#not me logging in here just to check my year in review for this year lol

[wilanserulia]

Another Gpose year in review! I'm gonna eschew the usual month-by-month recap in favor of a collection of twelve my favorite shots from this year.

I want to take the chance to say, thank you everyone for your support this last year! And I'm not saying it just to say it, either. I'm always humbled by the reception my silly videogame photographs get. I read the notes you guys leave in the reblogs, and it's a shame I can't respond to them all because so many of them make me smile like an idiot at my phone for how kind and nice they are. Thank you!

Check under the cut for the full pictures ✨

I've actually been very prolific with Gposing this year, but definitely not every month of the year lol. I've been playing FFXIV for fourteen years now, and I can't possibly give this game my all all year round. By the way, my Sightseeing Log project isn't over, but it's a huge commitment. Since we were going toward spoiler-sensitive territories, I figured I'd take a break and postpone the second half a little later into the expansion.

Alright, so, in no particular order, here are the full photos:

[jacethebeltsculptor]

Outer Wilds Expedition Log #3

Since I've discovered people find these tremendously entertaining, I figured I'd continue journaling my expedition into the Outer Wilds here on Tumblr. Where we last left off, I'd just made my first few runs to Space Florida (Giant's Deep), gave Frog NASA's resident slacker a scathing peer review, found some hints on how quantum objects work and how I might go about locating that ghost moon that allegedly exists. I also had some theories about what happened to the Nomai which didn't pan out that I'll get into in a moment. After my first few runs to Giant's Deep, I discovered that both my spaceship and space suit function as a submersible and diving suit as well. I'm not well-educated enough to know if the physics of that check out or not, but either way, I think I might've not given Outer Wilds engineering team enough credit. This was a game-changer to me, since basically the first thing I did when I booted up the tutorial was throw myself down a geyser in the name of scientific interest. Despite allegedly being aquatic, I drowned pretty quickly, but I noticed evidence of a camp being down there. This, combined with the dude on the moon mentioning that Feldspar's signal was broadcasting from Timber Heath, really piqued my interest. I spent a loop just exploring the geysers as best I could, but the caves didn't seem to lead down to the core of the planet or anything, and once I was down there, I realized Feldspar's signal was coming from somewhere on the surface. I did, however, find old Nomai writing which remarks on observing a nascent aquatic species, which dashes my theories that the Forerunners Nomai evolved into the player's species over millions of years, explaining their disappearance. I managed to do this without drowning, which is a rare show of competence from me. After that, I made me way up to the surface to look into that seed from DARBIS (Darkness and Relative Bramble In Space) that coincidentally seemed to have Feldspar's signal coming from it. Shockingly, it's bigger on the inside. So, gonna have to visit Dark Bramble at some point to figure that one out. Then, I took a nice cozy position on the observation deck to watch the supernova in peace- a lovely, sentimental gesture that I utterly screwed the pooch on due to the planet turning to face the other way. Despite having active investigations going on 2.5 different planets, I decided that I was done being afraid of the sun and decided to check out those two paired planets orbiting it. Once I was there, I noticed something closely orbiting the sun itself, so I decided to be a badass and land on that instead. I failed and got burned to a crisp. On my next loop, I went to visit the Twins. I originally landed on Ash Twin, but after finding nothing of note, I- in my endless foresight and wisdom- decided to just jump to Ember Twin. This led to me to breaking both of my shins and storing my femurs in my lungs, but did not kill me. Immediately, anyway. I started by finding the crashed escape pod below and working my way through the caves, before dying at the entrance to the safe zone by jetpacking my way straight into a cactus and losing the last of my blood. Now, I'm only about halfway through my last play session- you know, the part where nothing gets accomplished- but I'm apparently reaching Tumblr's character limit, so I'm going to have to split this into a whole separate post. Which is probably good, because there should and ought to be a legal limit to how much stupidity should be allowed in one post. Until next time, Tumblrites!

[wasongo]

I think I got a lot of new followers recently because twitter keeps going to shit. However, as you probably know I can't and don't post nsfw art here.

You can find my NSFW socials on my pinned post. I think a lot of people are hesitant to join platforms which aren't fully available to the public yet but if you'd like to keep up with my nsfw art I'd like to:

Urge you to visit my website and subscribe to my RSS feed for gallery updates!

Suggest you follow me on either Pillowfort or Cohost (18+).

In the last year I have started using PF and Cohost more than Mastodon, as they've implemented new features and their posting system is more in line with what I enjoy: robust tagging and filtering, ability to post MANY images, and readmores for long posts.

If you've been hesitant to join either of those platforms since you don't know what to expect here's a small-ish review of both purely from my experience as someone who: a) enjoys profile customization b) likes to have an organized art gallery that is filterable by tags.

This review is aimed at artists looking for NSFW spaces to post! UI screenshots might have suggestive terms and images. Proceed with caution.

Edit: Good grief tunglr, if you open this on the web dash the images aren't shown in the neat galleries I put them in to make the post shorter. Head on over to the permalink if you'd like a better looking post!

Let me just say that if you're looking for a review on more technical aspects of these platforms, like security and moderation policies. I'm not your guy. You'll have to look elsewhere for that. I'm focusing on QoL UI and community aspects.

Though both these platforms allow nsfw, please make sure to read their ToS/Community Guidelines for rules on what is and isn't allowed. Though as far as I'm aware they have pretty similar rules.

Pillowfort

Overview::

Pillowfort has more years under its belt being available to users than Cohost does, as such I THINK the artist/fandom userbase atm is larger, which means you might see more activity there. UI as of right now is very comfortable and the site runs pretty smoothly. Loading times are very decent. Posting is easy, though the image uploader is a little wonky (they are working on fixing this). You are able to create and manage communities based on interests or themes, which people can follow or join and all post in the same space. You can personalize your profile by adding images, links, and formatted text to your sidebar, as well as customize your own profile colors. Tag searches in my experience yield results of both art and aesthetic irl porn and gifs. If that's something you miss from ye olden tumblr days it might be worth a look.

Pros:

Posts have privacy options (everyone, logged in, followers, mutuals, only me)

Has a DM system

Posts have Commentable, Rebloggable, NSFW toggle

Can post MANY images on a single post

Readmore feature for long posts

Robust tagging system

Robust filtering system: hide or click-through warning (by installing Tassel userscript only)

Customizable profile colors, Light/Dark mode for whole website

Communities you can follow/join for shared interests

You can filter posts on profile by tag

You can filter posts on profile by "original poster" or "reblog"

Cons:

wonky image uploader, cannot upload multiple images at once

Cannot search for multiple tags at once

Search for terms with periods in them is currently broken (ex. "D.Gray-man" will not yield any search results)

Communities have few moderation features atm

Without Tassel installed the filtering system is pretty garbage atm (you can either show or hide nsfw or filtered tags completely, with no click-through warnings)

No multiple account/side blog feature yet

Some inline image formatting options are broken atm

Default endless scrolling

No progressive web app for mobile atm

For a more in depth explanation of PF's UI and features you can check out this official post.

Here are some images of the UI.

---

Cohost

Overview::

Cohost feels like it has a small artist/fandom userbase at the moment. However, to make up for that it has a pretty slick UI, it works great as a progressive web app on mobile, and it recently implemented an ASK system similar to tumblr's! Everything loads pretty quickly, and you can switch between your "latest posts" feed and your "bookmarked tags" feed. You can access your likes as a bookmark system, but as a whole "notes" and engagement numbers except for comments are not visible anywhere (this is wonderful for my personal mental health). It has a simple post editor and though the image uploader only allows 4 images that will load with lightbox, there's a workaround to upload MANY inline images if you want. The catch is you'll need to use a bit of markdown or html to do that. (more on that below) Though you can't personalize your profile colors, you can add personality to your page by making very cool pinned posts and adding images to your sidebar.

Pros:

Animated avatars! (listen i like having my animated komui icon)

You can make multiple "pages" (blogs) which function independently for comments/asks. switching between pages is effortless

Ask system, with anon toggle (you cannot reply privately atm tho)

2 Factor Authentication

Progressive web app for mobile works like a charm

You can preview your post before you post it

Posts have a NSFW toggle and you can save drafts

Can post MANY images in a single post (bit of a workaround as you'll need to upload your images to a draft first and then add them to a new post with some markdown or html code)

Readmore feature for long posts

Robust tagging AND filtering system (show, click-through, hide completely), plus CW system to give your posts additional click through warnings you deem necessary

You can do incredibly cool things with HTML and inline CSS on your posts

You can filter posts on profile by tag, and you can have pinned tags

Toggles for hiding reblogs, replies, and asks on profiles

Paginated browsing instead of endless scrolling (things load faster)

No engagement numbers visible ANYWHERE

Cons:

Image uploader does not let you upload multiple images at once. Limit to 4 images (can upload more as inline images with code)

Advanced post formatting (ex. bold, italics, bullet list, inline images etc.) has to be done through markdown or html + css which is not the friendliest for those who don't know any code (there's a button for a markdown cheatsheet when you post tho!)

No dark mode, or customizing profile colors atm (however there are workarounds to changing site colors with Stylus extension)

Cannot search for multiple tags at once

Cool things you can do with CSS on your posts might look very bad on mobile

Since you can do some crazy things with CSS on posts, you might come across eye straining visuals and movement on some posts. There are settings to tone this down, and people are pretty good about tagging things, so with some good filtering you should be able to avoid this however.

A little quieter on the artist/fandom front (but we can change that)

Here are some images of the UI.

If you made it to the end of this review thanks for giving it a look! If there's something vital you might want to know that I missed in regards to UI and posting features let me know and I will try to answer. But again, this is not a technical/security issues/bugs review so don't ask me about that.

Lastly, I've been seeing a handful of NSFW artists I follow on twitter hopping on bluesky. I REALLY suggest you do a little research on the owners and platform to see if you think joining is worthwhile, since I have a feeling many artists might not want their alternative to be a site owned by crypto advocates (and also a billionaire). Some basic research will get you there. Just take heed and use your best judgement. On that note Cohost is strictly against crypto (I'm guessing PF might be too but I don't have a link that I can point you to confirming this atm).

