is one of the most important practices of Jesus and without it, we become restless, flustered, and irritable.

Pray unceasingly - this means in every breath, in every moment, God is always listening.

Pray about the small things, not just the big things. Because God is the God everything, not one thing is unimportant to Him.

It's okay if you are not experiencing things the same way others are - we are all different and there is no point in trying to make yourself feel the same way as other people do.

Sadness and heartbreak are not things that you get over in a couple weeks, or even a month. Be patient with the process of grief.

Heartbreak is a type of grief, grief of a life you had envisioned, a relationship you had enjoyed, a person that you had in your life.

People may not be in your life anymore, but there will always be pieces of them that stick with you.

God doesn't change - and that truth will ground you more than anything.

You deserve the same compassion and empathy that you show others.

Trust your intuition - if it doesn't feel good, if you feel like something is off, trust it. You know yourself best.

It's okay to struggle, stop putting this pressure upon yourself to be "perfect."

Putting yourself out there is so hard but it will be worth it in the end.

We must acknowledge the disappointments, the heartbreaks, how can you continue to run if you are bleeding?

God is close, even when you are doing anything you can to avoid facing Him, to avoid being honest with Him, God already knows your heart. And He still remains with you.

It's okay to make mistakes, it's okay to do things that you regret now, have compassion on the part of yourself that felt like that was the best option at the time.

Good people are still out there and you will know exactly who they are when you meet them. A good friend will never make you question your worth.

Make time for God, no matter what is going on in your life. The time we make for God will cause everything else to fall into place, but He must be the foundation.

Talk to God constantly - whether you are driving for 5 minutes, or whether you are stuck in traffic, God is found in every moment and He is the friend that we desperately need.

The waiting is painful but it's far better than short-term gratification.

Open up to people, be honest, be vulnerable, there is strength is letting our guard down with people who care about us.

Loneliness is so difficult, but the moment that we acknowledge it, it will become less heavy.

We need God so much, without Him, everything falls apart.

[soosoosoup]

more treasure planet au (ft. Bruce & Viva!)

[sableeira]

please humor my self-indulgent artwork for the historical AU I mentioned like half a year ago and finally started writing. Detective Dazai and swordsman-for-hire Chuuya teaming up to solve crime cases during the Meiji period ✨

close-up because after a decade on this website I still haven’t figured out how to get images to look sharp

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

ORV is about enduring the horrors in real time.

(for @everyonesfavoritebastard)

[3rinbkk]

jungkook’s masterlist💗

SERIES 

risqué by @mercurygguk - on going

genre: age gap au, angst, smut, fluff. summary: in which Jungkook struggles to keep his relationship with you strictly appropriate and it’s not like you’re making it easy for him. 

runaway by @archivedkookie - on going

genre: best friend’s brother au, fwb, 4 years age gap, smut, angst, fluff, slow burn. summary: when your best friend’s brother, your first-ever crush, offers to help you explore your sexual desires, you just can’t refuse. especially when it’s someone as irresistible as Jeon Jungkook. 

mutual help  by @personasintro - on going

genre: fluff, angst, smut, slow burn, fake dating au.  summary: in order for you to pretend to be his girlfriend, he helps you with your sexual desires– he calls it a mutual help. 

bad influence by @noteguk

summary: in which you know Jungkook is a bad influence on you, but you can’t avoid falling for him every time.

practice by @chryblossomjjk

genre: college au, fwb, smut, fluff, angst. 

blackout by @jjungxkook

genre: best friends to lovers, roommate and college au, fluff, crack, smut. summary: utility bills shooting up like this should be an international crime. luckily, Jungkook has the perfect idea(s) to save up money and make your night sinfully unforgettable. 

the dilf installments  by @mercurygguk - on going

genre: established relationship, smut, angst, fluff. summary: this series follows Jungkook’s life as a divorced father. but wait, how exactly does one balance being a father, a boyfriend, a friend, and a respectable boss at the same time?

to turn a bad thing good  by @chateautae - on going

genre: series, arranged marriage!au, fwb!au, haters to lovers, smut, fluff, angst.  summary: Jungkook’s drunken one night stand goes awry when he comes to learn not only is he being forced into an arranged marriage, but it’s to the very girl he abandoned that night– and things get a lot more complicated when you’re the best hookup he’s ever had.

