#no one really gets us but us and we have no words to describe it to others

[strkly]

misunderstanding

s.m: you and bob were inseparable. until he begins to ignore you and you have no clue why. when you’re injured after a mission gone wrong you’re finally able to find out why.

robert ‘bob’ reynolds x avengers!gn!reader

w.c: 2k

c.w: hurt/comfort, bob being avoidant (but he means well), two idiots in love, hea, reader implied to be an og avenger, no use of y/n, thunderbolts spoilers obv. not proofread and intentionally lower case.

a.n: as soon as i finished the thunderbolts i wrote this LOL. im already working on like three more for him

After you had all saved the city and had been established as the new avengers you and bob had been inseparable. you had chucked it up to you just seeming the friendliest out of all of them but the looks the rest of the team all exchanged with one another anytime the two of you were around told you they thought otherwise.

you watched movies with him, went to go get milkshakes together, helped him with the chores around the base, there wasn't really a second the two of you weren't together unless you were out on a mission or sleeping.

yet as a recent theres been a shift. hes been avoiding you. its so obvious to not only you but everyone else in the team, he was more than happy to chat with yelena ava alexei hell he’d even rather talk to walker than he’d rather talk to you. the only person also seemingly receiving the cold shoulder from bob was bucky who shrugged when you asked him if he had any clue what was going on.

whenever you would walk into the room and smile at him he stared at you wide eyed before rushing out the room mumbling to himself before you could say anything to him. you tried not to let your heart break show on your face as you watched him flee the room as you had entered. you had been so determined to get him to talk to you today after over a week of nothing from him but watching him run away from you killed any sort of motivation you once had.

the pout only grows on your face as you feel yelena pat your back in pity. “i dont know what i did wrong.” shes quiet for a moment before she speaks, “dont worry im sure he’ll get over this weird phase and you’ll get back to normal in no time.” you look down at your feet and sigh, maybe she was right. you knew he struggled with his mental health maybe he just needed space yet the idea of that being it just made you feel worse. he had always confided in you, told things he wouldnt even tell the therapist he started seeing. it made you feel trust worthy, like the two of you had a bond stronger than words could describe. you like him, you like him so much your heart feels like its about to burst out of your chest at the thought of him.

it was later that same night. you could see the light peering out from under his door. he was up, but when you knocked on his door you were only greeted with silence. “bob?” silence. you sigh before pressing your head up against the door. “i just wanted to say goodbye, were leaving for the mission, me and bucky.” you can hear some shuffling inside at your words, you almost let yourself hope he’s about to come to the door but after a few more beats he still doesn’t respond.

“i miss you bob.” the words spill out before you’re able to stop them, “im sorry, for whatever ive done im so sorry, i just want use to go back to the way we were. i miss you so much, i hope we can talk once i’m back. goodbye.” you force yourself away from the door as the tears begin to pour down your face you don't even bother to glance back at the door as you exit the hallway and down to the area where bucky is waiting for you. he doesn't comment on your tear stricken face, simply just placing hand on your shoulder and asking if your ready to go. with a quick nod you join him on the ship and your off. you silently thank him for it.

what you don’t know is bob is curled up in a ball in his bed, pressing his face tightly against the stuffed bear you had bought him as a gift as he tried to silence his own sobs. it was for the better, he told himself over and over again. you didn't need him, not when you had him, you were better off without him as much as it made his heart ache.

five days. it had been five days since you had left and bob felt like he was losing his mind. he didnt leave his room, laying and rotting in his bed hoping the universe would just swallow him up. it took yelena and walker finally coming into his room to force him out of bed much to his dismay. he couldnt stomach to eat anything, shaking his head and hanging it down like a child clinging his stuffed bear to his chest while they tried. he knew it was a pathetic display but he couldnt find it in himself to care.

the rest of the team stares at him in pity, unsure of what to say. they all knew what he was going through, the only one oblivious to it was you, as walker finally sighed and opened his mouth to speak they all froze at the sound of the doors slamming open. “can somebody call a doctor?” bucky called out and everyone turned to see him enter the room. you were held in buckys arms, all beaten up covered in blood. bobs head spins, he doesnt hear the sounds of everyone asking what happened he doesnt see ava running off to get medic all he sees if you and he faints.

the mission was supposed to be easy. it was easy, until the last guy standing ended up being a mutant neither of you were prepared for. you ended up taking the bigger hit and bucky quickly finished the job rushing to take you back to the tower. your injuries were not life threatening but you lost a lot of energy in the fight and had ended up knocked out for a couple days. when you regain consciousness the first thing you hear is his voice. bob. he’s talking with someone whos voice you an barely make out, based on the brass and tone you assume its bucky. you cant make out what he’s saying but you cant bring yourself to open your eyes just yet.

footsteps ensue with a couple final words exchanged before the gentle opening and closing of the door and suddenly you’re alone with him. you can hear the scrapping of a chair and suddenly his very warm body heat flows next to you, you can feel his hands playing with the blanket as he sniffs. “please wake up.” you still cant open your eyes, maybe you’re still too tired but a part of you thinks you simply want to hear what he’s going to say.

“im- im so stupid. im so so so so stupid. all ive been dreaming about is seeing you again,” you feel him place his head on your stomach and you try to keep your heart and breathing at a regular pace, “i wanna sit on the couch together and watch movies and drink milkshakes and talk about anything with you i miss you please i was so stupid please just wake up so i can hear your voice again.” your chest aches and you fight the frown growing on your face. you open your eyes, realizing his has his face turned away from you. when you go to speak he manages to beat you to it. “i was so jealous.”

his words have you almost gasping before quickly closing your eyes again realizing he was turning his head to look at you. your mind running a mile a minute, you had no clue what he was talking about but his words had you hopeful, you couldnt help but be eager for whatever he was about to say. “he’s so much cooler than me. i get why you must like him, i just,, i just wish i could be the one you like. the one you think is cool but i know im not worthy of that.” what? you almost find the word spilling out from your lips but you manage to stop yourself. “i just couldnt do it anymore, after i saw you guys in the kitchen, you were smiling at him, i couldnt make that ache in my chest go away like you taught me and whenever i saw you it just go worse so i ran away like a coward. im such a loser.”

it finally clicks. you remember.

it was late at night. you had stepped out of your room to get a glass of water. when you got to the kitchen bucky was also there drinking a glass of whiskey, the two of you chatted for a moment and when you opened up the dishwasher to get a glass you busted out laughing at the sight of his metal arm in the dishwasher. “what the hell is that doing in there?” “what how do you think i clean the damn thing?” ‘not in the dishwasher! you’re so stupid bucky.” he walks towards you and leans down to be face to face with you, “thats why you like me doll.” you grin and hit him on the chest, shaking your head. “shut up.”

you opened your eyes once more and realize he had pushed his face to be pressing against your stomach. slightly shaking as he sobbed lightly into the fabric. your heart ached, realizing how sad he must have been. how lonely he must have felt. he freezes when you put your hand on his hair lightly running your fingers through it. “i dont like bucky.” your words are course, its clear your throat is yearning for some sort of hydration but you dont care. his head flys up and he looks at you with his wide wet eyes. your name tumbles from his trembling lips but you still continue to speak. “ive known him for a long time, he’s called me that for forever, he was just joking around with me i dont like him i promise.” he continues to stare at you in shock, his mouth opening and closing like a fish before he clenches his jaw and looks down at the floor, mumbling to himself, “im so stupid.”

as much as it hurts you force yourself to sit up and touch his shoulder. he looks up at you, a much sadder expression having taken over his face. “i love you bob.” his breath hitches, “i love you so much it kills me.” you wait for him to say something back, anything in return but he simply stares. you wait for him, you’re so patience with him he just can’t help himself.

you yelp in surprise when he suddenly laches onto you and you fall back with him ontop of you. you ignore how much your body burns in pain as he shoves his head in your neck. “i love you i love you so much.” you feel so much relief your eyes burn with tears. you can hear him mumbling over and over again that he loves you and it feels unreal, like youre dreaming and youll wake up soon.

“bob look at me.” he reluctantly pulls away from you and stares at you with heart eyes, your hands gently cup his face before pressing your lips against his. he eagerly but sloppily returns it, clearly inexperienced but you cant even find yourself caring as you can feel him brightly smile against you all other thoughts float away from you.

hours later when bucky comes back to check on you a smile falls on his lips as he sees bob laying on top of you and the two of you asleep peacefully, both of you unknowingly smiling in your sleep. he shakes his head before walking away. he pulls out his phone and clicks a couple things before raising it to his ear as he walks down the hall. “you own me 50 sam i told you they would get together.”

[korrasera]

Let's see, a brief list off the top of my head:

Most content creators are basically video editors and TV show hosts that have to content mill to survive, and they still have to develop audiences that'll support their work with financial donations.

Graphic artists are wage slaves, like almost every creative you'll find at a corporation these days. Advertising art, media production, website design, they're all in that boat.

Textile artists have to work for companies that mass produce woven fiber goods. Especially in the age of Hobby Lobby and JoAnn Fabrics having successfully Walmartized textile crafts.

Writers either get exploited by a company that employs them to write copy or technical writing, or if they're lucky enough to get a publishing contract they get exploited by a publishing company.

Musicians get by on gig work, contract work, and session work.

And that's just the artists. We're not talking about the makers, like woodworkers, mill wrights, or machinists. Again, most of whom are directly selling their labor to survive.

Petit bourgousie describes a relationship to capital and that relationship has changed. Despite improvements in labor rights, capital has widened the class divide significantly, changing who that term can really apply to.

If people are nowhere close to the middle class, if they have no access to social mobility, then they're not part of the petit bourgousie. At worst they're the victims of propaganda who have been taught that being petit bourgousie would be a good thing, not that they've ever seen any proof of it.

In other words, you can't point at someone who makes a living doing something other than hard physical labor and say that they're petit bourgousie. It won't accurately predict their attitude towards capital. So we have to be more careful is how we use it.

Small business owners, small landlords, yeah, they still qualify. They either engage in rent seeking behavior or they exploit people on some level. But anyone who sells their labor for wages? No, the vast majority of them are proles now.

Plus, as one final point...don't you ever get tired of hearing people say petit bourgousie when they're really just trying to tell you that they have no respect for fellow workers?

I really like this quote, because its a rhetorical question to which the correct answer is yes,

[farfromharry]

I noticed

Summary: He never notices you, but Lando does

w/c 3456

Lando Norris x Reader

a/n this was meant to be a few hundred words, oops. if you have any lando or oscar requests, pls do send

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“I don’t know why you bother, he’s a dickhead.”

Your body sagged and you sighed, setting down your makeup brush and locking eyes with him through the mirror. He was still lounging across your bed in his going out clothes, hair done to perfection, his phone basically hanging out of his hand as he eyed you. It must have been the 4th time in the last hour he’d made a similar snide comment and you were growing tired of repeating yourself. “He’s not a dickhead, he’s just…” There were a lot of words you could have used to describe him. Hell, Lando could probably supply a few himself, not that you would like his suggestions. Rude and unpleasant came to mind. “Shy.”

He snorted. “Shy?” That was the last word he would use. “The last time I saw him he had his tongue down a random girl’s throat and his hand under her dress.”

You remembered that. The memory stung. It bad been a celebration for Lando, a race win, you couldn’t remember which one now. Much like tonight, you had gotten dressed up in the hopes of him finally making a move and yet when you arrived he already had a girl in his arms. Still, you shielded him from Lando’s harsh words, something he probably didn’t deserve.

“Lots of people kiss on a night out, Lando. He probably didn’t even talk to her.” Defending him to your friends had become somewhat of a routine for you.

“We were in a restaurant, Y/N.”

