#ok let's be real they've been on repeat anyways

[arcxnumvitae]

I am, once again, thinking about M.onster and N.o Longer You. Blame Kirei for posting the song again earlier.

[sopaprimordialy]

Boppers, hear me out.

Victor is Luther's father.

Ok, now, you might be thinking: "what the actual fuck are you talking about?" Well, in this essay I'll expose favorable arguments to my theory/theses/head canon that, in the album, captain Victor is Luther's father. Keep your radio tuned tight, boppers, bcs I might be crazy OR I might be onto something.

(There will be spoilers)

1. First of all...

For context, Victor is the cop that kills Fox. He's played by David Patrick Kelly, the actor who plays Luther in the original movie, The Warriors (1979). This alone is a huge reason for me to believe that they are somehow connected, BUT THERE'S MORE!

I think we already established that what a character claims to be their reason for doing something is not always their real reasoning, or, at least, not the entirety of it. I do believe Luther kills Cyrus because he enjoys the chaos and has a lot of hate in his heart, as Swan wisely says, but I don't think that's all.

We have hints among his lines that he's also misogynistic and racist. "Well, duh?" You might say, because there were few white men who weren't those things by the time this story takes place, but sometimes we may underestimate how heavy this stuff weighs in the narrative. If he really likes chaos that much, why not kill, Idk, a police captain? That would certainly create generalized chaos just as he likes, but instead, he deliberately targets marginalized groups' leadership — he kills a black woman, a powerful black woman who was trying to unite her community.

She was obviously an obstacle for the cops to keep up with their oppression towards these groups because unity is strength, and all they don't want is strong communities that knows their rights and won't accept to be chased down like animals when they've done nothing but trying to survive.

In the very first track of the album, the question "but is Cyrus atractin' police action?" Is asked. The answer we find further on, especially when the police invades Van Cortlandt Park right after she's killed, is: *yes*, of course she is.

* Also, the timing here is too convenient, don't you think? Just like the police knew exactly when to attack, when the desperate crowd would be disorganized, when they would be easy prey... anyways 😛

2. That weird af phone call

Now that we have established that there would be a lot of interest on the police's part to have Cyrus killed, let's move on to the next topic.

Suddenly, without any further context or this being ever mentioned again, Luther talks to *someone* on the telephone. This happens in the album, and in the movie as well, it is not confirmed who the hell Luther was talking to on that phone call. I've already seen some people theorizing that he has contacts inside the force and that he's talking to them, and I agree, but I think he's not talking with some random cop, I believe he's talking to Victor.

Come think with me: how did Luther instantly knew Ajax had been taken by the cops ("Holy shit, Warrior down [...] Picked the wrong fight / now she's in for a long night", I'll talk about this later btw), and most importantly, what exactly was Victor doing at Union Square's station?

Let's compare this approach with Barnes' one at the park.

Barnes was alone in the bench, and only when Ajax approached him (and started beating the shit out of him), he called for police reinforcements. It didn't feel planned, even tho he was trying to bait them to come closer to him, I think it was much more about sexual harassment than him actually intending to arrest them. With Victor, however, it doesn't feel like a random encounter.

"Officers are on the scene". This line repeats a lot during Reunion Square, that alone indicates that there are a group of cops there, like they've been called. They knew the Warriors, specifically the Warriors, would be there, and why was it so important for them to get the Warriors if they're just a "likkle Coney Island crew"? Because Luther would be FUCKED if the Riffs reached them alive.

Of course, the Riffs could just not believe the girls, but he was not willing to risk it — after the phone call, Luther tells Cropsy the Riffs wanted the Warriors alive, but they don't. And he was right, wasn't him? Cleon being alive and telling the Riffs the truth was the only reason for him to be caught and... well, we don't know for sure what they did to him, but we can imagine they weren't gentle.

That being said, we have strong evidence that Luther was in touch with the cops, else he would have no way of knowing Ajax was grounded. And Victor needed a reason to be there as well; not only an informant, but also a motive, and if we consider the theory that he was talking to Luther, we have both things.

3. Trust in the impunity of a daddy's boy

During the entire musical, Luther thinks he can get away with about everything. I atribute that not only to the fact that he's a white man targeting women of color, but he must also have other reasons to believe he's immune to justice of any kind, and there's where I start to try to convince you that he's Victor's son.

I mean, when Cropsy shows that he's worried the Riffs would go after them, Luther, rather ignorantly, responds with "they're looking for the Warriors, remember?" As if the fact that the Riffs are going after the Warriors is enough for him to believe they would never even think about interrogating them, trying to find the murder weapon, etc.

This behavior suits someone that has never been held accountable for any misdeeds at all, and who would fit this description better than a cop's son?

Let alone that Victor is a captain. He holds even MORE power within the police. Being the son of a cop, even if you're a fucking gang member, you'd feel safe enough to do just whatever the fuck you want without even thinking about the consequences.

Like, how many times he could have been caught doing something illegal, just tell the cops "do you know who my father is?" AND IT ACTUALLY WORKING? I firmly believe he was the one to inform the cops about all of this — the gathering, the Warriors' location, and the fact that he needed daddy to arrest the women who could potentially cause something to happen to him, because the Riffs are not the police, they'd not give af abt who his father is, even someone like him would have to be a little worried about being taken by them.

4. Fox & Luther — Parallels

I bet you did not see that one coming. "What do you mean there's something in common between Fox and Luther specifically that makes Victor killing her an interesting parallel with his (supposed) son?"

Well, games. That's kinda it. Old games.

