#i must try to persevere regardless

[common-world-domination]

ALSO trying to draw when your visual memory is practically aphantasic is difficult who knew

[tododeku-or-bust]

Back temporarily 👍🏾

[notaplaceofhonour]

as a Jew I find the antisemitic trope of the Wandering Jew endlessly fascinating and there’s a version of it that lives rent free in my head that I can’t get out

because yes, we have been cursed—not by G-d, but by man; not for anything we’ve done, but for libel against us—and the curse antisemites have forced on us is that we must wander forever. we don’t get a home, here or there. we aren’t allowed to put down roots in diaspora, but we aren’t allowed to return either; regardless of which we do, the nations try to drive us out and impose their sentence on us: you must wander some more

there is a deconstructed version of the Wandering Jew that I want to reclaim, not as a testament to our sin but as a witness to the nations’, how they’ve treated the wanderer in their midst. on some level, a witness to how the nations treat all wanderers: Jew, Roma, bedouin. but ultimately, a testament to the libel & persecution we as Jews have endured & persevere through

this Wandering Jew is a weary old immortal forced to wander by hatred that goes before him through the nations, who has seen those nations come and go, empires rise and fall, and bears witness to our plight through every one, waiting for injustice to be righted so he can finally rest

[sapphirerogers]

What if we start a petition (aka protest/movement/pressure building) for Marvel to release the Stevebucky scene from CATWS?

We know that scene in the Quinjet had been filmed. Chris mentioned it. All we need to do is pressurise @marvelentertainment enough. They've got to listen at some point, if we keep insisting strongly enough and for long enough.

If released, it may not undo the atrocity that Endgame was, but it will provide much needed to these two characters and their dynamic after being reunited.

If it is still not released, we will still have made a statement - that we're still an active and thriving fandom and we can come together when needed for a good cause, to do the things one or two of us can't alone.

I know it looks hopeless, and I don't blame you for losing faith. But believe it or not, each of us Stevebuckies have the power to change that. All we need to do is come together, and stay together.

Think about how big we are as a fandom. All we need is unity and reach. I don't have the number of followers needed to get this post to enough people at once, but I can try regardless. Somebody has to start, and if it must be me, I'll do anything needed. It's going to be worth it.

I'll be making this post everyday, or at least as often as I can. I'll be tagging some of my Stucky shipper mutuals here, and I need everyone who sees this and agrees with me (whether you ship them romantically or just care enough about their friendship) to reblog this as many times as you can. Flood their social media.

This protest needs a special tag, so let's call it #ReleaseStuckyCWScene (don't forget this tag; we want those who just want fics or other posts to be able to filter this out if they don't want this)

Should you choose to join me, please make this post frequently and tag Marvel in every post. Do this on all platforms where you're active, regardless of how many people you know and how many followers you have. And please use tags where they're applicable.

Taking one day out of each year to jointly talk about Stucky is not enough. We need to be consistent. I need patience and perseverance from all of you.

I believe in every single one of you. Let's fucking do this. Starting right now.

@mainly-marvel @oneofstarkskids @jjmaybanksgun @slut-for-henry-cavill @stuckyfingers @amarriageoftrueminds @imposterogers @artwinx @capibuck @uninspired-platypuss

(reply here if you want to be on this taglist)

[basalamander-corner]

When you stop to actually think about it, the situation the octolings go through in pretty horrifying. Not just living in a home where the sky could collapse on them at any moment, but the futility of everything they're doing.

We learn in Splatoon 3 that some octolings clans (like Shiver's) lived above ground. They never went down into the Octo Domes, and became well-established to the point of being almost ruler-like? I don't think it's made clear if the great clans that Deep Cut hail from are seen as lords over the Splatlands or what, but they're clearly influential and powerful. So the octolings... really didn't need to spend all that time suffering.

Every one of them could have waltzed onto the surface and easily integrated into inkling society, and no one would bat an eye because as we all know: inklings are stupid as shit! They didn't care when Marina ended up there! So they wouldn't care about others.

So what was stopping them?

Could it be that the higher ups of the Octarian army, those closest to Octavio, were so blinded by their loss, by their sense of pride and their own selfishness, they felt the need to prove they were better than the inklings? To prove they didn't need their "blessed surface", and that they could survive just fine on their own? Their loss was humiliating, and for their superior weapons to lose to such a weak enemy, clearly they need to show their strength to persevere through even the most horrifying of situations.

Clouded by their arrogance, the Octarian army could only imagine that the inklings were keeping the zapfish (and other energy sources) away from them in order to punish them for daring to fight in the Great Turf War in the first place. They were so caught up in this loss they didn't realize inklings had forgotten all about the war within two generations! That sure, the inklings might have learned about it in school (as we hear from Pearl), but they don't know much else other than the basic facts.

And so, the younger generation of octolings suffered the most.

While the generation who lived through the war were trying to return to their glory days, desperate to show off their power and abilities, the newer generation of octolings are forced into fighting for a war they never wanted from a young age. We don't know if all octoling training starts at age 6, but Marina is certainly a case of it. Regardless of when they started fighting, they are fed propaganda and lies from birth.

Inklings are dangerous. Inklings are evil. Inklings will destroy you if they see you. You must avoid them. They hate you because you are an Octarian. That is why you must train.

And they have no choice but to believe it, because they've never seen anything to the contrary. They live in these crumbling domes, they know the inklings live on the surface with unlimited power, so of course they have to believe what their higher ups are saying, and what their own eyes are telling them. The new generation of octolings embody the teachings of their predecessors. As much as it might hurt to fight, as much as they are run ragged and used and abused, it's all for the best. It's for their protection. For their safety. If they step back, if they refuse service, then they're letting everyone down. The Octo Domes would lose power forever. How can you leave your own people to die? Are you selfish? Do you think the innocent must suffer? No. You'll be a good little soldier, and you'll follow orders.

