#if you’re young enough you can get away with this btw. and it’s funny. win

[raedas]

i’m failing at taarof

[calehenituseappreciation]

Ive seen a lot of Dream (and usually Techno and Phil too) as gods au (i have one too dw) but all of you are sleeping on the funniest option.

Tommy is the god.

Tommy.

hes the only one in that galaxy (other than drista ofc)

Just imagine how fucking funny it is like 

it would be so fucking hilarious

and tommy just doesnt tell them

so techno is just there making all these blood god jokes and jokingly telling tommy to serve him and tommys just laughing

imagine a god in the form of a chaotic 16 year old racoon gremlin just walts into your land commits arson and gets banned, only to come back with another person who he helps start a nation for drugs?

imagine how fucking funny it is

just

imagine tubbo banning a literal god from his lands and he just doesnt come back? he just plays by the rules? then goes and like sits in the corner all sad because some humans/dreamons told him to leave

ranboo, just joining the server: hi-  a chaotic gremlin god: wanna commit arson with me?  ranboo, just trying to vibe and maybe not disturb this god: sure 

Phil and Ranboo recongnize Tommy as a god on sight.

Everyone else just refuses to believe it. hes Tommy. Tommyinnit. hes just weird lol

And Drista being a fucking chaotic blood god? 

drista is open about her godhood and does not hesitate to spawn blocks

Drista finds Dream and decides she likes this small human, and dream just has to deal with it lmao.

drista and tommy are both born at the same time.

Tommy is a god of music, chaos, war and theivery (the last one bc he is a BITCH)

Drista is the blood god, chaos, deception, and theatre

okay but imagine the sbi interactions... like ig in this au tommy joins at like 12/13 years of age (in their minds) so he doesnt really grow much 

and like tommy, a literal god, just claiming phil as his father???

phil, in his house making eggs, assuming one of his sons woke up and came to the kitchen, not looking: hey son  tommy, from their couch, already deciding hes phils son now: whats up dad? phil: looks up at tommy who are you tommy: idk dad, who am i  phil: *stares at tommy for a second* eh i made extra eggs you can stay 

ASJIDGASUIOG IMAGINE TOMMY TELLING THEM HES A GOD BUT THEY THINK HES JOKING AND IGNORE HIM

everyone on the server: tommy is the youngest! tommy, as old as the universe: no im not!!!! im not a child!!!! he doesnt pout because pouting is for children and hes not a child but hes pouting tubbo: lol im older than you by a month tommy dont try to hide it tommy: im not a child!!!! techno: laughs

tommy doesn't try to hide that hes a god just its tommy

thats all the evedince anyone needs to think tommy isnt a god or powerful its like mcc hes good but only when he doesnt throw for content

quackity: sees drista written in bedrock lmao drista visited? tommy: yeah! i wrote that for her!  quackity: snorts yeahhhh sureee tommy

imagine like how fucking funny it is jsut like 

a fucking chaotic god breaks into your house androbs you makes a room under your house and decides to live in your floorboards

imagine dream like trying to manipulate tommy, and tommy a fucking anchient diety immeditly recongnizes what hes doing

but decides to play along for the angst and giggles and then actually gets mad when no one fucking cares for his theatrics

tommy, storming off to technos base to rob and build under: >:///// cant believe none of them acknoledged my  deppression 

i love that tommy stills robs everyone, he doesnt need to he can spawn in anything he wants

he just does it for the sport of robbery

JAKOGFSDOH

THE HOLY LAND

dream: im god actually tommy: thats so fucking funny lets make a cult about that :)  dream: see! look! im god! and jesus!  tommy: wheezing

imagine tommy getting stressed and letting go of his mortal form

Tommy, his human form peeling away, showing his actual form a bit: WH̸͘A͠T̷ ̶̢T͞H͢E ̡͘F̴̵͘Ù̧C͜K҉ ̶T͘͜͞E͟CHǸ͏Ǫ  Techno: HAH?

tommy just saw tubbo and got emotionally attached

Tommy, a literal god: hello Tubbo: oh hi do you like my pet bee? Tommy: you’re mine now Tubbo: im okay with this

tommy, a bored god: gives techno shapeshifting powers  techno, not even caring: changes into more human to pig-ishg forms as he wishes this is my life now ig 

phil lets tommy do fuck all in exile bc he knows hes a god hes fine

phil: IDC IF YOURE A GOD! YOU WILL DO THE DISHES NOW YOUNG MAN! tommy: grumbles but does them

phil is the only one who can control tommy

god... tommy... with star freckles... on his human form... (as well as his god one)

tommy: f̷͛͠a̵̋t̵̒̑h̸̚e̶̓͝r̸͊ ̸̐̒i̴ ̸̅̿d̷̉͆o̵͂͋ ̵̛̆ñ̸̾ő̶́t̸̎́ w̶͆͘i̴͠s̵̓̈́h̸͗́ ̵̯͗f̶͋́ő̴͑r̷̐̌ ̶͝é̵̽g̸͊͂g̵̒s̷͂̃  phil: idc, eat your goddamn eggs tommy: pouts

tommy, despite being able to get supplies himself by fucking spawning them in: hey tubbo? we need supplies 

In this au ig like if a god claims you you get a mark on your skin showing that. Drista’s would be like a green crown, Tommys would be a red and white disk (white as the outer ring and red as the center) (its different enough that if you don’t realise tommy is a god you wouldnt realise whos it is) (schlatt is the only one who never had one which shoulda been a sign dude :/)

Dream has two from the beginning, everyone else has only one, well until they meet drista. (sbi have had one since they met tommy, though they dont remember the first time they met tommy)

wait what if tommy like found them all as children one by one and later kinda pulled some strings to get them all in one kingdom. (he still joined sbi through forcing phil to adopt him) 

OKAY BUT IMAGINE IF TOMMY MET TECHNO WHEN TECHNO WAS YOUNG ENOUGH TO NOT REMEMBER

tommy would hang out with baby techno and tell him stories

once he told him the story of a man named thesus

another time he told him the story of a blood god

like for example tommys first time meeting techno would be like

(for context techno lived in a shitty village and was an orphan and it was kinda a dog eat dog place, he learned how to be strong because of it)(he was young enough that he doesn’t remember this well, just like learning about the blood god and someone giving him gold)

baby techno: sighs tommy, appearing out of nowhere: oh heyyy whyre you sad? techno: jumps turning around with a knife up ready for a fight who are you tommy: im tommy! :) techno: what do you want from me! you dont scare me! tommy: whats your name! techno: i have a knife! i'll use it! tommy: of course, thats a given, but its rude not to tell people your name techno, confused: t-technoblade? tommy: smiles thats a nice name techno: so. tommy: hm? techno: why're you here tommy: i don't have a reason. im just a traveller! techno: then why hole to this terrible village! theres nothing nice here! everyone is terrible and so are you! tommy: hmmmm i dont agree techno: what are you? a child? i thought adults were supposed to know that everyone is mean tommy: mmhmm looks at the bruise on technos face where'd you get that? techno: fight. i won. i'll win against you too! so don't try anything. tommy: of course. i would never win in a fight against a blood god techno, putting down his knife a bit, stars in his eyes: blood god? tommy: grins blood. god. i think she'd like you. techno, muttering: maybe i can give the blood god some of your blood tommy: laughs yeah, she'd defenitly find you intresting tommy: here tosses techno a golden crown at techno, he spawned it in in the moment techno: whats this? tommy: a crown, thought it suit you screams in the distance tommy: huh. i need to go. have fun lil piglin. ruffles technos hair before running off towards the screaming unbeknownst to the pig the blood god was actually the one waiting for the god he met. techno: stares at the crown 

Techno found a pouch of gold in his ‘house’ later that day. he didnt know who left it but it helped him get food for that night. (he kept the crown)

okay but imagine tommy not taking the war seriously at all, and only seeing it as a squabble between mortals, Like toddlers fighting

dream: SURENDER BY TOMMOROW OR WE'LL DECLARE WAR! wilbur: FUCK YOU WE'LL NEVER SURENDER AND JOIN YOUR SMP! Tommy: how cute

tommy doesnt realise that theyre serious until wilbur dies

tommy would usually go apeshit against anyone who dares messes with his humans, but what is he supposed to do when his humans are fighting Eachother?

wilbur: fucking goes insane and dies  tommy: hey- hey can you guys let me talk to wil for a sec? everyone else leaves tommy, unsually somber: sorry i didnt help you i forgot how easily breakable mortals are tommy: this time you wont die, and i'll make it so that you dont break again, okay? tommy: brings wilburs soul out of its body and enters his mindscape ghostbur: wakes up what- where am i? tommy: hi there ghostbur: who are you tommy: i go by a lot of names all, one, you, the world, the universe, god, but you can just call me tommy ghostbur: oh okay. who am i? tommy: you're name was wilbur soot. you were the son of philza minecraft and brother to Technoblade, Tubbo and myself. ghostbur: was? tommy: well you see, you died. ghostbur: oh... well what am i then? tommy: a ghost! well actually its your choice. would you like to continue your existance or fade away with your body? ghostbur: i dont want to fade away! tommy: smiles thats what i thought you'd say stretches his hand to wilbur ghostbur: grabs tommy hand tommy: lets go home

ghostbur doesnt remember that though

he only remembers the good

tommy wont let him remember the bad, what if he breaks again? mortals are so fragile

phil realises what tommy did as soon as he sees ghostbur 

drista, painting tommys nails (there both in god form btw) (after wilburs death btw): tommy shouldn't you of all gods realise how fragile they are?  tommy: i know just... forgot  drista: sighs and nods i get what you mean, especially with the ones we found... they act a lot like gods sometimes i forgot they arent  tommy: ikr? wait- drista here gets drista's hair out of her face you were gonna get it on my nails, anyways, don't judge me. we all know if dream died you would turn him into a ghost too drista: smirks not if you do it first, we all know you would tommy: you say that as if you wouldn't fight me to do it first  drista: .... tommy: ... drista: both of us when he dies? tommy: nods tommy: anyways my turn to do your nails 

or like tommy with ghostbur like

ghostbur: i don't like this :( tommy, a worried brother and god: whats wrong? ghostbur: everyone is mad at me and i d-dont know why- why are they mad at me tommy: theyre mad at something alivebur did ghostbur: b-but im not alivebur sniffs it hurts. i dont like it. tommy: spawns in some blue here ghostbur: whats that? tommy: its some blue! it'll help you not hurt anymore! ghostbur: how does it work? tommy: see how its blue? ghostbur: nods tommy: well its blue because it sucks up all the bad feelings! it'll help ghostbur: !!!!! ghostbur: presses the blue into his chest ghostbur: !!!!its working!!!! :D tommy: smiles good

wilbur fucking died and tommy went from annoying little brother to caring older brother

tommy just wants to help his brother :) though he doesnt realise that not letting ghostbur remember bad memories isnt good

*at logsted shire btw* ghostbur: who are you? tommy, chuckling: did you forget me already ghostbur? ghostbur: i didnt forget you! i think! you're tommy! i just... you're different tommy, looks over at ghostbur: different how? ghostbur: you're not normal are you? tommy: grins whaaaaat? you think im weirdddd? how heartbreaking... my own brother thinks im weird, this is terrible ghostbur: giggles tommy: but really, don't worry about it bur. ghostbur: you sure? tommy: yeah, dont worry about me ghostbur: smiles okay! do you want some blue anyways? tommy: giggles sure! ghostbur: grins

ghostbur isnt worried about tommy

he knows hes strong

phil having to tell tommy that he cant just not let wilbur remember the bad memories

and tommys like "what if he breaks again!" and phil hugs him and tells him to at least ask ghostbur if he wants to remember and tommys like ‘fine’

tommy: hey bur? ghostbur: yeah? tommy: do you like you're memories? ghostbur: i mean, yeah its hard not to when you only remember the good tommy, quietly: would you want to remember the bad? ghostbur: w-what brought this question on tommy: answer the question ghostbur: no- alivebur was badi shouldn't want to- tommy: but what do you want bur? wilbur, silent for a moment: yeah- yeah i do. not that i like the bad memories! they hurt... but i wish i could remember tommy: ... ghostbur: hey tommy? tommy: yeah? ghostbur, with tears in his eyes: do you think they'd be less mad at me if i could remember, maybe then i could repair my relationships, what the hell am i supposed to do when i dont even remember hurting them? tommy: what if they dont? what if you break again? ghostbur, saltily: we'll maybe i'll be able at least be able to say i know why everyone hates me tommy: i know how to get all of your memories back ghostbur, looks towards tommy in shock: you do??? tommy: nods ghostbur, voice wavering: for how long tommy: since the beginning ghostbur: and you didnt tell me tommy: i did what i thought was best. i just didnt want you to hurt anymore. ghostbur, angrily: WELL THAT CLEARLY WORKED DIDNT IT? tommy: sorry wilbur, sometimes i forget how to handle humans ghostbur: what- tommy: sighs and taps ghostbur on the forehead and ghostbur does the ghost equivilent of passing out tommy: wont hide any memories this time

ghostbur doesnt wake up, instead wilbur wakes up weither thats good or bad we'll see

wilbur, waking up with all his memories: HOLY SHIT TOMMY WASN'T KIDDING phil, who was reading beside the bed tommy placed wilbur into, which was in technos house. yes he broke into technos house with a passed out wilbur. move on.: hm? wilbur: holy shit phil: huh? yeah. wilbur: wait you knew? phil: yeah i recongnized him as soon as i saw him about 5 years ago now? wilbur: excuse me while i freak out because my little brother is an actual god

it really hits wilbur that tommy is a god later

wilbur: hey tommy? tommy: yeah? wilbur: how fucking old are you? tommy: snorts of course thats the first thing you ask wilbur: well? tommy: i dont really know the exact years since years are kind of a human thing that were invented recently wilbur: they were invented thousands of years ago- tommy: but it was around the beginning of this galaxy wilbur, softly: what the fuck

tommy telling wilbur stories about different heros and villains and different humans he met during his life.