I believe community driven and supported platforms are the way to go. If you end up thinking either of these two places are worth your time, do consider getting your friends and favorite artists on board or supporting them! You'll get added perks on both platforms if you become a supporter. PF recently added the ability to have MULTIPLE AVATARS (PFPs I think they're called nowadays) which I think is super cool (i really miss that from LJ days).

Again, thanks for reading and I hope to see some of you there!

[yonderghostshistories]

HAPPY 13TH ANNIVERSARY TO “HOLY FLYING CIRCUS” (2011) 🥳🎉🎊🎂🎈

(Aka the best Monty Python biopic imho)

It’s been 13 BLOODY years since HFC aired on this day (19th October) at 9:00pm on BBC 4 in the year of our lord 2011, but it’s only been a few months since I (and many other of my mutuals) watched and rewatched it this year, and I will always treasure the times that I have seen this wonderful movie!

I remember when I was a newly fresh faced MP fan in 2023 and was slowly and gradually getting into them, and that I was wondering if there was ever a biopic made about Monty Python? I mean, it would be kinda weird that there wasn’t a biopic made about Monty Python, ya’know considering that they were very much influential in the world of comedy and beyond, that it would obviously be a missed opportunity to NOT make a biopic about them.

I then went and logged on into one of the school computers at my secondary school to look up if there was a Monty Python Biopic, in which I googled smth along the lines of “Monty Python Biopic”, and LO and behold, HFC was (iirc) the first result that came up!

I was IMMEDIATELY intrigued to see what HFC was all about, and so I looked at and read the plot synopsis for HFC on IMDb. At the time, it was honestly really cool and interesting fr! Then I looked at the cast and…well. I wasn’t immediately put off by the fact that the cast for the HFC Pythons weren’t exactly 100% identical to the irl Pythons, like they were similar to them but JUST different enough to have a sorta distinct, uncanny feeling to them. But ngl, at the time when I saw photos of the cast, I did have a feeling that was like “ughh….this is soooo obviously cheap, why couldn’t they have gotten a bigger budget for this?”, and now looking back, I do recognise that HFC was, well, made on a BBC 4 budget (aka a low budget, at least for BBC 4) and that the cast and crew had to work with what they had (both in terms costumes and hair) and tbh I was kinda a bit mean on them at that time and that do I regret it. I mean, I still don’t forgive some of the HFC Pythons’ hair cuz OMG Steve Punt/Eric and Phil Nichol/Terry G’s hair is still kinda not good lol 😂 but I do understand why it is what it is.

Anyway, I digress!

It was because of this (plus looking at some rather quite negative reviews of HFC) that I STILL wanted to check out HFC and see what it’s about, but I had INCREDIBLY low expectations for it. At best thinking that HFC would be at least kinda decent, but at worst thinking that it would be kinda mediocre and not the worst but definitely not the best. So, for Christmas 2023, I asked my Dad (iirc) to buy me the DVD for HFC (as well as some other DVDs, those being “A Liar’s Autobiography” the book, the animated film adaptation “A Liar’s Autobiography” (2012), “Remember Me” (2014) starring Michael Palin, “A Field in England” (2013) and “In the Earth” (2021), the latter 2 cuz I was really into the League of Gentlemen/Inside No. 9/Reece Shearsmith at the time and also cuz I love me a bit of horror!). Then came January/February 2024, and I got my DVDs by that time!

(Here’s a crappy looking (affectionate) picture I took of them back in February when I still used my Android phone to take pictures of stuff)

Then I…..didn’t watch them (and in this case HFC) for a couple months after I got them (mostly due to school and exams and shit which made me kinda exhausted and so I didn’t watch much stuff during that time cuz of it), BUT! BUT BUT BUT!!

It was on a somewhat regular day on the 20th of May 2024, when I finally, FINALLY AFTER ALL THIS TIME OF LAYING IT OFF AGAIN AND AGAIN (again due to the exams and studying for said exams and shit) that I decided to finally get the courage to watch HFC in its entirety!! Also cuz I needed to give myself a bit of stress relief and also a lil reward for studying too much lol.

I got the HFC DVD from my living room shelf, I took the HFC DVD out from the plastic cover, I then got my DVD player and carefully inserted the HFC DVD into the DVD player so as to NOT potentially break it, and then…..I finally watched it.

It was…..quite the experience (and I mean this in the most positive way ever!)

Watching the film for the first time genuinely, like GENUINELY, floored my previously low expectations of it. Like, fr IT WAS CRAZY. AND AMAZING. AND WONDERFUL. AND SURREAL. AND FUNNY. Like, it was honestly the best thing I ever watched at that time!!

The HFC Python cast, who I thought was not gonna be the best, was actually fr incredible! Not only did they all get their respective irl Pythons’ mannerisms and expressions on point, but their unique take on each Python was genuinely charming and interesting fr! Especially Charles Edwards/Michael and Darren Boyd/John and their relationship between each other in the film was indeed very captivating to watch (and a lil gay and fan service-y, to which I also love it for that <33).

Speaking of which, Charles Edwards as Michael Palin was unironically the best thing about this film, not only for his voice and mannerisms but his character as well!! Like fr CHARLIE EDWARDS FR LOOKS LIKE ACTUAL MICHAEL PALIN LIKE WHAT?!!?!!

Darren Boyd as John Cleese was also quite great too, like, even if he portrayed him as the “Basil Fawlty Persona” version of John, I felt like it was still pretty much like John’s character, and Darren Boyd/John does show little moments of genuine vulnerability, which make it really more profound imo!

Rufus Jones as Terry Jones, Phil Nichol as Terry Gilliam, Steve Punt as Eric Idle and Tom Fisher as Graham Chapman were also pretty great in this as well! But ESPECIALLY Tom Fisher/Gray as HE ABSOLUTELY STOLE THE SHOW IN THIS MOVIE FR, AND THAT HE ABSOLUTELY SLAYED AS GRAY AND I LOVE HIS JACKETS, HIS SEXINESS, HIS QUOTES, HIS GAYNESS, HIS WISENESS, HIS EVERYTHING AGHHHHH (also he’s really beautiful imo). Like with Charles Edwards/Michael and Darren Boyd/John, their performances as their each respective Python was really amazing, such as Phil Nichol exhibiting Terry G’s childlike craziness and goblin-like energy, to Rufus Jones/Jonesy also acting/double role-ing as Michael’s Wife (in a loving homage to Jonesy playing most of the female characters in MPFC and the films with absolute PERFECTION) to Steve Punt/Eric being very much onto the business side of Python (in which he’s referred to as a “money grabbing bastard”, which I almost quote all the time haha).

Also shoutout to the supporting cast of HFC, they also carried the movie too! My personal favourites being Jason Thorpe as the rude and annoying and obnoxious boss (and very funny) Alan Dick and the LoB obsessed but with good intentions Christian with a stutter Desmond Lovely, Simon Greenall as the Pythons’ Manager/Film Distributor Barry, Paul Chahidi as the meek and trying to make things go well Harry Balls, and Stephen Fry as God (cuz Stephen Fry is an absolute ⚡️✨ ICON ✨⚡️fr)!

Oh yeah, also, I LOVE THE ANIMATIONS AHHHH THEYRE SO AMAZEBALLS FRRR!!!! AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVE LOVE LOVE THE MUSIC TOOO!!!! SHOUTOUT TO THE ANIMATION TEAM AND MUSIC COMPOSER FOR HFC, THEY DESERVE IT FR AND DESERVE ALOT OF APPRECIATION!!!

Also, this movie is fr so funny frfr, have I mentioned that it’s really funny? Cuz it’s really funny! It’s also (like Holy Grail) very quotable indeed, and there’s a lot like ALOT of quotes from HFC that live in my head rent free! My personal favourites among them are:

-“It’s Half Logical, Half Silly!”

-“Eric is a Money Grabbing Bastard!”

-“Glass of Cordial? S P O T O F S O U P ?”

-“Are you Willy waving at Jesus?”

-“Well, I am Gay, I like Neeews, it’s very good for film reviieeewwws 😌😏”

The ways this movie have changed my life for the better (and for the sillier) is that I’ve gone through the rabbit hole and have discovered many, MANY amazing shows and films starring each of the HFC Python actors, for example; “Treacle Jr” (2010) and “The Nine Lives of Tomas Katz” (2000) (both films starring Tom Fisher) are genuinely pretty great and I do recommend you watch them if you can! Plus I bought them and other projects starring each HFC Python on DVD cuz it shows how much I’m THAT dedicated to this movie (HFC) fr, and that I’m fr grateful for discovering this little BBC 4 Pythonesque comedy drama from 2011, cuz if i hadn’t, I’d have missed out on some real great stuff!

I will always love “Holy Flying Circus” (2011) for the rest of my life, and I will always appreciate and treasure it with my entire heart 🫶❤️, and I will continue watching and rewatching it and continue fanning about it into the future! I’m very lucky that HFC came into my life and that I watched it, and that I don’t think I’d be quite the same if I hadn’t the courage to watch the film on the 20th May 2024.

It’ll soon be almost 1 hour to the time (that being 9:00pm) when HFC aired on the 19th of October in 2011 by the time I’m writing this, so I’d like to quickly wrap up by saying:

Thank you “Holy Flying Circus” (2011). Just, thank you ☺️🫶❤️…..

And remember:

“Eric is a Money Grabbing Bastard”.

