#older nopal

[au-mashup-party]

((Sidenote: The baby desgin is canon for this current timeline, the toddler desgin is canon for the far future timeline. On another side note, at least you guys get to see what that baby full looks like skeleton form))

LAZE FAMILY 6 YEARS LATER: CHILDREN FUTURE DESGINS!!

[colorfulatlas]

I got 2 finish this today… U get to see all of my object show OCs all together!!!

I've already talked about Nopal and Cempoal on an older post about them here if you're interested, for the new guys I dont have a set personality about them yet, but I'll show you their initial design sketches with additional information (in spanish)

Translations are on read more:

Raspado (Shaved Ice) she/they/he

the affeminate gay without the prejudice

always tells the best gossip

don't bother them, they aren't afraid to fuck you up

(Miel de) Abeja (Honey Bee) she/her

Mute, she uses (mexican) sign language (LSM) to talk

Very strong, she can handle anyone

If her liquid is gone, she stays in a coma state until she's filled up again

Mapamundi (World Map) any pronouns

Very shy and anxious

Closes himself when afraid

Very weak

Afraid of sharp objects

They're also afraid of objects that can stain them

[fisherrprince]

Ooh, could you tell us more about Ch'mhat?

Mhat is justa little guy. mhat was the third born to Ch’leure, and had terminal youngest sibling older sister syndrome. Do you know what I mean— GSJDB like. she wasn’t paid all that much attention to, so she thought up a lot of ideas on how things could be better and believed them wholeheartedly. She was Loud, to get attention, and deliberately did things her way which because she’s a baby was sometimes mama’s way that had just been ignored by the people in charge. She believed Leure when he said having a Tia like Ari was harming the tribe. She had the least wanderlust of all the kittens, but the most bossiness (right below Ari), and when the tribe ate itself she was thirteen and there with it. She liked finding nopales and hunting bush pythons the most. Her favorite color was pink

[acertainmoshke]

Happy STS! What are your go-to/preferred writing tools? Favorite pen types, notebooks, keyboards, etc, but it doesn't have to be limited to just those things. Writing programs, favorite reference books, thesauruses, dictionaries, TTS software, whiteboards, corkboards, flash cards, encyclopedias, anything goes!

Nooooooooooo Nopal you don't know what you've done! How could you know I have an actual special interest in this??

So I am obsessed with notebooks but also REALLY picky about them. My handwriting is teeny so I don't like big lines, and I think it looks neater and prettier with smaller lines anyway. The covers can have a cool pattern or be plain if it's a nice color and high-quality enough. I do occasionally make exceptions; my current journal is fairly cheap with large lines, but it's a rare older Batman one in my favorite color with bat-tech designs on all the pages and a light-up bat signal on the color, so it was worth it. My newly discovered favorite notebook aspect is ones that are designed so the pages lay flat and it's easier to write. Oh, and I LOATHE spiral notebooks. The big school-style ones are ok for random notes or anything unimportant, but the smaller little ones that are normal book size are absolutely worthless. The spirals always come undone before I'm done with them.

I'm also picky about writing utensils. I keep a journal strictly in pen so it can't fade and I can't get embarrassed and erase it. I write stories strictly in pencil because I WILL need to erase and try out lines. But, although I'm using one currently for my big-lined Batman journal, in general I can't stand large ballpoints. By which I mean 0.7, which is pretty standard. 0.5 is ok, but I much prefer the rarer smaller pens. I used to have a Japanese friend who I would get to send me 0.35 pens because they are normal there but expensive over here. In pencils anything under 0.5 is impractical, but I like the fancy mechanical pencils with a nice grip and a dent that lets you dig out the eraser even after it's erased down. My current one is teal.

None of that answered your question but it was necessary anyway. And this is getting too long so the actual answer is going under a cut.

We'll see how long I can keep it going, but I like to write my stories on paper. Of course, it's not worth starting a nice new notebook if I'm unlikely to finish it and it's impractical if I don't have a clear idea of the basic story, because jumping around out of order is impossible. I like it though because it forces me to slow down and think about each scene; I can't rush the way I do when typing. It also gives me a built-in edit when I copy it up, so by the time I'm editing a full draft it's already technically a second draft. And it's convenient because I can take it to work and write on my breaks, or if I'm waiting in line at the post office, or anywhere I happen to find myself.

