#let's see if i have other things i've observed to note down later

[bakerysnake]

considering my recent experiences with burnout, i'm gonna have to convince my dad to give me one hour of laptop time a week (or at least two weeks) in 11th and 12th

[sebscore]

gen-z driver chaotically taking over martin’s grid walk? thank you!!

KEEPING UP WITH THE GRID

pairings: f1 team principals, drivers and ex-driver x driver!reader (im too lazy to name everyone im sorry)

warnings: swearing. christian horner. mention of a nipple tweak.

author's note: anon, you are a legend for requesting this! I'm not too proud of the writing, since I wrote this in the middle of the night and my brain doesn't function normally then. but i hope you like it anyway, darling! let me know your thoughts!!

masterlist

• • • • • • •

Y/N was mindlessly scrolling through her phone when a sudden loud voice interrupted her peaceful time. ''How are we feeling about today, Y/N?'' Martin bent his knees, so he could hold the mic up to her face as she sat on the ground. 

''Oh my god, you scared the shit out of me.'' She cursed, quickly covering her mouth as she knows she isn't supposed to swear on Sky Sports. ''Uh, I'm feeling pretty good about it, I'm starting on the second row, so not too bad.'' The driver answered his question, smiling sheepishly. 

''You like having alone time before a race?'' He continued, a grin on his face. 

Y/N shrugged her shoulders. ''I just happen to be alone right now, sometimes I'm chatting with my team or with some of the other drivers.'' 

''Martin, you look a bit tired, you want to sit down?'' She patted the space next to her, feeling bad that he was crouching down while she comfortably sat on the grass. 

The former F1 driver held a look of surprise on his face. ''In all my years I've been doing this, no one has ever offered me to sit down.'' He gave the camera a glance before slowly letting himself sink to the ground. 

''You know, people always wonder 'Where is Martin?' But no one ever wonders 'How is Martin?' We need to take better care of you.'' The man seemed clueless about what she was saying, but he was amused either way. 

''I'm alright, all that walking takes a lot of energy.'' He responded, pretending to wipe sweat off his forehead. 

Y/N chuckled. ''Yeah, I mean, you've been doing this longer than I've been alive, so I understand that you're tired from all the walking.'' She never let the oppurtunity slip to make him aware of their age gap. 

''Well, let's not talk age,'' he sighed, making her laugh, ''anyway, I think I might just hang around here for the entire segment.'' Martin concluded. 

An idea popped into her head as she heard his words. ''Can I do it? I've always wanted to do it.'' 

Martin was surprised for a second time since joining the young woman. ''You mean I let you go around the grid and talk to people?'' 

She nodded. ''Yes, I love bothering people with my presence.'' Y/N said, matter-of-factly. 

The Brit looked at his cameraman, who adamantly nodded his head to the idea of letting the driver do her thing around the grid. 

Martin let out a deep breath, but handed his mic and headset over. ''Just don't get me fired,'' he said, trying to sound stern, ''and don't curse!'' He quickly added. 

''I won't, I promise! I'll see you later!'' She got up from the ground and put the headset on, slightly altering it so it fit her head perfectly. ''Alright, let's make some controversy.'' Y/N exclaimed, pulling the cameraman along. 

She glanced around the grid, trying to find some interesting people to talk to. ''So, I just need to find a person and ask them questions about whatever I want?'' The athlete asked the cameraman, who simply nodded his head, making the camera shake as well.

''Oh, I love this program!'' She giggled into the microphone, doing a small jump out of happiness. 

Y/N observed the grid, knowing her first ''guest'' needed to be a good one. ''Okay, I've found someone!'' She let the cameraman know, pointing in the direction she wanted to go. 

''Alright,'' she tapped the person's shoulder, having them turn to the camera in confusion, ''the first guest on Y/N's grid walk is the team principal of Mercedes… Petronas… Benz…,'' she tried remembering the full team name, ''Whatever, his name is Susie's husband! Welcome, Susie's husband.'' She introduced Toto. 

The Austrian man was incredibly entertained by the young woman's antics. ''Hello, Y/N.'' 

''I have to ask you- how does it feel to be married to the greatest woman alive?'' She asked him, glancing around to find the woman in question. 

Toto laughed at the question, but proceeded. ''It's great, Susie is an amazing person who has done countless amazing projects and campaigns- I'm a very lucky man.'' The sincere smile on Toto's face when talking about his wife brought a smile to Y/N's face. 

''That's so cute- where is she? I only came over here, because I thought she would be here.'' 

''Unfortunately, she's not here today,'' he told her in a sad tone, ''I know that upsets you, Y/N.'' The driver's girl crush on Susie had been an obvious thing for many years, amusing everyone involved. 

Y/N pouted at his words. ''Well, yeah… that upsets me a lot actuall-''

''What is going on here?'' A British accent interrupted her interview with the team principal. 

''Go away, Russell George! I don't want you on my show.'' Y/N teasingly dismissed George, slapping his arm to get him out of frame. 

The Mercedes driver feigned offense, placing his hand on his heart. ''Why not? I thought we were great friends, Y/L.'' 

''Crikey, crikey, crikey! Don't you have shirtless pictures to post somewhere? Bye bye!'' She quickly got away from the Mercedes team, practically running at one point. 

Y/N let out a big sigh into the mic. ''Martin was right, this is tiring,'' she momentarily stopped in her steps, her hand on her waist, ''OH! Look! It's Charles Lechair!'' Her tiredness from a few seconds before was long forgotten as she strided over to her Monégasque friend. 

''Charles, hello, Charles!'' She put her hand on his back, guiding him to the camera. ''How are you feeling about the race today? What are the strategies? Do they know that word at Ferrari?'' She teased the red team. 

''Uh, we're feeling optimistic today and yeah, I'm ready to give it my all.'' He smiled, putting up his tv-friendly facade, not wanting to trash talk his team on television. 

Y/N raised her eyebrow. ''You're so cute being all positive! Keep that attitude, Perceval!'' She patted his shoulder. ''Thanks for talking to me and good luck!'' She bid him goodbye. 

The young driver walked in all sorts of directions. There were many people present on the grid, yet Y/N had quite a hard time finding people to talk to. It was when she walked by the Red Bull team that she found her next victim. 

''Christian! Christian Horner, hello, welcome!'' She and the team principal didn't have the best history, but she knew the viewers would enjoy the interaction as they knew said history. 

''Everyone, I'm joined here today by Red Bull, uh, Orange, Racing or whatever, F1 Team's team principal, Christian Horner.'' She butchered the team name again, although it was one purpose this time. 

She turned towards the man. ''Christian, I won't hold you up too long, but there is one question that our viewers have been dying to ask you and I think this is the right time to finally do it.'' Y/N build the question up. 

''Yes?'' He seemed a bit nervous, attentively listening to her words. 

''Can you say one nice thing about Y/N Y/L?'' 

The Brit visibly looked relieved at the question, thinking it would be something controversial. ''Of course, she's, uh, a very talented race car driver.'' He nervously smiled at her. 

''You heard it here first, ladies and gentlemen, Christian Horner thinks Y/N Y/L is the most talented driver in the history of Formula One!'' She overdramatized his response. 

''You know what they say, keep your friends close, but keep your enemies even closer.'' She patted Christian's shoulder. ''Thanks for the talk, good luck and I hope you don't win.'' Y/N told him before walking off, hearing him laugh behind her. 

''So far, I've talked to Toto Wolff and Christian Horner,'' she said to the camera, ''enemies to, uh, even worser enemies, I guess.'' 

''Guys, we're here with Yuki's boyfriend, Pierre Gasly.'' Y/N stood next to the Alpha Tauri driver, shoving the microphone in his face. He took his airpods out of his ears, already chuckling at the girl's actions. 

''How are you doing?'' 

''I'm-''

''That's all the time we have for you, I'm sorry.'' She didn't let him finish his words and walked away from him, quickly giving him a smile so he knew she was entirely joking. 

She stepped further onto the grid, continuing to look for people. ''A bunch of green outfits, not very fashionable- oh, it's Aston Martin! Let's find Sebastian!'' Y/N mixed herself with the Aston Martin team, trying to catch the German driver. 

''Seb! Seb! Can I ask you a few questions?'' She eventually reached the man, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek. 

His signature bright smile covered his face. ''Yeah, but where's Martin?'' 

''Me and Martin made an agreement, I get to do the grid walk and he gets to drive my car later- although, he never won any races, so that might not have been a great decision on my part.'' She told Sebastian, who seemed confused and fascinated at the same time. 

''Well, I think you're doing a great job as reporter.'' He deflected her words, not wanting to get in trouble by saying anything about Brundle's lack of GP wins. 

She smiled. ''Thanks, anyway… I know qualifying didn't go too well for you, but are you optimistic about the race?'' 

''Yeah, quali wasn't what we were hoping for,'' he sighed, ''It's gonna be difficult today, but we're gonna try our best to get as much points as we can for the championship.'' Sebastian finished his answer with an encouraging nod. 

''That's great to hear! You've been- oh my god, is that your dad?'' Y/N had glanced away from Sebastian's face for one second and saw Norbert watching them, waving at her once he noticed her looking at him. ''Okay, bye Sebastian! I'm gonna talk to your dad now.'' 

She walked past the Aston Martin driver to approach his father. ''Can I ask you some questions? I swear it's very short.'' She didn't want to burden him for too long. 

Norbert gave her a thumbs up, not minding being interviewed for a short time by her. ''It's okay.'' 

''Amazing! I mean, you're a legend of the paddock, Norbert! The drivers love you, the fans love you, everyone just loves you! Do you feel the love every time you attend a GP?''

Y/N had a good relationship with him as he and Sebastian would sometimes attend her karting tournaments together. Norbert had given her parents advice on how to support the young girl as best as possible. In a nutshell, the Vettel family were some of the greatest people she had ever met. 

''I do feel it, it's a great feeling and everyone is so nice to me.'' He wasn't very confident in his English, so he kept it short. 

Y/N smiled at him, delighted she got the chance to talk to him. ''You're always super sweet to everyone, so it's only right that we reciprocate your kindness,'' she nodded, ''okay, last question! Apart from Seb, who is the driver you're rooting for today? Is it someone you know very well? Or someone who is standing next to you and is asking you amazing questions?'' She played with a strand of her hair, pretending like she wasn't talking about herself. 

He laughed at her words. ''I'm supporting you, of course!'' He exclaimed, his arm going around her shoulder. 

''Oh! You're the best, Norbert! You're my favorite Vettel for a reason!'' Y/N said extra loud, knowing Sebastian would hear it that way. 

''I'll leave you alone now, thank you so much and I'll see you after the race.'' She gave him a brief hug and he wished her good luck, which she thanked him for. 

The cameraman had difficulties keeping up with her, used to the slower pace of Martin. Y/N noticed this and slowed down, sending him an apologetic look. ''Alright, I've talked to Seb, so I feel obligated to talk to Lewis now.'' She commented, trying to look for the 7x World Champion. 

''Where is he? He shouldn't be this hard to find…'' The athlete always saw the Mercedes driver hanging around the grid, chatting with his celebrity friends or getting ready with Angela. 

Y/N frowned. ''I should lore him or something…,'' she thought for a moment, ''vegan food, I have vegan food! Uh, free skydiving session! Oh my god, is that Roscoe on the track?'' She tried making him appear, but the only thing she got was weird looks from bypassers. 

However, a certain blond man caught her attention instead. ''Okay, I can't find Lewis, but this person knows him very well… or used to at least.'' 