So, there are only two characters that canonically like games in the musical, because they actually mention them: Fox ("A-yo I'll take you on an Odyssey like Magnavox") and Luther (with his multiple references to Pacman during the entire thing and other game expressions, like "I was at the top of the screen when I took that shot")

The Magnavox Odyssey is actually mentioned on the movie (according to my own father. I confess I don't remember this part, but I trust my nerdy father who actually have a connection with old consoles to notice that) by the Lizzies (fem version of the Bizzies), and Fox was not even there at the moment. Actually, movie Fox does not have a lot of... personality, if you ask me, he was kinda irrelevant. Anyways, even if Lin and Eisa wanted to reference this specific part in which the Lizzies offer to play Odyssey with the Warriors to lure them, why not have the Bizzies saying that? Why Fox?

Because that would be a bitter irony in the future. I might be crazy, BUT HEAR ME OUT, Victor killing a young woman that shared his son's interest for games was a foreshadowing for him being responsible for Luther's death as well — because he failed.

This is other thing they share: they failed. Victor failed to stop the Warriors from going home, Luther failed to kill Cyrus and blame the Warriors with no consequences, they failed together at silencing them, and this CAUSED Luther's (probable) death.

5. A gang member who endorses the police?

Ok, this last section is based in my belief that, even tho the crews fight and have their diferences, they all share a common enemy: the cops. That was the reason for them to accept the truce after all, the cops are their common enemy.

But somehow that doesn't feel true for the Rouges.

First of all, they killed Cyrus, which obviously means they were not in favor of the truce. But why? They sure would suffer from police brutality too if they were a normal gang. And we can all agree that they are even more violent than the average gang (I mean... have you listened to their leader?).

Also, this line intrigues me.

I mean, "picked the wrong fight"? It is clear that Luther's view is biased to take the cops' side. In this case, one could argue that his misogyny would play a big part on him diminishing Ajax's will to fight against an abuser. Anyhow, I think that this evidences that, even tho he's a gang member, he has a strong connection with the police.

CONCLUSION

I think we can all agree that Luther has something going on with the police, and I hope I have convinced you that he has something going on with Victor specifically.

It is possible to argue that their connection is only "tactical", or even go as far as to say that they are friends or something (tho, I don't think that's possible. One thing about brats like the Rouges: they don't go well with old people, with all due respect. I don't personally see this working as a friendship), but I'll stand with the father-son relationship till the day I die!!

Thank you for reading this madness and please lmk what you think! If there's something that doesn't make sense, if you have your own theories... I mean, I'm far more invested in this than I ever thought I would be, please give me more content 🙏���

[thewildefish]

Why I can't get a relationship despite turning 26 now?

People I know reply with usual spiel, “oh, you haven't found them yet”. Really? After 26 years of life, there wasn't even a single person I could've had a go with, even if it was short lived? Yeah right.

My Parents usually reply with "I don't know". Yeah, that's helpful as fk. You slandered me and treated like dirt for years, then cannot wrap your head around why your no-good-for-anything daughter can't find anybody. Go figure.

Nowadays if you're at this age and never been with anyone, it's a red flag from miles off. I'm not blind and notice what people are saying. I'm not going to pretend this isn't a commonly held belief and ignore that. What use is living in denial again?

Now, one time FB suggested some random post about being different and people meaning to accept you if they really respect and like you. Maybe if we continue to wear rose tinted glasses we're going to believe this is true (would be nice if so...), but this is NOT the actual reality. Theory vs in practice.

And I did happen to comment under that, I don't follow social rules blah blah, yet at 26 I'm still single, so clearly this is baloney.

Had the usual pitiful response along the lines of first para, some dude talking about techniques (would be nice if he elaborated ffs), one guy actually stating something helpful - namely that I don't seem to smile much and that scares dudes off - suppose point taken, but I don't smile much for 2 main reasons, one being that I wore braces for nearly a decade and showing teeth made me look hideous in photos so I had to train myself not to in order to spare even more humiliation, and the second one being I don't really have many reasons to smile anyway, so why would I?? My face isn't gonna lie just cause people supposedly want to see it. My face conveys what's really on my mind, simple as that.

And then of course got the dudes who know fuck all about me but felt it was ok to presume my personality must be shit of course. Thing is, despite that, they won't have the bias that people who know me display. So actually, could they be right?

I'm actually sick of hearing all the mollycoddling, all that nonsense about waiting for someone who's right - they're never coming, ok? I'm not gonna carry on deluding myself about something that's an obvious lie. Life is not a fairytale. It's a course of fierce natural selection just like in the rest of animal kingdom, and mentally ill fall to the bottom of the romantically desirable partners chain.

So, who do you think has the REAL answer to this question? Friends (that keep repeating bullshit they've been socially conditioned to believe) or strangers who although misinformed, lack bias towards my person?

Feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments

[omentranslates]

Owari no Seraph chapter 130 english fan translation

Hi you guys on tumbly get it before twitter this time because ehe

Anyways. I had no idea wtf to do abt labelling their dialogue in this flashback so. The eyeball is Eyeball bc they're an eyeball and the little human is Mikayuu bc idk they look like both? Thanks for reading, please check out the official tl if you haven't :)

Chapter 130: Remaining Light

Having come to know the truth of his own creation....

Yuu: I am Mikaela.

Yuu: Huh? Wait then, who are you supposed to be?

Mika: .....

-- Shibuya, Japanese Imperial Demon Army Capital City --

Shikama: ....hm.

Saitou: So then, you've been all alone doing this the whole time?

Human 1: We're out!

Human 2: What's that!?

Paimon Human: Oh wow

Bael Human: Hmm

Shikama: *little laugh*

Paimon Human: Who are you, Mr. Adult?