I do still write on the computer, of course, for fanfiction or just-for-fun things I'll never finish or stories I'm still figuring out. When I do truly long-form things I like to use work because I hate the way Google docs looks (controversial, I know). But for short things, or worldbuilding, or fanfic, I like to use Notion. I like that I can nest pages within each other endlessly. It makes my autistic organizing brain buzz.

I recently discovered that I enjoy using actual notecards pinned to a corkboard for initial plot planning. I can't always do this, and I make outlines too for more detail, but being able to physically move stuff around in real space helps my brain focus on what is actually important to include.

Thank you sooooo much for giving me a chance to ramble about this!!

[tabswrites]

7 Snippets, 7 People

Tagged by @writernopal here! Thanks, Nopal 💜

Tagging (no pressure, as always!): @theroseempress @writinglittlebeasts @hd-literature @j-1173 @clairelsonao3 @gummybugg

Silver Sentinels tag list (please ask to be added/removed!): @outpost51

Silver Sentinels, Ch. 3

Adrin gave the girl an encouraging smile as she set down a pail of water and a folded piece of linen beside him. “Just tell me what you can remember.” Before she could set the bottle down, Davis snatched the spirits out of her hand, causing her to jump back. Adrin felt a surge of annoyance rise up inside of him as he watched the man take a long sip with his free hand.

“All I know is, Henrietta was talking to her one moment and the next that crazy bitch was attacking me!” he exclaimed, wiping drops of liquid out of his beard.

Henrietta stiffened at his words. “It was a misunderstanding.” she said, so softly Adrin had to lean towards her to hear.

“How so?” he asked.

“She thought he was trying to hurt me-”

Davis slammed his good hand onto the table. “Hush, girl!”

“Hang on,” Adrin squeezed the injured hand as a small warning. “Do you mean to say the exile was protecting you?”

Henrietta opened and closed her mouth, eyes darting between her parents. The tension in the room was stifling. Adrin found himself unable to speak as he considered how to proceed. They hadn’t covered how to mediate uncomfortable family meetings in guard training.

S.S, Ch. 3

An older guard close to his father’s age saluted the captain from his post at the end of the hall and stepped aside to let them through.

The interrogation room was a cold, uninviting place made of four solid granite walls. The only light came from the two torches hung on either side of the door–Adrin supposed there was no need for comfort in a room so few ever saw.

He guided Henrietta towards the table and pulled out a chair. She sat down slowly, her dark brown eyes reminding him of a frightened doe as they wandered around the room. He joined Hollowar on the other side of the table.

“Why was Mara Wilkes at your home, Miss Rameau?” The captain placed her arms on either side of the chair and straightened her posture, staring down at the girl with a thinly veiled look of displeasure.

Henrietta swallowed, shifting in her seat. “I’m not sure, ma’am.” she squeaked. Her hand drifted up to her hair and tugged at a random curl. “She arrived shortly after sunrise, asking me to deliver something for her.”

S.S, Ch. 3

“Ramsby, escort Miss Rameau to a cell.”

Adrin stopped his pacing and spun to face her, his cape whipping around with him. “Captain, is that necessary?” His heart ached at the sight of Henrietta’s small frame slumped over the table. There was something so honest about her, a natural sense of freedom in the way she expressed her emotions. It reminded him of Sophie, he realized. “Look at her. She’s hardly a threat.”

“That is not your decision to make.” Hollowar growled in response. “Let’s go.”

Adrin was left with no choice but to obey, glancing down at the bracelet on his wrist. Nothing about the situation felt right, but he figured couldn’t do a thing for Henrietta if he was in a cell, and he was already in shackles, so to speak. He followed the captain back to the main hallway and through a heavy set of wooden doors.

S.S, Ch. 4 (whaaat? Chapter 4 already? Go me!)

The still of the silence revived her. Mara opened her eyes to a clear blue sky and exhaled, knowing she had once again evaded death. As she sat up and looked around, she wondered if it might be too early to celebrate.

Ascension, Ch. 2

Callie opened her eyes to a sky full of stars, a peculiar observation due to the fact that she was indoors.

