#like. its a great tool to get your thoughts in order and work on a solution instead of just kinda drowning in your problem and messy though

[glitterandwitchcraft]

🟣 TAROT TIPS FOR ANY LEVEL 🟣

Every pack is different in its energy, advice, art, and use. I have multiple decks to use for different scenarios.

You don't need all the fancy accessories so don't stress over them. All my cards are kept in a drawer in their original boxes.

Please don't cleanse your cards by shaking them in a baggie with things, especially coarse things like salt. I don't know what I was thinking when I did this. You will scratch your cards.

If your cards are sticky, try some baby powder.

You can mix incense ashes in baby powder to bless a new deck.

If you're struggling with picking cards from intuition, just wait for the trusty jump out.

Not all reverse cards are the opposite.

The art on the card reflects the personally held meaning from the creator of the deck so not all universal meanings will hold true for every card.

Your intuition will help guide you to messages and meanings.

Tarot is a great tool for meditation and trying to get your thoughts in order.

Sometimes, the meanings can feel kind of fortune cookie like. That's because usually they're there to help paint a broad picture. You can refine this with an extra card or two as well as your own thoughts.

If using tarot for spirit work, leave an offering for both the cards and the spirits and make sure to thank both at the end.

You don't need to use them every day to build a connection to them.

Tarot is a great tool, but nothing is ever 100% and the future is always changing so don't stress if the cards were wrong a couple times.

Developing your own ritual for big readings will help you focus and channel your energy and make the whole experience better.

Tarot takes a lot of practice to get super comfortable, but don't let that discourage you. The time will pass anyways.

You can use different decks in the same reading.

Tarot and oracle cards are two different things but can also be used together.

Cards are flammable. Please keep away from areas with high heat and open flames.

You don't have to ascribe to other's beliefs and rules when it comes to your personal practice. Some people don't do yes/no for tarot and some do. Some treat their decks with utmost sacredness and some don't. It's your practice to do as you wish.

For a personal deck, you can ask it for a card that indicates the reader (you) and a card to indicate anything else you need a reference to. Doing this can also give you insight into yourself and your energy.

[jjwolves]

Hello! Your writing's great! Um... Sorry, just a bit unsure because I don't normally request things in fandom spaces... If it's okay with you, could you write something platonic with DBBQ Ena where the reader:

1. Has a hard time trusting her salesman side.

2. Is scared of her meanie side.

3. Can't help but have a squish (that's platonic attraction) on her?

Basically just... The reader doesn't wanna feel like Ena's solely just trying to sell them something nor do they want her to be angry/insulting towards them... Also, gender-neutral reader please. ._.

If you can't or don't want to write this, that's completely fine! Have a nice day! óuò

DROOPY LIKES YOUR FACE ✦•··············•✦•··············•✦

What: 5 Headcanons of ENA the Worker X Reader (Struggling Platonic)

Who: ENA the Worker from ENA Dream BBQ (By Joel G)

How Much: ~700 words, ~3 mins

Warnings: Slight Language

You’ve been working with ENA for a while, and you’re pretty sure that you understand the pattern now. Froggy usually orders you and your partner in crime to go out and squash any problems which need squashing. You do your best to get the job done, and when there’s time, you try to find some reprieve from the crushing reality that this is probably going to be your job forever. You try to talk to ENA. You think that you’d be up for getting drinks later, but it’s hard to get along with her at times.

You two could be friends, you think, as you march through the realm of the carpenter and do your best to avoid any saws which would saw through the room you’re traveling through and send you into the abyss surrounding the tower. Adjusting your tie, you glance over at ENA as you walk. She’s chipper (heh) and red as her head swivels to face you, body unaffected by the movement like an automaton. “The ambiance here is palpable! Would you be willing to buy a jar of it?” Thinking on your environment, you make a joke—don’t you mean pulpable? ENA takes a moment to process before startling you with a switch-up. “CAN IT!” You jump and look away, returning to your nervous tie adjusting. At least she acknowledged it.

ENA is able to get through a door while you wait and idle about near a mouth on the wall that sucks on lollipops endlessly supplied by you suit’s pockets. Hopefully it’s too busy tasting raspberry and rootbeer-adjacent chemicals to notice that your work buddy is intruding in its domain. It takes her some time but eventually she circles back to you and you can stop feeding the thing. “You’re a good worker.” ENA smiles inscrutably. You’re thankful for the compliment, but you wait for the catch. She follows through. “And good workers know amazing deals when they see them. Would you be willing to trade a few lollipops for this stylish ribbon I found?” Should have known.

ENA makes you anxious sometimes. She doesn’t mean to, probably, but she ends up doing it anyway. Once in a while you’ll drop something or tell a ‘potential customer’ something less than flattering—but true—about your services. After the tool hits the floor or the words are out your mouth, you tense up, hoping that she wasn’t around to hear that. You look around. All clear. That is, until you look directly in front of you to see ENA wearing a jagged frown and holding a megaphone. “THAT’S ANOTHER INFRACTION! ARE YOU TRYING TO GET US TERMINATED!?” You jump back and apologize profusely, tripping over yourself. ENA’s face straightens into something more neutral, however, after your blubbering has subsided.

You take a break with your coworker (friend?), making sure to hide away from Froggy so that he doesn’t see you two slacking. It’s awkward and silent until your coworker speaks up. ENA looks thoughtful when she turns to you. “I apologize for the behavior of my employment.” She fidgets with her hands. “I’ve never really invested in a friend before… So please forgive me as I update my software.” Feeling a gentle smile on your face, you say that it’s alright. You’re both working on getting along better, after all. “Speaking of which. Friend. Earlier you had complained about not having any, ‘iced coffee’, as it were. Consider this a payment towards my forgiveness.” ENA reaches to grab something from her invisible item-space. You begin to say that she doesn’t need to pay you anything, but your words die as she places something in your hands. It’s coffee, frozen into a cube the size of your head, attached to the end of a freakishly large popsicle stick. It’s practically a warhammer. You’re baffled. ENA is quick to go white at your reaction. “DON’T LAUGH! IT ONLY COMES IN VENTI! God DAMNIT!” ENA throws her hat down in a fit of rage. You’re thankful for the strange gift from your even stranger friend.

A/N: You have a nice day too, Anon! Geez, guys, I'm sorry if you send in a request and it takes a while to get to it. I try to work down the list of requests by date and there's quite a few (which I am very thankful for). I do try to make every hc list or story very richly detailed, so it takes time to get done. The fics would lose what makes them special if I shotgunned them, haha. Stay tuned, and if you have a request you really really want done ASAP then you can always commission me! Comms take priority after all. :o)

[theresattrpgforthat]

There's an RPG that I just can't find. It's so simple, and yet? It's a one page fantasy RPG, "like" D&D but with much simplified rules. It's called something like Wizards and Sticks, or... Swords and Spells. Or something I don't know. But despite my best efforts, it's just beyond the boundaries of the map. Do you have any idea what it could have been?

Theme: One-Page Fantasy Games

Hello there! I found a *lot* of one-page fantasy games, and I honestly don't know if any of these are what you're looking for. One-page games are great for designers looking to put their feet in the water, and fantasy is definitely one of the most popular genres to play in, by far.

There's also a good amount of Lasers & Feelings hacks, which I'm not surprised by, since the basic rules are easy to pick up, and easy to hack. For the unaware, Lasers & Feelings is a rule-set that gives you two stats, and a single number that defines your proficiency in both. Roll high for one, roll low for the other, and roll it exactly for something special - and that's the core conceit!

Sovereign Shield, by Groovy Dad Games.

SOVEREIGN SHIELD is a tabletop role-playing game set in the grim fantasy world of Avren-Yara, also known as the Sundered Realms. Most of the action takes place within the last bastion of humankind, the great Western Imperium.

The Sovereign Shield is an order of secret agents in service to the High King of Nach Vadryn, the largest city-state in the Imperium. As agents of the Shield, players will undertake clandestine missions on behalf of the High King such as conducting espionage against powerful Guilds and other city-states of the Imperium, as well as investigating strange phenomena and threats that plague the peoples of the realm.

Par for the course for a single-page game, Sovereign Shield has simple stats, some basic rules on Tests, and a player resource called Luck that can be spent for re-rolls. On top of that however, it has an extensive item list, as well as a section for magic & gadgets, giving the players a lot to work with. With a double-sided page format, one page is dedicated to players, while the other is for GM's including some advice on how to run games, a few enemies to pit against your players, and even a first mission to get the ball rolling. It also draws from GUMSHOE in terms of how it handles clues, which might be handy if you decide you like this style of play. (GUMSHOE games assume that clues are too valuable to be hidden behind a chance roll.)

Sovereign Shield appears to be a one-page quick introduction to two other games made by the same designer, Through the Borderlands and Wardens of the Sundered Realms, which provide more lore and tools to play with. This is a very deliberate and thought-out piece of work that gives you a quick introduction to what could be a very complex and in-depth world if you decide to keep the game going.

Dungeon, by Jamzilla.

Dungeon is a one-page table game for one Narrator and at least one Adventurer. Venture into the depths of the Dungeon and face off against the Dungeon Lord!

All you need to play is a coin, at least one friend, a twenty-sided die and a ten-sided die.

What I love about Dungeon is the roll-tables. It has four roll tables for the GM to mine inspiration from: Denizens, Curiosities, Happenings, and Treasures. Each item on the list is a wonderful little starting point to create unique locations and charming NPCs to dazzle your players with.

The rules of the game are very very simple: player simply flip a coin and heads equals success. No stats, no weapons, no modifiers. If you want something more than these simple rules, you could probably take the roll-tables from Dungeon and use them to help generate encounters for another game on this list!

Song & Sword, by Vivanter.

Song & Sword is a 1-page, rules-lite, fantasy adventure game inspired by The Legend of Zelda and its myriad successors. It’s also a hack of John Harper’s Lasers & Feelings. Players take on the role of bold adventurers, attempting to save the land by collecting artifacts of legends and battling the forces of the Adversary.

Another Lasers & Feelings hack, this is a game for the Zelda lovers at the table. You use an ad-libs style of legend creation together, developing a universally known legend for each player to pull from as they dive into the game. Characters have a health system represented by Hearts, which can be lost when you take harm or embarrass yourself.