Paimon Human: Let's go where everyone else is!

Bael Human: Oh

Bael Human: Yeah, ok!

Shikama: Seems they don't have any memories left from their lives as angels after all. Well, that's for the best. It's better that way.

Saitou: ...does this mean you're still fighting for our sakes now?

Shikama: I'd rather they had no memories, that way they've got a chance at being happy living in this hell. Human lives are not long.

Saitou: You mean that, completely alone-

Shikama: And this plan as such slim hope of succeeding.

Saitou: YOU'VE BEEN HERE THE WHOLE TIME?

Shikama: But I'm not giving up on anyone. I'm going to resurrect them all.

Saitou: I'm crying...even though I don't remember. Could it be...are these memories of being an angel?

Mikayuu: Oof

Saitou: Huh?

Shikama: What are you doing with that box?

Mikayuu: Yuu. Yuu. Get over here, quietly.

Eyeball: *blink sound*

Mikayuu: Father is smart, he's going to find out I'm Mika and force me under his thumb again real quick. But if I let him protect me I can't move my plan forward...

Eyeball: Huy

Mikayuu: So what do we do, Yuu? We gotta lie so he doesn't find out.

Eyeball: Huy

Eyeball: Huy huy huy huy

Mikayuu: Ah c'mon, this isn't what you promised. Didn't you say you'd stay by my side and protect me as long as you lived? So is this you abandoning me?

Mikayuu: You'd never abandon me, right? Since we're best friends, right? Let's do this together then, we'll connect our souls together. Yuu and Mika will be two as one!

Mikayuu: This is the biggest deal, and our opponent is the smartest father in the whole world. If we wanna outsmart him we need to get serious. I'm gonna forget that I was ever Mika and become totally Yuu. And so are you. Forget everything else, your name is...

Eyeball: ...

Mikayuu: Mikaela.

Mikayuu: As long as you're Mikaela, Father won't be able to resurrect Mikaela, since my REAL soul is over here with me! Alright, let's start this battle, Yuu! No wait, Mika!

Mikayuu: No matter how many generations it takes, no matter how many eras come and go, we're going to save everything in the end.

Mikayuu: Our only allies will be each other. Won't you accompany me?

Eyeball: Huy

Mikayuu: Haha!

Mikayuu: Mika, get in the body. And then take the power of the seven lights and send em off flying ALL over, to places Father will never find them. So it'll take forever to do the resurrection.

Eyeball: Huy!

Shikama: What the hell are you two doing.

Mikayuu: O Light, erase my memories. I'm Yuu. I'm Yuu. I'm...

Shikama: Wh-WHAT THE...?

Shikama: NO WAY!!??

Shikama: It's hot-!! Yuu, what did you just do?

Eyeball: Huy?

Shikama: There's no way they know anything...Yuu is my creation. They don't have free will. So then, what? What happened? I'm the only being here with that kind of brainpower.

Shikama: HEY YOU. What did you just do? What did you see?

Mikayuu: Huh? Huh, what's that? I'm-

Shikama: Show your memories now.

Mikayuu: *gagging*

Shikama: There's nothing here, they've got no memory. They died so easily. Horrible how fragile human bodies are.

Shikama: Is this, too, divine punishment? This is such a rocky road to travel. Not to mention these dolls will just be repeating not even hundred year long existences, I wonder how much darkness they'll be able to collect. This...could be a long fight.

Mikayuu: ...huh. I kinda feel like there's something I have to do.

Yuu: I see.

Yuu: I remember a little more now. So in other words-I found you, Mika.

Mika: You found me. Don't you think you're a little late, though?

Yuu: Well it's not like I have any memories to work with here. Do you?

Mika: None. I feel like we wouldn't be able to bear recovering them, though. It's too long of a story not to fall into despair.

Yuu: Makes you think about how bad the vampires have it, huh. They live a long time.

Mika: You're right, it seemed that way with Krul too.

Yuu: What's life even for then? If everyone just dies anyways? And then forgets everything.

Mika: Yeah.

Yuu: So then what are we living for? What are we bringing everyone back for? What am I turning you back into a human for?

Mika: Look who's finally come around! I believe I've already answered this one.

Yuu: Remind me.

Mika: Let's run away somewhere together and live quietly. And then let's die at the end. That's our ending no matter what road we take.

Yuu: Oh, you did say that, asking me to run away. I'm really hearing Mika say that our end won't change no matter how hard we work, guess it's time to stop.

Mika: Oh come on.

Yuu: In other words, if I run away and die quietly somewhere, will that make you happy?

Mika: Hmm? I mean, I guess?

Yuu: But you don't have much life left to live, do you? Since if we keep up like this, you're going to turn into a full demon, right?

Mika: Oh, you figured out about that?

Yuu: I did. What's gonna happen if you become a demon? Taking my body or leaving? You'd never possess me, so you're gonna leave. Am I right?

Mika: Damn, you're good.

Yuu: And you think I'm just gonna let that happen?

Mika: Well-

Yuu: And with Akane and the kids still dead, you'd just say "well we tried let's both give up." Can we do that?

Mika: .....

Yuu: In the end, the most important thing is that since we don't have those specific memories, the us we just saw isn't really us.

Mika: ...hm?

Yuu: We're us now, can't be anyone else. I still can't give up on you.

Mika: .....

Yuu: I can't give up on Akane and the others. I also want to save Guren and the squad from whatever pain they're in.

Mika: So?

Yuu: So this is kind of a massive deal, isn't it? We don't know how things go after the Past Us died. If now us dies, we die.

Mika: Yeah.

