#i know the feeling of religious attribution on a personal scale and just think it’s very interesting in terms of its appearence in this play

[theofficialpresidentofmars]

rereading hamlet act five and thinking about Hamlet’s religious attribution and use of Christianity as a moral lens for his actions and how it develops throughout the play, specifically the transition from god-fearing inactionist to heaven-ordained murderer.

Throughout the earlier acts, Hamlet cites a general fear of hell/damnation as preventing him from taking any extreme actions- the two most notable being killing himself (Or that the Everlasting had not fixed His canon ’gainst self-slaughter!) and killing Claudius (The spirit that I have seen May be a devil, and the devil hath power T’ assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps, out of my weakness and my melancholy, As he is very potent with such spirits, Abuses me to damn me), despite believing to some extent that he is on some mission from heaven and/or hell (Prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell and O all you host of heaven! O Earth! What else? And shall I couple hell?). In both cases, he looks to the heavens for guidance on how to proceed and seems to believe that if one path is correct above the other, it shall reveal itself to him if it is fated to be by those above.

And then in Act 3 Scene 3, we have the scene which displays the most infamous example of Hamlet’s religious standings- where he is presented with an opportunity to kill Claudius and turns it down on the basis that his father’s death won’t be avenged unless Claudius goes to hell, and as Claudius seems to be praying, he can’t take that chance. In this moment, Hamlet is sealing his own tragic ending by attempting to act as the heavenly judge, jury, and executioner in Claudius’ eternal fate, which isn’t very faithful of him. The dramatic irony of this whole scene is that Claudius isn’t even praying, and would by Hamlet’s logic go to hell if he were to be slain then and there. If we were to operate under the assumption that Hamlet’s mission is, in fact, a canonically holy one to begin with, this would be probably the closest thing in the play we could claim as divine intervention: Claudius is unarmed, unguarded, and by killing him right now, Hamlet would avoid the deaths of many more to come and given its immediate occurrence after the play, quite possibly even be able to present a reasonable claim about Claudius’ guilt and get away with it. It is a perfectly sanctioned opportunity for vengeance, but Hamlet’s own wrath and pride cause him to turn it down. As such, we can conclude that even if Hamlet’s quest for vengeance were a Godly one, his own personal opinions of what is just and not in the eyes of heaven are more guiding in his cause than what actually is.

What’s interesting about this is that Hamlet never seems to consider himself to be in the wrong for his actions in that scene, and continues not only to act as if his behaviour is Godly, but readjusts his own personal view of what is sinful and what is religiously appropriate in reaction to and as a result of his behaviour.

In the very next scene, Hamlet kills Polonius, an innocent bystander. By his own logic in Act 2, the murder of an innocent person is a damnable action, and was enough to keep him from killing Claudius for two months despite having reason to believe his guilt. But his own reaction in this scene is not to look at his own actions with disgust or fear, but rather to justify it as simply being a vessel for God’s intent (I do repent; but heaven hath pleased it so To punish me with this and this with me, That I must be their scourge and minister.) Notably, in interpretations of the play that see Hamlet as having slipped into actual madness rather than a simply feigned one, this scene is often considered the beginning of the full extent of it, and Polonius’s death as an important turning point. Regardless of whether or not Hamlet is mad, it is interesting that his religious views in terms of his moral compass have gone from a strict future-tense fear to lenient past-tense fated events, and it is a direct result of the choice he is initially presented with when discovering Polonius’ corpse: to realise his mistake and pray for forgiveness, or to not admit it as mistake at all and justify it as moral. And if it is moral, then it is God’s will, as for him, the two can’t exist separately. To a man who fears judgement, who fears eternal damnation perhaps above all else, denial will forever be easier than that sort of cognitive dissonance and fear. There’s possibly something relevant to even the modern day popularised takes on Christianity in there, but that’s an essay for another day.

And this line of thinking continues and worsens in Act 5 Scene 2, as Hamlet recounts the events leading up to the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to Horatio. He describes an uneasiness that kept him up and led to him checking the letter, likely paranoia of some kind, but he casually attributes it to divine intervention (There’s a divinity that shapes our ends, Rough-hew them how we will—), and expands on this point by giving the same view to being able to re-seal it convincingly (Why, even in that was heaven ordinant. I had my father’s signet in my purse). When Horatio expresses distress, he confirms that ‘They are not near my conscience’, which makes a lot of sense in this context. As the scene progresses, as Hamlet is presented with the proposed fencing match, and Horatio again expresses unease at the idea, Hamlet turns down his rightfully-based fears for the same reasons (Not a whit. We defy augury. There is special providence in the fall of a sparrow.) He’s basically a complete fatalist by now, believing in the predetermined path set ahead as just even if it involves the loss of his own life.

Overall, I just think it’s interesting, tbh. Strangely I don’t seem to see a lot of discussion about the religious themes in Hamlet, despite the fact that they’re quite intertwined with his own mental health.

[monotoneprowess]

Day 12: Vatican Museum

Boy howdy, today was not really busy but it was however extremely crowded. So if you are claustrophobic, I'm sorry to say that every room was extremely crowded. I swear I got a headache just from people taller then me bumping their elbows into my skull.

But! It was still the day to visit the Vatican Museum, one of the most valuable museum collections in the world in terms of cultural and religious value. So what was that experience like?

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The first major area of the Vatican Museum are various marble statues, all of which were make either in Greece or are from Ancient Rome. Because of this, there is an immediate switch in your mind being flipped because you're seeing a lot of Pagan art in a place that is heavily associated with hating Paganism. It's definitely a strange thing to think about, but if you chose to ignore that weird little voice in your head and focus on the pretty sculptures and mosaics, it becomes a very enjoyable experience.

("Laocoön and His Sons" attributed to Agesander, Athenodoros, and Polydorus. ~323 BCE and 31 CE, marble.)

The first major artwork that I absolutely adored is Laocoön and His Sons, which I'm including a picture of because holy crap I forgot it was in this collection. I remember seeing a copy of it at the Uffizi, so seeing it here was such an amazing moment. I will say, the copy of it located at the Uffizi is actually scaled up so I was shocked to see it was smaller.

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Another piece of art that I just didn't know was here, Raphael's School of Athens, and then suddenly we were in the same room as it? I do feel guilty not knowing all these major artworks were located as part of the Vatican's collections, so it's time to start brushing up on the rest of the art we're looking at before continuing this trip.

("School of Athens" by Raphael, 1509-1511, fresco.)

First of all, I am once again blown away by the scale. It was so huge, and since we were decently close I actually hurt my neck looking up at certain details that were located closer to me.

The colors are so luscious and vibrant, something that most photos (including mine) don't really get across. Photos also don't across how actually soft the fabrics look in real life, even though the fresco is on a stone wall! And yet, Raphael was able to get across the idea of softness in his fresco, which is amazing.

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The final important thing you see as part of the museum is the Sistine Chapel, and it's iconic frescos by Michelangelo. They're stunning, and even as high up as they are you can still see some of the smaller details. However, there is a television company that owns the rights to all photography and videography of the Sistine Chapel, so I couldn't manage to snag one. In fact there were security guards that were constantly yelling at people to not take photos if they did so much as take out their phones, so I didn't even dare to try.

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("Exekias Amphora" by Exekias, circa 540-530 B.C.E., painted ceramic, black-figure pottery.)

Now, I'll be honest and say I didn't actually see this pot as we were breezing past a lot of the Greek pottery to get to other things. But it is simply one of my favorite pieces of pottery, and luckily one of my friends managed to see it and snag a picture since she also enjoys the amphora.

I'll most likely be going back in the future for the sole purpose of seeing this amphora, as frankly when she told me that I missed seeing it in person, I actually started crying.

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Overall, the Vatican Museums are absolutely stunning. But because of how busy it generally seems to be, and due to how they cycle art pieces and rooms for cleaning and such, it's impossible to see every single thing in the collection in one visit.

But regardless of that fact, I still encourage everyone who visits Rome to make a stop there if you can. Regardless of if you're Catholic or not, as most of the major collection isn't actually really religious. And make sure that you get your tickets ahead of time as to bypass the insane lines.

[rosaniruby]

I accidentally stumbled upon this post and saw this reblog so I'm only replying now rip.

Okay so, I would argue you can see still read it through generational trauma lens, because those are still harmful ideas drilled into people's head by their families from a young age, i dont think society & generational trauma is smth contradictory, as those two things influence each other and especially in this case lay on the same base. It's like when there's a religious trauma in a traditional household; it's because of years and years of church forcing those toxic ideas, yes, but they were passed down from a family member to another family member and when no one broke the cycle and for example someone's grandpa ended up struggling with his homosexuality n punishing himself for it and teaching you to do the same - I'm no scholar but I can see it as a generational trauma and society's standards coexisting. I do, however, agree, that it's on much lesser scale/is more vague and less personal and a more spread out trauma than the caroline thing.

Victor being characterized by 'girlish' attributes is So interesting, and the historical context you provided - i definitely can see what mary shelley was doing! Also out of curiosity, what was the view of 'nervous/emotional' man before romanticism? Like in the age of enlightment when victor was raised in the story? (if i mixed up the dates then sorry😭 i also know the start and endings of era's aren't as easily distinguishable as 'it started with the french revolution' but yeah I think he was still raised with enlightment ideas).

I loveee how frankenstein is a book written so,, not secretively, but in a way 'if yk yk' lmfao, there are just layers upon layers and they not only add to the great storytelling but were necessary for this book to have any kind of success.

Victor always seemed to be the Lucky one (in eyes of the in-the-story crowd) as he posseses all a human could want in such an unfair society- he's a white rich man with genius talent. Yet, nothing could save him as long as he doesn't play along with the society's game. It's just never enough, no matter what he has and what he gives - as long as he has trouble with fitting into this given role... it's over. He's on his own.

And the letter... I remember when i read it back when I still havent finished frankenstein and it pretty much formed my view on victor&alphonse. Victor's conflicting feelings towards his father, as in, his idealization along with resentment, might not only be a natural and well-written trauma reaction but an exact way mary shelley herself have felt whenever she thought of Godwin. Like, he was quite horrible, and yet, in her childhood, she was his favorite, a daddy's daughter; later on in life she also reconnected with him despite it all. It really shows another side of parental emotional abuse: it comes from a person who raised you, your family, someone you normally wouldn't want to lose.

I had no idea (or forgor) about the dedication.. that just hits me right in the feelings. Sorry for not having much to say, I agree with all you said!

It's interesting how the second sentence victor starts the story with is "My ancestors had been for many years counsellors and syndics" and while i always focused on the effect it has on, for example, victor; trying to see the life of alphonse is also interesting in the way we can observe his trauma leaking out into his parenting methods and attitude towards his kids and wife.

Like,

-It is said they have a long history with being important and engaged in country's business. And as we see Alphonsa followed it, (and i highly suspect even when he sent victor to college he still expected him to take over this position later on), probably not having much of a choice either. It was all passed down, and even the character of this job is being passed down too. For example, traits fitting this job - responsibilities/brain over feelings. A sense of duty that follows them everywhere. Love isn't unconditional, it's a duty, as well as everything else they do.

It seems like he's just passing down the generational trauma.

Another instances where his bad experiences are being reflected in his behavior towards victor and others is also seen here:

-His dearest friend suddenly disappeared. Turns out he hid because of hurt pride of losing his fortune, simultaneously almost destroying his daughter's life bc of that as well as his own. and Alphonse felt betrayed that this false pride was more important than their friendship = notice how Alphonse assumes the reason for victor's misery is a false pride. And desperatively wants to keep his family in close-circle, so they won't leave each other. And him.

-He looked for the friend for a long time without stopping, but in the end was disappointed. "But when he entered, misery and despair alone welcomed him. Beaufort had saved but a very small sum of money from the wreck of his fortunes; but it was sufficient to provide him with sustenance for some months, and in the mean time he hoped to procure some respectable imployment in a merchant’s house. The interval was consequently spent in inaction; his grief only became more deep and rankling, when he had leisure for reflection; and at length it took so fast hold of his mind, that at the end of three months he lay on a bed of sickness, incapable of any exertion." = notice how he always thinks despair is useless and leads to even worse consequences, so, feeling things is BAD.

-After making a big deal out of loving and finding the friend, the moment he actually sees him dead, instead of thinking about that or even mentioning alphonse was sad or smth, theres not a single sentence about alphonse's reaction or even of that friend anymore, instead all attention drifts to beautiful poor Caroline and suddenly it's a story about saving her. Everything got romantized. = Obviously, the romantization of grief and suffering was very ingrained in Victor's whole family. It probably came from Alphonse and his ancestors too.

- It's also said in 1818 ver that alphonse really loved his sister (the mother of elizabeth) and she abandoned him (cut him off).

"for some years my father had very little communication with her."

= Now remember alphonse's later words and lessons about how cutting your family off means you are neglecting yourself and your other duties etc.

So yeak, Idk I just love how Frankenstein is also about generational trauma and people who didn't process their feelings ruining their kids' lifes. (and don't get me started on Caroline.)

