#real survival stories

[haveyouheardthispodcast]

Propaganda below the cut:

As advertised. First person accounts of people surviving dangerous situations.

[hanvanmusic]

Viking Warrior Bjorn: From Bloody War to Tavern Tables - A True Story" (in description) #tavernmusic

The true-to-life story of Viking Warrior Bjorn is a gripping tale that ranges from bloody battle to tavern tables. This video tells the story of Bjorn, who lives in a town on the northern coast of Norway, starting a new life in taverns, starting with his victory after a protection war with a foreign army. Bjorn was a mighty Viking soldier and was found to be a brave warrior. One day, the country traveled to a coastal town on the northern coast of Norway, where he met a group of other Viking warriors. These warriors had recently been called into town to fight a foreign army from other parts of Scandinavia. Bjorn began preparations with the other warriors. A few days later, Bjorn and the other Viking warriors set sail for the ship with the foreign army. The battle was bloody and fierce, but Bjorn and the other warriors managed to achieve victory. However, the price of Bjorn's victories was very heavy. In the war, one of his closest friends died, and Bjorn was deeply shaken by his death. After the battle, Bjorn and the other warriors returned to town and went to a tavern to celebrate the victory. In the tavern, Bjorn was brooding over his friend's death. However, a woman he met here gave him encouragement and, by speaking, helped him cling to life again. Bjorn, impressed by the woman's words, decided to move on with life. In the end, Bjorn decided to stay in his town and built a new life there. Using his experience and courage in battle, he helped the townspeople and was considered a hero. Bjorn's life has turned into a story where the war begins with victory but the end is a fresh start in the tavern. Thank you very much for listening. Enjoy relaxing, Sleeping, Meditation Music and have a wonderful day or evening! Medieval Tavern Music🎼: https://bit.ly/3mSRGXf Relaxing Musıc ❤️🎼: https://bit.ly/3npb12h #tavernmusic #InnMusic #FantasyMusic #MedievalMusic

[beaft]

was at a party a couple days ago and i had cause to open up my bag o'holding (small bag inside of my regular bag where i keep all my shenanigans, band aids + whistle + sewing kit + fishing line + swiss army knife etc), and the girl next to me peered over, saw the contents and piped up "oh, so you're a wizard"

[thevalleyisjolly]

It's a minor detail but I'm so emotional over Doctor Who making the universal human language in the future based on Cantonese.

[mewtwo24]

I finally finished reading the fourth volume of svsss in full, and thing is--the first time through I only read the bingqiu content because I was ravenous for more of their happy ending.

Turns out that was a perilous mistake.

Because I started reading the airplane extras. And I swear to god. MXTX is trying to kill me

What do you MEAN demon lord Binghe was sitting on his big fucking throne. All stoic and forbidding. Surrounded by his demon generals who don't know shit about human courtship. Asking them what he should do, fully demoralized by constant rejections from sqq, only to have airplane tell him to act more pathetic and needy. Which is already hysterically funny and insane, UNTIL LBH'S RESPONSE IS THIS, KILLING ME INSTANTLY:

LUO BINGHE. WHY DOES HE SAY IT LIKE: "I already tried that, didn't work--nothing works :/ not mean, not maidenly, not housewife, not spicy, not capable disciple. Is doubling down on clingy really all it will take? What's a born hater with only one love in his life to do????"

The dichotomy of him sitting there like 'how can I reach the unfathomable depths of shizun's heart?' A HEART HE'S ALREADY WON OVER, MIND and then in the Holy Mausoleum solving the puzzle without blinking and being like 'oh yeah you just have to hit the acupoints, no sweat.' Literally the comedy writes itself I'm so--

How am I supposed to be normal about this. MXTX understands the juicy quintessential queer joy of a person with the world's power at their fingertips wishing only for love. Willing to do anything to earn that love, when unbeknownst to them it's already been freely given. Totally not screaming and yelling and clawing at the walls

And that's not even touching airplane's uproarious account of events. The way he's like 'lol what's next, lbh and sqq are best friends now? smfh' only to see lbh TACKLE SQQ LOVINGLY. FOR SQQ TO BE BASHFUL ABOUT IT BUT SO SO FOND OF THE LITTLE SCAMP. This when we've been experiencing sqq's constant inner monologue of 'I'm so cool and so dignified about my role, truly the epitome of propriety and poser-level fortitude.' Meanwhile, in their universe:

Airplane constantly flaming???? Sqq and lbh in his observations????? His absolute bewilderment and confusion????? Legendary. No notes every single second of this shit was hilarious.

