#i understand it’s a complicated subject that was part of the appeal!

[stockholmgf]

i made it the whole semester without crying over school and they got me at 3 am two days before it’s over

[officialspec]

What do you think gay men are attracted to in men that they can’t be attracted to in women?

It can’t be anything about femininity or masculinity obviously. That’s both sexist, and cultural so can’t be what drives men-only attraction.

It can’t be anything about stated identity because someone could lie just as easily as they could tell the truth in such a statement, and it makes no sense because homosexuality and heterosexuality exists in other species with no stated identities. It’s not like other animals without gender are all pan.

Saying idk it’s the vibes or some indescribable trait men have that women can’t but “I can’t explain” is a nonanswer.

Soooooooo what is it? Or do you think any sexuality but bi/pan is just cultural performance or an identity rather than an inborn orientation?

- [ ]

first off i hate this ask and i think youre a freak. in any other world i wouldve blocked you for this but unfortunately for both of us i actually like this type of philosophy. dont send this shit to anyone else though

i dont think its right to compare human sexuality to the same thing in animals, to get that out of the way. im sure until a certain point it comes from the same biological impulses, but human beings have way more complicated social structures and reasons for coupling that just do not exist in other animals. our social behaviours are what make us unique in the animal kingdom and that definitely extends to gender and sexuality. so theres that

people love to tout 'gender is a social construct' around like its a criticism in and of itself, which i think betrays a misunderstanding about social constructs in general. theyre the foundations we build language on to better understand each other, and affected by a whole host of cultural and historical factors. just because theyre subjective and complicated doesnt mean they arent real. in terms of the effect they have on peoples lives they may be the most real thing that exists

for example, 'kindness' is a social construct. the definition and ways it is enacted differ greatly across personal and cultural lines. but no one would ever suggest a world where kindness doesnt exist or loses meaning, because its an essential part of the way we interact with each other (in the same way i dont really see a world where gender entirely ceases to exist, mainly just one where people have more fun with it. im not a psychic though so who knows)

similarly, sexuality in humans is another social construct. i think the driving biological forces behind it are very real, but the labels people attach to those impulses are subjective attempts to express their inner world to the people around them if that makes sense. and those same biological impulses are ALSO subject to social ideas of gender, because those ideas are established at birth and reinforced over a persons entire lifetime

to use myself as an example, im a gay trans man. ive identified as other things in the past, because i was trying to pick apart feelings i had and express them to others in an attempt to find community. my identity might change as i get older and experience new things, or it might not. i identify as gay because im not attracted to the social concept of women, and someone i would otherwise be attracted to might lose all appeal after i find out they fall under that concept (this has happened before w transfems pre and post coming out lol)

of course, the real REAL answer to this is that trying to give queer identities rigid and objective definitions is a fools errand, and also lame as fuck. someone might identify as gay and be more attracted to general masculinity than men as a social category, maybe they fool around with a couple of butch women without considering themself any less gay. two otherwise identical people might be a butch lesbian and a gay trans man without either of those identities coming into conflict. they might even be the same person at different times of the week

the labels people choose to use are communication tools, not objective signifiers. if you dont understand them, they probably arent talking to you

social constructs are everything. we as humans have the unique ability to interpret our own messy desires and impulses into words that other people can use to form an idea of someone else in their mind. its how we build connections, and of course it isnt perfect because trying to squeeze someones entire personal history and the centuries of context that defined it into a handful of syllables is going to leave some room for error. but its all we have, yknow? so we keep trying. and i think thats much more human than any imposed objective 'truth' could ever be

tldr we live in a society dipshit. get with it

[jyantabear]

been playing pathologic throughout the summer and i've enjoyed it a lot and im currently on the changeling campaign and I heard a lot of people say the changeling route is underwhelming and weak but honestly i think it's been really great so far and I think it has tons of depth and I find Clara very interesting Idk im on day 8 of the campaign I feel like I have more thoughts on this route then the haruspex campaign. Perhaps its partly because Clara's subject matter appeals to me a lot but I think it's amazing It's this tragic story about a little girl who so badly wants to be good and do good. She wants to be love and accepted and find her place in the world with all the anxiety she has over her unsureness on her identity and the strange circumstances of her existence. It's about the Saburovs playing this pretend, toxic, nuclear family structure with her. Where a part of them does care about and love her but for selfish reasons. They project their insecurities on her, both of them. They want her to be their salvation and be their key to finally helping the town as they feel they're failures and frauds in that pursuit. So they pressure, love bomb, and abuse their daughter to fit this mold. And Clara is scared but she follows anyway desperate for love. And even without realizing it she's mimicking their teachings and values because It's all she's been given in this world. The only source of guidance It's about Clara and her relationship to the people around her. How she feels sympathy for her bound because she sees herself in them. Because she sees they're people with dimensions and are complicated. And she wants someone to see and grant her mercy and forgiveness as well. And it's so interesting to compare this to her interactions with Daniil and Artemy. Who she's also very similar with but demonizes them. (which I don't think is unjustified btw as they're very horrible to her. But I want to note that while the healers always had some tension between them this route has definitely cranked it up a ton and in the opening play Clara is the one criticizing them for being heartless, selfish, and "not knowing compassion" right off the bat. And even in the few times Artemy and Daniil can have pleasant exchanges with her it's short lived and never sticks with her) And she goes the extra mile to demonize them and deny and dismiss any complexity they might have as she also sees herself in them but doesn't want to admit it. Because it's what she doesn't want to be. It hurts too personally for her to associate with them and makes her feel pathetic even thinking she could be similar to them because she doesn't want to share their loneliness, their struggles, their failures. It makes her feel more stable in her identity to put them down and go "Well at least I'm not like those bloodthirsty horrible useless doctors" And While Clara also feels dislike towards Maria. Maria is someone Clara wants to be. She wants to be that beloved and powerful mistress. Someone who can guide and help others and use her power for good. Which is why she'll say "Her and Capella will be the only ones to understand my loneliness." Clara wants someone to understand her pain but only if she can protect this idealized image of herself she's painted in her mind because she's been hurt too much. It's a tragic story of the unrealistic and harsh standards placed on young teenage girls. And the idea that perhaps humanity is the problem. But taking that message in a rather conservative and violent way then one that acknowledges the complexity and indoctrination society and people have built. A young girl internalizing beliefs of irredeemable ontologically evil people due to all the abuse she's been put under.

[indierpgnewsletter]

What do you see when you look at a game?

What do you see when you look at a game? When we talk about visual art like a painting, we look it and we see line, colour, composition, pattern and so on. And we could talk about that stuff when we talk about games but then we’d be talking about a book’s graphic design. Which is important but there are better people to do that – better eyes to see through.

Normally, when I talk about games and art, I’m drawn to what you can’t see: what play feels like, the design lineage, the artistic statement, the political and social context in which it is made, etc. But I’m asking myself something different now: if there is a game in that book, what do I see when I look at that game?

Games do have a form. When we talk about Apocalypse World as innovative, one of the big things we are talking about is an innovation in form. It was the form of a work-in-progress Apocalypse World that caught the attention of a series of game designers in 2009-2010 – so much so that Apocalypse World 1st edition could’ve lost the race to be the first PbtA game to be published. It is this innovation in form – the form we see in those early offspring like Monsterhearts, Monster of the Week, Dungeon World – that most people think about when they think PbtA.

What is this form? Well, it’s stuff like how a move is written (its shape?) and what the Bakers refer to as the structure of the game, including stuff like agenda, principles, GM moves, the conversation, etc. The image from Vincent Baker’s post here captures the big picture.

The form of Apocalypse World is different from the form of the trad games that inspired it, like Ars Magica – even as the actual playing of both of those games (depending on whose playing it) could be the same. Or to put it another way, people (including the Bakers probably) were playing games in the style of AW before AW existed. The innovation wasn’t in the outcome, it was in the form.

Did that innovation in form lead to the spread of a culture of play that people now think of as the PbtA style? I think so! But that’s the power of form, right? The design of AW made an obscured style much more visible and accessible.

You know which game didn’t necessarily innovate in form? Blades in the Dark. Controversial? Not my goal! For me, part of the appeal of Blades in the Dark is that it actually looks like older games like Vampire the Masquerade (at least morethan AW does). Obviously, Blades in the Dark is innovative (in form and other ways) but parts of it look so familiar that it actually feels more approachable than PbtA to people who have played other trad games. You have what look like skills and you roll them. Easy. We could play right now.

(How much of Apocalypse World‘s popularity can be attributed to what it didn’t change? You know, XP, damage, gear, classes, etc. How much of Blades in the Dark‘s popularity is due to its familiar guise? The psychology of novelty and familiarity is fascinating but I won’t get into it because I am completely ignorant on the subject and maybe that is for the best.)