''Britney Spears! Can I interview you for the highly respected tv-show, Y/N's grid walk?'' She snuck up to the former Mercedes driver, catching him off guard, but he played it off. ''Sure, I'm very honored.'' His monotone voice almost made her cringe. 

''First question: is it alright if I call you Britney? I don't know how you feel about the nickname.'' 

Nico chuckled at her. ''You can call me that, Y/N.'' 

''Ooooh~ I'm getting special privileges! I like it!'' She was impressed by Nico's answer, not being sure if he would go along with her humor. 

''Next question! How does it feel to be a Monaco based Youtuber? Do you enjoy the influencer life?'' 

The former World Champion snickered at her question, not expecting her to bring up his Youtube channel. ''It feels great, I'm, uh, yeah, enjoying the influencer life.'' She could tell Nico was doing his best to come off as positive as possible. 

''Nice, good for you, dude! Anyway, this was Britney, the man who beat the 7x World Champion, Lewis Hamilton, in equal machinery in 2016!'' She quoted the meme that was often made online when people talked about Rosberg. 

Y/N didn't wait for Nico's reaction, a bit too scared if she was honest, and made a run for it again. ''I've talked to three German guys- wait, is Nico German? He said once that he doesn't drink beer, so I don't know if he's considered German.'' She rambled on, not even listening to the words that were leaving her own mouth. 

''There's Jenson.'' She caught the Brit talking to his Sky Sports colleagues. ''You know what? I've embarrassed myself enough already, I'm not making it any worse.'' Y/N went in another direction so as to not cross paths with him. 

''Too bad he doesn't drive anymore, I would have loved to give him a lucky nipple tweak.'' Martin and Jenson used to have this running gag of the older man giving him a nipple tweak for good luck before a race. 

Y/N didn't see where she was going and almost tripped over someone's foot. ''Oh, shit!'' She loudly exclaimed, balancing herself so she wouldn't fall. ''Oh, fuck I can't swear- wait, shit! Ugh!'' She pulled the microphone away from her face, that way her curses wouldn't be picked up. 

''This isn't live, right? Cause then I'm in trouble, I think.'' She glanced at the cameraman, who mumbled a small ''It is live.'' 

''THIS IS LIVE?'' Y/N gasped, looking absolutely horrified at the thought of thousands of people watching her at that moment. ''Let's find Martin then, I think I've done enough damage.'' 

She headed back to the place where the presenter had approached her. ''Martin! Where is Martin?'' The driver glimpsed around, but no Martin in sight. ''I have oatmeal!'' She yelled, before making eye contact with the camera. ''Old people love oatmeal, right?'' He simply chuckled, not wanting to shake the camera too much with his laughing. 

''Oh, there he is!'' Y/N spotted the man and made her way over to him as fast as she could. ''I definitely didn't say anything controversial or cursed throughout the entire thing.'' She greeted him. 

Martin looked relieved as she handed his microphone and headset back over to him. ''I was out of my element for a while,'' he joked, ''did you have fun, darling?'' 

Y/N nodded her head. ''Yes, I'm even considering changing career paths.'' She chuckled. 

''That's great,'' Martin smiled, confident she made some amazing television, ''well, I think you're gonna have to go, cause I can see your, uh, coach not looking too happy.'' He pointed towards her performance coach staring daggers at her. 

''Oh, fuck, yeah, bye Martin! Thank you so much!'' Y/N quickly thanked the man for letting her take over his segment and she dashed out of there, hoping her team wouldn't be too upset about her disappearing into the grid to ask everyone ridiculous questions. 

''She's a special one for sure.'' 

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[inklessletter]

Since I can't draw tonight, here's a steddie prompt for you:

Steve runs away from home once he becomes eighteen because his home environment is absolutely toxic. It's all yelling, and spitting insults, and constantly hearing that he is such a disappointment, so he decides to hit the road and go some city away from everyone he knows and just start over. His trauma response to loud, aggressive spaces leads him to accept a job managing a school library.

And he finds out it is his dream job.

He sees all these teens studying, sharing glances, romances beginning, stress increasing as midterms come closer, annoyed faces, giggling girls gossiping, kids vandalizing his tables... And he feels an observant. A watcher.

And he imagines. He imagines their lives, the tall jock with the widest smile going soft for the sarcastic redhead. The quiet thing blossoming between tose two boys who give longing glances when the other is not looking. The oddest friendship between the meanest eleven year old he's ever met and the most cynical kid to ever set foot in that school. He sees and he imagines, but he's silent.

Because silence is a precious shield that protects his imagination. Silence will never hurt him.

His first real friendship begins in silence. This girl, Robin, passes him a note with a poor drawing of him falling asleep on his desk. It made him laugh. She laughed too. That was enough.

They play this game together in which they both exchanged the craziest theories they could think of about other people's lives.

That one is a Russian spy.

That one runs a secret lab.

That one has mind powers (okay, that was maybe too crazy).

That one is an former cop.

"That one is a rockstar," Robin said pointing an absurdly good looking guy that was checking out a couple of books.

"He does looks like one, though..."

Robin was going to reply when she noticed Steve's rosy cheeks. She just smiled. She noticed the guy looking briefly at them, and then he grinned.

"Metal is more my scene, but close enough," he said.

Shit.

The guy approached them and Robin, the traitor, bolted away. The guy, all dimples and soft hair lent Steve two books and his library card (Munson, Eddie), that he registered and gave back to him.

Steve tried hard not to be an awkward mess, he barely managed to.

"I do actually play in a band, uh, on Tuesdays," Eddie said. Steve looked at him with a twist in his stomach. "And today is Tuesday. So if you want to come, I would gladly buy you a drink."

Steve felt a lump in his throat, and looked down.

"Uh, I—I don't—"

"Oh, sorry, I just—"

"I don't do well with loud noises," Steve said quickly. "I'm sorry."

Eddie nodded.

"Good luck tonight," Steve said, not wanting to leave the conversation in a rejection. He pointed the book. "This one is really good."

"Have you read The Lord of the Rings?"

"Yeah," Steve smiled. "I've got time and silence here."

Eddie looked at him with something hidden in his pupils meant to be discovered by Steve.

Eddie left the library.

There were a few days and a lot of conversations with Robin about that Eddie guy. Steve let himself imagine again, about him. About Eddie. He fantasized a lot, ignoring deliberately the sting in his guts knowing that he blew up his chance.

Two weeks passed and Eddie was there to return the books again, with a small guitar case hanging in his back, and Steve tried his best not to look like a kicked puppy.

"I can do soft noises," Eddie said, out of the blue. It earned him a look from both Robin and Steve. "When do you, uh, have a break?"

"Right now," Robin chimed in, quickly. "He's having a break right now."

A few minutes later they were in the rooftop. They found a comfortable spot with the best views and Eddie took out an old and battered ukulele. Then he looked at Steve.

"I am not a silent person. I exist in noise, and busy environments, and awful high pitched laughs," he said with a smile. "I can't change that, but I can change the noise."

Eddie caressed the tiny guitar strings, and the sound sent goosebumps through all Steve's skin.

"I can change the noise for you," Eddie said, low and soft, and he started playing a song. "If you let me."

His first real love began with music.

[moonchild033]

Astro Observations -3 ✨

Here we go with Part-3!!! 😍🤩

(These observations are based on the whole sign system, sidereal charts and all obs are subject to change with other aspects in the chart, so don't conclude anything with a single placement) ❤

Note: All obs here are for D1 chart if I didn't mention the chart name specifically, for divisional charts I've given 'in D4, D9' specification. 💛

Mercury Mahadasha (Major planetary period)- Everybody talking about having relationships during Venus Mahadasha but Mercury mahadasha and having mercury-venus conjunction or mercury-rahu conjunction in chart leads to multiple relationships and heartbreaks 😭😐

Ketu Mahadasha- At the end of 7 years, you'll be a whole different person lmaooo, truly more humbled than saturn mahadasha imo. 🙃😂

Mars-Mercury conjunction in D4 chart- Endless cycle of buying and selling lands/any properties. You'll benefit from this but the pattern of buying and then selling can be seen frequently. 😄😇

Mars-Rahu conjunction - Your own perfectionist tendencies will cause restlessness to you and those around you. If one of your parents has this, good luck, they might be finding faults on every little thing you do. 😬☹

Sun-Ketu conjunction - If you rush through things, it would not end up good for you, slow and steady wins the race is the lesson you would be forced to learn. 🤧

Water risings - Keep some secrets to yourself, showing 100% authenticity will only bring controversies to you. You'll see that ppl who appeared non-judgemental will start distancing themselves or grow judgemental towards you once you spill all the tea. It's because most ppl with this rising can have some WTF kinda secrets 😶

Venus-Ketu conjunction - If you like Electrical, Electronics related subjects, feel free to pursue that, you'll shine like the brightest star. 🤩

Aries moons (Esp. Aswini moons)- Golden child vibes. Your siblings can be more chaotic than you. You could be someone who lives by the rules set by your parents until you become independent. More like, this is not a placement of rebellious or chaotic children, they don't even talk back to their parents sometimes.☺

Mars/Sun/Jupiter in conjunction with 1H lord- This is funny but you'll get a second chance or a time period to escape from your mistakes. Watch out! They won't get caught/framed or struck in any problem that easily.🤫

Venus-Rahu conjunction - Burnt or blackened skin somewhere (house placement can tell the possible body part) and sensitive skin can also be an issue.😷

If Venus placement is present after Jupiter's placement- please save some money for retirement age. These people can have good earnings but fail to save for later. Ex. Jupiter in Gemini and Venus in Leo, Venus is present AFTER Jupiter. 💯

Mars-Ketu conjunction in Women - Very sharp tongue and cordial relationship with your spouse could be affected because of this. The catch is the effects are reduced when the spouse's profession is in healthcare, law or if he's spiritually inclined.💛

Rahu & Saturn Mahadasha- Individuals undergoing these dashas respectively should NOT marry each other during this time. Rahu MD person may feel pulled down by Saturn MD person as their inclinations will be different.😌

Taurus risings in D9= Never breaks their promises. They would be putting their heart and soul to maintain their word and can be burdened with loads of family responsibilities solely resting on their shoulders. They can be the ONLY breadwinners in the family or the one who earns more.🖤

Placements who change their jobs/source of income frequently:

Mercury in 2H/Taurus

Mercury in conjunction with 2H lord

2H & 3H lord in conjunction

Venus/Jupiter/2H lord in Gemini

(This can also mean that they like to explore and get bored of monotonous works or have too many interests/talents and end up being confused in what to choose, so they jump from one to another)💯👀

Let's Learn and Grow Together! 💋💅

With Love-Yashi ❤⚡

Masterlist 💖

[jojo-oliver]

How to tumblr for artists… my own version

A collection of things that have been working for me, but may not work for everyone

~~~ your posts ~~~

!!!reblog your own stuff!!! you need to reblog your own stuff, there is nothing morally wrong with reblogging your own stuff regularly. in fact, it is morally right to allow the chance for more people to see your artwork.