But in the end—as the octolings find their way to the surface after Octavio is defeated and the Zapfish is recovered for the first time—they find out that everything they had done was for nothing. They lived through horrible conditions, believing that inklings were punishing them, only to come to the surface and find that none of it was true.

Are any of them resentful? Do some think of their time underground fondly (like Marina is implied to)? Do they see it for what it was: a futile attempt at holding onto some semblance of dignity after their humiliating defeat to an enemy who couldn't even wake up on time?

Or are they left deeply scarred by it all? Hurt that the older generation—the ones who were supposed to know best for them—would turn their backs on them and let them suffer for a so-called "greater good" that didn't even exist!

Some ramblings about how my own OCs fit into these thoughts are down below. Feel free to skip if you don't want to read something less canon!

Sashi was long trained into being the perfect soldier. He was bio-engineered for it, spliced together using the genes of other soldiers that came before him. He is mistreated by those above him... and it's deserved, isn't it? After all, he isn't an actual octoling. He was created, he wasn't born naturally. So he isn't really sentient, is he? He's just a thing. A useful tool for what the Octarian army wants to accomplish.

And so as he's mistreated, he starts to embody that too. It takes finally escaping to the surface for him to realize and come to terms with the fact that what happened to him wasn't deserved. And I think that, while he isn't resentful, he is angry at Octavio. Sashi looked up to him when he was younger: the brightly shining king who clearly wanted what was best for his people. But when Sashi learns that every was for nothing, well... he certainly won't be happy about it.

Except... we find out that Octavio (and some of the other higher ups) would have never dreamed about treating Sashi the way he was, or any other experiments for that matter.

Yes, Octavio was blinded by his own pride and dignity, but he genuinely wished the best. And to him, creating an army of super-soldiers that could fight to protect them in battle was the best decision to make. So then why? If Octavio never ordered the cruel treatment, why did it happen?

Let's go back to the propaganda and lies: many octolings would believe it. They would grow up hearing about the glory days, the stories of war... and they want a piece of that pie. They want to be a celebrated war hero, they want to rush into battle and defeat the inklings that keep them oppressed in the dark for so long. And with that desire to fight comes a penchant for cruelty. So they treat the experiments—and other lesser soldiers—poorly. Because their job as soldiers is to fight fight fight and keep fighting, so it won't hurt to push them far beyond the limits of what is humanly possible, right?

And Octavio is blind to all of this. He is blind, and it seems like he doesn't care.

So they are left to suffer in silence.

@sharliexth here's a more concise version of my thoughts I shared with you the other day lol

[taki-yaki]

Domestic In The Underdark Headcanons

Pairing: Astarion x GN!Reader/Tav/Durge

Despite the dangers that people preach about the Underdark, you and Astarion try to make it feel like home.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Got this out in time for the day of love. It's not quite Valentine's centric but I hope everyone enjoys it either way.

Despite the Underdark being known as the most dangerous place to live in, you and Astarion try to make it feel like home.

After finding some of the freed vampire spawn, you take up residency in an old abandoned fortress in the Underdark. It’s no grand mansion in the upper city, but you hire some artificers who are paid a little extra to keep quiet about the whole spawn situation, as well as them being able to help out fellow heroes of Baldurs Gate.

You and Astarion have a home specially made for the two of you, based on the houses in the city, as well as the spawn having homes for themselves.

When it comes to decorating the house, Astarion was mainly in charge of wallpaper and furniture choices for the home, but would also take in your inputs as well.

However, the main issue with all vampires when it comes to personal homes is the forbiddance rule they must follow, in which they must receive an invitation to enter the home, so a little hanging sign is made saying Astarion & Tav’s home which sits outside the door.

When it comes to cooking, Astarion would make an effort to learn how to, mainly for your sake if you can’t cook at all. Of course, the first few dishes may be a bit too burnt or too salty, but you can’t blame him, he hasn’t needed to eat food in over 200 years. 

“What do you mean it’s too salty for you? Well, I just kept adding salt until I could taste it”

The two of you would also take trips to the surface, via a portal setup that Gale was kind enough to arrange for you both. Visiting nearby night markets that local villages provide.

When it comes to clothing, he would embroider small messages into them whilst patching up any loose holes. Additionally, when attending parties or balls, he ensures that you wear the best outfit, during the preparations for Wither’s reunion party, he ended up spending so much time decorating your outfit, that he had to grab one of his old shirts and quickly patch it up.

He would also write small messages on your work clothes/armour for you to read while you are both apart from each other for the day, managing tasks.

During the evenings you would share each other's shirts and Astarion would always make a fuss over it “Honestly darling, it’s an honour to be wearing one of my handcrafted shirts.”

He does enjoy seeing you wearing his shirts though.

Since Elves only need around 4 hours of rest through trance, Astarion would sometimes wait for you to wake up by reading a book whilst watching you nearby. If you are an Elf or Drow, he would try to wake up before you regardless.

During the evenings, you would both cuddle together, either reading books out loud to one another or listening to each other ranting about how your day has been, from managing wayward spawn to taking out some drow raiders.

You both would bathe together, as a form of non-sexual intimacy, trying out the different scented oils that you’ve purchased from the market.

You would gift Astarion flowers that you collect from the surface, although he does find them a little gaudy, he enjoys having them as the colours remind him of being in the sun.

Astarion would try to return the favour by gifting you flowers, but only ones that would be useful for making into poisons and lists what each one is and its function.

”See if you take the petals from this one then crush and burn them, you can make a quick deadly toxin, but I think they look nice like this as well.”

Of course, when these flowers started to dry up, he would press them between books to persevere them.

Despite all the horrors of the Underdark and the gurgling task of managing over 7000 spawn. You are both able to make a place to call home.

[self-loving-vampire]

That medium post is highlighting just how fucked people get when they treat gender norms like a Serious Thing you must abide by. Like, what?

1- "A weak thing really wanting to be strong is pathetic" is the kind of thing that is like... who is even saying that?