I hope I’m not unnecessarily complicating things by using the word “form” to refer to a part of a game’s design. I think if I said For The Queen or Yazeba’s Bed and Breakfast were innovative in form, it would be more clear because I’d be talking about the game’s physical look. But Apocalyse World just looks like a book, right? The reason I’m using the word is that there is a difference between the innovative stuff that AW does design-wise (safety-first asymmetric PvP, for example) and its innovations in form. And it would be good to look at them separately and see that divide.

Also, I think it helps us understand what parts of the game we’re talking about when we discuss a game without playing it. All in the quest of being articulate about what we see when look at a game.

Yours, having read one book on art,

Thomas

PS. It’s been a couple of dry weeks for the newsletter so glad to be writing again. I’m not an art historian but I was inspired by my conversation with Huffa (who is one) on the Yes Indie’d podcast to think like one.

PS2: I know “safety-first asymmetric PvP” could potentially sound like I’m casting some kind of gibberish spell. If you haven’t played AW, this explains a part of it.

[ryuichirou]

what kinda underwear do you think the male cast would wear?? i like to think Jade would go without some days, so improper!! OTL Floyd with the colorful patterns, whether he actually wears them tho is a 60/40. i can see him in those cliche heart boxers very, very easily. Do you think any of the cast would keep their lovers' underwear, like a souvenir? I could see Lilia doing it. 1/3 (the rest is just horny posting for a fish)

2/3 (this is *not* an art request just me being down bad for a semi-crazy assfish) I would die to see jade leech in lingerie OTL i cant think of any scenarios where he'd wear it, but god is it a beautiful mental image. Considering his take on clothing (being a mer+weird asf) I don't think he'd have any actual hangups about it, but he still wouldn't do it under normal circumstances. i think part of the appeal for me, is that you wouldnt expect a guy like him (big, top, JADE) to wear sumn like it

3/3 in conclusion  they took away my license because of how  fast i was undressing him

Hi Anon!

This is such a great theme for hcs, and I am very sorry that it took so long, but please understand: this is a very complicated subject, I just had to do research before writing it. Well, in actuality I was just googling all kinds of underwear over and over again until the picture in my head for every single boy looked right lol We’ll get to hcs shortly, but first I’ll reply to the other things you’ve said!

Btw, this ask is from MARCH, that’s how far behind I am in replying to those.

Totally agree about Lilia stealing his lover’s undies as a souvenir. This is his trophy, and he is very proud of them. He should have a display in his room…

Floyd also has his stealing undies moments. Some of the boys he sleeps with could be smitten with him enough to try to gift him their underwear, and Floyd would go “??? Why the fuck do I need these”. But sometimes? He just steals them lol He totally stole a couple of Riddle’s undies. He doesn’t really store them well though, so they’re just lying around his and Jade’s room…

Rook. Rook would also take trophies. And he would take such good care of them it’s insane. Now this is someone who would have a display somewhere… somewhere where no one would be able to see it unless he wants them to…

I also think Ortho would do it one time just because he wanted to play out the trope of having someone else’s panties in his room, oops! He’s a weird boy.

Can’t say much about Jade in lingerie, but it really would look good, not gonna lie….

Riddle – god I want him to have cute ones with a strawberry print, but realistically he is probably wearing just some plain tighty whities…. unless they have a pretty embroidered “R” on it, which is somehow even worse. I love him so much. Wait, would he be the one to wear undies with the weekdays written on them?

Ace – just some boxer briefs, nothing crazy; he used to have very colourful ones when he was younger, with fun prints and all, but nowadays he tries to be a bit more stylish and mature about it, so a lot of times he goes for dark-red/red/black ones.

Deuce – pretty neutral, but he does have a “lucky” pair of trunks that he always wears when he has something important going on that day… He also has a pair of very good seamless running underwear (deep blue with some light blue patterns), and he kind of cherishes them because it’s an expensive gift. Just wear them and run, Deuce…

Trey – he prefers boxers, the ones that are basically just shorts and aren’t tight. They also look pretty plain, but he has some with the tartan print. Usually green or red… He would look like a Men’s Health model if he wore something less loose and more stylish, but he loves his stupid tartan boxers!

Cater – boxer briefs, but the “leg” part is somewhat shorter; he has a variety of different ones, but it’s almost always some variation of grey and orange. He buys the ones that seem cool to him, even the sillier ones are on the cooler side; he is very happy that his sisters don’t have power over what kind of underwear he wears… he thinks about it every time he looks in the mirror after taking a shower.

Leona – probably something high-end and luxury, but he also doesn’t wear them all the time. He wears something short, slick and sporty when he does anything sport-related and needs support for his balls, but other than that – nah, putting on underwear is just another annoying unnecessary extra thing to do.

Ruggie – he bought the cheapest ones available in bulk when he was like 13, and he still wears them (they were a little big for him when he first got them). His grandma said that it has to be cotton, but other than that – it doesn’t matter, and Ruggie believes it wholeheartedly. So I guess some neutral grey briefs? Nothing too fancy.

Jack – oh this boy. He doesn’t like underwear that doesn’t give him good support, so all of his options fit pretty close to his body. I guess his signature ones would be briefs in which one leg is just plain black, and the other leg has a print of half of the wolf face… what, you think it’s cringe? At least it’s not the ones where the wolf’s face is in the crotch area… Jack actually thinks those are cringe too – he got a pair of those from Ace, Deuce and Epel for his birthday (google wolf underwear)

Azul – Calvin Klein and Hugo Boss are his best friends. Very… gentlemanly. He always picks the ones that would make him feel like a successful young man. They’re not too short, but a little shorter than regular boxer briefs, and always very tight. To some maybe even uncomfortably tight, but Azul doesn’t mind it at all for some reason. He has exactly 10 pairs of grey and purple ones, exactly 10 pairs of black and purple ones and a couple of white ones.

Floyd – a big collection, kind of like with his shoes and socks. He hates plain ones, but some of his undies aren’t obnoxious – he has a couple of pretty stylish and bright ones that aren’t too crazy. But yeah, a lot of them are pretty obnoxious and bright lol He loves loose boxers, but also has some tighter ones too.

Jade – yeah he’d go commando lol But not all the time. His choice of underwear is… eclectic. Of course, he has some plain ones (a couple of those are similar to Azul’s but in a different colour and size), but also? He has some surprisingly silly ones. Of course with mushrooms and stuff, or something that too cursed even for Floyd to wear. It just tickles Jade when he has a secret…

Kalim – luxury underwear! Mostly white + yellow/golden/orange ones, but he has some black ones as well. Super high quality, super special design, super cool-looking actually. And Kalim doesn’t even know that his underwear is different from the rest of the guys, but if he ever was to try on some other type of underwear, he would immediately feel discomfort and say that it doesn’t feel right against his skin. Too rough…

Jamil – his is also pretty high quality; even though his family serves the Asims, I feel like this is exactly why Jamil can afford a good pair of underwear. It’s not even remotely near the price tag of Kalim’s though, god forbid, no one should allow to wear underwear this expensive..! Anyways, since Jamil likes to go sleeveless, he probably prefers underwear that doesn’t cover his thighs at all, so just some regular tight briefs. It’s mostly black+deep red, his favourite colour combo.

Vil – there he is, the underwear guru. He has all kinds of underwear and sometimes changes it multiple times per day depending on his activity: he wears seamless short briefs for yoga so it’s not visible through his leggings, but still gives him support, he wears longer boxer briefs for jogging so his thighs don’t rub against each other too much, he wears some other type for flying… his collection is expensive, high quality and very well organised… What was that? A thong? Of course he wears a thong sometimes, it looks hot. And lingerie too, when it’s appropriate. Come on now.

Rook – there he is, the man who used to wear underwear with holes in it and didn’t even care. Point at him, laugh at him, and then say thank you to Vil Schoenheit who took one look at this creature and said “I can fix him”. Anyways, nowadays Rook wears a pair of seamless boxer briefs that hug his body tightly but don't feel suffocating; he owns a bunch of these in different colours. He also owns a jockstrap, and finds it kind of functional, but it makes his butt too prominent, so he doesn't wear it. It’s for special occasions only...

Epel – he fought his mum for the right to buy himself some new cool underwear before coming to NRC (having colourful undies your mom bought you when you were 12 SUCKS!), but he didn’t even get to wear them much because Vil saw them and gave him a lecture about how this is the worst type of underwear he could wear (pure polyester, are you serious??), and that Epel doesn’t care about the well-being of his down-there at all. Long story short, Vil got him some red+purple boxer briefs for the regular wear (not too tight, very comfy!) + a couple of  black pairs for magift (longer ones?? Epel didn’t even know it existed). Epel was actually worried that he would get some stupid girly underwear, but wow these are… kind of nice. But he would never admit that the ones Vil got are much better!!