[sehnista]

📂 2024 In Review rules: link your favorite and/or most popular post from each month this year (okay to skip months or do this for any blog(s) u have !) tagged by bex @baekhyunnybyun 🫶🏽💗

*i dont srb often so im using this chance to link everything🤗🙇🏽‍♀️sry

JAN (9) Most popular (★) : HOLIER Favorite (🫶🏽) : TOP SONGS FROM LAST YEAR lol / BIBORA🌧️ / 💙DONGHUN 가지마 가지마

FEB (16) ★ : A.C.E FIRST MUSIC INTERVIEW🥹 (my girl feels like foreverrr ago..) 🫶🏽 : 💜WOW BIG LOG IN JAPAN / 👅DAWON😗🫶 / 💜🫶🩷 / 🧡THIS BK… / MY GIRL MV / 💙EFFORTLESS

MAR (15) ★ : ❤️JUNHEE EFFORTLESS 🫶🏽: 💜AEGYO / MY GIRL STAGES ONE & TWO / A.C.E FAMILY♥️ / 💜MY GIRL JACKET BEHIND / WOWKWAN FACETIME

APR (15) ★ : 🐻POBY AT HIS FIRST JOB (also a fave) & SF9 FAVE ALBUMS 🫶🏽: HOME SWEET A.C.E SEHYOON & DONGHUN (I LOVE THESE SO BAD U DONT UNDERSTAND) / 🐻💜AT THE OFFICE / 💙BALEN🥺 / 💜WOWDAY

MAY (10) ★ : SUPERNATURAL 🫶🏽: A.C.E 7TH ANNIVERSARY (made myself cry honestly) / SOLJI UP & DOWN / TYANG MORNING COFFEE (idk how i did this bc the source video was horrible quality and the filming was so bad but these kind of look rly good) / MK🙄.. / DIAMOND WHITE DIGITALLY YOURS

JUN (14) ★ : HWI IT IS L0VE (it was almost BALD DAWON) 🫶🏽 : TMH🌈 / FLUSTERED WOWKWAN (feel like i have to clarify i wanted to show tht no matter how much bk likes to tease he himself cant handle it so it’s not sy calling bk pretty it was staff sry for the misunderstanding😅) / 💙CHOISTICK V2 / 💜CHOISTICK V2 / ❤️CHOISTICK V2 / ISABELLA LOVESTORY VIP

JUL (12) ★ : SUPER POP STAR💙 (my a.c.e s(et)oty maybe) 🫶🏽 : WOWJUNKWAN / WOWJUNKWAN again but in orlando.. / THIS SEHYOON……… / JUNHEE……

AUG (10) ★ : TYANG DWBH BEHIND 🫶🏽 : 💙🐻 FACETIME BEHIND / 💜A.C.E COMPANY / 💛YUCHAN A.C.E COMPANY / A.C.E @ OH SHOOT / JAENG BDAY LIVE (even tho its ugly </3)

SEP (6) ★ : HWI ON 🔝 🫶🏽 : 🌰INSEONG DWBH BEHIND / ANYMORE

OCT (9) ★ : KAYTRANADA, TINASHE WORST IN ME 🫶🏽 : 💙IN LONDON / ❤️JUST BETTER / 💙ANGEL / RECUERDA RECUERDA (someone said they thought this was taemin and i was like whoa..)

NOV (20) ★ : 💛PINATA SHOWCASE 🫶🏽 : 🪅CHAPTERS / 💙KCON LA / 🪅 WAX TEASERS / 🪅 MV / JUNCHAN.. / 💜WAX BEHIND.. / 💛WAX BEHIND.. / 💛IT’S THE BOY (so crazy …) / so many more..u can check the rest here if u want

DEC (17) ★ : ANYMORE STAGE 🫶🏽 : 💜🪅JACKET BEHIND / 💙🪅JACKET BEHIND / 💛🪅JACKET BEHIND / JUNCHAN again.. / 🪅 ITS LIVE

sorry if youve already been tagged ! @danneethai @iamacolor @ikjun @juhotonin @junsfangs @minzbins @myungjaehyun @nfly5 @videoclubs 🩵

[hoshibatake]

FREEDOM – Virtuality and Ideals/Chapter 5

Previous chapter

<An evening one week later. In the real world, Trickstudio>

Subaru: Oh. Anzu’s here! Otsukaresama¹～

Subaru: Come over here. Come laze around with us☆

Subaru: ...Huh? Work first, fun later? Oh, right. We were supposed to have a review meeting about FREEDOM.

Hokuto: Don’t tell me that you forgot.

Subaru: I remembered, but when I saw Anzu, I got so happy it slipped my mind♪

Mao: I’m glad to see her too, but isn’t that getting a bit too excited?

Mao: We’ve been seeing quite a lot of her since we started hanging out in Trickstudio regularly, don’t you think?

Subaru: You just don’t get it, Sari～. Any time you see someone you love a who~le lot is a time to be happy.

Subaru: Anzu, what’s up? ...Oh, you wanna hear about FREEDOM’s current status while we wait for Ukki～?

Hokuto: We can tell you that, but you have administrator privileges, so can’t you just check the data directly?

Hokuto: ...Fumu. You want us to be able to build freely without any worries, so you only log in when there’s an error?

Subaru: You don’t need to hold yourself back, though. You’re welcome at any time☆

Subaru: But thanks for being considerate, anyway. The current status, huh…?

Subaru: Oh, right. Our four avatars finally formed a unit～♪

Subaru: Out of their own initiative, of course. We’re Trickstar, after all☆

Hokuto: Yes. Putting the surrounding circumstances aside for a moment, I can’t help but be impressed at the realism.

Mao: Yeah, and their actions since they formed a unit have been reminiscent of ours as well. Subaru and Hokuto’s avatars have been jumping the gun, holding live performances in all sorts of places…

Mao: ...but my and Makoto’s avatars have been putting effort into city building and helping out citizens, instead of focusing purely on idol activities.

Mao: It kinda reminds me of the time when we just formed Trickstar♪

<Flashback. Five days earlier, in the information room>

Makoto: (FREEDOM is our first job of the fiscal year, so the agency must have high expectations too.)

Makoto: (In order to get good results, we first need to focus on building the city. This is my strong suit, so I’ve gotta give it my all!)

Makoto: (I’m following the plan I drafted using my experience with previous simulation games I’ve played…)

Makoto: (...but it’s pretty hard to balance it with those idol activities. A lot of things don’t turn out like I want them to.)

Makoto: (The fact that it’s not just about city building is what makes this game so interesting, but it also complicates things, so I’m having a hard time.)

Makoto: (I feel like I’m doing exactly what I should be doing, but the results don’t reflect that. Hrm…)

Makoto: (An online strategy guide would… not exist yet. Of course it wouldn’t. The game isn’t out yet, after all.)

Makoto: (I could still give looking it up on our internal network a shot. Although I really doubt I’ll find anything♪)

Makoto: (...Huh? I got a hit.)

Makoto: (“City Building Plans ‘FREEDOM’. Documentation for internal use.” ...Some of this information wasn’t in the documents we were given.)

Makoto: (Actually, it seems like I’ve stumbled upon some pretty significant information?)

Makoto: (…)

Makoto: (“Choosing idols and having them freely construct a city, using the software we developed in cooperation with this game company.”)

Makoto: (“If they are successful, that virtual city will then be built in reality”...)

Makoto: I already thought that it was strange that this job only consisted of playing a game. So that’s the plan.

Makoto: The reason why they’re letting us build this city however we want is still a mystery to me, but I never thought our city would become real…

Makoto: Actually, that’s a huge issue!

Makoto: The four of us have just been building our own versions of an ideal city, but it would by no means be an ideal city in reality!

Makoto: It’s overrun by dinosaurs and full of factories, with the occasional zombie outbreak and a theme park that’s without power most of the time. We can’t let them build that in real life!

Makoto: There’s a high chance that they would just cancel the whole thing, but I don’t want to let our first job of the year end in failure either.

Makoto: I’ll just have to correct our course, and turn it into a city we can be proud of…!

<Several days later. The dormitory, Makoto’s room>

Makoto: (…)

Makoto: (...Oof. How many all-nighters have I pulled now? I’ve lost count.)

Makoto: (By overhauling the factory area, I’ve increased the factories’ energy consumption, but now they’re less destructive to the environment.)

Makoto: (And I tore down all of the city in order to fix the infrastructure. I’ve widened the roads and improved traffic flow…)

Makoto: (I’ve built more parks, improving the citizens’ living conditions. The ambiance in the city should be much better now, but…)

Makoto: (It’s nowhere near ideal. There’s just not enough time.)

Makoto: (I feel like the career system... or rather, the idol activities that are being organized because of it are getting in the way of the development of the city.)

Makoto: (When they’re called upon, the avatars automatically start prioritizing idol activities.)

Makoto: (Their training takes up a lot of time, and when people gather for concerts, they end up leaving a big mess in the city...)

Makoto: …

Makoto: Maybe I should make the avatar ‘me’ leave Trickstar.

Makoto: I feel like their idol activities wouldn’t really change, even if ‘I’ wasn’t there. I’m sure ‘I’ would have more to contribute in terms of city building.

Makoto: The others might be a little disappointed, but I feel like this is the better option…

Makoto: But my eyelids feel so heavy… I can’t……

TL notes:

This is a standard expression used when greeting someone who has been working.

Translated by me, proofread by Altea (@icaruswasthesun on Twitter)

Next chapter

[attraction2him]

I'm back. I'm confused.

So, some weeks ago i was uploading photos to my drafts. Posting some of them also. Suddenly i get logged out. Just like that. I try logging back in and i get the message: "Your account has been terminated". I stared at the screen for a couple of minutes, then cursed tumblr and just decided to drop this.

Then yesterday i remembered about this photo of myself that i had posted in a moment of severe horniness. I hadn't thought it was going to draw anyone's attention but it got reblogged. More than once. I deleted my post and was about to ask the reblogers to please delete it, but thought "Why not leave it? Let's see what happens." So i just saved the link and decided to keep an eye on it. Anyway,.... as i was saying, yesterday i remembered this post and visited the link. To my surprise i saw the avatar of my blog, not some blank icon or something like that. I clicked and my blog was there!

So,... my guess is that someone must have reported a post on my blog. Tumblr took away my account just like that and after reviewing it and seeing that there was nothing wrong here simply decided to give it back to me.

I feel pissed off. Part of me wants to go back to posting. Part of me wants to just leave it as it is or even delete the blog. This is a side blog. I had thought i had lost my main blog which i've had for over 10 years. I think i'll finish posting what i had in my drafts (assuming they didn't delete everything. i haven't checked yet) and after the drafts are all posted i'll decide what to do. Thank you for reading this and for staying around.

[ros3ybabe]

Daily Check-in September 11th and 12th, 2023 🎀

Did not have the time to make one yesterday as I didn't get home til almost 11 pm and was so tired that i immediately passed out. I had a really good day today(Tuesday), tho! I ordered a bunch of stationery off of Stationery Pal and Kawaii pen shop, and ahhhh, I love all of it, and they BOTH came in less than a week after I placed my order. The quality of everything is *chefs kiss* and I am so excited to start using all this stuff in my university academics as well as my self study goals! I might even switch back to paper notes because of all the stuff I bought, who knows.