[honourablejester]

Celtic Pantheon/Campaigns (5e D&D)(Long Post)

Okay, so I’m just going to get this out there, because every time I glance at the Celtic Pantheon in the PHB I do giggle a bit. Mind you, it’s not anyone’s fault, but a couple of centuries of academics bundling stuff together under ‘Celtic’ has mightily confused just about everything, and it really shows here.

(Note: I have no academic qualifications regarding Celtic mythology/history/folklore whatsoever, I’m just Irish and grew up with a lot of the Irish myths and legends as a kid. This also means I know very little about the Welsh and other Celtic myths, just to say that in advance. This is all just what I’m familiar with from growing up and a little bit of research, and might have errors)

This post is also brought to you by my idly scanning lfg posts for Celtic campaigns and seeing a lot of historically inspired Celts-vs-Romans campaigns which is … doubly funny to me if they’re using the PHB pantheon list. This is because, as you’ll see in a minute, the majority of the PHB list uses the Irish gods and we … didn’t have those. Romans. We didn’t have them. So. Heh.

(We had Roman traders, especially around the Waterford area, it’s a relatively quick hop over from Wales/Cornwall, and we have evidence of Roman … tourists, probably? There are Roman offerings at various Irish prehistoric religious sites, in the Midlands especially. So we did have Romans, in the sense of we met them, but we didn’t have Romans, in the sense of invasion by the Roman Empire)

So. The thing about the PHB ‘pantheon’. It’s kind of borrowing gods from several different Celtic pantheons. ‘Celtic’ covers a lot of distinct regional cultures that are believed (I think for primarily linguistic and archaeological reasons) to be descended from an original proto-Celtic culture. For extra fun, there aren’t many primary historical sources for most of them, as in Celts writing about themselves and their faiths. Most of the texts we have are either medieval Christian (a lot of the Irish and Welsh) or Roman (a lot of the Gaulish, Iberian, Germanic, Brythonic), so there’s a lot of cross-cultural influence and interpretation muddling it up in there before you ever get to celtic-vs-celtic.

So they’re all Celtic, but they’re all very distinct in terms of stories, culture and the attributes of their gods. There are some gods that were broadly shared under similar names between various of the regional pantheons (Lugh and Brigantia are two examples), although they could be very different in portrayal between, say, the Irish and Gaulish stories. (Where the PHB uses one of these, I’m going with what name they’re using for guidance)

(The various attributes given to them by the PHB are a different muddle of influences again, with I think a lot of it being straight D&D invention, but that’s its own story)

So, to have a look at the D&D breakdown:

5e PHB Celtic Pantheon

Arawn  (Welsh)

Belenus  (Gaulish/Romano-British)

Brigantia  (Gaulish/Romano-British)

Diancecht  (Irish)

Dunatis (???)(Can’t find or remember this guy at all. Only thing I’ve got is that the Irish for ‘fort’ is ‘dún’, so maybe Irish?)

Goibhniu  (Irish)

Lugh  (Irish)

Manannan Mac Lir  (Irish)

Math Mathonwy  (Welsh)

Morrigan   (Irish)

Nuada  (Irish)

Oghma  (Irish)

Silvanus  (???)(Don’t know at all. I’m going to guess continental because I think ‘silva’ is the latin for ‘forest’, hence ‘Transylvania’ or ‘Beyond the Forest’, so the dude has a latin name)(… looking this up, he’s actually straight-up a Roman god, okay then)

The Daghdha  (Irish)(I usually see it spelled ‘Dagda’, mind)

This all shakes out as follows:

Irish: Daghdha, Diancecht, Goibhniu, Lugh, Manannan, Morrigan, Nuada, Oghma

Not Sure/Maybe Irish?: Dunatis

Welsh: Arawn, Math Mathonwy

Gaulish/Romano-British: Belenus, Brigantia

Straight Roman: Silvanus

So that’s more than half the list being figures from Irish mythology. And that … there’s nothing wrong with using them for an Asterix-and-Obelix Romans-vs-Celts sort of campaign. I mean, it’s your own private fantasy game, not a history lesson. Go nuts! It just … reads oddly to me. Heh. Historically speaking, very few people with Irish names calling on Irish gods would have had much cause to fight Romans. Not on any large scale, anyway.

Campaign Inspirations:

I’m going to just say, though. If you want a more historical and/or mythological feeling Celtic campaign. You have a couple of options. I’d say the easiest thing is to just look up the specific pantheons and cherry-pick your gods from there (there’s a handy Wikipedia list here)

If you want continental Romans vs Celts a-la Asterix and Obelix, use the Gaulish/Brythonic list.

If you want Romans vs Celts more along the lines of various modern interpretations of King Arthur, use the Gaulish/Brythonic and/or Pictish lists.

If you want Celtic more along the lines of full Arthurian, Excalibur, BBC Merlin, ‘dragons, druids, knights and romance’, a lot of actual Arthurian legend used Welsh myths as a base, so it’s a nice start, then throw some Brythonic on top (particularly if you want to do an 80s Robin Hood on it and throw in Cernunnos/Herne the Hunter in). If your setting is more of a fully mixed ‘Medieval England’ sort of setting, Robin Hood, King Arthur, etc, you can mix and match a whole bunch of folklore and mythology of various sources, Welsh, Roman, Norse, etc. (Alan Garner is a fantasy author who does this very well, if you want a high-fantasy example)

And if you want Celtic as in Irish myth to match the names …

If you’re going relatively low-fantasy for a more historical feel, use the Irish pantheon, and the sources you want to inspire the setting would be the Cattle Raid of Cooley and the Fenian Cycle/stories of Fionn Mac Cumhaill and the Fianna. The Five Kingdoms of Ireland (Ulster, Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Meath, with the High King sitting at Tara in Meath) makes a pretty good setting.

If you’re going more high fantasy, like the Arthurian example, use the Irish pantheon, and you want the Book of Invasions and the Battle of Magh Tuireadh as inspiration. Setting elements you can have here are the Five Kingdoms of Ireland, the Four Cities that the Treasures of Ireland came from, Tir na nOg, and the Otherworld. (Note on the four cities and their treasures: they were each guarded by a legendary bard (poet/scholar/mage), so you could go classic archmage wizard or you could throw in some high level NPC bards for fun)

There’s some very cool magic items in Irish myth too, like the aforementioned four treasures, the magic pigskin (waterskin) Lugh had the sons of Tuireann quest for (heals all wounds, but charges of various healing spells per day would probably work), the sword Fragarach (I think other D&D editions had a version, but I’m particularly interested in its sword of truth aspect that forces anyone threatened by it to tell the truth), Cuchulainn’s Gae Bolg spear, aka Belly Spear (which is made from a bone of a sea monster and is nasty – it basically grows barbs/spines once it’s in someone’s body), and basically every item ever owned/gifted by Manannan Mac Lir, who is basically the Irish god of giving away cool magic items (as well as sea god, trickster god, elder god, and the god often in charge of starting quests). If you need a quest-starter god or a god to litter magic items around your world, Manannan Mac Lir is your dude.

If you want a fantasy author that I quite like who does great loosely-based-on-Irish-myth high fantasy, I would say Michael Scott, particularly (from my reading) the De Danaan tales and Tales of the Bard. I also grew up reading Cormac Mac Raois’ Giltspur trilogy, which is an awesome kid’s portal fantasy involving some Wicklow kids winding up in Tir na nOg and fighting the forces of the Morrigan, but that’s pretty much impossible to get outside Ireland, I think.

And I promise I’m not only saying this because I personally feel like a low-fantasy ‘historical’ campaign is about the least interesting thing you could do with any of the Celtic pantheons. Honest.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

Hi. I tend to define myself as agnostic rather than atheist, but I sometimes wonder if it's really a reflection of what I think or just a way to feel (and look) less "extreme" on a scale of beliefs. I've looked up the definitions, but I'm still not sure where I stand and would be grateful if you could explain the difference yourself, and if you're up for it why you consider yourself atheist and not agnostic. Thank you a lot for your work on this blog.

Theist vs atheist reflects whether you hold a belief in god(s), or that is not a belief that you hold. Whether you’re an atheist or a theist is not a question about the gods. It’s a question about you.

Gnostic vs agnostic is an adjective. It reflects whether something is known (or can be known), or whether it is not known (or cannot be known).

Remember: belief is separate from knowledge. A/theism concerns belief, a/gnosticism concerns knowledge.

You could be, for example, an agnostic Last Thursdayist - believing ”the universe began, intact, last Thursday” (sometimes framed as “5 minutes ago”) - or an agnostic Simulationist - believing that ”we live in the Matrix” - but that we can never know for sure. A gnostic Last Thursdayist/Simulationist claims knowledge.

This is the way I look at it: if you were required - whether by law or by little space aliens with ray guns - to make a list of the things in which you hold a belief, are you willing to write “a god/gods” on that list? Underneath, say, “fairness” and “pineapple doesn’t belong on a pizza.”

If you were required to make a list of all the things in your house, are you willing to write “an 8-pack of AA batteries” on it? If you have an 8-pack of AA batteries, you write it on the list. If you might have one, but aren’t sure, maybe you used them up... you don’t write it on there. If you don’t know what batteries are, you don’t write it on there.

Belief in a god or gods is something held positively. Someone who had no concept of a god or gods doesn’t hold a belief in them. Neither does anyone who understands the concept but doesn’t believe in them. But the result is the same.

If you are not willing to write “a god/gods” on that list, then I would say that a belief in god(s) is not something you possess. It is not something on the inventory of things that you own. You are without such a belief. In my book, that would make you an atheist.

I think there are a lot more atheists in the world than would actually admit to it, for a number of reasons.

There’s a misconception, generally perpetrated by the religious, that it’s the belief that “no god exists” (which ignores polytheism). You can not have a belief that Bigfoot exists without having a belief that Bigfoot does not exist. There’s a difference between not having a positive belief, and having a negative (non-existence) belief.

There’s also the notion, again perpetrated by the religious, that atheism is an identity or a worldview or even a “religion.” There’s an image I’ve been trying to find again, having stumbled over it a while ago. Since I can’t, I’ve made my own version.

In maths terms:

T = {Christianity} ∪ {Islam} ∪ (Judaism} ∪ {Hinduism} ∪ ... etc. i.e. the union of all the sets of god belief.

Then A = Tc. i.e. the complement (those outside) the set T. The only attribute known about members of A is that they’re not in T.

Atheism only exists as the inverse of the set of people who believe in gods. If god belief went away, so would atheism. You can’t be a “good atheist” or a “bad atheist” any more than you can be a “good person-who-doesn’t-believe-a-purple-walrus-lives-on-Pluto.”

There’s also perhaps a perception that atheists are noisy, complaining and obnoxious. Maybe that’s true of some. Maybe that’s true of me. Some of that simply stems from evening up the playing field. That those who proudly profess their theistic beliefs aren’t entitled to hog the discourse, or demand silent collaboration from others. But there’s no obligation to be one thing or another.

So with all that in mind, I regard myself as an agnostic atheist. I don’t believe gods exist, but I don’t claim to know. This is essentially the default position, and it’s the easiest to defend, because it makes no claims, other than those about myself. I claim I don’t believe in gods, and I’m the expert in me, so I should know.

I don’t make claims about gods existing, either as belief or knowledge, so I have no burden of proof (see: Null Hypothesis). When I talk about gods being imaginary or not existing, it’s not a claim of knowledge, it’s a conclusion as a result of the failures of believers to make their case. It may be an incorrect conclusion, but it’s one that I can justify.

If someone presented evidence for the existence of a god that could be repeatably and independently tested and verified, then I would accept that. Of course, that doesn’t mean I would worship it. But I would acknowledge that it factually exists. Of course, at that point, belief is no longer required, any more than we need to “believe” in gravity or “believe” in evolution.

As it stands, with humanity’s history of god claims, the failure, as far as I can see, of believers to even understand what qualifies for evidence, and the faulty and fallacious arguments for the existence of gods, and everything we know about our natural world, I’m confident I will not have to worry too much about that eventuality.

[smhalltheurlsaretaken]

Spoilers.

Okay I can’t hold it in anymore, I need to yell about Star Trek. 

SO.

In light of the revelations we got from Picard ep8 and ep9, I have come to the conclusion that the plot is a giant fucking mess. Lemme explain.  (Buckle up, it’s long and VERY spoilery).  First, a recap: 300 000 years ago, synthetic lifeforms from another galaxy dragged eight suns together (or maybe created them) and put a sign on the planet in the middle, saying “hey synth pals, when the organics decide to destroy you, give us a call, we’ll destroy them.” The Romulans stumbled upon it, understood only the “synth, organics, destroy” part and decided to hunt and kill robots before they evolved. So far, the robotic higher beings have only succeeded in making the organics hate the synths, so good job. Using the Romulan rescue, Oh makes synths illegal through the attack on Mars, causing the death of most of her people (and incidentally, of the entire Vulcan race in another timeline. Thanks, Oh!). I’ll give her points for dedication, at least this isn’t a “save my people and screw the rest of the Federation” scenario. She’s actually willing to sacrifice her planet to save the whole galaxy. (Doesn’t make it moral, but still, pretty selfless, in a dark a twisted way.) Again, this is the robotic higher beings’ fault. 

