#just because its a red state you think these cities & the people that live in rhem have no value. interesting

[nimx]

crazy thing to say.

[batboyblog]

Hi, idk if you're a Mdni page or not, but I'm really scared. I'm 15f, I live in a mostly red state, I've grown up here, and everyone I know is voting red. I was previously in the middle, I didn't care either way who won. I'm terrified of the election after reading about everything the Republican candidate did and plans to do. I wanna know if there's anything I could do to help prevent Trump from winning the election? I have a younger sister, and I don't want her to have to live in a country where her rights are being stripped from her. I just wanna know how to help. Thank you for reading and feel free to delete if I broke a boundary.

for the record I don't mind anyone sending me an ask, everyone is welcome to interact respectfully.

that out of the way, I remember working for Hillary in the 2016 election (by my math you would have been 7?) and our intern was your age and he was... he was everything he was so dryly sarcastic, smart, unflappable, could do anything, he kept us sane and he saved our asses with his can do (and tech skills) more times than I can count.

So to any teens out there who are not yet old enough to vote and think "oh there's nothing I can do" in 2016 we won a Senate race by 1,000 votes, which 100% was the doors we knocked and the voters we talked to out of our office, a 16 year old intern working his ass off saved Obamacare in 2017, not a word of a lie, you can make a difference as an intern or volunteer

Now, from the tone of what you're saying it sounds like your parents would into that, idk if you're parents are the kind of people who let you explore your own thing, or the kind of people who just wouldn't notice, or if they're the kind who would seriously object to you volunteering for the Democrats or progressive groups.

A lot of people assume because they live in Red States or Blue states they don't matter, but for example there are key Senate races this year in Texas, Montana, Ohio, and Florida (Red) and Maryland (Blue) Alaska is a traditionally red state but its one and only Congressperson is a Democrat who will run a very close race to get re-elected again this year. So where ever you live there is a key race, even if it's local. And lots of chances to call voters or send them postcards in swing states

Any ways everyone check out ways to Volunteer Run for Something also supports younger local candidates so if you live somewhere very red or very blue it can be helpful to find locals running for school board or city Council

now for you personally young person, and everyone else, have real and serious conversations with people in your life about this stuff, I can not TELL you how often I knock on someone's door and we talk politics and they tell me "oh well I'm a Democrat, but everyone around here is really a Republican" but like I just talked to 4 other people who were Democrats in their neighborhood, they just saw one Trump sign and gassed themselves up about it. People are often much more swingable than you think, feel everyone out, if there's an adult in your life thats convincible, work on them find out what they care about and bring them facts, be claim and reasonable and work on them. Each of us doing one on one work with people who know us is WAY! more impactful than any TV ad a campaign can buy.

finally if your parents won't let you volunteer for Dems, reach out to the League of Woman Voters, they're not partisan, so they're not Dems or Republicans, they believe in voting. When I was in High School I organized a voter registration drive in my school at lunch time, thats a great thing to do, call your county/town clerk's office and talk to your school, get a social studies teacher involved they love that shit, young people are much more likely to be Democrats so just registering them is helpful.

best of luck, in the words of Hitchhiker's Guide, Don't Panic.

[decaffeinatedpartymuggoop]

Okay, we all know being a demigod is a shit position. Its scary and gets you killed in really nasty ways. But I feel like being a Big Three Kid has to be the shitiest position in all the shit positions.

Like, imagine being Thalia Grace. Your dad is king of the gods, lord of the skies. Led a war to get rid of a tyrant. And the only thing you get is his scorned wife AND brother, who both try to kill you (with one technically succeeding), a drunk of a mother, and brother who you thought was dead. Oh, wait, he’s not dead! No instead he was used as an offering to appease your dad’s wife and help fight in a war and prevent mass destruction.

Or maybe you can imagine being Percy. Son of the sea god, the stormbringer, the earthshaker. You get to live with a disgusting, abusive man for around 6 years. Who smells like literal shit. All because your scent as a demigod is too strong, BECAUSE of who your father is. You see things that you aren’t supposed to see and do things that people can’t do and go years thinking something is wrong with you. That your the problem. Then you get to the one place where you’re supposed to be save. But! Here is the kicker! You’re not! Your uncles hate you and you’ve been accused of stealing a symbol of power. A series of events that will kick off a war, and guess what. You’re a center point for it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood.

Mhm, but then there’s Hazel. Daughter Pluto, god of the underworld and riches. But that doesn’t really change anything does it? She’s still living in 1930s America, in a red state. One where confederate flags still hang if you go deep enough into the city. She go to a school where the kids are supposed to be just like her! They still don’t like her tho. She’s got no idea who your father is, only that he left her with a parting gift. Only it’s not really a gift. Sure, she can pull rubies and diamonds from the earth, all worth millions. But anyone who’s ever gonna touch it will die. She lives with her mother, a woman gone so mad with greed it kills her. And Hazel, by the way. Laying dead Alaska, inhaling oil. But it doesn’t end there! She can’t have her mother suffering for eternity, can she? The answer is no. Hazel gets to spend the next 70 years in the Fields of Asphodel. It still doesn’t end! Because when she’s brought back to life, she gets to fight in a war against giants, her sad story seemingly never ending.

Nico’s a son of one of the Big Three, one of the most ancient and most powerful. But most people look at him as something bad, something not worth taking a second glance at. Something too look away from, mostly. He’s from the 30s, spent years in a magical time casino with only his sister at his side. She doesn’t stay for long though, she dies soon after they discover their heritage. And he doesn’t remember his mother much, a name without a face. A face without a name. He survived an attempted assassination at 2, though it wouldn’t be the only time his was life was threatened. He clings to his sister, even though she’s dead. He’s the son of the god of the underworld, is he not? There had to be a way, and there is. Only she won’t talk to him, she seems more concerned with communicating with the guy who got her killed instead. She chooses rebirth, and he decides to lay it to rest. She’s not coming back, and he has a war to fight in. (He gets stuck in a jar and forcibly outed a few years later, but that’s a lot to get into for now.)

Jason Grace is a pillar of New Rome, their golden boy, their American boy. He’s a son of Jupiter, a natural born leader. He’s been at camp for as long as he can remember, he wants to be praetor soon. He’s had a rocky start, but maybe he’ll be one of the lucky ones. Retire a veteran and live a long life with Reyna in New Rome. Only that never happened. He has no idea where he is, there’s a girl holding his hand, and she’s cute but it feels wrong. They get attacked and people come in and call him a Greek demigod, familiar, yes, but still wrong. It doesn’t feel right. It doesn’t put things into perspective the way it does for Piper and Leo. He’s goes to a quest to rescue Hera, the name sounds wrong. He nearly dies but at least he remembers who he is. He spends the next 6 months trying to get back home, even though he isn’t too sure on where or what home is. He gets there, eventually, but it doesn’t stop there. He’s dragged on quests and battles and fights in the war but at least he survives it, he’s still there. Apollo needs help, he and Piper give him aid. He gets dumped. He doesn’t get to he a veteran in New Rome. Not with Reyna, not with Piper, not with anybody. He doesn’t get kids or grandkids. No, he gets shot down, another demigod buried.

