#situations where you should learn German:

[reconstructionbaby]

if there's one thing to learn from me. it's that it's a complete waste of time to learn german. please don't do it

[rei-ismyname]

Uncanny X-Men #10 review

Well, ten issues in and we finally hear something substantive from Nightcrawler. The Outliers are still being attacked by the Wolfpack sentinels after Ground Bear and Jubilee bailed, the Graymalkin Podcaster clown show continues, and Moonbeam and Gambit go on a date mostly off panel. It looks pretty good but it's unfocused and shallow. The Outliers are the stars and the absence of Rogue/Gambit was refreshing. There's fart jokes?

Nightcrawler thinks to himself that he doesn't want to go back to being an X-Man, except he is an X-Man, isn't he? Realistically, he's having the same doubts everyone else has had. They were left unresolved and brushed aside so I'm not going to spend much time on this. Fool me thrice.

Anyway, he's painting a roof with Chelsea, who ends up being a mutant. Great, just what this book needs more of 🙄. She's probably the wisest person here who knows the mall is a bad idea. Kurt is really enjoying this place as a 'home' that's 'healing him.' How? Doesn't matter. He's just saying words and I wonder why he's even in the book. The lady whose kid he rescued rocks up with homemade German pastries for him which is a nice moment but it's not a substitute for character development. Things happen to him, mostly.

Meanwhile, Deathdream is bleeding out at the mall and The Outliers are rallying. The adult X-Men are feeling like a bit of a distraction tbh. The kids are being developed the most, learning, growing, making choices. It's great for them, but it's an awkward situation if you want more than the barest development of The X-Men. I look back on the first arc and how much time was spent flashing back to Xavier and Sarah Gaunt. No idea what degree of editorial meddling there is, but I find it hard to believe Gail Simone would intentionally take focus off the main characters to that degree.

Jitter uses her powers to become a master combat medic for sixty seconds and takes charge. For some reason the Wolfpack just aren't attacking them right now, despite having a taste for blood and no master.

Calico has her heroic moment and aims to distract the Wolfpack. Ransom is hunting for a needle to save Deathdream and stops to cheer her on despite the ticking clock. Said clock ticks down and he's just a little bit too late, so Jitter is relying on memory. Sure. The 'if X happens, run and leave me' moment is the 5th time this beat has been played this run, and it gets the same response each time. There's value in repetition but I'm not seeing any formalism or thematic purpose here, so it just feels repetitive. Don't get me wrong, the kids are the best part of the book, but I don't get these choices. It's the kind of thing even a parody of action cliché should be embarrassed doing - and it loses power each time.

Time's up! We check in with Graymalkin, where the same dynamic as last time is escalating after the incident hits the news. Trask wouldn't kill kids because of his family history, apparently. Maybe he's referring to his sister, but that's a stretch. He had no problem with basically enslaving Juston Seyfert for his sentinel program. Whatever, maybe it's some new shit. The podcaster isn't happy, and keeps telling him to shut them down, something he's established he can't do. Not sure what was gained by including this.

Okay, Nightcrawler sees the Wolfpack situation on the news (TF are Logan and Jubilee?) He is obviously going to teleport there to meet them, but he stops for thoughts and prayers in a life or death scenario. DEEEEEP BREATH. Fucking really? Yeah, Kurt is Catholic, though he has spent the last few years having a major crisis of faith. He's also an experienced hero and pointedly not an idiot. Stopping to pray when kids you're responsible for are probably being torn to shreds is not something he would do, ever. It's embarrassing and frankly highlights why he shouldn't be in this book. Kurt Wagner is a complex, well-rounded individual. In this book he's been portrayed with 'is religious' as his defining character trait. I hate to go there but I'm dubious that Simone knows a damn thing about him - besides 'religious guy.' All that aside, if you only have room for a single flat character trait, take them out of the book. Kill him if you need to because this is painful. That would free up space for other characters to have beliefs, motivations etc.

Jitter is going off memory and Calico is regulating. The memory is fading and Ember is down though. After encouragement from Ransom Jitter does the Pulp Fiction thing anyway - Calico lapses into despair, repeating her mother's abusive nonsense.

Nevermind, Ember is fine and so is Deathdream. More than fine even. Right as rain. Ransom is reinventing the fastball special except with Ember kicking him in the heart.

Logan and Jubilee finally show up to protect the kids they're responsible for. They're held up by a barricade and a cop. Okay this must be a shape shifter or something because I don't see Logan even asking for permission, let alone wasting time arguing with this bozo. He'd leap the barrier, or slice it. Famously he does not give a fuck and is very willing to use violence. If you thought that was bad, Jubilee convinces the cop and then wastes time flirting with him. Flirting with a cop while their charges are fighting sentinels. I guess now that she's abandoned her baby in Otherworld she's got time to date. This is unserious shit.

I wish I had the gall to follow up that waste of time with 'we're not gonna make it.' This run isn't going to make it. Kurt beats them there and has his second most substantial conversation of the run. With a killer robot dog. He teleports it into the sky and kicks it without hurting himself. Maybe Calico softened them up since last issue.

Jitter and Deathdream seem fucked with two Wolfpack sentinels racing towards them. Ransom and Calico check in, while informing us that Ransom is who they look up to. I mean, she's been doing all the fighting and Ransom was going to leave last issue but sure. Why not? He does throw a robot dog at Logan for him to slice, that's leader shit. If I was being generous I'd say it's a callback to Fall of the House of X #1, where Colossus did the same thing with an ORCHIS soldier. It doesn't matter because Deathdream suddenly figures out he can kill them all. Easily. It's loosely explained and I don't care enough to quibble. His powers are established and they apparently include a healing factor too.

With that, the threat is over. They got them all, together. Right. Logan compliments Ransom who asks not to be called 'kid.' I guess he's the man now, dawg. The mutants are hailed as heroes by local news and The Podcaster is not happy. They've finally tracked down the idiot responsible for this debacle, and she sends him to be tortured. The private sector is rough. I still don't know what the Podcaster's actual deal is, she's all over the place and I can't fathom why anyone obeys or fears her. What does she want aside from a mutant prison?

This book lacks consequences. The adults keep making huge mistakes that other people suffer for yet they get bailed out. It's narrative 101 - if your characters make a mistake they should have to deal with the fallout. They learn and grow. Rogue hasn't made a good decision yet and her team are complimenting her - directly after a prison break with no plan where she spent her time punching Scott. They sent the kids to school and Calico was kidnapped in an hour. Logan and Jubilee fucked up so badly here the kids nearly died. One actually did, but luckily it didn't stick. Kurt is praying and Jubilee is flirting while they're fighting for their lives. These actions aren't being used as mistakes to learn from, they're just things that happen. There's no tension because nothing really matters. No matter what they do things work out and they're hailed as heroes. Personally, I want more out of the flagship X-Men book.

When the wisest person in the book is 6 years old, it hangs a lampshade on how cartoonishly everyone is behaving. I'm thinking that's the point. The ragtag misfits have goofy adventures that seem like the end of the world at the time, but it's just Tuesday. It's the fun book where you don't have to think hard. Moonbeam, Ground Bear, and the Podcaster. PTSD, let's never talk about it again. Diction lessons, sugah. Let's pray.

A look at the letters page tells us everyone is loving the book, and they're definitely real people that aren't cherry picked. Good for them and good for you if you're enjoying it. I'm not loving it, but I'm not hating it. It exhausts me a little but I do enjoy reviewing it. Thanks for reading, Ground Bears.

[hyperions-light]

Good riddance to that mess: Thank the Dread Wolf we’re done with the Mage-Templar conflict

(because magic in Thedas is more interesting this way)

Okay the people who love conflict have won and I am going to talk about this now lol

I've decided to stick within the framework of the world/story for this particular post, because I think you could talk about the issues with the mages/templars in connection with how they relate to real-life groups for an entire essay AT LEAST, and I want to focus on magic here, so I don't think it's that germane to the discussion. If you all want to talk about that later, I can put it on the pile.

It turns out that Jenny Nicholson was 100% right about the efficacy of numbered lists on the internet, so this essay will be hybridized into a list. Here are the reasons I'm glad the mage-templar conflict is gone and hope it never returns:

It limits storytelling avenues I understand how they arrived at this dichotomy as the logical extrapolation of a minority of people in Thedas being born with magic BUT it's very boring and it doesn't facilitate interesting stories. If you have this strict system and hierarchy that means that every mage has to live in the tower or they're a) a criminal or b) Dalish, that seriously limits the kind of characters you can make who are mages, which is dull as both a player and a writer.

