#someone asked me to add this ID to make it more accessible

[catskullery]

New sticker design for ANYC :)

Welcome to 🍔FLAVORTOWN🍔

By popular demand, the pre-order is up! Get it fresh and hot right off the grill!! ✨🥩

[ID: Dungeon Meshi fanart of Senshi dressed as and posing like Guy Fieri, wearing sunglasses and a flame-patterned shirt as he points dynamically at the viewer. Signs that say "Dungeons, Drive-Ins, Dives" hang around him. End ID]

[gottalottarocks]

Are you an American? Frustrated by the political process? Do you feel like you have no voice in our government? Let me introduce you to the wonderful world of public comments. 

This is where federal agencies propose new regulations asking for public feedback:

Regulations.gov

Here's a step by step on how to navigate this:

Look through the proposals on the explore tab and filter by "Proposed Rule". These are the regulations that have been proposed, but not finalized. 

If you click on these, they are pretty dense, text heavy explanations of the proposed rule changes. I definitely do a lot of googling when trying to understand what I'm reading. Also there are a lot of different topics here and I definitely don't comment on everything.

This is how you make a public comment. For example, for this proposed rule:

Start a new document and write the subject and docket number. Your comment NEEDS to have the docket number for them to count it most of the time, and the correct subject some of the time.

^^ this is ambiguous, but add the docket ID and subject just to be safe, it should look like this:

Ref: Docket ID No. NSD 104

Provisions Pertaining to Preventing Access to Americans' Bulk Sensitive Personal Data and U.S. Government-Related Data by Countries of Concern

Then address to the person at the very very end of the page. 

Scroll all the way to the end:

^^this is the person you address to. 

Then introduce yourself. If you have experience related to the proposed rule, talk about that. For rules related to the environment and public health I say that I'm a geologist with a master's degree and I work in environmental remediation. Otherwise, I just say I'm a concerned citizen. 

Then I say hey I agree/ disagree with this proposed rule and here's why. Oftentimes there will be lists that the federal agency is asking for specific feedback on.

Commenting on these will have a lot of impact. 

Here's an example comment I forgot to post for a rule regarding methane emissions in the oil and gas industry:

Administrator Michael Regan The United States Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20460

Ref: Docket ID No. __ Waste Emissions Charge for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems Dear Administrator Regan, My name is __ and I am writing to you as a geologist and graduate of ___.  I currently work in ____. Thank you for your interest in reducing methane pollution, which I believe to be one of the most important aspects in reducing the harm caused by the climate crisis. Within the short term, methane is a much more powerful force of global warming than carbon dioxide. It breaks down faster than carbon dioxide— but it traps significantly more heat that should be bouncing back into space. When scientists talk about taking our foot off the gas pedal in regards to the climate crisis, methane is at the forefront of our minds. Natural gas is often proposed as a solution to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions (since it produces less carbon dioxide than coal plants), but these methane leaks are a serious threat to public health. Not only is methane hazardous, it’s ability to cause short-term superheating is contributing to the rapid increase in wildfires within the U.S. and globally, further degrading air quality. Last summer in NYC skies were orange, caused by ash from Canadian wildfires. As someone who sets up air monitoring equipment every day to ensure the surrounding community is not impacted from the disposal of hazardous waste, I have a unique opportunity to see on a day-to-day basis how air quality is degrading. I strongly support the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed waste emissions charge. For EPA’s implementation of the fee to fulfill Congress’s goals, the final regulation must continue to include key requirements including: ·       Regulatory compliance exemptions must only become available after final standards and plans are in effect in all states and that these plans are at least as strong as the EPA's 202 methane emissions proposal. Operators filing for exemption must also demonstrate full compliance across their facilities; ·       Strong and clear criteria must remain in place for operators seeking an exemption based on unreasonable permitting delays; ·       When operators seek an exemption for plugged wells, they must clearly demonstrate that their wells have been properly plugged and are no longer polluting; ·       Transparent calculations and methodologies to accurately determine an owner or operator’s net emissions; and ·       Strong verification protocols so that fee obligations accurately reflect reported emissions and that exemptions are only available once the conditions Congress set forth are met. I urge the EPA to quickly finalize this proposal with limited flaring, strengthened emissions standards for storage tanks, and a pathway for enhanced community monitoring. Thank you, ___________

