#she didn’t go that year either

[princessanneftw]

I love how they call it a “mystery”.

This (iconic) moment during the Sochi 2014 opening ceremony where Anne whipped out an absolute bible of a book is enough to tell you why she won’t be there.

But also, that same year, she said this about opening ceremonies (and she’s right):

Princess Anne lamented to her fellow IOC members Wednesday that athletes have become an “add on” to a bigger celebration.

“I am old enough that I remember when the opening ceremony was only with the athletes,” said the British princess, who competed in equestrian at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. “To me, the balance has gone too far the other way.”

Plus, the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony is going to be four hours long and take place outdoors on the Seine for the most part. As someone who is not 73 and recovering from a head injury, I couldn’t be arsed with that, so I can’t imagine she could be either.

[mochi-kitty]

“Shiro made a mistake rejecting yuri” SHE WAS A CHILDDDD

SHE GOT REJECTED BECAUSE SHE WAS A CHILD AND SHIRO WAS AN ADULT

Listen we know they loved each other and AT ONE POINT yuri grew up and became an adult too but not every relationship works in this clandestine way. That was the whole point! She had rinka or satans children and Shiro stepped in to take care of them when yuri died. Shiro was too late when he realized he loved her back and yuri was too early when she confessed. Did they love each other at the same time? Yes. Was it obvious? Yep! Were they both adults? Yep yep! But yuri was waiting for rinka to return when his body would begin giving out and Shiro was still not ready for his own confession. As Rick said “better confess before someone else comes along” and eventually he was right. Satan returned and declared yuri as his and got her pregnant.

Correct me if I’m wrong but I think that was the hidden meaning of yuri and shiros relationship no? Too late meets too early. Too rough meets too kind. What’s clearly there cannot be pursued because of the situation their forced/chose to be in and it ends in tragedy. I mean we have this whole chapter about Shiro deadbeat exhausted and hurt from a monster attack, ready to die and leave the twins to die because yuri was dead now too. He feels he failed, he made all sorts of mistakes and thinks finally he can die for being the worst monster of them all. Then the twins begin crying and he realizes that’s the twins desperately want to live so he should do. He’s gonna make sure these damn babies don’t disappoint their late mother (after of course Mephisto commands him to be their father and makes him the 251st paladin) In a way that’s how he’s making it up to yuri by raising her children without judgement for their origin and teaching them to be strong like her. He knows her good intentions as misguided as they were, he knows the truth despite mephisto covering it up. Did he have regrets? abso-fucking-lutely!

But he had every right to reject her back then, in fact, he very well should have either way! Because at the time, she was a child and he was an adult, period.

[makotonaegiunderstander]

something I’ve been thinking abt is how many people think Makoto is immune to despair. I don’t think he is. I think becoming the ultimate Hope was BECAUSE he felt despair. He wouldn’t have fully reached that point without Junko. Makoto becoming such a beacon was his last attempt to avoid completely falling and it wasn’t because he didn’t feel despair, it was because he was too damn stubborn to allow everything to go to waste and he refused to sacrifice his beliefs for someone else’s. His inner monologue tells me he DID experience the same new low the other suvivors did in the final trial, but at the point where he had the choice to give up and die, he looked at the others and he looked at Junko and he couldn’t allow it to happen, not out of self preservation, but because the idea that Junko would have control over their lives made him FURIOUS. and that utter refusal to die kicked in, wether luck or otherwise, and he made the concious effort for one last push while something in him was breaking. He had to be broken in order for the Ultimate Hope to come through so aggressively, bc it could only exist in the face of the Ultimate Despair. He snapped the same way she did, but in the other direction. In what could have been his final moments he chose to embody everything Junko wasn’t, and every single optimistic and luck fueled ideal in him suddenly charged forward and pushed him. It was a combination of the final straw and a choice. Makoto isn’t immune to feeling despair, he’s just too stubborn to fall into it of his own volition. I think that’s why I like that scene in DR3 so much. People were SO SHOCKED Makoto actually fell for the tape, that he actually became despair for a moment. I saw people getting mad or disappointed, saying it was pathetic and Makoto seemed to fall from some sort of pedestal for them. Honestly part of me wonders if that sort of mentality, which clearly people had in universe, affected Makoto a bit. Like he started to see himself as less of a person, subconsciously. Prompting him to take more risks, less self preservation, act way more bold. It seems he has to be reminded a lot not to put himself in danger by his friends, to not do something too reckless. All over the place I would see in regards to that scene either this frivolous ‘oh this was just angst drama with no meaning behind it’ or ‘he can do better than that. he’s so weak’ or ‘come on, there’s no way he’d fall into despair, he’s the Ultimate Hope!’ This kind of mentality, which was kind of ironic considering Ryota was there the entire time saying the same thing and treating Makoto the same way. Like Makoto was superhuman. Like Makoto didn’t feel despair the same way ‘normal people’ did. In a way that was also how Munakata saw Makoto. Makoto stopped being a PERSON to the world when he became Ultimate Hope, he became a concept, a belief system, much the same way Junko ascended beyond herself. But the difference is that treating Makoto that way is the opposite of the reason Makoto became such a representative for hope. He wasn’t doing something no one else could. He was doing something everyone had the chance to, he just… was a little more optimistic, a little more stubborn, a little more ‘gung-ho’ about things. He just took the lead where no one else did, where no one else knew they even COULD in the face of Junko’s unstoppable force. She had overcome the biggest threats and obstacles in the world, what could one person do? And the answer Makoto found was, anything. Everything. It doesn’t all rest on Makoto, he’s just the one that was inspired to try to do what seemed like the impossible. But as evidenced by the change in his friends after that trial, it’s clearly not something only Makoto is capable of. The others pulled out of despair thanks to Makoto, but it was their choice to do so.