You could be any one of them, really. Pick your poison, but I guarantee you won’t like any of them. Spending years trying to find a place where you belong, where you feel safe. Only for it to never come.

Percy, who, if you really look at the books, isn’t really all that well liked until he’s at least 2 years into camp. Only to then be sidelined because the courages, brave, fearless daughter of Zeus is back from the dead. Nico, the son of one of the most feared and hated gods. Who has death written all over him, who excludes it so much animals can smell it and humans can sense it, who’s been ostracized and pushed off to the side since he was 10. Hazel, who was treated like disease as soon as she stepped foot on camp soil. Who’s gone her whole life looked as something that’s cursed, that will only bring misfortune, a bad omen.

Shit positions, all of them.

[imaginesbymonika]

“Shame” Part 7

A Pedro Pascal x fem!Reader fan fiction

Plot: For the last four years, Y/N and Pedro have been dating in secret. The fear of rejection has turned them into a mystery that could only be encountered in yearning looks on red carpets or hands that are touching one another briefly. However, for the longest time, things have been working out that way just fine. But now Pedro's agency wants him to have a PR relationship with another woman and neither Y/N nor Pedro is sure if their love is going to survive that.

Warnings: swearing, mgg is here to STAY (this is for you kim, love ya)

A/N: you guuuyss!! hello!!! i was gone for such a long time (?) i was just really busy with university and just life, but yeah, im back for now, i guess <3

"To be honest, I didn't expect you to show up.", the tall man states as his eyes light up at the sight of the young woman. Y/N just chuckles at the sincerity in his voice. She watches how he takes a step to the side, offering her to walk through the door into his home. There is a certain tension, lingering in the chilly evening air. Who would have thought, that they were living in the same city… She mouths a brief 'thank you' before doing so and waits for him to close the door. However, before he does his brown eyes scan the street in front of the building. Curious if any paparazzi have seen her. But once he realizes that no one has noticed his guest his posture visibly softens.

„Well, I didn’t expect you to reach out to me, Gubler.“ At the mention of his last name, he giggles (actually giggles) and wipes the corner of his mouth with his left thumb. His gaze falls on the floor for a second, before he meets Y/N's again. She can clearly see that he wants to say something in return but doesn't. Instead, he makes a hand gesture, telling her to step further into the house.

„Oh my god… This is actually so stunning.“, the y/h/ced woman whispers as she wanders down the corridor into his living area. She can sense Matthew’s eyes on her form but acts like she has no idea. "Thanks.", is all she receives back.

A silence falls upon the two again and when she sits down on his long couch, she feels its softness:" You know, I always wanted a couch like this myself." "Why didn't you buy one?"

"Are you sure this is the one?", Pedro scratched his chin, his finger moved up his face and stayed underneath his nose. He taps his skin a few times and sighs:" Don't you think that leather would be a better choice?" There was something in his look that told Y/N that the decision was already made.

"I don't know." He lets out a soft chuckle:" Well, I tend to spend a lot of time in here. So I figured, that the least I can do is make this space as cozy as humanly possible." Y/N feels how she sinks further into the colorful and fuzzy furniture:" Oh Really? Because whenever I see videos of you meeting fans, you appear to be outside quite a lot!" At that, Matthew laughs out loud:" You've seen videos of me online?"

"I may have looked you up."

The actor crosses his arms in front of his chest, and Y/N watches how his muscles flex. She swallows and her hands stroke the material of the couch. "You looked me up?"

"You're asking me a lot of questions." His chuckle is as soft as honey. Y/N already wants to hear it again." You're right, sorry." "But yeah, I did."

Hot tears were dwelling up in her eyes and she felt how her hands were violently shaking:" God! Everyone thinks that you are so sweet! That you're this perfect nice guy! Hollywood's goddamn fucking sweetheart! I wish people could know the disgusting and ugly and horrendous truth about you and your stupid and mean lies! And- and- and the way you're only acting! You're not like that at all! You have them all fooled!"

Pedro stared at her. Her hand flew up to wipe her eyes:" You're so mean!" "You don't mean that.", Pedro whispered and swallowed thickly. "You're so mean."

[yourmomxx]

[spring mornings]

words: 1,6k

It was a typical, late morning in spring. The sun had already risen, but not yet reached its highest state. Not that it mattered much in Gotham City. But today, even Mother Earth seemed to be in a generous mood, and here and there, a few rays of sunlight broke through the usual gray sea of clouds.

Somewhere, on the edge of town, just where the population thinned minimally, stood a tall residential complex – next to another one that looked the same, and another one that looked the same, and another one that looked the same.

Just like most of the rest of Gotham – or at least the parts that weren’t sponsored by Wayne Industries – this building was an old soul, spearing home to around three separate people per floor.

The apartments weren’t the biggest, and the floors in-between were cold due to the stone walls of the building, but at least there was an elevator. Also, it was mostly old people or petty criminals that found themselves living here. No real danger to anyone around.

Or so you would think.

But the real danger doesn’t come from within, no, in this case, it came from outside. An intruder.

It was a typical, late morning in spring. On a weekend. With mostly old people in the building. That were still sleeping.

But he didn’t care for that, no. He was leaning backwards on one of the plain white doors that led to a rented apartment, hands dipped in the pockets of his cargo pants and a loose-fitted T-Shirt. For once, his red hair wasn’t caught under a cap, he had gotten a haircut a while ago anyway.

He didn’t care about peace, he only cared about chaos. Because it was a late morning in spring, on a weekend, with mostly old people in the house that were still sleeping, and he was yelling.

“Oh, Jason, I love you so much! Oh, Jason, please, yes, exactly like that,” Roy Harper exaggeratingly moaned. He pitched his voice higher, in the – absurd – belief it would make him sound more girly-ish, his head was bumping the door behind him in few-second intervals.

Anyone listening would have thought that Roy was having a very ... spicy time down there. But no, he was alone, simply mocking a situation to draw the attention to him that he wanted.

It had been minutes since he had first entered the building, walked up the stairs, and knocked on the door to his best friend’s apartment, only to find that no one answered him. And because he just couldn’t leave it at that, he had decided to put on his little show, and his sounds were starting to become obnoxious to the entire rest of the people living in the building.

“You’re doing that so well Jason,” he kept on going. “Jason, I love you so much!”

Roy Harper had the body of a model athlete, but the mind (and in some’s opinion also the brains) of a five year-old. He was in the constant craving and need of attention and was determined that if nobody was available to give it to him – he would simply take it. Just like right now.

He knew that his best friend was home, and also that he was awake, judging by his inner watch but yet, he hadn’t opened the door for him.

And Roy could all too well figure out why. Which was the reason for all of this circus. Because he came here to see Jason, and if he wanted to see Jason, then he wouldn’t give up so easily, defeated by nothing more than a door.

The two of you were living together anyways, you could thoroughly study each other’s body parts another day.

The archer was just opening his mouth again, taking a deep breath for an extra loud exclamation (he didn’t even get to the kinky parts that he figured the two of you were totally into), when suddenly, and without any warning, the door he leaned on was opened from the inside.