Adsjbffsg what if Tommy made himself blonde and blue eyed and white bc thats hyow the first human he met looked like asjfhsd

and just didnt change that, despite meeting new humans, its just his defult settings.

he would totally do this tho im crying.

drista just based her human form off dream because she is his sister now. he must deal with this. trying disowning me when i look like you BITCH.

thats my take anyways later might continue this

[starcookiechu]

ROTT Review

SPOILERS FOR THE MOVIE. You have been warned.

FYI: I just finished the movie. So my opinions may change a bit but here I am writing a full review.

Before I talk about the movie, I have to say this movie has fantastic animation. The music is as good as usual.

Ok now the story. Let’s start with the our Trollhunters.

Fair Lady Claire. My girlie Claire really brought her all into this. I’m really proud of the young woman she has grown up into. However for the sake of the plot and story they make her run out of magic juice quite a bit. But my girl is still the best and gives it her all.

Wingman Domzalski. I will be perfectly honest. Toby is kind of the annoying best friend at times and bothers me as a plus size person. (They really push the over eating thing to the point that it’s his biggest factor.) Toby is a very eager kid who is ready to get in the action. Never being negative to his friend but the best emotional support who will always be at his side. Sure Toby was used a bit as comedic relief in the movie but when push comes to shove, Toby will always be there to do the right thing.

Blinky is amazing as always. One of the best father figures out there.

Aarrrgh was there. Was great for the scenes he was in, but all together didn’t do much that altered the story.

Our Trollhunter, Jim Lake Jr. Someone I admire and basically see as my little brother/child. Kiddo really did it. I know everyone is upset that Jim’s arc was redone when we had the “Unbecoming” episode. If I could come to a peaceful middle ground, I saw we all need to blame Merlin. He really rocked Jim’s world and self worth. When the creator of the object you need to save the world with tells you “You’re not enough”, it really can be a great setback. But once we past that, Jim really pulled through. Amulet or not, he is our Trollhunter.

Mommy Dr. Lake was there. Barbara was mostly there for our emotions.

Dilf Strickler. I felt that he was changed a bit since we last saw him, but he had a new purpose. He was more cautious and happy because he had a chance at a happy life with Barbara. Which makes what happens to him more upsetting. 

Nomura my sweet. This movie did not deserve you. At least she was with Draal.

And Not-Enrique (seriously why didn’t they ever give him an actual name) just wasn’t in the movie.

How about some CreepSlayers?

BABY ELI PEPPERJACK CAME BACK LOOKING SO CUTE. So proud.

Bumbling knight oaf Steve the Palchuckian was great as usual.

I will say though. The whole pregnancy plot was just a way to get Eli and Steve out of the way. I could feel that the writers maybe didn’t like Steve so much since Wizards. But Steve was once again someone to laugh at. Pregnant and out of the way.

How about some Akiridions?

Aja my darling girl, oh how you’ve grown. I understand some think she has changed. However I must say that her preparing a plan B on the side was smart. She isn’t just a princess on earth anymore. She is a queen on a distant planet. So if she thought evacuation was best, it would ensure that everyone would live. And avoid losing more valuable people from her life. So no, I can’t blame her.

DJ Kleb was there. He was kinda doin his own thing and messing with Steve. Brother-in-law stuff.

It was good to see Varvatos Vex.

Stu was the man in the background working on the busy important things like working on the amulet. Personally I feel like the series REALLY underutilizes Stu A LOT so I was so happy to see him being a part of something huge.

And finally some Wizards.

Douxie my love, you were amazing as usual. His powers have grown greatly and have contributed to the adventure. But god the writers really do love to take everything away from him don’t they. It’s unfair.

Archie was kinda just there and just... I understand leaving Douxie but that doesn’t mean I like it.

Nari the sweetest. I can only imagine the guilt she felt to end Nomura. Her self sacrifice was probably the one in the movie most called for.

Alright now I’ll talk about the movie.

I can whole heartedly say this movie was rushed. To be honest I feel like the original writers weren’t completely in this. At least it felt kind of not so much Trollhunters or 3Below vibes but more Wizards, if that makes sense whatsoever. Something is off.

I just want to blame Merlin for everything. To hell with that guy.

The beginning sequence was great. A car chase to a moving train. Which ends up with Toby of course screwing up and breaking the brakes. Of course. The train falling off the tracks which ultimately ends up with Nari gone. Oh yeah, and video recordings of Magic, trolls and being taken in by the police. Great.

WHY TF WAS TOBY TELLING THEIR STORY TO THE POLICE. YOU DON’T MIX THE POLICE IN STORIES UNLESS YOU KNOW THE COP PERSONALLY. CUZ IT’S A MESS AND THE POLICE GET IN THE WAY. GDI TOBY.

Our heroes go back to base on the new and improved Camelot. Where we discover that Barbara and Strickler are now engaged. Happy news and would secure that Jim has another Father figure in his life and his mother’s happiness. Which explains Strickler’s “stay behind” advice. Now he has a family to watch over. He must be careful and warns that Jim’s actions could cost so much that he might not be able to afford.

Enters our Majesty Aja and the new stud on the block, Eli. Dang I wish puberty hit me like that.Truck-kun strikes again. And also enters... the pregnancy thing. I will say, I didn’t mind it too much... at first. But there are complications. Steve is too young to be a father and dang 7 kisses?? I can’t help but feel like Aja should have mentioned that or it was a last minute plan to write out Steve and Eli. (Which it was.) It was funny sure cuz omegaverse and ALIENS but all together it’s really iffy.

They really had Douxie preform a body-swap spell only so it would be undone. And undoing the spell only hurt them both?? C’mon. C’mon.

And they mention the Krohnisfere. We’ll get back to it. Jim gets a brand new amulet infused with Akaridion tech. However theres an issue. It was created by Merlin right? Who is a wizard right? Who uses MAGIC. Shame Douxie wasn’t there to help make it. Ya know. 1/2 of the original creator of the AMULET. So it’s missing a huge part and for the sake of the plot, Jim doesn’t test the Amulet which is out of character personally.

Toby makes a silly big deal over a penny. I was actually hoping they would make it a silly Chekhov's gun later on. But no, it’s just Toby being loud and comedic relief.

The titans are released and we visit a very pregnant Steve. Ok so it’s a rushed kind of thing. ok.

Aja suggests evacuation. You can say it’s out of character but we need context. When Aja helped in the Doomsday Battle, she was ensured a way out but if she let the people of Arcadia perish. She decided to stay and help. But now the Trollhunter himself can’t help. So to ensure the survival of everyone, evacuation. A best chance for everyone to survive. Plus she is now a Queen. She rules over a whole planet which must change her thinking.

Now our characters are split into 3 teams:

Blinky, Archie, Archie’s dad and Claire for the Krohnisfere.

Jim, Aja, Toby, Strickler and Barbara for the Glacial Titan.

Nomura, Douxie and Aarrgh for the Earth Titan.

Now here is where I have problems. WHY. DID. THEY. SEND. TROLLS. TO. BRAZIL. IN. THE. DAY. Nomura dying was just so out of pocket. Unnecessary. I couldn’t even grieve properly I didn’t have a chance to process. The best thought I could think was “At least she’s with Draal now.” 10 seconds later, Strickler makes the choice to sacrifice himself. Because of Jim’s heroic’s, Strickler decided to try to save the most important people in his life. The person who was always dishonest finally had a chance to live a happy life with his family. The one who played it safe now had to make the final impulsive move. And unfortunately, his death was in vain. These deaths were just so forced. It wasn’t in any way good. And Strickler being one of the best written characters just going in such a way was just off. He died for nothing. He could have turned back and fought another battle but... no.

(BTW Barbara was just there... for Strickler’s death.)

We move to Babara and Jim having a heart to heart. I’m glad she didn’t blame Jim but a small moment of anger. Something a little more real for me but no I guess. Barbara will always just be Jim’s mom. She mention’s Jim’s father and it passed so quickly I missed it on my initial viewing. I’m happy that Jim’s father is never revealed or made a bigger part in his story. This is good representation for those of us who did have our fathers walk out on us. That we can grow despite our parents failing us.

And finally team Krohnisfere. Archie just leaves. He’s gone. Poor Douxie. A mentor and now his closest companion.

Our heroes meet up to go against the Volcanic Titan. In comes Varvatos Vex on a Gun Robot. Nice to see some good ol Gundam with a character mentioned throughout the entire trilogy. However it doesn’t last. BTW for the sake of survival, Aja leaves Jim and Toby. Iffy.

Douxie pulls a “Jason stop. This isn’t you.” thing with Nari and is reunited with his friend.(+ points for the shippers. It’s kinda winning me over?) Also, Claire now has the power to teleport a Titan. I know she’s much stronger than she was for the Trollhunters Sn 2 finale, but cmon. You can’t just say she’s out of magic juice and then pull this. C’mon.

(btw did the titan make a War of the Worlds tripod sound? No? Just me?)

Nari sacrifices herself and takes the other god with her. Which takes away Douxie’s other companion. Mr. Stark I don’t feel so good. Why does this movie hate Douxie so much. (I am so sorry shippers. Angst.)

BLINKY DIDN’T SEE A PAGE? ADDRESSING IT IN THE SHOW DOESN’T GIVE YOU A PASS. I forgot the word but this irony isn’t greatttt.

Jim now has to pull out the legendary sword Excalibur. But he can’t cuz he hasn’t harnessed the power of friendship.

And Steve is giving birth. At the worst time. What is this a zombie movie??? C’mon.

Jim says “Magic is friendship” And Stu is finally being used for one grand act. Seriously Stu is just so unappreciated. So he fixes the amulet with magic.

Basically everyone who went on top of the Volcanic titan falls off at some point. Except Jim cuz of course some 1v1. 

ONCE AGAIN Claire is out of magic juice. Because... reasons.

Toby makes the choice to race to Jim’s side with the technology to cancel out magic. (Wait how does science stop magic again)

BTW, For the Good of all doesn’t hit as well BUT it’s not mentioning any glory towards stinky Merlin so I am happy with the change.

JIM HAS A NEW TRANSFORMATION. MY BOY. MY SON. I’M SO PROUD.

Toby races to Jim and his helmet falls off the taco truck. That honestly should have been a huge warning sign. I was worried he didn’t have armor but we know how this goes.

Jim defeats the final titan and everyone is happy. The fight is finally over.

STEVE HAS 7 KIDS. OUCH. 

Seeing Jim run to Toby was heartbreaking. Now this is the one scene where the movie really let out actually process a character’s death. How on earth can you process your best friend, your most faithful companion dying. Jim goes through too much I swear to god.

Now let’s discuss the time travel plot. I honestly feel like they pulled some kind of Attack on Titan ending. The main character burdened with knowing the future and what could have been. And if everything is meant to be how it will be, destiny will reconnect them again. (Jlaire reincarnation AU???)

I’m actually ok with this ending. I understand people would want the time stone to return only a few minutes. But even then, the kiddos still have police records, so many people dead at the titan’s hands (or feet) and now the world knows about the existence of trolls thanks to the internet. In New York no less. And people are still dead.

We return the the beginning of everything, reflecting the “Unbecoming” episode.

(NGL I’m bothered that they didn’t do anything to stop Steve from bullying Eli, but Jim can’t do it. He’s saving it for Toby.)

And now finally, let’s discuss Toby becoming the Trollhunter. From the beginning, Toby never considered himself good enough to be the main star. Always the wingman, the 2nd best. Support. Now it was Toby’s turn to climb the ranks and be the Hero he’s always wanted to be. It’s Jim’s turn to live an easier high school life. I don’t doubt that he won’t follow Toby. But now he knows what to avoid and how to make the story process more smoothly.

