#random late night thoughts

[flamingpudding]

Little Snippets #2

Danny was having a shit day. The kind of day you would wake up and just know things would go so wrong that just rolling over and continuing to sleep would make it somehow better. Alas Danny had gotten up, which to be fair sleeping in the rafters of an abandoned warehouse didn't give much choice, and his day had gone down hill from there.

Which was why he was currently laying in an dirty alley one leg over a tumbled over trash bin his other on some trash bags that did not cushion his fall. His elbow tingled with that weird pain when you hit a nerve and he was pretty sure he had now more than just a cracked rip. Seriously, he hated that he had lost his transformation midair and crashed down because the damned GIW somehow got their hands on Vlads taser technology.

But the weird part was that wasn't even the worst or best part.

Danny dizzily stared at the old man that stood between him in all his fallen glory and the GIW agents. The old man stood there straight well mannered a paper bag, his apparent shopping in one arm and a hand gun -an actual hand gun, Danny had to do a double take to used to the laser guns from his parents and the GIW- pointed at the agents.

The old man said something about having different morals and that he wouldn't hesitate to shot as well as regretting not having his shotgun right now, but honeslty Danny was kind of too shocked to really listen to what the old man was saying.

Seriously, maybe Danny should still have just rolled over and continued to sleep in the warehouse rafters. But he had to admit the old man was kind of badass.

[illwilledomen]

Illagers are verbose and sadistic creeps, and piglin are rough and blunt out of necessity. Basically;

“A little birdy told me you’ve killed one of our raid captains. Hrrrm, what a naughty player you are. And you’ve gone back to your village, soaked in the blood of my brothers. Don’t you know we can follow your scent, little mouse?”

vs.

“Oi. You. Piss off.”

[korpikorppi]

Guys, I just now noticed one more interesting little detail in the Untamed!

You know the names of the buildings in the Cloud Recesses: the lecture room/hall Lanshi (兰室, Lánshì, "Orchid Room"); Yashi (雅室, Yǎshì, "Elegant Room") – the reception room/hall; the spirit-summoning room/hall Mingshi (冥室, Míngshì, "Underworld Room" or "Room of Darkness"); Hanshi (寒室, Hánshì, "Frost Room") - Lan Xichen's residence; and Lan Wangji's Jingshi (静室, Jìngshì, "Quiet Room"), right?

The character used to write the "shì", room, in the names is 室, here seen in the Lanshi and the Yashi (the names are read from right to left):

As a side note, the Lan seem to use the traditional rather than the simplified characters, so the "lán" in the Lanshi is written with 蘭 rather than 兰.

BUT. Not so in the Jingshi! Instead of the 室, a slightly different character is used for the "room":

My trusty dictionary did not know the character in question, so I started to look at what was different:

As such, the character 凶 (xiōng) means act of violence, murder, evil. An evildoer. A murderer. And as Lan Xichen told Wei Wuxian, we know who lived in the Jingshi before it became Lan Wangji's residence: "It is the place where our mother lived in the Cloud Recesses".

So, it seems that when the house became Madam Lan's prison, the character was changed to reflect her crime, denoting the place as the quiet room of a murderer. Accentuated by the reversed colours of the sign:

This has probably been quite self-evident to anyone who actually speaks and reads Chinese, but was quite an oooff! to me as I realised. One more killer detail in CQL 😟.

And while I was at it, I just had to check what it says above the gate (seen here when LWJ returns home with the Emperor's Smile):

As far as I can read it, the characters are 影竹堂 (yǐng zhú táng), which I freely translate as "Bamboo Shadow Court". An apt name for the place.

Hopefully it offered some solace to Madam Lan.

And oh, I just have to add! As Hanshi is the Sect Leader's residence, Lan Xichen is living in their father's house, while Lan Wangji is living in their mother's. And the two houses are more or less identical, down to the furnishings (just check the scene where Lan Xichen confronts Wen Chao and his muddy boots in ep8 vs. The Wangxian Scene in ep43). So did Qingheng-jun have the house built for his wife, identical to the house she was not allowed to live in? That is quite plausible, in universe. Out universe, they probably had only so many buildings to shoot in :).