And then paste your comment in or upload a document and submit! You will be asked to provide your name and address. Also the FCC will only take comments on their website, but the proposed rule will be posted on the federal regulations website I put above and they should have a link to the FCC website within that post. 

[ursamajori]

quick reminder since someone asked about it—

for any post i write an id for, you are always free to add it to the original post as alt text and/or just in the caption!

in fact that’s greatly preferred, since it means more people will see it and the post will be more accessible!

you can also edit and adjust any part of an id i write to make it more accurate!

anyone is also free to add any of my ids onto different versions of a post!

you can credit me if you want, but it’s very much not required!! as long as a post is accessible, that’s what matters to me

this is something i usually add to tags of posts i write descriptions for (or audio/video transcripts, plaintext , etc) but sometimes i forget to say! most if not all of us who write ids prefer people adding them

i’ve been using a lot of exclamation marks for some reason i just want creators and other bloggers to know they are encouraged to do the same and i very much appreciate people adding my ids to their posts!

[anistarrose]

"Someone asked me to edit their ID into my undescribed post, so I reblogged the ID to my blog! That's good enough, right?"

[Plain text: "Someone asked me to edit their ID into my undescribed post, so I reblogged the ID to my blog! That's good enough, right?"]

So, this is not a misconception I fault anyone for having. But I am politely begging you to actually add it to the orignal.

Why? Well, here's a random piece of fanart I described a couple months ago, because it was cute and I wanted to share it while maintaining an accessible blog. And here is what I see when I open the notes as if I were looking an ID, and sort reblogs by "comments only":

[ID from alt: a blank reblogs section, saying: "No reblogs with this filter yet. Try another filter?" End ID.]

Now, is this what everyone else sees when they open the notes of this post? I genuinely don't know, and that's part of the problem! But I suspect, after comparing notes with other people who write IDs, that a majority of people checking the notes don't see my ID either! Hence, they either have to expend extra energy to write their own description — or if they don't have that energy, because so many of us ID writers are disabled ourselves, then they have to choose between reblogging an undescribed post, or not reblogging it at all.

So what can you do? Edit the ID into the original post! Of course, include an ID from the start if you're comfortable writing them and/or getting help writing them — but if not, adding them when provided is the next best thing! You're also doing a big favor to anyone who struggles to remember to check the notes for a description, because of ADHD or any other memory issues.

TL;DR: We all know Tumblr is not a functional website. Hence, those of us who write the descriptions need the help of the people who post the images, in order to make our shared online communities accessible. Editing the ID into the original post is a way to guarantee the description won't be lost to the void.

"Someone added an ID to my post, but they didn't tell me to add it to the original. Should I still add it?"

[PT: "Someone added an ID to my post, but they didn't tell me to add it to the original. Should I still add it?"]

Yes! Yes yes yes! Include credit if you're nervous, but every person who writes IDs wants to make the post as accessible as possible! If you can't write IDs yourself, this is the single next most impactful thing to make your online communities more accessible!

[ID: two mock-up Tumblr posts to illustrate adding an ID from the notes to the root post. A blog named "your-blog" posts an image of text reading "something cool you posted" with the caption "check out this cool image I made!" In the notes, the blog "image-describer" reblogs with an ID, which is highlighted. This version of the post is labeled: "original post, reblogged via ID writer." The second version of the post is from "your-blog" again, where they've added the ID directly under the image, with the same caption below the ID. This version is labeled "updated root post, with ID copy-pasted. End ID.]