Trying to make it nuanced is difficult Attempting to show that everyone has a point in a situation is difficult when one group has absolute power over the other and can kill them whenever they feel like it. Also, with the abuses the Templars regularly perpetuate against the mages established in DAO and DA2 any attempted justification reads as the story sanctioning an oppressive force. If they try to demonstrate the danger of magic, they end up with the 10,000 blood mage problem from DA2. It's a hard thing to do within the framework they set up, but they also haven't been particularly successful with it, imo, so abandoning it is a better choice.

It's the most reductive version of the conflict Reducing the entire discussion to whether magic is good or evil, whether mages should be free or confined is really boring. It's a false dichotomy that promotes extremism in characters on either side of the conflict who never interact with one another. "Is magic bad?" is a useless and uninteresting question. Who cares? What does it do?; Where did it come from?; What different ways can you use it? are all better questions.

Makes it difficult for the audience to learn more about magic If the only characters the audience ever meets are people who come from the Circle, Dalish mages, and apostates, the amount they're going to learn about different perspectives on magic and its various uses is limited. Part of the reason Jaws of Hakkon was such an interesting DLC for DAI is because the Avvar have a completely different philosophy about magic and spirits. It was refreshing after several games of having the same ideas about magic shoved down our throats to hear someone give a different perspective and ACTUALLY NEW information. Everything I needed to know about the mage-templar conflict, I already knew by the end of DAO, but I had to sit through two more entire games while people discussed it at length.

Magic in the North is fascinating Now that we're finally rid of that conflict, look how many different kinds of magic we get to see in DATV! We get to meet a Rivaini Seer, a Mortalitasi (who can use magic to TALK TO REAL DEAD PEOPLE!!!), a non-Altus mage from the Tevinter Imperium; we get to see magic as it was utilized by the ancient elves and how it interfaces with technology. We got DWARF MAGIC!! Finally, an answer to what Sandal was doing! We found out you can use it to turn yourself into a LICH!!! All of that stuff is so cool, and we had never encountered it before this game! It brings up so many new questions about the nature of the Fade, the source of magic itself, the strength of magic in Thedas relative to other places in the world. And NONE of it could be discussed in the South because they are too busy arguing about fucking towers!!!

tl;dr: The mage-templar conflict was a boring and reductive lens through which to view magic in the DA universe, I'm glad it's gone, I hope they continue what they started in DATV and explore different ways magic can be used in the future.

[museofzia]

hi zia!! i’m also a tokio hotel shifter and have been for about 2 years now. i haven’t shifted but i will soon. i’m currently stuck on what to do for my dr so i’ll just give a quick run-down and i’m hoping you can help me since you’ve shifted so many times and know what the whole “tokio hotel environment” is like.

so basically, ever since i’ve learned of shifted (before i knew who tokio hotel was), i’ve had a hard time keeping one storyline because i constantly have new ideas and try to incorporate everything i want into one dr because i’m just more comfortable with one dr (for now). anyways, in my current dr i’m a famous singer and as i’ve said before, it’s a tokio hotel dr. of course i’m going to be friends with the band but i’m just wondering if you have any ideas on how i could make the whole situation work—being a singer from america while knowing and being friends with a band from germany and still being able to be around them often. so far i’ve come up with the idea that maybe i had to switch companies or wtv you call them—from an american one to a german one, and that’s why i have to spend time there. but even if i do that, it won’t be forever and i still might not be able to see the band that often. i understand it has to be realistic and everything and obviously i’m gonna be away for them for some time, which i’m completely fine with. part of me is contemplating if i should just switch to be a part of tokio hotel myself but then i wonder what it would be like to be the only girl and if that would bother me or cause problems and also what role i would even play in the band. sorry this is so long lol but as i said, you’re obviously very experienced and creative so if you have any ideas please please lmk! tysmmm!

haiiiii!!!! as someone who shifts to be in Tokio Hotel but embarked a solo career, its possible, but its not.. easy. there's the simple things such as scripting that TH resides wherever you reside, but then it might take away from the culture, wouldn't it? here's my experiences! I take flights every few months to switch between Korea, Germany, and America. it's tiring, yes, so thats why I usually plan a quarterly schedule depending on the tasks I have. when recording albums or focusing on my solo career, I focus on residing in Korea, where I can attend most events and have access to hang out with my family and family friends more often. my team and my studio is there, and thats where I can set myself more into my solo singing career. Whenever I have tasks to get to regarding the band, I make sure to finish the highlighted tasks in Korea before flying to Germany, where I can talk more with the band and focus on recording, running errands, and spending time with my boyfriend. this schedule becomes tedious at some point, which is why I put my focus more on the band than anything else. around the earlier days of my career, I focused more on my solo career, but now my priorities lie with the band, which is why spending time in Germany is a bit more frequent than anything else.

In the band, I play keyboard. It adds enhancement to the music, but it doesn't play the largest role. fun fact-- the alarm in the beginning of Schrei? I use my keyboard to do that in concerts .. hehe :-) *blaaare* being the only girl in Tokio Hotel becomes a burden in the first few days. I actually got enormous amounts of both hate and love, but I focused on the hateful aspects more-- as one does. some of the craziest experiences plot off of people just thinking I was a prostitute that slept with everyone in the band. helloooo? no? only the singer. /hj . . It becomes uncomfortable if the rumors begin to bleed into how the band interacts, but we're over that stage now. I think the main thing I focus on now is the feeling of living with 4 boys. ew ew ew. I did script one other girl in the band now, woohoo! but before that, it was sickening. SICKENING!!!! first day I moved in, they threw a prank on me and I cried :-( not because they made me sad, but I was so homesick, and I got very angry at them.. its okay though, because otherwise, they're quite peaceful as roommates, but we are all prone to stress and arguments. bill and tom tend to argue a lot, actually. natural brotherly things. I argue with tom the most-- we are some of the most expressive and opinionated people.. but tom just never knows when to shut his mouth.. other than that, it'll be fine. it'll take some getting used to, but ive got it down, so so will you. thank you for reaching out!! I always like talking about tokiohotel!! my found family :-D

[miyaz6ki]

may i ask (politely) for a chuuya x reader where his lover is just like- in the nicest way possible, a mix of a german shepard person and a calico cat. They are just the sweetest person, yet also can get upset if called out or someone insults those close to them (as in full on plotting a murder but is too sweet to actually go through with it) like just a normal day story pls- if they were also a pm member I'd love you to the moon-

─── my only one, moon and sun..

𝜗𝜚 synopsis. the sweetest ever!!!... plus chuuya i guess /j (chuuya x really nice reader

𝜗𝜚 pairings. chuuya x gn!reader

𝜗𝜚 director's notice. HIII I LOVE THIS IDEA SM. ty for sending this in. IM SO SORRY THAT I COULDN'T MAKE READER A PM MEMB I COULDN'T FIND A SILLY NICE CUTE WAY TO WRITE FOR THEM :( i wanted to do like a lil story b4 the actual thing so i'm sorry.. you can say i got a little carried away (i forgot the prompt) follow & rb to support ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ

pre-relationship!chuuya who was surprised by how undeniably sweet you were to him. didn't you know how dangerous he was?

pre-relationship!chuuya who had just helped you from a robber who tried to snatch your bag. you were just sweet enough to invite him out for dinner as a thank you

and boy was pre-relationship!chuuya all over the idea. although enamoured by the mere thought of being out with someone who was everything he ever looked for in someone, he kept refusing, not wanting to take up any of your precious time. but you were stubborn, and firmly insisted on taking him out. and god did he like that.

pre-relationship!chuuya who'd already forgotten the meeting he was supposed to attend at 7:00pm sharp. it's already 8 and he's still talking with you. but of course, he didn't wanna make the interest too obvious, but subtle enough to notice.

and finally when you two exit the restaurant, pre-relationship!chuuya's eyes can't help but broaden as you tell him 'thank you'. damn he hasn't heard that in forever. awkwardly had to look away, gosh this was the first- no it wasn't even a damn date! and his face was already dusted with pink.

"look it's fine.. really it is.. it's what any good person would've done seeing your situation." ( ˶°ㅁ°) !! "but i still want to say it. i still want to tell you thank you. not many people are good nowadays, you know." (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶ )

although before pre-relationship!chuuya didn't wanna make it obvious, definitely wanted another dinner like this with you.