~~~ queue it!! ~~~ my queue is 500 posts strong. maybe don't try to make your queue hundreds of posts strong in the same day omg but like… once every month or two i'll go through my whole blog and just scroll and "add to drafts" to every one of my own posts i have. then i'll use the "mass post editor" to add content warning tags. and add to queue, and shuffle. and then I write down what the date was for when I last added my posts to be reblogged on queue. this is helped by turning on timestamps for posts in tumblr "dashboard preferences" settings.

queueing is necessary and life saving for me. It takes out so much work with decision fatigue and the anxiety around posting. It also guarantees that even if I suddenly need time off or away from my phone, I don't just disappear and lose all traction. It also breaks the instant-gratification cycle that you expect when you finish an artwork. It's hard to keep creating when you post something and, when you're expecting to get that gratification, you get none... If you queue your new artwork to come out at a later time, you've separated that expectation - with time. It hurts less and contributes to a more consistent gratification thing instead of peaks and troughs.

~~~ tag ya stuff ~~~ when you're making a new post, the first 20 tags are what gets put into the searchable tags. do not feel shame for using lots of tags. shame is the mind-killer. tags are hard. hard to know what to tag a post with. hard to remember the tags. so I found some ways to help myself. maybe they'll help you too. dedicate some time towards just figuring out what tags you want to use. i have a list in my phone notes that i add tags to and reference whenever i'm making a new post. i have the phone right beside the laptop while i'm tagging so that i can just look at it and scroll. tags are the only way for people to find your artwork, other than people manually coming to your blog because they saw you somewhere. there is no algorithm. posting without tags, until you have an established fanbase, is throwing something into the void.

When I'm doing tag research, I look at what people seem to use - when you put something in the search bar, tumblr recommends you some that have a higher following, typically. Looks like this on desktop:

if you like one tag, look at what other people who use that tag also tag their posts with. Observe and learn how this tag is used. search through a bunch of them and write them down.

here's what i got in my notes, for the specific kind of art I post and look for:

these tags are sort of specific to me and the kind of art I make. You'll want to research your own tags, but this is an example of how I keep them organized to make posting more effective. I generally only write down a tag when it's got more than 2k followers. You might be tempted to use the tags with millions of followers, but I've actually found those a lot less functional for small artists. If your stuff doesn't immediately get a bunch of notifications, you're drowned out and pushed to the bottom much faster. But the bigger tags are better than no tags, so I keep them if I can't think of anything else to tag something with.

~~~ post at the right times….? ~~~

fridays and saturdays is when I post fresh new things... usually. every website has it's own peak hours, and you can find those hours in many different online articles that try to sell you social media growth services. tumblr is unique in having later hours.

here's some random graph from google images:

please don't over think this. please don't let this consume the idea of when to post, preventing you from posting at all. it doesn't mean too much - if you post during very active hours, maybe your art would just be pushed down the feed faster. if you post at the end of hours, maybe everyone's going to sleep… if you post at inactive hours, maybe there's less 'competition'… if you post at the beginning of active hours, maybe that's just more time for your post to circulate for the day, if you have enough people reblogging it once it drops....

this also is in EST. So fuck the other time zones, I guess. I'm over here in europe knowing that the "best" time to post would be like 2-3am or something. It's like this for most english-speaking majority sites - higher traffic in north american time zones.

it's also worth mentioning that this is scattered as heck, compared to other social media sites. and it's not like, the activity times of your followers. it's not the best time to post for your niche. this is just tumblr, broadly. all of tumblr.

~~~ Plan ahead for annual dates ~~~

Your artwork will get more circulation if it's posted on a celebratory day. You could just put them on your calendar and if you're wondering what to make, look on the calendar for what's coming soon. For example, asexual awareness day, trans day of visibility, location-specific holidays, etc. Here's my phone notes thing with my own recorded annuals:

I got these dates from googling and reading different articles, but I find that I still miss dates, and then I add them for next year. If you know of some I missed, tell me and I'll add them please <3

~~~ reblog other people's stuff ~~~

tumblr is sorta about ecosystems. things get passed around within groups of people that are all following eachother. to enter this ecosystem, you must engage and reblog other people's stuff too.

if you reblog other artists' stuff, sometimes they'll come over and reblog your stuff too. sometimes they'll follow you back. this is called becoming a mutual. I'll search specific tags for the kinds of people I want to follow and the kind of art I like - those are listed in the screenshot of my tag note under "Tags for finding new people".

I see a lot of blogs out there that are very clean, posts are tagless, and are only for the artists' content. like scrolling through a portfolio. I imagine this is good for people who are migrating to tumblr but already have their own established fanbase from elsewhere.

you don't need to do reblog other people's stuff on your art blog, you can do this on a separate blog. but if the two don't look very closely correlated, it's hard to tell who you are when you're interacting. and hard to make sure people know that you are the same person as your art blog. and you gotta remember to promote yourself on your personal blog.

~~~ have an art tag ~~~

make your blog easy to search!

if i go to your blog, and you've written 'artist' or 'sometimes art' in your bio, i wanna see it… it make me so sad when i don't get to see it. i want to reblog it. please let me reblog it :(

to make a tag on your own blog searchable, you don't need to repost it to add a tag. you don't even need to reblog it. you can actually just go back to the original post and edit it to add your tag. I've seen post people just have their art tag be something like #(blogname)art . you can see my own in my tags image above. if it's very unique, then it'll work tumblr-wide. I think that's good, since the tumblr search function is really weird. Otherwise it should still work if it's not entirely unique, people just have to make sure they're searching specifically your blog to see only your stuff.

I like to have a link in my pinned post where people can click to have immediately searched for my art tag. Convenience is king. Keep in mind that most people are on mobile, and if something isn't immediately clickable, they often won't find it.

~~~ be consistent and be patient ~~~

!!!this time will pass anyway!!! how many notes you have is not correlated with how good you are as an artist. wanting to earn something from your art means you essentially have two jobs. two potentially full time jobs. this shit's difficult. most of the job is promoting yourself. don't undersell how hard it is to do… don't feel bad for not immediately succeeding. I would write about how hard it's been to promote myself, but it would just be long and sad I think.

This isn't a full guide, please feel free to add more!!

I'm sure in another year I'll disagree with a lot of this, it will become irrelevant with time, and I'll have a lot of different opinions. Chip in and share what you've been doing? Teach me? This is very overwhelming. Don't do it all at once, just like, try one thing at a time, and see how it works for you. Your niche might be different. One size does not fit all. If you're confused about some of the things I talk about in here, you might be on mobile. I do most of my queueing and posting from the desktop browser version.

I will update this with more as things change, but I think you'll have to click through to see the updated post

[dragon-chica]

Wednesday Addams General NSF W Headcanons

Fandom: Wednesday

Warnings: Rough sex and kinks, fully consensual harm, idealization of death, it's Wednesday.

Bloodplay is one of her favorite activities. She loves seeing your skin covered in beautiful crimson and licking it off of you, the way your breath heaves as she becoming enamored with a simple cut and her blown pupils staring up at you while her tongue swipes across it.

"I've always enjoyed the phrase 'sticks and stones may break my bones, but chains and whips excite me.' don't you agree?" she says eyeing you up, a hint for later perhaps.

Choking. To the point of where she's about to/may pass out. She imagines you're really ending her, in the throws of bliss and dying by the hands of her true love.

Flogging or whips, she doesn't care for spanking but loves the marks or sometimes welts left behind.

Gods does she love to torment you, but she takes as well as she gives. From drawing everything out as long as possible to literally tormenting you.

She's not one for marking where others can see, and isn't happy when you happen to leave visible marks on her, but she's incredibly possessive and believes it should already be clear that she doesn't share.

You two switch regularly. Even if you usually are into bottoming, there's something about the way she's so prideful and stubborn that goads you into giving her a taste of her own medicine, and reveling in how she eventually crumbles for you.

She is a brat. You're not entirely sure if she's trying to piss you off into taking it out on her, or if she really thinks herself to be so high and mighty trying to talk down to you while she's pinned and handcuffed and your mercy but you remind her soon enough.

Overstimulation. Pain and pleasure, pleasure until it becomes pain is her favorite part. Bringing you the relief of a hard won orgasm then not letting up until you're begging her, that's it's too much. That it hurts. But you were just pleading for her not to stop? To give you more? She's only doing as you asked.

When you do the same to her it's so satisfying to watch her crack. It takes time and patience to make her fall apart but you've learned her weaknesses as well as she knows yours.

Very sarcastic and sadistic, talking down to you.

She's not into voyeur or other's seeing or knowing what you do together. You're hers. To know and have. You're dating an Addams, and that means devotion.

Her hobby of experimenting with sex largely includes her love of torture methods. Slightly adjusted for your enjoyment, but she's willing to try the real thing if you'll do it to her. She can take it. She gives you a challenging stare if you falter.

Honestly you probably find some of the things she's into pretty concerning. You trust her to not truly harm you, which shows a lot, but she wants you to do some hardcore things to her that are hardly sexual and just seem like she has a pain kink that's a little too far.

Waxplay. Specifically with vampire tear candles, but red will also do. She likes it to be candlelit anyway so it's convenient as well.

Wednesday can be sort of clinical in her observations at times. She likes to know exactly what makes you tick and will makes notes from time to time. You're scared to know what's actually in that book.

Bondage. Probably the biggest thing you do is tying each other up and having your way. From intricate shibari to antique manacles that hang in her room presumably for 'decoration'.

If you have a dick she would be ruthless with cock and ball torture. If you don't have a pain kink, you likely would soon without ever having expected it.

She loves the intimacy of knowing exactly what makes her partner tick and plans to learn everything about you.

I lied. I said I was going to work on other characters for a bit. Here's this. I'm sure I could go on, but that's all for now.

[cupidjyu]

kiss me awake pt 3

(98 line) when you wake them up with a kiss~

genre: flirty juyeon, a lot of cuddling, sleepy cuddles, slight drunk changmin the night before?? lol notes: changmin biting the other members when he was drunk is the craziest thing I've ever heard of.. hope you enjoyed this series!! soon, there will be a full fic for my beloved #1 fan ~ word count: 1.2k

juyeon

you yawned, staring at the mirror for a minute too long before finally deciding to exit the bathroom. it was early in the morning, really early. you had work that day while juyeon, your lover, had his own day off. you sighed.

you also had an important event that day, so you dressed up quite a bit. when you walked back into the room after touching up your hair, he was still sleeping, curled up all alone on the bed. oh, how you wished to join him and go back to sleep. 

you knew he didn’t like sleeping in so you walked over to him. you leaned down and pressed your lips against his. he stirred in response and he almost immediately knew it was you.

his lips formed a cat-like smile as he blinked his eyes open. 

you laughed, “hi, handsome.”

he was actually cute at that moment, with his messy bed hair and slightly puffy eyes. he turned to you and sat up, rubbing his eyes. his droopy eyes looked you over with a glint in them.

“hey, pretty.”

you shoved him slightly, making him fall back on the bed, “don’t be a flirt.”

“why?” he propped himself on his forearms to look you over again, making you blush. then, he leaned forward and hugged you, burying his face into your stomach. “when you wake me up looking like this, i can’t help it.” 

his eyes were big now, peering at you through his eyelashes.

“okay, okay,” you smiled, leaning down and pressing a kiss on his forehead. “see you later… handsome.”

you turned around to leave for the day. but, you paused at the door when you heard his quiet, deep voice from behind you.

“i’ll be waiting for you, pretty.”

kevin

“has anyone seen kevin?” you peeked into one of the rooms. your friend shrugged.

“he said he wanted some alone time so, he’s probably in that room,” they pointed to the door. you walked in and you noticed that he seemed to have fallen. his eyes were closed and his whole body was relaxed on the bed.

you smiled and walked over. 

“hm?” you noticed, that in his hand, his phone was on. he had searched for something on it. you leaned closer and read the words: cute gifts for your s/o.

your heart practically soared and you immediately pressed a kiss to his lips without giving it a second thought. he startled and panicked, looking around quickly.

“hi kev,” you greeted, hiding your shy smile.

his eyes landed on you and he visibly relaxed, “oh, y/n. i missed you.” then, his head whipped to where his phone was gripped in his hands, still on. he hurriedly shut it off before you could see (though you did).

“so!” he laughed nervously. “d-did you see anything?”