the weekend  by @chryblossomjjk

genre: m/18+, fwb, angst, smut. summary: every weekend, you give Jungkook a little taste of something he’s missing monday through friday.

hair dye: the collection  by @mercurygguk

genre: established relationship, fluff, sumt.  summary: series about Jungkook’s different hair colors. 

denial by @girlygguk

genre: fwb au, secret-ish situationship, smut/fluff-ish/angt-ish. summary: it’s been a plethora of secret meetups, quickies in the bathrooms of his awards shows, and 2 am ‘you up?’ texts during you year-long situationship with Jungkook. you both agreed in the beginning that your careers are far too hectic to commit to anything serious, but you can't shake the shitty ache in your chest every time the high wears off, or when you’re crawling out of his bed in the middle of the night, trying to exile the shitty feeling of longing that you harbor for him, you spend time with another one of your guy friends. Jungkook sees, and he’s mad.

colour me in by @taegularities

genre: fwb, fake dating, college!au; fluff, angst, smut. summary: Jungkook’s door only opens for you when there’s a barter: a trade of lust and haze. but today you knock for something more, as intriguing as it is frightening- and you hope it doesn’t close his door forever. 

gradation by @shina913

genre: bf2l, fwb, slow burn; fluff, angst, smut. summary: on your wedding day, your fiancé leaves you at the altar. while reeling from the embarrassment and heartbreak your best friend, Jungkook, wants to do everything that he can to help you heal.

in the seom by @thvhoe

genre: college au, fwb to lovers, smut, angst, fluff.

p&p by @yoon-kooks

genre: smut, fluff, college!au.

spicy n' sweet by @thvhoe

genre: established relationship, fluff, smut, angst, dance au x boxer au. summary: Jeon Jungkook is the perfect guy... to piss off your parents. he's buff, inked up and the definition of their worst nightmare but hey, when love comes knocking on your door there's not much you can do. it's not like you planned on falling for him... it just kinda happened, and honestly, you're not even mad about it. not at all.

in which by @onlyswan

genre: established relationship, fluff. NOTE: this is one of (if not MY) favorite series i've ever read. it's so beautiful and heartwarming and it brings me so much comfort,,, thank u so much for this amazing work of art <3

bitchin' by @kinktae

genre: 1980s au, eventual smut, e2l. summary: the 80s were a time of choices. which perm was right for you? what color neon would you wear next? none of these choices, however, were more questionable than a certain deal you made with Jean Jungkook.

gold rush by @onlyswan

genre: fluff, smut. summary: what must it be like to grow up that beautiful? with your falling into place like dominos.

candles & flames by @taegularities

genre: enemies to lovers, royal!au: angst, fluff, smut. summary: he wasn't supposed to be yours. his foolery wasn't supposed to target you. tis wasn't supposed to happen.

ONE SHOTS

make you mine by @mercurygguk

genre: college au, friends to lovers au, fluff, angst, smut. summary: your first day at your new college is quite eventful to sa th least. but everything seems slightly less chaotic when Jeon Jungkook offers to help you on your way - if only knowing him wasn’t an even bigger mess than the day you first met. 

never be friends by @jjungxkook

genre: best friends to lovers, fluff, crack, suggestive. summary: a healthy mix of irritation and amusement leads to kissing and making out with your best friend. everyone knows that. 

white lies by @noteguk

genre: smut, fluff, very minor angst.  summary: in which Jungkook lies his way out of and into trouble. bet he can’t tell white lies when it comes to you. 

happy birthday loser  by @jungk0oksthighs

genre: idiots to lovers, smut. summary: after three years of limping over your roommate, you give him one hell of a birthday celebration.

what if I love you too much? by @taleasnewastime

genre: fluff, angst, smut, single mum reader. summary: jungkook. it’s only a name you learn after your son kicks his ball over the fence. before that you only knew him as the hot new neighbour who mows his lawn topless. and though you have no intention of getting to know him anymore than that, inevitably you do. you don’t necessarily fall, it’s too slow for that, but you definitely develop feelings you don’t intend to feel. because you know men like him, and you know that whatever you’re feeling, he’s probably not feeling the same. all the same, however hard you try, you can’t help yourself.

roommates by @jjkeverlast

genre: roommates to lovers, roommates au.  summary: you’ve been roommates with jeon jungkook for quite some time now, not having a single thought of him other than a roommate. but things take an unexpected turn when you accidentally catch him in the act.