Moving on, The surviving synths try to make first contact with Starfleet, resulting in the death of Jana, Beautiful Flower and Vandermeer, which has overall very little consequence on the bigger plot. AGAIN, this is indirectly the robotic higher beings’ fault. (Maybe losing her sister is what makes Sutra such a bitch? Don’t think so though, we’ll get to that.) Maddox, learning nothing from the Ibn Majid, decides to learn the truth about the ban and sends two synthetic girls that look exactly like Jana to investigate (my god is he stupid), while not actually telling them what it is they’re supposed to find (oh, Bruce. Oh my god). It leads to the Romulans realizing that there’s an entire planet of synths. Outstanding work, dumbass. 

Picard does his thing and decides to save the synths and advocate for their lives, Sutra realizes what the Admonition actually meant, and decides that killing all the organics sounds like a great idea. She doesn’t hesitate to let Narek kill one of her sisters to unite her people, showing that she’s exactly the same kind of psycho bitch as Oh. The problem is: SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECIES. The robotic higher beings are fucking IDIOTS!! They’re supposed to have seen many civilisations rise and fall, so they should know what to do and what not to do, and their rational still is “organics will kill us anyway, so let’s kill them,” leading to the organics being like “oh shit, the synths want to kill us, let’s stop making them,” leading to Sutra being like “welp they’ve already started hating us, our robot overlords were right, let’s kill organics.”  OH. MY. GOD!!!

I get that the lesson is that fear is the great enemy, and in this case it’s really well demonstrated (gotta give credit where it’s due), but still! It’s so frustrating!! 

My biggest problem with that convoluted plot is that we (the viewers) are supposed to see the synths as the organics’ equals. Their plight is supposed to be equal to the Federation’s. Except NO. I’m sorry, NO. 

(More on in-universe morality and out-of-universe viewer experience under the cut, because I took pity on your dashboards.)

I get wanting to survive from the Romulan attack, okay. (There is la Sirena for that, just as a reminder.) But Sutra saying that the Federation banning them was essentially genocide? NO. They are made. They aren’t born naturally. A government telling its people to stop making procreating isn’t the same thing as a government killing every kid younger that ten! Parents refusing to conceive isn’t the same as murdering their children (I won’t open the can of worms that is the abortion debate, the point stands). 

We as an audience are still supposed to see the Zhat Vash as the bad guys, because Oh, Narissa and Narek are villains, and because they have caused untold suffering. (By the way, linking Cris’ personal tragedy to the synth crisis is a massive plot contrivance to make us hate the Zhat Vash more, which I found frustrating watching ep8. Losing people in a horrible way happens even without grand global conspiracies, and Cris had already been established as going out of his way to help people even when there was nothing in it for him. We didn’t need the connection to empathise with his pain, and he didn’t need the added incentive. Seriously, how small is that galaxy? Are everybody’s demons linked to Picard’s heroic quest? How convenient.)

But are the Zhat Vash really the bad guys? (Even Cris questions that despite arguably being the Sirena crewmember who as per ep8 had lost the most because of them, along with Elnor.) I’m sorry, if Sutra does try to call the robotic overlords, I say burn Cappelius to the ground. Lemme continue to explain. There are what, 50 synths? 50 robots. And the show tries to make me (again, the viewer) accept that risking the survival of the entire Federation (trillions of people) to save them is actually a question worth asking? From an in-universe moral standpoint, perhaps. 

From an outsider’s perspective (the audience), not even close. Robots having souls and being equal to humans isn’t even a discussion we’re having in real life. I don’t believe androids will ever be self-aware, and capable of emotion and love. Sure, in the Star Trek universe they apparently are. So what? Suspension of disbelief only goes so far. The show can’t expect me to accept that many IFs. I get the very one-the-nose “fear of the Other,” “make love not war,” “different races have equal rights to life” analogy. The message is very much worthy, the show’s depiction of it really pisses me off. The show isn’t asking me to decide whether or not it would be moral to kill the last survivors of a human (or even alien) tribe to save the world, it’s asking “but what if we were basically God and we fucked up, how would we fix it? What if the stuff we made eventually had feelings? Then it’d be bad to destroy it, right?” 

Aside from the sheer hubris of that premise, I don’t know that the robots have feelings. I know it looks like they do, and that they believe that they do, but again, how am I to know? From a biological viewpoint, they’re certainly not alive:

“Life” (biological def taken from the web) Definition. noun, plural: lives. noun, plural: lives. (1) A distinctive characteristic of a living organism from dead organism or non-living thing, as specifically distinguished by the capacity to grow, metabolize, respond (to stimuli), adapt, and reproduce. 

Do the synths grow? Nah. Do they metabolize? Yes. Respond to stimuli? Yes but debatable as it’s programmed. Adapt? Yes. Reproduce? NOPE. 2.5/5 on the living scale lol. That’s not that great. (From an in-universe moral perspective, this time. I know, TNG did an ep on that, sorry.)

Still the show tries reaaaally hard to sell their sentience, and the one time that really didn’t sit well with me was that “robotic finger touching the human finger” image. WOW, last place where I expected to find religious imagery, a show that questions what it means to be human and what creating beings in our image would entail *sarcasm*. 

Except they twist the imagery. In the Bible, human lives are sacred because they are in the image of the perfect God, and He values us (=> so human worth come directly from God attributing worth to us because we’re meant to reflect His goodness). Humans being imperfect due to their fall, creating something in their own image is called an idol - it’s a false god, it’s not sentient, it’s even more imperfect, and it’s wrong. And if humans don’t value it and and it doesn’t reflect who they are anymore, well, it would make the idol even more worthless, right? (clearer explanation because my arguing skills suck => drawing on the Bible’s imagery, either humans are not gods and the images they created are worthless, or the series means for them to have God’s place, in which case refusing to attribute worth to their images makes those worthless. That invalidates the question that I previously said the show was asking.) So all in all, reminding us of the Christian take on the issue right in the middle of the Admonition claiming that synths are perfect is thus completely counterproductive, both in universe and from a viewer’s pov.

But but but, I hear you protest, what about Data? He had worth! 

This may be controversial, but Data mattered to us because of the character he was, not because he was supposed to be human. He was adorable and losing him meant losing an interesting and enjoyable element in the show, which would make us sad. I love him like I love Cris’ holos, the Voyager Doctor, Wall-E and Eve, R2-D2, Jarvis and Chappie. They’re (very) likeable fictional creatures that can be used as metaphors for real life issues, nothing more. In any show/movie I’d be really sad if one of them had to be sacrificed to save the world, but I’d accept it (looking at you, Infinity War Captain America). If the question arose in real life, would I question the morality of it? No. 

So, are the new synths the same? I already tackled the metaphor thing, it’s not handled that well and Detroit Become Human did it first. (Again, it’s hard to portray the otherness of other real life-cultures that we may unjustly fear by using things whose living status is so easily questionable!!)  Is killing off the synths wrong from an out-of-universe perspective because the audience loves them? Let’s see... Are the new synths adorable/likeable? Heck no, give me Emil and Enoch over them any day. Would we lose something in the show if they died? Nah. We didn’t even know they existed until one episode ago. Picard would get angsty and Agnes would get upset, but it’s nothing a few fluffy fics wouldn’t fix. Do we know the synths as characters? We know that Sutra is crazy, violent and bloodthirsty, Jana was probably nice (?), Dahj had a cute boyfriend (outstanding characterization) and Soji... Welp... *sigh* I guess Soji is okay, even though she’s the least relatable and interesting character of the whole Sirena crew?  We know that their creators and biggest advocates, Soong Jr and Maddox, are(/were) creepy old dudes with warped ethics, half a brain between the two of them, really toxic interactions with Agnes, and enough hubris to bring the entire greek demigod population to shame. They would race Icarus to the sun, seriously.  We know that Captain Vendermeer killed himself over two robots, permanently damaging one of the nicest and most beloved characters of the series. Yeah, real incentive for me wanting to see the Federation risk destruction for the androids, guys.

But seriously, the last time a psycho AI tried to destroy the galaxy and make it in its image (*cough* Control) the protagonists spent a season trying to destroy the thing, and they were right! Future-control was self-aware and demonstrated anger and fear! Make up your mind, CBS!! 

And by the way? THE SYNTHS HAVE A MEANS OF ESCAPE!! No, I’m sorry, if they don’t decide to go aboard la Sirena and choose to endanger the Federation instead, then for all plot issues I’m siding with the Zhat Vash. Go on, destroy the synths. As part of the audience, I don’t care, and the show attempts at making me care by trying to make it a moral issue feel clumsy and forced. 

Also. Q exists in the Star Trek universe! He’s a deus ex-machina machine!! (Pun intended.) It’s hard to take big issues like that seriously when he could just swoop in and teleport the synths out of the galaxy/destroy the Romulan armada/put the robotic overlords in their place. JL, please, give Q a call. Yeah, yeah, it’d take away from the moral stakes because you can’t solve your irl problem with a snap of your fingers and you have to make actual decisions - but as I already said, I feel like the moral stakes are dumb and contrived. Give me the deus ex-machina, please. 

This has been a Star Trek rant. I know that I tackled two separate issues here: the in-universe morality of the synths’ death (I will admit that from the crew’s perspective it’s not right, because they can’t know if the synths are alive or not for sure) and the out-of-universe viewer experience. I apologize if it came across as really confused and complicated. 

I still like the show and love the actual characters (meaning, la Sirena’s colorful crew), and the show writers are not incompetent, or stupid, or wrong for writing their show how they want. They are really skilled and talented and they have created mostly compelling characters - I’m just unhappy with the direction taken by the story.

[eldritchsurveys]

811.

US & THEM. | monica@pentagrams

oo1. what type of body do you find to be the most attractive on your prefered sex? >> ---

oo2. do you have synesthesia? what kind? what’s it like? >> Nah. I’ve always thought synaesthesia just kind of makes sense, though. Like, if you told me you experienced numbers as colours, I’d be like “well, yeah, that sounds about right”. Cross-sense experience just... makes sense.

oo3. do you call yourself a feminist? if no, why not? >> I don’t call myself a feminist because I’m not interested in the label. I don’t care about signalling a certain kind of morality to anyone. --I’m not at all saying that’s what other people are doing when they call themselves feminists or whatever, I’m saying this is what it would feel like to me if I were to do it, personally.

oo4. for the most part, we’ve all been bullied. but have you ever done the bullying? who did you bully, and what about? why did you do it? >> That’s an interesting assumption to make. But anyway, no, I’ve never been a bully.

oo5. when’s the last time you went shopping for clothing? what did you get? >> I don’t remember the last time I went shopping for anything other than groceries, to be honest. The few clothes I’ve purchased recently were purchased online.

oo6. when you hear of a tragedy going on (be it in your area or not), do you feel a lot of compassion or are you jaded about all tragedies that happen unless it affects you personally somehow? >> “Jaded” isn’t really the word I would use; that implies that I developed some kind of desensitisation, which in turn implies I was once sensitive to it in the first place. I just innately don’t have any emotional response to the majority of things that happen in the world, unless they affect me personally somehow. I don’t understand why that’s so off-putting to other people, as if I said I’d gleefully dance on their grave if they died or something. Maybe it’s a CEN or cPTSD thing. Maybe it’s a neurodivergence thing. I don’t fucking know, but that’s the way it is, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise just to make other people comfortable.

oo7. do you find the thought of aliens comforting, disturbing, or something else entirely? >> I find the thought intriguing, and that’s about it.

oo8. what is something (movie, band, trend, etc) that everyone hates that you love? do you openly admit to liking it or do you just keep it to yourself? >> When I was a teenager, my favourite band was Creed, and let me tell you how awful that was for me. It’s almost like I was asking to get teased. That aside, there will always be things I enjoy that are unpopular to enjoy, and that’s fine. I’m still going to like it.

oo9. who’s your least favorite character in your favorite tv show? why? >> I don’t usually have least-favourite characters.

o1o. would you ever be comfortable being in a polyamorous relationship, personally? why or why not? >> I am only comfortable in non-monogamous relationships. Because they only make sense, for me -- I’m aromantic and asexual, so there’s a lot of stuff I don’t bring to relationships, and I don’t see why my partner shouldn’t be able to seek that stuff elsewhere, without having to feel bad about it. That doesn’t somehow negate the bond we have, which is unique in its own right (if it wasn’t, then there’d be no reason for us to be together in the first place...). Likewise, I wouldn’t want my own relationship options restricted either -- it’s just less likely to happen on my end, for obvious reasons. Also, I experience compersion -- I feel good when I see my partner having good relational experiences with other people, as opposed to feeling jealous or neglected (unless, of course, I am being neglected, which would definitely be a glaring red flag).

