#i like my farms and my forests

[ourdreamsareneon]

Piggy backing off my last post, if much like in 2016 you're going "I should just move to New Zealand" head my warning, little yanky

People are not going to like you. People will hear the accent and either think you're a Trump supporter or a stereotypical stoner valley dude with half a brain cell.

Learn a bit of Te Reo Maori. You don't have to learn a lot, just your basic greetings, but you should learn place names and pronunciation

There was a huge cover-up in 1948 when a group of American service men tried to stop Maori bar patrons from coming inside. Naturally, both white and Maori patrons beat the shit out of them. The fight involved hundreds of people. As far as we know, two people died in the Battle of Manners Street, both Americans. This was during an event called the American Invasion, where Aotearoa asked for British aid during the war and were sent Americans instead. Americans who were documented as mostly sitting around, being incredibly racist, and assaulting our wāhine. So maybe don't walk down Manners Street at night. It might be haunted, I dunno.

While you're looking at Te Reo, look a bit into Tapu and Noa. This is about things that are considered sacred, but it also just gives you good kiwi manners, like taking your shoes off when you go into someone's house and not sitting on tables.

Learn how to tō waha - shut up. All I hear from the Americans I've met living in Aotearoa is that the second they go home, they realise how loud Americans are. Take a deep breath, listen to nature, and lower your voice

Did you know ANZUS is no longer a mutual agreement of power because America got upset that Aotearoa is nuclear free and so didn't allow any US naval ships into port after 1984 because they had a policy of not confirming or denying if they have nuclear weapons on board? They're still kinda holding a grudge against us for it and disolved a whole allyship over it! All that to say, in 1987, we formalised our anti-nuclear stance, so whether travelling by air or by ocean, please keep all your W.M.Ds at home! (Bill Clinton reinstated our allyship in 1996 and gave us the status of "Major non-NATO ally" but that's the year my sister was born so I don't acknowledge it)

It's crazy that America is so anti-terrorism but when the French sunk the Rainbow Warrior in July 1985 and everyone, including their 'besties' Australia were like "yo bro the French just did a terrorism on New Zealand...that's like not cool right?" America refused to acknowledge it. Only in September, after France admitted guilt did America go "we hate terrorism grr" I don't know what my warning here is I kinda just remembered and went "huh." Don't do terrorism, but if you do it's okay because America will be chill with it?

While the two older halves of the ANZUS polycule were sending military forces into the Vietnam war, New Zealand just sent economic aid and medical aid. We're lovers, not fighters (#FreePalestine). We did, uhm... supply Agent Orange... but that was after America was like, "We'll kick you out of the polycule again," and that's just so much work. Peer pressure works on us. We're people pleasers.

There you go! Those are all my tips for relocating to the Better DownUnder! I could go on, but my therapist said I should avoid thinking about Bill Clinton and the Big Bad War on Terror if I want to make it to 30 ^_^ I hope this was helpful!!

[adventures-in-poor-planning]

ALERT ALERT I SAW MY FIRST WILD TRILLIUM GRANDIFLORUM IN 22 YEARS!!!

[hedgehog-moss]

I recently heard about a 400-year-old tree in a nearby village, which made me want to estimate the age of the big lime tree behind my house. I measured the circumference at my height then divided by Pi to get the diametre then multiplied by the growth factor for this species—and I learnt that my lime tree is about 255-260 years-old! It was born in the 1760s... I also went and measured some of my beech trees and the oldest ones are ~190 years-old, which makes sense as it’s the age of the house. I’m not sure why this lime tree is so much older than all the other trees on this land, but it makes me want to give it a little plaque, maybe one that says “I was 25 years-old during the French revolution.”

[thatmiraclecupcake]

Cute stardew valley idea:

If you want to have Junimos on your farm, but don't want to feel bad about what is essentially enslaving them for maximum profit, make a little junimo garden instead!