Idia – he usually wears the grey ones with triangles that STYX issues for its personnel. They are pretty comfy, and you can just grab a box and boom – you don’t have to think about your underwear ever again, EASY. But also Idia has some kind of childish loose boxers… with his favourite characters, of course. This isn’t just underwear, it’s also merch. Perfect for rewatching 300 episodes of your favourite anime.

Ortho – how much he wishes he could wear underwear…! But if we’re talking about real!Ortho, I think he would also like good ol’ regular loose boxers. But overall his underwear collection is less childish than Idia’s, at least because he has some Calvin Kleines.  And yes, of course it’s black and neon blue. He doesn’t really like the STYX ones because they make him sad, but he wears those from time to time because he wants to match with Idia.

Lilia – the moment he discovered funky underwear he was never the same. It’s the same thing he does with socks: he buys everything that seems fun, even if it ends up not being his size: he just gifts it away to younglings, so it’s all good! I think every Diasomnia boy has at least one pair of underwear that doesn’t match his style at all, because it was Lilia’s gift… anyways, Lilia either wears black ones with bright patterns (black + neon green+pink!), or something completely obnoxious. Nowadays he’s also thinking whether he could pull off something cute+sexy…

Silver – he wears whatever and doesn’t think about it twice, as long as it’s clean and has no holes in it. The majority of his underwear are pretty boring regular boxer briefs + just regular boxers that aren’t as tight. He also has one silly pair with blue and pink birdies… a gift from father, of course. He always smiles when he wears them.

Sebek – his default is black+green briefs; his thighs are getting too powerful, so he doesn’t like shorts-type underwear these days. But he does wear one lengthier pair – and it’s special equestrian underwear that has padding on the crotch. Sometimes the boy just wants some extra protection against rubbing okay… it’s not as much of a problem for the rest of the equestrian club boys for some reason.

Malleus – it’s clearly custom-made just for him: it’s black, made of high quality special type of silk + has beautiful lacing. Honestly, Malleus panties are a piece of art. I guess it’s like traditional Briar Valley type of design, but super extra fancy; he is the future King, after all. It’s hard to say if it’s comfy or not, but it looks quite dramatic. Malleus also has some underwear that is lengthier, almost like leggings. 

Bonus round!:

Crowley – doesn’t wear anything. Don’t tell anyone.

Crewel – a big variety, a lot of bold patterns, but his favourite pair is a part of black trunks with a white zebra print. Shocking, I know. He has some pretty sexy ones though, maybe even a thong.

Trein – granpa undies… grandpa undies.

Vargas – unfortunately, probably a jockstrap.

Sam – well wouldn’t you want to know? :)

Che’nya – he almost never wears underwear. And he flashes people. He is a very, very bad cat. He only wears underwear when he knows his pants are going to slide down because he doesn’t know how to use a belt properly, and people are going to see that he is wearing boxers with cartoon hedgehogs tickling each other in a weirdly sexual manner. Bad, bad cat.

Neige – pretty plain ones! Almost all of his underwear is either white or light blue. Some of them have silly prints, almost too cute for a guy… He gets tons of very cool expensive underwear for free as promo, but he donates the majority of them without even unpacking it. Thank you for your kindness, but people need undies more than Neige <3

Rollo – he is similar to Riddle, but I also think he would be that one kid who wears some priestly old-timey looking cotton shorts, because these are more traditional, and traditions are to be cherished. One could think that this is a part of his school’s uniform, but nah, Rollo is just a little weirdo… looks good on him though.

Fellow – I’m sorry, it’s probably kind of bad :( it used to be a decent pair of boxer briefs that he got when they suddenly got lucky enough with money, but now it’s well-worn and has some holes in it. It also used to be bright orange, but now it has a pale sort of peachy hue… he wants to get something new to wear, but whenever they get the money, clothes aren’t really a priority.

Gidel – his aren’t as bad because Fellow always wants Gidel to have something at least a little bit better than what he has, but Gidel’s pair of boxers is clearly too big for him. It’s pinned around his waist just so he doesn’t lose them… it has some guy’s name written on the butt part, and while Fellow finds it kind of depressing (maybe he remembers the guy he stole those from), Gidel thinks it’s pretty funny.

[shelandsorcery]

Astronomics Game Art : Designing Mining Equipment!

Gonna talk this week about designing mining equipment for the sci-fi game Astronomics - demo on steam right now! - And I thought I'd start with a little conversation about research and process (...that doesn't really have on a much art in it but just stay with me) and maybe get to tap in a little bit into how someone like me who doesn't do a lot of technical design learned a lot about how to get excited about that whole field through the research stage of this game.

So when I say research I really do mean fairly old-school research — and this is probably gonna be a theme with a lot of the posts about this game in particular, because I don't think you can build sci-fi without some understanding of engineering systems and current scientific realities to then play with, you know?

As you may gather from the trailer, Astronomics is a game about asteroid mining, among other things. Which meant that we had a lot of need for legit industrial feeling props and tools for the player to use, things that felt functional and believable without feeling complicated or delicate. I really enjoy the challenge of adding appeal to something that maybe people don't always think about being appealing or fun or cute (this is never an absolute statement — there's always somebody already able to see more appeal in any given subject and I could ever imagine) so part of the research stage is going and looking for that appeal. So above you can see a sheet of loose rough sketches I did in clip studio paint from reference that I gathered with the rest of the team and by myself that seemed relevant to some of the designs we were pursuing.

If you've had the chance to play the demo, you'll know that it's not just surface mining but we are going to be letting you mind gases and liquids and underground mineral veins as well — these are all things that people do in the real world of course, so process one was taking a quick look at those actual industries and then figuring out how I could condense that activity down into a pretty simple and easy to understand machine.

So turned out what we needed was something that drilled and dug, something that pumped liquids, something that sucked air, and all of these things needed to then produce some sort of container to hold what they had collected.

In a videogame you really need to communicate to the player why each act they do is significant and different from the others, and as the art director it was my job to figure how to do that through visual design of the tools they're going to be using. So that meant that even though you could certainly store liquid and gas and solid resources in the same kind of box, I wanted to try and find ways to keep each thing feeling different. Best case scenario is that you're able to look at a prop we've designed and know in a split second which of these three states of matter it will be containing; in the research stage one of the things I'm looking for is any existing visual language that we have (in this Western English-speaking North American videogame audience culture) that already solves this problem.

The great thing about industrial design is that they indeed have very intentionally tackled this problem. Part of it is purely physics optimization that the field of engineering has been working towards for human history. For example, when you're storing liquid and you want to remove all of it from a container you probably don't want something with corners — that's how you end up with cylindrical liquid storage. When you're storing a gas you're likely keeping it under pressure, which means you need a shape that will withstand pressure evenly, which means you're looking for something with literally no corners or edges ideally — and that's how you end up with bubble-shaped gas storage like a propane canister. And then when you're storing something solid and you want to use the space most efficiently and be able to stack whatever it is that you have packed it into, you have a box.

Real good news is, a box and a cylinder and a sphere are all wonderfully visually distinct shapes in a fantastically strong place to start when it comes to solving the question of storage. So then we get into the challenge of the machines themselves — what distinguishes a drill from a pump from a vacuum?

So that's the beginning of some of the questions that you have to answer when you're designing props for a game — in the research stage is only one of bunch of different ways you start figuring out these answers. But I want to talk for just a second a little bit about how I personally wrangle my research, because I am definitely not telling you this is the only way to do it. It seems like it may be worth explaining what I get out of this process and see if anything here make sense for you!

One of the reasons that I have this huge page of sketches, big and detailed or tiny and loose, all laid out in one place for me to look at, is because I personally learn and remember things more strongly by taking notes. With my hand holding a pencil ideally. And when they're abstract concepts or verbal or numerical then I'll use writing and I won't have a problem with it, but my job at this stage was not to figure out abstract concepts or to find themes — my job was to solve visual problems. So my first order of business was visual research specifically. Now for me, that involves lots of things — I have a Pinterest board for any sort of subcategory of stuff I'm researching to just do enormous broad research with; then I probably bring most of those images into a huge working .PSD file and move them around to create groupings. And then I start drawing.

I really think that drawing is integral for me at this stage. I don't think I could do this without drawing as part of my research. There's so much that I just don't bother noticing if I'm not going to be drawing the thing that I'm looking at; even the worst, fastest, sketchy as drawing makes me pay infinitely more attention to something then I do when I am simply collecting information mentally. I'm phrasing this in a somewhat exaggerated, self-deprecating way, but I really can't exaggerate how much more I get out of things when I sit down and draw them. They talk about drawing is a way of seeing, and for me that's a practice I've intentionally pushed and explored in my life.

