#in honor of brasil my country

[arvoresacrademiquella]

i think boothill would LOVE to listen to chico buarque and in honor of twitter's death in brazil I think the hsr family as a fandom should all embrace it as a valid headcanon

[pickingupmymercedes]

I've been trying to phrase why that Senna tribute was such a big deal for brasilians.

Why having Lewis honor Ayrton, at every opportunity he has, has been the catalysing force behind so many brasilians adopting Lewis as our own.

So, allow me to try and show it with a very short tiktok i found and a bit of context.

(translation: maybe we'll never understand Senna's impact on our parents generation)

Brasil is a gorgeous country with the best people, but it's a country with a painful history, with impacts felt to this day.

From 1964 until 1985 Brasil was under a military dictatorship, as most latam countries. The country was poor, people went hungry, brasilians were exiled and those who dare to speak against the regime were tortured and killed.

When the first civil president took office again, in 1985, the country had a inflation monthly rate of around 60 to 82%. That scenario lasted for the 90's as well.

Back then, as my dad tells me, it didn't matter how much money you made, you were going to struggle at some point of the month.

Ayrton and the national football team were the escape to a lot of brasilians.

Watching the tv, on a Sunday morning, as he drove all around the world, and proudly lifted the brasilian flag, was something that most families could gather over.

Of course there were other brasilian drivers. Champions even. But Ayrton was unapologetically brasilian.

And most importantly, at some point between his first title and the second, he learned the impact of his words and actions. He learned how there were millions of brasilians looking up to him.

When he died, it wasn't just a driver from Brasil that was lost. It was this breathing space that, suddenly, people didn't have on their Sundays anymore.

Lewis's story with Brasil has a lot of similarities, but mostly, it's how he's unapologetically an Ayrton fan, and how in recent years he's become unapologetic in what he stands up for.

Lewis's love for Ayrton is what blossomed Brasil's love for Lewis.

The road Lewis has taken in f1 is his own, and people recognize how hard it was for him as a black kid in a very white european sport.

But to a lot of brasilians, his story also has that slight influence of this certain dude that they used to watch on a Sunday morning when they were kids, when times were tough, and when they could use a bit of hope.

[dragonfoxgirl]

Based on the real story of a rescued macaw, "El vuelo de Loló" is an animated short commissioned by Itaipu.

A Hydroelectric plant located between my country, Paraguay and Brasil. I was honored to contribute to their conservation division by helping tell the story and to aid in the efforts to shine light into the ilegal capture and trade of our wildlife.

I hope you guys enjoy this animation.

[katanadepapel]

Didn't I tell you guys that my TMNT MM/ TOTTMNT OC Naomi is a rhythmic gymnast? So! I wanted to include her too! 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷

The 2024 Olympics inspired me a lot 😁

My honor, being from Brazil, is to create characters that show how magnificent our country is,

and for that I also thank God abundantly.

🇧🇷 Here, another anthem of our Brazil! 🇧🇷

🎵🎶

Já podeis da Pátria filhos,

Ver contente a mãe gentil;

Já raiou a liberdade

No horizonte do Brasil

Já raiou a liberdade,

Já raiou a liberdade,

No horizonte do Brasil.

Brava gente brasileira!

Longe vá temor servil

Ou ficar a Pátria livre

Ou morrer pelo Brasil;

Ou ficar a Pátria livre,

Ou morrer pelo Brasil.

Os grilhões que nos forjava

Da perfídia astuto ardil…

Houve mão mais poderosa…

Zombou deles o Brasil;

Houve mão mais poderosa

Houve mão mais poderosa

Zombou deles o Brasil.

Brava gente brasileira!

Longe vá temor servil

Ou ficar a Pátria livre

Ou morrer pelo Brasil;

Ou ficar a Pátria livre,

Ou morrer pelo Brasil.

Não temeis ímpias falanges

Que apresentam face hostil;

Vossos peitos, vossos braços

São muralhas do Brasil;

Vossos peitos, vossos braços

Vossos peitos, vossos braços

São muralhas do Brasil.

Brava gente brasileira!

Longe vá temor servil

Ou ficar a Pátria livre

Ou morrer pelo Brasil;

Ou ficar a Pátria livre,

Ou morrer pelo Brasil.

Parabéns, ó! brasileiros!

Já, com garbo varonil,

Do universo entre as nações

Resplandece a do Brasil

Do universo entre as nações

Do universo entre as nações

Resplandece a do Brasil.

Brava gente brasileira!

Longe vá… temor servil

Ou ficar a Pátria livre

Ou morrer pelo Brasil;

Ou ficar a Pátria livre,

Ou morrer pelo Brasil

🎵🎶

[moochilatv]

Niko IS interview

Writing about NIKO IS @nikohigh , it should be recognized that we are facing one of the most active MCs in the hip hop scene. In last years, he has published several albums and collaborations with remarkable artists, producers and legends of the genree.

 On constant tour with Talib Kweli @talibkweli and his crew of artists, he also takes the time to perform crossovers and go on tour with reggae artist Matisyahu @matisyahu .

His name is Nikolai Paiva. He was born in Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) and lives in the United States. He spent part of her childhood living in Buenos Aires and Bariloche, because her father is argentine. That's why you will find references to our country in his raps (he even names Batistuta @gabrielbatistutaok , the great footballer and legend, on a track).

This interview was carried out in the framework of the tour in Austin (Texas). When the South By Southwest (SXSW) was taken place. It's an event that gathered artists from all over the world, and also a large part of the latino community dispersed all over ther.

1) How's everything in Austin, Texas?

I LOVE TEXAS. SXSW is special. It’s my 13th year doing it and every year is better. It is a South American dream Come true. 

2) What are your feelings about the new project "The Adventures Of The Young Viejos" with Juni Ali ?

I feel that it’s a culmination of my latest travels with Juni Ali and a love letter to RAWKUS records and the golden era of Hip- Hop through my voice. 