I understand some are unsatisfied with this ending, which is kinda trademarked with Dreamwork’s shows. I get it. But honestly as of right now, I think I like the ending.

The amulet didn’t choose Jim because this Jim is not the same Jim as in Sn 1 Ep 1. He is a new man. And I think we all can agree that it’s his turn to be happy.

---

I still love this series so much. It is my favorite cartoon. Of course it has it’s flaws, but this ending is at least satisfactory and not heartbreaking. Now it’s up to us to either continue the story or contribute our ideas in fanfiction. I look forward to everyone’s creations.

Don’t think. Become.

[neighborhood-merc]

It is I, and I am back with more a new list of fanfics for this wonderful ship called SpideyPool. 

Listen, I don’t know why I’m doing this as well (maybe because I fuckin love these boys and want to share my fave fanfics of their ship to everyone...or whatever) but here we are. [ Here are Part 1, 3 btw! ]  

Same shit applies:

The themes of the stories on this list varies, I’m either into something heart-warming, fluffy, domestic that sort of stuff or into some really really heavy and dark messed up ones. It always depends on the mood am I right? *wink wink*

It’s always gonna be smutty though lol

As long as it’s tastefully written, whatever kinky shit, I can be into it, I don’t judge the writer. With that being said if I add something straight up messed up here now/or in the future, don’t judge too, just mind the tags of the fic, for your own discretion if anything.

this list should be Wade Wilson/Peter Parker - Spiderman/Deadpool pairing only. I kinda like my babies greedy/possessive for/of each other.

I don’t care who tops or bottoms.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Summaries are taken directly from the fanfic’s summary.

Read the tags first!

Wolves [ Update: Sadly, the fic has been deleted :( ] (This is WIP, but I swear it’s so fucking good you should read it. It’s a Prison AU, and the writing is sublime)  Peter is falsely accused and sent to jail, where he meets the violent ex-mercenary, Wade.

Don't Forget To Check Your Calendar! Peter REALLY should remember to check his calendar or Peter forgets that he has a heat coming up, and in doing so causes several sticky situations to occur (thank god for Tony's NDA's).

Communication Error “Have you seriously been doing this bit for a year now?” “Bit… what bit?” Wade looked at him, confused. “This,” Peter waved his hand, “the 'we’re dating' bit.” There was a pause, and then suddenly, it was like Wade’s whole body imploded. His shoulders sunk and his head dropped and suddenly Peter knew he’d made a huge mistake. “Hahaha, yeah, the dating bit.” He held up the wine. “One year of one really bad, horrible joke.”

Night Off Wade is taking the night off when a certain Spider calls for help.

The Great Florist, Wade Wilson (this ones got a Sequel) Deadpool has found the apartment belonging to Spiderman. Or Peter Parker, if the name on the door is anything to go by. Now some people might use this information of said secret identity wrongly. Normally Wade would have been one of them. But this is different. This is Spider-Parker, I-mean, Peter-man, I-mean, fuck. Now Deadpool just have to figure out exactly what he is gonna do with this information. Which is quite simple really. He's going to leave Spidey flowers and win his heart this way or the one, where Deadpool spams Spiderman with flowers, and Spiderman has no idea what's going on

Tale As Old As Time, Song As Old As Rhyme (This belongs to the series  “A Spider in the Pool”) It is absolutely fucking good, I recommend you read them. Do read the warnings though yeah?) Peter Parker gradually falls for Wade's dubious charms. They have a lot of hang ups and kinks to negotiate, but with sex this hot, Peter can't help wanting more. Erotica with significant plot and relationship development.

Help Me, Peter Parker, You’re My Only Hope! “I need your help,” Wade admitted. “And why would I help you?” Peter asked with an amused chuckle. “Because, um, I asked you? Isn’t it what you do? Help people who ask for it?”

Damage Peter Parker finds himself in a sticky situation and who should show up to rescue him but the infamous Deadpool? Now Peter feels indebted to the mercenary... And maybe weirdly charmed by him.

I'm Serious Wade wants Peter to top. But he really, really doesn't know how to ask.

Shake it out (this series is a good boi)

Sick Days  "Wade." "Mr. Rogers." They stared at each other, one calm and silent in his fury while the other looked like a deer about to be pummeled by an eighteen-wheeler. "I'm sure you have a reason for being in my son's bed without a shirt on?"

Love Me Dead Peter tries to tell Wade his feelings. It's kind of a train-wreck.

Disgusting -Spideypool (5+1) This is a Wade Centric fic containing topics of mental health struggles and self image. Nothing too graphic but still.

Flip the Safety They both get a little carried away when they fight, but this time Wade grins over his gun and the worst part is that Peter knows he doesn’t plan on shooting him.

Do It Yourself “I bet you’re flexible enough to suck your own dick.” Wade plants that thought in Peter's head and he can't help where curiosity leads him.

Looking for a savior in these dirty streets  (WADE YOU LITTLE SHIT LOL) what's your opinion on eating ass? just looking for a yes or noThat's the text Peter gets when he's in a meeting with Anna Maria, trying his hardest to get back to running a company a few months after an unexpected trip to the underworld.

Act your age (not your shoe size) “Wanna go grab some grub? I have it on good authority there's some qual-a-tee Mexican around here.”Peter’s mouth drops open. “Uh, you always invite guys you just met out for lunch?” Deadpool laughs and leans forward. The words are muffled when he says, “Only the ones I meet in movie theaters.”

That's the power of love (cute af fic) “Yeah, so, about that. Nice to meet ya, I’m Wade Wilson but def not your Wade Wilson although I gotta say, I’m jealous of the asshole.”

Baby, i’d victoria your secret anytime (another good boy) Peter’s known Wade for a while now, so he can maybe see how this makes sense -- like, maybe Wade has a thing about going commando and just happened to have an old girlfriend’s panties lying around, one thing led to another…but…“And the bra?” Peter croaks.

It's The Alcohol Talking It wasn't every day that Wade came across a drunk-off-his-ass Spider-man.

Marco (this is fuckin’ hurt ok???) Spidey was fine. Everything was going to be fine.

Took no time with the fall (Part One of “wasn’t looking for this” series) When the Avengers had briefed him on Deadpool, they played up the Kills People for Money and Has No Real Morals angle and left out the Is Pretty Damn Funny and Charming in a Weird, Terrifying Sort of Way part.Or, five times they meet on rooftops plus one time they take it to the streets*

Now you're in my way (Part Two of “wasn’t looking for this” series) Wade's been with the Avengers for four months. The two of them have been together for five.Their relationship consists of taco-based dates, a ton of sex, and, well, Avenging.

The Stalking of Wade Wilson "It’s around this point that a niggling thread of thought worms its way into his head when he’s not paying attention, one that gently suggests that Wade might be slightly less of a bad guy than Peter previously thought."

Seeing the real you (it's not what I imagined) "The fuck,“ Deadpool said slowly. He was staring at him in a way that made Peter feel decidedly uncomfortable, and this was saying something, considering Deadpool had a habit of leering at him at the most inappropriate times. "Are you kidding me?" he eventually gasped. "How OLD are you? Twelve?“

I'll Always Protect You Anonymous said: If anyone is up for it I have a rescue prompt idea where Peter (he is not in his spiderman suit) is taken as a hostage with a gun to the head along with a few other civilians. Peter is warning the criminals to let everyone go otherwise his fiance,Wade, will kill them all. They mock him and beat him up. Then a furious Deadpool saves Peter by the most badass way possible. Also I would love if someone write how unnervingly skilled Wade is as a mercenary. Please? Anyone?

Your ass is mine  Spidey takes a toilet break while on patrol. He wasn't expecting Wade to join him.

When I'm Inside You Spiders are hard to catch. When Deadpool manages to pin one down on an NYC rooftop, he thinks he deserves a prize.

Daddy It had started as a joke, which was conveniently how most of these things always happened.

Any Means Necessary Anonymous said: Abo au where Peter is a young mutant who both displayed his heat early before his adolscent stage and spidey powers that went out of haywire the moment his heat started, leaving him to thrash around the city, running away from his family. Wade Wilson, an alpha, who happens to be a professional mercenary for hire, is now paid to catch this mutant, and try and calm him down by “any means necessary” because Peter, even as an omega is swrecking havoc amongst the city. [ 1/2 ] Of course, Wade takes those words seriously, and decides to just do that solution by first, capturing and drugging the young omega, and then, placing him in what could be described as a special and adjustable breeding stand in Wade’s attempts to calm Peter down. [ 2/2 ]

One Fear (Two Fear), Red Rear (Pink Rear) (Note: Now this is where “read the tags first” is applicable af. Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you dude) Anonymous said: Hello, another one for you: Deadpool adopts MCU Spidey and treats him like his actual child. That is until Peter starts growing up more and Wade can't help but feel attracted to him. At around age 15, Peter starts actively trying to seduce Wade. Wade resists, but in the end gives in. My kingdom for hardcore daddy kink, Sub!Peter, Wade calling him a good boy/baby boy. 

Wo Rauch Ist (this fic is fucking gold) "Someone needs to write a ‘the fire alarm went off at 3 am and now the cute guy from the flat next door is standing next to me in his underwear’ AU" 

[butterflyinthewell]

Headcanon ahoy!

Ahh, I can’t believe how much fun I had writing Danceverse Ultra Magnus (semi OC) in my Stories Tell Us fic. I was waiting for an opportunity to spotlight him for a bit while he did his Guardian bot stuff AND finally bring to light my headcanon about his specific race / language.

I call Mags a “semi OC” because he’s a named character in the franchise, but hasn’t been seen in the Bayverse movies, so I yanked him up for myself. He first showed up in Lines as a white Kenworth t800 and later changed over to an International LoneStar.

Kenworth

LoneStar

Ultra Magnus is a Rustian. 

Rustians are native to the Sea of Rust, which is like a hybrid of a desert and a plain and the rust storms make Earth’s sandstorms look like dust puffs. Rustians are Cybertron’s equivalent to the indigenous peoples around the Earth, like Aborigines, First Nations, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, etc..

Autobots are respectful of Rustians. Decepticons...not so much. I’ll get more into that soon.

The racial slur Decepticons use against Rustians is Junkions or Junkers-- it hurts them like the N-word hurts black people. The term exists in Decepticon mumblings because Rustian homes look like piles of junk from the outside, while inside it’s clean, neat and cozy. They build like that because the Sea of Rust is known for its rust storms, and the “junky” looking homes let the wind and blowing rust slide around buildings instead of battering against them and piling up to block the exit doors.

You can call Rustians a Rusty or Rusties because that’s what they’ll playfully call themselves (in their language), but the J-word will get you a one-strike warning if you’re ignorant, and repeats get you smacked in the mouth and kicked out of the social circle. Avoid the J-word! 

Rustians are excellent storytellers. They’re notorious for it! It’s how they pass on knowledge. They love hearing other peoples’ stories, too, the more gripping the better. A favorite game of theirs is for a group to retell a known story with the most absurd twists they can make up without changing the story’s outcome. You lose the game if your addition changes the plot and you win if you’re able to finish the story to its proper end while laughing your aft off. Like, they might tell you the plot to the Die Hard movies, but everybody is wearing tutus or has rainbow colored teeth, or all the cars drive backwards, that kind of stuff.

Rustians evolved for a long time without any contact from the rest of Cybertron, so they have their own language, writing system, culture, beliefs and technology that is totally separate from the Autobots and Decepticons. 

The first outside contact Rustians had with anyone was with the Primes, who they saw as gods capable of appearing and disappearing at will. It was a glowing contact with kindness exchanged from both sides. Then the Fallen came through later and wiped out a lot of Rustians to prevent a Prime from emerging, and it became the first time Rustians had ever seen death. Death was so new to them that they had to invent a word for it because one didn’t exist. 

They thought they somehow angered the gods and came up with prayers, music and poetry to try to appease them and prevent it from happening again. The fear of angry gods appearing gradually faded, but the legends, stories, songs, prayers and poetry about it continued through history.

The Rustians’ second outside contact was the Decepticons, who arrived shortly after Ultra Magnus’ generation first saw the stars. The Rustians were still hurt and the population was slowly recovering from the Fallen’s unprovoked attack. They were no slouch with weaponry and combat, so they were able to put up a fight against the ‘Cons. The problem was they were outnumbered.

And Optimus showed up with a small convoy, having tracked the ‘Cons to the Sea of Rust. He realized he didn’t have enough bots with him to hold off the Decepticons in the Sea of Rust, and the Rustians knew they didn’t have enough people to hold off the Decepticons either. 

The language barrier made communication almost impossible, so Optimus made his intent to team up with the previously-unknown bots clear by only pointing his weapons at the Decepticons, never the Rustians. They figured out the rest pretty quick.

Let me make it clear that both teams were screwed if they didn’t join forces, it wasn’t the Rustians getting totally clobbered until the Autobots saved the day. The Autobots were getting clobbered, too. Neither group had a chance of winning on their own. It was a mutual agreement to combine their armies and drive the ‘Cons away. The Rustian Optimus fought back to back with as a team happened to be a young Ultra Magnus. After the battle, they worked patiently through the language barrier and established communication.