With no time to adjust to his lack of leaning space, Roy fell backwards, flailing his arms for balance, and landed hard on the cold stone floor of Jason Todd’s apartment.

Still grinning, as he was looking up to see his best friend, who was standing leaned against the now open door.

“Hiya, Jay!”

“Roy.” Jason Todd’s voice was flat. His muscular arms were crossed in front of his chest and he was staring down at his best friend with a disapproving look.

He, on the other hand, was twisting his neck to take a farther look into the apartment – with a beaming smile, he recognized you standing in the empty doorframe between the kitchen and the living room.

“Hey, Y/N!” He greeted you. You gave a small wave back.

Roy frowned. Was he hallucinating or was your hair … tousled? And were you adjusting your pajama shirt? Oh, you so totally were!

The archer grinned cheekily. In one swift move - a total opposite to the rather clumsy entrance he had landed - he was back on his feet again and made his way to the left, directly into the small kitchen.

Vaguely, he heard Jason close the apartment door behind him. Determined, Roy headed for the hung shelves. He opened them one by one and closed them again, until he eventually found what he was looking for – a half-eaten bag of mini chocolate-chip cookies.

With a triumphant laugh, he pulled them out of the shelf, closed it behind him, and dug his hand in the bag.

Roy stuffed one cookie after the other in his mouth, without chewing even one of them properly, all while his feet absentmindedly carried him further into the apartment, through the threshold into the living room.

Both you and Jason leaned opposite him against the open doorframe, backs turned to the kitchen, and looked at your friend with raised eyebrows and crossed arms.

It was quiet for a while, only interrupted by the continuous munching noises of Roy devouring his cookies.

You tilted your head.

Normally, there were two possible reasons why Roy Harper would spontaneously seek out your and Jason’s apartment.

A) he was gravely injured and needed medical attendance as soon as possible. This usually happened at nights, or sometimes when he had decided he felt like starting a brawl.

Or case B) where he was just bored and in total need of attention.

You gave the archer in front of you a quick once-over with your eyes. Considering the lack of blood on his clothing and skin, and the fact that he could still walk upright, today the case seemed to be the latter. Also, the more common one, to be honest.

Jason seemed to have come to the same conclusion as you, because he was now shooting a disapproving look at his best friend.

“Roy, what do you want here?”

The addressed looked up from his cookie bag with stuffed cheeks. “Is this a bad time?” He muffled. “Oh, why am I asking, of course it is, you two were totally going at it.”

“I think what we are doing in our apartment is totally our business, Harper,” Jason almost spat at him. But Roy simply waved him off.

“Relax, it’s not like there was a problem, guys. I would love for Lian to have someone she can play with,” mumbled Roy, stuffing his face with even more cookies.

“We weren’t-” Jason groaned, frustrated. “Roy, what do you want? “

He shrugged. “Can’t I just come by to visit my good old friend once in a while? Huh, jaybird? My pal, my buddy, my boy?”

“Okay, that’s it.” Jason pushed himself off the wall and unceremoniously grabbed Roy’s shoulders.

“What are you doing?” The redhead asked, but Jason didn’t give him an answer. With all his strength, and the help of his apartment’s slippery floors, he pushed his best friend towards the door out of the apartment, which you courtly held open for both of them.

Roy turned around on the doorswell and threw Jason his best puppy dog eyes. “Come on, Jay, you can’t do that to me!”

“Call next time, Roy!” Jason simply said, and with a thump, he threw the door closed in his best friend’s face. At least he had left him the bag of cookies.

For a short while, Jason was just standing there, head close to the wall to check if Roy really was leaving. Only, when he heard footsteps disappear in the distance and the faint slam of the main door, he stepped back with a sigh.

You stood cross-armed, leaning on the kitchen counter. “Do you think we were a bit harsh on him?” you asked, and Jason turned to you.

“Nah,” he waved off. “He’ll be fine. He’s used to rejection.”

Your mouth fell open at his comment. “Jason!”

You slapped his shoulder playfully; he had taken a few steps towards you.

“What?” Your boyfriend laughed.

His voice dropped lower as he leant down to you, his warm breath was brushing over your ear. “Was just saying how it is.”

Then he captured your lips in a warm kiss, lifting his hands to grip your waist and pull you even closer to his body than you already were – trapped between him and the kitchen counter.

A soft moan managed its way past your lips at the movement, and you gripped your hands subconsciously into the fabric of his t-shirt.

“Now”, Jason grinned, when he broke away from you. “Before the red tornado barged in and interrupted us so rudely – where were we?”

[dj-algy135]

God I love Chappell Roan so much. I don’t think people understand just how much she means to Midwesterners. Seeing people upset she’s performing in red states is insane when queer people exist in red states. Like the communities that are spread about here are some of the most loving, passionate, and kind I’ve ever been apart of.

I’ve gotten to speak to elders!! Elders!! Just casually!! I’ve gotten to speak to indigenous elders!! I’ve met queer people who are social workers, lawyers, farmers, firefighters, band members, activists, parents, teachers, business owners, and artists just casually. I’ve seen the bravery it takes from all of us to just collectively exist here. I admire my friends who are fighting to get name changes and HRT.

Our communities know we are all we have in these states so we fight. I live in a small city and it’s amazing the work that our local activists do. We have a local Christian church group that gives away free clothing to anyone. They also host a hobbies swap where people come together and just barter and trade items. We have a local business that does community gender affirming clothing trading. Our one singular Planned Parenthood supports basically the entirety of our community here. They started an independent sex ed program because of our school districts policies. Our local libraries fight tooth and nail to keep their spaces queer accepting. Our school district despite its issues has gone to bat for teachers protecting queer students because despite the board being entirely red they felt it was a violation of privacy and freedom of speech rights to out kids and teachers. Last year our pride event that supports basically every small town in a 100 mile radius across two states had threats made against it. The organizers got in touch with an activist group in a nearby area and moved the event to that town. It was the largest turnout they’d ever gotten.

Like it is so hard being queer out here. I’m in an open minded city compared to the rest of my state despite people publicly and proudly showing themselves as white supremacists and bigots in my own neighborhood. My city is still red but our communities here refuse to be erased and I think that’s wonderful. Our allies are so passionate. We have a Lutheran, Baptist, Christian, Catholic, and Methodist church that all proudly show themselves as queer accepting. The businesses willing to hire openly queer people and treat them well here defend them because they know if they don’t, no one else will. We take care of each other and I think that’s amazing.

Anyways, queer people exist outside of California. Have some class because a lot of y’all don’t like us because of your own personal biases against poor people, the working class, PoC and etc. It’s weird for you not to care about queer people in blue states, especially those of you saying we deserve the treatment we get by living here. White queers need to especially get a grip. Chappell Roan is an icon and please be normal about her touring in red states.

