#or a lot of photos under free-to-use licensing tbh...

[critter-creature-or-beast]

By ondrej-radosta, CC BY-NC

[supercasey]

King, give us your autsitic headcanons for tma please

I don’t know if I’m the best person to come to with this request, seeing as I’m diagnosed with ADHD but I haven’t officially been diagnosed with Autism yet (though I’m fairly certain I have it), so I’m sorry in advance if I suck at this. Anyways, here’s some autistic headcanons for characters I HC as such!!!

Jonathan Sims: His special interest might actually be working because he just really likes consistency. Struggles with understanding sarcasm and “under the table” type jokes. Leg bounces for days. Hyperfocuses on researching stuff to the point that he was an amazing employee back in Research, but he often had to take a few days off after big projects because he would’t take proper care of himself while hyperfocused (he still struggles to). Can’t eat a lot of sugar or he gets hyper. If You Touch Him Without Permission, You Die.

Martin Blackwood: His special interests have mostly ever been related to dogs or writing poetry. Tea is the only drink he can stand having because everything else isn’t textured right. Weighted blankets are the best invention ever in his opinion. Has really high sensitivity to criticism and it annoys him to no end. Keeps his nails extra short to avoid them touching Bad Textures. If he has to wear jeans, he’ll be really uncomfortable for the entire duration of wearing them. He’d rather hang out with Annabelle than eat one single chip.

Tim Stoker: Doesn’t really have many special interests tbh, save for maybe outdoor activities. Can’t eat anything too bland or he will cry. Happy flapping is his favorite stim but his leg bounces alongside Jon’s a lot, too. Refuses to sit still ever and prefers to walk around while reading/working (one of the many reasons he refuses to record statements). Wears Hawaiian shirts at all times because they’re Good clothes to him. Refuses to wear a coat because it has a Bad Texture no matter what he does.

Sasha James: She switches interests non-stop and it’s hard for even her to keep up with them. Picks at the skin around her fingernails to the point that they’re always torn up; she’s tried bandaging them, but it doesn’t help. Spins in her office chair to stim at work. Forgets about personal space most of the time, but most everyone is chill with it by now (Jon still gets scared by it sometimes). Chews on pens and pencils constantly, the archives literally has no unbitten pens or pencils left. Has absolutely exploded pens on herself before.

Georgie Barker: Ghosts and the supernatural are her special interest. The Admiral isn’t an officially licensed service animal, but Georgie’s trained him to help her calm down from panic attacks when she’s home for them, otherwise she self-isolates until it’s over. Happy flaps a lot when she gets excited. Bites her fingers to the point that they bleed without her even realizing it. Needs a lot of physical stimuli to stay well.

Melanie King: Photography and cameras in general are her big special interests, so she collects a lot of cameras and photos. If she touches something sticky, a part of her will die. Hates being touched on the shoulders and back of her neck, even by people she’s close with. Presses up against the wall a lot in order to get stimulated. Petting animals is a surefire way to help her calm down if she gets upset.

Peter Lukas: Has no idea what a special interest is but he sure af likes boats. Gets overstimulated so easily that he can’t go anywhere that’s even remotely loud. Gets overwhelmed if people raise their voice at him. Cold places make him a lot calmer, and he likes holding ice until it melts. Lies down on the floor to decompress; weighted blankets help with this a lot. He has a service dog that helps him get out of crowds when necessary.

Gerry Keay: His special interests are fires, history, and grunge music. Likes to head-bang in order to stim, as well as snap his fingers and knock his knees together; honestly, he just does a lot of stimming. Used to get punished for stimming by his mum, so he does it really fast to avoid being noticed, which hurts a lot. Chews on his clothes if he can’t stim. Loves getting hugs more than anything else; please squeeze him until he explodes.

Michael Shelley (OG): His special interests are mostly related to the Spiral related supernatural cases, as well as to music from the 70s and 80s. Has to wear headphones and listen to music or he’ll be really anxious. Anxiety attacks happen so frequently for him and he hates it. Scratches his arms a lot when he needs to stim and can’t. Happy flapping king!

Mike Crew: His special interests are collecting and caring for succulents and the science behind aerodynamics. Free falls through the Vast to help himself relax after a hard day. Jumps around a lot- off of and onto furniture, up and down on trampolines, etc- in order to stim. Prefers not to talk if he can help it, but he’s not selectively mute (he was as a kid, though). Wears oversized coats and sweaters for that sweet, sweet pressure.

