#i will not put my hat into the ship discourse ring but one of my pet peeves is when shit dont make sense😭

[pcktknife]

Its canon that Sara wasn't in the new event cause she does not want to go near Itto at all. inexplably I've seen people say that's proof she actually is deeply in love with him

itto + sara is such a funny ass ship cause what are we doing lol

[rexscanonwife]

Hey. I'm not really one to throw my hat into the ring over any kind of discourse or anything like that, it's really not my style. But it is really upsetting seeing mutuals, especially my friends, openly and honestly kinda viciously put themselves down.

I struggled a LOT with self love/acceptance, and I know how hard it is to achieve it, but I promise you the effort is SO worth it. Self shipping, whether it's a coping mechanism or a hobby, is something that should make you happy, not sad, and believe me it is detrimental to your health to constantly be making a mockery of yourself, especially through the lense of something that you LOVE.

I know each one of you has boundless love for your f/os and for each other, turn it INWARD. Make your f/os as crazy about you as you are about them, even if you don't really believe it at first and I promise you that over time you will and self shipping will be more fun than ever.

[edgy-ella]

I’m very late to the Bayonetta shipping discourse, but in a fandom dominated by scorned BayoJeanne shippers, I wanna throw my hat in the ring and say why I prefer BayoLuka.

Put simply, I think it’s really rare to see a canon m/f ship where the woman is unabashedly the cool dominant one in the relationship. Think about how many pairs there are of fangirls swooning after big, burly superhero men, damsels rescued by knights in shining armor, or an action couple with similar power levels (but, y’know, the guy is The Main One™ of the two). There’s nothing wrong with those types of ships, but you can’t deny that they’re everywhere.

That’s why I like Bayonetta and Luka’s dynamic so much. They’re unabashedly not that.

Bayonetta is an angel slaughtering powerhouse, child of prophecy, last of her kind. She punched god herself into the sun. Luka is a guy with a grappling hook.

Whereas Bayonetta literally dances around her opponents in a fight, graceful and effortlessly as she beats these divine beings to a pulp, Luka can’t help but trip over himself or slam headfirst into a brick wall. When Luka threatens to “expose” Bayonetta in the first game, she responds by cheekily flirting with him or saving his life from an unseen threat. Bayonetta literally controls her clothes while Luka’s scarf often slaps his face in the wind.

Cheshire, the pet name she gives him, both solidifies that she sees him as cute and harmless as a kitten and implies he has more sentimental value to her than she initially lets on. It was the name of her favorite childhood stuffed animal, after all.

For the record I have nothing against BayoJeanne. It’s an okay ship. They just don’t have that special draw for me

[superkirbylover]

hi. i really admire all the work you do and how much you've done over the course of your lifetime. it's really inspiring how many hats you wear and encourages me to try my best to do the same. i find learning new tasks really frustrating especially now that i have an injured wrist, but i look at you and i get the motivation to try and do my best, even if i feel like crying because i'm not immediately good at it. i really look up to you. i won't get super parasocial and act like you're perfect, that'd feel insulting, i've never talked to you, but just as a creative, you make me feel so much better about myself. i hope this doesn't put pressure on you, i'm not expecting you to make masterpieces, i just really envy how much you've done and how you haven't completely given up on the internet. i hope i get to see more from you.

thanks.

this doesn't put pressure on me at all. in fact, i'm really glad i serve as an inspiration for you. i'm glad i'm one of the reasons you keep going. it's an amazing feeling that just by being myself, i push others to do that.

in truth, i wasn't always good at the things i do. typical "yeah every creative says this" kind of thing, but it's true. it took me roughly a decade to get to my current level of understanding about programming, and that's only in LUA. i stared at pages of documentation coming out understanding none of it, watching just as many tutorials and still learning nothing. the same thing happened with 3d modeling, because while i had the vision in my head and the experience of putting things together to model on ROBLOX, i often got frustrated at blender. i can't tell you how many scrapped 3d models i have sitting on my sd card (that's a lie, i can, it's ~10, going as far back as 2018). only recently by doing the mario 64 models for my COOPDX mods have i recently gotten confident in my modeling skills, but even then. i constantly bump into invisible walls and don't understand why. it's likely where my autism comes into play, making it harder to learn things. there's been so many times i wanted to bash my head into the wall because it felt like no matter what i did, i wasn't getting it. i'd quit, but... i'd always come back. i didn't know why, but despite how upset i'd get, i'd have that desire to try again. i think it's because my desire to get the hang of it and learn to do it was stronger than my desire to give it up. it was annoying, but... hey, because of that, i've managed to get so many hats into the ring.

it's easy to look at everything that's happened to me negatively online and want to give up. i've been doxxed for 4 years (and counting, if that last ask is anything to go by), i've been harassed, dragged into ship discourse, stalked, lied about, lost friends, you name it. some days, i think about abandoning everything online, and occasionally even my life as a question pops in my head: is it worth it?

and every time, i land on the answer: yes. it is.

i've met my best friends online. i've found myself online. best of all, i don't feel alone. i've made it this far, and if i quit now, not only would i be doing all of my friends a disservice, but myself. because there's more to the internet outside of all of the bullshit that happens.

i happen. you happen.

this ask happened.

roundabout way to say... thank you. i really appreciate it.

[jessaerys]

I think what gets me about the popularity of mattmello as a ship historically tied to the late 00s early 2010s is that by virtue of how little background we get from the source material it is almost entirely based on 1. aesthetics and 2. speculation/fanon 

which like i understand (very common phenomenon. remember jeanmarco) and i am definitely not immune to fall out boy looking ass anime boys (specially at the time when i would’ve been like 14-16) but imo it is categorically the kind of engagement with a source material thats akin to me to like. coffee shop aus. more about coming in with pre-established tropes you enjoy and assigning them to blorbos than truly intellectually engaging with what makes the characters compelling in the first place within the narrative. which is a perfectly valid way to engage with fandom its just very boring to me

so like coming into the second half of death note for the very first time in my late 20s and having this wealth of more than a decade of fanworks to explore just makes mattmello so funny and absolutely baffling to me because on the one hand you have what is this very sharply written unique set up for this lopsided rivalry ripe with intense freudian issues and sexual tension in which both characters are bizarrely obsessed with each other. whatever crack cocaine they put in that one control room scene. yes yes the picture of you i keep on me at all times. dear mello. near threatening death note murder-suicide at the drop of a hat. the fascinating narrative cycle of juxtaposing a new generation of genius minds that mirrors light & l, separation by death but this time by working with each other rather than against each other, the triumph and tragedy of sacrifice in the name of the greater good, the endless ramifications of being shaped together and against each other for a specific purpose. one of them was always doomed from the beginning and it was never in his hands! it didn't have to be this way but it always was going to. something something about the inevitable downfall of intellectual twin flames.

 and on the other hand you have 60 second best friend anime boy who admittedly races cars and smokes cigarettes. which. to be totally fair. is pretty much two of the sexiest activities an anime boy can do. but my point remains

anyway you may think i am relitigating decades long shipping discourse but my actual real thesis for this whole post IS that i would bet real life money that 00s yaoi history would’ve gone down DRASTICALLY different if near had looked a bit more like a slut. literally. imagine if his character design was, like, a tattered wifebeater and some spiky silver chains. thumb rings. white shirt draped around his elbows (i also think this would solve 80% of the shallow "near is just a secondhand L" takes but this post is already too long)

anyway, tl;dr society if near had shown some shoulder

[l1ttles3am0th]

Vee’s SuperUltraMega Personal and Blog Intro!

(Expand To Read)

WELL LADIES, GENTLEMEN, AND EVERYONE ELSE, ITS FINALLY TIME I GOT AROUND TO THIS! I’ve put this off for quite a while since I don’t really use this ex-hellsite, but here we go regardless! Below, you’ll see about stuff, a byf and dni, and some basic interests. Collapsed for the sake of not overtaking your entire page.