Will not include What I Ate as I honestly don't remember, I am very tired at the moment(Tuesday night), having run most of today with 3 hours of sleep. This check in is going to be a bit more on the self care self compassion side as I had a rough two days honestly.

🩷 Personal Achievements -

Washed my hair

Made it to both classes on time

Organized my new stationery in my desk

Cooked steak *actually* good in my food fundamentals class

🩷 Academic Achievements -

Completed a PSYC writing assignment

Completed NUTR assignment

Completed pre lab quiz for my Anatomy Lab

Completed Osmosis lab report

Earned my Human Subjects Research Training certificate for my PSYC class

(I’m certified to use human subjects in research studies at my university for the next 3 years now, how cool!?)

Should I make a post about the stationery I got? Like a haul/review post? Let me know what you think! It’s all pretty aesthetic so I would love to share my opinions on the quality of the stuff I bought….and I bought a lot of stuff without realizing it!

🩷 As of today, Wednesday September 13th, here’s a little academic todo list for today:

Weekly Writing for my Food Fundamentals class

Take my Exam 1 for my NUTR class

Read Chapter 11 for my Personal Finance class + take notes on IPad

Complete my Nutrition Log for my Fitness for Health and Sport class

Study Japanese for 20+ minutes

🩷 And here’s a little personal to do list for today:

Change current fitted bed sheet to new one I just bought and washed, throw away old one

Take my bedroom trash out, throw out package box

Clean bathroom completely

Sweep bedroom

Organize desk more efficiently

Wash my current dirty laundry

Put away previous clean laundry

Change clear shower liner to my new one

Throw out old carpets and replace with new ones

Follow my skincare routine (my face is begging to be taken care of again)

Possibly hang up my string lights with clips behind my desk and attach BTS photos to clips 💜

Budget for paycheck tomorrow

This check in was definitely a little different than the others, especially cause I started it last night but had to save it as a draft cause I nearly fell asleep while typing it up. I will definitely post an update tonight to see how much of my to do lists I accomplished! Looking forward to having today to myself, as I didn’t go to class due to the extreme rain we’re having (I walk to my campus as I do not drive…at all) and I’m completely home alone today! Let the productivity begin!

Til next time, lovelies 🩷🤍

[nellie-elizabeth]

January 2025 - Reading & Media Logging

Thought I'd try and get some thoughts down about what I read/watch/listen to each month! We'll see if I keep it up throughout the year... thoughts under the cut!

What I Read:

This was a pretty light reading month, honestly. I've been so swamped with work and just feeling pretty overwhelmed and anxious in general, and it's had a negative impact on my reading time. I'm pretty far into 3 or 4 books right now so I think early February will have a lot of finished volumes, hopefully!

Maurice by EM Forster: Finished this on New Year's Day I think, so it counts! Really glad I read this, it was a surprisingly moving emotional experience, especially given when it was written and its publication history.

Paladin's Hope by T. Kingfisher: Well, nobody can say I didn't give this series a fair shake. I tried three books, but unfortunately it's time for me to bow out now. It's a bummer because I do like the world-building of this series, like I think the setting is intriguing and I would love to spend more time in the world, but... the characters are just too stick-figure-y for me, they just don't feel like real people at all, and the romances are very... tepid and don't give me any feels? If I'm reading romance I need the feels lol. I actually had the thought that I'd rather read like, mystery novels or straight-up fantasy adventure without the romance being the focus, in this setting. Because then the characters being pretty 2-dimensional and same-y wouldn't matter as much, because their emotional centers wouldn't be like... the purported main purpose of the text, as it has to be if it's romance. I also think they're just poorly written enough that it's hard for me to overlook other sins. Ah well.

Go Tell it On the Mountain by James Baldwin: obviously Baldwin is a genius and his stuff is always really moving! I hadn't read what is probably his most known work before, and it was an interesting experience - it felt kind of dense and impenetrable in some ways, but also really affecting in others. I feel like I can tell it's an earlier novel from him, where he's really working out some of his foundational thoughts socially and politically. Definitely glad I finally got around to reading it.

The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens: Only recommend if you're a big ol' Dickens fan and you want to check out everything he's written - it's definitely not strong as a novel, it's very episodic and repetitive. But there's that quote about Dickens, that he has bad architecture but good gargoyles, and that was definitely true here. Sam Weller in particular stands out as an all-time Dickens character for me, I love love loved him. I legitimately wonder if Samwise Gamgee is based on him at all.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson: completed my re-read of this trilogy! These books are oddly compelling for a reason I can't quite quantify, I think for this one it was just super satisfying to see the good guys successfully dismantle all these evil conspiracies, they got that fantasy of being able to pull a fast one over the villains and totally drop the mic on them lol. Plus I love how just... unapologetically queer these books are in certain ways? Berger and her husband and their non-monogamous bisexual BDSM stuff, and then Lisbeth and Miriam... it's just cool how casually integrated that stuff is.

Blood of Empire by Brian McClellan: A straight over the plate, nothing fancy, nothing to write home about but nothing to complain about fantasy series! I really enjoyed making my way through this sequel trilogy. Not a ton to say, but I think for this last book the highlight is Bo and Nila slutting it up with all of Vlora's soldiers while she's having a mental breakdown. Great stuff, no notes.

What I Watched:

Outlander season 7 started back last year but the last couple episodes aired in January! I've already written reviews that are posted here going into detail, but broadly speaking I'd say that this show has had a gradual dip in quality over the years, I think partly in response to the books getting bigger and more meander-y and just less coherent as novels? So. Can't blame the show too much for that. All the stuff that makes me like Outlander for the messy, juicy, melodrama that it is, were still present this season though. I got fed WELL with all the John Grey material, lemme tell ya.

Critical Role, Bells Hells: Obviously I'm always watching whatever CR is putting out, but I wanted to do a shout-out on Bells Hells because the campaign finale episode is airing NEXT WEEK! This campaign has been far more controversial than the first two, it seems, and I'll just toss my two cents in and say that I really love it. I've seen some of the fandom criticism and it's an interesting experience for me because I can't exactly disagree with most of the points people are making, but for me most of the issues people have been listing, are features, not bugs, to my mind? Idk, I won't get into the weeds with it but I guess this experience has taught me that what I'm looking for from CR is not the same thing a lot of other people are. I love that these campaigns break the rules of narrative structure in ways that can sometimes feel uncomfortable or alienating. I think almost everything that's being said about BH could be said about M9, tbh, and there was far less of a backlash against it. Ah, well. Point is, I'm still having a great time and I'm SUPER looking forward to seeing the epic 8.5 hour finale episode next week.

Dropout Content: I've been having such a bad mental health month and work has been crazy and my brain has been having more trouble than usual processing new content, so I've been revisiting a lot of Dropout stuff, rewatching eps of Make Some Noise and Game Changer, and enjoying the new shows like Gastronauts and Nobody Asked. This has become quintessential comfort TV for me, I'll watch pretty much whatever these people decide to make. I've gotta get back to watching Dimension 20 though, I go through feasts and droughts with my binging of seasons. I was part way through Mice and Murder but I fell off of it... maybe I'll hop back on in February!

What I Listened To:

Epic: The Musical. Okay. So. One of the other reasons why I think my reading time was down this month is that my brain was eaten by worms and my whole personality was turned into Epic: The Musical? I am not that which I once was. I've been listening through this entire 2 hour and 20 minute album like... daily. For weeks. I cannot stop. I have been doing a lot of thinking about why this grabbed me the way it did, because I'm always fascinated in why certain things grab my attention and activate a hyperfixation, when others don't. Honestly, for the most part it's inexplicable; the stars have to be aligned or whatever. I needed something to listen to, to just buckle down and get through this huge amount of work at both my jobs, and this was what accompanied me through a couple of really bad weeks. Here's my pitch for why it's a good musical: catchy songs, complex and really well-constructed as a work of musical composition, awesome production quality, and a voice cast that's honestly so fucking stellar it blows the mind? If you're just like "yeah, I like listening to fun songs sung by people who are very good at singing" then like... I recommend it for that alone. But as for why I think this musical is not just good, but truly great, at least for my interests? Well, I think it's three big things:

This is an adaptation of a source material from nearly 3,000 years ago. I am fascinated by adaptations of ancient texts or even just like... "pretty old" texts - what concerns did the text grapple with in its original context, and what does this adaptation choose to focus on, how are different threads pulled depending on who's adapting it and when. It's the closest thing I have in my life to a truly spiritual practice, thinking about humans who lived so long ago that they could never have imagined the world today, sharing the same story I'm sharing today. Thinking about listening to this musical, and having this emotionally cathartic response to Odysseus reuniting with his wife Penelope after 20 years of separation, and knowing that millennia ago, ostensibly people sat and listened to this same story told in song, and had an emotionally cathartic experience about the same thing. It feels very special to me. Plus, like, I had a Greek mythology phase as a kid like I think a lot of us did, and this musical totally awakened that slumbering fascination, which is fun.

The compositional complexity of the text as a concept album. Jorge Rivera-Herrans is a young guy, he's in his mid-twenties and he started this project 4-ish years ago I believe. It makes me so hyped to think of the long life of creating art he has ahead of him, because this is... some good, good shit. Not just good for someone his age. It's good, period. The musical serves as something of a puzzle-box for those people who are interested in dissecting leitmotif and musical themes. This is one of the most intricately woven works of music I've ever encountered as a musical theatre fan, if I'm being honest. I'm still catching new threads every time I listen; the care with which it was constructed makes it feel truly worthy of closer attention and study. There's a pleasurable effort in unraveling all the ways the songs interact with one another. It works on the level of just being fun songs to listen to, but if you like it enough to want to slow down and pay attention, there's a whole world waiting there for you to notice.