You didn’t know what else to say. It had definitely been inappropriate and you had no idea how the staff hadn’t put a stop to it. For some reason unbeknownst to Lando, you just couldn’t admit he wasn’t a good guy. You refused to hear it.

With a huff you picked up your brush again, resuming your makeup and paying Lando’s negative comments no mind. “Look, I don’t need you to understand it. You can keep your opinions to yourself.” Her tone was sharp, one he wasn’t used to being on the receiving end of.

He didn’t say anything else until they were ready to go.

On your way out of the door he grabbed your arm gently. You turned to look at him with a raised brow, annoyance still simmering under your surface. Sure you would get over what he said soon, but you didn’t want to let him off too lightly.

“Look,” he started, eyes peering into yours with a genuine sincerity you didn’t see all the often. “I just want you to be careful, that’s all. I don’t want some asshole to break your heart.”

Lando and Jake were technically friends too, or at least they ran in the same circle, but that didn’t mean he did anything more than tolerate him. He hadn’t ever really spent much time with him, not on his own, but he had seen enough in group settings. He knew what he was like. You were far too good for him, but you couldn’t seem to see the bad in him.

“He’s your friend too,” you pointed out. “You are the company you keep right?”

His face fell and he put a step of extra distance between them. The words stung. Lando didn’t think he was a brilliant guy. He had his flaws, he didn’t always show up, he had messed a few girls around in his younger years, but he wasn’t like Jake. For you to even imply that he could be, it hurt.

Somehow, you didn’t notice the change in his mood, or how stiffly he agreed with you. “Right.”

If you noticed the sudden shift in his demeanour, you didn’t mention it. The two of you just climbed inside his McLaren and made your way silently to the party. It was awkward, uncomfortable, something that spending time with Lando never was. It made you shift uneasily in your seat.

Every now and then you’d glance over at him, hoping to see him trying to hold back a laugh that would shatter the tension lingering in the air. Each time you looked over he was simply looking at the road. You hated it.

Usually when you arrived somewhere together, he acted like a gentleman. He would open the car door for you, loop his arm with yours and you would wander into whatever social gathering you were attending with wide smiles on your faces. In a totally non-misogynistic way, he loved having you on his arm. It created a sense of pride in him. This time, he barely even checked you were following behind him until you made it to the elevator. What followed was a very uncomfortable ride up to the rooftop bar.

You let out a breath as soon as you could finally get out of the confined space with him. The bar was your first stop, then once some wine was secured, you greeted your friends and the hosts.

You didn’t stick with them for long, finding an empty couch to sit on that had a perfect view of the entrance. You had to be ready for the moment he walked in.

As Lando headed to the bar with Max (who he had found very quickly, the pair never far from one another), you painstakingly made sure every bit of your look was perfect. Unbeknownst to you, he was watching every move you made, a habit he picked up years ago when he first decided he was in love with you. His eyes followed you as you smoothed out your dress, brushing some hair over your shoulders, straightening your posture, double and then triple checking your makeup. You wanted tonight to finally be the night Jake noticed you. The dark-haired man’s stomach churned just at the thought.

Every few seconds you shifted, like you were anxious. You scanned your surroundings a few times, making sure he hadn’t entered without you seeing. You’d had more than a few nervous sips of your wine.

When the elevator doors opened and the man occupying almost all of your thoughts finally wandered in, your heart began to race. It was now or never. Really you should have been practicing what you were going to say.

Each step he took that brought him closer to you made your heart rate spike.

“Jake, hey,” you greeted, a beaming smile on your face. Any sane man would have stopped in his tracks, been utterly starstruck by how beautiful you looked. Your hair fell delicately over your shoulders, back straight, dress highlighting every desirable part of you, skin basically glowing in the light. Yet he barely paused to throw a half hearted wave in your direction. He didn’t even smile back. The man had greeted you like it was an inconvenience to him.

Lando watched the whole thing from his seat at the bar. He watched as you deflated, an ache settling in his chest at the look of pure defeat on your face. The brunette knew more than anyone here how much effort you had put into trying to get his attention. You had taken hours to get ready. Adamant thay every detail had to be perfect. Leaving his flat you’d actually been excited about where the night might go. And he had just brought it all crashing down in literal seconds.

For a second or two you didn’t move. Your eyes were fixed on the ground, breaths growing deeper. He saw it in the way your chest heaved. You weren’t going to hold out much longer. The last thing you wanted to do was cry in the middle of a party.

Lando swiftly excused himself from his conversation with Max, not that he’d been listening for the last 10 minutes anyway, and made a beeline for you in the corner.

You didn’t see him coming, you were too in your own head. When a pair of hands landed on your shoulders you were startled. He didn’t leave you wondering for long. His breath brushed your ear as he dipped his head down so he could whisper to you. “Come outside with me? I need some air.”

A frown curled onto your lips. He knew that expression well, you were confused. “We’re already outside, we’re on a roof.”

A few eyes began to glance at you both. He smiled at them. “It’s too crowded out here. It’ll be much quieter.”

You turned your body so you could actually see his face and try to get a read on him. “Are you okay?” Your own sadness was momentarily put on pause as your worry for him outweighed it. Lando was susceptible to anxiety, even anxiety attacks every so offen, you didn’t want to risk that right now. If he was overwhelmed, her feelings could wait.

It was wrong of him, he knew it was, but he played into your worry. “I don’t know. I think I just need to get out of here for a minute.”

You nodded, grabbing your clutch and gulping down the last dregs of wine that had been in your glass. “Let’s go.” You rose to your feet, almost headbutting him on the way up, and slipped your hand into his much larger one.

Really he should feel guilty about it, but he was just glad it worked.

The elevator ride down to the lobby was quiet. You were beginning to think about Jake again, how he had so easily brushed you off. Meanwhile Lando was thinking about you, and what the hell he was going to say when you both got outside. You were going to be so mad at him. The ding that signalled your arrival was far too loud in the silence.

Fresh air felt like a blessing in disguise. You took a deep breath as you finally headed outside. Then you remembered your company.

You whipped around to face him, eyes wide and hands immediately reaching for him like you were checking for any injuries.

He grabbed your hands in his, stopping your obsessing. “I’m okay.” You looked at him as though he was lying. Now was the time to come clean. “I,” he sighed. “Look, I lied.”

“What?”

“I’m fine, really.” You were still unsure, eyes slightly squinted like you were trying to suss him out. “I saw what happened with Jake. You looked upset and I thought you needed an excuse to get out of there. I didn’t know what else to do.”

If there was one thing you wouldn’t do it was admit that you weren’t okay. Lando hated how you couldn’t even do it with him. “Lan, I’m fine. Jake just— he had other things to do, that’s okay.” Excusing his shitty behaviour only made the man more angry. He had seen it all, the way he ignored you, sauntered up to the bar, greeted Max and your other friends, ordered himself a drink and then probably started chatting up the first girl he set his eyes on. He certainly wasn’t busy like you claimed.

“That’s your problem,” he exclaimed.

Your brow furrowed and your face twisted into something of offence. “Excuse me?”

“You’re too nice, too willing to let him walk all over you. He doesn’t give a shit about you, Y/N!” All these feelings had been building up inside Lando for months now. Every time you went on and on about your crush, every time Jake let you down or dismissed you again, he couldn’t take it anymore. He’d had enough. You needed some tough love, someone to tell it to you straight. “Why can’t you see that? Everybody else can!”

Your face fell. The words hit deep. Logically you knew he was right, Jake was never going to give you the attention you so desperately craved from him. He liked having girls falling at his feet. You weren’t special to him, just another admirer. He would never see you as more than someone in his friend group who he didn’t really talk to. To have it pointed out so clearly, especially by someone you care about, it stung.

“No matter what you do, he never notices you. I always notice you.”

You weren’t sure what to take from that. Was it a confession? The thought of him telling you his feelings right now was overwhelming. “Lan…” Your voice wavered. Now that he’d had his initial outburst, his anger died down. Enough to see the tears beginning to line your eyes.

He was such a dick.

He sighed, shoulder’s sagging. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-“

“It’s okay. I know.”

Like a cruel twist of fate, a couple exited the fancy bar where the party was being held. As they grew closer, stepping into the soft glow of light being emitted from the street lamps, you realised you recognised one of them. So did Lando.

Jake clearly couldn’t read the room. “Oh, hey Lando, Jess.” He greeted you both cheerfully, his mystery woman staring at you both as she clung to him.

You frowned, heart cracking just that big more. He didn’t even know your name? It took everything in Lando not to swing. “Her name’s Y/N.”

He completely ignored Lando’s words. Despite the fact he had basically only just arrived at the party, he seemed pretty hammered and eager to leave already. “What are you doing down here? Party’s great.” His voice was loud, practically echoing through the streets.

“Just needed some air.”

His smile was tight-lipped, fake. All he wanted was for him to go away. Obviously he was too drunk to know when he wasn’t wanted.

There was an awkward pause. Well, awkward for you and Lando at least, he probably didn’t even notice. Jake didn’t notice a lot of things.

“We’re heading off, anyway. Enjoy the party guys.” With that the pair wandered down the empty street, leaving you and Lando free to resume your heated discussion. You didn’t feel like arguing anymore.

A sob escaped your throat before you were able to choke it down. The tears that had been ever so close to falling earlier were back in full force. There was certainly no stopping them now. It felt like your heart had just been stomped on.

There was no way Lando was going to let you suffer on your own. “Come here.”

As soon as you were in his arms you felt better. Whether it was the warmth of another person, his scent or just the fact he made you feel grounded. Everything felt a little less loud with him here.

He leaned his head against yours, one of his hands on the back of your head, stroking your hair. It was soothing. You had no idea how long you stayed like that before the tears stopped. You would stay there forever if you could.

When your sobs turned to sniffles and your breaths grew more even, he began to speak. “You deserve someone who loves you.” He took a deep breath and his hand stuttered on your head. It was now or never. “Someone like me.”

He expected to feel you tense, to have you pull away. Some sign of rejection that would break his heart. None of that happened. You simply tilted your head upwards, so you could look him in the eye. You didn’t look repulsed or afraid, that was a good sign at least.

Your cheeks still shined in the light with leftover tears and he risked wiping them away. The way his thumb trailed over your skin was tender, like he was trying to memorise you. Your heart throbbed.

“You love me?”

There was no hesitation in his response. Lando was a man who knew what he wanted. When he had his heart and his mind set on something, he didn’t stop or waver until he got it. “I’m in love with you. I have been for years.”

It should have come as some surprise to you, maybe shocked you ever so slightly, but for some reason it didn’t. He was always there, right by your side when you needed him, in both your happiest and saddest memories. When you thought about your life in years to come, he was always there. He made sense. You weren’t you without Lando. Subconsciously you had probably been in love with him for years too, it had just taken it being pointed out for you to realise.

The eye contact between you didn’t waver even for a second. If it were anyone else looking at you with such an intensity, you might shy away. The way he looked at you made you feel brave.

You didn’t say anything, just fluttered your eyes shut and closed the gap between your lips.

He acted like he knew it was coming. Maybe it was just the reaction time of a Formula One driver, but he barely wasted half a second before he kissed you back. There was an intensity in the kiss that you didn’t think you had ever experienced before. It felt like any second now fireworks would begin exploding over your heads. You cursed yourself for not having done this earlier.

He was the first to pull away. You chased his lips with your own and he cracked a smile. He granted you one more chaste kiss which definitely didn’t quench your desire.

“Are you pitying me or did you really want to kiss me?” That was insecurity shining through.