ABOUT

NAMES: Vee, Moth, Sunny, Blair, Goldie

AGE: 18

PRONOUNS: They/Ae/Wish/Star/Bloom/☆/🌈/✨/🌌/🌸 + More [Refer to my pronouns.cc if you want to figure out how the hell to use 98% of these]

TERMS: Feminine + Neutral (Some Masculine terms i.e. “Dude” and “Bro” too!)

GENDER: Femme Non-Binary w/ 300+ Xenogenders

SEXUALITY: Asexual Lesbian

OTHER IDENTITIES: Otherkin, Non-Human

KINTYPES: Demon / Fallen Angel (Also Cathearted + Dollhearted)

DISABILITIES: Autism + OCD, C-PTSD (All prof. diagnosed)

RACIAL/ETHNIC BACKGROUND: White

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS: Nonreligious, Pantheistic

LANGUAGES: English (Native), Russian (Sporadic Beginner)

BEFORE YOU INTERACT

-I tend to type in a formal, ostensibly-grammatical manner, that may or may not have some errors. As a result, I may edit posts or comments multiple times in a single 30-second period if I see any. I also have a large vocabulary and lean towards the bigger words in it whenever possible, so please feel free to ask for definitions!

-I have a difficult time understanding social cues, and when problems arise, I need to be told clearly, immediately, and with enough detail to get me to understand. If you do not do that, I genuinely won’t understand what I did wrong.

-As much as I’d like to NOT get involved in discourse, I might throw my hat into the ring occasionally.

-I really don’t give too much of a damn about problematic media, as I don’t have the mental energy to half the time. As long as the creator isn’t an active danger to children, animals, and/or the deceased, I won’t bother you about a particular piece of media. Although, I will sometimes discuss stuff related to it if need-be.

-I draw. Need I say more? I post more frequently on Instagram at @l1ttles3am0th!

DO NOT INTERACT

-Basic DNI Critera (Bigots, Pro-Contact / Anti-Recovery Paraphiliacs, Proshippers, etc.)

-Blacklist Residents (BickerySebastian, Lux, SharkyNatty, BadBoyBingus, A certain fruit-themed ex-acquaintance [Bingus is only here because they asked me to DNI as well, and they’re the only one here I actually respect.])

-Anti of xenogenders, neopronouns, otherkin, etc.

-Exclusionists of any kind

INTERACT WITH CAUTION

-DSMP Fans

-Fans of absolutely, irreparably irredeemable stuff (See BYF For Criterion)

INTERESTS / LIKES

-FNaF

-Helluva Boss

-Sailor Moon

-Evangelion

-Fallout

-Portals (Album)

-123 Slaughter Me Street

-Garten of BanBan (Yes.)

-Cats

-Nature

-Dress-Up

-Rainbows (If you couldn’t already tell)

-Foodfight (2012)

-Nightcore Music

-Classical Music

-Royalcore

-Aesthetics

FRIENDS AND MUTUALS

-To be filled out.

BLINKIES

——

CHANGELOG

DATE OF CREATION: August 12th, 2023

OCTOBER 24th, 2023: Added this changelog. Added a title to the blog and moved the opening text to behind the expand button. Updated my about me to add xenopronouns that were added to the collection since the creation of this post. Switched out prns.page for prns.cc officially. Prns.page will be kept as a backup for if the ship sinks. Edited my blacklist with new additions. (Edit 2: Added blinkies. Thank you to @3v3ry0n3z-fav3-al13n-x3 for the inspiration!)

AUGUST 26th, 2024: Updated my age and a whole bunch of other stuff.

[raspberry-rampage]

tumblr 2022, huh

TOP 22: Glad to see so many things I recognise and like, like ST and TOH. Happy to see my boy Steve up there, though it’s probably thanks to him being shipped with a certain metalhead, but ships talk later. This was a weird year for me, got into many new fandoms (ER, TOH, ST among many), cooled down on old ones, but hey, still alive for more bullshit - and isn’t that the tumblr motto of life? More of my thoughts below.

anime and manga: So shocked (sarcasm) to see BNHA and SXF so high... Dunno, stopped caring about the first one so long ago and quickly got bored of the second one. Honestly, I'm not really in these fandoms anymore, I just don’t vibe with so many ongoing shows. Cheers to KNY being on the list though. And Witch Hat Atelier LET’S GOOOOOOO

anime and manga characters: Same as above, fell out of love with so many series... So funny to see Reigen up there. My boy Dabi is #10, fuck yeah, so much higher than his milquetoast little brother! Can’t believe Sasuke is top 15, that’s sound like a joke.

memes: I’m out of touch with memes, man. I only remember “live XYZ reaction”, the blorbo discourse, morbin’, and that fucking movie.

movies: I still haven’t seen No Way Home cause they’re not putting it on vod ugh. Glad to see Encanto on top, I think it deserves it (though I have mixed feelings about so much Disney on the list). LOTR being on the list made me so happy. And Do Revenge is #12! Very good, it’s a cool movie. And it’s fucking hilarious that American Psycho closes the fifty.

music: So happy to see The Amazing Devil on the list, their music is bomb. I also saw my beloved Florence on the list, as well as FOB, P!ATD and Zeppelin. nice :^)

ships: I don’t like By/ler, simply cause I don’t like Mike. Give Will a different boyfriend please. And ofc Ste/ddie and Ron/ance are there... Idk man, I prefer He/llche/er and Jan/ce. I know these are hetero and you may think I’m hom/opho/bic or some shit, but fuck you, I just don’t think those characters suit each other. Har/ringr/ove is still on the list, it’s such a nice minifandom so it fills my heart with joy. Honestly, the list has pretty much all the major ships of ST fandom. De/st/iel still going strong lol (have I mentioned I still haven’t watched this show?). Lumity FTW, ecstatic to see my girls so high. I’m not really big on Hu/nt/low, but maybe it’ll grow on me with S3. Surprised Ge/rask/ier is still so high, seeing as S2 was another fuck you to their relationship.

tv shows: No surprise that ST is top. Glad to see TOH and ATLA on the list. Surprising to see LOTR:ROP so low (or is it?). Another surprise was seeing She-ra on the list - don’t get me wrong, great show, but didn’t know the fandom was still alive, happy for them though.

video games: Colour me absolutely not surprised that I have no interest in the top 10 games that mainstream cares about. Good for Stray to be so high, need to watch a playthrough of it sometime. It’s so strange to see Skyrim on the list but no Elden Ring - they even used Ranni’s hat on the graphic. I think The Quarry is there mainly thanks to their big promos and stuff. It was a good game, not my cup of tea though. Ecstatic to see Bloodborne still going strong. A bit of a surprise to see RE8 still there, but maybe DLC livened up the fandom a bit. We’ll go crazy with RE4 remake in March, don’t worry.

video game characters: Oh yeah, let me see... Once again, disappointed with top 10. Didn’t know F/NA/F was so strong on tumblr. I can’t believe there’s so many Twis/ted Won/derl/and characters there. Not even Ranni or Malenia? Wtf??? I recognise almost nobody here, and like nobody at all. There’s only maybe 12 games between 50 characters, that is so weird. Wait, I just saw Sora made it, that’s fucking hilarious.

And about their ST post: I saw that cheeky dig at Billy, but can’t sense if it’s malicious or not. Also, they called Steve a dad. No, he’s a mum, get it right.

