#i was hoping to still be able to use it as at least a good archive or portfolio but nope

[katjohnadams]

@todaysbird

Sorry, you've activated my special interest which is digging up information on obscure artifacts lol.

What I can find is this was a Hasbro product produced by Tiger Electronics. There were commercials for them and a good number seem to still be in circulation so I imagine a fairly large number were made.

Trade in them on sites like eBay is showing pretty active interest and decent prices from around 20$USD with no figure to 150$USD NIB. I would guess having the figurines, which were part of the function, is likely a huge part of collector value. After that you're concerned with condition of the battery case, functioning electronics, and the condition of the body and paint. With toys, completion and condition are king.

Unfortunately, unless there's an interview I haven't been able to find, the artists, engineers, and programmers are lost to time unless they decide to make their past work public.

They look like they were mass produced for the US market, but I wouldn't be surprised if they sold in Canada and elsewhere in western English speaking countries. The first run from 2003 was listed at 14.99$USD and the Deluxe models later that year were 19.99$USD. They made eight, total.

Apparently these could interact with the website via some sort of code? But I couldn't find much info on that. Secondary market supplies are somewhat limited since they only seem to have done a single run of these, but it looks to have been a fairly big one, primarily sold through Walmart, at least in preorders.

I believe the model you have is the yellow Kougra model, which was part of the first wave and would have come with one figurine that would have sat in that pocket on the right for storage and had a peg that could be placed in pegs holes around the toy to depress buttons to have the pet do different activities.

Honestly, this is a cool old toy, pretty impressive technology for the market it was aimed at in its time (today it'd just have been an app with DLC lol), and if it still had the figurine would likely be a nice get for a nostalgic collector. Sadly, I'm not seeing many of the figures being sold individually on the secondary market, which is expected since that's the part most likely to be lost, followed by the battery tray door.

Good luck, hope this helps!

The commercial, only one I can find (I assume most of their advertising was done online and on the website as that would be the most efficient way to hook their target demographic):

anyone have any information on neopets handheld devices like the one below?:

im writing an article on the history of these games but it’s been INCREDIBLY difficult thus far to find out information like where these were released, what advertising was done (if any), who produced the games (hasbro?), what price they were originally sold for, who worked on the animations…if you have pointers to any of this info, reblogging for public knowledge or DMing me is awesome!

[starrysturns]

a slight princess problem

it had been a few days now. two, maybe three. you had lost track. giving up the counting with each sunset you could see from the little window of the room you were being held in. you had managed to make a little cozy area for yourself. a corner away from the door, barricaded with boxes that would sometimes fall over when the ship would go over a harsh wave.

thankfully, this wasn't the worst captive situation you could've been in. they were at least feeding you, so it wasn't totally awful. you pulled the flimsy sheet over your head, the thunder being too loud for you to fall into a peaceful slumber. 

you heard the door creek open, followed by the sound of footsteps before it shut. the person was still in the room with you. holding a lantern before they sat down right across from you. 

“pssst, you awake?” the voice was grumbly, tired and feminine. you slowly peeked out from your cover, your eyes meeting hers. she was pretty. her hair mid neck length, eyes brown like your stuffed bear at home that you were really starting to miss, and pink lips like a rose.

the sight of you peeking made a small smile spread across her lips before she put her hands up, a show of surrender that you deemed good enough before sitting up. “can't sleep?” she asked you. you shook your head, your eyes glancing down. 

the girl understood you, nodding with a hum. “me either. i can never sleep during storms. always scared of going under, and the thunder just reminds me of a warning.” you glanced back up at her, your lips pursed as you tried to understand what she meant. “a warning?” you asked. “yeah.” she said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, but your puzzled expression showed her you had no idea what she meant. “i mean, it's like the sea warns us- sees us as a threat to its waters so it tries to keep us off. scaring us off with violent waters and the sounds of thunder.” 

“so why be on the water then?” you asked, your curiosity getting the better of you. she hummed, looking around the ship like she expected the room to answer for her before shrugging. “i’ve always loved the sea.” she answered simply. 

“me too.” your somber response made her  eyebrows quirk up. “really? the sea isn't normally the scene for a royal, no offense.”