The manner of how it was produced - a TikTok-y musical for the kids these days... basically, Jorge marketed this musical through social media. He released it in chunks over time, he released snippets of songs, demos of himself singing, he auditioned the vast majority of the cast by asking them to duet his TikToks and thus found the right voices for each character. He released videos explaining his process of composing, and going into the hidden motifs and connections. It was a brilliant bit of marketing, but it also hits on one of the most special parts of the musical and the fandom surrounding it: you get to see the creative process and the final product side by side. It's kind of the same thing I like about TTRPG shows, where you watch the art being made, and the art, all at once. Being able to go back and see Jorge singing a demo of a song in 2021, and then seeing his video asking people to audition, and then hearing the final release, and then getting a behind-the-scene video where he picks apart the choices he made in composition, it's like getting to see inside the machinery of construction. It's iterative and it's community-focused and it's the best of what social media can do, a reminder that it's not actually ALL bad. Plus, all the fan-made animatics are so cool... there are enough of them that you can actually "watch" this concept album from start to finish with visuals created by a whole host of talented artists.

So... yeah, I knew I'd talk about Epic for too long but that's where my brain is at right now. I'll be curious if by the end of February this hyper-fixation has started to fade, or if there's anything else that comes along to replace it!

This was fun, to reflect on what I've been watching and reading this month!

[gaming-of-the-shrew]

F's Weekly Roundup, vol. 1

LIGHTNING ROUND - EARLY-MID JANUARY 2025

Warmest greetings, everyone. Welcome to the first (and hopefully not last) post on 'The Gaming of the Shrew'.

I've often felt a creeping paranoia surrounding the topic of forgetting which specific games I've played, movies I've watched, books I've read; you know how it is. I've had a goodreads account for a while, but that hardly covers everything!

So, for 2025 (and hereafter?) I've decided to make a log of such things where I'll be documenting my brief thoughts once per week! If I have anything more in-depth to say about a given piece, that'll be a separate post of its own.

Let's begin!

GAMES

Purrgatory (2021)

SCORE: 6/10

Completed in: Roughly 4.5 hours.

Purrgatory is a fun one to start with, given its heavy themes of existentialism. It's a point & click adventure set in a monotone afterlife and featuring a cast of colourful characters. My favourite is Elijah, a purple armadillo poet who's overly critical of his own prose (I know the feeling).

But that's not exactly why we're here; that'd be because buddy, this game is exceedingly gay. Most if not all of the cast are gay, trans, or some combination of the two. We love this, of course, but it links slightly into my main critique of the game: not to mince words, every character talks like an online gay person circa 2018. We're talking crytyping, 'fuck dude he sure does', the whole nine yards. This isn't a cardinal sin (hehe) or anything, but it dates the game just a little and detracts from each character's unique voice.

However, with that being said, it's a game with a great deal of heart and compassion. Sean the pink snake's story brought me to tears with its deeply human, matter-of-fact depiction of how it feels to miss the little things about a person you've loved and lost.

At $0.00, it's hard to go wrong here. Check it out!

Felvidek (2024)

SCORE: 8/10

Completed in: 4 hours

Felvidek is a game I'd been meaning to play since it came out in early 2024, but only got around to recently. I was initially drawn by its unique presentation and the fact it's an RPGMaker game (my favourite) but make no mistake, there's much more to see here.

You play as Pavol, an alcoholic knight whose wife has left him. Life is shit, perhaps even moreso than life generally tended to be in 15th century Slovakia, but fear not! Laughter is the best medicine, especially if there's ought to do otherwise but cry.

Yes, Felvidek is a black comedy, but not in the style you may be used to. It's less 'non-stop comically dour misery' and more 'frying pan to the face' in its blackness. You'll meet comical characters, jolly drunks, demons of all shapes and sizes, and somewhere in between all of these you'll have an icy bucket of existential terror, grief, trauma or depression dumped on your head without warning. It's quite exquisite, and does a great job of portraying the manner in which these concerns often manifest in real life: suddenly, and without due warning.

There's a lot to love here I haven't mentioned, not least of which being the soundtrack, so if you like historical fiction or black comedy, you'll likely get a lot out of Felvidek.

killer7 (2005, Windows release 2018)

SCORE: 8/10

Completed in: 14 hours

So this is a party I'm immensely late to. After having played No More Heroes and its sequel for the first time last year, I wanted to try more of Suda51's offerings.

killer7 is in an interesting position as far as critique and review goes; it's a game which is inimitably unique, but one which has enough of a dedicated following that just about everything there is to say about it already has been. Regardless...

Narrative-wise, the game follows the eponymous killer7 (aka the Smith Syndicate), a group of elite assassins tasked by various shadowy organisations, government and otherwise, to eliminate key political targets. In my mind, the best part of this is that we get to see the broader geopolitical scope of our actions. Often, this view is a cynical one. The annihilation of an entire country is presented through dispassionate boardroom discussions and standard protocol, portraying an emotionally disconnected world much like our own.

Most everything else is very cryptic, and one often gets the impression that the specific vibe of what a character is saying is more important than the actual words they're using. Make sense of it or don't; after all, your charge is to kill, not to understand.

Funnily enough, though, I don't care too much for the actual moment-to-moment gameplay. At best it's a serviceable semi-rail shooter, but at worst it's clunky and frustrating. Normally this would be pretty damning, but everything about the game's artistic presentation and world is so compelling, bizarre and dripping with personality that it makes such flaws very easy to overlook.

Islands: Non-Places (2016)

SCORE: 4/10

Completed in: under an hour

I found this game looking through the contents of the itch.io bundle for racial equality, which I purchased a few years ago. Visually, it scratched a similar itch to Vectorpark's Windosill, a favourite of mine, so I decided to check it out.

Through a series of levels, you're presented with seemingly-mundane locations which slowly unfold to reveal idiosyncracies ranging from the unusual to the supernatural. Your sole means of direct interaction with these worlds is to click on, predominantly, flashing lights scattered throughout them. It's a very pretty and atmospheric game, but it's one that doesn't seem interested in truly allowing you to inhabit these spaces. Perhaps that's part of the intent; most of these areas capture the mood of the vaunted 'liminal space' trend, and are therefore inherently transitory. But in order to really evoke that feeling of transition, we must first be welcomed in - a goal such a limited means of interaction does not achieve.

Islands does a passable job of portraying liminal spaces, and the visual presentation is beautiful, but it simply doesn't go beyond the surface level and ultimately fails to make an impact.

Secret Little Haven (2018)

SCORE: 5/10

Completed in: 2 or 3 hours I think

Rounding out this gaming roundup is an OS simulator, in the same vein as Hypnospace Outlaw, and another extremely trans game. Though we have access to a number of applications in the fictional Sanctuary OS, the overwhelming bulk of the story is communicated through an instant messaging app à la MSN or AIM.

We take the role of Alex, high school student and magical girl fan. Alex is assigned male at birth, but when a male character from their favourite anime is rumoured to transform into a girl in an upcoming movie, doubts about their gender identity begin to rise to the surface. To complicate matters further, Alex's father is obsessively controlling and manipulative, with very specific ideas about the person Alex should become.

I've been pretty harsh in my scoring of this one, but only because I do not find the OS simulation to be a compelling vessel for this story. It's clunky, and not even in the way a PC from 1999 should be, and the few puzzles which involve straying from the instant messenger are either ludicrously simple or extremely poorly conceived, especially when it comes time to use the cmd console.

Otherwise, though the actual story we're presented is reasonably competent, it moves far too quickly. Our main character goes from literally never having heard the word 'transgender' to immediately identifying as such. This is forgiveable, but some breathing room for discussion outside of gender would have been nice; as it stands aspects of the story regarding what it means to live in a society with rigidly defined gender roles or the intersection of well-meaning love and abuse are malnourished. My absolute least favourite part is Alex's school friend, a character whose concept is good, but their implementation is sophomoric at best (think 'creepypasta character typing their accent').

This section is pretty negative in tone but I want to stress there are things to like here. It's a hopeful and cautiously joyful story of transgender awakening, and as a trans person myself I was deeply ingratiated to Alex's journey, confusion and all.

MOVIES

These are gonna be a little more brief, I think. We'll see.

Pleasantville (1998)

SCORE: 6/10

Has any other 'they go to a cool alternate world' movie had the balls to have one of the characters stay behind to live there forever at the end?

Great concept, decently executed. Cops out a little from its stated goal of challenging social complacency and conservatism, but it is what it is.

True Lies (1994)

Score: 3/10

Iconically bad.

I love how soft-spoken Arnie is in this film, he's like a frighteningly large St. Bernard. Goes on for like four hours too long and is considerably less clever than I assume it thinks it is. Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger kissing in the glow of a mushroom cloud is the most emblematic image of Hollywood there could ever be.

(Perfect Arabic)

The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

Score: I'm not sure

What I liked: The futility of directly seeking meaning in life when you're far more likely to find it in the everyday without looking for it. Condemnation of orientalism (...sorta). Beautiful visuals.

What I didn't: Portrayal of women. Despite it being intentional, main characters are irritating in a way I don't find compelling. Plays into orientalism (...sorta).

Anora (2024)

Score: 8/10

This would've been a 7 if not for the final scene. Dramatic, hilariously slapstick, frankly a lot fucking wackier than you'd probably expect. Similar to Felvidek in that 'you laugh before you cry' kind of way.

Practical Magic (1998)

Score: 4/10

A little rough. Another in the time-honoured tradition of 'witch movies where barely any witch stuff happens'. Heartwarming story about how it is very difficult to kill Johnny Depp. I liked the margarita scene, though.

Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon (1995)

Score: So quintessentially subjective that I don't feel able to give one.

It's very telling that the poster for this movie is just Goku doing the big punch he does at the very end, rather than any of the core characters. Dumb and inconsequential, but the appeal of course comes from elsewhere. I love Tapion, this broody Link-type bishie boy. Vegeta shows up 85% of the way through the film and executes one attack which does not work. So it goes. I liked it.

The Craft (1996)

Score: First half 7-8/10, second half 4/10

Starts out positively iconic, lots of fun vindictive magic, edgy as sin, amazing outfit design. However, as with any teen revenge movie, the latter half must always centre around the main characters' comeuppance. I understand why this is, but it's just not fun!

Alright, that's all! I saw a few more movies so far this year, but I don't have enough to say about them to include in this post. Subsequent posts will most likely be much shorter. 'til next time.

