#popular eyeglasses

[lensysindia]

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[takes1]

Hiii, I love all ur fics sm! Ur literally so talented omgg

I wanted to request a fic where Oikawa and short/academically inclined reader are friends with benefits. I think it would be fun to see them get jealous and tiptoe around their feelings for each other since they don’t wanna ruin what they have. Can it also be nsfw and could u add some angst pls? Thank youu!

f*cking jealous!oikawa in secret

hi! thank you so much!! hope this interpretation is alright!

warnings. heavy nsfw, minors DNI

details. fem!reader / short!reader / jealous!oikawa / popular x loser trope / jock x nerd trope / tutor!reader / subby-switch!oikawa / switch!reader / oikawa with a nerd fetish / needy!oikawa towards the end / kind of hate fucking? / oikawa being mean / riding / implied oral / fluff, angst, and smut / reader with glasses / 1.8k words

links. my masterlist. more haikyuu. my ao3. my imagines

"You're sooo lucky to tutor him, (Y/n),"

Your hopeless friend sighed, scrolling through Oikawa's Instagram for the upteenth time.

"I'd give anything to spend that much time alone with him."

It was a little creepy, but you loved her. Other girls fawning over your secret fuck-buddy was something you had to -begrudgingly- get used to. It pained you more when it was somebody so close, but nothing was worth coming clean about it.

The last thing you needed during senior year was a target on your back.

"Oh, he's such a prick!" You wave her off and grab your drink from the café counter with a smaller, pleasant, 'Thank you.'

The table was more of a C-curved booth that your group had to shimmy into. The shape made it hard to get in and out of, rather serving as an ultra-cozy prison to focus on your studies, your caffeine, and your snacks.

As a way of not letting you off the hook so easily- your friends cracked open their notes, laptops, textbooks, while entertaining the 'absurd' idea that any of you could actually date Johsai's least eligible bachelor.

A bunch of star-students with decorated academic achievements was the only impressive thing about the patrons at your favorite, quiet, coffee house. With- maybe-- the exception of money in eyeglass prescriptions, or luxurious stationery that decorated the table.

Your voice stood as the most displeased, the most troubled, of the discussion. You flipped through the chapters, halfway forgetting what page you needed to be on, because you got caught up in his shortcomings.

"He doesn't listen- he takes my hours away from people who might actually need it- he's, obviously, got the biggest ego I've ever seen--, Oh- hold up."

It was a struggle to flip to your page and rummage around your pocket for your buzzing phone.

"Well, I'm glad somebody's got some common sense-," Was the only guy in your group, disgruntled at all the Oikawa-talk.

Oikawa's name flashed across your screen. Your body seized and you hugged it to your chest.

"Woah!"

"You good?"

"I'm just--gonna take this outside," You cleared your throat and sank all the way to the floor, crawling over shoes and bags from under the table to get far away from your friends.

It was on the second-to-last ring by the time you hurried outside. You hated him for many things, but the wind picked up, spraying a chilly mist all over your clothes, and you couldn't help but associate him with the feeling. Your hoodie was still inside, forgotten in your haste.

"What? I'm busy right now." You spat, shivering already.

"Don't fog your glasses up, princess."

His easy, light tone particularly bothered you. You groaned.

"Get to the point, pretty boy, I'm busy--,"

"I know. I just called to say you should stop talking about me. Reads as a bit... obsessive, don't you think?"

The breath you took to poke a hole in his 'obsessive' argument gave way to nothing- except a silent realization.

"You're- where are you?"

You squinted at the dark window, but it was one-way.

Oikawa watched you turn to the parking lot, smirking, from inside the cafe.

He sighed, a real airy, fake one; the one he knew you loved to hear from him in bed.

His voice was lower, closer to the receiver. "I thought you said you were busy?"

The audacity to call you obsessive, mixing with the adrenaline his sudden proximity shot into your system. You pressed 'end call.'

When you re-entered the cafe, you spotted him immediately. He was walking back to his booth, one away from yours, from the restrooms. Though you both saw each other, there was hardly an indication that you knew one another at all, thanks to so much practice.

It was, still, hard to watch him slide into a seat right next to some other girl.

So, he heard you talking shit about him while on a date, then left her to go call you? You rejoined your booth, and spared a mean glance over at him, like the absolute garbage he was. He returned it with lesser intensity.

-

You'd think, with his cock in your hand, he wouldn't bring up the events of that morning. It put him in a less-than ideal position.

"Y'knoww,"

He hadn't said anything yet, but your eyes were rolling. Used to the attitude, and equipped with a firm point to make, he continued:

"You should ditch- ahh, that little loser in your little friend group."

A little roll of your hips had him wincing- spreading the slickness all across his dick, from all the work he had put in, already.

You cocked your head at him, "Oh, yeah?"

Oikawa's eyes rolled back into his skull, a groan at how hot you looked, grinding on him. You were his perfect, nerdy little secret. He specifically wanted you to keep your glasses on today. It was a thing. You didn't understand it in its entirety, but it likely had a connection to the reason why he opted for a lowkey arrangement.

"And you should ditch that shallow whore--,"

"Oh my god!" He gasped, surprised to hear such a thing uttered from your mouth, "Fuuuck you're so jealous-!"

"Me?"

It was completely unfair and utter bullshit that he acted like his jealousy was nonexistent. To him, only you could get out of your pay grade. He pretended to forget that the only reason you were fucking multiple times a week was because he 'needed' you so bad. You felt a little exploited.

"That's so hot-aughhh!"

His big, strong hands were forcing your cunt against his slippery, thick cock, since you wouldn't move quite right.

"M-mmh-! Tha-t's-," You struggled, voice breaking, hands against his muscular chest, "Not- mh, fair."

Your textbooks, his assignment due in 40 minutes, were neglected on the floor across his bedroom. Your tutoring was basically roleplay. It turned him on as soon as you got to talking about the relevant class material, telling him that the work he had already done was wrong.

It turned you on too, to an extent. You liked that you got him stiff without trying, without touching. You loved when he pretended like he wasn't, but bounced his leg right next to yours, cleared his throat before every response, got caught staring like some depraved creature.

You were exactly his type. He was the hottest guy you'd ever met. Something had to give.

"I- ah, don't wanna--," He fucked you hard, like you had a ring on your finger, "See you talk to that loser again."

He couldn't stand the threat of being second place. A guy with such a precious ego needed to feel like you wouldn't leave him. While your social structure may have harbored the suggestion that this would be the case, it wasn't an accurate representation of your feelings.

The whimper lacing his voice grew as you placed a firm hand around his throat.

"Don't- date- other girls." You threatened through gritted teeth and bitten-back moan.

It was just your luck that the most ridiculous peacock of a man would have such a great dick, give you such great head, that you couldn't live and let this fucked-up situationship die. The timer of the semester ticked away, standing as an informal end to it, so neither of you had the gall to cut things off before you needed to.

He whined under your touch, bottoming out hard, keeping himself as deep as he could get.

The lonely bastard draped his arms around you and pulled you close.

"Mmh- you know I gotta- h-ah, keep up appearances for us, princess," His quiet mutter, spilled across your shoulder, forced a shiver down your spine.

His sheets smelled just like him.

You loosened your grip and decided to play with his soft, lush locks, taking in his scent, his touch- that feeling. Like you were his, but not in some twisted, shameful way.

You wanted one of his shirts but it wasn't that simple.

For the moment, you chased the dream, while he was still gentle and peppering you in kisses.

Maybe in some perfect world, he would let go of his status, be a little less weird about your intelligence, and you could have a boyfriend instead of a glorified dildo.