“none taken. just had a love for it ever since i was a kid.” you paused, a small smile on your lips as you remembered all the times you would sneak out the castle and sit by the stone steps where your home met the sea. “i always dreamed of being able to tour it just- not like this.” your expression turning sad as you talked about your hopes- it set the girl off in a way. frowning for a split second before abruptly standing up, her expression unreadable. “i should go- don't want anyone to see me missing from my quarters. thank you for talking with me.” she left the lantern on the side of you, “keep this with you. some light may help you sleep.” her voice was soft and she sent you a small smile before walking out. 

her swift exit left you puzzled, did you say something to piss her off? you sighed, shrugging it off before laying back down, your eyes up on the ceiling as you slowly were finally able to fall asleep, the sound of the waves and the flame in the lantern turning a cold and unsettling ambience calm. 

.

matt stood outside the room from where you were staying, he had heard the entire interaction you had with his fellow pirate. when he heard the door shuffle he quickly got up from against it, he was soaked from the rain but stared at the girl leaving your room. his eyes narrowed into a glare and arms crossed. 

“if you're going to lecture me for talking to the princess, you’re wasting your breath.” she said, meeting matt’s stern glare with her own. 

“i’m not.” he huffed, “you're a capable girl, i know that gracie. is she awake?” he asked. 

“she was when i went in there. you should leave her alone though.” gracie moved away from the door, her hands falling to her side, “she's not in a great mood.”

“i’m not surprised.” matt grumbled out. “it’s not her fault.” gracie bit out, “she didn't ask to be kidnapped by us.” matt rolled his eyes, “oh god, not this again.” he looked at her, “look i saw a job opportunity i took it. it’s not that different from you and tucker.” 

“the difference with me and tucker is, i didn't kidnap him. he needed help and i did it with the help of my crew, and later on he became part of that very crew.” her voice was level, despite the anger matt could see building up in her. 

“you’re an idiot! putting us all in danger so you can live out some job you think is well planned-” “it is well planned-” she cut off matt, “no its not. you kidnapped the princess, you think the royal family will give us money for it but i think we’ll all end up locked in the farthest jail cell they have in the dungeon.” 

there was a long pause as matt processed her words, the rain pattering on the floorboards of the ship, the only sound they both could hear as gracie waited for a remark from him.

matt sighed, shaking his head, “it won't happen that way.” he finally responded, “we’ll ditch her by the docks once one of us gets the payment and leave immediately. we’ll be in and out too quick for the guards to catch us.” his tone was convincing, as if he truly believed it. 

“for all of our sakes i hope you’re right, sturniolo.” she sighed. walking off before matt could say another word to her.

matt’s gaze followed her before he averted it to the door you were behind. his hand hovering over the handle before sighing and turning away. he’d check on you in the morning. 

.

the morning cold was unforgiving to you, being used to your thick comforter and going to a thin sheet to cover you from the cold breeze that sneaked through the cracks of the ship. you grumbled, you hadn't seen the sun in days- you were cold and still in the same clothes you were taken in. it truly couldn't have been better for you. 

sitting up you looked at the door, seeing shadows of footsteps, all the pirates were awake, you could tell by the thudding of their footsteps. you heard the knob of the door turn, making you stand up to face who was walking in. 

“oh, you’re up.” matt said, his eyes looking up and down. “couldn't sleep for long.” you replied, your eyes on him as he looked at you and then around the room. 

“we’ll have to set a few rules here darlin’.” he said, shutting the door behind him. “so, nick said you’re my responsibility. that means i’m stuck watching you. maybe i’ll have you sort through things today so you’re not bored out of your mind or-” he paused, his brows furrowing, “do you know how to sew?” 

you blinked at him, “um. no, i can’t.” he frowned, unsatisfied with your answer, “great. i’ll be right back then, princess.” he hummed, walking out.

he returned in no more than 10 minutes, crates in his hands. “we like to make our own jewelry on this ship.” he said, “of course we steal rings and stuff, that's how i got this one.” he pointed to his star ring after settling the crates down by you. his eyes locked with his, “this was stolen from the scariest siren out there, my greatest catch. her name was stella.” he sighed before smirking at your frown and wide eyes in realization of what had happened to her. 