Agnes Montague: Has no special interests tbh. Is selectively mute a majority of the time, but she talks every rare, rare once in awhile, mostly when she’s forced to by the cult. Extremely touch-starved, and it makes her skin incredibly itchy, to the point that she scratches herself raw more often than not. Hot coffee cups are one of her favorite stimulants, right up there with submerging her body in hot water until it all evaporates into steam.

And that’s pretty much all the characters I HC as autistic (though I’m sure I missed a few)! I hope you guys like these, because I actually really enjoyed writing these headcanons!!!

[purplesurveys]

1245

Serious question, peanut butter or nutella?  Oh you are just mean. Nutella is amazing as a filling or icing, but when it comes down to it I guess I look for peanut butter more often. I love both though.

Do you prefer baked potatoes or mashed potatoes?  Mashed. But baked potatoes are pretty good too; the only reason I didn’t pick it is that I don’t get to have it as often as I do mashed.

What is your oldest sibling’s middle name?  I’m the eldest sibling, but my sister, who comes after me, has Beatrice as her second name if that’s what you mean by middle name.

Do you like breadsticks?  Yes. The more cheesy-garlicky, the better.

What are your favorite things to spend money on?  Merch or food.

Which would you rather have a new puppy or kitten?  Puppy. Not the biggest fan of cats.

How old will you be on your next birthday?  24.

Do you ever feel self-conscious when you eat around other people?  If it’s the combination of having to be around people I’m not too close with, like workmates, and I’m eating something that tends to be messy, like jjajangmyeon, then yeah I can definitely feel conscious.

When you opened your eyes this morning, what were your first thoughts?  I fell asleep from 11 PM to around 3 AM and when I woke up then I thought  “ugh, I fell asleep early again?”

What is one thing in the room you’re in that reminds you of somebody?  My vape pen constantly reminds me of Andi because they were the one who gave it to me.

Could you ever be friends with somebody who was homophobic?  No.

Would you ever want to be a supermodel, or date one?  I did want to be one, at one point. It was all a matter of being stuck with the wrong crowd at the time lol.

Honestly, have you ever made fun of somebody so bad they cried?  Probably with my sister when we were very young.

Honestly, would you rather be complimented on your looks or intelligence?  Intelligence.

Have you ever purchased a pregnancy test, for yourself or otherwise? I never have.

You can get one thing, anything, for free right now. What do you pick? Why?  A 1 or 2 TB hard drive. My phone has reached the stage where I’m starting to have to constantly delete shit so I don’t reach the maximum storage, so I need someplace to dump all my photos and videos in to free up my phone.

Honestly, have you ever danced naked?  Nope.

What was the first illegal thing that you did? Did you get caught? I dunno...buy pirated movies? I didn’t get ‘caught’ since pirated movie stalls are widespread here anyway, so for the most part I’ve always been more concerned for them than I am for myself.

What is the home page on the computer you’re on?  Technically it’s supposed to be the Google home screen, but I have an extension that shows me my to-do list for the day.

Do you like to write poetry?  Nah, that’s always been my Achilles’ heel when it comes to writing.

Are your ears pierced?  Yup. Surprisingly enough they’ve never closed up despite never having worn earrings (clip-ons notwithstanding) in the last 13 years.

If so, were they pierced with a piercing gun, or with a sterile needle?  I’m not sure, since my mom had them pierced when I was a baby. I would guess piercing gun, though.

Do you wear makeup regularly? I never wear makeup.

Did you eat cereal for breakfast today?  I never have cereal unless I’m staying at hotels. It’s just never been something I look for.

When was the last time you tripped over something?  A box that was lying around in my room.

Any obsessive-compulsive tendencies?  I’ll sometimes get concerned with how many times I have to flick the switch of our hot water dispenser or open and close the refrigerator door before I feel completely satisfied...but I dunno if that counts.

Who was the last person you yelled at?  Technically...Angela? I was filming an unboxing video for a gift she randomly got me and I loved the gift so much I was yelling my excitement through the screen.

Why did you yell at them?  ^ That.

Favorite type of apple?  I don’t like fruits.

Ever seen live horse racing?  No, it’s not something that interests me.

How about live greyhound racing?  I don’t even know what that looks like.

What’s one thing, besides the obvious, that you couldn’t live without?  The arts, I guess. I need something to listen to, to watch, etc on a regular basis.

Have you ever touched a giraffe?  I don’t think so.

