#shrine-vandal

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

Makes sense. I've heard some of the album and will continue soon (after I am done with the Flood tracklist).

One of the reasons I haven't given up on TMBG and I don't think I ever will (unlike with Weird Al) is that their music is such a perfect match for my mind in many ways. It's stuffed full of little references to scientific or cultural concepts (even to the point that it's a little annoying at times), and its lyrics sound like the sort of jokes I make (and that other people make at me), but in a way that people liking can't hold against me.

I get the sense that these songs were written for me. They're about nerdy people who love to talk, obsess over strange details, and generally use their minds in strange ways. They think about the lyrics of songs. They have science-related names, like Boing and Crushed. They have their own subculture and lingo (I always thought it was cool how the spaceship of Flansburgh and Linnell's son [in "Snowballs at the North Pole"] is referred to simply as "the mothership" -- too much stuff like this gets on my nerves, but here it just seems perfect).

The songs themselves are clever and quirky and "too much for kids" in a way I can't really explain. Something that helps is that in addition to thinking about things for their own sake, they're playful with language itself. They make references that no one outside the TMBG subculture is likely to get, and then they do get some of them (whoever the "Xiang Yun" of "Winter's Tooth" is, TMBG know who she is), so it's like a joke with no punchline. They make fun of politicians by making up fake quotes and then having the names of those people be anagrams of words relating to the real things those politicians believe. They are all the people who ever made fun of their schoolmates in this way, only they are doing it for themselves. They are geeks. They are just the kind of people who talk like this.

I don't have the energy right now to be able to talk about why this is so important to me, but it is.

hiiii frankie, do you like homestar runner :3 who's your favorite character

my favorite Homestar character is Strong Bad, but in the original sense of the phrase, as used in the Novels and Discussions of A. J. Palmer:

But then, with a single turn of the phrase, Strong Bad had swept the Strong Bad Theory in the dirt. It was his simple remark, “Yeah, but that ain’t the issue,” that shook me to my core.

[angeltreasure]

If you’re in a position where you can donate anything, please consider supporting our faith.

“On Tuesday, May 23, at 2:31 a.m., the Des Plaines Police Department responded to a fire report at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. A person had entered the campus and set fire to the outdoor Chapel of the Resurrected Christ. Both the Des Plaines Fire Department and the Des Plaines Police Department arrived on the scene and worked together to put the fire out. Unfortunately, the fire damaged the outdoor Chapel, several pieces of statuary, and sacred art. Although we are very saddened by the painful vandalism, we wish that through the help of our community, we can reconstruct the outdoor Chapel of the Resurrected Christ, also known as "the Altar of Miracles." Pilgrims visit for many reasons: some seek hope, others express gratitude; however, all come with prayers and express love to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Thank you for your prayers, and together we will rebuild this sacred space.”

[dailyworldecho]

[zvaigzdelasas]

A stone pillar at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo was found with "toilet" written on it in Chinese on Monday, according to Japanese media.

19 Aug 24

[zedecksiew]

Monument vs Shrine

In "Replica, Aura, and Late Nationalist Imaginings", the political scientist Benedict Anderson (most famous for his Southeast Asia scholarship and that definitive critique of nationalism, Imagined Communities) muses on the Lincoln memorial:

Within a temple explicitly mimicking "the religious edifices of a safely pagan Greece";

Mazda Corp floodlights designed "to ward off unnatural, indifferent sunlight";

The abstract enshrinements of "Lincoln's memory" in the "hearts of the people", while neither Lincoln's actual remains or any rites for people to perform are present;

The sense that ultimately the most reverential thing to do there is to take photographs.

+

The Lincoln Memorial; the Jefferson memorial next to it; both figures repeated again on Mt Rushmore; both figures repeated ad nauseum on dollar bills.

These monuments are designed to proliferate. Not only must they create a sober, stately experience for the visitor---but they must also do so consistently, because they are built for visitors: the mass audience of the national population.

Otherwise they must be physically replicable: a memorial to a particular national hero, erected in every city.

The very format of monument-building get copied:

Post-colonial countries, in need of new myths, choose to manufacture national cenotaphs of their own, in imitation of Western models.

Malaysia has Putrajaya, a federal capital sprung ex nihilo from palm-oil agricultural land, its buildings all arches and onion domes and imitation arc de triomphes in inhuman scale, its avenues broad and utterly unwalkable in the tropical heat.

+

At such monuments the citizen is cast as tourist.

Of this state-sanctioned object of devotion you are encouraged to take photographs, sell merchandise---ie: continue the process of replication. With every copy nationalism is reified.

God forbid you tweak the official monument with your own meanings, though! While writing this post, I found the following story, from December 2023:

"Lincoln Memorial temporarily closed after being vandalized with 'Free Gaza' graffiti"

+

Anderson's essay cites instances where the personal and irreproducible sneak back into, or leak out from, or vandalise, national monuments:

"Early in the 1910s,"---in Manila's Cementerio del Norte, a municipal cemetery planned by an American urban designer---"a small pantheon was constructed for the interment of Filipino national heroes."

This monument was to emulate the Pantheon in Paris, where "great Frenchmen" of the national canon are memorialised.

But the Filipino version failed.

"Today, hardly anyone in the Philippines is aware of this dilapidated pantheon's existence ... What has happened is that the Filipino Voltaire and Rousseau have managed to escape, summoning devoted, often familial bodysnatchers, to convey them to home-town shrines."

+

Not that the municipal cemetery itself is deserted. Custodians and their families live in the very mausoleums they care for.

Further, Anderson describes All Saints' Eve in the Cementerio del Norte, when thousands pour into its precincts.

But these multitudes adjourn to their own myriad family graves and small ancestral shrines: spending the day with immediate loved ones, "drinking, praying, gambling, making offerings ..."