When it comes to what you do in the game, there's only rules for generating one large villain that the party must defeat. This game feels like it's focused primarily on the ultimate confrontation, and not the smaller fights that your characters might be expected to get into on their way to the big boss. The game also mostly focuses on what the players need to know - there's little to no help for the GM. I'd recommend Song & Sword for a group with a GM who isn't afraid to improvise - or perhaps for a GM who doesn't mind pulling inspiration from somewhere else.

Sword Poem RPG, by ahcoffeebeans

there is a sword. a cursed sword. it has been around for as long as the earth has known life, or perhaps it only pushed its way out into existence the first time you picked it up. either way, the sword will kill you. and then it will wait, for the next person to arrive. forever

SWORD POEM RPG is a gm-less one-page rpg about a very cursed sword and the people who pick it up. You play as the cursed sword, experiencing the lives of the people you ruin from the moment they pick you up to the moment they self-destruct. This is a game for one to seven people.

I don't believe this is anywhere close to what you're looking for, but there's a lot of 1-page games out there and they are easy to read, so I felt like throwing it in anyway. Plus Sword Poem is very pretty, and only requires d6's to play. The game is focused on story first and foremost, following a tragedy where a single cursed sword warps everyone who wields it. It's GM-less, meaning that everyone at the table will get a chance to decide what their leg of the story will look like.

Sword Poem definitely needs a group that is happy to pull from a deep well of creativity, and it's also a game that needs the group to decide when the story has reached it's end. If you want a game that feels like a game, and not a storytelling exercise, you might want to skip this one.

Age of Adventure, by Ageofadventurerpg.

Age of Adventure RPG (Version 10.5) is a one-page rules-light old-school heroic fantasy tabletop roleplaying game inspired by John Harper's Lasers and Feelings. d6 system

Welcome adventurer – to an exciting world of monsters, mayhem and magic. All you need are some 6-sided dice and your imagination.

For a Lasers & Feelings game, Age of Adventure carries a lot of information. There is no space wasted on this one-page game. Despite the fact that it shares the same base rule-set as a number of other games I found, it feels very traditional in genre and tone: high fantasy, encounters, proficiency checks, spell-lists, and a characterization of characters that isn't exactly race or class-based, but feels very similar.

Dungeon Vermin, by BooCherry.

DUNGEON VERMIN!! is a one-page micro-RPG about the dregs of the dungeon going on missions for their Dark Master.

Play as skeletons, goblins, gremlins, kobolds, and other weaklings as you bodily hurl yourself towards certain death. Your foes will fall under your sheer numbers as you die, die again in pursuit of what you're pretty sure is a worthy cause.

This is an option for folks who like the monsters in fantasy games more than the heroes. Your characters have a d6 dice pool that they'll need to leverage in order to roll above their EXP, which stands for their Expiration Point. If you fail - you die!

I expect this to be a game that you careen into and and play fast and loose. Expect death, especially gruesome over-the-top death, and expect to roll up a new character fairly easily - at least, that's what I assume, given that it's a one-page game.

By String and Song, by EfanGamez.

Your words are stone, and your songs are steel…

Introducing By String and Song, a one-page bard-only tabletop roleplaying game! Create a character in under 2 minutes and begin an adventure!

Being one page and by utilizing a simple d20-only system, this game can be enjoyed by both TTRPG vets and newbies alike!

Since the game revolves around a d20, it will likely provide a similar vibe as D&D in terms of kinetic play. That being said, it strips away classes, and gives your characters just 4 stats to worry about: Boldness, Bulk, Brains & Brawn. Combat is expected, with a list of six different kinds of monsters to get your DM started, as well as a short list of spells available to beginning characters. By String and Song might be an easy pick-up game for a short run of 1-3 sessions, but I'm not sure if it works for a year-long campaign.

Dragons & Dungeons, by Little Lab.

You are a group of adventurers returning from a long journey, finally setting foot again in the town of your departure at a great festival, and just now you are at the counter of the inn where you first met. You are celebrating with the treasures you have recovered in your quest when a messenger arrives with this letter. It is signed by an old ally of yours asking you to save the kingdom again in one last great adventure. What do you do?"

A Lasers & Feelings game, Dragons & Dungeons has a very similar feeling as D&D, which makes sense, considering the way it brands itself. Designed to be printed on a piece of paper that folds out into an envelope/brochure format, Dragons & Dungeons has a really lovely presentation, which can make it a fun thing to print out and hand around a table. Additionally, unique to this version of a one-page fantasy game, you can spend a resource called Inspiration to use special powers, such as getting special information from the DM, rolling an extra dice, or saving an ally from certain death.

Realm Warriors, by Trollish Delver Games.

Welcome to REALM WARRIORS, a one-page fantasy TTRPG inspired by games like The Fantasy Trip.

Players take on the role of Champions of the gods, chosen to destroy the Dark Magus himself.

This is another game that is no-nonsense when it comes to laying out the rules. Everything on the page is devoted to telling you how the game works - and the game feels like it pulls a lot of inspiration from the OSR. Similar to D&D, your champion will have modifications to their core stats based on the class you choose, as well as some basic equipment. There's specific rules for wounds, sleeping, and travel, which are some things that the OSR often cares about, and your Experience is determined by the length of the adventure you go out on. The bulk of the GM advice provided in this game is mostly how to run enemies, as well as a list of typical creatures to send up against your characters. All in all, fairly standard when it comes to one-page fantasy.

Also Consider…

First Fantasy, by Mars Strocks.

Wolves & Spices, by A.Tian.

Dawnfire Warriors, by matara.

Magic & Might, by The_Bellmont.

If you like what I do and want to leave a tip, you can check out my Ko-Fi!

[malehypnofantasy]

Muscle Head

"Morning, muscle head,"

"Ugh.....what do you want? I literally pounded your ass to oblivion as if that's my girlfriend's tight sloppy pussy last night, what else now?"

"Can you calm down for me, muscle head?"

"Y---yes, sorry about the outburst. I just didn't think you'll wake up this quick,"

"This is 9 AM, this ain't early, muscle head. I noticed the damp towel so you already worked out. Well, last night was great, but don't you think you need to eat again after that draining workout before going on about your day? My feet can get used to a passionate sucking,"

And just like that, the muscular bodybuilder dropped to the floor and grabbed the nerd's hazel brown feet. The bodybuilder sucked each toes with the utmost care and attention while moaning in delight on how delicious of a treat it is and the nerd just smiled proudly while holding his laughter due to the ticklish sensation of the handsome bodybuilder's tongue and saliva.

The whole feet worship lasted for about 5 minutes before the bodybuilder went on another body parts. He lost himself to his Master's barely hairy pits and thin arms while his Master caressed his hair and whispered sweet nothings to his ear. Eventually, he blew his Master's cock before going on about his day as he got some brand partnership talk with one of his sponsor during lunch before another gym appointment with two clients and his own coach throughout the evening. During the stretch of hours he's outside of the house, he behaved normally as if he didn't just swallow the cum of his nerdy loner of a neighbor earlier today

Around 8 PM, the gym is already quiet as the bodybuilder already asked his coach for a 1-on-1 session in his prep to Mr. Olympia so the gym is closed early. When he's doing his set, someone called his coach, so the coach excused himself to pick it up. It's an unknown number but against his better judgement, he picked up

"Hello dumb tool. You must be in the gym, this is your Master speaking, Tobias. Is Aaron still with you?"

And just like that, the Coach reverted to his tranced and enslaved self as he answered monotonously that Aaron is indeed with him and he's currently working on his muscle and poses for next week's Mr. Olympia

"Well, Aaron's little brain probably forget that he's also my subject even though he's out of the house and I told him to be back home before 8:30. That's not going to happen now since this is 8:10 already so I want you to punish him, dumb tool. This is what you're going to do---"

A couple minutes later, the Coach, Tobias, stared at his disciple.

"Are you done with all the reps?"

"Yes, I'm done. Who called? You spent quite some times," he said while taking out one of his earbuds

"It's none of your business, muscle head," said the Coach smirking while Aaron's pupil went wide as his consciousness started slipping away and his entranced self started to resurface once again. But, he's wearing one of his earbuds still so he resisted and started begging

"Coach, what the fuck? Don't say that word again,"

"What? Muscle head? Why? Aren't you a muscle head? Stop resisting and let that bitch ass power bottom out, Aaron. Our Master already told me to punish you for breaking your curfew,"

"Wait.....our Master?? Oh no...." he said, still fighting even though his Coach bombardment of his trigger word clearly made this a losing battle

"This is 8:25, muscle head. Don't you remember your Master's order? Maybe that's why our Master called you muscle head, because your little brain barely have an original thought of its own. You know what, kneel. Kneel to the floor and start repent, muscle head. Beg for your Master's mercy,"

Aaron didn't want to, but his Coach grabbed him by the shoulder and pushed his form as his trembling knee eventually caved in to the pressure. The coach also grabbed the still plugged earbuds and then smirked as he whispered Aaron's trigger word with his gruff voice. Aaron looked up and eventually realized how glazed his Coach's eyes are, and then he started to be pushed to his own subconsciousness as the other Aaron's fully resurfaced

"Now worship me, muscle head. Master is on his way to pick you up and he ordered me to train you to become the biggest slut in this year Mr. Olympia. So let's take this slow so we can still have something to show to our Master when he eventually comes around,"

[butterflytarot]

Broke Witch Hacks

Listen! I get it. Money's tight, times are tough, and witchcraft - though very important - has to take a backseat to the mundane sometimes. Though there isn't always an alternative to everything or a cure to struggling financially, I thought I'd include some tips for broke witches and practitioners!

Before getting into this, I do want to clarify: For many practices, you don't need any tools or resources in order to practice, but I know that tools and whatnot can be very useful and may align with your traditions, so I wanted to highlight budget-friendly recommendations with this post! Thank you, and I hope this helps some of you, because it helps me!

SMOKE OPTIONS

Incense can be a very cheap option depending on where you live. In fact, some shops even sell boxes in bulk for under $2. I recommend getting them in-person from small shops, but you can find good deals online too! This is a great alternative to candles if candles are too expensive for you.

Additionally, tealight candles! They're often cheaper, and sold in bulk. You can also get those talls candles - you know, the ones that usually have religious imagery? - at places like flea markets, dollar stores, etc! If you don't agree with the religious imagery they depict, you can cover it with paper, peel it off, write on it with marker... and so on!