The other thing, though, is that visual problem that I need to solve. Sometimes solutions to the problem aren't obvious until they are visualized — it can be very easy to get distracted by things like surface details and miss the silhouette language, or vice versa, but when you are doing the drawing you have to wrestle with the silhouette and the details and make decisions about them. Visual trends appear way more clear when you are drawing something for the 10th time as opposed to simply seeing it for the 10th time. And all of the layers of cultural meaning and context that clutter up a photograph can be simply ignored as you transfer only what you need to a drawing, where you might discover something that everything else hid until then. Beyond that, one of the things you may notice about the sketches is that they are somewhat cartoony — I'm certainly trying to capture important details and be representational to a degree, but much like gesture drawing the human figure, researching this way lets me start finding out what the gestures are of these different sorts of subject matter. This is something that I knew about creature design, and about flora design, and one of the real joys of this game in particular was proving to myself that this gesture approach applied to industrial machines and technology as well.

I mean, I knew that there were cute trucks out there, but gosh.

I think if you are in need of something to reinvigorate a particular piece of subject matter for you — if you're designing something that you are just not that excited about, or if you don't feel challenged by the work in front of you — I really think sitting and sketching from reference can open up the complexities and help push you and your work farther. It certainly works for me and I know that the learning I did on this game is something I carry with me to future projects as well.

That seems like a pretty strong place to leave this post in particular, but I'll be back later this week with more breakdowns and screen caps of the actual design process of all of our adorable mining equipment!

I would really love to hear from folks if you also engage in similar research processes before going into full design mode — or if you have a completely different way to get your mind revved up and ready to go, I would really enjoy reading about it!

In the meantime, if you're curious about mining asteroids but it's cute please feel free to check out the Astronomics demo on steam, I made an awful lot of visdev art for this and handed it off to some incredible game creators who have done some really impressive stuff taking their ideas and my ideas and running to honestly some pretty new and exciting places with them.

[amphibizzy]

bluesky functions among a lot of false positives in all aspects of both moderation and curation. a net is cast, there is bycatch, and those get appealed/manually reviewed. a curation or moderation list should only cover an amount of users their own staff can handle basic vetting and appeals of, and thats generally the case for trusted ones. lower stakes things happen in curation, like say a feed that pulls posts mentioning "hylics" and tagged hylics, accidentally netting posts about Gnosticism and not the funny rpg game. manual removals/exclusions or inverted keywords is the work that must go into it

there are several current attack vectors, for example actively turning stuff like follow4follow trains into honeypots (where the followed account is then rebranded and its followers shamed or put on a list alongside it, worse people nuke-block everyone who follows it) and "mistakes" in untrusted, malicious labels/lists. this is a likely, malicious-user-driven reason why a large pattern of people could be roped into a fast moderation decision which is cleaned up in post there are users who make the platform more functional and there are ppl who make it worse. both have nearly the same tools, which are decently powerful but can be slow to update or have short outages

i wrote too many thought tags and then had even more thoughts so im gonna readmore here. i just wanna be productive in the decision if whether or not u wanna deal with joining and curating bluesky and its all interesting to me. yap yap

example: possible that the child safety bans picked up some people who were maliciously added to certain lists that then get targeted for reports

that but also *POTENTIALLY* some could be the maga ppl making fake trans etc accounts- deliberately infiltrating and trolling and being put on horrible subject lists willingly. there are also certain Harassment Websites who are currently targeting users in mostly alternate ways. it could also straight up just be people finding a list of a kind of person and mass reporting everyone on it

that is happening- just not sure if its part of it. the point is that there is a lot of bad actors

i have LIGHTLY looked into it and am not stating fact, but because of this context i think its is extremely reasonable that the ppl caught up in the bans are mistakes via user-driven malicious action, especially with the appeals that have gone through so far. theres so many things that are just kinda frontline messes that could be taken out of context. I DO NOT DOUBT THAT I COULD BE WRONG so dont be annoying @ me if i am. theres still info i wanna talk about in here but the whole platform is more complicated than the moderation ppl here are used to which ranges from fuck all to some awful shit. even here, a specific recent shitty tumblr ban wave had an extra shit layer of false positives, and i personally saw successful appeals of those.

on top of all of this, bluesky was gaining a million users a day for a bit there (and im shocked its functioning as okay as it is), theres no way any of this is gonna be perfect for awhile, and its going to look bad. but i think its worth continuing to curate if you dont have a need for a platform like bluesky, then no pressure to go there. i do personally consider tumblr and bluesky to be the two peaks rn. insta maybe a lesser if ur already established (but eugh, lol) bluesky is similar to twitter in structure but with easier curation (fully understanding the difference between each type took me a hot minute lol), plus a user driven effort to vibe reset from twitter by pulling away/cutting off combative interactions, muting and blocking instead of butting heads, more and noticeably less hostile interactions everywhere i look.

and imo feeds to organize your own posts is huge, not as easy to pass through like tumblrs archive but far better than nothing. ill b making a few categories of my art into feeds

just hesitate a bit before getting scared away from another basket to put your eggs bcs of some secondhand info. look into it because it could be interesting. bluesky doesnt cut off logged out users (another plus) so you might be able to look into things directly

update from me 10 mins later: i went to take my own advice lol and i found a relevant official statement from one hour ago

[meyerlansky]

🦉☕🌷

🦉Is there another author that helped inspire you to write?

on the one hand i’ve been avidly reading for 30 years of my life and reading fic specifically for ~25; at this point i’m just a patchwork of every author i’ve read and enjoyed and i have no idea how to tease out what’s inspired what. on the other @goatsandgangsters perpetually “yes and”-ing any idea i have, even if it's a fandom we don't share and they have no interest in, is like. the number one reason that i get anything done ever.

☕Coffee or tea while you write?

secret third option: hot chocolate 🥰 or a cocktail. both are good.

🌷What's one of your fics that isn't as popular, but you hold dear?

okay so like… i knew going in moon’s low (can't say no) wasn’t gonna go too far, and i feel pretty comfortable with that assessment even though it’s my newest thing, given the way modern fandom very heavily front-loads engagement. it’s not the buckies, it’s not smut, it’s introspective, it’s short, and it’s not suuuper complimentary to bucky, so i wasn’t really expecting it to do much or go too far. i also didn’t plan for it to feel… as personal as it did? not the specifics, i have never punched a friend in the face, but i have absolutely been in the position of doing something i didn’t want to do because someone i cared about asked me to do it and they were happy about the result and i wasn’t, and shoving that dissatisfaction down because what does it MATTER, they don’t want to hear it, they’re HAPPY. there’s also like… hm. i won’t turn this into a whole Thing on the sexual politics of topping/domination/masculinity/etc and the dehumanization doms/tops can be subjected to wrt being treated only as a vessel for what their partner wants, but as a butch with complicated feelings on how The Butch is seen in queer culture, there’s a looot of that in there too. i don’t actually think i resolved all of that stuff as cleanly as it could’ve been, but that’s part of what appeals too: they’re guys in the middle of a war, they don’t have access to any of the language we have now about concepts like this, and i think they’d rather claw their skins off than Sit Down And Talk It Out, even if it was on the table. but it’s fiction, so they can arrive at an understanding without TOO much emotional exposure, which is also my fucking pipe dream. ANYWAY. YEAH. MOON’S LOW. THERE’S A LOT IN THERE FOR ME.

questions/emojis from here!

[izzythehutt]

This is why we lie, Jesse!

Everyone talks about the (many) times that Walt lied to/consciously used the truth to manipulate Jesse over the course of Breaking Bad, but rarely do I see people discuss one of the few times he was completely honest with him—the scene where they discuss the buyout in 5x06, also titled "Buyout."

Just two men, separated by a sea of shadows and sage furniture

This scene gets somewhat overshadowed by the hilarious, awful dinner with Skyler that follows it, but I find it fascinating—particularly its placement at the tail-end of their partnership, an episode before they have the infamous Almost Final Breakup You Are Not Worth Five Million Bucks Fight.

This might be the scene where Walt is the most honest with Jesse about...almost anything.

There's no game here—it's just two people, with a complicated and close relationship, each trying to convince the other to do something they don't want to do. Walt decides in this case to just be candid about why he does not want to sell his share of the methylamine, presumably because he thinks Jesse will be understanding of his motives, maybe even sympathetic to him.

And given what happens, you can see why he defaults back to lies and manipulation.

Walter used honesty! It was super ineffective!

First of all, the fact that he invites Jesse to his home in the first place is a major change from the norm for them. You could chock it up to him subconsciously wanting to piss off his wife (which later happens), but there's a level of intimacy there. Walt has a very specific way of compartmentalizing his crime and civilian life, and part of that is keeping Jesse far, far away from the latter.