3) How did you connect with legends like Sick Jacken & Planet Asia for the album?

I’ve encountered both of the legends from my tour experiences as they are both great friends with Kweli. We recorded both of those songs in the studio together. Plus Sick Jacken co owns a studio in LA called the “Drug Lab” with BLACKSTAR and Kweli’s legendary engineer “Federico CSIK Lopez” who is Colombian and also mixed my album ! 

4) One of the highlights of the project is "Live from the Blue Note". What do you think of the song and video clip that they published?

I think it’s a tremendous honor to represent the culture at such a prestigious and important jazz venue such as the Blue Note.. also having their blessing was an honor of mine! It was my dedication to the lyricist lounge. 

5) How did you meet Talib Kweli? A global hiphop legend. Do you have more collaborations between the two of you that haven't come out yet?

I’ve answered that question over 88 times lol it’s a great story. You can google it. But he discovered me in Orlando! And we must have over 50 unreleased songs at least! That’s my mentor ! And friend ! 

6) Will you work with El Bles again?

We are currently mixing the next SOFRITO album which is called “SOFRITO MUNDO” and it’s beautiful. I feel it’s my favorite one so far! Very futuristic yet very Island influenced. El Bles is a salsa sage.  ACHOOO PAPI 

7) What do you think of the new albums by Blackstar and Talib Kweli with Madlib?

They are AMAZING. POWERFUL! BEAUTIFUL! Side note, I was supposed to be on LIBERATION 2 but didn’t because of sample clearances. Blame EGON. Shhhh

8) What are your current inspirations?

MYSELF. MY MOTHER. GOD. LIFE. WATER. Atahualpa Yupanqui. Mach Hommy. moodyman. Many others!  

9) What do you remember from your past in Bariloche? Would you like to visit Argentina in the future?

I remember all the love and the cold! I miss it. I lived in Buenos Aires as well. My father is Argentinian. I just found my other family on Instagram! it’s a crazy story shhh they don’t know yet LOL! One day they will! Maybe after this ! I’ll be back very soon to drink quilmes and eat churrasco. And find my father ! Haha

10) The last questin it's a funny question. What do you have in your backpack? Moochila with the extra "o" means backpack/mochila

Currently, I have hair products, rolling papers, hair ties, a copy of “naked lunch” , allergy medicine, vitamins, spare headphones and coconut edibles.  

[theaprilfools]

aww u two got disowned for me? im honored xP

also brasils team is the best its not my fault we're winners!! (and its no fair to hold a grudge against an entire country because that sooo)

convinced the twins to watch the world cup and root for brasil with me >:P

we're def gonna win trust me @1-800-disaster-twins

[dutchplayboyfans]

@playboymx Iniciamos Abril con una portada muy especial, nuestra @jenisummers ! #mommabunny! - GRACIAS POR TANTO JENI ❤️ - Special thanks to @jvdasberra / @magumaguna and his team for this AMAZING shoot! - LINK EN BIO What does this cover mean to you ? This is so hard ! Honestly I’ve thought of this everyday it has been years I’ve been hoping, praying , wishing and dreaming for this, something I’ve worked so hard for! I can’t put into words how powerful and how meaningful this is to me. No matter how I write it I don’t think anyone will ever truly comprehend or understand how significant and important this cover is to me. How monumental it is to me. It’s hard to put into words how deeply moved I am by this great honor , how special this cover and pictorial publication is to me. It is one of my all time greatest accomplishments ever ! I have such great passion and feelings for this cover because playboy is not just a brand to me , Mexico is not just a country to me but it became my familia it became my home ! I am now a resident of Mexico and forever Latina at heart ! Throughout this great adventure South America especially Brasil, Colombia and Chile also became very significant and important to my fan base which I am appreciative to have such great support from Mexico and all of Latam! I will be a part of this country , team and family always ! It’s literally the full circle of my playboy career as momma bunny here in Mexico. It’s where I was discovered as a bunny. 6 years later starting as a playmate in 2015 to becoming playmate manager and coordinator of production and events to now have Playboy cover #8 my own solo cover here where it all started this beautiful and great journey has to be one of the best chapters of my life is a real dream come true ! It’s the ultimate gift that the playboy Mexico familia could ever give me ! One that I am humbled by ! One that I will always cherish and forever be grateful for. I take great pride and honor to be Latin America’s one and only momma bunny ! https://www.instagram.com/p/Cb48ThUM8Sw/?utm_medium=tumblr

[danielaeditsthings]

Lie To My Face - Patterson (Portuguese)

Yesterday I had the pleasure to speak with @kate_kellyricci who is the official Brazillian-Portuguese voice actor for Patterson (@ashleythejohnson) in Brazil. She wanted to say goodbye to the character and asked if she could dub one of my Patterson videos. I said absolutely. (because of course.) It was such an honor.

Sometimes we forget how many people it takes for a show to run… even from people in different countries.

Thank you to the wonderful Blindspot-Portuguese voice actors for all your wonderful work through the years. You are appreciated.

Special thanks to:

Wallace Raj (official voice of Borden) @wallace_raj, Reynaldo Vilea (@vilela.reinal), Rodolfo Novaes (@rodolfonovaes.dub), Cynthia moran (@cyntia.moran), and Alex minei (official voice of david) @alexmine, for making this happen.

Special thanks to @unorthodox-oblivion who helped me translate this video into Portuguese

——

Ontem, tive o prazer de falar com @kate_kellyricci que é a dubladora oficial da Patterson (@ashleythejohnson) no Brasil. Ela queria se despedir da personagem e me perguntou se poderia dublar um dos meus vídeos da Patterson. Eu falei "claro!" (Porque, óbvio que sim). Seria uma honra.

Às vezes esquecemos quantas pessoas são necessárias para que uma série exista... Até pessoas em países diferentes.

Obrigada a todos os incríveis dubladores brasileiros de Blindspot por todo o seu fantástico trabalho por todos esses anos. Nós amamos vocês.