“nope,” you held in a laugh. “nothing at all.”

he smiled and let out a relieved sigh. then, he pulled you in so that you were both lying in bed facing each other. he observed your features, smiling sweetly. you smiled back, your heart thumping.

“for your information…” you started.

“i think that a handmade bracelet would be a cute gift,” and you couldn’t help but let out an amused laugh at his shocked expression. his eyes widened and he gasped.

“so you did see!”

“see what?” you looked at him innocently.

he poked your cheek, glaring playfully, “don’t try to act dumb. but thanks for the idea." he winked before kissing you.

chanhee

you yawned, stretching your body after spending so long cleaning the whole place for the guests coming over. then, you remembered that chanhee was working on editing some pictures on the couch, so you decided to check up on him.

you paused when you saw him. he fell asleep, with his computer on the table as he laid out on the couch, his eyes closed and peacefully.

you leaned over and poked his cheek with your finger. he didn’t stir. so, you decided to press a kiss to his cheek, just to test if it works.

and then he woke up.

he peered at you with droopy eyes, “did i fall asleep?”

you smiled with amusement, “what do you think?”

“agh,” he pouted, getting up from his lying position. “i was literally almost done and i just had to fall asleep…” he grumbled.

you waved him off, sitting next to him. you wrapped your arms around his side, hugging him warmly causing him to relax and melt.

“it’s okay,” you simply replied.

“why?” he whined. he glanced at the date. “i’m pretty sure this was due a while ago…”

“yeah but…” you reached a hand up to caress his cheek, turning him to face you. he slightly flushed at the close proximity. “you looked really cute just now.”

chanhee stared at you with wide eyes, completely silent. then, he pushed you away, his ears red now.

“don’t… be ridiculous. you're the one who kissed me to wake me up. you can't just do that!"

you crossed your arms, “i’m being serious. and why not? i love kissing you.”

he laughed shyly, “in that case,” he thought for a moment. “this can wait another day.” he grabbed onto you to lie next to him as he latched onto you like a koala. “i’m going back to sleep.” and just before he fell asleep, he pressed a light kiss to your nose.

changmin

you took in a shaky breath, your eyes staring straight at the bowl of soup in your hands. you were incredibly focused on not spilling it. finally, you made it to the room where you knew changmin was having an incredibly deep slumber.

you placed the bowl on the nightstand. and then you leaned in to press a kiss to his lips. he groaned as he slowly woke up. when he opened his eyes and caught sight of you, he smiled tiredly and grasped your wrist to pull you into bed with him.

you yelped.

“you kissed me awake,” he observed.

you nodded. you let out a sigh when you felt him attach to your body in a tight, possessive hug.

“changmin,” you called out.

“hmmm?” he hummed lazily.

“how much did you drink last night?”

he paused, silent for a moment before finally croaking out an awkward, “i drank enough.”

you tsked, “you drank enough to run around and bite eric and i.” you swiftly escaped his hold, making him whine cutely.

“come on, let me feed you,” you urged him. and to your surprise, he happily got up, listening to your orders. he was still sleepy but he looked adorable with his messy hair. and before you knew it, he had flopped back down on the bed with a groan. 

“i have a headache.”

“yes, so you have to drink this.”

“but-”

with one hand, you pulled him back up. he stared at you with absolute awe.

“woah, you’re strong,” he looked at you with lovesick eyes, making you giggle.

but you still shrugged, ignoring him as you began to feed the soup to him. he smiled at you fondly after each and every bite.

“you’re so caring,” he suddenly whispered. his eyes began to get teary as he sniffed. “i love you so much…”

you stared at him in disbelief.

“changmin.”

“hmm?”

“are you still drunk?”

[nahoney22]

Honeyyyyyy🥰

congratulations on hitting 4000 followers! Thats huge! Honestly, no one deserves it more than you. Thank you for all the wonderful things you have requested throughout the years💕

I would like to request a Jesse x Fem!Reader, where reader gets discharged from a lengthy hospital stay and gets to go home, where her partner Jesse picks her up and takes her home and cares for her. Its a very self indulgent request i must admit. It can be sfw/suggestive or nsfw if you like, but mostly i‘d love some caregiver!jesse 🥺

ilysm 💕🌸🪷

Relief

Jesse X F!Reader

word count: 781

After being discharged from hospital, Jesse shows you just how much he missed, cares and loves you.

warnings: 16+ as there is implied sexual content but nothing explicit. female reader, mentions of hospital visits and reader having a bad autoimmune system, slight angst but fixed with lots of fluff and comfort. Established relationship.

Authors note: thank you for the support always bestie. Enjoy, sorry it’s a little on the shorter side. ily 💜

After what felt like an endless cycle of blurred days and nights, the comfort of home beckoned. Your autoimmune condition had warranted an extended stay at the hospital, and although the memories of long hours and less-than-stellar meals lingered, there was a beacon of hope waiting for you on the other side.

You had been with Jesse for just over a year now and never had you been so lucky. He was the perfect blend of kindness, humor, and of course - undeniable good looks. So, it wasn't surprising to find him eagerly waiting for you in the lobby, his foot rhythmically tapping the floor. But when his eyes met yours, any signs of impatience melted away, replaced with a beaming smile.

"There’s my girl," he greeted with a joyous grin, leaning in to plant a tender kiss on your cheek.

Mustering a weary yet content smile, you replied, "Here I am." Your smile widened in delight as he gracefully unveiled a bouquet of your favourite flowers from behind his back. "Oh, Jesse," you murmured, "you really didn't have to."

"No," he smirked, arm confidently linking with yours, guiding you as he flagged down a cab, "but it made me happy to."

With a content sigh, you both settled into the taxi, heading towards the sanctuary of your home. The mere idea of being enveloped in the soft embrace of your own bed was enough to make you feel more relaxed. Jesse's eyes were fixed on you, tenderly observing the visible signs of your exhaustion. But, he was smart enough not to voice his observations. Instead, he pulled you closer, letting you nestle into his side for the duration of the ride.

A short while later, the familiar setting of your home welcomed you. Stepping inside, you inhaled deeply, reacquainting yourself with its comforting aroma. Overwhelmed by the warmth and familiarity, you sank into your couch, releasing a sigh that echoed your longing. "I've missed this so much," you murmured, gazing up at the ceiling. As your gaze wandered, a realisation dawned. The place was spotless. Not a single trace of dust to be seen anywhere.

Catching your surprised expression, Jesse chuckled, "Thought I'd do a bit of tidying up."

Your laughter joined his as relief washed over you. The realisation that he'd taken it upon himself to do every little chore that was pending made your heart flourish.

From the laundry to the dishes, from taking out the trash to scrubbing that stubborn grout in the kitchen sink you'd been meaning to tackle – everything was done.

"Jesse," you whispered, admiration and affection swelling within you. Although you two didn’t share a home, mostly due to Jesse's commitments with the GAR, seeing the lengths he'd gone to care for your space during your hospital stay only deepened the bond between you.

Jesse's face lit up with a touch of pride as he then pointed towards the fridge. "I also prepped some meals for you." He admitted with a sheepish grin, "Though, I won't guarantee they're gourmet quality – cooking isn't exactly my specialty." His hand instinctively went to the back of his head, a gesture he often made when slightly embarrassed.

“Anything would be better than the dirt they serve in there.” You shudder at the cold gruel you were offered.

Overwhelmed by his thoughtfulness, you responded, "I can't begin to express my gratitude." He settled down beside you on the couch, wrapping an arm around you protectively.

"You could start by resting and taking it easy," he said with a playful smirk, his lips gently brushing your temple. His fingers began to work magic as he moved them into your hair, massaging your scalp and making you sink further into his embrace.

"That sounds perfect right now," you admitted, stifling a yawn as relief washes over you. Curling even closer to him, you whispered, "I love you."

"And I love you," he replied, ensuring both of you were covered with a throw blanket before starting a holomovie, the volume just low enough to be comforting. Cherishing moments like these was essential because they were so rare.

That evening, Jesse managed to whip up a surprisingly delicious meal. The two of you shared stories and laughter, catching up on all the happenings you missed while you were away. And as the night grew deeper, he effortlessly lifted you, a hint of mischief in his eyes, and carried you off to bed. Even as passion ignited between the two of you, kisses turning into heated dances and breathing turning into soft moans, Jesse's touch remained gentle. And his whispers held promises and love that saw you through the night.

Oh, how you missed him.

Requests open until the 15th of October 2023 ☀️

Kofi 🧋

Masterlist

Tags: @andyoufollowyourheart @whore4rex @imperialclaw801 @temple-elder @mysticalgalaxysalad @littlefeatherr @kaitou2417 @eyecandyeoz @captxin-rex @jesseeka @ashotofspotchka @theroguesully @ladykatakuri @jambolska-grozdova @arctrooper69 @padawancat97 @rain-on-kamino @either-madness-or-brilliance @staycalmandhugaclone @ko-neko-san @echos-girlfriend @fiveshelmet @dangraccoon @plushymiku-blog @chrissywakingup @kixs-husband @pb-jellybeans @nunanuggets @sleepycreativewriter @erellenora @zippingstars87 @tech-aficionado @grizabellasolo @therealnekomari @tech-depression-inventory @brynhildrmimi @greaser-wolf @tinyreadersmur @seriowan @by-the-primes @the-bad-batch-baroness @kaminocasey @marvel-starwars-nerd @ladytano420 @ladyzirkonia @raevulsix

[st-danger]

aahhh hello diaper anon here! Thanks for being so open minded and I promise I will love anything you write!!

My main thoughts were rain being made to wear them by a ghoul of your choosing and said ghoul conveniently locks all the restrooms. Then rain thinking he's being subtle when he's uhmm relieving himself but everyone notices and teases him for it - horniness ensues.

But seriously take it in whatever direction you want, you're a saint (pun intended) <3

(Quick little note that I'm really pleased this Anon trusted me to write this kink for them, and if you don't like it or you're gonna be squicked by it just don't fuckin read it but I'm not going to tolerate any rude comments towards this kink if it's not your thing so don't even go there. ANON I'VE NEVER WRITTEN THIS BEFORE I HOPE IT IS TO YOUR LIKING THANK YOU FOR TRUSTING ME)

Rain stares at Mountain's outstretched hand.

More specifically, what is being held in said hand. It takes him a quick moment to realize what it is, the puzzle slowly slotting together, and as it does, Rain feels funny. Weird. All over.

"Go on," Mountain says, and Rain doesn't have to look up to see the sweet smile on his face, so evident in the tone he takes. "Put it on."

He starts reaching for it, but stops just before he lays a hand on it, hesitating. This is new. They've talked about it- well. Mountain's talked about it before, mentioned it a few times. Last week, actually, when he had held Rain close and kissed his ear and told him to let go and get his lap soaking. Would you wear one? he'd breathed. Make you go in public and it'd be our secret. Mountain doesn't flaunt his kinks quite so brashly as the others do, but he's just as deviant as the rest of them. Everyone knows what everyone likes, but Mountain still makes Rain feel like what they explore is clandestine. An arousing little hush-hush thing just for the two of them.

Rain's stomach twists as he lays a hand on it, takes it from him. It feels like sealing his fate, a little point of no return. An escalation that crosses some kind of line. Mountain is leaning down, cupping Rain's face in his hands and kissing him before he has a moment more to think. He lets himself be kissed, thoroughly and deeply, arms hanging uselessly at his sides, one hand clutching the diaper a little harder than before.

"Our secret," Mountain breathes against him, gentle and coaxing, like Rain wasn't going to agree to this from the beginning, regardless of the strange feelings it evoked. He gives Rain's lower lip a teasing little lick, and then rubs their noses together, so affectionate.