Yuu: SO WE CANNOT DO THAT.

Mika: Well now you're just saying things that should go without saying.

Yuu: Ok but so we're mixed up with god and angels, so what's certain is that this game got SO messy. And easy-to-die human guys like us, well we've gotta pull through somehow without dying anyways! Yeah!! That's what we're going with.

Mika: Ok so...you're just saying "do your best." That's not gonna change our ending at all.

Yuu: Of course it's not. That's why we're getting more information we can use to win.

Mika: Yeah I guess.

Yuu: You're not getting away from me til I'm dead, Mika!

Mika: Yeahhh

Yuu: Ok so, we know the rules of the game now. And once we know them, we can make our own. Let's move up to the gamemaker's side of the board!

Mika: Not looking to be a very well thoughtout game.

Yuu: Mika, who's gonna be the winner?

Mika: I mean, of course it'll be us if we actually do it.

Yuu: Exactly! Alright, let's go. We're not picking from strategies, we're just gonna go get those seven sin keys!

-- 8 years ago, The Third Vampire City Sanguinem (Tokyo Underground) --

Ferid: *humming*

Ferid: What exactly is this Mikaela that the first keeps trying to create? What exactly is this Mikaela that Father keeps just barely missing?

Ferid: Just what the hell is this Mikaela that I've been told I've got no aptitude for?

Vampire Attendant: Your things have arrived from the human town.

Ferid: Ah, then we'll be able to search right through their memories. And where is it? Vampire Attendant: In the second guest room...-

Ferid: Thanks. And the children?

Vampire Attendant: They've been tranquilized and are sleep...-

Ferid: Thanks.

Ferid: They're so cute asleep, and they sure are knocked out.

Ferid: So, did you already see in the memories?

Guren: ...I'm just about to head in.

What were they searching for so early in those two's memories...!?

[veebs-hates-video-games]

Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom is more fun than any 6/10 game that does everything ok but nothing great has any right to be

I'm going to attempt to get myself to post stuff here again even though I don't feel up to it most of the time, just so I don't forget my thoughts on things or forget how to write, and I guess we can start with this one because I just finished it over the past week.

Literally nothing in the game hasn't been done before dozens of times, frequently just as well if not better, but somehow it's still pretty satisfying anyway, and a lot of people who've tried to do those same things have managed to screw them up in ways that they avoided here.

The crafting system was just interesting enough to keep my attention until I finished the game, but it's nothing compared to an Atelier game.

The turn-based combat has a decent number of options available, but it doesn't give you much incentive to actually use most of them and doesn't stand out much in most ways (beyond how amazingly you can break it).

The music is kind of catchy and still stuck in my head, but beyond that it doesn't really stand out in any way.

Most of the art is serviceable and nice enough to look at, but the animations are kinda stiff and a lot of stuff is relatively generic. The character portraits are genuinely pretty good though.

The characters are pretty generic too, and you can guess exactly which stereotypes they fall into right away and be completely right, but they have just enough interactions with each other to make them mostly pretty likeable to spend time with them anyway.

And the story is just a big pile of tropes and cliches, but in a pretty inoffensive way that serves its purpose to move the game forward and be mildly rewarding when things get resolved.

Is it a great game? Absolutely not. Did I have a lot of fun with it anyway? Heck yeah!

It has a satisfying loop of doing quick runs of dungeons to collect materials, going back to town to talk to people and turn in quests, crafting a bunch of new stuff, selling the extras in your shop, and then repeating it all the next day. There's nothing revolutionary, and in a lot of ways it looks and feels like something from like 25 years ago, but they've managed to get rid of a lot of the rough edges a lot of games that actually came out back then tended to have, so there are very few barriers to just playing the game if you get into that loop.

I know Kemco has a reputation these days for publishing D-tier games that are low budget and not very good (and let's be real, the physical copy of Lagoon I still have for the SNES from when I was a kid tells me no one should be surprised that's what they do now because that's what they've always done), but there are some hidden gems in there, and this makes me curious about Rideon's (the developer's) other games. I guess I'll find out when Marenian Tavern Story: Patty and the Hungry God inevitably goes on sale again in the next few weeks.

Also since I can't be bothered to figure out where to edit it into this post higher up or make a separate one for it, here's something Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom got right that much higher budget games that in theory should be much more polished surprisingly often don't: the way the menus feel.

Sure, they could've organized them a little better so you didn't need to dig through so many of them to do certain things like socket orbs into your gear, but they're quick and responsive and have options for filtering and sorting what's in them too. You can also scroll them one line at a time or an entire page at a time, when a surprising number of games don't bother with the latter.

And the real thing they got right that way too many games don't is that they're nearly instantaneous. I think it was World of Final Fantasy (definitely a Squenix game I played in the past year or so anyway) where the menus take a second or two to open up and become interactable, which is mildly annoying itself but made so much worse by the menu and cursor being drawn to the screen right away but not becoming responsive until that second or two is up. It's super obnoxious to visually indicate that you can do stuff when you can't do stuff yet, and I had to train myself over the course of the game to wait before pushing any buttons every time I opened the menu.

Something that's somewhere in between the two is Xenoblade Chronicles 3, where I'm pretty sure the menus take about the same amount of time to open, but the animation of them fading in is used to partially hide that, and more importantly they don't draw the cursor until it's already ready. As soon as it looks like you can interact with it you actually can for real, which feels infinitely better.

Anyway, that's the kind of thing that tons of AAA games manage to screw up that Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom largely avoids. It also mostly manages to avoid doing anything truly great, but just not having tons of little common annoyances goes a long way because they add up.

Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom: it's ok! And sometimes that's enough.