“relax darlin’, i didn't kill her.” he added, snickering in amusement. you looked up at him, tearing your gaze away from his silver ring, “what happened to her?” you asked. 

matt paused, he considered answering you but you weren't a friend. “nothing.” he bit out, the charming pirate facade now being replaced with a stern one. “look princess, you’re not gonna be on this ship doing nothing. the boys and i were gonna have you on patch up duty but since you have no skills for that, you’re on jewel sorting duty.” he said. separating the stack of crates, revealing tons of shimmering treasures.

“you have blue jewels, red, green, purple. and then for metals you have gold and silver.” he passed you a clean rag, or well, threw it at you. 

“sort them each. then make it look pretty, think you could do that?” he asked, gaining a nod from you in return. he smirked, “very good.” matt hummed before walking out. 

so now you were on jewelry duty, it shouldn't be so bad, you sighed, sitting down on the floor and getting to work immediately.

.

as matt returned to his headquarters he sighed. you were so pliant, he kinda wished you would fight for your own dignity, give him a little challenge. but your flight was stronger than your fight, or maybe you just wanted to go unharmed. 

he didn't have much time to dwell on it before nick came storming in, chris hot on his heels trying to reason with him before getting silenced when nick closed the door on him. “wanna tell me why the majority of the crates are missing?” he asked, his brow arched as he looked at matt.

“yes actually!” matt spun around to look at nick, a smug grin on his lips, “i’m dealing with our “princess problem.”” he said, making air quotes with his fingers. 

nick sighed, rubbing his temples, “and what the hell does that mean?”  matt rolled his eyes, “dude. relax. i just put her to work is all. she's gonna go crazy in there with nothing to do.” nick snickered with amusement, “you care why?” 

“because if i have to deal with a princess kidnapped under our ship, i’d rather her be sane. besides maybe the girls got skills to see what's real and what's fake in those crates.”

nick looked him over once before shrugging, “alright. next time tell someone other than chris.” he said before walking out. his words with chris to leave him alone and do something being muffled as they got further. leaving matt alone with his own thoughts. 

now matt had to think what to keep you occupied with when you were done with the crates, he hoped it’d take you a few days so he could come up something good. his eye caught a glimpse of a book, picking it up off the desk. it was a book about different sea creatures and myths. he recalled your conversation with gracie the night before that he eavesdropped on. he grabbed a pen before scribbling in it. he’d give it to you after you were done with the crates. while writing his little message on the book he couldn't help but pause, matt knew his crew was upset with him, but he really didn't want to let them down. he hoped that for once, he was in the right. that this would go smoothly and you’d be out of their sails quickly.

.

the support on this au has made me cry about 5 times so far.. it's just crazy how a silly little idea with my friend (gen!!! snoopychris!!!! i cant believe we're friends!!!!) ended up being liked or tolerated by people like its truly a beautiful thing. i'd make a taglist but i dont have a post schedule and would hate to disturb anyone! but if enough wants it i will push down my pride and make one just for u guys 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️ thank u sm for the love - star

[themimicwecallmeg]

Platonic Yandere D-16 and Bumblebee who takes Bee in the divorce

Hi!!! I like your request, a wonderful TFOne oneshot… Okay so I want to say this first; I really wanna do a baby bee type scenario I hope you won’t mind… or maybe that’s what you want? Anyway I’m done yappin, tysm for the ask and enjoy ^v^

‼️SPOILER ALERTT‼️

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

⛓️: When he saw Orion fall in the well of Cybertron, previously shot by his best friend, now turned into his greatest nemesis, Bumblebee, AKA Badassatron or B-127, managed to keep Elita from jumping to his rescue, despite him being smaller than her. She screamed a sparkfelt “NOOO-” and Bee’s audials flinched… he didn’t like too loud noises, and the crowd around wasn’t helping. He saw his best friend, Orion, fall to his death, no more left arm as it was blasted off by D-16…

⛓️: Elita fell on her knees, Bee silently trying to comfort her as he noticed D’s intense scarlet gaze, turning around to Sentinel desperately trying to crawl away, wounded and weak… Bee was overwhelmed, the crowd was cheering way too loudly for D, who was now dealing with Sentinel’s minions effortlessly as his fury took him over