-F

[notsocheezy]

Brain Curd #302

Brain Curds are lightly edited daily writing - usually flash fiction and sometimes terrible on purpose.

Experiment in progress. Refer to case logs.

I rode my bike to the far corner of town - the other side of the train tracks (or it would have been if there were ever rails built here). I found the usual chain-link fence and locked my bike to it with a U-lock. I tugged on it to make sure it was secured and entered the leftmost front door.

This apartment building, a duplex, was owned by the church next door, which purchased it from the family who used to own it just a year ago. It was good timing, too, because the homeless population in town was double the last count. Up the stairs I climbed, into the dimly lit foyer of the men’s home.

My father, who sat in the corner staring at a tiny laptop screen, accounted for roughly a third of that population increase all on his own. So he was provided a bunk and a bit of floor space, just like the others. As was his nature, he took it in stride and expanded out further than anyone had given him permission to: his desk was large enough to account for his own bit of floor space, that of the man in the bunk above his, and that of one of the men in the bedroom.

“Hey,” I said, taking off my backpack and setting it on the floor with an unintentional thud. The women’s home downstairs must have hated me.

“Hey,” my father replied, taking a hit of his vape, which was the size of a deck of cards with four wedding rings stacked atop. He turned around and blew the cloud of vegetable glycerin and flavorings into my face. “Doesn’t that smell just like Fruity Pebbles?”

“Fruity Dino Bites, maybe,” I replied.

He looked me up and down. “Take a seat, you’re making me nervous.”

I pulled a folding chair from the wall and sat in it, creaking the floorboards beneath the thin carpet.

He turned the screen to face me. “Check this shit out.”

He hit the spacebar and an animation began playing over wobbly footage of the ocean. It was a title card, which read, ‘The Vapist.’

He proudly smirked and said, “New intro for the channel.”

I nodded. “Cool.”

“And take a look at what I’m reviewing this week.” He held out several small glass bottles with vape liquid inside, waiting for me to take them (I didn’t). “They’re all cereal themed. But the one I just sampled for you is supposed to taste like Froot Loops. It didn’t taste anything like Froot Loops, right?”

I shook my head. “No, definitely not.”

“Good, ‘cause I already sent him an email. It’s false advertising, you know. I’m gonna have to put that in my review.”

“How much did you pay for all these?”

“Nothing. These are review samples. I’m doing him a favor.” As far as Dad was concerned, this YouTube channel was his job - though it didn’t pay more than whatever value you could put on e-juice. Hence the lack of his own apartment - and more importantly, lack of a stocked pantry.

I unzipped the second pocket of my backpack and pulled out a couple bananas left over from school meals. “I brought you something to eat.”

He took one of the bananas and frowned. “What, do I look like a monkey to you?”

“Uh… this was all I could get. It’s not - I mean, would you prefer an orange next time?”

“As the bisexual said, ‘I’d prefer something other than fruit now and then.’”

“I would have saved you a burrito like usual, but I was starving today.”

“Hmph.” He gestured to the other banana still in my hand. “Eat up, then. You’re a growing boy.”

I looked at it. It was small and green. He liked them green, but I never did. It didn’t sit right with me to eat a banana that wasn’t ready to be eaten, a banana still acidic and lacking in sweetness. Bananas like this fought back against you, both when you peeled them and when you ate them. Overripe bananas were at least good for banana bread, but these, to me, were good for nothing but waiting.

I cracked the stem and started removing the peel. “I chickened out again.”

“Seriously? Dude, it’s not that hard.”

“Yes it is! I’ve never asked anyone out before in my life.”

“Alright, fine. Pretend I’m Celeste.”

My eyes twitched. “Huh?”

“Or, uh… what was her name?”

“Oh, uh… Serenity.”

“Right. Serenity. You two went to preschool together.”

“Yeah, and?”

“You’ve known how to talk to her since you started talking.”

“Yeah, but…” I trailed off, focused on removing as many strings from the banana as I could. “It’s different. I’m different, she’s different.”

 “She’s not different. Watch. Pretend I’m her and ask me out.”

“You don’t look anything like her. She has a lot more hair on her head and a lot less below the neck.”

“She’s got more below the neck than you think. You’ll find out after the dance is over.”

“Dad!”

“What? You’re attracted to her, aren’t you?”

“I mean, yeah, but…”

“Then fuck her brains out. No big deal. But you need to ask her out first. Try it.”

“Uh… okay? Hey, Serenity.”

“Hiii,” Dad replied in a horrid falsetto.

“Nope, nope, nope, I can’t do this.” I took a bite of rock-hard banana and I swear it crunched under my teeth.

“Can’t do what?”

“Stop it, Dad.”

“Hmph. Baby.” His stomach grumbled. “That banana isn’t gonna do it for me. Let’s go get something to eat.”

Suddenly I started to feel queasy. It was like a sense of impending doom crossed with food poisoning. I shivered.

“I, uh, I’m not feeling so good.” I rubbed the side of my head and my eyes watered.

“Fine, I fly, you buy. Hurry up, I’m starving!”

“I don’t… I don’t have the cash…”

“What do you mean you don’t have it?”

“I lost the money…” It was all I could do to say these four words and hold down the contents of my stomach.

“Goddammit, Trevor… What am I supposed to eat, now?” He held out his floppy arms. “I’m malnourished!”

“I could…” The thought of food was making it worse, but I needed to defuse the situation. “I could bring you my leftovers after dinner?”

“Oh. Of course," he said. “Of course you’re expected at ‘home’ for dinner. What are you having?”

“Probably…” I gulped, trying to keep from vomiting. “Probably… Maybe steak again?”

“Man, fuck you. Fine, go back to your private palace. Ride your little bike back to Grandma and Grandpa.”

I could see as if it was right in front of me: my own shaky breath fogs up my glasses in the cold dark of the night - everything is cold, so cold, and as my glasses become clearer, I see my bicycle, crumpled in the street, hunched over as if sobbing. There’s blood on my hands.

When I came to, my father was halfway through yelling at me to hurry and clean up the puddle of vomit in front of me. I fell back onto the floor as my legs gave out. I breathed heavily, my heart beating in my ears. But at least my stomach felt better.

“I think I need to go lay down,” I said, or at least, I heard myself say it.

Dad stared at me, incredulous. “Sure, fine, you want to leave, then leave. You didn’t need to give me something to clean up! There’s a sink right over there!”

“Sorry,” I said, getting up. I zipped my backpack and slung one of the straps over my arm, then hobbled outside.

“What just happened?” Celeste asked. “Are you alright?”

“I should be asking you what happened,” I grumbled. “This is all because of whatever you’ve been doing to me.”

“You’re sure it wasn’t that banana?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. I had a vision.”

“A vision this time? Not just an idea popping into your head?”

“That’s right,” I said as I unlocked my bike. “And it felt real.”

“What did you see?”

I trembled as I looked at my bicycle. The handlebars were still unmangled in my hands. “I don’t want to talk about it. All I’ll say is, I’m gonna walk my bike home today.”

Please comment, reblog, like, and follow if you enjoyed - I'd love to know what you think! See you again tomorrow.

[fioreofthemarch]

Finding Her - Chapter 19

Link makes notes, takes photos and keeps time on his quest across Hyrule, in the hopes of finding Zelda and staying sane until he does. [ Previous | Next | First | AO3 ]

Log date: 17:35. 9th month, 18th day 104AC Location: Lookout Landing, Emergency Shelter  Weather: Overcast, drizzle 

Arm hurts, really hurts. A Yiga got me there. In a bad way, but getting better. 

Don’t know where to start or where to end. It’s Autumn already, but it was Summer yesterday. Talk of a Blood Moon soon. Or did that already happen? Head’s swimming. Losing my grip a little and then suddenly I’m

Upstairs, in the loft, dozing. Zelda’s downstairs. Where’s the flour? she asks, I want to bake something. It’s been over a hundred years! So we try but I’m a better cook than a baker and she’s a culinary mad scientist. No measuring cups, no recipes, just vibes. We’re sitting on the floor waiting for the cake to bake, flour everywhere, and then she’s on my lap, then her lips are on mine, then her apron is gone along with the rest of our clothes, and when I wake up in bed next to her, there’s still flour in her hair. 

Was that yesterday or the day before? Trying to hold on. Time flowing through me like air out a window. If I reach out I can catch moments in my palm: Standing with Scorpis under a sunshade, waiting for the rain to pass. He’s telling me it’s a family legend that his great-grandfather was a Knight, like me. Then I’m with Jerrin, getting my bandages changed. She says it’s a miracle I survived, or perhaps the Goddess’ idea of a joke. Then Muzu is insisting we train the soldiers harder, but Slergo and Offrak say people are already working their guts off. Gralens hands me the latest edition of the Lucky Clover Gazette. Buliara and Harth take inventory of my gear and weapons. Mubs reads me a letter from Garini, who says hi. 

I’m here. I’m trying to be here. They’re saying the Sages are on their way to Lookout Landing. They say victory is near. But all I wanted was her, and that future only half-dreamed. The one where we have a house on a hill and it’s being renovated to add a library. Zelda’s downstairs, reviewing the plans over a cup of tea, and I’m upstairs, in the loft, checking on the baby. He was a winter-born child, like me, so he’s strong. There’s a cake in the oven. And it’s a good one.

A photograph of the kitchen in the Emergency Shelter. It’s quite orderly, as though someone has recently given it a tidy, though some jars of flour, sugar, milk and yeast are still out of place. There is a fire crackling below the stove.

Caption: Does she prefer vanilla or chocolate icing? I should know this…

---

Log date: 19:34. 9th month, 21st day 104AC Location: Passeri Greenbelt, Hyrule Field   Weather: Partly cloudy 

Cool morning. Trees are going red now. Rode out with the Monster Control Crew at noon. There’s a camp nearby that they hit once every few weeks, but each time it gets rebuilt a little closer to Lookout Landing. We prayed at the Goddess Statue before we left. Paya is here now, leading the services. As the hours tick down, all round the clock, people pray. 