The virtue of wanting to become stronger (be it for altruistic reasons or even just to master your art) no matter how pitiful your starting position is seems to be something that repeatedly comes up in fiction.

It's not just shonen training arcs to help you overcome someone who outclasses you in every way but also things the RPG journey of starting out at level 1 barely knowing your left from your right and becoming strong enough to kill god at the end.

In fact, this is what makes games like Gothic and Dark Souls so appealing. You start out so weak that everything obliterates you in one or two hits and you're pretty much just another doomed soul in a horrible situation, but if you persevere you can overcome anything.

Maybe stop thinking of strength or weakness as something inherent to gender rather than something you need to cultivate through training and experience? Sure there's geniuses like me who get a huge experience multiplier but that's not gendered either.

2- Boys 100% do cry. They often get beat up for it because they're not supposed to cry, but they still do it regardless of how things are "supposed" to be. Because humans are humans and extremely few people naturally fit the platonic ideal of what their gender is supposed to be at all times. Crying is not exclusively a "girl" thing, and it has nothing to do with weakness, bravery, or intelligence.

See, the thing is that the people who actually get good at video games are usually people who enjoy playing video games and do it on their own rather than just when they pick up something they have never done before in an effort to get validation while being anxious the whole time because they arbitrarily decided that video games are "boy things".

You're not just missing out on the confidence buff but also jumping into a mid-game area before finishing the tutorial. What did you think was going to happen?

"Fantasy story where a woman is doing cool stuff" is like... not even abnormal if you ever engage with anything outside the absolute most mainstream of media. Maybe it won't feel so shameful if you realize it has been done extremely well countless times before.

Also gendering romance seems like a mistake as well. Like, from the exact same story as the above image:

Yeah, it turns out stories can have both romance and women doing cool things and mature, non-sexist men will not necessarily hate either of those aspects.

I'm one of those people who got physical abuse to transition to mainly just threats by fighting back, and you know what that was actually like?

I never was even remotely as strong as big as my father was. I'm 170 cm and grew up malnourished (about 100-110 lbs before I left). I eventually also developed a major disability. Meanwhile he was huge and has literally killed people before. Most of those teens who fought back against their abusive dads? They probably were still physically weaker than said dads too.

But none of that matters, because you don't need to actually win, you just need to show your will to fight. You need to make it clear that there's going to be serious costs if they are violent towards you, and even children who haven't gone through puberty at all are capable of doing that if they give zero fucks.

Even an unarmed 10-year-old who was truly willing to do so is capable of causing lasting harm to an adult. I don't blame anyone for not trying something like that themselves since most people don't want to harm their parents and are averse to pain, but it's definitely dumb to make it into a gender thing that is just impossible without a specific type of puberty.

Also I should note that in a lot of cases this doesn't make the abuse stop entirely. It didn't in my case.

This is literally just applying that one comic to yourself.

Hope you're sitting down for the next bit:

Playing cool video games is the modern day equivalent of fighting war??? How does that even occur to you? Video games are literally entertainment. More like reading books or playing sports than killing people for real.

Also like, war still exists? That's kind of a big thing that is going on right now. War exists and people are fighting it. If this person grew up in the US then their country has been at war in some capacity for the vast majority of its existence. The modern day equivalent of war is war, and war is not actually cool or respectable like gaming is.

Putting up a bright billboard that reads "You know you don't have to be like that just because of your gender, right?"

Like, who cares if the other women you know personally only improve their skills for the sake of dress-up and horses? Do you not have things you want to do? I don't know what to say other than that this reads like NPC behavior.

Tip: You can be a man if you want, but also that probably won't give you instant competence or respect like you think it will. You're still going to have to Get Good at whatever it is you want to do.

So the kind of person who tries to fake an interest in "boy things" in a completely half-assed and insecure way actually exists and has terminal gender essentialist brain. I see.

I do think that's kind of shameful not just for the essentialist garbage but also in the sense that it reads like someone who is too invested in trying to insincerely impress others at the cost of their own individuality and pursuits.

If you're going to be taking right-wing types seriously then maybe you should at least notice that they also don't seem to respect tradwife types at all. They want to own them, sure, but they don't respect them. Attraction is not respect. Those people just don't respect women by default for reasons that are patently bullshit.

This is, from multiple angles, a personal problem. Some of us actually do like video games rather than using them as a way to get respect.

In fact, I'd hate it if people made a big deal out of the fact that I'm a woman who likes video games. That is and should be just a normal, unremarkable thing.

You know, maybe that whole thing where you see yourself as an eternal, inherent weakling not just physically but technically is unhealthy and holding you back from even considering that you could ever be good at anything besides child-rearing and clothes.

Good thing that she rarely feels like this anymore as an adult who is (according to the comments) no longer in a religious cult but this is like... putting my sexist father's thoughts in a self-loathing woman, basically?

[is-the-fire-real]

Hello! I've recently realized (through blogs like yours) that I've been casually absorbing a lot of antisemitism, and I've been trying to learn more so as to counteract it, at least in my own head. I've seen the horseshoe theory mentioned a few times, but never explained what it actually is. Would you be able to link me to some reading on the subject? Regardless of whether you answer, I'd like to say thank you for your time, and I'm glad you exist!

Hello there! Thank you for stopping by and for asking important questions like this. It's very difficult to admit to, and confront, the bad messages we've absorbed from society. The cool thing is that you'll have some difficult work at first, but it gets way easier with time. You are going to be fine so long as you persevere.

I will let you know that I'm not an expert in anything--I only ever graduated high school in the US! So I can tell you what horseshoe theory is thanks to a lot of auto-didactic reading on the subject, but I don't have sources in front of me. I invite anybody in Jumblr to tweak or correct anything I'm about to say.

"Horseshoe theory" isn't just about antisemitism, but about extremism--but we'll come back to antisemitism. It is summarized by the image of the horseshoe: the two ends of the horseshoe should, by all rights, be far away from each other--they're the opposite ends! But when you look at a horseshoe, the two end points are very close to each other. Closer to each other than either one, on its own, is to the middle.