Ultra Magnus recognized the Prime engraving on Optimus’ helm and believed him appearing when he did was an apology from the gods for bringing death into their ranks, so he did what people do with a sincere apology-- he accepted. He invited Optimus to immerse himself in the Rustian way of life and taught him their culture, religion, music, stories and their spoken and written language. Optimus offered Ultra Magnus the same in return, which began a complete and equal cultural exchange. Nobody forced anybody to change who they were even though there was quite a bit of culture shock in the beginning. Everybody got over it and worked out a harmonious coexistence. :)

Rustians weren’t technologically behind the Autobots. They had a lot of medical tools and navigation methods the Autobots had never seen, and likewise the Autobots had weaponry and construction equipment the Rustians had never seen. They filled in each others’ technological gaps and got stronger for it. 

Btw, some Rustian tech looks like something out of a steampunk comic because that’s their style. A lot of their art and sculptures are clockwork stuff that moves.

The technological exchange let the Rustians start building “underground” underneath Cybertron’s top layer. A lot of them started living beneath the Sea of Rust as much as living on it.

Optimus told the Rustians he had no desire to erase their culture or their way of life, but he knew the Decepticons wouldn’t hesitate to do exactly that. He offered them a place in the Autobot army if they wanted one, and they were all over it. There are no Rustians in the Decepticon ranks. Not one. 

Rustians have a very distinct accent when they speak Cybertronian; the human equivalent would be somebody speaking English with a Jamaican Patois accent. A non-Rustian who learns to speak enough Rustian to communicate will have a strong and obvious accent, too, like an English speaker speaking Patois. 

Ultra Magnus is perpetually amused by Optimus’ command of Rustian. Optimus comes from the southernmost tip of Simfur and has the Cybertronian equivalent of a thick rural Alabama drawl. Sentinel Prime “cleaned up” his speech a bit and trained him out of his tendency to mumble, but the drawl is bleepin’ obvious in the way he pronounces words. Optimus sounds funny when he speaks Rustian, but he speaks it correctly. He knows Rustians find his pronunciation hilarious and he’s fine with the teasing.

Regional Cybertronian accents (Rustian included) don’t show up when bots speak Earth languages because they download those and pick up whatever regional accent they scan off human voice transmissions, like people talking on cell phones, Skype and so forth.

Rustian has to be learned, so you can’t download it off a dead bot and suddenly be able to write / speak it. Only a native speaker of the language can teach it properly, and there’s a lot of nuance outsiders will never pick up and mimic perfectly.

Here’s a small taste of the language. One phrase will be familiar if you’ve been in the TF fandom for awhile.

Bah weep gragnah wheep nini bong is a universal peace greeting that means “I arrive at your presence peacefully and harbor no ill intent towards you”.

Bah weep is a greeting for when you’re arriving, literally “I arrive” or “I come”.

Nini weep is a greeting to somebody who is arriving, literally “you arrive” or “you come.”

Bah gneh is a farewell you say when you’re leaving, literally “I go”.

Nini gneh is a farewell you say when somebody else is leaving, literally “you go.”

The Rustians gave the Autobots and Decepticons nicknames in their language. Autobots are affectionately referred to “shinies” (ar ang) and Decepticons are derided as “sharpies” (ing arg). They refer to anyone in general who isn’t Rustian as nileeng. It’s a non-offensive term that means “others”.

The Rustian “I love you” is bah ethsteo nini.

Ultra Magnus’ name is still his Rustian name. Ult Ra Mag Nus. He’s got a name people can easily squish together and pronounce in Autobot, Decepticon and English. It means warrior elemental or warrior of the elements, and references an old story describing a Rustian who faces and overcomes the four elements-- ground, fluid, flame and air.

Rustian language sounds like total gibberish to someone unfamiliar with it. Listening to two native speakers of it sounds a lot like radio interference where two frequencies mix up because they talk fast. Optimus asked if he could utilize the spoken and written language as a code language. That was totally cool with the Rustians, and from then on you were likely to find a Rustian sitting in on listening posts and teaching Rustian in the Autobot Academy. They could relay information over Decepticon channels to help conceal Autobot frequencies, and the Decepticons still haven’t caught on to the trick.

Rustians like Ultra Magnus became the Cybertronian equivalent to Navajo code talkers. The written language looks like a bunch of dots, so somebody could carve or shoot holes in something to say “there’s 200 ‘Cons holed up here” or “Warning: Snipers” without alerting the Decepticons that they were onto them.

A Rustian who hasn’t scanned another planet’s vehicles looks distinctly different from other Cybertronians due to their protomatter coming from the Sea of Rust and living life where rust storms can scour a nice paint job off in a matter of hours. 

Rustians are matte and appear rusted, like old vehicles left out in nature for years and years, but they're in good physical condition. They don’t creak, they aren’t breaking down and they can move like any other bot. 

Their optics are white, though a lot of them got blue filters voluntarily so people knew they were friendly to the Autobot cause, and they can turn the blue off any time they want. 

White optics help them see and be seen in heavy rust storms where rust is blowing like sand. Rustians in their native environment will paint reflective stripes on their faces and wear a scarf around their neck with reflectors arranged in decorative patterns to aid in visibility, and they can flip the scarf over and scrape off the paint to camouflage themselves if they need to.

Their creation story says their optics are white because Primus swept the stars from the sky to light the Sea of Rust and the stars became the lens through which they see the beauty of the universe. Cybertron’s oldest star charts are Rustian in origin.

Rustians who scanned an alien vehicle are almost indistinguishable from any other Autobot, so you can’t spot them in a lineup unless you know what to look and listen for. Like all Cybertronians, Rustians don’t attach too deeply to their physical appearances aside from their dot glyphs. They keep those no matter what form they take, and they’re easy to miss. All Rustians have a dot glyph somewhere on their body, so those glyphs, an occasional glimpse of optics without blue filters and noticing an accent if they speak Autobot Cybertronian are the only hints that you’re talking to a Rustian. 

Ultra Magnus’ dots are on the backs of his hands. He’s got a whole bunch of other Autobot Cybertronian glyphs on his body, kind of like somebody who has a lot of tattoos.

But Ultra Magnus isn’t the only Rustian. They are a minority in the sense of not many are left after war tore Cybertron apart, but they’re not in danger of going extinct. 

So I headcanon an onscreen bot as also being Rustian because he’s got dots right smack out there on his chin.

It’s green duster double-gun boi, aka Crosshairs.

Crosshairs goes by Crosshairs because the Autobots have a hell of a time trying to pronounce Kroz Stiz Ay Ras correctly (humans can’t either!) and he got tired of non-Rustians butchering it, so he goes by an Autobot approximation that doesn’t make him cringe. His Rustian name means aims well and swift because he’s ridiculously good at sharpshooting while moving fast.

And I hinted that Rustian survives into the future in the same way languages evolve over time, but readers didn’t know it at the time because I hadn’t “brought out” my headcanon for Mags and Crossy yet. The roots of Rustian words still exist a trillion years after the Autobots first touched down on Earth. 

In Tin Man’s Treasure, the main Trillian characters (distant techno-organic descendants of humans) are named Eth and Steo. :)

[theragamuffininitiative]

Last Days of Summer @KCRep

Well this has been long in coming

Guys.

I saw Last Days of Summer with Corey Cott and Emily Padgett and it was amazing and now I’m here a week and a day late to talk your ear off about it. ;)

I went with my favorite cousin (shhh don’t tell the other cousins) to see the show because she likes theatre too but her family doesn’t care so they never see things.

She knew I was a fan of one of the cast, and I did my level best not to fangirl too hard and I think it was an all around success. :D

This was yet another exercise in the “how far will Rags drive across the country to see a show if it is at all a possibility to do so” which I think is going to drive my parents insane.

When we got there, I did what I forgot to do at The Lion King and asked if it was ok to take pictures of the curtain call. Unfortunately, because of copyright reasons with Jason Sherwood’s set design, pictures were not allowed. :P But now at least I think I’ll remember to ask the ushers at shows, because curtain calls are my favorite thing and someday I will get pictures at them.

I’m not going to spoil the story for anyone who may want to read the book the musical is based off of, or just in case it gets produced again. (please please please) But if you’re curious, there’s this.

We went the last night because I couldn’t get away sooner. I would have loved to see the first show and then seen the closing show because I know they did a lot of changes, but I’m really happy with the version we saw.

It opened with a radio suspended on a wire, and the crackling voice of a baseball announcer set the narrative into motion. The radio was one of my favorite parts of the production, it was a great storytelling technique.

Robbie Berson as young Joey Margolis was amazing. All the kids in the cast were, but as the main protagonist....antagonist? hm, anyways, the main character, he carried the story the whole time in a great way, always believable as an incorrigible kid and strong enough to dig into the deeper parts of the story.

Jim Kaplan as Craig Nakamura was also amazing, and I love the character of sweet but feisty Craig so much.

These two boys, honestly, they were such pros.

And what can I say about Corey and Emily? They are stars, obviously, and I loved every second they were on stage, together or separate.

The end of Act One features a pretty big blow up between Joey and Corey’s Charlie, where Joey allows his emotions to get the better of him and turns on Craig. Charlie scolds him and tells him he has no choice about growing up and gives him a thing or two about being a man. Honestly, that act one closer was pretty great, but it also gave two of my favorite moments of the show:

1) When Charlie gets fed up with Joey’s selfish behavior, Corey bellowed “sit down!” and one older audience member audibly went “whoa” XD XD XD.

2) in the song that follows (”Says Who? Says I”), there was a moment where - for lack of a better description and realizing it’s a pun considering what team Charlie Banks plays on - Corey became a giant on that stage. For most of the production, all the players were equals. Kids and adults and ensemble members alike, they complimented each other and no one outshone anyone else. But near the end of the song, and probably on purpose for the story, Charlie/Corey towered above everything else as he belted out lines that were equally self-deprecating and proud about who Charley and Joey should be. I was in awe. It was a great moment.

Emily’s disguised yet still noticeable baby bump made for some fourth-wall-breaking humorous moments for the audience, considering her starlet character and lead romantic interest persona. But it was all good. XD

I. am. seriously. in. love. with. that. staging. I could talk about the sets all day.

Jeff Calhoun’s directing. Can I get an amen.

Jim/Craig’s performance of “We Always Had a Garden” is honestly the part I got the most emotional over, and he sang it like an angel, I was very wow.

I need the album.

Chris Dwan as Stuke was great. I started to get worried about Stuke’s mortality when he went from “occasional comic relief” to “goofy tag-along friend” and, well, I was right. But he was great and he had this fantastic little random dance number (”This Time It’s For Real”) while singing about his latest crush. It was precious. XD

There was, as the review I linked to said, a lot crammed into this little show. Like, a lot of a lot. The first act balanced everything pretty well, the second act was a little stuffed.

One of the big climactic moments in act two felt very rushed, and one of those “we’re just going to assume the audience gets what we mean” and the audience gets it but isn’t allowed any time to appreciate it. I’d like to see that done a little differently, but I completely chalk it up to there just being such a wealth of plot to deal with in those final scenes and numbers.

Speaking of numbers, if you want a taste of some of the music aside from that one clip with Robbie and Jim, Corey performed some of the songs with some cast members at his concert that week:

“You Never Have to Say Goodbye” - cue tears

“No One Else For Me” - sweeeeet

I love Big Band music so much. Jason Howland for the win.

“That’ll Be You and Me” is sort of a bonding moment for Joey and Charlie and it reminded me a lot of the character dynamic between Zach and Henry in Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, one of my favorite movies.

The wedding scene was hysterical. You’re just gonna have to take my word for it, but the blocking on it was perfect and the characters played tug-of-war across the stage trying to get Charlie to board his train on time and keep the rabbi from passing out as he flew through the “ceremony.” XD The Rabbi was a good character. Give Gary Neal Johnson a hand.

I did not cry. There were moments. But I didn’t. XD

Everybody kept swearing and then the boys would make “can we say that word” jokes, like in the middle of a song, when you knew what they were going to say because it rhymed, and I’m old fashioned but it was also great. XD

There’s an earlier scene where the baseball team is helping Joey memorize his answers for his Bar Mitzvah (”The Only Way to Score”) and it was both funny and precious as everyone except Joey learns all the Hebrew answers.

“Just Like Us” and its reprises kept the show solidly focused on Joey, and his buddy Craig.

I wanted to give both Joey and Charlie all the hugs.

I whooped for the orchestra at bows. I’m always like the only person who does that at a show, but I appreciate the orchestras so much, it’s just my thing now: I whoop loudly in support of the pit musicians, deal with it everybody.

My cousin enjoyed it :D :D :D

Standing ovation, btw, of course.