Um agradecimento especial a Wallace Raj (voz do Borden) @wallace_raj, Reynaldo Vilela @vilela.reinal, Rodolfo Novaes @rodolfonovaes.dub, Cynthia Moran @cynthia.moran e Alex Minei (voz do David) @alexminei por fazer isso acontecer

E um agradecimento especial à @unorthodox-oblivion que me ajudou a traduzir esse vídeo para o português

[nathsketch]

It's amazing that one brazilian artist is so successful and talented! I love your draws!! Those with the indigenous and carnaval... lovely! 💜 Muito sucesso ainda pra vc!! Abraços!!

Thank you so so much! Even though I’m not particularly proud right now of the way my country is handling... well, pretty much anything that matters, I always try to use my art to honor my beautiful Brasil. But we desperately need Treebeard and the Ents to help us save our rainforest. Seems like Sauron and his army took over the government 😩

[brohogany]

Hodgkin's International Newsletter (December 15, 2020)                                              Meet André Singleton!   

André just recently discovered the long-term Hodgkin's survivor family, and we are very happy that he did! We feature Andre in this month's "Q and A"- happy reading!

1. When were you diagnosed with HL? How old were you? I was diagnosed in October 2004 when I was 18 years old. 2. What was the biggest challenge during your treatment? Everything was the biggest challenge for me. I was 18 years old and fought tooth and nail to get to college. I was a freshman at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. It was 5 weeks into my freshman year and during midterms. I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that I wouldn't be returning to school AND I was no tasked with fighting for my life. I returned to my hometown, Kansas City, Missouri, to undergo all the blood tests and biopsies which ultimately led to me being diagnosed with and treated for Stage IV HL. Heartbreaking to say the least. So, everything from leaving my peer group to beginning chemotherapy in the winter left my deeply crestfallen.  3. When did you first meet another HL survivor?  I met Quiana Parks through her cousin, Adriane Brown, in 2016. She is the same age and went through treatment at the same time. It was an extremely emotionally expressive moment for me. I love her.  4. What has been the most difficult thing about being a survivor? The most rewarding?  The most difficult part about being a survivor is the intersections of my survival. Not only am I surviving HL but I am also surviving as a Black man and a gay man. As an artist. As a poor person. It's been so lonely trying to navigate the world with having so many strikes against me. How the oppression of the world really crushes each one of these parts of me and collectively they are crushed. A beloved artist, thinker, feeler, activist and someone who faced breast cancer, Audre Lorde once said, "There's always someone asking you to underline one piece of yourself. Whether it's Black, woman, mother, dyke, teacher, etcetera… that's the piece that they need to key in to. They want to dismiss everything else." I wish the main part of my struggle was at least one of these things that I have been being penalized for embodying (as mentioned in the beginning of my response to this question)  but the truth is that they all do and I am punished and denied systemically a chance to live decently. At 18 years old I never had a starting chance to be self-sufficient and independent. I have been tethered to a medical system that has never cared about me. I haven't had consistent care and I struggle with even using the word "care" because it didn't, hasn't and doesn't feel very caring. So, the compounded factors make survival a very very difficult thing. I am often afraid I won't make it to 40 years old. I'll be turning 35 on December 23rd. What a surprise. I feel like I am withering away.  The most rewarding has been my ability to understand the shadow side of life. To understand how "darkness" serves me. With such a young and pivotal diagnosis I was ushered into the realm of sickness, dying and death. I have deeply connected with many people who are sick and dying. I continue to honor my dear loved ones who have died. The urgency to care and share what resources I have - whether inner or outer resources - is paramount to me. Creating the world I need/ed for myself inspires me to listen deeply and serve others in whatever way/s that I can. I never personally feel limited but I do feel the limitations that are put on me because of anti-Black racism, homophobia, classism, elitism, ableism and the countless forms of oppression. The struggle has been very real and the truth is that even iron wears down. I can't do it alone no matter how inspired I am or inspiring others find me. I need/ed critical help and support for a very long time. So, I guess the reward has yet to come. Coming?  5. Name the most interesting place you have ever visited or would like to visit after COVID? I would say the most impactful place I've visited is Salvador, Bahia, Brasil. I don't believe that there will be an "after COVID" just like there isn't an after cancer/HL. However, I do look forward to when I will be able to properly visit Africa. I've spent some time in South Africa over the years. But I really see myself spending time in Burkina Faso and other African countries. Burkina Faso is the home of two very important Spiritual teachers that have been major healers and instrumental in fortifying my faith in my body and genetics as an African person. Malidoma Patrice Somé and Sobonfu Somé (may she rest in peace) have written books, journals and lead workshops that are rooted in their traditions of the Dagara Nation/People and they have made this living experience a bit more tolerable. They have reminded me through their words that the reliance on Spirit is essential to not only living but also dying. I have infinite reverence for their understanding and eons of practiced faith which is tremendously left out of the West and the belief systems and all systems that impact everyone. Sobonfu once said, “There is a deep longing among people in the West to connect with something bigger — with community and Spirit. People know there is something missing in their lives, and believe that the rituals and ancient ways of the village offer some answers.” I want to be in a place where this isn't a concept or something you can buy but it is essential to the day to day experiences.  6. Who is the person you admire most? I admire people who endure suffering and really try to make sense of what they have or don't have. The ones that can't help but express what happened to them and how it still impacts them. The ones that keep repeating how they feel because they haven't and don't feel heard. Because I know that this chips away at their Soul/s. That hurts me deeply. But I admire the tenacity and inability to give up in their eye/s and heart/s. The ones that go out with a fight. I never say people "lost their battle to cancer" or "cancer got the best of" because cancer died too when said person departs the physical plane.  7. What would you say to your pre-Hodgkins self? Words of wisdom, advice, "If I had only known..."  (Continue to) trust yourself and your heart, mind, Spirit and Soul. Be firm but lead with soft hands, a soft voice, soft heart, soft eyes and love. Always give thanks.  8. Where do you see yourself in five years? Hopefully, still living if the world can give me that grace. I can't be here if others don't see me here and/or want me here. It's not even that I refuse to have the onus on me. I just can't simply do it alone. No one can. Especially not one who has already been fighting vigilantly just to be here on this earth physically. 

