#shuffle it up baby

[ratatatastic]

i just love how rumpled he looks we joke mackie got woken up and shoved out of the hotel into the arena but have we considered it looks like bobby should be snug as a bug in a rug with a sleep cap and bunny slippers on right now and not in a hockey rink

[swan2swan]

ARE YOU SERIOUS???

[rindomness]

In honor of me finishing the first draft of the Phanshuffle fic, here's the updated Thief designs for them all. I'm saving real-world redesigns for the Strikers fic that has, somehow, inexplicably, sprouted up in my wips.

Please please feel free to ask me any questions about them. I'm obsessed with this AU. It is my baby. There's strikers stuff now in case you missed that at the top and I really want to talk about it.

[jollyreginaldrancher]

More sussy (Yellowjackets) shuffles

I preemptively apologise for these

[an-inspired-eternity]

apt summary of secret distance in this au

[paradisepoisoned]

“Bang! Bang! That awful sound…”

This was just supposed to be a quick doodle, but as you can see… I got a little carried away.

P.S: Curse you @brothercrush for saying it better than I ever could. You saw the vision.

“BOYKING WHO WILL NEVER BE HIS DADDY.” 🖤

[luvrodite]

oh it’s so over for me😖😔

[a-strange-inkling]

2004:

Chrissy: I just don’t know why she’s so upset today.

Eddie: Probably because it’s her time of the month.

Chrissy: *amazed* How on earth do you know that?

Eddie: The Evanescence covers.

Maggie: *screaming from the next room, her electric guitar blaring* I’M GOING UNDER!!!!DROWNING IN YOU!!!!!!

[autumnsup]

In my broody end-of-summer sadness era today, compliments of Leonard Cohen, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Air, and--you may have guessed--LDR.

[carbonateddelusion]

some more thoughts about Andromeda's conservatorship:

their conservator has legal ownership of them and everything they represent. it started off as them becoming their guardian when they were itty bitty, but after a bad episode that was unfortunately public, they were coaxed into the conservatorship they're currently in. it wasn't a huge change honestly though because they were already used to being so restricted in everything they do. they're EXTRAORDINARILY sheltered, and not just in a "you haven't had to experience bad things" way.

I think their conservator/guardian is a normal dude when they're not working with Andro. they have a husband and some fur babies, nieces and nephews they love very much, and are all-around seen as a charitable, good person by the media, although as reclusive as Andromeda themself is. they've compartmentalized their mistreatment of Andromeda. Andromeda is a brand, a thing, they aren't a person to them anymore- maybe they were in the beginning, but certainly not now. they make their job "easier" by thinking of Andromeda less as someone with needs and more of a checklist minimum of things they have to accomplish in order to maintain the brand by keeping the icon compliant.

[septembersghost]

I saw a comment on reddit that said they love taylor swift the musician and artist, they care about and respect what they know about taylor the person, but they really, really dislike Taylor Swift the Celebrity and that's where I'm at. I can't stand the attention whoring and the pap walks and the constant headlines and her feeding into it on purpose with her dating life and her friends and everything again after years of growth and privacy. it's exhausting. I love her artistry and when we get to see her true self, but I don't like the PR machine and wish she'd give it a rest. She's already the most popular, successful pop star right now. She doesn't have to do this much.

oh this is such an interesting topic, and there's more to unpack in this than i can probably address properly, but the first thing i will say is: you don't have to like the celebrity® stuff to love and enjoy her music, appreciate her artistry, and respect the parts of her true human self that we're aware of (ie: what she has shared herself, what fellow artists/collaborators have said, how she treats others, like workers, her documented kindness to fans, her generosity, her humor, etc).

it's a tricky thing because taylor the artist, taylor the woman, and taylor swift™ the brand are all intertwined, but they're not the same, and the brand aspect - the marketing, the planned photos and arranged articles, the business savvy, the vinyl variants (idc about this but i know some do), is far further away from the real person than the music itself is, which is a much more intimate, vulnerable extension of her. yet they have to exist in tandem, because you cannot gain the massive success she has without selling that, without playing that game and being calculated in the media. this is true of any very famous musician, they have to craft that and market it.

i know i have quoted this a lot by now, but: "the image is one thing and the human being is another. it's very hard to live up to an image."