Most of the Philippines' presidents have mausoleums in Norte, "but no one pays attention to them ... and only their separate descendants come to attend them."

"There is something exhilarating here that one rarely sees in national celebrations, maybe because the structure of the ceremonial is not serial, but entirely cellular."

+

Hometowns re-exerting themselves within the nation; ordinary people scrawling meaning onto the edifices of the uppercase-P People. A multitude of the singular, instead of a single mass.

Despite nationalism's efforts to centralise and clone a national identity, still we mutate, still we bootleg, still we graffiti, becoming once again ourselves.

And---particular to post-colonial societies---in doing so we casually continue the work of liberation, sneaking the idea of freedom away from our own architects and elites and prime ministers, who would seek to seize its meaning for their own purposes.

The churches or mosques or temples to demos that the federal government builds are ours to transform. To take from. To ignore.

"No need. We've got our own shrines at home."

+

National heroes become local saints and slip out of national control.

Does the Filipino government really control the various Rizalista sects? Karpal Singh is now a datuk kong, without his political dynasty's consent.

Across Melaka and Negeri Sembilan there once existed shrines dedicated to Hang Tuah, Malay folk hero, now a powerful figurehead of Malay-Muslim ethno-nationalism.

One such shrine existed at Tanjung Tuan:

With a plain altar---more a porch, really---of poured cement, for folk to leave food offerings;

Sunlight mottled from the surrounding forest, and fluorescent lights from a nearby gazebo;

A large rock, with an indent on its crown, said to be Hang Tuah's actual footprint;

The idea that this was a sacred space, where you could come to ask the spirits of the place for love or children.

The shrine that existed was sited in a forest reserve. It was swept clean of leaves by locals; its adherents belonged to all faiths and ethnicities; following the transactional logic of folk religion, those who had received its blessing would've paid for its maintenance.

+

"Existed".

Because the Religious Department of the State of Melaka destroyed the Hang Tuah shrine sometime in 2022, for the crime of idolatry.

A double heresy. An affront to both orthodox Sunni Islam---

But also to the Malaysian state, that sanctions Sunni Islam as its official religion; whose nationalism requires its mythic hero to have only the attributes and magics the state ulama and historians say he must have---and no others.

Local shrines are destroyed, because the nation-state intuits them to be threats to its exclusive franchise.

+

Image sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_five-dollar_bill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc_de_Triomphe https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Putrajaya https://www.facebook.com/PilipinasRetrostalgia https://www.globaltimes.cn/content/984521.shtml https://www.facebook.com/PerakPress https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malays_(ethnic_group)

[hoshi-neko-hikari]

Hikari’s Big Hit (open rp)

Hikari has been working on her school’s culture fair project for weeks. She was making a diorama of a hinamatsuri shrine. Japanese dolls used to celebrate Girl’s Day in Japan. She planned to explain to her classmates that these dolls were used to symbolize health, fortune, and good marriage.

She already made the emperor and was now working on the empress doll. Of course, one of her classmates wasn’t too keen on her hogging the limelight with what he calls “a lame holiday”. This student was, of course, EK.

Hikari soon placed her finished shrine on a shelf and made it clear that no one is allowed to touch it. EK took this opportunity to fix the shrine up. He got out permanent marker and got to work.

Hikari was horrified when she came back and found her shrine vandalized.

“There! I made the dolls a billion times better!”

“Hikari said no one could touch it!” Hikari started to seethe as EK tried to gaslight her into thinking the project was ruined because of her.

“You made them wrong! Did you do any research? I was only helping! Not my fault you don’t know your own culture!”

“Hikari. Said. Don’t. Touch it!” She yelled and punched EK in the nose, knocking him down and sending him to the nurse, crying.

Her red eyes became clear blue when she calmed down and realized what she did. “Oh no.”

She was then called to the principal’s office.

@weirdgayenby @chill-nightfury-beans @welcome-to-random-characters-2 @gorefieldsworld and every one else

[odinsblog]

The site of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s killing in Jenin has been bulldozed and her shrine desecrated, in an unexplained early-morning operation on 26 October.

A surfaced road running between houses has been reduced to huge boulders of broken concrete, and earth dug to over half a meters depth. Vehicles passed up and down the lane. One day after, even walking amid the smashed rocks would be a challenge. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its affiliate, the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate (PJS) in condemning this act of vandalism and recalls on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh.

The road, Balat al-Shuhada’ Street, in the Jabriyat neighbourhood of Jenin is thought to have been ploughed up by heavy civil engineering vehicles at approximately 3 am on 27 October. Locals state that these were operated by members of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF). Paintings of Abu Akleh, and tributes left on the spot where she was shot have beed destroyed.

Nasser Abu Bakr, PJS president said: “This is a monstrous act of destruction. Shireen’s family and friends have found some solace visiting the place where she was shot down, and placing tributes. This wanton act of vandalism is surely revenge for the report just issued by the UN that states that Israeli forces ‘wilfully or recklessly killed Abu Akleh’. It underlines the need for her case to the investigated by the International Criminal Court ICC, with which the IFJ has already lodged a complaint”.

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger said: “I have visited this site myself and know firsthand how important it had become to those who mourn Shireen’s loss. It is hard to see this destruction as anything other than a cruel act of vengeance, of a kind that can only exacerbate tensions in Palestine. The sooner the ICC gives this case the attention it deserves, the better”.

(continue reading)

[2-dsimp]

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Yandere Spin-offs

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Introducing Icha the cult leader

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Yandere cult leader! Icha who holds rituals towards his god Eros to ensure that y’all’s souls are destined to be tied down together forever in the present and in each lifetime.