⛓️: Suddenly, D took Sentinel by his back collar, Bee knew what would happen, he wanted to cover his blue optics, he didn’t want to look… but he did… as Sentinel was ripped in half… Bee subconsciously put a servo on his mouth plate in horror, while Elita was starting to not recognize D anymore

⛓️: He gasped when D ripped Sentinel’s t-cog out of his chest, wielding it in the air, making a speech to all high guard members as he started shooting and blasting down everything Sentinel owned… including some innocent cogless miners in the way

⛓️: Elita told Bee to evacuate the city, or at least try getting everyone to safety, even if she knew Bee was still too young to do all this… she couldn’t help but rush at D- wait no… Megatron… He tried to stop her, crying at her that it was suicidal, but instead she ignored the cries of the sparkling… rage also taking over her…

⛓️: Finally when Bee managed to get out of the crowd, he met Megatron’s gaze… it was firing red, crimson sparkles of rage emitting from them as he approached Bee, but Bee was mortified, he stumbled into his pedes and fell on the ground as D-… Megatron crouched to his level…

⛓️: “Come with me Bee… you’ll be safe with me… Sentinel’s gone… you’ll be better with me… under my care… forever” Megatron’s tone was petrifying, his red optics showing desperate possessiveness as he restrained himself from picking up Bee and bring him with the high guard and him… Bee was on the ground, mute from the fear that made his spark almost jump out of his chest…

⛓️: Suddenly, the ground opened from under them, a huge blue blast of energy knocked both of them down… but Bee? He fell unconscious, his processor not able to process anything anymore… he missed the fight of the titans… but what he didn’t know was that when the high guard and him left Iacon for good… Megatron brought something… or more like someone with him…

⛓️: Bee woke up in a room that wasn’t his, or maybe more of a “rusty old place that was falling down” type of room. He felt a painful pang onto his intake pipe… he touched it with a servo snd he saw blue energon on his digits… how was he even alive? He tried to ask himself the question… but trying to use his voice box made him feel intense pain, a pain stronger than Darkwing’s punch, a pain stronger than being left alone in sub level 50… a pain he couldn't even express… At least… not verbally

⛓️: Outside it was dark… smoke was seen outside, fire… then blasts of energy started to be fired in the sky, as if celebrating something… screams and victory howls were heard, which were loud enough to make Bee cover his audials firmly

⛓️: After some time, loud and imposing pedes could be heard walking towards his room, as he tried to get away, he noticed a tight handcuff on the side of the recharging berth he was on… he couldn’t escape… poor young Bee… still a sparkling, forced to live with a future tyrant until maybe, just maybe, Elita and Orion find him… Bee will learn everything that he missed… or maybe he won’t..

— After all, Megatron is known to be more than stubborn at times… he’ll take good care of Bee… as long as he… stays… quiet… —

OMG I AM SO PROUD OF MYSELF FOR THIS ONE!!! Second ever yandere work, GOD this felt so good to write.. anyway @shatteredglass36, I hope you liked it and I hope anybody who stumbled upon this likes it too ^v^

- Meg >:3

[tiredspacedragon]

So we finally got a proper Legends: Z-A trailer

Saw a few other people posting their thoughts, so I figured I might as well join in because I do have a lot to say and not too many people to say it to. So here's what's going through my head looking through the trailer and website.

Long post ahead.

I was right. I told y'all and I was right and I am going to be smug about it because I said so. Present. Freaking. Day. I said the clothes in the reveal trailer proved it wasn't set in the past and I. Was. Right. Could still be time travel involved I suppose, but the majority of the game is set in the present and I am vindicated.

I wonder if the train station we arrive in, or I guess I'm just assuming this is a train station, is the same one that takes you to Kiloude in XY. Still want to know what "the usual place" is and if it has anything to do with the ghost girl.

The male protagonist kinda looks like Professor Sycamore to me. I wonder if we're gonna be a nepo baby in this game.

No gym logo on Prism Tower anymore. Which could mean anything really.

Actually a little disappointed about the "wild zones," I'd have preferred to see the Pokémon just out and about wherever. I think they may still be? But just mostly confined to these places. Bit of a bummer, not that bad.