on my knees by @jjkeverlast

genre: smut (seriously this is pure smut) summary: who needs a vibrator when Jeon Jungkook is here to do the job? not you. 

the act of falling by @kooktrash

genre: smut, angst, fluff, established fwb, fuckboy!jk x fem!reader. summary: what was supposed to be a meaningless fling has turned into much more before you both realized you were falling. now all you can do is hope that all the challenges you’ve faced are worth something.

stay by @koostarcandy

genre: fluff, angst, slight smut, this is the “she fell first bet he fell harder” trope. summary: Jungkook comes in and out of your life like a recurring side character in a 90s show. you wish that he would stay, just like the main character that he is.

eat me by @7deadlysinsfics

genre: pwp, fwb au, f2l au, smut, fluff. summary: you accuse all men of not knowing how to make women cum, and your best friend, ever the competitive one, challenges you to let him show you that he doesn’t fall into that category. blame the tequila for what ensues.

the boy with galaxies in his eyes by @oddinary4bts

genre: fwb to lovers, idol!au, angst (a lot), smut (a whole lot too), fluff. summary: you had never thought the night sky could be found in someone’s eyes. that is, until you met Jeon Jungkook and his gravity pulled you in. will he crush you with the galaxies in his eyes, or will you learn to explore his worlds and make them yours?

changes in between by @taegularities

genre: roommate au, s2f2l; some crack, fluff, angst, smut. summary: “does that mean that I can kiss you now” becoming the roommate of Jeon Jungkook is the biggest change you’ve ever gotten thrown into- but little do you know that the addition of another man will bring even further turbulence into your (love) life. 

rockstar 101 by @jeonjcngkook

genre: rockstar au, pwp, established relationship, smut, just pure unadulterated filth. summary: in the words of christina aguilera, “there’s nothing more dangerous than a boy with charm” and Jungkook is certainly coated in it.

groupie by @joonsy2k

genre: smut, fluff if you squint. summary: your best friend Jimin invites you to see his band, painted duck, perform at your local bar. you didn't expect to end up backstage with the bands lead bassist.

feel better by @mercurygguk

summary: your boyfriend arrives home after the Grammys, seeming annoyed and disappointed. and as his girlfriend, you want to make him feel better.

seven days a week by @back2bluesidex

genre: pwp, smut, fluff if you squint. summary: Jungkook promised himself that he will be fucking you right seven days a week.

primrose by @jeonjcngkook

genre: romance, established relationship, fluff, smut. summay: "I said... we're not done. understand?"

concrete king by @bratkook

genre: fluff, smut, limbo energy. summary: when a cute boy in a tacky hawaiian shirt lands a trick in your honor there's no way you could ever say no to him.

part two: hit the slopes.

cockblocked by @mercurygguk

genre: roommates au + friends (idiots) to lovers, smut/fluff/angst. summary: in which a pair of best friends are hopelessly in love with one another but they're too dumb to realize, even when everyone around them are dropping hints every five minutes. or alternatively; "you're an idiot for thinking i wouldn't love you back."

wicked by @noteguk

genre: smut, demon!jk. summary: in which incubus!jungkook likes to ruin pretty innocent things, and you might just be the perfect target.

many moons by @onlyswan

genre: royalguard!jk x princess!reader, strangers to lovers; fluff, angst a bit, slightly suggestive. summary: your father sets off to find a way to get you the moon, not realizing he has already given it to you.

all over you by @taegularities

genre: fantasy!au, HP!au, exes/e2l!au, light angst, fluff, smut, a lot of smut. summary: you just wanted to win the prize in options class, but it seems as if your ex has other plans.

DRABBLES

strawberry lips by @personasintro

genre: fluff  summary: it’s not your fault your professor is extremely young and oh, so hot. 

tryna smoke by @kooyeux

summary: little weed smoking sex session with you fuck buddy Jungkook in his lil' studio.

squirtle by @kooyeux

summary: "if you were a pokemon, you would be squirtle".

[tenofmuses]

Free Witchcraft Resources for Beginners

A couple months ago I made a post shouting out the fact that witchcraft doesn’t require any money to get started (or to be practiced, for that matter), and I had a few people ask me about what they can do that’s free, especially as a beginner, so I wrote up this post. I was lost and broke when I was getting started with my craft, and it was really difficult to find tips for beginners that weren’t just “buy these things!” I’m hoping this will be useful for people who are looking for a place to begin.