Yandere cult leader! Icha who’s usually snarky and foul mouthed on the outside. But is actually calm and pragmatic when he dawns his cult garbs and preaches to his followers how they had to pray to Eros in order to fulfill their pure hearted desires of claiming their soulmate as theirs.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who resembles a prickly chihuahua whenever you’re not around for him to blatantly fawn over. He’ll snap at anyone and anything since he’s got a very short temperament and is prone to getting violent.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha that has a long history of anger management issues stemming from a ripe age. Where it was documented that he first punched a hole into the wall. Before ruthlessly assaulting a random boy who gave flowers to you before he even got the chance to.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who’s a total homebody and looks as if he doesn’t work out much with his tall lanky limbs. Rest assured he’s got a sleeper build which helps him in taking care of his ritual sacrifices (His love rivals) in the name of obtaining your love under the jurisdiction of his god Eros.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who’s such a gentleman whenever it comes to taking care of his darling. He’ll open the doors for you, send you flowers/favorite snacks, write love poems, and promise to never ever leave your side even in death. (Literally)

Yandere cult Leader! Icha that actively vandalizes your things. Drawing ritual like symbols in discreet spots upon your bags, hairbrushes, clothes, and even the back of your phone case. He swears he’s not trying to bully you, it’s just a simple incantation meant to attract you towards and ward off any potential suitors who dare to waste your time via unexplainable deaths.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who speaks with a harsh stutter and acts like a love drunk fool in your proximity. He’s an awful klutz to the point where he’d always trip and fall over himself due to his eyes being so focused on over analyzing every bit your gorgeous figure.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha that collects anything belonging to you that you’ve thrown out. such as your trinkets, broken pens, used hair ties, clothes you thought to donate, your used empty body wash, and even bubblegum of which you chewed and spat out in the foil wrapper.

Yandere cult leader! Icha who’s so nasty thinking nothing of it when he opens the wrapper to chew the gum savoring the taste of your saliva. Even going as far as to roll the gum under his tongue and leave it there to marinate so he could fully relish in yalls indirect French kiss.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who spends his time meditating manifestation spells. Trying to summon you out of thin air so he could trap you in his lap and coddle you like the precious babe you are. Making sure to spoil you rotten with his affectionate gestures of love.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who worship his shrine of you alongside his god Eros. Always paying homage to how you made his heart palpitate with every glance and smile you threw his way. Even if you were just trying to be nice and hardly even knew of his existence.

Yandere cult Leader! Icha who’s not above thinking of kidnapping you and stowing you away within the confines of his basement should his god demand to see progress of his love for you bearing fruit (which is Him having a delulu monologue between him and his god basically encouraging him to act on his selfish desires and monopolize you whole in the name of his pure love for you, his sweet lamb.)

[links-in-time]

Captivity

My second offering for Whumptober 2024. I realised I'd been ignoring Twilight even though he's one of my favourite boys. So unfortunately that means he gets a whole whump fic all to himself. Enjoy

Warnings: Descriptions of blood and violence. Read at own discretion.

🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺🐺

The walls of stone were cold and slick with slime and other substances. Straw had been spread on the floor in a vain attempt to soak up the fluids. Not that it made the room any more pleasant or comfortable. A tiny window high above head height, no more than a few inches square, provided the only source of natural light. Torches held in sconces around the room, flickered and sputtered in the airless space.

A fist swung into Twilight's jaw, for what could have been the tenth, or the hundredth time. The hero wasn't sure at that point. He'd already lost consciousness twice, much to the annoyance of his captors. But he'd be damned if he relented and gave them what they wanted. All he had to do was hold out until his brothers arrived and rescued him. However long that might be.

According to the shift from sunlight to moonlight coming through his miniscule window, Twi estimated he had been imprisoned for at least four days. His captors had fed him a few times since then, and given him enough water to sustain him, but not to slick his thirst.

Twilight knew that if he did what they wanted, then he would be rewarded with a proper meal and plenty of water. His jailers had promised him such. Though there was really no trusting their words.

SMACK

The slap stung Twi's already bruised cheek, his face already raw from the constant abuse. Briefly he tugged against the hands restraining him, but quickly slackened again as the pain dulled to a minor ache.

The heavy iron collar around his neck was honestly causing him more pain and discomfort at the present. The chain linking him to the wall constantly trying to drag him downwards. The collar itself was just loose enough that it twisted and rubbed against his neck. Twilight could feel the sore spots underneath the rough metal. He wanted to scratch them, to pick off the scabs and rub them until the itch and the pain went away.

“Transform you little prick!” Twilight's tormentor screamed in his face, spit flying from his mouth.

Oh yeah, that's what they wanted from him. Twi had almost forgotten why these brutes had nabbed him in the first place. He supposed it was his own stupid fault for getting in this position. Twilight had grown too comfortable around his brothers. He'd let his guard down in multiple ways. But after the discovery of his biggest secret, he had been transforming more and more frequently in front of the others.

They had accepted Twilight's other form with as much love and kindness as any of their other oddities. But Midna had always warned Twilight about what could happen if the wrong people saw him shift.

In a rare era with no Ganon and no hero, the time the Chain found themselves in was surprisingly tempestuous. The royal family was experiencing a lack of popularity, and faith in the gods and goddesses of Hyrule had slumped. Statues and shrines sat abandoned or graffitied by vandals.

Overall, none of the heroes had felt particularly welcome in this era. They had made themselves known to the current King, but he could offer them little in the way of information about Dark Link or black blooded monsters.

Someone had suggested a night out to relax and enjoy a brief moment of genuine peace. There had been a tarven, drinks, and a hearty meal. A few more drinks. A tipsy Wild had challenged Twilight to a race from the gates of town back to their camp. Knowing he could win without breaking a sweat on four legs, Twilight had transformed without thought for where they were.

Midna would have slapped him senseless.

He was paying for it now of course. None of the boys had noticed the group of thugs watching them from the shadows all night. A group of strangers in bright clothes with strange mannerisms had quickly drawn attention of an unsavory manner.