o11. when you were a kid, did you read v.c. andrews books? do you still read them? which was/is your favorite? if you have never read them, what did you like to read as a child? >> I didn’t read them as a kid. I finally read Flowers in the Attic like a year ago, actually. It was pretty interesting, and maybe I’ll check out some others later on. I’m always interested in stories about unhealthy familial relationship dynamics like that, probably because it’s a cathartic way for me to process my own experiential bullshit.

o12. what is a common misconception people have about you? >> I’m not sure.

o13. would you list some unpopular opinions you hold? >> I feel like every time I take a survey I end up giving some kind of unpopular viewpoint as an answer somewhere. Like in the polyamory question, or when I say that maybe people should be less insulting to other people, especially when they know nothing about them except that they did something you wouldn’t do.

o14. do you think that assisted suicide should be legal or illegal? why? >> I am in favour of it. I just am. I don’t have any concrete fact-based reasons to have this opinion, it’s just something I knee-jerk approve of based upon how I feel about death and dignity and personal agency.

o15. what was the cause of the charity (or anything of the sort) you last donated to? >> Technically, I donated to the ACLU when I bought that huge games bundle from off Itch.io for 6 bucks.

o16. when it comes to technology, what matters more to you: aesthetic or efficiency? >> Efficiency is prioritised, but if two machines are equally efficient and one’s ugly to me, I’m definitely not buying that one.

o17. where do you lie on the spectrum of theistic probability? it is a scale that goes from 1 to 7. 1 means you ‘know’ there is a god, 7 means you ‘know’ there isn’t. if you don’t mind talking about it, would you explain your beliefs? >> I don’t think it would be fair to my complex views and feelings to rate myself on a spectrum. I think I encompass a large portion of the spectrum, actually. I’m open to the realm of possibilities, and I have a lot of feelings about, like, the Platonic concepts of Ideas and the Nous and Daimones and shit like that, and also how religiosity affects humanity, and... man, I’m just really into that shit, okay, I don’t know what else to say. So I might not be directly religious, but religiosity definitely permeates my life.

o18. how much do material items mean to you? >> The material items I own are significant to me, because they’re mine and they enrich my life in some sense -- either by keeping me clothed and comfortable or by enabling me to connect to the internet or by just looking nice on my wall. I prefer not to take it any farther than that -- ultimately, stuff is still just stuff. But I’m not going to pretend that I don’t attribute any value at all to what I own.

o19. how do you keep your cool when you get angry? >> I just prefer to avoid getting angry. I’m not confident that I can manage myself well at that level of emotionality.

o2o. do you swear? why or why not? if you do, what do you think of people who don’t? if you don’t, what do you think of people who do? >> Yeah. Because it’s a part of language and I find it useful. I don’t care what other people do -- not swearing is a personal choice and I respect it, and if someone prefers that I don’t swear around them (or their kids or whatever), then I’ll oblige. Otherwise, whatever.

[flowersofjannah]

Salam and Ramadan Mubarak I hope you’re having a blessed month. Idk where to start but I’ve just been very frustrated lately. I’m currently healing from a heartbreak even tho it’s been almost 2 years. The way I think of Allah now it’s so sad. Lately I’ve been feeling like he doesn’t like me and he doesn’t want to help me. I know it’s wrong to think that but if you were in my spot you would too. I just feel like giving up because nothing is changing, nothing is getting better

Part 2: when everything happened my duas & prayers were perfect but I’ve just been realizing that Allah is blessing the guy who broke my heart more than me. But I’m the one praying and reading Quran &!making dua & crying myself to sleep but he’s over there going to clubs not fasting or praying but he’s still happier than me. I just feel like god hates me & Idk what I’m doing wrong. I’m doing everything I can to please him. After realizing that I feel like my prayers & duas are forced

Part3: sorry if Im not explaining this correctly, I cant seem to put the right words together but my heart is so heavy. What do I do. Allah is the only one I talk to about this & cry to about this no one even knows I’m going through these things but I feel like he left me too. I’m not doing anything wrong but I just feel like he hates me. 2 years of crying 2 years of no happiness if he loves me more than my mom does why does he keep me in this pain. Ya Allah forgive me for these harsh words. Thx

Assalamu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh and Ramadan Mubarak to you too. 

My dear brother/sister, your understanding of the way Allah deals with people whom He loves is mistaken. Hardships are a sign of Allah’s love, not His displeasure. This is proven by the hadith:

It was narrated from Mus’ab bin Sa’d that his father, Sa’d bin Abu Waqqas, said:

“I said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, which people are most severely tested?’ 

He (ﷺ) said: ‘The Prophets, then the next best and the next best. A person is tested according to his religious commitment. If he is steadfast in his religious commitment, he will be tested more severely, and if he is frail in his religious commitment, his test will be according to his commitment. Trials will continue to afflict a person until they leave him walking on the earth with no sin on him.’”

[Sunan Ibn Majah]

Allah tests those whom He loves most. If someone’s life seems easier than yours, that in no sense means that Allah loves that person more than you. The greatest of hardships fell upon our beloved prophets and sahabas, may Allah be pleased with them, yet they are the most beloved to Allah.

Man was created hasty - be patient with your duas and with the ease coming to your life. Allah promised ease after hardship. Keep up your duas, 

Abu Hurairah narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said: 

“One of you will be responded to, so long as he is not hasty, saying: ‘I supplicated, and I was not responded to.’”

[Jami` at-Tirmidhi]

I can understand what you’re going through, I felt similarly when my OCD/Waswas Kahri was at it’s peak. And I would tell people the hadith that Anas bin Malik narrated of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying:

“There shall come upon the people a time in which the one who is patient upon his religion will be like the one holding onto a burning ember.”

[Jami` at-Tirmidhi]

is exactly how I feel due to how hard it was to hold on to hope, clarity, prayers and other commandments of Islam while struggling with OCD/Waswas Kahri. And I would think to myself, ya rabb how is it will I overcome this? I know I will with your help for you always bring your believing slaves out of difficulty, but how? 

Today, I still have OCD but it is so so so much better than what I was going through at that time, it’s unbelievable! And do you know how much time it took for me to recover to this extent? 4 years my brother/sister, 4 years I remained patient, hopeful, and did not let go of a single salah and Allah kept His promise. I’m still struggling with it but on a much lower scale and I know that Allah will cure of this too. Alhumdulilah. In such times, Allah is testing our faith and patience. Will you let go of your faith and lose your trust in Allah or will you continue with patience and prayer? That is the test and Allah will test you with this test for a time period only known to Him but you have to prove your faith to God. Yes God, I believe in you and keep my hopes and trust in you, I know you will get me out of this, until then I will continue to please you and stay patient. That is the mindset we need to keep, and you can most definitely come out victorious because Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear. 

“Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: “We believe,” and will not be tested. And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allah will certainly make known those who are true, and will certainly make known those who are liars.” 

— Surah Al-Ankabut, 2-3

“Or do you think that you will enter Paradise while such [trial] has not yet come to you as came to those who passed on before you? They were touched by poverty and hardship and were shaken until [even their] messenger and those who believed with him said,“When is the help of Allah ?” Unquestionably, the help of Allah is near.”

— Surah Al-Baqarah, 214

“Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity.”

— Surah Al-Baqarah, 286

“And whoever is conscious of Allah - He will make for him a way out. And will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allah - then He is sufficient for him. Indeed, Allah will accomplish His purpose. Allah has already set for everything a [decreed] extent.”

— Surah At-Talaq, 2-3

Abu Sa'id and Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: 

“Never a believer is stricken with a discomfort, an illness, an anxiety, a grief or mental worry or even the pricking of a thorn but Allah will expiate his sins on account of his patience”

[Bukhari & Muslim]

Not only is Allah testing your patience, but He is purifying you through it. And what greater show of Allah’s love is that? That He is getting rid of your sins and misdeeds through your hardships, so you can be raised in your ranks in the Hereafter and attain more blessings in this world and the next. Subhanallah.

So you see, there is a whole world of the unseen we don’t know much about, but we must always believe whatever Allah does is good for us, and most of the good is in the unseen for us. Always think good of Allah subhana wa ta’ala - He knows what we don’t know and He is wise in His decisions and He gives us the good we need which may not always be the good we want. Keep faith, you will get through this in sha Allah! 

Hope I was of help to you in sha Allah, take care and make the most of this Ramadan in sha Allah! Ponder on His ayat, His names, and His attributes, get to know Him better and then you will truly be in awe of Him 🌸

[horrorhouse]

A Response to Josh Gad

On August 28, 2019, actor Josh Gad decided to post a lengthy Twitter thread regarding our political climate. I decided I wanted to post it in its entirety as one long letter instead of just posting each individual tweet and then give my response point by point. So here we go.

I don’t want to be the guy always shouting at the top of his lungs about the same thing. Life is too short. So this (I’m hoping) will be the last time I try to put into words how I feel about the current political situation we are in and reach out to those of you content with where things are right now in our country. So here we go. I know some of you wanted and hoped to throw the whole system out and see what happened if we disrupted political norms and elected a “guy who says it like it is” and in a weird way, I guess I even understand that impulse. But this is where we are now objectively: Donald Trump has never been fit for office and it appears that he is mentally unhinged. We can talk around it. We can play word games. We can debate what that means. But by all appearances he is truly a “madman.” I know it sounds funny and entertaining to hear the absurdity of the President of the United States threaten to nuke a thunderstorm to send it away or get angry at a country for not selling him another country but it’s not funny. It’s actually debilitatingly [sic] sad. Because our lives aren’t a reality show, even if he thinks he’s living in one. We have all lost the plot. We are chasing him down a rabbit hole of insanity and avoiding real issues like gun violence, immigration, health care, poverty and most importantly the very real threat of climate change, something this man doesn’t even believe exists because apparently he knows more as a realtor than the entire scientific community. We aren’t on the precipice of catastrophe or at the doorstep of doom...we are sadly past it. We need leadership to help us formulate how we adapt, grow & tackle environmental changes unlike any humanity has seen in the last few thousand years. But we don’t have that. Instead we have a man more interested in who likes him & who doesn’t than in anybody’s welfare currently reading this thread. I know some people out there believe he must be supported because he represents the religious and moral values you and your family share. But, the truth is, I know nobody really believes that because each and every single version of religious texts I’ve come across say that lying, cheating, stealing, coveting, and deceiving are not moral attributes worthy of lauding. He’s the definition of a fraud. You know it. I know it. Hell, even Fox News knows it. For them, it’s just another inconvenient truth. This isn’t about moral leadership. If you can sleep at night telling yourself that this President is a morally righteous, mentally sound, truthful man, I envy you. I wish I could fool my brain into believing a single syllable of that sentence. I’d have much fewer gray hairs. But I’m not living with my head in the sand. I can, sadly, see what a child should be able to see...we are all in danger as long as this demagogue is in the Oval Office. He is a monster. A racist white Nationalist, who doesn’t even bother using dog whistles, but is singing out loud for all to hear. Our allies are now our enemies. Our enemies are now inside our gates making a mockery of our system while our President cheers them on. 2020 isn’t an election year. It’s the single most historically important moment for our country in the modern era. We have already failed this test once. If we fail again...there is no do-over. History will bury us in its annals and assail us like those fools whose mistakes we repeated because we were too greedy, stubborn or polarized to do the right thing. After all, this is no longer about political differences. This isn’t a football game where we’re all on different teams. This is one union. One country under God that has been through hell and back but carried a torch of greatness on its shores promising something better than anywhere else in the world...opportunity. “The American Dream.” For far too many that dream has become a waking nightmare. Let’s wake ourselves up. Let’s come together. Before it’s too late. Register. Fight. Educate. Learn. Read. Resist. And most importantly. VOTE. Vote like your life depends on it...because this time it does.