[saintbleeding]

do you have any advice for writing image descriptions? I’ve been wanting to add some to my art but I don’t know how to go about it

hello anon!!! that’s a wonderful thing to want to do and im happy to offer whatever help i can :3

so because image descriptions are very much a community effort, that does also mean there isn’t really a style guide or anything, which can be freeing but also quite intimidating! here are some kinda off the top of my head suggestions:

If ur comfier putting the ID in alt text than the post body, that is still much MUCH better than no ID at all (and side note, if someone copy+pastes ur id into a reblog, it’s not a suggestion that you did anything wrong, they’re just trying to make them maximally accessible. while a lot of ppl who need IDs will use screenreaders and will prefer alt text, there are ppl whose preference is plain text in the body of the post (i personally fall into this category))

similarly, if you are struggling to write an ID/don’t have the energy/etc, i cannot recommend People’s Accessibility on discord highly enough. there are some wonderful folks in there who can give you pointers or even write IDs for you! likewise, i can’t speak on others’ behalf but i’ve gladly written IDs for ppl’s posts before they’ve put them up before, and i’m happy to do so, even if we havent interacted before! you can shoot me a DM with the image you need described and i’m glad to assist

more specifically:

it’s good practice to include the name of the fandom and the characters, assuming it’s fanart. altho it’s likely that fanart will stay broadly within a circle where people are familiar with the source material, there may be ppl who encounter the post and wouldn’t know this detail without it being laid out explicitly

you’re welcome to mention whichever details you like, especially if you are the artist, because you know what’s important to the image as a whole. it’s also perfectly acceptable not to get super detailed on things like clothing/hairstyles, especially if they aren’t relevant to what’s going on

a good rule of thumb is to ask yourself, if you didn’t have the image in front of you and just had the description, would it be a true representation of what the image looks like/portrays? would your mental image be accurate? that’s what you’re shooting for.

the best advice i can give is to just dive in and start, bc it gets a lot less intimidating once you’ve done a few, and it also gets easier the more you do it :3

also, i think trying to follow ppl who describe images helps a lot, because you will get more passive exposure to descriptions and what you think works/doesn’t, which can improve your own ID writing! on that note, highly recommend @princess-of-purple-prose/@pathos-logical (kay is a pillar of this and every community tbqh), @ryutarotakedown, @lucky-numberme, @fox-guardian, @squeeneyart, @hotdrinks, @samwise1548, and @rq-described (a breadth of interests represented here, but also if you’re asking me i presume you have at least a passing interest in audio drama and adjacent :3 )

thanks so much for asking and as i said i’m always happy to help however i can!!! happy describing, i believe in you!!!

[demonicnarwhale]

just like many things I'll start something then toss it aside and we've done this before but here's the protocol: Eel saying she has this file on her computer for a long while now. And she knows she won't get back to this any time soon so here we go

Ok here's some explanation to this whole jazz:

Due to Scratch being like fuchsia blood (because of course) and so the Felt all wear some sort of uniform looking clothes. Tie in to how all wear similar green suits and stuff. And of course their blood colors are placed on them ya know.

(Minus HK posing as an olive as she's a lime, she doesn't have any powers as a lime. Like no ability to shoosh or calm high bloods lol. I just think it's funny and allows for there to be a reason that HK's there. Aka Scratch intimidation, she works as a cleaner so she doesn't have to worry about her getting hurt/blood reveal moment, and she'd rather not get caught by some other trolls or something tee hee)

Here's some silly info: (some stuff has been changed from previous post from some days or month(s) ago)

Heights aren't like up to date as the line up is really just to show their clothes and designs (or lack of)

Matchstick while a burgundy his sign is supposed to also kinda resemble wings. Like it's the most "trust me you gotta squint" sort of shit. But it's cuz I wanna give him a moth (perhaps plus some other animal) sort of lusus cuz hah light. Fire. He extinguishes fire but like haha lusus attracted to the light. and and and and and and and eel is trying her best here

Stitch is the only goldie but it's just funny that not only does he have no psionics to start off with, but also just like his og one eye got fucked up. So even if he did then it's like real weak. Just cuz like eye retina(??) and brain yeah im no surgeon

Sawbucks and Quarters to me are just like the guys who can take a fuck ton of hits? so indigo. yeah. that's all. Like Cans ofc can but I also just think of him more in an offense manner and Quarters takes up the defense

Die gets the cone of shame. fucking loser.