Lando had poured his heart out to you, he was terrified of being a rebound or a second choice. He refused to be second best to Jake. It would be tough to walk away from you if you admitted what he feared, but he would do it to protect his own feelings. The last thing he needed in his chaotic life was a relationship that was one sided. If you weren’t all in he was going to have to walk away.

“I really wanted to kiss you.” A weight was lifted off of his shoulders. “I think I didn’t realise how I felt about you was love. With Jake I wanted his attention, I wanted him to look at me and tell me I was pretty. I tried everything to get him to like me. With you, I don’t have to do that because you’re already looking. I don’t have to be someone I’m not. I can be myself, comfortable. I never worry that you’re going to judge me because you’re probably right there being weird with me.” He laughed as you laughed. “Lando, you, you’re my peace.”

He looked like he was about to shed a tear. “Do you mean that?”

You smiled. He had never really understood the term weak in the knees until he saw that smile aimed at him.

“I mean that. I love you, and I’m sorry it took me so long to figure that out.”

His thumb hovered over your lips, tracing their shape with a look in his eye that was so fond you could have melted. “I would have waited forever for you,” he admitted. Those words basically turned you into a giant pile of mush.

Your smile quickly turned into a grin. “God, you’re cheesy.” You weren’t you and Lando if there wasn’t some playful teasing sprinkled in somewhere, even in the middle of a dramatic love confession.

Lando scoffed. “I’m trying to be romantic here. Do you mind?”

Neither of you could be serious for that long.

“Just shut up and kiss me again, lover boy.”

The kiss he placed on you was done with such a ferocity you were surprised you didn’t get scolded for public indecency. Clearly he had been holding back. You were more than happy to make up for lost time though, just maybe not in the middle of the streets of London.

When you finally returned to the party your lips were swollen and joy was radiating from every part of you. Max’s eyes found his best friends as the two of you re-entered the party with your hands intertwined. He raised his eyebrow and Lando sent him a wink. The elder was rather proud of him for finally making a move. It had only taken years.

You found yourselves tangled together on the dancefloor, arms around one another and heads touching. You swayed to the music. It felt like you were in your own little bubble. Just you and him, as it always was meant to be.

He brushed his nose against your cheek, pressing a soft kiss to your jaw. “For the record,” he whispered, lips curling into a smile at the fact he got to tell you these things freely now. “I will always notice you.”

Your heart soared. Yeah, he was the one.

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[strawberrysohn]

"if you want forever (i bet you do)" | taste — jjk (pt 2)

series summary: your best friend (with benefits) has a new girlfriend...little does she know, you were and would always be there first.

what to expect for this part: fuckbuddy! jk, y/n is still a bad person (what are morals anyway), cheating, oral (m receiving), whiny! jk (!!!), again feel free to imagine 2018/2019 jungkook for this <3

also!! y/n is described to have dyed blonde hair & hair with strands that can be tugged on. just a heads up for readers with different hair textures :)

again no word count...a lot of words.

enjoy :)

"what do you see in her?"

jungkook shrugs. "she's pretty, nice," he thinks of all his favorite features of his girlfriend, siyeon. "she cares about me. she's really gentle too. she's just a good soul."

y/n nods, trying to seem interested while also trying not to yawn. "how nice," she speaks. she sits back further on the bed, his monitor screen more visible to her now.

she loved to watch him play video games. it was fun for him because he enjoyed his little games, and fun for her because she found all the little noises he made whenever he got shot endearing. the hushed whispers of 'shit', the hisses and groans...he got really into it. plus, telling him he could play was just a really subtle way to get him in the mood. and the more she distracted him with questions, the worse he would do in the game. and the worse he did, the more he'd rage quit. and then he was all hers.

"are you jealous of siyeon?" jungkook asks, smirking a little.

y/n can't hold in the laugh this time. "are you joking? absolutely not, try the opposite." she shakes her head as she flips through her magazine. "she's gotta be jealous of me. you saw, yesterday when i came up to you guys, right?"

it was quite funny, seeing the way siyeon clutched onto jungkook as soon as y/n walked up to him after class had ended. all she wanted was to ask a homework question (and maybe piss off siyeon a little...), and her very presence near jungkook had siyeon eyeing her up from head to toe and everywhere in between. it was, as y/n loved to say, pathetic.

"you're reading too much into that, y/n," jungkook chuckles at his friend. "she barely acknowledged you."

"she was clutching onto you like she was a dog and i had come to steal away her favorite chew toy."

"you're being dramatic."

"and you're being delusional." y/n retorts, sitting her magazine down.

jungkook groans as his character is eliminated. since he has time before next round, he turns around his swivel chair to face her. "maybe you're right," he says, causing y/n to perk up a little. "she does get a little...nervous whenever you come around. even when i bring you up. it's weird."

"yeah?" god, she liked where this was going. "how weird? tell me."

jungkook takes a moment to recall before he speaks again. "this morning, as i was leaving her place, i told her i was having you over. she got this really flushed look on her face...like i had really said something crazy. she asked what we were gonna be doing and i just shrugged because i didn't know yet. siyeon let out a really shaky breath...it was weird."

y/n listens intently, trying not to look as victorious as she felt right then. "oh wow," she says nonchalantly. "that is weird."

jungkook nods as he continues. "yeah, and then she asked if she could come with...like, she was willing to take off work to hang out with us."

y/n places a hand over her mouth in fake shock, but also to hide her growing smirk. she feared if she tried to say anything else, a laugh would come out instead, so she just sits and listens.

"i told her maybe next time, on a day when she's not working," jungkook explains. "maybe after class one day. would you be okay with that?"

y/n shrugs, feeling her eyes brimming with tears from holding in her laughter for this long. luckily, jungkook had turned back around to play his game again so he couldn’t see. "sure, why the hell not, right?"

"i'm glad you see it that way!" jungkook's smile is evident in his voice. "i can't wait...my two favorite ladies in one place!"

y/n can't help but roll her eyes at his enthusiasm for something that very well would not ever happen. she looks back on the past, when she was his only favorite girl, and she didn't have anybody trying to compete with her. it was less complicated but it was also way less fun.

she looks at the back of his head while he plays, seeing the soft fluffiness to his hair today. she watches as he leans over to grab his can of soda and take a drink. then, he's back to clicking away at his keyboard, his nimble fingers working hard to get him the win.

"jungkookie?"

"hmmmm?"

"do you see a future with siyeon?"

the question makes jungkook actually pause his game. he faces forward for a few more seconds before turning around again to look at y/n.

"a future..." he thinks, his top lip coming over his bottom lip as he concentrates. "well, sure."

"yeah? how long?" y/n was curious now, wondering if he'd actually thought about this or if he was just thinking off the top of his head right now because she asked.

"i don't know," jungkook hums in thought. "as long as we could make it work, i guess."

"and what about you and i during that time, hm? she watches as his expression changes. "what would we be doing?"

jungkook thinks about the best way to answer this question. he looks at y/n, his best friend, sat back against his headboard, looking gorgeous as ever. the way her tight baby pink top fit her gorgeously and her beautiful legs were on display. of course he had to notice the way she spread them, probably on purpose, as he stared. he blinked and met her eyes.

"i think we'd still be friends."

y/n stifles a laugh and nods. "okay," she could tell he was hesitant to answer realistically, but she let it slide. she tucks her legs up to change position, not ignoring the way his eyes followed her every move. she crawls over to him, slowly. "just friends...?" she sits right in front of him, looking at him as her legs dangle off the bed.

"y-yes," he replies. "we wouldn't be, um, you know..." jungkook trails off.

"we wouldn't be fucking anymore, huh?" y/n fake pouts at him. "good thing this is only hypothetical. we both know you can't resist me."

"y/n–"

"you know she doesn't understand you like i do, right?" she interrupts him and his mouth goes zip. "she doesn't. she couldn't possibly get you the way that i do. i mean, have you two even had sex?"

"we have," jungkook answers, quickly and swiftly enough for her to know it wasn't true. "what does it matter?"

y/n shakes her head and laughs. "god, jungkookie, this is honestly quite sad." she sighs, having way too much fun.

"what is?" he frowns, her laughing only making him more confused. he just wanted to play his game and spend time with his friend, what was so bad about that?

"you're dating some diner maid bitch who genuinely has nothing appealing about her, except maybe her body, and you haven't even fucked her yet? it's sad."

jungkook feels his face heat up. "don't talk about my girlfriend like that, please." he speaks, trying to sound stern.

"she's literally beyond boring, and she doesn't have anything in common with you," y/n continues, ignoring jungkook's plea. "there's no way she could ever begin to get you, really."

"y/n, i don't wanna get into this," jungkook shakes his head, standing up from his gaming chair and approaching her. "okay? i don't wanna talk about this with you. i get that you don't like siyeon but you don't have to be mean, okay?"

"i get you, jungkook," y/n looks up at him, rising to her feet. her hands find his biceps and she waits for his hands to find her waist like they always do. "you hear me? i get you."

jungkook's hands tentatively find her waist, like they always do, though this time his grip isn't as strong. he looks her in the eyes, his heart racing in his chest "i-i know you do, y/n."

"good boy," she smiles and reaches up to pet his hair, watching as his eyelids flutter at the feeling and the praise. his gaze lingers on her lips for a few seconds before he leans in slowly.

"n-need you so bad..." he whisper against her lips.

"i know."

their lips meet and the kiss is messy, yet passionate. jungkook's grip on her hips tightens to it's usual roughness as the kiss deepens.

jungkook pulls away at last, breathing hard, his eyes darkened. y/n meets his eyes with an innocent expression.

"jungkookie..." she hums his name in her usual sing-songy tone. "why don't you lay back on the bed and let me show you just how much i understand your needs, hm?"

his eyes widen in childlike wonder and he nods, sitting on the edge of the bed and crawling upward so he was all the way against the headboard.

y/n smirks at his eagerness and crawls up with him, her eyes glowing with devious intent. "good boy, jungkookie...so good always." he gulps at her words, his cheeks turning a light shade of pink. "aw, baby...you're blushing." she coos at his reaction and he groans in embarrassment.

"whatever, just," jungkook blinks and looks away. "do something, please."

y/n smirks and hums, reaching for the waistband of his sweatpants. she hears him gasp, caught off guard by the sudden movement.

"w-wait, you're gonna...?" he looks at her hands on his waistband and the gleam in her eyes and lays his head back against the pillow. "shit, y/n, really? you know i can't hold back when you—"

"you talk too much, jungkookie," y/n pipes up, and his mouth goes zip. she smirks. she loved how quickly she could shut him up. she pulls his sweatpants down after he lifts his hips off the bed to help. jungkook hisses when the cool air hits his length, its tip already leaking for her.

y/n grabs his base, earning a small whine from him as he watches her actions. she begins to stroke his length, her manicured nails ever so often rubbing against him, making him shiver. "g-god, y/n, don't do that with the nails, okay?" he begs softly and she complies, only because she had more things in store.

"relax, jungkookie..." y/n smiles warmly at her friend, innocently even. she looks back down at his cock, rock hard and leaking. he looked so pathetic like this, it made her toes curl. "let me take care of you, baby, hm?"

"p-please..." he whispers under his breath, watching as she moves her face closer to where he needed her most.

she begins with just his tip, entering it in her mouth, sucking softly. he groans from above her on the bed..it was clear he could get off from any kind of pleasure right now.

then, she takes in half of him, her cheeks hollowed out as she sucks him off agonizingly slow.

"b-baby, please, your mouth is so good, but–ah need more..." he whines again, the sound pleasing y/n's ears.

finally, she gives in and takes all of him in her mouth, his tip hitting the back of her throat. jungkook lets out a guttural moan, throwing his head back against the pillow, his eyes screwing shut. "o-oh my god, y/n..."

she keeps a steady pace as she sucks his cock, gagging ever so often when his tip would hit her throat. her hands rest on his muscular thighs as she listens to his pathetic whining.