[beeseverywhen]

So I've got a gender neutral 1st name and it always winds me up because everyone assumes I'm a man (funnily enough my dad also has a gender neutral name and has the opposite problem. When we're together and have booked something in our names, ppl always mix them up lol)

Every email gets a Mr. And they start referring to me as he. When my names called for anything and I step forward they are like oh no I'm looking for x not you dear. When I answer the door ppl get this weird look on their face and always double check the name they've been given even when I'm like yep! that's me. It's always really annoyed me. It was always a thing in school.

When I worked in an office taking calls nobody would accept my name the first time they heard it. They'd either call me by a different more feminine name, ask me to repeat myself or be like I thought you said...X and laugh and I'd be like. I did. Its always annoyed me because its so unnecessary. You don't need to guess someone's gender. You don't need to tell them they've got a man's name. Not to mention, I know they'd do the exact same thing if I was a bloke. Because it's 100% a unisex name.

Most ppl I speak to with a gender neutral name tell me this, its definitely not just me and my reaction (politely correcting them) is one of the more measured ones I've come across. Some ppl will start shouting lol which while I understand their frustration, is unnecessary. People should try not to assume, but let's be real, they didn't choose to be someone who's inconsiderate in that way, it's socialisation. (Which frankly, I do think we should try and address more at large cause unisex names are great when people remember they are unisex! It's a tool against sexism with cvs and emails and stuff. It means it's less of a problem if your kid isn't the gender you thought they were, as long as they like their name they save a bit of money they would have spent legally changing it on everything. Unisex names make sense! There's a logic there.)

Anyway the point to all of this is. I've always been frustrated by the feminine versions of stuff. Most of them were added later (man used to just mean human), and they largely mean something completely different. Queen does not have the same connotations as King ok. What's that post where the op is like the only time I want to be a man is when the guy selling me a kebab calls everyone but me brother? I get it!!! I really get it!! I've always spent a lot of time with men and I'm irrationally jealous of all my friends being 'brother' and 'mate' to each other when ppl awkwardly call me by some feminine alternative that barely means the same thing.

So in recent years I've decided to lean in to it. Something i only feel is possible, largely because in recent years I'm so much more comfortable with my gender. It always felt like something that had been imposed on me. I didn't want to be a man but I was so jealous.  I didn't really want to be a woman either, if society was right about what being a woman meant. But I know now that's not what being a woman is at all. I've spoken about this before but I feel I owe the trans community a great debt, because it was in hearing their stories and hearing about what gender meant to them, that I really began to see that it was possible to love being a woman! Trans women showed me that there's a joy to be found in expressing my gender. It's not imposed on me, I'm choosing to express the parts of femininity that matter to me. I'd support trans rights anyway because they are people and deserve to be treated well as they express their own body autonomy, just like anyone else. But I'm passionate about the messages underlying their community (those of self love and seeking happiness. Loving your gender and being free to express it) because I know they are right!! I feel like I need to keep telling people because honestly, I feel like trans women have given me a gift, in showing me what it is to be proud to be a woman. I'm proud to share my gender with women like that.

If I want to refer to myself as a guy, or a dude, and say I feel like a king for winning something, and let my friends call me brother too; well I'm free to do so, if I feel those terms are gender neutral when I use them to refer to myself then they are. That can't make me any less of a woman because thanks to the influence of trans women I've finally embraced being a woman. I love my gender, I love being a woman and if I want to be a woman who's using gender neutral terms of address, then I can be. I'm no less a woman than any women who want to use the terms I'm personally uncomfortable with. Loving who you are and loving your gender is about keeping the parts of that gender expression that make you happy and leaving the rest for the people that do want them.

Anyway. This post is brought to you by me seeing the humour in the fact that because I now use guy and dude to refer to myself, and do so in settings online where nobody even knows my name, I'm now optionally letting people assume I'm a man without them even seeing my name. Which is pretty funny tbh considering I've spent my whole life being mad about ppl assuming I'm a man when they see my name in an email and trying to avoid it. So yeah, gender neutral names, I'm a fan all round.

[thesoftboiledegg]

This was such a great episode! I expected crazy shit to happen, especially with the hyper-realistic video game. I was like, "OK, this entire episode is going to turn out to be a simulation" and was pleasantly surprised when the "hyper-realism" was just a joke.

Anyway, it makes me so happy that Beth is bisexual. I figured she was, but the show never stated it either way. That's four out of five--only Morty is left. And to be honest, I think he's bisexual after his weird, unexplained obsession with Bruce Chutback in season 5, but the episode didn't outright say it.

I loved watching Beth and Space Beth fall for each other and go on dates. And OK, they're the same person, but they've made different choices and had wildly different life experiences. This created some tension and intrigue because they're not just repeating the same words and phrases back to each other like an echo.

Sarah Chalke gave a great performance, too. I'd say this is easily her best performance in the entire show. The dialogue was so natural that it sounded like it came from a live-action drama and not a cartoon. Rick and Morty has always had decent dialogue--and Rick in particular sounds like a real person talking at times--but this was another level of realism.

These new writers definitely know what they're doing. Damn.

I could NOT believe it when Rick said that he's fooled around with other Ricks. Holy shit. I actually paused and rewound the video because I was like "...did he seriously just say that?" It's been part of fandom culture for years, but I NEVER thought it would be in the show. Especially with C-137, who's a notorious Rick killer and hates them almost as much as he hates himself.

This makes me so happy! And it's yet another confirmation that Rick is pansexual. Give it up, homophobic fans, because the evidence just keeps mounting.