He sounded close, so you fucked him back, hand back on his throat; you wondered how many girls would be disappointed to know that Oikawa Tohru didn't last very long in bed.

"You wanna cum, pretty boy?"

A wince at your rough, loaded kiss. His grip was iron, his strength speaking enough for how mute you got him.

It was so quiet, so pitiful: "Pl-ease,"

God, he looked so cute all fucked-out. He only looked at you like that. Like he never wanted you to leave, like he couldn't breathe without you around him, like you weren't just friends with benefits.

Too bad you were just some freaky nerd-fetish.

He pulled out and you sat, buzzed, on his drained cock, more than satisfied with the sight of cum all over his stomach.

When you pushed up your fallen glasses, his cock twitched accordingly and reminded you of the only reason you existed to him at all.

Kissing, cleaning up, cuddling, all of the winding down was still commonplace between you. He wanted attention, you wanted time to chill before you had to go home. He even made it difficult to get dressed and out the door.

Today, he kept his arms around your waist when you attempted to get up, after 20 minutes of cuddling.

"Pleaaase stay," He whined, unable to hold you as firm as he wanted for fear he would hurt you.

You smiled.

"I need to study more tonight."

"Study here!" He pouted.

Right. Then this would happen all over again- because as soon as he would see a pencil between your teeth, he'd try to replace it with his cock.

"Really study," You pried his fingers off and got dressed.

He watched for a time, but needed to assert himself more in order to feel like he wasn't useless, or forgettable. He joined to get dressed, too, and kept a close eye on your seemingly unbothered expression.

"I'm sorry for cursing at you."

It was so unimportant that you had no idea what he was talking about.

"It's okay," Rolled off your tongue, fast.

Oikawa got twitchy. His sly attempts at dragging out your departure slipped through his fingers like sand.

"Let me help you with that," His unprompted kiss to your forehead, along with his gentle gathering of your things, left you a bit dazed.

You fixed your hair- hesitant to look at him.

"Thank you."

He insisted, like usual, to walk you home. You sighed and posed the same argument, the way you had for the past month. People would notice if you were together in any capacity. Rumors would start.

When he was done packing your books up, he was touchier, and hung over you like a cat rubbing itself all over your ankles as you walked to the door.

You rationalized that it had to be your glasses. It gave him some sort of kick. He barely let you out of his bedroom, let alone his house.

You forgot to ask for a shirt, but... maybe next time?

☆VIP☆

@integers @paradoxicalwritings @yuchacco

my masterlist. more haikyuu. (new) my imagines.

[artifacts-and-arthropods]

Emerald Spectacles from India, c. 1620-1660 CE: the lenses of these spectacles were cut from a single 300-carat emerald, and it was believed that they possessed mystical properties

These eyeglasses are also known by the name "Astaneh-e ferdaws," meaning "Gate of Paradise," based on the symbolic associations between the color green and the concept of spiritual salvation/Paradise. That symbolism (which is rooted in Islamic tradition) was especially popular in Mughal-era India, where the spectacles were made.

The lenses were crafted from two thin slices of the same emerald. Together, the lenses have a combined weight of about 27 carats, but given the precision, size, and shape of each lens, experts believe that the original emerald likely weighed in excess of 300 carats (more than sixty grams) before it was cleaved down in order to produce the lenses. The emerald was sourced from a mine in Muzo, Colombia, and it was then transported across the Atlantic by Spanish or Portuguese merchants.

Each lens is encircled by a series of rose-cut diamonds, which run along an ornate frame made of gold and silver. The diamond-studded frame was added in the 1890s, when the original prince-nez design was fitted with more modern frames.

The emerald eyeglasses have long been paired with a second set of spectacles, and they were almost certainly commissioned by the same patron. This second pair is known as "Halqeh-e nur," or the "Halo of Light."

The Halo of Light features lenses that were made from slices of diamond. The diamond lenses were cleaved from a single stone, just like the emerald lenses, with the diamond itself being sourced from a mine in Southern India. It's estimated that the original, uncut diamond would have weighed about 200-300 carats, which would make it one of the largest uncut diamonds ever found.

The lenses are so clear and so smoothly cut that it sometimes looks like they're not even there.

Both sets of spectacles date back to the mid-1600s, and it's generally believed that they were commissioned by a Mughal emperor or prince. The identity of that person is still a bit of a mystery, but it has been widely speculated that the patron was Shah Jahan -- the Mughal ruler who famously commissioned the Taj Mahal after the death of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan did rule as the Mughal emperor from about 1628 to 1658.

The emerald and diamond lenses may have been chosen for symbolic, sentimental, and/or cultural reasons, or they may have been chosen simply because they're pretty and extravagant; the original meaning and purpose behind the design is still unclear. Experts do believe that the eyeglasses were designed to be worn by someone, though.

At times, it was believed that the spectacles had spiritual properties, like the ability to promote healing, to ward off evil, to impart wisdom, and to bring the wearer closer to enlightenment. Those beliefs are largely based on the spiritual significance that emeralds and diamonds can have within certain Indic and Islamic traditions -- emeralds may be viewed as an emblem of Paradise, salvation, healing, cleansing, and eternal life, while diamonds are similarly associated with enlightenment, wisdom, celestial light, and mysticism.

The Gate of Paradise and the Halo of Light were both kept in the collections of a wealthy Indian family until 1980, when they were sold to private collectors, and they were then put up for auction once again in 2021. They were most recently valued at about $2 million to $3.4 million per pair.

Sources & More Info:

Sotheby's: Mughal Spectacles

Architectural Digest of India: At Sotheby's auction, Mughal-era eyeglasses made of diamond and emerald create a stir

Only Natural Diamonds: Auspicious Sight & the Halqeh-e Nur Spectacles

The Royal Society Publishing: Cleaving the Halqeh-Ye Nur Diamonds

Gemological Institution of America: Two Antique Mughal Spectacles with Gemstone Lenses

Manuscript: From Satan's Crown to the Holy Grail: emeralds in myth, magic, and history

CNN: The $3.5 million Spectacles Said to Ward off Evil

BBC: Rare Mughal Era Spectacles to be Auctioned by Sotheby's

[acottonsock]

ACottonSock's Sims 4 Mods Masterlist

I'm not well versed with The Sims 4, but after my recent video where I mentioned revisiting it after many years (like we're talking 2015/16), a few viewers asked me to put together my mods list because they want to enjoy Sims 4 too and had no idea where to start.

Last Updated: 12/17/24 - swapped out default eyes for the 'Atmospheric Eyes'. Added 'Auto Check Toddler & Infants Tweaks' by LittleMsSam.

Click "keep reading" to see the entire compiled list!

CAS and Default Replacements

Body Hair Replacement (Luumia Edition): Replaces EA's terrible body hair textures with Luumia's textures.

Default Replacement Cutlery: Replaces the EA fork and spoon textures with nicer ones.

CAS Room - Plant Lover: Really pretty CAS background room.

Atmospheric Eyes: Default replacement eyes.

Remove EA Lashes: Removes EA's chunky eyelashes so I can overlay my pretty ones.

Cumulus Clouds: Overrides the default clouds in the sky to be a lot high texture and prettier. I use 'Alfsi_clouds_cumulus02_mesh'.

Cherry Tree Override: Replaces the default cherry tree to a better texture.

Luumia's Body Hair: Body hair that appears in the 'tattoo' category. Looks very realistic.

Luumia's Vanilla Skin Default: A nice smooth default replacement skin.

Popcorn Ceiling Default: Changes the ceiling texture to be the classic popcorn ceiling.

Stand Still in CAS: Stops the stupid animations when Sims fidget around in CAS.

More Columns in CAS (4 columns ver.): Adds more columns in the CAS catalogue.