"y/n, y/n, shit, i–mmph!–fuck–hah–shit..." jungkook's a whining, moaning mess as he tries to resist the urge to buck his desperate hips up into her her perfect mouth. he knew she'd be okay with it, but now it was like a challenge for himself, to see if he could take it.

he watches the way every inch of his cock disappears into her mouth, then reappears again, only to disappear once more. he hears the way she gags ever so often, the idea that he was so big she had to gag on him really boosting his ego.

y/n swirls her tongue around his tip as she sucks, adding extra pleasure. his hands quickly find her hair, messing it up without meaning to as he tugs on the strands, her dark roots finally starting to show from under her bleach blonde hair. his tugging causes her to moan around his length which sends a vibration up his cock.

"fuck, y/n do that again," he tugs on her hair again and she moans around him, the same vibrations return. "oh, shit, i'm s' close...y/n, i-i'm g-gonna cum soon..." he whines, almost whimpers.

she hums around his length, eager to feel him cum down her throat. she deep throats him repeatedly, the gagging sound more constant, since she knew it drove him crazy.

"y/n, y/n, oh, fuck–" jungkook whimpers loudly as he releases down her throat, his eyes rolling back. "shit, baby, take it all..."

y/n swallows every drop, humming happily at the familiar taste on her tongue. she pulls off his cock with a 'pop' and wipes her mouth with the back of her hand.

"you really want forever with a girl who won't even do that for you?"

jungkook meets her eyes and sighs, his chest still rising and falling quickly as he comes down from his release. "n-not right now..." he averts his eyes, realizing what had just happened. they couldn't keep doing this.

"relax, jungkook, i'm only teasing," y/n smiles as she crawls up to lay beside him, her head propped up by her elbow.

"oh...right," jungkook gulps and turns to face her. his cheeks were a light pink. "t-thanks...also..."

she smirks at his quietness. "you're welcome," she hums in response, her free hand toying with his hair. "you're using that conditioner i like, aren't you?" her fingers thread through the slight volume.

"yeah, siyeon likes when i have fluffier hair," jungkook replies absentmindedly. y/n's eye twitches. "i remembered you got this for me so...i bought a new bottle."

how nice, y/n thinks to herself. she continues to play with jungkook's hair, unintentionally (maybe) tugging on the strands a bit, noticing the way he whines softly.

then, there's a knock on the door.

jungkook looks up at y/n, who furrows her brows. he looks at the time and sits up slowly, fixing himself. "it's probably siyeon. try not to look so...vexing." he gestures at her awkwardly before heading out into the main room of his dorm.

y/n stifles a laugh at his clearly flustered state when he answers the door for siyeon, noticing the way his voice waivers a little. she hears a bit of their conversation.

"is she still here?"

"y/n? yeah, she's in my room."

"what did you do all day?"

"just hung out, played video games. why?"

y/n stifles a laugh at the way jungkook dances around the truth. he had gotten much better at lying over the years. she sighs, bored, and decides to make her presence known. she stands up, stretches and slides her shoes back on.

siyeon watches y/n's scandily-clad figure emerges from her boyfriend's bedroom.

"oh, hey, siyeon!" y/n greets with a smile. "wow, love that hat! really fun!" she notices the crocheted hat atop the woman's head, the yellow and orange combo making her insides hurt.

"thanks..." siyeon glances at y/n again before stepping closer to jungkook on instinct. "i had just gotten off of work, so i came over...i hope that's okay."

jungkook nods. "yeah, of course! the more the merrier, right, y/n?" he looks to his friend, who has a hand on her throat, a troubled expression on her face.

"sorry, you two, i'd love to stay and hang but my throat is suddenly killing me," y/n sends a small teasing glance at jungkook who looks away, clenching his jaw. "i better go back to mine and take something." she places a hand on jungkook's arm, bidding farewell, the touch lingering of course. she waves to siyeon who waves back, still clutching onto her man.

"see y'all around! toodles!" y/n sends one last look back at the two of them before heading out, winking at jungkook subtly.

then, she was out.

(i have no beef against crocheting/crocheted hats btw no hate to the crocheting community)

tags:

@bhonbhon @emmie2308 @ttanniett

[given1soul]

eng translation!

1st pic: Sergei Smutianov (*surname derived from "mischief/rebel/troublemaker"): Gay, (*medieval/historical) reenactor, BDSM practitioner Pasha Sirotkin (*surname derived from "orphan"): obedient good boy Jan Ptacek: takes wenches to Teremok on a date (*Teremok = fastfood chain with local Russian cuisine) (*this name is used in Russian localization) Jindro Skalitzkiy (*Jindřich is Henry's Czech name and it is used in Russian localization instead of Henry, pronounced /een-droh/): employee of the month in Teremok Shmuel Skalitzkiy: chav-aesthete Vanya Profitrolev (*Vanya is like English John - one of the most common names, the surname is derived from a French cream pastry profiterole)

2nd pic: Jindro Skalitzkiy

employee of the month in Teremok

has a dog Barbos (*one of the most common names for dogs in Russia)

eats everything, literally and metaphorically

a reaper, a reader and a flute player (*literal translation for a Russian proverb for Jack of all trades)

in reality: a leather worker, a jeweler, a tailor and a blacksmith

just a really good and independent guy

lives in a big, old apartment that he inherited from parents. partially made it into a workshop

from his (biological) father picked up trolling

from his (adoptive) father picked up unbound passion for role-playing

from role-playing picked up unbound passion for BDSM

3nd pic: Jan Ptacek

sincerely believes that Teremok is a great place for dates (*it is not)

a fan of juice balls (*a thing for Boba) (*also fan has a feminine ending in Russian here, for the sas I presume)

a real normie in terms of clothes, loves brands

is afraid to go home late at night and of confined places after he got kidnapped for ransom at 15

was born with a silver spoon in his mouth (*in Russian proverb it is a golden spoon)

has a car but not a driver's license (Jindro has a license)

his only friends are: Vanya from the gymnasium (*an elite private school) and Jindro from Teremok

got a very good position at Ismailovo hotel complex through his uncle

4th pic: Shmuel Skalitzkiy

reads tarot, listens to vinyl, sleeps under a tapestry (*very aesthetic you see)

and wears Thrasher...

Jindro's younger step-brother

has an awful ex that broke his heart and traumatized him (*ex is used with a masculine ending)

chav-aesthete (*basically a chav is a British word for a kinda punk but not really, a disrespectful and looked down on young man, used here with an adjective describing him as someone who still appreciates beauty, a kind of contrast)

has an insanely good music taste

gets triggered by French

doesn't know that Ioann's real name is Vanya (*so, if we find a comparison it would be if John changed his name to a more religious Johann. they all stem from the same name; pronounced /ee-oh-ahn/)

a barman at a queer drinking establishment

5th pic: Vanya Profitrolev

really changed his legal name to Ioanne Liechtenstein

has a Persian cat (dreamed about it since he was three) which Erik hooked him up with, from a shelter

has been a friend with Jan Ptacek since the gymnasium

LGBTQ+ activist and Instagram blogger

silent waters run deep (*a similar proverb in Russian but with demons (a demon!) in silent waters)

knows all queer drinking establishments in Moscow

and not only queer

found his boyfriend a therapist

is really afraid that people will learn his real name is Vanya not Ioanne

6th pic: Sergei Smutianov (*another possible spelling is Sergay though not official. gay is underlined)

nerd... former

reenactor

sadism in the flesh

his apartment is a museum of art he so loves

gave Jindro his name

DILFed-up at 40 (that's the impact environment can have on a person!)

loves black 🖤

Seryozha (diminutive of Sergei) and Istvan are his two different personas, the second he likes considerably more

is self-made and made himself EXACTLY like this

7th pic: Pasha Sirotkin

big like dyadya Styopa (*uncle Styopa is a childrens book character who is really tall. it is a now a Russian proverb about tall people)

Erik and Pasha are not such two different personas but both are close to his heart and important

wears pants with a lot of pockets for a lot of things to always be ready for anything

good obedient boy

he loves Istvan / he's Istvan's 🤍 🖤

is shy and very polite

works in an animal shelter and volunteers a lot, taking stray dogs from the street in his car

references to characters from our (with @stupiddumat) modern au

[vanswarpedtour]

We sat down to chat with MySpace’s beloved MILLIONAIRE$ about their return to the Warped stage, old mems, and excitement for what’s to come. Learn how to LIVE FA$T and PARTY HARD before catching them at all three stops in DC, Long Beach, and Orlando this year!

How does it feel to come back and play Vans Warped Tour in 2025?

Melissa: When we got the offer, I legit was like, “REALLY? It’s actually back?!?” In my mind, it was not gonna come back.

Meredith: When I found out I was in disbelief, I was like, “Really???”

What’s your craziest Warped memory?

Melissa: [The realization] didn’t hit me until the moment I walked onto the stage for the first time. I’d never done a FESTIVAL festival…nothing like Warped Tour. I remember walking on stage and being like “Woah! Am I ready for this?”

We were treated like the losers, like the outcasts. Another girl in the band, someone threw a shoe and hit her in the face. We got a lot of shit talked to us that we laugh about now. I think it’s this redemption thing, playing this year. Like, “Fuck all you guys! Look who’s still fucking here bitch!”  

Meredith: I was going to Warped Tour every summer…I have great memories of lying to my mom and telling her I was spending the weekend at a friend’s house, and then getting in a car with a bunch of kids and driving up to Dallas in a beater not knowing if we’re gonna make it *laughs.* And then just getting a gnarly sunburn, and hanging out with my friends, not even really caring who’s on the lineup, we’re just going for the vibe.

What’s something you have to do before every performance?

Meredith: For our headline shows, we’ll have our DJ play a set, and we’ve curated that playlist with our favorite music. We hype up beforehand and dance around backstage!

Melissa: We also do our little “double double” hand thing…

Meredith: Yeah we also do uh, *patty cake/elevator hand game motion* little hand clap thing–

Melissa: And we also have nails on, so it’s like this *awkwardly does the hand motion.*

Meredith: Yeah, instead of a huddle we do a little secret handshake thing.

What’s your favorite song to perform live and why?

Melissa: I don’t know! That’s a hard one! No matter what order the set is, the first song when we jump on stage is the most hype. Also, we normally play “Alcohol” last. I think that one is so ingrained, everyone is having fun. I’m so excited to be on stage, and it’s sad to have to leave the stage, so it’s like giving my last moment of “Let’s just do it!” even if I’m exhausted.

Meredith: Yeah, that one’s just so iconic. And no matter who you are, I feel like everyone knows the words, and it’s easy to sing along even if you don’t. By that time, everyone’s balls to the walls. My favorite song is “Stay the Night.” The melody is really fun, and the dance we do to it is like old school Dream Girls vibes, and I like those types of songs.

Describe MILLIONAIRE$ in three words.

Meredith: Unapologetic. Iconic. Hot.

Melissa: Party. Besties 🫶. DGAF.

What’s your favorite part of Vans Warped Tour?

Meredith: Seeing so many friends that are also on the lineup. I think it’s really fun that we all get to do this together and it’s gonna feel almost like summer camp in a way *laughs.* Hanging out, seeing lots of friends, and watching a lot of bands that we love–there’s so many bands on the lineup that we’re both fans of. At the end of the day, even though we’re playing, we’re fans of this music, so that’s cool!

Melissa: It’s so nice to hang out again with the people we grew up listening to. Getting to see them perform and performing alongside them is a really cool feeling. I’m so happy to say they’re keeping the scene alive in Warped Tour too.

If you could collaborate with any other band or artist, who would it be and why?