LINK TO ENTIRE NEWSLETTER 

*Bless all the other survivors who contributed to the newsletter + all the folks who know this battle well ... deceased and living. Axé* 😔❣️🙏🏿

[deepend-swimmer]

Do you not want Sana to be a Muslim?

Tbh not in Skam Brasil. Sana's character is about resistance, shock of culture, living through prejudice and keeping your faith despite it and bringing awareness to minorities. That is well portrayed by a muslim character in European countries and the USA because of the growing arabic imigration. However, in Brasil, Islamism is a small community and the best option to have the same impact as Sana's character would be an african origin religion. They have been around since the beginning and still suffer a violent backlash, their members are attacked in many forms and their Terreiros (where they can manifest their faith) are often destroyed and burnt to the ground and they are almost never represented on media, I can't remember one character. So if her character was from any of those, it would be groundbreaking and way more powerful than a muslim one. Especially in our current situation, when the President has made public and live threats and biased comments to their communities and some of their world known leaders were assassinated.

I'm not, by any means, saying that muslims don't deserve the representation, I think it's a beautiful religion. But in our reality, an african religion would have three times more impact and importance.

Brasil has a crushing christianity majority (most of it being catholic). Is very uncommon here for anyone to not follow a religion, even if they are not active followers their families will be. So Eva and Noora (probably most of the characters) will be from a christianity religion, especially because their characters have none to do with minorities. Sana is the only minority main whose a great part of their arch is about faith, so that's why her being part of the Umbanda or Candomblé would be very powerful and meaningful.

Se alguém quiser que eu traduza, só mencionar galera.

DISCLAIMER

The account that was considered the official Skam fanpage in Brasil released a fake announcement as a joke, they put sources and many informations that made it really seem like it was going to happen which lead to many other webseries pages to spread it. but Skam Brasil is not going to happen. I'm really sorry for everyone that was also rooting and waiting for it, but who knows maybe we will have it one day.

However that doesn't change anything I said up in this post, that is still my point of view if we do have a remake and thank you all for reblogging it, I feel honored.

[noweyesee]

About Roots and Ancestry

  For many years I thought that to me, there wasn’t a more vexing concept than ancestry. I strived for it and put effort into discovering my roots and trying to reconnect with them, but each step was and still is met with a hard rock wall of historical abuse.

 Getting older, and hopefully wiser, I concluded that it wasn’t Ancestry that vexed me, but rather the continuous effect of slavery and how that was able to take even what should be ours as a right, not only social, economical or lawful. Something that theoretically is in your veins and in our culture: History and Roots.

 I’m a Brazilian person, but that doesn’t say much about me other than my native language. Brazil is a country with a variety of ethnicities, and with a lot of miscegenation, considered a multiracial country. A country that, like many others, was invaded and subjugated into what is called “Colonization”, where Indigenous tribes were annihilated and African slaves were brought in and broken down.

 Even today we see the damage, socially, economically, culturally. The victims were left with a deficit in all aspects of life, but even so they put in effort to survive and to claim the basic respect and rights a human being deserves.

 In all of this, we’re left with precious symbols of survival. Candomblé is one of them, through syncretism it was created by Yoruba Slaves , in order to maintain culture and people alive. The Deities kept on with us disguised through talk, dance and prayer.

 When I was younger I asked my father if he knew where our family came from, a name, a tribe, a location, anything.

 He answered: “I’m not sure. I know that we got our surname from slave owners, that my mother’s family came from Cape Green (because of their eye color), that we have Bantu and Nagô in our bloods and that my indigenous grandmother was Bugre.”

  Bantu is a word created by colonizers to address a area of land that houses 400 ethnic subgroups.

  Nagô was a word coined to mean any slave that spoke Yoruba.

  Bugre was how the colonizers named any indigenous they came across. It means savage, barbaric, pagan. It was an insult.

 I think what broke my heart at the time was to see my father proudly recall a piece of information about our roots only to discover it meant pain, prejudice and loss.

 After all that, researching more and being faces with the history, the suffering of my ancestors (in a really general way, since I don’t know exactly who they were) to stay alive and blend in, I discovered that I should not hate Ancestry, but instead feel blessed that they managed to survive and find ways in which I can put in effort so that my Ancestors can survive through me and be proud of my actions.

I’m Brazilian, but from my mother’s side we come from Poland.

I’m Brazilian, but the family of my father’s mother came from Cape Green.

I’m Brazilian, but I have Yoruba in my blood.

I’m Brazilian, but an Ancestor of mine was born somewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa.

I’m Brazilian but an Ancestor of mine was from one of the 1000 tribes that existed in Pindorama before it was named Brasil.

This is more a promise than anything else, that not only from me will come the fight for rights and human rights, but also an individual fight. A search for my roots, so that they can finally be named with the honor and respect they deserve.

References:

Ethno-Racial Characteristics of the Population - PCERP | 2008

https://www.google.com.br/amp/s/m.mundoeducacao.bol.uol.com.br/amp/geografia/a-populacao-indigena-no-brasil.htm

http://www.irdeb.ba.gov.br/tamboresdaliberdade/?p=1284

https://pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bantus

https://pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bugre

[rap-liine]

50 questions tag

tagged by: @nervousatthenightclub omg sorry this took so long but thank you!!!