[spiders-notagain]

Misc Headcanons

[Stuff I don't know how to make its own post]

legendary lost city buried under the sand somewhere; minecraft buried cities style

cliff cities- used to be a big fortress now just used for daily living

mostly specific monasteries

extremely good water recycling system- technology to make water out of hydrogen and oxygen in the air

if breakfasts are things that are easy to obtain then plomeek must be obtained regularly (e.g. grown throughout the year, incredibly hardy plants)

valley cities- alderaan style

shikahr historically very good land, less earthquakes and harsh conditions

large areas of the planet irradiated by radiation and theres not much they can do about it, no ones allowed to go there without special protection

some areas that are civilized have been ruined by their ancestors and are only just starting to restore its natural state

no birthdays but some places have a quincenera coming of age equivalent * sometimes in addition to the kahs-wan and taloth trials

Vulcans are pretty direct and so an acceptable form of making friends (although its really more like conversation partners) is to go up to a person and tell them that you share an interest and would like to talk about it. This is no guarantee youll ever interact again though.

Vulcan has a lot of jobs that are restricted to native citizens

Need mental contact to survive as babies the same way humans require touch

Tight knit families heralding from olden days. Almost mafia like in its web of connections. Additionally, alliances with certain clans meant status and power.

Alot of infighting between clans in the earlier days also

Similar to Ant colonies underground

Buildings have sections above and below ground

Above ground, buildings protected from sandstorms. Few windows, more doors. The less open to the elements the better.

Sehlats were tamed more recently than dogs, usually they would offer protection to the vulcans in exchange for food

Black and brown hair extremely common, genes for blond or red hair extremely rare

Early books made out of leather and a cotton-like fiber

later books made out of stone paper

Water very rare, lots of it is a sign of wealth.

Given the newness of logic, theyre not very good at it and struggle to apply it in day to day life. Additionally theyre good at lying to themselves about what emotion they may or may not have

Multiple different sects bc everyone has a different opinion on whats logical

Some are better adjusted than others because some try their absolute best to

Very preppy- high ego, strong social classes, pretentious, hide any faults, care alot about their reputation, fear being ostracized in their own community, many social rules

vulcans generally prefer to keep humans away from their sehlats because humans try to be overly affectionate with them and end up severely harmed

Vulcans get hit with winter depression even harder than other species but deal with it better. Their own ships are set up to have sun lamps all over the ship.

vulcans view mental illnesses with the same seriousness as physical ones.

not only can vulcans pass on mental disorders to their children but also strong phobias (and some philias) even those obtained through later trauma

typically mothers during pregnancy thought to occur during the mental bond

the prenatal mental bond can pass on memories as well but are typically suppressed till adulthood. its more of a folk wives tale thats corroborated enough that most people agree but technically had little proven evidence until recently

vulcans think murder by drowning is one of the worst most senseless murders ever

vulcans be like  🤓☝️well actually-

vulcan school systems dont have an above and beyond grade because the highest possible grade to get is by default you meeting the acceptable standards. that said, they do have extra awards given out for such behavior. although acceptable standards by vulcan standards is somewhat higher than is what is the case for human standards

vulcan kids still do the same 'kid logic' thing as humans because theyre trying to reason and understand the world using the logical reasoning skills being taught to them but they dont have enough information to make it accurate

Vulcan vegetables are bred to have a higher concentration of nutrients, a project that has been in development for the thousand some years since the awakening

passive cooling methods going back thousands of years; more advanced than human technologies

windcatcher like structures built to incorporate: the structure of the house, local weather, local geographical phenomena, etc.

heavily populated cities may have hybrid cooling systems that are integrated with modern technology to increase efficiency, this is less common in more rural areas where ppl are more likely to be 'if it aint broke dont fix it'. in most cases though they were so well designed that not much is needed aside from general maintenance

depending on the location, most vulcan homes are designed with the concept that a bedroom is exclusively for sleep and like wardrobe changing. you dont usually engage in hobby activities, doing those in a separate entertainment room or in the equivalent living room

like the rest of their society, vulcans incorporate more circles into their architectural designs than humans do and less squares than humans do

glass art is one of the oldest vulcan art forms. their planetary conditions work very well for it: lots of sand, high heat. and its an art that features alot of mathematically appealing shape language

ex. those curvy glass vases with the holes, floor mosaics with tinted glass, stained glass windows, suncatchers, etc.

in ancient times, betrothal jewelry (and other ceremonial purposes) were made partly with copper wire crafted from the blood of their enemies. some of these pieces (and spare wires) still exist. Vulcan clans that still practice this, obtain the blood ethically from dead animals (or in extremely rare occasions, consenting dead relatives)

STARSHIPS

Constructed so that every system is at max efficiency when used exactly perfectly how its meant to.

Its interlocking systems mean that it has millions of tiny unobtrusive glitches that can happen to the point where one can reasonably predict based on the type of glitch exactly what deeper system is failing and why

While it has normal passwords it mostly relies on each person to have their own special bioelectric pattern that is measured each time a user touches the console in order for them to input anything at all

They dont like outsiders on their ships as crew because they make tiny mistakes that while easily fixable, can mess up major systems

Sun lamps all over the ship as natural lighting, they gradually turn off according to the vulcan solar cycle and are replaced by a secondary lighting system that mimics candlelight. Although its kinda dark for humans its just fine for vulcans

Because of the size of their ships, they often have really large 'halls' that take up multiple decks and serve as visual space for the different wings connected to them

the vulcan warp rings compared to the human twin nacelles serve different attributes with the analogy being like a train versus a car. trains are faster but theyre also bulky, dont slow down well and arent designed to make quick on the spot diversions

[masterangst]

General Headcanons that play a part in Post!game long fic of mine

This could also could just be seen as random headcanons I have of the characters based on my playthrough

For starters, Wyll became a Paladin in my playthrough, and I actually think it fits his character very well. Oath of the Ancients, to be exact.

He's in the Hells with Karlach in the beginning, but he still comes and checks on things above

He has no problem living up to the Ancients tenants, and the powers he gained are quite helpful to him in the Hells.

The reason I chose to do this, is because Wyll embodies what a Paladin does. He strives to inspire others and beat back against despair and to help others. He preaches hope and wishes to inspire it in others. He loves his friends and cares deeply about his father and his city and isn't afraid to voice it/do what it takes to protect them.

Though, he struggles with his belief that because he's still tied to Mizora, that he's unworthy of the position, but believes he can do more good than he could before. Considering it's a very powerful combo.

He's also come to accept being a warlock under Mizora, deciding to see the powers given to him because of it as a gift instead of curse.

He's main focus is helping Karlach at the beginning and may develop into something more 👀

Astarion

Him and my Tav, Axel, have become bounty hunters of sorts. It's a great way for Astarion to find people to kill and drink from. "Nobody actually cares about murder, as long as you murder the right people"

He's grown a lot more comfortable with his body and with sex. He still likes to enchant people with his charm, but now he does it cus its fun sometimes

He forces Axel to sleep in luxury and not in a bedroll every night. Also, it is the one that keeps Axels' appearance in check and repairs both of their clothes if they get damaged.

They created a technique together to take down their enemies. Sometimes treating it like a dance as seeing themselves in battle turns them both on. (I can make another post that goes into their relationship a bit more)

Now that he's not malnourished, his eyes have turned less red and his teeth are now not constantly pointy. In other words he appears more human/elfish to others now. He uses that to his advantage

He also has discovered a few abilities that spawn have that Cazador hid from him. Such as spider climbing, though he struggled with it at first. Only Axel knows of this.