CRYSTALS

Crystals are often very expensive, but sometimes, they're WAY more cheap than you'd think (you just gotta know how - and where - to look)!

First and foremost, look up open and closed mines. If a mine for a specific crystal is open, you're going to find it on the cheaper end of its usual price scale. If it's closed, ways a few years until it opens again, otherwise it'll likely be more expensive!

Secondly, be mindful of shops you buy from. Any shop could overcharge you, so learning about the quality of different crystals is important.

Thirdly - be mindful of CALCITES! Some people will sell you a calcite (which is usually $15 or under) but say - or truly believe - that it's a different crystal (which is usually more expensive). The tell-tale sign of any calcite is that the crystal looks "wet." Look up the difference between green calcite and aquamarine - commonly confused for each other - and you'll see what I mean!

Lastly, ETSY ETSY ETSY! Etsy is going to be your best friend when it comes to crystal shopping! You'll want to apply the price filter, otherwise you'll find more expensive stuff. I recommend shopping in the U.S. specifically - the quality of crystals is higher than other places, like Hawai'i or Indian, but it's more inexpensive than places like the U.K. Some crystals you can even find free on Etsy, such as selenite.

Commonly inexpensive crystals can be certain calcites, selenite, sodalite, tiger's eye, and howlite! Crystal chips can also be quite expensive (I once got genuine turquoise chips for under $10)!

You can learn more about shopping for crystals here and you can learn more about tiger's eye specifically here.

HERBS

Let's be honest, having your own garden can be really unrealistic, and buying genuine herbs can be pricey. Instead, I recommend buying tea at the store! Your average tea bag has various herbs in it which you can use for your workings.

You can also do energy work with your basic drinks - tea, milk, even water - as well as your food (that's part of kitchen magic)!

Your average cooking seasonings (salt, italian seasoning, pepper, garlic, etc) are all things you can also use! (It's actually common for normal household items in general to be used!)

WATERS

Using water in your practice can actually be huge. Even if you don't have clean water, even if you'd rather just use rainwater.

Rainwater on your window can be used for divination. Moon and sun water can be used for various practices - medicinal, cleansing, offerings, etc. Regular water or salt water for cleansing... Salt water is also great for protection. And so on!

PENDULUMS

Pendulums aren't always the fancy, triangular jewelry you can find online. You could use almost anything for a pendulum - even a pencil tied to a string! Just know your positioning and have your protections up!

BURNING PAPERS & ELEMENTAL WORK

Sometimes, writing your intentions or prayers on regular paper and then burning it can be very helpful for spellwork or manifestations.

Additionally, whispering to wind or trees are also options people lean towards - Whether it be kindly asking the elements to carry out your wishes to the rest of the universe, or just having a friendly nature spirit being a listening ear, any elemental force or spirit you have a good relationship with may be a great resource to you in dire times!

If nothing else, putting energy and intentions into what you speak or think can sometimes be the most powerful magic you can do! Not everyone throughout time had fancy bowls or effective candles, but magic and witchcraft were still practiced. Learning chants, prayers, dispellings and verbal banishings, and much more, can really be helpful to you!

You might like to review this resource on mantras!

SPELL JARS

Spell jars can be difficult to find, but an alternative I like is using mason jars! Usually you can just clean them out from any residue food or juice, and places that give out free food often have stuff in mason jars. Otherwise, lots of people tend to give away mason jars free, on sites like Freecycle or Facebook Marketplace. And sometimes, mason jars can be cheap when you buy them as food at the grocery store, even the dollar store!

Speaking of the dollar store, you can easily find mini jars at the dollar store sometimes too, depending on where you're from! Usually they come in sets of 4-8! They're often very tiny, but great for mini jar spells that you can easily slide into your purse after buying & doing some spellwork with them!

Lastly, you can use other dishware or containers for spell jars! In my practice, I almost never close spell jars actually, so things like cups, bowls or plates work just fine! If you prefer to close your spell jar, simple food containers work lovely as well! If you can't afford food containers, you can re-use some from certain foods - for example, deli meat at the store (usually the cheap brands) sell their meats (like harm or salami) in hard plastic containers, which you can clean and reuse! You can also use Altoid (mint) cans, any cans you wish to reuse actually, and so on!

SEX MAGIC

Sex magic requires literally nothing but knowledge and your body (and sometimes, not even any work with your physical body is required)!

ALTARS

Hidden altars can be made with everyday items, decor, shoeboxes... Learn more about it here, if this interests you!

Additionally, the home in many cultures can be seen as a temple. How you treat your guests and fellow residents, how much love you put into the home, and things like taking care of yourself inside all matter. Relaxing is very important psychologically within your home. Dancing and singing can put out good energy. And so on. You don't need filled bookshelves, fancy floorings and extravagant food to make your home a happy place, a holy place, a spiritual place to be.

You might enjoy learning more about how the household was regarded in ancient Greek and Hellenism, which you can do here!

SHADOW WORK

Shadow work can simply be just a pen and paper! But also, you could use your phone notes.

Another method of shadow work only involves TRAIN OF THOUGHT! It's all about self-reflecting in the moment, following associations, and consistently asking yourself why you feel things the way you do and/or see things the way you do! You can get pretty deep when interrogating yourself internally, without pressure of writing everything down!

SPIRIT WORK / WORSHIP

Spirit work, and worship, is free! You don't always need glamorized art, bowls of water and incense offerings every night, to worship a spirit (like a deity). In fact, sometimes devoting acts to them is a way of worship, like studying, resting well, crying, or even going outside!

Additionally, spirit work and making deals with worship sometimes is all about the energy and effort you put into it. Depending on what transaction you're making, no physical items are required!

Just make sure you're staying safe, and that you're respectful of all spirits involved!

THANK YOU!

I hope this was helpful to some of you! Please feel free to comment if you need help finding a low-cost alternative to something! <3

[starrdio]

OH OKAY! HERE'S AN ENA THOUGHT!

So, famously, it is 'Dream Barbecue' despite there not being a barbecue in sight. There is also MUCH speculation on the idea of ENA as a mother in some capacity. Those things combined make this shot int he trailer a lot more interesting in hindsight:

A gargantuan figure, wearing something that looks like a baby's bonnet, scooping mannequins into what looks like a grill rack made of a ribcage. First of all WHAT THE FUCKKKK now second of all lets think about what a barbecue actually is.

So a barbecue, in my experience, is when you invite your friends and family over and cook a lot of good food and have a good time. Often, a barbecue will have one appointed Griller, who cooks all of the food. They are part of the festivities, but adjacently. They are often hosts, but tethered to the meat machine instead of sitting at the table chatting all the time. It is, some may say, the perfect cross point between work and pleasure-- you are doing a job that is crucial for the event's success, but it is a casual affair where you can still drink and relax and talk to your friends while you do so. Now what about motherhood? Point blank, its a megafuckton of work. Very rarely does it provide opportunities to relax, especially not when there's a baby involved. Many find a great deal of fulfillment in it, but its still kind of an expectation rather than an option (but thats wayyyy too big to talk about in a post with my shitty chicken griller ENA redraw in it LMFAO). Even if ENA wasn't literally a mother via some 'the game takes place in the afterlife!' or 'humanboard was her son!' theorycrafting, we can consider allusions to taking care of children as another megalodon task she is given. Interestingly, once again, without real input from her. Back to the trailers, we get these shots:

We see Meanie's hand hesitating to reach toward a skewer (in shadows), Humanesque ENA clawing her way towards a Spatulady, and ENA looking at Humanboard's body in her arms with an uncharacteristically subtle and hard to read expression. The first two being tools in real life, the latter being a tool in the game. What does this mean? i have no fucking clue. But I have some thoughts 1. The reason its 'Dream Barbecue' is because ENA dreams of some semblance of a work-life balance. To have a role, but also to have people around her that want to be there and to be able to sit down and drink a beer when its time to leave the meat alone. We see that she can't handle the idea of abandoning working entirely in the Purge Route, but we also get a pretty damn clear impression that she resents the constant ordering too. 2. I don't really believe in 'ENA was actually a mother' theories yet-- there's not enough info to convince me anything is that literal in the game, much less something that requires belief in theories like 'The characters used to be human'. However, I think there may be merit to ENA as a framing device for a statement like 'the expectation on women to have children by default puts people in a position where raising a family isn't fulfilling, but rather a task that they hope produces returns on their time and effort (the 'child' as a tool)'. 3. Meanie hesitating could be indicating something like 'work is work no matter how casual it is', which could also tie in to a statement about the work done in a household and to have much less raise children. Something about the humongous babything. Actively destroying ENA's bodies. hello

4. Meanie hesitating could also mean the inverse, because she is such a contradictory character. She was the side appalled at the Purge Event, so maybe she is hesitating to pursue something that isn't straight up work despite herself. I haven't even touched on how Salesperson's arm only appears after the narration says its unlike her to hesitate and seems to incite both of them to do that shadow puppet thing. Which both forces Meanie to move, but also doesn't result in them reaching the skewer. so it could imply that the Salesperson persona does or doesn't want them to have this too. gawd In any case, I don't think the reoccurring baby imagery is meaningless even if I'm not convinced its literal, I think the significance of the barbecue needs to be considered more often when considering ENA and her relationship with people and work, both of these concepts seem to be more intertwined in the narrative than not, and I'm very excited to get more of an idea of what Meanie and Salesperson are actually thinking because they're both pretty obviously personas for ENA and the relationship between why those are what she chose and what each of them represents adds a lot to possible interpretations of ENA's actions. thank you for coming to my tedtalk

[senka-mesecine]

I'm dying to know, how would Barnes react if after the Vietnam War was over, (headcanoning that he survives) his s/o he sent home was waiting for his return?

Country Roads.

Robert Barnes x Reader.

---

Trains didn't pass through here.

Neither did buses; hell, even the odd car or truck was a rarity of a sight to behold.

There are places in this great, big country where Wal-mart Discount City worked 24 / 7, but Barnes didn't think anything here works that long. Well, maybe it does? He wouldn't know. He's been away for that long. Maybe in the big cities somewhere. Here, everything closed early because everything is critically understaffed because of equally critical low wages, that much will never change at least. Especially, precisely here. It closed here at like…five in the afternoon. In the winter, at around three. How depressing was that? Melancholy and desolation and silence and the god of the sun lands in a wheat field, traversing the endless gold sea. He gets hungry from his long weary travels and wants to buy some bread, salami and ketchup for a sandwich to eat. He grabs the handle of the store's entrance and he finds it locked shut. Barnes lights a cigarette walking along the rusty train tracks erected over a hollow valley down below, chuckling at his own thoughts, musings and overly active imagination running wild, observing a distant sundown embracing the other side of the mountain and the water silo sitting at its top, giving the sun the humanity of a drifter travelling home on foot, not unlike himself.