[universallywriting]

Fandom discourse is such a wild thing. Whenever you actually find it, like when I see people saying the villains I like are in fact problematic (I fucking HOPE they’re problematic, they’re VILLAINS), or when you see people canceling ships because one is taller than the other so there is a power imbalance, it’s just such an awful headache. But seeing people TALK about discourse is always intriguing and funny. The cursed name you may not utter lest Ben Shapiro’s voice ring in your ears.

lemme go ahead and put on my pretentious hat, lol.

i’ve got my bachelor’s degree in english, but more than that, i have a serious obsession with literary analysis. it’s like my favorite thing to do. i can tear stuff apart and put it back together and i just really love digging into that kind of shit. i cut my teeth in the anti-twilight forums, and got deeply involved in the ways people could analyze a piece of media.

and then i took a break for a while.

and then i came back and i was like “oh okay we’ve taken the shipping war level takes and we’re just applying it to social justice issues, neato” LOL. i was really not prepared to walk back into fandom and see people be like, “Steven Universe is homophobic because the lesbians are not correctly gay also the diamonds clearly represent nazis and steven universe is telling us that we should be nice to nazis”.

when i came into fandom, i actually wanted to make essays - like with the angry steven essay i made a while back - but the longer i stayed the more i was like “ooh, yikes, maybe i shouldn’t” just because i don’t wanna deal with drama and i answer way too many of my asks.

i would absolutely love to discourse about media. i do it all the time in private. discussing the nuances of what is good and bad rep, talking about the death of the author and how you could theoretically read the diamonds through a political lens, etc, are all topics that i’d personally love to read about and write about. but i also hate fighting with people, and the fighting seems inevitable.

and now i’m just rambling about meta but hopefully i’ll have some inspo to write some nice SU stuff soon!

[ranvwoop]

There is discourse and I am unfortunately putting my hat in the ring bc... I feel like the actual point is not necessarily what's being discussed

1) QPRs are defined by the individual and can be, like, whatever. This is True.

2) QPRs, no matter what comprises it, are no less important than other forms of relationships. This is Also True.

3) There was, at least at one time, genuinely a problem with [something with romantic framing] /p /p /p it's not against their boundaries they r buddies it's ok!!!! Early c!beeduo marriage comes to mind. I see this less now, which is cool, but I think it's still relevant to the conversation at least as an example.

If characters were solely fictional, this would be all well and good, even the third point, despite how I think that downplays QPRs. But people have the right to dictate rules for how we play with their self insert OCs! QPR shipping is putting a character into a non-canon relationship with non-canon deep feelings, and imo it's still important to try to apply what we Do know about the ccs boundaries and apply them to QPRs, because I don't think many CCs are educated enough on what a qpr is to even know that this is a thing going on lol.

I will use beeduo as an example though beeduo is not necessarily the focus, because they're one that can go either way and it's good! They have consented to their characters being in A Deep Relationship, because that much is canon. Their relationship being a qpr is great! (Their relationship being romantic is also good.)

It is Not Cool when people do the old, "they have to be in a qpr because it's lesser than a romantic relationship, therefore it's the Safe Option and I can do this without breaking their boundaries". Nnno. People did this a lot in early c!beeduo. This is where the /p Cause Boundaries comes in, not necessarily actual QPRs for the sake of writing QPRs (beeduo qpr community now is very lovely as things became clearer and disingenuous people have moved on :D).

Using that mentality as a sort of framework brings us to other characters, though. If they haven't consented to their characters being in a deep relationship, then putting them in one is Sorta Ehhh, because it's on the same footing as other sort of relationship that is stated to be boundary breaking and disliked by the ccs.

QPRs are legitimate, difficult to define relationships that can consist of a lot of different things, and that feels like it goes hand in hand with "and maybe we shouldn't place this on characters if their writers aren't explicitly comfortable with it".

[kbstories]

What are some of your favorite one piece moments and why?

WHOO BOY thanks for asking and buckle up ‘cause this is gonna be a long one

(A note before I start: I read OP up to volume 63 in German and the rest in English, so I apologize if I get some pre-ts names wrong! Also these are in somewhat of a chronological order and based solely on the manga.)

Luffy giving the dog (Shushu?) the last box of food: This is the moment that made me love Luffy, it’s such a simple but effective way of showing his core philosophy that people’s treasures and dreams have inherent value and that everyone deserves to have someone by their side who will fight for them when they can’t do it themselves.

Bellmere: Just. Everything about her and that flashback. “They are my kids”, just... It made me emo back then, still makes me emo today. Love it, love her, love her design and what she’s all about. Yes.

Luffy going “I’m nothing without my crew!” in Arlong Park: Bear with me here ‘cause I was like 12 when I read this arc the first time, and back then I didn’t get why Nami wouldn’t just ask for help (so the “Help me!” moment only became a tear-jerker during my many, many re-reads). Something that did make immediate sense to me was Luffy straight-up admitting his skillset is limited to punching things very good, and I was like hell yeah go Luffy because I was 12. (I also love that this sentiment was echoed by Luffy going “I can’t be Pirate King without you” in Whole Cake Island two years later, so that’s another favorite right there.)

Skipping ahead otherwise we’ll be here all day but Luffy carrying Sanji and Nami in Drumm. Seeing him climb up that mountain with his bare hands and feet fucked me up even as a kid, the way Oda paced it really made you feel what an absolutely harrowing experience that must’ve been and I still think about it a lot.

Zoro fighting Mr. 1 in Alabasta: That fight was just mindblowingly cool and I love Zoro. That panel of him kneeling in his own blood after winning the fight hrgghhgh and oh hey THE STRAWHATS SHOWING THE X ON THEIR ARMS FOR VIVI 🥺🥺🥺  how are those not permanent tattoos Oda FIGHT ME

The entirety of Noland & Kargara, how they died without seeing each other and fully mending the argument they had and how Luffy ringing the bell hundreds of years later redeemed it all. Oda went incredibly hard on Skypia’s backstory and I’m not entirely sure what possessed him to tell a story that tragic but I, for one, am grateful. (Fun fact I was extremely late to this whole shipping thing and thus One Piece is very much about the platonic nakamaship of it all for me but even as a clueless baby fan I shipped THE FUCK out of Noland & Kargara oh my)

“I want to live!” + Sogeking shooting the WG flag + Usopp’s speech to Luffy + Luffy almost fighting to the death to keep his crew safe + MERRY’S GOODBYE: I bawl my eyes out every time I read Water 7, it’s my favorite arc to this very day because it’s just so complex and nuanced and the crew’s limits being tested in every way is just a very rewarding (if incredibly emotional) thing to witness. It put both Robin and Usopp on the map as two of my absolute favs and I’m so grateful for that.

The Strawhats teaming up against Oz (?) was something I didn’t know I needed until I saw it and I’ve been gunning for another Strawhat group fight ever since. The team work, the absolute trust, just everything about it was a delight and made all the stuff that followed (Zoro & Sanji laying down their lives for their captain, the entirety of Sabaody) so much more painful. Also Bink’s Sake because Brook deserves to have friends to sing it with him every single day of his life!!!

Luffy refusing to ask if the One Piece is real or not on Sabaody: I just adore that moment. Rayleigh was so soft and indulgent with these baby pirates carrying along the legacy of Roger’s old hat... My heart...

Mr. 2/Bon Curry (?) in Impel Down. ‘Nuff said.

Ace saying “Thank you” after you-know-what but let’s not linger on that because I was reading One Piece weekly back then and it traumatized me to the point I didn’t keep up with it for 10 years haha!

The post-timeskip era is a bit of a blur to me because I binged it all just a few months ago and my memory is McFreaking Terrible but I’ll start with Law being warned on two separate occasions that he might not like an alliance with Luffy, making the alliance anyways and proceeding to burn in “Strawhat-ya is a fucking moron” purgatory ever since. I don’t care if it’s overdone, every year Law loses to Luffy’s idiocy is one added to my lifespan. Godspeed, king of emo pirates. You dug your grave now lie in it.

Sabo coming back: I know there’s discourse about that doing bad things to the plot and the stakes of character deaths in One Piece, bla bla bla, I truly do not care. Luffy getting one (1) big brother back and Sabo stepping up to Ace’s legacy was so monumental when it happened that it briefly brought me back from my One Piece hiatus and I immediately bought volume 75 when it came out in German. (Now if Oda will only let him live and let Luffy actually hang out with his brother I would very much appreciate that, huff huff.)