Meredith: We got asked this last year at When We Were Young, and I think we said Charli XCX. That would be crazy. Maybe a metalcore band would be cool. We’re both fans of metalcore and there’s a lot of bands in the scene that are awesome right now. Yeah, I think that would be so fun!

Melissa: Yeah, and we could sing with them, or do our cutesy rap too! I would want to do a song or a tour with people that still want to keep the scene alive. I just wanna have fun, it’s not some competition. When we do shows and songs, I want it to be fun, I like that part of music!

Do you have anything exciting planned for your Warped set (that we can know about)?

Meredith: Party vibes, fun, and high energy. We’re working on a way to spice it up even more.

Are there any new or upcoming releases fans should keep an eye out for?

Meredith: We’re planning to do another release with Graveboy Records which is really exciting. To be determined when that’s gonna be, but new music is on the way, and maybe some other stuff that we can’t talk about yet.

What tips do you have for up-and-coming bands/artists?

Melissa: Never give up. No matter who talks shit about you, I don’t care, never give up! Just believe in it. It’s always been in my heart, a lot of people are like, “How are you still wearing the bow?” and all this mean stuff–it’s like dude, this is just me! Believe in your music, because other people will believe in it too.

[freuleinanna]

Right, so I'm hearing a lot of negativity toward changing Abby's physique in the series, and while I understand where it's coming from, I think it should be explored further?? For the sake of this post, I won't praise neither version, game nor tv, but literally, every change makes sense imo because one drags another forward

So, first, let's rewind. It's pretty obvious at this point, where season 2 is going to end, right? So. By that point in the original narrative, we know literally NOTHING of Abby. The game wears us out, allows us to bombard our personal grief and pain out of our chest, and comes to a more mellow point, where we're exhausted emotionally. And with that, slightly more open toward learning something new. And then we learn A WHOLE FUCKING LOT about Abby.

BUT. This narrative only works if we don't have to wait 2 years to see her story. With the TV series, they have to keep thinking about the new-watchers, and how to hook them in for season 3.

So it makes sense to reveal the least important thing about Abby, the one we also learn first while playing the game: her motivation. So we have to see her. And we have to be at least teensy bit interested when she comes back. But again, her motivation is the least important thing about her, her story unravels in a different way, and it's brilliant. So I'll let it be, okay.

Then! We see her, and the actress, while having gravity of presense, is not the muscled killing machine. BECAUSE WE ARE GIVEN ABBY'S MOTIVATION, WE LOSE THE 100% NECESSITY FOR HER TO LOOK EXTRA FORMIDABLE. She is a monster that comes from nowhere and leaves for nowhere – in the game. Here, we know she's been obsessed with Joel ever since the hospital, but the drive behind creating a scary, animalistic figure that makes you shit your pants with her sheer force, is lost. Instead, another representation is found, which plays nicely into the new visual.

Abby's obsession is that of mind. Where game Abby was mostly pushing it aside in favor of building physique, TV Abby is overanalyzing every single deranged bit of her trauma. She remembers, word for word, how Joel was described. She doesn't think he's handsome, but that's how the monster, who came from nowhere and left for nowhere after raging massacre on her world, was described. And it gets to her. Claws at her. Hooks her. She is conscious within her own dreams. Game Abby was following the corridor into the unknown. Tv Abby knows full well what's there, and still can't stop herself from doing it.

She's obsessed in a way more unhealthy manner than her game counterpart, I think.

And! It plays really fucking well into the discourse of "OH SHE COULDN'T HAVE BROKEN THE CLUB SHE'S NOT EVEN BUFF". No, she's not. It makes her even more dangerous/scary.

Because can you imagine what kind of horrors she is on the inside, when this twiglet of a woman BREAKS THE FUCKING GOLF CLUB, AND THEN CONTINUES BEATING JOEL WITH HER BARE HANDS, SCREAMING?

Can you imagine the sheer force required from a person to break a golf club? With game Abby, it wouldn't have been unexpected. She is, after all, really strong. But TV Abby? Can you imagine how tortured and burned and fueled she is by her emotions, that it makes her do that?

So it all comes well together. Little derangements. Obsessions. She scares you not because she's merciless and you have no idea who she is, but because (and that's what you're only supposed to learn after the first part of the game) you get a glimpse of what state she's in, and it's terrifying. And Kaitlyn Dever has done a bloody murderous job portraying that.

So, in conclusion, I guess my take is this: Abby Anderson is still the same character you love. All of her drive remains. However, the game being split into 2 seasons required certain narrative changes, and that caused presentation restructurization, and that altered how the characters needed to be perceived and built.

Underneath, though, it's definitely Abby. Why don't you love her? Everything about TV Abby already falls brilliantly into place, just like it did with game Abby. If you look an inch deeper, it's obvious. I don't fucking know what else people need.

[arlechinav-blog]

Types of Trancework & The Mysteries

(Pictured: Kore & Demeter with initiate.) This is going to be a long one.

Being a dance ethnologist, I have focused a lot on the practical techniques for trancework utilized by Mediterranean peoples past and present. If I had come from a classics background first and did not have a solid background in dance history and methodology I think the outcome of my work would be expressed very differently. A lot of the folks who read this blog do have some kind of background in classical Hellenic studies and are also interested in how to utilize this stuff in the context of the Mystery Religions of the ancient Med. If you are one of those people, this post is for you. Happy reading, friends, and feel free to ask questions if you have them. A Quick Overview of the Types of Trancework I break the different types of trancework used in the Med down into 4 categories based on the methods used and the purpose of the trance. This is specifically something you would get from looking at it from a practical perspective--How do we do it? What does it take? What is it for? 1. Basic Trance--For joy, celebration, experimentation, work, sleep, pain management, and things that are not specifically spiritual. 2. Catalyst Trance--Shapeshifting, heroic embodiment, bilocation, and things that might be described as magical workings. A lot of the things this is used for relate directly to archaic folk religion. 3. Spiritwork--Any type of trance that involves interacting with spirits other than your own but are not gods. Death spirits, nature spirits, and wind spirits being the big 3. 4. Euphoric Trance--Deity bridalwork, prophecy, coming into the presence of divinity. Each type of trance builds on the skills and cognitive developments supported by the previous category. I have done a full blog post on some of these categories so if you would like to explore deeper definitions for those, follow the links.

*Also check out: Training for Trancework

(There are a lot of ways to break down trancework--which is helpful if you want to puzzle out the different methods in use and what they are used to do. You could have a completely separate category for every purpose if you wanted to. It really only affects how you think about trancework. I use these 4 to give us some common understanding so we can build from there but if it helps to think of it differently then go for it.)

(Image: Sailor pulling rope. Sea shanties are excellent examples of basic trance in action.)

Understanding Basic Trancework

Just about everyone in the ancient world would have understood and participated in basic trancework from infancy until death. It would have been something they were very familiar with even if they didn't put words to it. This is because trance is and was everywhere in daily life. Lullabies are trance. Work songs that are used to time things and coordinate movements are also trance. Prior to industrialization it was just how things got done. -Sing a song that lasts X length of time while kneading dough to make bread. It is and was a popular method for detemining how long it takes to complete a task. -Songs are used to keep a working rhythm for weaving, especially works that take multiple people like weaving cords of rope. -Threshing and harvesting songs keep people working long hours under hard conditions to reduce exhaustion. -Rope handling and rowing songs are used by sailors to coordinate feats of strength that have periods of muscular rest and tension.

Humans are musical creatures. We have done a lot with those skills. Bluring the lines between secular and sacred in daily life.

(Image: Kallikantzeroi. Boogeties associated with winter mischief. These roles were actually played by people as shapeshifted humans terrorizing anyone who went out at night.)

Understanding Catalyst Trancework

Catalyst trancework involves utilizing a fuel source to power the trance effects. This allows the trance to go on longer without being laced to a type of labor. Without having a job to repeatedly perform and get lost in, entheogens and powerful emotions can be used to keep it going for long periods of time. There is also a fuzziness to the mind that occurs during catalyst trance that does not feel the same as the wandering mind more commonly found in basic trance. You are more likely to have an active imagining mind while engaging in basic trancework and a bit more of an empty head caught in current sensory experiences with a catalyst trance. (More likely but this is not a hard and fast rule--humans come in a lot of varieties so it is hard to generalize about experiences.)

In the context of the Mystery religions, catalyst trancework is not done by everybody. Anybody can get drunk and trance but that is an entirely different thing than the coordinated and specific efforts that go into a mystery tradition. Catalyst trancework is used in Mysteries that involve heroic embodiment--becoming a hero and engaging with a ritual play that involves what some might describe as sympathetic magic. All of the traditions described in my blog post titled, "Ancient Agricultural Rites Hiding in Plain Sight" are examples of heroic embodiment and catalyst trance. Catalyst trancework is strongly tied to heroic carnival traditions like Anthesteria and Quirinalia. Anything that involves an appearance from the entourage/ thiasos.

Regalia for this often involves masks and dressing up as named characters (every region has their own names). And the whole thing is fueled by whatever the local favored alcohol is--and there is a lot of variety. The fact that it is local is important to carnival traditions. It isn't just a matter of opening any ol' bottle of something, it is opening the locally produced something that honors the spirits of the area you are in.

The difference between heroic embodiment and shapeshifting is rather skin deep. Shapeshifting is the embodiment of animals and wild spirits while heroic embodiment involves taking on the mantle of hero, being the hero. Shapeshifters are frequently (but not always) cast as boogeties, monsters, and spirits of death. Heroes are the ones that ritually fight them in dance battles that may or may not involve trading actual blows. Their objective is to battle it out in rituals of sympathetic magic where life triumphs over death.

Catalyst trancework can also describe the act of drunken trancing without any purpose. So, it does not refer strictly to any Mystery religion but it is one technique among many that was and is utilized in some mystery traditions. More on that later.

(Image: A wind spirit. The personification of passion (in the illness sense, not in merely feeling an emotion). These bodiless beings like to take possession of human bodies so that they can experience their preferred physical sensations but the byproduct of that is a troubled mind for the human host--aka the Bride.)

Understanding Spiritwork

This is a category that has the least amount of written material out there about it but it is the one I have studied in living traditions most extensively. Spiritwork can be divided into possession or communication based. To an outside eye, possession and heroic embodiment look very similar. Both involve the use of regalia and can involve the entranced interacting with named spirits. The differences appear on closer examination. For one thing, it is usually done without mind altering substances. No alcohol or emphasis on emotional connection to the music to kick things off. And secondly, possession is thought of as a spirit marriage between a human and their possessing spirit. There can also be more than one possessing spirit at any given time hovering over the Bride. For heroic embodiment and shapeshifting, there is only one role per person at a time. Also a Bridal relationship is permanent while heroic embodiement and shapeshifting are often temporary--usually lasting a period of about 9 years (unless it is a hereditary tradition, this can change from region to region).

Possession is always permanent from a reconstructionist standpoint. Exorcism (as a ritual and thoughtform) did not enter the equation until somewhere around the 1st century CE. So, there are living traditions of exorcism in the Med but they tend to relate to monotheistic concepts about the hierarchy of the spiritworld. Excorcism is being defined here as a removal of a spirit who has attempted to form a Bridal relationship with a human. Spiritwork can encompass rituals of exorcism, I just don't do it because the recitivism rate makes the point nearly moot. (It is ridiculous, something like 97% of exorcisms relapse within the first year.) Ancient peoples knew this and understood it but a lot of people really, really wanted a quick and easy fix to this problem so there was a ripe market for anyone offering exorcism services.

