#pls feel free to add on!

[thedisablednaturalist]

Hey, I saw your post about disability access and queer spaces, not just some kind of nebulous "you're welcome here" with no follow-through in concrete ways.

In shorts, I'm an independent pagan minister (I'm not here to convert, just take initiative) trying to check and double check a lot of assumptions I both grew up with, and have seen in LGBT+ spaces (I'm part of the community myself, with non-mobility related disabilities), and would love to talk about the issues you've seen in any level of detail you're comfortable with.

I'm not.in any profound position of power (also, in my state you can become ordained without church affiliation, so while this is a job it's not one I'm paid for, but I do have a cross-section of privilege I'd like to combine and, as I said, take initiative to help make things better when there's opportunity.

I am having trouble parsing this so forgive me if I misunderstand what you're asking.

I'd recommend looking through my other posts and following other vocal disabled people. I'd recommend @crippled-pvp @crippled-lavender @wheelie-sick @phoenixonwheels to start with.

If you know that there's someone with disabilities in your Pagan group, I'd ask if there's anything you can do to make the space more accessible for them. Make sure to listen and not judge, it can be hard opening up and requesting accommodations.

I'm sort of pagan myself (more druid though I think I dunno) and I know nature is a really crucial part of the belief system. Maybe include disability friendly parks/trails when taking outdoor trips. Some national parks are actually getting treaded hiking power chairs so if you're near one you should inquire about it! For regular meetings make sure that mobility device users can get their equipment easily and safely into the space and will be able to have their equipment with them. Stuff that regularly happens should always be accessible, and special events should be as accessible as possible and if that's still impossible provide alternatives. A really helpful thing would be setting up a virtual option so those who have to stay home can join in virtually. All you need is a laptop with a webcam pointed towards the speaker and a microphone. Also make sure people wear masks ESPECIALLY indoors and in crowded areas.

Outside of that a big thing is making sure the only gender neutral bathroom isn't the only handicapped bathroom as well. It's perfectly fine to have it be both (nice for disabled queers) but if the bathroom is always being taken by abled bodied queers then that prevents access by disabled people (who cannot use any other bathroom). If anyone has other examples of accessibility specifically for queer spaces feel free to add.

I hope this helps!

[purpleelephantsocks]

So do you think that when Aaron is in med school learning about mental illness and medication he gets this moment of realisation that the meds Andrew was court mandated to take were the wrong ones?

[paarthursass]

genuinely love how the whole gang is like "fuck this guy"

[mossy-aro]

ultimately i think my insistence on aro positivity honestly is as much a political stance as a personal one.

when i say aro positivity is crucial and that i dislike doomer-ist posts that express sentiments like 'I hate being aro so much I wish I was dead instead’ it's not because I don’t think there can and should be a space for negativity and acknowledging self-hate, or the many ways being aromantic can really suck sometimes. i find that to be very important!

that being said. there is smth here about how self-hate posts are sometimes just arophobia that we inflict on ourselves. and when we put that out into the ether it (intentionally or not) can become arophobia that we inflict on other members of the community. i think there absolutely needs to be a place for negativity and the expression of anger and frustration and self loathing even - these are all good things to talk about because these are things that we experience. that being said, it can also be genuinely upsetting and triggering to people to have what is essentially arophobia shown to them and then have that be validated by other aspec people. your personal thoughts can affect your wider community on a level you may not anticipate. and i understand it i truly do! it took me so long to be able to recover from accepting being aroace - it threw my entire world off kilter and made me question everything about my place in the world.

but my insistence on aro joy and positivity is because ultimately i do believe that building is at the core essence of it all. that ultimately discussions and the purpose of community should be about construction, not destruction. and this is both a personal and a political stance. talking about how much you hate yourself and cultivating online discussions/spaces where negativity about aspec identity is the main and only theme is destructive - if that’s where we let the conversation end. these thoughts can and should be used as a vehicle to look for a path forward!

joy and positivity create a space where the focus can become on forging a path forward, on construction, on community building instead of tearing ourselves and others down with negative thoughts. it’s not productive or healthy when it stops at a place of negativity - it becomes actively destructive to the essence of community.