So. You’re interested in witchcraft and would like to find out more. Maybe you keep seeing those “crystals/herbs/books/etc. beginner witches should have” posts, and you’re frustrated, because you want to begin your practice, but don’t have the money for those supplies. I was once in that spot, and even now that I’m five years into my practice, I have rarely purchased any of the supplies witchtok deems to be fundamental. Here are some places you can begin instead. Let’s get started!

Info continues below.

Foundations

By foundations, I’m referring to things that aren’t explicitly witchcraft, but that I have found very beneficial within my own practice.

1. Before anything, I recommend asking yourself a simple question: why do I want to practice witchcraft, and what do I hope to get out of it? You may not know for sure yet, and your answer will likely change over time, but having some intentions going in can be helpful when you’re in the early stages of research. When I was starting out, I felt very overwhelmed by the amount of info out there, so if you have a bit of an idea of what you’re specifically interested in, that can be helpful to get you going.

2. Meditation: not all witches meditate, but a lot of the skills you develop through meditation can be helpful within witchcraft. You can try out secular meditation (apps like Balance and Headspace, as well as Insight Timer—the former has a mix of secular and spiritual meditations), or you can find a witchcraft-specific guided meditation on YouTube. For neurodivergent folks out there, I recommend looking into active meditation, which I’ve found to be quite beneficial for myself.

For me, it’s always important to remain grounded when I’m doing any spiritual practice, and meditation is a good skill you can work on to help with that. I also find that having a background in meditation can be really helpful later down the line when/if you are attempting visualization and/or astral projection, witch’s flight, and so forth.

3. Journaling: another thing that isn’t specifically witchcraft-related, but is an important skill to harness, on my opinion. To me, it’s crucial to be in touch with what I’m feeling (especially when it comes to doing spellwork), and journaling is one great way to do that. If you’re stuck and don’t know where to begin, look up witchcraft (or general) journal prompts on here or somewhere else. A lot of the ones that come up will be shadow work, which can be intense, so only do what feels comfortable for you.

I’d also like to note that automatic writing/drawing is an entirely free option if you’re interested in communing with spirits or deities. Essentially it involves getting into a trance-like state (usually in a dark room only lit by candlelight or similar—this is to avoid distractions) with a piece of paper and pen, and you write or draw everything that comes to your head without thinking about it. And then you go back and see what sort of messages you may be receiving. It’s a bit hard to explain and I’m not very experienced in it myself, but it’s something worth looking into if it sounds interesting to you!

4. Look at what you have, instead of what you don’t: a lot of beginner witch resources will list specific items that you should have, without really explaining why. And without that knowledge of how/why having an item is important, you might find your Must Have crystal sitting unused on a shelf somewhere. So instead of focusing on the items you want or feel like you should have, look at what you do have. Are there plants or herbs in your house/yard that you feel drawn to? Do you have a collection of cool rocks and stones? How do these items make you feel?

For me, a large part of my craft is my belief in Animism (the belief that all living things have innate spiritual qualities, like a soul, spirit, or specific energy) and this can play into the way you interact with the natural world if it’s a belief you also subscribe to. Try and feel the presence of a plant to see if it gives you any specific feeling. It does? Great! Now you have a correspondance for that plant. And it’s even better than the correspondances you’ll get in a book because it’s based on your own personal connection and intuition. That’s what is most important.

5. When in doubt, use your intuition. You might find a source that says cinnamon should be used for protection. Another will say it should be used for abundance spells. What matters the most is what you think about an herb/plant/stone/colour, or whatever else you may utilize. I recommend to start keeping a list of what you associate these things with. It can take awhile to build up a personalized list, but once you have one, it’ll be a lot more useful than what a correspondances book says to do.

6. Scour your pantry and get cooking: are you wanting to try out a spell but you haven’t bought the ingredients? Look in your pantry. You may be surprised by how many commonly used witchcraft herbs you find in there. And if you have been starting to associate certain herbs or spices with specific feelings or energies, that’s a great way to get started with creating your own spell.

You can do a spell in many ways, but when I was starting out, one of my favourite ways was to incorporate a certain herb or spice into food I made. Say you’re making a soup and maybe you want a bit of protection, so you add some ground pepper with the intention of that pepper protecting you as you stir it into the soup. Same goes for any other ingredient you’d like to use. A little intention goes a long way!