Possession is tied to two categories of spirit--nature/wild spirits & wind spirits. Nature spirits are tied to romance and intimacy while wind spirits are tied to mental health. At their core, these traditions are ancient methods for dealing with anxiety, intrusive thougts, obsessions, addictions, and things that make life difficult. That is what these spirits are and the rituals we do with them are methods of keeping them in check. This is why it is expressed as a marriage. By externalizing these things, they can then be isolated and managed where otherwise living with them would be debilitating. It doesn't affect everyone but the harder a life has been, the better the odds of requiring these kinds of rituals to keep life in balance and allow a person to be more functional while also keeping the onus of the blame somewhere else. Because a person will have a harder time healing if they cannot separate these things from the whole of themselves. It is a kindness.

The other kind of spiritwork relates to what we might think of as mediumship. Essentially communicating with spirits, including the spirits of the dead. This is also not considered voluntary as far as I know. The ability to do this is passed down in families, though not genetically. It can ricochet off your aunt who married into the family and land on you. Usually there is some kind of story or reason for this ability to spontaneously appear, it afflicts widows more than anyone else. And I say affliction because this is not exactly thought of as a purely positive thing. Not everything can be defined as good or bad and this is one of those mixed blessing, grey area, cursed with awesome sort of things.

Spiritwork features prominently in the customs associated with Summer Dionysos as well as the goddess Kybele. Dionysos as a god of madness (there is that mental/emotional health connection) and Kybele as a mother of monsters (winds). More on that later.

(Image: Persephone and Demeter in iconic regalia.)

Understanding Euphoric Trancework

Euphoric trancework is a big deal. It takes the most dedication, the most preparation, and the most formality to successfully pull it off. It utilizes skills acquired from all the other categories of trance as well, which means to my eyes that this is not something to rush into before exploring at least some of the other forms of trance first. However, this seems to be the one that a lot of folks make a beeline towards when starting out. Which can really shoot you in the foot if you actually want to experience everything that it can do.

Trancework has physiological and neurological components to it. It is not something that you can just believe whatever you want about and expect to get the same results as someone who picks and follows a specific known path to get there. All trancework makes you feel funny. If you want to feel a little giddy while dancing around and dedicate that to a deity, that's wonderful but it is not what I am talking about here. Euphoric trancework is something very specific and difficult to do on accident.

I break it down into deity Bridalwork, prophetic Bridalwork, and coming into the presence of divinity--just being in close proximity to a deity. It cannot be treated casually if you want to experience these things in a similar way to how these things were experienced in the ancient Med. Deity Bridalwork and Prophetic Bridalwork are extremely similar to each other but they have different ritual objectives.

Deity Bridalwork is essentially making yourself into a horse for a deity. This is a culturally encoded concept that means "your body gets possessed by a god." Pay close attention whenever a sacred legend talks about a deity or daemon being strongly associated with horses, that is often a pretty big clue that they are frequently associated with these types of rituals. Bride is a gender neutral term in this context.

This is done in ecstatic rituals where the deity is expected to be present and presiding. Non ecstatic rituals where the deity is expected to be present and presiding will involve a statue as a substitute for this. Ecstatic rituals are occasions where miracles take place and people get to interact with an embodied deity in the limited ways that would be appropriate--engaging with their prefered rituals tools, foods, colors, scents, drinks, and anything relevant to the current place in the calendar cycle.

Prophetic Bridalwork involves all of that plus the added bonus of receiving a truthful statement about matters beyond human perception. That phrasing is important. If a prophecy is truthful and useful then it is divine. If it is untruthful or not useful (or just gibberish) then it comes from some other source--most likely a daemon. The ability to do this accurately and to be able to spontaneously compose it in verse on the spot provides proof of state. In other words, the proof is in the prophetic pudding.

Coming into the presence of a deity is done without any kind of embodiment. It is merely a matter of singing the right songs and doing the right kind of dances. These are (usually) stately and highly formal. Most of the gods are dignified in their conduct but there are a few yahoos in the pantheon that prefer a bit more crash and chaos. (Looking at the entourage of Dionysos and Kybele here.) This can be done without a lot of messing around with other forms of trance but you should at least be able to reliably get yourself in and out of a basic trance before giving it a go. The goal of this one is just unity, oneness, feeling close to divinity. It has a positive impact on the mind, body, and spirit of the participant and that is enough of a reason to do it.

How this Applies to the Mysteries

I would love to give an overview of each Mystery Religion and be able to say, "X trance category is used in Y Mystery tradition," but (alas) things are a wee bit more complicated than that. The complicating factor is that in some of the more involved Mysteries, like the Eleusinian Mysteries, there are multiple kinds of trance utilized by different people at different times depending on the role being performed--the initiate experience is going to be very different from that of someone who is embodying a deity or a hero. So, it isn't as simple as saying "X category of trance is used for Y Mystery."

Also, the Mysteries are strongly associated with trancework in popular imagination but they are not the only place where it can be found. Trancework is involved to some degree in just about every avenue of traditional worship. Any religious occasion that features music and dancing will feature trancing as a byproduct. It can be fancy stately well-coordinated trancing in a large circle dance that goes on for a long time. Or it can be goofy drunken reveling that goes on for a long time. Holy is holy. We don't discriminate in this house. Both of those examples are of basic trancework done in a religious context because the goal is just to dance with the community, the trancing is a happy byproduct. The trance produced by it is not used to do anything beyond keep that dance going. Context is everyting.

The other thing to keep in mind is that different types of trance would be used in the same type of mystery in different places. As an example here, in the wider pattern of Grain Mysteries, the fellahin of Letopolis would basically all practice ritual heroic embodiment instead of it being just a limited number. Whereas the Arkadian methods would have called for a separation between the duties of pilgrim first timers and old-hat locals, with limited numbers of people performing heroic embodiment with a whole separate ritual selection for who gets to do it/has to do it.

I try to simplify things and show you what to look for so that you can apply those concepts to whatever Mystery or tradition you happen to be studying. It is easier to take a look at a known ritual occasion and just ask yourself, "What kind of trance experience is being described here?" That being said, I'll get into some of the low hanging fruit to give you some examples to start working from on your own.

Dionysian Trancework

Dionysian cults do it ALL. They do not pick a lane. Each method is utilized for something different in the context of Dionysian trancework. Basic trance is utilized during harvesting and in the process of pressing fruits to make wine. Spiritwork is heavily involved in the trancework done for Dionysos in the summer months (like Tarantella). In the cold months (during carnival season) it is almost entirely about heroic embodiment--which is Catalyst trancework and that makes sense because it is when the new booze becomes available. And then there are the Orphic hymns which, to my eyes, are primarily intended for euphoric trancework.

So, if you want to engage with Dionysian trancework, you really can't go wrong. Any category you want will engage with some aspect of it. But if you are looking at your calendar and trying to plan out what kind of ritual you want to participate in: Harvest = Basic Trance Summer = Spiritwork Winter = Catalyst Trance Whenever = Euphoric Trance

If you read in between the lines here you can also imply that the Orphic hymns are suitable for Euphoric trancework--which can be done at any time or at specific points on the calendar that hold some meaning for you or the tradition that you are engaging with. Shapeshifting rituals are most likely to take place during the colder months. Possession rituals happen in the warm months. It helps to structure and pace things a bit. There is a cycle to it.

Grain Mysteries

The Grain Mysteries are not confined to the rites of Eleusis but those are probably the most well known. The Grain Mysteries rely quite heavily on heroic embodiment. It is a major aspect of the ritual process and one of those neat little details that does not get discussed much in classical texts about it. It is extremely prominent in living traditions and folk religion though, so that is where I am coming from with this. There are 4 dates of importance for those who participate in the heroic embodiment dance battles. In the Christian world, they map onto the four embertides--Ash Wednesday, Pentecost, The Exaltation of the Holy Cross, & St. Lucy's Day. These correspond to 4 Grain Cycle festivals of the ancient world (I'm going to pick on Rome for this since their dates are fixed and easier to chart):

Quirinalia on February 17th Robigalia on April 25th Consualia Aestiva on August 21st Larentalia on December 23rd

(Not everybody has calculated their calendars in the exact same way over the last 3,000 years so be aware that dates will not line up exactly, which is why I generalize it a little bit.) These are the days when those who have been chosen for a role as a hero or as a boogety will get dressed up and beat the stuffing out of each other in dance battles that go bonk. Those are all catalyst trance rituals.

Drinking kykeon as an initiate would not be catalyst trance unless it is done in such a volume (or recipe) as to produce intoxication. Intoxication is not required to produce a trance but a lot of modern folks with no background in trancework sure like to emphasize it. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. I don't know. To my eyes, it sounds like it was used as deiknumena (a hypnotic trigger that produces an expected dromena/responses). In this case, it sounds like the initiate drinks the kykeon and the mere act of drinking a single sip of it is holy enough to induce feelings of euphoria. Given that the purpose here is to come into the presence of a deity, I would categorize it as a type of Euphoric trance that happens to involve a sip of something (alcoholic or not).

Deity Bridalwork could also be involved here with the Lesser Mysteries in Anthesteria (February-ish) and the Greater Mysteries in Bodromion (Sepember-ish). They function like book ends for Death Season.

I'll have to make a Part II to include some of the fun ones like the rites of Mithras and those of Aset/Isis. This should give you plenty to chew on for a while though. As always, let me know if you have questions.

[saturdaynightspecialpresentation]

Let's Watch Libertarian Propaganda for Children for Some Reason

Hey everybody, look, it’s the Tuttle Twins!

Yeah, there they are. Zooping around on their time machine.

The Tuttle Twins is a streaming show from Angel Studios, the independent studio behind Sound of Freedom and various Christian and Christian-Adjacent movies. They’ve got some movie about Jesus out right now.

No, you can’t- The Buddy Christ thing isn’t- You don’t- 

Anyway, although I first heard about this cartoon from a youtube channel called “Fundie Fridays” The Tuttle Twins isn’t a Christian propaganda cartoon, it’s a Libertarian propaganda cartoon.

One that teaches kids how to buy Bitcoin!

After watching just the episode about Bitcoin, I wanted to watch and talk about some more episodes. And I sketched out a bit of an intro explaining what Libertarianism is in the minds of the people who created this show, but then I had a second thought.

“Am I just describing a straw-man libertarianism? Am I just paraphrasing these ideas in a way that I find easy to refute? Have I become the very Tuttle Twins I was trying to defeat?"

And then I watched the very first episode and their description of what they believe is pretty much word for word how I was going to explain it.

And hey, they put that episode up on youtube, we can watch it together!

(You can also watch season 1 and 2 and most of 3 for free on their slightly wonky app or web site, but there are a few full episodes on youtube as well)

Or you could skip it and read my amazing summary below!

Anyway, after a brief cold open that sees the twins hurtling through dimensions, and a pretty cute gag we cut to our entrepreneurial twins selling lemonade. The science-minded Emily is using it fund a trip to science camp, and Ethan is using it to fund his purchase of an enormous gummy bear. 

Until, that is, they are confronted by Karinne.

Likes: Fiat Currency, Communism, sweater vests. Dislikes: Freedom

I gotta be honest, I don’t totally get Karinne, she’s kind of a foil or frenemy for the main characters, and she comes off kind of preppy coded, sort of the snobbish rich kid used to getting what she wants, but y’all are libertarians, you shouldn’t be shaming her for the fact that her parents are Randian producers. 

Honestly I am eternally fascinated by kids show characters whose job is to be constantly wrong, but after watching a few episodes I don’t really have a clear read on her. Sometimes she tags along on an adventure and acts as an ideological foil for the kids, but so far I've seen her argue for fiat currency, religious intolerance, the NSA, and using the power of the president for self-enrichment. So... Uh... Not the raging communist I was lead to expect, put it that way.