and i do think that this is especially poignant considering the fact that being any kind of queer, but especially aromantic (and/or asexual) means forging a path for yourself and making your own happiness where there is no obvious way forward. our communities exist mostly online (right now, anyway), there is little recognition of our existence in the real world, the effects of amatonormativity are both pervasive and actively dehumanising, and there are legal, economic and social structures in place actively making our lives more difficult. yes that all sucks! it’s good to acknowledge that. we need to in order to change it. but more importantly, that’s not the end. we are still here and our happiness, our future is for us to determine. even if we can’t change the laws or society, loving yourself and understanding aromanticism as a political identity (as well as personal), as a radical worldview, and as a protest against amatonormativity is essential for both community and personal well being. the personal is political.

tldr. i guess my point is that as a community, we should focus on building, improving, and nurturing ourselves and each other (construction) as opposed to destruction. we should recognise aromanticism and asexuality as political identities as well as personal ones and rely on community and self-love in the absence of anything else as a form of protest and political power. destruction (the recognition of everything that is wrong) is essential as a starting point - but where do we go from there? we rebuild.

[so-very-small]

okay. but. g/t soulmate au’s

soulmates having a mark where they first touch each other. giants having the tiniest possible handprint on their skin, while some tinies have huge marks that cover most of their bodies

having your soulmate’s name written on you. imagine being a normal human and having the name “Twig” on your arm. a perfectly respectable borrower name, if only you knew borrowers existed.

any scars your soulmate has, you get as well. a very confused human wondering what monstrous beasts keep fighting their soulmate and giving them huge scars and bite marks, entirely unaware their soulmate is a daredevil tiny who likes to fight rats and other animals.

only seeing in color when you meet your soulmate. a person seeing what they think is a creepy bug scuttle out of sight, and the world blooms into color, and now they think their soulmate is a cockroach. they are distraught.

taking common soulmate aus and making them g/t is my favorite thing

[haveihitanerve]

Imagine for me please Gothamites mocking Batman because sure he’s their ‘savior’ and all, but he’s also one of them and it’s been a few years since he’s become Batman so he’s well known and just- Batman: *growling* go home! Teenager:… gO hOmE~ like what are you? My dad? Batman:… Teenager:… I’m kidding please don’t adopt me - Batman: I am vengeance. I am the night. I am Batman.  Gothamite: ~I aM vEngeAnCE~ like do you practice that in the mirror? Batman:…  - Batman: don’t sell drugs to students Drug dealer: doN’T sElL dRuGs tO stUdeNtS- please as if you didn’t need drugs to live in college  Batman:… Batman:… just… not too much Drug dealer: *scoffs* of course not dude I don’t want them overdosing we need more smart people who don’t want to kill everyone- plus if they die I lose a customer Batman:… good to know

Teenager: *walking home from school, drops books* Batman: *watching from a nearby roof* damn that sucks Teenager:... Batman: Teenager: *grumbles as they bend down to grab stuff* Batman: stay in school! Teenager: *flips him off* ~ Visitor from Metropolis: ugh omggg this city is soooo grosss! its because none of you have superman! all you have is that wannabe furry Batman! Gothamite:... *looks up and spots Batman* yeah you right Batman: fuck you! Gothamite: *grins and flips him off* Batman: *leaves* Gothamite: *beats the shit out of the Metropolian for saying something as blasphemous as that* ~ Gotham citizen: ugh i got my hair all done and no one notice- Batman: *from above* ohhh emmm GGGGG that sucksssss Citizen:.... Batman: :) Gothamite:.. no one asked you you furry black hotpocket Batman: :( ~

[beesorcery]

silver and sulphur

[ID: a drawing of Zirk Vervain from NADDPOD in profile, visible from the chest up. He looks in front of him with a neutral expression and holds a glass flask of colourful liquid in each hand. Zirk is a young humanoid man with dark brown skin, droopy elf ears, and blonde hair with rainbow dipdyed ends. He has messy, curly bangs and a pair of round glasses, and wears a white shirt with puffed sleeves, thick black protective gloves, and a black apron. Behind him, the wall is covered in pipes, glass vials, and other alchemical equipment. Decorative writing on the wall reads "Vervain's Potions & Salves / Thornkirk". end ID] (id via transguyhawkeye)

[timperi-fan]

I need more screenshots of them, my own "collection" is way too small 😭😭

[loventian]

Touchstarved character name meanings!

Lemme preface this by saying I’m not a name meanings expert I just love crawling through google pages and over analyzing things ALSO to make sure the results weren’t influenced by fandom everything here is from pre-2020! With that let’s get into things!

Mhin:

Mhin is a little bit tricky, as I can’t find anything for their name spelled as it is. Min, however, has several different sources and meanings.

