#most of them are in an arts and sciences field lol

[batboyblog]

I feel like some people can't be/refuse to be educated, or they're deliberately being obtuse because they're trolls, psyops, or they just fell for the trolls and psyops. But its still good to point out where they're wrong and to give actual, you know, facts, for the benefit of other people reading who might actually be reachable.

yeah, I mean I usually ignore them because usually its bad faith and when a post is getting hundreds even thousands of notes in a day you just can't keep up with the 10-20-ish people who say something, particularly if its in the tags because thats just hard or fighting in the replies which always feels weird

But I was in a bad mood and in general seeing the same either bad faith or straight up don't know comment over and over and over again is very annoying

the "lol Joe Biden didn't do anything about Student loans!" one is pretty annoying since Biden has forgiven well over 100 BILLION dollars worth of student loan debt, so like he has done a lot on student loan debt. I'm not a big deal but I remember I did one of my "what Biden did this week" posts and it had the student loan debt forgiveness for people who got defrauded by the Art Institutes, and a few people added their stories of being defrauded and being in debt to AI for years and the one that'll stay with me was an older guy who went to try to get a new degree to get a job in a different field kinda late in the game, his 50s or 60s and of course didn't get the jobs he hoped for because scam college and saying how he thought he'd die in debt and it was all gone, all forgiven. So just like people flippantly dismissing a very real life changing thing is very annoying

there are a few other very common annoying ones "why didn't he do this when he controlled congress before!" well he was busy passing the biggest climate change bill any government on earth has ever done, investing in our Infrastructure for the first time since before Reagan was President (Reagan 😒) listen Biden passed 4 of the biggest most transformationally progressive bills the US has seen since LBJ

American Rescue Plan

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

CHIPS and Science Act

Inflation Reduction Act

on top of which he passed the first gun control law out of congress in 30 years, and other things, like the Respect for Marriage Act to protect gay marriage, or making Juneteenth a federal holiday (the first new federal holiday since MLK day in 1983)

SO! thats why he didn't do the things he wants to do in his next term he was busy doing equally (and in the case of climate change more important) things and thats why we should all be hopeful if Joe Biden is President with a Democratic Congress he'll get most if not ALL the things on his agenda done, because he's fucking good at this, we haven't had a President this good at pushing bills through Congress and using every switch and lever of the federal government to make major progressive change since LBJ or FDR, I guess his big mistake was naming it something boring like "Inflation Reduction Act" and not something sexy like "New Deal" or "Great Society"

sorry to go off on a tare there, but its just frustrating to see 40 (out of tens of thousands really) posts saying the same dumb shit and having no real way to respond

[sunthyme]

🎆 New year, new headcanons!! 🎆

Hey, so I've been a bit dead for a hot sec, apologies for that. Hope y'all are having a good break! Now, for something that's been in the works since August (drum roll please)...

🎉 REDONE TWST HEADCANONS!! 🎉

First up, yet again...

♥️ Heartslabyul ♥️

WAHOO! Ignore that you can clearly see which I had to redo lol, that's going to be a bit of a theme as I looked back and wasn't super happy with some so I redid them until I got it right.

Since y'all know the characters this time, I'll be just adding new or changed things to my earlier posts. :D

Enjoy!

♥️ Riddle Rosehearts ♥️

So pretty much nothing changed from the original with Riddle, I just made her look better. Yippee!

Added thing for my University Headcanon/AU is major and I see Riddle being an English and Law major.

♣️ Trey Clover ♣️

Once again, nothing really changed except for the fact that I learned to draw him better. I gave him a labret piercing that I think would have been one of Cater's first piercings, which thankfully went well.

He'd obviously be a Culinary major.

♦️ Cater Diamond ♦️

Speaking of Cater, this one was a bitch to draw. I literally redid him three times, send help. (I'll reblog this with the extra between version for y'all to see)

A new headcanon for him is that he's the kind of character that has his eyes closed for the most part and only opens them when he's like super serious. I just felt it fit him. (I'll also attach that in the reblog)

He's very heavily gyaru inspired (shout out to @/Cayfourdiamonds on Pinterest, I loved his edits of Cater and they were my inspo) and I wanted him to curl his hair in the mornings, princess curl style. He has naturally straight hair and the freckles are indeed fake.

He's a Cosmetology and Communications major.

♠️ Oki Chiang ♠️

She's a Sociology major and her birthday is October 4th (Libra). She's apart of the Poetry Club (OC club).

Nothing much changed here either, though I tinkered with her skin tone to amp up the contrast and shifted to blue to a darker hydrangea-y colour.

(Edit: I forgot, I have UM for my ocs now!)

Unique Magic - "Who Are You?": Creates a mist as Oki recites the spell that induces confusion. The confusion will last up to two hours after the mist fades, depending on the strength of the person affected.

♣️ Luna Madden ♣️

Another one I had to redo twice because GOD, the in between was SO UGLY!! Ew. Anyways, way cuter now! I gave him swirly eyes for funsies and trimmed down the colours in his makeup so it's more cohesive.

They're an Art and Psychology major and their birthday is January 22nd (Aquarius). It's in the Science Club.

She uses mobility aids, alternating between a cane and braces depending on the day, due to Multiple Sclerosis (an autoimmune disease that impacts the spine).

Unique Magic - "It's Tea Time!": Conjures a pre-set tea table fitting Luna's desires. The bigger the table and the more items, the harder it is for Luna to make.

♥️ Ace Trappola ♥️

Oh boy, another redone one. I went a bit ham with his design, I really wanted to make him look like a heart. Found the braid idea on Pinterest, as one does, and ran with it. He's so cute, he looks like a heart lollipop. Also, I gave him braces because I love that idea so so much!

He's undecided in his major.

♠️ Deuce Spade ♠️

I adore how this one turned out, he's my son and my boy. Nothing really changes aside from style improvement and I gave him better bangs.

Also an undecided major. (Adeuce twinning frfr)

♥️ Bunnie Chrona ♥️

She's a Psychology major and her birthday is June 30th (Cancer). A part of the Track & Field Club.

Ooh, she's so cute, I love her sm! I gave her vitiligo and stripes in her hair to imitate those splotched black and white bunnies that are so adorable. I did make the interesting choice to give her blue eyes, not for any particular reason, they just contract the red undertones well.

Unique Magic - "Killing Time": Bunnie's speed will increase for an hour, making her go at an inhuman speed.

♦️ Ness Benoit ♦️

She's a Drama major and her birthday is May 25th (Gemini). They're in the Film Research Club.

Finally, Nessie! They also had an in between but they actually looks more like the OG than that one lmao. Gave her some little devil tail earrings and just made the hair confirmedly into a wig. Also gave them a lil fang :3

Unique Magic - "Devilish Charm": Allows Ness to appear differently or say different things to different people. It takes more energy the more people she is using it on.

Stay tuned for Savanaclaw, up next!