1. What takes up too much of your time? prolly tumblr tbh

2. What makes your day better? just getting time to myself to chill and watch stuff

3. What’s the best thing that happened you today? a bunch of stuff actually!! i got a bunch of compliments on my outfit + hair, maintained first place in my gymnastic competition in gym, got my daily approval from my favorite teacher, finished the oreo ripple icecream i didn’t know we had until my sister told me and i discovered red oranges are a thing apparently 

4. What fictional place would you like to go? oooohhhh maybe Alagaësia (the place where the Inheritance Cycle is)

5. Are you good at giving advice? yupp

6. Do you have any mental illness? nope

7. Have you ever experienced sleep paralysis? no

8. What musician inspired you the most? honestly i think the entirety of bts was really a big inspiration for me to get deeper into dancing and other things but hobi especially motivated me, and even though hyunjin’s backstory is super inspiring i don’t know how it helped me personally yet

9. Have you ever fallen in love? huh even 9 year crush don’t count as love imo

10. What’s your dream date? i’ve never really thought about it but probably a fancy dinner and a walk through the city at night after 🌌

11. What do others notice about you? i try to be optimistic and upbeat 24/7 so I really hate being around negative ppl, even tho ppl hate me for my smarts idgaf about them and genuinely care about my education, although im v confident im also v grateful for everything, and can cut people down but im really caring (mom friend literally everywhere) and i know what i want and i get it done

12. What is the annoying habit you have? ok my mom can fight me on this but burping isn’t that bad ok

13. Do you still talk to your first love? no? he moved but even before not really

14. How many ex’s do you have? 0️⃣

15. How many songs are on your playlist? pandora ain’t letting me see the full list but either way a lot of what i listen to isn’t on there, so im gonna take a guess and go at 500? it’s different for each playlist tho

16. What instruments can you play? i’m relearning piano and i want to pick up guitar

17. Who do you have the most pictures of? lmao one of my best friends and trust me they’re all ugly

18. Where would you like to go before you die? either mecca for religious purposes or greece/rome/brasil

19. What is your zodiac? virgo ♍

20. Do you relate to it? yES omg it’s like a 98% match

21. What is happiness to you? the emotional, physical, and spiritual contentment of a person OR (bc i think i understood this wrong) being with people i love, the feeling of accomplishment / pride, reading books that take you away from reality, debates and physical exercise

22. Are you going through anything right now? only high school my dude 🤙

23. What’s the worst decision you’ve ever made? even though this technically wasn’t my choice but eating nutella sandwiches for lunch every day and not getting into team sports as a kids 😭

24. What’s your favorite store? MARSHALLS, HANDS DOWN

25. What’s your opinion on abortion? women are absolutely entitled to the rights to their bodies and men should have no say whatsoever in this aspect, but at the same time don’t use it as an excuse to hoe around and constantly get pregnant

26. Do you keep a bucket list? not really, but i have an idea of some things i want to do in life

27. Do you have a favorite album at the moment? stray kids’ miroh (liSTEN TO IT)

28. What do you want for your birthday? silver/grey adidas soccer sweats, a new pair of black sneakers, and a permanent ps account

29. What are most peoples first impressions of you? 1) looks bc (majority of) ppl aint blind and 2) im super energetic and outgoing and just really friendly in general, 3) confident and a bunch of other things

30. What age do you seem according to most people? okkk literally all adults think im 5 years older than i am but?? i’m not 20 believe it or not

31. Where do you keep your phone while you’re sleeping? on my dresser next to my bed or charging on my cabinet

32. What word do you say the most? the duh lmao prolly bruh or either of the second two words

33. What’s the oldest age you would date? no one older than me but maaaaaybe sixteen

34. What’s the youngest age you would date? no on younger than me past a few months

35. What job/career do most people say would suit you? teaching but HUH i do not have to patience to teach kids

36. What’s your favorite music genre? pop (more specifically the kind with a k before it)

37. If you could live in any country in the world where would it be? i’d stay in the US

38. What is your current favorite song? hmmmm beside the ones that will always be my favs then maze of memories by stray kids

39. How long have you had this blog for? only a few months but i made so many amazing mutuals already!! 💫

40. What are you excited for? my april trip to spain & morocco with my best friend and my move into my new private school in late august

41. Are you a better talker or listener? uhhh both?? i love talking but i’ve always been a human diary so i can't really chose

42. What is the last productive thing you did? finish four pages of my history hw 🙃🙃🙃

43. What do you want for Christmas? nothing bc i ain’t christian

44. What class do you get the best grades in? omg my grades are lowkey sad rn they’re all a minuses but!! i do really well in p much everything but us history honors, bio honors, and spanish ii are two classes i love and excel in

45. On a scale from 1-10, how are you feeling right now? gotta say a 9.3 bc im regretting all the sugar i ate today

46. What can you see yourself doing in 10 years? working in a lab in boston

47. When did you get your first heart break? if you don’t fall in love you can’t get hurt :0

48. At what age do you want to get married? hmmmmmm i don’t wanna have a huge gap between me and my children but i also want to have a stable successful career first, so i’ll say before 30 ig

49. What career did you want to have as a child? veterinarian but then i realized that meant looking at sick animals all day and i went n o p e

50. What do you crave now? a gym bc i wanna exercise

tagging: @sonqmingi @parkseonghwa (whenever she comes back from hiatus), @lqhhj, @forhyunsuk, @ultvisual, @cuteez, @ateezsbitch @taengyo @astarlightmonbebe and ofc anyone who wants to!!

[quorrarider]

Worries

Alright, I know I don’t have a lot of followers here, but I have to vent about something that’s happening in my university right now: A man threatened to go to the university with a gun and shoot the students.

Now, I know some people will be like “it’s just a threat, he’s probably not going to go through with it” and that’s the problem. This is not okay. People shouldn’t hear about such a threat and dismiss it.

The man who made the post had already threatened to do something of the sorts through a letter before the recent shooting at a school in São Paulo and the Brazilian Federal Police went to his family and offered him psychological help, but apparently it wasn’t enough.

The police has been notified and went to his house (unsurprisingly, he wasn’t there) and the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR - where I take classes) released a notice warning the students and informing us that it’s likely we won’t have classes until the author of the threat has been found. It’s not very clear if he will be arrested upon being caught or not.