Bg3 has almost it's own rules than just normal DnD. Because of this, and based on what is stated and shown in the palace. There is no evidence that the spawn were bound by their coffin like normal dnd. So in my story, that isn't a thing. And I stick with the notion that Astarion isn't forced to sleep during the day, but must at least trance once a day

He also is not the best as writing letters to everyone, but he's always watching over Axels shoulder and butting in to make corrections or add something

Shadowheart

She has a little cottage where she homes Scratch and the Owlbear.

She's not very good at gardening but she's trying. She's determined to have a small garden by the beginning of spring (story is set in winter)

Also went on a few trips to find her connection with Selune

She struggles with overcoming her trauma with her parents and with Shar and feeling worthy of being a follower of Selune

Mostly been traveling and learning more about her parents for now. Has evaded Shar assassins and has a small map of locations she's knowledgeable about of Shars followers. She intends to use it someday, but not yet.

I imagine she gets lonely and wishes to be with the others again. Though she sleeps with Scratch every night and the Owlbear sleeps on the floor by her bed.

Scratch accompanies her on her travels and makes sure she's eaten and lifts her spirits when she's sad

Her and Axel write to each other all the time and she sees him like an older brother even though hes younger (she's 48, he's 39)

The only other person she's spent time with is Gale. She stayed with him when she went to the temple of Selune in Waterdeep. They also write occasionally.

Gale

Gale is quite content with being a professor. He feels like he doesn't have that dying need to prove himself all the time anymore

Though he still wishes to be recognized by his peers at the academy

Also has tried to rekindle his relationship with Elminster, but hasn't seen him in person yet

He still feels very lonely, however, and frustrated he's having to rebuild his career in a sense. He misses being on adventures and the people he considers his real friends

He keeps in regular contact with Wyll and Axel the most. Gale helps keep Wyll informed of upstairs news and gives him new things to read to keep him company. Also has decided that Wyll must be his invite to the Blackstaff ball.

Wyll forces Gales to practice his dancing and they exchange recipes as well

Gale considers Wyll his best friend, but won't say it aloud or admit to it. It's like a mother who says she doesn't have a favorite child but clearly does.

Wyll also considers him a best friend, but also besides Karlach

Karlach

She didn't want to go back to the Hells. She was terrified and was ready to die, but having someone there helps.

She's tired of constantly fighting, I mean it's fun and all, but it's also tiring

She wants to settle down in Baldur’s Gate and have a place big enough for all her friends to visit her

The reunion party reminded her why she's still fighting. So she can come home and go on adventures again

Her and Axel are the closest. Axel was the first leader Karlach ever fully admired and didn't grow to regret it. She's also the only one who knows things others do not about him, and she takes pride in that.

She loves the color Pink and she can't wait to wear pretty dresses at the Blackstaff Ball no one tell Gale she's coming too

Sneaks away to relieve her sexual tension and lies about it. She lives with the guilt.

Is much like Astarion when it comes to letter writing. She looks over Wylls shoulder and makes comments about what he should write and how dumb the companions are sometimes.

Lae'zel

She won't be in my story very much, because she's off trying to fight/negotiate a war, since Orpheus was sacrificed.

To be frank, Lae'zels arc is my my favorite one. Especially if you choose the route to go against her queen. She's a beautiful character. Anyways.

She's a bit busy with the rebel forces but she holds onto a memento given to her by Axel to remind her that peace sometimes works better than violence.

She misses her friends on the Material plane and fully intends on seeing them in the flesh once her battle is done.

Also checks in a lot with the hatchling Xan

She can't write to her friends, but she knows they are rooting for her

By the end of the game, her and Shadowheart had made up their differences and actually became friends

In terms of everyone together. I like to imagine that a permanent side effect of the worm is that now everyone must rebuild their stats.

I'm sure I have more, so maybe I will make another post. But I was thinking of the things that play into my long fic as well.

[hypodermicfroggy]

Hello again Tumblr Limbus community, I am here to bring you: more horrors. By which I mean memes.

An explanation of these assignments below the cut:

Faust has both invested and not invested in crypto in the many alternate realities, and so she's just smack dab in the middle.

Heathcliff: Does not understand crypto and does not want to. Fuck off with that nerd scam shit.

Gregor: Probably can't wrap his head around the concept but also doesn't really put stock in a currency you can't physically interact with. Follows the logic of "if this is something I couldn't trade for cigs in a POW camp, then I probably shouldn't be interested in it."

Ryoshu: May or may not actually understand crypto, but follows the logic of "just rob people the old-fashioned way like a normal fucking person."

Sinclair: Would probably not understand or want to invest in crypto, but would also probably get peer pressured into investing in some of it anyway, most likely by Rodya.

Yi Sang: Knows how crypto works, in fact understands all the intricacies of it and the volatility of it and will state as such. Which is precisely why he doesn't invest.

Ishmael: It's a wildly impractical and made up currency for scamming foolish people, of course she's not interested in it.

Vergil: Has lived in the City and dealt with enough of its criminal/Syndicate elements to know enough about crypto and as such knows it's just another scam. And is going to throttle Dante and Don both for falling for it when they get back to the bus.

Don Quixote: Absolutely has no idea how it works but she thinks it's neat. This girl would buy a custom NFT of Roccinante and be convinced it is not just a jpeg with pretension. I love her, but she would, you know she would.

Dante: Is probably initially wary but between their amnesia and spinelessness, they would probably fall for the first persuasive conman peddling the shit to them.

Outis: Would normally follow the same thought processes as Gregor for avoiding crypto, but as soon as she sees Dante has fallen for the trap, she of course jumps right on board with it to support them, because the taste of manager boot far outweighs any other logic she seems to have.

Hong Lu: May or may not actually understand how crypto works, based on some of the investment...activities his family has probably engaged in. However, he definitely doesn't grasp the actual value of the damn things and would also get caught up in NFT schemes. This boy would look at a jpeg of a banana and go "well how much could it possibly cost, Dante, 1000 Ahn?"

Meursault: Understands crypto's mechanics well enough and has weighed the risks to decide it's similar to a stock market, and thinks he can work with the numbers because the stock market is relatively stable and predictable. He cannot, but he is convinced that he can.

Rodya: Definitely knows crypto is a scam, but can't resist the gamble even though she knows better. Everytime, she thinks maybe this time this currency will be the one to go to the moon. She also may or may not definitely also be the one selling crypto to the Sinners.

Also one I forgot originally on the chart at the time but which came to me as I was formatting this:

Charon: Does not understand crypto and does not invest, and is in fact probably just a little too young to invest, BUT, she does figure out how to buy a custom NFT. It's something with red eyes, as a gift for Vergie. :) The emotional grief this causes Vergil makes him postpone beating Don and Dante's asses until the next foolishness they get themselves into.