What does your mom call you?  Robyn, or the Filipino term parents use for their kids.

What stresses you out the most in life?  A particular client at work. We have a million campaigns going on for them at any given point so my life virtually revolves around that brand these days.

Do you play any PC games? What is your favorite?  Nope.

If you were pregnant, how would you tell the father? Well, that would depend on the circumstances. Did we want a baby? Was it a bad surprise, a happy surprise? I can't answer this with just one idea. < Yeah.

What���s the hardest level you can play on Guitar Hero?  If I’m using a Playstation controller, I can go Hard or Expert. But my finger coordination with the actual guitar controller is terrible and I fail most songs even at Easy.

What ever happened with you and your first boyfriend?  There was never any ‘boyfriend,’ but my first girlfriend and I have basically had a falling out and I haven’t talked to her in months, and I expect it to continue being that way.

What’s your favorite country song?  I don’t have any.

What is the worst thing a former boyfriend/girlfriend has done to you?  Putting her pride and anger first even when I’m obviously in a state of disstress or breakdown in front of her. That’s some emotional rollercoaster I’m glad I don’t have to deal with anymore.

What were you for Halloween last year?  Just Dora the Explorer again, which was a repeat from the year before that.

Are you feeling guilty for something?  I don’t think so; at least there isn’t anything I’m actively feeling guilty about at the moment.

Are you usually quiet or loud?  I think I’m in between? I’m pretty loud but I can space out at the most random moments hahaha.

How many hours do you spend on the computer a day?  This question always makes me wince at myself...I guess anywhere between 16-18 hours? The only time I put my laptop down is when I’m off to bed, but otherwise it’s constantly open.

What is the show that you watched when you were little, and you still do? I don’t think there is such a show.

Do your siblings text you?  Nope. We live under the same roof 24/7 so there’s been little need to text.

Do you want a small or big wedding?  Big.

Have you ever searched for your own house on Google Earth?  Yes, but that was when Google Earth was still super bare so I wasn’t able to see the actual house anyway, but just the general area where we’re located. I haven’t used Google Earth in years.

Who is your ex dating/talking to?  I don’t know and I hoooonestly could not care less.

Ever kissed someone who smokes?  Yep.

Does it take a lot for someone to annoy you?  Depends on my mood. I have my moments where it’s very easy for me to get irritated.

Do you own your own computer?  I mean it was bought for me, but I didn’t get it with money I earned.

Did you ever have to share a room with one of your siblings?  When my brother was starting to mature, my sister and I very very briefly experimented sharing a room, but it lasted like all of two weeks. My parents ultimately just transferred our balcony to a bedroom so that all three of us had our own rooms.

What noises in the room you’re in, do you hear at the moment?  An airplane is flying above me at the moment so I can hear its engine. I can also hear some crickets chirping and the faint barking of dogs.

Have you ever dated someone with longer hair than yours?  Yup.

What’s the biggest upcoming event for you?  I guess my second vaccine dose is kinda big? It’s happening this Friday.

What do you typically order from Wendy’s?  I rarely get Wendy’s tbh, but when I do I usually go for their Baconator.

Have you ever been given a lapdance by an actual stripper?  No, it’s not something I would be into.

What do you love most about yourself? Continued the next day because I am terrible at taking a survey in one go. I like that I don’t hesitate to do or buy things for my loved ones, not even inwardly. I guess it’s because my family has always lived very practically, so I want to make up for that by spoiling my friends.

Have you ever received a hickey from the last person you kissed?  Yes.

What are you doing right now?  I am supposed to be at work but it’s a relatively quiet day, so I’m here. I do have my screen split between Tumblr and my emails though, so that I’d be able to see if new work will come in hahaha.

What’s bothering you right now?  Quiet work days always make me anxious because it makes me think if I’m forgetting about something crucial.

What was the last thing you drank?  I literally just took a sip of my coffee before moving on to this question.

Be honest, do you like people in general?  Depends on the situation, I think. Like when I go to concerts, I know I’m around people I share the same interests with, so there’s a sense of solidarity that goes with that. But when I’m like...I dunno, lining up to get my license renewed at a government office, I know people there are in a rush and tend to get rude, and that makes me feel a little bit overwhelmed. I don’t think this is something I can generalize.

Do you want your tongue pierced?  No. Lip I can consider, but I have to pass on tongue. 

Do you change your phone background a lot?  I do these days, yeah.