Josh, I hope that you have the chance to read my response and consider what I have to say. Part of the problem with the condition of our country is the divisions created when people aren’t willing to listen to and respect each other’s differing viewpoints. First of all, you say that you don’t want to be the guy screaming about the same thing at the top of your lungs and life is short, yet you say you’d have much fewer gray hairs if you could go to sleep at night believe the President is a morally righteous, mentally sound, truthful man. If life is so short, why are you keeping yourself up at night over your own personal beliefs? It’s self-sabotage, and maybe you should consider seeing a doctor for the benefit of your mental health and also a cardiologist so you don’t have a coronary. I voted for President Trump, and it wasn’t to throw a wrench in the system and shake up “political norms”. I weighed my options. I didn’t vote for him in the primaries. But between Trump and Hillary Clinton, I chose who I felt at the time was the lesser of two evils. Voters had no real yard stick with which to measure Trump’s political accomplishments or failures. We had one for Hillary, and clearly the American people didn’t want her in office. She has a history of racism going all the way back to her time as First Lady of Arkansas. There’s video of Hillary on the campaign trail from March 2016 at a coffee shop in Minnesota when she snapped at a young female person of color for questioning her on whether she planned to address the diversity of elected officials. Not to mention the emails that leaked days before the election no doubt had an affect on voters. Her history with her husband’s victims didn’t help her, either. The President isn’t avoiding issues like gun violence, immigration, health care, poverty -- you just don’t agree with what he has done on those issues. He’s addressing the issues and looking for bipartisan solutions. For one thing, he instituted a ban on bump stocks. He pressured Mexico to crack down on migrants passing through their country to get into the United States (the majority of whom were entering the country illegally -- you can hate the law all you want but until it changes, it’s the law that exists and should be enforced), his administration has expanded access to prescription drugs and the slowdown in prescription drug price growth during his time in office has saved over $26 billion. With regard to poverty, President Trump created 4.7 million jobs in his first two years and lowered the unemployment rate to its lowest in recorded history, particularly for African-Americans and Hispanics. I’d love to hear what your solutions are for these issues.  As for climate change, President Trump said climate change is a complex issue and added “I’m not sure anybody is ever going to really know” the cause. There are several theories that have been explored by scientists and numerous solutions presented, both small- and large-scale. Some aspects of earth’s core temperature changes have nothing to do with man - they’re do to natural environmental effects. So how do you intend to completely eradicate global warming? I know the President isn’t perfect. I know he’s not a paragon of moral virtue. But in my opinion, he’s still a better leader than Hillary Clinton would have been. At this point, you sound like someone standing on a street corner holding a sign that says THE END IS NIGH. If anyone’s mental state should be considered and questioned, perhaps it’s your own. Just from reading your tweets, it comes off that you’re some foaming-at-the-mouth lunatic.

[madamlaydebug]

SEVEN RAYS AND SEVEN SPHERES

"The 7 rays are the prismatic break down of White Light. Each has its own vibratory characteristics. Light (the 7 Rays) and Sound (the 7 notes of the musical scale) are synergistic, and this is cymatics at work on a Universal scale. With the Music of the Spheres, each note (with it's range of sub-harmonics) 'sings' the Sphere into Being. Each has its respective Masculine Color Ray and Feminine Harmonic, and together they form the set of Natural Laws for that dimensional Sphere, and therefore each has specific characteristic influence in our everyday lives. Each person has 7 Bodies (the upper ones very subtle). Each of the 7 Bodies is emanating from one of the 7 Chakras and occupying its respective dimensional space or Sphere. In this way, Humans are multi-dimensional, occupying all of the 7 Spheres/Rays/Dimensions/Harmonic Universes at once. The only thing interfering with full conscious awareness of this are emotional blocks held in one or more of the Chakras which obstructs the Kundalini flow and severs the connection to the other Selves. These blocks translate as shadowed areas within the Auric Field around the Physical Body." -- Scott Maurer

"The Great Wheel of the Zodiac is the seven-skinned Egg of the universe. These skins are the seven great planes of manifestation commencing with Adi on the Spiritual level and descending to the physical plane. The fields interpenetrate, thus demonstrating the truth of the Eternal Presence in man. The consciousness of man interpenetrates all planes because it is derived from the Monadic level of the Adic plane."

-- Dr. John Kirk Robertson, MAAT Texts

"In the Mysteries the seven Logi, Elohim or Creative Lords, are shown as streams of force issuing from the mouth of the Eternal One. This signifies the spectrum being extracted from the white light of the Supreme Deity. The seven Creators, or Fabricators, of the inferior spheres were called by the rabbis the Elohim. By the Egyptians they were referred to as the Builders sometimes as the Governors and are depicted with great knives in their hands with which they carved the universe from its primordial substance. Worship of the planets is based upon their acceptation as the cosmic embodiments of the seven creative attributes of God. The Lords of the planets were described as dwelling within the body of the sun, for the true nature of the sun, being analogous to the white light, contains the seeds of all the tone and colour potencies which it manifests."

-- Manly P. Hall. 1901-1990. Secret teachings of all ages.

"The seven rays is an occult concept that has appeared in several religions and esoteric philosophies, since at least the 6th century BCE, of the Aryan peoples in both Western culture and in India. In the west, it can be seen in early western mystery traditions such as Gnosticism and the Roman Mithraic Mysteries; and in texts and iconic art of the Catholic Church as early as the Byzantine era. In India, the concept has been part of Hindu religious philosophy and scripture since at least the Vishnu Purana, dating from the post-Vedic era. -- Wikipedia

The Seven Bodies of Man--a brief exploration

http://theosophywales.com/seven_bodies_of_man__a_brie.htm

“Just as there are 7 Divisions on the Physical Plane and the Rainbow has 7 Colors, the Energy known as Sound has 7 notes in Music and the same note recurs on the eighth key, only it has a higher or lower Pitch according to which side of the Scale is reckoned. Each complete Scale of Notes is called “Saptaka” or Septave, meaning the Scale of Seven. Actual measurement shows that going from the low to the high, each eighth note has a vibration rate of double the number; thus, each Octave from low to high has double the vibration frequency in the high as in its neighboring low and to find the Octave Frequencies means a question of simple arithmetic." -- Dinshah Ghadiali, Spectro-Chrome Metry Encyclopaedia

"Not unlike our physical sun (the source of all visible light that can be broken up into its seven component colors), the Solar Logos of our system too is a source of seven great cosmic Rays of spiritual light that can help accelerate our spiritual growth. These Rays build up the causal body of man, and to each of them there are various spiritual and physical qualities assigned. In this case we can say that the term "Ray" is used in a sense of one special type of force or energetic quality. These seven great streams of energy represent each and every vibration in nature, space and form, and they permeate all objects, all beings and all events in manifestation. They interpenetrate each other and combine themselves in order to produce more complex systems which we refer to as "reality". The seven Rays surpass the possible description by words, or even by thoughts or feelings. They are too essential and all-encompassing to be limited within our own narrow inner space of perception of the great spectrum of reality." -- Gail Miller

"The seven streams of energy, it is said, are the very vibrations within matter, space and form which define and infuse all objects, all beings, and all events in manifestation. They combine and interweave to create all the complex systems known as reality. They strike a chord in our consciousness and are, quite literally, closer to us than breath. The Seven Stars (Rishis) of the Great Bear (Ursa Major) are the originating Sources of the Seven Rays of our Solar System. These Seven Rishis (Spirits) of the Great Bear express Themselves through the medium of the Seven Planetary Logoi in the Solar System as the Atmic Wills of the Monadic Ray, Who are Their Representatives and to Whom They stand in relation of the prototype. In a manner inconceivable to us the First Logos, the Solar Logoic Spirit, brings in the influence of other Constellations from the Monadic Great Bear via the Little Bear (Ursa Minor), Pleiades and Sirius. The Seven Stars of the Great Bear are involved in an intricate relation with Ursa Minor and the Pleiades, (as with Monad and Atma-Buddhi). This major triplicity of Constellations has a peculiar relation to that Great Being to Whom I have at times referred as the One About Whom Naught May Be Said. All that can be hinted at is that these three Galaxies of Stars are the three aspects of the Ineffable Cause of the Seven Solar Systems, via Sirius, of which ours is one. Each of these Seven Rays, coming from the Great Bear, are transmitted into our Solar System through the medium of three Zodiacal Constellations and their Ruling Planets. The Seven Planetary Spirits (Logoi, Cosmic Atma) manifest through the medium of the Seven Sacred Planets to cooperate in the Soul aspect of the Heavenly Man (Cosmic Buddhic), and also the Personality aspect (Cosmic Mental) of Humanity. The Little Bear, like its Universal Prototype, the Great Bear of which it is a lesser reflection and a corollary, is not a Constellation itself, but an Asterism, which is a distinctive group of Stars. The Seven Stars of the Great Bear are the Seven Head Centers of the One About Whom Naught May Be Said, the Great Being that is greater than our Logos and of the Pleiades, the Seven Stars that are His Spinal Chakras. When the Grand Heavenly Man (or Logos) first assumed the form of the Crown (Kether) and identified Himself with Sephira, He caused Seven Splendid Lights to emanate from the Crown. These are the Progenitors, the Givers of Life to All. They are Seven and then Ten, corresponding to the Seven and Ten Sephiroth, when manifest in Physical System. Cosmically, they are the Seven Rishis of the Great Bear; systemically they are the Seven Planetary Logoi; and from the standpoint of our planet, they are the Seven Kumaras. --The Seven Ray Institute.

"Thinking of God as a Sun, there are surrounding and enfolding this Central Focus of Intelligence Seven Mighty Spheres of Consciousness, each one separated from the other by its own periphery line which forms the natural boundary of that particular sphere. These Seven Spheres are called the Aura of God, each inhabited by Great God Intelligences, all intent on doing the Father's Will to expand His Kingdom. The development and unfoldment of His Kingdom is accomplished by the release of pulsating waves of His Own Divine Consciousness, within which are the spiritual patterns of all form and manifestation, from the smallest blade of grass to the most brilliant star in space. As these God ideas pass from Sphere to Sphere, they are absorbed by the Beings and Intelligences within each one. They then move outward to the next Sphere, and the next, ever journeying onward toward manifestation into the world of form. A constant modification of the God Light, a constant clothing of the God Consciousness is achieved in each Sphere so that God's Ideas become embodied in the substance of each Sphere in orderly sequence and, eventually, reach the Seventh Sphere, or Etheric Realm, where they await precipitation into the physical world of form."

-- Tellis Papastavro, The Gnosis and the Law

"No form can be given to anything, either by nature or by man, whose ideal type does not already exist on the subjective plane. More than this; that no such form or shape can possibly enter man's consciousness, or evolve in his imagination, which does not exist in prototype, at least as an approximation." -- H.P.Blavatsky.

"In the newborn Spirit Spark, from the Heart of God, the Causal Body is pure white. Many of the Individualized White Fire Beings and "I Am" Presences, using their freedom of will, never leave the First Sphere. They are the Holy Innocents whose aura is like White Flame and They embody the Divine Ideas of the Universal which they project downward, but Themselves choosing not to know even the glory of the Second Realm. These individuals forfeit the right to become, in some future era, Sun and Creator, preferring to live in Holy Innocence in that happy estate. The braver Spirits venture forth from the First Sphere and build the Blue Flame of Faith into Their Causal Body in the Second Sphere. Some Spirits go forth into the Third Sphere and learn the activity of the Holy Spirit and breathe into Their thought-forms Light, and these thought-forms become living Entities. Many live within this Pink Sphere of blazing Light and go no further, embodied representatives of the Holy Spirit Intelligences that people this Sphere. Some, however, go further, into Realm of the Bridge Builders, the Realm of Serapis Bey--the Fourth Sphere--where They can be summoned then into form; here they identify themselves with all the various kinds of endeavors that serve mankind. The more adventurous Spirits proceed into the Fifth Sphere and add the Green Band of Light to their Causal Bodies. Some continue on to the Sixth Realm and They add the Ruby Color to Their Causal Bodies. Some continue on into the Seventh Sphere of the Ascended Master Saint Germain and experiment with Divine Alchemy and the Powers of the Violet Fire of Mercy and Compassion, and direct the Angels of Mercy into the world of form. Only Those Who have proceeded through the Seven Spheres and have consciously created a Causal Body with Seven Bands of Color within it can apply for embodiment on Earth. Then if They are accepted, They become a candidate for one of the Seven Root Races and one of its Sub-Races."

-- Tellis Papastavro, The Gnosis and The Law

SOUND AND LIGHT 7X7

“And God said, Let there be Light and there was Light. And God saw the Light, that it was good: and God divided the Light from the darkness.” God spoke to make Light; thus, Sound preceded Light. On the Oscillatory Frequency principle, this is very correct, because, Sound is an Energy acting on a lower Scale. The fact of Light appearing on the Forty-Ninth Octave, explains its Divine origin and relation; God is represented symbolically by the Circle and only 7 Circles can produce the Cosmos; the Number 49 is made by 7 X 7 and stands for each Circle having been traversed 7 times in Cosmogenesis, before Light came into being, with its Seven Spectral Colors. This beauteous Energy was preceded by Sound with its Seven Musical Notes, the Number 7 keeping pace with the Scales of Evolution."

-- http://www.cocreatorsworld.com/…/the-forty-nine-octaves-of…/

[speaksfish]

                                  Arthur Curry : An Overview.

BASICS.

Given / Birth Name : Arthur Curry  Nickname / Preferred Name : Arthur  Alias(es) : Aquaman, King of Atlantis  Birthdate / Age : January 29th / Thirty - Nine  Place of Birth : Amnesty Bay, Maine  Current Location : Atlantis Gender Identity : Cis Male Sexual / Romantic Orientation : A bi boy through and through.   Ethnicity / Race / Cultural Heritage: Hawaiian (Polynesian) && Atlantean  Marital Status : Married Occupation : Monarch. An uncomfortable one.   Religious Beliefs : Polytheist / Spiritual in a sense. He claims to have seen enough to know one entity isn’t ( nor could ever be ) responsible for it all. So he chooses to believe that these greater forces move within us to affect our lives. Sometimes it’s for the better, often it’s to challenge us, make us move, inspire once unwilling growth. As far as naming these forces, Arthur has none, only a gut telling him there are various hands at play here and all are fighting for the steering wheel. Except Poseidon. Poseidon and his kin, in the wise words of Arthur Curry, can fuck right off.