Airplane's comment that sqq + older adolescent lbh traveling together was just watching a couple in their honeymoon phase. OR the fact that lbh is exceedingly petty and refuses to share their food in the wake of airplane's interruption of their time together, until sqq relents sheepishly and insists airplane eat what's left (ONLY AFTER PLACATING LBH WITH MORE FOOD FROM HIS PLATE, SOBBING)

Watching airplane salivate over Mobei-Jun and acting like that's totally normal behavior. Finding out mbj and airplane got together first. Finding out sqq encouraged airplane. LIKE THIS. WHILE HE IS STILL IN DENIAL ABOUT HIS OWN FEELINGS:

Mobei-jun clearly thinking their arrangement is a forever thing, heartbroken his human abandoned him with all the hapless fury of a scorned wife swept away by false promises of fidelity. Airplane writing demons to be the type to beat up their crush lovingly and still unable to connect the dots about mbj's feelings. Mbj letting him go and respecting his wishes, only relenting when there's indication airplane was poorly processing his own feelings and didn't actually want to leave. Mbj caring for him and listening to him as soon as airplane voices what he needs directly and with clarity. None of these gays are functional and it's everything to me

Unrelated, but I physically can't hold this information in anymore:

I'm still reeling from younger lbh having his sexual awakening from the image of sqq wrapped in the immortal binding cables. Condemn me as you like he was so, so real for that.

And no I will not be taking any comments about how luo bingge couldn't bear to see luo binghe cherished in ways he never got to have and all the haunting implications of that. I will also not be taking any comments about luo binghe's instinct to look for sqq in that alternate universe, only to be shaken to the very core to be unable to find his shizun anywhere. The unspeakable and latent horror of his relentless mind likely piecing together what happened, but unable to say it; to suspect what is true, and live with the harrowing confusion of his double's actions. To blame himself, to assume that he had let his anger get the better of him in that world and result in unspeakable folly...

I also refuse to talk about how heartrending it is to hear Tianlang-jun weakly say "In the end, I really can't bring myself to hate humans." The implication that the foolishness of that hope and bright-eyed fondness--the very thing that put him through such unspeakable agony--couldn't be beaten out of him entirely. To discover that his faith in Su Xiyan hadn't been misplaced, to the contrary: his beloved hadn't scorned him at all, but rather fought to the miserable end to protect the fruition of their genuine feelings of love when she couldn't protect tlj or herself.

How MXTX has sqq deliberately draw parallels between their situation and that of ygy+sj and tlj+sx; desperately wishing it might not be too late for them. The concept of breaking cycles of abuse and harm pervasive throughout the newly devised story, how it evolves for the better only when love takes the place of power, pride, and domination. How the moment sqq chooses vulnerability instead of saving face, the genre shifts to the so-called "cringe" girly genre where most if not every character is more fulfilled, more true to themselves. How the "male-oriented" former genre was aimlessly sensationalized and sexualized, how it was a sustained performance of aspirational toxic masculinity. How men objectify other men without end. All of the unspoken gendered implications that come with that.

Anyways. Going to go put my head in a sandbox and try to process everything I just witnessed because even a second reading is not enough to find a modicum of closure.

[mwolf0epsilon]

Not to start beef on main but what was the POINT of creating and then endearing us to Rex, of making him such an integral part of The Clone Wars and Rebels as a protagonist and supporting character, making him not just Anakin's and Ahsoka's captain but also their friend and most loyal ally, if you're gonna fucking snub him from the plot completely?