Have you ever made someone so mad that they broke something?  Possibly.

Have you ever been strip searched?  I’ve been searched, but was never asked to strip.

Do you have a funny last name? Does anyone make fun of it?  No, it’s an ordinary surname.

Ever have a drug overdose? What did you OD on exactly?  Never.

Do you get sick of people who call themselves bipolar all the time? I get sick of people who call themselves bipolar, and of people who use ‘bipolar’ to describe someone else who just has your typical mood swings.

Describe your day so far in three words:  Business as usual.

What was the most stressful project you had so far/while in school? I was once designated as a leader for a science investigative project, which didn’t make sense because science was definitely not my strongest point. Needless to say it didn’t go well and I ended up being a terrible leader. Choose one- Butterfinger, Milky Way, Snickers:  Butterfinger, even though they’re a bitch to eat and chew.

Have you ever stepped in dog poop?  Maybe once or twice. It fortunately doesn’t happen a lot.

What was the last thing you spent money on?  I got Angela and Reena cheese tarts. The reason behind it was Jin held a VLIve last Monday and he had been eating egg tarts during the stream; and because I was happy to have watched my first Jin live, I got my friends cheese tarts hahaha. I don’t know a lot of places that sells good egg tarts so I settled for cheese tarts instead, which I think are better anyway.

Have you ever slept in the same bed with the last person you kissed?  Yeah.

Is there a guy that knows a lot about you?  I guess Hans? We personally don’t get to have a lot of heart-to-heart exchanges, but considering how Angela’s my greatest confidante I’m sure she has shared bits of my life to him, which I don’t mind.

Is there someone you just can’t imagine your life without?  I don’t really like answering this question anymore because the people that I’ve declared ‘for keeps’ have faded out of my life at some point. I’m a lot more guarded and self-preservation-y when it comes to this now.

Do you prefer Starbucks coffee or small cafe coffee?  Ooooh, both. I love coffee.

Would you ever consider getting a piercing in your septum?  No.

Do you enjoy being outdoors?  If the weather is nice, yes.

Do people tell you that you have an accent?  I mean I’ve been told my English is strong, but my accent in particular doesn’t really get noted.

Do you enjoy watching fireworks on the 4th of July?  I don’t celebrate that.

What’re some unspeakable subjects for you?  I don’t like talking about my brother. Otherwise I am pretty open about everything.

Is there anyone you would take a bullet for?  Several people come to mind.

Do you enjoy tanning?  If I’m at the beach, sure. It’s honestly not something I have to constantly keep up with, though, since I’m already naturally tan enough. Are you a virgin?  No.

Who’s your celebrity crush?  Taehyung :(

Did or do you get good grades in English class?  I always got pretty good grades in English.

What part of your body are you self-conscious about?  Teeth, and my legs sometimes.

Are you expected to help fix Thanksgiving dinner?  I don’t celebrate that.

Have you ever lost anyone close to cancer?  Yes.

Do you personally know anyone who is transgender?  Yes.

When was the last time you got a shot?  Last month, then I’m getting my second dose tomorrow.

[maiji]

Finally managed to get my hands on a copy of Genji Days! (Thank you libraries ♥️) It's a selection of diary entries from Edward Seidensticker, the second of the "main trinity" of Tale of Genji English translators (Waley being the first and Tyler the third, of course), from the time period when he was deeply focused on this project. The entries run from 1970 to 1975, and it's not just Tale of Genji-focused; there's many other aspects of his day-to-day - slice-of-life snapshots, the politics of the time, as well as thoughts on/experiences with other classic and contemporary literature and writers, though ultimately the recurring theme/topic is the translation work.

I think any modern reader, no matter how much you love the Tale of Genji, would agree that reading it from beginning to end even just once is an endurance test. Translating it - trying to get into the author(s?)'s head and reverse engineer intent and meaning a thousand years later - is a darned intimidating and impressive task. On top of this, he was dealing with the shadow of Waley's work (generally considered a masterpiece of translation, yet also known as a rather "free" adaptation, with not an insignificant number of cuts and alterations). As a creator it's comforting in many ways to read Seidensticker's own worries and insecurities about what he's doing as he slogs through drafts and rewrites. And obviously he has some interesting and insightful things to say about the writing and characters, but he also has plenty of funny and sarcastic comments too (see second photo lol). Even when I disagree, I enjoyed seeing his perspective - and the changes in his perspective - as he progresses through the story and revisits it at different places and times. (He was bouncing around the US, Hawaii and Japan over the course of the entries - mainly Ann Arbor, Honolulu and Tokyo.)