The starter trio is...weird. I am disappointed to see that neither Snivy nor Piplup are part of it, feels like that was done on purpose just to subvert expectations. But subverted expectations don't guarantee the surprise is better, y'know? But yeah, Chikorita, Tepig, and Totodile. I mean I don't dislike any of them, I'm happy to see them getting some love, they desperately need it. But having two of them be from Johto is really strange. Kanto and Hoenn probably weren't options because their starters already have Megas, but that still left Sinnoh, Alola, and Galar to pick from. So here's hoping they've just got something really good cooked up for both Meganium and Feraligatr that they just couldn't wait to show off. I'm really not sure if this game will follow in the footsteps of the previous Legends game and give us regional forms for these guys, or if they'll just get Megas instead. Both is possible, but unlikely, while just Megas feel like the most likely. Which kinda sucks because I like regional forms and would like to see more, but Kalos is the Mega region, sooo... I mean they could give these guys regional variants and then give us Megas for the Kalos starters and have us get one of them a la how we got a Mega Kanto starter in XY, but that's pure speculation. Anyway, these guys are neat, if a little odd. I like 'em fine. Also first time getting two quadrupeds in one starter trio so that's cool. Yeah Tepig's gonna stand up but it's still a first for the base forms.

Looks like the catching system works the same as it did in Arceus, which suits me just fine, because I had a lot of fun with that.

Ooh, we can go on rooftops. I notice, though, that there's no sign of catacombs yet. Still holding on to that little hope. Come on Game Freak, it's a whole game set in Poké-Paris, there have to be catacombs.

Rival picks the starter weak to yours. Lame.

Okay, so real time battles. That is...very interesting. I doubt this will become a series staple, at least in the mainline games. The turn-based Pokémon metagame is far too deep, intricate, and honestly well-crafted for them to just throw it out, but it is a neat idea for a pseudo side game like this. The faster pace will make the battles less methodical, less about taking your time and coming up with strategy and more about thinking on your feet, which could be a neat challenge. And I'm looking forward to seeing how certain moves' mechanics change in relation to this new system. The above screenshot, for example, shows a Lucario using Protect, which is normally not a very good move for playthroughs as it doesn't do much in most single battles other than waste a turn, but now in this game it will be invaluable. Being able to completely block an enemy attack without worrying about dodging and repositioning is incredible. It looks like each move is on a cooldown timer too, so you can't just hammer away with the same move over and over again. Guess that keeps the battles more dynamic. Also I wonder if this means they'll do away with PP. More powerful moves may just take longer to recharge. Hmm. There's a lot more I could say here, but I don't want this post to go on forever. Still this is neat, especially since I've been musing a lot lately on the differences between battles in the games vs how they're depicted in the anime and such.

I see the player character still has a dodge roll, so I assume the Pokémon can still kill us? Hope so, that was a big part of the fun last time.

So Mega Pokémon are all permanently iridescent now? I...actually don't mind that, it looks kinda nice. Sorta reminds me of the Terastallization crystallized effect. Pretty. Also I like the new bronze-coloured Mega Ring. Also pretty.

So the CEO is evil, right? That's kinda the way these things work in Pokémon. Of course it could be a double bluff and she's actually chill because they know we're expecting that trope by now, but we'll see. The big manly man secretary with the Pancham and Buneary hair ornaments in his man bun is cute though.

They put AZ in a SUIT?? Man looks clean! Like he even washed his hair! And he's smiling! He recovered and he's actually happy! Oh you love to see it. Still though, my guy, I get that you're three meters tall, but you live in Poké-Paris. You could have found a tailor. So I guess the stitched together clothes are a fashion statement.

Also we are so getting that Floette.

I never noticed that Zygarde 10% has a butthole before. A hexagonal one at that.

Looks like some parts of the city are still under construction. There's scaffolding up. That's cool, adds more of a 3D element to the environment. I do like climbing things.

Also, speaking of the city, it's split into five sections, and now they're all colour-coded. Which is kinda funny looking, but I mean I'm here for it. The colours match the plazas Lumiose had in XY that were named after colours...almost. The red section is where Magenta Plaza should be, and the section where Rouge Plaza should be is a very pale pink. So did they change the order, or are these colours someone's very mixed up idea of what magenta and red look like?