"...say how about i walk you home? the least i could do after dinner. wouldn't want your purse/bag to get stolen again do we?" (˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧ a brief chuckle from you, and a smile forms. damn is it just him or were you just smiling at him? "sure! chuuya right?" "y-yeah! yeah! yes!"

safe to say that wouldn't be the last time pre-relationship!chuuya walked you home. he'd make sure it wasn't at least.

boyfriend!chuuya who suddenly had the need to let you spend all his money. even if you refused. that's so honestly why he fell for you in the first place.

boyfriend!chuuya who followed you into any store you went to, card in hand, and suggested to buy anything you picked up.

boyfriend!chuuya who was minding his own business while accompanying you to the cute little fruit mugs over there 'till two rude girls who were suddenly arriving in the same aisle as you both were in

"oh my gosh.. no way that girl is going out with a man so small.." "yeah literally.. i would never have said yes. can't believe there are actually women that prefer men below 6ft!"

boyfriend!chuuya's whose eyes twitched hearing what they'd just said, but then decided not to mind them. if he'd learned anything from you, he wouldn't say anything back.

but you never said you wouldn't talk back.

"what do you mean? he's nicer than your deadbeat father for sure."

the two girls gave a look of disgust but quickly left. and your expression, well more like your demeanor changed as they did.

"we should get the banana and strawberry ones, right? let's match!" "huh? oh yeah sure."

boyfriend!chuuya is still stunned from what you said, but ended up just muttering an "yeah sure" before you both paid and left the store.

boyfriend!chuuya who asked why did you defend him, even when you weren't trashtalked about, after you both left and got ice cream.

"well we're partners now right? no one should talk about you like that. besides, you aren't that short." ٩(^ᗜ^ )و ´- "of course i am not!!" ୧(๑•̀ᗝ•́)૭

boyfriend!chuuya who loves it so much when you defend him after that interaction. you aren't afraid to assert yourself to others. you aren't afraid to tell them something bad in return. and damn was it hot to see how you looked confronting anyone who had insulted either of you two.

boyfriend!chuuya who's so in love with you what a silly little guy

GN ITS BEEN SO LONG SINCE I'VE WRITTEN FOR BSD..! i hope this was somewhat coordinated with the prompt dear anon

[quillusquillus]

How 2 Phone

I often see my fellow neurodivergent and/or younger friends absolutely crippled by the inability to make even simple phone calls, and it was perplexing to look at myself and find that for the most part- despite all traits indicating I SHOULD struggle with this too (as I struggle deeply with in-person convos)- I do not. Then I realised that this is because at a very young age my mum sat me down and TAUGHT me how to do it, step by step, so I'm going to relay what she taught me and hope it will help somebody the way it helped me.

DISCLAIMER: this was learned originally in the context of the UK and it's something I still use effectively for german calls in Switzerland. I don't know what americans do maybe they have secret phone codes I don't know, adapt as needed I guess

---

First thing to remember is that, if you are calling some kind of office or support or business or organisation of any kind: they are doing this ALL DAY, even if you fuck up as spectacularly as it's possible to fuck up and stumble over every single word, you are still just a blip in their workday of many many many calls. they will not care.

Second thing to remember is that because they're doing these calls all day, all they actually want from you is the information to complete the task you give them. You don't have to be a ~conversationalist~ or even particularly friendly. Generally speaking you can just apply the following template to every call, and just be a very basic level of not-rude and say your thankyous and that's all you need

Third thing: Though not necessary, it's useful to develop a "phone voice" where you sit up straight and speak extra clearly and brightly, like you're in a theatre play. This makes you easy for the other person to understand (especially on bad lines), and reminds you that it's all a repetitive sequence of lines like a script and this is NOT a social situation.

THE TEMPLATE:

(a possible step 0 is getting through the auto line, which is just pushing buttons so I'm gonna assume we've got through that already as well as the deep fried hold music and a real person has now answered the phone)

"Hello, my name is [firstname lastname] and I'm calling because [reason]." --- Reason for this step: they need your name because they need to know how to address you on the call, and telling them the context for the call will help them know what to do next. They too have "templates" and have usually done them many many times, they just need to know which one they need to select for this call. I say this exact phrase the same way every time I make a call like this: a strong opener can help your confidence and you can practice it off call if you like. Don't treat it like a conversation, just say the whole thing and move to step 2

Stop and wait for instructions and/or questions --- Reason for this step: Now it's the other person's turn to figure things out, and you are in the passive role. This is when you get asked things like customer number, date of birth, doctor's name etc., all the things that they need to look up on their computer. This will go on until they have all the details they need and then they will move to the next step.

They will ask you again about your reason for calling, answer in exactly the same way as before or go into greater detail as needed. --- Reason for this step: The first time you did this was like the movie trailer that let them vaguely know what to expect, this one is where you have their full attention and they will begin to handle your task. You didn't mess up the first time they just needed to get all their questions out of the way first and are now clear for your queries.

More details, figuring out stuff, getting transferred --- This is the most chaotic and unpredictable step because it will be different for every call and varies depending on what you're trying to do. Good luck, and repeat steps 2 and 3 as needed (or start again from 1 if you get transferred)

When done, they will ask you "is there anything else I can help you with?" --- Reason for this step: Sometimes people will call with several things they want to do at once (open a credit card account AND check their balance, for example) and so this is part of their call template. Feel free to give this a few seconds of consideration: I like to pretend to think even when I know I have nothing, because sometimes I DO randomly think of a question I'd like to ask, or it's just a nice cooldown moment to gather my thoughts. A common question I find myself asking is "do I need to bring anything?" for when I make appointments. 99.9% of the time I don't need to bring anything, but having the confirmation of "no, you don't" gives me some extra peace of mind.

"Okay, thank you very much, have a nice day!" --- Reason for this step: This lets them know that you're going to end the call, and they'll respond in kind and (usually) hang up first. Sometimes they may jump in with a "you may receive a rating form/call/whatever to rate the service you received on this call", just let them get this out of the way (they are required to say it), say "okay, thank you, I will!" and repeat your goodbye a second time. This closing farewell is another thing you can say exactly the same way every time, and you can practice off call if you like.

That's it! In my experience very very few official phonecalls will deviate from this format, and even if the person on the other end is being unusual you can generally just barge ahead and impose it on them and they will fall in line lol

[actual-changeling]

i was going to put this at the end, but it got long and a lot of people won't read that far.

right here you can find a german website that is filled with interviews of people talking about the history they lived through:

many of these recordings are decades old, and you can start listening to real stories told by real people who were there all the way back to 1914. you also have interviews with important historical figures, both political and cultural.

they're hosted on youtube so either have your own way of translating them or use the english subtitles; i combed through a few and they're pretty good. zeitzeugen, which roughly translates to time witnesses, are a big part of our remembrance culture, and they should be a part of yours.

especially interviews about the propaganda and how it worked should be a must watch because so much of it could be said today, like "when even elon musk the french did the hitlergruß we all thought 'well hitler can't be that bad if even they are supporting him'".

it's too late to win back the fascists but there are many people you CAN turn away from it if you know what to tell them.

i don't usually talk about politics on here because i need the escapism but it's been on my mind constantly and i gotta let it out somewhere. if you're interested in details on the immigration system in europe and why you should care you can find what i originally wanted to say under the cut.

i wish people that hate immigrants would actually. talk to one. because all the racist shit aside they have a fundamental misunderstanding of how seeking asylum actually works once you reach the border. they think people get money thrown at them for doing nothing, that they "refuse" to work, that they're "criminals" and all that shit.

even most people that aren't fascists don't have an understanding of the legal hoops they have to jump through, so bear with me while i rant about politics for a hot minute. i'm begging americans to pay some attention too.

imagine you're seeking asylum in germany because your home country is not safe anymore. imagine you're fleeing because otherwise you'd be dead, because there's no home, your family is in danger, you have no other options.

so you're fleeing on an overcrowded boat or paying some asshole too much money to get you across the border in the back of an overcrowded truck. good luck not dying on the way.

do you remember to take all your documents? do you take the time to get a new passport? will you be able to keep all your shit while running for your life? probably not. most people that get to our border have no papers that "confirm" their identities, which then puts them in the following situation:

if you have a passport and you show it to them they will straight up send you back because now they legally know where you came from. you can lie to them if you have one and say you don't or, more likely, you simply do not have one. you're allowed asylum, which is a basic human right btw asylum is not and never should be conditional. the second you add a "but" or "except for" you're talking like a fascist.