And like the other episodes in seasons 5 and 6, "Bethic Twinstinct" shows a new side of Rick--someone who's calmer, more patient and willing to help his family instead of just taking what he wants, then throwing a hissy fit when they get sick of it.

Rick's relationship with Jerry is changing, too. He says that he installed the "pillbug protocol" because he got drunk with Jerry one night (that's pretty big in itself) and installed the protocol because Jerry said that's what he "wanted most in the world." Rick wasn't being an asshole. He actually gave Jerry something that he wanted.

And yeah, Rick could be lying, but I think he's telling the truth this time.

Overall, this episode was a good combination of everything. Beth exploring various aspects of her personality, Rick bonding with Beth and his grandkids, Jerry letting out his frustration instead of being passive. Admittedly, Morty and Summer didn't do much, but they were still fun. I enjoyed the meta jokes about how they've had a million Thanksgivings and don't even know how old they are at this point.

This episode didn't explain those creepy posters where Space Beth appears to be controlling her family, so I'm guessing she'll turn up again--and this time, it might not be so friendly.

Anyway, the one part I disliked was the ending. The implication was "Haha yeah, Jerry's got two hot wives that will fool around in front of him." Normally, I'd call it lowkey sexist, but this episode did have Beth and Space Beth exploring a romantic relationship without Jerry's involvement. Still, I'm not a fan. I guess they're cucking Jerry in there? lmao.

Some might dislike this comparison, but Rick and Morty is starting to remind me of Moral Orel, especially with this episode in particular. Both shows start off as rambunctious comedies but explore more mature and dramatic themes as they go on. Honestly, "Bethic Twinstinct" wasn't that funny, but the character development is a worthy trade-off for me.

[m0nsterjuice-art]

I know you've probably been asked this several times too many, but how did Springs take the idea of queer people?

I know the movement was gaining traction when he was alive, and he was a scientist by nature, so how accepting was he initially? Did he ever try to deadname Alex?

I know he's quite the traditionalist twat, but considering his current status as Alex's boyfriend, if he wasn't originally the most accepting at first, what might it have taken?

oh I'm happy you asked!

So Springtrap/William was initially hesitant growing up, occasionally having feelings but still repeating the bigoted ideas his parents said. That is, years until he became close with Henry. While one-sided, William came to terms that he was indeed in love with this man, and he was bisexual.

When his wife eventually left him (she was suspicious of him sneaking out constantly, and when he tried to change the subject by coming out as bisexual, she was not accepting) he started to experiment more, he frequented gay bars and meet-ups, having an underground double-life (nothing new for him) and keeping it pretty under wraps, with the exception of the occasional employee.

During his time, he did indeed meet trans people, as they've always been around. So when Alex came out to him initially back in Fazbear's Frights, he knew and it didn't deter him, but he does sometimes have questions

This topic will be touched with Hare-brained, but I'll leave this planned dialogue from it :)

Alex: listen, I've been thinking. I get it, I get the whole "your business is your own" thing. I'm the same way. I'll be real, I have stuff about me I keep to myself too.

Springtrap: really now?

Alex: yeah. like, I'm.. uh.

Springtrap: yes? do tell.

Alex: I'm trans. I'm a trans guy. I don't really talk about it unless I have to, people tend to not be all too accepting.

S: trans as in transsexual, yes?

A: outdated term, but yeah.

S: really now?

A: yeah, see. he lifts up his shirt to show his top surgery scars

S: I-I appreciate you opening up to me like this, but please have a bit more modesty- oh my..

A: heh, can't let you blow a gasket huh?

S: do you plan to have-

A: naw, naw, I only wanted top surgery, I'm fine with how I am right now. That I'm not showing. Unless, you want me too, anyways.

S: wha- ah, Uhh..

A: it's ok man, you can drop the act. I know.

S: ?!?...

A: Don't act all surprised, you've been checking me out since you first tried to kill me, dude. I know

S: ....

A: You were around in the 80's right? That wasn't a good time for people like us, it's ok. You're safe with me though.

S: ...When I used to go out at night for my experiments, my wife grew suspicious of me. I couldn't just tell her what I was doing though, I couldn't have her risking anything. So instead, I told her a different truth to sate her suspicious. I told her I loved her, but I also "played both teams", as they say. She ended up leaving me then and there. I never saw her again.

A: here. hands a whiskey flask

S: wha- WERE YOU GOING TO DRINK ON COMPANY TIME?

A: you want it or what big guy?

S: ....

S: drinks

S: alright, no more. We have work to do lad. and… thank you. For listening.

A: Well, thanks for sharing, and for accepting me. :)

____

[sunwarmed-ash]

YOOO ok a prompt.... A spider-cest fic using

The colour pink, a lamp, and a doorknob

His hand shook as he walked up the front door of the apartment building the three of them shared. It was just easier to cohabitat after- well after. After everything went to shit. After they had to watch Peter 1 lose EVERYTHING. After they had to glue back together the pieces of a broken man who was still, the most unlucky of the three of them.

And that was saying something.

Because Parker (Peter 3) had just come from his "night job." And not the one where he's in spandex.

Usually just latex. And usually nothing else. It had become a reliable source of income after Jonah fired him, and he had given up on the prospect of a real relationship after he lost Harry and Gwen in the same night. It was a pretty convenient plan b and it turned out to be just as fruitful in this universe too.

Which is why he's basically on the verge of a panic attack as he reaches for the doorknob of 12C.

Usually, usually he's careful. Especially with two additional spider men on constant patrol, he takes extra care not to let his two jobs intercet. Tonight they did. And even worse, he doesn't even know which one. It was too dark, and whatever that creep had given him, had dulled some of his senses consideribly. (Which, was a whole other can of worms he did not have the mental capacity to process right now. He's just barely gotten his ability to walk in a straight line back.) But he knows they'll be waiting up for him. Just on the other side of that door.