[sweetestcaptainhughes]

You know what I laughed at Quinn having two tvs in his living room but it also just makes sense. As someone who has her phone, and laptop and sometimes even iPad streaming multiple things at once.

Like maybe Quinn Hughes is living the dream.

[lele5429]

I need to write 25 pages of academic stuff in the next four days, move out in two days, and then travel 35 hours to China. Yeah. To deal with stress I’m posting some ALTTP medallion-buttons I made.

[frazzledsoul]

The early Gilmore Girls backstory about how much contact Rory had with Christopher makes no sense. Christopher fans and Lorelai detractors claim that she ran (thirty minutes) away and didn't tell Christopher where she went and he had no clue where she was for years....yet Rory recognized him when he shows up, he knows how to get to Stars Hollow, and we're told that Rory sees him on holidays. Only on holidays? Why, yes, because he has never visited Stars Hollow even though Rory has lived there for a decade and a half. I guess he just sees Rory in Hartford? Again, Stars Hollow is THIRTY MINUTES AWAY. This cannot be that hard.

We're also told that he calls once a week, which seems unusual given that he only sees Rory a few times a year and won't actually go near her house. That's the kind of arrangement you have with a parent you have semi-regular visits with, not someone you see twice a year and who (probably) doesn't pay a dime in child support. Yet when Lorelai is engaged to Max for an entire summer he doesn't know until right before the wedding. He's calling every week and it NEVER comes up? This seems unlikely. Then his number gets randomly disconnected and it turns out he moved across the country to settle down with Sherry and never gave Rory or Lorelai his new number. Again, he talks to them every week and he never mentioned he was thinking of doing this? All summer? Three months, twelve phone calls, it never comes up? And he doesn't tell them his new number until after the fact?

Then a few months later Christopher calls to ask if Rory can spend part of the holidays with him and Lorelai delays telling Rory about it (the one time she actively does anything to "keep" Rory from Christopher). Rory asks if Christopher has called Lorelai and mentions that he always checks in at this time of year. Okay, so he's not calling every week, then?

None of this makes any sense unless you figure "every week" is a gross exaggeration and maybe Christopher checks in every couple of months at the most. And to point it out once again: Lorelai tells Christopher in that first episode that the door's always been held open to Rory, he just hasn't tried to use it, and he agrees...she also tells Rory that Christopher is going to come and go as he pleases and they just have to deal with it (actually, you don't, not if you make him pay child support, have regular visits, and set some boundaries with him. But that's another issue).

[aladaylessecondblog]

Azura: *tired of losing Nerevarines* Listen, Dibella, I just. I just need you to assure me he's not going to go apeshit and kill ALL my people.

Dibella: I can't promise anything more than Dagoth Ur and the Tribunal will die.

Azura: Well. Alright.

later...

Pelinal:

[omgpurplefattie]

If I could go back and change one thing about my life so far, I would have gotten a cat much earlier. Cats are the best, and there was absolutely no point in denying myself until age 39.

[vintagepresley]

The most relatable Elvis tiktok.

I sometimes feel like it sounds cringe to say, “This person saved me.” But it’s so true. I was in a deep depression and had some shit going on when the Elvis movie came out. So, decide to go see it when it came out because I love Austin Butler and who could’ve guessed I’d be leaving the theater completely in awe and in love with Elvis Presley.

Suddenly I felt like I wasn’t depressed anymore. I took a deep dive into all things Elvis. Consuming all of his movies, clips on YouTube, reading books, listening to all his albums and then collecting Elvis merch. I lived and breathed Elvis (I still do). I only felt happy because of Elvis. As soon as I felt the depression coming back I’d just listen to Elvis or watch a movie or I’d go see the Elvis movie again, lol.