In Chinese, Min (敏) meanings “quick, clever, sharp” Which seems rather fitting for our neighborhood soulless hunter. An alternative script for Min (民) translates to “people, citizens” which could have some interesting implications, as Mhin is implied to have strong connections to the city of Lovent.

In Burmese Min means “king, ruler” which, connected with the second Chinese translation, could perhaps be some foreshadowing? We don’t know how Mhin is connected to Lovent, but the city must have had a ruling class, perhaps Mhin held a position of power? It could also be why they survived, and which a powerful curse nonetheless

Finally, in Irish Min is said to mean “smooth, fine, small”, though I can’t find as many sources on this one. I include it because people have pointed out Mhin’s cloak pins are triquetra, which are Celtic symbols.

Kuras:

Please know I adore Kuras when I say this, but he really got the short end of the naming stick it seems. The most promising thing I can find is the usage as a Hindi surname, which doesn’t seem to have a meaning listed. If you remove the S and go with Kura, it can mean “river” in Turkish or possibly “fierceness, tiger” in Japanese.

Now here’s the silly translations! In Arabic, Kuras (كراس) seems to translate to brochure. In polish, it translates to chicken.

I truly doubt the devs thought brochure/chicken were good labels for the dear doctor, so I’m favoring the Turkish translation. Mostly because Eridia is a city divided by a river; could there be something deeper hidden in there? Maybe!

Ais:

So clearly Ais has a lot of Japanese influence, with his design being inspired by Oni, so I looked for those possible translations first. Ai (愛) translates to love in Japanese, and is typically used as a broader term to refer to emotions tied to like compassion, empathy, or platonic forms of love (as opposed to 恋/koi which refers to romantic love).

I’m gonna focus on this translation for a bit. Someone on a translation forum phrased it in a way I really love: “Ai” is something you do or give. Ais is our introduction to the Seaspring, and to groupminds in general. While the concept of a hivemind is usually used in horror as a way of taking away agency, the Seaspring is framed as a refuge for people to turn to. Could Ais’ name be an allusion to a goal he keeps hidden? Is the Seaspring a manifestation of a desire to give love despite the violent world? Or am I just reading into this too deep?

Vere:

Vere actually has a straight up name meaning! Most of the sources I found say that Vere is a French/Gaulish name meaning “Alder”, and it usually pops up in the surname “De Vere”. Alders are a kind of bitch tree, and I have no idea how that tie into Vere as a character.

But if we take “Vere” as a word rather then a name, then Latin translates it as meaning “truly, really, actually, rightly”. Vere’s introduction to us is as someone to not trust, a cunning fox waiting for the next meal, stealing our darn room key and lying about it! So I find it really interesting that his name could be a word for truth. Perhaps before his chains Vere was someone a lot more truthful ?

Leander:

Big shout out to Leander for having a plain ass easy to translate name. I’ll give you googles exact definition here: "lion of a man", from leon, "lion", and andros, "man".

That was easy, so now let’s pick it apart!

Traditionally, lions are symbols of nobility, courage, strength, and protection. Leander has a reputation for being That Guy; he’s a leader, a protector of the masses, etc etc. for all intents and purposes, Leander really is a lion of a man!

…On the surface at least. Because under all the symbolism, lions are still predators, no matter how noble.

[evil-youth-messrs]

when heterosexual couples are implied to be in romantic relationship/have feelings for each other in media, people will take that as a stated fact that they are indeed involved.

(for lack of better examples, atla and rogue one. both have scenes where the main couple is in a dark place and their faces are close. from my experience people tend to interpret those moments as first kisses and a confirmation of the couple's involvement.)

but when it's a same-sex couple, they could be all over each other, saying the most romantic soulmatey kinda stuff and people will still not acknowledge them as gay, unless there is a (unquestionable) kiss and/or a direct statement that they are dating.