CAS Modifiers Bugfix: Supposedly fixes the receding chin issue that appears when Sims age up in CAS.

Gameplay Mods

MC Command Center: Adds greater control to your Sims 4 game experience and NPC story progression options.

MC Woohoo: Allows various common Woohoo options to be available as settings.

Small Vegetarian Overhaul: "Vegetarian" no longer has to take up a personality slot in Create a Sim. Your sims can have all three of their precious personality traits and still be a vegetarian if they want to be.

Enlist in War: Adds a new self-interaction to Sims to allow them to enlist in a war.

More Layoffs: Increases the chance of a layoff happening to your Sim.

More Names Variety (+Expanded Random Names): If your sims visit Sulani, San Myshuno and Mt. Komorebi often, the game will generate sims to populate festivals, streets and to take part in activities. These townies do not get their names from the same list you have in CAS (randomized) but have separate lists of culturally appropriate names. These lists are short (some only 10 names long) and you may have noticed some repetition or have grown tired of seeing the same names over and over again.

Better Elders Mod: Adds new social interactions, social events, and gameplay options for elders.

Dental Care: Sims can get cavities, have bad breath, need and receive braces, toddlers can teeth and teens can have wisdom teeth extracted.

Divergent Sims: Focuses on neurodiversity, self-esteem, mental health, addiction, evaluation, and treatments. This includes a detailed variety of 25 anxiety, developmental, learning, mood, neurological, personality, body, eating, and mental health conditions affecting infants to elders as well as 4 addictions affecting young adults and older.

Eye Care: Adds basic eye care to your game. Regular eye exams, contacts, and eyeglasses can help identify and then mitigate these issues. Laser Eye Surgery is also an option for some conditions.

Career Day Overhaul: Adds many new features to the existing in-game events. (REQUIRES: High School Years and XML Injector)

Magic School: Adds a magic school like Hogwarts! (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

Extreme Violence: Like the name suggests, adds violence and many more deaths.

The Hopes & Fears Mod: Overhaul of the Wants & Fears system. (REQUIRES: Lot 51 Core Library and The Custom Wants Mod)

Dynamic Teen Life: Adds to and enhances the teen experience, introducing popularity, social groups, more after school activities, as well as additional entertainment, social, and dating opportunities. (REQUIRES: General Pie Menus, Shared Tuning, and Mood Pack)

Foster Family: Become a part of the LMS Foster Family Network and take care of Toddler, Children, Teens or Pets who are in need of a Foster Family.

Live in Business: Adds Lot Traits to the Game which lets you run Businesses at Home like Live in Bar, Club, Cáfe, Daycare and more. (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

More Buyable Venues and New Venue Types: Lets you buy more Venues and adds new Venue Types to the Game. (REQUIRES: Universal Venue List and XML Injector)

Online Learning System: Learn up to 41 Skills (incl. Vet & Hidden Skills) online via the Online Learning System (OLS).

Social Activities (Visit Friends, Family and more): This Mod adds Social Activities for your Sims to go to! (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

Auto-Zodiacs: Your sims now have zodiacs! This mods adds the 12 western zodiac signs to the game, and automatically adds them to babies when they are born.

LGBTQIA+: Gender & orientation Overhaul: Adds a ton of nuance to Sims' sexual and gender identity.

Delinquent Teens: Adds opportunities for teens to rebel and consequences for if they do ranging from being grounded, to in-school suspension, to probation, and more. (REQUIRES: General Pie Menus, Shared Tuning, and Mood Pack)

The Personality Mod: Each Primary trait costs 0 Satisfaction Points, so you can add the traits to newly created sims, straight out of Create-A-Sim. Secondary Traits cost 50 satisfaction points. (REQUIRES: Lot 51 Core Library and The Custom Wants Mod)

More Deadly/Intense Fire: Makes fires more hazardous.

Chat Pack - More Social Interactions: Adds more social interactions between Sims. (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

New Random Names: Bored when you look to a townie name or try randomizing it and it have the same name and last name all the time? This mod will help you with that!

Preteens: Introduces a new life stage between children and teens and a new school, depending on which version is installed, Middle School or Junior High School. (REQUIRES: General Pie Menus, Shared Tuning, and Mood Pack)

Meaningful Stories: Redesigns the mood and emotions system. This collection of changes big and small aims to allow your sims to feel more human, to make the events in their lives feel more meaningful, and to turn managing their lives into a more interesting challenge.

Autonomous Vampires UPDATED!: Changes the ask to be turned and offer to be turned to autonomous.

Teen's Cupid Corner: Adds Cupid's Corner for teens.

First Crush Preteens: Adds the ability to have first crushes. (REQUIRES: General Pie Menus, Shared Tuning, Preteens, and Mood Pack)

Teen Jobs Collection: 12 new careers for teens.

Vampiric Bloodlines: Adds vampire bloodlines. (REQUIRES: Trait Tracker Injector and XML Injector)

sims4me Trait Overhaul: Tweaks the existing traits to make them more meaningful. Sims will do better or worse in certain/all careers, at school and/or at university based on their traits. Traits will also influence autonomy and skill gain. They will moreover affect how well two Sims will get along with other Sims, this will also be affected by the other Sims mood and/or age.

Spend Weekend With: Send your Kids away to visit their Grandparents or other parent, or send your Teens away to stay with a friend for the Weekend.

Can I Come Over?: Want to visit a Friend but you can’t remember where they live? Too lazy to search all worlds for their lot? Send them a text and you may will get a text back to go and visit them with just a click!

Pregnancy and Baby Mods

Cherished Moments - Pregnancy: Adds over 15+ different Moodlets that can occur during appropriate & realistic pregnancy trimesters. (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

Relationship & Pregnancy Overhaul Collection: Adds an astounding amount of pregnancy and relationship options.

Child Birth Mod: Adds a ton of new pregnancy events and outcomes.

New Realistic Life & Pregnancy: Adds more family interactions, morning interactions, mean interactions, kids interaction, and more.

Fixes

Adults Get Crushes FIX: Allows Sims older than teens to develop crushes.

Carry Napping Toddlers to Bed: Adds three new interactions to put toddlers to bed available when they are napping. (REQUIRES: XML Injector)

Better Autonomous Homework: A, B and C Students should make their Homework autonomously now.

More traits for kids: Unlocks more traits for kids.

Meeting new siblings will change relationship: Adds a relationship change (and notification) when a sim meeting their new little brother/sister.

Break Up Whim / Want Fix: Sims who do not have family oriented trait will soon or later get break up whim if they are in relationship for a long time, even when the couples are soulmates. With this mod, Sims will NOT get break up whim unless their romance score is less than -10.

Dine Out Reloaded: Fixes a ton of Dine Out related features.

Simulation Unclogger by TURBODRIVER: Script that detects when a Sim causes the simulation to get stuck, rendering the game unplayable, and attempts to fix it.

Less Musical Chairs: Reduces the amount of moving around from chair to chair or place to place when sims are socializing with other sims.

No Standing Up to Greet: Stops Sims from standing up to greet. When seated, Sims will only greet each other by waving. They will still greet each other normally (i.e. hug) when both of the interacting Sims are standing.

Various Seating Fixes/Additions: Sims will now sit while watching musical, comedy and karaoke performances.

Auto Check Toddler & Infants Tweaks by LittleMsSam: Changed the Cooldown from 5 minutes to 60. Sims will now check on Toddler & Infants regularly when Motives are low (Hunger, Hygiene, Energy), Diapers need to be changed or when the Cooldown is over (To play with them, talk, teach Flashcards etc.)