He quite literally saved me. I was this 🤏🏽 close to possibly killing myself. If it wasn’t for Elvis making my day everyday and making me happy. Thanks to him I made some great friends last summer on tiktok and had the best fucking time just watching Elvis movies with them and sharing our freaky ass thoughts about him that led me to writing fanfic and bringing my tumblr back from the dead and meeting even more great friends on here.

Anyway, Elvis really do be out here saving lives and forming friendships. I will always love and defend this man with my life. I love the Elvis fandom so much. ☺️

[modeus-the-misanthrope]

Me gripping the entire Amazing Digital Circus Fandom by the shoulders so hard I am about to draw blood: I swear that I have no problems with AU's and people making them. But if yall's inability to properly tag that shit ends up turning the Amazing Digital Circus tag into 85%, AU of an AU focused on a side character like fucking Undertale tag is! I will personally take a dump in your A/C unit right before the hottest day of the summer!

[echologname]

Murder Drones: N's a metaphorical biscuit

Source: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/what-is-a-british-biscuit

Since the creator's were originally considering giving him a British accent (mentioned in the live Q&A with the cast on Cartoon Universe YT), I'm using English biscuits as a basis for these points, which some may be sound logic and others a bit of a stretch.

The etymology of the word, "Biscuit," means "baked twice," in Latin. As to our knowledge, N's been reprogrammed ("baked") twice, first to be a butler and secondly as a disassembly drone.

In terms of personality, N's as sweet as sugar which were only added to biscuits a little before the 7th century to make them more palatable.

"[Biscuits are] one of the first industrially produced products in the world." This was at the rise of the Industrial Revolution when biscuits were mass produced on steam powered machinery, similar to how robots are created both in modern day and most likely the future with automation replacing more and more jobs done by hand.

"In New England, it was sometimes called “sea biscuit” or “pilot bread." N's literally a pilot.

"If a biscuit was soft, it had gone bad." This comes from biscuits originating as an ancient form of MRE/hardtack, something deprived of moisture for a long shelf life that's a quick source of calories and not provide much nutritional benefit. In N's rebellion against JC Jenson out of empathy for the workers (a "soft" emotion), as J said, such drones are "corrupt" in the eyes of the company.

As a disassembly drone, N has an inherent need to consume "Warm sweet," oil in order to prevent overheating and exploding (dying), but this flaw is intentional to ensure DDs do they're job and never return to Earth. Tea is also a liquid that's typically served hot with added sweetners like honey or sugar along with some firm biscuits on the side which are best consumed dipped in the tea to soften them.

Chibi N with a Jammie Dodger.

[flamingpudding]

Guys it's just merch

Danny watched with a smile hidden behind his mug of hot cocoa his new family. Originally he was only going to mess with them a little, since he wanted to keep his civilian live he gained with them but at the same time wanted to kind of provoke them to tell him about their night time jobs on their own.

Not like he could just flat out tell them he knew about their vigilantes lifes and that would be embarrassing to explain.

It's not every day that Danny's powers fluked on him, but with the stress of the past months, it happened. Right at a moment, he had to be clumsy and trip over his own feet and accidentally phased through a grandfather's clock, finding a hidden passage. Well at least he learned that way that Batman hadn't placed him with some other rich fruitloop that wasn't his godfather but well... with Batman himself and his family out of mask.

Yeah no, he did not want to explain that and hoped they would do that themselves. But apparently, they took Danny's statement of wanting a normal life a bit too serious.

Which brought him back to his current entertainment in the form of messing with his siblings.

"I don't get what the problem is guys. It's just merch." He chuckled slightly at the face Damian was making. While Jason chose to kick Tim under the table.

"Soooo how much merch on Red Robin do you have with this shirt now?" Dick asked instead with a bright smile, Danny still hadn't figured out how to tell what emotion he hid behind them sometimes.

"I think this is my third shirt of him." Danny mused, placing his cup back on the table and tapping his lip in a thinking motion. "Though I was going to pick up a couple of custom-made jackets of Red Hood and a Nightwing plush later today."

He acted like he did not hear the triumph like hiss of 'yes' from Jason as well as the very upset huff of Damian.