When one maps out political or social beliefs, it is common to place them on an X/Y axis, or a straight line. One extremist position takes up the X, the opposite takes up the Y, and the moderate position marks the center. This gives the impression that both forms of extremism are naturally opposed to each other, and are farther from each other than they are the middle.

Horseshoe theory suggests that this X/Y axis is inadequate. What we see in actual human behavior is that extremists have more in common with other extremists than they do with moderates, even if their beliefs appear to contradict.

So, take an X/Y axis about leftism. One end is marked "anarchism", one end is marked "authoritarian communism", and the middle is marked "liberalism". One would think that anarchists would be the polar opposite of authoritarian communists, and that anarchists and ACs would fight to get liberals on their respective sides--since liberals are closer to them than they are to each other. But we don't see that. We see anarchists and ACs spatting online about who is the Real Leftist, but in real life, regarding real-world action, both groups agree that their real enemies are not each other, but liberals.

This is because, while both groups have very different ideas about how leftism should be implemented, they agree on the most immediate "problem" of overthrowing liberal democracy.

The meme on the left is that liberals will invariably ally with fascists, so don't trust liberals. The reality, over and over again, is that leftists ally with fascists and try to undermine liberals. They do this because they all agree that modern democracy, the greatest achievement of liberalism, must be destroyed in order for their preferred replacement utopia to arise.

I saw this, among many, many other examples, when leftists voted for Trump, or voted for Stein or Sanders knowing it would lead to Trump's election. Leftists joined right-wingers in going to liberal blogs and laughing at them on election night 2016; both groups openly salivating at the suffering they saw, both groups opining on the future collapse of democracy, both agreeing with each other. I saw it also during the 2004 election, when I ran a couple of LiveJournals that talked about politics--I had both leftists and right-wingers mocking my pain at that electoral loss, both blaming me for being gay and asking for rights at The Wrong Time, both agreeing with each other.

This is obvious in a variety of extremist belief systems, which is why I didn't even restrain it to politics. Flat Earthers largely do not agree with one another on a flat-earth map or model; they don't agree on whether or not they are Christians; they don't agree on what it would take to prove or disprove their ideas. They constantly infight over these details. But these are all window-dressing. It's tiny details they battle it out over, because the point of Flat Earth is to create a massive conspiracy among politicians, scientists, militaries, and religions to Suppress The Truth and Dupe The Masses. In that, all the extremists are closer to each other than they are to those who accept the globe earth as fact.

The phrase folks throw around on Jumblr, which I agree with, is that "the forge that bends the horseshoe is antisemitism". In less illustrative language, the thing on which all extremists agree is that the Jews are responsible for their pet conspiracy.

Leftists often misattribute a saying to Marx: "antisemitism is the socialism of fools". In this view, socialism teaches the exact structure of most baseline antisemitic beliefs. A semi-secret group of bloodsuckers hoarding all the wealth, puppeting and manipulating world events from behind the scenes, sneaking and sliming their way into Real Power--the power no one ever sees? Yeah, those are all antisemitic canards. But leftists thought they could avoid falling for antisemitism by simply putting words like "the wealthy" or "landlords" and "the bourgeois" in place of "the Jews", and that they'd be fine.

I would argue the last year (and many other years, but that's beside the point) has proven that they are not fine. It turns out that when you have an entire belief system based on Jew Hating Without Jews, it's extremely easy to start hating Jews! All you have to do is redefine your terms so that "the wealthy", "landlords", or "the bourgeois" are the Jews.

A specific example, and one I've discussed recently: the term "Zionist". Not what it means, but how it is used and what it is understood to mean.

Far-right extremist antisemites have used "Zionist" to mean "Jew" for decades. And they have tried, for decades, to make alliances. They have done this by saying things that sound good to leftists, but which give the right-wingers plausible deniability regarding their antisemitism (what we call "dogwhistling"). This bait did not work on liberals. It did work on leftists. And now, we see that liberals generally use "Jewish" to mean "Jewish" and "Zionist" to mean "Zionist", but that leftists use "Jewish" to mean "Jew I like" and "Zionist" to mean "Jew I want to kill".

Once again, leftists agree with Nazis and the extreme right. Once again, leftists make it clear by word and deed that they care more about the socialism of fools than they do about socialism. Once again, they validate that Hating Jews Without Jews only lasts until there's any reason whatsoever to plug Jews back into the system of hate, and then...

This is the hypothesis of horseshoe theory as I understand it. Again, if anyone has corrections or scholarly sources they'd like to share, please do so! I like to learn and I am often inside my own head, so I admit that I could be wrong in some details or missing nuance.

[rolandrockover]

Reprise Vol. 1 - Master & Slave

I think it's no big secret that Paul doesn't have much good to say about Kiss' Carnival of Souls. To put it mildly. Or he simply does everything imaginable to at least create such impressions whenever this album title should rarely enough become the subject of an interview question. Of course, he's welcome to do as he pleases, but personally, from my humble perspective, I think it's a bit of a shame, because I can also remember times when he spoke a tiny bit differently about it.

For example, I can still remember the time when the subject of a reunion was still treated as fictitious, and it wasn't on anyone's horizon, least of all Paul's and Gene's. That was back in 1994/95, when Kiss' laudable motto of perseverance and giving their best was for a change increasingly emphasized in their new music.

And I still remember very well that regular little Kiss feature in the German Rock Hard magazine, which was supervised by their Kiss Die-Hard (0), and from whom one got the vivid impression that he regularly got a certain insight into the world of our favorite band. I think it must have been February or March 1995 when Paul and Gene (1), but also Eric Singer (2), apparently got in touch with the interviewer directly from the rehearsal room in a telephone interview and Paul confidently said, not without his usual side-swipe at Gene, that his songs were much more melodious and heavier than Gene's. There was a certain pride in that. At some point later he even went so far as to claim that the new album was the best and heaviest since Creatures of the Night. Oh my!