Place a junimo hut in a little corner or side area, give them some trees and decorations, and then plant some recurring-harvest plants like trellis or bushes, with sprinklers or Deluxe water retaining soil so you don't have to water anything. Then just let them enjoy their little garden and not take any of their harvest. Presto! Cute little junimo garden!

[glitterghost]

Sometimes my brain just goes ✨️ johnny flynn ✨️ and like what the hell am i even supposed to do with that?

[archersgoon]

i know i've said this before but it is so absurd that they expected froi to be able to reconcile the expectations of the guard (obey without question etc etc) and the expectations of his learning (acting as his own person questioning and thinking things through) just like that. like this is why he manages lumatere/charyn dual-citizenship so easy that's fucking peanuts to him that's kiddie shit compared to the saw trap he's spent the last three years in

[happyk44]

"I'm not leaving you behind! It is my duty," he hissed. "I swore myself-"

"Your swore yourself because you had no choice, Percy." Her eyes were endless dark, devoid of feeling, of life. "You had a price to pay for your mother's life and this was your only offer." Her thin fingers cup his face through the bars. "You didn't choose to be my protector." She gave a weak laugh that made his stomach plummet to the floor. "You're not even my guard yet, not really."

Like a phantom, her touch slid down his cheek. He caught her wrist before her fingertip stopped gracing his skin. He could feel the rounded edge of her fingernail poke against him. Silence held fraught between them.

"Bianca-"

"Percy," she cut in, voice so sharp it cut him to the core. "I want you to survive. You're free. Take advantage of that, and go. Now."

"I can't go back without you," he said, quickly. She didn't fight his hold, but still his grip tightened. As though the harder he held her, the more she would stop protesting her escape. "You are-"

"Dead." Her lips thinned. "I'm dead, Percy. I was dead the moment they got their hands on me and I will be dead before either one of us even makes it beyond these walls, but you-" Her voice cracked, eyes watering.

He shook his head. Blood pounded in his ears. He didn't want to hear what she was going to say, wanted her to stop, wanted it all to stop. Just for a moment.

But it didn't, and neither did she. With a deep breath, she carried on, "You can make it. You can live. But only if you leave without me, so go."

His lungs burned. She inhaled so deeply, spoke so forcefully, and it made him hold the air in his chest until he couldn't take it anymore. If he didn't breathe, maybe she would. But his chest ached. Self-loathing wedged itself like a rock in his throat as he let go. The sound of his own breath was like nail on chalkboard.

"Percy," she whispered. He shook his head and leaned in closer. Although tears hadn't yet fallen, her eyes were still wet. They glistened like the night sky. Her forehead pressed against the bars.

He looked away. The brick wall to his left was growing a fair bit of moss in the corner. "What's our star again?"

She laughed. It was a watery thing that choked him where he stood. Memories of standing the long grass, moonlight shining off the river, while she read her books beside him. Every so often, she'd look up at the night sky and search for the brightest star that month. She'd tell the stories behind the constellations. Or at least the stories from her kingdom. Any time she told a story, a fantastical myth, she'd follow up that her brother knew more - Nico, the quiet prince with a voracious appetite for legends and monsters.

Then, if she could spot the brightest star that month and if she recalled, she'd tell him what it meant for the people born that month. At least, in their hemisphere anyway. The stars were different elsewhere. Sometimes she'd crack open the newspaper, the stark image of her father, and read aloud the horoscopes.

He still remembered the incredulous sound she made when he told her they shared the same birthday. She'd dragged him to the library to refresh her memory on their star. Then argued furiously that he did not share the same traits as her.

It was a silly thing. She didn't believe it. He didn't either. But it was the first time they hadn't played the stiff act of royal princess and her knight-in-training. Not Percy holding his tongue and following strictly one step behind. Not Bianca doing her best to pretend he wasn't her shadow.