Camera Mods

Live Mode and Tab Mode Fix: Fixes the annoying drift in tab mode.

Sliders

Luumia Sliders: Ear Presets, Ear Up/Down, Face Asymmetry, Fingers.

Luumia Sliders: Height, Hip Shape, Neck Height.

Pouty Lip Slider: Adds the pouty slider to a Sim in CAS.

Presets

Northern Siberia Winds: Adds a collection of preset noses, lips, eyes, ears, cheeks, etc.

Miiko Lips: Adds a collection of presets and overlays of lips.

Obscurus Nose Presets: Adds a collection of presets and overlays for your Sims.

Lighting

Better In-Game Lighting (Dark Base): Changes lighting.

Sunblind: Realistic lighting overhaul.

Environment Replacements

Khippie 505 Terrain Replacements: Overrides EA's terrain textures, depth, contrast, and colours.

Khippie 202 Ground Replacements: Overrides EA's ground textures.

Khippie 707 Nature Replacements: Overrides trees.

Khippie 101 Builder Replacements: Overrides EAxis floors.

Adult mods (18+)

Basemental Drugs: Custom drugs, custom animations, altered walkstyles, altered moods, altered needs, come-ups, peaks, comedowns, hangovers, addiction, rehabilitation, and loads more.

Basemental Gangs: Adds gangs. Features rivalries between gangs, micromanaging your own gang members, use gang members as drug runners, run your operations through your own gang headquarters, exclusive new opportunities from your right hand man and much, much more.

Basemental Gambling: Functional casino venue and gambling.

WickedWhims: Adds realistic s3x and menstrual cycles. There's a SFW version called Wonderful Whims.

[beautification-tales]

Co-Dependent

"You're just so... different, you know?" said Kara, eyeing Grace's lunch with a mix of amusement and disgust. She took a bite of her own burger, the mayo oozing out and staining the white bun.

Grace looked up from her salad bowl, a hint of irritation flickering in her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

“Like I heard you were popular back in high school. I mean all the boys from my class wanted to drive an hour to visit your school. Then I meet you… and you’re…” Kara gestured to the salad and then to Billie’s lanky frame, dressed in a vintage band t-shirt.

“Ordinary? Is that what you’re trying to say?” Billie spoke up, her voice a little sharper than she’d intended. The cafeteria buzzed around them, but it was as if the table had become an island of tension.

“I just don’t understand the hype.” Kara smirked, her friends snickering in agreement. Grace's cheeks flushed with a silent anger. “We decided being bitches wasn’t worth it. But how’s it working for you Kara?”

Kara’s smug expression faltered, and the room grew quieter as everyone leaned in to catch the impending drama. The smell of greasy fries and the sound of soda cans opening seemed to fade away. Grace's words had been like a pin prick to the bubble of tension. Billie felt a swell of pride for her friend, who had always been the calmer, more diplomatic one of the two.

“Sorry just asking. C’mon girls we’re leaving.” Kara stood up, tossing her half-eaten burger onto her tray. Her friends followed suit, their laughter trailing behind them as they strutted away, leaving Grace and Billie at the table.

“Is it really worth it Grace?” Billie whispered after the trio had disappeared into the crowd, her eyes scanning the room, expecting more glares or snickers. But the other students had already moved on, their attention grabbed by something else, leaving Grace and Billie in a pocket of relative quiet.

Grace looked through her eyeglasses. “You know why we agreed to stop.” She spoke so softly, Billie had to lean closer to hear. “But maybe we should show them who we really are, who we’ve become since high school. They can’t define us with their petty judgments. Besides, we’re not here to impress them or anyone else for that matter. We’re here to get our degrees and move on with our lives.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry” Billie replied. Grace took a deep breath, pushing her glasses up her nose, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of lingering malice. “You don’t have to agree so easily Billie. I’m not that bitch anymore.. I’m your friend and I care what you think ok?”

Billie nodded and went back to eating. "You know I don't care what they think, Grace. We've got each other." The two girls finished eating and attended class. They both took notes as Kara and her friends laughed and joked in the back. The class came to an end as Kara approached them. “You actually paid attention? How cute!” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Kara walked to the professor to flirt and fuck for her grade. Grace shook her head in disgust as Billie looked on in jealousy. “Let’s go Billie. We need to study for the test anyway.” Grace grabbed her books and stood up, her chair scraping against the floor.

Billie nodded, following her friend out of the classroom. They decided to hit the library early to avoid the after-class rush. The heavy oak doors of the library swung open, revealing the cool, quiet space filled with the scent of old books and the faint hum of the air conditioner. They found a table near the back, surrounded by towering bookshelves that offered them a bit of privacy.

They sat and opened their books. “I do miss how it was in high school. We should be running this place.” Billie said determined. Grace looked up from her book and sighed. “You’re talking like an addict. We agreed that.”

“You agreed! I just followed along like usual but I’m sick of bitches like Kara enjoying the lives we should be living!” Billie’s voice grew a little louder, echoing through the hushed library.

“Lower your voice you idiot!” Grace hissed, glancing around nervously. Billie bit her lip as her eyes rolled in the back of her head. “Mmm there she is! Now call me a pathetic slut and make eat your pussy as you plan to put Kara in her place.”

Billie put her hand on Grace’s arm, her eyes pleading. “No! I refuse to be that evil bitch again!” Grace’s eyes searched Billie’s, finding a mix of anger and fear. She took a deep breath, her grip on the textbook tightening. “Okay, Billie. We’re not going back to that. We threw the rings away remember?”

“Wrong!” Billie pulled out a ring an placed it on her finger. “Ungh … I missed this! I love being sexy!” Billie’s voice had changed, it had become more seductive and alluring. Her breasts, which were once small and unnoticeable, began to swell, pushing against the fabric of her shirt. Grace’s eyes widened in shock as she watched Billie transform.

“Don’t do this Billie! You’re a good person” Grace whispered urgently, her voice barely audible above the library’s white noise. But Billie’s transformation was already underway. Her once flat ass grew, the buttons of her jeans straining to contain the newfound volume. Grace felt a strange mix of horror and fascination, her mind racing with unanswered questions and a building dread of what was to come.

“Don’t you remember when we stole them from the Alpha bitches our Sophomore year? How fucking good it felt?” Billie caressed her new curves savoring her transformation. Grace put her head down trying to fight her arousal.

“Please Grace! I want this! I want you to be that legendary bitch again.”

Billie smirked, her eyes gleaming with a mischievous light. “Remember how we used to make those sluts beg for mercy? That’s power, Grace. That’s what we gave up, and now we can have it back!”

Without warning, Billie’s hand shot out and grabbed Grace’s chin, tilting her head up. Their eyes met, and for a brief moment, Grace could see the flicker of doubt in Billie’s gaze. But it was quickly swallowed by the seductive power that seemed to be consuming her. Before she could react, Billie’s other hand began to wander, gliding over the soft fabric of Grace’s shirt and teasingly grazing her nipples. Grace’s breath hitched, and she felt her body respond despite her mind’s protests. The warmth from Billie’s touch spread through her, igniting a fire in her core that she thought she’d left behind in their high school days.

“Don’t you miss making me please you as your slave?” Billie’s voice was a sultry whisper, her eyes dancing with a mischief that sent a shiver down Grace’s spine. She felt Billie’s hand squeeze her chin, guiding her face closer to those heaving breasts that had suddenly filled her shirt. “We were unstoppable, remember?”

Grace’s resolve wavered. She couldn’t deny the allure of their past power. The way they had strutted through the halls of their high school, feared and desired by all. But she had worked hard to shed that image, to become someone better, someone kinder. “Billie, we can’t... we can’t go back to that.”