[somedayillbepeterpan]

Death by Polin smiles

I’m not going to survive June 13

[purgatorygrl]

God I was watching this part of the story and my heart broke when I saw how incredibly sad Arthur looked. I mean, it's totally logical. The bank robbery had gone horribly wrong, his greatest father figure had died, Lenny who was probably like a brother to him and he loved had also died, John who was a brother to him was captured along with Charles and Abigail whom he also loved, plus the rest of the band that he didn't know what had happened to them either.

He was on a boat in the middle of nowhere and he didn't know if he was going to get out of there alive and if he would be able to see any of them again.

[sandersgrey]

"Nico solo book should be a tragedy" disagree.

Nico was Rick Riordan's first canonically queer character, and the first book queer character a lot of my generation knew about as kids- it would be a huge slap on the face of his audience if his story ended as a tragedy, and Riordan knows that. Thats why solangelo has such a solid, healthy dynamic in the background of toa.

Of now, he's also one of very few pjo-verse characters to be basically confirmed mentally ill, and he's also really disabled in the text, whether its said or not.

Nico is a queer orphan who's entire storyline til toa was just tragedy after tragedy after goddamn tragedy, and who has JUST begun to heal. He deserves a happy ending.

More importantly, the audience- the queer, disabled, mentally ill kids who see themselves in him- deserve to see him be happy at the end.

To make his story a tragedy would be to validate Nico's (and Hades') belief that kids like him don't get a happy ending. That all we're made for is tragedy.

Rick Riordan first wrote The Lightning Thief so his adhd son could finally see himself in a hero. He keeps writing after his son is grown because he knows how much other kids need those stories- his students, even. He knows.

It's even in the narrative itself: it tells us upfront that Percy's mother called him Perseus because he was the only greek hero who got a happy ending.

Nico is the queer kid's original Perseus.

The reasoning follows that he must be happy.

[incorrect-ikevamp-quotes]

Oh we are so BACK

When I tell you I saw this and died. HELLO?????

I keep hiding my face lahshjsdhjgfsaf HE HAS NO RIGHT. NO RIGHT AT ALL BEING THAT SEXILY INTENSE AAAAAAAAAAA

Anyway, I should probably try to make some attempt at describing the event since. If I don't I'll just be barking/crying/hiding my face for the next twelve hours.

Basically--and I'm not sure this is going to be across the board, but it held true for Napoleon and Sebastian at least--each suitor has a birthday event this year instead of a separate story. Comte's won't be released until tomorrow, but they have posted a preview.

From what I gather, he talks a little bit about himself and reveals parts of his past that haven't come to light in the game yet. There wasn't really enough to convey a coherent narrative beyond attending a party, but the line displayed here does get across the larger theme:

Comte: (I don't need momentary pleasure or ephemeral affection any longer. Now that I know love, there's nothing but you.)

He talks about how the aristocracy have thrown parties and extravagant celebrations for his birthday for most of his life. But none of it has ever really made him happy, largely because he knows that they are attempts to strengthen and broadcast power relations within high society. While I don't think he means it's entirely devoid of well wishes, I do think he sees it as a nexus of influence--and thus, by nature, impersonal. And honestly, I don't think he's wrong about that; the higher the echelon in social standing, the more it requires performance to maintain the position.

That being said, there is a fascinating flashback where he remembers a pureblood telling him about how falling in love with a human is an experience of another caliber entirely. My understanding is that Comte was still a fairly young vampire at the time, so he didn't really understand what the person was getting at. It seems like the other pureblood was trying to convey the difference in feeling, perhaps the fact that humans are more grounded in accordance with how they live--the reality and necessity of change.

After reading this--and the recent 5th bday story--I can absolutely see how change is something Comte has a complicated relationship with. He's known a certain way of life for so long, has constructed a sensibility of distant, rational maturity. After all the heartbreak of his youth, and two very acute traumatic events in his life, I can see why he'd be so afraid of broaching any kind of proximity with another person. Because on some level it's so much easier not to put your feelings on the line, to never have to fear devastating loss. And that's to say nothing of the worry of being unable to measure up on behalf of another person, of letting them down.