"I can't just wear it," Rain whispers, and Mountain knows what he's asking.

"You need to use it," he tells him, and Rain feels the oddest shiver, the most pleasurable little hit of nervousness that he thinks he's ever experienced.

He's not sure how he's supposed to keep it secret; standing before his mirror, the dawning realization that his pants are too tight to hide the shape... and the sound. There's a distinct crinkle and there's part of him that knows that Mountain was aware it wouldn't be entirely quiet. At least the bar will have enough noise to cover it. Its the cab ride over he's concerned about. He grabs a sweatshirt, ties it around his waist. Crosses his fingers.

It's not enough.

Not enough to evade the way Swiss seems so observant, looking over at him from the other side of the cab. Mountain sits in the front, a low drone of conversation between him and the driver. Rain does his best to sit still, keep his face nice and neutral, but when he looks over at Swiss, his cheeks heat. Casual, he pulls his phone out. Texts Mountain.

I think he knows.

The reply comes a moment later.

It was his idea too.

Rain flushes hot and cold and turns the screen off as fast as he can. He does not look back over at Swiss, even when Swiss runs a gentle hand up his thigh, closer and closer to where something plastic is stuffed just underneath- the hand withdraws and Rain feels his cock give up an interested twitch.

It's worse, having two of them aware. The bar noise as expected covers any potential sound, and he keeps the sweatshirt tied firmly around him. The way Swiss and Mountain watch him, the way they know what he's hiding, why he's pouring himself a glass of water in between his first and second beer is exhilarating as it is nerve wracking. His cock has been plump since the cab ride, but he feels the pressure in his bladder ever more insistent. It's a strange headspace, to realize he isn't sure if he wants to be hard or not. If he should be hard or not. If one of those options seems dirtier than the other- all swollen from the humiliation of it all, the secrecy, or limp and seemingly suffering through the degradation of it in order to please them. Obsequious and servile.

He's barely been sitting down in the corner booth before they join him. No rest for the wicked, he supposes, scooting over to allow Swiss to slide over, pressing their shoulders together. Not even the extremely wicked.

"How much longer are you gonna squirm for?" Swiss asks, voice light and conversational.

Until, is the answer.

"I don't think I can do this," Rain admits, leg bouncing, running a restless hand through his hair. He lets out a huff of a laugh, a disbelieving little thing, cheeks pinking when he brings his eyes to meet theirs, looking back and forth between them. He knows his eyes are a bit wide, and that Mountain loves the conflict he sees in them. He knows Mountain and Swiss are going to praise him for this later on; all he has to do is let go and they're going to take him apart after this, use their fingers and their tongues and their dicks to make him cry and cum until he's a pathetic heap, willing to do it all again if it means the same reward.

Swiss slings an arm around his shoulders as Mountain reaches for his hand, holding it. Rubbing his thumb soothingly back and forth over the knuckles.

"Deep breath, Rain," Mountain says. His thighs tense- he's not sure why he's trying to hold back now. The beer and water have caught up to him and he knows it's an inevitability. He doesn't want to be too uncomfortable, but can't find it in him to relax and let it happen. Logically, he knows the others are all absorbed in their own conversations and drinks, that Mountain and Swiss are the only ones privy to what Rain is wearing. What he's about to do.

It doesn't feel that way.

It's such a thrill.

"Do it," Mountain orders, "and look at me."

He tries looking calm. Placid. He manages it through the first few drops he feels begin to leak out, but he instinctively clenches, and stops, a wave of sensation blooming out from where he's tensed. The muscle in his jaw jumps as he grits his teeth. He squirms again, and Swiss's hand squeezes dramatically on his shoulder.

"Relax," Swiss murmurs, barely audible over the ambient noise around them.

He tries to keep his face calm, but his eyes flutter and lips part when he feels the flood of warmth, the electrifying embarrassment. Mountain's hand tightens around his, looking back at him with a disbelieving, hungry look and- the heat of it, the squish of it should be deeply weird, but instead it's soft and gratifying and Rain quivers ever so slightly the entire time he wets himself.

He feels the tension Swiss carries beside him, feels the neediness in the way Mountain squeezes and releases his hand over and over, sees in the pained crease between his brows.

"Cirrus!" Swiss waves up at her, and she slinks over. Swiss begins grabbing the sweatshirt around Rain and yanking if off, out from underneath him. Rain stares, dumbfounded while Swiss hands it to her.

"Thanks," she says, and shrugs it on. "Been cold all evening."

Rain watches her rejoin Cumulus by the counter, watches his only saving grace as it were slip out of reach.

"How about another round?" Mountain smiles.

[fookinavocadosman]

Let’s Hurt Tonight {HS}

It’s Harry’s birthday and Y/N has something special planned for him but will he ever find it out?

warnings: a bit fluffy but pure angst at the end

note: this is what harry’s wearing later in the chapter

word count: 3.1k

“Harry stop!” I yell through my laughs as he presses kisses and raspberries to my stomach, trying to push him away.

“Okay okay.” he stops his attack, laying his cheek on my stomach, his eyes connecting with mine as a soft smile lines his face. “I love your laugh so much,” he says to me and I feel my cheeks heating up as I cover my face with my hands.

“Stop it,” I mumble, letting a smile grace my face. We sit in silence just observing each other. Harry and I started dating a little over a year ago but we’ve known each other for years.

Let's say we're the poster children for the cliche of childhood best friends that have feelings for each other but are too scared to admit it to either one. Harry’s alarm blares bringing us out of the moment and he lets out a groan moving his face completely into my stomach.

“I don't want to go.” his voice muffled, sending vibrations up my body. I reach down and scratch at his head playing with his hair.

“I know,” I whisper back to him. He sits up turning off his alarm and turns his head to look at me. His hair is messy and his skin is glowing from the sunlight.

“I'll see you later, my love. I love you,” he whispers, leaning in and giving me a soft kiss. Kissing Harry feels amazing. Every time we kiss my body tingles with electricity and a smile never fails to break out on my face. It sounds dramatic, like something straight from a romance book or movie, but it’s true.

Harry gets ready and leaves me alone in my bed after leaving a quick kiss on my forehead. After getting acclimated without Harry I grab my phone texting Anne and Gemma to make sure everything is set for tonight.

Harry's birthday is today and I've been planning a party for him. It's hard trying to surprise him and plan things that will knock him off his feet because with just a press of a button he could have everything he ever wanted.

Perks of dating a world-famous musician I guess.

We're back in our hometown for his birthday so I've been planning with Anne and Gemma to surprise him with our friends from school and some of his more famous friends. I spend the rest of the day in bed and once I finally start feeling productive I get his present for tonight ready, it’s not big or flashy but it has meaning.

It’s a pale blue box, with one of my favorite quotes from our favorite movie to watch together. In delicate cursive, it reads, “It was no ordinary friendship. We were inseparable, constantly being separated. I’ve realized that no matter where you are or who you’re with, I will always truly, completely love you.”

When Love Rosie came out I sent it to Harry and told him he had to watch it and every time we would see each other that was the movie we watched. Maybe we loved it because it represented us but no matter the reason, it’s a huge part of our relationship. Inside it has some memorable items from our years as friends and even the start of our relationship as well as a photo album of photos of us throughout the years, family photos, selfies, candids, and even some photos of us from award shows made the cut.

I smile as I put it back under the bed and I begin to get ready for our “date”. I told Harry that I planned a special date for his birthday and we’d be going to his favorite restaurant but I needed to run over to his mum's to pick something up for after our date tonight.

As I'm doing my makeup Harry comes home knocking lightly on the bedroom door as he opens it. I turn my head over my shoulder to look at him and he sends me a smile coming up to me.

“You look, beautiful baby,” he whispers, placing a kiss on my lips. I mumble a thank you against his lips, he places his hands on my shoulders pulling away and pushing his cheek against mine. We look at each other through the mirror for a moment and he turns his head placing a kiss on my cheek before pulling away from me.

“What time is the reservation? I’m going to go take a shower,” he asks me as he gets undressed.

“8:00 but we got to stop at your mum's first so I can get something for later.” I remind him and he nods his head heading into the bathroom. I finish getting ready and text Anne asking if everything is coming out okay and she tells me to stop worrying and that she has it under control.

Harry comes out a few minutes later dressed in an opened button-down shirt that has flowers and squares on it with a white bandanna around his neck and his signature black skinny jeans. He runs his hand through his hair as he walks up to me, placing his hand on my waist and spinning me around slowly.

“You look amazing love,” he says, keeping his eyes glued onto my outfit. It's a simple black dress that hugs my body perfectly paired with red heels.

“Thanks, H, you don’t look too bad yourself.” I compliment him and a smirk begins to cross his face. He pulls me closer to him so our chests touch his hand pressing on the small of my back as mine falls onto his waist.

“What if we had my birthday dinner later this week? I don't think I want to leave,” he asks, leaning into me and I shake my head, putting my hand on his chest, and pushing him back.

“No way it was a bitch to get these reservations, later, promise,” I tell him and he groans, pulling away from me.

“Fine, let’s head out mums is about 20 minutes from here and another 20 to the restaurant,” he says and I nod, grabbing my purse and phone texting Anne that we are leaving. When we arrive Harry pulls into the driveway turning off the car.

“Come in, I'm sure your mum wants to talk for a second while I get what I need,” I tell him and he nods, opening his door. We walk to the door, his arm slung around my waist and I open the door pushing him in front of me.

“Surprise!” yelled everyone and Harry stands shocked looking between everyone and then back at me.

“You didn’t.” he smiles, turning to face me.

“I did.” I smile back at him and he lets out a breath pulling me into a hug.

“Thank you so much.” he squeezes me tight and I mumble anything for you into his shoulder. The party starts and Harry goes around greeting his friends as I deal with making drinks and catching up with other people.

A while passes and I haven’t seen Harry in a bit so I wander from the kitchen to the living room. I stop by the doorway when I hear my name, seeing Harry on the couch with a beer in his hand as he talks with some guys we went to school with as well as his band members. I lean away from the doorway so I'm out of sight.

“I still can’t believe you’re with y/n! Just imagine if that bet never took place we wouldn’t be here right now.” I recognize the voice as Michaels and I hear Harry chuckle in response.

“Yeah you’re right, I never would’ve thought I’d be here now.”

“What bet are you talking about?” Louis speaks up and I lean closer to listen. My heart beats faster as the silence is prolonged.

“At the beginning of year 9, I made a bet with Styles that he wouldn’t be able to get with the “weird girl” in our year by the end of GCSEs, and all of a sudden by the end of December they were best friends. You technically still lost though cause you never hooked up with her by the end of GCSE’s.” Michael explains and I feel my heart drop.

I back away from the doorway as my hand is placed on my mouth to cover the sharp breaths trying to escape me. I slowly place my drink on the table in the hallway as Gemma comes up to me, startled by the way I'm acting. I shake my head, heading towards the stairs going into the bathroom, and locking myself in there. I try to hold the tears back but a couple slip out as I begin to rethink everything.

I was just a bet?

I was so confused when Harry came up to me that first day and sat with me and we ate and talked and as the days passed I felt a connection with him.

Was any of it real?

A knock at the door breaks me out of my thoughts and I hear Harry asking if I'm alright. I sniffled a bit, wiping my eyes and face clean of the tears and I put on a smile opening the door.

“Yeah I'm fine, just felt a bit ill for a second but I'm okay now.” I smile at him and he looks me up and down trying to read me. I keep my fake smile plastered on my face and he finally nods leaning in to kiss my cheek. I push in front of him and his lips skim my cheek making an excuse that I have to go back down to the party and help Anne with something. I make my way to the kitchen. With each step, I feel my heart crumble a bit more.