I was entertaining the idea of Clover and HK switching blood colors just cuz I can go "Haha Clover's soooo lucky that he's still alive" yadda yadda. But then, he wouldn't be able to get all weird and freaky with chuckle voodoo stuff. Yeah should he have that access? No :)

I could've made Trace a violet too but I felt like in their sprites, Fin (to me) is much more obvious to being a shark. Like look at that fuckin mug ya know? So i just went with making just Fin a violet.

the idea was to keep it where like there's more lowbloods than highbloods but ya know what. Just realized the only three midbloods I got are fucking Die Crowbar and Snowman. The sequence (ok I'll probably add someone else to the midbloods)

While I could've just made their blood off of like their ball or hat color, I felt like it'd be fun to see what blood color id assign them considering like their attributes or personalities like Itchy to me is an olive as I like to think that olives can be more rowdy or energetic? yeahhh like ofc not all but just for this yes

Also the idea of Itchy being a goldie sounds disastrous

Oh SHIT SAWBUCK IS A TEAL IM CHANGING HIM TO A TEAL OHAGUH

Doze is a burgundy but also like his sign a 2 and and anddd hourglass looking hehehe

Itchy was supposed to look like that dangly bit from the grandfather clock. And the others I gave up trying to implement some time looking reference

I know Snowy's pants are like so obvious cuz hahah spider web haha but BUT I AM SO HAPPY FOR HOW IT LOOKS. LIKE PANTS BUT COULD LOOK LIKE A SKIRT DRESS THING IF STANDING LEGS CLOSED AND AOUGH YEAHHHH

Oh yeah I'll also be adding or trying to come up with their clothes when not in uniform but that's a maybe. Maybe. There's ideas like I got Clover and Fin's but the others? yeah good luck.

Also I just really like ponchos or like the coat duster thingy yeahhhh

Also also PS. if there's like any questions please feel free to ask just cuz there's some other things I wanna talk about but it's either for characters not here or I am blanking

[goodluckclove]

Finding Banned Books Online: Actual Resources

Hey, it's me - a version of Clove who is now able to access their anger through means I am not going to delve into on a public space. Hello!

I have continued to get myself very upset over the people who tear apart anyone who makes the vaguest attempt to support, or even provide mixed opinions on the IA lending library. They insist there are so many ways to do this already through resources provided by libraries, but don't actually say any of those solutions.

Because Google is free, right? It's free and definitely still a viable way to easily access information. We all agree Google is normal and reliable, and that people these days actually know how to manipulate search terms in a way that effectively provides information. That's why it's such a great thing to say when people ask questions instead of actually providing information that could easily solve the problem in your favor. Great!

Anyways, I went ahead and did research so I can offer an actual guide to people looking to access - in this case specifically banned books - without the aid of piracy or the Internet Archive. These are programs created by libraries, fully legal, though admittedly not always the easiest to access.

The Palace Project: Banned Books Club

This seems to be the best option I was able to find. It's an app created by the Digital Public Library of America where you can access a variety of digital library archives, including the Banned Books Club. You don't need address or proof of ID - you don't even need your legal name.

You get a digital barcode you can use to access books for about 20 days at a time. They have a vast collection of e-books and audiobooks, as well as a bevy of fiction and nonfiction. Cool!

Brooklyn Public Library: Books UnBanned

If you're a young person in the United States who has their apps monitored, this is another alternative. The Brooklyn Public Library waives out-of-state e-card fees for youth that last a year (You might be able to reapply).