“Last chance or I’m finding a new mistress. Kara seems promising.” Billie’s voice was playful yet had a hint of seriousness. Grace’s heart pounded in her chest as she stared at the ring on Billie’s finger. “I’m ten times the bitch Kara is!”

Her thoughts raced, the memories of their high school reign coming back in a flood. The power, the fear they had instilled in everyone, the rush of it all. "My ring give it to me." Grace's voice was firm, a command that Billie had not heard from her in a very long time. She felt a jolt of excitement, but also a hint of trepidation.

Billie pulled out another ring and slipped it onto Grace's bare ring finger. It fit perfectly, as if it had been waiting for this moment. The second the metal touched her skin, Grace felt the change begin. Her hair grew out, transforming from her mousy brown bob to a cascade of golden waves that fell over her shoulders. Her eyes, once a plain brown, turned a piercing blue that seemed to see right through people. Her glasses fell off, no longer needed, as her vision sharpened. Her cheekbones became more pronounced, her skin glowing with a newfound confidence.

“Fuck! The power…. I did miss it. I want it back!” Grace exclaimed, her voice laced with both excitement and trepidation. Billie's eyes widened as she watched the transformation take hold of her friend.

Grace’s body began to morph, her breasts swelling beneath her blouse, straining the fabric until buttons popped open, revealing the pale, creamy skin of her rapidly growing cleavage. The sight was mesmerizing, and Billie couldn’t help but let her gaze linger, remembering all the times she’d envied Grace’s ability to command attention. Grace’s ass grew too, filling out her pants until they hugged her curves so tightly that it was a wonder they didn’t split at the seams. The room around them seemed to shrink as the power of their former selves began to pulse through them.

Billie’s hand didn’t leave Grace’s chin, instead it slid down her neck, her fingertips tracing the line of her collarbone and making their way to her exposed chest. Grace’s breath grew shallow and quick, her moans of pleasure echoing through the library. Billie leaned in, her breath hot on Grace’s neck as she whispered sweet nothings that were anything but innocent.

Grace looked at her companion and partner. Dark thoughts filled her mind as she thought of how to rule.

“Mmmm we’re back bitch.”

[burningvelvet]

random history trivia you should know: in the early 1800s people wore these hipster-style glasses. the first pair is indeed blue; lord byron was also fond of blue sunglasses. green on the right was another popular shade as it was thought cooler colors protected sight better from the yellowish warmth of light. i don't know if that's medically true, but i had a beloved pair of purple glasses once and i thought they were much more comfortable than regular black shades. i'm pretty sure the famous composer franz schubert in the middle there is just wearing regular eyeglasses.

Sources: John Wesley Jarvis' Portrait Of A Gentleman, 1807, composer Franz Schubert at age 17, 1814, Nathaniel Olds by Jeptha Homer Wade, 1839.

[twstfanblog]

(Little scene from Manhwa H (that's the one I'm on 🤣) @st4rz666

Little bit of the inner thoughts of Crewel. Kind of a bad dad, but like...nah I got nothing to defend him 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Also random OC name drop. He will appear in a lot of fics once I actually get around to him showing up.)

Divus hummed, eyeglasses on while he worked on a jacket he had gotten the idea for around lunch. While he adored his daughter, having her out of the house was a blessing. He and Dire didn't have to pretend to be in love and they could separate to do their own hobbies (or whatever one would call the nefarious deeds Dire got up to when no one was watching him). In the calm, quiet of the duchy, hand stitching in embroidery on a meter long tailcoat was just what Divus needed to unwind.

He held in a sigh when a servant announced to him that Yuu had returned from the Ashengrotto home. His puppy wasn't ready nor interested enough in embroidery to allow him to work on it, so into his work closet the jacket went. Once his office was cleared up, he waited patiently, knowing his daughter's first stop when coming home was to rush to him for a hug.

Hearing the door of his office open, he smiles seeing his puppy poke her adorable little head in, "Hello, my puppy! How was your-AH! WHO IS THAT!?"

Yuu beamed as she dragged a rag of child into the room. White and black hair that was stringy, a potato sack of a dress, and a dirty gaunt face with large bag heavy eyes, "Her name is Yu! She's my new friend!" She smiled to the child, giggling as she tried to smile back though clearly nervous.

Divus tried to hold in his sounds of...it was cruel, but disgust. He didn't like children, that was a fact he always knew about himself. He was lucky that when he was expected to produce an heir for the Crowley line, he at least found Yuu to be CUTE when she was born. A pleasing child was so much easier to learn to love than...whatever she had brought in.

He hums, stepping closer and eyeing the child, "Well...what family does she come from? I couldn't think of a noble house that'd allow their children to walk around as such..."

Yu wrung and pulled at her dress hem, mumbling her family's name under her breath.

"Speak up. I can't hear you."

She tried again, her nerves building under Divus's cold, calculating gaze. Voice trembling and soft, barely louder than before, "I...I'm Yu-"

"Speak!"

"Papa! You're scaring my friend! Knock it off!"

Trust his puppy to have a bark just as big as her bite.

Divus glanced at his daughter, a lecture on 'inside voices' dying on his tongue once he noticed the other child's expression.

Hollow eyes that held a flicker of hope, skinny hands gripping onto the soft flesh of his child's arm like it was a life line. The willingness to stand in her shadow for protection.

Admiration.

"..."Divus hummed, looking the child over once again before coming to a conclusion. Yuu could use a 'Yes-Girl'; someone to be on her side simply out of admiration. And with the proper care, this child could become a beauty in her own right. Divus would just have to add her into Yuu's beauty routines.

He smiles, kneeling before the two girls and pinching their cheeks, "Papa is so sorry, puppy. He'll be nicer to your friend. In fact, how does a sleepover sound? Your little friend can get a nice bath, a meal, and pick some of your pajamas to borrow for the night.

Both of the girl's eyes widen, beaming at Divus before Yuu cheers, "Thank you, Papa! I'm gonna show Yu my room so we can play! Call us when dinner is ready!"

Divus keeps his smile, waving at the two girls leaving his office before his expression drops into mild annoyance, "Of course my puppy manages to find a 'Robert' of her own..." he sighs, shaking his head and walking to his desk to open his sketch book to a new page, "I fear she'll be such a popular child..."

Divus was a social climber, a feat that he sacrificed his family name for. He sacrificed plenty to get where he was today, Robert's affections and friendship one of many. As he sketched, he wondered just how dear his child would become to this poor lost pup she had brought into their house...

[trivialbob]

This afternoon my dad and I went out to lunch.

I drove, he paid. Fair tradeoff, right? Full disclosure: It was his car too. His back hurts some. A car is easier to get into than my truck.

Afterwards we were at his apartment. A wall in the lobby has photos of veterans who live there. He recently gave his picture to hang there.

I don't remember seeing this picture before. In others of him in his 20s he wore "browline" eyeglasses -- the ones that are plastic on top and wire on the bottom. I saw some people wear those in the 00s and 10s. I thought they looked outdated in the 21st century. (If you like 'em, that's cool.)

Here my dad is wearing clear plastic frames which are sort of popular now. I like these glasses, both in this picture and when I see them on other people nowadays.

[franciswhetsel]

I can't find on my blog if I've posted about this before, but the 19th century local dandy that wrote Edgar Allen Poe fanfiction, Douglass Sherley, was mentioned in this letter that a local historian dug up for me and it is fascinating. I'm just going to copy + paste my pillowfort post about it.

So the historian I've been in contact with was an incredible help, and went ahead and transcribed the bits of the letters that discuss Sherley.