Okay so the rival is the protagonist you didn't pick with a palette swap and wardrobe change. That's cool, it's been a while since we've seen that. I mean I guess Arceus did it, but that was to match DP having Lucas and Dawn appear in game. The last time it happened with totally new characters was...XY. Huh. And of course changing their look is totally new. The names are a little goofy though. Urbain and Taunie. Sometimes Pokémon can be subtle with the protagonists' and rivals' names, but Urban and Townie here are not an example of that.

Speaking of, no names for the protags yet, but they are totally new designs, not makeovers of Calem and Serena, at least not obviously. I wonder if they'll be referenced at all. I highly doubt either will actually appear, but some mention of "the hero who stopped Team Flare x years ago" would be pretty standard Pokémon fare.

It is interesting how things in the wild zones seem to have just been left as they are. Like they weren't cleared out or turned into parks, there are cars left crooked on the side of the road and tables and chairs abandoned where they sat. I wonder if that's going to be a point of tension in the plot, people opposing the redevelopment plan because they were forced out of their homes. Seems unlikely for Pokémon to get into anything like that too deeply, but they may touch on it. Why do they look like that?

Sooo that's a Chikorita that knows Disarming Voice, which it cannot learn by any means in the mainline games. I smell a Grass/Fairy Meganium form in our future. Mega or regional, whichever. Tepig is shown using Rollout and Totodile is shown to know Bite, but both of them learn those moves normally, so that's no guarantee of Rock or Dark types for them. Fairy moves are new for Chikorita though, very very new.

Either that is the world's tiniest Onix, or Pokémon won't be properly scaled in this game. Again :/ Come on guys, you made it work last time. Yeah, visible size variation has been a thing in the last couple games, so maybe there's hope, but that itty bitty Onix sucks to see.

Okay hold up. Bottom right corner. It looks like Mega Evolution is on a timer. Don't tell me it just ends after that runs out. Oh I don't like that. Not at all. The whole point of Mega Evolution is that it's once per battle but it lasts the entire battle. That better not mean it only lasts until that timer runs out, that just makes it reskinned Dynamax. But I don't know what else that could mean. Ugh. Not a fan of that, no sir.

LOOKER BUREAU SPOTTED!!! Oh please tell me we get to check in on Emma. I would love that.

Okay, so this is the last thing shown in the trailer. A logo showing what looks to be the Prism Tower with a Poké Ball atop it, just after the text, "PROMOTION MATCH ANNOUNCEMENT." So what I would assume that means is that there are some kind of promotional battles, maybe a tournament, being held in Prism Tower? Possibly to fund the redevelopment project? I expect they'll use this to have a bunch of old characters show up with updated designs, which I love, so consider me stoked.

[kalinara]

I think it's more a "Phoenix" story too. At least I hope so.

I think I've mentioned before, but I feel like this is a perfect set up for Jean to have a really good test of character moment.

This is the first time, pretty much ever, we've seen Jean really and truly embrace the Phoenix side of her since the very beginning, before Wyngarde and company helped it go very wrong. And we know she's haunted by what she'd done as the Dark Phoenix and, on some level, STILL holds herself back because of it.

And well, a big trigger for a LOT of Dark Phoenix incidents is...well...Scott being either in danger or presumed dead. I think First Class even did a bit where they met a parallel universe version and the very first thing she says to Scott is a reference to his death (and apparent youth).

Scott knows it's a risk, and in true Scott Summers fashion seems to find it both a turn on and is preparing for it, just in case. (Poor Quentin.)

So it seems like a really good set up for Jean to, ideally, realize that this time is different and be able to control herself rather than lashing out. Which hopefully can give her some more long term peace of mind.

I feel like Mackay is a "seed first, cultivate later" type of writer, and we aren't yet really at the point to see everything start coming together. That doesn't necessarily mean the end product will be good, of course, but I'm generally willing to be patient as long as I think it's going somewhere. Right now, all these threads feel very disconnected, but I don't think they'll stay that way. I'm hopeful that we'll start seeing some movement after X-Manhunt.