I’m writing and posting this because I want people to know about this. This type of thing just can’t go unnoticed. My country might not be in the news that often, it might not be as economically important or powerful as other countries, but we deserve to tell the world that things are not alright and they won’t be for as long as people refuse to recognize it.

The tragedy of Suzano, São Paulo, which happened on March 13th at Escola Estadual Raul Brasil (Raul Brasil State High School) left nine people dead, including the authors of the crime, and some people dared to say that wasn’t as important as other tragedies because of the “small amount” of victims.

That’s not how any of this works.

Numbers don’t make a tragedy.

So I’m leaving this here, where someone might read it, in a language people might understand, in the hopes that someone will see this and share it, and I’ll be praying to god someone does, because this is so important and people still ignore it.

approximate translation of the text:

“My confreres, the oath of the next massacre will soon be fulfilled. I will honor the name of the brothers and shoot down as many as possible AIDS bearers, sluts and blacks. “[...] “I also warn in advance that it will happen at UFPR, so you have the time to prepare the popcorn and accompany everything from stateroom [...] “We meet again in Valhaha.”

[gingerandwry]

Brasilia, Brazil

Few people have anything good to say about Brasilia, the country’s capital. Built from nothing only sixty years ago, it is now the third biggest city in the country, yet it draws few tourists. Even many “residents” leave on the weekends-- they are only here for work during the week and return to their home towns whenever they can. But from an architecture and urban design standpoint it is one of the most distinctive, unusual cities in the world, and that’s why I wanted to see it.

A quick history... For most of Brazil’s colonial history, cities along the coast competed to be power centers. Many agreed that the capital should be moved to a neutral location in the central interior, and the new republic’s Constitution of 1888 even called for it. But it wasn’t until after WWII that a president, Juscelino Kubitschek, put a plan into action. He assembled a team of designers and architects-- most notably Oscar Niemeyer-- to design the new city. In 1960 (59 years ago this week), Brasilia was inaugurated, and the capital officially moved from Rio. Niemeyer (who had strong communist leanings) wanted it to be the city of the future, where rich and poor would live and work side-by-side. His distinctive Modernist buildings still define the cityscape and were the main draw for me.

The main city of Brasilia is shaped like an airplane (it’s surrounded by 25 satellite towns too). The cockpit, fuselage and tail (the “Eixo Monumental”) contain most of the government buildings, museums and other attractions. The wings are divided into a grid and areas are named after what they contain, such as shopping, hospitals, sports clubs, etc. (Yes this is very strange as you would think it would behoove everyone to have these things spread around.) Beneath the wings is a large (manmade) lagoon. In many ways it’s a brilliant design (not unlike Burning Man) but it’s executed very poorly.

I arrived Monday afternoon to a relatively cushy AirBnB in the Hotel Saint Moritz in the “Northern Hotel Sector” (at the top of the fuselage). I needed some food, and the only real option was a giant mall (Conjunto Nacional) across the street. Brazilians love malls, and that’s especially true in Brasilia since there is effectively no street life (more on that soon). This mall was massive and yet there were no maps or directories. I really couldn’t fathom how that works tho I tried to as I wondered for half an hour to find the food court. That night I decided to take it easy, but I did enjoy the rooftop view of the axis.

On Tuesday morning I stepped out to begin my walking tour, which, if you’ve been to Brasilia, you probably find laughable. First, the distances are much bigger than they seem on a map, mostly because there is so much dead space to cross (lawns, parking lots, empty lots, grassy knolls, etc.). Two, Brasilia is famously made for cars, so there are few sidewalks or crosswalks. This means forging trails where you can (including on medians), waiting for a break in speeding traffic on four-to-six lane roads so you can run across, teetering on narrow curbs, walking in the street alongside parked cars, etc. It is extremely unpleasant, sometimes terrifying and often inefficient. It’s also surreal as when sidewalks or staircases (some of the few concessions made to pedestrians) just end abruptly at a busy road; the city planners know people will walk across that road but have done nothing to aid them. I know that in some places (like parts of southern California), the lack of sidewalks reflects that fact that nobody walks anywhere. But lots of people walk here. The problem is that they’re poor. The middle and upper classes drive cars, and city government doesn’t care about poor pedestrians. I suppose that Niemeyer thought everyone would drive in the future, and that’s why he designed such a sprawled city that can really only be traversed by car. But the result is a betrayal of his egalitarian principles (not to mention an environmental catastrophe).

Nonetheless I was determined to walk. Google Maps’ walking directions pointed me to... the mall. Yes Brasilia lacks sidewalks but you can take malls to get from points A to B. (Once again I got lost in the mall, so it took about 15 minutes to find B.) On the opposite side of the mall from my hotel sits a small plaza (hilariously named Praca dos Pedestres or “Pedestrian Plaza”) with a view overlooking the Eixo. It’s similar to The Mall in Washington, D.C., but it is not inspiring. You can see some of the stranger Niemeyer buildings along the axis and the Congresso Nacional at the end, but it’s mostly a large empty patch of grass that seems unfinished. My first stop was the Teatro Nacional, a sort of pyramid without a top that would make an awesome waterslide. Then I visited the Biblioteca Nacional, a fairly new (and incomplete?) building. It kind of resembles a hi-fi stereo from the 70s and looks great from afar. But up close it’s a terribly wasted opportunity. The ground floor of the building is encased in opaque glass windows so that it’s impossible to see inside-- or even get inside. I walked around the entire building before I found the drab entrance. Of all types of buildings, libraries should be accessible, open and functional, but it seems Niemeyer preferred grandiosity for one of his final designs.

I continued on to the Museu Nacional and the Catedral Metropolitana, two of the city’s strangest, most recognizable buildings. They are both quite compelling in person, tho not well kept up and smaller than I imagined (or perhaps they’re dwarfed by all the empty space around them). The museum is a white dome with a Saturn-like ring around it and a large ramp leading to the entrance. It hosts rotating exhibits, but I was mostly interested in the building. The cathedral resembles a wheat bushel with leaning columns coming together in a peak at the top, separated by giant stained glass windows. The effect on the interior is unique and breathtaking.