Okay, so, after the show:

We stuck around with a group of peeps to stagedoor. Folks, this is the first time I successfully stagedoored something lol.

Corey was the first person to come out, and... - poor guy. XD He was booking it, making a very determined beeline for the exit. If I was left to my own, I would have let him go, but the guy in front of me stopped him so I got up my courage. He was polite and kind to us, but you could tell he just wanted to go home. (and afterward he ended up apparently getting delayed like seven hours trying to get back home to the city, so I don’t blame him at all) So he signed a couple posters and playbills, and then as he was walking away I stepped forward and asked if I could get his autograph. He was like “yeah, ok” and then, rather than giving him the playbill, I pulled out my Bandstand album jacket. :D :D :D Guys, he lit up, it was the cutest and happiest thing. He went from “ok sure” to “awwww yeaaaaah!” and signed it like six times because my marker wasn’t working properly lol, and then was like “um that’s gonna have to be good enough” even though I told him the first time was ok. XD

So then everyone else started to come out, and I got a lot of the cast to sign my playbill, including all the main kids, Emily, and most of the baseball players - who were the coolest about doing autographs so bless you dudes. Young Jim somehow has the neatest signature.

And then we went home! XD

As usual, I am certain I am forgetting all the things, but there we are. I only wish I could have gone twice. I would love to have gone earlier so I could tell everyone to go see it. But I’m reasonably sure it will get more productions, so be on the look out for it! :D

[rukia-g]

A love no one can rival

AN: I didn’t even like Adam at first and I knew he and Shiro weren’t going to go back together, but the way he was treated was beyond unfair. I was looking forward to their reunion, but since that didn’t happen, here’s how I imagine it would go in a different reality. Btw, please take into account that I headcanon Shiro as bi/pan/ace. (Also I’m kind of nervous because it’s the first time I write a m/m fic, I hope I’ve done it right). Also in AO3.

 Adam took a deep breath.

   “Takashi?”

Shiro turned to him, a look in his eyes Adam couldn’t quite define: a bit nervous, maybe anxious, mixed with surprise and uneasiness. It was to be expected, they had been avoiding each other since Takashi came back.

“Adam…”

“Can we talk?” He noticed Keith was behind Shiro, glaring at him. Since Adam broke up with Takashi, Keith had been quite hostile towards him, and Adam wasn’t surprised the boy still held in more resentment than Takashi. “Alone?”

Shiro nodded and followed him to an empty classroom. Adam closed the door behind them, heart beating loudly in his chest. He had rehearsed this conversation so many times in his head, and now his mind had gone blank.

“I’m glad that you’re okay.” He said, voice barely louder than a whisper.

“I’m glad you’re okay too.” Takashi answered. “Iverson told me what happened when the Galra first attacked.”

Adam closed his eyes. The last thing he remembered of that battle was that he barely avoided a direct hit of a laser beam, then nothing until he woke up six months later in a hospital bed. He had been the only survivor, and the thought that so many teammates, so many friends had died while he was still alive out of sheer luck still haunted him. Sometimes he lay awake at night, staring at the ceiling and wishing he had fallen with them.

As if he knew what Adam was thinking, Takashi put the only hand he had left on Adam’s shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.

“I’m sorry. If we had come back sooner, then maybe…”

Adam shook his head. An irrational, resentful part of him wanted to yell at him, ask him why they didn’t come back as soon as they had Voltron so Earth wouldn’t be unprotected, but he couldn’t. Sam Holt had told him that they were fighting the Galra in space so Earth wouldn’t be attacked, and Adam understood that, he really did, but…

But a selfish part of him wanted to see Takashi again.

Not even a week had passed since Shiro left for Kerberos, when Adam felt the ruthless claws of remorse tearing his heart up. He had made a terrible mistake, he thought. He should have been more patient, more understanding. He missed Takashi so much… Surely he felt the same. They had gone through so much together, Adam wasn’t going to give up just for one disagreement (actually, there had been too many disagreements, too many arguments to count, but at that moment all Adam could think of were the good times they spent together).

When Takashi comes back, Adam thought, they’ll both apologize and spend the rest of their lives (of Takashi’s life) together. Shiro had already far exceeded everyone’s expectations, surely after that mission he’ll settled down (he won’t, an annoying voice at the back of his head whispered. He’ll never stop pushing himself harder, he’ll always try to outdo himself. Adam crushed that voice with hopeful love and blind optimism.)

And then, they lost contact with the Kerberos mission, all three men were declared dead and the Garrison blamed Shiro for it.

“He shouldn’t have gone.” Adam heard people whisper in the halls. “He was sick, he put his teammates’ lives at risk.”

He was always putting his own life at risk. Adam thought, but said nothing. Their last conversation echoed in his head: This is your life at risk. This was exactly what he had feared when he tried to talk Takashi out of going to Kerberos. Adam knew there was a chance Takashi wouldn’t survive the mission, and he had wanted to avoid the heartache he knew he’d feel when Shiro wouldn’t come back. It was to not avail, though. He still loved Takashi, the news of his death still hurt. So he said nothing, and focused himself on his work. He didn’t have any right to leap on Takashi’s defence when Adam himself had doubted him too.

Though he wasn’t surprised when Keith got expelled for getting into a fight, again.

And then Sam Holt came back, with a story so crazy it had to be true. Aliens! Actual aliens and an evil intergalactic empire and a bunch of unlikely heroes defending the universe with a huge mecha robot. It sounded like the plot of those tacky science fiction shows from the twenty and twenty-first centuries that he used to watch with Takashi.

But now Adam knew Shiro was alive, somewhere out there, and he was going to come back. That thought revived a spark of hope in Adam’s heart he had thought dead. Takashi was coming home, they’ll mend their relationship…

…Or maybe not. They had broken up, after all. What if Takashi thought Adam had found someone else? What if Shiro found someone else? Some handsome alien man or a cute alien girl. He suddenly remembered when they watched Guardians of the Galaxy and how Takashi used to stare at Gamora. Oh, how mercilessly Adam had teased him for having a crush on a character from a movie a hundred years old…

It wasn’t so funny anymore.

And now here he was, finally alone with Takashi, after so many years, and all the doubts and hopes and fears he’d had hit Adam with so much force, he could barely speak. Takashi looked so different now, skin so pale, the grey hair and the scar a sharp contrast to the face in his memories, and the jarring absence of his right arm…

Adam wondered if that man was the same he had known and loved.

It took him a moment to remember what they were talking about.

“It doesn’t matter.” Adam said. “You guys are here now. We can fight back. We’ll free our planet.”

Takashi nodded, a smile curving his lips. Adam had missed that smile so much…

“Yes. We had freed planets from Galra rule before, we can do it again. And once Earth becomes part of the Coalition, we’ll put an end to the Galra empire once and for all.”

Adam’s heart skipped a beat.

“The Coalition?”

Shiro nodded again, a spark of excitement in his eyes.

“The Voltron Coalition. We’ve formed it to free the universe from the Galra. We’ve gone so far, but even with Zarkon and Lotor gone there are several warlords we must defeat before the universe is at peace. I’m sure with the help of Earth’s forces… Adam? Is something wrong?”

Adam had been staring at Shiro, eyes widening as a terrible realization hit him.

“Takashi, are you thinking of going back to space?”

Shiro blinked, apparently surprised at his question.

“Well, yes. We have to put an end to this war.”

“I know, but it doesn’t have to be you!” Takashi was still staring at him in confusion. Adam ran a hand through his hair. “Commander Holt told me everything. That you were captured and forced to fight as a gladiator. That they cut your arm. You have suffered more than anyone in this war. Don’t you think it’s time to step back? You don’t have to carry the weight of the universe alone anymore!”

Shiro clenched his jaw, a stubborn frown between his brows that Adam had seem too many times.

“Adam, I understand your concern, but I can’t just stay here while there are people out there suffering and fighting and dying. I want to make sure no one goes through the same I did.”

Without thinking, Adam stepped forward and grabbed Takashi’s shoulders.

“But you could die! I already lost you once. Do you have any idea how I felt, believing you had died out there, without a chance to properly say goodbye? I can’t go through that again!”

Shiro cupped his cheek, hand warm and comforting against Adam’s skin.

“Then come with me.” Adam’s eyes widened, breath catching in his throat. “We can fight together, explore the universe together! Adam, we saw so many things out there! We’ve gone farthest than any human has ever gone. The planets, the people, the cultures we’ve met, all so different than our own! I’ve never dreamt I could see so much of the universe, and now we have the chance to explore it together!”

As he saw Takashi speak, eyes alight with an enthusiasm he hadn’t see in years, Adam felt the last remains of his hopes crumble away. He had refused to see the truth, and now it hit him, breaking his heart in a million pieces.

Takashi would never love him as much as he loved space.

How do you compete with the longing for adventure, the yearning to go where no other human had been before? You can’t. Adam had seen enough war at that point to know when he couldn’t win a battle.

His arms fell to his sides, and something in Adam’s eyes made Shiro stop his rant.

“Takashi, I can’t. I have a live here on Earth. I love my job, I love helping young cadets reach their dreams. You can’t ask me to give everything up to go with you.”

Shiro looked at him, eyes wide with confusion and hurt. It made Adam realize a major flaw in their relationship both had refused to acknowledge: Adam would never understand Takashi’s eagerness to explore the universe, and Shiro would never understand Adam’s desire for a mundane, stable life.

Shiro closed his eyes for a second before speaking again.

“Adam, this is everything I’ve ever wanted…”

“I know. I won’t ask you to give up your dream, but please understand that I have different goals in life.”

Takashi nodded, eyes closing again as he digested what that meant.

“Then, I guess it’s over.”

“It is.” And Adam realized both had harboured hopes of mending their relationship, while at the same time knowing, deep down in their hearts, that it wouldn’t work. And that hurt more than anything else.

Adam gave Shiro’s arm a light squeeze.

“Please, be safe out there.”

“Thank you.” He shallowed hard and looked Adam in the eye. “I hope you find someone that makes you happy. You deserve it.”

He left without waiting for an answer. Adam stayed in the empty classroom a few more minutes, trying to get used to the idea of being a bachelor again.

[loveyboyslovin]

Jess’ Fic Recs: A Masterpost

i'm told a lot these days by @myriadus

i’m told a lot these days is a beautiful Cow Chop story based on the show Dead Like Me (which is amazing btw so definitely go watch it if you haven’t!). Gina is a Phenomenal writer, and this story was the first fic to ever make me bawl my eyes out with Legitimate Tears. For that reason, it will occupy a special place in my heart until the day I die. If you haven’t read it yet, you are missing out on what became one of the most influential fan fiction reading experiences of my life!

Pyrite (and the coda Diamonds Are Forever) by @cockbite (personalized_radio on AO3)

Pyrite was the first of Hannah’s longer stories that I ever read, and I will never regret it! This Fake Chop fic also includes characters from the other Fake Rooster Teeth crews. The characterisation is excellent and the story draws you in from the very start! Diamonds Are Forever picks up a while after Pyrite’s story and perfectly builds on the beautiful relationship that James and Aleks have with each other, as well as the absolute hilarity of James and Gavin’s ongoing feud. Also, Hannah is a wonderful human being, and I am so lucky that Gina kept telling me how amazing she was until I eventually plucked up the courage to go say hi! Hannah is one of the nicest people I’ve met in this fandom, and she’s always right there when I need someone to bounce ideas off, so please go and show her some love!

i'm taking all i have to take, this taking's gonna shape me by orphan_account on AO3

If you are a fan of Fake Chop, and are comfortable with the concept of male pregnancy, then this fic will destroy your heart with feels!! I stumbled upon it by accident, and being a lover of both Fake Chop and mpreg, read the entire series of two fics in one sitting! This story is heartbreaking and spectacular and life-changing in equal measure, and although dlmau still remains the first time I ever cried from reading a fic, this wins the Uncontrollable Sobbing Award, because I was crying at so many points throughout the story that it’s not even funny. This fic is an emotional rollercoaster, and that is a testament to exactly how Phenomenal a writer she is! (And if you are someone who is unsure of your feelings for mpreg, I honestly believe that this fic is a wonderful first step into that world!)

Bump In The Night by @pacificrey

A really cool Spooky Scary Monster AU where Aleks takes up a job placement with the slightly shady company, Cow Chop. As things unfold, he soon realises that his coworkers might not be exactly who they seem. The pacing of this story is really amazing and I love it, especially the choices for each of the monster species and how well they fit the personalities of the characters they’ve been assigned to.

first impressions (and the searchlights series as a whole) by @myriadus

Ok, so W O W! first impressions is Spectacular, and it’s literally only a prequel of sorts for the larger fic to come. It is set in a combined Fake Chop and Soulmate AU, and the focus of the story is on Aleks and the different times and ways that he met the members of what would one day become the Cow Chop crew. Gina once again blows me away with the way that she can characterise our favourite boys and girls so well that I can hear the words coming from their own mouths. This fic is so worth checking out, and I definitely recommend sticking around for the rest of the searchlights series as it’s being written!

it all seemed so fine until it wasn't. by @gavinsaleks

An Amazing Fake Chop fic where James and Aleks slowly fall for each other, and everything is ripped from them when Aleks is killed, or at least seems to die. When a mysterious visitor shows up a few years later, James has to deal with the fact that the friendship and possible love that he had already mourned, never truly left him after all. This one is incredibly emotional, and I love the way that it’s written.