[taylortruther]

I’m not american, but like basically the rest of europe i’m totally fixated on the upcoming US election. We watch with horror, but lately also a lot of empathy and perhaps a little bit of hope. I saw a thread on twitter where a loooooot of people talked about how they’ve lost close family and friends because of MAGA. And I can’t even imagine how frustrating it must be. And its just.. so sad. Do you live in a swing/red state? Do you like.. feel how divided the country is on a daily basis?

(Sorry if this is invasive and rude or something, i’m just so curious how it is to be in the middle of it)

i live in a deeply red state (texas), and in a liberal city, so i do feel it pretty regularly. and for anyone who doesn't know, a red state is one that is historically republican, meaning most people vote for republican candidates.

however, i also see - beyond political labels - how broken our system is, period. i live in austin, which is liberal, but the city is deeply racially segregated, gentrified to hell, historically enabled a corrupt police force (shocker!), and has regular power struggles with the very conservative texas government. plus, tech bros and tesla. i think what frustrates me the most is seeing people move here to enjoy a more liberal city and then just completely disengage from politics otherwise.

BUT i also see a lot of protests, since we're the capitol, plus ut is a huge university and located here. day to day, i feel i could easily go to almost any stranger, and commiserate about losing abortion access in texas. but anything more controversial or nuanced and i think i'd lose people. and if i left the downtown area/city limits, i would assume people are republicans, we're basically surrounded by very conservative areas (and that's the case for every major city in texas.)

the biggest thing i notice is that joe rogan fans and elon fans are everywhere, and that skews my above statement lmfao.

[illarian-rambling]

Mmm can I hear about the Araunian Empire? Whatever you think is most interesting about it :3

So, I won't get into why they blew up, because I'm not done worldbuilding it hoping to keep that a bit of a mystery, but I'd love to talk about their culture!

The Araunian Empire existed as the first great center of civilization on Illaros. They had runic magic, came up with the first writing system, and built vast trade networks despite not allowing foreigners into their cities. They also came up with the first calendar system and existed by its measure for several thousand years, disappearing about four thousand years ago from the present day.

Their cities were built like giant compounds. Think Çatalhöyük or a nicer version of Kowloon Walled City. The roofs of these vast structures served as markets, while the interior was far more residential. Enchantments ensured that even the most enclosed depths received natural sunlight.

The Araunian revered the sun, in fact. They worshipped it and the mind of Beginning that lived within. They saw the world's colors as a blessing and thus painted their cities brightly. Each city had its own code of colors painted on the outside, so you would know that you had arrived at Dualn by its blue and yellow, or Eyma by its pink and red. As much as they worshipped the sun, they feared the night. Superstition stated that if you went outside at night, the stars might snatch you away or whisper in your mind. This is why their cities were built as compounds - so people didn't have to be outside once the sun set. Most Araunian saw this as more of a suggestion though, so many more sketchy parts of the market stayed open at night. Even so, it became tradition to avoid the stars.

The Araunian people were also brightly colored. Their skin and hair could be anything from red to brown to purple and everywhere in between. They stood a bit shorter and broader than humans and had slightly pointed ears. No Araunians exist in the present day because of the whole "their empire blew up" thing, but you can still see eyes of bright orange, red, or gold in some dwarven and human populations. In fact, many elements of dwarven writing are believed to have Araunian origins, as they traded the most closely with them back in the day.

And that's about it, I think. They were a highly technologically advanced society even by modern standards. Their xenophobia prevented much spread of these ideas, though, so most of their incredible tech found nothing more than a sandy grave. But mostly, the Araunians were just people going about their lives.

Thanks for the ask!

[mk-writes-stuff]

OC Interaction Game

Rules: describe an OC, then describe how they would interact with the OC(s) of the people who tagged you

Thanks @somethingclevermahogony and @illarian-rambling for the tags! I love this game

C’s OC: (As of the start of Book 1) Narul is a 23 year-old slave at the Palace of Labisa, the Great City by the Lake. He is a forestfolk, a person or group of people who have been mutated or altered by the effects of wild or ambient magic. His birth mother was a priestess, his father is a mystery. He was adopted by an enslaved woman as an infant, thus how he ended up in the servitude of King Hutbari. He is a giant of a man, literally, at just a hair under nine feet tall. He is additionally quite bulky, much much larger than even the biggest human. He is so large that the door into the slave quarters had to be reconstructed just to fit him as he grew up. Aside from his size he is also just a bit rough in appearance, hairy and broad, picture a DnD Dwarf, just sized way up.

He is inhumanly strong, a fact that causes him a great deal of distress. Because of his size and strength, Narul has the potential to be quite dangerous to normal humans, as he has been repeatedly reminded of since his childhood. Narul has a great deal of anxiety around his body and his potential to accidently hurt others, as such he is quite timid and careful. He has a tendency to mumble when he talks, which unfortunately due to his low voice, often makes it sound like he is growling.He is a gentle person, he likes flowers and abhors violence. He cries relatively easily and gets easily anxious or overwhelmed.Despite all of this he is fiercely loyal and kind. He doesn’t talk much but loves to listen to others. 

His fatal flaw is a healthy dose of self-doubt and self-loathing. Narul hates his body, it scares him, and he believes that it scares others. He is often self-deprecating, though not in a joking way. He feels an intense jealousy towards those around him that are able to live normal lives and pursue normal relationships.

Katie’s OC: Elsind is a 20 year old changeling whose true form looks like a mannequin wrapped in raw meat with five fins ringing its face, and who can transition between a solid and liquid state. They change their disguise frequently (they can only do people, not animals) and use the pronouns of whatever face they're wearing. As a person, Elsind is anxious, easily flustered, cries a lot, and is overall very kind-hearted, despite working as an assassin for a rebel cell. She ended up in that line of work because she wants revenge for what the nobility of her home put her through - kidnapping her at thirteen to serve as a court freak. He thinks if he can assassinate his target, he can earn his courage back and be more than another discarded toy of the ruling class, even if the idea of killing someone makes him sick. Indeed, classism is where Elsind gets very passionate, as well as talking about romance novels. They long for love, even if they think no one would accept a changeling without a disguise. I would also say she's chronically unlucky. If anyone is going to slip in the mud in his nice new dress, it's Elsind. All I have written down on their character notes is "eager to please, easily overwhelmed, great combo of traits," which is pretty much Elsind's deal.

My OC (created by my lovely gf): Nellie is a clone in her mid-twenties, although she’s only been out of the vat for about six months. She’s reasonably tall and pretty skinny, with pale skin, short black hair, and narrow red-and-gold eyes, which she usually hides behind sunglasses. Nellie is a sweet, kind, and empathetic woman who cares very deeply for others and wants to help, to the point where she sometimes struggles to put herself first. She also has a deeply traumatic history of abuse by her genetic donor that still troubles her deeply and gives her struggles with intimacy, as well as an addiction to mindsplit that she’s trying to shake. She longs for a simple, happy life - a good job, a nice place to live, good food, and the chance to live as her true self (Nellie is a trans woman) is all she’s really looking for (and maybe a partner one day if the opportunity arises - she’s met a friend who’s cute but he’s also a clone of Belladonna’s dad so she’s a bit uncertain). Nellie also has empathic magic, although she hasn’t trained it much, which she mostly uses to see how others are feeling and help them where she can.