“Hey Anne, can I ask you a question?” I lean against the counter close to her and she turns to face me, her contagious smile beaming.

“Of course my love, anything at all!”

“What are you supposed to do when you find out someone close to you has been lying about something for a long time?” she stops cutting the food she was preparing, places the knife down, and turns to me.

“You found out didn’t you love?” she asks me and the last bit of my heart that was standing crumbles.

“You knew?” my voice cracks as my eyes well up with tears.

“I did sweetie. He was talking to one of his friends about it around the beginning of it and I gave him a lecture and told him to tell you immediately but he refused to say anything because he didn’t want to risk losing you. I'm so sorry you had to find out this way sweetheart.” Anne explains and I drop my head letting my tears fall.

“Oh come here love.” she pulls me into her chest and I let the sobs rip out of my chest.

“Why?” I ask. I know she doesn’t have an answer and she just holds me closer.

“What’s going on?” I hear Harry and soon feel his arms on my shoulders and I immediately tense.

“She's not feeling well at all honey, I think you should take her back home.” Anne saves me from talking and I hear him mutter an okay telling his mum to tell everyone we're sorry for leaving early as he pulls me out of her grip heading for the door. He gets me in the car and I keep sobbing as he tries to comfort me but it’s not comforting me.

It's hurting me.

He eventually gets me back into our room and I just sit on the bed as he kneels in front of me rubbing my knees as he tries to get me to talk.

“Baby you have to tell me what’s hurting or what’s wrong so I can help you.” He continues to try and help and I shake my head.

“You lied to me.” I make out in between sobs and I feel his hands tense on my thighs. “You lied to me about everything.” I lift my head from my lap making eye contact with him and he shakes his head.

“No baby I didn’t lie to you my love.” he tries to defend himself and I remove his hands from me as I stand up from the bed.

“Stop lying to me!” I scream pointing at him as I walk away from him leaving just the bed between us.

“What have I been lying to you about? Please tell me!” he raises his voice and I throw my hand up pointing between us.

“Everything! The reason why you even became friends with me! It wasn’t because you thought I was interesting or “cool” it was because of a fucking bet!” I tell him and his face drops.

“How do you know about that?” he asks me and I let out a bitter laugh.

“I went to go find you and heard you talking to Michael and when I went upstairs I assume Gemma sent you because she passed by me as I was holding back fucking tears and after I found your mum she just confirmed everything that was said and that’s when you walked in.” I ramble, the tears starting to dry, my sadness slowly being replaced by anger.

“You have to know as soon as we started becoming better friends I called off the bet! Michael didn’t accept it but it wasn’t a bet to me anymore I promise!” Harry runs his hand through his hair, tears starting to well up in his eyes and I lose it.

“No! You don’t get to fucking cry Harry!” “You have been with me countless times when guys were only with me to fucking use me! You were there picking up the pieces and you never once fucking thought to come clean with me! Our entire friendship was built on the fucking fact that you were just making your way up the ladder to sleep with me!” I scream at him as I take a deep breath.

“Sure I would’ve been fucking mad at you in the beginning but maybe I would’ve gotten over it real quick right now I don’t think I can because all I can think about is if any of this is real!”

“It is real! I promise y/n! I will call Michael right now and have him tell you exactly what I told him when I called it off, everything has been real I swear!” he continues to try to explain but I let out a sad chuckle shaking my head.

“Your promises don’t mean anything because I don’t trust you, Harry,” I whisper his eyes connect to mine and his tears begin to fall.

“Please y/n how can I make it up to you? I will do anything to fix this. Please.” he begs me and I shrug my shoulders.

“I don’t know if you can fix this, Harry.” I whisper and he begins to walk towards me but I hold my hand up stopping him. “I’m going to go change just please leave me alone,'' I tell him and he nods his head.

I walk into the bathroom after grabbing a pair of pajamas and let the tears fall freely as I wipe away the ruined makeup and think back to all the memories in the front of my head. When I walk out he’s still in his clothes sitting on the bed with his head in his hands. I clear my throat and his head shoots towards me as he stands up.

“Your birthday present is under the bed. I'm going to the guest room. Happy birthday Harry.” I send him a small smile, grabbing my phone and leaving the room as he stands still watching me walk out the door. I lay in the guest bedroom letting myself cry until I couldn’t anymore.

As my eyes closed and the sun rose, the light from the sun shone through the cracks, but not the cracks of the window, the cracks in the darkness of my heart.

The cracks he made.

the

Harry’s POV:

I stand frozen as she walks out of our room. My heart seizes with every step she takes farther from me. It was never meant to go this far. It was a stupid fucking bet that meant absolutely nothing to me once we became friends. I drop down onto my knees lifting the duvet, seeing a pale blue box tucked carefully under the bed.

I pull it towards me sitting back on my knees as I admire her handwriting on the box. “It was no ordinary friendship. We were inseparable, constantly being separated. I’ve realized that no matter where you are or who you’re with, I will always truly, completely love you.”

My heart drops more as I open the box and look through all the mementos and photos of us throughout the years. I’ve royally fucked up big time. That night I slept on the floor of our bedroom, feeling the guilt of my actions coursing through my body.

I spent all day trying to figure out if there was anything I could do to fix the wounds I'd made but nothing seemed to work. There's a light knock on the bedroom door and when I look up I see y/n walking through.

“We need to talk,” she says, shutting the door behind her. Her cheeks are puffy, her eyes are red and swollen, and she’s been tearing herself apart. It hurts even worse knowing I'm the reason for her pain.

“I don't know what I want anymore Harry. I need space and time to think things through.” She speaks up, ripping off the bandaid of where our relationship stands. My heart crumbles just a little more but I nod my head because this is her decision and I'm not going to fight her.

“I’m going to go stay at my mum’s for a little bit, once I get through all these fucking thoughts in my head and can tell you what I want I’ll come back, but right now, I can’t be here, I can’t be with you.” her voice wobbles and my throat tightens as tears well in my eyes.

I nod my head once again, unable to form words. She packs her bags and by nightfall, she is ready to leave. I follow her downstairs and once she makes it to the front door I stand frozen at the bottom of the staircase.

“y/n.” I speak up and she looks up at me, her grip tightening on her suitcase.

“Please take your time. Don’t worry about me, make the decision for yourself. I will support whatever you decide.” I tell her and she nods her head giving me one last look before she walks out of the door.

And just like that the moon split in half and the stars crumbled, falling like fireworks into the sea, I watched my world fall apart the day my love left me.

[minnieposting]

i want to talk about robins trailer again!

following up from this post + a cool thread i saw earlier compiling lots of details i didn't notice in the trailer! (and the morse code post)

mostly really interested in the fact that this whole thing is filmed and directed by sunday

(sc from twt thread)

i said earlier that robin must feel like she doesn't want to let down both sunday and the family, both as his sister and the "pride of the family". but this clearly shows that he's the one pulling the strings, or at least one of them.

(as i type this out, i realize the usage of "pulling the strings" could relate back to the imagery of puppets we've been seeing. they are present in robin's trailer and also seen in the 2.2 penacony trailer)

(and of course, another puppet on strings...)

not sure where i'm going with this because tbh i got side tracked because i had the realization while writing. just some cool consistent puppet imagery, obviously symbolic, just don't feel like thinking about this rn lol

ANYWAY, my original train of thought was going towards sunday being a huge pressure on her, whether intentionally or not, he's clearly got his own shit going on... but i also feel like this gives new meaning to something else i pointed out a bit ago (post)

sunday is always right behind robin! she's always in the spotlight while he looms in the shadows. another thing tho, the same person who posted that twt thread i linked to pointed out that our bird friend is seen in the corner watching robin perform (x)

in the upper right corner!

(though, ive seen speculation that the bird is not sunday's but the dreammaster's! either way, sunday is still the most involved with her in the context of my post...)

now, going back to what i really want to talk about in the first place - director sunday. i do think this is more symbolic than anything, and coming from robin's perspective as this is her trailer.

sunday is a perfectionist obsesed with control and robin's public image may not be spared from that. she may feel that sunday is essentially breathing down her neck, whether or not sunday is aware he's making her feel like this. i've always thought that sunday's perfectionism and his obsessiveness have bled into his love for his sister and their relationship as a whole. again, she clearly does not want to let him down specifically, especially when they're supposedly working towards a childhood dream.

it's just! this whole thing about freedom, or the lack of it. robin is a caged bird and that's become explicit in her trailer. who knows wtf sunday's deal is, but he's also clearly under SO much pressure, he's the head of the oak family and ALSO needs to be nothing less than perfect. dude had a whole speech about it. i also imagine they both don't talk about any negative feelings related to this, maybe even wanting to keep up appearances around each other too.

i feel like i dont have anything else to say. i just mainly wanted to talk about some observations and stuff. i am very much looking forward to 2.2 coming out later, im SO excited to dig into sunday because he is the most intriguing and mysterious to me. their relationship is just so so so interesting, im so excited to see it in all of its glory later.

and mandatory note bc i am an anxious person, i do a lot of talking out of my ass and this is just exactly that.

(uh i scrolled up to read this post over and saw i linked back to a morse code post and didn't talk about that at all. well there's SOS morse code in robins trailer! that's fucked up! what else can i say)

[pokemon-dungeon-masters]

Big announcement time!

A lot has happened and even more is about to so I’m here to catch everyone up and announce something new!

To start: Over a month ago I held the first play test in the server with Nines, Slime, Chime, and Talai. It went really well! So here’s a rough overview of what happened:

Team Twoshot was tasked with finding a missing Volbeat and disabling a minor dungeon, named the Symphonic Glen, which used to be a stage for Pokémon to share their music with each other. Loudred, with his posse of 4 Whismur, took over the stage and pokénapped the Volbeat to use as a personal spotlight with her Tailglow, which gave him a +3 to Insight making his Echoed Voice even more dangerous. Plus each Whismur had a specialty punch move; Ice, Fire, Thunder, and Mega punch. It was a tough fight but Team Twoshot managed to bring the crew down and save the Volbeat, reuniting her with her lovely partner Illumise.

Nines played Heathcliff, a scarred male Gyarados with a purple scarf, well-worn but also well-cared for. Very much willing to let loose, but surprisingly careful about his allies. Particularly the ladies.

Talai played Slasher, a female Sneasel with some piercings. She has a rough exterior and personality who secretly has a soft side.

Slime played Demeter, a somewhat dainty and matronly Roserade with a penchant for drinking tea, and a distaste for unnecessary fighting. Has unique colored roses, one red and the other purple.

Chime played Tealight, a small but fearless Litwick. He's friendly if a bit creepy, and prone to jumping straight into battle for his teammates. Totally consumed with inflicting status effects.

We found a lot of things that needed clarification thanks to the playtest, such as:

Travel Points now allow you to move up to 2 tiles per point.

Which kinds of effects still apply on partial hits, most notably Lifedrain.

Fainting has been entirely reworked, which will be addressed at a later time.

General Movement, such as you can't move diagonally through 2 hostile Pokémon.

Lots of changes to Roleplay Actions, including a new feature called the Stamina Bar.

And a lot more that we've been working on!

In other news, we've finished our Explorers of Sky playthrough and have started Gates to Infinity! Team Soy Bois, led by Boi the Riolu and Wattson the Shinx, managed to save the world (with a single punch!) and now it's time for a team; Team Gorls, staring Fraisey the Axew and Brittany B the Snivy. I've actually never played Gates (no spoilers if you join us!) so I'm excited to see what happens. We stream most every Saturday at 6pm est and we voice the characters! Anyone is welcome to join and, if you're interested, you'll have a chance to voice a character too!