A great green valley opens up in front of him and underneath him.

On a metal bridge that once served to transport mining wagons.

Now, standing solitary above a sea of pine trees enveloped in a shroud of dusk.

There was nothing in this remote county anymore; shit, there was barely anything out here when he was born, almost forty years ago now, Great Depression and all, the last coal miners and road workers hanging up their tools and pickaxes and leaving, moving on, resettling into nearby villages and towns where industry wasn't quite so hopeless and dead, him being one of them --- somehow, going to the 'Nam almost being a great equalizer to whatever he had back here, which was not much to speak of anyway except the family home that's stood empty or at least half-empty ever since his Ma' died and Pa' followed suit, but he figured he'd never complain or pose himself a snowflake with a sort of suffering so special it needed recounting or spilling willy-nilly, relishing the silence in an odd way no differently than he did when he was eighteen and freshly volunteering, figuring that at least out here, nobody was likely to bother his ass. Then or now. He didn't need much of the world anyhow. Never liked it tremendously in the first place. Was the most overrated crap imaginable.

He sent you here. Yeah, he did, son of a bitch that he was.

Thought, no, knew in fact, the boredom of the lonely vista and all, it was infinitely preferable to you meeting an early end faced with a stray bullet, a mine blowing your guts out, losing your limbs, going blind or deaf thanks to the fallout of an explosion, inhaling some crap you shouldn't inhale and earing yourself a tumor or cancer or getting captured and raped fifty times and then hanged up a nearby tree and he didn't care who disagreed with him on that. Yeah, he wrote you up as unfit for service on purpose, even though you qualified in every sense. Short sighted. A consummate slacker. Troublemaker. Insubordinate. Bad for collective morale. Clumsy. Doesn't know what the fuck she's doing. Anything he could come up with to spice up a report so hefty you'd be on the next chopper out of there as ordered by Captain Harris and that sad, wet noodle, limp wristed sack of shit Wolfe who was never hard to convince or anything anyway. He didn't care if you hated him afterwards. Hate was something he was comfortable with him; like an old friend's familiar tap on the shoulder.

So long as he could spare you something you by no means needed to suffer.

Death.

What did you know about death anyhow? If he had any say in it, and he did have all the say, you'd continue to know as little as possible.

Gave you the key to his family home.

Pushed into the palm of your hand the night before you were recalled and evacuated away from base camp and out of country; told you it ain't much but you can sit tight and wait for him there until he comes back. Easy pickings to have someone drive you out here. Enough shotguns and ammo still lining the walls of the old homestead for you to use them if some sack of shit finds a particular interest in a woman alone in the hills. Until he comes back, that is.

-"And if you don't?"-

He remembered you asking, questioning his plan of action, fierce and just as sad.

He had no answer to that, throwing you a lingering stare, memorizing your face.

Walking into back to his freshly dug foxhole and scurrying back into the dark.

He recollection has him sinking deeper into his leather jacket as he trudged along broken, defunct train tracks overgrown with thick Spanish moss and weeds, passing the odd crooked billboard, electrical pole or sign that faded beyond recognition exposed to the elements, the copper frame of the railroad partially missing at certain intervals, like someone came up here and dedicated their sorry ass to stealing the darn thing and probably sell it to some third party piece of shit motherfucker; he didn't bother changing out of his fatigues either. What he fought in back there was what he wore out here; the same combat boots, the same trousers, belt buckles and button ups, halfway challenging someone to say or do something about it. Didn't wear sunglasses to tactically conceal the scars either as much as they could be concealed; figured he wanted to see you in all your colors, openly and clearly, in the off chance you actually took up his offer and decided to wait on him here. Not diluted or obscured by shades. Ever since that gutless piece of shit Taylor had him on his aim and Barnes gave him a direct order to just do it and end it all he thought about you and what a sight for sore eyes you'd be. Back from the dead and walking a great, big freshly plowed field where the road ended and the bridge was crossed, leading into a valley of rich, black soil running along the length of an old, partially collapsed fence that needed fixing. He scoots down and grabs a hand of the earth, crushing it in the palm of his hand, feeling it, bringing it up to his mouth and planting a kiss on it, letting the dust cascade back where it belonged, spilling through the hollows of his fingers. Looking back up, the roof of his house is clear and in view, encircled by a fence line of trees; a small bit of movement on the other side of the acres long parcel, scooting down and harvesting something out of the ground.

Well, he'll be damned.

So, you came out here after all.

Barnes spits the tobacco he's been chewing for a better portion of a mile.

Decides to watch until your form straightened out and then stood still.

On alert.

As if though you saw him watching you.

Maybe unable to make him out quite as well as you would've liked in the dusk.

Perhaps left anxious by the single solitary man out here other than yourself.

-"Mhmm-hmm! You gone and done turned real native out here!"-

He hums followed by a deep, bellowing yell that echoes across the open field dotted with the last rays of an orange sundown, finding he sounded just as self-content and smug as he intended to; the sound of his voice enough to cause a murder of crows to flap their wings up in fright. -"Pickin' them taters all by your lonesome."- He adds, chiding playfully, feeling his own finger slide up and down the belt of the rucksack swung over his shoulder in anticipation. -"In the middle of my property no less!"- He prods, finding you merely standing there, in the distance, like a deer contemplating whether it should move out of the car's way or not. He could've swore that he spotted your mouth falling agape. He halfway expected to grab the dozen of potatoes you dug out of the ground and gathered into a basket at him, taking aim. Instead, you're frozen in motion. Merely staring. -"Now, who gave'ya permission to be doin' that, exactly?"- He sass mouths, throwing one leg forward and placing one arm on his hip, not expecting the guttural shout you let out, cutting through the silence of twilight and the wideness of the valley, like it took a hot minute for his presence here to settle in. Like you needed to actually process the fact he's come back. -"Robert?"- You yell, questioning, still as stiff as a board, right before your legs moved and you were practically running towards him, heavy in sprint, your harvest apparently long since forgotten. -"Robert!?"- You practically wail, mid-stride, your form bigger and bigger amidst the flatland, flying like a bullet or a bull in a half stumbling rut towards him; he imagined that once you reached him, your hands will either ball into fists and start railing and slapping against him desperately or you'd spit straight across his face for sending you away the way he did. Either way, what bliss. So, stand and deliver, he thinks, giving you the right to do whatever you decided once your face was close enough for him to see the tears welling up inside of them, brows furrowed, visage twisted in a mask of despair once you lounged yourself at him, caught by his arms, the weight of the push practically thumbling both of you backwards, your hands black and grimy, hidden behind a coating of dried mud as you clench and coil yourself around him in what he could only describe as need and panic.

Trains didn't pass through here, nah.

Neither did buses; hell, even the odd car or truck was a rarity of a sight to behold.

A pheasant cries in the distance and the sun god was sinking into the bosom of the mountain and he was standing in the middle an empty late summer, early autumnal pasture, the evening humidity rising out of the earth, leaving behind a heavy scent, the onslaught of your kisses bedashed with tears peppered feverishly across his face leaving you out of breath.

[sirfrogsworth]

Amazon-Style Product Photography Tips

I got this message from a lovely follower.

Now, a fairly large part of my new steady job is product photography. Not glamour shots, more documentation. The company I work for makes, among other things, licensed drinkware (think water bottles, mugs, tumblers, etc.). Part of my team's duties is to photograph a mockup or finished product both for our records and to submit to the license holder.

The routine typically goes: put item facing forward in lightbox. Click. Rotate to the left. Click, etc. for the back and right. Then a closeup of the copyright info.

Here, finally, is my question: one of the license holders decreed that all of our photographs must be taken at f/8 and shutter time (?) of 1/25s. This strikes me as… not always optimal, considering the range of colors of objects as well as different materials: polypropylene both transparent and opaque, stainless steel, and lacquered cardboard for packaging. I would love to hear your thoughts on how I might better (while being consistent!) adjust camera settings to account for these kinds of factors

As an added bonus, we let the camera decide white balance/color correction. But I don't think I'm knowledgeable enough to try and correct myself, considering none of the monitors/printers I use are color-correct in the first place. I just know there have been many times where I've submitted photos only for the license holders to be like, "Hmmmm, that green doesn't seem like the right kind of green…RESUBMIT!"

First, I'm going to answer this specific question, but at the end I'm going to recommend a full setup for taking these type of rapid fire product shots.

My answer:

f/8 makes sense. Outside of macro photography, this allows a deep depth of field assuring the photo is sharp and in focus for the entire depth of the product. It is usually the sharpest part of the lens and it is not so small of an aperture that you risk diffraction effects softening your image. They probably were told this by a photographer and thought it applied to all of the camera settings.

The shutter speed is problematic. By forcing it to a fixed setting, your camera is going to choose whichever ISO gives a good exposure. And if you don't have enough light, it will choose a high ISO that will possibly add a great deal of noise to your photo. Noise can corrupt the colors of your photo and it just looks bad.

If your camera is on a tripod and they want the sharpness and depth of field f/8 grants you, then I would set your camera to aperture priority mode (usually Av), lock your ISO to it's lowest number (usually 100) and then your camera will choose the best shutter speed on its own.

So… Camera on tripod Av mode f/8 ISO 100 Camera chooses shutter speed

This is all assuming you are using a tripod and continuous lighting. If you are handholding the camera or using flash, I can rewrite the recipe. Otherwise this will get you very sharp photos with minimal noise.

I'd also recommend getting a shutter release cable so you don't shake the camera when taking the picture. Just search your camera brand and “shutter release” and get the cheap wired version unless you really need wireless.

This is the Canon DSLR one, just to give you an idea.

Be warned, if you do not have powerful lighting, you may get some long shutter speeds. That is perfectly okay as long as it is on the tripod and you aren't shaking the camera when taking the picture.

As far as white balance goes, if you really want it to be accurate, you can order a cheap photography “gray white balance card”. They are as cheap as 10 dollars.