[more-sonorous]

Hey! Hope everything is alright, we lost power lol- but uhh... Race head cannons? (I am sososo normal 😚) Good morning/day/night! 💜

hi, katz! thankfully the dorms still have power so i'm grateful to be bored out of my mind with internet access loll

race headcanons, let's do it!

his name is edward anthony higgins (which is partially real life canon and partially a nod to fanon) and he despises being called ed or any version of his first name (father's name). he's okay with tony or anthony, though.

i base my race off of livesies and 92sies (with a bit of uksies). his looks lean more towards ben cook and his personality is a mix of mostly max casella and a bit of josh barnett. sarcastic. fast-talking. impish little prankster. sorta mean and rough around the edges. big joker. ugh i just adore tough guy race and will always write him as such.

strong. (you've all seen ben cook's incredible biceps, need i explain?)

i adore the smart race headcanon. dk where it came from but i lovingly adopted it in both canon and modern

albert's his best friend in every universe

he and crutchie and jack are thick as thieves in every universe, caught somewhere between brothers and best friends

specifically canon era

got his nickname from selling out at the tracks in brooklyn, which i think is just plain canon but you can never be sure in this fandom

part irish (father) part english (mother), but he's born on u.s soil.

father is almost definitely 100% involved in gangs like the dead rabbits and the whyos

mother is dead oops

four older half-siblings (oops i think dad got around), two brothers two sisters, doesn't keep in touch with most of them but contacts occasionally as a last resort

manhattan's official second in command, takes over in jack's place when jack ages out. probably is not the next president of the newsboy union, but the next treasurer

related to the last one, the boy is excellent with numbers. very smart but just never had the opportunity to develop those skills. when davey starts school again, he offers to give race arithmetic lessons. when he realizes that race is better at arithmetic than he is, it turns into race helping davey do math homework.

two years younger than jack

became a newsie when he was around ten

misses his mom

knows he's smarter than most of these schmucks, so he's constantly running and winning card games/poker games/betting rings to trick people out of money. it's how he gets his mental stimulation, much to jack's annoyance (how else is he supposed to get extra cash for his expensive habits, jack?)

tobacco addiction oops

specifically modern era

got his nickname from being good at running, unironically. either he did track and field or he picked up the nickname from foster home shenanigans-- i pick my poison based on the au

absolute vape demon to the chagrin of all his friends.

foster system kid! mother is still dead and father was definitely involved in seedy criminal activities, currently in prison

still has all of those older half-siblings but... they do not get along, so his lil ass ended up in foster care at ten years old

misses his mom

still a certified genius when it comes to math and science, but he could care less about whatever else there is. he and davey make great study buddies because they excel where the other falters. they also make good tutors for jack, who needs a little assistance in all subjects that don't involve art or pe

i love making him a dancer in universes where that is financially possible, because here you've got this fast-talking witty tough guy that can whip out ten pirouettes in a row and flip across the room and still get up in your face-- then he still says 'and what about it?' and will beat your ass if you answer wrong

biggest case of gifted kid burnout you ever saw

could compete for valedictorian if he wanted to but he only tries in the subjects he has fun learning about

chronic procrastinator

because of the above, addicted to energy drinks as well. will probably need a kidney stone removed at some point in his life.

chews on the silver part of his pencils like the goblin he is

when someone (probably davey) tries to put him onto mechanical pencils, he snaps off the little plastic pocket clip and chews on that instead

augh thank you so much for the ask! i had so much fun answering <3

[ranger-ribbons]

More General Rangers Headcanons

Sixth Rangers are inherently more powerful than the regular Rangers. You'll notice that most can 1v1 difficult enemies that prove challenging to even the Reds of the team (ie.: Zhane (In Space Silver) 1v1'ing Ecliptor). This is because, on a power scale, the Sixth is supposed to balance the team out. A team that can work as individuals and an individual that can work on/with a team

Reds develop an attachment to their Sixth Rangers, be it romantic (Carter Grayson/Ryan Mitchell) or platonic (Leo and Mike Corbett), but it's close and quickly formed

Similarly, Sixth Rangers form quick and close attachments to their Reds, platonic or romantic

Pinks and Blues are either siblings or best friends and there is no in-between

Survivor's Guilt is a powerful force and 90% of the Rangers have it, especially the alien Rangers or those like the Lunar Wolf Wildforce Ranger

Rangers getting discouraged and believing themselves unworthy of the Power is also common, so there's a network of Rangers you can call to help with that kind of stuff

If you don't already have fantastic spatial awareness, you develop it pretty quick as a Ranger. It's damn near impossible not to because of all the attacks by Monsters, Bugs, etc

Red Rangers can give orders to their teams and the Power will give little pushes for the other Rangers to following it, but that doesn't mean the other Rangers can't refuse of their own volition

The Morphin' Grid affords its Rangers a form of immortality. They can be fatally injured, but otherwise, Rangers are effectively immortal

Some Rangers go on to become police officers, but most Rangers agree that working to assist and help people (ie.: lifeguards, doctors, breaking ground in the science fields) is best. Some of them establish dojos to train people to protect themselves (Tommy Oliver) and others work with volunteer efforts (Troy Burrows)

Veteran Rangers, Reds especially, tend to hang back during crossover events- this is to give the new Reds the confidence in themselves and their abilities, and allow them to grow into their leadership. The only exception was Forever Red, because Jason is a little bit of a control freak. He's the oldest Red, it's his right

When a Ranger is in a battle that forces them into demorph (i.e.: Gia, Jake, and Noah (Megaforce) against Creepox) the other teammates will be supremely worried and clingy, this is because of a trauma bond each team shares, but also because seeing someone you love get so hurt in a battle that they lose their ability to hold their morphs is fucking terrifying.

On that note, other Ranger teams will check in after those battles because seeing your successors get demorphed in the middle of battle is also something terrifying

Also on that note, some Rangers have specific nightmares in which they don't make it out of those demorph fights alive

The TMNT do on occasion pop out of the New York sewers to assist in a battle or two with the Ranger teams

Rangers who have martial arts skills (Ninja Storm, Jungle Fury, Samurai, Ninja Steel, etc) stick together, much like Rangers who are from or went to space

The techs of the teams have secret channels that they use to make "communication devices" (cell phones) so that Rangers don't have to rely on their morphers to communicate as well as being able to communicate with other Rangers and teams

Bulk and Skull have been linked so tightly with the Rangers that they've been kidnapped several times, only to be let go when it's been clear they aren't Rangers themselves

Junior Rangers have a chat, kids that helped Rangers (Heather, Jordon, etc.) have linked up and compared notes. They know of or know each other and most of them are tightly linked together

Possibility of more later, I didn't expect more than one post lol

[nyoaeuikhoudu]

Elite Force highschool hc's

stealing this idea from @texanmarcusdavenport because I too have headcannons that I must scream into the void.

Centium city is located close enough to Logan High that the kids all go there. Bree and Chase changed their last names so they can go to Logan without being recognized. Their alias last name is "Douglas" because they're not creative and it's hilarious to see their teachers meet Douglas Douglas during conferences.

While the bionic teens are well known around the world, there wasn't quite as much coverage of them in the Philly area because it wasn't super local, so Bree and Chase are able to fly under the radar easier since they're not household names around here.

Idk if yall know what this is, but I feel like it would be fun to have their school structured under the academy system. In short, along with required core classes like math and english, you have to pick an area of interest or career for your other classes. You get cords for completing courses in your academy and most of your electives will be centered around that area of study, plus it helps with college applications.

As always, we'll do this in alphabetic order

Bree:

After much deliberation, she decided on the Natural Resources and Agriculture academy (green). She originally wanted to do Human Services and join ROTC for drill, but Chase wouldn't let her because that would draw too much attention to them.

- her adhd makes it difficult to retain information, so she struggles with classwork, especially lectures.

- in the gifted program w/ Oliver (Chase is jealous lol) no, the gifted program is not based on grades, it's IQ based.

- not super interested in her academy, mostly just in it for the field trips.

- thrives in English classes, can whip out a grade A essay in 20 minutes.

- expert procrastinator, usually doing her homework the morning it's due or in between classes

Chase:

Part of the Business and Computer Technology academy (blue). Though he'd probably thrive more in Engineering, he mostly just joined to work towards inheriting Davenport Industries like Donald wants him to.

- very booksmart

- sacrificed his perfect GPA for maintaining cover. (He's sitting at 3.5, though he's definitely capable of 4.0)

- not the most social, trying his best to lay low.

- started working the schools coffee shop and snack hut for the finance side of things

- refused to test for the gifted program, pissed that Bree did behind his back despite his insistence that they don't draw attention to themselves.

Connie/Skylar:

Part of the Arts and Communications academy (purple). While she's not particularly skilled in the arts, she does enjoy marching band and likes spending time with Jordan and Gus (who are also both in AnC, art and film respectively.)

- gets decent grades. B average

- took an interest in theatre after Gus's Skylar Storm movie, and now helps out on tech.

- works the booth for shows, light design and helps out with mic checks

- surprisingly good at history for an alien- she convinced Chase to join her at history bowl and their team obliterated the other schools.

- involved in multiple sports, namely wrestling and dance team, but colour guard is still her favourite.

- so used to the name Connie that she doesn't even realise when people call her that outside of school, though the twins still slip up and call her Skylar in class.

Kaz:

Part of Health Sciences academy (red) to help with work, though he's less serious about it. If given a choice, he'd choose not to belong to any academy and just go home. He focuses more on the sports injury side of things, learning how to prevent injury rather than treat it for the most part.

- his grades don't reflect his intelligence

- struggles in class due to his adhd

- the only reason he's not failing his medical courses is because Oliver helps keep him on task

- tried three other academies before MM, none seemed to fit him best.

- the only elective he takes outside of HnS is shop, he especially loves welding and blacksmithing.

Oliver:

Also in the Health Sciences academy (red). Though he originally joined because of Mighty Med, he actually found a love for field, focusing on the Medical side. He's been taking extra science classes for fun along with academy courses.

- gets good grades, but definately not perfect.

- terrible at anything that requires math

- builds study dates into his schedule to spend time with Kaz and help him learn the material.- has been in the gifted program since elementary school.

- was originally part of AnC with the rest of his friend group, but switched early his sophomore year when he started working at MM

- still participates in band, playing the oboe for concert and marimba for marching season.

Ages:

Skylar is a senior, everyone else is a junior.

[dandylovesturtles]

just a little write-up for one of my sillier AUs that I have in my head because I was thinking about it and just wanted to chat about it. this is all meant for spooky funsies so don't take anything too seriously here.

I do plan to write one of my Bad Things Happen Bingo entries set in this AU (no idea when I'll actually get around to it, but anyway) and maybe some other things in this AU if I feel like it. It just floats around in my head sometimes.

this is very very vaguely inspired by the old show So Weird, or more specifically the hazy memories of So Weird that I have from when I watched it as a child lol

ROTTMNT Paranormal Investigator AU!

Timeline:

instead of being a martial arts clan, the Hamato clan is a clan of psychics, people who have a mystical connection to the paranormal and supernatural, able to see things other humans cannot. their task is to keep the balance between our world and the world of the supernatural, and to protect humanity from particularly malicious spirits, demons, and cryptids

after losing his mother to the fight against a demon, Hamato Yoshi decides to leave the clan and eventually becomes a famous movie star

unfortunately with no one around to keep balance, the forces of the paranormal start to encroach on the mortal world more and more, wreaking havoc

the boys are still mutant turtles and Yoshi still ends up a rat. how? idk. honestly it's not important. it's a thing that is mostly lampshaded in this AU lol I just still wanted them to be turtles. I think Draxum is still here and he still wanted to make warriors using the Lou Jitsu DNA but the whole thing went astray and now he's just like their weird uncle they call sometimes when they have a problem

as they get older, various dangerous paranormal events convince Yoshi that he needs to begin training his sons in their clan's ancient arts and honing their psychic abilities, so that they can begin to restore balance in the world

uuuunfortunately he's super rusty and the kids are still learning so they have to do a lot of investigating of rumors and tips that get sent to them. this means a lot of legwork and a loooot of nothing. like 95% of what the boys deal with are misunderstandings, hoaxes, and rich assholes taking advantage of local legends for nefarious schemes

the other 5% though... those are the doozies

Yoshi has an apartment in New York that the kids grew up in but now they spend a lot of their time traveling the country in a big ass camper (van life)

also April is here

Leo

the skeptic

up until they ran into their first real paranormal occurrence, Leo was fully convinced that all this ghost stuff was nonsense and his dad was just trying to come up with some kind of publicity stunt since his acting career is behind him

after their first real paranormal occurrence, he believes it's real, but he's still super skeptical that most things they hear about are going to amount to anything

and 95% of the time he's right, which he always reminds his brothers of and this is very annoying to the rest of them

he still enjoys traveling around in the van though so he doesn't complain much

super good at scouting out clues and noticing things that the others don't...when they can get him to actually engage with what they're looking into

Leo is on the lower end in terms of psychic ability, but specifically his psychic powers have manifested as essentially a giant negation field. He can't be possessed, enthralled, hypnotized, or compelled, cryptids tend to shy away from him, he naturally rebuffs other supernatural creatures, etc.

this doesn't really help with trying to convince him that these things are real because they tend to run away from him

Donnie

fully believes that the paranormal is real but takes a highly scientific approach to it. he is going to crack the science behind ghosts and he's already got the spot in his room made for his resulting Nobel Prize. he's gonna be Donatello Hamato, Father of Ectobiology

builds them all kinds of ghost/demon/cryptid hunting gadgets, and is the one that handles all their equipment anywhere they go

reads books on ghosts and cryptozoology and then writes truly scathing reviews on good reads

is also the one who does upkeep on the van (it's only nice as it is because of Donnie)

claims to only care about evidence during a hunt but then has a tendency to get carried away when he thinks he's on the trail of something interesting

still, he can come around to a natural explanation like Leo if he sees enough evidence

he's also on the lower end in terms of psychic ability; what he does have gives him information. he's able to see the threads of how spirits connect to and interact with our world, able to tell at a glance when a footprint or dropping is not of natural origin (even if he's never seen it's kind before), able to sense when there may be some evidence the others can't see in the room. sometimes spirits are even compelled to beam knowledge directly to Donnie. also, demons or spirits trying to disguise their true faces doesn't work on him.

which actually freaks him out sometimes but he doesn't tell them that

the twins' psychic power also manifests in a lowkey Twin Sense in this AU; they can't literally read each other's thoughts, but they can feel when the other is having strong emotions or is in pain, and they'll just get a Bad Feeling if the other is in trouble of some kind

Raph

sits somewhere between Leo and Mikey/Donnie on the skepticism scale, but frankly he doesn't care if it's natural or supernatural as long as he can help

cryptids never like him and this bums him out. some of them are cute :c

on the flip side he seems to be a calming presence for certain spirits, especially childish ones

very scared of getting demon possessed, doesn't mention it

actually kind of loves when the solution turns out to be some kind of bad guy and then he gets to help hunt down and catch and unmask them, like some kind of super cool police detective

is the defacto leader because he's the oldest/biggest and no one else wanted the job anyway

drives the van when Yoshi doesn't want to (the others drive it sometimes too but Raph and April are the only ones with an actual license)

has a much higher psychic ability than the twins, able to sense when there is something supernatural in the area, able to talk to spirits, able to touch spirits and demons if they've crossed fully over into our world even if they are normally intangible. means he can punch a demon in the face if he wants to. he's able to do various rituals and exorcisms if needed as well, and can often banish spirits or demons if he knows what they are and how to best get rid of them. often does protection wards on his brothers when he thinks there's something dangerous around.

Mikey

a true believer, but doesn't think it's a puzzle that can be solved like Donnie does. there are things about the world and universe that are unexplainable, and he likes it that way

if the solution is something natural he's pretty much useless at helping though

"don't run off-" Mikey is already on the other side of the haunted house

is easily the most restless when cooped up in the van and prefers when they decide to camp at a campsite. loves sleeping outside.

Leo and Mikey are still close, but have a very highkey sibling rivalry over their differences of opinion with regards to the supernatural and what they're even doing

even still, Leo tries to stay close to Mikey to protect him (but Mikey often runs off so its a moot point)

unsurprisingly, Mikey is the strongest psychic of the bunch, and is in fact ridiculously strong. he can sense the presence of spirits, can communicate with them even if they haven't fully crossed over into our world, and can even do some minor mind reading and tell when people are being untruthful or compelled (he has to actively choose to do it though so his fam's privacy is safe. sometimes he gets visions of things that are about to happen. unfortunately he's also very vulnerable to possession and compulsion because of this, and cryptids are attracted to him, for good or ill. sometimes the things they cross are friendly or just looking for help, and Mikey is happy to do so! other times... not so much

April

she already believed in the supernatural before meeting the boys and meeting them just cemented her worldview for her

she loves ghost hunting/paranormal investigation for the thrill of it all

goes with the boys whenever she doesn't actively have to be in school; demands all the details when she can't be there

the one walking in yelling WHAT'S UP DEMONS, IT'S YA GIRL

along the way she picked up Mayhem and he's her pet now. he can teleport her to the boys if they need her help and she's still in New York

absolutely no psychic ability but she does have a bat

Yoshi

almost as powerful as Mikey, but retired

gives the boys lessons but otherwise usually stays in the van watching TV while they're actively investigating

only steps in if he thinks something terrible is about to happen

usually it's fine

[sircarrieart]

Had to make some character designs from class so I finally got an opportunity to make fully fleshed designs for @stradiivarrii and I's boys!!! I also had to make 2 props for each and two bed rooms so I did one for Ib and Jeep.

For those interested I'm gonna put some lore for each + thier whole story/deal below (it’s very long btw lol)

Okay so these guys like in the way future when Pangea reforms and creates a brand new super continent. They specifically live along what used to be the Indian Ocean/ in that area which is now called the Great Bay. At this point in time the Ocean is a big no-no zone for civilians and the government has banned even commercial vessels from going too far from the coast. Most civilians understand bc ya know, the oceans bigger and scarier now, no one knows what’s out there and no one wants to find out.

So where do these 3 come in?

Starting with Ibrahim; he works at the docks, working in ships. It’s mainly dismantling old ones, fixing up commercial ones and refurbishing personal vessels so they can’t go out into the open ocean. Ibrahim used to live with his older brother Jakob until Jakob joined a military research program called the Odyssey Expedition in hopes of answering his life long call to the sea. Jakob actually got his wish, going on an expedition into uncharted territory but ultimately went missing.

The military is well funded, and the Odyssey Expedition is specifically funded by the extremely rich scientist and politician, Hachiro Kintsugi, so Ibrahim knows they could’ve found Jakob and brought them home if they wanted to. Except they haven’t. In fact they’ve completely swept it under the rug. So when Ib starts getting S.O.S signals from somewhere in the ocean, he assumes it’s Jakob and takes matters into his own hands and starts stealing boat parts from work to fix up his own boat in hopes of using it to find Jakob. But not every part can be found at the docks.

Enter Jeep. Jeep’s a notorious thief and current leader of the Fiamme Ribelli, a small but powerful government resistance gang. Jeep doesn’t have much interest in fighting the government and essentially inherited the gang bc the original four leaders (his dad and uncles) got arrested during a particularly risky heist. Jeep’s been holding down the fort the best he can, keeping their main base (his childhood home) up and running. He even turned it into a little pawn shop/Robin Hood situation, selling what he steals from the rich and sells it back to his neighborhood.

Ibrahim piques Jeep’s interest when he comes by looking for boat parts and after getting the truth about his plan Jeep offers to help. He may be a bit of a criminal but he knows his way around an engine, always tuning up his beloved Jeep, and he’s got connections that’ll make this operation go much smoother.

Sometime after the two get to work Theseus comes along. Theseus is from the big city, in fact his family practically runs it. His father, Hachiro, as mentioned before is a well known and rich scientist with a focus on agricultural science. His mother, Elisabeth was an actress, a singer, a dancer, a painter. She’s had a career in ever art field known to man but now spends her days organizing events and using their immense wealth to fund vanity projects. Which includes funding their son’s android augmentations.

Theseus used to be flesh and bone until his lungs started failing as a kid. Through an experimental procedure he successfully had his lungs replaced with mechanical ones. And then other organs started failing and so they got replaced too. By the time he was 12 most of his internal organs were made of metal. He was both a medical and mechanical wonder and most of the population obsessed over him. By the time he was 15 Theseus was used to having his face or body on billboards and magazines, of having people know the intimate details about his he ticks and what his insides look like. Eventually the hyped died down, BUT oh no!! His mother noticed something was wrong with his leg! I guess he needs the knee joint replaced. And look, his arms a little stiff, he must need a new shoulder. By the time he was 20 his entire body, minus his head and hands were made of metal and Theseus had become a symbol for the innovative world, even becoming the face of Odyssey Expedition’s Innovation Department when it’s formed. He even met Jakob before the fateful trip and felt devastated and guilty when he was told they weren’t gonna try and bring him home.

Which is why when he hears the SOS signal and realizes Jakob’s little brother has been tapping into it Theseus decides to finally resolve his guilt and help him. But he tries his hardest to keep his identity a secret since he’s aware that he’s not as beloved outside of the city and Ibrahim has a very personal reason not to trust him

And that’s what I got for them so far!!! There’s one more member of this little crew named Quill that I wanna make a full design for and I wanna make both his and Theseus’s rooms too!! Plus I wanna make official designs for all the side characters too (bc there’s so so many that I absolutely adore lol). Idk if this will ever become a comic or what but I at least want to flesh out the lore and story and share it with you guys in some way!!

[musicalmoritz]

If Sakumei stay together and go further. What will their date and relationship belike? Family dynamics even (if they adopted kids)?

More on SakuMei! Alrighty so if they got back together I see them being much more mature and ready for a relationship than the first time around. It starts out very slow, they’re hesitant to get back together after what happened the first time. But since they’ve been friends for so long, they fall into a natural comfortability with one another

They enter a honeymoon phase, being the happiest they’ve ever been together. Their friends are happy to see them happy, although there’s some slight jealousy on Natsuhiko’s end. Mei is leaving the art room more and actually trying to enjoy her “life.” Sakura helps her work through her existential problems and figure out who and what she is. Mei helps Sakura make sense of their own feelings and learn how to express them. Instead of focusing so much on their own wants for a relationship, they focus on helping each other. And through that help, they both become comfortable expressing when they’re unhappy with something or want something in the relationship to change. Real healthy shit, we have left their toxic yuri days behind

As for the type of dates they go on, I think they’re very lowkey. They drink tea and read books in the broadcasting room, or in Sakura’s boundary. Due to the open space, their dates often turn into group hangouts, so if they want privacy it’s best to go to the art room or the library. The art room isn’t always safe as Nene and Tsukasa will barge in whenever they feel like it. But the library can get crowded too so really, this school is hell for these two introverts. They make it work though, once the students have cleared out it’s pretty vacant

If you haven’t noticed I’m a big filmbro and like to include movies in just about every fic I write. This is more of a Sakura/Natsuhiko thing but I apply it to other ships with them, I think Sakura would be rly into creepy/gory movies. They have tackled the Disturbing Movie Iceberg (I’m only two tiers down, I’m too sensitive to watch all that shit lmao) and like to make ppl watch gross movies with them. To Natsuhiko it’s a form of torture but Mei doesn’t care for fiction so she’s more indifferent (Ik a lot of the movies on the Iceberg are documentaries/home videos but shhhh we’re ignoring that for this). She complains but she doesn’t get scared or grossed out the way Natsuhiko does, it’s more that she’ll point out how unrealistic the special effects are and make fun of the bad writing. Bad movies are Sakura’s favorite though so they laugh along, that way they end up bonding over their judgemental natures. By the end, Mei might end up falling asleep on Sakura’s shoulder

Most of their dates involve them just sitting around and talking. They don’t always have to say something, but they can keep a conversation going very easily. Neither of them are that talkative in crowds but one-on-one they could yap for hours. Because of this they know each other super well, they’re able to keep up with each other’s interests and viewpoints. They get into deep, philosophical discussions often, which leads Sakura to lighten the mood with tea

Now let’s imagine them in another life where they’re both human and get to grow old together. OG Mei and No.4 Mei are twin sisters here bcuz I said so. I don’t see No.4 Mei doing art full time but she keeps it up as a hobby for whenever she’s stressed, partially because it’s something that connects her to Shijima. She would have an art room in her house full of paintings of Sakura and her family (credit to you for that hc lol). OG Mei absolutely becomes an art teacher tho. I could actually see No.4 Mei going into the medical field and becoming a doctor, since art isn’t really her thing I think she’d be more of a science person. There’s also more personal reasons for it, she wants to help kids that are going through what her sister went through

For Sakura it’s hard to say. I think they’d own some sort of gothic tea room. They sell tea there as well to make some extra income. Not that they need it with their rich doctor wife, but it’s a nice bonus. To commit to the bit they wear black vintage gowns to work every day. And their house is an old manor, funded mainly by the aforementioned doctor wife. One thing abt Sakura is they’re going to commit to an aesthetic. They host a lot of events at the tea room like murder mysteries/scavenger hunts, especially around Fall. Mei stops by each one to support her partner, and when she does she’s always the one to solve the mystery

They have a son, one of those cursed little Victorian boys. They also own an unreasonable amount of cats, all with very formal names. They’re very weird parents, but good ones. I’m getting Addams Family vibes. Mei also goes butch in the future so she can be the Gomez, trust. They encourage their son to learn healthy communication skills and take up hobbies so he can explore his interests and make friends. They’re also very loving towards one another, a very romantic couple. They end up having a wonderful life together, along with their son and many friends who crash the manor. Natsuhiko and Shijima pop in most often, along with Tsukasa and Aoi/Nene. On occasion Mitsuba will drag Kou up to visit but he always gets creeped out by the place. This would make a great family sitcom

Thank you for the ask mootie, I love talking abt SakuMei!!

[doppel-doodles]

Making a lil intro to all my lmk oc's cause I feel like it-

Note: pls ignore the inconsistent art, it's a placeholder till everyone has a proper illustration like Arthur lol-

Shui liu:

Once the heir to the fearsome koi clan, one of the celestial realms biggest enemies. Shui had betrayed her family and served the heavenly host as a high rank general who was so blood thirsty the title "the heavenly attack dog" was given to her by her fellow soldiers.

An early retirement due to foul play got her sent back to earth.

Over the centuries that ruthless personality seems to have vanished leaving behind a carefree and self assured woman, while her height and strength are intimidating it is hard to stay afraid for long when she acts like a giant,goofy teddy bear, ESPECIALLY around her twin daughters who she will become the biggest clown around just to make them smile.

Arthur Allard:

A child prodigy and now one of the most world renowned scientists in the fields of chemistry and biological engineering, Arthur had come to China along with his younger siblings to further his studies.

A quiet and aloof man who always has work on his mind and just seems to be somewhere else mentally a lot of the time. Constant exhaustion and worrying self care habits seem to be the norm for him, the same couldn't be more false for how he treats others possessing never ending fatherly care and kindness in his heart.

And behind all his mild manners hide many oddities,eccentricities maybe even just a bit of madness but he means well.

*vague mention of alcohol consume here

Adrien Allard:

A famous model in Europe but not so well known in Asia, he is Arthur's younger brother and chose to stay with him while their younger sister left to return back to France, by many claimed to be the spitting image of their father, a suave and charismatic young buisness man that can get a deal to always be in his favor.

The closer you get to him the more of his unsightly traits he reveals, a selfish,self destructive coward that has as much trust as a wounded animal and will run back to the bottle to hide from it all.

Klara Allard:

Oldest daughter of Arthur and Shui, just like her father she shows great potential in the art of science though her specialities lay in robotics and machinery, sadly though she hasn't been able to leave her home much on account of almost always being in terrible health.

Despite that struggle she is an incredibly lively and cheerful young girl. Her smile is contagious, lighting up a room in an instance as she talks and talks seeking to learn, making friends wherever she goes with curiosity and an open mind.

Her boundless energy, reckless attitude, just all around impulsiveness make her very hard to keep up with and just a tad exhausting.

Kathrin Allard:

The youngest of the family, Kathrin or better known as "Katie" is the only one of the daughters that has inherited her mothers demon genes and strength. Something she does not seem to be a fan of as she puts a lot of effort into hiding those traits.

Katie does not talk to strangers. She can't even look them in the eye, to her faces appear muddled and as if scribbled over with crayon making it even harder to get the courage to be around them.

Her own face doesn't do her any favours. On her face is always a smile, barely reacting to what happens around her, this is not by choice but it's not something she can explain so it just alienates her further from others.

[candycane969]

✨🎧🌆ROTTMNT DONATELLO HEADCANONS🌆🎧✨

made by me! candy! :3 no major spoilers

A quick guide!✨

💜 - Supported by canon (things that are pretty sure out there, maybe not confirmed 100% but yeah)

❤ - Kind of supported by canon (things that happened in the series that miiiight lead to some other stuff)

🧡 - My source is that I made it the fuck up (still trying to fit it into the character tho)

⭐ - Not sure if I'm taking this headcanon or not, but I do think It's pretty neat

💋 - Kinky! DISCLAIMER: Ive always seen the rottmnt boys (and April) in the age group from 17 to 19 and thats what I headcanon them as (as it is my own age group!). Ive seen the show and was fucking sure theyre my age and then a month or two later I was slapped in the face with thier actual age lol. I dont support any pedo shit, I also dont think minors can consent. Just putting it out there

Lets go!🌆💜🎧⭐✨

The 'Tism

• 💜 I think Its pretty fucking obvious that this boy is autistic, pretty much everything in the show supports this.

• ❤ Donny's headgear also works as noise cancelling headphones! He's often overwhelmed by background sounds and his gear makes it easier for him to live his life (either on missions or just spending time with his brothers and/or April). He still loves blasting his music on the highest volume tho. It's different when you consent to hearing your jams then when several people are talking at once and youre going crazy.

Tagging as kind of canon because he might have audio sensory issues because of his autism and you can reraly see him without the damn googles.

Different stims

❤ Foot stomping

❤ Hand flapping

🧡 Repeating a song/part of song over and over (yes, even if it has no words)

❤ Spinning on chairs

🧡 Pacing around the lab/the lair

• 💜 He knows ASL! Though It's never said in the show why he learned it, I believe that because he goes nonverbal often. Everyone in the lair can sign a bit because of that, but not everybody is too good at it. Donatello can communicate in ASL fluently.

Gender

• 🧡 Donatello never really felt connected to being "a men" and categorising things as "for boys" and "for girls" always seemed dumb to him. Shortly after Leo's coming out as a trans men (SURPRISE LEO HEADCANON) he went to talk to him about his gender experience. After some thinking and digging, Don came to the conclusion that he is in fact nonbinary. He still uses mostly male pronounces but always appreciates gender neutral pronounces coming his way.

Sexuality

• 🧡 While realising his own gender he also figured out that he doesn't really sees gender that seriously in others either. Men or women, its pretty much whatever to him. He doesn't like to label himself much when it comes to his sexuality, he accepts reffering to him as a pansexual or bisexual.

• 🧡 When it comes to dating Donatello doesn't imagine himself with anyone, really. He finds himself attractive, but doesn't think anyone would fancy him in a romantic way. He's not interessted much in dating either way. But he doesn't exclude dating someone in the future. It's just he won't go out of his way to look for love.

• ❤/🧡 Its obvious Don is a men of science, he's a genius when it comes to coding, math, engineering, I would say chemistry as well. Thats the field he feels the most comfortable in, but he loves learning new things in general. As long as there is interesting knowledge he can obtain, he will be there, soaking it like a sponge. He likes listening to info dumps, and probably listens to long ass video essays and/or podcasts.

• 🧡 Don likes to learn about others people hobbys and takes interest in learning about it. He likes showing others that he cares about something, even though Its something totally indifferent to him. For example, he knows lot about art making process from Mikey (Angelo even made him paint with him a couple of times!) even tho he doesn't really likes drawing and/or famous artists. No many people appreciate his work so he wants to show his appreciation to others.

• 💜 He is pretty low empathy most of the time. It's hard for him to relate to others, and can often feel like someone is overreacting. It's also challenging for him to put his feelings "out there". Which often makes him look unloving or unfriendly. And it couldn't be farther from the truth. He loves his brothers even though they bother him most of the time. And he loves April as well (though she never really troubled him much). He never really thinks that his low empathy is a flaw (more often he thinks about it as a blessing) but there rare are moment when he feels helpless because of it. He is glad that his family knows that he truly cares about them (and accepts any effort he puts in to express his feelings, even if it seems small).

• 🧡⭐ I've seen people headcanoning Donny as a baker and honestly I like it a lot. Cooking is Mikeys domain, and it suits him well, as it allows a lot of freestyling and just overall feeling. Baking and pastry making is very calculated and one miatake can ruin the whole thing. It reminds Don of engineering in a sense. Also baking is an easy way to get love and appreciation from his family because, cmon, he just made the most angelic fruit tarts in the whole universe, of course they're going to praise him. It also works as a stress relief. When feeling stumped and/or overwhelmed over a project or a situation he'll make something easy like brownies to get his mind of it.

• 🧡 He's very sentimental. He loves receiving gifts and will cherish and use them (even if he doesn't like it). He still has every "gamers dont die they respawn" Tshirt and every "dont fuck with my brother he was born in october and has autism" mug. Sometimes he REALLY wants to throw something away but god damn it this is painting Mikey did when he was ten and is just five splats of paint and thinking about him somehow finding out and crying about it might destroy him forever.

• 🧡⭐ This bitch reads fanfics, thats it. It started when he was around 13 or smth with Atomic Lass x Reader and now he knows all the fanfic lingo. He still might read something from time to time and writes very long and well written comments (with constructive criticism).

• 🧡 Speaking of which, Don writes perfect sentences while texting. All the correct spelling and punctuation. He also communicates with emojis and gifs like a millenial.

Food, TW: drinking!

• 🧡 He has a rather strong head, you cant make him drunk that easily. But when it finally happens, youre in for a ride. Shutting him up is near impossible, he will talk non-stop but with much less eloquence then while sober. Its extremely easy to make him laugh, so Leo absolutely loves it. He often looses track of what hes saying and starts completely different rant. Overall a chaotic mess. Really fun to witness it at least once. His beverage of choice is either fun cocktails or beer (tho rarely and/or only with some kind of juice because he doesn't like the fizziness on his tongue).

• 🧡 And that takes us to Donatello that hates fizzy drinks. He hates carbonated beverages, no matter if its cola or champagne. The feeling on his tongue and in his mouth makes him really uncomfortable. When there is no other choice but to drink up some bubbless, he leaves it open for as long as he can to get rid of them. His brothers despise him for that.

• 🧡 He doesn't like weird food combos either and is rather picky. When ordering food Don sticks to what he knows not to risk an uncomfortable texture touching his mouth. Texture is the most often reason for him not liking a specific food. Donnys pretty strict to preparing food as well (the way he does a thing is The Correct Way and no other exception is acceptable). Also he puts milk first so his cereal doesn't get soggy.

• 🧡 I feel like he likes fruit juices in boxes and fruit mousses but this is pretty random 🤷

• ❤/🧡 He wears contacts! We've seen little Donny with glassess, so I assumed he wears contacts now. When he knows he will be spending all day in the lair (for example because of an injury) he still has a pair of glassess he uses. And yes, he tapes them to the head. Because he rarely ever wears them, he never came up with a solution for not having ears and needing glassess.

• 🧡 ABSOLUTELY hates smoking. Will go on a rant if he sees someone he knows smoking. He absolutely despises the smell and WILL take it out of someones mouth/hand and throw it away. Appreciates the fun smells of vapes but still hates them. Will call vapers losers (maybe not exacly in these words but he will for sure).

• 🧡 Really good at makeup, but not as good as Leo is (ANOTHER SURPRISE LEO HEADCANON). He spend years perfecting his eyebrows of course. He also wears eyeliner because serving cunt is important even on the battlefield. From time to time you can see his nails painted as well.

• 🧡⭐ While being flustered or simply distracted he stutters a lot, mostly in a way of repeating whole words or parts of a sentence ("Its good because- Its good- Its good because I um- Its good-")

• 🧡 Enjoys taking very long baths, and actually prefers them much more then showers. Can stay underwater for a rather long time as well!! Being fully submerged calms him down a lot and its overall very relaxing for him.

• 🧡⭐ Ive seen a lot of takes that without his battle shell, he is really flexible (due to having a soft shell). And I like the idea. I think, that before sitting infront of a screen (or a desk in general) to do his work for several hours he stretches deeply so his back won't be so sore later. Also a reason to draw Donny in yoga poses and thats always cool.

• ❤ Makes up shit to fuck with his brothers. Like just spreading misinformation and gaslighting them for shit and giggles. Or to get them to leave him alone for a while. Also will gaslight them if they somehow find out that he was lying ("what? you must have heard me wrong then 🙄💅")

• 💜/❤ Loves singing and dancing!!! Aint the best singer (tho I love his songs in the show Im kissing him as we speak) but is a gorgeous dancer! He finds it incredibly fun and feels fabulous while doing it. Also Im pretty sure dancing counts as stimming so add it to the list. Dances solo like 90% of the time but really enjoys dancing in pairs (dances with April a whole lot when they get the chance!).

• ❤ He rarely laughs out loud, but when he does it is loud and messy. A good joke can make him think about it all day and continue laughing for a long time. Not my og take, Ive seen this headcanon before and I love it so so much :3

• 🧡 From all his brothers, he kind of wishes to be human the most of them all. Its not a big big wish, he does think of himself as very unique individual and takes pride of being a mutant. But sometimes while hanging out with April he can get lost in his thoughts of "what ifs". Maybe in the process of making a cloaking accessory.

• 🧡 His handwriting is god-awful. All scribly and fucked up like Doctors writing. Unfamiliar eye would not decipher a word out of it, but Don knows exactly what everything means. But he mostly writes digitally.

• ❤ Dons dislike of hugging is canon, but I do believe he likes being touched on his head and face (head pats, cheek rubs, scratches). He enjoys hand holding when it's appropriate as well.

• 💋 Im headcanoning the boys to go through mating season once a year (except mikey cuz he small) everyone at a different time. It would be similiar to an ovulation but much more horny (with also fever symptoms). Don would be the second after Raph to get it. While in heat he doesn't go feral or anything, but after a few days stops working because he cant focus on his craft. Waves of sudden temperature changes (mostly high heat) with really horny thoughts and hypersensitivity to pretty much everything...yeah not the best work environment. He spends his  most intensive days closed off in his lab or room because he really doesn't want his family to see him like this (the rest of the turtles are in thier rooms during thier mating time as well for the same reason). Also add being possessive while having a SO, and also veeery easy to irritate.

• 💋 Donny takes on a more submissive role while being intimate, even though he loves to be in charge all the time. But he isn't a bottom either, I would put him perfectly in the middle as a switch (more leaning on that sub part tho).

• 💋 His biggest turn on is smell. Like someones natural smell, no perfumes and all. He likes to snuggle in the crook of the neck and take it all in. This becomes cranked up to eleven during mating season, as he absolutely cannot stop sniffing. Would love his significant other to leave him clothes with thier smell on it and sleep and/or snuggle with it.

Might add more later but thats all for now :3💜

Hope you enjoyed it⭐✨

[jadevine]

Braiding Sweetgrass (and science)

So I said I'd finally start reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer this week and Friday still counts, lol.

Anyway I've gotten a couple of warnings about how this is not just a book about "PLANTS PLANTS PLANTS, THEY'RE SO GREAT," but also how Indigenous knowledge of plants relates to colonization, the environment, and Kimmerer's family/cultural history as a Native woman. I'm going to need some breaks between reading sessions, although it's not so much "upsetting" for me as "heavy." On the other hand, I find this book comforting as the contrast to Kimmerer's situation, a scientist trying to find the art/beauty in her field: I'm a non-white artist who has a habit of ending up in white science spaces because I need to research stuff, and the constant compartmentalization of "Art/lived-experiences(TM) versus "Science/Study-Of-Other-Experiences(TM)" just grates on me.

Disclaimer: I know this is being changed/resisted against in recent times, but art/artists still tend to be seen by scientists as "not knowledgeable (in the right manner)."

Against my better judgement, I saw a Reddit post asking "how do populations/ethnicities with dark hair and eyes tell each other apart?" and after I inwardly sighed and gave them a list of "different traits that people have," I mentioned that this question is a VERY common dog-whistle for racism, and since it has such an easy answer, I wasn't sure why it was in a SCIENCE forum (or why it was kept in a science forum, instead of just suggesting that the OP cross-post it and ask some non-white people about it).

I got at least one scientist irritated at how irritated I was, and I was told, "you're a writer/actor, so you probably shouldn't be posting so much in a post on a SCIENCE forum. Please let the actual scientists handle this question."

And I was like (obviously paraphrased--my actual response was longer), "Okay then, can you tell me why I have only ever seen people panicking about "How do random Asians/non-white-folks in a city/country tell each other apart on the street?" regarding LARGE populations, when that is not how most people experience daily life? Like, hearing this question is as weird as asking, 'how do people in Paris tell each other apart when most of you speak French?' Like... Manila residents do not keep detailed police profiles on every other resident, I promise."

While I wait for someone to either ignore me or answer my question that piggybacks on the main post, I'm channeling Princess Leia and thinking, "Help me, Non-White Anthropologist. You're my only hope." But given my luck, I might get "helped" by someone who's more Anthropologist than Asian, and they're ALSO going to tell me to be nicer to people who are just asking questions.

Maybe I should have scrolled past this question and let everyone else talk about 'how do Asians/non-white-people distinguish each other when they all have dark hair and eyes?' without my tired Filipino ass coming in with, "WE TELL PEOPLE APART BY LOOKING AT EACH OTHER, DUHHHHH. Here's 100 traits to distinguish your average human from another one, you'll find that hair-color and eye-color are only two."

[german-enthusiast]

hi im sorry this questons isnt in German but im not confident in my ability and I can only read some of your shorter German posts. Do you have any way to learn more than just buzz words? Like I can understand bits and pieces but reading still is really hard for me, I'm asking because of your recent post lol its okay if you cant help me, thank you for your time!

Hi! No need to ask in German, no worries!

It would be interesting to know how you've been learning so far and for how long!

At the start of learning a language by yourself, it often makes sense to choose a pre-planned curriculum such as a textbook or online course (a free online example that's quite solid would be the DW Deutsch Lernen program!) That way you learn basic grammar concepts and words that connect to whole sentences instead of merely disconnected buzz words.

Beyond the basics, I believe it makes most sense to focus on the topics that are important to you personally and try to curate your resources based on that. Be it hobbies (learn sports vocab, art vocab, history vocab etc), aspects of your personal life (talking about family history, queerness, mental health, etc), your field of study/work (talking about science, art, linguistics, crafts, etc), or interests (like analyses of video games, literature, movies, historical events, politics, etc).

If you're dependent on buzz words, it sounds like you need a larger vocabulary overall and maybe going (back) to the basics will be worth it! A good way to figure out what vocab you're missing is to create output and see where you're stuck (though of course you always can understand more than you can produce!)

Most of the time, I don't hold back with my posts (i rather add to my complicated sentences than dumb them down!) so don't judge yourself too harshly based on them!

[hurricane105]

Favorite books of 2024!

Ok fair warning: most of the traditionally published stuff I read is nonfiction. Lots of science and prehistory stuff in here.

I Contain Microbes by Ed Yong: This was a reread. I had forgotten how beneficial most kinds of bacteria are - and that disinfecting every single thing in our houses isn't always the best move (spoiler: it's linked to rises in autoimmune disorders).

Eager by Ben Goldfarb: This one is all about beavers (be prepared to get some weird looks when people ask what you're reading). Beavers are a rodent, and there's a tendency to treat them as vermin. But they're an important part of the ecosystem, creating wetlands much more efficiently than humans can.

This got long so I'm putting the other recs under a cut

Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death, and Art by Rebecca Wragg Sykes: Story time! I was raised in a religion that didn't think any humans other than homo sapiens had ever existed - they made fun of people who believed in evolution and thought it was all a bunch of baloney based off of like, two teeth and a fingerbone. Spoiler! There's dozens of Neanderthal skeletons (and that's not even counting other species of humans, like Denisovians and heidelbergensis; the rant about hiding evidence to be misleading can wait for another day). What I didn't realize before reading Kindred was that Neanderthals weren't the stumbling, grunting hairy humans I had always subconsciously assumed. This book is top tier for me, solely because it has so much new information.

Never Home Alone: from Microbes to Millipedes, Camel Crickets, and Honeybees, the Natural History of Where We Live by Rob Dunn: This was also a reread. You might think you're the only one living in your house - but there's zillions of other animals in there with you.

Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake: Also a reread. Along with a lot of other people, I had always overlooked fungi as being rather uninteresting. However, I was wrong! There's so much packed into this book (the author's experience taking a fermentation bath, how mycelium can be used to make furniture, and how cordyceps take over ants) - it completely rearranged how I see fungi.

Brilliant Green by Stefano Mancuso: I wound up reading this one twice, back to back, to look for things for BOTW Zelda to ramble about in Link Goes Undercover. It's short but has a lot of examples of how plants live just as vibrantly as we do - they move, sleep, and signal to one another, in ways science is only just starting to understand.

An Immense World by Ed Yong: This book is about how animals perceive the world differently than we do. Not just in terms of different colors of vision and scent sensitivity, but also in things like how whales and birds migrate using the earth's geomagnetic field (which is why there are more whale strandings when there's a solar storm - their internal GPSes are messed up). Top tier for this year for sure!

Underland by Robert Macfarlane: An in-depth (lol) look at what's going on under the earth's surface. For example, what potash mining looks like, what scientists study when they pull ice cores out of the Arctic, and did you know that there's a cave in China that creates its own weather system - clouds, rain, the whole nine yards?

Joyful by Ingrid Fetell Lee - also a reread. Several years ago I went on a 'what exactly does comfortable home design look like' reading kick, and this was one of the books I found the most helpful. For example, circles tend to feel bouncier and brighter than other shapes - think of things like bubbles and those round windows on staircases in Victorian houses.

What If? and What If? 2 by Randall Munroe: these are together because they're very similar content - if you liked one you'll probably like the other. These are just fun applications of physics.

Breath by James Nestor: Okay I'll admit it, I was extremely skeptical about this one. The author claims that everything from waking up at night for the bathroom to fuzzy thinking can be solved by breathing through your nose. So I tried it, sure it wouldn't work but figuring I had nothing to lose. And shockingly, it does help everything he said it would AND MORE. I've never had much stamina for things like running - I'd get out of breath before my muscles gave up. But breathing through my nose solves that and all the other problems he discusses. So it's definitely worth a shot, even if you're also sure it won't work for you.

[fallynleaf]

Hey, I saw a post you made that mentioned that you went to school for star trek fanzines?? How on earth did you manage that, it sounds like a dream come true!!

it started with me seeing an article about the University of Iowa's fanzine collections! i think it was this exact article from this post in 2015. i had just graduated with my bachelor's degree and was considering going into library science at the time, but my state only had one school with an accredited master's degree program, and i hadn't gotten in the first year i applied to it, so i was sort of trying to figure out what i wanted to do next with my life.

when i read that article, i was really impressed by the University of Iowa special collections having a partnership with the Organization for Transformative Works, so on a whim, i looked to see if they had an accredited library science program. the answer was YES.

i started seriously considering actually applying there, and i found out that they also offered a dual library science master's along with a graduate certificate in book arts, so i thought i'd apply to that program and see what happened.

to my surprise, they accepted me! i also lucked out and managed to get a job that would cover most of my tuition and expenses, so it ended up being actually way cheaper for me to go despite being out of state lol. the downside was that i had to live in Iowa...

but grad school ended up being an amazing experience for me, and my professors were all super awesome and encouraged me to pursue my interests without being at all judgmental of me wanting to learn about fanzines, so i focused heavily on fan culture librarianship, and i spent a lot of time talking to Pete, the curator mentioned in that article, haha (he's extremely knowledgeable and also has so much respect toward fan culture. just a really great guy all-around; he truly deserves the opportunities he's gotten there).

i also studied zines from a book arts perspective, and learned about the history of the medium and got to meet one of the main scholars who is studying zines and archives.

i spent the rest of my degree taking way too many extra book arts credits (i actually applied for a full dual master's, an MFA in book arts along with the master's in library science, but i barely didn't get in (ended up being for the best in the long run, as i graduated right before covid lol), so i just have a graduate certificate in book arts and not a double master's degree). i took my required library science credits and did as many of my projects as i could about zines and fan studies stuff, haha, and then i filled the rest of my time by learning literally every book arts skill offered at UIowa.

there was surprisingly quite a bit of synergy between the two! special collections has quite a few people working there who also specialize in book arts stuff, so they got very familiar with me as a fellow librarian and also as a regular patron of special collections, either for my book arts classes or just because i kept visiting in order to read the Star Trek fanzines in my spare time, hahaha.

it's sort of an oblique angle to approach fanzines from, because most of what i studied was sort of, like, studying around the content, like i studied the material conditions that zines were made in as well as some of the issues with storing, archiving, and studying them rather than, like, analyzing the actual content of the zines, but it did put me frequently in contact with the zines and greatly expanded my understanding of pre-internet fandom.

the downside was that i ended up with a pretty print-material-heavy library degree (with some additional specialized knowledge that isn't very applicable in most library settings, since fanzine collections aren't exactly common...), and covid ended up largely killing my desire to remain in the library field.

so in terms of careers, i'm not sure it really did a whole lot for me (though in terms of personal growth it was a really incredible time and i don't regret it at all). i've pivoted away from libraries and back toward writing as my main career goal, and have spent the past few years also trying to learn Japanese translation so that i could maybe pursue that as a career. i concluded i need a work from home job, basically, lol.

i'm actually considering eventually reaching out to some of my book arts connections and seeing if i could find extremely niche work translating like Japanese papermaking stuff for English-speaking book conservators and such HAHA. but i'm waiting for my Japanese skill to be better before i try looking into that, since i'm not qualified at this point for any sort of professional translation work.

in the meantime, i've been learning translation by practicing with pro wrestling, hahaha. (i got into pro wrestling like two months before i finished grad school lol)

now my library degree lives on inside of me mainly through the work i've done volunteering with the OTW, some small zine projects and other book arts stuff i've done, and me using my book arts supplies/know-how to create materials for doing activism.

[dragonmarquise]

Bro i love reading your brc headcanons, do you have more about the futurism and eclipse crew members that date each other? I think i saw it mentioned in one of your posts and the idea lives in my head rent free

Ahhh thank you!! ;u; And I have a few for them! Maybe not as extensive as my other BRC ships but still.

Before I get into headcanons, just want give a shoutout again to this awesome art by @monkiinart which inspired me to ship these two in the first place! ;u;

So then, the two particular characters here, at least for my headcanons, are Nyx (FUTURISM spring palette, joins BRC in the post game) and Aquila (Eclipse summer palette, the one with dark brown hair).

First, the set up for them dating:

Nyx decided to just be blunt and asked Aquila for her number. Aquila of course thinks it’s just a trap, with the two of them being on rival crews and all. She challenges Nyx to a series of score challenges, five in a row, but is genuinely impressed when Nyx manages to nail all of them!

A quick script-thing of part of their exchange after Nyx finishes the challenges:

Nyx: So, am I getting those digits or what? Aquila: Still hoping for that, huh? You’re either very brave or very stupid. Nyx: Why not both?

That actually gets a laugh out of Aquila, and she figures, fine, why the hell not. They start texting/calling each other, and eventually go on dates, and then the rest is history!

And now other random bits:

Not quite related to them as a couple I think? But Aquila is femme and Nyx is butch, just saying. :u

At first, Nyx was pretty flustered around Aquila on their dates, partially in a “Holy crap I’m actually dating her now, what the hell do I do” kind of way. Which contrasts a lot with her usual calm and confident personality! Even after a while of dating, Nyx is still sometimes flustered around her girlfriend. Aquila herself doesn’t mind, she thinks it’s cute and will say as much. Which makes Nyx even more flustered most of the time, lol

Aquila does yoga and has gotten Nyx into it too. Nyx has also been getting Aquila more into video games, she’s found she enjoys turn-based RPGs the most.

Nyx tends to be snarky with others, even to friends and people she respects like DJ Cyber. Aquila is the only person to whom Nyx drops the snark. Likewise, Aquila is usually fairly dismissive of others outside of Eclipse, especially any rival writers, but with Nyx she’s genuinely respectful and kind. Not to mention they’re both very loving towards each other!

Favorite guilty pleasure for both of them is watching cheesy rom coms and romantic dramas together!

Aquila’s day job is as the director of a science museum in New Amsterdam. She loves it and often brings up science topics while she’s on dates with Nyx, like new research projects and discoveries across a whole bunch of science fields. She’s really happy with how Nyx is interested in this stuff too and can keep up with her.

Though, sometimes Nyx has to look up a ton of stuff afterward to get a better understanding of certain things they talk about. Usually with topics that she isn’t already familiar with. But hey, she gets through it for her girlfriend!!

Aquila has been meaning to try out cooking new recipes and stuff, but she would often put it off. Now that she’s dating Nyx, she has encouragement for cooking more, plus a taste tester for new recipes!

I mentioned in the FUTURISM post that Nyx sometimes gets into little prank wars with Cueball. She does “pranks” on Aquila too, but instead of like, scary or annoying pranks, it’s more like hiding positive and lovey-dovey notes for Aquila to find~

I think that’s about all I have… for now! If I end up brainstorming more stuff, I’ll either add them here or make a new separate post. :D

[mell0bee]

tagged by @candiedjellybean thank u dude!!! im p sure ive done this tag sometime last year so will be interesting to see if my answers have changed

Are you named after anyone? unfortunately, st. brigid of ireland, but also apparently it's a name thats been in my dad's side of the family too? either way my parents knew of the name due to irish catholic reasons. yipee! though im cool with it bc st. brigid used to be the goddess brigid from irish myth, and also both of them were badasses <3

When was the last time you cried? .....genuinely i think the last time i cried was in like. early march when i watched the holdovers? i think? taking a break from college has greatly decreased the frequency at which i cry lmao

Do you have kids? no sir

Do you use sarcasm a lot? i guess yes? probably about as much as the average person (this is not sarcasm)

What sports do you play? i do not play any currently (though i probs should. i am built like a twig and a strong wind will knock me over.) but as a kid i used to play soccer which i hated and was god awful at and softball which i liked more but i was also god awful at and mostly spent my time hitting foul balls and playing with the grass in right field. but it was fun!

What’s the first thing you notice about people? uhhhhhh. uh?????? if they're wearing a cool outfit or have cool hair or smth? idk man. i guess i dont rlly think abt it?

What’s your eye color? brown

Scary movies or happy endings? uh. both? am p sure my tolerance for horror is a lot higher than most people and im always down for a tragedy but i also like happy endings too. though from a writing perspective happy endings are significantly easier to pull off than sad ones (& more common. hero's journey and all that).

Any special talents? uhhhhh im double jointed in my thumbs. also i can put my foot behind my head. is that a talent? im also working on my sudoku time, i think my lowest time for master difficulty is around 6 mins 30 seconds? which is uh. above average?? i think???

Where were you born? idk apparently they cloned me in a lab somewhere

What are your hobbies? lately playing a lot of video games, writing (mostly fanfic), art stuff (mostly drawing but am learning how to use watercolor), uhhhh.... ttrpgs but i havent gotten to play in a while sadly

Do you have any pets? dog!!!!!

How tall are you? 5'3

Favourite subject in school? science

Dream job? ahahahah funny you should ask that, i say, having been doubting my choices in career aspirations and my post-undergrad 5-year plan that i've had since high school for the past 7 months, (please send help. but. for a serious answer. i think i still want to do science research? just maybe in a softer science like psych even tho my undergrad is bio & neuro???? idk. unsure.)

tagging uhhhhhhh candiedjellybean already tagged most of the ppl i usually tag sooo @halflingkima ? i think i tagged u last time too lol. & anyone else who wants to do this!!!