Another event that is just starting is Talai's Friendlocke! We will be playing through Pokémon Insurgent as a nuzlocke where each person participating roleplays as a member of the team, choosing moves in battle and strategizing together. Can these mons parent their kidnapped orphan trainer? Join us and find out!

So, what's next? Well, simply put, more playtests! There's still a lot of mechanics that need tested before this project is finished. This time, however, I will be taking a backseat. Instead, my co-creators Nines and Slime will be DMing, each testing different parameters with very different dungeon layouts, difficulties, and more. I will still be involved, just this time I will be observing the sessions and taking notes on anything that needs worked on. Below are brief descriptions of each DMs planned playtest:

Nines' Playtest:

The Coral Cape stars a ragtag group recruited by the Cutthroats, a roving pirate band. You're tasked with scouting out the titular dungeon, reporting back with any objects of interest, and - most importantly - looting anything you can get your hands on!

This playtest places low-level characters against a variety of situations,  primarily combat as well as some social scenarios.

Slime's Playtest:

Deep within the Iron-Soul Mausoleum, something has stirred, causing Steel, Rock, and Ground type Pokémon to become rowdy and dangerous. Several Explorer teams have ventured into the ancient crumbling ruin, but none have successfully cracked the puzzle and made their way into the central chamber.

This Playtest is testing the upper levels of character creation, dungeon based weather effects, as well as the maximum size of Dungeon layout.

Once the Alpha playtests are over we will be going over the entire system and reworking/finalizing as much as we can before the next stage; Beta test Oneshots. There will be a series of oneshots with the goal of giving as many players a chance to play as possible. If you are interested in being a part of the two alpha playtests or the upcoming beta oneshots please check out the Discord server.

And that's all for now! I will do my best to keep everyone posted but if you have any questions feel free to drop them in the comments and we will do our best to answer them. Thank you all for being a part of this project and for being patient while we figure out the next steps; your support truly means a great deal to me!

[bonesandthebees]

Hi Bee! You seem to read a lot of books, and I've been trying to get back into reading books rather than fanfiction as of late (which is going good atm). I used to read a lot of actual books when I was younger, but once I was a pre teen I'd discovered fic and had trouble reading actual books unless I had to for school lol. Anyway, my question is do you have any book recs? While for right now, it is going well, I only have two books I'm planning on reading after I finish the two I'm reading simultaneously right now. So it'd be nice to have some more for once I finish those as well. :D

Another reason for my wanting to get back into reading actual types of books is studying a more formal written literature to improve my writing, and to observe what author's do with their writing style that I'd want to incorporate in my own writing. If you have any tips for studying/observing, I'd also love some of those.

While this doesn't really have to do with the whole book thing, I just wanna say that you definitely inspired me to want to write more. Most of your titles always sound so cool and make me wanna read anything of yours solely based off them, and your plot, descriptiveness, metaphors, Greek mythology references, and so many other little things about it make it so enjoyable to read and something I'd strive to be within my own writing. A little silly, I know, considering it's MCYT fic, but your writing is genuinely so cool.

That's all I wanted to say, bye bye.

this is so kind thank you!! it seriously makes me so happy anytime someone tells me my silly fic writing inspired them to start/improve their own writing. writing is such a beautiful art but it's also a skill you have to put so much time into. you're off to an amazing start already with recognizing that you have to read published novels to improve your writing. it seriously helps so much.

I can definitely give you some recs! I'll put them under a read more, but since you asked for tips when reading novels:

try to pay attention to things you like and don't like about the author's writing style. like if you're reading a novel and there's a line of description that's particularly gorgeous or sets a scene super well, consider annotating the book with a pen or highlighter or if you don't own the book itself, copy down the line/paragraph somewhere (notebook, notes app, smth like that) to refer back to later. or if you find yourself super immersed in a conversation going on between two characters, take a step back to notice how the author writes out the conversation. is there a lot of physical description of what the characters are doing while they speak that lets you picture th escene easily? or is the dialogue rapid fire back and forth which forces you to just be sucked into it? what about it do you like?

or, on the contrary, if you find yourself struggling to enjoy a book try to notice what about the writing style is pulling you away. is there too much flowery description that makes you want to skip ahead? is there too much exposition so you feel like you're just getting an infodump instead of a narrative? take stock of what your own thoughts are as you read and then try to figure out why that is.

also, a tip I heard once is that you can always try to emulate a specific style. if you want to improve your writing and you just read a book with a writing style you really want, maybe try and write a random scene in that same style. it doesn't have to be anything original or even good, no one ever has to see it, it can just be for your own practice. just keep the book beside you and try to pick out what makes the writing style distinct, and try to emulate that. not saying you have to adopt that style, but just trying out a new style can give you some variation to help you develop/improve your own.

okay now book recs time, this'll get long so putting it below

now you didn't specify what kinds of books you like to read so I'm going to just throw in a few from a few different genres I've read. most of these are books I've recced here on my blog before but they're all a bit scattered so I'll rec them again. now, I mostly read fantasy or historical fiction because I just like those genres but I'll try to include some variety here

Genre: Fantasy (Typical Medieval)

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

one of my all time favorite novels. incredibly expansive fantasy worldbuilding that draws from a variety of cultures that's not exclusive to just europe. of course there's one country that's fantasy england, but you also have countries that take inspiration from asia, africa, and the middle east. you follow several characters that vary in age, race, gender, sexuality, etc. and they're all wonderfully fleshed out and fascinating. the story itself is also just fantastic and the world really swallows you whole. there's also a prequel to this called A Day of Fallen Night that I actually think I liked a bit more than Priory, but I'd recommend reading Priory first because it's easier to get into the world through that one whereas ADOFN is a bit more dense.

Genre: Fantasy (Apocalyptic? Sci fi? Kind of?)

The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin

similar to priory, the fifth season is a masterclass in worldbuilding and creating interesting worlds. that's where the similarities end though. technically speaking The Fifth Season is a fantasy and not a sci fi, although it feels more like sci fi to me tonally. The Fifth Season explores a world that is so regularly tormented by apocalyptic natural disasters that everything is formed around survival and it makes for such an interesting culture. the story also does an incredibly interesting and unique thing with POV that I rarely see in novels so that's also super fascinating to dig into for writing study. currently reading the sequel to this one and I love it so far.

Genre: Historical Fiction

Hild by Nicola Griffith

alright if you really wanna stretch some writing/reading muscles this is definitely a book you can try out. but be warned, it is dense. I'm a fairly fast reader and it took me so much longer to read this than I was expecting just because of how dense the writing is. this story takes place in 7th century Anglo-Saxon Britain so there's a lot of Old English words thrown in, and while there's a glossary at the back it doesn't cover everything. this is a really interesting novel though that dives deep into the time period and the specific life of one girl as she grows up at the heart of the political machinations of the Anglo-Saxon kings. really great if you're like me and think learning a lot about what life was like in this time period is super fun, but I could see it being a drag for people not super into history like that. I still think it's a really good story though on its own, especially with how the main character is characterized as she grows up, and how it represents all the politics going on at this time

Genre: Satire/Dystopian Fiction

Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

I'm including this because I'm trying to give you a bit of genre variety. If you want to read an adult dystopian book for our modern day this is definitely an excellent one to pick up. warning, it's incredibly effective as a dystopian novel because all I felt was dread and fear after finishing it. it takes place in the near future where the prison industrial complex has been combined with the entertainment industry. prisoners who are serving a sentence of either 25+ years or life are given the option to compete in televised gladiator style death matches. if they survive 3 years, they'll be released. the novel is incredibly on the nose and not subtle whatsoever about it's criticisms of capitalism and racism, especially the racism that the prison industrial complex is built on. the horrifying thing about reading it is how easily I could see this becoming a reality, especially the brand sponsorships. it made me want to laugh and cry at the same time because of how ridiculous but realistic it was.

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

And here we have my all time favorite novel. this novel is a great example of unreliable narrator and how to tell a story two different ways. if you don't know the twist for this already, go into it blind, I promise it'll be more fun that way. the premise of the story seems simple—the morning of their 5th anniversary, a man's wife goes missing and the story follows his attempts to find her. but it gets way messier than that. this novel is an excellent example of how to characterize horrible people and still make them enjoyable to read about. also, if you're like me and enjoy media about two shitty people having an unhealthy and fucked up relationship, you'll adore this.

Okay that's a lot so I'll stop there for now, but feel free to pop into my inbox if you want anymore recs! especially if there's a specific genre you're looking for. if I've read anything that fits what you're looking for I'd be happy to throw it your way!

[suhjihanma]

☩ 𝕲𝖔𝖔𝖉 𝕭𝖔𝖞. ☩

☩Kink (5) : Sex toys / Stretching ☩Pairing: Suguru Geto / Female ! Reader. ☩Word Count: 929 (Drabble format) ☩Content Warning: Sex toys, submission, submission play, dirty talk, slight implications of gentle femdom, anal play, vibrators, praising, slight degradation, neediness. ☩Author's Note: Minors and kink shamers DNI. Morning drabble before I settling down to sleep. I was working on this on and off before I got tired. Hopefully, I'll play catch up with my kinktober fics. Unfortunately, tumblr decided to hide my shit under the tags so later on, I'll be uploading a link to my blog regarding the fanfiction that I've already written. As always, Geto has the submissive dog in him. Likes and reblogs, comments are always appreciated. Happy reading.

Geto’s body was only yours.

It was only expected of him to be fully stretched out.

Nowadays, people only describe it as being ‘slutted’ out.

“Beg.” A voice raised with demand as you slowly got on your knees and faced the man who was tied on both ends of the front and back frame. The sound of faint squeaking arises when writhing in frustration occurs by you slowly inserting a well-known toy that he uses in the bedroom with you. He wants you to stop yet, you wouldn’t let him off so easily. 

Deep inside, you knew he loved to submit to every chance that he got from you. To eat at the palm of your hand while begging to be punished or something in particular that will take his pride away. All he knows is that by sprawling his legs, providing you the consent to act on unforgivable things to his body, it was entering a world mixed with heaven and hell.

“I can't.” A wounded-like cry came out from Geto as he resisted the urge to escape from the restraints, including to lose control from holding the orgasm that could fall and take over in any mere minute. The miserable man. You want to end his struggle early, but the sadistic side in you merely want to bask in it more. A strong-willed man like Geto turns easily into a person that begs for more. To be fucked with over and over, teased towards the point of insanity, and being praised for how ‘good’ he was while being under your control. 

No one but you could see this side of him, and it was a very damn good side of him. 

“Then you’ll just have to do it yourself then. Poor, Slut.” The tormenting antics grew to be too much for him to handle yet, you were loving every minute of this. An anal bead that was used for stimulating a certain area inside him started pumping slowly in and out of him. Observing how the wet and red hole swallowed every inch of a bead made the view more erotic than it ever was. Not to mention the sounds of him wailing out for more, begging to be touched rather than something made of random material. To push his limits even further, you then saw one of the miniature vibrators laying across the edge of the bed and grasp it in reach. Pushing random buttons that the vibrator was meant to function with, a low guttural sound came from Geto’s pursed lips. “No, please.” One of your eyebrows raised up in false confusion as you slowly brought the vibrator to his heavily weighted balls, teasing the settings that made him spill out mewl after mewl, while the other hand was occupied with removing the anal beads and thrusting it back inside him, causing him to let out a desperate whine. 

“Oh? Does my little boy not like this." Cooing your words only escalated Geto’s problem as he furiously shook his head in an attempt to disagree.