USOPP UNLOCKING OBSERVATION HAKI AND SAVING LUFFY AAAAAAAAAA

Corazon holding onto life until Law was safe + Corazon’s smile: Corazon in general, actually. Law harboring that little bit of kindness he was shown as a kid and plastering it all over his ship and his crew and his own fucking skin. Mmmm love me a big sip from that good ol’ heartbreak.

Still in Dressrosa, Zoro going “I wonder what he’s dreaming about” when Luffy smiles in his sleep. It’s this little line and kinda insignificant because they’re talking to Sabo in that moment (and that’s clearly like woah), but it’s so fucking soft and it made my heart grow three sizes so there.

Jack getting one-shotted by Zunesha: Get rekt you insufferable asshole oh my god

Whole Cake Island is practically 78 chapters of favorite moments but Nami saying goodbye to Sanji + Luffy almost ripping his arms out to warn Sanji about Pudding + Sanji making a Strawhat lunchbox by accident + “That’s just how you are” + Luffy muffling his pain in front of the mirror so his crew doesn’t worry (Oda turn on your location I just want to talk) + Sanji carrying Luffy back to the ship + “I’m your captain now! Don’t die even if it kills you!” so yeah, the entire thing. Also Katakuri??? What a loser I love him

[Spoilers for Wano]

And if I went into all the things I like about Wano we’d truly be here all day. Gun to my head I’d probably pick Zoro & Luffy reuniting, Kidd & Killer in Udon (of course) and “At sea you fight pirates!” as my favorite moments so far. Also Jinbei joining the crew after a million years holy shit FINALLY and Luffy getting angry over spilled bean soup and KIDD BEATING THE SHIT OUT OF APOO FUCK YES and don’t get me started on the new characters especially Kiku and Yamato and---

[End of Wano spoilers]

Anyhow. My answer to “What’s your favorite One Piece moment?” is basically “YES” to all of it, thanks for coming to my TED talk.

[blackstarising]

stranger things 2 thoughts under the cut:

okay, this season was good, so everything after this is just going to be details but the season overall was good. any roasting is meant to be more of a light grill or even a light toast, if you will

first of all, can they just mail noah schnapp his emmy early? because that boy literally did the Most™. honestly, i don’t believe i’ve ever seen a child actor come full force the way he did. seeing will suffer onscreen was incredibly heartbreaking and noah definitely brought that depth to his role.

the soundtrack, the bush and mandale signs, the arcades, the clothing, the houses, all 80s, all wonderful.

i think the duffer brothers are trying to actually kill me bc not only do we get hopper but we got hopper in flannel doing dad thing and i am left here very thirsty and very distressed rip i brought this on myself

tbh i forgot that hopper even had a daughter until the fifth episode, because everything he was doing looked so natural

and i know there’s some Discourse brewing about jane (i’m going to call her jane consistently from now on, she deserves to be called by her real name) and hopper’s relationship, especially their fight mid-season, so i’ll throw my proverbial hat into the Discourse Ring

i’m not going to excuse hopper, actually, and i’ll even confess that as a binch with anxiety who hates yelling, i had to turn down the volume of my computer and read the subtitles at one point because it really messes with me

definitely, threatening to turn jane back over to the authorities was wrong, and a new low. but i also saw that it was very much anger born of worry. like, parents get angry, and he had a reason to, because you could see that he was watching his daughter willingly put herself in danger, and it’s not like she’s unaware of the consequences

that being said, i don’t blame jane for leaving. you could see she was starting to match the whole experience to her time in the lab with papa and the fact that she was counting the days. damn

so in the end, they both acted shitty, but they both owned up to that and apologized. and i think david and millie did a really good job in really portraying a realistic father-daughter relationship. it’s not always cute, fluffy, one-shot, material, it’s messy and screamy and painful sometimes.

but ohmygoodness their relationship hurts so good the bedtime stories the waffles the halloween candy sorry i need a mome-

max!!!!!! i!!!! love!!!!! max!!!!!! ever since i learned what internalized misogyny was, i’ve been a bit wary of tomboy characters. but max didn’t play into those stereotypes at all, which is super refreshing. she was very content to be who she was, but she didn’t need to denigrate other girls to do so!!!!!! and it’s just good!!!!!!! 

(also the fact that the boys didn’t question that max beat their high score. also good, also pure, beautiful, beautiful)

[suddenly wearing a mourning veil] okay we need to talk about bob. right now.

i was one of the people who was suspicious of him (not because of shipping reasons, but the show makes you a little on edge, you know?) so i definitely squinted at everything he did but like he was so sweet and supportive of joyce and the boys and he didn’t like overstep his bounds but the way he tried to encourage will was so sweet and and and he’s just working at radio shack and he checks in on joyce to eat lunch with her and make out in the supply closet [hyperventilates a little] and and and the slow dancing in his halloween costume and he knows BASIC [is practically sobbing at this point] and he loves the byers and he died so that they could be happy and he’s a superherO AND I WOULD DIE FOR HIM AND SEAN ASTIN HOW COULD THEY DO THIS TO MEEE-

also when he’s talking about how he grew out of getting bullied and “I get to date Joyce Byers!” i get so close to tearing up every time you have no idea

i love how we get development for the rest of the party’s families, and barb’s families too. especially lucas’ sister, a gem, an icon™

and just!!!! lucas!!!!!! i really love how he’s the straight man of the group, but you can tell he’s matured over the year that’s past (also that voice drop, i see you caleb)

and lucas and max is now the only relevant ship on this show im sorry i dont make the rules

dustin is so sweet and big hearted and i really loved seeing more of his depth. tbh i may or may not have started projecting a little especially at the last ep when no one would dance with him!!!! but it’s so hard when you’re so loving and no one returns it in the way you’d want it to!!!! and the fact that he was even willing to love and protect a demon from another dimension dustin please don’t let the world rob you of your sweetness

i was crying about noah earlier but finn also basically killed it this season. you could tell that mike was Depressed with a Capital D and even though he didn’t get as much screen time as he did last season, every scene he did have was Quality,

especially the scene when he was talking about how he and will became friends and those TEARS FINN JUST DRIVE TO MY HOUSE AND STAB ME MYSELF

i really loved watching jane grow and come into her own this season! you can tell that she’s very aware of her power, but there’s that internal struggle about how to use it, which made the final battle that much more poignant.

terry’s backstory was immensely heartbreaking, i don’t have much left to say about it

i really did love kali, though! the detour from hawkins was a bit unexpected, but i love that world building aspect and im really intrigued about kali’s backstory and also her...front story? damn i hope she’s in season three because there’s so much more tea left.

and like....what about 1-7, 9, 10? are they still alive [insert eyes emoji here]

i’m going to be Agressively Heterosexual and agree that billy is pretty™ but at the same time i’m super worried that he’s going to be woobified because he is abusive, and i’m 95% sure he’s racist. so yeah i really hope that doesn’t happen but it probably will [sips wine tiredly]

STEVEN, MY MANS. the development that started last season really paid off here! tbh even i felt hurt when he asked nancy “you don’t love me?” like this binch has got feelings! and he’s not perfect but he’s a lot more genuine than i gave him credit for and the fact that he babysits kids and calls them shitheads but also lets himself get his ass beat for them. oh steve, keep growing but never change.

okay, nitpick and potential unpopular opinion, but i kind of hated the jancy development in this season

because there really wasn’t any, i don’t know, and this is really shitty of me for all my campaigning last year, but it just felt very cheap and superficial

like nancy and steve break up very early in the season, conveniently

and then when they’re at conspiracy guy’s house it just felt too explicit, too heavy handed and cliche, like Conspiracy Guy is basically spelling out their relationship to the audience

and then they do the thing where they just....have sex, and maybe it’s because i’m wearing my grey-ace hat, but like, honestly, two characters having sex doesn’t mean shit, anymore, okay?