This is the one I use.

There are a couple of ways to utilize the gray card.

Option 1:

You put the gray card in the exact lighting as the product or just hold it directly in front of the product.

You take all your photos in RAW format (JPEG will not work) and adjust the white balance in Lightroom, Photoshop, or any RAW editing software. Use the white balance picker tool (looks like an eyedropper) and click on the gray card.

This will give you an exact white balance for that lighting environment. You can synchronize those white balance numbers across all of your photos. Lightroom has a copy and paste function or a "sync" button that will change adjustments in all selected photos as you go.

This is the most accurate option because it allows for “tint” adjustments for extra color accuracy.

Option 2:

Do the same as above and remember the white balance value. Then set your camera to a custom white balance matching that value. It will probably be around 3200K or 5500K depending on your lights.

Pro tip: If you have any ambient lighting from overhead or other room lights, it could contaminate the photo and skew the white balance into a weird color temperature. Try to make the room as dark as possible aside from your photo lights to avoid this. If you are using flash or have really bright photo lights, this isn't a huge concern.

Option 3:

Use your camera's built in custom white balance tool. It's different for every brand, so you will need to search for a tutorial. But the basic idea is the same. You put the gray card in the lighting of the products, take a picture, the camera analyzes it, and then sets a custom white balance. This can also be done with a white sheet of paper in a pinch.

Here is a video demonstrating the process. Remember every camera brand mau have a slightly different method.

Good white balance means accurate colors. That is important with product photography and a good value add for your clients. Just be warned, if you change the lighting even a little bit, you have to redo this process. If you bump a light or switch it out for a different one, redo your white balance calibration.

Also, some continuous lights have white balance drift, especially if they allow you to adjust the color temperature manually. Not only will the white balance change depending on the power setting, but it can also change over time. Especially if the lights are used frequently.

Move the lights, redo white balance. Change the power, redo white balance.

And if your lights are stable and on the same power all the time, I’d still redo the white balance every week or so. Personally I would do it before every shoot, but you’ll have to decide if that is worth it depending on how fast you need to turn things around. I usually do it as my first photo in the series so I can set the white balance, select all the photos, and copy the settings to all of them at once.

The nice thing about doing white balance with a gray card is that the results are display agnostic. Even if your monitor is poorly calibrated, you can be assured the white balance is accurate. And if someone says your photos are green, it will be their monitor and not your problem.

You just have to avoid doing any color specific adjustments to the images. Trust the gray card and white balance tool more than your eyeballs and display.

You can boost saturation a tad, but that is all I would mess with unless you know what you are doing. Even if the photos look a little drab or not very colorful, I would leave it alone. It sounds like the importance for this task is accuracy of color rather than making them as pretty as possible.

------------------------------

Okay, that is the question answered. Now I'd like to go through how I would build a setup to do this kind of work.

In the product photography world, this workflow is referred to as "pack shots." The idea is to create a consistent setup so you can just swap out the product one by one and speed through the shoot. It is best to control as many variables as possible so all you need to do is set the product down, take the shot, and repeat.

I'm going to show you my ideal pack shot setup with a light cube. I think it will be similar to what my follower is using. And, if not, it might help him streamline his process a bit.

A light cube is just a box made of diffusion material.

You drape a background with the color of your choice. White is usually preferred for Amazon-style pure white background photos. Though I prefer dark gray for aesthetic reasons. You just want to make sure the backdrop has that natural gravity curve so there isn't a hard line or wrinkles.

For lighting, you should get two *identical* lights. They can be desk lamps as long as they are the same and have the same light bulb inside. Then you just place them on either side of the cube. You want the ball of light on the cube to be in front of your subject.

Remember, your light source isn't your actual lights. It's the ball of light on the sides of the cube.

If you want to make it a little fancier, you can get a black or white acrylic sheet to create a reflective surface. You want it as far forward as possible and a little elevated. Here are some things I did in a simple light cube with the setup above.

Here is what the white acrylic looks like.

I placed a big book under the acrylic sheet like this.

This allowed me to hide the curve of the background and get a nice crisp transition between the acrylic and the background.

And if you do white acrylic, you can get the background to seamlessly blend.

As I said, two desk lamps will work, but if this is for a business and you want something fast, convenient, and reliable, I would suggest something more robust.

I'd probably get two daylight balanced COB (chip-on-board) LED video lights that have a Bowens mount attachment.

This Godox light is very reasonably priced for its features.

Daylight balanced means one consistent color temperature, so less chance of drift. These are very bright so you can use a quick shutter speed and you won't even need a shutter release cable (still a good idea). You also don't *need* a tripod, but you should still use one. The main advantage of bright lights is they can't be overpowered by room lights. You can be assured any overhead lights or window light will not contaminate your photo. A darker room is always preferable, but if you crank these it won't matter.

The Bowens mount allows you to place any modifier you wish on the light from softboxes to reflectors. But the standard reflector should be fine for the light cube. But if you are taking photos of tall cylinders, a couple of strip boxes might help.

Don't worry about putting the grids on. You just line them up towards the front of the light cube so you have even light from the top to the bottom of your cylinder. Again, this is optional.

Since these lights are so versatile, you can do any kind of lighting for any other photographic needs. Slap on a white umbrella and take company portraits if you want. Or you can use them as video lights to film a worker safety video.

So, here is my recommended ingredient list for a pack shot light cube setup.

Light Cube COB video light Black Plexiglass Seamless paper (color of your choice)

Colored poster board also works if you keep it from getting dinged up. And the light cube also comes with some cloth backgrounds, but watch out for wrinkles.

BONUS TIP: If you want that pure white background like in Amazon shots, add a third light from behind with no background paper. Make the light cube material your background and shine a light through it. You have to make sure it is bright enough to give you pure white, but not too bright that the light blasts your subject from the rear.

Otherwise just use a white backdrop and use Photoshop to brighten it to pure white.

Karl Taylor shows a pack shot setup without a cube, but the same principles apply. He shows you how to dial in that white but not too white background. Just imagine instead of shining a light onto a background, you are shining a light through the background (the back of the cube).

[drewlyyours]

Okay, since we’re all playing MHM rn for the #cluecrewplaythru, I thought I would translate some of ~very~ cursive letters for anyone who may find them hard to read

The brown journal in the attic:

we dined with the Maupassants in a strange quarter of Shanghai known as the Enchanted Dragon. Mme. [short for Madame, the French equivalent of Mrs.] Maupassant showed me the lovely muslin [this fabric was quite fashionable in the 1800s and I believe rather expensive] that she has purchased earlier that week and we exchanged pleasantries about out travels in the Orient.

As the meal progressed, an elderly man approached me selling a curious puzzle box shaped like a pyramid.

There appears to be no hinges or any semblance if its mechanics from the outside and yet the solution to open the box was very intricate and involved. The artwork was magnificent and I became enchanted not only with the contraption but with the artistic genius of the kindly old man. My mind ran wild with the possibility of creating a hotel where rooms are puzzles full of traps and tricks, just like this pyramid box.

In my broken Mandarin, I asked about the old man’s employment situation and pressed him to return with me to engineer my next hotel. He became embarrassed, and my dining companions protested my forthcoming attitude.

Even in the far East where their traditions are so different from ours, a woman is still confined to remain passive and meek, regardless of her passion or intellect.

E. Valdez letter in the writing desk:

The Golden Gardenia

December 8th, 1902

Mr. George Williston[?], General Manager

The Victorian Hotel

Powell [?] and Clay Street

San Francisco

Dear Sir,

This letter shall serve as an introduction for my faithful employee, Wing Tang, who has been employed in my service as head chef for over ten years. It is with ^much regret that I must discharge him, and were it not for the retirement if my hotel establishment, I would still retain his services.

Sincerely,

E. Valdez

Proprietor, The Golden Gardenia

The letter in the staircase:

Diego,

I’ve waited so long for your return but have kept our treasure true. Here us the tool you’ll need to find it. May your rainbows never run out of luck.

The stars and moon will shine on you

As you begun your quest.

Move like a knight upon his horse

To quickly pass the test.

Take care to keep your path in check

Along the outside border,

So you may see the sun return

To claim its rightful order.

Rose’s letter to Hue:

Dear Hue,

I’m doing great! How are you? Yes, the rumors are true: I bought myself a Victorian mansion! it’s funny you should mention Abby; she’s actually the one who decided to go in on this venture with me. We’re still in the process of restoring the place. It’s a lot of fun, but also a lot of hard work. We’re beginning to get a little worried that we’ll fall behind schedule if we’re not careful. There’ve been several accidents lately that have interferred with our work.

when you visit, you can stay in the Chinese room! We’ve just bought some new furniture for the room. We’re just waiting for the wallpaper to dry before we move everything in. With all of the distractions and the schedule, by the time I finish writing this letter, I’m sure we will have completed the renovations altogether! I’ll try to get it into the mail before [she did not finish the letter]

Letters in the safe:

My dearest Elizabeth,

I could never sully that sweet name by calling you Lizzie. You shall evermore be Elizabeth, my Elizabeth: the sweet, dear woman who has honored me with her enchanting presence and grace.

Tonight, I ride on yet another perilous trip, but always to return to your beloved smile.

Until then, please accept this bouquet of gardenias, your favorites.

~ El Diablo

My dearest Elizabeth,

Only one soul on this great Earth knows the two secrets that circle my heart: my love for you and my secret identity. Know that my intentions are the purest in all respects. I am a modest man, and all of the wealth that I have acquired by devious means are put to the best uses – all given them to the poor, the misfortunate and the defenseless.

And so I am - a poor, misfortunate and defenseless man in the presence of your beauty. You have stolen my heart, dear Elizabeth, and all I ask is your hand in marriage to be mine.