"The description of Douglass Sherley is on the final page of that letter (page 6) and reads:

“By this time you have, doubtless, read of the horrible confirmation of the old reports about Douglass Sherley. I did not believe them before and cannot comprehend how he could have been guilty of such baseness. He has consented to leave the country for good next Monday, so ___ Sherley’s brother informed brother Will.” Bruce then goes on to talk about cantaloupes, I think. I believe the blank might be “Mrs.” or a first name.

Second letter, second page

“You say you did not read of Douglass Sherley’s disgrace. Don’t speak of it to anyone, for the disgraceful affair should never pollute a woman’s lips.' "

These letters are from August 23rd and August 28th 1896, and there are barely any mention of him in the Courier Journal after 1896. This is important because prior to that he was all over the paper. There were mentions of him going to numerous weddings and parties, he wrote columns for the paper, and he was involved in putting on things like operas and plays. 

He also died in Martinsville, Indiana, which makes me wonder if that was where he moved. (I believe he still lived in Louisville for part of his last years.) 

I think I've just about reached a wall with my research; the only other thing I have any interest (at the moment, at least) in chasing after are newspapers that he was in when he toured with James Whitcomb Riley. Someone else was kind enough to write a blog entry that includes clippings from non-Louisville newspapers, and they're an interesting look into how Sherley was known outside of Louisville: 

The Wilmington, NC Weekly Star, 8 Dec 1893 (reprinted from the Indianapolis Journal):

Kentucky’s Oscar Wilde Douglass Sherley is doubtless, in a literary way, the most conspicuous person in Louisville. He is notable also in many other ways. At first glance he is seen to be what is styled a “character.” Being fond of character study himself, he would no doubt generously recognize his own claim to the classification. He is a large, well built, squarely adjusted man, with a massive head and neck, dark hair, an intelligent brown, suggestive of femininity in a way, keen and kindly eyes, a large brown mustache, worn in curly ends like the “beau catchers” of the traditional stage spinster, a pleasant, sensitive mouth, with the air of a man of the world, but withal a clean, temperate, perfectly correct man of the world. He has a droll habit of holding his head on one side and looking aslant through his eyeglasses, which gives him a unique expression, and without which and the flowers in his lapel, almost always a red rose, he would hardly be Douglass Sherley, Mr. Sherley is popular among the men, and also much liked by the women, his literary work being more generally appreciated by the latter. There is a fine, feminine, but not unmanly, quality in his writings, which  really only women, or men with a like feminine streak, can interpret and enjoy.

A point of interest is this May 1886 article about Sherley from the Cincinnati Enquirer

A CLUB SCANDAL Douglas Sherley, of the Pelhams, Involved He Hunts for the Originator of the Story, and in His Search Punches a Bank Clerk SPECIAL DISPATCH TO THE ENQUIRER LOUISVILLE, KY., May 3 — Nothing is talked of in the clubs to-night except a difficulty which occured to-day between Mr. Douglas Sherley, Present of the Pelham Club, and Mr. Matt Smith, a member of that body. Mr. Sherley is a man of means and leisure, and belongs essentially to society. HE has written several books and has built an aesthetic house that has been the talk of the town for three years. The Pelham Club members are the younger set of society men and recently persuaded Mr. Sherley to accept the Presidency of their club. Within the last two weeks, however, a movement has been on foot in which twenty members of the club were interested to bring about Mr. Sherley’s removal. The understanding was that the twenty members in question should offer their resignations simultaneously to the Board of Directors. When questioned in regard to this unexpected action they were to say they would not belong to an organization which had for its Chief Executive a man who had been guilty of certain disgusting and unnatural practices that were charged against Mr. Sherley. When Mr. Sherley heard of this movement to-day he went at once to Mr. Matt Smith, a blank clerk, whom he had heard was one of his defamers, and demanded an immediate denial in writing of the nasty stories. Mr. Smith said he had not originated the stories, but had repeated them, and refused to sign the paper. Mr. Sherley, who is a fearless man and very athletic, promptly attacked young Smith and gave him a sharp blow in the neck. Smith attempted to return the blow, but outsiders interfered too quickly, and dragged the gentlemen apart before either was painfully injured. The affair quickly went the rounds, and the scandal has been vigorously discussed by society men all day. It is due Mr. Sherley to say that none of his friends believe the stories which gossips have put in circulation about him. He is an eccentric man, and some of his peculiarities have subjected him to comment, but he is a gentleman, nevertheless. Mr. Sherley has secured a cowhide and a pistol, it is said, and will either thrash or kill the man who is at the bottom of the outrage, if he can discover him.

I have a lot of thoughts about the connection but I'll get back around to that later

[porcupine-girl]

The BJYX Store!

Ok, it wasn’t a whole BJYX store, but it did have a BJYX section! It was an idol store, whose existence I was tipped off to by @marlo-noni. This mall (Shanghai Joy City) had two idol stores in addition to a million anime/donghua/etc stores–I’ll make separate posts for all the non-bjyx merch I saw (and bought). Both idol stores were 75% kpop but with Cpop/Cdrama sections if you looked around.

And this one had an actual shelf that was not labeled Xiao Zhan or Wang Yibo or both, but actually labeled 博君一肖 bjyxszd!

It wasn’t huge, but the fact that it’s still there five years after the Untamed aired speaks volumes about how mainstream this is.

See more under the cut!

Yes, there was a full-size (well, not quite as tall as he really is) XZ cutout next to it. :)

It had a lot of stuff that was just XZ or just WYB–photo cards (which seem VERY popular, they were like 50% of the content of both idol stores), standees, pins, etc–but also actual BJYX merchandise! Mostly fanart-based, some of which I'd seen before. This stuff was definitely not officially licensed by either of them (which makes me wonder if anything in this store besides the K-pop CDs was actually officially licensed?)

Two sets of wedding-themed fanart standees:

Also this kind of ugly/awkward pin of them... kissing? Ish?

This store (I wish I'd taken more photos of the whole store, tbh) had a ton of these double-sided posters/banners about 6"x18" for all the different idols, and in addition to individual ones for XZ and WYB they had a whole bunch of BJYX ones. They were on the shelves with the other banners, rather than in the BJYX section. I wound up buying three–the first photo is one side of each, the second photo is the other (not sure which is "front" and "back").

I'm honestly not sure what "Doll's Fate" is about on that third one. Tagging in the BJYX experts: @rainbowsky @accio-victuuri @wwx-lwj-ai-ni @bjyxobsessed any of you know what that's referring to?

The other idol store in Shanghai Joy City wasn't as explicit about the BJYX, but they did have a whole shelf just for the two of them, separate from all the other Cpop people:

All the merch was just one boy or the other, though, I couldn't find anything with both on one item, let alone explicitly shippy.

For the record, I scoured three malls in Beijing (SoShow, Xidan Joy City, and Chaoyang Joy City) and while I found various other cool merch, I could not find any dedicated idol stores in any of them. Although I will admit I didn't have time to go through Chaoyang JC as thoroughly as the others – these malls are all huge, like 8-11 stories!

Bonus #1: This eyeglasses kiosk that was right outside the bjyx store knew exactly what it was doing:

Bonus #2: Can you believe they just happened to be playing Wu Ming when I was browsing the BJYX merch? It's not surprising that they were playing music by the idols they sold, but the fact that they just happened to play one of Yibo's songs in the 15 or so minutes I was there was amazing.

[lensysindia]

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[whumpinggrounds]

Writing Blind/Low Vision Characters

Time for another one of these I have decided! As always, this is based on personal experience with blind low vision people, classwork, and research. I do wear glasses, but I am not blind/low vision and this is not my lived experience. Please feel free to question, correct, and comment, as long as you are respectful! Thanks so much for reading :) On to the good stuff!