the celebrity aspect is often uncomfortable, because by nature of its glitz and hugeness (the monster on the hill), it is more devoid of the personhood. (this is actually one of my stumbling blocks with midnights, because it's very much an album of taylor regarding celebrity and fame, as she was clearly grappling with that and how to engage with it, but it's a less accessible topic and generally leaves me feeling that distinct barrier.) the wealth, play-by-plays of her dinners, constant coverage of where she is (when she's not performing or doing something publicly related to her art, it's not actually our business), news outlets using her for clicks, other brands using her for clout, the pap walks, the general fame aura of the whole thing, it is exhausting. i love her, i respect and admire her talent/creativity/dedication/work ethic, i don't need to see her in every news app, and i don't think it's healthy.

taylor the human has certainly made mistakes, because that's the nature of living and having human flaws, but some of those have been in service to the celebrity (a condition which we know has hurt her in the past). taylor the celebrity attends events and plays to the camera, taylor the celebrity knows when to deal with the paparazzi, taylor the celebrity can have google create puzzles to serve taylor the artist and let the fans have fun. taylor the person has given introspective, honest interviews, taylor the person lays herself into those lyrics and the artistry, but that and the image blur together because it's her constant state of existence. lyrics are poetry set to music, so while hers are often diaristic, they also condense, and alter, and take poetic license to turn those experiences into song.

but taylor the very real human being, who wakes up in the morning and brushes her hair and makes her coffee - we do not know her. we do not ever see her, the moment she steps into public view, that shift has to happen. we do not ever interact with her. and she is not for us. she is not our friend, nor our personal property. we have no right to any aspect of her life. taylor who stands onstage and shares her meaningful connection with us and talks about our shared relationship and love, that's the artist, and there is nothing wrong with caring about her and being excited about her and following her work and discussing its content. however, she does not go home in the night to us in her living room, and that's how it's supposed to be! we are not a replacement for her inner circle of loved ones. we cannot provide her support or company in her quiet moments, in the private times when she leans on the people around her. "yas queen"ing her success or her genius strategies or her street style is not real interaction, it's being a fan. that's fine! i certainly do that and it's great! i enjoy seeing her succeed. i will analyze and discuss her music and what it tells us, i will talk anytime about how much her music means to me and how it's helped save me and how dearly close i hold it and how i love her for that, and it's a real form of love, we are perfectly capable of loving someone we don't know and that remaining healthy. don't cross boundaries of idolization, obsession, stalking, it's all good. if we use the dreaded word - parasocial - there are studies about those bonds being positive things and helpful for people! it's not only a negative term, it's all about boundaries and recognition of reality. if we could know the real person, our dynamic towards her would immediately change.

the problem i think you're struggling with (if it's okay for me to say so) is dissonance because we have not experienced this level of bombardment with the celebrity for many years, and it feels a little jarring, even a little false, regardless of intent. she had successfully been much more private for a while (and lessened some of the worse aspects of the media intrusion and fans' invasive bad behavior, which sadly has all ramped up again), and now she's chosen to change that strategy. that's her prerogative, it comes with its benefits and its downsides. hopefully she's finding a new sense of balance and safety with it. my suggestion is to ignore the aspects that are bothering you and prioritize what you love and what feels enriching. you do not have to engage with all facets of the fandom at all times. it's not required, there's no test here in being a fan. you love the music? that's enough. you need to block out gossip and tabloid fodder for a while? that's completely fine. you find yourself annoyed at stuff happening in the fandom? (same. the lack of perspective, media literacy, boundaries, the cruel, immature commentary towards others, i'm over it and disappointed in a lot of people on my dash tbh.) utilize your filters and prioritize whatever you need. those interactions are always up to you.

hang in there, we've got an incredible october coming up with the eras film and 1989 tv. anything else is noise. the art and the music is beautiful and exciting, and we're so lucky to be spoiled with that like we are. look forward to the positive things, i promise that's worth it.

[asurrogateblog]

top 5 beatles songs

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

2. Strawberry Fields Forever

3. Baby, You're a Rich Man

4. A Day in the Life

5. I am the Walrus

=================

okay okay top five NOT in either sgt. peppers or mystery tour (no particular order):

In My Life

2. Ob-la-di Ob-la-Da

3. Tomorrow Never Knows

4. Here Comes the Sun (esp. the Love mix)

5. If I Fell

[jackinalex]

Thinking about how fucking cute (and also hot) Alex was in the Poppin’ music video

[sonknuxadow]

gary i need to have the experience of playing sonic frontiers for the first time again

[ratqueenbee]

Immaculate vibes

[rockaesthetic]

Hazza 🥹💚