Twilight guessed they had grabbed him at some point in the night. How none of the others hadn't woken at the sound of intruders he might never know. But the thugs had tied him up and tossed him into a cart before dawn. Blindfolded, Twilight had little to no idea where he had been taken. Only that he had bounced around in the back of a wagon for a few hours, before being bundled into some kind of cellar.

His face stung, and his shoulders and ribs ached. His lip was split and bleeding, as were several notches in his left ear. What he wouldn't give for a potion, a loaf of bread and cheese, and a good day's worth of sleep. What he got was another slap across the face, before his tormentor yanked his head up by his hair.

“You sure are a stubborn, stupid son of a bitch. You know that!” the man grunted.

His breath smelt of fish and stale beer, never mind the terrible body odor that Twilight got a whiff of every time he got close. Twi had nicknamed him Stinky.

“I'm…” Twi groaned. “Not your son.”

“Why you little…!” Stinky hissed, frustrated by Twilight's continued obstinance.

The brute pulled Twi's head back while he punched him hard in the ribs. As Stinky let go of Twi's hair, he doubled down by kicking the same spot with his boot.

“Argh,” Twi coughed, winded and wincing against the pain. He definitely heard something crack that time.

“Easy,” one of the men holding Twilight's arms warned. Though he sounded pretty casual about it. “The boss won't thank you for breaking his pet.”

The boss, Twilight had heard him mentioned several times during his imprisonment. However, he was yet to have the pleasure of his acquaintance. Apparently he ran a black market in odd creatures and Hylians with strange abilities. A handsome teen who could turn into a ferocious wolf was apparently worth a lot of money.

“I need a break anyway. This fucker’s face is gonna break my wrist!”

Stinky grumbled, examining the dried blood on his knuckles and forearms. He gave the other two men a nod and Twilight's arms were dropped. They fell like dead weights at his sides, tingling as his blood rushed back to his extremities. As the men brushed past him towards the only door, one of them bumped Twi with his knee, knocking him forwards onto his hands.

“Haha, there ya go! He's a mutt afterall!” He chortled, giving the other thug a nudge to make sure he got the joke.

Twilight choked against the pull of the collar and heard the men laughing, as the door was opened and slammed shut. A heavy bolt was slid into place before the voices and footsteps of the men faded into the distance.

The young hero remained on hands and knees for a while, limbs shaking as they struggled to hold his body weight. Arms which could stop a rampaging goat, or even wrestle a Goron (with some special boots of course). He doubted he had the strength to do either of those things.

Twilight took stock of his injuries.

Where to begin? He thought grimly.

His face had taken so many beatings at this point he wasn't sure where one injury ended and the next began. Twi's right eye felt swollen and sore and there was a ringing in his ear that didn't want to go away. His shoulders ached less now that his arms weren't being yanked behind his back, but they were still stiff when he tried to move them.

Sitting up slowly, Twi shifted his legs to bring them around in front of him. He didn't dare move around too much in case he reached the extent of the chain connecting his collar to the wall behind him. He had done that already, the first time he'd been chained up, almost strangling himself before he relented his struggle. For now he rested his back against the slimy wall, working more dirt and grime into his beloved tunic.

Twi swallowed a few times. Stinky had definitely broken a rib with that last kick. Twilight could feel how tender that spot had quickly become. If they weren't careful with him, they could easily puncture a lung. Twilight didn't think the boss would be too happy with that. Then again, if his minions couldn't prove that Twilight was a shapeshifter, then he was worthless to them anyway. In which case he assumed they'd probably give up and just kill him.

“No, don't think like that,” he berated himself. “You're going to get out of here, and you'll see your brothers again. You just need to hold on a bit longer.”

He knew he wasn't the most emotionally stunted or traumatized member of the Chain. However, Twilight usually liked to pride himself on keeping his emotions in check when the situation required it. When his captors loomed over him, demanding answers and a reaction to their beatings, Twilight gave them nothing. He would force a smile onto his face and spit their insults right back at them. Midna had given him plenty of training in that area too.

Slumped against a filthy stone wall, cold, bleeding and bruised, a heavy iron collar dragging at his neck, Twi had no one left to perform for. He was in pain. He hadn't seen a friendly face in more than four days. He wanted a bed to sleep in and a warm meal lovingly prepared by his crazy cub.

Twilight folded his arms and legs in and let himself feel it all. Head resting on his scuffed knees, his tears rolled down his cheeks and soaked into his grime stained trousers. Twilight tried to keep his breathing even, but a sob escaped him, making him tremble with the force of trying to hold it back. His shoulders heaved despite the deep ache in his muscles. Cries tormenting his raw throat, as he pulled his arms tighter around his knees. And he cried.

They were ugly tears, dripping with dirt and traces of blood as they dribbled over Twi's lips. He coughed when he struggled to draw air into his lungs, which only made him cry harder at how miserable he felt.

A crash echoed in the room above. Twi sniffed as he fought to stop crying. His body tensed, ready for whatever was about to happen. Ears trained on the floor above, listening for voices or further disturbance. Twilight thought he heard someone scream, a man's voice, strangled and desperate. He hoped it was Stinky.

Then there were footsteps running towards his cell door. He heard someone throw back the bolt before kicking the door open.

Twilight's eyes grew wide as relief flooded his body. He felt light, giddy even. If the face staring back at him hadn't been set into a scowl, Twi thought he might have grinned like a madman.

“We got the three thugs upstairs, are there any more Twi?” Time asked briskly.

There was a thunderous look in both of Time's eyes and a faint smattering of blood dappled his left cheek. His hand gripped the sword at his back, ready to attack if an enemy jumped out from the shadows. When Twilight shook his head, Time lowered his hand and made a quick scan of the basement cell.