Vocab

Blind describes a person who has very little to no vision. This can be written with a lowercase or capital b (blind or Blind). Blind does not always mean no vision. It is medically defined as having vision of less than 20/200 in the better eye. Someone can be able to distinguish color, light and dark, or shapes, and still be blind.

blind refers to the medical condition of having little to no vision.

Blind (note the capital b) refers to the sociocultural experience of being a nonseeing person in a predominantly vision-based society. This distinction is newer and less common than with the Deaf community, but is becoming more popular, particularly with DeafBlind people. As always, the important thing is respecting what people identify as and want to be called

Visually impaired is a term that covers the spectrum of vision differences.

The term does not include disorders that affect one or more of the “basic psychological processes.” What this means is that though vision or the use of visual information may be impaired, if the nature of that impairment is not related to the structure of the eye, it would not be described as “visual impairment.” Examples include perceptual disabilities, brain injuries, or dyslexia.

B/VI is an acronym, standing for Blind/Visually Impaired, that can be used to refer to the community as a whole.

Low vision describes a person who is not fully blind, but whose level of vision is significantly impaired. More technically, this refers to vision that cannot be corrected through medical or surgical procedures, or conventional eyeglasses.

Legally blind (in the USA) refers to an individual whose vision is affected beyond what glasses can correct. This is a bit difficult to describe in writing but: If the strongest prescription possible cannot bring that person’s vision up to 20/20, they are legally blind. This is not the same as having no vision.

Deafblind or DeafBlind refers to an individual with any combination of vision and Deaf gain/hearing loss, ranging from mild to profound Deaf gain/hearing loss and from low vision to total blindness.

Visual acuity refers to clarity of vision and is the source of numbers like 20/20, 20/30, etc. This is another one that’s weird to describe so stick with me. My vision is about 20/40 (last I went to the eye doctor lol) which means that I see at 20 feet what someone with 20/20 vision sees at 20 feet. The top number is always 20, and refers to the 20/20 standard, while the lower number describes the visual acuity of the person in question. If their visual acuity is 20/10, that means they see at ten feet what a person with 20/20 vision would see at 20 feet. If they see at 20 feet what a person with 20/20 vision would see at 200 feet, they are medically considered blind.

Visual functioning is (basically) a measure of how well a person can use visual information in completing tasks. This is assessed a number of different ways.

Residual vision is another way of referring to the functional vision of a person with low vision or blindness. 

I’m not going to go through all the different kinds of blindness and eye conditions, because that would take too long, and this is already a pretty long vocab section. But there are lots of different kinds of conditions and disabilities affecting eyes and vision! Please explore them :)

Blind Culture?

Is there Blind culture in the same way that there is Deaf culture? Difficult to say. It’s an ongoing debate, and I’m going to briefly address each side, and then leave it up to you to research further how this might affect your character and your story.

Historically, the blind community have rejected the idea that blind individuals have a shared culture. The reasons for this are very well outlined in this letter, which I highly recommend reading. To summarize it here: Blind people are not isolated from sighted people in the same way that Deaf people have been historically isolated from hearing people. The reason for this is generally acknowledged to be the lack of, or existence of, a language barrier. Blind people use the same language as the sighted people around them, while Deaf people have used signed language as opposed to spoken language. Where no language barrier exists, this position argues, no separate culture forms or needs to form.

On the other hand - there are certainly experiences that are shared by people across the visually impaired spectrum that fully sighted people do not have. Blind or low vision people access and interpret the world in different ways. There is, analogous to Deaf communities, a history of blind or low vision children being educated separately from sighted children, and of discrimination throughout the lifespan that has isolated visually impaired people from sighted society.

What does all of this mean? It means that there is less consensus about what it means to be visually impaired, and what values or traditions unite that experience. It means that there is less of a framework for how your visually impaired character might relate to other visually impaired characters or their broader community. I highly encourage further exploration within your own story, as well as making sure that whatever choices you’re making about the character’s relationship to their vision is grounded in conscious choice and research. Just because there are no easy answers about a collective blind culture does not mean that a blind character can be written the same as a sighted character but without the vision.

Assistive Technology

Assistive technology (as a reminder, this is not specific to visual impairments) refers to pretty much anything used to make the lives of disabled people easier.

Official American government definition is:  "Any item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of children with disabilities. The term does not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, or the replacement of such device."

Braille is a tactile system of writing in which raised dots represent letters, numbers, and punctuation. More on this later.

A screen reader is a software program that either reads written text on a screen aloud, or produces a Braille display.

Speech-to-text programs are software programs that...convert speech to text.

Text-to-speech or TTS are programs that convert written text into spoken speech. These were also commonly used on landline phones by d/Deaf people before text messaging became commonplace. 

Seeing Eye dogs are service dogs that are trained to help their blind owners move and navigate independently.

White canes are white canes with a red stripe. These are both navigational tools for B/VI people, and used to communicate to others that the person carrying it is B/VI. Accordingly, it is illegal in some US states to carry a white cane if you are not visually impaired. Only 2-8% of B/VI people actually use them, though, and it requires dedicated practice to use them effectively. They are designed to vibrate differently when they come in contact with different types of surfaces, and proper practice can help cane users distinguish between different obstacles. 

Braille and the Braille Literacy Crisis

Braille, as mentioned before, is a tactile way of writing, which helps B/VI people read and write effectively. I’m not going to do an exhaustive explanation, but essentially, a different combination of raised dots represents each letter of the written alphabet. The sentence I’m writing, rewritten in Braille, would have the exact same words and structure, but would be expressed in raised dots. There are abbreviated forms that are less commonly used and may be used by more skilled readers or those reading texts with specialized, space-saving abbreviations.

Less than 10 percent of legally blind in the US can read Braille, and only 10 percent of legally blind children are currently learning it. This is a huge problem. Over 70% of blind adults are unemployed, and up to 50% of blind students drop out of high school. There is a strong, scientifically supported link between literacy and employment.

Technology should supplement literacy, not replace it. Screen readers and text-to-speech are great tools, but are not an adequate replacement for literacy.

Reading English text is not always the best possible method of reading. The misguided belief that reading Braille is isolating and stigmatizing leads many to push reading text over reading Braille, even when this is inappropriate or even impossible. Some children achieve higher levels of literacy through reading Braille.

Implications for your writing: Can your character read Braille? Why, or why not? What impact does their illiteracy have on their life?

Rethink

I’ve tried a couple different headings here cuz as always, don’t want to tell people unequivocally not to write things. But these are things you should really think hard about before you include them in your writing.

So, things to rethink:

Overused tropes for B/VI characters:

Blind seer/blind mystic

Innocent, pure, noble, sweet etc.

Bumbling oaf B/VI person

Feeling people’s faces as a way to “know what they look like”

Does not happen in real life, more of a stereotype/sighted person’s fantasy

“Helen Keller didn’t exist” TikTok conspiracy theory (not a writing thing but a pet peeve I can’t not mention)

This is ableist. The only reason people think she wasn’t able to accomplish things is because she was deafblind and that’s fucking bullshit. It is not a cute silly TikTok joke. It’s ableism, and it’s disgusting.

Blindness negating power/ability.

This can be anything from an actual superpower (X-Men) to a technological advance (Star Trek) to a supernatural ability (Avatar: The Last Airbender.)

In real life, this could be having someone with other senses that compensate to an unrealistic degree, or echolocation, which, while it proves successful for some people, is hard, takes a ton of effort, and doesn’t work for everyone.

Resources/Recommendations

Please add recommendations in reblogs and comments! I really haven’t watched a lot of TV or movies that have blind characters, which sucks :/

Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law By Haben Girma is an autobiography of a deafblind woman that is incredibly well written and discusses independence and activism.