(here I will inevitably mention yuuri on ice. that shit was gay as hell they literally got engaged and still there's discourse whether they kissed in that one scene or not. also from what I heard saltburn has immense gay vibes and some people deny it??)

the double standards man, I'm tired

[ikol-art]

I'm not a writer so don't ask me for a fic, but

I keep imagining a scenario where Merlin is holding Arthur as he's dying, but with a magical grief outburst like Morgana's over Morgause. Except for Merlin it sends his time manipulation powers into overdrive and he ends up reversing it, all the way back to the beginning. I've read several fics where he time travels back, but in this scenario I imagine Arthur ALSO knows about it, because Merlin was holding him as it happened. Imagine Camelot at the very start of season 1 and only Arthur and Merlin have knowledge of the past/future 10 years. I'd imagine it would change quite a bit (they def support Morgana from the beginning, smuggle out any sorcerers because they don't quite want to actually murder the king, maybe Arthur and Morgana end up simply traumatizing him with their stances on magic idk, they adopt mordred and also hatch and smuggle Aithusa in, gaslighting everyone into thinking she's a bird)

Now Arthur has to do the whole 'keep Merlin's magic a secret' thing.. he's terrible at it, Morgana ends up knowing within 5 minutes

I would also imagine it would change the relationship dynamics, sharing 10 years with only one person is bound to bring you even closer together (yes I need merthur to happen here, but it could also be mergwenthur 👀 or if Merthur is endgame Gwen should at least get to end up with both Lancelot and Morgana, she deserves everything)

[ellstronaut]

Going back to this debate

I know Ellle is a multifaceted individual that much is obvious she’s not one dimensional she has many elements to her personality. Additionally, it’s important to remember that even on the spectrum of masculine and feminine, Ellie isn’t completely one or the other. She exists in some sort of grey area between them, embodying both masculine and feminine traits. She’s not defined by one end of the spectrum, but rather by the interplay of these two extremes.

Yet at times the characterisation of Ellie is laced with internalised misogyny. And highlights the way “masc presenting” lesbians are treated in real life tied down to the “man” in the relationship why is Ellie mostly written as the dominant one especially when coupled with fem reader why do we head canon her as a top when it’s literally canon that she’s a switch? Why is there an infinite amount of “ellie taking care of the reader on her period” scenarios outnumber “Reader taking care of Ellie on her period” Ellie written as tall towering over fem reader and not like she’s literally 5’5

The fact is that there’s a heteronormative slant to the way people write her. Like I said almost never written as a switch, but a top. To some extent been portrayed as tall and dominating, never small or vulnerable. And Santa Barbara Ellie is often sexualized even though she is deeply traumatized and emotionally tormented. The problem is that people are viewing her through male-centric lenses, reducing her to an object of desire rather than a fully fleshed out woman with a complex, nuanced personality which includes many dimensions, some of which may be considered feminine.

There is no specific way to be a “masc lesbian” a woman nor feminine and express your femininity. Nor should that separate her from her womanhood/femininity. in a way it’s her way of showing how feminine she is. maybe not stereotypically through outward appearances, but her general identity. she’s a woman who experiences the same struggles that women do, Obviously she doesn’t waver just on the lines of black and white, she’s all rounded. In between. Grey area. The point I’m trying to make is that she’s all and above, you can be both masc and fem. I would add that Ellie's femininity is often overlooked or even belittled by people who only focus on traits that appeal to them. Not her emotional intelligence, her caring nature, her resilience, her dedication to her loved ones. Fuck she’s also a soft heart and a tender soul. These aspects of her are just as important to her character, she is a whole person ffs, exceptionally fleshed out

So fuck

“the hot wife and her hot boyfriend”

Why not

“The hot wife and her hot wife”

“She’s so boyfriend

Uh

“She’s so girlfriend”

Santa Barbara/Seattle is literally at her most vulnerable, disheveled state that girl is literally plagued with trauma, stuck in a limbo of “do I seek vengeance in the name of losing my family and absolutely everything or stay and suffer in silence (at who’s expense?? Hers) Yet we sexualise tf out of her, the most vulnerable pinnacle of existence—glorified and romanticised bc it’s “hot”

this is not a dig at anyone you’re free to write whatever tf you want bro it’s your platform but pls let’s not bs and pretend as of this doesn’t occur

[multifandom--mess]

can't stop thinking about how messy it would have been if hannibal had gone alone to florence without bedelia, and instead, he gets with antony dimmond. like imagine will arrives to florence and finds hannibal shacked up with some guy that looks like him 😭😭 he would have gutted his ass right back so fast

[sunlitlemonade]

so. uh. surprising thing about jason, who might be one of the most inconsistently written characters ever, is the fact that one trait about him has remained constant throughout different eras, reboots and even an elseworld. no, it's not his thighs tho that would be a very good guess.

it's his suicidal ideation. yeah.

[here's me screaming about the fact that he feels like a phantom that has outlived its purpose of haunting in detail if you're interested]

[xeeljii]

i just want to run some errands with him ...

[venusinta]

commission for t4tnarusena (twt)