“But… this world is so huge, and we’re so small. What can we do…? No, we can probably do anything. Yeah! We can do anything!”

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

The Sword of Kaigen

standalone fantasy set in a rural mountain village at the edge of an empire that still holds traditional values, with families of powerful water/ice magic warriors

follows a powerful young heir who begins to question his beliefs about the empire when a new boy comes to his village from the city

and his mother, a housewife who has tried to forget her youth as a warrior and vigilante in the city since she moved back home to a loveless marriage

when there’s a violent attack on their village that they’re unprepared for, everything changes, and she has to embrace her old skills to protect her family and people

[whenthegoldrays]

and yes. yes I am bitter that I don’t get to go to my friend’s wedding. yes I am bitter than she’s whooshing off to Colombia to get married when her whole life is here, everyone who knows and loves her and her fiancé is here, and so many people in her circle have neither the money nor the circumstances to fly to another country to support them on their wedding day.

[lilidawnonthemoon]

[in-tua-deep]

when I was 12 I was sick and missed a science test. when I was back at school the teacher told me I could make it up after class but it completely slipped my mind and I went home on the bus

the next day I went to the teacher to apologize and tell her I could stay after that day if it was still okay and before I could she was like “You saw the zero in the grade book” in such a matter of fact way

I, in fact, had not looked at the grade book?? I had no idea that she’d put a zero in for my test. I was just a distractible kid with undiagnosed ADHD who… forgot to stay after school because my usual routine was to get on the bus

I didn’t say that of course. I just nodded in absolute befuddlement and then stayed to take my test that day

I’m much older than 12 now but I still remember my confusion and shame and the bolt of momentary panic before she told me she would let me do the test and I’m like. idk. it kind of stuck with me. I was 12. I was a pretty good student otherwise, yeah distractible but in a quiet “doodle on every paper near me” and “has two to three books on hand at any given time so I don’t get bored” kind of way.

I think even after all these years I still don’t understand why she felt like she had to scare me

[omtai]

Made a customer feel bad about being a bitch & take a step back and reconsider why she’s being a bitch… I feel like God

[e-adlirez]

Chinese/Lunar New Year

So uh for the past few days I’d been contemplating a Chinese New Year piece for this year in particular because uh it’s the Year of the Dragon and that plus dragon dance so perfect a combination it makes, but uh… admittedly I bit more than I could chew so uh :’D

I wasn’t able to make a full artwork in time, but I do have my cleaned up sketch to show for the holiday, so without further ado, happy Chinese/Lunar New Year Stilton fandom <3

It’s very not complete and the dragon’s details aren’t even drawn in but I hope ya’ll like it anyway

I am planning on finishing this tho so stay tuned for that :3

[mabaris]

I know it’s probably just my age and I’m Too Young To Possibly Get It and You Had To Be There but I’ve always kinda rolled my eyes whenever people talk about how joss whedon was some titan of nerd media and everyone loved his work

avengers came out when I was 13 and I thought that was. all right. at the time, everyone on the internet was nostalgic for firefly, so I watched that and found it extremely underwhelming, and wasn’t interested in seeking out more of that writing. but it is inescapable huh

[locusfandomtime]

Since the ending of the season has been confirmed… and nobody new joined this season, it’s possible someone new is joining s10! So…

a serious alternative to the other poll. I think some of these have a pretty low chance of happening, but I chose options that are at least possible (i.e. the hermits know them). don’t take this too seriously, i’m just curious on what the fandom thinks is the most likely option

[droppingartintotheinfinite]

so we can all agree he never washed that outfit for the whole three years, right

[mercymaker]

woke up early, sick and feverish, and immediately thought of malstarion

i wonder what that means for me.. hmmm

[emmcfrxst]

having teenagers be like 95% of your coworkers is so fucking irritating

[steviescrystals]

i seriously need to get a new job and start making money again asap bc i cannot keep living at home much longer it’s driving me insane

(wrote an entire essay in the tags without meaning to oops)

[fingertipsmp3]

I’m gonna challenge my subconscious to a fist fight and I’m gonna lose