They cover you from 13-21, assuming you can work up the nerve to apply directly by emailing them, or messaging them on their youth-led Instagram account (@bklynfuture).

The Uncensored Library

Are you outside the United States? Do you have a computer that runs Minecraft? This is not technically a way to read Ulysses or The Hate You Give, but The Uncensored Library is a massive world seed dedicated to preserving (I think mainly) journalistic articles covering news in countries where censorship is way more prominent. This is an outlier to my point but it kicks ass and I think it has a place on this list.

There are other options out there like Hoopla, but it looks like a lot of them require an existing library card number. Libby has a nice UI thing that guides you towards the options in making an online library card for a local branch, assuming that's something you are able to do.

This is what I was able to find through about 45 minutes of searching. If someone else has an additional insight I would LOVE to add it. Libraries are working so, so hard to provide as much of a reach as they can, but unfortunately it's difficult to spread awareness without Spreading Awareness, if you know what I mean.

At the same time, if you're a person who is just spouting that these resources exist without either naming what they are and/or acknowledging that there are a small small small handful of options - it definitely seems like you're less interested in sharing information to encourage a positive change, and more invested in looking right and informed.

I spent almost an hour to find two actual sources to share. If I wanted to read a book I didn't have access to, it would be infinitely easier to give up. It is so fucking easy not to make the effort to read a book that could potentially change your life. It's so fucking easy just to not read! So hopefully this helps someone expand their horizons in a meaningful way, or just have better access to a library system that they might not otherwise have!

[butterflywithsass]

Things I Wish I knew living on my own

This is gonna be pretty short at the moment (I'll add more later) because I haven't been living on my own for very long and I think there's still plenty that I still have to figure out. I'm also drunk as I write this so this might be rambling.

This is gonna be chock full of really obvious stuff for most people but stuff that really confused or stressed me out when I did it. It's also gonna have that obvious stuff that's not so obvious because no one really talks about it until you are on your own and you haven't the first idea how to start.

First things first. Money. You're gonna need it, so look up a bank that is in your area and look into the process of setting up an account. Some banks have this online, sometimes you need to walk into the bank and do it in person. In both cases, make sure you have a passport, birth certificate, or other ID on you, as literally everything you know about your financial state prior to this. Ask your parents if you need to, or someone who knows this, because they are gonna ask a lot of questions. Once you've got the account set up make sure to confirm your ID. I set up an account online, and since I forgot to do this step, I have now had my account deactivated and I need to start all over again. Don't be like me.

If you're in a foreign country like me, make sure you understand how the currency works, and set up a method to transfer funds without having to pay the tax every time. Set up an app like Wise or something similar so people can transfer you money and you can move it to your bank account. Make sure you have a rough idea of how much something is worth in each currency. I'm still adjusting to using pounds, and things would look really cheap until I realized that a pound is worth slightly more than a dollar.

Services. I mean stuff like wifi and tv and stuff. If you're a student, than your wifi is fine, just make sure you set it up right. Euroroam is a bitch, so make sure you google how to do it right and just follow it step by step. Ask for help. Just ask someone. I'm so serious. Another thing I'm struggling with is TV. In the UK you have to have a license for BBC iplayer. Don't listen to your British friends when they say you don't need it. You do. If you don't have it you will get prosecuted. I don't wanna get prosecuted. It's super easy, even if it's kinda expensive, and hey, you get access to everything BBC. Just google tvl.co.uk and something will turn up. You can use that super handy bank card you got when you signed up for the bank account.

Transport. buses, trains and shit. First of all, make sure you download all the apps and inform yourself on how they work. It's gonna be confusing especially if your an American country hick like me so nows the time to learn. Get the maps. Get the bus schedules and routes. Pin them on your wall. Also, There's often some super cool discounts you can get if you sign up. Where I am in Scotland at the moment there's such a thing as a YoungScot Card, where you can get bus fair free if you're under 22. If you're not in Scotland, chances are there is something like that if you look. Transport can add up. Don't get Uber or a Taxi unless it's your only option, in which case, GET THE UBER. It's better to pay a butload of money for transport than be stranded somewhere alone. Your safety is more important than money.