The Sages arrived two days ago. Impa and Robbie not long after that. Here to give every last Message Medallion a service, Robbie said, while Impa handed Josha a stack of ancient texts to translate. Then, an emergency meeting with the Sages. They’re fidgeting, they’ve heard the rumours. Purah starts saying something but I stop her. They won’t believe the truth from anyone but me. Don’t know what I said, only that I tried to think of how Zelda would tell them, if she were in my place. 

Felt like all hell broke loose after. Gasps, cries, bowed heads, furious tears and vows of vengeance. All that anger and grief is a torch to a powder keg. Suddenly Purah is saying we march at dawn, tomorrow we avenge our Princess and destroy the Demon King! And I’m standing there unable to breathe because I realise I'm not ready. I can’t face him yet and I don’t know why. And I’m trying to think of how to say that without freaking everyone out, because your hero isn’t exactly meant to have second thoughts… when it’s Josha who saves me one final time. 

‘You can’t go!’ she cries. She grabs some ancient book and flips through the pages, pointing to what looks like a lunar chart, with a bright red circle at its centre. ‘There is a Blood Moon tomorrow! If it happens while you’re down in the Depths, it could be a disaster!’ 

More whispers. A bit of back and forth. Purah brushes her off as paranoid, but then the Sheikah gather around a couple calendars and do a few calculations, and in the end, the attack is called off. 

So Ganondorf got himself another day, and so did I. Can’t delay forever but… there’s just something not settled in me yet. When we win this, everyone else’s lives go back to normal. 

But what about mine? 

A photograph of the night sky, clear as glass and only broken up by the pinprick lights from distant stars. Low above the horizon, almost pulsating, is a huge, crimson moon. 

Caption: She was right, the little rebel. 

---

Log date: 10:00. 9th month, 22nd day 104AC Location: Sanidin Park Ruins, Hyrule Ridge Weather: Fine 

They’ll have realised I left by now. I put a note on my pillow promising to come back by sun-down. Have to keep moving in case they send scouts after me. 

Not abandoning them. Would never dream of it. But I promised myself to chase every lead and this last one is for me. 

Read through the Lucky Clover Gazette this morning and a headline on page 8 caught my eye. WINGED WRITER HANGS UP HIS FLYING GOGGLES. Penn? He’s leaving the Gazette? He told me that Traysi loved his work. I have a great all-weather climbing set to show for it. 

Might be stalling. Might not. Just want to figure this one out. Penn was looking for Zelda too, after all. And maybe searching for something else along the way – a reason to wake up each morning, get back on the trail, and soar long… 

He deserves to know what happened, or at least for someone to thank him for his hard work. Or maybe I just want to see a friendly face, before the end of it all. 

A photograph of the said Lucky Glover Gazette article, held up for the camera, the greenery of Hyrule Field just visible in the background. There is an illustration of Penn literally hanging up his goggles, with a pantomimed look of resignation on his face. 

Caption: You can take the man out of the newspaper… 

---

Log date: 15:50. 9th month, 22nd day 104AC Location: Great Sky Island, Central Hyrule Archipelago  Weather: Clear

I found Penn on Washa’s Bluff, in a gazebo where an old friend and I sat once. Kass would sing until the sun went down, and as thanks I’d make us both dinner. His songs still carry on the wind if you know how to listen. They’re the songs of the land, after all. 

We talked for a long time. I told Penn we made a great team, that his leads were invaluable, and that chasing them down kept me on my toes. Sure, we didn’t find Zelda, but we told the stories of her people and should be proud of that. He said he’s still leaving the paper no matter my flattery. Spoke about having lost his touch, that his instincts were gone. A reporter without instincts is like a Knight without a sword. It didn’t help when he noticed that I did, in fact, have my sword back. 

‘Don’t worry about me, partner,’ Penn said. ‘I’ll get back in the air, someday.’

But I was worried. I didn’t want Penn to lose hope… I didn’t want to lose hope. And in that moment, it felt like waking up. Like surfacing from beneath deep waters. I wanted to be alive. I wanted to live a good life. I knew I still did, even without her, even with all the pain.

So I said to him that maybe wanting to be better is its own instinct. Maybe trying to find something or someone or some meaning to it all is what keeps us going. And maybe we don’t have to do any of that alone. Penn sat with that for a long time, and then pulled out his notebook.

‘Would you want to write a column for the Gazette?’ he asked. ‘Our readers would love it. I’ll edit it, of course.’ How could I say no? We shook on it then and there. So much for his sabbatical.

It’s nearly time. I bid Penn farewell, then came here. Wondered — if I could choose how to spend one last afternoon, what would I do? The answer was easy, though it took a little while to coax Zelda to join me. But now we’re here and we’re ready: for a nap, with the sun on our backs, and nothing else but us and the quiet moments we can still share. 

I miss you, Zelda, even though you’re right here. I miss you more than I could ever say. But I’m going to keep on living. I’m going to live enough life for the both of us. I think it’s what you might have wanted. 

If nothing else, I consider it a duty. What is a Knight, if not a devotee to his lady? 

A photograph of the Light Dragon, coiled around a hollow tree stump that sits atop one of the atolls of the Great Sky Island. Three Korok wind-fans are placed in front of her snout – a makeshift lure, and apparently a successful one. On her mane is Link, resting comfortably on her hair. Together, they doze. 

Caption: You deserve all the rest in the world. 

---

Audio log transcription date: 104.09.24  Time: 9 minutes 45 seconds.

LNK | 08:00 Gloom’s Approach in sight. All units report. Vanguard?

MIN | 08:00 We will lead the charge. 

YNB | 08:00 Launching on your command, Link!   

LNK | 08:01 Flank? 

RIJ | 08:01 Static charging as we speak.

TLN | 08:01 With some guidance. Arrows ready. Any monsters down there won’t know what hit ‘em.

LNK | 08:01 And rearguard? 

SDN | 08:02 I am here. If you are hit, fall back to me. 

LNK | 08:02 Last not but least, intel? 

JSH | 08:02 Reporting in. We’re here to help from Lookout Landing, however we can! 

LNK | 08:04 Alright, listen to me. Zelda gave us everything she had for this, but she also gave me an order: protect you all. If anything happens, you get yourselves out. Everybody lives, do you understand me?

MIN | 08:04 Link… 

TLN | 08:04 What about you?

SDN | 08:04 Zelda would not want you to throw yourself at death!  

LNK | 08:05 That’s not happening, not when I have her power right here with me.

RIJ | 08:05 Then give us your orders Link.

YNB | 08:05 We’ll do whatever you say. 

LNK | 08:05 Fight smart, hit hard. Don’t touch any Gloom, keep your Sundelions in reach. As soon as we have a visual on Ganondorf, we do whatever it takes to finish the job. Clear? 

[All answer: ‘Clear’]

LNK | 08:06 And whatever happens… I’m glad to have spent this time with you.

RIJ | 08:06 Likewise, Link.

MIN | 08:07 Yes, it has been an honour. 

TLN | 08:07 We’ll finish this together! 

SDN | 08:07 For the Princess!

YNB | 08:08 For Zelda!  

LNK | 08:08 For Zelda. Any last words? Josha? 

JSH | 08:09 Nothing at the moment, but the further underground you go, the weaker your signal will be. I’m going to disable a few processes to conserve power, like the audio transcription. Let’s hope we don’t need it.

LNK | 08:09 You heard her. Make it count. Or at least live to tell the tale.

LNK | 08:10 Okay, heading in. See you on the other side.

[certainheaven]

I have a lot of things to write about my attempt to induce lucid dream, i start it from March this year, what a long time journey and i am still here… sigh..

Back to lucid dream, ( traditional method as MILD, WILD, etc i tried those sometimes, but lately i stick to SSILD when WBTB and yoga nidra before sleep, i always keep my dream journal too, you will be surprise how many log in my dream journal but no LD yet 🥲, and of course reality check every hour and sometimes i did ADA ( all day awareness)*correct me if i am wrong)

Tried, a lot of herb for induce LD but nothing worked for me, silly me bought 3 pouch of mugwort tea back then ( one pouch is 30 bag of tea ), the taste is horrible, who in the world like this kind of tea, even i like tea i hate this one 😭 drank it before sleep, no effect, drank it when WBTB, no effect, even i didnt get any vivid dream and my dream recall so horrible after that. Wonder why people succeeded with it…

Blue lotus, that one is expensive one and i just got a little flowers for quite of money to spent 🥲 not worked for me too ( i want to hit myself ) in the first time i drank it i had this really long deep sleep i ever had, like you just hit your pillow and close your eyes for one second and one second later you open your eyes, you already sleep for 7 hours! I am grateful for that one though, i never sleep like that before. But yeah after that first time it didn't do anything for me anymore, not deep sleep, not vivid dream or i even can't remember my dream.

After that, i don't want to tried the tea or herbs again, due to disappointment, and then, came these supplements…

Anyone maybe did heard a lot about vitamin B, especially B6 and B12 which coincidentally make people LD, well lucky for me because i lack on these vitamins (including vitamin D) and i bought it for my health too, i bought only vitamin with B1, B6 and B12 in it first but i change to B-complex ( there are choline in it so also need it for my memory, i had the most bad memory in the world if i can say it) so it's a win-win if i really did LD with it too but well… you know the outcome already. But one day i tried this B1, B6 and B12 vitamin one when i did WBTB, i did have semi-lucid(?) one when anything out of place like who in the world can pull blanket through the wall?????? Yeah it was me and i keep thinking it was normal to pulled blanket through the wall, i always like this when had ‘really dream-like scene and there no way you can witness an do it in real life’ and keep thinking it was okay, dam—- what an idiot 😭

But tell you what, after regularly consume B-complex and vitamin D3 frequently my dream became kinda vivid and my recall more better than before consume these vitamins. That's a great progress i guess.

And the recent supplements i just bought a week ago! Huperzine-A and Alpha-GPC! Sigh anything related to brain always expensive 😭 you guys know Galantamine? Yeah that one supplement also the most potent tool for induce LD due to people who review it on reddit, but sadly i can't bought it and you need prescription to buy it (and the price my god more pricey than those two i just mentioned… just why…😭)

Like how stupid i was, i consumed it both when WBTB, due to high choline in these two i am not surprised i was so sick and wanted to fainted after i woke up. Hard to falling asleep again but try to force it but i feel uncomfortable don't know why, and didn't get any dream, maybe because how high choline in my body that day, these two supplements work so fast like the effect will peak at around 10-15 min after you consume it.