I'm so excited to see the rest of the contents, but something about the preview made me equal parts giddy and enamored (all I do is kick my feet with excitement LOL). I think what gets to me with Comte is that he truly does love companionship as a place to rest, a place where he can be honest about himself and his feelings without fear of ridicule (and the same goes for MC). In a world increasingly obsessed with surface level performances of power, status, and emotion, it's hard not to feel his exhaustion to the core.

Also, because these lines at the end more or less destroyed me in the best possible way:

MC: ...The you who had nowhere to belong no longer exists. In much the same way...Abel, I belong to you. Comte: ... Comte: I wish I could say to myself all those years ago, the me who kept indulging in such paltry things. Comte: Until you meet MC, you will never know love... The warmth of MC in my arms filled me with such joy I was near tears. (I don't need momentary pleasure or ephemeral affection any longer. Now that I know love, there's nothing but you.) The moment my lips found hers, the sweetness lit a fire deep in my body. Comte: These cute lips that melt against mine, the heat of your skin, the love that envelops me in your embrace--always leaves me so deeply in love with you.

[idiopathicsmile]

said it before and i'll say it again: i know this isn't like the deepest or most pressing reason to want universal basic income and affordable housing but i can't stop thinking about all the cool art that would exist, in every single medium, if people who enjoy making stuff didn't need to live in constant anxiety about balancing their creative projects with making rent.

i mean, it's amazing what does exist if you dig for it, but imagine if everyone who wanted to make stuff was free to spend their time and energy that way without constantly veering towards overwork-induced burnout.

i don't know, it's just a nice thought.

[badolmen]

On the topic of ‘bad mascot horror video games for kids’ the exception to the rule (or rather, something that understood the assignment) would be My Friendly Neighborhood.

I don’t want to spoil anything if you haven’t booted up the game before, but just…don’t be fooled by jumpscare compilations or the character design. From the opening cutscene this game grabs you by the fucking throat. The mechanics have thought put into them, the voice acting is top notch, and christ the fucking story - a complete story, one that has an end that isn’t promised in future ‘chapters’ or left ambiguous.

Yes, it has jumpscares from goofy muppet monsters, but they’re not cheap tricks. Once you learn how the game works they’re easy to avoid or at the very least anticipate - not to mention they’re survivable with the healing mechanic. And just when you think the scares are done, when you’re well into the game and have all the tools you need to navigate around potential jumpscares, the final act dunks you into the deep-end with the actual horror and nightmare fuel puppets.

I’m not sure how much the game as a whole qualifies as ‘horror,’ but it’s certainly being lumped in with the Whatever-Mascot Horror Game of the Week genre. Which is a shame because My Friendly Neighborhood is leagues ahead of those other games. It has more in common with survival horror than it does with mascot horror in terms of gameplay and tropes. It’s literally just the ‘monster’ designs leading people to assume its another Poppy Playtime clone complete with half baked story and repetitive, unimaginative gameplay loops. And that’s so far from the truth -

My Friendly Neighborhood is like if Sesame Street and Resident Evil had a beautiful muppet baby that opened its eyes to have an existential crisis when confronted with the horrors and apathy of modern capitalism.

[flopsy-art]

playing pacific drive and you should too

[tls123]

i wish more people in the orv tag remembered that kim dokja was already in his late teens when he started reading ways of survival

[clementimetodie]

Abuser is abusing me. I am going to respond by dragging myself down to their level and abusing them in the same way they abused me, but it's okay when I do it, because I am Morally Righteous, God Himself even told me so!

[cream-and-tea]

current favourite scene in lay me down is the one where judge sits agnes down and goes “listen…. you need to know that pallas is dangerous….. they’re violent and kill people… you need to get away from them…” meanwhile calliope is standing literally right next to her. i ❤️ u my beautiful beautiful hypocrite