The beginning of the book is lighter on mentions of the translation work, though in the preface he says the focus on Tale of Genji really started in earnest in 1966 but that there were translation drafts of parts even before this time. Mentions kind of drift in and out, and as you move further and further in time it grows stronger until he’s in his “intense” final stretches.

There’s a lot I enjoyed. Below are point form notes on a few things that stood out to me and I happen to remember at the moment.

Acts of translation and creation

I didn’t know that Seidensticker actually originally started with the Uji chapters and actually wanted to publish them alone before being talked into doing the whole thing!

His glee at finding translation errors (not creative translation license) when cross-checking his work against Waley’s translation made me laugh.

The level of detail and effort that went into the readthroughs and re-readthroughs - he reviewed and revised his drafts by checking against Waley’s translation and Murasaki Shikibu’s “original” text at the same time, to see where things differ or drift and to attempt to justify his reasons for his translator’s choices or at least feel good that what he had done wasn’t complete garbage. 

Theories and thoughts on the original author(s) and also trying to figure out the thoughts and intentions that Waley had when creating that renowned translation. Because of the whole reverse engineering aspect, I find it fascinating to read about translators getting a feel for the author’s voice, and then feeling out of sorts when they hit a part of the work that just doesn’t seem like it was written by the same person. He also had lots of commentary hypothesizing what Murasaki Shikubu might have planned in advance or not, and also wondering why Waley cut or edited certain things - and sometimes resignation that (paraphrased) “goddamn Waley was right, this part is a bore and killing me” lmao

His struggles on how to deal with character names and where to introduce them without it sounding stupid.

Thoughts on how translators, in an attempt to make dialogue sound natural, may often end up with characters that basically sound like them... because of course your own speech and mannerisms seem natural to you. Yeah, I feel this.

Some days loving his work and feeling effortless and then the next day coming to his work and hating it all. And nearing the end of finalizing his work and getting super zen-like and hitting a who-cares, whatever, let-it-out-into-the-world stride while still alternating and flipping over to anxiety and nightmares about it. So relatable. 

Having nightmares about losing his work in a fire and getting super paranoid and moving his copy of the final work and a nicely typeset copy so that they are stored at opposite sides of the campus. My level of paranoia.

Character opinions

Omg his love for Yugiri. LOL. If there’s one thing I came away with with regards to Seidensticker’s opinions on the characters, it’s that he thinks Yugiri is the bomb and deserves all the marriages and all the babies. And TBH, I like Yugiri a lot myself so this his commentary really made me remember why I appreciated this character so much... until the Yugiri chapter that made me nearly throw down my book. That chapter didn’t seem to bother Seidensticker though.

Related to this, Seidensticker doesn’t seem to care for Kaoru very much at all. I find this really interesting, because for me, many of the reasons why I like Yugiri are why I like Kaoru. Even more interesting - Seidensticker seems to very much prefer Genji to Kaoru, and even NIOU to Kaoru. Choo Won, the lady who helped him with retyping his drafts, makes a comment implying Niou is preferable to Kaoru as well (that Kaoru seems smaller and meaner if I recall correctly). I’ve actually not read Seidensticker’s translation of the Uji chapters, so it makes me wonder how much of that is also his bias implicitly coming through his translation (similar to the point earlier about how translators unconsciously make characters that sound like them).

His remarks on liking Yugiri and Tamakazura more and more as he works on the translation, and how as he gets older he prefers sensible characters to romantic ones. I feel this as well lmao

A growing appreciation for the Kokiden lady that mirrors my own feelings. (I have thoughts about Kokiden that I will share also whenever I get around to doing her illustration for the Genjimonogatari series.)

That he thinks the Suetsumuhana chapter is fantastic. YEAH I LOVE IT

Random sex stuff

I wasn’t expecting so much talk about pornography and collecting porn and critiquing porn. I particularly liked this: “Then I stepped into a movie to see how the pornographers might be doing. They have made no advances at all. It is still very much a matter of gasping and writhing under a blanket.” (This attitude completely reminded me of some fics/doujinshi I have read)

His getting invited to a Japanese host club and (separate incident) a sex toy shop in Shinjuku and being absolutely fascinated.

Being questioned about his sex life by a Noh actor. His diary entry is like (paraphrased) “I kept making up lies lollll I might have to answer to this one day...”