there's no illegal immigration because there's no "legal" immigration. there are no "legal" refugee routes because that's just now how fleeing from a country works. every single country should allow you to find refuge and guarantee you humane living conditions. in europe, this is a law that overwrites any national laws on that matter.

now, let's say they allow you to stay, officially giving you a "Duldung" what roughly translates to them giving you a document of tolerance. you get into a refugee home, maybe you finish school, maybe you learn a trade, maybe you try to find a job. you WANT to build a life.

however, the state does not allow you to work. they say "hey can you prove your identity" and when you say no they say "well try again in a few months now fuck off".

they have to come back to get their tolerance extended. the state literally tells you to go back to where you came from and get your papers. if you somehow manage to survive that trip (unlikely) and come back they will then say "great! now we can legally send you back to where you came from" and they deport you. i'm not joking or exaggerating in the slightest.

we have people here that have been trying to find work for 15 years and more, but legally they're not allowed. the state tries to deport people as soon as they get any sort of identification, and the only way to help them at that point is getting the press involved and turning it into a media nightmare. the system in pretty much every country is not meant to help people integrate into society, its purpose is to get rid of people.

germany is a bureaucratic nightmare for citizens and it is even worse for everyone else. you NEED a document that proves what you tell them in any and all cases or they legally do not believe you, and that applies to refugees and immigrants too. we have people here that were BORN here and still aren't officially recognized. the state STILL tries to deport them. people that were BORN HERE 30 years ago. it is probably way worse in the USA because the legal system there is a joke.

to anyone who is not european or follows the news closely it's probably difficult to understand what we've been dealing with for the last ten years. especially around 2015 there was a refugee "crisis" that allowed all the right wing fascists you now see in the governments to find their footing. we watched people drown on the news and it's still happening, the media attention just isn't there anymore. middle school was filled with teachers making us debate whether or not we should try and help people or simply let them die. "left wing" or centrist parties that were fighting for refugees are now supporting deportation. there's no "centre" anymore.

discussions online are almost always focused on the USA and their immigration processes, so i am begging americans to look to everywhere else for a change. you're not the only ones with problems, you're not the only ones suffering, and you're not the most important fucking country no matter what so many seem to believe.

european politics affect you. our problems affect you. and honestly the people dying and suffering at OUR borders deserve your fucking attention considering how much everyone is looking at yours.

you point to our history when it is self serving but history is repeating itself right here. you talk about das dritte reich and world war 2 and then never look at what's happening here or anywhere else. the fundamental lack of interest is part of why you have so many nazis on television and in the streets, and learning about our history will help you deal with your problems.

don't come at me with "but our schools don't teach us" teach your fucking self. you have the entire internet at your disposal and i will try and find some good sources for you if you somehow cannot manage yourself. don't be afraid to go for sources in languages other than english, you can always translate them.

the rapid decline of transatlantic relationships is prompting all of europe to become more united, and a united europe is stronger than the USA. world politics that do not involve the USA also exist, by the way. there's a whole globe out there that isn't talking about you 24/7. plus all of our fascists are talking to your fascists, so the more you know about all sides the better.

i'm far from where i started by now but i guess my point is to educate yourself, especially on history that is not local.

actually look at how hitler ended up in charge, what the system was like before, and what happened after, instead of cherry-picking examples to compare with your own news. you point at book burnings without knowing which books were burned and the global consequences all of that had. you talk about hitler but never mention hindenburg, the man that put him in charge. i bet most people have no idea of the weimar republic and how it broke apart in the years before 1933.

how germany deals with its history, as badly as we do it sometimes, should make you think about how the USA does not. if you have questions i'll try to answer them although this is a vent post for the most part. still, i hope some of this did something, even if it just prompts you to do some research.

[ifwebefriends]

My Child Lebensborn review/thoughts/rambles

So the other day, I played a game called My Child Lebensborn and I just have a lot of thoughts and feelings about it. It’s kinda intense with its themes and story (TW below) so if you’re in a good headspace right now, I really think that you should play it or watch a let’s play on YouTube. It’s like 4-5 hours long. The game is on most consoles as well as android and iOS. It costs $3 and a part of that goes to the Children Born of War Project so while I’m usually pro-piracy, this is one game that I really think you should not pirate. I played the iOS version which you can download here.

The game is described as a “dark tamagotchi” where you play a struggling single parent in 1951-1952 Norway and care for your young adoptive child (either the male Klaus or female Karin, you choose). Klaus/Karin is a “Lebensborn,” an Aryan child born out of wedlock of a German soldier and a Norwegian woman during the occupation of Norway in WWII. You have to balance caring for the child both mentally and physically, work, investigating the child’s origins, and keeping up with local news. A lot happens to the child over the course of the game that you can’t do anything to prevent, you can only impact how the child sees the situation and how they may react to it. It’s a really good and educational game about an aspect of war that I wasn’t really familiar with until now and while it’s not really the most “fun,” it’s a very fulfilling and engaging experience.

The story is basically entirely told through text and mostly happens to the child outside of the home so most of the disturbing stuff happens off-screen but it’s still heavily referred to and feels like a punch to the gut.

If you have a hard stomach and think you can handle it, stop reading this post now and go play it as I’m about to give trigger warnings that could spoil the game and then go into my personal thoughts about it.

Trigger warning for: references to war, bullying, assault, poverty, abandonment, references to Nazism, attempted murder, being forcibly tied up, being urinated on, ethnic discrimination, cruel family members, cruel teachers, and child sexual assault.

Direct Spoilers below

So I don’t think I ever want kids IRL but the way that Karin had MY WHOLE HEART and I wanted to be the best parent ever for her 🥺 like that is my DAUGHTER and you WILL NOT TOUCH HER

Karin baby you deserved so much better I’m sorry I could only do so much for you 🥺🥺🥺

AHHH I DIDN’T BUY THE FOX TOY IN TIME IT WAS GONE BEFORE I HAD THE MONEY FOR IT FUCK

I wish I had chewed out the grandparents more during that visit with them fuck them

The bullying was so fucking cruel like what the hell that’s a child who didn’t ask to be born under these circumstances have some compassion!!!!!!

The way that I clocked almost IMMEDIATELY that Karin was sexually assaulted since she didn’t want to be touched (I don’t know where I learned the warning signs but I did)

I wish there was an option to fucking murder Mr. Solheim

I choose to believe that Karin and the parent ended up somewhere good where people were more tolerant, I have to believe that

I chose to investigate the parents as much as possible, be as honest with Karin as I could, and tried to keep some hope and cautious optimism alive in Karin while still being sensitive to her feelings and not forcing her when she didn’t feel like doing something and I was very satisfied with how things turned out, she trusted me fully by the end

I wish that Karin was more trusting of others by the end but I don’t know how much control I had over that

Here are my chapter complete endcards to further describe the choices I made:

Image ID in ALT Text

[ryus3i]

Prince Micheal Kaiser x fem Maid reader

How reader and Kaiser met

Crowned with Love Masterlist

Cw; reader is a maid, Kaiser is the prince of Germany, reader is not from Germany, she/ her pronouns, curse words, strangers to lovers??

A/n; sorry this took a bit to come out but here it is enjoy! Series master list will be out soon! @rroxii (Ty for feedback in the last fic, I hope you like this!)

The way you met your “prince charming” wasn’t something you would ever want to relive. Not everyone has the pleasure of meeting the heir to the throne and you certainly wish you hadn't. Let’s just say Kaiser wasn’t all lovey dovey with you like he is now.

“And just what do you think you’re doing?” a voice behind you says as you quickly shove the book in your hands back into its place on one of the hundreds of shelves in the castle's grand library. 

Turning around to meet the stranger who had interrupted you. It was none other than the crown prince himself, Micheal Kaiser. The same Micheal Kaiser who had built himself quite a reputation around the castle and the kingdom. Micheal Kaiser was the cold prince but to you he was just an insufferable prick, at least based what the other maids had told you. 

“Oh, I’m sorry your majesty, I finished my tasks for the day and figured I could spend some time in here you say, voice laced with nervousness, you were allowed to be in here right? 

The maid who had  shown you around the castle had told you that it was okay to visit the grand library if we had spare time. If all that was true, why was the prince staring daggers at you. 