7. Dedicate your actions, time, or energy: if you’re interested at all in working with deities, ancestors, and other spirits but don’t have the time/space to build an altar—or maybe you aren’t sure how involved you want to be with this part of witchcraft—you can devote an action to the entity. This can be simple. For example, when I worked with Apollo, I would use taking my meds and vitamins as an act of devotion to him. This is an offering. And offerings can be anything you want them to be. They don’t have to be expensive or fancy!

It’s also important to note that you do not need to work with deities or spirits to be a witch. You don’t even have to believe in them. Many witches are atheists or don’t work with any deities at all. But for those who are interested, simple offerings can be a good place to start.

8. Practice energy work: in my view, energy work is the most important skill to learn for your craft, since so many things build off of it. And with energy work, you don’t need to spend any amount of money on it. All you need is yourself, your intuition, and anything else—I mean that quite literally, you can practice feeling the energy of other people, pets, trees, buildings, foods, socks, your favourite pen, and whatever else you think of!

Once you get to know the energy of the things around you, you can more effectively utilize them as tools within your practice (this builds off of the intuition point I made earlier).

For example, as a child I lived in a house that was surrounded by cedar trees. It was a place where I felt very safe. To this day, when I see or smell a cedar tree, I feel safe and protected. You can read this any way you’d like—to me it’s both a spiritual and psychological phenomenon—but this is one example of sensing energy.

As a witch, you can practice that skill and use it to get to know the tools you’d like to use within your own craft (the things that connect to you personally, not what you’re told you should connect with). This isn’t an easy skill by any means, so if it doesn’t come naturally to you, that’s perfectly okay!

For more on this subject, I recommend two books: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Kimmerer (more on animism in particular) and Psychic Witch by May Auryn (lots of exercises to practice working with and sensing energy).

Where to Go for Learning

After you’ve thought a bit about some of the above, or skipped it altogether if it doesn’t suit you, you’re probably wanting some good resources that will actually tell you how to do the witchcraft thing. But before that, I want to reiterate again that this is your practice, and you should only do what you are interested in. So take what you want and leave what you don’t.

I’m going to point you in three primary directions for learning good information: books, podcasts, and YouTube.

But first, I want to issue a massive disclaimer for the YouTube information (and some books, for that matter). You should not have one sole source for your information. Books that have bibliographies are always the most trustworthy sources. And even though I trust the information coming from the YouTubers I’ll mention—especially because I’ve read similar information in several witchcraft books—don’t take their word at face-value. Be critical of what you’re told. Believe what you believe. This is a skill you’ll learn over time. It can be a bit overwhelming at first, but it will get easier to discern what’s good info vs. bad info, over time.

Before you get started, I highly recommend watching this helpful video by HearthWitch with info on how to vet your witchcraft sources: link.

Books

In my view, books are the Best source of information, period. Anyone can publish an article or video online, but not everyone can publish a book. So there tends to be a bit more reliable info in witchcraft books.

As far as knowing what book you should begin with, there are lots of lists out there for beginners, and I recommend just looking at one of those lists and picking what sounds interesting to you. Take what you like and leave what you don’t.

Most of the YouTubers I’ve listed below have videos recommending books for beginners.

If you’re interested in British folk witchcraft, I started out with Folk Witchcraft by Roger J. Horne and it was a brilliant beginners guide that I recommend to anyone who is interested in that branch of witchcraft.

As always, while you read witchcraft books, be critical of the information you are presented with. Unfortunately, lots of witchcraft books (especially the classic ones) can be rooted in concepts like bioessentialism, colonialism, and racism. My recommendation is to not take any author’s word as gospel and to use your critical thinking skills when reading witchcraft books.

Where I live, books are EXPENSIVE. And when you’re just starting out in your practice, you might not have the money or ability to go out and buy a book just yet. Maybe you’re still unsure if witchcraft is right for you. Or maybe you’re in the “broom closet.” Whatever the reason, here are some free places to find books.

1. The public library: a bit obvious, but a great resource to look at, because you never know what your library might have. Libraries are the best. And entirely free!

2. Library apps like Libby or Overdrive: especially helpful if you don’t want to bring home a physical witchcraft book, or if your branch doesn’t have any copies of what you’re looking for. You can also get some audiobooks on there.