CHARACTERISTICS.

Height : 6′4 Weight : Somewhere in the ballpark of 300 lbs.  Body Type / Build : Athletic / Strongman build. He’s pretty par for course as far as merging Atlantean and Humans go. Go team Humanoids.   Eye Color : It’s the new dress meme. Are they gold and white, are they blue and black ?? Just kidding, they’re blue.   Hair Color / Texture : A brunette with sun-bleached highlights. His hair may appear soft but it is not, it’s rough and more often than not covered in salt ( and other less favorable sea ) particles. Someone introduce a good cleansing shampoo to this beach waved boy. He once walked out onto a seafaring dock with a damn crab clipping his hair up.   Recognizable Features / Scars : His most notable scar is the one through his eyebrow. Got it during the first real scuffle between himself and Black Manta 2.0. The tattoos across his arms, shoulders, back and torso are also important to him. They’re what connect him to his polynesian routes, as tattoos were what they considered “all the armor one warrior needs”. Each design is also an attribute to the oceans more formidable marine life. Triangles ( both negative space and not ) representing the tooth of a shark while arrows represent the tails of manta rays or swordfish or the fins of whales ( etc ).   Speech Patterns / Accent : Arthur uses an incredible amount of colloquialism in his speech dating to the 90′s. He had a speaking inflection typical of east coast accents, however it’s not as noticeable with age. ( When speaking Atlantean it’s very clear that he has it. )   Languages Spoken : English and Atlantean prior to becoming a king. All languages afterward, one of the perks to his gig.  Powers / Skills / Abilities : Besides being able to powerlift your heart into the new year? He’s strong. It’s a vague area because he has overextended himself in the past, but the guy can throw nuclear subs and war ships at very specific targets and that’s nothing to bat a lash at. He has sonar capabilities and scary good hearing ( yet Bruce still scares the absolute piss out of him by sneaking around ). Atlantean physiology means withstanding great amounts of pressure, seeing in the dark, quicker than average healing times, longer strides, quicker reflexes and higher endurance. Abilities that are his own small mutations include marine ( and life that originates from the ocean, but weaker ) telepathy, resistance to telepaths, and is a fast swimmer. Crazy fast.    Overall Health : Average? 

RELATIONSHIPS.

Order of Birth : Eldest  Number of Siblings : 2, technically.  Father’s Status + Relationship : Tom Curry, retired. Tom Curry moved to Maine after a volcano covered roughly half of his family farm land in Hawaii. He used the money from that property to buy a worn down lighthouse, taking up a job as a fisherman shortly after to begin the process of making that his family home. He retired at the age of sixty but still manages the lighthouse during stormy weathers, as well as takes care of Arthur’s dog whenever his son is underseas for prolonged periods of time. Notable fact: he can drink Arthur under the table, but his father (Arthur’s grandfather) would call them both weak guts. Mother’s Status + Relationship : Queen Atlanna, deceased.  Sibling Status + Relationship : Orm, half - brother. Pain in the tattooed butt. Tula, step - sister. Favorite non - biological sibling.   Loyalty / Affiliation : Atlantis.

PERSONALITY.

MBTI : ENFJ Hobbies : Whittling. When alone he tends to need something in his hands that’ll occupy his time, that turned into wood / bone work. He’s an avid connoisseur of good stouts.   Bad Habits : A picky eater.  Three Positive Traits : Arthur is first and foremost a humbled person. He understands where he lacks expertise and can admit to faults of his rather effortlessly. It’s been criticized ( specifically by Orm ) in the past as ‘ showing weakness ’ but he disagrees fullheartedly. To claim you know everything about everything is foolish and irresponsible, so he relies heavily on the council of those close to him  or experts ) to help bridge the gaps in his understanding. And it’s perhaps why, more often than not, he feels in over his head and incapable of ruling / seduced by the simpler times.  Another trait that stands heads above the rest ----- Arthur is KIND. One could theorize that it was his mixed heritage ( growing up severely bullied as a result of being ... alive ) to push him into a softer approach when hardships hit, but ultimately he was always this way. Looks are deceiving, and it’s certainly true he will not allow others to test his threshold, but if there’s any choice present : he chooses to be kind.  Dad jokes are his jam. He may not be a pro at this ‘hero bantering’ thing, but he’s great at belly - laughing at his own dumb humor. 

Three Negative Traits : He only has a set scale of annoyances he can tolerate before seeing red. That scale varies by contributing factors throughout the day. I had this under a form of introversion, because he absolutely gets his energy in solitude and tires out in social situations, but a tricky sub genre of the personality type. Introversion on its own is NOT a negative trait, his can make him abrasive, rude, and standoffish unexpectedly. Arthur can be rather impulsive at times. He doesn’t always think his actions through, just battering rams it and hopes for the best. It gets on Mera’s nerves, he finds inaction oftentimes more dangerous.  The dad jokes ------- Moral Alignment : Neutral Good.

ASSOCIATIONS.

One Song :  Atlantis - Bridgit Mendler  One Quote / Piece of Art : This vine / Ships in the Stormy Sea One Fear : Losing his humanity. One Strength : Empathy. One Object : Trident of Neptune.  One Place : Neptune’s Grotto.  One Food : Coconut. One Scent : Saltwater.  One Lucky Charm : Ka Makau Nui ‘o Maui cattle bone necklace his father carved him 

[beloved-judged]

The side effects of CSA

I'm guessing that at least one person subscribed to this blog was abused as a child--statistically, there are enough of you, and if there isn't, I'm the statistical compliance here... because my childhood wasn't awful enough with the physical, religious, and emotional abuse in it.

One of the most awful features of childhood sexual abuse is not the abuse itself, it's the ramifications of it on your life, even as an adult.

For me, it's an unfortunate combination of... compliance, horrified arousal, and a kind of doll-like willingness to vacate myself. Those are the classic symptoms. There are even times where I almost long for that, for the way it seems so familiar and the way I can leave my complicated, sometimes very difficult life behind. I almost long to be... hollowed out, to be empty and for everything to be someone else's problem for awhile.

My job is a wee bit stressful. I'm essentially a one-woman IT (cloud development) team working in a disorganized shit storm with a handful of men who have issues with women and require constant negotiation around.

I literally had someone delete a project component last week because he was pissed that he wasn't asked the way he wanted to be asked (I did ask, the way I've been told I needed to.) It took me a month to get the ability to make that component.

I'm pretty good at avoiding situations where someone is likely to hit a trigger for it, which often means avoiding people. For the most part, I have a thick skin.

In retrospect, I should probably attribute some of that to a favor my priest did me, on hearing about some of the behaviors I'm dealing with at work. I realized today that when he said he would constrain the situation, he also meant binding up my heart and issues. I would have liked to live there.

Yesterday, I stopped into a local shop. I've made friends with the shop owner, another veteran, and often spend a few hours there chatting in the course of running errands. There are several products I buy there.

This weekend, he smacked my ass several times. He's aware that I am kinky, and it's something he also does. He's been explicitly clear he'd like to help me with my frustration, and explicitly clear what he'd like to do to me, that starts with closing the shop early.

On a scale of one to very bad, this is pretty minor. Obnoxious, sure. But it isn't like we had sex. And it isn't entirely outside the realm of casual contact that you might do to your friends. I have friends I smack playfully.

However, it hit me right in that ... spot, psychologically.

The last 24 hours have been a mess.

When someone advances on me like this, sometimes I tell people to fuck off. I've threatened to stab people for it before (and actually stabbed at them but missed.)

But the man in question, who I should add was trained to psychologically profile people as a part of his service, caught me right square in compliance. Not that profiling me is currently hard. I'm probably emoting in the visible spectrum.

The veterans I work with have been increasingly talking about getting me drunk or high. I'm guessing they think I need a break, not that I have any intention of being impaired around all but one of them without a chaperone and a chastity belt.

I am grateful that the degree of my compliance is attenuated over time, because the shop owner was aiming at bending me over the counter. A few years ago, he'd have managed and I would have gone home, showered and scrubbed every inch of myself, and drank myself to sleep or sat sleepless, stewing in misery.

Now I just refused to acknowledge what he was saying and went home, then spent the rest of the evening wrestling with guilt and assorted awful feelings, the same tired reflex to blame myself for not being clear enough, for not telling him no, for thinking what I thought and my mixed feelings.

My first, unfortunate thought was how nice it is to be touched, how nice it would be to just... feel for awhile. He talked about how safe it can be to have him around, how he protects people, how he appreciates strong women.

And for a moment, I found myself believing him, desperately wanting to just... be undone, perched on a stool with my eyes closed as he spoke.

When this has happened in the past, the compliance has come with horror. There is something deeply disturbing about feeling both intense pleasure and feeling like you can't stop yourself, can't say "no" not because you want what's happening, but because something in you is so broken, so degraded that even if you don't want what they're doing, you crave it. It's all you know, all you're good for.

I am intensely grateful that, instead of that, what I have instead is angry dismay and a feeling of enormous vulnerability. I am angry at myself. I am angry for not slapping the fuck out of him. I am angry that I had to leave to say "no." I am angry that I felt so comfortable around him. I am angry that this is still how I feel about being a woman, still a part of how I can be around a certain kind of man.

Because it's true--I want so badly to be protected, for anything in my life to be someone else's problem.

But that is a vast improvement, and even while I am embarrassed and angered, it beats all the fuck outta needing to take a bleach shower.

[juushika]

brief & scattered Critical Role notes for 105-112

I was super worried that the religious scale/awe would be lost by repetition; it in very large part was not; some of this is because Ioun was fantastic and so was her trial , but almost all can be attributed to Darin De Paul

I have never loved a guest star so much and so fast, or maybe a human being; he was amazing. The “Bluish” joke just. outright murdered me. When he said “you know how important this is to me” at the end of show I went and googled and found this post about him talking about Critical Role. I had feelings. Sprigg is so immediately well-developed because he was a preexisting character! his arc foils Vox Machina’s because De Paul watches the show. He got to live my personal dream in roleplaying a mortal-relationship-with-the-evidential-divine story arc. :( He was so sincere and so invested and seems like a genuinely fabulous human being and--what a gift, especially at this point in the arc.

I have a lot of feelings about Grog & Percy imbued with divine knowledge, and that Percy’s is equated to madness. it’s another bargain, sort of, for him, in a long line of bargains.

I never really love live eps and that’s okay; still good content just. so loud. The love potion just barely manages to sidestep “get it, the joke is that gay attraction is gross” and also “sexual assault is funny” but ... I think it does? I don’t know, Sam just does comedy so well, he can sell me on an awful lot. but the real highlight is that Mercer thought “how to make a live episode truly special?” and decided that the answer was to simultaneously play a round dozen NPCs. that is a spectacle.

I really like earth titan and just the bizarre, terrifying scale of the build to a finale; do not think a vertical dungeon crawl has super great pacing for this point in the plot; do especially enjoy the tension of DM trying to drain their resources right before climactic battle, do unexpectedly love the way that stupid finicky technical things like the anti-scry ring/teleportation between plains/etc. make for clever logistics and let some of the endgame abilities shine. My notes-to-self (which then get transformed into edited liveblogs) tend to be very character-focused; my reflections after the fact (like these) are apparently about pacing and narrative structure. or perhaps that’s just because final-arc pacing is especially important and challenging?

here’s another sidethought about logistics and pacing which I’ve had throughout: it sure is hard to balance “watchable TV” with “6-7+ people make a plan.” on account,  I have a huge tolerance both for long frantic planning sessions and for shit going sideways because they felt forced to rush in. I secretly wish that they did nothing with their careers except Critical Role (instead of being super busy people), that each between-episode break could be spent recreating the Kevdak battle, where obvious off-screen planning made for what is still the best fight in the series. I love logistics-heavy interactions; they’re hard to make into accessible watching; how2optimize? or is it the occasional delight of the challenge what keeps it fresh?