Maybe it's just because he's tired, or because he's drinking (was there ever a scene where Walt was honest on this show where him being drunk or drugged wasn't the cause?) but I honestly can't point to a single moment in this conversation that feels manipulative. For Walt it's vulnerable, a rather intimate admission of a weakness—he's kind of abrupt and rude, too, but Jesse knows him well enough to see that's way more honest for Mr. White than when he's being overly "nice"—being nice is exclusively for moments of manipulation or the product of guilt when it comes to their relationship.

And he really gets personal about his past, which is so not something he does in his relationship with Jesse. As far as we know the only other person he's ever confessed that he's been harboring these feelings about his departure from Gray Matter to is Gretchen (though in her case it was an accusation that he was cut out, in Jesse's case it's admitting he thinks he made the mistake which cost his children "their birthright.")

He is actually willing to admit to Jesse that he made a poor business decision in his youth that he's regretted ever since. He's willing to just put it out on the table and frame his desire to stay in the drug business as being about personal ambition (his own potential.)

The only thing he doesn't admit is the fact that his breakup with Gretchen is probably why he left the company, which could be the subject of a whole 'nother meta.

And how does Jesse respond to this candor, this honesty?

Jesse remembering fonder days of nearly strangling Mr. White to death in the RV

You can see the disillusionment happening in real time. The scales are falling from his eyes on-screen! Jesse really did take Walt's 'family man' motivations at face value, and to realize that his mentor's temperamental personality is actually a cope for his profound wounds and deep-seated resentment at his thwarted ambitions...I think it legit disturbs him.

Maybe for the first time, he really sees Walt for who he is—someone who wants money for his family after he's gone, that he could understand. Someone for whom "empire building" is so appealing in and of itself he doesn't care if people die or its built on an addictive drug that destroys lives? Uh....

This is one of the many things that separates them—Jesse just isn't naturally ambitious in the same way. Walt may have taught him to "apply himself", but the inherited perfectionist tendencies were really in service of gaining Walt's love and respect, not gratifying his own ego.

For Walt, being honest is presenting things in a way that he would find compelling, and he and Jesse are so wildly different (Jesse still has a conscience, for one thing) that he always has to consciously take advantage of their differences to get what he wants out of him.

Now this? This is a conscious manipulation. It's also an admission of something painful and deeply personal (the fact that Skyler told him she'll be happy when he's dead) but with the clear intent of, if not guilting poor soft Jesse who also knows what it's like to be rejected by your family into changing his mind about the buyout, at least making him feel bad about it. Because if there's one thing Walt is good at, it's punishing his loved one for not falling in line.

This makes Walt's desperate clinging to the relationship in the next episode even more tragic, because as fucked up as they are, this is probably the most emotionally intimate relationship he's got at this point. Sure, Jesse's horrified by him, but he's marginally less horrified by him than Skyler is!

[searingenvy]

a mother's love

a tharja meta.

It is not an unknown fact to those who have played Awakening (or at the very least has seen the way Noire is as a character,) that Tharja is a...complicated character when it comes to the subject of motherhood. In this meta I'll be going over Tharja's view of the concept, both past and present.

It is important to note that I'm not trying to defend Tharja as a mother, but rather I'm trying to explain where she's coming from and how she plans on moving forward in the future.

This will include mentions of other people's characters to some degree, namely Donnel and Noire (who we do not have at this very moment), and any mentions of the former have been discussed with the current mun beforehand! As for Noire, I will only be using information pulled from the scripts (both ENG and JP, with distinctions listed).

Not everything said in this will be 100% in game facts but rather headcanons, but I will try and use in game text in order to back up the idea.

First and foremost, we have to understand how exactly Tharja views her family. Not the one she brought with her to the Academy, but her mother and father from Plegia specifically. We know they exist, and we know they're alive...and that's pretty much it. They're brought up in her C support with Kellam, where she sends them a letter back home. In his B support she expresses concern-- so over all Tharja does care for her family, even if she's reluctant to show it.

As for the type of people her parents are...we can't say for sure. This part is purely headcanon, but I like to believe that though they were not terrible people, they were much like Tharja herself-- closed off and unwilling to outwardly show their affection. This is mostly just backed up by the fact that her parents are also spellcaster and are most likely dark mages. I'm mostly backing up this idea with the line below.

Tharja: I come from a family of powerful mages. They can usually take care of themselves.

Obviously she could just mean in terms of their pure raw strength, but with how Tharja acts, I feel like it would make sense for her parents to also be the type who keep to themselves and taught her that the person you should always rely on is yourself.

They also seemed more preoccupied with teaching her dark arts as well. In her supports with Noire Tharja states that she was taught how to perform dark magic since she was just a baby. Something that will also come back later

Tharja: Hardly a problem. I was instructed in the dark arts from infancy. Even my umbilical cord was cut with a curse.

TL;DR: Tharja grew up in an environment where relying on yourself was the most important lesson. She was cared for, but never shown the love and care that is typical between a parent and child. They also taught her dark magic at a very young age.

With that...Noire. She's a touchy subject. For starters, Tharja finds the idea of her even wanting a child to be ridiculous-- but post game, especially after marrying Donnel, the idea of having a family becomes more and more appealing to the point where I headcanon that she likely asked about children first.

Where things get complicated is that future Tharja's motives are weird. Really weird. We know that Tharja didn't want Noire learning dark magic or curses. Below is an English translation of the Japanese script! Credit here!

Tharja: I didn’t want to teach my daughter… who was so innocent and trusted her mother without a doubt in her mind… anything like curses. Curses are… very dangerous. My future self… surely must have thought the same way as well.

Future Tharja was not a good mother-- and even in game Tharja still performs curses and hexes on Noire...I don't even really have an explanation for that besides the fact that Tharja does it to pretty much everyone in the army. I'd like to personally believe that her supports with Noire take place after her supports with her father (which is where mentions of the cursing her as a child take places) where she would eventually stop when realizing her future self's motives for not teaching Noire magic...but I have no proof of this. At all. Just a personal thought.

She also is a grieving widow for a lot of the future it sounds like-- and when losing the love of your life (especially for someone like Tharja who barely even knew what love was before the events of Awakening,) it gets hard to think logically. I imagine a lot of those hexes and curses post Donnel's death were for the sake of keeping Noire safe or growing stronger as to not lose her as well.

But we aren't really here to defend future Tharja or explain her 100%-- rather, I want to look at how Noire coming to the past and telling Tharja about her future self shapes how she views her role as a mother.

Tharja, for the first time in her life, is experiencing what a true family feels like. Donnel isn't exactly one to hide his feelings, and he loves his wife above all else-- and with the young Noire also existing, Tharja is determined to not allow the same fate to happen to her daughter. There will be no talisman, no curses or hexes (unless to help ig), and she will admittedly be a bit more protective of her. She is opening up to the idea of love and family, just

If either Donnel or Noire were to die there's no telling if things would end up any differently-- but for now all she can do is do her best as a mother, even if she doesn't exactly know what it means to be a good one. She's lucky to know what mistakes need to be fixed, and if she were to ever meet the future Noire again...she would want to make things right once more, even if she still has a hard time outwardly showing love to her.

[secretceremonials]

I'm completely fascinated by Cassandra's character. But I noticed that here on Tumblr some people romanticize her relationship with Agamemnon and I was very surprised, as I always thought it was obvious that it was a toxic relationship. You seem to understand more about this subject than I do, but did Cassandra have any affection for Agamemnon? Or even Agamemnon for her?

Hi anon! And thank you for the question, I had a lot of fun writing this.

That's a very complicated question, but I'll be my best (disclaimer that I'm not an expert, but I do read a lot).

We do have to take the relationship in its cultural context a little bit. A lot of people do seem to make Agamemnon a lot worse than he is in the texts. The fact that he took a concubine after a war would have been completely acceptable behaviour (Achilles does it, and we mostly forgive him), and doesn't really prove that he must have been violent to her or anything like that. I'm not saying that these attitudes are, or were ever, okay, but the fact that he is coming from a society in which slavery was fine means we can't just assume he is a monster on the basis of him having a slave. But I think that considering this context can also only take us so far. I find it difficult to believe that victims were less troubled by these occurrences, just because they were an accepted part of their society.