“The grand library is no place for a commoner, a maid like you is not to set foot in this room. Enjoy all the free time you have in your quarters, get out” all this is said with a smirk on his face. Your face on the other hand felt like it was on fire, you were beyond embarrassed and humiliated. 

“I apologize, your majesty” you say bowing your head. The temptation to walk right through the doors who put you in this situation was getting harder to resist. You couldn’t just walk out the doors or you’d be in even more trouble with the prince. 

“Save the excuses, considering where you are now you must be new here? Isn’t that right?”

“Yes your majesty”. 

“My parents will hire anyone won’t they, even little maids who snoop around places they shouldn’t be. Anyone like you should know not to stick your nose in places where you could never  

You have had just about enough of the crown prince and now it was time for you to leave. 

“Forgive me your majesty but I will be taking my leave, I don’t find pleasure in being around arrogant assholes like you”.

“Oh the little maid has quite a bit of a tongue doesn’t she, do I need to remind you who I am?

“You don’t, I think i know well enough who you are now, you said I had no place to be here so allow me to leave”.

“Not so fast, it’s my turn to find out who you really are, care to tell me your name dear?” He says all this whilst blocking your way out.

“ l/n y/n” you say through gritted teeth, what exactly did he want from you now. You didn’t want anything to do with him, you should’ve known the rumors about him were true and 100% accurate at that. 

“Well y/n, pleasure to meet you” he says with a delish smirk, one you wanted to slap right off.

“You don’t seem to know much German, y/n, your accent and broken German gives it away. That book you picked up earlier was in German, I doubt you’d be able to read it.”. 

Kaiser moves to the shelf behind where you had put the book from before. Taking the book from off the shelf he brings it to the small desk to the side of you two, before taking a seat at the desk he reaches a hand out to yours.

“You know, I could teach you some German,” he says, nodding his head towards the green book that laid on the desk waiting to be read. 

“No thank you, I don’t learn from assholes” you cross your arms, if he could be annoying so could you.

“Now, don’t be like that, I'm being so generous right now, just give me a chance”. Just to make him shut up for the first and only time you would take a German lesson from Prince Micheal Kaiser. 

As he takes your hand in his he brings you to the table and pulls out two chairs, one for him and one for you. Taking a seat you pull your hand away from his and open the book. 

It would turn out that it was in fact not your only German lesson with Kaiser, every other day or so the two of you would chip away at the book. Spending more time with the prince made you realize he was only an arrogant prince on the outside and not on the inside where he was a soft prince with a love for reading and for you. 

[whitestopper]

Bisexual media

Note: This should not be taken as a declaration of quality or my personal likings - I haven’t consumed all the media below. Not all of the shows focus on a bi protagonist but all do have at least one bi main character; a summary of main initial plot is provided. I will edit this post with updates intermittently.

TV Series

The Bisexual (2018) - Leila explores her attraction to men after identifying as a lesbian alongside her girlfriend and friends for the past decade, while her new roommate tries to get a grip on his relationship with a younger woman.

Black Mirror’s San Junipero - Yorkie meets Kelly in the strange setting of San Junipero. What’s the deal with this place, and what can make them stay?

Bob and Rose - Bob is gay. Rose has a boyfriend. Can I make it any more obvious? (I can - they find that they’re attracted to each other and deal with the implications and expectations of that.)

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - Rebecca pursues her ex-boyfriend in the hopes of finding happiness. With a drastic move to West Covina, will she learn what happy feels like?

Cucumber - Henry’s life is upturned in one evening, then another, and then some more, while boyfriend Lance and new acquaintance Freddie come to terms with the present and the past.

Everything Now - Newly out of recovery from anorexia, Y11 student Mia is determined to complete her bucket list and be seen as normal.

Feel Good - Mae and Charlotte navigate a relationship challenged by Mae's drug addiction and Charlotte's new sexual discovery.

High Fidelity - Young record store owner Rob revisits her past relationships in order to sort out her singledom.

Kieta Hatsukoi - Aoki lies about having feelings for classmate Ida to protect the feelings of his crush Hashimoto. But misunderstandings and revelations cause a hullabaloo.

Orange Is The New Black - Piper is a 30-something year old who carried a suitcase of her ex-girlfriend's drug money. Once. A decade ago. And now she's been sentenced to 15 months in jail because of it.

Torchwood - this Doctor Who spin-off features a collection of characters solving alien crimes.

Movies

Appropriate Behaviour - Brooklyn dweller Shirin deals with her ex-girlfriend, family expectations, job struggles and more.

The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant - in one of the few films with an all-female cast, the titular fashion designer navigates her relationships with her family, her live-in servant, and her cousin's attractive acquaintance.

City of Lost Souls - a German musical exploring the experiences of LGBT people, black people, Jewish people and immigrants in post-WW2 Berlin.

Disobedience - Ronit returns to her old Orthodox Jewish community after her father passes away, having been shunned for not adhering to cultural expectations.

Je, Tu, Il, Elle - A woman struggles in dealing with her break-up.

Shiva Baby - While at a Jewish funeral service with her family and community, college student Danielle navigates an awkward situation with her sugar daddy and her ex-girlfriend.

Books

@the-bi-library has an extensive collection of books, with specific collections based on genre, romantic endgame, intersecting identities (ie. protagonists of colour or disabled protagonists), etc.

The Literary Bisexual offers a smaller but thoroughly-reviewed collection of books from around the world.

I also recommend winners/noted entries for the Lambda Literary Award's Bisexual categories - there are other categories not specific to identity for which bisexual books can be nominated.

Fiction

You Could Be So Pretty (Holly Bourne) - In a world not too unlike our own, where girls and women can be Pretties or Objectionables, what will schoolgirls Belle and Joni make of their lives under the Doctrine after an incident brings them together?

Your Driver Is Waiting (Priya Guns) - Damani, a RideShare driver, falls hard for a white upper-class girl, but she's been grieving her father, caring for her mother and dealing with the ever-growing tension from protesters across the city. When Jolene acts with massive consequences, what will Damani be pushed to do for herself and her community?

Natural Beauty (Ling Ling Huang) - Our protagonist, a former piano prodigy, has had to abandon her potential in order to provide for her parents following a car crash. A job at a famous salon seems to fall into her lap as the solution, but there's always a price to pay for beauty.

Non-fiction

In The Dream House (Carmen Maria Machado) - Machado goes through her volatile relationship with The Woman From The Dreamhouse, intercut with musings on pop culture and history.

Strong Female Character (Fern Brady) - famous in British comedy circles, this autobiography follows Brady's life growing up in Scotland as an autistic woman.

You're Embarrassing Yourself (Desiree Akhavan) - from the Creator of The Bisexual and Appropriate Behaviour, this autobiography covers Akhavan's life as a bisexual Iranian in America.

Bisexuality research/history/essays

Bi Any Other Name: Bisexual People Speak Out

Bi: Notes for a Bisexual Revolution

Bi: The Hidden Culture, History and Science of Bisexuality

The Bi-ble Volumes 1 and 2

Claiming the B in LGBT - Illuminating the Bisexual Narrative

Go the Way Your Blood Beats - On Truth, Bisexuality and Desire

A History of Bisexuality

Purple Prose - Bisexuality in Britain

Music (This is for songs which are outright bisexual, not just songs inspired by bi experiences or by bi artists. Also, no Sweater Weather.)

Alicia Champion - Bi

Amber Fornoles - A Very Bisexual Song

Ana Carolina - Homens e Mulheres

Ani DiFranco- In or Out

Anne Marie - Perfect to Me

Bali Bandits - Girls & Boys

Book Of Love - Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls

Cariño - Bisexual

Chappell Roan - After Midnight

Christina Aguilera - Not Myself Tonight

Delli Boe - Bisexual Problems, Bisexual Problems 2

Demi Lovato - The Kind Of Lover I Am

dodie - In The Middle

Domo Wilson - Becoming Myself, Bi Pride, Bisexual Anthem

Halsey - Alanis' Interlude, Bad At Love

HOUSE OF SAY - Boys Girls

Janet Jackson - Tonight's The Night

Jão - Meninos e Meninas

Jesse - Girls & Boys

Jessie Paege, Lucy & La Mer - Not a Phase

King Kitty - Bisexual

Mad Tsai - Boy Bi

Megan Thee Stallion - Captain Hook

MIKA - Billy Brown, Blame It On The Girls

Miley Cyrus - Midnight Sky, She's Not Him

Missy Higgins - Scar

Mitski - Cop Car

Peaches - I U She

Peter Allen - Bi-Coastal

Poppy - Girls In Bikinis

Torrey Mercer - Boys / Girls

The Veronicas - Take Me On The Floor

will.i.am, Pia Mia - Boys & Girls

Ysa Ferrer - To bi or not to bi

[juanabaloo]

HC for Faith in 3x14 Bad Girls: i don't have any real quibbles with Faith's spiral / reaction to accidentally killing Finch the Mayor's aide. i think it is logical. but i think it adds a delicious layer (JUICY ANGST) to her reaction if it reminds her of a previous death.

pre Sunnydale back in Boston maybe she doesn't know her own strength, esp if she recently got her powers. maybe she accidentally kills some guy she just means to shove, bc Slayer strength and all that. like she meant for him to take a step back and instead he goes back like 20 feet and gets accidentally impaled. later she figures it out (maybe Diana helps, maybe not) - and she says "i didn't know."

or perhaps it's a truly similar situation, Diana (her watcher) is keeping an eye as she patrols but these vamps come out of a club into the alley and there's vamps and regular people running around and she accidentally stakes a human.