3. Archive.org: aka the web archive. Entirely free and entirely legal, this works as an online library service where you can check out a book for a bit of time right from your computer. Sometimes you can download PDFs as well. I’ve found a lot of my favourite witchcraft books on there, so if you have a specific title in mind, search it there.

YouTube

First, as a bit of a caveat before recommending you to watch YouTube videos on witchcraft: in my view, books are the best source of information for any witch, as they are able to contain a large degree of nuanced and research-informed information. But books aren’t a simple solution for everyone, and I’ve learned a lot from informed YouTubers over the years (in fact, like many witches, I was first exposed to witchcraft via Harmony Nice on YouTube!).

I’m including a list here of witch YouTubers that I personally recommend because I have found that their content aligns with information I have read in books and other research-informed sources over the years, and because I find them to be generally reliable.

I want to note here that this list is rather biased, as I tend to watch witchcraft YouTubers whose practices mirror my own in some ways. So most of these practitioners have practices informed by European folk witchcraft, and are not very diverse as a result. If any practitioners have further recommendations to add on, especially for practitioners of colour and practices that are different from mine, please do so!

My recommendations:

ChaoticWitchAunt: folk witchcraft, specifically in the Italian tradition, some great beginner content, info on working with saints and spirits.

TheWitchOfWonderlust: death magic, spellwork, great beginner content, lots of excellent info on working with spirits.

HearthWitch: truly a well of information on British witchcraft, beginner videos on any topic you can think of, q&a livestreams, and there’s even a video on vetting witchcraft sources that I really recommend for beginners.

The Redheaded Witch: folk witchcraft and folklore, spirit and ancestor work, daily witchcraft ideas, some beginner videos.

TheGreenWitch: such an excellent resource for herbal/green witchcraft, videos on spellwork, ingredients, tools, and more.

Mintfaery: lots of beginner information, videos on working with the fae, nature witchcraft, and lots of fun witchy days in the life.

Ella Harrison: German folk witchcraft, great beginner resources, including some more niche traditional craft topics like witch’s ladders.

The Norse Witch: info on Norse witchcraft and Heathenry, Norse paganism, and some content about astrology.

simplywitched: lots of great everyday witchcraft content, pagan witchcraft, more vlog style.

Warrior Witch Nike: witchy book reviews, paganism, deity work, some astrology content.

Mhara Starling: the place to go for anyone interested in Welsh witchcraft and folk magic related to Wales.

Alwyn Oak: lots of witch’s guides, especially relating to sabbats (those popularized in Wicca), forest witchcraft, gorgeous videos.

Ivy The Occultist: chaos magick and lots of interviews with practitioners from a variety of paths/backgrounds.

Shadow Harvest: personal day in the life witchy content, some videos looking at working with dark goddesses and deity work in general.

Note: some of these YouTubers have written their own witchcraft books geared towards beginners, so if you enjoy their videos and want to learn more, check those out.

Podcasts

The Astrology Podcast: not specifically witchcraft, but if you want to learn about astrology in detail, this is an excellent place to begin. Link goes to YouTube.

Books and Broomsticks: all kinds of good info, especially pertaining to folk magic, witch guests invited on to share more about their own practice. Link goes to Spotify.

Southern Bramble: A Podcast of Crooked Ways: a variety of witchcraft related topics, interviews, and discussions, often revolving around folk magic and traditional craft—interviews show different traditions. Link goes to Spotify.

New World Witchery - The Search for American Traditional Witchcraft: what it says on the tin; various topics and conversations through an American traditional/folk magic lens by the author of the (amazing) book with the same name. Link goes to Spotify.

Salty Witches Podcast by Cat & Cauldron: traditional witchcraft through a modern lens, another podcast that has a wide variety of topics covered. Link goes to Spotify.

—

As always, if anyone has any additional (free!) resources to add onto these ones, please do so.

Good luck to all of the beginner witches who are embarking on their spiritual journeys, and I hope some of these tips have been helpful! :)

-Em

[himejoshiangels]

unfortunately thinking hard abt how Bruce meets duke at three vastly different times in his life and how he watched the innocence and cheer leave him as he got older and more jaded only for his spirit to blaze with hope when he matures into the signal

[tiffycat]

This was supposed to be team bonding time

[Transcript:

Cassie: this food is taking way to fucking long

Kon: for real bro like-

Bart: WHERES. MY. FOOD.