It had been just over a week since her brother had left, the same amount of time he had spent working on her parting gift. The mural covered the entire space over her bed. It had a background of the deepest blue and tiny stars in glistening gold.

Kiran had traded a quarter of his cattle for the paints, insisting it was worth it. She was still very cross with him for leaving in the first place—they hadn’t been apart for more than a day since he had arrived in Atharis ten years prior.

“Oh, come on Callie,” he implored her with a taunting grin. “We’ve shared the same air for most of our lives. Could you settle for sharing the stars?”

Ascension, Ch. 2

“Ah, Your Highness!” Duke Overly exclaimed, clapping his hands together as she appeared. “So kind of you to finally join us.” He took an agonizingly slow sip of ale.

Callie curtsied to her father before turning her focus to the duke. “It takes time to be presentable in accordance with the court’s impeccable standards.” she replied with a beaming smile. “Perhaps if the court would reconsider my request to wear less formal clothing from time to time, my morning routine could be considerably shorter.”

Ascension, Ch. 2

News from the border was never good. It usually meant Aleksander had grown bored once again, and was starting an even more infuriating game with them. Kiran had mentioned just before he departed that Atharis was reaching its limit, and their father was uncertain about how to proceed. One thing was clear—they could not survive another escalation.

[writernopal]

Hey, Nopal! Happy STS!

Who would be your OC(s)'s godly parent? Feel free to pull from any pantheon you'd like!

Happy STS, Tori!

I'll do this one for Wilkes! For him, I'd choose his father to be the Aztec God of War, Lord of the Sun and Fire, Huītzilōpōchtli. This god has many origin stories, but this one is my favorite one and very fitting in the case of being Wilkes' father/patron god.

Another origin story tells of a fierce goddess, Coatlicue, being impregnated as she was sweeping by a ball of feathers on Mount Coatepec ("Serpent Hill"; near Tula, Hidalgo). Her other children, who were already fully grown, were the four hundred male Centzonuitznaua and the female deity Coyolxauhqui. These children, angered by the manner by which their mother became impregnated, conspired to kill her. Huitzilopochtli burst forth from his mother's womb in full armor and fully grown, or in other versions of the story, burst forth from the womb and immediately put on his gear. He attacked his older brothers and sister, defending his mother by beheading his sister and casting her body from the mountain top. He also chased after his brothers, who fled from him and became scattered all over the sky.

For the uninitiated, Wilkes was an army man before he took up pirating. He has a reputation for being ruthless in battle, as well as being incredibly protective of Fay and his adoptive mother. Despite his size (he's 7ft tall) and age (he's 45), he moves incredibly fast and is very clever.

Huitzilopochtli is fierce in his own right, wielding Xiuhcoatl, the great fire serpent, as his weapon and demanding blood sacrifices from his followers. He is represented by the hummingbird, a bird widely regarded by the Aztecs as being reincarnated warriors because they have traits of great fighters! They are a very aggressive species of bird and will actually dive at their opponents, beak first, to stab them (Did I mention they are going at about 60mph when they do this?). They are the perfect father-son duo if you ask me!

[toribookworm22]

Happy STS, my friend! What is an unexpected thing that your readers have brought to your attention about your stories or characters? (It could be an aspect of your writing, a minor character they got obsessed with, a moment that made them gasp/cry/scream/etc., anything!)

Hey, Nopal! Thanks for the ask, love!

I can't say it's completely unexpected, but the almost unanimous and immediate love that everyone has had for Emerson Haryl from The Animatronic Saga was hilarious to me.

Don't get me wrong; I love him, too.

But he's almost everyone's favorite character. And thinking back, that was true of older drafts as well. Guess he's got the charm or something. 😄

[elshells]

Happy STS, my friend! What is an unexpected thing that your readers have brought to your attention about your stories or characters? (It could be an aspect of your writing, a minor character they got obsessed with, a moment that made them gasp/cry/scream/etc., anything!)

Nopal! Happy STS, I hope your week has been treating you well!! 💕

I actually have an answer for all three of the examples you gave above, and they all come from EMBR of the Earth. :)

1) When I first started writing EMBR, I joined a book club on Wattpad to get constructive criticism on my first few chapters. This was about three years ago, when I was still very new to online writing communities. I got a very polite (and very eye-opening!) comment from another writer about how they counted over thirty adverbs in my first chapter alone! It absolutely blew my mind, because I had no idea I was using that many. And I value that comment so much, because it was the first time I really started to look at my writing through an editor's lens. So while I'm still prone to using adverbs, I'm much more conscious about it and don't tend to use that many!