Diana assures her it was just an accident and calms down a very upset Faith. Diana disposes of the body, telling Faith after how she did it. they talk about it at length afterwards, back in the safety of Diana's place (where Faith is living). says all the same stuff Giles does about how this has happened before. "how many people do you think a Slayer saves? it is terrible and regrettable but sometimes there are casualties" etc.

"you should not pretend it didn't happen but you cannot think about it while you are out on patrol. you have to move past it Faith. a moment's hesitation is all a vampire needs to kill you. you have to stay focused, this is your work, it is not meant to be carefree fun."

[really this works either way, the "don't know my own strength" version or the "vamps and people running around" version. bc Diana can help her process and learn from both.]

and Diana's reaction - calm and reasonable and supportive - really shakes Faith. she is NOT used to this. Diana did not assume the worst of her, didn't ignore her mistake but also assumed Faith would be better next time. Diana trusts her, doesn't limit her patrolling at all, and Faith gloms onto Diana even harder than before. (until ofc Diana dies, when Faith couldn't save her from Kakistos)

and then she and Buffy are in the groove and it's so much fun and then Bad Girls Finch happens and it immediately guts Faith. it reminds her of how alone she is, bc Diana is not there to help her, even just talking to her. it reminds her what a failure she is bc this is now THE SECOND time it happened. that she should have learned from before and she did not. it reminds her how she will never be as good of a Slayer as Buffy, bc ofc Faith doesn't know about how Buffy killed humans* before bc the show pretends it never happened and oh yeah CEO of repression Buffy never talks about it.

( * ) for the fact checkers: i believe the list is Ted (before she knew he was a robot), the zookeeper in The Pack, the coach in Go Fish, the germans in Homecoming, and a Knight of Byzantium. sure some of these are more passive and all IMO deserved but Ted is the biggest one for me.

Faith still blames herself for Diana dying bc she couldn't stop Kakistos. AND NOW it doesn't even matter that her and Buffy killed Kakistos and she "avenged" Diana (her words, not Diana's). bc the best things that Faith learned from Diana don't matter anymore. they aren't true anymore. Diana believed in Faith, believed Faith could become a better Slayer, that Faith could learn from her mistakes. Faith let Diana down (again) when she accidentally kills Finch. Faith now believes Diana was wrong to believe in her, and Faith loses all faith in herself. (sorry there really isn't a better word)

[zenjestrr]

tagged by @crepsley blame them

Xabaal Thorne Age: 32 1. Where in Thedas is your Rook from? The Anderfels 2. What is your character's alignment? Chaotic good (all Rooks are chaotic good, we don't have options to deviate from that) 3. Race & Class? Qunari Mage (Evoker) 4. If your Rook was a companion, where would they be found? probably Hossberg Wetlands 5. What emotion did they usually pick? almost always picked the bottom-right serious option 6. What companion are they platonically close with? Davrin & Emmrich 7. Romantically close with? Neve 8. Who are they suspicious of? the Trevisan mayor cuz you can see his betrayal from a million miles away. a victim of this game's bad writing tbh because in any other context he'd be 100% correct. the Crows should not be in charge of a nation but because Veilguard's writing quality is....not great he got turned into a Saturday morning cartoon villain 9. Does your Rook get along with their chosen Faction? with the average grunts? yes with leadership? lmao no 10. Are they proficient in playing any instruments? yes, the horn (mainly because I can play the french horn but also for haha funny funny big horned man can play horn) 11. Weapon of choice? staff. I thought I'd be using the knife + orb before the game came out cuz it was the new option but the staff was more consistent for my playstyle. I only ever used the knife vs qunari since my most powerful orb was necrotic and for some reason the Antaam are weak to necrotic (which doesn't make sense since necrotic is treated like poison in this game and qunari are naturally resistant to poison. it's how they can wear literal poison paint as armor) 12. What is their orientation? straight 13. What are their thoughts on killing? Is it a necessary evil or do they enjoy it? Last resort tool but doesn't feel bad about it if it gets to that point. 14. What hobbies does your Rook have? Rook is framed as the foil to Solas and Solas likes to paint so fuck it we paint now 15. What NPCs do they like? Which ones do they dislike? Like - Vorgoth, Evka & Antoine Dislike - the obvious NPCs that are designed to be hated like Avenci, the Venatori nepo baby, the Dragon King cuz he's such a nothingburger, etc. 16. Do they have a favorite creature in Thedas? those weird alligator things that hide underground when you get close 17. Do they enjoy life as an adventurer? yes because any excuse to use magic is great 18. What would your Rook be doing if they weren't recruited by Varric? doing Warden stuff 19. How do you think they'll meet their end? pre-AMA I would've said the Calling but apparently Epler said that the blight is no longer lethal now that the Evanuris are dead and the Veil is completely fixed so...yea 20. Would they side with Solas or fight him? I mean...we're always forced to go against him. we just pick the flavor of opposition but we literally cannot side with him 21. What is your Rook's favorite ability? Entropic Sphere.

22. What languages is your character fluent in? Common + whatever they speak in The Anderfels (you'd imagine it'd be fantasy German like how Orlesian is fantasy French but Veilguard did a shit job of depicting accents and language) + can understand Qunlat perfectly but is very very clearly not a native speaker since they learned it from their parents and not from living in Seheron or Par Vollen 23. What do they do after an absolute crisis? Same tactic I employ for myself in real life: bottle it up, put it away and ignore it, try to solve the issue or accept the situation. eventually the bottle gets stuffed too much it breaks and then there's a catastrophic emotional explosion which burns 14 bridges and ends 3 friendships permanently (this is totally a healthy and intelligent way to handle things) 24. Does your character believe in an afterlife? No 25. What specialization best represents your Rook? Evoker. if this game ran like Dragon Age Origins and Dragon Age 2, I would've dual specc'd into Evoker and Death Caller 26. What animal best represents your Rook? honestly, a gorilla. fucking huge and intimidating, incredibly athletic, can tear your face off but is very gentle and very intelligent 27. What was their life like before the events of Veilguard? born to a Tal-Vashoth father and a Vashoth mother. magic manifested in his mid-teens and I headcanon that the Grey Wardens of The Anderfels is similar to the US military in the sense that they bait conscripts by paying for people's education and giving them a stipend to send home. So to avoid going to a Circle, he signed up with the Wardens to get magical training that way. 28. Is your character the de facto leader of the party? Or do they consider someone else as the leader? every Rook is the de facto leader but honestly Harding should be the leader. she has a decade more experience than Rook and already has leadership experience (she's squad leader to the Inquisition scouts). they wrote Harding in this game to be this naive little church girl but that's not what she gave off in Inquisition. 29. If you could choose a different faction for your Rook, which would they have joined and why? Mourn Watch. meta reason, it's the only other faction that has content and reactivity on par with the Wardens (rip Lords of Fortune enjoyers you got crumbs). but as a character, my dude is genuinely fascinated by Nevarran culture and the undead 30. What's your favorite thing about your Rook? I'm gonna be so for real, Rook is my least favorite Dragon Age protagonist (not worst BioWare protag tho, rip Ryder). I don't hate Rook but I dislike how limited we are in how we can choose who they are as a character: we're always forced to be a kind junior manager that watched too many therapy tiktoks. but my favorite thing about my Rook is honestly his looks. I think this guy is, aesthetically, my favorite PC I've ever made in an RPG.