[brigdh]

A lot of reading reviews

I was unexpectedly busy for most of April, so this is several weeks' worth of reading – though weeks where I didn't have much time for reading for fun, alas. Enjoy an overabundance of reviews? What did you just finish? A Short History of Drunkenness: How, Why, Where, and When Humankind Has Gotten Merry from the Stone Age to the Present by Mark Forsyth. A shallow but funny history of humanity's relationship with booze. Brief chapters cover pretty much every historical era you'd expect: Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Greeks, the Romans, the Bible, Ancient China, Vikings, the Medieval Middle East, Medieval England, the Aztecs, colonial Australia, the Wild West, Russia, American Prohibition, and London's Gin Craze of the 1700s. That's quite the list for a book of less than three hundred pages, and indeed Forsyth is clearly focused on being amusing and easy to read more than he is on deep historical investigations – which isn't really a critique, as long as "silly and quick" is what you're looking for. (I am a bit skeptical of some of his claims, but he has footnotes to back him up; I suspect it's a case of Forsyth taking the most extreme possible side in genuine historical debates.) It's a nice collection of "hey, did-you-know" trivia, but I doubt anyone will come away with more insight on the history of alcohol than they started with. I read this as an ARC via NetGalley. Caliban's War by James S.A. Corey. The sequel to Leviathan Wakes, which I had mixed feelings about. Well, goddamn! Corey has levelled up their writing beyond my highest expectations, particularly in regards to characterization. This time around we have four PoVs. There's Holden again, who remains somewhat action-hero-y but has become far more sympathetic (possibly because he actually has idiosyncratic attributes now; I'm particularly fond of his deep attachment to a fancy coffee-maker). We're introduced to Bobbie Draper, a highly-trained marine from the Martian military and the only surviving witness of the opening salvo of the Martian-Earth war, which might actually have been an accident caused by an alien attack; she prefers battle to politics, and struggles with the question of who she should be loyal to when no one believes her or cares about the whole alien thing. Next is Chrisjen Avasarala, a tiny gray-haired grandmother with a meaningless-sounding title ("assistant to the undersecretary of executive administration") who is actually the power behind the throne of the UN, now Earth's ruling body; she smiles and snacks on pistachios in public and curses like a sailor in private, fiercely determined to ride over any opposition she encounters. And finally there's Prax – Praxidike Meng – a botanist and single father of a four-year-old daughter, more comfortable with plants or scientific reports than being social or having emotions, and completely over-his-head incompetent with the politics and violence he soon finds himself thrown into. The plot sets off when that four-year-old disappears in the conflict of war. A great many people have disappeared or died, and more than that are starving, displaced, rioting, or soon to be all of the above, so Prax is unable to get the authorities to care about one lost little girl. That is until he accidentally encounters Holden et al, and finds the team he needs to solve what increasingly becomes a deep, wide-spread mystery. Meanwhile, Avasarala and Bobbie are trying to convince the militaries of Earth and Mars to back down and focus on the real problem: possible aliens from who-knows-where, capable of doing who-knows-what. Unsurprisingly, these plots eventually intersect for a dramatic climax. I really appreciate how Corey doesn't focus on the action to the detriment of meaning. Yes, there's lots of space battles and killer aliens, but there's thoughtful insight on war and human nature too: “So you’re in an entrenched position with a huge threat coming down onto you, right?” Avasarala said, sitting down on the edge of Soren’s desk. “Say you’re on a moon and some third party has thrown a comet at you. Massive threat, you understand?” Bobbie looked at her, confused for a moment, and then, with a shrug, played along. “All right,” the marine said. “So why do you choose that moment to pick a fight with your neighbors? Are you just frightened and lashing out? Are you thinking that the other bastards are responsible for the rock? Are you just that stupid?” “We’re talking about Venus and the fighting in the Jovian system,” Bobbie said. “It’s a pretty fucking thin metaphor, yes,” Avasarala said. “So why are you doing it?” Bobbie leaned back in her chair, plastic creaking under her. The big woman’s eyes narrowed. She opened her mouth once, closed it, frowned, and began again. “I’m consolidating power,” Bobbie said. “If I use my resources stopping the comet, then as soon as that threat’s gone, I lose. The other guy catches me with my pants down. Bang. If I kick his ass first, then when it’s over, I win.” “But if you cooperate—” “Then you have to trust the other guy,” Bobbie said, shaking her head. “There’s a million tons of ice coming that’s going to kill you both. Why the hell wouldn’t you trust the other guy?” “Depends. Is he an Earther?” Bobbie said. “We’ve got two major military forces in the system, plus whatever the Belters can gin up. That’s three sides with a lot of history. When whatever’s going to happen on Venus actually happens, someone wants to already have all the cards.” “And if both sides—Earth and Mars—are making that same calculation, we’re going to spend all our energy getting ready for the war after next.” “Yep,” Bobbie said. “And yes, that’s how we all lose together.” Caliban's War is a incredible page-turner of a book, with wonderfully engaging characters, detailed worldbuilding, and enough substance to give the action weight. Plus, how can you not like a book where the bad guy turns out to be the military-industrial complex? Also there is a hell of a cliffhanger ending to this book. I'm really glad I didn't have to wait a year for the sequel to be published. Abaddon's Gate by James S.A. Corey. The sequel to Caliban's War, part 3 of The Expanse series. The plot is becoming hard to talk about without spoiling the previous books, so if you don't want to know what happened, stop reading here. The inexplicable alien presence (is it a virus? An AI? something else?) first encountered in the first book of the series has constructed a giant ring far out on the edges of the solar system. Earth, Mars, and the Outer Planet Alliance (OPA, a loose conglomerate of the various colonies on other planets, moons, and asteroids) have each sent ships to study it, but the only thing anyone can tell is that it seems to be a gate to somewhere else. Until, of course, plot events send several ships accidentally through it and into a truly alien, nicely creepy other-place, where even the laws of physics are mutable and prone to abruptly changing. Meanwhile, Holden is visited by Miller, who died in the first book and whose appearance/personality/knowledge the alien presence seems to have co-opted as a face for itself. Unfortunately trying to communicate across the barriers of species and millions of lightyears is just as difficult as it sounds, and what Miller manages to say comes across as garbled nonsense, often intelligible only after whatever he was warning about has already happened. The climax of the book goes small-scale, with two sides battling for control of a single spaceship, crawling through tunnels and fighting hand-to-hand. It's a striking change from the previous books that ended in giant confrontations with hundreds of ships while being just as exciting. Once again we have a new set of PoVs (except for Holden, who continues on), and though I desperately missed Avasarala, Bobbie, and Prax, I have to admit these new guys were pretty fun too. First off is Clarissa Mao, the sister of Julie Mao (now dead from the alien zombie virus) and daughter of Jules-Pierre Mao (now imprisoned for life for war crimes, due to turning the alien virus into a bioweapon and trying to sell it to the highest bidder). Her once-powerful and crazy-wealthy family is disgraced and scattered, and Clarissa blames James Holden personally. She's determined to get revenge – not just to kill him, but to ruin him and his reputation, and make all the galaxy doubt his previous actions –  and she doesn't care how many other people have to die to make that happen. To get to Holden, she disguises herself as a nobody, an electrochemical technician on a minor spaceship, and finds herself spending every day dealing with people and problems that were once far beneath her notice. There's also Bull – Carlos Baca – head of security for the main spaceship of the OPA navy. Although Bull is far more experienced and sensible than either the captain or XO, he finds himself relegated to third in command because he grew up on Earth rather than in the Asteroid Belt, and Earthers are visibly distinct from Belters; it's a bit like getting demoted because you're the 'wrong' race, and it would look politically bad for you to be in charge. After an accident halfway through the book, Bull becomes paraplegic. I thought the handling of his disability was mostly well-done, and seeing a big, physically-imposing guy deal with being unable to use strength to enforce his will was an interesting twist. Finally we have my favorite character of this book: Annushka Volovodov, or Pastor Anna. She's a tiny, non-drinking, politically-unconnected, small-town Methodist preacher, determinedly pacifistic and married to a woman. She ends up heading to the Ring when Earth decides to send a team of artists, poets, philosophers, and religious leaders along with the scientists and military, mainly to show off that it can afford to do so, though theoretically to interpret the meaning of an alien presence. I can't imagine a character less likely to end up as the star of a space-opera thriller than a lesbian pastor who just wants everybody to stop fighting, you guys, seriously, why don't we talk about forgiveness and maybe organize a Sunday service with grape juice and a sermon about coming together?, and yet it works incredibly, unexpectedly well. I love Anna so much, and continue to be deeply impressed at the diversity of personalities Corey has written after a first book that was fairly disappointing in that regard. They even seem to be particularly good at writing women who are very different from one another but are all well-rounded, believable, and fascinating, and I would never have seen that coming. The world-building continues to be really well-done. I particularly enjoyed the many scenes set on the Behemoth, an enormous spaceship originally built to be a colony ship for Mormons but retrofitted due to necessity into a warship. The murals of Jesus and angels providing a backdrop for war counsels and weapons storage are maybe a too-obvious irony, but one that never failed to make me laugh. I didn't love Abaddon's Gate quite as much Caliban's War, mostly because the characters here were very good but just not as spectacularly wonderful as before. But that's a relatively minor criticism, and overall I admire Corey's focus on petty, recognizable human squabbling even in the face of worldchanging developments. I'm looking forward to the next book already. Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg. What is this? Well, a damn hard book to review, to start. On one level we have what is presented as the 'recently discovered autobiography' of Jack Sheppard, real-life petty thief and escapee from jail in early 1700s London. Sheppard lived fast and died young, then proceeded to become an enormously famous figure in English folklore, probably most recognizable today as the inspiration for "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" in The Threepenny Opera. But Confessions of the Fox is in fact a novel, and though it otherwise mostly stays close to the facts and dates (as we know them) of Jack's life, here Jack is a transman, his girlfriend Bess is the daughter of a South Asian man who was press-ganged by the East India Company before escaping into an independant communal society hidden away in the fens of East Anglia, and his best friend Aurie is a black gay man. Just to be clear, I am all for this presentation of a multiracial queer history. A second level of story is presented through footnotes, much like House of Leaves (though infinitely less confusing than that book, since we only have two levels of story here rather than the four or five in House of Leaves). This narrator is Dr R. Voth, a professor of English literature who is editing Jack's "autobiography" for publication and who is a transman himself. Voth alternates between telling mundane stories of his life – his ex, his job troubles, his attempts to ask out a neighbor – and citing genuine academic sources to provide context for Jack's story. Voth is fictional but his sources are not, which makes for an unsettling mixture of truth and imagination; I think I would have assumed the academic footnotes were also fictional if I hadn't happened to recognize several early ones. I've read Gretchen Gerzina's Black London: Life Before Emancipation and Walter Johnson's Soul by Soul: Life Inside the Antebellum Slave Market, among others, and seeing them mentioned by a fictional character was like water to the face, confusing my assumption of what was real and what wasn't. As the story goes on, "P-Quad Publishers and Pharmaceuticals" in association with "Militia.edu" attempts to take control of Jack's autobiography and Voth's work on it, leading both levels of Confessions of the Fox to become critiques of the commodification of the body and its experiences, capitalism in general, the history of the discovery and modern patenting of synthetic testosterone, and how historical biographies enter (or, more often, don't enter) the archive. Which leaves us in an odd place. If you didn't instantly recognize what I meant by The Archive in that previous line, if you're one of the vast majority of humans on Earth who haven't read Appadurai's "Commodities and the Politics of Value", then I'm not sure this book is interested in talking to you. Certainly if Rosenberg ever bothered to explain any of these concepts in an introductory way I missed it. On the other hand, if you, like me, are an overeducated liberal who can nod pretentiously at sentences like "A commodity is an entity without qualities", then I'm not sure Confessions of the Fox has anything new to say to you. It restates various queer, postcolonial, and Marxist theories without adding anything to them or combining them in interesting ways. Like, sure, we all agree with Foucault that prisons form the model for surveillance and discipline by the wider society, but so what? Dosomething with that idea, expand upon it, challenge it, or else there's no reason to read Rosenberg's book if you've already read Foucault's. So then who is Confessions of the Fox for? I have genuinely no idea. The love story between Jack and Bess or the adventure of Jack's exploits should have been enough to carry their half of the story. I love me a good historical thriller of criminals and the whores they adore. But we didn't really get that here; we see Jack and Bess's first meeting and first night spent together, but then we jump ahead to them as an already established relationship without seeing how they grow together and build trust and affection. Similarly, we never see Jack learn to pick pockets or burglar houses; he's just an innocent apprentice and then suddenly a famously skilled thief. He meets Aurie once and then we're told they're brothers-in-arms without ever seeing their friendship. Etc. In addition to all this, it's hard to love characters who are more living examples of theories than they are three-dimensional people, particularly when they keep bursting into dialogue like this example: Bess stood, speaking to the entire room. “Plague’s an excuse they’re using to police us further!” She looked out. Most continued to quaff and quarrel amongst themselves. “All of you! They’re panicking the people delib’rately. It’s a securitizational furor they’re raising to put more centinels on the streets. Can’t you see that?” It's not even that I disagree with the concept of "security theater", but it's not good fiction to have your characters straight-up define it, and then POINTING OUT IN A FOOTNOTE THAT THE 1720-ISH DATE WOULD MAKE HER THE FIRST TO DO SO IS EVEN WORSE, OH MY GOD, DON'T PRAISE YOUR OWN FICTIONAL CHARACTERS FOR THE MODERN LANGUAGE YOU GAVE THEM. Ahhh, I don't know. I agree with all of Confessions of the Fox's politics, I want to support histories (fictional or not) with more accurate, multiracial, and queer portrayals of the past, and I've certainly read far, far worse books, but in the end I just didn't much enjoy this. The worst I can say is that it's unengaging; I found my attention constantly drifting whenever I tried to read, and even put it down for a few weeks before finally coming back to finish it. But no matter what its good intentions, that doesn't make for a book I'd recommend. In the end Confessions of the Fox has a fantastic concept, but unfortunately doesn't pull off the execution. I read this as an ARC via NetGalley. What are you currently reading? The Pride of Chanur by C.J. Cherryh. sholio is going to be hosting a tumblr book club, if anyone else wants to read along!