Chill Out by @cockbite (personalized_radio on AO3)

Anyone who knows me will know that I am a multishipper at heart, and I can enjoy almost every single Cow Chop ship as much as any other. Hannah, bless her heart, wrote This Thing, and I haven’t been the same since. Chill Out is pretty much just PWP, but it’s ModestHundarNovaHD and all four of our boys are just written so Perfectly that I could just die. The sex itself is amazing, but the emotion and writing behind it just elevates this fic to a whole new level, so definitely check it out if you’re into some Prime Smut!

Subway Love by @therearenofriendshipsinuno

A Fake Chop universe where Trevor is a civilian and he happens to meet Aleks on the train to work, completely oblivious to the fact that he’s an infamous criminal called Immortal. This is a really wonderful fic and I adore it, because it’s such a new and exciting change to be reading about Fake Chop from the perspective of an outsider, someone who isn’t part of that world.

Lost & Found (and the alternate POV one-shots Kaleidoscope) by @beneaththetwilightsky

Lost and Found is an incredible Soulmate AU where you have the first thing your soulmate will say to you tattooed on your skin. James grew up with no such tattoo, and thought that it meant he wasn’t ever destined to find a soulmate, but then one day he bumps into a boy, Aleks, who is mute. This story is Insanely cute, and I love to read about the beautiful budding relationship between Aleks and James. Now that Lost & Found has been completed, Kaleidoscope tells the story of their relationship from the viewpoint of other characters in L&F, and it’s so wonderful to constantly see the world she has created be explored and expanded. She, by the way, is one of the sweetest and most wonderful people I’ve ever met, and it has been such a profound honour to become friends with her and to continue to cherish NovaHD and Cow Chop together!

what you had & what you lost by @scrubtopia

A Fake Chop fic set in the 80′s, where James and Aleks struggle to move on after their crew of bank robbers disbands. The ending is simply beautiful, and the way the entire story is written is truly masterful!

Cow Chop Cabin by @brutalitytailor

I read this one ages ago, and I still love it to this day. It’s insanely cute how the Cow Chop boys (minus Brett) go and stay in a nice cabin in the Colorado mountains for a few weeks. The whole thing is beautifully domestic, and I adore the plot about Aleks going through a break up and how James and Aleks work through their budding feelings for each other.

Nova, Baby by @cockbite (personalized_radio on AO3) and @kidenn

Fake Chop, Fake AH Crew, Coffee Shop AU, Dog Park, Enemies to Friends to Lovers. Do I really need to say anything else?? This incredible fic by my darling Hannah and collaborated with Jackie is an experience you’ll never forget! If you haven’t read this yet, you are truly missing out!

ultrajoy by twotwentyfour on AO3

The fact that this is a first fic ever written still completely blows my mind! It is crafted so well and written so evocatively, and the development of James and Aleks’ relationship (starting out as kids innocently playing together and becoming best friends, then growing into young adults planning for college and learning about the realities of the world) is so organic and beautiful to read that I’m getting emotional just thinking about it!

love in the first degree by @poeticatbest (astralnoon on AO3)

What first began as my birthday request of “beachside love confession in the rain” to my dear friend, love in the first degree immediately became a gift I’ll never forget! This fic - set in a Soulmate AU - has its angsty moments but builds to such a gorgeous and happy ending for both James and Aleks! A story about moving on from the pain of the past, of learning to love yourself and to trust others, I can’t recommend it highly enough!

i’m buried in this house (i love yous on every floor) by @honeyeonii

I’ll tell you one thing about my wonderful friend, Mark. He has an unparalleled ability to capture emotion and character in a short story. Though each of his fics are bite-sized, they are just as impactful to me as stories I’ve read that have been tens of thousands of words long! After reading this beautiful love story, do yourself a favour and go read every single one of his Cow Chop stories, because they are all incredible!

[khiphop-discussions]

SMTM6 ep.7 Comments and Highlights

I’ve already seen half the diss battles. I really think they should have just done all 1v1 like they did in previous seasons. It would have been better. IT’s really to much to have to focus on 2 opponents for each person in a 2v2. That’s why I think the 1v1′s were universally better. You can really take your time and research that one person as well as not have to share the insults with your partner because if you already said something, when they say it it loses some of it’s power and vice versa.

Hanhae’s one of the only people who hi-fived the fans when he came out! Just wanted to note that.

Hangzoo looks like a whole ass gangster. If Los was the street level gangster than Hangzoo is the crime boss

Ja Mezz’s “HaHAAAA” man I wish I was good at gifs so I could make one of that.

Maniac is so funny. I hope he goes on more shows after this.

I haven’t seen Maniac vs Hanhae besides like the first 10 seconds or so. So I’m watching that one pretty much blind.

Woochan has been throwing shade (not even shade really but full out insults) this whole time and I’m only 13 minutes into the episode

I haven’t seen Black Nine v Ryno either. And this beat is hard as FUCK. I’ve seen so many people get dissed to this beat (Survival of the Fittest by Mobb Deep)

His whole rap was already given away during the introduction? So from that point all he was doing was repeating the same shit? I mean, it was good rap wise but I’ll have to see Ryno’s. Either way this is a lesson in not giving your whole rap away in the introduction. Also, if you’re on the receiving end you shouldn’t have that look on your face, you gotta look more unfazed but still serious enough to make the other person shook. Ness did that with Young B and now Ryno did it to Black Nine. 

Black Nine was better.

This is what I was talking about with Asol a couple days ago, half her rap is about feminizing the other team in an attempt to basically call them weak or lesser so it’s like???? 

I think Asol and Wonaje did better in the diss but Woochan freestyled and STILL didn’t fuck up so that was dope.

Yeah, Hanhae won that. The beat choice was trash though. I think he could have chosen something different and his rap would have sounded better. The content is good but I didn’t like the actual sound.

One Sun needs to make a song with that “Let Me Do It Again~” line as a hook or something because that shit was lowkey fire lol

Team DD wins

It’s ep.7 and Dean has still barely had any talking time or screen time. Dean fans got robbed lowkey. All that hype just for him to be almost non-existent

Hash Swan isn’t a battle rapper but he does have a slick mouth? Like he says some reckless shit in his songs sometimes so I know he’s gonna do pretty okay in the battle...whereas Junoflo...hmmm (I’ve already seen this battle btw. But this was pretty much my line of thiking before I saw it so I’m putting it here)

Also, I haven’t seen Ja Mezz vs Hangzoo

Why is Young B out here dressed like he a crip or something? lol all that damn blue

“He’s tall and can’t rap” - Young B. OK you guys KNOW I love my Young B but, that’s kind of overboard? Ness is actually not a bad rapper. I know this is for show but B looks dead serious when he says that and I feel like I know enough about him to know when he’s kidding. His opinion is his opinion but I’ll have to respectfully disagree with him there.

KillahGramz pulling out the receipts I’m DEAD!!!!!

“I don’t know much about Woodie and Ness” KillahGramz: “Alright Bet” lol

Damn, Ja Mezz pulling up the receipts too lol.

Shit, Ness got under his skin before the batlle even started no wonder he got so far under his skin in the actual battle. LOL

This is why Young B went so hard. Has Ness not pissed him off before, then maybe Ness would have won. I think B would have went easier lol

Young B told Ness to suck his dick at the end which was edited out. But that’s why everybody is going wild and why Young B has that face at the end like he’s disappointed in himself.

So that’s Young B’s beserker button? Getting told he can’t rap? Make sure to NEVER say that Young B. Jeez.

I kinda skipped past KG/Hash vs Juno/Woodie cause I already saw it and it was kinda wack.

Mezz vs Hangzoo now. The only one I haven’t seen from this battle

Mezz wasn’t all that but he was alright.

OK Hangzoo called him a child, the a pedo (this was just lyrics from Hangzoo not something Mezz has actually shown himself to be, it matched with Zoo’s next bar), said he got outrapped by No:el and Young B, said his hair was trash (thanks Hangzoo!), and more. He really wrecked him like 2 or 3 bars. He had wrecked him long before he got half way through the list. lol

DoPark should have eliminated Woodie instead but of course they probably wanted him for the later stages.

Yeah, they just said it. They picked the ones who will do better later. So Ness goes home.

Obviously Asol is going home.

Team DD been making bangers. People slept on them but I think Team DD might win if they keep it up. They have a cool style and some great rappers with nice feels.

Not a fan of the CoDean/Killah song. But Dean’s part (the hook) is cool.

How dare Hanhae be that fucking cool and smooth?

The feature was unexpected lol. I already knew Hanhae won because I spoiled that.

UGHHHHH the cliff hanger!

[mightbedamian]

#TMIishTuesday #60 - Make a democracy a democracy!