Also there is a running joke for the first season where people keep pronouncing her name “Karen” and I don’t know if the joke is she’s supposed to be kind of a Karen in the slang sense? But honestly when I picture the kind of mother who would show this show to her kids… People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones, that’s all I’m saying.

Anyway, it turns out Karinne is the president of the “Cul-de-sac Kids Club” and last night she held a meeting to amend the laws of the kids club to allow the president to have as much lemonade as she wants, so she has some lackeys just cart away all of the lemonade, leaving our heroes without a way to earn money in the glorious American free market economy, what with the means of production having been confiscated and all.

The good news, though, is that Grandma is moving in! Along with her pet, and very specifically not tame raccoon Derek, who was banned from her previous dwelling by the HOA because, quote, “HOAs are full of communists”. Someone should put that on a shirt and sell plush toys of that raccoon.

I do enjoy the fact that her first impulse on hearing that Karinne is going to confiscate the lemonade is to slingshot a bar of soap at her head:

Don’t worry, she doesn’t actually assault a child.

Anyway, that night as the twins are lamenting the loss of they hear the noise of an acetylene welding torch coming from their grandmother’s room.

It turns out she made her mobility scooter into a gadget-laden time machine, so our show has a premise now. Huzzah!

After a series of actually pretty good gags, the kids end up in France, 1848 to meet with Frédéric Bastiat, who I was not previously aware of but who appears to be one of the founding figures of modern libertarian ideology.

Apparently American politics these days are all your fault you french son of a gun. Also wow they drew your hand wrong in this frame.

And he describes what I was going to describe about the libertarian moral foundations of this show.

“My book is about the idea that laws should protect our God-given rights or ‘Natural rights’. Having rights means there are some things you can do, and nobody is allowed to stop you!”

Specifically, rights to life, to liberty (Meaning the right to do what we want so long as it doesn’t take away another person’s rights) and to own property.

And to be clear, and this is explained later in the episode, these are very negative rights. The role of the government is not to ensure that you have any specific amount of property, liberty or life. Rather, you have to gather as much as you are able by your own lights, and the government’s sole role is to prevent other people from taking whatever property you have or abrogating your liberties or killing you.

Does that mean that taxation for the public good is the same as theft?

You betcha, which is what we learn in the next part of the show. A part which is largely so boring that I can't be bothered to screencap it.

The time machine runs out of “Knowledge Juice” and strands them in an Old West Town. Knowledge Juice is the fuel for the time machine, it’s a green goo that goes down when they travel through time, and up when they explain that they’ve learned something. And it’s a plot device that I think they eventually get rid of just because it gets kind of redundant.

Actually I’ll just sort of go over the formula of the show. 

The kids have some more or less relatable real world problem;

Grandma takes them back in time to meet a historical figure who tells them about some libertarian principle;

On the way back the time machine runs out of knowledge juice in some fantastical situation;

The kids solve the situation using their new libertarian knowledge;

They refill the knowledge juice reserves by explaining what they learned;

They then go back home and use what they learned to solve their ordinary kid problem.

Just from a story structure perspective the part where they refill the knowledge juice is extremely redundant; It would be more elegant to just have them explain the lesson to the other kids when they solve their problem at the end of the episode. I think eventually they figured that out.

Arguably, if you really wanted to condense things you’d have the kids go on a historical adventure with the historical figure, then come back to the present and explain what they learned and apply it to their current situation, but the reason they have sections 3 and 4 is because those are usually where the crazy cartoon stuff comes in, they end up in some alternate fantasy dimension or shrunk down and fighting a worm war, or something fun like that.

Except for this pilot episode, where parts 3-5 just take place in a generic old west town. Not really starting with a bang honestly.

Basically, the Sheriff fights off two cattle rustling bandits, who then return in the guise of tax men, taking cows away from an innocent rancher to use for business subsidies and charity, which isn’t fair because the law is supposed to protect her property, and anyway the rancher gives cows to charity sometimes already.

Since taxation is theft, the kids lobby to get the laws changed, and after an amusing title card that says,

The whole town has voted to repeal the taxes and they capture the rustlers, huzzah!

Anyway, the Tuttle Twins go back home, and call an emergency meeting of the Cul-de-sac kids club to hold a vote to repeal the law that allows the President to have as much lemonade as she wants. Of course, the vote goes their way…

Which is when Karinne reveals her trump card, which is that the club by-laws allow the President a unilateral veto over any proposed amendments to the club rules.

Furthermore, she points out that the Kids Club is not a government organization, but a private one which is simply a contractual relationship that the twins entered freely. And since the government’s job is to enforce contracts and protect private property, the twins will be arrested if they try to violate the contract by taking any of Karinne’s honestly earned lemonade.

Yeah kids, that’s right. Have grandma teleport you back to talk to Murray Rothbard, he’ll explain it to you.

Okay okay I made all that up. I'll stop arguing politics with a children's cartoon.

They successfully overturn the rule but give everybody in the club a glass of lemonade on the house anyway to show there’s no hard feelings.

So, this episode is not that out there. Something I can’t get across in summary is that there are a lot of classic cartoon gags, and a lot of them land. I’ve watched a few episodes of this show now and smiled at a lot of gags and laughed out loud once or twice. As much as I don’t agree with a lot of the ideology behind it it’s not something that was tossed out there.

The animation quality of any given shot varies quite a lot, but there is some attention to the animation, visual gags and comedy timing as well as some funny writing. This isn’t a half-assed scam or complete amateur nonsense, this is clearly made by people who are trying to make something genuinely good outside of its propaganda purpose.

That said, I obviously have some issues with the show.

Honestly going in I thought my biggest problem with this show would be ideological disagreement. And don’t get me wrong, there’s some stuff in this show that I strongly disagree with, but there are quite a few episodes with perfectly fine messages. There’s an episode where they get into a prank war at science camp and eventually it starts wrecking the science projects so Ghandi teaches them about de-escalation. Rosa Parks talks about civil disobedience and how sometimes you should disobey unjust laws, but you should always be aware of the consequences beforehand and think carefully about how and when you should do it. There’s an episode where they talk about respecting different religious traditions and how the government shouldn’t mandate or prevent any religion.

I agree with all of that, even if some of that is something that kids won’t really get to put into practice much.

My big problem is that even though there are gags in the historical parts, this show suffers a problem that a lot of educational shows do, which is that it feels like it stops dead to lecture you about something and you have to just sit through that until the fun bits start up again. The historical figures tend to be heavily simplified in a way that some people might object to, but I think the bigger issue is that this simplification makes their stories less compelling.

You’re not so much living through a recreation of the exciting things the historical figures did so much as listening to them talk about what they did. It’s a real “tell, don’t show” approach that makes about a third of every episode really kind of dull unless it’s one of the episodes where what they’re telling you is batshit crazy.

So if you’re going to watch it for camp value, I really don’t recommend starting with the first episode or trying to watch it in order, I’d just scan the episode summaries and watch one that sounds crazy to you. There are at least two that try to sell Bitcoin to children. There’s a few genuinely bananas episodes and ideas to gawk at if you’re into that kind of thing like I am, but there’s a lot of fairly bland episodes.

And talking about how viewers will view the show…

I have had to accept in my heart that I have no idea who this show is made for.

It has a lot of parallels to American Christian pop culture programs, but like, okay, so right-wing American Christians have built this entire parallel media ecosystem because they’re paranoid that Hollywood secularists are going to corrupt their kids with secularism and paganism. I knew a guy once who said when he was a kid his parents made him stop watching Tiny Tunes because they saw one of the characters meditating, but that’s okay, he could still watch McGee and Me.

Now, I don’t agree with that kind of strict parental thought control, it is at least internally consistent. A lot of parts of the Bible are about devout Godly people being corrupted by worldly concerns or religious apostasy, going at least back to the worship of the Golden Calf in Exodus. And the right wing Christians who are worried about media corruption think any deviation from their theology is a threat to a person’s immortal soul.

So the impulse to shield your child from any media that even slightly questions or contradicts your own views isn’t good, but at least it’s theologically consistent and in keeping with the Bible.

Meanwhile, if you find yourself saying, “As a staunch libertarian and tireless advocate for personal freedom, I believe in strictly controlling what my children are allowed to watch or think.” Like…

You know come on and think for a second about what you’ve just said.

The kind of paranoia about controlling your children’s worldview that would make someone want to watch this really doesn’t seem to me to be in keeping with, well, uh, the actual values espoused in the show.

So I kind of don’t know how to feel about it. Personally, I would never expose a child to this on purpose unless they were old enough to ask some very critical questions about what they were hearing.

On the other hand, when I imagine the kind of person who is going to show this to their kids… I kind of almost wonder if most of the other stuff those kids are seeing is a lot worse. I can kind of imagine a very earnest child taking this stuff seriously enough to start questioning some controlling parent or religious authority.

So I really just don’t know. If anybody has any insight into the culture of the people who watch this kind of thing, I’d be really curious.

[the-flowerpatch]

many thoughts, many thoughts…

[uchiha-gaeshi]

Now that I think about it, my college's party scene was super shit...

[please-picturemeintheweeds]

Too many thoughts too little organization of them BUT something about the ways that we heal from trauma and how we work through the same shit over and over again learning something new about it/ourselves everytime it comes up, and how WCS feels so important to the midnights story (memories feel like weapons, your finger on my hairpin triggers, etc) and the ways that processing and healing from trauma significantly impact relationships and sometimes we find ourselves in situations that we thought we wayyyy better for us because of some important differences but looking back on them they end up having more in common than we ever would have admitted while we’re in it. Idk!!! Just, these things feel related and (not necessarily in an accusatory way towards joe, let’s let her tell the story first) I think we swifties need to be prepared to have serious conversations about trauma and triggers and love bombing and the themes of violence in her work and how difficult it can be to extract yourself from bad situations and and and and and

[never-quite-buried]

I am loving it! The lifestyle side of it is incredible, i have 11 recipes saved already and a list of skincare products to look into.

But moreso i’ve loved the community. Chinese memes are hilarious, i love how they’re in on the chinese spy jokes and we all now pay daily cat tax, if you don’t have your own then store bought or dog tax is fine 😂 I’ve finally figured out stickers and am mutuals with a couple Chinese swifties now which is cool! Her music has always connected me to people before so it feels fitting that i find a little home in swiftbook 😅

Many users have given tutorials and tips on how to best use the app and people have been sharing stuff about our respective cultures. I cried a couple times last night at videos from Chinese users welcoming us and giggled my butt off at roxycats introduction/guidelines video. Roxycat: “Do not shit in my living room” 500 americans in the comments: “yes maam roxy maam🫡”

Some people have described it as feeling like a field trip with a bunch of other schools or a festival high. Everyone’s kinda curious and being kinda silly and extra but i just love it. I’m so glad I signed up when it was still at #8 😂 we kinda overloaded their account signup and people have been getting errors for hours now whej trying to sign up. But 15million downloads overnight can do that I guess 🤣

Oh oh one last thing i love: apparently we’re the personality hire, if you will, of tiktok and people from other countries are leaving tt to follow us to xiaohongshu because we are 90% of their fyp. We’re all like “Omg we thought you hated us😭😭😭” but China + these other digital migrants are being so kind like we are not used to this it’s wild 🥹

I should have saved more thoughout the day but here’s a couple interactions i liked:

Nope now it’s at the point that i’m shocked that people off tt don’t know what’s going down. I have no reach but i’ll sum it up anyway.

SCOTUS is hearing on the constitutionality of the ban as tiktok and creators are arguing that it is a violation of our first amendment rights to free speech, freedom of the press and freedom to assemble.

SCOTUS: tiktok bad, big security concern because china bad!