How Nellie and Narul would interact: I think at first Nellie would be a bit intimidated by him because he’s huge. But with her empathy magic, I think she’d quickly realize he was actually a very sweet, anxious man, and she’d no longer find him scary. She’d be happy to talk to him (I think she might kind of hope the creeps would steer clear of her if she spent time with him, but regardless she’d be happy to just because he seems nice) and would be fine talking if he wanted to listen, although I think she’d feel like she was running out of things to talk about because she’s still figuring herself and her life out. If he ever opened up to her, she’d understand the feeling of being different very well - she’s only just recently been able to start living a normal life now that she’s out from under Narcissus’s thumb.

How Nellie and Elsind would interact: I think they’d get along great! They’re both very kindhearted people with awful pasts due to their natures (Elsind being a shapechanger and Nellie being a clone). Nellie doesn’t want Narcissus dead particularly, and would certainly never want to kill him, but she wouldn’t blame Elsind for wanting their abuser dead. They both have similar view on the world (classism bad and nobility kind of sucks), and Nellie would love to hear all about Elsind’s romance novels - she’s just starting to read herself, so she might ask Elsind if he has any suggestions. She would be happy to befriend Elsind despite her being a shapeshifter, so I think they’d both benefit from this friendship, since both of them could definitely use a friend.

This was a fun one! I hope y’all like the answers, lmk what you think :)

@kaylinalexanderbooks @rkmoon @writingsfromspace want to play?

[hadesoftheladies]

Girl I FEEL you on the cities thing 😭 there's just something so strange about it. Not all of them ofc but I think it's just what happens when so many strangers are in such tight quarters, empathy can get people hurt if they show too much and that has the weirdest unexpected effects on behavior

i live in the capital city of my country and it gets more populated every day. it is common for us to have positive and enthusiastic conversations with strangers. please note, my city is also one pumping with migrants from all over the world and i live at the CENTER of it. it is nothing like what i experienced in florida, new york or central missouri. i was in the suburbs of central missouri. i saw both manhattan and queens in new york, and i stayed for some time in miami, florida. it was actually the less populated places that had the weirdest people. like both the white and black americans had very strange behaviours. anti-social to the extreme. (in central missouri people would just stare at you and then fake smile or walk away and they'd avert their eyes, keep their heads down, greet no one even people they knew, mumble, stare into the abyss through you LIKE???) it made me question if i grew up speaking english my whole life just because of how weird their communication was. like we had no lingual cues in common and i had an american education! we were literally there to compete as schools under the same curriculum. (most normalest people there were anyone of asian decent, anyone from africa, the guys from honduras, and the two russians that came, and the canadians, at least half of them)

it was actually people from the southern states and new york that talked the most normal throughout my entire trip. new york actually had the most normal people, even among the students i met there. like conversation was natural with them. new york felt like being in my home city, just more ocean-smell. (although in most cases i was only meeting and talking to poc). however, i've also never seen despair on so many people's faces than i did in manhattan. i've never been scared of someone looking miserable but when i say i saw a man whose eyes were black with hopelessness . . . i've never forgotten that look on that caucasian man's face. i've never in my life and in all the places i've been to seen such abject despair on a human being.

i think, bringing it all together, and given what i know about friends and families staying there (i have family in scarsdale, new york and some old childhood family friends in redding, california, and a cousin of mine who stayed in philadelphia for a while) i just . . . let's just say the US is the capitalist capital of the world and it shows in their population. like the mental state of North Americans is just radically different from what a lot us go through. having such a highly consumerist and individualistic culture has really done numbers on so many people there. not to mention its such an efficient empire in terms of mass destruction and propaganda. china is its biggest competitor in that department. i think it's also why that part of the continent has some of the highest rates of mass shootings and serial killings. that system is just so efficient at making sociopaths out of human beings. and the large-scale violence that underscores nearly every interracial relation is just incredible. a family friend is doing university in the US--forgot the state--and he was just like being a black person there is so different from studying in the UK. like it's just so much more oppressive. UK has racists but it's not as dire as the US. you're insulted but not as heavily profiled. in the UK, there's some unspoken respect or understanding given toward foreign students (at least from east africa) because they know we're just there to study and get to work. there's also just way more accommodation and consideration.

the US . . . like it's just depressing going there. also didn't realize how much equatorial privilege i had until i was in florida in the summer with hurricane alerts on the TVs. i have never been blown sideways by the wind. it was crazy!

like my country has frequently struggled with tribalism, but by god it's just not that bad (although our police force is also heavily underfunded). like y'all's government and oligarchs fucked y'all up so bad. your history and economy have just been roasting the humanity you guys are fighting to keep to death. good luck, man. like for all your wealth, i sincerely would never trade places. and im not just saying that to make myself feel better lol. i would not survive. my anxiety would spike up by 1000000000x I'd just get cancer from the stress in like two months.

that being said i also desperately need to leave my city for like a six month vacation XD. i crave the countryside and there's too much noise.

[unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240]

how are the Hanukkah preps going for u ?? do u feel safe enough to share what it’s like in the diaspora ?? (im super curious to see what it’s like outside of israel !!)

Hi there! An early chag sameach! 😊

So I can only really speak for my area, but so far so good on the "being visibly Jewish in my area" thing. My situation is weird, in that I live in a rather blue (liberal) big city that happens to be in a deep red (very conservative) state. As a queer/trans person and reproductive rights advocate, it's been rough and feels like a powder keg waiting to explode. My queer/trans spouse and I may need to flee the state if things get worse for somewhere more liberal overall (and hopefully not violently antisemitic) but we'll see what happens.

As a person who dresses visibly Jewish though, it's been reasonably fine so far? I haven't wandered onto the liberal campus area since 7/10 and I imagine that would be a lot different of an experience. We have all gathered as a community several times since 7/10 in order to express our grief and prayers and advocate for the US to help Israel recover the hostages. On 10/10, I gathered with the local frum community to daven tehillim and so far that has been my favorite gathering/the one I felt most comfortable at. It was very focused on our grief for our brothers and sisters and siblings in Israel who were killed and captured, and davening for a swift and just resolution. I also attended a much larger community-wide event some days later that was a lot more nationalistic, but at least it was still focused on the human concern. There was another community event I went to at the shloshim mark, and it was a lot more organized (for obvious reasons) but vibed a lot more like it was geared towards the kind of liberal Jew that actively wants the American flag and the Israeli flag on the bimah (idk if that makes sense to you, but it's a very specific Vibe™️ of Jew here.) I could not go to the march in D.C. but people in my community were strongly encouraged to go if they were able.