Tim: You need to be patient!

Cassie: *wheeze* ]

[chrisbangs]

YANG JEONGIN  for @foxinys

[ohgreat-moretapes]

Hey Tim, my dad recently had a seizure and I wanna be able to comfort him...it really scared me and of course it scared him too and I figured you might know a good way to help me to comfort him? I'm sorry you have to go through stuff like that all the time I wish I could comfort you too...🫂

Everybody's situation is unique so you'll need to find what works for y'all personally of course, and that's just gonna come with time.

But that being said, I am certain what would mean the world to him is just simply spending time with him. I've had a lot of health scares in my life and a lot of those times I just wished someone was there by my side, not to take care of me, just to distract me and help pass the time while I was healing.

Board games, crafts (without sharp objects), getting into a podcast together, gardening, starting a collection of some kind... Fun little things like that can make such a big difference.

And that being said, don't forget to look after yourself too. If you feel like the stress is weighing on you too, you gotta make time for yourself and make sure your own needs are being met before doing things for others.

Take it day by day: drink water, eat healthy, avoid alcohol, and get some physical exercise when you can (extra points if it's something y'all can do together like pickleball or table tennis). I know everyone says this stuff but it really does help.

Here's to healing, we're in this together bud <3

-Tim

[inkskinned]

everyone talks about the clothing store and honestly everyone is expected to wear stuff from that store and you're a little young and curious, and what's the harm of looking. it's in all the magazines and everyone knows okay some of the things are ugly but! like generally everyone thinks we should be wearing these clothes. they're elite. they're precious. they are a symbol of wealth and status.

you walk into the clothing store and see a very nice sweater and you've been wanting to stay warm so you pick up the sweater. it turns immediately into a horrible fizzing froth, rushing over your skin, faintly acidic. it's tacky, it leaves behind a residue. horrified and a little ashamed - did you do it wrong? - you reach out blindly and your hands find a shirt. that one dissolves too. you think of the phrase you break it, you bought it. how much money did you just accidentally spend on that shirt and that sweater, both things that you'll never be able to wear.

more confused than anything, you turn to the first person you see, but she's experiencing the same thing, her brows furrowed. "i've been here since i was 13," she says. "one of these days i'll actually get to try on something."

you were raised with horror movies, so you look for an escape instead of trying to stay. you go to the front desk and wait in the front line and when you finally get to the front, a very angry man is sitting there, scowling at you. "i think your store is broken," you say to him. "i can't pick up any of your clothes. they don't work."

it is as if you have said something vile. every person within earshot takes a step back from you. the man gives you a cool look. "these clothes are good for you," he says.

"no, i know that," you've read about them, "but i can't seem to actually hold them."

again, everyone seems to think you've said the wrong thing. some of them are holding shirts, so obviously some clothes work. those are the people you hear whispering first. lazy. someone murmurs. i managed fine, you hear. i just had to keep trying.

the man taps a sign next to him. in big bold print: not everyone can have this.

"okay, um. if you're not going to be helpful, i'm just going to... not buy this," you manage, feeling yourself flush with heat. why are you so embarrassed? their clothes are the thing that aren't working.

"i don't have time for people who don't dress themselves well," he says. "it's disgusting."

you don't know what else to say because actually you dress fine, you're pretty sure, you're just not in their clothes. you leave the store.

but your hands are still tacky from before. you find yourself weirdly sensitive about your clothes. maybe you should go back in, try again? there were people who were able to make the clothes stay present, you might have just been doing something weird.

plus there's the rest of the world. how people look at you in airports. how shame rushes over your cheeks during job interviews, worried you don't look "professional" enough. the people across you are all wearing those clothes, and you're not. in the doctor's office, the nurse's eyebrows skyrocket. are you sure you actually went into the store and tried on the clothes? you're staring at her - i'm here to see about my cough, not about my wardrobe.

but of course it fucking matters. when you google it, you find out that most people can only hold onto the clothes for about two years or so, and then they fizzle out too. that the clothes only "stick" for 5% of customers. it just means that any person in those clothes matters more. it's a scarcity. at first, you're horrified by the idea of something that almost never works. but you learn it soon enough: being in the 5% means you have taste, class, are exceptionally pretty.