-------------------- tagging @shepardcommander and @bellaralutare. no pressure if you don't want to. anyone else is free to join in

[pommunist]

past anon who talked about the alex's first priority being money/funds and who is apparently based to you (hola :D👋)

after reading back my ask i realize that i may have come off as a little bit harsh (not as harsh as you french fans, you guys are BRUTAL) i wrote most of it in a burst of frustration at the whole admin thing lol.

i don't think alex is some disney villian who is twirling his mustache as he watches on his past workers cry out of frustration because of the lack of communication. he just isn't as experienced when it comes to these kinds of things.

he's doing what he thinks is best from his lawyer studies, don't gave out any info that isn't 100% guaranteed, anything that comes with money is a huge legal problem and must be fixed as first, those type of things.

everyone that has known alex personally has said that he's a genuinely sweet guy (well, except his some of his workers but doesn't even have a relationship with them because of the lack of communication LMAO /coping) i don't think any of his current actions are done out of malicious intent or whatever.

all of his recent streams are probably a way to earn money and the whole egg merch is probably for even more money (the bio of the acc literally says that it is ''the best way to fund qsmp'') (i've already talked about my opinions on that)

the whole not communicating is so ''he doesn't make false promises'' and also, so he doesn't get sued. (understand where he is coming from but huge disagree)

the not having ways of contacting him via twt isn't done as a result of this situation, he deleted twt some time ago (very unfortunate timing, like, 2 days before lea's statements. he should've reinstalled it, but he doesn't need to anymore since he now has an email for when he needs to be contacted)

the events that are currently happening have been planned for months in advance (still think he should put them back a bit. i guess the german streamer is kinda understandable since he has apparently been waiting for like, 10 months?? still think he should've put it back)

i think what he wants is for when pomme's admin comes back for the work environment to be perfect but i still heavily disagree with his ways. the way he's going about it now is only going to lead to burnout from the workers :( none of what i said justifies the lack of communication btw. his actions come off as kinda tone-deaf right now.

although with the whole (understandable) anger from people about the twt admins + the union + jose's statements + the french's statements, i do think he will start actually communicating with his workers (he kinda has to with the whole jose thing, unless he wants all of qstudios garbage out in the public, which is like, a really bad thing for him)

unfortunately, i'm only based when i'm angry <3 so this is probably dogshit. but the problems in qstudios ARE fixable. (this is either gonna end up aging like milk or like fine wine. i hope it's the fine wine since i love qsmp and i'll probably completely give up on learning french/spanish if it doesn't)

holà again !

I personally didn’t think you were too harsh on your last ask, you had genuine concern about the course of his actions and it didn’t feel like you were attacking him or anything !

I don’t know Q personally obviously so I won’t speculate too much on what he’s thinking through this, but I agree with you that he probably isnt an evil guy and doesn’t have bad intentions with it.

However I still stand with the fact that he was at least negligent towards what was happening behind the scenes of his passion project and should’ve been more aware of the inner workings of the QSMP.

This isn’t an easy situation, especially with all the legal aspects (which should’ve been thought of beforehand btw) but I think everyone or at least most people who criticise what is going on are doing in first because they want the admins to be treated well but also because they want to trust that Q will do the right thing.

Admins and fans alike wouldn’t spend so much time getting updated on the situation and writing their thoughts if they didnt have at least some hope that things can be fixed.

Now it’s up to Qstudios to prove those who believe right and to prove those who lost trust (can’t blame them) wrong !

[cherriebbyyyy]

Scent of love

First things first an apology in advance for my mind and what it made me do. Second the tags of what is below the line Nico Rosberg X Jeremy Fragrance fic , their 1K worded meet-cute if you will non explicit. Third here is the ao3 link X Happy Reading xoxo.

Nico was on a much needed vacation as he felt the salt in the air, the dew of the morning sea breeze on his face as he walked down the pavement by the beach in Santa Monica. The feeling of the grainy sand under his shoes that got dragged from the beach a few steps away, the smell of the ocean it was perfect, he had chosen California for this reason and also the fact that F1 wasn’t as big here and he had such a small chance of anyone recognizing him.He bought a mango cup from one of the vendors on the side enjoying the contrasting flavors  of the sweetness of the mango and the tanginess of the lime and salt that was added like the do here. 

“Fuck” Nico said as bumped into him causing some of the mango cup to spill on his white linen shirt, he thanked God he didn’t add chamoy or his shirt would have been stained as well as sticky as he felt the mango juice seep through the shirt and on his skin. He didn’t even get a chance to look and see who bumped into him when he heard “What is that scent?” as he felts a nose inhaling at his pulse point. 

“What the hell get off of me!” 

“You smell really good, what is that?” 

Nico had enough and pushed the sweaty shirtless freak away from him, and it seemed like he didn’t want to go until Nico gripped the gelled hair and pulled the man’s head away from his neck. Finally taking a look and it was a little shocking this guy looked like a long lost brother, a doppelganger. 

“So?” the strange man questioned Nico

Nico looked at the man confused what was wrong with him, what weird scent fetish did this guy have. Why was he sniffing Nico like a truffle pig in the forest desperate to catch the scent and why was he just staring at Nico waiting for an answer like any of this was a normal situation.

“Nothing I’m not wearing anything” Nico spat out.

“No after shave? That’s not Gucci Memoir? It’s a bit musky like it must have been your pheromones calling to me, also sorry by the way about your shirt, but mango does not stain so you should be fine. Are you German by the way?” 

What the hell is Nico’s life, he was getting whiplash and for once it wasn’t from driving.

“Yes I’m German” 

“Ah I could tell the accent, the blue eyes and blonde hair. You are almost as handsome as me. My Name is Jeremy” Jeremy said as he extended his hand. 

“Nico” He responded as he shook Jeremy’s hand 

“Ah, where are my manors? Nico, my compatriot, would you like a new shirt?”

“Are you going to buy me one?” 

“No my home is right there” Jeremy said as he pointed to a pink house on the other side of the pavement a few meters down the pavement. 

‘Fuck it’ Nico thought this day couldn’t get any weirder and a new shirt would beat having to walk 30 mins back to his Air-bnb in a sticky shirt. He’d also be close enough to a public space if this guy tried anything. 

“Ok” 

“Amazing, follow me, I was just about to start my jog as well, I usually head towards Venice to work out instead of the pier but fate wanted me to meet you instead” Jemery said as he walked towards his house. 

Everything Nico learned about Jeremy made less sense because now that he took a good look trailing behind him, this guy was way too sweaty for the distance he had jogged and also the man was wearing white skinny jeans and a pair of white trainers that looked to be more for basketball than running. As they entered the house Nico was a bit in shock to look over at the kitchen table and see half of it covered in cologne bottles. This guy did have a scent fetish.

“Quite the collection you have” Nico comments breaking the silence 

“Ah yes, actually review them online it is a passion of mine, I actually go by Jeremy Fragrance, it is funny people often ask me to smell them and guess their scent like I did to you.”

He comes closer to Nico again standing where Nico has to gaze up and meet Jeremy’s eyes as the man is slightly taller than him by a few inches, Nico now close enough to feel his warmth and catch a whiff of this man's cologne which he couldn’t identify if he tried probably a mix of something that is on the table. 

“Nico let me say I am straight and currently looking for a God fearing woman to be my wife, but you are so beautiful and your scent has called me like no one else's not even a man made one---” he pauses to lean into Nico’s neck once more and take a deep breath. 

“-like I said earlier it seems like fate a man like you almost in my image, I think we must explore” Jeremy says with conviction as he stares into Nico’s confused eyes hoping Nico gets his message.

This man is crazy but what a pitch Nico thinks, he also hasn’t kissed a man in months as it is hard to vet someone for something casual, he usually sticks to women as it doesn’t really matter if that gets out as it is something people assume about him anyways. Maybe it is fate he thinks as he looks up to Jeremy and closes the gap between their lips. 

Jeremy is shocked for a moment before he melts into the kiss grinning as pitch had worked on sweet Nico. He slides a hand into Nico’s blonde locks noting that they are softer than his own then dipping Nico to gain control of the kiss as he slips his tongue in. He brings Nico back up and breaks the kiss. 

“Now what we came here for” Jeremey grins as he strips Nico of his shirt. 

For half a second Nico wonders if this was all a ploy but after that kiss he didn’t really care.