Tiktok lawyers: if china is such a concern why are you singling us out? Why not SHEIN or temu which collect far more information and are less transparent with their users?

SCOTUS (out loud): well you see we don’t like how users are communicating with each other, it’s making them more anti-american and china could disseminate pro china propaganda (get it? They literally said they do not like how we Speak or how we Assemble. Independent journalists reach their audience on tt meaning they have Press they want to suppress)

Tiktok users: this is fucking bullshit i don’t want to lose this community what should we do? We don’t want to go to meta or x because they both lobbied congress to ban tiktok (free market capitalism amirite? Paying off your local congressmen to suppress the competition is totally what the free market is about) but nothing else is like TikTok

A few users: what about xiaohongshu? It’s the Chinese version of tiktok (not quite, douyin is the chinese tiktok but it’s primarily for younger users so xiaohongshu was chosen)

16 hours later:

Tiktok as a community has chosen to collectively migrate TO a chinese owned app that is purely in Chinese out of utter spite and contempt for meta/x and the gov that is backing them.

My fyp is a mix of “i would rather mail memes to my friends than ever return to instagram reels” and “i will xerox my data to xi jinping myself i do not care i share my ss# with 5 other people anyway” and “im just getting ready for my day with my chinese made coffee maker and my Chinese made blowdryer and my chinese made clothing and listening to a podcast on my chinese made phone and get in my car running on chinese manufactured microchips but logging into a chinese social media? Too much for our gov!” etc.

So the government was scared that tiktok was creating a sense of class consciousness and tried to kill it but by doing so they sent us all to xiaohongshu. And now? Oh it’s adorable seeing this gov-manufactured divide be crossed in such a way.

This is adorable and so not what they were expecting. Im sure they were expecting a reluctant return to reels and shorts to fill the void but tiktokers said fuck that, we will forge connections across the world. Who you tell me is my enemy i will make my friend. That’s pretty damn cool.

[bonefall]

Is there beef with the Holstein cows and you or what was that joke lol

It's kind of wild It's just never come up on this blog before, but I HATE holsteins. Bottom 10 cow breeds for me. I hate how they're so common they account for the majority of milk produced. I hate that they're the "default" cow to the point where some don't even know cattle HAVE other colors. I hate their tiny horns (IF THEY EVEN HAVE THAT. LOSER ASS HORNLESS COW) and their painfully massive udders.

Legit I'm trying so hard to not launch into a No Mouth Must Scream style AM speech-- shoot my hand slipped.

(AM speech about why i dont like holsteins below the cut)

For starters, I have to give a brief lesson on what these terms mean; the "Holstein" is the American strain of the "Frisian" breed. Frisians are an ancient breed from Frisia, in the north of what we now consider the Netherlands. Crosses between the breeds are "Holstein-Frisians."

(There’s even more to this but im keeping it as simple as possible. Also one of my friends is Frisian and she is probably going to kill me for describing it like that.)

Historically, livestock was adapted to the environment they lived in. Frisians were bred by the Frisii people for hundreds of years in extremely grass-rich, lush, flat environments. The "polders" of the northern parts of the Netherlands. They're huge and eat a LOT of food.

Traditional Frisians were developed to produce as much meat and milk from a single individual as possible, without compromising the health of the cattle with constant inbreeding to get quick gains. We are talking about a breed that is over 2000 years old. They had the perfect environment to make The Ultimate Food Cow and by god they did it. I can respect that.

So, take that, drag it across an ocean to a place that does NOT have polders, and add the rapid enshittification of capitalism to it. BAM you've got a fucking holstein.

There is ONE goal for "improving" the holstein. Make More Milk. As long as the black and white milkbag leaks enough, nothing else matters. Health? Fertility? Feed ratio? Ability to not die of infection? WHO CARES. MILK LINE GO UP.

Over 90% of holsteins are inbred to start with, because Milk Line Go Up. To the tune of having an average COI of 8%-- where extreme negative effects (think Hapsburgs) start to crop up around 10%

Holstein bulls are aggressive bastards (many dairy bulls are), so no one wants to keep intact males in their herds, meaning most cows are artificially inseminated

Not being limited by the natural lifespan of a living bull means that the same stud can keep having direct offspring for decades after his death

Toystory the bull had 500,000 calves before he died, and hit over 1 million offspring in 2015. That's ONE animal and to put this in perspective, there are 9 million holsteins in the US.

DON'T WORRY IT GETS WORSE

Not only can 99% of holsteins be traced back to just two bulls-- 99% of male holsteins share one of two exact Y chromosomes with those two bulls.

The gene pool is so small that it's equivalent to about 60 individuals. Warrior Cat allegiances are larger than that. That's barely bigger than modern ThunderClan.

"Massive lack of genetic diversity" does not begin to capture the existential dread of this situation. Mark my words, WATCH, when the Bird Flu finally mutates a strain that rips through a mammalian population, it's gonna be in the USA and it's going to be through our dairy cattle.

This is not prophecy or me laying a curse on the land, this is the natural consequence of basing the stability of US milk production on the equivalent of 9 million clones of two classrooms worth of individuals, and then packing them in close quarters

And we don't have to wait for doomsday for the impacts to be apparent on the cattle themelves

Holstein fertility has also dropped by half since the 1960s when the intensive inbreeding really kicked into high gear

Because their whole body is dedicating all of their resources to milk production, they have a notoriously "bony" frame.

Show judges, however, like this because they think that's a very "feminine" look for a 1600 pound ruminant. Very normal thing to think.

Like. I don't know if i can communicate this to people who don't look at cows a lot (it's not quite as obviously dramatic as a pug skull) but here is a comparison of an "ideal" show holstein and an "unselected" holstein from a herd that's been established as a sort of "control group" for what they looked like back in the 1960s;

The way that the artery on the "modern" cow's belly runs to the udder like a big pink worm freaks me out the most ngl

The udder also bulges out from between the back legs

The show cow is so thin

And then compare these both to a Holstein-Frisian cross who leans more on the Frisian side;

Proper weight, developed legs. Its biggest "problem" is actually just the udder shape-- deep udders, which "hang" low like that, aren't optimal for milk-focused breeds because the higher away from the ground the less chance there is of infection. In that department, the "unselected" holstein clearly outclasses the holstein-frisian.

But it probably won't be surprising to hear that the "show holstein," with its massive, swollen udder, is SUPER prone to infections such as mastitis.

But it is also just more prone to getting sick generally

And, to keep up with these insane demands, holsteins need a TON of food. You aren't going to just turn these things out into a pasture and be done with it. Even its ancestor the Frisian needed premium Dutch polder grass to be such a good cow-- crank that up to 11 with these Monuments to Humanity's Hubrice

The Texas Longhorn developed in semi-feral conditions and can eat a bush to become the best thing in a 10 mile radius. The Scottish Highland was iron-forged in upland moors with a steady diet of turf and rain.

Meanwhile if a Holstein has less than 5 homemade meals a day without poland spring bottled water it will die to death.

And the WORST part? You have to use these if you want to make money in dairy farming. It's WAAY too expensive to just run a suboptimal farm. Their milk isn't great, but they sure do make a lot of it.

...so Holsteins and Holstein-Frisians (and other "super efficient" breeds) have absolutely decimated heritage cattle. The American Milking Devon is a deep reddish brown with gorgeous horns and low maintenance; rare. Randall Linebacks are painted with lines of white speckles down the back and can be used for any purpose; critically endangered. The Niata was a pug-faced cow who could fight jaguars; extinct.

And THAT'S what makes me hate them most of all. I LOVE cows, but whenever I see a reference to one, it's a holstein. It's always boring black and white splotches with big pink udders. They're practically synonymous with "cow" when their homogeniety is actually hiding much cooler breeds from you.

Did you know cows can be tiger-striped?

And that England has its own type of longhorn?

Or that cow horns can twist upwards like an antelope?

And that they can have REALLY LONG ears?

And that they can be blue?

And that's not even getting into some of the cows that have gotten a small crumb of attention lately, such as Highlands, Ankole-Watusi, and Texas Longhorns. There's so many cool cows out there! And they're all really different from holsteins! MOST of them are also a lot healthier and produce tastier milk and meat!

TL;DR yeah i don't like holsteins and I like sniping at them. For reasons both legit and petty.

[samuraisharkie]

never truly got the phrase “knot in my stomach” until recently where it feels like my stomach has managed to tie itself into a certifiable Sailor Proof knot that refuses to get undone and hurt like fuckin hell. Extremely high levels of stress plus period plus physical issues equals very very bad time

[zoologica42]

Temperate Lake Dashboard Simulator

🐦‍⬛2xcrested_cormorant Follow Going to try and eat this weird fish

♻️🐦‍⬛2xcrested_cormorant Follow wilmdlife hopital

🐸rana-bufo Follow No one can ever truly understand what BULL4rog's music means to me 😭 this song in particular argrgrgrgrgrg the way he puffs out his vocal sack asdfghjk

BULL4rog: listen here on spotify ♻️🐸rana-bufo Follow I think I huave chytrid

🐟ilikeeatingminnowsFollow I just migrated here from finstagram please be nice

🐠powerbottomfeeder Follow

I have HAD IT with this lake, it’s the third day in a row we’ve had nitrates above 8 ppm and uug the algae, my allergies I can’t do this

♻️🐟carpy-diem Follow

Lol we regularly get nitrates up to 20 ppm in my lake ♻️🦞crawdaddy Follow uhhh you shouldn't be bragging about that, it's really unsafe ♻️🐟carpy-diem Follow suck it you little oligotrophic bitch

🐢snappturt Follow Dear Tumblr, am I the Basshole for the way I catch minnows? I was chatting with some of the guys I bask with and they said the way I catch minnows is problematic; What I do is I sit on the bottom of the lake, I hide myself in the mud and I open my mouth. My tongue looks a lot like a little worm so I wiggle it around- and because of that, minnows swim over and check it out. Once they get close enough, then I bite down and eat them. Some of my rockmates have told me that this is manipulative and toxic behavior- but they also eat minnows...I don't know guys...

🦆tree hole-nester-acorn-eater Follow

is it just me, or is this super homoerotic???

🐟bigpikexxl Follow liveblogging diving down to the bottom

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow dark

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow big log

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow rock

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow kinda cold

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow oh hi @deepwatersculpin!!!

♻️🐠deepwatersculpin Follow oh hey @bigpikexxl!!!

never thought i'd seen one of my mutuals irl!!! I didn't even know we lived in the same lake!!!

🐠Shadlad Follow I'm not sorry, and I'm not afraid to say it, if you're an introduced species, go dry yourself out. You're not welcome to eat up all of our resources and live in my ancestral longs and rock crags. These things are for us to relate to and not for you to squander.

♻️🦞crevice-steve Follow

Can't believe this type of fishcourse is still popular on this site, introduced species didn't choose to be introduced and have as much of a right to live as anyone else. Bigotry against introduced species is still bigotry and that's a hill I will dry on. ♻️🐠Shadlad Follow Go ahead, dry yourself out then ;) ♻️🪷nootnootnewt Follow Hey man, I hate invasive species as much as anyone else but please stop telling people to beach themselves for political reasons- yeah that includes inavsives too ♻️🦐typical_scud Follow Did you legit just use the word Invas*ve to describe introduced species? ♻️🦢flatfootswimmer Follow anyone in this thread eat pondweed?

♻️🐟largemouthbASS Follow A colab with my mutual @2xcrested_cormorant after they got released from the wildlife hospital. They haven't been on much since the Fish and Wildlife Service released them in the wrong lake and it took them a while to get back to their colony. We hope this guide will help you avoid accidentally eating/engaging with bait!