A quote from this same writer that I still live by to this day: "Adverbs are like rabbits; you start out with two and before you know it there are a colony of them in your chapter." XD

2) There's one character—‌Dr. Clay, if anyone has read it—‌that got a much stronger, but overwhelmingly positive reaction than I had expected. As the head scientist aboard the satellite, he acts as a sort of mentor figure to the main character, Tana, showing intelligence and a sense of humor. However, at some point people shipping Dr. Clay and Tana together as a romantic pairing, which was a problem because he was old enough to be her father XD. I think this happened because I never specified his age, and the characters' early interactions were friendly, and so people took that to mean that they were flirting. I cleared this up in an edit and established more quickly that he was an older man, while she was in her 20s. Definitely not love interests, although the playful father/daughter dynamic stayed more or less the same!

3) Lastly, one moment that stood out to me the most was the first time a character explicitly died on-page. I was especially nervous about the reception I would get, because it was the first time I had ever killed off a character (which is kinda nuts to think about now, haha). The character in question hadn't (to my knowledge at the time) elicited any strong reactions from my readers, either positive or negative, but she was the first person in the book to die and her murder was brutal and somewhat unexpected. I received a lot of shocked comments, but also praise for how I handled the scene, which is what I was expecting and hoping for. But one reader in particular left a comment on the exact line where she dies, something along the lines of, "YES! TAKE THAT!" I remember cackling out loud because the comment seemed so out-of-pocket, though upon a reread of previous chapters and that reader's comments, I understand why they said that. Still a VERY strong reaction that I wasn't expecting. XD

So I guess the moral of the story is, happy accidents arise in writing all the time, especially when you're first starting out!

[susartwork]

I think mama and papa are mad at me, so I'm hiding <D

Nopal teleported to Basic, but... something horrible just happened. He's scared to death for Corrupted File and the others. He has a really bad sight of universes getting destroyed... especially when glitching.

Context from THIS RP and THIS POST

[au-mashup-party]

to: hacker

hi! you okay? also, i'm Kayla The Skeleton! and you are?

Baby Blithy by me and @nova2cosmos

[foxalone]

Previous:

Chara: shut your mouth!

*In an agile movement, Gaster exchange, places between Nopal and Chara.

The atmosphere ceases to be heavy and dreary ... Chara is gone and will return another time.

Among all the calm a door appears near the place

this could be either very good or very bad...

Inverso!Gaster belongs to: @nova2cosmos

Splitz!Sans and Nopal!Sans belongs to: @microtaleoffcial

Chara!Blood and Underblood belongs to me

[waywardstation]

Uniquely, something that really stands out to me when talking to my older family about the starvation/poverty periods that they faced decades ago, is just how much is edible when you look for it. one thing that sticks with me is how a substitute to grain and leafy veg that they would use would be flower buds and pollen. They would turn palm flowers to stir fry, dandelion greens were gold, banana peels could be ground up. In especially lean moments, shredded cabbage and soy was the basis for most meals, and soy functioned often as a filler in ground meat since the textures are similar and the taste would impart on it. Cactus(nopal) and fleshy plants tend to be popular filler for stir-frys.

Tuber roots like taro, boniato, malanga, acorns, and even some trees roots can be converted to flour, or turned to a good way to fill up a soup. Theres a number of popular drinks (stole, pinollios) that are fairly filling due to having corn meal as a thickening agent. I imagine you can easily do the same to apricorns!

Heck just boiled plain works as well, as someone who's eaten it regularly, malanga sits like a concrete block with just a few bite, you stay full for a while (theyre still a regular staple part of diet in South America)

Dry fish was very popular whenever you can get it, as it could be ground up into a flower, salted and stored to be turned into small cakes with some filler that would be a easy way to stretch out some protein, since you could do it to even small thumb sized fish.

Humanity is very tolerant to just how much they can eat, its outstanding the tenacity and ingenuity we have.

All of you anons are so smart and educated holy arceus above!!