In terms of how Agamemnon views Cassandra, I do think there is something resembling affection. In Aeschylus's Agamemnon, he asks Clytemnestra to be kind to her, and in Euripides's Hecabe, Hecabe appeals to Agamemnon almost as her son-in-law, asking for his help, considering the "warm embraces" he enjoys with Cassandra. In Euripides's Trojan Women, Agamemnon takes her as his "bride", and Talthybius remarks that "Love for the god-inspired girl pierced Agamemnon's heart" (James Morwood translation), again suggesting affection, not just lust for her. But, then again, as he cannot possibly have known Cassandra for long enough to base this love on anything except her looks, can we really say it's any different (there is also the view that Apollo orchestrated the pairing, more on that later)? Ultimately, he still feels entitled to marry (have sex with) this pretty girl, by virtue of him being the general of the army that destroyed her home (cultural context is important, but its still hard to see past some things). Still, I do think that this shows that the popular interpretation of Agamemnon as a cruel old man is inaccurate. He definitely cares about Cassandra, and really only feels entitled to her in a completely socially acceptable way.

How Cassandra views Agamemnon is a bit trickier I think. In Euripides’s Trojan Women, I struggle to read anything other than her hating him. She admittedly does express a desire to marry him, but this is because she views it as a way to ensure his death (even if it comes alongside hers). So, she is motivated entirely by a desire for revenge, firmly believing that the match was orchestrated by Apollo, meaning that any acceptance she shows isn’t really any sign of love, just submitting to her fate with the knowledge that she is sealing his. In Aeschylus’s Agamemnon, I think there is a bit more apparent affection. She obviously hates Clytemnestra, and speaks badly of her murder of Agamemnon, which she callas an “accused deed” (Henry Howard translation), so this dislike doesn’t just seem to be of the woman who will kill her, but mourning for Agamemnon as well. 

I think it’s worth noting as well that these characters are really more archetypes that can fulfil a different role in whatever story they are involved in, than any concrete characters with distinct personalities. So even amongst ancient sources, opinions vary depending on what the writer intended to use them to show. For example, Aeschylus's Agamemnon is a pretty standard tragic hero plot. Here it makes sense to portray the relationship positively, to highlight Agamemnon as a hero and Clytemnestra as a villain (in very simple terms, since I’d need a whole essay to get into it fully). On the other hand, In the Trojan Women, Euripides was trying to commentate on the horror and futility of war, particularly for the women of the losing side, so it makes much more sense for Cassandra to hate her new master and be vengeful towards him. I would say that even the modern retellings can be valid as well, they are just taking these archetypes, and applying them to their own narrative (it’s just that the extent from which they have derived from the myth varies considerably).

Basically, how I view them depends almost entirely on what version I am reading. When I make my own interpretation, I would say that I don't romanticise them, and that I generally view Agamemnon as somewhat loving Cassandra, but Cassandra despising him, although he treats he fairly well. At the end of the day, he is the general behind the army that ruined her life. I do also sometimes like portrayals where they have a better relationship, but this is more because I love Cassandra and want to see her be happy than anything else.

So overall, it's not very clear cut, and a lot of Agamemnon hate is a bit unjustified (he acts like a petulant child sometimes, but honestly every hero does). While I don't think it is possible to ignore the fact that Cassandra has no agency in the relationship, it may be worthy of note that even in modern law, she could still be capable of consenting (evidential presumptions would fall onto the defence to prove the presence of consent under s75 of the Sexual offences act 2003, so consent would actually still be hypothetically possible, just harder to prove in current English law, obviously not super relevant here, but I do think it is interesting that this isn't automatically legally rape- I am stretching the statute a bit here to say that Cassandra's slavery is akin to unlawful detention, which isn't strictly true, but since slavery is illegal in any case it's the closest comparison I could think of).

Their relationship is inherently unequal, and impossible to form a conclusive judgement on, but I don't think either extreme view is particularly helpful for analysis (although completely fine for making your own interpretations).

[ladydragonkiller]

If you’re having to count the Draculas, you may have a bigger issue on your hands. I’d recommend calling the exterminator.

That is a lovely shawl! I’m fascinated by beaded lacework. It combines the best of both lacework and jewelry making, it seems. The tiramisu also looks good! I never considered the aesthetic aspect that must go into culinary school before. It does look quite nice.

Hobbies, hm? I’d consider myself a writer, though I don’t post things all that often. I play a couple different instruments, one more so than the other. I go to the gym at least once a week, though I’m not sure if that counts as a hobby. I’m also quite fond of reading, though I rarely have much time or energy for it during the school year.

Are there any particular stories behind how you got into culinary arts and/or lacework?

- Vampire 🧛

See, i tried calling an exterminator, but he just ended up being another dracula. it's a real problem around here

beaded lacework is a lot of fun to do! and easier than you might think. and the aesthetic part of culinary arts is fun. unfortunately plating designs are not my strong suit at this point, but i'm great at executing other people's ideas.

all of those are wonderful hobbies! i'd say that going to the gym counts if it makes you happy and/or relaxed. and i completely understand reading falling by the wayside, i have much the same issue during semesters.

I became interested in both subjects so long ago it's hard to remember honestly. for lacework, i think it grew from my existing knowledge of how to knit and desire of taking on more challenging products. Plus, there's a local fair with a craft showcase that my family used to enter, and generally, big lacy shawls and the like did well.

I also enjoy the longevity of many lace projects. though hats are fun to make, they're also very quick (i can do one a day, depending on the weight of the yarn). casting on and binding off is the least interesting part of a project to me, so something like a big shawl with far more in the middle appealed. I also enjoy doing more complicated pattern repeats, as plain old stockinette or garter or moss stitch (and so on) get to be monotonous after a certain point.

as for culinary arts, I mostly just enjoy making food. the process of it is very satisfying and meditative, people are happy when they eat tasty things, and i love following recipes. a list of steps that if you follow closely, you're guaranteed success? count me in.

for your question: what's your favorite drink?

[chee-annn]

Hello and welcome to my blog on ICT where we will look at the complicated world of ICT components and their functionality in real life. Let’s explore some practical examples of how these components play a significant role when it comes to developing a contemporary lifestyle, accessing information, and browsing through this new digital era. We will travel from basics of hardware to software inventions, as we discover how different parts of ICT make a connected world.

Cloud Computing

I use cloud storage applications such as Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive for my academic papers, research documents, or project files. My documents are kept in clouds hence they can be accessed by any device with an internet connection. With cloud storage being so convenient and flexible, I can easily shift my papers from a computer or laptop even a smartphone. In addition, this permits me to collaborate more effectively as well as work on educational things wherever I need them to be done.

Software

Last semester and this semester, our instructor introduced some helpful software. For instance, the simulation software we have been using like Interactive Simulations helps me to do virtual experiments and understand complex scientific ideas by doing them virtually. It makes difficult things easier to understand. My assignments and projects are being done in Microsoft 365 as well. I can easily work on documents like making a report or presentation; therefore, it simplifies school activities and creates a platform for collaboration.

Hardware

To start with, when it comes to academic life an essential tool is a laptop which helps me to find the latest information relevant to our lessons, visit educational websites as well as gather multimedia materials that improve my understanding of different subjects. Our instructor took us through hands-on sessions where we could practically learn about microscopes most recently. During our practical quiz, I learned about the importance of microscopes, and their functions and gained experience in focusing on various samples under observation through a microscope lens because of its higher magnification power in comparison with eyesight. Moreover, we also use printers for printing hard copies of our experiment papers, research papers, and other outputs.

Transactions

I recently bought a pair of high-heeled shoes on Shopee as I prepared for an upcoming Soiree. The entire process was smooth as I navigated through the Shopee app, I'm careful in selecting the perfect pair before proceeding to check out. To make it more convenient, I chose to pay using G-cash, a mobile wallet service. This payment option is made for a smooth transaction that guarantees fast and secure digital payment.

Communications Technology

In our capacity as SK officials, we actively participated in a seminar through Zoom last Saturday. During the seminar, there was an online orientation on different aspects such as youth development plans, fund utilization, and disbursement. This digital forum made us understand our roles and responsibilities. When I look back at my Senior High School (SHS) days Google Meet proved to be very useful. First of all, a few classes were conducted virtually and Google Meet was a way of connecting teachers and students online. Apart from educational issues, I also can connect with my family members using communication platforms such as Messenger, Instagram, etc. These platforms give me instant access to my contacts whether they live nearby or far away, as I can share my stories and stay in touch with them.

Digital Data

It is normal for us to utilize tools like PowerPoint or Prezi as well as create visuals, infographics, and charts that are eye-catching and talk about our findings and data in class. The presentation’s appeal is boosted by these digital platforms and enhances understanding of the research results. Besides, rather than physical notebooks, I love using an app called Microsoft OneNote for jotting down ideas, main points, and references. This digital process ensures easy accessibility, efficient organization, and fast retrieval of information leading to a more streamlined way of organizing academic work.