He takes another deep breath. He cant put it off any longer. He twists the knob and steps inside. He's blasted instantly with light, the tall side lamp next to Pete's arm chair, his usually clear and bright creulen eyes, stormy and duller than he's ever seen. He's in so much trouble.

He tries to just charge through up the stairs, but Pete caught him before he could move more than 3 steps.

"We don't need to talk about it now, I just want to make sure you're okay."

Parker shrugged his boyfriend off (oh yeah, did he leave that part out? They've been kinda dating since they both got spit out into Peter 3's universe 4 months ago. Anyway)

"I'm fine, I'm fucking spiderman."

"That's not what I mean and you know it,"

Parker ground his teeth. It irritated him to no end to fight with himself. Because he was just asking fucking stubborn. But he was also a genius, and of course right, and knew Parkers tells better than anyone in the world.

"I'm really, really not."

"What do you need honey?"

Parker melted, he hadn't been called a pet name since May was alive. It warmed his long iced over heart and made him feel more alive than he had in a while.

"Is Peter up?"

"Yeah, we just finished making popcorn, want to join us for a movie?

"I really need to shower first though"

Petes eyes softened and he nodded in understanding, "Take all the time you need. But hurry back, we missed you."

Parker flushed pink from his toes to his ears. He was so helplessly stupidly in love with these two and it would be the cause of his downfall when it eveibabtly got taken too, but for now, he was going to enjoy it.

"I love you,"

Pete shrugged his shoulders playfully, "how could you not?"

Parker barked out a laugh he didn't know he needed before pulling Pete against him until their lips met.

"Thank you, I love you." He repeated and Pete bumped their foreheads together gently.

"Love you too, go shower so you can come back to us."

[jrueships]

Gemini and Sagittarius

I LOVE GEMINIS! THEY ARE SO FRIENDLY TO ME ALWAYS N I DONT GET WHY ! I think they're jus generally friendly to everybody n I just think it's just me cus the world revolves around me, as it should . no im kidding, they're just really good at making a person feel so special and i appreciate that so much abt them! The world needs that!!! They're clever, awesome, n ALWAYS got something to say from themselves! Always got opinions they've collected or thought! New points n views! Very cool to experience, very OK i am going to sprinkle that tidbit of information into my daily life! THANK you very COOL!

THOUGH THEIR OTHER ASPECTS CAN BE A MAJOR CURVEBALL SOMETIMES! i think it's cool but some people might really not expect or want it! It does take some time to get used to n realize 'ok, this is all just a part of them n u gotta learn to love it/accept it! It's always been there!' Because it's not like geminis purposely HIDE shit, they've just got more shit they end up sharin under all the other shit! I think a lot of people think they're malicious n two faced, but really they're just multifaceted & express it at different times!

They can either be really cold or really hot, people just gotta acknowledge that that's who they are! Either way, geminis mean what they mean! They are that! A whole package of INTERESTING!!

i had a gemini gf (she would do the '*does evil act* im a gemini' but ironically so it was funny. Like she'd accidentally do some small thing then apologize then say im a gemini u know?) N she was real cool! Loved our conversations!! She was up for whatever! Would always ask how my day was, she was sweet! We're still friends ! I feel bad tho cus i almost always ghost a gemini on text cus me personally, i struggle with GENUINE genuine. Like talkin about days, how i feel n shit. Cus i gotta entertain n i don't want ppl walkin away from me cus i bore em with my personal borin shit they don't care abt! BUT SHE RLLY DID CARE N I FEEL BAD FOR BEIN COLD. i explained it to her (n with a lot of libras i had to repeat the spiel) n she understood really well!! But i still felt bad

BUT ANYWAYS ABT HER UH. she was a sneaky link WHATEVER LOL i won't get into deets. N SHE was the one who proposed the idea n i was like sure lol im up for it (b4 my asexualization)! N we was cool! I mainly just liked talkin to her tho. I was younger. it was swag! BUT ALL A SUDDEN SHE WAS LIKE ' I WANT A BABY. I WANT A BABY I WANT TO CALL HIM RALPH AFTER THE STUFFED ANIMAL TURTLE YOU GOT ME' (she loved turtles. African spurred tortoises specifically!! 3rd largest speices in theanyways) N I WAS LIKE. GIRL. YOU ALREADY GOT A BABY, I HAD TO BURP HIM AT NIGHT ONCE IN YOUR CLOTHES CUS I DIDNT NEED TO BE EXPOSIN HIM TO SOMETHIN UNSEEMLY!!! WE DONT NEED NO KID! We both agreed this was for fun?? AND SHE WAS SO SAD! she made me feel so shitty like im sorry bro but im not the right man for you! You need someone serious n ready n i am NEITHER. you deserve better ! let's think on this! ... she got So desolate bro. I FELT TERRIBLE

I did stop the link n she found a better guy! We still chat cus she's clever n awesome n im glad she's glad!!!!! I love geminis but they can be much to some people! You just gotta find the right people !

[blogofken]

Left-handed Guitars - A Solution in Search of a Problem

by Ken Hiebert

Ah, the age-old question:

If you're left-handed, is it better to learn on a left-handed guitar?

I'd like to posit this question in a slightly different way:

Why on earth would you want to?

Being left-handed myself, and someone who plays guitar "right-handed", as well as being a guitar instructor for the last dozen years or more, I have developed some fairly strong opinions on this.  If you happen to be a left-hander who plays a left-handed guitar, please don't take offense at this because it really only applies to those who are just beginning their journey.  If you already know how to play then please keep on rockin'!