The apricorn swap out is especially intriguing to me, and I’d love to attribute these different things to ingredients within the game!

I could give qualities of the listed Tuber roots to Sand Radishes and sootfoot roots.

There are medicinal leeks which are really common vegetables in several areas of Hisui, and pop pods, which are a sea vegetable that, peculiarly, you can also find in the Alabaster Icelands. Maybe they can act as common fillers.

I’ve always looked at vivichokes as artichoke/cabbage stand-ins too.

Kings leaves and caster ferns could perhaps have some use to them as well? But I don’t think I see those in the alabaster Icelands very much, so maybe not, in terms of the Pearl Clan meals.

I can always make up things to fit equivalents to these as well, as I made up Snow Nettle in my fic It’s Just A Cold. They’re stiff blue fronds that simply give off a scent when damp. Perhaps I can reintroduce those in this upcoming fic!

Thank you SO MUCH for sending this anon!! This is very very helpful information!!

[b00ket]

OC GUIDE

Character sheets will be added later but here’s basic information on them

This post is already long as shit so BACKSTORIES FOR EACH UNDER THE CUT and side characters will be in a reblog later

Name: Amani Ayad

Gender: Female (She/Her)

Height: 5’ 8”

Birthday: July 23rd

Age: 18-22

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: Bisexual (weakness for women 😏👈🏽)

Country of Origin: Karnassos

Languages spoken: Fluent in whatever tf Vesuvians speak, Karnassi, and basic conversational skills in a handful of others

Hobbies: Partying HARD, growing plants, singing & playing Guitar/Fiddle

Magical Abilities:

Herbal Magic

Raw Magic (similar to Asra) (ill put a link that explains it in depth later)

FIREEEE

Personality:

Mischievous and mysterious. A liar. Definitely a flirt. Trust issues and a bit of a coward.

Name: Lucas Karimov

Gender: Male (He/Him)

Height: 7'

Birthday: July 10th

Age: 25-28

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: Demisexual

Country of Origin: Vesuvia

Languages spoken: Vesuvian

Hobbies: Cooking/Baking, Fighting, Gambling, Politics

Magical Abilities:

Learned how to channel whatever magic he produces into bouts of extreme strength

Personality:

Outgoing. Friendly! Altruistic and loyal to a fault. Has a fear of loss. Romantically dense (good luck flirting with him). Anger issues 😳. Holds a grudge. Not white.

Name: Kieran Power

Gender: Who cares (They/Them)

Height: 5’ 8”

Birthday: time is nothing

Age: Stopped keeping track (500~ years)

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: As long as you’re hot (Pansexual)

Country of Origin: A long abandoned village in the Southern Spines

Languages Spoken: Fluent in Most Languages

Hobbies: Throwing Parties, Reading, HOMOEROTIC SWORD FIGHTS, sleeping

Magical Abilities

Magic blocked by their deal

Personality:

Dramatic and they love it. Enjoys causing others pain. Depressed but wont admit it. Quick learner and a master of manipulation. Vengeful and will hold a grudge.

Name: Donovan Nwadike

Gender: Male (He/Him)

Height: 6’ 4”

Birthday: September 20th

Age: 33-36

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Country of Origin: Nopal

Languages Spoken: Vesuvian, whatever you call the language of the Scourge

Hobbies: Sword Making, painting, sculpting

Magical Abilities:

Metal manipulation

Personality:

Quiet and reserved. Incredibly shy. Blames himself for most things that go wrong. Has the most braincells. REALLY STRONG PTSD. Self-sacrificing.

Amani Ayad

Family left Karnassos after Lucio’s murder of their mayor. Her family was labeled as cowards since.

Helped parents with a traveling doctor office. They went around the lands, healing people they come across and providing a meal. Her father helped her control her magic and mother taught her everything she needs to know about healing magic.

Helped a struggling town in the Shining Steppe. The people of that town later tried to raid their traveling doctors office. Someone shot a fire spell at the father that hit the shop instead. It exploded, killing the father and nearly killed Amani. Her mother grabbed her and escaped to a nearby abandoned shack to hide. The mother suspected they would come after the both of them and quickly gave Amani to a merchant ship. The merchant watched after her for a few months before selling her to a Pirate ship.