I then walked to the “Banking Sector” which has more to offer than you might expect. Brazil’s banks-- and especially the central bank-- often offer cultural centers and exhibitions centers, which at the very least can provide a good opportunity to glimpse inside some beautiful buildings. Case in point, the Caixa Cultural, a large bank whose lobby is filled with stunning stained glass windows, one for each of Brazil’s states. Across the street is the headquarters of the Banco Central do Brasil, a deceptively light looking skyscraper, that is home to a “money museum” featuring currency from around the world (unfortunately I could not go in without my passport).

Cursing the traffic and city planners, I continued my walk, now scrambling south from the axis. My destination was Santuario Dom Bosco, a beautiful modernist church famous for its chandelier and illuminated Murano glass meant to resemble a starry night sky. It was also a nice place to sit for a minute and let my frustrations with the city subside. But that didn’t last long. I ventured back out and over to TV Tower, a broadcast tower that is one of the country’s tallest structures and offers sweeping city views. Supposedly. After a hot, lengthy walk dodging cars I arrived only to discover it was closed for construction. At this point I decided to treat myself to an Uber to get home, tho not before one last stop at... the mall. And yet again I got lost, this time in search of a grocery store which it turns out the mall doesn’t have-- apparently I should have gone to the grocery store sector. That evening I decided not to venture far from my hotel, which fortunately sits on a small plaza with a pizzeria, beer bar and convenience store.

On Wednesday I set out (in an Uber this time) to finish my tour of the Eixo. I headed to Praca dos Tres Podres, the hub of the federal government. Sites include the Supremo Tribunal Federal (relatively dowdy); Palacio do Planalto (the Executive building which looks similar but its elevation on stilts makes it much more remarkable); Panteao da Patria e da Liberdade (a collection of striking geometric forms, including small dove-shaped performance space with a beautiful stain-glassed window, a stairway to an eternal flame and Brazil’s largest national flag); Espaco Cultural Lucio Costa (an underground lair honoring the city’s main urban planner which includes a giant scale model of the city); Museu Historico de Brasilia (a small, elevated marble block whose interior walls are engraved with the story of the city and several inspiring quotes about it, and whose exterior features a massive statute of Kubitschek’s head); and several art pieces. Up the hill are two beautiful buildings that house the Foreign and Justice ministries: Palacio do Itamaraty and Palacio da Justica. The former appears to sit in a lake that reflects the buildings columns and arches, while the latter’s exterior contains several cascading water falls. (Side question: if Brazil has not had a monarch since 1888 and Brasilia was built in the 1950s by a leftist government, why are all the buildings called palaces?)

The centerpiece of all this is the Congresso Nacional, an eye-catching masterpiece rich in symbolism. Two tall, narrow towers intersect a low flat building with two roof adornments, a dome and a bowl. The dome (symbolizing inclusivity) tops the House chamber while the bowl tops the Senate. These are lined up neatly with the towers so that they balance each other out, tall and short, wide and narrow, heavy and light, square and circle. It’s really a perfect structure that I could not take my eyes off of as I walked around it.

Once I had soaked in as much as I could, I took a car down to the “Sporting Clubs Sector” to the Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil, another bank-run exhibition space. This one is dedicated to contemporary art, and the current exhibition was on photorealism and hyper-realism, where artists use photographs to create amazingly realistic paintings that are able to convey qualities that the photography does not, such as depth, light, texture and social themes. The technical mastery behind these works was mind-blowing, and it yielded interesting insights into how different media and technology help each other to progress.

I then headed further south to Pontao do Lago Sul, a waterfront area with restaurants, performance space and meandering paths. It feels very new and contrived (like the whole city I guess) but it’s still a nice place to enjoy the light of the sunset. On my way home I stopped back at Praca dos Tres Podres to see it lit up at night, and I’m very glad I did.

There was not much left to see on my last day so I spent most of the time relaxing and catching up on this blog. I stepped out for a moment to see JK Memorial, Kubitschek’s museum and mausoleum (in the cockpit). It’s a modest, tasteful building full of the president’s belongings (documents, medals, clothes, pens, 1974 Ford Galaxie, etc.). The displays were in English which is always nice, but I do not have a strong interest in Kubitschek so I breezed through quickly. I did enjoy the recreation of his library (with 3,000 books) and the many historical photographs, particularly those showing the building of Brasilia. I noted how much empty space lay between buildings during the construction. This is to be expected but one would also expect that space to be filled in over the next sixty years....

Brasilia is a city most people don’t want to spend much time in or think much about it. But it’s actually a fascinating place that made me consider the value of architecture and urban design. I loved the notable buildings here much more than I expected to. Concrete Modernism does not sound aesthetically pleasing, and I thought the city would look more kitschy, like Epcot Center. But these thoughtfully rendered buildings really opened my eyes to how beautiful modernism can be and how well it can age. Just as important, the city founders (especially Niemeyer) did not try to emulate existing world capitals like London or Rome. They created entirely new buildings that were-- and still are-- distinctively Brazilian. If a country’s capital should showcase its own aesthetic, Brasilia has succeeded.

And yet in almost every other way it is a failure because of-- not despite-- its (over) design. Contrast it with Sao Paulo, a city that has grown up entirely organically. Yes it’s a mess but it’s a much more exciting, livable, human city. Brazil’s cities have incredible street life but that’s pre-empted in Brasilia. This city offers a lesson that cities grow from the bottom up and cannot be handed down from above. Clearly the designers had an idea about how a city should work, but they completely ignored how they actually work. Good urban planners will take note of existing human behavior and patterns and accommodate them (for example, building parking lots) while encouraging better civic mindedness (like building bike lanes). It’s also foolish to design a city around a technology that’s only 50 years old (driving) while ignoring what humans have been doing for tens of thousands of years (walking). Like so much of Robert Moses’ concurrent work in New York City, this urban design sacrificed the city’s residents to the greater concept of the city.