...until or unless they give us yet ANOTHER crossover afterward. :-D

Thoughts on the newest issue of X-Men (2024) where it’s revealed (spoilers)

Scott was captured by space pirated he’s cause he’s the mate of the pheonix

Well, you know I very much enjoyed that plot point. I'm a little sad it ended so quickly, since we had to get everyone back for Chuck's great escape. But maybe they'll try again either here or in the Phoenix and I'll get to see Jean save her damsel husband.

It can be dangerous to be the grasshopper concubine.

[penisbilt]

the bittersweet but absolute flood of relief that comes from admitting defeat at living independently, to have to move back in with parents. we tried! we gave it our best shot for almost 3 years! but living like this (being on our own) is just not possible for us at this time of our lives. we've finally proved it to ourselves that we can't do it. it'll be okay to let ourselves rest now

[scuddle-bubble101]

Puuuuud!!! I missed you guys

(Sorry I haven’t interacted much ^_^;)

Oh hey Lumina-BHRYBGRHVRUVNRUVNRHJNVIJRNHBGHFHVGNFV

[orcelito]

hello i did a fun thing

TOTAL WORD COUNTS: 2020: 110311 2021: 273622 2022: 154134 2023: 142187 2024: 20248

estimated my total words posted to ao3 (had to go chapter by chapter for discacc bc ao3 shows the total word count for a fic under the year it's been last updated, and thus not helpful for this with my 500k words beast of a fic)

the fun thing about 2020 is that ALL of those words were between 11/21 and the end of the year. so it was actually my most productive time, just squished into a span of barely even a month and a half

you can see. that this year has not been very good for my writing.

[silverandebony]

oh hey trauma surrounding watching other people eat while you, if you're very lucky, get something approximately equivalent, but more realistically either get something significantly worse or have to provide your own unappetizing food. what's up, i didn't miss you

[arionaleilani]

1. it’s my 24th birthday today, so my goal of being published by the time i’m 25 is now a one year looming monster, but i never specified what kind of published and am currently looking in various literary magazines that are recommended for writers who have yet to be published, so i’m surprisingly confident that i can make it work? and tbh even if whatever i write isn’t officially published before my 25th birthday, if i have someone in the process of being published then i’ll be happy!! no matter what though, i’m gonna try to be proud of myself for at least giving it my best shot!!

2. i honestly love that my birthday is on the ides of march because the ides of march meme shitposting is only a thing on tumblr but it also being my birthday makes it easier to like. be excited about the ides of march outside of tumblr. like even in person i can be like “it’s my birthday! i’m an ides of march babe (:” and if someone is like oh what’s that? or if they say something along the lines of oh like julius caesar? i can be like yep!! and even if it’s a small thing outside of tumblr it brings me immense enjoyment and amusement being able to bring it up off of tumblr

3. transportation situation has been very rough since june 2023 when i totalled my car, my gap insurance are being assholes and i ended up putting my foot down on the phone with them yesterday which i’m pretty proud of because i am NOT a confrontational person (something i’ve been working on this past year, so seeing some improvement with my ability to hold my ground and not be a pushover yesterday was very cool!!) i was told i’d get a response from them by friday next week no matter what, and if i don’t then friday of next week i will continue to wreak havoc upon them. but my moms car which i’ve been using since my accident broke down yesterday, hopefully it’s fixable but my parents were saying it might be done for, so trying to think of how i’m gonna get to work next week is kind of stressing me out lmao, but for now i’m just gonna focus on enjoying my birthday the best i can because i don’t want to start off being 24 with an overwhelming anxiety for something that won’t be a potential issue until monday. plus i already messaged my boss today to let her know that i’m going to do everything i can to make it work out but just so she’s in the loop and knows of the potential of me not being able to make my morning shifts (one of my coworkers said she’s more than happy to give me a ride for our afternoon shifts which does help relieve some of the stress!) and i told her i’d let her know for sure sunday so that if necessary she can have time to figure out someone to fill in for me in the mornings!

overall: life is weird and i ended being 23 yesterday with a shitty situation but a positive outlook and i am going to enjoy my first day of being 24 no matter what because honestly i fucking earned it. happy friday everyone, i hope it’s a good day for you and me both!