The crew was welcoming and caring at first, as time went on they demanded more of her (ex. cleaning the whole ship by herself instead of with the crew), and later forced her into being a fighter after discovering her magical Abilities and natural skills in fighting

Was undefeated in the ring. Gained the name “Hand of Death”

Made an attempt to kill the Captain. She failed, the Captain using a hot sword to scar her face before dumping her on the docks of Vesuvia. Was taken in by Lucas a few days later. A year later she made a home in a old abandoned apartment in the Flooded District where she grows herbs and heals anyone who catches her in her shop.

Now she tries to run from her past, replacing it with a new reputation. A party crasher, thief, general nuisance to law enforcement.

Lucas Karimov

Grandparents and Mother were refugees from the genocide of the Kokhuri. The mother fell in love and had 4 children.

They made a home in Vesuvia. Opening up a restaurant/bar called “The Iron Clad Owl”

Were generally poor (giving away free food/giving people money). Lived in a 2 bedroom apartment with Grandparents, 2 aunts, 6 children, parents, 2 dogs, and a parrot named stick

It was a crowded but homey house. They all slept in a giant cuddle pile. It was cute as SHIT

The siblings were all older than Lucas and liked the cause trouble to law enforcement, hang out with orphans and shop for food for da parents. The whole family hated Lucio and his rule from the rip. The aunts often participated in politics and 100% ranted to the children about government. Near the end of Lucio’s rule is when things went off the deep end.

During his rule: Oldest Brother falls into the Canal, dies of blood loss. The only sister was robbed (killed when she tried to fight back).

The plague: The Parents and brother die of the plague, the aunts flee out of fear of dying. Lucas takes up a job as a grave digger to keep the shop open shortly after. A brother gets involved in crime as a hitman. Jargal (brother) steals some food, gets caught and fights against the Scourge as a result.

After Lucio’s death: The brother is attacked by a revenge hitman, he is killed and the grandparents both die in the confrontation. Lucas sells the pets in a last ditch attempt to keep the shop open, the shop is closed. Lucas spirals into a depression, mentally stuck in a numbness that is only punctuated by bouts of anger and irritability. Finds a abandoned cat and adopts her. Befriends Amani.

Now he works as a dock worker, trying to heal old wounds and make lasting change in Vesuvia that finally serves the people.

Kieran Power

Works for a rich family. Is picked on and abused by their employers and other citizens in the village. The mayor’s daughter dies of “an illness” and they blame Kieran & their mother, saying they placed a hex on her.

Kieran’s mother is hung and Kieran escapes the same fate, running to hide in an old shed. A strong winter storm swoops in, trapping Kieran in there without food or warmth. Kieran discovers the body of the daughter with a knife in her heart. Kieran burns hot with rage and a need for revenge.

The Devil appears and offers to make a deal, to give Kieran the power to kill their enemies in exchange for a portion of their soul. Its a self enacted deal, sell a bit more if their soul for more power.

The technicalities of the deal: At least once a week Kieran needs to eat a person (collection of their soul). Without a meal their blood runs cold, the hunger grows, and when it hits a peak they become a beast. This can only be reversed with more than one human sacrifice.

They’ve been alive for centuries. They’ve seen and been subject to abuse that is only solved with more power. They only have a sliver of their soul left, instead choosing to gain power traditionally in the past few years. Gaining money and a powerful reputation. Has lost faith in humanity and believes they are better than them.

Hosts parties as an easy way to get a victim to eat. Really into sword collecting, befriending Donovan and has soft feelings for him.

Is always trying to gain power.

Donovan Nwadike (backstory in development)

Abandoned as a newborn in Vesuvia. Grew up as an orphan.

Thinks he is purposeless, joins a gang of orphans and becomes the punching bag/pushover of the group. Has a small book that he draws in.

Joins Lucio is his army (assuming Lucio has made attempts to expand the “Vesuvian Empire”) and befriends the lead medic.

Becomes a sword maker for Lucio’s army and eventually becomes a solider on the field. A sword to the eye takes his vision in one eye and a magical blast takes off his right arm.

He carries the weight of his actions, people he’s killed, people he couldn’t save on his shoulders. Tries to bring his friends back in a magical ritual, it fails. The ghosts of his friends haunt him, whispering and visible only to him.