As he took in Twilight's form, shrunken and cowering against the wall, covered in blood and dirt, Time softened. His anger had fuelled his rampage through the building above, but now he allowed it to fizzle out. Though his frown returned when he noticed the shackle around Twi's neck. As he crossed the room Time dropped to one knee, heedless of the blood and grime seeping into his trousers. Twilight looked in far worse shape than a dirty knee.

“Are you hurt?” Was his first question, as he gave Twilight a cursory look over.

“Nothing I couldn't handle,” Twi sighed, quirking the corner of his mouth.

“Don't give me that. You're going to give me, Hyrule, and the Captain a rundown of all your injuries and you'll subject yourself to healing and rest,” Time insisted, a little shocked by the lightness in Twilight's tone.

“You'll get no arguments from me Old Man,” Twi nodded, dropping his fragile mask of confidence.

“Good, glad to hear it,” Time replied, glad to see that those thugs hadn't completely knocked the sense out of his descendant.

Time lifted a hand to cup Twilight's cheek, but he hesitated when he examined the extent of the bruising on his face. One eye was half closed due to severe swelling and a trickle of blood slowly dripped down from one ear.

“S’alright,” Twilight huffed. “You can't hurt me any worse than they have already.”

Time tried not to think about that and settled for giving Twilight's knee a comforting pat. Though what he wanted to do was gather his descendant in his arms and hold him close to his heart.

“The others are searching more abandoned buildings in the area. I'll go up and see if I can find the keys to get that thing off you.” Time indicated the collar and Twilight couldn't fail to notice the acid in Time's voice as he said the word ‘thing’.

“Okay,” Twilight replied, voice cracking on unshed tears.

This conversation and the realisation that he was being rescued had brought on a wave of exhaustion Twilight hadn't expected. His head began to droop and Time couldn't help but reach out and catch Twilight's head as it tipped to one side.

“Hey, are you with me cub? Will you be alright if I leave you here for just a few minutes longer?”

“Yeah, I'm alright. Go, I'm not going anywhere,” Twilight chuckled in an attempt to further reassure his mentor.

“Okay, I'll try and be as quick as I can,” Time insisted, pushing up to his feet once more.

As Time turned and walked towards the door, Twilight called out to him.

“Check the one that stinks like fish. And if he doesn't want to talk, give him a good kick in the ribs for me.”

Twilight's devious smirk leant speed to Time's steps as he hurried back up to the floor above. Moral code be damned, these men had hurt one of his boys, that made them monsters in his book. And he knew what to do with monsters.

[melefim]

Swearing in Dead Boy Detectives: Episode 2- The Case of the Dandelion Shrine

Episode Overview:

31 total, 9 different words said by 8 characters.

Edwin: 1 Bloody Hell

Charles: 1 Bloody, 1 Bloody Hell, 1 God, 1 Bollocks

Crystal: 6 Shit, 6 God, 1 Jesus

Jenny: 2 Shit

Niko: 1 God

Tabby Cat: 1 Piss

Litty: 3 Fuck, 1 Ass

Kingham: 2 Fuck, 1 Shit, 2 Ass

Curses Per Character:

Edwin: 1

Charles: 4

Crystal: 13

Jenny: 2

Niko: 1

Tabby Cat: 1

Litty: 4

Kingham: 5

Uses Per Word:

Fuck: 5

Shit: 9

Ass: 3

Bloody: 1

Bloody Hell: 2

God: 8

Jesus: 1

Bollocks: 1

Piss: 1

Lines:

Tabby Cat: The Cat King is pissed. We're taking you to him.

Edwin: What the bloody hell is this? (Bracelet)

Crystal: Ok, props for the like, Herculean-level effort, but vandalizing my shit isn't getting us anywhere.

Charles: Oh my god, here we go.

Jenny: Whatever angsty, John Hughes-level bullshit that's going on in here, just do it more quietly.

Crystal: Oh, shit. Sorry. (Almost runs into Niko)

Crystal: Oh my god, holy shit! (Niko collapses)

Crystal: God, I feel lonely too.

Crystal: Jesus, you guys are like a dead married couple on acid.

Crystal: Oh my God! Holy shit, how does today keep getting more disgusting? (Looks at Paranormal Parasitics book)

Crystal: God… (After Edwin asks 'And were there any graves or decaying bodies near her in the woods?')

Crystal: Oh my god, Charles back me up.

Crystal: Oh, shit, uh... (Sees sprite-controlled Niko in butcher shop)

Charles: Bloody Hell. Is this what's gonna happen to Niko?

Charles: I thought you said even Aramaic was easy with a bit of study. Bloody read it.

Charles: Bollocks! (After he breaks the vessel)

Jenny: Just cut the weird shit. Or I'll like evict you

Crystal: Oh my god, Niko! (Niko starts seizing)

Kingham: For real, it smells like dog shit in there.

Litty: Little ghost fucker!

Kingham: Baby trapping asshole!

Crystal: Niko? Holy shit, your hair!

Niko: Oh my god. Are these your friends?

Litty: I'm gonna tell you something, because I think you really need to hear it, okay? You should go fuck yourself.

Kingham: What gives, asshole?

Litty: You know what? You can take that sweater and you can shove it up your ass. Do you have any clue how powerful we are? We are fucking gods!

Kingham: You better hope we never get out of here or we are going to fuck you up, like 'brass knuckles and mace' fuck you up!

Notes:

Not Included:

Litty flips off Charles, Edwin, and Crystal with both hands, and then later Kingham and Litty both flip off Edwin.

Not a curse, but…

A “Bobtail” (What Edwin’s dad would have called Crystal) was slang for a prostitute

An “Unlicked Cub” (What Edwin’s dad would have called Charles) was slang for “A rude uncouth young fellow”

Updated:

- Replaced ‘Uses Per Word’ chart with a version with better labels.