It’s probably too late to fix Brasilia and all its wasted space (and there does not seem to be much will to), but some elements could be corrected, starting with the city’s ambivalence-- even hostility-- toward tourism. Despite its short history, Brasilia is a unique, important city with many attractions in relatively close proximity. It would appeal to a lot of people, especially architecture enthusiasts and Brazilians interested in their own government. And the people are much friendlier than in Rio (perhaps because in Brasilia people are grateful to have visitors whereas in Rio they are taken for granted). But the city does nothing to encourage tourism. There are no good options for getting around, and all of the government buildings are either closed to the public (a terrible look for a democracy) or are only open in small windows or under specific conditions. From an outsider’s perspective it seems they don’t actually want tourists here. Everyone I met first asked me if I was here for work, then if I lived here. They were all surprised to learn I was just on holiday.

I think it would be fairly easy and inexpensive to turn the Eixo into a proper tourist destination. Put in sidewalks, crosswalks and stop lights. Fill in the empty spaces with trees, fountains, playgrounds, pathways, reflecting pools, etc. Over time add more buildings like museums, hotels (outside of the hotel sectors!?) and restaurants (currently there are zero). It’s practically a blank slate surrounded by some incredible buildings housing the seat of the federal government of one of the world’s biggest countries. Visiting Brasilia could be a treat, not the chore most treat it as. I wonder if there is resistance to changing the city so as not to dishonor the original vision (Niemeyer was still called upon to build the major new buildings up until his death in 2012). If the city wants to fulfill its ambition to be a city of the future, it needs to adapt and modernize. If it does not, its problems will only multiply, and it will stagnate and decay and will remain a city stuck in the past. I think a photo from my hotel roof taken on my last night illustrates Brasilia’s potential and its (so far) disappointing failure to live up to it....

It ended on a good note tho. Taking off from the airport I was just able to make out the airplane shape from my window seat, and that made it feel like my trip was complete.

[lovenikkimadegeeky]

I would discourage everyone from buying the "Brasil" suit as it is very racist and uses slurs for native Americans in the cloth items' names and descriptions along with very little actual allusion to Brasil besides the birds and one description ~an upset native American

Dear Nonny, first off, I’m so very sorry that a game which is supposed to be fun has upset you. It shouldn’t be that way and the fact that it happened is awful.

The fact of the matter is that Elex, despite the fact that localization is what they do, is not very good at it. The fact that they’re a Chinese company who specializes in taking Chinese games and publishing them in other countries would lead you to believe that they’d be much better at it than they are. It’s obvious, both from this and other things, that they have not hired a native English speaker to help with localization and they really really need to. Their continual lack of comprehensive instructions and understanding of European/American culture is a constant block to people enjoying this game as fully as they should.

That being said, I do think there’s some confusion about this outfit that needs to be cleared up. 

This is not a Native American outfit. It is not meant to be a Native American outfit. It is meant to be an outfit based off clothing from Indigenous Brazilians. Just like Native Americans, there are many many different ethnic groups with very different cultures and thus very different looks put under the umbrella term of “Indigenous Brazilians”. It’s entirely possible that this outfit is a conglomeration of many outfits. The headdress looks extremely similar to headdresses in this wikipedia article, which was originally taken off a Brazilian news website. Similar headdresses are also seen in a picture on Survival International (second to last pic), which is nonprofit organization specializing in protecting Indigenous people, originally founded to protect Indigenous Brazilians specifically. I can’t find a good source for the top unfortunately; what I did see that looked similar did not come from websites I felt comfortable sourcing. However, for the bottom, here is a news article about Indian Day, a day set aside to recognize and honor Indigenous Brazilians, where you can see similar bottoms to those in the Brazilian suit.

Which leads us to another thing that needs to be addressed, the use of the word Indian. Acording to wikipedia índio (Portuguese for Indian) is the common term for Indigenous Brazilians and, on the Portuguese wikipiedia article, they use the word repeatedly. Does this mean they should used it on our server? No, it doesn’t. If Elex were doing its localization correctly, they would have known that this is an incredibly loaded word in the English language and they could have easily chosen one that wasn’t so offensive to so many people.

Love Nikki also didn’t make this outfit on its own. It worked in collaboration with UNESCO, which is a specialized agency of the United Nations whose tasks, among other things, includes “promoting cultural heritage and the equal dignity of all cultures”. This was nothing something that LN developers just did. They very specifically worked with a group that specializes in promoting different cultures. Which leads me to believe that, at the very least, an organization that specializes in trying to embrace diversity did their absolute best to make sure that this represented Indigenous Brazilians.

My point behind this long and lengthy sourced reply is, while I understand and sympathize with the fact that you’re upset, it’s important to keep in mind that this isn’t an outfit from your culture. This is an outfit from the many cultures of Indigenous Brazilians. The use of the word “Indian” is, I agree, problematic, and the fact that Elex hasn’t hired a native English speaker to point out these sorts of issues is unacceptable. Elex can and should be doing better. If you want to complain to Elex about this suit, that’s what you should be complaining about: their word choice and their lack of cultural sensitivity and awareness. 

A couple things worth noting. I’m a white woman so I can’t speak for either Native Americans or Indigenous Brazilians, all I can do is research to the best of my ability and then offer up that research in an attempt to help people understand the nuances of this particular conversation. I hope that’s what I’ve done. Also, a lot of people might side eye my use of Wikipedia as a primary source, however, I stand by that decision. Wikipedia has been proven to be a decent (if not particularly well written, according to the experts) source of information, that is not that much more unreliable than official Encyclopedias. (And, yes, I linked to Wikipedia for the article about the reliability of Wikipedia. The article is well-written, points out the issues in studies even if those studies were in favor of Wikipedia, and will link to the actual studies if you want to read them for yourself.)