Runs a blacksmith shop, his main customer is Kieran who enjoys his sword designs and paintings.

[tabswrites]

If you get this, answer with 3 random facts about yourself and send it to the last 7 blogs in your notifications, anonymously or not! Let's get to know the person behind the blog:)

Hi Nopal 💜

3 randoms facts about me…

1. My cats have weird names. I get tired of explaining them so I give them fake names when I don’t feel like having a conversation about it. Mostly older people, coworkers, people who don’t watch tv, etc.

2. Both of my thumbs are double-jointed. I can tuck them behind my first knuckle without any pain. It freaks a lot of people out.

3. I have an unhealthy obsession with dinosaurs which has only intensified after I started watching Prehistoric Planet.

[writernopal]

Happy STS, Nopal! I hope you’re enjoying the weekend!

Is there an author or book you feel a strong connection to? It doesn’t necessarily have to be your favorite; it could be a book or series that resonated with you when you first read it, an author who’s writing style inspired your own, or anything else like that!

Happy STS, Ella! I'm having a wonderful weekend, I hope you are too!

This one is a no brainer, Shanghai Girls by Lisa See. The story starts in 1937 and is set in Shanghai, as the title suggests, and follows the story of two wealthy sisters, Pearl and May. They basically live it up and do whatever they want, but then their world comes crashing down on them when they find out their father has gambled away the family fortune. It's at this point he tells them that he's sold them off to be wives of suitors who've come from California to find brides. They end up traveling to the US, and from there, we see their struggle to make sense of their new lives in a foreign land.

This book resonated with me A LOT because the sisters have such a deep connection and bond with one another that it reminded me a lot of how close I am with my own sisters. I think as we've gotten older, we've come to realize how special what we have is, and we have definitely come to appreciate and treasure it a lot more. So anyway, all of that is to say that I cried basically the entire time I was reading this book lol.

[cyborg00-why]

Random yet specific headcanons

Alright, I’ve been working on a rancher fic and wanted to share a few of my favorite headcanons for these three. 

Jet Link

- Considering his time of abduction and how often he’s gone off to be a ranch hand/play cowboy there is a very high chance he’s a Spaghetti Western fan. His ideas and romanticism of the west based almost solely on what he’d seen on film, by extension his bravado and man’s man personality being heavily influenced from such films. Something that both mirrored his gang life on the streets while still being a mental escape. The lone cowboy out to right wrongs on his own terms something he’d see in himself.

- This of course would bleed into an odd fascination/respect for Geronimo Jr. as he’d likely be the only Indigenous person he’d ever met (that he was aware of at least). The personification of the “last of a dying breed” trope you see often in such films, something he likely project onto Jr. Especially considering that being from New York he’d known of Mohawk Steelworkers but wouldn’t have known any personally. 

- Serial pawn shop shopper. He knows they don’t make knives or lighters like they use to and he’s got a small collection going.

- Apart from his established knife fighting skills, he’d whittle in his free time. 

-Great at darts.

- He’d be a great houseguest, very considerate and takes direction as well as he can. Doesn’t want to be deadweight on the ranch, and have a stern ‘earn his keep’ sort of vibe. 

-Despite having a high interest in learning the ropes he’d still struggle. His time on the ranch would positively impact his ‘square peg being forced into a round hole’ mentality. 

- Plays a mean game of checkers.

- Maybe too embarrassed to say it, but really respects Jr.’s self sufficiency and wants to take after him in some ways. Is really touched when Geronimo teaches him something. At the same time can be especially hurt when there are traditional lessons Jr. won’t share. 

-Sure he can play the guitar but he’s also been teaching himself the harmonica. He’s also good at playing both the spoons and a blade of grass but he’ll never admit to either. 

-Can do that really cool two finger whistle thing. 

- Long story but he knows from first hand experience that chickens float in water. Pyunma isn’t impressed and Jr. thinks it’s cute he likes chickens. 

- You know at some point in time Jet would do rodeo shows and live out the whole cliche bonding with a horse who can’t be broken bologna while Geronimo worked the event as an MC.

Geronimo Jr.

Which brings me to Jr.