He just grinned at the amusement about how they apparently were competing over how much merch he owned of each of them.

When he found a Robin figure and several Robin pins mysteriously placed on his desk the next morning, he broke out laughing. Yet still just to mess with them gushed about his newly gotten merch to his family while sharing a knowing look with Alfred who knew he was just messing with them.

If there was a surprising amount of Batman merch, suddenly mixed into what he already owned the following week without his knowledge. Well, he wasn't going to complain about free stuff.

But he still would get a good laugh out of their reactions on the day he decided to full on dawn every piece of Batman merge instead of theirs.

[cl3opatra]

i think it's 3 am

we are in bed, you hold me

i am your favourite memory

i keep you up with the wounds of my past,

you salve them with the worries of yours.

we talk of the world,

two lost souls

under the cold rainy night,

you whisper, rest.

i cry, you play with my feet,

nostalgia. it's been a year.

i still see your face in the rough drafts

of all my sad poems

you have a new favourite.

i am lost. you were my anchor

my home

i am homeless.

[korpikorppi]

What's in the name: Cloud Recesses

While making the edits for the post about the seats of the five great sects (plus one small definitely-not-a-sect), I found myself going "Why do the Lan always have to be so extra, why not just stick to three characters like everyone else 😫". But looking at the characters used for what is simply translated as "Cloud Recesses" is actually very interesting. Let's see!

My trusty translation software translates the 云深不知处, yúnshēn bùzhīchù, as "the clouds are deep and unknown" with the 云深, yúnshēn, translated as "Cloud Deep" and the 不知处, bùzhīchù, translated as "I don't know where (something is situated)". So, together they evoke "a place hidden by deep clouds" (hidden in deep clouds), the "Cloud Recesses".

But looking at the characters in more detail, more layers of meaning emerge. In addition to "not knowing" or "being unaware" of something, the characters 不知, bùzhī, carry the figurative meaning of "to not admit defeat, hardships, tiredness etc." (or so my trusty dictionary says). The character 处, chù, means "a place" but also, when pronouced/read as chǔ, "to dwell". So, put together, "to dwell (in) a place hidden by deep clouds, admitting no defeat, hardships, tiredness etc."? Sounds pretty Lan, if you ask me (and, as a sidenote, the chǔ also has a meaning "to punish"... just saying).

And there's more. In addition to the "cloud", the character 云, yún, is mentioned to have a literary meaning of "to say, speak", and the character 深, shēn, can also mean "profound". Can that be taken to mean "profound speech" or "to speak profoundly"? As in speaking with great knowledge, showing wisdom and insight, speaking philosophically, or speaking intensely, acutely, with deeply felt words... I might be reaching here but it feels intentional, as speech is something that seems to define the Lan with their silencing spells and all their rules related to speaking. And come to think of it, "speaking profoundly" seems to also define all the main Lan, in one way or another: Lan Qiren, the respected teacher; Lan Xichen, the soft-spoken diplomat; Lan Wangji, who does not speak unless there is something really worth saying, and when he does, speaks almost exclusively in elevated register (a great meta post about that by @hunxi-guilai); Lan Sizhui, speaking for Lan Wangji and speaking with manners and wisdom beyond his years; Lan Jingyi... speaking, and speaking with passion, not afraid to voice his opinions.

So, it seems to me that the name of the seat of the Lan Clan is layered with meanings beyond the "Cloud Recesses", meanings that cannot be expressed in a simple translation, but that actually also describe the Lan, not just the place they live in.

However, I need to end this with a disclaimer: as much as I would love to, I do not speak (or know much) Chinese, so as I mentioned I am relying on translation software and dictionaries here, and my speculations may be all wrong. So I would love to hear from native Chinese speakers, or from people who actually know the language, if anything I've mentioned above makes any actual sense or if I'm reading way too much into this 🙂.

[oblivionsdream]

My thoughts are consumed by SVSSS and TGCF 99% of the time but then on occasion MDZS just sucker punches me in the feelings.

[secondbeatsongs]

do you ever wonder what Muscles Glasses is up to