What I mean, since that's a rather thoughtful and equally rare tribute to their own music, which was previously only outspoken to give a very special shine to the indeed excellent Revenge, and the return to form associated with it. And I must add to this Paul seemed quite proud of Revenge in 1992 regardless of how hard he had contributed to the previous albums in the 80's anyway. But who knows, once again, it was probably just the latest sensationalization of the upcoming album (3). Promotion is a double-edged sword, but to wipe Revenge away so succinctly because of it, I really don't know. But maybe and probably because it wouldn't have sounded so good to say their new album was the best since... their last one.

But to get my act together and to at least briefly talk directly about Master & Slave in this context.

So, as I already mentioned in my original entry, Master & Slave had the working title: Paul's Riff. In my perception, this suggests pride and respect, not necessarily from Paul himself, but clearly from his band environment. And the fact that such a meagre, yet all-saying no-name was chosen as accepted as a working title, if not even honored from everybody involved clearly speaks for itself.

And because this is a reprise, I'll simply feature an excerpt from my original text about what I see in this song:

"What begins in Not For the Innocent with a few approaching, ominous tones, continues in Unholy as a small extension in a slightly different pitch, and a much more compact back and forth oscillation of these tones, which thereby does not form the entire riff, but only a complementary part of it. In Master & Slave the whole thing gains in drasticness, and the motif is doubled to a lower pitch, added to the previous one to secure its terrain, only to turn into a Black Sabbath motif a la After All. An endlessly repeating highly dynamic acrobatic feat in loud and quiet/guitar and bass contrast."

When writing Master & Slave, Paul must have thought to himself: Ok Gene, a dark album full of Unholys shall it be? This time I'll listen to you, then you shall get Unholy. Which must have stimulated his ambition to try to outdo Gene in terms of Unholy by more than a small margin. I think the result shows in all strength what the right ambition can achieve.

"To conjure up this wet dream of riff Paul must have really tried hard and done his very best to achieve such a result - regardless of what he claims about Carnival of Souls as a whole today."

It is a real pity that he no longer stands by it. Gene and, above all, Bruce (4) seem to have fewer problems with this.

Side Notes:

(0) Jan Jaedike.

(1) Gene emphasized the psychedelic component and compared Carnival of Souls to the Rolling Stones' Satanic Majesties Request (1967) (5) , and that they couldn't explain either why it sounded different from the previous album.

(2) Eric said the album was super heavy and exactly the kind of music he wanted to play. I love to mention this because he had also clearly distanced himself from Carnival of Souls over the past few years. Klassik!

(3) Can anyone still remember how they loud-mouthedly advertised Crazy Nights as a mixture of Animalize and Destroyer back then? There's even a Youtube video of it, but don't ask me where. Anyway, that was still was something different.

(4) Or the last of the Mohicans, as I like to call him.

(5) Hmm, which Stones album did Ace's cover of 2000 Man actually come from?

Master & Slave starts from the beginning. Unholy and Not For The Innocent are highlighted. Turn up the volume and open your ears, I assume no liability:

Master & Slave (1997)

Unholy (1992)

Not For The Innocent (1983)

I'll add After All by Black Sabbath on top.

After All (1992)

[followerofmercy]

Admittedly insane religious/political ramblings from yours truly under the cut

Hi. I'm having a bad time asldfj

I just. I think it's both appalling and hilarious that other Christians are not just okay with the end of the world, but actively encouraging it. The genocide in Palestine. The poverty and starvation and disease and homelessness in the US. Conflict and suffering across the entire world because the US has entirely too much influence in global politics.

I don't really subscribe to a literal apocalypse/world ending in fire myself, but it's just like... I understand believing in an End. I understand taking comfort in the thought of a Great Suffering with paradise on the other side of it, regardless of whether you survive. I do not fucking understand ENCOURAGING IT LIKE A JRPG VILLAIN JUST BECAUSE IT'S FORETOLD?!

Like I just do not understand how people got from "This is a bad event that will happen because the devil hates you and wants you to suffer, but humanity will persevere through the grace of God" to "THIS MUST HAPPEN AND WE MUST HASTEN ITS OCCURENCE TO GET TO THE OTHER SIDE FASTER"

Like you realize this makes you the literal devil's pawns, right? I get that turning religious institutions into tools of evil and authority is pretty textbook, especially for Christianity, but like??? HAVE SOME SELF AWARENESS??? Fuck's sake, you can literally just kill yourself if you wanna get to heaven faster and leave other people's children and families out of it.

(Don't. Don't actually do that. It is a tempting thought from experience but not one you should indulge aldfsj)

I am just very angry with this apathy about the state of the world as something that is supposed to happen, absolving people of taking care of and loving each other. I hate that. The point of this world is to love one another through the hardship, not just stop and throw your hands up and say "Welp, guess it's the end! Fuck the homeless/arabs/sick/queers/immoral/whatever is convenient to declare undeserving of love today."

The point of this shit to be radically kind without tolerating abuse and I'm not entertaining any viewpoints that say otherwise. I'm not even entertaining "Oh, everyone's a sinner/is flawed' anymore. I'll reconsider if it's ever used correctly, to mean "you are loved no matter what and should look forward to growing and developing as a person" instead of the pervasive "you're inherently evil deep down and will never be able to atone on your own, so listen to God (really, the church) and pray He has mercy on your miserable existence. He's barely restraining Himself from nuking you off the planet because you're so disgusting. And really, you shouldn't even attempt to try to be better because it will end in failure. Just be grateful you're allowed to live."

Like idk man. I don't have that much vehement hatred for my own creations even if they're flawed. I think it's kinda batshit insane to think your God thinks about you (and other people) that way, and I'm extra angry that you're calling MY God an abusive nightmare piece of shit with your actions.