- Added a god from Crystal I missed

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More Dead Boy Detectives Swearing Posts:

Masterlist

Swearing by Episode

Swearing by Character

Swearing by Word

All Swearing Posts

And if you like lists of things like I do, you can check out my other Dead Boy Detectives ones here!

When Charles’ Shirt Colors Change

George Rextrew’s Edwin comic inspo board

Full soundtrack with timestamps

Moves, Incidents, and Cases Masterlist

First pass at finding where the songs in the score are used- full post with timestamps in progress.

[probablyasocialecologist]

The site of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s killing in Jenin has been bulldozed and her shrine desecrated, in an unexplained early-morning operation on 26 October. A surfaced road running between houses has been reduced to huge boulders of broken concrete, and earth dug to over half a meters depth. Vehicles passed up and down the lane. One day after, even walking amid the smashed rocks would be a challenge. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has joined its affiliate, the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate (PJS) in condemning this act of vandalism and recalls on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh.

Not satisfied with murdering her, they've desecrated her memorial.

[catindabag]

TBOSAS on Crack short take (42)

Pres.Ravinstill: My dearest Mentors, in spite of the recent tragic events-

Felix: You mean the Arena Explosion Incident that almost got us killed if not for Palmyra Monty being absent that day?

Pres.Ravinstill: Yes. That one.

Festus: But why are we calling it tragic? Nobody died.

Pres.Ravinstill: Correct! Nobody died except for our government’s budget for reconstruction that is. Now I have to borrow another large sum of money from Monster Cardew- I mean, from Mama Cardew again.😞

Livia: That sounds like good news to me.😌💅

Coryo: Of course it does.🙄

Pres.Ravinstill: However, that is not the reason for why I’m here today-

Androcles: Mr. President, Mr. President, are you here for your missing Bichon Frisé puppy-

Everyone: Andie!

Androcles: Nevermind. I’ll shut up now.

Pres.Ravinstill: As I was saying, I’m here to make an announcement. An important one that will either make or break the future of our country. So Felix, come up here and give your Gran Gran a hug-

Felix: Am I in trouble? If so, just know it wasn’t me. It was Festus-

Festus: Hey! I ain’t no criminal-

Felix: Or Hilarius-

Hilarius: Fair enough.

Felix: And Sejanus.

Sejanus: Coryo! Coryo, my love, they’re bullying me again!😭

Coryo: Babe, please stop crying in front of the President. It’s embarrassing.

Sejanus: Ok. I’ll stop crying if you first give me a kiss.😘

Coryo: On the cheek?

Sejanus: No.

Coryo: On the forehead?

Sejanus: Lower.

Coryo: On the nose?!

Sejanus: Lower.

Coryo: On your chin?!

Sejanus: You know where, Babe.😏

Coryo: I-

Sejanus: Pretty please?🥺

Coryo: Um-

Lysistrata: Kiss him! Kiss him, Coryo! Coryo, please! For the SnowPlinth Fan Club!

Diana: You do know that the President is still here, right?

Felix: Don’t worry about it. My granduncle is part of the SnowPlinth Fan Club. Just look at him.

Pres.Ravinstill: Kiss him! Kiss him, Snow!! Crassus x Strabo forever!

Apollo: Crassus x Strabo?! That’s the wrong SnowPlinth Fan Club!

Felix: Tomato, Potato.

Florus: I beg to differ. That’s-

Coryo: *faints from embarrassment*

Pup: Well, I’ll be off to call the medics again.

Sejanus: *princess carries Coryo* Oh, don’t mind me. Coryo and I will be going home together.🥰

Pres.Ravinstill: Fine. I’ll go straight to the point. Felix, my beloved grandnephew, I am officially promoting you to be my new son and heir.😊

Felix: Wait, what?! Why me?! What happened to my other uncles, aunts, and older cousins?!

Pres.Ravinstill: Fortunately, they were all disowned yesterday.

Felix: Disowned?!

Pres.Ravinstill: Fortunately.

Felix: What about my parents?!

Pres. Ravinstill: Them too. So starting today, you are now my one and only son.🥹

Io: Oh, that’s so sweet!

Juno: ✨Slay✨, Class Pres!

Clemensia: Congratulations, Class Pres!

Iphigenia: Nice one, Class Pres!

Domitia: Let’s party!

Dennis: Food’s on Livia!

Livia: Suck a di-

Felix: Granduncle, are you crazy?! Why would you disown everyone but me?!

Pres.Ravinstill: It’s father now. And Panem, it was quite a funny story-

Felix: Please just tell me the short version.😞

Pres.Ravinstill: Fine. Your parents, uncles, aunts, and cousins had a big fight yesterday-

Felix: That’s just normal-

Pres.Ravinstill: Which escalated so fast that one of them intentionally destroyed one of my rare #SnowPlinth merch and my #Crasca4Ever hate shrine!

Vipsania: The audacity!

Pres.Ravinstill: Sis, you don’t even know the worst thing they did!

Vipsania: What did they do?

Pres.Ravinstill: Those damn ungrateful kids of mine vandalized one of my exclusive Bichon Frisé puppy posters out of spite!😡🔪

Everyone:. . .

Pres.Ravinstill: So I disowned all of them. Lol.

Felix: What the heck?!

Lysistrata: Not the SnowPlinth merch!😭

Pres.Ravinstill: I know! They were all so cruel to commit a crime such as that!

Sejanus: Mr. President, Mr. President, we must swiftly punish-

Pres.Ravinstill: Don’t worry, Mr.

Plinth. I already gave them a befitting punishment for their actions.

Felix: Which is?!

Pres.Ravinstill: Peacekeeper duties for 10 years without pay.😊

Felix: *faints from the shock*

Gaius: Fainting must be trending today.