Printers. You will need them. Often, there will be documents that you need to sign on paper, and so a printer will be needed. Google places where you can get things printed. If you are a student, make figuring out how to print things at your campus library a priority. I'm about to invest in my own printer just so I can skip this process because it's exhausting.

Voting. Just because you're not in your own country, doesn't mean you shouldn't vote. I'm from America, and care very much about the results of the next presidential election. If you're already registered to vote, try and get an absentee ballot.

Which brings me to mail. Get some stamps, and make sure they are the right ones. There will be postcard stamps, and mail stamps, and international stamps. Get the international letter stamps for your ballot and put them on because mailing is not paid for outside of the US. Then fucking mail it! (I'm swearing at myself so I remember to do this part when I'm sober)

Phone number. You will need a new one. Get an Esim card (should be in your settings if you have an iPhone) Make sure your friends have your new number and test it out to make sure it works when you're in a new country. One thing about Europe, is that the old buildings really suck for phone reception. Also, if you want to make this simpler and can't remember numbers very well, use Whatsapp or Instagram to message people.

Mess. You may go into this with certain ideas of granduer when it comes to personal organization. Be real. You won't be any more organized or tidy on your own than you were with other people. Just make sure that the essentials are accounted for and forgive yourself for the rest. Keep a drawer or a basket for all that important shit like bank statements or that letter that says they're opening an investigation because you haven't bought a tv license so it's all in one place and you don't lose anything. If it's urgent, pin it on your wall (get a bulletin board for this). Do your laundry. If you have your own washing machine and dryer, good for you. I don't, so figure out how the system works with the communal washers and get on that. Once again ask for help. Wash your sheets. Wash your pillowcases. WASH YOURSELF.

Hygiene. I hate it too, but it will make you feel better about yourself if you are clean and your teeth are brushed. This is the first thing to go when you feel in a slump. I know. I hate showers. I hate brushing my teeth, but not doing it makes my self-esteem go down the drain and my depression goes on a victory lap. Just do it. If you can't do anything else on this list, or you feel like everything is too overwhelming, do this. It will make a lot of other things feel doable.

Food. Okay, scratch that. This might be the most important thing. I am currently making a late night dinner of dried mangos and wine because I didn't have the motivation do get dinner tonight which is a prime example of what not to do. Because now I'm drunk and hungry. Get a fucking fridge! Get a microwave! Go to the grocery store and buy food. Even if it's ramen or mac and cheese. At least it's food. At this point, don't worry about eating healthy, just eat. Since I'm not allowed a mini fridge or a microwave, I have to time my meals so I get into the dining hall on time which results in this... So if you're in a similar case, set alarms for meal times, and GO TO THEM! If you miss it. Find a place that has cheap takeout that you will eat as a fall back option.

Groceries. Find a grocery store that has the things you need, and see what kind of membership or regular discounts you can get. You will need it. Don't worry about buying too much food, or buying too much junk food. If you're gonna overspend on something, better it be this and not something else. Eventually, you will get a sense of what you actually like to eat and what you don't. But for now, don't be afraid to buy something just to try it because it might become your new favorite food. Make a running list on your phone of what you need to buy and don't worry about overbuying. If you buy something you don't eat or don't want, give it away! Your neighbors or classmates or friends might want it and food is always a good way to meet people and form connections. At my old school, I became known as the one who would always have a bag of storebought cookies on me in class if anyone was hungry and didn't have any other options. I was proud of that reputation.

Don't restrict your space. It can get easy to walk the same path every day, and never venture outside of the area you know well. But every so often, try and use that bus pass you got, and go a little further afield. