#my bets are Japan or America

[localgardenweed]

You thought i was done with just 1p?? No we going all the way. Same rules as before this is a DEFINATE answers they know by heart and get it first try not a hunch or a lucky guess

[mistyechoes]

what would be the disadvantages of using a sea turtle for a tmnt species

[paper-mario-wiki]

hey, can I ask you for some advice? sorry if this is uncalled for or you just can't answer this, I understand if so

how did you work up the courage to actually get to HRT so fast? I've found out I was a trans woman around when I was 15 and im about to have my 23rd birthday, and due to my financial/working/academic/housing (I live w my fairly conservative parents) situation it does not look like it's in the cards for me any time soon. but also I feel like I should just try to find a way and try to start out ASAP, for the sake of my own happiness. but also im afraid of whatll happen if things go Topsy turvy and I need housing from a family that thinks I'm a freak. how did you do it? again, apologies if this ask feels unwarranted or to big to ask to "Funny lady play tf2 dot blog", but I'm fine if this doesn't see an answer

First of all, I don't have insurance, so keep in mind that I did it out of pocket (note: I am broke).

I used Zocdoc (America only, sorry) to find a hormone therapy consultation, went to that appointment, and they referred me to an endocrinologist. After I got some blood tests done, I got prescribed a 30 day supply of sublingual Estradiol for about $16, again, without insurance. Now, this is of course in Biden's Seattle so it might not be as easy where you are. But at least for me, the process from booking the first appointment, all the way to taking the first pill was about half a month, because I got lucky finding a doctor. During covid, according to my endocrinologist, there was a HUGE explosion of people wanting to medically transition, so a very common thing I've heard is that a lot of doctors are booked out for months. I was lucky enough to get this appointment on Sep 1st, because the next person available in my area wouldnt have gotten me in until November.

Critically, here's my main piece of advice: You can't start until you take the first real action towards accomplishing it outside of your head. You can think, and plan, and crystalize how great it would be if it happened, but you have to actually make the first step and google "HRT doctors in my area", and schedule an appointment. To do it, you must first do it. This goes for many things in life. Simply starting the processes instead of keeping them in my head had me accomplishing many things I never thought I actually would, like starting HRT, going to university in Japan, and moving to Seattle.

Many people like me, including maybe you, are really good at getting in your own head and thinking of every possible way something could go wrong, or could be denied to you. And you get so tied up in the reasoning that you forget about the Doing. To the best of your ability, try to stop thinking, and just start doing. Anything. Choose to do something that you have wanted to for a while. Just one thing. Doesn't have to be buying a plane ticket to France, or confessing a huge secret, maybe start with that thought you had the other day of "ya know I bet pottery on those big goofy wheels is fun" and google 'pottery wheels near me' and see where it takes you. It's easier than you'd think to try. And who knows, at the end of this process maybe you'll have a beautiful vase. Or, even better, a vase with a personality, flaws, and a new hobby that you're excited to get better at.

[diedraechin]

[Sneak Peek] What Chapter are we on now????

Chapter 52? Really? Damn.

Anyway, I have like one half of a scene to write before giving this to Io to edit, but I didn't want you all to think I've forgotten you since we're in the midst of the Grand Prix series. Besides the spills in the Skate Canada Men's Short (I'm still in the process of watching) reminded me of the even splattier place I left you hanging... So I thought I'd give you some fan chatter from the stands as a treat!

I did cut a bit out for length because I needed the set up but wanted to end on a specific punchline. So just know that there is more back and forth as a certain pole dance instructor gets a Katsuki lesson... 😉

“Ok. I found it.” Tabitha squinted at her phone. “He’s skating in the second to last group according to Skate Trails.” She looked away from her phone and over at her wife. “I don’t really keep up with Men’s though, so I can’t tell you anything about Katsuki.”

Jade just shook her head and leaned back into her seat. “That’s fine. I just wanted to see if we’d missed his skate because it’d be nice to see how he does.”

“I didn’t realize that you were a Katsuki fan!” One of the women behind them leaned forward. Jade and Tabby had chatted with her during the Pairs event earlier before going off on their antiquing adventure with the friends they were staying with during the break between the Pairs event and the Men’s. Though they’d ended up missing most of the first two groups all together since dinner had gone long. Still, it was kind of nice to see a familiar face. While Jade had known this was going to be an all day thing, it was really an all day thing.

<snip snip for excerpt length>

“I heard that a Grand Prix thing is coming to Detroit.” Jade was just happy to have something to add to the conversation.

“Really?!” Tabitha looked at her. “To Detroit? I haven’t looked to see where Skate America was going to be next season yet.”

Katsuki fan nodded. “Oh yeah. And I really hope that Yuuri gets assigned since he trains in Detroit because I will definitely drive down from Guelph if he does. I’d love to see him live again. And when the events are smaller like Grand Prixs, it can be easier to meet the skaters if they have the time and inclination.”

"Time and inclination? Katsuki?" No one could miss the snark from Newcomer, but given that she knew Yuuri wasn't the most...forward person, Jade didn't exactly disagree.

Katsuki fan smacked her hands on her thighs. "Let me dream!" Then she broke out into a wide smile and laughed.

“Looks like they’re going to let them onto the ice.” Katsuki fan’s friend said as she shook her friend's arm.

Jade and Tabitha turned around in their seats and sure enough, almost as soon as they settled, the announcer was declaring the start of the group and the skaters all took off onto the ice, some handing things off to the people standing on the other side of the boards as the six skaters scattered across the ice.

“I can’t tell who is who.” Jade said.

“Fluffy hair in the Japan jacket is Murata, he’s the other Japanese skater. Slicked back hair is Yuuri.” Katsuki fan said.

Over the speakers, the announcer started calling out the names of the skaters and the country they represented and each skater was greeted with cheers and applause even though none of the skaters broke from their warmup to acknowledge it. Behind them, Katsuki’s fan cheered for each skater but was especially loud when Yuuri’s name was called, shouting “Yuuri, Ganbaaaaa!”

On the ice, Yuuri unzipped his jacket as he headed to the boards and he handed it over to someone there.

“Oh my god! Is that Kai Tamm?! Kai showed up?! Hallelujah!” Katsuki fan certainly sounded overjoyed. “Should have been checking the forums, I bet her showing up was already mentioned.”

So did her friend. “My prayers have been answered! Do you think if I pray hard enough, he’ll come to his senses and go back to Alexei?”

Jade glanced over her shoulder at them.

“Kai is the assistant coach at the Detroit Skate Club that Yuuri works with. She’s the tiny Hawaiian woman next to the idiot Italian with the big hair who is supposed to be Yuuri’s coach. Sorry, I’m just from the side of Yuuri’s fandom who isn’t really pleased with how Cialdini is coaching our boy.”

And when Jade looked back, it was the woman who was talking to Yuuri as he nodded. Another skater came up and stopped in a way that sprayed Yuuri with ice, but Yuuri just leaned over and brushed the crystals off his black pants without looking away from the woman.

“Rude.” Tabitha muttered. “Shouldn’t he get in trouble?”

“It’s Michele Crispino. It wouldn’t be a competition where they competed together without Yuuri getting sprayed by a Michele hockey stop.” And as Newcomer finished their commentary, Michele left the boards, but not without patting Yuuri once on the shoulder. Without looking Yuuri held out a thumbs up to the other skater which Yuuri’s coach seemed to approve of since he looked like he was laughing.

“Michele is going to regret that because KAI IS HERE!” Katsuki’s fan cheered. A few people around them chuckled.

“Using the Goncharov (1973) soundtrack for his Free is reason enough for Mickey to come ahead of Katsuki!” someone commented.

“Are you a Mickey fan or a Goncharov fan?” Newcomer asked.

“Does it matter?” came the reply.

[floralcavern]

My opinion on the IDF

(Because, yes, despite me being Pro-Israel, I still have ✨thoughts✨)

People need to stop comparing the I/P conflict to the Holocaust. It is nothing like the Holocaust and Israel is nothing like Germany. And you making that comparison really shows how little you actually know about WW2. Read any history book. Read Anne Frank, or Night. In fact, the closest thing to the Holocaust that is happening in this war is what is happening to the Israeli hostages. They are under way more of those conditions. 

No. If we are to ever compare this to any other war, it is more similar to the Vietnam War. 

The IDF is very similar to US soldiers in Vietnam.

Look. We can all agree that US was on the right side of Vietnam. They were helping the Southern Vietnamese from the Northern Vietnamese. So when you hear “They were on the right side/good side” you automatically think they were the good guys. Wonderful heroes. And, yes, Vietnam veterans were heroes. But they did some fucked up shit. 

For example, according to one veteran, one time when one of his friends had been murdered, out of anger, they all burned an entire town down. US soldiers took out a lot of their frustrations and anger onto the Vietnamese. So while we all agree that they are on the right side and are the good guys, they did some fucked up shit. Stuff that cannot be excused at all. 

Another example is in WW2! We all think of the allies as the good guys! They fought against the terrible Nazis and yadada. America was on the good side, they were one of the main sides that took down Germany! So while we acknowledge that America was the right side the be on, we cannot forget the horrible things they did. For example..

They had Japanese concentration camps. 

Bet you didn’t know that. 

The reason for this was because the amount of violence they saw and experienced was involved with Japan. They were traumatized but it is no excuse to do something like that!

America was the right side, but they weren’t the perfect military. 

No military is perfect!!!!!!!!!!!

That includes the IDF. 

But here’s the thing, on the side of the ‘good guys’, usually when there’s extremely violent people in the military, there are usually two reasons for this. 

They have experienced horrors beyond comprehension while fighting on the battlefield, causing them to become jaded and bitter

Or 

2. They were always a violent person and they joined the war to take that out onto others. 

It is the tragic reality that every single military has people like this. It is history. The historical ‘good guys’ did horrible things as well. 

That brings me back to the Vietnam War. 

The soldiers saw so many horrible things that could actually compare very well to what the IDF has seen. 

US soldiers had no way to tell if a citizen was Northern Vietnamese or Southern Vietnamese. 

Usually by the time they learned, it was too late. 

There are stories of US soldiers having a Vietnamese child come up to them, holding something. About to give them a gift! But when they opened their hand, they were holding a grenade. 

That is so similar to what Hamas is doing. They use suicide bombers and child soldiers. Things like that will create an idea of they can’t trust anyone. Anyone could be out to hurt them and there’s the idea of almost animalistic fighting for survival. How can you trust when Hamas could literally send a child out to kill you?!

So, really, if you think about it, the US soldiers of the Vietnam War are very similar to the IDF. 

That sense of they can’t trust anyone, violence due to the trauma and being surrounded by enemies trying to do the same fucking thing (hell, Hamas has been committing terrorist attacks on Israel for years now). Even what the two sides fight for are somewhat similar! 

The US fought to help the Southern Vietnamese and gain freedom from their Northern neighbors. Israel is fighting for freedom from their neighbors who are constantly attacking them and freeing Palestinians from their oppressive government. 

It starts out virtuous and those ideas do carry on for the most part, but it also dissolves into animalistic violence and anger because of the shit they have seen.

Also, the way US Vietnam soldiers were treated in America is actually really similar to how Americans treat the IDF. 

Nowadays when we meet a Vietnam veteran, we comment on how brave they are and how they’re a hero. Back then, though? Ohhhhh boy. Americans hated them. When soldiers would come home, Americans would yell at them, spit on them, etc. Now, doesn’t that sound familiar?

So, TLDR;

I support Israel and I support the IDF in the same way I support America in WW2 and the Vietnam War. They’re on the right side and have virtuous intent, but they sure as hell aren’t perfect and have done some fucked up shit. Yknow. Like every other military in the world. The sad reality we live in. Not everything is black and white.

[writingquestionsanswered]

Have you got any advice/resources for non US writers trying to write something set in America? The internet is so US centric that it’s kind of tricky to find research sources that don’t assume you know a lot of things already, making it difficult to work out cultural differences I should be aware of, or to find points of reference I can properly understand. I need a part of my story to take place in the US and I want it to fee asl accurate as I can get it (but I can’t afford to fly over)

Non-U.S. Writer Setting Story in U.S.

I don't know of any resources dedicated specifically to non-U.S. writers who want to set their story in the U.S., but keep an eye on the comments in case anyone knows of any.

The cultural differences you'll need to be aware of depends on your own culture, where in the U.S. your story is set, and who the specific characters are, as many places in the U.S. culturally diverse.

Google Searches - Specific Google searches may be your best bet. Like, for example, "What are some cultural differences between Tokyo, Japan and Atlanta, Georgia?" You can also try something like, "What is the cultural makeup of Atlanta, Georgia" (for example) and then research those specific cultures. And, to get a feel for the general city/state/regional culture, you can try searches like, "What is the culture of Atlanta, Georgia" or "What is the culture of Georgia, U.S.A. like?"

Groups and Forums - Groups and forums (such as on Facebook, Discord, and different web sites) can be a great way to chat with others about specific topics. If you can find travel groups/forums based in your country, you might be able to find posts about traveling to the location of your story setting. Or, you could post and ask if anyone from your country has traveled there and what it was like.

Blogs, Vlogs, and Articles - You can also look for travel blogs written by travelers from your country, as well as travel vlogs on YouTube, to see if they have gone to the location of your story setting. Travel articles in online travel magazines published in your country are another option.

Location-Based Web Sites - Most towns, cities, counties, states, and regions have their own web sites and web-based travel guides geared toward visitors. For example, if you Google, "Visit Atlanta, Georgia, U.S." the first hit is a web site called "Discover Atlanta," which features information about things to do, popular events, areas of the city, getting around, and more. In fact, under their "visitor guides," they have a guide specific to international visitors available in multiple languages. Odds are, other big cities as well as states will have something similar.

My post Setting Your Story in an Unfamiliar Place has some other general suggestions that might be of help. You can also send your questions here, and I can do my best to answer them as will others in the community who are from/familiar with the location of your story.

Happy writing!

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

♦ Questions that violate my ask policies will be deleted! ♦ Please see my master list of top posts before asking ♦ Learn more about WQA here

[communist-hatsunemiku]

omfg this morning I was chatting with this girl on snap and I mentioned my love for Miku and she was like "oh i bet your love for Miku is kinda like my love for eminem" um. no the fuck it is not and I'm kinda upset you'd think that's an okay thing to say to me. but I decided to look past it.

and then the topic of 7/11s in Japan came up and I said they're really great and she goes "yeah there's way less crackheads than in america" like ok so this is officially joever.

[falloutboylyricss]

Fall Out Boy and Places

note: this post only includes names of specific places, both real and fictional

Evening Out With Your Girlfriend

"I'm deep with futures like Chicago / No, Glenview never meant a thing to me, she never meant a thing to me" - Growing Up

Take This to Your Grave

"Pete and I attacked the laws of Astoria with promise and precision" - Saturday

"Landing on a runway in Chicago, and I'm grounding all my dreams of ever really seeing California" - Homesick at Space Camp

Chicago Is So Two Years Ago (title only)

"But there's a light on in Chicago, and I know I should be home" - Chicago Is So Two Years Ago

From Under The Cork Tree

none

Infinity On High

"Put love on hold, young Hollywood is on the other line" - The (After) Life Of The Party

"And everyone's looking for relief, United States versus disbelief" - You're Crashing, But You're No Wave

"New York eyes, Chicago thighs, pushed up the window to kiss you off" - I've Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers

Folie à Deux

"Erase myself and let go, start it over again in Mexico" - I Don't Care

"Let's hear it for America's suitehearts, but I must confess, I'm in love with my own sins" - America's Suitehearts

Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet (title only)

"Plant palm trees on Lake Michigan before it gets cold" - The (Shipped) Gold Standard

"Said, 'I'll be fine 'til the hospital or American embassy'" - What A Catch, Donnie

"And you're a bottled star, the planets align, you're just like Mars" - 27

"A Roman candle heart, keep us far apart" - Tiffany Blews

"Have you ever wanted to disappear and join a monastery, go out and preach on Manic Street?" - 20 Dollar Nose Bleed

West Coast Smoker (title only)

"Got my degree in the gutter, my heart broken in the dorms of the Ivy League" - West Coast Smoker

Save Rock And Roll

"Did you trip down twelve steps into Malibu?" - The Mighty Fall

"Bel Air baby, did you get dressed up?" - The Mighty Fall

"But we are alive here in Death Valley, but don't take love off the table yet" - Death Valley

"When Rome's in ruins, we are the lions, free of the Colosseums" - Young Volcanoes

"Americana, exotica, do you wanna feel a little beautiful, baby?" - Young Volcanoes

PAX AM Days

"Cargo and despair, all American made" - American Made

American Beauty/American Psycho

"You know you look so Seattle, but you feel so L.A." - Irresistible

"She's an American beauty, I'm an American psycho" - American Beauty/American Psycho

"Take me down the line, in Gem City, we turn the tide" - Uma Thurman

"In between being young and being right, you were my Versailles at night" - Fourth Of July

"There's a room in a hotel in New York City that shares our fate and deserves our pity" - Twin Skeleton's (Hotel In NYC)

MANIA

none

So Much (For) Stardust

Heaven, Iowa (title only)

"6 AM, Mulholland Drive, Moonlight Sonata and I" - Heaven, Iowa

Misc.

"I wanna put the Midwest home again" - Alpha Dog

"Sometimes, when I'm in Heaven, I get forgetful of the Earth" - Lake Effect Kid

"And joke us, joke us 'til Lakeshore Drive comes back into focus" - Lake Effect Kid

"I love you, Chicago, you make me feel so summer fling" - City In A Garden

"You know the world can get my bones, but Chicago gets my soul" - Super Fade

"Captain Planet, Arab Spring, L.A. riots, Rodney King" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"Oklahoma City bomb, Kurt Cobain, Pokémon" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"Nuclear accident, Fukushima, Japan / Crimean peninsula, Cambridge Analytica" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"More war in Afghanistan, Cubs go all the way again / Obama, Spielberg, explosion, Lebanon / Unabomber, Bobbitt, John, Bombing, Boston Marathon" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"Stranger Things, Tiger King, Ever Given, Suez" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"Elon Musk, Kaepernick, Texas failed electric grid" - We Didn't Start The Fire

"Great Pacific garbage patch, Tom DeLonge and aliens / Mars rover, Avatar, self-driving electric cars" - We Didn't Start The Fire

[animebw]

Hey there! I know emotions are running high right now, and this episode really hit hard. But for some reason, I feel like this might actually be a better path for developing KumiRei's relationship and their character arcs.

As you so eloquently put it, Kumiko is both less and more serious about their love than Reina, which has always made me hesitant to fully ship them. Kumiko's acceptance that she would eventually have to let Reina go, while still believing their relationship will survive, has always bothered me. Reina is obviously head over heels for Kumiko, even considering (though I think she never would have actually done it and gone wherever her own prospects are the best - exactly what Kumiko expected of her) following her to a decent music-related college in Japan. Until now, Kumiko has seemed a bit too nonchalant (save for the concerned expression after the America revelation) about wanting a future together as much as Reina does.

As painful as this episode is, it finally shows in a way we’ve never seen before that Kumiko explicitly wants that too, and they are both deeply upset about potentially losing one another. It also beautifully illustrates Kumiko's growth as a character—she truly is Reina's equal now, not musically, but in their strength of character and core beliefs. This time, sticking to their convictions has hurt them, but it's also what they love about each other.

I had my doubts about KumiRei going canon (or as canon as KyoAni can get away with), but now I think that’s where we're headed. They need to separate their relationship from music because it has grown far beyond that, and this final blow might help with that. At least, that's what I'm hoping for.

This is so eloquently put, kudos. And for what it's worth, Kumiko losing the auditions is apparently a change from the source material- she actually wins in the original novels- so all bets on what to expect in the final episode are officially off. KyoAni's never been afraid to make massive changes in its adaptations, to take stories from what they were and make them into something new. They've done that several times with Eupho alone already.

Is the chance high?

Not really, if I'm being honest.

But after spending so many years convincing myself they'd never be brave enough to let it happen... suddenly I find myself hoping again.

I find myself sincerely, earnestly hoping that a miracle is possible.

[pendragonsgallery]

@roszabell asked me to post this and I delivered

Hetalia Characters as things said by my college friend group:

America: “Just because I haven’t had sex doesn’t mean I don’t know the basic components of it! I wasn’t in the Revolutionary War but I still know what happened. I know how it started- I know the foreplay, and the aftercare is just the Constitution. It’s not that complicated of an issue.

Canada: “Yeah I could take down a moose. If I can dive quick and tap it in the nuts it’ll go down guys, trust me. I’m a moose expert.”

England: “You look like a guy in the 1940s being drafted for war. Why are you mad, at least I didn’t call you British. I held back just for you.”

France: “What if I want to be a rich bitch? Is that respectable?”

Spain: “If my parents had told me they were having another kid, I would just say no. I’m the princess here bitch.”

Romano: “vapes are so gross. If you’re going to be addicted to nicotine, at least smoke a cigarette like a real man.”

Germany: “How did I, as a twenty year old man become the mother figure. And why am I doing it so well?”

Prussia: “Just Dance? Bet. If I’m making money, I’ll twerk like there’s no tomorrow.”

Italy: *very confidently* “Some people like hard liquor and I like fruits in my yogurt! I see no difference.”

China: “I know how to tell if there is inflation. It’s determined by dip in dots prices”

Japan: “I’m just staring at the goldfish crackers… and they’re staring… back at me.”

Russia: “anything is possible if you believe in yourself and that if that includes you deepthroating your ice cream… then who am I to judge I guess.”

Austria: “I can assure you that people twerked and got down hard to Ode to Joy and absolutely should continue to do so. Shit slaps.”

Hungary: “I’m gonna beat you with my shoe out of love.”

Denmark: “Well you know what else bitch??? You’re mom- I mean my mom- your mom- my-your- fuck I-”

Lithuania: “I drink black coffee cause I need ✨validation✨.”

[a-998h]

hi! this is my first time requesting!

can you do the Stardust Crusaders with an off-duty popstar reader whose stand ability allows anyone, including its user, to break into song as if it were a musical and it gives the affected a great singing voice? If the Crusaders need a distraction, the reader gladly offers to help! Sometimes, one of the crusaders would join and sing along with the reader. and sometimes the reader and the Crusaders would have entire performances together.

(Basically the reader is kind of like a bard.)

Thank you for this, the whole concept sounds like comedic gold to me❤️

The stand will be called Siren Song

(Going from most to least willing to participate)

Jean Pierre Polnareff

This man is a deep tenor

He also screams band or theater kid

Begs for you to use you stand when ya'll have off time

I bet this man can only sing in French

He probably has a decent singing voice and probably sung to Sherry when they were kids

The first one to sing along with you

Has the time of his life when you go full musical

Tries to get you to use it on Jotaro all the time

He also dances like he's in musical too

Since your stand looks more mermaid/siren like, Silver Chariot likes to touch its scales

Wants to touch you stand's tail, but they tried to bite him

Makes sure to have water for you, just in case

Will definitely buy one of your albums after the kick Dio's ancient ass

He would definitely share French songs with you

Becomes your biggest fan

Calls you Rossignol

Oldesph

Another deep tenor

He thought it fun when you would sing to group

Whenever you go full musical, it scares him

Also has a decent singing voice, than you Holly

Is dramatic, but not like Polnareff

Whenever he sees your stand, he wants to touch the scales

Keeps his robot hand away from your stand

Will try his best to sing along

Shares his favorite songs with you

Usually joins in singing after Polnareff

Probably can't dance well, mostly due to his age

Proud of you in the only way a grandpa can be

Will definitely buy one of your albums if they're in America or Japan

Calls you Canary

Muhammad Avdol

Baritone

He's 50/50

He is team dad so...

He'll sing along to you songs

Is happy that you make the group happy

Whenever you go full musical he plays along

He loves the dancing part of the musical part

He can definitely sing in Arabic

Tries to teach you Arabic songs and Arabic dances

Your stand and Magician Red don't get along

Will check for albums of yours

Is thankful your stand makes the group happy

Calls you altaayir almugharad

Noriaki Kakyoin

Higher tenor

He is insecure about his singing

He has fun with the others whenever you start singing

During a full musical moment, he tries his best

Likes how your stand makes his singing voice better

He can dance well

Teaches you video game songs

When you start a sing along, he is reluctant at first

He does sing along quietly

Shares his favorite music with you

He will buy one of your albums

Is a bit proud of you

Both your stands get along

calls you furunushi or Māmeido

Jotaro Kujo

My god

This man is a deep bass

He acts super embarrassed by your constant singing

All that smoking messed up his throat

He won't ever sing along

He will fight against your stand power so damn hard

He hums the songs, but never admits it

Will lovingly tell you to shut up

Never admits to liking your music

When things go full musical, he tries to not participate at all, but he ends up doing it at some point

Secretly likes the fun vibe you bring

Star Platinum tries to befriend your stand

Will secretly buy an album of yours

[coffeeman777]

Israel has bombed a hospital full of innocent women, children and the sick and dying. Killed over 500. How can you support that?

What's happening in Israel right now is horrible in many ways. It's more tragic than words can say. My heart breaks for all of the innocent people on both sides of the conflict who are suffering or have died. I'm praying that God brings peace to Israel quickly.

It must be said that Israel didn't start this fight. Hamas did. Israel cannot simply let Hamas invade their territory and kill their people. Hamas is a disgustingly evil group of men who are also cowardly beyond belief. It is standard operating procedure for them to attack Israelis then retreat and hide behind women and children, using their own innocents as human shields in an effort to stop Israeli retaliation. Many times before, this tactic has worked. Not knowing the details of this particular event you're talking about, if it really happened, I'd be willing to bet this hospital was a base of operations for Hamas militants, or a depot for their weapons, or something of the sort. That's exactly the kind of abhorrent thing Hamas would do.

Whatever the case, Israel can't let this go. Hamas is dedicated to the eradication of Israel. They aren't willing to accept peace under any circumstances. It has been said before that if Hamas laid down their weapons, there would be no more violence, but if Israel laid down their weapons, there would be no more Israel. It's true. Hamas won't stop. And they're killing/kidnapping/raping innocent Israeli civilians. They're even beheading infants. Israel has to do whatever it has to do to stop it.

America once dropped nuclear bombs on Japan to end the war. A great many innocent Japanese people died, and it was a terrible thing. But that's what it took to make the fighting stop. Israel is in a much worse situation with Hamas than America was with Japan. They have to end the fighting and protect their people. Israel is doing all that it reasonably can to spare Palestinian civilians. Any Palestinian civilians that are caught in this fight, their blood is on Hamas, not Israel.

Am Yisrael Chai.

[demonslayedher]

In the midst of being very, very, very, very, very busy with work, a colleague sent me info about the KnY Onsen collab going on at two onsen towns in Kanagawa and Gunma Prefectures, both in eastern Japan.

My response was, "yeah, too bad I don’t live out there... and will only be out there for a meeting later in December... ... ...I just booked a place for two people in Yugawara Onsen, you wanna go?"

While it's always fun to go to these sorts of collab events, I admit that I found this one somewhat stressful due to total lack of planning on my part. I was just like, "Onsen! Make these deadlines, prep that meeting, then onsen, onsen, Kimetsu no Yaiba and onsen!!!" and I totally neglected to read all the fine print on how this event works.

How it should had worked is you arrive early enough to head out to the onsen part of town, turn in your pre-purchased ticket at the center with all the merchandise (and if you're lucky, you'll see a Kakushi working the counter ☆), get your booklet to stamp with different character stamps set up around town, and get the all-important map of where all the photo spots, stamps, and spots to hear character voices on an an app for a game you can play for an extra price (and additional pre-purchase ticket). At this point, they will also explain the hours of when you can use the local facilities involved in the collaboration. With that information, you begin your leisurely stay and stroll, including looping back around the station area to get the stamps and pose with character stands around the station, at the town hall, and in other shops. You get dinner at one of the collab places--like a local America-themed restaurant's spare rib set with sauces inspired by four of the characters or a seafood restaurant--and then show at least three character stamps in your booklet and hand over one of your two coins to go take a dip in one of the onsen facilities. After dark, you walk around and enjoy displays like this Love Breath one:

The following day, or later on in the collab period, you finish up going around to every spot, and take a second dip in another onsen, which is also covered on your original ticket. If you're doing the additional game, you listen at all those spots, and of course you buy lots of merch both for the collab and around the onsen town.

But if you are like me, you do it wrong.

You arrive later than you hoped to, you get excited to see Mitsuri and Muichiro at the train station, feel stressed about saving time for onsen and wind up do a bunch of things out of order that wind up eating time, including trying to go straight to an onsen instead of turning in the ticket first, and then discovering that you simply do not have time for everything once you see that the generous hours were for turning in your ticket, not for using the onsen. I also had dismissed the stamp rally as optional like the audio game I did not want to pay the price for, so it did not even occur to me that I would need three stamps before an onsen, and how hard it would be to find those stamps in the dark when you are fretting more and more about time.

In the end, we only (barely) had time for one onsen instead of two, which is frustrating, and even though they had stands of all the characters, we simply did not have time to see them all. (Himejima was off in the woods somewhere with no stamps or audio game things, so like we did, I bet a lot of people choose to simply leave him alone to meditate and train out there.) I saw the stand I wanted to most: Genya!! He gets to be included now!!!!

We did find the place with parfaits (thanks to asking the Kakushi, as the official websites weren't much help with this (but reading all the fine print probably would have helped overall)), and we sacrificed the second onsen dip to get these instead before leaving town. In addition to dessert items (like a Mist Pillar parfait with cotton candy mist on top!), they also served the yamakake udon and made a nice presentation of floating items down a river to your seat.

So anyway. Not my most lived-to-the-fullest KnY collab, nor a very relaxing onsen trip overall, but it always brings a smile to my face to see KnY melded into the landscape. The steep hike up to our cheap lodging and dragging suitcases around to at least find a few extra standees was pretty tiring, but the mountain view of the stars and morning birdwatching was as rejuvenating as a regular mountain onsen trip usually should be. That all being said, I plan to recover with regular bath salt at home and the newest volume of Kimetsu Academy.

[lovehypegirl]

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐋 𝐇𝐎𝐓 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐓

ACT 1 CHAPTER 1

SNEAK PEEK

"How's that kid you caught for…uhh Sawamura?" y/n asked as she laced her fingers with his

"Mhmm" Miyuki held onto her hand as the walked up the steps "He's got fastballs"

"…and? Any breaking balls?"

"Nope"

"Really? At his age he should have about one or two under his belt. Even a half-assed curve ball y'know? I mean at middle school that's all I had"

"You were younger in middle school no?"

"I was. Last year of middle school in America - eighth grade - students are thirteen turning fourteen instead of fifteen turning sixteen"

"American schools are weird"

"Nuh uh! I'm a senior in America but a second year in Japan now that's weird. So instead of graduating uhh next year? I have to go through second year, and two third years cause it's a four year school or whatever. Point is, now I have more school"

"Awwe poor y/n" Miyuki smirked at her as they walked onto the field toward home plate

There were other people doing late night swinging in field B, far enough that y/n and Miyuki would have their privacy

"Shut it! At least I have a free period since I'm exempt from learning English" y/n swung their hands back and forth

"You should be using that free period to practice your batting. You won't make it to clean up if your batting sucks"

She stuck her tongue out at him "I'll use that free time to rest from early morning practices. It's like military drills at five am. Not my shit" she let go of his hand as he set up the tee at home plate and she got in the righty batters box "I'm gonna hit this shit outta the park" she said confidently as she kicked at the dirt a little

"4000 yen" (25.54 USD)

"Oh so now we're betting on my obviously incredible skills?"

"If you're that good then you won't need to worry about getting 4000 chased outta your pocket" Miyuki shrugged and placed a practice ball on the tee

"Aw shut up. You know damn well I'm broke. Exploiting the poor" she muttered as she did a few practice swings

"Your arms are low" Miyuki pointed out

"Nuh uh"

"What do you mean 'nuh uh'" Miyuki said as he went to stand behind y/n, his broad chest to her back and he reached his arms forward in a back hug fashion to place his hands over hers on the bat and raise her arms up

"There, you'll get the most out of your swing from that height"

"You're just ensuring that you ain't gettin' that 4000 yen"

He shrugged "Then hit it outta the park"

"I will" she squinted her eyes at him and swung

She in fact, did not hit it out of the park

"4000 yen"

"Goddamnit"

[duchessghosttiger]

Bill Cipher x Reader - Prologue

//Narrator’s p.o.v//  

Right now, you are inside your house in Japan. You are talking with one of your close friends, Hitoshi Kaneko, and Akari Miwa. His English name is Jackson. And her English name is Rose. You hand picked their English names, yourself. They respect you as both a person and a detective. So they will usually call you, senpai or Y/n - sama to be respectful and polite. And you also like them and respect them too. You have been friends with them when you first got into contact where you stayed at Winchester, England, which was more than 20 years ago. 

Flashback in y/n p.o.v

I was walking through the road of Winchester towards the new bakery that opened up 6 weeks ago. And, it has been over a year since I got here, and over a year since my aunt abandoned me here. Well, at least it’s nice here, better than America, where she’s going. Well, it rains more here, not like I’m complaining. I enjoy it. I also enjoy some tea with 8 cubes of sugar in it and strawberry shortcake which I’m going to get at the new bakery. I have enough money, that could last me at least 4 to 6 months if I spend it wisely. And, I can’t get more money, because I’m not the right age. I’m only 7 years old, but I have enough intelligence to pass as a college student. 

I finally got to the bakery, and I opened a door. 

I walked up to the front of the line, there was no one there besides the bakery worker girl and three other customers. 

“Hello,” I said. “I’d like to order something.” 

“Oh! Hello, welcome to sweetie mochi’s bakery, how may I serve you.” The girl at the counter said with a closed eye smile. 

When the girl opened her eyes she was surprised to see a child standing in front of her. 

 “Where are your parents?” She asked, still shocked. 

“Not in this country.” I said. 

“Oh? Do you know where they are?” 

“America.” I said boredly. But in reality, I do not know. 

“Oh, sorry to hear that.”

“I have money.” I say. 

“Oh, what do you want?” 

“Can I have a tea with 8 cubes of sugar in it, and a strawberry shortcake, please?” 

“Of course!” She says while making the tea. 

“So where are you staying, if you have no parents with you?” 

“Oh, uhhh.” 

“Do you have no place to stay?” She questioned. 

“Well, no I do not.” 

“I know some one who does.” She says excitedly. “He’s one of the usual customers I have that comes everyday since this bakery opened up 6 weeks ago. I can introduce you to him for you. He opened up a house for boys and girls like you, I bet you will like it there.” 

“Okay, you can introduce us.” I say. “But no promises I will go with him.” 

“Sure, fine by me.” She takes out a jar of sugar cubes. “Now, you said you wanted 8 cubes of sugar, correct?” 

“Yes, that’s correct.” I confirmed. “When does this guy comes by?” 

“He usually comes by around 23:00 PM to 26:00 PM.” She says. “What’s your name?” 

“My parents called me Y/n.” 

“Ok, Y/n!” 

(Time-Skip)

It is now 25:16, and someone came in. It was a man, it could be that person that the girl was talking about a few hours ago. 

And I was right, like usual. 

“Salut, madame.” He says. “I’d like my usual. Please.” 

His voice sounded tired. 

“Of, course! One dark roast with 1 pump caramel and 1 pump vanilla coming up!” She says going to get the cup. “Hey Y/n, can you do me a favor and start getting the caramel and vanilla?” She asked. 

“Sure thing.” I said looking around for them. It was on the side where all of the add on condiments are, next to some plain, and other flavor of bagels and the doughnuts. I picked up the caramel and vanilla add on flavoring, and walked up to the nice lady working here. I handed them to her and said, “Here you go, Onna.” 

“Why I didn’t know you spoke Japanese!” She exclaimed while giggling. “I’m half Japanese myself! Well, at least you are polite.” 

“I didn’t know you had a child working here.” The man, chuckled. 

“Oh, right!” Onna says. “This is Y/n! She’s new.” 

“I’m not new, I’ve been here for a year.” 

“What?!” Exclaimed Onna. “You’ve been here for a year? Where did you live?” 

“Oh, I lived at a nearby hotel.” 

“Y/n can come live with me and the others.” The man claimed. 

“That’s what I was thinking too, Mr. André.” 

Otoko no hito.”I say. “Konnichiwa.” 

“Hello to you too, Y/n.” 

“You know Japanese too?” 

“A little bit, yeah.” Mr. André said nodding his head. 

(Time-Skip) 

After a little bit of talking I decided to go with him to his house. I mean, it’s not like my parents or my aunt will notice. 

I was slightly worried that I wouldn’t fit in, and it looks like André noticed because he said, 

“Don’t worry Y/n, you will fit right in, and I bet you that they all will love you.” André smiled while he drove there. 

After a few more minutes we have arrived at his house. 

The sign on his house read: Mr. André’s Abnormal Home

The lettering was in cursive. 

The moment when he opened the door for us, there was a loud ringing, letting everyone inside know that someone was inside, and of course they suspected it to be Mr. André. 

“Mr. André! Mr. André! Your back!” A girl with strawberry blonde hair said. “Oh! And he brought someone with him! Perhaps a new friend!” 

“Yes, Yes,” He says, “Akira, this is Y/n, and Y/n this is Akira, and yes Akira she’s here to stay.” 

“Yay! A new friend!” Akira yelled. 

“Jeez, Akira your so loud.” A new voice said. 

The new voice sounded like a younger boy, much like the girl standing right next to you.

“Hey, that’s rude!” Exclaimed Akira, offended. 

“It isn’t rude, it’s the truth, Akira.” He said, rolling his eyes. 

“So?!” Akira questioned, very offended. 

“Whatever.” Again, he rolled his eyes. 

“Now, now, no fighting while we have someone new present.” André says, splitting them apart. 

“Now, Y/n this boy here is Hitoshi.” He said. “Say hi Hitoshi.” 

“Hi.” 

“Hello.” I said.  

Flashback ended

//Y/n p.o.v//

That was how I met a few of my best friends. We all live in my house in Japan. My house can fit up to 10 people, but we all agreed to keep it only to ourselves. 

“Hey, Rose.” I addressed. “Can I have some tea?” 

“Sure thing! Senpai!” 

She went off to make me my tea. 

“Hey, Y/n,” My other friend, Hitoshi or Jackson called me. 

“Yes?” 

“How is that case coming up, detective?” Jackson questioned. 

“Oh, it’s going good, I’m pretty sure I just found our lead.” 

“Oh really, who do you suspect?” 

“A girl named Alice Jewel, I suspect being the murder.” 

“How sure, are you?” 

“I’m 86% sure that she’s the murder.” 

“Why do you suspect her.” 

“Well, 1) she keeps buying new cleaning supplies and new of the same clothing she usually wears 2) she lives near where the murder kills and hides the bodies 3) she usually wears white gloves with a tiny speck of blood on them 4) she only ever goes out of her house at midday and midnight, to find her victims and then kill them at night 5) and when she does go out of the house she goes into the alleyways and then she drops by the bar to get some sake before she goes out killing which explains the markings on the victim which leaves out marks that she was struggling to keep it a straighter line 6) one of those nights when she went out killing, she forgot that she left her hair-spiral hair tye and also left her knife behind leaving her fingerprints on it 7) Alice and the killer both have a medical background, experience with making the right movement to get the job done. And finally 8) Alice’s appearance matches up with the killers, there was a few witnesses in her neighborhood that was still awake and saw Alice killing her victims, and no other suspect that the police force mentioned could be the killer matches up with the killer’s appearance, except Alice. That’s how I know that Alice Jewel is in fact the murder.” 

“Wow, you really are the best detective.” He said amazed. 

“I’m almost done writing the report out.” I say, finishing editing the report on the computer. 

“Hey, Y/n-sama, I finally finished making your tea.” Rose said, coming into the office. She set the tea down next to me. 

“Arigatou, Rose.” 

“Your welcome!” 

Right when I finished the report, I got a call. (Incoming call)

“Hey guys, I’m going to take this,” I say standing up.  “can one of you upload my report? Thanks.” I said stepping out into the hallway. 

I checked the caller’s name. It was my Aunt Laura. 

Wonder what she wants, I thought, while accepting the call. 

(Y/n, Aunt Laura) 

(Call Accepted✅)

Hello? 

Oh, hello, mon ange. 

What’s the sudden call, Laura? 

I just wanted to hear you. See how you are doing.

No, what’s the real reason? 

I just wanted to see if you would take a break from work and come visit me for the whole summer. 

Hm, alright I’ll be there soon, auntie.

Alright, thank you, mon chérie, I’ll see you soon. 

Yeah, bye. 

Bye, Y/n.

Oh, yeah, do you still know that I am going by Liv Bright while in public. 

Yes, I still know that, and when you get here I have a surprise for you. 

Au revoir, Laura

Au revoir, ma bichette 

(Call Ended)

I already know where Aunt Laura lives. She lives in Gravity Falls. Which coincidentally you’ve been there a few times with Wendy. Which Wendy also lives there. 

“Well, it looks like I will be going to Gravity Falls.” 

“What’s that?” My future successor said. 

“A place in Oregon, that no one knows about, except when you pass by it and also its population.” 

“Cool can we come along?” She pointed to Jackson and herself. 

“Sure, we got enough money, for the flights.” I say. “We’ll probably have to take our private jet there.” 

“Sure, fine by us, I guess.” 

“Great.” I said. “Well we better start packing because we leave tomorrow afternoon.” 

“Okay!” 

[wuxiaphoenix]

Behold, the Pepper!

Many things in the world are either much older or much younger than most people imagine. The idea of a 360-degree circle? Dates back to the Babylonians, about 2400 BC. The humble market strawberry? Still less than three centuries old, a result of crossbreeding between a European berry and a species from the Pacific Coast. Sweet bell peppers? Still haven’t hit their first century. Records conflict, but they date back to the 1930s at the earliest, and didn’t make it to American markets until the 1960s.

I’m trying to picture many of my favorite meals (jambalaya, spaghetti, pizza) without bell peppers. Ouch.

And a justified ouch, because peppers are amazing.

In most temperate climates they’re grown as annuals. This works, but they’re actually frost-tender short-lived perennials. If you can keep a plant from freezing during the winter, odds are it’ll bud out in spring again and give you a second crop. Though, noted, this is more reliable with hotter peppers. I’ve gotten an habanero through the better part of three years, bearing more fruits than I could use. Bell peppers, a bit less than two.

They’re not fussy about pollinators, either. You can do it with your fingers. You can let the bees handle it. Or, if you’ve got them on an enclosed porch because you’re trying to keep them from freezing, the ants will do it for you. If by some chance you don’t currently have ants, put in a pot of impatiens! Ants love the nectar in their spurs, and will appear out of thin air. Of course odds are they’ll also bring aphids to all your other plants, so consider what you can live with.

(Okay, I may still be cranky about the aphids.)

But peppers themselves are wonderful, adding taste, texture, and nutrition to dishes. I love the fruity element habanero adds to a tomato dish; you just have to add it in very tiny amounts....

One of these days I want to make habanero powder. I bet the mac ‘n cheese would be awesome.

It’d probably also make killer foot powder. Capsaicin is not just tasty heat, it’s medicinal. Antifungal, antibiotic, and a good pepper-up of the immune system in general. It doesn’t actually set your mucus membranes on fire, BTW. What it does is set off a reaction so your nerves think normal body temperature has suddenly become being slow-roasted by a flamethrower. Kind of the opposite of mint tricking your body into feeling cool. You can either wait for the capsaicin to degrade or apply quantities of lipids to pry it off your poor nerves. This is why milk and buttered bread work, while water is not an optimal solution. (So to speak.)

Still, if you’re going to use peppers in a fantastic world, check your time period. They’re native to the Americas, meaning if you’re doing a historical fantasy they won’t be anywhere else until the early 1500s. Though they started moving fast after that! Korea definitely had them after 1592, by way of Japan, who likely got them from China, who got them from the Spanish and Portuguese... you get the picture.

And now you know why MDZS fans who love history crack up at Wei Wuxian’s favorite foods including hot chilis. Yes, it’s a fantasy China, but that’s no more historical than the potatoes... oh dear....