[clochanam]

the if they had a kid meme in a perfect world where alec wasn't a) snipped b) actually wanted kids c) could settle enough to help raise said kid(s) xoxo

send in "what if they had a kid?" and a ship name and i'll ramble abt our muses' offspring! ( ALWAYS ACCEPTING! )

caitlyn emily trevelyan-jones, in this very hypothetical situation, has the luxury of a childhood denied to both her parents. her existence is a secret protected fiercely by both of them, and she grows up in a home where aisling and alec tread the line between awareness and hypervigilance. she loves art, she absolutely DOMINATES during any games involving a board, and she loves to travel via train, although she enjoys cycling just as much on sunny days.

she loves both parents, but depending on the situation she tends to gravitate towards alec for the more sensitive issues. she'll go to aisling for most things, but the things that are likely to upset her? they go to alec. it's never a case that she feels like she isn't allowed to tell them anything, but she's got enough kindness to last a lifetime, and she has her father's observational skills and her mother's problem-solving skills, and they always lead her to confiding in alec, or uncle Q if things come to that.

during her youth, she learned how to speak in a multitude of languages, including but not limited to french, german, irish, italian, russian, lithuanian, portuguese and spanish. she's also in the process of learning japanese and korean. she loves to go walking with alec when they visit the cabin together, and she loves to come home and chat with aisling while they cook dinner together, and the cabin is filled with her paintings and books. she's not restricted in any way, but exceptionally few people in MI6 know about her, and it's best to keep it that way. that being said, the few who do know about her are fiercely loyal to aisling and alec, and wouldn't dream of risking caitlyn's safety by exposing her to anyone else in the organization.

while caitlyn is entirely her own person, her parents have passed forth a number of qualities that aid her considerably through life. that being said, she's much more like alec in terms of social situations, with the quick wit and likeable nature, easy to approach, easy to like. however, at home, she's much more like her mother, though her comforts in the cabin include a current affection for her father's book collection. she collects mugs like it's nobody's business, and she hopes to go to art college when she graduates, though her true passion is to restore art pieces and return pieces of art to their native country of origin.

i know i should discuss janus in this context but gdi i can't make the girl's first post involve that level of angst?? (except i can and she most likely does support alec's viewpoint bc "you guys literally didn't tell 99% of your colleagues about me, maybe he's right, maybe it should all come down", she begins to resent aisling for working so hard to try and stop alec, she misses her uncle james, it's v v v emotionally fraught bc secrets and lies are naturally a part of this blurry understanding of what's going on and most of them are replicated by aisling and alec without either of them even understanding that they're all lies, and caitlyn's just this teenage girl who has to pick through it all?? crow i'm gonna sob i thought we already had the max level of angst until i started writing this--)

[fellow-travelers-fic-recs]

Fellow Travelers Fic Recs | Current WIPs: April 2024

Active WIPs with most recent updates posted in the past month featuring awkward hospital room conversations, a hospital room meet-cranky, and hospital whump... I'm sensing a theme, here. More fake-ish dating, Mama Fuller wisdom, Professor Hawk, a couple road trips, some time travel and a few modern AU's. There really is something for everyone!

Happy reading!

✨ Be sure to show the authors some love and appreciation with kudos and comments on the fics you enjoyed!

🌺 Remember Our Love - Remember Me by Larnee💠[G, 638] Tim Laughlin - the love of Hawkins life is gone. Hawk struggles to move forward until someone unexpected shows up at his doorstep. Tim has never left Hawk, not now, not ever.

🌼 Chances Are by @bluebellsinburbank | ConsumingLove [G, 3K] After a family Thanksgiving, Estelle and Hawk talk. Then she meets Tim.

🌺 I Know I’ve Never Lived Before by @bluebellsinburbank | ConsumingLove [G, 3K] Wherein Hawk completely accidentally and through no fault of his own intentionally ends up dating the man he's sleeping with.

🌼 Within The Heart of Me by drabbleswabbles💠 [NR, 3K] Lucy goes to the hospital to talk to Tim. When she arrives, Hawk is already there.

Otherwise known as, a prompt fill that wanders a bit off the mark, but is close enough in spirit to give credit where credit is due as far as inspiration goes.

🌺 Darkness Before the Dawn by @beyondxmeasure | Cyantific [NR, 350] It’s June 1944, following the US offensive against the German-led Caesar line that tore through a small squad of the 141st Regiment, killing two men and wounding others, along with Sergeant Hawkins Fuller. Following the blast of the Nazi’s K5 railway gun, he underwent surgery to repair sustained shrapnel damage and is now recovering in the Army’s 32nd Evac Hospital. In the bed next to him lies Corporal Marcus Gaines from the 85th Infantry Division, also wounded in action.

Or, the story of how Hawk and Marcus met.

🌼 A Disaster Beyond Measure by drabbleswabbles💠 [NR, 23K] Hawkins Fuller is a campaign manager with a PR disaster on his hands. The solution involves pretending to date none other than Timothy Laughlin.

Featuring: unrealistic portrayals of the life and job of a campaign manager for the sake of the fake dating trope.

🌺 Who Are You (who am I?) by Anonymous [G, 2K] AU- Hawk fails his security clearance after Tim goes to the army and Senator Smith locks him in a mental hospital where he is lobotomised

Or, Tim receives a letter from Mary saying Hawk needs him.

🌼Too old to play (and too young to mess around) by @bejeweledmp3 | ninav [M, 61K] Kimberly Fuller goes on a two-week vacation to San Francisco, in which she: drinks excessive amounts of tea, gets betrayed, cries more than she should, eats donuts, and seeks out truth with the help of a man she only knows from a presentation card; not necessarily in that order.

But mostly, she finds her father in every least expected place. And learns to make her peace with what that means.

🌺Sands of Time (Turn Backwards) by @brouill3r | brouiller [NR, 22K] 1987 Hawkins Fuller is full of regrets for the life he's lived, though Tim once told him he regrets nothing. Hawk so wishes he could say the same.

In the still night air of a hotel room, clutching a cracked paperweight to his chest like it's carved of the finest gold, Hawk gets his wish.

Or, a time-travel fix-it fic that nobody asked for.

🌼 Is it over now? by @satelarry | satelarry [M, 43K] Seeing the love of your life walk away without being able to tell him that you love him has to be one of the worst situations a person can go through. But Hawk decided to fulfill Tim's request, knowing it will be the last. What happens when he wakes up, 18 years before, with the knowledge of what's going to happen if he makes the same decisions? Does the ending always stay the same?

Or, the Time Travel AU in which the only thing ruining Hawk's plan is Tim's stubbornness.

🌺 Again, only better by @madsmeetsmisha | madsmeetsmisha [M, 17K] Hawk had no idea what was really going on here. All he knew was that he was back in 1954 and a completely distraught Tim was standing outside his door. And he also knew that he certainly wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

🌼 🪴His great consuming lovage* 🪴 by @carnivalrow | nightfall_in_winter [T, 2K] Tim's potted plant has a story to tell...

🌺 We'll be on the road like Jack Kerouac by @jesterlesbian | captainquint [M, 4K] He tried to think of what Tim would do or say. The man who had only spoken to his son a handful of times over one weekend in 1968, but had seemed to understand him far better than Hawk ever had.

The business card felt like it was burning a hole in his pocket.

An idea burst to life in Hawk’s mind. This was an emergency if he’d ever seen one.

“What would you say to coming with me to San Francisco?”

Or, Hawk and Jackson go on a cross-country road trip to San Francisco.

🌼 Educate Me by @fullerthanskippy | fullerthanskippy [E, 13K]  A Hawk x Tim AU in which the timelines jump from 2012-2014 to present day 2024. When present day Tim receives an invitation to the 10-year reunion of his Georgetown graduating class, he is filled with both hope and dread that he will run into one particular professor.

One man who was the through-line of his two years in grad school. The man who taught him more than he could have ever learned in the classroom.

When Tim is re-acquainted with Professor Hawkins Fuller, he immediately flashes back to 12 years prior, when he first encountered the man that he had no idea would be the greatest love and loss of his life.

Or, tons of garbage filthy smut sprinkled in between pining, angst, and fluff. Contains explicit material including but not limited to the likes of top!hawk, bottom!tim, top!tim, bottom!hawk, dom!hawk, sub!tim, bratty!tim, and much, much more. Enjoy!

🌺 I Sing the Body Electric by telescape8💠 [M, 28K] Modern AU. It all starts on Election Night 2016. Tim falls hard. Hawk falls harder.

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