So, no. I will not believe that there is such a thing as just suffering, or suffering that Must happen beyond the things that I myself experience and grow from. I do not get to decide what should be character growth for other people. I am going to do my goddamn best to make this world a better place to live in and I am going to spit on anyone that tells me it's pointless.

[whomuses]

Fuck it Gale naming Caedes short fic

The Title of Monsters

Sleep didn’t come easy to them, these days. Although, in all the history which they could remember, sleep had never come easy. So perhaps it had been before they had come to be here, maybe they had never rested well or quickly. So much of their past was shrouded, a dark veil that covered all that they knew. Only… flashes, flickers occasionally. Usually the smell of blood, the crack of bones between their teeth. The monster that carefully stood from the well travelled bedroll, slipping past slightly shifting and adjusting bodies wrapped in their own fabrics near the banked-down night fire, knew that it was pointless to try for that slumber now. The night was lost. They would persevere, as ever they did, making their way to the side nearest the soft rush and burble of the brook. The sensation of thick, gluey blood that stuck to their claws was particularly heavy tonight. And no matter which way they turned their digits, it wasn’t visible. A memory, a curse… they sat heavy on the bank, dipping fingers into the icy water, as if to wash it away regardless. Much like the iron tang inside their mouth, it would not disappear by any mortal means… which was known. Of course.

The young woman, hopeful, eyes full of dreams and lips full of song, had stained deeper than the natural red tones on his scales. And how much death? How much laid it’s heaviness across his shoulders? They swallowed hard, tilting his head back and closing his eyes, letting the light of the moon wash over bare shoulders and the planes of their face, the smell of the fresh water, fragrant night-grasses and the last crackling traces of woodsmoke do their best to wash away the worst of their thoughts. Almost like meditation, this urge to push away the darkness that threatened to consume them at all times. They had to maintain control. If he didn’t, then it would all be lost to the parasite regardless…

The sand next to him shifted. A shape lingering, in that gap just behind where his other hand had sunk down to support their lean. Opening his blazing eyes, he glanced back, a carefully neutral expression. Not that it mattered, much. Few other than their own kind seemed particularly good at reading the subtleties of a hairless face.

“Didn’t mean to startle you.” “I heard you coming from the moment you stood up.” they responded, rolling his eyes slightly, looking back towards the water now. “My hearing is far sharper than yours.”

“You don’t say.” Gale awkwardly shifted until he was able to sit on the sand too, settling himself down. It couldn’t have been particularly easy, with his ridiculous sleeping gown, but he sure managed it, surprisingly gracefully, in fact. Not to say that it was … graceful. Just moreso than expected.

“What’s on your mind?” Apparently unwilling to let any silence pass them by, he spoke, but it was softer, kinder, than might have been expected. Especially considering… everything. Letting out a long sigh, they shook their head, slowly. Mouth parted, just slightly – but no words came. What could possibly be said, in fact? “Ah… the tiefling girl still on your mind?” he asked. It was an easy out, and perhaps, it wasn’t entirely untrue, so the question received a slight nod. “Well, I’m not surprised. An awful thing to wake up to, it must be said.”

“I know that you all blame me -”

“Quite so. After all, you were responsible. You made no secret of the fact.” Gale’s tone shifted, just a little harder. It was an act that hadn’t been forgiven. That was good. It shouldn’t be. No forgiveness deserved for the cruelty they didn’t remember committing. “But I also know something about what it’s like to have an immense, hard to control power.”

Another sigh curled it’s way out of their chest, reaching up to scrape their claws across the side of their cheek, not sure quite how to respond.

“Why are you up?”

“Oh, couldn’t quite fall asleep. It’s a rather balmy night.” he waved a hand in the air slightly, as if to gesture at the soupy humidity. Perhaps they didn’t feel it as much, with their scales, as human skin did. “Heard you getting up, thought it might be a good night for a little company. Of course, if I’m bothering you, I can find another spot out of the way…”

Even they recognised that invitation. They could send him away, return to their mental flagellation for a cruelty he couldn’t explain or quantify. Or, perhaps…

“I have no issue with your company.”

“Excellent.” and Gale smiled, with such a genuine shine in his eye that it was almost alarming – because it seemed real. Actually please to spend time with – with – whoever they were. “You know, it’s funny, when we met… you struggled to introduce yourself. Do you remember? You’d just pulled me out of a portal, and I’d made such a monumental fool of myself, getting stuck there. I could think of very little except what an idiot I had been, and yet – I looked at you. And you had this – this hunger in your eyes. This – sickness, I guess. And fool that I was, I laid that firmly at the feet of that little parasite in our heads.” he fell silent for a moment. They looked away, unable to meet his eyes as he spoke. Yes. The urge to tear apart the eagerly offered meat had been … so hard to resist.

“But it’s funny.” and now his voice was so soft it was nearly inaudible. They risked a glance across at him, but his eyes were fixated across the water, into the trees. “I keep thinking about it, now. How you hesitated. How you didn’t have a name on your lips, to give me. I know who I am. I’m Gale, of Waterdeep. Without a hesitation, it’s there, ready to give, but you… really don’t know who you are. Do you?”

“No.” they said, shaking their head. “I woke up on the ship. Even then, I … barely knew who I am. I still don’t think I do.” mouth parted, they hesitated. What could he say to Gale? What was there in him? Admitting this was… foolish, perhaps. But here in the darkness, with the sweet night fragrances and the soothing of the brook when the world felt half remembered and unimportant, it was easier to say. “I think I’m a monster.”

“Well…” he frowned, too. “It must be said, I’ve rarely considered myself willing to travel with someone who commits deadly maulings in their sleep. Not that it’s been much presented as option to me before. But for what it’s worth? I don’t think you’re a monster, not really. There’s something inside you, perhaps, like our slimy little companions,” he tapped a finger against the side of his head, “That’s out of your control. But that doesn’t mean it’s not fixable. And it doesn’t mean that you, the real you, is a monster.”

It was so strangely honest. They tilted their head back again, peering back at the heavens.