its mostly because of hookup culture imo

so jonathan and nancy have sex, but there’s no confession of feelings or anything, so it just feels like a cheap way to show the audience THEY’RE TOGETHER NOW ARE YOU HAPPY

and then they don’t really interact as much in that context for the rest of the season, so it’s left kind of ambiguous

and i understand that it’s a 9 episode season and this is more of a C plot, but i think i would have rather had a slow burn throughout the 9 episodes [cough] like last season [cough] with a more affectionate moment at the end than just break up, nancy’s free, SEX, done

it’s not a very emotionally gratifying narrative as it is

second nitpick: tbh the final battle of this season felt a little too note for note to the final battle of the first season, and it felt repetitive at times, so i admit i kind of lost interest in the middle of episode 9

i really thought the “watering the story down” to get JusticeForBarb™ was really clever 

and just....joyce. i’ll never get over joyce. i have no complaints, she’s a mom who punches back and she’s tenacious and good hearted and amazing and she raised two amazing boys 

i don’t know i need a nap 

[darkstrangevirgilanxiboi]

High School Trends That I Remember Fondly

Okay so let me share with you all some quality high school trends from my days in high school because boy were we a bunch of sass masters These all took place from 2007 -2012 because I went to a weird fusion school that lumped every grade from 7th to 12th together ( that means we had thirteen year olds up to 18-19 year olds in the same school ) Anyway let's go 7th Grade( I was a smol 13 year old) First off there were like 30 kids in each class okay? So.... - Pencils as hair decor ???? Why???? - Swiping needles from Home Ec and sticking them in your finger JUST under the surface of the skin to freak out the teach - Referring to lunch as ' the troph special' -Girls sending guys Valentine's that just said ' U R No Good ' and ' Allen Ur Not In My League ' - Guys sending girls tiny stuffed animals for V Day with cards that said ' I'm Soft For U' and ' Be My Plush One?' - Claiming various things had ' killed our ancestors ' : ' I can't do long division , my thirty seventh great grandfather died doing that' ' No I can't answer that question sir, every male in my family so far has died answering English questions ' ' I'm not allowed to be disciplined , discipline killed my grandma' - Wearing rubber bands as bracelets or rings and the tighter you could get it the cooler you were ???? This kid almost lost a finger by third period I mean ..... -Asking our biology teacher what would happen if insects could speak every class period ' What if wasps could speak but they only spoke Mid-6th Century English ' ' What if spiders all speak Russian' ' Do you think bees know English ' - Pestering our history teacher for the history of the Leaf Village ( I'm sorry Mr. Hoagland ) - Replying ' Deleted' when your name was called ..... I accidentally started this one 8th grade ( I was 14 ) - Rap battles to settle arguments ???? - Yoyo fights. It got intense. -Every white boy in school dressed like a bad Western movie character , cowboy hats and spurs and SO.MUCH.PLAID. - ' The Dew Crew', a gang of boys who drank nothing but Mountain Dew as refreshment , was born and monopolized the school's soda supply of Mountain Dew . All of them made it to adulthood but it is suspected they no longer require sleep and eat only the disdainful glares of women for survival ( at their peak there were 15 of them ) - Intense shouting of someone else's name every time something went wrong ( usually the name Sasuke ) - Pentagrams everywhere ; drawn on any surface we could find unsupervised for a second , started by me doodling in art class and picked up by my squad . The school board thought someone was possessed by the devil it was GREAT.... I NEVER GOT CAUGHT - In Chemistry we watched Finding Nemo about 3 times a week because the teacher was really forgetful and he let us watch it when he forgot his lesson plan , so by the end of the first month that year every kid he taught would call various roundish objects ' the butt' and I was nicknamed' Dory ' by everyone I knew Also the principal was nicknamed' Bruce" -Hardcore Zombie prep planning , there was a gang and everything . The Apoca-Punks are still strong - Disney discourse in English class because our teacher was a huge nerd for Disney and loved nothing more than to watch us argue over which princess would beat Gaston in a fight faster ( Kida won by a landslide but we all agreed Mulan would murder him in five seconds flat ) Also he nicknamed all of us after Disney characters and I was Lilo ( my best friend was Stitch ) - Okay so I brought a bag of chocolate as a treat for the class one week and I was really tired and out of it so when the teacher ( our English teacher Mr . Bagley, who was also the principal) asked me to ' explain the historical properties of chocolate' I got sarcastic and went ' For many years chocolate has been used in medicinal treatments for ailments of all kinds. Perhaps it will even cure the lack of hair on Mr . B's head' ...... For a second it was dead silent and then he laughed and said "Well put , you continue to live up to your nickname, Lilo!" - Shakespeare quotes at inopportune times " Exit, pursued by a bear" " We are in the middle of a test , Austin. " " A rose , by any other name , would smell-" " DO NOT ENCOURAGE HIM INDI" - The drama kids dramatically snapping during arguments - Okay so there was this weird loft zone in the second gym( because our school had two , a sucktastic old one from the fifties and a newish one from the eighties ) nobody was supposed to go up there unless they had permission and it was for filming a basketball game ??? But everyone went up there anyway and at least ten couples lost their virginity up there ( what a weird place to do it tho , we kept the wrestling mats up there) I sluffed class a few times and took a nap there And it became a Thing to draw a little baby face on the wall if you lost your V card there -Supergluing coins to stuff???? There's still a dime on someone's locker and it's been like ten years -' Ambrosia' , AKA this super delicious combo of cherry slurpee , Sprite, and orange Fanta that our English teacher made us during parties . He literally made it in these huge plastic bins and just ladeled it out to everyone 9th Grade( I was 15) - The Goth Invasion Everyone who was punk enough wore black ripped jeans and eyeliner and streaked their hair with red and black One kid never left the Goth phase , we love u Scott ( it's cool he was our school's Warren Peace anyway ) - AFTER A SCHOOL ASSEMBLY VIEWING OF SKY HIGH FOR HALLOWEEN MY CLASSMATE SCOTT WAS NICKNAMED WARREN BY THE ENTIRE SCHOOL He was really salty about it too , he said " Warren isn't goth he's Punk there's a difference you capitalist Bible thumpers' Scott got 54 Valentine's that year but just shrugged and gave his candy to me and my squad because we were , as he put it ' the only punk crew in class, plus you're all really cute ' He never kept a girlfriend very long but he was the nicest guy you've ever seen ( everyone thought he was gay but just too shy to say it ) Over the years he is consistly hotter , and more unashamedly Goth - My sister arrived in school and was immediately the most popular kid in school and was nicknamed ' Princess ' - My squad got nicknamed ' Squad 7 " due to our obsession with Naruto and other anime , and we each were nicknamed after characters from the show by my friend Indi ( who was named after Indiana Jones, no lie) Melanie was ' Kiba' ( which delighted her because she would marry him in a heartbeat ) Mackenzie was ' Neji' because according to Indi she was the most monologue-y Chandra was ' Hinata' because she was shy but fierce And I, Aubrey , was ' Gaara' because according to Indi :' Your dad is kinda sucky and you've got two siblings . You're sort of the social outcast of school and when you get annoyed enough it's like you've got this terrifying supernatural thing in your eyes , I love it ' I LOVE THAT NICKNAME 10th Grade( I'm 16) - ' Because I'm Batman ' being an answer to every question - Goonies puns - Three girls got pregnant and were called the ' Baby On Board Squad" - Due to this teen pregnancy scandal , my heavily Christian community had our school hold assemblies about how ' Sex will kill you' and how ' every time a teen has Sex Thoughts, an angel cries' ..... There were ' God Is Abstintent ' posters everywhere So naturally we revolted and the drama class put up these fliers reading ' Without Sex, You Wouldn't Be Around . ' ' Satan Loves You and Wants You To Explore Your Perfectly Normal Urges ' ' Sex Won't Kill You- But STD's Could! Use Protection! ' ' Wrap It Before He Taps It And The Angels Won't Be Crying " " Boys Like Girls.Boys Think Of Girls In Sexual Ways. Boys Best Treat Her Right First . Boys Best Be Stepping Up As Baby Daddys If They Tap Dat " And many more golden rebellious posters - Shouting " Go Go Power Rangers " when dealing with a problem and just out of nowhere any kid wearing the appropriate Power Ranger colored shirt would appear So you'd get a guy in red , a guy in blue , a guy in black , a guy in white , a guy in green , a guy in gold , a guy in silver, a girl in pink and a girl in yellow and they'd all pose dramatically and do the Power Rangers moves - Rubber band slingshot warfare using hairpins as ammo - The school dividing into Benders and Non Benders , and the school's most loved outcast was deemed Avatar( I got the honor so my squad was nicknamed accordingly ) - High School Musical was the biggest thing ever because our music teacher WROTE THE SCORES FOR THEM I MEAN....... We all knew every song by heart that year Everyone shipped Chad and Ryan 11th Grade( I was 17 ) -Percy Jackson was huge and everyone wanted a godly parent - Every girl used a dramatic break up song to end things with her man it was GLORIOUS - Taylor Swift was playing on the radio every day - My class finally realized that my friend Courtney and I had the same exact birthday and birth year , and thus introduced us to substitute teachers as ' The Fraternal Twins' Courtney and I are both gonna be 23 on March 20 at 6:40 am - Our history teacher thought my friends and I were in an assassin cult because we were always drawing kunai knives and swords and guns , so he banned kunai drawing????? And it thus became the Cool Thing to graffiti everywhere??? All because I drew one on my ASVAB???? -The sheriff pulled me out of homeroom because I'd been overheard singing P!nk's " Funhouse" and the Secretary thought I was an arsonist because of the line " I'm gonna burn this sucker down " and thus rumors spread like wildfire that I'd: ~ Murdered someone ~ Witnessed a crime ~ Started a gang war ~ Shot a cop ~ Robbed the one gas station in town ~ Insulted the sheriff's daughter by not inviting her to my birthday party so he was here to bribe me to do so ~ Stolen the sheriff's prized collection of horse paintings 12th Grade ( I was 18 ) - Posters everywhere about the world ending ( it was 2012) - Harry Potter mania - John Lennon Memes???? No really on the anniversary of his death the school was flooded with posters of him everywhere saying " In Loving Memory Of A Dreamer " and the radio only played his music and the drama class went around stating facts about his death it was surreal and I was part of it