Hey, This is a very important topic. Please keep reading - and most importantly: Go, use your vote! Be it upcoming Sunday, the Sunday after or any time later. Thanks! Hey there mighty people of the internet! And welcome to issue #60 of #TMIishTuesday - my weekly Tumblr post about what goes through my weird mind and on what you guys want to know more about. It can be something very personal, it can be something political, it can be completely pointless - but in 99.9 % of the cases, it involves opinions. And mine as well. // Last week I discussed bisexuality and the stereotypes and misconceptions regarding the topic. Check it out, once you're done reading this. :) // Within the next two weeks we have two elections coming up in Germany. Both are elections for state parliaments - those of the Schleswig-Holstein and North Rhine-Westphalia. Given the latest events in countries like the UK (Brexit), the US (The Trumpet), and France (Le Pen), it is even more important that you - you reading this - make use of your vote! Ever heard of the AfD? Let me give you a little bit of a break-down as to what happened in the elections mentioned above and then move on to the situation in Germany - and why I think we have some scaring tendencies here. 1. The UK, aka. "we want to leave the EU so badly!" - 23 June 2016 For the past few years there had been more and more public voices who felt the UK was not treated properly by the European Union (EU) - especially with regard to the migration situation (aka. the refugees coming into the EU being distributed equally among the member states). After a years-long debate, Prime Minister David Cameron kept a promise from his 2015 election campaign and held a referendum about a possible move of the UK to leave the EU. The weeks before the two campaigns were picking up speed and the closer the referendum came, the closer the parties were. In the end, it was a very close race, but Cameron's campaign to stay in the EU was not successful. It got 48 % of the votes. Which in turn meant that the UK has officially started talks to negotiate the terms of their leave. Also, as you probably know, the leave voters had a significantly higher average age than those who voted to stay in the Union. I already posted @glenrules's tweet back then in my an general update post on my life, but it's just ridiculous. And his caption "Ever been fucked by a pensioner before ? You have now." is just spot on! The younger population - and Scotland and the city of London - showed a high percentage of stay voters. Why do I tell you this story? You probably know all of the things I just told you. Well, the leave campaign got a mere 1.3 million votes more. With nearly 18 million people, who could have voted, but didn't. 35 % of those, who were allowed to vote in the referendum, didn't. But surely they joined in with the incredible vocal "this was not a fair referendum" shouts. I don't see how it was not fair. You knew the facts. You knew it would cost the UK millions every year to leave the EU. You knew your relationship towards the EU would change. You couldn't expect that you were allowed all the benefits at no costs. What would have worked: Preparing yourself well enough before the vote, checking both opinions, and finally: actually voting. Take-away: Go, use your voice! Vote! 2. The US, aka. "God bless this mofo!" - 8 November 2016 Elections in the US are quite a happening. Still, all the "Let's make America great again" and "Hillary for America" didn't quite get the people to the polling stations. Only 60 % of the voting eligible population actually used their power. And while Hillary Clinton got the popular vote (meaning she got more total votes), she still didn't become president. The American voting system is f*ed up!  No, the Trumpet became president. And we saw the same we saw with the Brexit vote: People shouting: "This is not fair! We need a re-run of the election!" Well, I have to give you that: To me it also feels unfair when the majority of people voted for Clinton, but they got the Trumpet as a president. :D But: That's how their election system works. And has been working for centuries. You can't say "it's unfair". You knew how it worked. What would have worked: Getting the remaining 40 % to vote. Changing the election system during the last election period. Fleeing the country. Okay, leaving the country is not funny. I shouldn't say that. But the first two: Definitely! 3. France, aka. "Let's switch the political situation completely!" - 23 April 2017 The latest election in France shows how sudden a change can come by. From two parties winning pretty much every electoral district to winning barely any in just five years. This again shows how agitated the whole political situation in Europe has been lately. Take-away: Don't let the right-wing parties take over! France, if you're reading this: Don't be silly! Don't hand the Èlysée Palace to Madame Le Pen just like that! Right, let's turn to Germany cause that's what we're here for. Looking at recent polls, we can expect the AfD well above the 5% threshold needed to claim seats in the Bundestag, the German national parliament. As if 9% of the German voting population were asleep for the last few years - or simply feel SO "invaded" (quote by Bernd - pardon, Björn - Höcke) by immigrants. A party built on hatred. A party that basically denies the Holocaust. Höcke, spokesperson of the AfD in the German state of Thuringia and chairman of the party in the state parliament, called the Holocaust memorial in Berlin a "memorial of shame". Wilhelm von Gottberg, another member of the party, once mentioned a "flaw of guilt" which clearly states he believes the Holocaust is nothing you should apologise for. Yepp, and I could mention lots and lots of other statements. But it's not the topic of today's post. I think I made my point here: The AfD is an ultra-right party. Some say calling them "nazis" would be too much. But, quite frankly: They are nothing short of the stuff the NPD preaches. And you call them nazis. As far as I am concerned: Only because the AfD doesn't have the N of "national socialism" incorporated, that doesn't make them any better. Aaaanyway. This post should be more about why you should vote. The first reason is stated above: Don't give those ultra-right idiots any more power. The more votes for other parties, the less their votes will weigh. As long as you don't vote for them, I don't care what you vote - it's completely up to you. And that's why we should be proud of how far we've come! We learned the lessons from the Third Reich: Anti-democratic behaviour leads to dictatorship. Sooner or later. As Cicero told us more than 2000 years ago. What a wise man! Why is democracy important you might ask? Cause who care when you only have one vote and there are 60 million others, who also do? Well, I have some answers for you. 1. Every vote counts the same. If you vote, you can be sure that your vote counts exactly the same as any other vote. We don't have the conditions of the empire times where only certain people were allowed to vote - and those of the noble and the clergy would count waaay more than those of the "common bourgeois". That's freaking important! 2. You are free in the party you vote for. You have the choice. You can decide between the 30+ parties that run for the election (granted, if we're talking Schleswig-Holstein, there are only 13 parties. And no one can tell you off for voting for that particular party. Take a look to Turkey to know how a situation would look like when you were not allowed to choose freely. Do I have to say any more? 3. It's fun! If you're young, that sounds ridiculous. I know that. But: Politics are fun! Developing an opinion on topics you have an interest in - and on those that are very important - is cool! Not only does it help you when you engage in discussion with friends, family or class mates - it also makes you realise some stuff you wouldn't have realised before. It makes you realise opportunities. Go, catch them! Also: It fills me with a lot of pride that I actually haven't missed a single opportunity to vote. National, state-wide, communal, European - I used them all. You do the same, please! Btw, did you know that you can also vote, when you know you won't be able to on the day itself? Just request postal vote. There are forms online for the respective elections. If you forgot, you still have some time left. For the election in Schleswig-Holstein upcoming Sunday, the deadline for requesting your postal vote is Friday, 5 May, 12.00. For North Rhine-Westphalia you have 6 hours longer. The deadline is Friday, 12 May, 18.00. Whatever way you use to vote, whatever party you choose to vote - do the same as 78 % of my Twitter followers and go, vote! I'll like you a little bit more then! Go, do it! Do you plan to vote? If so, why do you think it’s important? If no, what’s your reason? Place a comment, tweet me, dm me, or do anything else you can think of to get to me. Queer Shoutout you say? Technically this isn't too much of a queer shoutout, but 1/3 is queer. That counts, right? It's just too fitting. Three wonderful videos on why voting is such an important part of a democracy. And why it's even more important in these times. Jodie Calussi gives you a little talk on the history of voting rights, Lisa Sophie talks about the difficulties of making decisions and help with finding the party that fits you best and Applewar's MasterJam and his friends created a lovely cover of Die Toten Hosen's song Willkommen in Deutschland to tell you that voting can keep those nasty AfD people off you. Check all those videos out. They deserve it! :) As always: Next #TMIishTuesday next Tuesday. If you have any questions in the meantime, just ask away. Whatever you’re curious about - I don’t bite. :) Until then: Stay mighty! Linkage: - glenrules’s tweet: https://twitter.com/glenrules/status/746228140792381444 - My post mentioning #Brexit last year: http://mightbedamian.tumblr.com/post/146622442867/tmi-ish-tuesday-16-wrap-up - Wikimedia graphic for the 2012 presidential elections in France: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2012_French_presidential_election_-_Second_round_-_Majority_vote_(Metropolitan_France,_communes).svg - Wikimedia graphic for the 2017 presidential elections in France: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%C3%89lection_pr%C3%A9sidentielle_de_2017_par_d%C3%A9partement_T1.svg - Welt.de: SPD büßt noch mehr in Wählergunst ein: https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article164132054/SPD-buesst-noch-mehr-in-Waehlergunst-ein.html - Wikipedia: Election threshold: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Election_threshold - Fabian Leber for tagesspiegel.de: Flüchtlingskrise: Die AfD drängt auf die Straße: http://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/fluechtlingskrise-die-afd-draengt-auf-die-strasse/12466360.html - Sidney Gennies for tagesspiegel.de: Nationalsozialismus: Die AfD provoziert am Holocaust-Gedenktag: http://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/nationalsozialismus-die-afd-provoziert-am-holocaust-gedenktag/19310794.html - Zeit.de: Wilhelm von Gottberg: AfD-Politiker lehnte Distanzierung von Holocaustzitat ab: http://www.zeit.de/politik/deutschland/2017-03/wilhelm-von-gottberg-afd-holocaust-zitat-distanzierung - Wikipedia: De re publica: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_re_publica#Inhalt - NDR.de: 13 Parteien stehen in SH zur Wahl: https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/schleswig-holstein/13-Parteien-stehen-in-SH-zur-Wahl,landtagswahl1190.html - Poll among my Twitter followers: https://twitter.com/MightBeDamian/status/859146811486998529 - Jodie Calussi: Ihr wollt es.. | 80% Challenge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJNIPuQMk4Y - Lisa Sophie: Wen soll ich bloß wählen? - Entscheidungskrisen | ItsColeslaw: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEy1_80PqRw - MasterJam: Willkommen in Deutschland (Cover Musik Video “Die Toten Hosen”): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru91LJ_R6e8 Oh, and here’s some self-promo: - Last #TMIishTuesday: http://mightbedamian.tumblr.com/post/159982754723/tmiishtuesday-59-bi-what-on-bisexuality - All #TMIishTuesdays: mightbedamian.tumblr.com/tagged/tmi - More #TMIishTuesdays on politics: http://mightbedamian.tumblr.com/tagged/mightbeserious - More very cool stuff: www.twitter.com/mightbedamian - Even more very cool stuff: mightbedamian.tumblr.com 

[shakesonaplane]

Throwback Blog Post: “Top 5 Airplane Personalities”

Season’s greetings my intrepid band of misfits. I hope the coming weeks bring some sort of wonderful holiday cheer and joyous good times. If you’re like me, you’re huddled around something warm right now as the Northern Hemisphere plunges into the cold abyss that is the winter (#brr). In my meandering on the internet and my old archives, I somehow stumbled upon a blog I wrote from back in College / University. In reading through my realized how frightfully embarrassing that whole thing is (not that this is any less embarrassing mind you), but I did find a gem that really brought a smile to my day.

So instead of some trip recap (and because I’m lazy), I’d like to offer you a throwback post from 2008 where I decided to tell the world that I’m a pathological liar when I travel. Given the upcoming increase in your travel plans, I figure what better time to remind everyone that airplanes are sincerely a fun place to make some new friends. So, without much further ado, I present an “anshubhaiyya” special from 9 years ago on how much I enjoyed messing with people on airplanes as a young adult.

In case you’re wondering what I looked like in 2008 when I wrote all of this insanity (only things that haven’t changed are the hairy arms)

Hi I’m Ken Adams - Top 5 Airplane Personalities

I love airports…well, I take that back, I don’t like being in them when I’m in a rush or when I’ve just had my fourth cavity search, but I love to people watch. When you go to an airport, everyone is so busy and so hustled that people’s real, unfriendly selves come out. Whether its the angry mother with her four kids being rowdy, who she normally handles well but given the lack of Sesame Street or toys, she’s stuck keeping them occupied…or the busy business person who doesn’t seem to notice there are other people in lines or on escalators and always has a damn bluetooth headset attached (btw its funny to talk as the other part of their conversations and watch their reactions)…or the harassed traveler who is stuck in a place they don’t want to be because of weather and they’re either yelling or sleeping due to exhaustion from too much yelling…

But, when you get on that plane, you’re forced to sit and be nice to a person who is far too close for comfort…and if you’re like me you’re usually alone in traveling so you don’t know this woman/man and have to be cordial and polite for any amount of flight time while all you wish was that you could land and do something mildly interesting…..the best, though, is how people tend to strike up conversations with each other in order to make the time fly….maybe even asking thought provoking questions but usually just trying to keep the conversation going because, let’s face it…if you start and stop abruptly it’s just awkward

So, this guy sitting next to you on the flight, they don’t know you and chances are you’ll never meet them again….so what do I do? I lie….I make up who I am and where I’ve come from and what I’m doing because, to me, that’s more interesting…the more exciting you are the more fun you can have with people and in turn, the more fun they have….it’s fun to meet someone interesting, so much so that you feel better about your trip given a fun tidbit of information or a cool personality (see Fight Club)…

1) The Child Prodigy

A lot of us like to travel as comfortable as possible, and in doing so we tend to wear shirts, hoodies or hats that have our school’s name on them….so usually a good way to start a conversation with this person is to see their age and ask, “oh do you go to school there?”…to which one can simply reply…”oh no, I actually teach”…the cover story I used was that I was a child prodigy and graduated high school at age 14, college at age 17 and got my Ph. D. last year (usually I’m about 21 or 22)…people are usually astounded and I say “no, it’s not that great, I don’t have tenure yet, just an assistant professor” and when asked about what you teach, make up some information about the last final or test you took and run with it….whether you’re an economics guru or a biological whiz or whatever…this one is always fun because the first look you get is the “what the hell?” look to which you can laugh and say “I know, sounds crazy…”

2) The identical twin

This particular way doesn’t usually work, unless you sit next to someone who barely recognizes you (someone from school or an extracurricular or someone that hardly knows who you are)….this is actually what started, for me, the lying on airplanes…One day when I met a girl I recognized from high school debate (nerdy, yes), she ended up sitting next to me in the small hometown airport….she was a HUGE ass kisser/gunner/bitch/etc. but wanted to befriend me on the plane….she led with a “have we met”…so I countered with the “no, I’m sorry” and when she said I looked familiar and had I done debate I said, “oh, no that was my twin brother Abhishek….yeah my name is Neil, I didn’t do all that…he did”….after which I spoke about myself in the third person to her and just basically made up whatever I liked…where I went to school, how I was doing, what I had said about debate/her/Harvard (where she went)….sometimes talking about yourself as someone else to someone else who actually thinks they know your original self can be fun…write that down

3) The Arranged Marriage-er

This one always kills because of the ethnic card I have…see being a young Indian man flying to and from random cities can get really annoying…people tend to glare at you, almost afraid you’re a ticking bomb…so when you sit down next to your John/Jane Doe…you start to fidget, act uncomfortable, and ultimately ask them if they’re married (it usually helps if they are)…when they reply, you start asking interesting, thought provoking questions about married life in America (accented is a plus), and ultimately end the line of questioning with…”well that was probably easier bc you met your spouse well before”…after they try to figure it out….you start with the ethnic barbaric nature so many people think exists….I’m only 22 but it’s a good marriage age…my parents found a wonderful person from India who is our caste and all the stars and signs agree we’re a great match…I’ve met her a few times but I’m on this plane to go to my wedding…they live in ______ (insert town) and basically I’m going to be married in a few days….then just sit back and watch as they ponder the crazy arrangements, they congratulate you, or they are shocked….my ultimate goal is to have a champagne toast or something with the cabin after several people hear about it…but yes, this is one of my favorite airplane personalities bc marriage makes people happy

4) The Professional Dancer

This tends to work best if you’re flying to and from a major city….I first used this on a trip from LAX to Chicago…sometimes when people ask you what you’re doing in a certain city, this is a good way to go….it’s hard to be a professional singer or actor or athlete because more people will attempt to look for you or even know if you’ve been in certain things (unless you want to be totally aspiring but that’s no fun)…so I went the dancer route…you’re traveling from your home in City A to a concert in City B for _______ (insert obscure musician) in which you’re a backup dancer….you can start talking about influences, styles and even tell the person of where they might’ve seen you (“If you ever see a video with a group called N’Sync…called Pop, I was in the background of the ____ scene)…then you can start talking about the business, people you know, potential sexualities….it’s always quite fun

5) The Young Entreprenuer

Sometimes you find yourself sitting on flights and you’re dressed better than you should….you might be wearing a suit or just a nicer outfit than most and we all tend to own nice electronics like iPods and things…so this one I’ve devised on a trip back from NYC when I changed into my only clean (but very dressy) clothing…go with what you like but I tend to start my young millionaire personality as an online store that sells something really random…chairs are a good one, also random software, designer kitchenware, video gamer sites…basically anything that most people wouldn’t look at as millionaire making….when people ask what you do you say, oh well I’m just outta college but I’m working on my company, which I started in HS…right now we’re private but we’re getting enough buzz to warrant publicly selling to google/ebay/apple, whatever…basically running with the idea that you’re set for life and all you want to do is make more money…it’s always a good idea to have a company name in mind in case, but usually you can be small enough to be under the radar of most people….being a young millionaire can be fun too, because you can talk about the dream cars you own, the trips you’ve taken and, if you have an elderly person, it’ll melt their heart if you say you’ve made it so you’re parents don’t have to work anymore…

…Just to let you know, I don’t think lying is a great thing to do…the idea is that having fun is important and this person who you’ll never see again will only understand you as that interesting person they met on a plane….in a way you’ll brighten their day…people usually live their lives in such an ordinary, routine and mundane fashion that a little spark is always fun….so if you get away with your personality, you’ve made someone’s day more interesting and made yours more fun…it’s a win-win….