Forever, Diego

[vaguely-concerned]

playing a souls game means that I am watching a lot of long form youtube vids on the side once more, and it has allowed me to remember in full force that sinclair lore is one of the best -- perhaps the very best -- channels on youtube. come for the excellent fromsoftware game analysis*, stay for the deep dives into some of THE weirdest corners of pop culture that you didn't even dream existed but will carry in your heart and mind forever now. I am currently working my way through their playlist about niche and frequently bizarre 80s/90s anime, and I was laughing so hard it almost made me fuck up the last two hits in my final triumphant fight with the dancer of the boreal valley.

basically this channel is the epitome of the sentiment of 'it makes no sense. compels me, though' as a celebration of strange and uncategorizable (and perhaps initially off-putting) art everywhere, and I think that generosity and genuine curiosity of gaze is needed in our media landscape now more than ever. whenever sophie goes 'it's just so fucking weird!!' in tones of glee and intense fascination an angel gets its wings. sin's undaunted dedication to the art she likes and disinteres in what she doesn't, regardless of how it's popularly received, inspirational. the youtube algorithm is not kind to them because it sucks ass, but!! if you want some quality Soulsborne lore that can break out the lens of queer theory when it's called for, videos about cryptids to fall asleep to, the only postmortem of Madam Web you'll ever need and didn't know you wanted (you do tho), 3 hour breakdowns of comparative cosmology of the fromsoft games that rock actually, honest engagement with and appreciation for dark souls 2 (my beLOVED), horror game let's plays and recaps, the oddest anime you ever saw discussed in great depth and with passion, the history of bloodborne -- I won't even say fandom, I think this qualifies as scholarship frankly, GORGEOUS pixel art backgrounds to rest your weary gaze upon, elden ring stuff? they gots elden ring stuff for ya, and to laugh like a dumbass every step of the way... look no futher. join the snack covenant 2day. some specific video recs based on what your interest might be under the cut!

*shoutout to them and TBSkyen (whose 'Boss Designs Of [Soulsbornering]' series is also absolutely excellent, second rec on the rec post! Here's the Bloodborne installment of the series, and my personal fave is predictably the Dark Souls 2 one) for being part of the few channels who actually explicitly use the tools of literary and art analysis to look at those games. I love a lot of the lore community but for god's sake will someone actually look into the actual overarching themes and ideas at work instead of trying to forensically break down the order in which events happened like it's a real world crime scene or site of archeology, not a deliberatly constructed story made with human hands or go source: it's a berserk reference and move on. and these champs go 'yeah we got you. let's talk about aldia's whole deal in depth' and I for one am so grateful

If you're into bloodborne, may I suggest: Laurence, the Worst Vicar. your one stop shop for understanding just how badly this guy sucked, as well as a lot of the Themes ticking away in the background of the game.

I have literally never thought about Warhammer 40K a day in my life before and I'm not about to start now, but this conversation about how oops as a franchise you were so mysogynistic back in the 80s it looped all the way around and now space marines may all be kind of trans actually?? is one of the best things I've watched in ages!

I know nothing about the anime they are discussing here but this whole vid had me rolling with laughter. they just don't make dubs like this anymore folks. the fuck counter triumphant

[absurdly-overpowered-astronaut]

Of Asks for morning cry or any ocs you like :D

favorite animal? why?

are they any good with numbers?

how would your character describe themselves? it doesn't have to line up with how they really are.

what do they have in common with you? how are they different? would you get along with them?

I don’t think I’ve shown art or talked about all of the main characters before so heres some art of them for context (the names are listed in the same order as the art. Kat first then going to the right ending with joycie)

favorite animal? why?

This was actually surprisingly hard ^^; like I know which animals I associate with them but I struggled abit with picking one animal that would be their favourite because its just not something I think alot of them have thought about but I tried my best! >:3

Kat - I don’t think he has really thought about the question but if you were to ask him he’d say cats. Because his family has cat and his preferred name is similar to the word I think he has a affection for them. I also think he relates to them on a more personal level because he gets branded as lazy alot and he’s internalised that and cats are often called lazy because we apply are human standards to them. He thinks they are silly and fluffy and yeah

Cody/Tory - jelly wish because they don’t have brains (in the conventional sense) and don’t feel pain.

Grey - blob fish. She relates to the blob fish and thinks its cute.

Morgan - Llama. Looked up what animals can’t kill you and picked the first result as her favourite/j. I think she learns more about Llamas and Sheep because of her whool based hobbies and because of knowing the most about them they become her favourites.

Tolver - ants because of their reputation as hard workers and as a masculine interest.

Alex - crows because she thinks their ability to use tools and intelligence is interesting <- one of two characters that dose not have crow symbolism and is not associated with them in story

Joycie - dogs - I think she’d pick something cute but basic like dogs. She also values loyalty and purity both things often attributed to dogs so I think that also factors into her choice.

are they any good with numbers?

This is actually a really funny question for me because I’ve been writing Kat’s math redemption arc this chapter (well was when I wrote the first draft of this ask…)

Kat - absolutely abysmal with numbers! Struggles to count can’t really grasp non-literal math mathematical concepts. He can get there with help and when things are explained and broken down in the right way but struggles greatly in general <- probably has Dyscalculia

Cody/Tory - he’s great with numbers probably the best out of the main cast but he’s the kind of person where math just clicks for him and he could not for the life of him explain it to someone else. He could calculate something really complicated perfectly but if you asked him to explain his working he would struggle. He’s tried to help Kat with his math before but they’ve both given up at this point after lessons went something like this

“First you set up your equation” <- doesn’t explain how to set up said equation

“Then you factorise the 147 and the 34” <- dose not explain why you factorise and why its those numbers you factorise or even what is or how to factorise

“Then you do the thing”

“The what-”

“You know the thing”

“???”

“Okay…Just tell me what 19 x 2 is”

“Uhhh”

“Just double it”

“Ummm”

“Count 19 up from 19”

“Yeah umm I can’t count that high”

“YOU CAN’T COUNT ABOVE 20???!!!”

Grey - she gets by. Is smarter than people give her credit for but is only really smart in areas that interest her. Scary good at some areas of math but bad to average at others she doesn’t find interesting/worth her limited time on this earth. Mostly draws in her maths book so doesn’t have much room for equations.

Morgan - can’t do anything beyond y9-10 math (she is in y12) because of single Minded focus on not dying to an unhealthy degree. She’s so consumed by how she could die horribly and awfully at any moment so dosen’t have room in her brain to or the desire to learn more.

Tolver - is great at math but mostly self taught so there is a bit of a disconnect from how he does and how it’s taught. Tolver has the most number sense out of the team before Tory joins so he manages the money and any paper work for the team and since he’s one of the earliest members of the ghost hunting association he also has/manages paper work and numbers for the full organisation sometimes. So he’s good at numbers out of necessity/to make himself useful and as a product of growing up working in the ghost hunting organisation cult thing :)

Alex - average for her age. Not especially good not especially bad. Though she does have a kinda unique way of looking at where she sees math as like a language. Equations are like sentences , symbols (+ - = < > ect) are like grammar and particles. The point of an equation is to not only get to a conclusion but to communicate an idea to another person and everyone who dose math has there own short hands and habits and tricks so there is “different dialect’s” of math like People who do hands method for multiplication of 9s and people who do minus and add to 9 method are like sub dialects and so on.

Joycie - a little above average. Good at grasping concepts , working out what a questions asking her to do and doing calculations but struggles with any change ie Hates and Complains about “the alphabet being put in math” for “no reason” and BEDMAS becoming BEMA ect. Quite the close minded individual.

how would your character describe themselves? it doesn't have to line up with how they really are.

Kat - Kat swings between great and terrible self esteame. so he'd either discribe himself as incredibly competent , a good friend and helpful ect or the absolute scum of the earth. Both are exaggerations.

Cody/Tory - Tory would describe himself as a good student/son/friend and an otherwise average person. He wants to be acknowledged and affirmed as good and heavy ties this concept to his relationships so since his relationship and morality are how he defines his sense of self he’d describe himself in relation to them. He thinks very highly of himself and very lowly of himself so he’d probably describe himself as an average person otherwise to avoid presenting himself to highly or to lowly.

Tory would describe himself in a way that is less so self deprecating as much as it is minimising himself.

Grey - Grey would describe herself as a unique soul in a sea of unambiguous and boorish thinkers or something similarly self aggrandising or something similarly dramatic. She wants to be important and unique and most importantly to matter! Even after death. So she’d give herself a grand description to convince herself of her own importance and individuality. Her relationships at the start of the story are mostly obligation based or contractual so she doesn’t really care about people finding her annoying or arrogant.Her importance is in contrast to and at the expense of others so she’s describe herself not only in away that was self dramatising but also that uses the general population as her yard stick.

Morgan - not not a terrible person. She doesn’t really have any sense of self so I think if confronted with having to describe herself she’d not only give a vague and evasive answer but also an unsure one. It’s vague because she doesn’t know much about herself. She isn’t initially introspective so she’d define herself by something easy like black and white morality. Morality also ties into her feelings around safety and mental heath so I think she’d use something like that.

Tolver - he is strong leader man dude💥✨💥✨💥who always makes the rational decisions that his emotional teammates are too soft to make he is such a good team leader who is so independent and smart TM. He wouldn’t word it this brashly but this is essentially the underlying message of how he’d describe himself. Safe to say he has a very warped perception of himself and the world. He thinks he has much more emotional stability then he actually does turns out its actually repression , internalised ablism and internalised toxic masculinity. He is very dependent on others and very attached to them specially he tends to latch onto people and then idolise them. He is also not man or a dude it turns out but that will probably take him a few years post arc to come to terms with / understand being gender queer. Aside from being utterly unempathetic and self destructive he is a pretty good team leader and smart aside from the obvious and those are the only parts of the description that are even remotely true.

Joycie - joycie would describe herself as Morgans friend or the medic. She is a parallel to Morgan in the sense she obsesses over one thing to the point it’s detrimental to her sense of self and assessment/processing of the world around her. So she’d describe herself as just whatever it is she is using to define herself/she has latched onto. Because her whole sense of self is tied to being Morgans best friend and after she realises that she no longer is she then completely defines herself by being the team medic repeating the process but with a job instead of a person because a job can’t move on and leave you right? Right? You can’t lose your role in a group dynamic when the authority that provided you certainty no longer as a use for you haha yeah- umm spoilers

what do they have in common with you? how are they different? would you get along with them?

I struggled alot with this one too so its not an exhaustive list just the stuff thats easy to talk about

Kat - Kat takes alot of inspiration from people in my life and my experiences but there are very few things we have one to one the same. Like for example Kat draws on alot of my feelings surrounding gender but he is trans masc instead of NB and has a much more traditional (for lack of a better word) view on gender but I think we have/would have very different understandings of it. I think Gender is a social construct and that boxs/terms should exist for people who want them but gender should be treated and seen as more flexible and fluid but kat more so see’s himself as a boy but doesn’t really question gender beyond that. He’s be fine with/understand non-binary as a concept but he’d have a much more ridge veiw of it then I do. ie non-binary = androgynous vs Non-binary is whatever makes you comfortable.