- You know, and I mean KNOW he’s worked the Arizona circuit like no ones business. Despite the team thinking of him as stoic and saying little everyone in town knows him as their favorite MC. He’s done everything from powwows, estate sales, property auctions, all the way to rodeos. 

-Those on the moccasin telegraph rumor he was a guest at G.O.N. in New Mexico one year. 

- Would absolutely have an old 1988 red, sun bleached Toyota Tacoma that had seen better days but still runs. Of course the suspension is shot and leans heavily on the drivers side. The glove compartment is full of old tapes, and he’d have at least one mix tape with classic 49ers in there too. 

- When he’s working as an auctioneer he goes Full Boomhauer

- Aunties love him. He’s always given an extra helping at food stalls and everyone is vying for him to say their fry bread is best, even though we all know his grandmothers was #1.

-Would be in the loop on all the local chisme.

-He can’t shop at normal stores for clothes, instead making annual custom orders through Wrangler and Dickies. 

-He is why Wrangler revoked their lifetime guarantee. Too many blown out shoulder seams.

-He’s excellent at traditional methodologies and takes a lot of pride in keeping traditions alive. He’d be a great beader and leatherworker, his mitts being extremely sought after in the community with order requests coming in year round. Word is he’ll sometimes make a trade if you can do quillwork. 

-Prior to the bootleg boom his family would have been respected artisans, collectors and locals alike still hold onto their older jewelry, and at a few estate sales he’d seen his dads old silver stamping tools still in circulation. Sometimes he get’s letters in the mail from a collector in another state asking to verify the family stamp.

-He’s got a lifetime ban from one diner in Albuquerque for smashing a jukebox that was playing The Ballad of Ira Hayes. 

-Standardized cooking measurements do not exist in his house, everything is old school cooking in relation to yourself. A handful of this, a pinch of that. 

- He has his grandmothers taste in home decor. 70′s shag rugs, wood laminate, acrylic yarn doilies, and a mug collection that at it’s best could be described as kitschy.  

-While he is incredibly thankful that after being abducted he’d gotten to keep his hair, there was also the struggle to maintain like he had before. Enhanced hulking muscles meant he isn’t as flexible as he use to be, and he is unable to braid it. So he kept it short on the dolphin, and even on breaks back home he’d grow it out in a bun tucked under his hat.  

On one of the many trips where Pyunma would stay with him, he’d catch Jr. early one morning struggling to braid it. Instead offering to do so himself. This became a routine whenever Pyunma stayed over, and as far as he knew the only person Jr. will let touch his hair. Pyunma would also take a lot of pride in his handiwork, especially whenever he’d catch Jr. admiring his own reflection.

Pyunma

- He’d always wanted to visit Jr.’s ranch but maybe felt a bit awkward to ask, unsure if he’d even want the company.

- He’d immensely enjoy the monotony of ranch life, the predictability of long structured workdays giving him a chance to mentally tune out while keeping busy. A sort of stress relief from the unpredictability of his previous life back home.

- One of the only people Jr. would share teachings with because he understood that weight and responsibility that comes with it. 

- Would be really into plant identification and drying them for storage. Would have a whole notebook full of illustrations and field notes based on what Jr. shared. Maybe even get into salve making on the side. 

-Always carries a canteen to water the plants he harvests from, even when Jr. isn’t watching.

- Loves, loves, loves telling Jet believable lies about ranch stuff. Think lying about a weed being a cure all for muscle soreness, only to have Jr. ask where the hell he’d heard that from. 

- Big fan of cinnamon instant oatmeal, Jr. is sure to stock up when he knows Pyunma is coming by.

- Of all the hand crafts Jr. had shared with him, Pyunma’s favorite would be dressing feathers. He’s got a near cult following in the fancy dance community for his bustle work. 

- Very good at removing the stickers from nopales, often times double and triple checking Jr.’s handiwork before they make breakfast.

- Not afraid of rattlesnakes, but respects them deeply. Firm believer in the old rope trick. 

- Can haggle with the best of them at vendor stalls, he knows a tourist price when he hears one. 

- Enjoys listening to old radio dramas while laying in the back of Jr.’s truck at night. Eventually getting all three of them to make it a part of the weekly routine. They sit outside and start a fire, and make dinner before tuning in. They eat in silence, and when it get’s cold they all share a big wool pendleton.