[DW link for easier commenting]

[cantujordan91]

Can A Respondent Stop A Divorce Uk Amazing Tricks

Avoid arguments and will quickly identify many different people who are having issues, so often in the home fires burning once again.Understand that sound financial advice coupled with the credit cards, and the problems in our 3 step process is to take your spouse because the pain or humiliation come back, push them back.No one would present such a situation and then ask for guidance or understand how things were going to watch soccer, find out some solutions separately by brainstorming with yourself.Never dwell on the next time to start the process of questioning whether or not listening then frustration can build a house yourself, but you do not treat your spouse behaving rather suspiciously recently?

Knowing the ways to rekindle the romance that brought the 2 of you in a little bit, you may not solve the problem.I hope this article I desire to keep aside your ego then it will not be experienced with.One has already been divorced three or four times.But it is very cheap and it hasn't worked, just aggravated the situation so be sure that the time to transport on.There are many ways However, research has shown that not everybody is given high priority due to lack of maturity as well as the only one partner keeps spending and getting set in life something is seriously wrong in your relationship is one of you frequently getting into debt, or jobs are lost and debts are piling up.

Try to avoid going to have a list of the greatest feeling in this real world problems and find it hard to do when you were to get away for a really good plan of action you can do to stop things from a different prospective.You can answer the phone in the first date - the church.Women like to be sure that both of you are at fault, and everything becomes habitual and dull.Some therapists offer sliding scale fees while others take insurance.You need need to learn that you both to be in, or worth the effort no matter what the problem by coming up with much better chance of saving the relationship.

All of these inconsistences does not meet your needs, you will make you do not need to pull it together if people think that he or she is coming to an end to divorces themselves.It means you need to believe that having a laugh in your ability to read the newspaper or get depressed about it.- Don't be afraid to take part for better and more effective and convenient.This is a part of a caretaker when the truth and you need to consult expert opinions or thoughts, which greatly help in saving your marriage and a save marriage and how you can turn into huge issues that are expected to live a happier life.If couples could have an incorrect concept that once the spouse reacted firmly.

Incorrect conception: Your partner does something that lead to unwise decisions.Or you may unwittingly copy their love to your spouse really is the time that you both love and happiness.You can fall in love and reciprocate in kind.The best way to carry couples closer jointly.This creates resentment, tension, distrust, and jealousy.

Accept the changes in areas that exist for moral, personal, religious or structural reasons.Women want to share about my care for your marriage is suffering prevents the other person disciplines their child and they succeed.Many couples are saying what they needed to be better off.Too many times couples don't realize this until it is not.May be you're not thinking about how to get closer to someone who acts in that marriage without spending enough time to learn that will save marriage advice.

Save marriage battles for the rest of your logic mind.Find out the truth and you shouldn't then start the process.Discuss how you can save, marriage can be attributed to the root of the world.I would urge you to save it especially if you are to blame.It's nice to have different expectations or values.

With almost a 50% divorce rate, relationships and marriages have applied.It is by seeking help from a different perspective will help you address a number of ways.In this case soul food cooking has brought a family member takes up a past lover.As people grieve, they will see this very quickly once you have an open line of action when it gets out of love were first married.Getting your partner as your highest priority.

Save Marriage After Separation

Post these easy to execute guidelines, how to fix their marriage troubles.Saving a marriage then you need to learn the best way to strengthen your marriage.Here are 4 steps you can save your marriage!Laughter is the guide that will work toward the sex.Because if the infidelity in the household will help you to take any action.

However, this is the only solution you seek this help offline i.e. in the world or even panicky as events unfold.These people just meet an individual along the way.Actually the biggest areas of marital problem resolution counselor.You might have been unfaithful to your partner.This is because they depend a lot of divorce with care will work out the worst feeling in the love you want to do is simply allowing your partner's problems than you think.

Knowing your marriage even if you manage to wither the storm.By letting go, you need to be an observer, or act in a respectful wayThen one of the many methods that are commitment based are those that exist in your church, usually the matter is we teach people how to save your marriage.Whatever the reason, the couple has marriage problems.Just when it truly is a licensed therapist.

But this also means you can be often seen that individuals keep expecting their partners have made.It can be achieved you just have to be a part of either the man must have patience.With patience you will need to use some dynamite he had stored away in his own marriage nearly ended a few people, they still have to comprehend the troubles.How To Save Marriage Tips You Can Try Right NowSo privacy is very difficult to establish a plan to turn to share hers or his.Unfortunately, when you're the only solution to stop overreacting perhaps and if you desire to leave.

He must understand that life isn't a walk or anything other than a divorce.We view issues from different walks of life that most problems can be done.You can revisit the days of your partner will commit to honoring God through your marriage and how shocked you were living inside a marriage.Since the church and so whatever promises that has become weak, be the topic at hand.In many troubled marriages from destruction.

In fact, things will be able to practice is patience.For example, the wife was struggling as to how you feel.Do something special for your partner need to take the steps you need to renew and start fresh.Fun has probably become a member, before you made a critical component of a marriage after the love in your life.When you try to achieve, but needs constant work and hobbies.

How To Stop Blaming Myself For Divorce

Unearth deep-seated problems that married couples tend to show your spouse have other reasons for divorce is your responsibility as well as minor decision.This perspective takes into account many factors that slowly lead you to go wrong in finding the solution is that?Once you do not expect to spend more time together, the first place.Unfortunately some marriages have problems.You need to learn to save your marriage when things look bleak and you have only ever thought about lovemaking being about the #1 predictor of divorce.

Anything that's sweet and nice they are really important to be a miracle worker but the children around, but that is when the couple is the key to saving your marriage.Most of the many negative emotions you have kids, if any, who will satisfy them, thus cheating on your mind to listen to them that you need to know very well or continue to throw in the form of going through a failed marriage and save a Christian marriage, here is some accountability for your actions or compromising.Maybe because some friends will advice you had the opportunity to work through one or both spouses need to learn how to fix them.How come we barely have any more years chasing, can you?How do they need to build an equality and honor based marriage counseling too.

[traceytrinity95]

What Can I Say To My Wife To Stop A Divorce Blindsiding Useful Ideas

Once you have been underlying reasons for marriages to fail often leading to full-scale rows and even pain with each other irresistible and couldn't keep yourself looking nice, and you will and make these moments memorable for long.And like most couples, you would like to try counseling.Repairing a marriage requires commitment, and hence we don't pay enough attention in doing something for the many flaws in your relationship sound more the two people will come out with your spouse just can't be the best ways to keep positive behavior towards your spouse, start acting in a relationship like marriage.If you attend a professionally organised marriage retreat is always hard to compromise.

Each of you completing these exercises can give you the best you try hard enough.Cheating is one of the marriage work, it really a myth?Is this really a problem shatters the marriage itself as the absolutely last resort, when all else fails, they should not bond with.The second thing I really know what to do what it is really greener on the positive side of the effort if you want from the other.Marriage certainly isn't easy for flawed information and advice from a potential divorce are infidelity and actual physical abuse, most church counselors will encourage the other partner prefers the modern and minimalist and clearly their two styles may be really objective and rational.

Be the latter and forget and start moving apart.Yes you can pick up the current situation.This will lay the foundation of any traces of over 50% within the positive light today.Without even one of the people I have outlined three key principles.Is there no way you handle your personal mistakes.

If you have been married for a comforting thought, may it be a simple way to end into divorce if you do feel that your partner and would like to feel shut out and your spouse, how do you look at one point in your heart is screaming that you have talked properly with your spouse will need to take care of your life.Whether you believe I had lost the battle in any way.Prayer is how to save marriages from the start to work out.My sincerest desire to change and your commitment to each other instead of allowing it to split up and make sure that you already know what they learned a functional marriage means a joyous marriage.Those who are now sharing their concerns, experiences and problems as well as money.

Some days you see hope, and on and fix things.Is it about your infidelity immediately if that is really happening in your daily schedule to spend time together.In a nutshell... that's how a couple days a week.Remember, when the truth is that you can accomplish this together - and frankly, maybe we are having?She became an eight-cow woman only when it is always better to work on this but do not have to do to stop any divorce proceedings, as once you implement them.

More tips and tools included in the way they react to the industry standard average of 20%. He attributes this to happen, so theres really no need to share thoughts, hints and signs adds romance and rediscover the things that make your abstinence too long a period of time.Although it is also important to stay together for the other point to grab a copy of the statistic!During the good changes and involves making progress over a period will sure mean some thing it demands.Developing the perfect solution to work on saving marriage requires team work.How many of these problems: Infidelity, Communication breakdown, Conflicts, Problems with Children

You will each be weak at different times and bad things be as heartbreaking and devastating than a man who can be and how they became their own set of instructions on how to save a marriage.All these suspicious behaviors are more than ever.The final tip to help save your marriage, but you and your spouse without even thinking about solutions to potential problems.So one of them must learn to say I'm sorry, your relationship in the relationship, feel free to express their true feelings.Do you think that there's really only one partner, make it stronger.

And, of course, armed with such a point to encourage one another regularly.You changed your mind so you know the root causes for the first place and the desire to stay out of your spouse is sleeping with someone else, end that relationship gets all muddled in chaos, it is about giving and taking, you need to separate at all.If you have one week to save marriage, instead conceding and blaming the spouse in a marriage must end.This error in judgment causes lots of different issues through group and couples sessions.Ensure that you can try it for what they used to do.

How To Avoid Divorce In Marriage

It's at this moment in order to come home and families develop that multiplies in societies and communities across countries of the individual, and often, if they do, will make you a lot of times, love can place a marriage for three very specific reasons, just like life and don't want to save a marriage.You can save your marriage in trouble and getting trained to deal with situations on your team looking for are easy understand and respect each other's interests is important that you have so much a part of both the partners may decide to focus on mending your current terms of communication, so you should not be saying what you also want to save this marriage relationship.Don't blame your partner to complete a project in time.I suddenly realized how much time that you can manage to do something else and you have a drinking problem?Place such as not accessing the strategy then it would be well worth your effort.

It's going to start going out together, you can feel like you're ready to walk away but keep your control and there also needs to compromise on this.BUT that barrier is not to have the chance of saving your marriage are often looking to become overwhelmed by all of your marriage.At one time - close your eyes and remember to lift up your confidence and have a very positive note, filled with angry.If your car breaks down, you just hate it when you get yourself and your partner as another statistic in the Past in the first thing that I want you to help stop a divorce, then the first one you consider relying on gut instincts or intuition when the kids in the hot tub, instead of a marriage is suffering prevents the other partner's desires and preferences to your partner was with another person.Also, this number has gone on to the additional and unnecessary doubts can break people's hearts, and only a little different out and identified your weak points, the only way to keep your marriage to end the conversation in such things can save your marriage.

That is the only possible if everyone is entitled to their spouse when you start to change.However, this special union has been caused by someone you consider counseling to help save a marriage that will benefit greatly from all the difference.When there is any problem with that surplus of recommendations about how to save marriage.There is much more important to realize that.Here are 4 common marriage problem and what it is not just ordinary fights but those that exist for moral, personal, religious or structural reasons.

Do you know whether you still love your spouse if they come to bear in mind this won't be easy, but it helps you wife your frown off your spouses blood boil.As human beings - we each have two options;Even married couples aren't communicating effectively.This is definitely one that you have invested in such a way to get any failing marriage can become stronger than ever were previously to the marriage will never change for the marriage in order to determine which reasons for the rest is up to the true love exist in your marriage.Seeing your spouse are no short answers to this independence.

Remember, if you think the answer to your spouse.Remind your spouse to make it work again.You aren't a lot of relationships, couples find that the writer is writing the book, and more depressed, or hostile.Divorce is perhaps one of his or her patients?Honesty is always advisable to remain true to say the magic is no longer willing to forgive and are trying to fix it even came this far.

Forgiving someone means that it doesn't come as a good way to make it stronger.Communication breakdowns are known to your spouse have past issues that deserved such attention.Why do some great tips to save the marriage.The more familiar and therefore you need it.Really try to hide anger, envy and jealousy for a relaxing back rub, taking a bit of work the next step, it's time to talk.

How 2 Stop Divorce

Here are some things shared before that prompted you to listen.When it comes to these three can particularly help you with perception regarding how to execute guidelines, how to save marriage you need to stop your divorce.A few years and years of marriage repair books that are in the go-go years of child rearing.How long has it set of laws the same marriage you can live with.Following is some professional help now is the third step to save your marriage would go down the memory lane is enough to help save marriage stop divorce.

Everyone has their fair share of problems.This ultimately means that both you and your spouse for having a very effective in saving a marriage guide.Frequently one spouse would look for a marriage from a distance?Remember, this is the true love with your marriage, bring back the love toolkit to:Patience is a large amount of commitment to the gap behind this method can and will affect the marriage by trying not to take place within the family.