Internet Access

Being a BSED Science student, I need to have internet access. It plays a crucial role in my study of the Spiral Progression Approach in K to 12 Science. My group mates and I can also get materials from recent academic sources through the internet hence incorporating the latest teaching methods in our papers. Moreover; we can communicate easily since we have online contacts which makes teamwork easier thus allowing us to compare notes together. In turn, this means that we can dig deeper into the curriculum.

[artg211-termproject]

Week 4 - Vanitas

3 Considered Concepts and Appealing Characteristics: Vanitas (Allow me to work with abstract art, Give me a chance to explore Photoshop, I can be less “wholesome” with it), Primitive Figuration (Fits within my ability level, Wide range of possible subjects, Does not require “perfection”), and Floating Heads (Wide range of tone/mood, Would be better done in Photoshop, Could use my own photography).

Chosen Concept: Vanitas

Why: I think this is a really unique subject and I am excited to work with abstract art and learn to use imperfections to my advantage. I also wanted experiment with darker moods/tones and subjects.

Key Words: Spooky, Eerie, Sad

Software: Photoshop

This week, we were challenged to design something inspired by art forms that involve parts of the human body. I chose vanitas, which (as I understand it) incorporates the human skull into the design. I decided to depict a more abstract skull because a realistic human skull would be incredibly detailed and complicated. The reason I chose to design a new version of the poisoned apple from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is because of how skulls are often used to express danger. I immediately thought of this scene from the animated movie and wanted to recreate it.

[shockpine]

sharing my alt (18+) blog & long text post

linking my other blog here! its an adults-only/18+ blog and i'm very very serious about that. i really have weird feelings of like what i use social media for, i mostly only post my furry art here still because i need to be able to get commissions whenever that comes up.. if i had a Normal Job i'd probably be posting to an All Ages account a lot less. but currently i'm actively posting to this account (shockpine) and that's not going to stop!

i'd definitely still be posting here even like far in the future but probably more for game development stuff. and more like professional comics and artwork. i have cool projects in the works! sort of! a little! i'm not exactly one to exist in """18+ spaces""" but i feel weird about the furry scene being treated as all-ages. my experiences with adjacent fandoms as a teenager involved borderline grooming, and as much as furry stuff has been immensely helpful in gender expression and making friends the past few years i feel like it wouldn't have been very safe for me as a teenager.

like seriously. it's so common like 16 year olds on twitter see obviously horny furry art and get super interested without really understanding what they're feeling, the artist is like "umm no, big boobs aren't sexual? real people have big hips and big boobs and are half naked all the time", and the kids think it's totally safe and normal and fine to ALSO be drawing that (this happened to me with weird fetish art in the brony fandom). and at the very best those teens are instead just getting told "wait til you're 18 to draw porn!" like that's the one form of sexual expression and it's ONLY for the cool big kids. like oh my god. i don't really know the metrics of who follows me on this account, a massive chunk of the following is just from one viral gif that doesn't actually see my posts even, but it just feels so weird expressing myself when sexuality is so intertwined in so much of this kind of art. social media makes this way more complicated because i'm existing in a community, a social space, i'm not just sharing art to anyone and i'll never meet any of them, like on a personal website. most of my art is fairly all-ages to some extent and that makes this a lot harder too, it doesn't really do anything to scare people away!

i'm rambling a LOT but it's just a very complicated subject and it feels like cognitive dissonance to be as opinionated as i am about this while still using this account. but i can't just retroactively mark it as 18+, that would be incredibly hypocritical, and i do rely on commission-work currently and my alt blog isn't very known.

right now i'll still be posting to this account, but i just like to be a little less limited and more friendly on an account where i'm like comfortably using my page the way i want to and all that.

I'm not going to like actively link to this account in my bio or something, but I'd like to at least mention it once with, like, an explanation and stuff. It's not a PORN profile but i'm not afraid on there to post and reblog sexual stuff to there. I LOVE DRAWING BOOBS! i love drawing bodies!!! and having to constantly worry over not presenting any sexuality in my work lest it becomes the dreaded 18+ and therefor NSFW and therefor PORN (gasp) is not a struggle i enjoy! furry spaces are frequently like separated into SFW and NSFW despite a huge part of the community's DNA being based on sex appeal and it's not really a distinction i like making in general.

my beautiful daughter Gradient

[phoenixyfriend]

Uncle Ben and Little Luke

AKA we combine several types of time travel for maximum Soft Chaos, let’s go

EDIT NOW THAT I’VE WRITTEN THIS UP: jfc this ended up much angstier than initially intended uhhhhhhhhhh sorry

So a common enough thing I’ve seen in time travel fics is characters getting de-aged when tossed back physically, to neither the age they should be in that time, nor the age they were from the time they left, but whatever is most convenient. This is usually de-aging OT Obi-Wan into his TCW self, for reasons relating to, chiefly, removing the damage of Tatooine absolutely destroying his body alongside PTSD-driven alcoholism, but also because fic writers are horny, and Ewan McGregor playing a late-thirties negotiator is on average more appealing to people than Alec Guinness playing a vaguely feral desert hermit.

So, here’s how it plays out:

We take Luke and Ben from some point in the OT. There are a variety of options depending on how angsty we want it to be. My first instinct is ‘right after Owen and Beru die’ but I want to have that sweet angst where Luke knows that his dad is Vader and that Obi-Wan was trying to convince him to kill his own father without telling him that.

We’ll go with shortly after Bespin, and then they end up significantly before TPM. The Obi-Wan of the timeline proper is, eh, let’s say eighteen. Not really ready to be a knight, but old enough that we don’t have to worry about “if we go save Shmi, do we somehow wipe out Anakin?” which is absolutely a worry. Anakin is a toddler, and is in no place to be evil, on account of being literally two years old. He can’t even explode people with his brain yet.

Now, Ben finds himself mid-thirties, as is traditional. He’s not upset at this, because his joints hurt so much less than they used to! His knees aren’t exactly teenage-perfect, but by the Force are they better than they were in the years before he died! His hair has color! He doesn’t have arthritis! And, goodness, no physical withdrawal symptoms! The psychological aspect is still there, but nonetheless, he’s in much better shape than he last remembers being.

Luke looks like he’s about six. He was recently twenty-two. This is not an upgrade. Ben keeps having to carry him. He can’t see over the counter when they enter a bar for information. He can’t enter the bar in the first place. He’s very annoyed by all of this.

Ben is not annoyed. Ben is having a lot of emotions, actually, but annoyance isn’t one of them. He didn’t get to help raise Luke the way he might have if Anakin hadn’t lost his shit, okay, he sees a small Luke and he wants to hug him and cry.

Luke would like to be able to purchase a speeder part without the lady at the stall asking him if he needs his “dad’s” permission.

Once they figure out when and where they are, they need to decide where and how to leave. There are general shenanigans to gamble their way into enough money to hire a ship. They are in the ass end of nowhere, but definitely not Tatooine. There appears to be a jungle. There appears to be a significant variety of man-eating creatures. There appears to be a temple to the Force of questionable origin. None of this is actually helpful, except for the moment they find a “baby’s first lightsaber” in the temple.

Luke only has one hand and, being a six-year-old, his body is growing too fast for him to bother with getting a wired-in prosthesis the way he could as an adult. He can get a more basic prosthesis, but nothing that attaches to the neurons. He’ll outgrow it too fast.

He’s tiny and he’s not used to doing things with just one hand. He uses the Force to do what one hand can't, and every time someone tries to tell him he's misusing the Force he whaps them with the empty sleeve.

So, you know, they find out what year it is. Ben has a breakdown. Luke is upset that he left behind his friends. Ben admits to him that Leia was his twin. Luke stares in horror because dude, she kissed him, you couldn’t have mentioned this earlier???

Ben points out that Beru and Owen were keeping Luke away from him for nineteen years, and then they had about three days of awkward travel to find Leia in the first place, and then Ben died. He didn’t have a whole lot of time to figure out how to tell him.

(This sparks an argument that lasts several days. All onlookers assume that Ben’s son is throwing a tantrum. He doesn’t correct them, even though this is a very valid reason to be upset, because the truth is much harder to explain.)

Sooooo they travel. Mostly, Ben plays Sabacc, cleans house, and pays their way towards Coruscant. Luke still really wants to learn to be a Proper Jedi, even though Ben is pretty sure that Luke would have... a lot of difference of opinion with the Temple, but sure. Coruscant. They can at least stop by, and see Qui-Gon, and Mace, and Quinlan, and Bant, and everyone else that’s still alive and not tragically deceased in the horror following the start of the Clone Wars and then the birth of the Empire, and Ben can have a nice sob over all his dead friends being alive again.

Ben is only barely holding it together while Luke is in the room with him at any given point. But it’s fine! It’s fine. He’s fine. All of his loved ones have come back to life! It’s great! HE’S FINE.