[englishitaliantranslations]

Using cognates to learn Italian vocabulary

In my article on using cognates to help you learn vocabulary in another language, I gave the example of trying to learn the German word for important, ‘wichtig’, and how there’s no hook there to help you remember it (which is why so many of us fall back on rote repetition to try to hammer vocabulary into our heads). However, I pointed out, if you knew that wichtig descends from a root that also produced weigh, weight, and weighty, you could reframe the translation as wichtig = weighty, important, and now you have your meaningful connection.

Such connections don’t do away entirely with the need to practice, but they do mean that much less practice is required. You just have to focus on that meaningful connection.

Let’s have a look at that in action.

A list of the 1,000 most commonly spoken Italian words, generated from subtitles of movies and television series, includes 475 nouns plus 17 numbers (cardinal and ordinal, so I’ve put them in a separate category).

I have classified all 475 nouns into groups based on the available meaningful connections for an English speaker learning Italian:

208 are very easy, meaning they’re very close to their English counterparts (Group 1)

54 are still fairly easy, being cognate with their English counterparts, and similar enough if you’re looking for it (Group 2)

101 are harder to see, but are still cognate (Group 3)

77 are still cognate, but more difficult (Group 4)

23 have cognates, but with obscure words or common French or Spanish words, or the similarity is much less evident (Group 5)

12, and only 12, are unrelated, and thus require a mnemonic connection (Group 6)

Of the 17 numbers, all are cognate, and most of them quite obviously so.

In other words, about 94% of this group have some meaningful connection with an English word. I will agree that the nouns and numbers are far more likely to be cognate than other parts of speech, but still, this is impressive.

I am working on a workbook that will expand on these, and contain all the top 1000 words. In the meantime, I hope the following lists of these nouns and numbers are useful.

Here are the numbers that appear in the list:

uno, one

due, two — think duo, dual

tre, three — also cognate with tri-, as in triangle, trio, tripod

quattro, four — think of quadruple, quadrilateral, quadruped, square

cinque, five — cognate with five, but this is not very obvious; also cognate with quinquennial and quinate, and of course French cinq

sei, six — cognate, but you do have to focus on the first part of ‘six’!

sette, seven — cognate but it may help to think of September (which used to the 7th month, before the Romans reformed the calendar by popping in what would become July and August), also septenarian and septuagenarian; also French sept

otto, eight — think octagon, octopus, octave

nove, nine — French neuf, English November (same reason: it started off as the 9th month), novena

dieci, ten — cognate with decimal, and French dix

venti, twenty — okay, there are words in English cognate with this, but they’re pretty rare; still, if you drop the initial t, the words become much more similar

cento, hundred — cognate with cent, century

migliaia, thousand — think of millimeter, millisecond, etc

milione, million

primo, first — think of primary

secondo, second

terzo, third

Ok, let’s look at the nouns. First, the ones that are very similar to their English counterparts:

Group 1

abilità, skill, ability

accordo, accord, agreement, chord (mus.)

animale, animal

appartamento, apartment, flat

area, area

arte, art

atomo, atom

atto, act

auto, car (automobile)

banca, bank

banda, band

bar, bar

base, base

bit, bit

blocco, block

bordo, edge, border

campo, field, camp

capitale, capital

capitano, captain

carattere, character

caso, case

causa, cause

cella, cell

cent, cent

centro, center

città, city, town

classe, class

colonia, colony

colonna, column

colore, color

commercio, trade, commerce

condizione, condition

consonante, consonant

continente, continent

controllo, control

copia, copy

corda, rope, cord

corrente, current

corso, course

costa, coast

costo, cost

cotone, cotton

cuoco, cook

cura, care, treatment, cure

danza, dance

decimale, decimal

deserto, desert

difficoltà, trouble, difficulty

discussioni, discussion, argument

divisione, division

dizionario, dictionary

dollaro, dollar

effetto, effect

elemento, element

energia, energy

esempio, example

esercizio, exercise

esperienza, experience

esperimento, experiment

est, east

evento, event

famiglia, family

fatto, fact

feltro, felt

fico, fig

fiera, fair, exhibition

figura, figure

finale, final

finitura, finish

foresta, forest

forma, form, shape

forza, force, strength

frase, sentence, phrase

frazione, fraction

frutta, fruit

gas, gas

gatto, cat

giardino, garden

gruppo, group

idea, idea

industria, industry

insetto, insect

interesse, interest

lettera, letter

liquido, liquid

linea, line

livello, level

log, log

lotto, lot

macchina, machine

magnete, magnet

mais, maize, corn

mappa, map

marchio, mark

massa, mass

materia, matter

materiale, material

melodia, melody

messaggio, message

modello, model, pattern

motivo, reason, motive

metallo, metal

metodo, method

minuto, minute

molecola, molecule

momento, moment

montagna, mountain

monte, mount, mountain

moto, motion

motore, engine, motor

musica, music

natura, nature

nazione, nation

nome, name

nord, north

nota, note

numerale, numeral

numero, number

oceano, ocean

offerta, offer

oggetto, object

olio, oil

ora, hour

ordine, order

organo, organ

pagina, page

palla, ball

papà, dad

paragrafo, paragraph

parte, part

partito, party

pausa, pause, break

periodo, period

persona, person

persone, people

pistola, gun

porto, port

posa, pose

posizione, position

possibilità, possibility, chance

pratica, practice

presente, present

problema, problem

processo, process

prodotto, product

proprietà, property

punto, point

quarto di gallone, quart

quota, share, portion, quota

quoziente, quotient

radio, radio

record, record

regione, region

resto, rest

risultato, result

rock, rock

rosa, rose

sale, salt

scala, scale

scienza, science

scuola, school

segmento, segment

segno, sign — also signal

senso, sense

sistema, system

sezione, section

sillaba, syllable

simbolo, symbol

soluzione, solution

sorpresa, surprise

sostanza, substance

spazio, space

stato, state

stazione, station

storia, story, history

strada, street, road

stringa, string

strumento, instrument, tool

studente, student

studio, study

successo, success

sud, south

suffisso, suffix

supporto, support

tavolo, table

team, team

temperatura, temperature

termine, term

test, test

tipo, type

tono, tone

totale, total

treno, train

triangolo, triangle

tubo, tube

turno, turn

ufficio, office

umano, human

unità, unit, unity

uso, use

valle, valley

valore, value

vapore, steam, vapor / vapour

velocità, speed, velocity

verbo, verb

vigore, force, vigor / vigour

villaggio, village

visita, visit

vittoria, win, victory

Group 2

the fairly easy nouns (but you may have to work a little to see the connection)