The World I Live In by Helen Keller describes life as a deafblind individual and is really powerful and beautiful.

[sadic-sugar-nerds]

Brainrot is real had to draw an actual ref of my current playthrought girl "ai ai" (listen man when i start a file i dont think to hard about names) whos real name is Lily! ft. lil sydney in the corner bcuz UUUGHH ILY SYDNEY /EXPLODES bit more info undercut!

Shes well known for her kindness but not to be confused with being docile

High brattiness + defiant

Often she acts polite with a soft tone but turns bitchy and cold as soon as you turn against her/ "unpure"

high beauty in game but i like to think of it, she well known for constantly switching hairstyle and fashion.

easily aroused (my god is this annoying in game when your trying to beat people)

Good grades+ popular and she only needs eyeglasses for reading.

started high school with a "ore-sama" personality/class slut but somehow ended up converting to the church for Sydney and to everyone surprise she's been 100% faithful.

Her and Whitney have a throw down every other week(they hate each other.....i think???? me directly looking at their high lust stats...put a pin on that), she tries to be nice to kylar but after being kidnapped by her once(lets not make it twice) she just straight up bitchy around her, Best friend with robin hc when robin was missing for a whole throw hand with bailey(ended up being sold to eden but she escaped), Faithful to Sydney but is keeping her lil secret she has a sugar mommy to please every Saturday (Avery pls we need that money).

despite preaching about purity and what not, if she knows she can get it her way...well.....we can keep it a secret ^^

is known in the orphanage once she gets really angry is hard to stop her, to the point she gets blinded by it.

tbh the "best" route of the 3 farthest ones i have HAHAHA

[loominggaia]

Another preview for the big upcoming Evangelite Fashions article. These are wealthy Evangelite citizens.

Lore under cut:

NOBLEMAN

Location: Queenswater

Evangelite nobles are citizens who rule a territory or are directly related to someone who does. Not all nobles are rich, but the vast majority are, and they display their wealth mainly through the clothes they wear. This man is an example of what the typical Evangelite Nobleman wears day-to-day. His outfit is not at all practical, but it doesn’t have to be, as his slaves take care of all practical matters for him.

Vivid blues are expensive pigments, but that’s obviously no concern for a man of his wealth. His blue silk shirt features puffy sleeves to make him appear big and important. The ends of his sleeves are adorned with white frills, which matches his necktie. Over his shirt he wears a poncho in rich blue and gold hues, its sides held together by silver chains. His fingers are decorated with flashy jeweled rings. White leggings extend up to his knees, giving his legs a desirable shape and drawing attention to his fine beaded leather shoes.

The Nobleman’s hair is worn in a style that locals call the “uptown sleek”, as it’s very popular with upper class Evangelites. The sides are combed back and the front is shaped into an elegant swoop. He has no facial hair, meaning he is not yet married. But as a noble, his family has likely arranged a marriage partner for him already, and then he may sport a thin, subdued mustache that is common amongst this kingdom’s wealthy.

NOBLEWOMAN

Location: Wintermoore

 Unlike lower class women, Evangelite noblewomen are not expected to cook, clean, or serve anyone, as they have slaves to do all that for them. They are not even permitted to rule territories except under very specific conditions, so they have a lot of free time to spare. They are taught that their most important job is to bear children and look their best, as if they are simply fashion accessories for their husbands. Not all noblewomen sit around and do nothing, however. Many of them have found hobbies or have involved themselves with causes that are important to them, such as volunteering for their local temples.

Even the wealthiest Evangelite women face many of the same restrictions and similar oppression to lower class women. Oftentimes looking good is all they are allowed to do, and so it is the only skill they develop. This mature Noblewoman has developed an eye for color, texture, and composition to dress herself fashionably each day. Her style is the envy of others, and it shows off her family’s great wealth to her peers at a glance, which is exactly what is expected of her.

She lives in the freezing territory of Wintermoore, so she must maintain her style while accounting for temperature, wind, and snow. She wears all purple hues–the most expensive of pigments. Her padded silk overdress is lined with fox fur for extra warmth, and the dress beneath is striped for visual interest. Her corset is made from the finest leather and dyed black for contrast. Her shoes are made of the same leather, decorated with fox fur puffballs to match her overdress. Her double-headwrap not only keeps her warm, it indicates to others that she is married at a glance. Lower classes don’t always have access to eyeglasses, so the ones on her face are a sign of her status.

Makeup is controversial when worn by lower class women, but it is practically mandatory for the upper classes. Like many wealthy Evangelite women, this Noblewoman has caked her face in white powder to make it appear lighter, giving the impression that she never spends time slaving away in the sun. Dramatic eyeshadow and blush are added to prevent her from looking sickly. She has decorated herself in large, fancy pieces of jewelry, and she has learned exactly how to pose in order to casually show them off.

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[thinkingimages]

Finsen's apparatus for concentrating the sun's rays, illustration from Medical Electricity and Light: An Elementary Textbook for Nurses (c 1910)

“You have this Edwardian nurse in leg-of-mutton sleeves and steampunk eyeglasses doing something very technical”, explains Natasha McEnroe, Curator of the Florence Nightingale Museum. We're looking at a photograph from around 1900 in the museum's The Kiss of Light exhibition. The nurse is outside using a large lens, known as Finsen's apparatus, to focus direct sunlight onto the face of a woman with lupus vulgaris. The treatment is far less simple than it seems—such nurses knew the risk of burning.

In the early 20th century, light therapy was a very popular treatment for various ailments including lupus vulgaris, scrofula, and rickets. It took a skilled technician to administer treatment, and they were almost exclusively women. McEnroe was enthusiastic about running this exhibition in the small, temporary space at the back of museum after being approached by historian Tania Woloshyn, who had uncovered the hidden history of these female technicians through her archival research. Together, Woloshyn and McEnroe designed the exhibition and excellent accompanying book.

Many British hospitals administered light therapy to patients, especially in the interwar years. Nurses appear in nearly every photograph of light therapy, whether intimately holding the face of a patient to ensure precise application of light, or entertaining small children who needed reassurance when facing the intimidating apparatus. Yet, McEnroe says, nurses are “totally missing” from medical discussion of the “powerfully bactericidal” effects of light therapy. But the exhibition displays show the all-female nursing team of the Light Department at the Royal London Hospital, who were “praised for their exacting standards and kindness towards patients”, or the staff at the South London Hospital for Women and Children, who were all women.

There is a retro futurism about many of these images. We move from Edwardian outfits to 20th-century posters of lurid orange babies and grinning, tanned mothers. Photographs document how light therapy moved away from health care and into the domestic sphere. The picture of the “Homesun” mercury vapour lamp from the 1930s reflects this shift towards light therapy in the home, to which medical professionals were vehemently opposed. There are accounts of people falling asleep in front of their lamps and being burnt, or even, as the exhibition book describes, “being electrocuted while using them in the bathroom”.

Health professionals took light therapy seriously from the early days of treatment, because they knew that overdoses could be damaging. But the public's view that “tanned skin” was a reflection of “health” was unstoppable, and “by the late 1920s”, explains McEnroe, “light therapy became conflated with general sunbathing in the public realm”. The museum is responsibly addressing present-day concerns about sun exposure and skin cancer in a series of public events, talks, and lectures, and the museum is also giving visitors Cancer Research UK leaflets about sun safety. It's interesting to note that next door at St Thomas' Hospital there is still a phototherapy department, used mainly for dermatology."

Hidden histories of light therapy

Kelley Swain

Published:August 22, 2015DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)61527-6

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