you try to ask why exactly it's these clothes, but you usually are answered with an eye roll. you ask why the prices are so high. why nobody seems to care about the way their clothes leave that weird strange residue for years later. there's a sizing chart online you find, hoping it might explain your weird inability to lift anything. most of the news articles all read the same thing - this chart was made by someone cruel and definitely isn't accurate, but for some reason it is still used as our golden rule.

so you go again. you fall too. it's worth it to try. even kind of ironically. even kind of privately, shamefully. this time you go and manage to hold onto socks, but it means you sometimes get that strange residue on your floors. you get used to the tackiness after a while, but when you manage to hold onto pants, you discover the tackiness spreads. sure, it's irritating - this sense there's a barrier between everything you touch, even you and your friends - but it's worth it, because people notice you're in those pants. and you don't want to be one of the 95% who lose them after all this fucking work you put in, so you let the tack get all over everything until it dries down into a fine powder that coats your floor in a brick red flurry. when you walk, your footprints look bloody, so you just learn to step gently.

and since it worked for you once, like gambling - you will come back. you will teach others how to get into the store. you will tell your own children - oh, you just have to keep trying at the clothing store. you will let others treat you badly when you are not wearing the right things. you will spend all that money over and over and over again and you will feel ugly if you are not wearing their brand. you are simply treated better if you dress like this. you feel better if you dress like this, secretly winning over your friends who are between sizes. it doesn't matter how much time you spend at the store, missing birthday cakes and parties because you're trying to make a dress look nice before dissolving. what matters is that when it works, all that relief and joy and peace rushes in. when it works, people finally love you again.

the diet industry promises you - it'll all be okay, once you're thin.

[watcherintheweyr]

desperately need people to understand that alicent is a victim but she’s also an abuser and a perpetrator

that she actively makes choices to harm other women because of jealousy and envy and the greed deep in her bones because submitting to suffering didn’t get her what those women fight to grasp for themselves.

she is absolutely a victim, in show.

that doesn’t change that she abused rhaenyra and her children, her own son, most likely helaena given how she flinches every time her mother touches her, and is actively weaponizing the patriarchy of westeros against other women- rhaenyra primarily, but also mysaria and dyana.

she isn’t the moral, righteous force of good that even she thinks she is, she’s a wounded woman directing all of the rot, pain, and fury inside her at the wrong people and forces.

[fanfic-gremlin-ft-trauma]

my best friends sister recently came out as trans and it’s really showing the subtle transphobia and bias around me

it’s never “she came out” or “she’s trans” it’s

“/deadname/ wants to be a girl”

“/deadname/ feels that he is trans”

idk man it’s just really off putting because to me it’s literally just an identity, it’s expression, it’s comfortability, and like, ok yes it’s a change if you’ve known this person as one name your whole life, but it’s just like a surname? if they choose to take the spouses last name that’s what you call them, not that different. pronouns, to be honest, are not difficult to adjust to. sorry, but if you’re ’uncomfortable’ calling someone by their preferred pronouns imagine how they feel. finally comfortable enough to tell people, and now you’re saying “sorry, I’m just having trouble adjusting to calling you by she/her.”

???????? it’s incredibly weird to me. anyway, thought I’d share bc trans people are so so important and even if we’re ‘progressing’ it’s subtle language that can actually hurt the most.

anyway anyway, so happy for her, and I’m glad she felt comfortable enough to come out, because especially where I live that’s not easy <3

[danwhobrowses]

Well Critters it's Bells Hells Live Show Day! That snuck up on us quickly didn't it? Felt almost like a few weeks ago that they announced it!

Alas, being across the pond (also tomorrow's Father's Day in the UK) I will have to wait for the VOD, sitting here with my usual Thursday night doses of anticipation, imagination and anxiety, but I hope all that are attending have a great night. So much can happen, so much stuff I want to happen too but ofc some things are long shots - anyone who looks at my feed can tell what I want to happen let's be honest, and there'll be dress up and whatever beyond extra entrance Sam has planned to make his anticipated and grandiose return.

So sing the intro loud, tag your live spoilers just in case, do creepy whispers if Laudna performs a Sending, tell them to stop it if they sneeze, and most of all enjoy the show!

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Horse Yaoi trotted so Horsegirl Yuri could fly.

[strawberrinoz]

“i am NEVER letting that jolly blonde fuck drive the motorcycle again.”