acqua, water — aqua, aquatic

amico, friend — amicable, Spanish amigo

angolo, corner — angle

anno, year — annual

amore, love — amorous, French amour

bambino, child, baby

barca, boat — barge, barque

bellezza, beauty — belle (the belle of the ball)

bevanda, drink — beverage

cane, dog — canine

carne, meat — carnivore

casa, home, house — well-known in English from the Spanish casa; also cognate with French chez (to, at), as in chez moi (at my house)

cavallo, horse — cavalry

cielo, sky — ceiling

collo, neck — collar

corpo, body — corpse

cravatta, tie — cravat

denti, teeth — dental, dentist

dimensione, size — dimension

discorso, speech, discourse

donna, woman — madonna, dame

erba, grass — herb

fine, end — final, also French fin

fratello, brother — fraternal, fraternity

libro, book — library

lingua, language — cognates, also linguistics, lingo

luna, moon — lunar

madre, mother — cognates, also maternal, maternity

mano, hand — manuscript (written by hand), also French main, Spanish mano

mare, sea — marine, maritime

mente, mind — cognates, also mental

meraviglia, wonder — marvel, marvellous

mercato, market — cognates, also merchant, mercantile

morte, death — mortal, mortality

naso, nose — cognates, also nasal

nave, ship — nautical, navy, navigate

pneumatico, tyre / tire — pneumatic tyre

poesia, poem — also poetry, poetic

posto, place, spot — post, position

potenza, power — potent

regola, rule — cognates, also regulate, regular

risposta, answer — response, riposte

salto, jump — saltatory, saltation, also French sauter

sangue, blood — sanguinary, sanguine, exsanguinate, also French sang, Spanish sangre

signora, lady — cognate with senior, sire

sole, sun — solar

stella, star — stellar

terra, land, earth, ground — terrestrial, also French terre

tratto, stretch (of road, river, land) — tract

uomo, man — human

vento, wind — cognates, also ventilate

vista, view, sight — vista

vita, life — vital

Group 3

Here are the words that are cognate, but less obviously so:

alimentazione, supply, feed, diet — alimentary (canal), alimentation

anello, ring — annulus, annular.

aria, air — aura, air, aerate, aerial

avviso, notice, advice, advertisement

calore, heat — calorie, calorific

campana, bell — is in fact the word for a church bell in English, but this is not a well-known word! also cognate with campanology, the study of bells

canzone, song — chant, French chanson

capelli, hair — capillary (because capillary veins are as fine as hair)

capo, chief — capo (come into English through the portrayals of the mafia), capital, per capita

cappello, hat — cap

coda, tail — coda, caudal, caudate.

copertura, cover — cover, covert

desiderio, wish — desire

dito, finger — digit

divertimento, fun — diversion

fattoria, farm — factor (meaning someone who acts as a business agent, especially a manager of a landed estate)

ferro, iron — ferric, meaning related to iron; also French fer

ferrovia, railway — ‘iron way’, A railway is an iron way, ferric via

fila, row — file (in the sense of people in a row, moving ‘in file’)

finestra, window —  defenestrate, also French fenêtre, Spanish fenestra, German Fenster

fiore, flower — floral, flower; also Spanish flor, French fleur

flusso, flow — cognate with flux (when something’s in flux, it’s still in flow)

foglio, sheet, leaf — folio, foliate, exfoliate

fondo, bottom — fundamental, profound.

genitore, parent — progenitor, genitive

gioia, joy

giorno, day — journal, also French jour, journée

grado, degree, level, grade — grade, gradient

grafico, chart — graph, graphic

guerra, war — guerilla, also French guerre

immagine, picture — image, imagine

impianto, plant — implant, plant

isola, island — isle, isolated

lago, lake — lagoon

lato, side — lateral (relating to the side), quadrilateral (four-sided)

latte, milk — latte (milky coffee), lactose, lactating

lavaggio, wash — lave, lavatory, launder

lavoro, work, job — labour/labor

libbra, pound — this is why the abbreviation for pound is lb. (from Latin libra), also French livre, Spanish libra, and the zodiac sign Libra

luce, light — lux, lucent, translucent

lunghezza, length — from lungo, meaning long

maschi, men — macho, masculine

mattina, morning — matins (an early morning church service), also French matin

medico, doctor — medic, medical

mese, month — cognate with menses, trimester (3 months), semester (six months); also Spanish mes and French mois

mezzogiorno, noon — break it down into mezzo-giorno = mid-day

miglio, mile — cognates, and related to migliaia, thousand, from the Roman mile being 1000 paces

miniera, mine — cognates

modo, manner, way — mode

mondo, world — mundane (worldly, belonging to the world), also French monde, Spanish mundo

muro, wall — mural, immured

nascita, birth — nascent, renaissance

negozio, store, shop — negotiate

nemico, enemy — inimical, enemy

notte, night — nocturnal, and indeed night

nube, cloud — nebula, nebulous

onda, wave — undulate

oro, gold — auric, French or

orologio, watch, clock — horology

ossigeno, oxygen — cognates

osso, bone — ossify

ovest, west — cognates, also French ouest, Spanish oeste

padre, father — padre, pater, paternal, paternity

pane, bread — French pain, as in pain au chocolat; also Spanish pan

passo, step — pace

pensiero, thought — pensive, also French penser

pensione, board — pension

pesce, fish — Pisces, piscatory, also Spanish pez, and French poisson

pezzo, piece — cognates (also, you can think of a piece of pizza!)

pianeta, planet — cognates

piano, plane, plan, floor — cognates

piazza, square, plaza — plaza

piede, foot — pedal, pedestrian, also French pied, Spanish pie

piedi, feet — as before

pista, track — French piste, as in the English expression "off piste"

porta, door — portal, also French porte

primavera, spring — prima is cognate with primary (1st) and vera with vernal (relating to spring)

prossimo, neighbor — proximal, proximate

radice, root — radish

re, king — rex

riva, shore — river

rotolo, roll — rotate, roll

ruota, wheel — rotate, rota

sedia, chair — sedan chair, sedentary

sedile, seat — ditto

seme, seed — semen

soggetto, subject — cognates

soldato, soldier — cognates

soldi, money — solid, an old coin called the solidus, also French sol, sou

sorella, sister — sorority, also French sœur, Spanish sor

speranza, hope — esperance, desperate (out of hope), also Spanish esperanza, French espérer

spettacolo, show — spectacle

suolo, soil — cognate with French sol, Spanish suelo

suono, sound — cognates, also French son, Spanish son, sueno

superficie, surface — superficial

uovo, egg — ovary, also French œuf, Spanish huevo

viaggio, trip — voyage

vocale, vowel — vocal (because vowels are voiced by the vocal cords with little restriction on them, in an open way)

voce, voice — cognates

volontà, will — voluntary

zucchero, sugar — cognates

Group 4

harder cognates, where the links are more obscure:

acciaio, steel — the common root means sharp; cognate with acid, acerbic, acrimony