-Kat has alot of people pleasing tendencies which he inherited from me

-kat has a very similar relationship to his parents and grandmother to what I have with my aunt , uncle and grandmother

-he likes anime

-Kat got alot of my internalised ablism + experiences as a AFAB autistic person

-difficulty understanding where you stand with someone

-The feeling like you need to punish yourself for making mistakes

-Struggling in group social dynamics 

To many things to name

Cody/Tory - internalised guilt over the mere fact of existing

-crying alot

Grey - artist among other things that are hard explain so not going to further elaborate

Morgan - mental illness struggles

-paranoia spirals

-the feeling of knowing that what you’re scared of isn’t really that bad/is irrational but you just can’t get over it no matter how hard you try

-fear of blood/difficulty dealing with or thinking about blood

-the feeling of fearing death even when you feel like you have nothing to live for

Tolver - we have things in common but in a way that is hard explain so skip

Alex -puzzle box in interest

-child neglect

-anime intreast

Joycie - attaching yourself and your identity to one person and believing that person cares about you even beyond the point that is reasonable

I would get along with - Grey / Kat / Alex / Cory / Tory / morgan / joycie

I wouldn’t get along with - Tolver (I love him as a character but I couldn’t stand him in real life)

[artistotel]

tips for traditional artists (mostly painters)

so while i primarily post doodles and such on this blog, my true passion is traditional art. :) i see a lot of tips for digital artists but rarely for traditional ones, so this is just my own experience (before anyone goes like "oP tHaT iS nOt UnIvErSaL eXpErIenCe" (i know this site well enough lol) if the advice doesnt sit well with you feel free to ignore it because i am def not an end it know it all. and nobody is because art is so broad and there is no right way to do it.

EQUIPMENT

so, first of all, in my language we have a saying "the tools dont make a master", meaning a true master could create with anything. i mean, sure, to a point, tools wont replace your ability to conceptualize art, but cmon.

equipment matters, especially when painting. i mostly work with acryllics and markers. lets talk about acryllics.

paints

its important to get at least okay quality paints. the stuff i use is not insanely expensive - croatia has limited offers, and i am poor. however, i tried paints for like 1€ from tedi and they are far inferior to goya's paints i use (3-4€ cca per 100ml. and those 100ml are going to last you a very looong time if you work on small scale paintings, and i even managed to fit in large ones).

ESPECIALLY THE WHITE PAINT. i cannot stress this enough. if youre gonna buy cheaply, buy everything cheap except for the white. make sure the white is good. it will serve as a thickener for other colours and good white can even do a good job of covering up the black paint.

brushes: get good brushes. if you paint frequently with bad brushes (like the ones i get from muller; they seem fine but ehhh im constantly changing them) you will be spending more in longer run than you would if you invested in something better. im not talking about 100€ packs made of donkey tail strands or whatever, i mean normal brushes, but look at reviews a bit. i once ordered like 10€ pack of brushes from amazon and they performed muller ones by far (and were cheaper); they left thicker paint and didnt get ruined after five uses.

markers

now see, i dont have any advice here, but i wanted to contrast it with my previous talk about how i purposefully buy good paint. well, i purposefully buy bad markers. really bad ones. because equipment often depends on what style you are after. i use flomasters, and they do what i want: and thats a cheap and trashy look.

canvases and papers

if youre gonna invest into something, invest into paints rather than canvases. you can trick a bad canvas by putting on multiple colour layers, you cant trick bad paints. but there are differences to bad and good canvases, of course. however, if youre just starting out, just go get a bad one; i take most of mine from tedi, or order online. you dont gotta spend billion of euros on them.

paper is also important. i am a painter and i bought a Leuchtturm1917 though unfit one, and was annoyed as to why everyone thought it was great. then i bought the one with specific sketchbook paper and it works fantastic. if youre painting, you need appropriate paper.

learn colour theory and some art history

yes i know this sounds boring. but its not. draw inspiration from your predecessors. there are people making oil paintings of modern things. you heard "dont shade with black" (and thats my personal mantra too) but chiaroscuro was a valid art movement. if you take a look at my own art you will most likely say: oh, thats pop art! and you would be right. i am inspired by roy lichtenstein, andy warhol, and other pop artists. but thats just the surface. my use of colour is inspired by the impressionist takes on it; i dont shade with darker colours, i shade with different ones. i shade red with blue, yellow with purple or red, and so on. if you look at the topics and subjects of my art, you will find surrealism. if you look at my approach to art itself, you might find influences of croatian naive. learn about actual philosophies behind art movements you like; you might find something for you.

ok these are just some general thoughts i had, id probably have more lol but thats it for now

[fishyishy]

A3! Event Translation - memory of toys (10/11)

━━━━━━━━━

Yuki: Yuup.....

Yuki: (I was so busy planning that I completely forgot about my original purpose coming here, which was to buy a present)

Yuki: ....Ah.

Yuki: (A dress up doll.....like the one I had before. I guess it might be too early for my little nephew......)

Citron: Yuki, is that the present you are getting?

Yuki: ......I was just thinking that maybe in the future, he might end up playing with dress up dolls like me.

Yuki: I'll just get him this for now.

Citron: Ohh, what a cute stuffed animal!

Yuki: I wonder if I should make some clothes for it and put them on. Maybe I should make a few so he can change its clothes.

Citron: What a great idea! I'm sure your nephew will be very happy.

Citron: I will also buy this, and this, and this too! So many special toys!

Yuki: Ne, now that I think of it, why did you want to help this toy store?

Citron: Well you see.....

------------------------

Since I was a child, I had to study the art of rulership in order to become a king, so I wasn't able to play with toys.

However, after I learned about Japanese culture and arts, I became interested in Super Sentai works as well.

And so, when I finally came to Japan, I saw children having fun wearing the transformation gear and having goods from the Super Sentai series.

The children would decide on transformation poses and shout out their catchphrases with smiles on their faces.

In this country, children could transform into whatever they dreamed of.

I began thinking that I was very envious of this scene.

------------------------

Citron: Toys are magical tools that can make dreams come true. You could become anything you wanted, is what I thought.

Citron: So this is like a store for dreams, where you can buy toys like that. That is why I couldn't help but speak out.

Citron: It is also convenient to buy online.

Citron: But I am sure there will be some kids who will see the real thing and will find their new dreams, some kids who will make new memories with the toys that were carefully chosen and received here.

Citron: Just like Yuki is doing now.

Yuki: .......

Citron: I am sorry, I dragged Yuki and the others into this because of my personal feelings.

Yuki: It's fine, really. I had a lot of fun doing it, and I think I was able to get something out of it.

Yuki: As a result of your feelings, the promotional video itself was effective, and the interior design became a bit of a hot topic on social media.

Citron: I am sure the effects will start to show soon.

Yuki: Besides......I was also able to perform as the doll I broke back then.......

Yuki: Somehow, I felt like the sad memories I had of that time have been reclaimed.

Citron: .....I am glad.

Yuki: Anyways, just who are these toys you've been putting into the cart for?

Citron: A present for Tangerine!

Yuki: It looks like there are a lot of otaku-esque toys in there though, is that what you're looking for?

Citron: The last time Tangerine stayed over, Itaru taught him all sorts of things.

Citron: Ever since then, Tangerine has become interested in these things. I am sure he will have fun playing with them all!

Yuki: I can't believe it.

Citron: And even if he breaks it, we can fix it here!

Yuki: ........

Yuki: I guess with an international-level patron, this store will be safe........maybe.

---------------------------

prev I next

[stalwart-spirit]

reconcile - for the single-word fic prompt!

500 years later and I found time and an idea for this one!

Polycrystals in The Aetherfont are actually legit Elementals akin to the ones found in the Shroud and Eureka, so I took that and ran with it! This time, I write about my shy Sharlayan bunny, just before he became a WHM!

Not proofread, its once again 3am. u_u

Normally, it would take a great deal of work and persuasion to even get access to the Isle of Haam, but the young viera found himself in a great opportunity for study due to the efforts of his father; a respected Studuim professor and established Archon.

Thus they both find themselves wandering through the deeper regions of the isle, traversing a particularly new route into the Aetherfont itself perceived to be free of any lurking dangers, trailing just behind a small troupe of fellow researchers who busied themselves with setting up various tools and devices.

"Careful now, son."

The older viera, dark hair streaked with silver, helps the younger down a rocky slope with one hand, holding the bespectacled boy's pack in the other.

"Right, I'll be ahead with the research group." Renauld smiles warmly as he watches the other dust off his robes before handing back the admittedly dense pack, undoubtedly filled with as many books and notes the scrawny lad could carry. "Don't wander too far, you hear me?"

Bjarni shoulders the pack, taking the staff strapped onto its side, looking to his father and nodding repeatedly. "I-I know to stay in e-earshot and eyeshot, don't worry!"

It's with a pat on the shoulder that Renauld turns to join the others, leaving the young kit to his own curious wanderings.

He's been excited for days since getting the news of this trip, barely sleeping a wink from both the trepidation and thrill of such an opportunity. To think, first hand experience here of all places, perfect for his thesis! Sure, the excavation itself is fascinating, but what he really is interested in is the natural environment itself. What wonderful fauna and flora flourish here in such a densely aetherical environment?

Finding a small nook to settle in, Bjarni slips off his pack and pulls out a parchment and quill, squatting down before a patch of glowing moss in order to take detailed notes.

"A sign of h-high moisture, bioluminescence most likely caused by the brightness of t-the environment caused by the dense aether... Excess energy not used coming out as fluorescence-"

There's a sudden pickle up his spine, hairs standing up on the back of his neck. Something watching and the feeling of pressure in his ears. The boy's sensitivity to high concentrations of aether is enough already due to the current environment, but this is... Different.

Standing suddenly he swings his staff as he turns, the crystal atop the verdant cane almost making contact with-

"Polycrystal-" A small gasp as he breaks his train of thought. "Elemental??"

The winged creature seemingly takes offence at the stick pointing its way, giving it a shove strong enough for it to tilt back and hit the young viera in the face.