“I don’t know who I am. The real me. But I think I am… discovering it. I like who I am more, with… you. The – all of you. I feel more grounded. The cruelty in me is easier to hold back.” “I’m quite glad to hear it.” Gale smiled gently at him, dark eyes turning to look at the light scaled dragonborn. “Actually, the other day, when we awoke to that … gristly sight, I had a thought. An old language word, that hasn’t crossed my life in quite some time, but I felt oddly pertinent, shall we say. Caedes.” they tilted their head towards him, brows furrowing. “Say it again?” “Caedes,” he repeated, a touch slower, a hard emphasis on the start and a rising inflection on the s, Kai-diss, and they slowly mouthed the word before allowing it out, tasting all it’s consonants and rumble.

“Do you mean to name me, Gale?” they asked, more amused now.

“It’s as good a word as any, and I feel it rather suits you. But if you don’t like it or – or feel I am not worthy of that honour, by all means -”

“No. No, I like it. Caedes. Yes. It is better than this unnamed life I have been living.” he snorted out of both nostrils. “Thank you, Gale.”

“Don’t worry about thanking me. I should be thanking you. I hadn’t thought I’d much in the way of getting to name something, well, until I have children – should that – come to pass, don’t worry – in fact, forget I said it. Please.”

Caedes did not bother responding to his babbling, only to smile slightly.

“Well, the night is a little cooler,” by the slight red on his cheeks, Gale was definitely not feeling cool, but regardless, “I’ll try to bed. You should do the same.”

“Goodnight.”

“Yes, goodnight.” and he tried not to laugh as he listened to Gale settling back down into his bedroll, watching the sky as the first hints of dawn gold began to shimmer.

[thedanniannie]

No, I haven't been writing about Itachi as frequently. Why you ask? I have homework. Homework that quite frankly is the bane of my neurodivergent existence. I can't take the homework, it's dick is too big. My homework's dick is so fucking ginormous, and it intimates me, leaves me shaking and quaking in fear.

I've been trying to come up with mental scenarios to help me finally do this gd homework, specifically scenarios that involve my lord, savior, and lawfully wedded wife, Itachi Uchiha. My running storyline is he watches me do my homework, and if I get distracted he locks me up in his mind palace like I'm Kakashi, pokes me a little bit in my vitals and I fucking die. Or...he could just like, be sitting next to me in the library, that's also an option.

Regardless, I apologize to my fine members of my carefully curated kingdom, my kingdom of Itachi lovers. I know there's like, ten of us but REGARDLESS...we are in the dark ages, the plague may be upon us. Unfortunately we do not have doctors as far as I know of, so we must all persevere, with Itachi Uchiha in our hearts. I shall continue my scripture slowly, as I have been keeping note of ideas for future texts. But I must overcome this infection of needing to do my homework first and foremost...

[tinewithdanarrative]

Have you ever had uncertainties because of people's own perception seem governing you.. you want to be truthfully sincere yet you're restraint from being repressed by their words... it feels like anyone is invading your space, degrading for being candour, and trying to burst your bubble from the state of your freedom with God.. People sometimes can be suspiciously unscrupulous... They keep lurking of you and seem to find way to buzz around when all we know God sets different arrangements for us —those environments for man, no ONE can decipher God's ordination of every environment we came across in each routes... All I know is I'll stand with the truth that I seek & now liberates from satan's ideas..

𝐀𝐥𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐲 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐬

"You must be unshaken by anyone or anything, in all situations, and you must not be influenced by anyone’s words. You must have a stable disposition; no matter what people say, you must immediately put into practice what you know to be the truth. You must always have My words at work inside of you, regardless of whom you might be facing; you must be able to stand firm in your testimony to Me and show consideration for My burdens. You must not be confused, agreeing blindly with people without having your own ideas; rather, you must have the courage to stand up and object to those things that do not come from Me. If you know clearly that something is wrong, yet you keep silent, then you are not a person who practices the truth. If you know that something is wrong, but then twist the topic around and are blocked by Satan, causing you to speak without any effect and to be unable to persevere until the end, then this means you still carry fear in your heart. Is it not then the case that your heart is still filled with Satan’s ideas?

[acrimleyarts245-03]

Blog 1

Hello! This is my first post on my new blog for my typography class so welcome! I hope you enjoy this experience as we take this journey throughout the semester together. So, this week we had to read from a book called "Thinking with Type" by Ellen Lupton (just know that when I reference the book, this is the one I will be talking about). This particular chapter was about Letters and typefaces, which is an essential resource for graphic designers (which is the career I would like to pursue once I finish school). The first typefaces were modeled on the forms of calligraphy, which makes sense since calligraphy is a very old form of writing/art. The anatomy of letters is a thing that was created, which I find very fascinating because I have not thought of an inanimate object...? would have anatomy even though now that I think of it, it is just pieces that make up something. Another thing that I found very interesting is that bold and abstract typefaces did not become a thing until the 19th century! I do like to gravitate more towards these typefaces when working on a specific project, so I am glad that artists decided to stray away from the 'neat' and 'fancy' lettering. Overall, in this chapter, I learned that typefaces are very important in context, and they help portray the message that the creator is trying to convey so it is important to research and take your time to find the perfect one!

Moving on, this week we are working on our first project! We must choose a famous person and represent them in 9 different squares, I decided to go with famous surrealist painter Salvador Dali. The picture is of the first 3 squares, the photo of your celebrity, the second square is a pen (either ballpoint or micro pen) version of the person that is visually pleasing and the 3rd one is like the 2nd one, but it is more silhouette-type drawing. Not going to lie, this project is a big pain and I am not a big fan of it, but I think it is because I am hardcore struggling on the next 3 squares in this project(I will show the product next blog), and I feel like 8/29 class was a waste because I did not accomplish much. I have also printed out so many different versions of my original photos and none of them have been RIGHT at ALL. The first thing that should have been done is still not done because something is always wrong with it. Today's class (8/29), I thought I had everything sorted out, but I found out that is 0.5 inches too SMALL, so now I need to photocopy some new ones. Regardless of my inept struggles right now, I am going to persevere and finish this project, producing excellent quality at the same time because an artist never quits! at least not this one. That is all for now, I will update you guys' next week when I complete this project further but until then, signing off. 