Urban: You don’t say.😒

[tellusd20]

Another remaster of an older map: a rural shrine to a harvest god sits alongside this crossroads, receiving regular offerings and prayers from travelers and passersby. In times of peace and plenty, the god is crowned with flowers and offerings are piled before it, untouched by thieves. In a time of war and disaster however, the god's shrine has become a target for vandals and thieves, though some faithful (or desperate) travelers still light votive candles.

Changes:

Expanded map from 15x15 to 20x20 grid.

Improved shadows and changed grass boundaries

Added 'fireflies' to night variant of peaceful map.

This map is available to supporters in PNG/VTT format, without watermark, in day/evening/night + grid/gridless variants.

[remuslupinschocolat3]

My stardew valley headcanons because no one can stop me!!!!!!!

Part one

In alphabetical order

Abigail:

💎Bisexual

💎she/they

💎Hates children

💎In a Polycule with Sam and Sebastian

💎Shares a braincell with Sam

💎smoked weed once with Sebastian and threw up afterwards

💎has random beef with Haley that Haley isn't aware of

💎gets piercings just to spite her dad

💎was only good in English class in highschool

💎regrets being on 2020 alt tiktok

💎 secretly vandalizes their father's yoba shrine (he thinks it's Sebastian doing it)

💎their gay awakening was Keira Knightley in Pirates of the Caribbean (she just like me fr)

Alex

🏈the definition of comphet

🏈himbo

🏈gay man/lesbian alliance with Haley

🏈his first crush was the team captain of an Opponent's school gridball team

🏈 doesn't drink alcohol because he's scared to be like his father

🏈he had a pathetic crush on Elliot when Elliot first moved to the valley

🏈has a bottle of the perfume his mother used to wear and sprays it on his pillow when he's sad

🏈used to go to a gym in Zu City but stopped after a boy there asked him out

🏈dated Haley in highschool for half a year until both of them came out to the other in hopes to let the other down gently

Caroline

🍃not a single thought behind those eyes

🍃fell out of love with Pierre ten years ago

🍃grows marijuana plants in her tea house (have you seen her two heart event?)

🍃dyed her hair green once when she was 15 and never tried a different color again

🍃has a few secret tattoos

🍃the necklace she wears is a gift by Rasmodios

🍃best friends with Jodi and Robin

🍃loves to gossip, she knows everyone's business

🍃almost became an almond mom but stopped before it could affect Abigail in the long run

🍃she has no enemies, everyone loves her but hates her husband

Clint (it's red cus he's a red flag)

🔨4chan user

🔨incel

🔨used to tell his mom to make him a sandwich

🔨called his parents by their first names

🔨knows the Irish dance (I don't know what it's called lmao)

🔨can't have friendships with women because he always thinks they fall in love with him

🔨hasn't exercised since he finished highschool

🔨stalks Emily (that's canon) (stay away from her)

🔨can you tell I hate him yet?

Demetrius

🧪is the reason his first marriage failed

🧪controlling and possessive (Maru's two heart event)

🧪so boring

🧪thinks missionary is the only way to have sex

🧪I know people headcanon him as autistic but I think he's just petty

🧪 arrogant, thinks he's smarter than everyone else because he knows science

🧪was actually an okay step father to Sebastian until Maru was born

🧪him and Robin are not compatible but neither of them want to go through a second divorce

Elliot

��� gay and proud

🦀in his mid thirties

🦀 can't swim

🦀 used to write star trek fanfiction as a teenager on fanfiction.net

🦀so fucking tall

🦀went through three separate gender identity crisis before realizing that he just isn't comfortable expressing himself as a stereotypical manly man

🦀demi romantic

🦀gay man/lesbian alliance with Leah

🦀sees Leah as the little sister he never had

🦀 isn't really broke, he's a trustfund baby who wanted to experience what it's like to be a starving artist (thinks it makes his art more valid)

🦀Leah beat him up when she found out

🦀 obsessed with his hair (I'm so jealous of his luscious curls 😭😭😭)

🦀so dramatic (used to be a theater kid for sure)

Emily

🔮the character I headcanon as autistic

🔮 pansexual and asexual

🔮they/she, trans

🔮dating Sandy

🔮knows everyone's zodiac signs

🔮names her plants

🔮gets the zoomies after work (at night)

🔮Haley hates it

🔮Haley's biggest supporter

🔮vegan

🔮thinks of Clint as a genuine friend (save yourself girly pop)

🔮calls Sandy the weirdest nick names "hello my cuddle bear" "it's been too long since we last saw each other my strawberry jam"

🔮suckles on Pennies (she just like me fr)

🔮reads books about crystals for hours on end, Haley has to take the book away from her and drag her to bed sometimes

🔮has befriended the junimos

🔮Sandy sells the clothes she makes

🔮hates the taste of strawberry in candy and stuff

🔮would vape if vapes existed in stardew valley but not in a I'm a thirteen year old boy way but in a I like the taste and I enjoy making smoke rings kinda way

🔮you can't tell me that she's not a pothead

🔮knows Haley is a lesbian years before her sister figures it out

🔮besties with Shane (refuses to sell him alcohol at the Stardrop saloon)

🔮gets extremely flustered around people she deems as attractive

🔮is really bad at doing her own makeup (Sandy or Haley do it for her)

🔮has a huge tattoo that covers almost her entire back

🔮her energy is contagious

🔮high School was very hard for her but college was the best time of her life

🔮wants to buzz her hair so bad but has enough restrain to keep herself from doing so

🔮loves to make cocktails (she makes Gus try them and he always loves them and puts them on his menu)

🔮makes Shane, Sandy and Haley cosplay with her (none of them want to but they can't say no when Emily looks at them with that wide eyed grin of hers)

🔮unleashed a group of rats in JoJa mart because Shane complained once (1 time) about his working conditions, the store closed for two months

🔮can you tell how much I love Emily?