He is not fine.

Luke is also grieving all the people who haven’t been born yet, but he’s... significantly more okay than Ben is.

The closer they get to the Core, the more often people just assume Ben is Luke’s father, and then look shocked and uncomfortable when Luke flatly calls him by his name, and they just... compromise. This is the point at which Luke starts calling him “Uncle Ben.”

Ben cries in his bunk later that night. Luke overhears it and wonders how the HELL Ben is more unstable now, when there’s a chance to fix things and no Vader or Empire trying to kill or capture both of them, and all his friends are alive.

(Luke will later learn a lot about PTSD and realize this is actually a fairly normal situation, to process significant events and emotions only after gaining safety or catharsis.)

(Twenty years on a ball of sand with an alcohol addiction and debilitating fear of the man you raised as your own brother is not, in fact, safe or cathartic.)

At any rate, they’ve settled into that pattern by the time they reach the Inner Rim. The Inner Rim is the part of the galaxy at which they’ve collected enough money (and mental stability) to travel a little better, and to take a few more risks.

Risks like “manipulate people with those baby blues.”

Ben tells Luke that he’s a menace, after he pouts so cutely that he gets a free scarf added on to a purchase that Ben makes. Luke responds that Ben has no room to talk, since he flirted a free breakfast out of that one inn owner.

Also, Luke is currently physically six. That is objectively a situation that sucks. He deserves to use it for all it’s worth if he’s stuck like this.

“You know, if you keep wearing all-black and looking longingly at the velvet cape and Space Chanel boots, the temple is going to worry that you’re a darksider.”

“Uncle Ben... you told me, yesterday, that I sparkle so brightly in the Force that it’s almost blinding.”

“Yes, but the gloves--”

They don’t agree on this, but Ben relents. He does actually understand good fashion, unfortunately, and he’s not unaware of how much Leia taught Luke about such things.

Luke’s about forty years ahead of the curve, of course, but Skywalkers are prone to such things. It’s usually in regards to technology, granted, but...

They get to Coruscant. Ben is very obviously a Jedi. He knows all the right words and walks like a Soresu master and feels warm and comforting in the Force. They let him in with minimal questions. They note down “my first padawan left the order to have a child, but died shortly after; I consider Luke here to be my nephew, and have raised him as such,” and move on.

Luke is vaguely annoyed because he already had an uncle (and aunt) that raised him, but he admits that a person can have more than one uncle. He can live with this. Ben was more family to Anakin than Owen was, in some ways, so it’s kind of true. Luke is even working on feeling more childish affection for Ben instead of the complicated mess of emotions that come from being lied to about some very large and important subjects, and then seeing the person saying those lies have regular emotional breakdowns due to something as small as Luke saying he likes the curve of the hull on that freighter.

(Apparently he sounds just like his father did as a child. This is almost heartwarming.)

The thing is! The thing. The thing is, they almost make it to the Halls of Healing to get looked over for weird viruses, or Outer Rim Parasites, or whatever the hells needs to be happening. They almost make it without Ben having a flashback to dead younglings or brainwashed troopers or the declaration of a Sith Empire. They almost make it without incident.

Then Ben sees Qui-Gon, and freezes, and does not move again.

Luke cannot get him to restart.

People are staring.

They haven’t even made it to Medical, Uncle Ben, come on.

Young, local Obi-Wan comes over and asks if there’s something he can do to help. Or maybe this “Ben” knows Qui-Gon? Master Jinn doesn’t recognize Ben, but maybe Luke knows more?

Luke does know more, but what Luke actually says is “he probably needs a mind healer.”

(Ben will not appreciate this.)

(Ben is unfortunately standing in the middle of the hallway and completely unresponsive, and is unable to argue with this assertion.)

(Ben is pretty much proving this assertion entirely correct, actually.)

Obi-Wan is helpful, if a little bitchy in the manner of most late-teens individuals, and offers to help get Uncle Ben down to the Halls of Healing. It involves Obi-Wan gently pushing on Ben’s shoulders, and Qui-Gon offering to carry Luke so he can be in Ben’s sights (because Ben is a Mystery, and Qui-Gon is quite fond of those, so he wants to stay involved). Ben kind of just... shuffles on down.

There are medical tests. They ask about how Luke lost his hand. He refuses to talk about it. They ask how Ben got all his scars. Luke says he doesn’t know. They ask if he knows why Ben looks like he’s been through a war. Luke says it’s because he probably was.

They check for foreign viruses. They find evidence of thus-far-unpatented vaccinations. They ask Luke if he knows what he’s vaccinated for.

“How would I know? I’m six.”

They agree that this is a good excuse.

(It is not. He’s lying. They do not know this.)

They do some more tests. They find a lot of questionable medical bullshit in Ben’s body. Most of this is from the clone wars, but they don’t know this. Someone realizes they haven’t gotten a ping back from the Shadow Network regarding “do we have permission to pull the medical file of a Jedi that isn’t in the normal database? We’re assuming you know who he is, since we don’t.”

The Shadow Network does not know who Ben is.

The healers, of course, go “huh, that’s weird, but maybe the name he gave his nephew was fake. We can’t exactly ask ‘Ben’ for more details right now. We already had to sedate him. Let’s check the DNA!”

The DNA pulls up as Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The padawan who brought this guy in two hours ago.

“Huh, that’s weird. Let’s call in Kenobi and ask if he knows what’s going on.”

Obi-Wan absolutely does not know what’s going on.

They ask Luke.

“Oh, I don’t know,” he says, lying through his teeth and not even pretending otherwise.

“You’re not a very good liar,” teenage Obi-Wan tells him.

“I’m not trying to be,” Luke says. “Can you get Master Yoda? I feel like we’re going to need him.”

They normally wouldn’t get Yoda on the request of a six-year-old, but they also normally don’t have a catatonic thirty-something Jedi who looks like he’s been through a war popping up in the medical database as the pimply teenage padawan that broke his pinky trying to do a Badass Ataru Flip last week.

Or... whatever Luke i... is... oh dear.

“Young one,” Qui-Gon asks, while people whisper-shout behind him, not realizing he’s cutting the Correlian Knot and just asking the kid himself. “Do you know why your midichlorian count is so high? It’s almost unheard of.”

“Uncle Ben said my dad was the Chosen One,” Luke says, because he is capable of being a little shit and is actually really eager to let Ben deal with some of the fallout. He feels for the man, really, but he’s also tired of being the one to field every single question.

Also, the expressions that pass on Qui-Gon’s face are hilarious.

(Luke may or may not be more affected by his six-year-old brain than he would like to admit.)

“Thank you,” Qui-Gon says, sounding more than a little strangled about it.

It takes another three hours for Ben to wake up.

He listens to the questions. He hears what they say his ‘nephew’ said. He looks at Luke.

“Is this revenge for not telling you about Leia?”

“It’s not revenge,” Luke does not lie. “I just don’t know how to explain it.”

“It’s pretty easy to explain.”

“It’s not my secret.”

“This is revenge for the Leia thing.”

“No,” Luke says. “Revenge for the Leia thing was when I ate a live frog in front of you.”

This is the point at which someone interrupts and points out that they appear to be stalling.

“Oh, he is,” Luke tells them. He gestures at Ben. “I can’t tell you more, because it’s more his story than mine.”

“I’m afraid, Master, that I am very likely to have an emotional breakdown if I allow myself to consider the reality of this situation for longer than the fraction of a second I already have,” Ben reports, full of false cheer. “Suffice to say, I am far from stable and have only held out this far for Luke’s sake.”

“Can you explain why you have my DNA?” Obi-Wan asks, as the person who’s most concerningly involved in this situation.

“You can,” Ben says, smiling like there is absolutely nothing wrong in the slightest, ever. “I’m you, from the future. I actually died and spent a few years dead before coming back. I’m not sure why I’m younger than I was when I died, but I appreciate being able to put on my shoes without my knees attempting to mutiny.”

“He needs a mind healer,” Luke reiterates, in case the strained grin hasn’t made it clear. “So do I, but not as much.”

“I have felt literally every person in this Temple save for Luke and Yoda die,” Ben reports, looking a shade more manic than a few seconds earlier. “It’s very overwhelming to feel you all being alive again. I may be approaching a mental breakdown, and I’ve been rather strictly advised against using alcohol to treat my traumas again.”

Luke kicks him in the thigh. It’s not a very hard kick, because he is very small, and he does actually like Ben. “I’m not letting you turn into an old drunk again.”

After several seconds of silence, a healer quietly suggests that everyone clear the room, and asks if someone could fetch Master Yoda as the youngling requested.

(THIS IS ALMOST THREE THOUSAND WORDS. I started it less than two hours ago. Why am I like this.)