Here are my pieces so far:

[augustinthewater1995]

worried for this set i'm playing tonight but stoked to try some new stuff regardless. i feel that i'm closer and closer approaching where i want things to go and its only a matter of time until it's actualized in performance. i must persevere!

had a dream last night that i was being stalked by an amorphous mass of flesh and woke up right as it started to consume me in a basement i played a show in a decade ago. also realized that the feeling of someone always being in the room with me is just god.

doors open eyes open heart open mind open i move forward with no grace but with an obscene persistence

[soaringwide]

Hi there! Just wanted to put my name in for the reading giveaway! If I get picked, I would love a reading that focuses on what I can do while moving forward on my religious/magical path. It has been a long time since I've made any forward movement (my practice has stagnated), and as much as I would love to pick up where I have left off, I feel as though I am missing something within myself. Thank you!!

Hello @coyotegamer :)

First of all thank you for your question! I think I will try to first assess why things have stagnated, and then what you can understand and do to move forward.

For anyone else interested in a free reading, I currently have enough asks so they are closed, but I will open them again because I have 4 days off at the end of next week so I'll have some free time. Stay tuned!

Current situation

(The first two columns on the left where meant as signifiers for yourself in this situation, and the next three as why you experience this stagnation.)

So for you in your current situation, I see that regardless of how long you've been invested on your path, you show up as someone who is in the developing stage of their craft (the Page), working on learning as much as possible, which makes sense since magic/spirituality/esoterism requires a lot of ground work to get things started and is obscure unless you were raised in it. However, instead of moving onto the next stage you sort of remained stuck in this beginner phase, perhaps due to a lack of confidence or motivation, or because you lacked a clear way forward.

You may have experienced a lack a results or a poor harvest, not necessarily in a tangible way but perhaps you were expecting to get something from your practice on some level that you weren't getting, such as internal or emotional fulfillment or a feeling of completion and belonging. This made you feel like you were just going back and forth aimlessly, unable to direct your energy anywhere, like a lion in a cage.

As to why things have stagnated because I wanted a bit more info, the idea of being unsatisfied with your accomplishments came back again, with the idea that it might not be rooted in reality but rather in your own perception of the situation. Perhaps you think you haven't gained a whole lot from your practice but it's rooted in your expectations and pessimistic vision.

There is a wound here, and you got three cards talking about some type of pain and necessity to transmute it into strength. This deep dissatisfaction killed your drive and your sens of direction. You lost your sense of purpose, as in, why you do the things that you do, and for a while you were not able to persevere.

I also think you lost touch with the magical sense of wonder you felt at first because you got super comfortable in your routine, as the honeymoon phase faded, and you didn't know how to keep the spark alive.

What can you do to move forward

I think there is a message of reclaiming that part of you that you neglected during this stagnation phase in order to feel whole again. There is space for healing if you allow yourself to flow again and try to merge this fragmented parts of yourself once more.

In order to pick up steam again, you must face those internal blockages you feel. There is again the idea of transmuting something within yourself in order tor reclaim what you have lost (your enthusiasm; your bliss; your drive).

Perhaps you are resisting the deep call of divinity and magic within yourself. A breakthrough is needed and you are resisting it because you fear it might hurt you if you make a mistake. I get it those things can be scary af. But the Tower is not always this doom and gloom thing and can be a powerful force of change. I think there's the idea of taking a big leap of faith, of changing something drastically.

Really you need to wake up to the idea of going back home within yourself. To what truly matters to you. Not what others think is the right path, not the path someone tells you to take, but the one that feel natural and true to you, the one that feels like home.

Don't let your fear of not being enough or not knowing enough get in the way of exploring and doing, because I think you know enough to take the next step. You are human and despite the world we live in you belong to nature and its wisdom. It is yours and within you as well and you can reconnect with that and heal. You may be scared you need to be perfect in order to move forward but that's not true because nothing is ever perfect in the realm of nature. We are all imperfect little things running around on a floating space rock trying to make sense of the crushing beauty of the universe. You must do with what you have and let the world around you teach you.

Reconnect with the fresh energy of a new beginning, and go toward what speaks to your soul, what creates this feeling of going home I talked about earlier, and again don't listen to what other tell you you should be doing that make you feel like you are not advanced or knowledgeable enough to do, because you will learn on your path. One step at a time with optimism and joy in your heart.

With the last two cards of the Quareia deck I was hoping to get a more concrete idea of a path to take, but I don't think it's mine to tell you, but rather encourage you to explore and take a wide step forward.

The Weaver of Creation talks about building something long lasting, weaving it into existence so to speak. It will bring fruit but you must put in the work.

The Wheel of Fate Rx makes me think that rather than waiting for Destiny to move you, you must spin the wheel first and then the movement will carry you forward. Remember that you are always the one to decide what step you want to take. There is a lot of talk online about being chose by this or that, but ultimately you are free and that gives you immense power, and you'll be able to give your love and dedication to a path that you willingly stepped on, and then once you give you will be given back and be moved along.

I would advise you to be careful about reading too much what is online for the time being and rather refocus on yourself. Find the little spark within you that tells you where to go next. Maybe spend some time in nature and sit in silence, look around. Magic is everywhere, it doesn't have to be something you need to force yourself to do complicated things in order to see feel and practice. This process can be really eye opening about your own path. I have this image of the Excalibur sword in the rock, the rock being your heart. Once you drew it out you'll grow into your own power.

I hope this reading was useful to you! I also wanted to say that I highly empathize with you because I'm in the same situation so doing this reading also helped me motivate myself! I'll gladly read your feedback if you wish to share something! Wishing you good luck on your path!!