[theriu]

By a stroke of unexpected blessing, I acquired an actual in-store copy of LoZ: Tears of the Kingdom! Behold!

And the natural first thing to do was inform my niece and nephew who are also avidly awaiting it. This was quickly followed by impromptu arrangements for a Cool Aunt Sleepover including said niece and nephew and also another niece and nephew. We took turns playing through the intro and exploring the first map and completely lost track of time! And now, slightly out of context potential spoilers under the cut as I recount our reactions and my favorite moments of the night:

[Link crawling on the ceiling like a lizard while Older Nephew searches for Clues] Zelda: Oh! Link, the master sword is glowing! [Link back on the ground, but tbf she totally could have noticed the sword glowing while he was crawling on the ceiling]

“[Older Nephew], can you PLEASE keep moving?” “I need to click Zelda a fifth time to make sure we got all the dialogue!”

Awwwwww ZELDA IS A LIL HISTORY NERD BLESS HER HEART

“Those rocks are definitely patterned like breakable rocks. I bet we can come back later and break them.” “Yeah they are you’re probably right.” (We were not right.)

Older Nephew: “Just what is Ganon smoking for there to be so much? He must have horrible lung problems.”

Me, totally nervous about upcoming creepy scene: “[Younger Nephew] you’re gonna need to leave pretty soon, this next scene is probably gonna be SUPER CREEPY” (It was indeed creepy but nowhere NEAR as creepy as I expected from the trailers, altho I did close my eyes for the one head-turning part, dont judge me)

Older Nephew: “Yeah, dead Ganon. Ganon without water. Dehydrated Ganon.”

“SO THAT’S HOW THEY RESET HIS STATS”

[Everyone to Younger Nephew] “You can come back in now!”

“Where did his shirt go?” “Magic” “Why are his PANTS gone?” “No idea”

[After finding pants] “Did we miss his shirt?!” [The quest for a shirt continues]

“The portal is down there—“ “I KNOW I’m EXPLORING”

Link really just walked up to a giant drop into open air without his parasail and went “Time to yeet,” no answers given and no questions asked. Classic.

“Giant lilypads!”

“I found a STICK!”

“NEW MUSHROOMS!!!”

[Everyone while Older Niece was breaking pots] “Destroy ancient relics! Demolish personal property for cash! Commit vandalism!”

Older Niece decides her talents are better served livetexting our progress on Discord.

Younger Niece is delighted that the new fuzzy race have big wing-shaped ears like her original character and is now calling Rauru her grandfather.

“I bet you can ride the emus!” (You can’t and I’m still mad about it)

[While I am searching a tree for eggs] Older Nephew: “Are there any eggs? Do we get to consume a bird’s children-to-be?”

Younger Nephew ends turn early because he hasn’t learned how to hit yet and there is an enemy robot RIGHT OVER THERE. Understandable, really.

Older Nephew slides down to explore dangerous ledge hovering over the abyss. Younger Nephew, repeatedly: “This is dumb.” Me: “Yeah, it is.” Older Nephew: [finds a hidden chest] Me: “Never mind!”

Older Nephew has dubbed first hand power Magic Superglue. I don’t remember what it’s actually called, so apparantly it stuck (ha!)

“THE KOROKS ARE BACK!” [cheering]

The children cheering me on as I fuse six giant blocks into SUPER BRIDGE

Accidentally glueing comically small-by-comparison crate to the very corner of Super Bridge

Younger Niece gets jumpscared by an emu BOLTING out of the trees RIGHT AT THE SCREEN. Gameplay paused while room recovers from laughing fits.

“We can FUSE STUFF INTO NEW WEAPONS?!! This is the BEST THING EVER!!!” [Older Nephew and Younger Niece conduct rigorous experiments resulting in some actually cool weapons, a stambulb arrow, and an apple stick.]

REVENGE OF YOUNGER NEPHEW: Comes out of shrine and destroys a robot in two hits with Boulder Sword.

[After 2 1/2 hours] “WE FOUND HIS SHIRT!!!” [cheering]

“You hit the fans to make them work!” [Older Nephew forgets to unequip ax and obliterates half the raft]

Utterly delighted over discovering the glow seed arrow trick myself while ineffectively trying to kill a robot.

Younger Niece: “How come you always find the eggs?” Me: I’m just that good. It’s because I own birds.”

[Group hilarity] “MINE CART SHIELD!”

[Group insanity] “MINE CART HAMMER!!!!”

And that’s when I looked at the clock and realized it was 1:30 in the morning, so we wrapped up and went to bed. AND A GOOD TIME WAS HAD BY ALL!

[beardedmrbean]

A 65-year-old American tourist has been arrested in Japan after being accused of vandalizing a shrine.

Steve Lee Hayes was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of property damage, a Tokyo Metropolitan Police spokesperson told TheJapan Times.

Hayes is accused of “carving the alphabet with his fingernails” into the wooden pillar of Meiji shrine gate in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward around 11am on Tuesday, police told the outlet.

The 65-year-old admitted he “wrote his family members’ names” on the pillar, the outlet reported.

The incident occurred during the tourist’s family trip to Japan. It’s not immediately clear if his family was with him when he allegedly carved their names into the shrine.

Investigators were able to track down Hayes from surveillance footage and he was detained at his hotel in Tokyo, the outlet noted.

Hayes faces up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 300,000 yen ($1,900) for the alleged vandalism, CNN reported.

The Meiji shrine is a Shinto shrine that “was established in 1920, to commemorate the virtue of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken who took the initiative to make a foundation of modernized Japan,” according to its website.

Torii gates are often found at the entrance to Shinto shrines that symbolize the transition from the everyday world to the sacred.

The incident comes as a surge of tourists have visited Japan in 2024; more than 24 million tourists have traveled to the country from January through August this year, according to Japan National Tourism Organization.