ala, wing — cognate with alar, agile, axle

albero, tree — cognate with arbor, arboreal, arboretum, also French arbre

azienda, company — cognate with hacienda

bastone, stick — cognate with bâton

caccia, hunt — cognate with catch

camera, room — used in the expression in camera, and cognate with bicameral, chamber, cabaret

camion, truck — comes from French camion, which has passed the word into many languages, including English; may derive from chemin, meaning way, path (see Spanish camino)

cappotto, coat — cognate with cape

carica, charge (as in attack), load — cognates, also car, chariot (think of a chariot charge and a car's load)

carta, paper — cognate with card, chart

cerchio, circle — cognates, also circus

chiamata, call — cognate with claim, declaim, proclaim

chiave, key — cognate with clavis, clavichord, clavicle, clef

collina, hill — cognates, also column, colliculus (anatomical term)

colpo, blow — cognate with the English/French word coup (coup de foudre, coup d'état, coup de grâce)

coppia, pair — cognate with couple; could also think of copied

cosa, thing — cognate with cause, also French chose

cuore, heart — cognate with core, accord, also French cœur

domanda, question, request, demand — cognate with demand

estate, summer — cognate with estivate/aestivate, estival/aestival, also French été

età, age — cognate with eternal, eon

figlio, son — cognate with filial, also French fils

filo, wire — cognate with filament, file

fiume, river — cognate with fluvial, flume, fluent, fluid

folla, crowd — cognate with full, folk, also French foule

fornitura, supply — cognate with furniture, furnish

foro, hole — cognate with door, forum, forensic

fretta, hurry — cognate with Fr frit, meaning fried (as in pommes frites), and indeed English fry, fried

fuoco, fire — cognate with focus (think of the hearth historically being the focus of the home or room)

gamba, leg — cognate with gambol, and French jambe

gamma, range — cognate with gamut, and of course the Greek letter gamma (but this doesn't point to the meaning in the same way)

ghiaccio, ice — cognate with glacier, and French glace (ice, ice cream)

gioco, game — cognate with joke, juggle, also French jeu, Spanish juego

giro, ride, tour, turn — cognate with gyrate

grido, cry — may be cognate with cry, also Spanish gritar

inverno, winter — cognate with hibernate, also French hiver

lattina, can, tin (diminutive of latta, meaning the same thing) — cognate with lath, lattice (all to do with being thin, narrow)

legge, law — cognate with legal

legno, wood — cognate with ligneous, lignite

letto, bed — cognate with litter (think of the litter used for carrying the sick or wounded, not trash), also French lit

lotta, fight, struggle — cognate with lock, locket, through a root meaning to bend, twist; also French lutte, Spanish lucha

mela, apple — cognate with melon

metà, half — cognate with median, mediate

moglie, wife — cognate with moll, mollify, Molly

neve, snow — cognate with Nevada, névé, nival, and indeed snow; also French neige, Spanish nieve

occhio, eye — cognate with ocular, oculist, monocle, and indeed eye; also Spanish ojo

orecchio, ear — cognate with aural, auricular, ear, also ‎French oreille

paese, country — cognate with peace, also French pays, Spanish país

parola, word — cognate with palaver, parole, parlay, parable, also Spanish palabra

paura, fear — cognate with French peur (also quite similar to fear)

pece, pitch — cognates

pelle, skin — cognate with pelt, pellagra, film

pericolo, danger, peril

peso, weight — cognate with suspend, pound, expense, pensive

piega, crease, fold, pleat — cognate with pleat, replica, duplicate

pietra, stone — cognate with petrify (literally, turn to stone), also French pierre, Spanish piedra

pulcino, chick — cognate with pullet, also French poulet, poule

punteggio, score — may be cognate with point (as in score a point)

rabbia, anger, rabies — cognate with rabies, rage

raccolto, crop — cognate with recollect, collect

raggio, radius, spoke — cognate with radius

ramo, branch — cognate with root, ramus, ramification (branching)

ricerca, search, research —  cognates, also French chercher (Cherchez la femme!)

richiesta, claim, request, demand — cognate with require, request

rumore, noise — cognate with rumour

schiavo, slave — cognates

secolo, century — secular (from the Latin saeculum meaning generation, century, and also worldly), also French siècle, Spanish siglo

sega, saw — cognate with saw, dissect, secant, segment (notice the cutting theme)

sonno, sleep — cognate with somnolent

sostantivo, noun — cognate with substantive, with core of word (stant) cognate with stand; think of a noun as a substantive thing that stands, that is, a concrete object

spalla, shoulder — cognate with spatula, spatulate (think of the broad, flat nature of the shoulder blade), epaulettes, also Spanish espalda

tempo, weather — cognate with tempo, tempest, also French temps, Spanish tiempo

vece, stead, place (as in, in my place, in my stead) — cognate with vice versa, vice (meaning in place of, subordinate to), also week, vicissitude, vicar

vela, sail — cognate with veil, velum (a thin membrane like a veil)

vestito, dress — cognate with vestiment, vest, divest

vetro, glass — cognate with vitreous, vitrify, also French verre, vitre, and Spanish vidrio

Group 5

Those with with the hardest connections:

anatra, duck — cognate with an obscure English word, anatine, also German Ente

bisogno, need — cognate with French besoin; a possible keyword for those unfamiliar with this word is bison

bocca, mouth — another obscure cognate: buccal (relating to the cheek), also French bouche (as in Fermez la bouche!)

braccio, arm, branch — cognate with brachial; not cognate with branch, but similarity useful

bugia, lie — cognate with boast

cambiamento, a change, shift, turn — cognate with change, although not very obvious; perhaps clearer if you know that cambiamento derives from cambiare, to change, and the English comes from French changier

guscio, shell — may be cognate with cyst

pioggia, rain — cognate with pluvial, flood, float, also French pluie

pipistrello, bat — used to be vipistrello, which makes the link to cognates vespers (evening prayers) and western (where the sun sets) more obvious

pollice, inch, thumb — cognate with obscure word pollical (of the thumb), also French pouce (thumb, inch)

ruscello, stream — cognate with rivulet, also French ruisseau (but may be easier to go with a keyword: the rushing stream)

sabbia, sand — cognates from a root meaning to pour, also French sable

salita, climb — cognate with saltatory, saltation, also French sauter

scarpa, shoe — cognate with sharp, derives from Gothic word meaning sharp object with pointed ends, because shoes had a pointed end?

sentiero, path — cognate with French sentier, Spanish sendero; apparently not cognate with send, sent, but PIE root word *sent- meant to go, to travel, so could be considered so

sera, evening — here's an obscure cognate that some might know: serotine (a bat); more familiarly probably: French soir (as in bonsoir), and Spanish sera

settimana, week — cognate with September, through the sept=7 connection; also French semaine, Spanish semana

slittamento, slip, sliding — not cognate, but similarity sufficient for imagining so

sorriso, smile — cognate with risible (laughable) and riant (laughing); sorriso derives from Latin sub-rideo (below a laugh, as it were); also cognate with French sourire, souriant

stagione, season — cognate with station, also Spanish estación

taglio, cut — cognate with tagliatelle, intaglio

testa, head — cognate with French tête, Spanish testa

uccello, bird — cognate with avian, aviary, also French oiseau

Group 6

Those with no connections. These are the ones for which a mnemonic link is recommended, and I’ve provided some suggestions:

cantiere, shipyard, building site — canter into the yard

cibo, food — chip (actually cognate with ciborium, a receptacle for communion wafers, if you happen to know it; also Spanish cebo)

elenco, list — elect to the list

gara, race — cheer the race

mucca, cow — moo cow

partita, (sports) match, game — participate in the game (actually cognate with a musical term in English, if you happen to know it)

ragazza, girl / ragazzo, boy — ragged urchin

scatola, box — casket

scheda, card — the schedule is written on the card

se stesso, self — stetson

tuta, suit (sweatsuit, tracksuit, overalls) — tutu

volto, face — think of the expression volte face