Awkward civility and stiffness carried thick between them from the moment Percy had been casted into his role. But that night, with the sound of yelling and laughter still echoing in their ears, they made an agreement. They didn't have to be the best of friends, but they sure could be casual with each other. After all, they were going to be stuck with each other for the rest of their lives.

At least... they were supposed to be.

Slowly each finger detached one by one until all that was left was his palm pressed against her wrist. Then that fell away too. Still he couldn't bare to turn his head and face her.

"Leo," she said. "The lion. Strength, pride, loyalty, confidence."

A stabbed orange toy on new year's day passed through his mind. "Sacrifice."

It was quiet for a beat. Then, "Yes." His heart hammered so fast he could feel it in his throat. "The lion represents sacrifice."

What was he supposed to say? He wanted to run, to turn the lock with the key he stole, take her and run. Run far and fast. But deep inside, he knew she was right. He could get by undetected. No one cared about a child knight, not even yet passed his training. He could blend in and slip out. Even if he got caught, they wouldn't nearly put in as much effort to get him back as they would if she were with him.

She was right.

She was already dead.

He swallowed thickly and met her eyes again. The night sky glistened back at him and he thought of constellations and warm handshakes and kind agreements and silly arguments. Breath caught in his throat. "I'll miss you," he whispered, voice hoarse.

Her lips twitched. "I'll miss you too." She blinked, and one tear slid down her cheek. He tracked the wet trace it left behind until it welled up at the bottom of her chin and dripped to the floor. "Will you do me a favour?"

"You're my princess," he said. "I would do anything for you."

It was a weak smile she gave before she spoke. The sight of it crushed him. "Tell my family I love them." Her breath escaped from her shakily. She pushed back her hair. A classic move to hide the nerves that drove her hands to tremble ever so slightly. "And take care of Nico. Please."

"I will," he promised.

Her smile strengthened ever so slightly. But the tears fell fast now, one right after the other. Her face tilted away at the first streak. He immediately turned his line of sight back to the brick wall. Weakness, sadness, grief - she hated being seen with any of them. He always respected it. Look away until she was done. Don't speak, don't ask her anything, don't help her. Just look away and stay silent unless she calls out.

So, even as his mind's eye was trapped in the wet track of tears on her skin, the hitched sound of her breath holding in a cry, he turned and headed back for the dungeon's door. The doorknob twisted in his hand. The door cracked open.

"Percy."

He held stiff. "Yes?"

"Don't forget the bracelet."

Heat burned at the back of his head. In his pocket, the bracelet felt heavier than the weight of the world. When he had first arrived, she gave it to him. When he refused to take it, insistent that she could deliver it to Nico herself, she shoved it into his pocket herself. Like a ghostly stain, his thigh still tingled with the forceful and firm press of her hand. He was sure it always would.

"I won't."

"Stay safe," she said, a princess in a dungeon ready and waiting to die.

His heart shattered. Still, he kept his head held high. "I will."

Then, without another word, he left the girl he had spent the last three years training to protect. He was meant to die for her. It was the role he had accepted the night he and his friends had stormed the castle and pleaded for help with his dying mother. He didn't argue. He didn't plead. Without hesitation, he swore his life away for hers. Without hesitation, he swore his last breath would be hers.

Yet she was the one embracing the eternal coldness to come. She was the one breathing weakly so he could breathe strong. She was trading away her life for his. She was the lion, giving a mighty roar before the dawn of a new year. She was the sacrifice, held down by chains with a glistening sharp blade raised above her head.

But he wasn't the one lowering it upon her neck. No, he was the cold breath of winter. The first drop of snow. The wilting grass. He was the barren wasteland that drove her out into the open. He was the starving masses desperate to live. He didn't have to drop the blade. He didn't have to use his own hands to spill her blood across the ground. His survival was her end. And that made him her killer anyway.