For everyone else, let me first attempt to answer the second question. If you are left handed (like me), you've probably noticed that pretty much everything in the world is against you because it's been designed with the right-handed person in mind. Whether it's using an old-school can opener or those little school desks with the left side wide open, or even trying to write with a pen and smearing ink all across the page, it's pretty obvious that the world has it in for lefties - and don't even get me started about writing in a three ring binder. Oh yeah, and right-handed scissors. Whoa. Well, thankfully someone did come up with a left-handed version of those that works, but with most of these other things, we're basically screwed. It's sink or swim, buddy. Get with the program or get out and walk.

It's pretty severe and the struggle is real, but if there was something a left-hander could just do naturally and not worry about having to adjust his or her whole life to do it, wouldn't that be preferable?

I remember my Mom telling me about my aunt (who's a lefty) when she was in school. The teacher had been trying to force her to write with her right hand (there it is again - wRITE with the right hand, the proper hand). Anyway, she was having a tough time until my Grandpa went down there and tore a strip off that teacher and told her she better let his damn kid write with whichever hand she damn well wants (or something like that). So, it fixed the problem, but not without a lot of pain and a huge amount of expended energy.

Now, back to the answer to the second question which I'll repeat because by now you've likely forgotten what it was:

"Why on earth would anyone want to play a left-handed guitar?"

So, you're a lefty who really wants to play guitar and you just came home with your first left-handed guitar.  You've taken lessons for a month or so and you've just spent the whole weekend working on the coolest riff you've ever heard.   Let's say it was the riff from "Smoke on the Water", because if you've just started learning guitar, then that probably *is* the coolest riff you've ever heard. Now, say you're at your friend's place and he's also learning how to play guitar and you're really pumped to show him this awesome riff.  Then you realize that you don't know how to play *his* guitar.  You only know how to play *your* guitar.  Then repeat that scenario for every one of your other friends as well.

Now fast forward about a year and you're in a small music store, and there's this dude playing a really nasty version of "Stairway to Heaven" and you know you can play it WAY better than him. You look around on the rack for a lefty guitar but sadly, they don't have any in stock.  Foiled again!

Now, I totally skipped over the part where you went to your local, small-town music store and played a dozen different guitars because you wanted to find the perfect one to make all your dreams come true - one you could buy with the money you saved pumping gas all summer.  The reason I skipped that part is because it likely never happened.  You'd be lucky to find even one guitar you could play at most small music stores and guaranteed, it's going to be more money than its right-handed equivalent.

Ok, so after all of that, I still don't know why anyone would ever really *want* to play a left handed guitar, unless someone simply convinces you that you should.

My first band consisted of myself on guitar, my friend Ian on bass guitar, and my other friend James on drums.  James also played guitar and Ian played everything, but the one thing we had in common is that we were all left-handed. What are the chances!?

*Interesting side note:

Like most lefties, we enjoyed talking about how the entire world is against us, and when another friend noticed this, he remarked that we "sounded like a bunch of bitter southpaws." Our band name was born!

Now, the interesting thing about these three Bitter Southpaws is that we all played guitar right-handed.  Another interesting tidbit is that in the arts, the incidence of left-handedness seems to be relatively high, and among left-handed guitarists, the majority of them don't play a left-handed guitar.

Here's another question that you probably have never asked:

"Why does everyone in North America operate a standard transmission with their right hand, while in the UK they use the left hand?"  

Here's a hint - it's not because everyone in North America is right handed or that everyone is left handed in the UK. It's because that's the way they are built.  To build them the other way around would be ridiculous and would cause more problems than the imaginary one it would solve.  Just because you are offered a choice doesn't mean that it's legitimate or beneficial.  As a left-hander myself who plays "right" I'm convinced that the opportunity someone saw for a niche market in left handed guitars was a solution in search of a problem.  Could you learn to play a left handed guitar?  Of course, but why would you want to unless some salesperson convinced you that you should?  

I'm also convinced that left-handed guitars have caused more problems than they've solved.  Learning a musical instrument is challenging enough as it is, so why in the world would anyone want to make it more complicated than it needs to be?  

There have also been some great players of upside-down guitars (Jimi Hendrix, Alber King, Elizabeth Cotton), as well as great guitarists who played with the guitar laying flat on their laps (Jeff Healey comes to mind.)   Could you do that? Probably.  That doesn't mean that it's the easy way or the best way to do it, it just means that humans are capable of almost anything they put their minds to.  I've even seen someone play guitar with his feet.  You gotta do what you gotta do, I guess.

So, to answer the first question:

Should a lefty start learning on a left-handed guitar?

If you've never played a guitar before, then I would say a resounding NO!  I don't think personal preference has anything to do with it.  In order to play guitar well, both hands need to function well above what would be considered "normal function" for non-musicians and if you're starting from zero anyway, you might as well just do it the normal way.  Learn to play the instrument the way it was designed.  It will make your life easier.  There's a reason you don't see right-handed pianos, or right-handed saxophones.  Now, I've taught a few lefties in my day, but they had already been playing that way for over a year before they came to me, so changing it up at that point would not only have been insensitive, it would’ve been completely ridiculous.

When I walked into my first guitar lesson over 35 years ago and picked up my first guitar in a left handed fashion, Chet Breau (son of the late, great Lenny Breau) told me something like, "Kid, if you don't already know how to play that thing, I'm gonna teach you the RIGHT way!"  I'm so glad he did, and this is exactly how I approach the subject with my own students today.