There have been several talking groups, Peace-oriented Shabbatot, and pro-Palestinian protests happening as well. The first two seem to be going well, but I have no idea about the last one, as the rhetoric from that leadership has become very antisemitic so I have not engaged them at all. I have been able to avoid them in public. Most recently, there was a pro-Israel protest that was supposed to be focused on the captives, but enough people couldn't stay on message that I considered leaving and am still a little conflicted about if I should have. That was the first time I've seen counter-protesting, and it was just one guy yelling a lot of offensive and antisemitic things. There's another rally coming up that I suspect will result in some kind of confrontation or violence because it's right near campus and it's organized by the same people who couldn't stay on message. It's also in an area where there are a lot of cops and has historically been used to kettle protesters. I am more worried about the counter-protesters to be honest, but I also think that if it turns violent it would likely be started by them. I really hope I'm wrong and everything remains peaceful in its protest.

I have yet to find a local group that is analogous to Standing Together, which is unfortunate, because that's effectively my position. I am hopeful I will find the other people that are deeply invested in the safety and freedom of the people of Gaza as well as Israelis.

So in light of that backdrop, it's shocking normal. Chanukah is going forward as usual - if anything with even more vigor than normal. Large, public, annual events are still happening and so far seem well-attended and there has not been harassment. We will see if that continues. I am planning on eating latkes with many a creative topping and proudly displaying my menorah in the window. I plan on going to some of the large public events (Chabad does several of them, but so does the broader community) dressed as I normally do and I refuse to be intimidated. So far I have thankfully not been given a reason to be.

B'ezrat Hashem that continues, and that we all see a just and peaceful resolution to the war soon.

[edge-oftheworld]

thinking about the way when i interact with fellow aussies on here I see so much disappointment about how they didn't come here on their last tour. how sydney 5sos fans are a different brand of human i'm not really sure how to describe (we all freaked out when we went to the same concert lauren was at for example). thinking about how the australian leg of take my hand tour felt like it was almost its own thing, sandwiched between the gap after the bulk of the tour before it and that short gap before they announced the most recent tour after it--almost as if it was meant to bridge both of those tours. how they played in newcastle and on the gold coast and it wasn't quite cairns or coffs but it was a bit more than your state capitals headline tour. how, with the exception of the big four, we often don't realise how small our cities are on a global scale. there are only 27 million of us on this desert island.

thinking about how they wrote easy for you to say and had to perform it on tour six months before its actual release, it was so important to this setlist, to the vibe, and how it's about nostalgia and missing sydney and they finished the tour in sydney and it makes me wonder, i can kind of guess when the song means the same thing to me, how much it hurts to be able to perform here and yet not be able to stay for longer than a holiday. and yet they do do that for us, put on shows about as regularly as any other artist does. even if they didn't play splendour in the grass. or falls festival. even if it's been four years since fire fight australia, it was only months ago sierra was promoting beyond blue as a charity to donate to. friends of friends did some fundraiser for a youth centre in blacktown: maybe I have to look to see it, but I can see the impact they've left.

and then I see how happy they all seem to look when they've gotten a chance to hang out in australia. ashton covering songs in the heat. calum obviously having a blast. luke dropping sydney pics that were assumedly from before it got really hot, looking carefree, a familiar skyline and familiar urban graffiti. the way when michael arrived in perth for the first time after lockdown he simply had to tell us all right away. and i've always kind of seen them coming back here for good? heck, joel madden even assumed right on his podcast some of them might have already. the way ashton doesn't have a dog in the states, and how i've always seen him with an aussie. the way luke integrates seamlessly into the life and culture of the inner west area; and calum carries blue mountains vibes with him wherever he goes, as michael does with the sydney pop punk scene. we know brandy and sierra at least love australia--i was actually fangirling about sierra in their comments with the veronicas just the other day (bless them for deciding my comment was something that needed to replying to). while crystal does have a massive group of usamerican friends and family I can see her enjoying the vegan places in melbourne and brisbane (they're coming to sydney too. the inner west and parts of the north side are almost there) and maybe being a little more hopeful about politics. I can also see it being a really healthy place to raise lua.

maybe it's the hopefulness of an urban designer who sees the impact of art and culture and having people around who create for a living on our cities, but maybe I see myself in 20 years bringing my kids to see them play and being able to tell the story of a series of songs (red desert, efyts, whatever is next in the theme in the works for 5sos6 as well as the solo stuff like a lot of wfttwtaf and boy) and how they figured out what we all have to, how to find and create a place that's home to you--because it's actually a pretty likely event. and i love seeing the evolution from the 'let's get out' / 'worked every weekend just to get out of town' vibe of self titled and sgfg to now. I really do want them all to feel like they can relax now after so many years of working and depriving themselves of the love that comes from belonging (I do feel like we've heard more about it from luke and ash specifically) and I also get the subtle vibes of where that might happen. and how much it might hurt when they don't get to have that. what did they do for aussies? gave us hope that we could make it, in whatever we want to do and whatever success means for us. maybe it's just me though. for now. maybe i've got the expectations of someone who grew up unable to afford things like concerts mixed with the anticipation for this june. I hope i'm not projecting, but also, the empathy I feel when I see myself in someone is usually spot on.

so idk. one day i'm gonna design some really classy public housing made to unfuck the status quo and i'm gonna raise money to build it and sierra will write a song and say she's doing a donation to this charity in australia doing things about homelessness and the class divide and it's gonna help me fund it. that's just one option of something i can see going down that's not completely unrealistic if very very optimistic but it's how i live my life. but i'll go to a 5sos concert eventually. i'll play their songs i've arranged with an orchestra one day too and we'll do it impressively, noticeably. i don't really know what else i'm supposed to expect? I know my experience is worlds away from many people's. but these guys inspire me to create and I don't really need anything else to do that.

[jalwyn21]

To add on to the classism convo regarding T*ylor and Joe. What's wild to me about Sw*fties saying Joe taking public transportation must mean he's poor...all major metropolitan cities in America currently have a public transportation system that American businessmen, federal and state government employees take because these cities are becoming almost unlivable due to our current housing crisis and therefore you cant really travel in or out in a car unless you dont mind paying an obscene amount in parking/red light tickets, there's barely bus lanes its all pedestrian walking and biking. You can tell the Sw*fties have to either be very young or very VERY privileged and live in a bubble to believe that using any form of public transit is "poor" when it's a luxury in some places and in others it's free. I'm American, and I have always agreed that americans center themselves so much and think that our way is the only way, and things we deem luxury are commonplace and easily accessible to others in other places. Like someone else mentioned before class in america compared to abroad is much different. Yes, we birthed the Rockefellars, the Vanderbilts, the Carnegies, but American class has never been about intellect and actual talent it's about the wealth in your pockets and how to best show it off. Class abroad is more about your intellect, your talents, your work ethic, and philanthropy. It's night and day differences, and that's part of the reason why him and T*ylor couldn't work. She has no understanding of what real class is. Being seen and heard all the time doesn't make you the most popular in the room (look at Beyoncé and how since she's had her children has moved more in silence rather than needing to be seen at every event every second of everyday) it just makes you look like your desperate for that validation because you have imposter syndrome and KNOW you don't belong in that group of people because you haven't done anything substantial to even garner access to the rooms you are in. T*ylor was an imposter then and still is one now, and she hates that even with how much Joe loved her. Even he couldn't help her shake that she is an imposter latching onto a cosplay at an event where people keep telling her she can't sit with them because she doesn't belong.

Two countries divided by a common language... as the saying goes.