"Ow-" Glasses knocked askew, and he quickly adjusts them back in place. "I'm sorry, you s-startled me, is all! I only heard of the Elementals in the Twelveswood. Suppose the researchers who found this place only caught a quick glance a-and assumed you were part of the crystalline structures-"

His explanation doesn't seem to dampen down the Elemental's sour mood as it lets out a series of disgruntled chimes which cause the viera's long ears to pivot and tilt in... Recognition?

"Tre-trespassing? Oh! The others! I suppose suddenly having your home broken into and trodden on is a l-little alarming, to say in the least. I promise we don't mean any ill will! It's all in order to research aether, you see, we want to learn m-more so we came here to do that."

Awkwardly he fiddles with his staff, rolling it between his palms.

"It's everything, really. To find a big reserve of a thing that's basically in all of us means we ca-can potentially learn countless things about how we and the world works. How beings like you are!"

Now it seemed like the Elemental had calmed, Bjarni's words doing something to alleviate whatever aggressions it held towards himself and the research group ahead.

To reconcile with a peeved Elemental? Well, it wasn't exactly in his plans for the day.

"I know there are more of you here, l-lots more I imagine! So if you please, little polycrystal, let your friends know we're okay and we'll be on o-our best behaviour. If not, well, my dad will take care of anyone who does anything out of order!" His chest puffs in pride, certain of this fact. "I promise not to tell anyone of you ei-either! Won't even write of you in my notes!"

Hovering, the creature ponders, then circles the viera, making more of a musical chime, seemingly satisfied.

As quickly as it made itself known, the Elemental vanishes in a shower of glowing lights, leaving Bjarni to stand there suddenly realising how peculiar this interaction was.

"... Did I just make a friend??"

[4lbon]

maybe this is a dumb question but this is the second time i’ve seen someone say something about race/ethnicity in regards to 4b and i’m still confused how it would negate its cause or intended purpose. like if only white women were participating it would mostly only be targeting white men because that’s who white women partner with the majority of the time. and it wouldn’t require like 100% or even majority participation in order to send a message. but also like i don’t even think the point is entirely to send a message it’s also just for women to know it’s an option to not be in a relationship with the people who are their oppressors under the system of oppression which is the patriarchy. idk i just have never understood why south korea being a fairly monoethnic country would make a difference in this case. like it wouldn’t work the SAME in the united states but it also doesn’t seem like it would be a bad thing. if anything the fact that mostly white women would be participating might actually be good because they would also shoulder the blowback from the men who were mad about it. it just seems like i’m seeing the diversity of women used not as a tool but as a reason not to take any action or actually doing anything subversive these days and it’s frustrating. tbh i could be reading you all wrong though and i don’t want to come across as confrontational i’m not actually annoyed with you just annoyed in general lol. anyway i’m curious to know your thoughts

Hi. If you're still here waiting for my response to this i'm gonna answer this in good faith. The funny thing is I think we're on the same page with several things! As I said in my original post i think it's great to encourage women in this country to decenter men and swear off dating, have kids with, etc etc! I think it's an important conversation to be having that being with men a) isnt required for happiness and self-fullfillment and b) may be unsafe to pursue at this time.

BUT. and any people of color are free to chime in here i literally just had the OH moment abt this watching this tiktok: in south korea, because it is very monoethnic, the difference in privilege between men and women is much more clear cut and straightforward. (Not to say there aren't any other marginalized groups OR other ethnic groups in korea, but 97% of sk is ethnically korean) But when you come to america, because there is such greater racial diversity that makes the line of oppressor and the oppressed not very clear cut. I'm not saying we have to play oppression olympics there just has to be a lot more nuance. There are plenty of white women in this country that have more privilege than men of color and thats just the truth. This sort of nuance is not going to affect the korean 4b movement because of the country's large monoethnicity.

also just from a generally speaking point: if your feminism is not also actively anti-racist, it is not and will never be For All Women. so i absolutely encourage anyone who wants to decenter men in their lives to do it, but that CANNOT be the end of your activism if you actually care about ALL women you also have to be sticking up for women of color, queer women, trans women, disabled women, undocumented women ALL the other marginalized groups that will be negatively affected by trump.

and you should also be wanting to help and support marginalized men too! even before the election i was seeing 4b get traction on tiktok and it was really buying into this gender essentialist, all men are evil cut all men out of your life ideology, which i think it objectively BAD. Radical feminism is BAD. the idea that men are inherently bad and women are inherently good is BAD.

and that's what's really off putting about it all to me. yes sure, decentering men is good, but it by putting it as the "4b" movement it's attracting really radical and bad ideas imo. the korean 4b movement is also SUPER TRANSPHOBIC. when your movement is borrowing for literal terf ideology its hard for trans people to feel allied by yall.

in conclusion yes please sure dont date marry sleep with or have kids with men! that's a great choice to make in these times for your personal safety! but 4b is a bad ideology to be sharing terminology with AND there is much much much more meaningful activism to be done!!

[ananke-xiii]

Lately I've been giving a lot of thought to the concept of "work" in spiritual journeys. When I first read Gurdjieff years ago I was taken aback by the fact that he equals transforming and knowing onself to actual work. I was like, no, it's not possible, work is work, spirituality has nothing to do with it. And I was fucking wrong.

Even just LEARNING about the tools one MIGHT use to start THINKING ABOUT evolving on a spiritual level is exhausting. It's work work work work. It's punching the clock. It's discipline and energy and time spent on studying and listening and meditating and doing other practices. It requires EFFORT. Tons and tons of it. It can be tiring. You will be tempted to stop many times because it's not gonna be pretty. It will get worse before it gets better. You'll cry a lot. More than you can even imagine. Your dreams will be vivid and you'll start experiencing reality in a different way. And people will abandon you and you will abandon people. And then you'll cry some more.

So yeah. Gurdjieff was right. It IS work. A different kind where you don't work for your boss or your clients or the state or whatever. You work for your soul. With your soul. To meet and say hi. And it takes your everything.

I'm not saying something new here but it became clear after maybe one WHOLE year that this kind of work is not compatible with the "8h of work, 8h of play, 8h of sleep" mentality. Ofc, this mentality doesn't even apply under "normal" circumatances so it shouldn't even come as a surprise. And as I said, I'm not discovering a new continent here: the "otium" vs "negotia" debate is as old as Western civilization as we (like to) know it.

To further complicate matters let's imagine that what many spiritual teachers have been telling us is true: humankind is stuck. Its evolution has stopped. Collectively we have managed to reach the third chakra. And we've not even been particularly successful at that. Therefore the key is to work in order to evolve and reach the fourth chakra. The heart chakra.

Symbolically I think this is why society is so in love with the idea of Love, cause that's the goal and we've been trying to reach it for millennia and failing (because we are looking for an object, any object, to love and that's not the point, the point is always. always the connection with others).

But the thing is.

The thing I've realized today is.

To BE ABLE to Love. To be in a condition where Love comes easily. Where Love flows from you effortlessly. To be able to open your heart.

You need rest.

And fucking tons of it.

Rest not just as in "sleeping" but as in "being in a relaxed state". Which is a flexible state. A state where lines can be more easily crossed and bridges are not needed cause lands touch each other and oceans meet and greet. A state where connections can happen.

(now I understand why one of my teachers recommended TWO naps per day. A crazy thought for me until I tried to take at least ONE. Life-changing experience. Also: not feasible)

To be able to Love Like That, rest is necessity. All "The Work" , all the effort you put in lead to that. We NEED to learn to fucking rest.

And so we're back to square one. "The Work" and "work" seem to be incompatible. Because what "The Work' teaches is basically how to rest your mind. What "work" does is instruct your mind to see life as divided into different time-slots: there's a time for duty and a time for rest and they are separate and must be kept as such (even if it's not factually possible because the 8-8-8 rule is an ideal and not a reality). There's no flow, no flexibility, only separation.

And because rest is a necessity in order to open the fourth chakra, one might almost say that taking the time to know oneself is an endeavor that's only possible for the people who have the means to do so. People who can make the choice of not "working" for a great variety of reasons. Still, people who HAVE THE POSSIBILITY to choose.

After all, in ancient Rome otium was something that only the aristocracy could afford.

So: even if the whole world benefits if only ONE person puts in the effort to know themselves, it will not be enough for a collective evolution. 'Cause it's the "collective" bit that's missing.

That is to say that "work" as it's currently conceived in our patriarchal capitalist fascist society ACTIVELY works AGAINST the opening of our collective heart chakra.

The "constant growth" idea was already laughable and counterintuitive but under this light it is finally shown as a big fat lie and a great danger.

So what can we - normal people needing actual jobs - do if we want to open our heart?

I don't have a solution. I can only share what I've been doing and what I was taught which is:

do something (meditation, practices, reading etc) every day for at least 2 minutes. It's a very small amount of time to dedicate to oneself and go inwards. It's also not a daunting task: it's interstitial, in-between all these ideal 8-8-8 hours, it's a promethean act of rebellion but even better cause it's small, undetectable, unpunishable.

don't drink alcohol, don't eat meat, avoid sugary stuff: I didn't believe it to be true and I understand the recoil because I suffer(ed) from a lot of issues related to food and alcohol. But yeah. It helps. A lot. These are some of the most rebellious acts we can do today.

pay attention: observe yourself and your surroundings. If you're unsure, don't say yes or no; say you'll think about it. don't talk or TALK LAST. listen listen listen and listen. Silence is one of the most powerful tools we have.

spend time in nature: which just means pay attention to nature around you. we live in nature, there's no separation. even in the greyest city you are IN nature. You can see the grey clouds. You can hear the rain or the wind. There will be a tree or even one patch of grass somewhere. An insect. A bird. A rat. Roads and buildings are made out of mountains and rocks etc. Water comes out when you turn on the tap.Just observe these things and listen: there are stories to hear.

breathe breathe breathe breathe! pay attention to your breathing. there are many free resources online or even apps that can teach breathing techniques. Maybe it will be uncomfortable at first but you just need to do it for 2 minutes, remember?

this isn't how I started. I took a different route and it took me more than 5 years to realize it was actually this simple. It's simple but it isn't EASY, I know. However, it actually works because these are small ways to reclaim our time as ours and be present in it. Actually living it. Two minutes of meditation there, a little tree-watching here, some shutting up and listening over there, drink more water etc: tiny acts of connection everyday until one day you realize that the door to your heart was always open for you. You just weren't aware of it.