[newlacesleeves]

trying to enjoy the last few weeks of beautiful outside time and THIS FUCKER just crawled on my foot COME ON SERIOUSLY I AM JUST TRYING TO VIBE

[seekingthestars]

booted up acnh for the first time in uhhhh /checks watch/ idk six months or so bc i SWEAR i'm gonna try to actually finish my island, so have some cute shots of already-finished spots while i contemplate, once again, if my decision to flatten my island and rebuild was really worth it 🥰

[fisherrprince]

Went and discovered your kh werewolf au properly and 1) I love it I'm eating it up and 2) I have but one question, should you be willing to answer: which university do the characters attend- MSU in Bozeman or UM in Missoula? Or a different one entirely?

It's so inconsequential I know but I happen to have a lot of family in Montana so it being set there really piqued my interest aksksksk

HAHA I haven’t actually been to either but if you asked me to pick one I would say… University of Montana? It’s further West and closer to a couple national parks. Depending on how large UM actually is, I might say naw and pick a trade school on the edge of Glacier national park.

[flovverworks]

a new beginning thoughts despite me only jsut having met iroha thumbs up emoji. can be applied to the rest of the games in the series too me thinks.....

but it rly solidifies my 'akira arrives at a later point' thoughts, cuz i rly do love when they do that...T_T especially in the town restoration type of games like anb & animal parade, something like a while after the inn is built.......

i rly might just keep akiras canon mhyk experience in every single verse that doesnt have some of the wizards w/ them (type0, fe, etc) sorry i cant let go its too integral. i dont rmbr how harvest goddess works in anb, i know in majority shes just a rumor and even in things like ap i prob wont have akira actually see the magical beings...? but i do think theyre a lot more aware of magic around them, in a 'i thought i saw something' way rather than Actually being able to tell whats going on/the rumors are Real etc. something something traces of magic & spirits on their soul

witch princess seems rarely talked about like. ever. but shes a lot more real, so once akira catches wind of her......tries to talk to her a lot (even if it nvr goes anywhere). similarly i think theyd talk to hg's pond too. in general very attached to witches & magic. u can guess why

will very likely not actually open up about their isekai life thumbs up emoji but in heart events sense & dialogue it gets increasingly more obvious something is up

i lov anb cast visiting ur farm so akira does that a lot too. especially if u have cats or sheep. then the times they show up increase significantly. OUR cat now. sheep is cuz theyre reminded of lennox. spends the rest of their time in the areas around town writing or reading

[yo9urt]

minecraft continues swimmingly...i now have TWO (2) dogs

[chiropteracupola]

Art prompt: Keith making the acquaintance of a Highland cow?

he is not having a wonderful time!

[always-a-slut-4-ghouls]

I have this tea cup I made in highschool (it’s really cute and was designed more like those Japanese ones without a handle than it was those fancy English style with even more elements to them) but I never actually asked if the glaze we used was food safe (we all used the same glaze on those cups specifically because the teacher glazed those ones in particular and I don’t remember checking. I glazed and painted every other project but only one of them was something you would use for food and that thing broke a few years ago and was honestly more decorative) and this has haunted me ever since. It’s a super cute cup and I adore it, but I have no idea if I can use it for its intended purpose and while I could buy a lead testing kit I’m not sure how I would check for anything else that might have been in that glaze. I know the color used but not the brand, so that’s not really a help either. The teacher I had left the district after that year because our school district paid art teachers a shit wage and we rotated through them like elementary school kids needing new shoes every year. I’m not entirely sure how I would contact her, but even if I did track her down (something not entirely impossible from what I know about her life outside of teaching us for a year, I would feel slightly weird about it though, even though she was my favorite art teacher) but I highly doubt she would remember something like the glaze she used on one project her students made at a school she taught at for one year. I’m not sure what other testing kits I would need besides lead to confidently say it’s safe enough for my personal use, and it’s annoyed me for several years now.

[welcometoteyvat]

co-op is crazy bc in the same co op session you can immediately click with someone and then find out the other rando who joined might be a racist