[weaselle]

i had to make a solution for this for myself, mostly because of depression, but it makes a nice How To for folks who are low on spoons or could use some help in the kitchen.

Fortunately i was a professional cook for over a decade. UNfortunately the first post i made explaining it was suuuuper long. Let's see if i can do better

So you select any protein that you can cook in a frying pan -- chicken breasts, ground beef, pork chops, sausages, steak, chicken thighs, whatever. You also select one or two types of veggie (mushrooms or tubers also work, i just did this with potatoes and carrots for dinner tonight).

[i like cooking for vegetarians, but this is how i cook for myself when i'm low on spoons - perhaps i'll do another post for meatless meals]

You'll also need some kind of oil, and a sauce or two of your choice in a bottle. All cooking gear is a large frying pan with lid (i prefer non-stick) a spatula, a cutting board, and a knife.

You cut the veggies into bite size pieces, cut up enough for two meals. One kind of veggie is fine, or you can do mix two or three

Put frying pan on medium heat with a little oil. Tubers or mushrooms or go in the pan a few minutes before the protein. 2 portions of the protein goes in the pan, about 5 minutes with lid (don't worry you can still get a good sear on both sides)

Now flip your protein if it's flip-able and add normal veggies, put the lid back on another five-ish minutes.

Take your protein out and put it with one portion of the veggies in a microwave safe container. That's going to be your lunch tomorrow. Put the other portion of protein on a plate to rest (you have to let a cooked protein sit a couple minutes before you serve it or when you cut into it all the juices run out and it goes dry - the liquids thicken as it cools, preventing this drying out if you let it rest, the goal is to serve it very warm but not hot hot)

While it's resting, pour some sauce from your bottle in the pan with the rest of the veggies and turn up the heat. A single sauce/bottle is fine, i like to get fancy and mix a couple. Two examples of personal favorite mixes are 1: bbq sauce and a hot sauce like sriracha 2: roughly equal parts low sodium soy sauce and worcestershire (makes something similar to a teriyaki sauce) A swallow of wine is almost always a great option if you want to add that to your sauce too, just add it to the pan before the other sauces so the alcohol has time to burn off.

...

Here is the important bit. While your veggies are finishing, wash your cutting board and chef knife. Then when you dump your veggies and sauce over your protein on the plate, while it is still too hot to eat, you wash your frying pan and spatula before you eat. Now the only dishes you have left to do are your plate and fork. Maybe a steak knife.

...

The whole thing takes about 35 minutes even with washing the dishes, and that includes your lunch for the next day- just pour a different sauce on and stick it in the microwave for a couple minutes (or five minutes back in the frying pan) and you have a full healthy lunch with a different flavor

You can use this technique every single meal and it yields hundreds of combinations, from pork and potatoes bbq, to salmon and broccoli teriyaki, to chicken and zucchini in a soy glaze.

It will keep you down to less than an hour of kitchen time per day total for both lunch and dinner including all dish clean up, uses the least dishes, the least effort, requires the least technique, and is, depending on what you pick out, very affordable

here are a couple more examples from this month; i didn’t take pictures of the salmon i did recently, but you get the idea

it's not super fancy, but it is easy, affordable, quick, and any flavors you want. Hope this helps some folks

Happy Cooking!

[dracimexidae]

I'm in pain 🫠

[orcelito]

Been finishing up act 2 of bg3. It's a good thing I find the battle systems so fun bc Hoo Boy there sure do be battles

[leebrontide]

Hey

Hey Americans.

The federal government is about to get useless for at least a bit. This is a GREAT time to get involved in state level environmental orgs. That's where you're gonna be able to do the most for the next few years. Even a bit of casual volunteering can make a big difference.

I've done this off and on for years and when we go local we WIN. And friends winning feels good. This is how a lot of progressive agendas have won in this country. The whole US isn't out of this. People ARE still fighting climate change all around you.

You could be one of those people, in community with other people who are doing something.

doom and gloom "oooh everything is pointless oooh I'm so deep and edgy because I love trying to be the death of hope" people will just get blocked. I'm not talking to your crab-bucket ass.

[defrogatory]

im gonna have to work 12 fucking hours tomorrow .... wtf have i gotten myself into w/ this second job