Well, that was generally an odd experience to re-read :) Hope you enjoyed that little trip down memory lane and have some fun ideas for what you’d like to do on your next holiday travel flight. Next year I’ll be back with loads more travel and hopefully some great stories to go along with them. Till then, Merry Christmas/Hanukkah/whatever it is you celebrate!

Cheers (and, for the throwback, jsk)! Abhishek

[alwaysscreechingbasement]

A rant/essay from a Facebook friend. (LONG post ahead)

Since the depression, every generation has had to work more and more to get by. In the 50's and early 60's, a family could easily survive on a single income. By the 70's it was almost standard that if you weren't in the higher tax brackets, both parents had to work. By the 80's (because of the 'new' financial difficulties of the late 70's, and people relying more and more on credit), most people had debt, and two incomes barely covered it. Debt went NUTS in the 80's, mostly because capitalism was HUGE then because of Reagan. There were all these things that quickly went from a 'luxury' to a necessity, like home phone, cable, and multiple cars. By the 90's, the wage gap that sprouted in the 70's and flourished in the 80's had come to be a way of life. People had tens of thousands in debt, the population was growing faster than ever before, and people depended more and more on government assistance. The Clinton era saw tax breaks for the middle class, better less expensive healthcare, more readily available medicaid, and people were finally starting to get on their feet as a nation (Clinton left us [National debt] in the black for the first time in decades). Then Dubya happened. Or, outright stole the election, I should say. He took away most of what was helping people become self sufficient, raised taxes on the middle class, and simultaneously gave huge tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations. He was able to make it seem acceptable because of the influx of tech wealth. Cost of living grew much faster than the average wages, and he put us right back to where we were before the Clinton era in two years. He managed to destroy 8 years of progress with two years of greed plus two wars he put on an imaginary credit card in attempt to make himself a hero. Then Obama took office. What he did in his 8 years was to get us a deficit again, raise wages (as much as he could) and give us affordable healthcare. Unfortunately, because he was black (and also progressive, but mostly because he's black), republicans openly blocked him and fought him every step of the way. 

Funny enough, one of the main reasons that was able to happen, is up until this past presidential election, people under 30 (millennials) didn't bother to vote. The older republicans who had been duped into believing the scare tactics from the Dubya years came out in full force, while younger progressives couldn't be bothered to vote in local elections. Starting around 2000, America had record lows of young voters, and this allowed republicans to gain a strangle hold on the government. The Tea party gained traction. A black, progressive president was new, and people are generally fearful of anything new. Because of the non-progress spurred on by Dubya and then the obstructionism of the right through the Obama administration, not only did republicans gain power, but millennials (who were finally having to live on their own) were faces with an even larger wage gap (as every generation before then has been) and took to the new format of social media to complain. STILL numbers of voters in that age group were pitifully low, but the small percentage that did vote often voted for 3rd party candidates or worse, Tea Party/republican candidates, because all they knew is they wanted change that they weren't seeing. 

Then came the 2016 presidential election. Social media (created largely by baby boomers, btw) allowed them to feel more engaged with less effort. They finally started becoming more involved (though small and local elections still saw little to no rise in young voters), and they blindly glommed on to the 3rd party candidates again, who this time used the same social media platforms millennials were dependant on to spread their message of "change", without giving any solid solutions as to how to attain it. Social media also allowed conservatives, the right, and outside forces (looking at you Russia) to push a false narrative about the only major candidate that could actually enact change and continue Obama hard won achievements. Most of the "oligarchy" argument as well as the other blatant lies that were spreading around like wildfire have been proven time and again to have originated on the right.

Unfortunately, now more than ever (thanks again to social media) younger people determined that they wanted to be" different" and "anti-establishment", ironically by throwing their support behind a 30 plus year career politician. They're a generation who saw that collective online organization could affect real life change through petitions and threats... so instead of working together to improve the only progressive candidate's platform that had a chance of winning, they chose to hold the election hostage. Now, this is not speculatory, they openly did so with the "Bernie or Bust" malarkey. Bernie, having a long track record of attention whoring, helped to amp up the growing unrest, and instead of directing at the right (who got us into this mess in the first place) he falsely directed it at Hillary in attempt to be remembered for more than collecting a government paycheck and to bolster his own ego. He had zero solutions, and zero practical experience, but millennials en masse bought into his empty promises. Because of that divide, and people claiming 'political purity' by voting for Stein, writing in Sanders, or simply not voting as a protest (if not voting for Trump to "teach people people a lesson"), Trump won. The exit polls showed as much. 

Trump has shown in his time so far that we're not only heading back to pre-Clinton era tax disparity, but that the wage gap will only increase, this time with fewer routes of government assistance. So, no, it wasn't baby boomers who caused it. They aren't too blame. The blame lies squarely on the shoulders of Republicans, millennials who only vote when it's "exciting" if at all, and the conservative/right/outside forces that pushed the narrative that Dems and Liberals were ineffective in achieving nationally benefitial goals. If you look back at American political history, it's been the same story over and over again. People want change (but only to benefit themselves) some vote for a candidate to achieve that change, usually the 'outraged' right. A republican wins, digs us deeper and deeper into debt, causes the cost of living to increase, and (in recent history, 80's to now) seem to TRY to get us in a war. People again want change, then some people vote, usually for a Dem, and change for the better starts happening. The original group of voters (Reps) get mad because their taxes (that they would have paid anyhow) start going to programs designed to feed, house, and give medical coverage to those in need (they like to call them moochers), and the current group (Dems) get mad because they aren't seeing change occur FAST ENOUGH. So again people start voting for change, ANY kind of change, and we end up with another republican in office, starting the whole process over again. This time it was almost different. If all the people who claimed to want progressive improvement had actually voted for the candidate that would've won (and technically DID win by thousands of votes) in a few years we would have had better wages, a less expensive housing market, and probably universal health care. Hillary ran on increasing minimum wage to $12 then increasing it incrementally over the next 4-6 years, and free college for most degrees within 2 -4 years (both of which she had a well thought out achievable plan for) Yet younger voters wanted $15 and free college NOW, and supported the guy who promised them that with no actual plan to achieve it. (I believe his actual words were 'we'll figure it out when it comes time'). 

Millennials aren't the first generation made to struggle. Far from it. The only reason it seems like it's so much worse than it used to be (aside from the ever increasing wage gap born of the back and forth of political parties elected by impatient voters) is that what's considered to be necessity now was luxury a decade and a half ago. People expect to have fast internet, cable (or online viewing services), newer cars (made more expensive by republicans making eco-friendly vehicles more expensive to buy and own), central heat and air, roomier/updated housing, "organic"/gluten-free/"GMO free food (that's costs 50-75% MORE than traditional food w/zero added benefits), and hell, even gourmet coffee. In 1998, if you paid $8 a DAY for a single coffee drink you did so because you were rich. Now people expect to be able to afford it. The cost of living is growing higher and higher because people just EXPECT to have things that 1)aren't really necessary (think a new car every few years, fancy pod coffee machines, all of the over priced food that's basically snake oil, freaking lipstick that's $60 a tube, etc) and 2) people who don't vote allow politicians who are actively working against them to gain or stay in office. So, yeah, baby boomers are in the same boat. A lot of them were fortunate enough to have been able to save money back during the Clinton era, but it was much harder for them then it was for their parents. The money they would've been able to live on then runs out exponentially faster today. They, too, have to go without healthcare (although thanks to the Clinton era boom and the Social Security they paid into then they have a little more to work with. 

Also, if you're working 3 jobs, they're probably minimum wage, less than 30 hours a week jobs. While the job market isn't great (it also has declined due to republican tax breaks and the population growth), people can still find full time jobs that pay more. A small investment in practical/ technical education (like auto repair, forklift operation, dental assistant, etc) or even the willingness to do manual labor (cities are constantly searching for workers (even with zero experience) to lay roads, collect garbage, etc. And those are good paying full time jobs. A friend of mine, with no experience, got a job working in distribution. It's physical labor so they're still looking for workers as people don't want to do strenuous activity to get a paycheck. In less than a year, he's gotten full insurance, and went from the $12 per hour he started at to $16 per hour with time and a half for (frequently available) overtime. In Texas alone there's thousands of great paying jobs that people just ignore because it's physical labor and/or outside work. I know of at least three millennials personally who turned down full time jobs because they were tough. THAT'S where the disconnect happens between older generations and millennials. Older generations actually did the jobs millennials (who grew up in a somewhat pampered tech rich world) don't want to do. THAT'S why older generations expect millennials to 'work harder', because THEY DID. Older generations see that millennials want the pay for tougher jobs without doing the tougher job, and they (pretty rightfully) don't think they deserve it. Should minimum wage be higher? Hell yes. Should a person be able to work 30 hours a week and have all the things the generations before them worked 60-80 hours at a full time job for? No. A single full time job can (and often does) pay as much if not more than 3 part time jobs. It just takes a stronger work ethic, the willingness to actually work a harder job, and the ability to not assume you should have all the things that you could do without. I have absolutely zero sympathy for someone spending $8 for a coffee everyday, $6 for a sack of "organic" oranges, and $20 a month for each online viewing service, only to bitch that they can't save money. Keeping up with the neighbors doesn't get you where hard work and frugality will.

Another side note: Millennials tend to be a bit more gullible when it comes to snake oil fixes for things. 99% of the people I've seen pushing "essential oils" and "cleanses" to cure things are millennials. Someone I used to be friends with on here bought into the "organic/GMO free/ gluten-free" BS, paid way too much for "holistic / naturpathic medicine" (read sugar pills), "healing crystals" and also $120 eyeshadow palettes/frequently changing their hair color at $75-150 a time/$30 "vegan" body wash used to complain about it being so hard to make it every month, and -while still spending ridiculous amounts on pseudoscience and overpriced luxury beauty items- frequently asked for financial help. They seem to feel they "need" these things and that they're "saving the world" through buying expensive personal products that they think are eco-friendly that really aren't. You'd think a generation that grew up having educational resources like the Internet would be smarter, but they generally don't seem to be. It's really sad that instead of using their portal to infinite knowledge, they want information spoon fed to them in memes and sensationalistic sound bites.

Not to continue on my rant/essay but... it should also be noted that with every advancement in history comes a higher cost of living. That's just a fact of life. People were pissed when they had to pay more for a bottle of milk when pasteurization became the norm because it saved lives. People were pissed when safety standards made meat cost more. People were pissed that Internet service became more expensive when they switched to fibre technology instead of modems. Every improvement comes with cost. It's how it's been since the beginning of time, and that's without modern capitalism. You can't expect the technology of tomorrow with the expense of yesterday.

ME: True, but it seems increasingly like the rich are just hoarding their wealth, and not giving enough of it back to the people (wage increases, charity funding, etc.), not to mention that politics really isn't helping this much (seriously, the GOP's mindset seems to be 'work until the day you die' - that Georgia senator that said she opposes a livable wage is a prime example), and I'm just wondering how long until capitalism implodes due to it's own hubris.

MY FRIEND: And that's why it's so important for millennials to actually get out and vote instead of handing over a list of demands and expecting it right now. Change takes time and work, and the only thing the 1%ers and the GOP are working for is to line their own pockets. You can't dig your heels in and refuse to vote for the betterment of all Americans just because you don't get your (falsely promised) instant gratification. Plus, political change starts at the local level. Until younger voters start actually giving a damn about REAL politics instead trendy meme worthy politics, we'll stay treading water if not sinking outright.