I bought the 250 uhm mcg or mg(?) Huperzine-A i don't remember sorry ( i told you my memory is trash 😭 luckily this two main benefits is help with memory and cognitive) and uhm 600 mg Alpha-GPC 50% so you will only get 300 mg when you consume it one pill.

The question is why these supplements? Well, i can't explain it because i am not expert or really know, but choline is help with active brain when we are sleep, and like Galantamine which is for Alzheimer disease, these kind of supplements for Alzheimer found out to be effective and coincidentally induced LD, that curious isn't it? If you really want to know and curious search it up yourself because i can't explain more than this 🤣

Planning to using this for just once per week, because these supplements stay inside body kinda in a long time. I am out of method and kinda tired to always met with disappointment so i tried supplements, but it's also help my brain so i can't complain 🥲

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Jack Howl Bloom Birthday Personal Story: Part 3

"Happy Birthday"

(Part 1) (Part 2) Part 3

[Savanaclaw Dorm – Birthday Party Venue]

Deuce: Okay, time for the last question.

Deuce: “How do you spend your days off?”

Deuce: …Is what it's asking. I mean, I think I can guess, but…

Jack: I'm usually training on my days off.

Deuce: Yeah, thought so. Whenever I'm out for a run on my days off, it's not like we don't bump into each other often or anything.

Deuce: Isn't there anything else you do?

Jack: What else… I take care of my cactus, and I prep and review for class.

Deuce: Class prep, huh… Guess I should take a leaf out of your book sometime.

Deuce: Oh yeah, that reminds me, I saw you in town the other day… What were you doing then?

Jack: The other day…? Ah, that was probably the day I went to go check to see if the new protein bars were out already.

Jack: But hey, wait, so you were out in town too? If you saw me, you shoulda said something.

Deuce: I mean, you looked like you were really focused on the products you were staring at, so I didn't want to interrupt…

Jack: Uh-huh. That's considerate of you.

Jack: Yeah, so I have my usual products that I like to get, but their nutritional values can change based on the maker and the flavor.

Jack: Whenever I go into town, I make sure to check for any news on restocked or new products.

Jack: If I'm going to be paying the same amount of money anyway, don't you think it's better to have stuff with more nutrition in it?

Jack: And I'm pretty sure how effective each one is depends on the person…

Jack: So whenever I start a new product, I always make sure to keep a notebook on any changed in my weight and muscle gain.

Deuce: You're so serious… Or I guess more like intense.

Jack: It's just that I want to be as thorough as I can be if I'm making comparisons.

Jack: Plus, if I keep a log, then I won't accidentally buy something that I didn't like.

Deuce: And with that, the interview's over. Great job, Jack.

Jack: Yeah, you too.

Deuce: And, now it's time for the main event… The moment that the birthday boy flies on his broom!

Deuce: Here you go, this broom was prepared for you. They said that the flowers on the end were made to suit you specifically.

Jack: This thing? It kinda feels a little too flashy for me…

Deuce: You think? It's got some real heavy-looking flowers, so I thought it was a perfect for you!

Deuce: Anyway, you better go all out! Show us all how cool you can fly!

Jack: Hm, you don't have to tell me twice. No way I'm gonna let you guys see anything lame from me.

Jack: I don't want to be looked down on, just 'cause I'm a first year. I'll show everyone on campus just what I can do.

Jack: …Alright! They better keep their eyes on me, I'm gonna show 'em all how it's done!

(Part 1) (Part 2) Part 3

[magpies4nights]

GUYS DONT PRESS P ON THE TITLE SCREEN WORST MISTAKE OF MY LIFE (Dev log #15)

AT LAST, SUMMER IS HERE!!!!! I am so excited I can finally rest I- oh right. Summer classes. Sigh. Well, they don’t take up the whole day thank god and I don’t need to be there, but It’s still not exciting. Oh well. Maybe I’ll play the sims 4 again and check on how my poor little torture victims are doing/j Jk jk, I don’t torture my sims. Unless you consider naming them things probably EA wouldn't approve of, then yeah I guess I am a horrible person.

But yeah, on the week I released the demo (which by the way, thanks for the 58 views!!!! thas crazy) I was putting up with finals. Some of my classes had to be pushed to the next week, and that was INFURIATING. It was kinda agony because I just wanted everything to be done and over with and I was practically exhausted. Like sleeping at 7 pm exhausted. Yeah......Well, should I even talk about how my life is going? I flunked the review for my major. Thank god, honestly. I mean, I didn't do it on purpose, and I am sad in a way that I flunked it, but I didn't want to continue on the route I was going on. I feel kinda stupid for even trying but I guess it's ok to make mistakes in your early 20's rather than your 30's... for some reason.

Ok, dev time. I decided to take a break from making sprites for a bit. So I worked on a part of the game that I would have left a secret, but I think it’s quite funky hehehe

I like old computers. I would have replicated the windows XP thing because I have so many memories of it, but I'm scared Windows might snipe me or something. I once was lying on the couch my parents turned into a bed (I think I was sick at the time), and it was late at night, and the computer was shutting down (it played this sound: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gb2jGy76v0Y) and for some reason the noise absolutely scared the absolute living shit out of me (I think I was like 4-5 years old and I was terrified of bassy sounds). I do not remember ever having any positive relationships with computers before I turned 6 lol. I’m pretty sure I used to think I could live without them. Oh you poor bastard. If you saw me now not only would you not understand a single word I’m saying, you would be incredibly disappointed with how dependent I am on computers. I think once I'm done with that I'll try to fix whatever is going on outside scene, because that's the only scene that causes the game to crash. I'm pretty sure it's because there's too many objects, because when I turned off the animations and the visibility it still took forever to load (like, nearly 2 seconds. The scene takes 4 seconds to load, and normally a scene would take me less than a second to load). soooo, uh yeah, I'm trying to find an occlusion culling equivalent to solve this because that's a 3d game thing, and this is a 2d game lol. I'm thinking of turning off visibility for when they're outside the viewing frustrum (player's line of sight, or more like rectangle) because it cuts down half the time for when the scene loads. If nothing works I guess it's just deleting and re-adding the child back into the scene every time the camera is on them... sigh. If it ticks me off too much I'll probably return to doing sprites because there's still a lot to do lol.

Well.... I so far got no other ideas for references in this game, so I guess I'll put in the inspiration of the outro (which is the Portal outro)

(not my video)

I know, I know. Cheesy. BUT instead of it being in the antagonist's view, it's the protagonist's view instead. I tried singing for the song, but every time I do I make Jojo Siwa sound like a professional vocalist (I don't even know why she still sings. Didn't she bust one of her vocal chords already? Or is that a rumor? Either way that's already gotta be a sign that you probably shouldn't continue on the route you're on.) I literally had 5 attempts on my computer and they all sound horrible. I'm not going to put them on the internet for my sake and your sake too. So yeah, no vocals. But the lyrics will still be there. They won't have the typing effect though.

I once had a strange dream that I was looking through the itch.io comments and someone kept spamming about how they headcannoned Xandra to be a trans man and were like honestly I don't know how my brain combined those several factors together but I find that funny.

yes its the caseoh meme. no i will not apologize

[isalabells]

Die drei ??? books you would recommend reading?

In general? Pick up the books for every episode you love or find intriguing for whatever reason, esp if some (or all) of these were released until 2008ish, when they were still trying to stick to the 60 minutes mark. You'll be surprised to discover how many things got cut or moved around for the sake of the adaptation(like e.g., not to rec a BJHW book, but Späte Rache is soooo interesting, bc they completely omitted Peter's pov in the adaptation while in the novel, there are entire chapters told by him. He fucking adapts a dog in that one.)

My specific recs? This is so funny bc I haven't picked up a ddf book in so long BUT I recently started listening to one of these fan podcasts (me, 5 weeks ago: who tf listens to episode discussions that run 2,5 to 3 hours on average?!?? me now, knee-deep into catching up on 3 years worth of pod episodes, having already relistened to my fav ones several times:🤡🤡🤡), and they usually draw a comparison to the books, and it really made me want to start (re)reading again, so who knows. Just off the of my head and in no particular order

Toteninsel bc I'll always answer Toteninsel, no matter what anyone asks me. It's that good, and I actually reread it every other year or so, and sometimes I even log on to tumblrdotcom and have a meltdown over it (actually that one contains even more reasons why this is a rec). The best trilogy of the series, fight me. Extra fun if you're looking for more Bob/Jelena (I know most of you don't). But also gives you a better sense of how Marx tried to structure the narrative, putting each of our three little dudes into the spotlight in one of the three parts (that, understandably, gets lost in the adaptation).

Feuermond bc it's the series' second best trilogy, and it's even more charming in written form. The epistolary parts, which admittedly do drag in the adapation, just fly a lot better here. It gets even more apparent that Mary invented the entire second act because he had pages to fill, but it's such a delightful read that it doesn't matter at all. Must-read for the crazy sports stuff Peter pulls near the end when they're trying to get to Knox Island.

Karpatenhund bc anything written by my girl Mary Virginia is Worth It, but also iirc that story has some freaky shit in it for children's lit. Astral body, anyone??

und der verschwundene Filmstar bc it's the best take on (Old) Hollywood and the craziness of The Industry and everyone involved with it.

Pistenteufel bc I just checked my goodreads review and OH LORD. Worth it for whatever fucking homoerotic thing is going on between Bob and Toni the entire time.

Meuterei auf hoher See bc heterotopian setting x crime mystery is a perfect combo, always.

Rufmord bc stylistically (and probably storywise as well), this is Minninger's best work.

Gift per E-Mail, that is if you like Kelly, bc she has a more prominent role in that one which I, Kelly stan #1, enjoyed immensely.

Shoot the Works, preferably the OV (hmu in case you need it, I think I still have the pdf somewhere) bc I love it even more than all the other crimebusters (and I LOVE the other crimebusters), and also I need us all to team up and pressure Europa to finally adapt this episode. I've been desperate for a release for years. (omg but yes PLEASE read Shoot the Works I BEG)