."I love it, but-" Geto’s whining was only given as a response to the condescending atmosphere. 

 “But, what? After all the things I did for you, you’re still complaining? The hand slicked with precome moved from the toy was now placed on his highly sensitive cock, moving at a vigorous pace almost enough to make Geto cry out in agony. The gentle hands caressed the heaviness with pressure along your strokes.With each pump that moved from your hands, the cries of the man under you grew to be more lewd. 

"No, Baby. Please!" “Please, what?” The sounds of irritation spat from your tone of voice as you looked over to see the man flushed in a shade of pink with sweat beads rolling down to the sides of his temples.

 “I need to come. I need to come so fucking bad, baby.” A devilish smirk grew across your face as your pace went faster, causing the worn out man to scream out in frustration before giving into temptation and growled out a feral-like tone before dropping into the sea of pleasant bliss. “Fuck…” The words slowly drawled out on his lips while a cover of white mess continually splashes over your hand. No matter how hard he tried to hold back, your hands were too good for him. A sense of satisfaction conflicted with the sense of disappointment in your consciousness as you look over at the now tired Geto, flinging his head back in relief while the visible contractions of muscles were shown in his arms and legs. You were amazed at how well he held his own, surprisingly enough to make it this far. 

Guess that meant those little 'lessons’ with him grew to be quite the help. “Such a shame, baby. I thought you would hold out longer than this."Joining him in his personal afterglow, you gently run your fingers through his hair, not aware of the fact that he was sound deep asleep due to the intense moment of his orgasm. A sympathetic smile crept on your face as you kissed him on the forehead while continually massaging his scalp. "Maybe you could last longer with a vibrator on your cock." You spoke to yourself in the room, pressing a gentle kiss to his flushed cheeks. From that moment, you digressed about the plan, but that little sadistic side of yours had you wrapped around her finger. You just pray that hopefully Geto won’t think any less of you in the bedroom.

[turtlesandfrogs]

Tips for foraging inside city limits!

For those who don't know me, I've been foraging my whole life, and while I started off down a gravel road and backed up to timberlands, I now live less than a block from a strip mall.

The first thing to know about foraging in city limits is that there's way more wonderfully tasty food growing for free than you'd think.

The second thing to know is that you'd better wash your food and make sure you're not harvesting from a superfund site unknowingly.

The third thing to know is that there's a little more networking involved than when you're foraging "undeveloped" land.

Getting started:

There are two keys to successful urban foraging: you need to get to know the area, and you need to get to know the plants.

I strongly recommend developing a walking (or wheeling) habit. As a forager, you're going to want to get familiar with the individual plants in your area, and you just can't do that at the speed a car or bus moves. Make note of the potential plants, and watch how they're growing and yielding from one year to another (pear trees, for example, are famous for being alternate year barers- meaning if they have hardly any this year, they might have a bumper crop the next).

You also need to learn the plants- in urban areas I tend to focus on foraging from invasive species, and agricultural species that I know grow prolifically where I am. Check your local invasive species, and see which are edible. In my area, Himalayan blackberries are very invasive, and pretty darn good. No one is going to mind you picking Himalayan blackberries, because they are so prolific that there will always be more. Different areas will have different edible invasive species, and it pays to learn them.

I recommend going to a plant nursery and seeing which fruiting trees, bushes, and shrubs do well in your area and bare prolifically. People often plant a tree, and then years later, they realize it produces enough for five families, and they'd love for someone else to come pick. Or someone planted a tree decades ago, and now someone else lives there and doesn't care for the fruit. Sometimes, they even pick the fruit for you and put it out with a little free sign. I've also had great luck asking. Usually, people are more than happy for you to take some because to them, it's just a mess. I've also had good luck posting to local gardening groups on Facebook, or buy-nothing groups, or Craigslist, or putting up flyers that say something along the lines of "I'll come pick your fruit and leave you a portion" or "let me pick your fruit and I'll make you a crumble". That usually gets me more than I want.

Places to forage:

Peoples' yards: While you're wandering around, observe which fruits and nuts in your area are so prolific that loads go to waste. Here, it's usually apples, pears, figs, blackberries, raspberries, plums, walnuts, chestnuts, and acorns. Complement (authentically) people on their yards when you see them, gardeners are enthusiastic and generous and love enthusiasm from others. Be authentic in your appreciation, though, and don't expect anything. Part of what you're doing is building connections and recognition. If they offer you something, be excited and thankful, and they might tell others about you when excess food comes up. I've indirectly gotten apples, figs, peaches, plums, and walking onions this way. I've also written notes and left them in mailboxes before, and I have had some success just straight up asking about figs and apples. I've even gotten foraging permission by being an enthusiastic young person at a gardening club, class, or show.

Back alleys, overgrown fences between public and private spaces, corporate grounds that someone planted and forgot about: is obvious when food isn't wanted or cared for. If there are pounds of fruit or nuts laying on the ground, and some has already gone bad, and it's in a public area, I say go for it. I'll often pick up the bad ones too, and bring them home to compost, just to make the area nicer for others.

College campuses: often edible species get planted because they're pretty, and no one cares if you pick up the nuts or fruits. It pays to learn some unusual edibles. I've gotten strawberry tree fruits, edible dogwood, and ginko this way. Sometimes they've got demonstration gardens, and they want people to take the food. It is worth it to ask.

Some examples from within short waking distance of one bus route in a town:

These are Himalayan blackberries.

These are everywhere. These are very prolific where I am, and if one section is picked clean, there's another 100 feet away that's still loaded.

This is a plum tree.

Actually, it's several plum trees, because plums come true from seed and this one has been dropping plums for years. This is in a public park, and probably got started in the neighbor's yard. Every year, I pick dozens of plums from the ground and tree, and every year there are hundreds more that don't get picked.

This is a pear tree:

I've gotten permission to pick from this tree before, but this year was a bad year for it. Next year it will probably be loaded, as it has in the past.

This is yarrow.

A lot of eco-concious cities are starting to add yarrow to their lawns, because it's drought tolerant, native to North America, and tolerates mowing and foot traffic very well. Also, my city doesn't spray herbicides. Yarrow makes a lovely tea. Also, if you go to the edges of the lawn area, up against trees and shrubs and such, they often don't quite get the edges so you can get the flowers, too. Just be cognizant of how many dogs are likely to have been doing their business and try to pick an unpopular spot.

This is a red currant that someone planted, and someone else did a terrible job of pruning:

It's in a volunteer park, where people want you to pick the food. I have snacked often on this plant.

These are acorns:

I'm only competing with non-native squirrels for this one. I'm going to try to make something from them this year.

No matter what you're harvesting, never take more than you can use. Learn some ways to preserve the harvest too- freezing and drying are probably the easiest, but canning, jams, and jellies aren't that hard. You will probably end up with more than you need or want if you're anything like me. In that case, buy-nothing groups, gardening groups, and mutual-aid networks are a great way to share the bounty and sometimes set up trades, or get future foraging opportunities.

Hope that helps!

[hillbillyoracle]

"Feel Your Feelings" Might Be Bad Advice

Something I've been thinking about a lot lately is the advice to "feel your feelings."

When I was in my BSW program, one of the things I consistently got flagged for was not having enough warm regard (which, fair hit) and not validating feelings enough. Which was odd because when I wrote out my transcripts of those sessions I see I'd done it multiple times using almost exact scripts from our lessons. But when I looked at people who weren't getting that feedback - they were validating almost every other line.

Which felt and still does feel insane to me personally.

An aspect I think gets overlooked when people give that advice, when programs train folks up in that advice, is that "feel your feelings" was radical for its time and place. The dominant culture of the first part of the last century was one of deep repression.

I personally question whether it's always the right advice in today's culture, where individual validation is dosed to us several times a day by technology companies largely in one valley. So much cultural discourse revolves about validation and who's valid and who's not. The places we spend large swathes of time are hyper optimized to produce and reward explosive emotion. And did you ever even have the emotion if it didn't make it online?

"Feel your feelings" was so helpful precisely because it went against the prevailing cultural climate. What if the advice we need today is "put your feelings to the side"?

"But Marz!" you say, aghast, "That's horrible to tell some to bottle their feelings up!"

I mean I'm not advocating for that either. I think there's just a fundamental misunderstanding of how feelings work that's been reinforced by our narratives of therapy and how our social platforms are structured. It creates the dichotomy of "let it all out" or "bottle it up".

Phenomenological discussion of feelings first, then the helpful metaphor.

Something that you can wind up learning through consistent and appropriate kinds of meditation is that what you consider "you" is actually based on two fundamental factors - perception and recollection. But when you observe them both in action at the same time, you see it's never possible for them to be totally in sync. It's impossible to perfectly recollect the moment that you're presently perceiving. There's always this slight gap. A skip.

You perceive a feeling arise it and then you recollect it. If you perceive an emotion but never recollect it, it does not arise to the level of sense of self. If you don't perceive a feeling, you can't recollect it and the same is true.

What you'll note is that I don't say that the feeling stops existing, just that if either part is missing, you cannot experience that emotion. They're not one in the same.

The misconception I see all the time is that if I turn my perception and recollection to something other than this feeling - then it doesn't exist. I've ended the feeling. Which means people either think they've dealt with the feeling by not perceiving it or that people are loath to stop perceiving it for fear that will equal repression.

To both groups I think it's important to hear that that feeling is a real thing that persists without your input. Emotions are an aspect of the mind - not of your consciousness. Which might be too in the weeds to get into here but just know you are not your feeling and you not perceiving that feeling does not mean the death of you in any way that matters.

Okay the metaphor.

A program starts up on your computer. You get a little window that pops up. This really isn't the time for it so you minimize it so you can come back to it later. But what's this? You left it for a while and the program shut all the way down - no more window. Then other times you leave the window for weeks only to find it's been there in the background the whole time.

That's a feeling.

You can choose to minimize it and come back to it later. By minimizing, I mean focusing your perception and recollection on something other than that emotion. That process isn't as easy as it is on a computer but with practice it can get much easier to accomplish than you might think.

Sometimes you'll come back later and the emotion is gone. Sometimes you'll come back years later and the emotion is still there. That's just how a brain do.

So why minimize it? For the same reason you would a window of a program - it's not useful to you right now, it's getting in the way, you're not a place where it's socially appropriate to explore that program - I mean really take your pick. It is a useful skill.

The mistake older generations made was that minimizing the window meant they'd closed it and it chewed up memory and overworked hardware in the background over time. The mistake I'm seeing today is people trying to run all the programs on the highest settings thinking anything less than that is to lose some fundamental aspect of the program on hardware that was not built for that usage.

Most ways to properly x out of that window usually requires some space and time to process what's in that window. Being able to minimize that so you can do that in a way that honors that feeling and doesn't crash your system is pretty key.

How do you x out of the window? There's lots of ways honestly. You sit and observe the feeling, noticing how it changes in intensity and sensation until it's no longer perceptible even with effort. You can see what an emotion has to say, what it believes, and decide what of that you want to listen to and take on. For intensely negative emotions, they're delusion is always in the mix so finding that root delusion and dispelling it often leads to the intensity lessening at the very least.

I just wonder if that kind of advice isn't more radical in a world where delayed gratification is getting rarer and rarer, where our ability to self validate gets atrophied by constant exposure to external metrics.

Put your feelings to the side and process them when and where you can do that better.

Neither constant repression or constant validation will ever lead to emotional resilience. All that's good is in the grey.

Anyways, I hope this is helpful or gives you something interesting to think about. I'm mostly just hope that by writing this it won't be ping ponging around my brain as much lol.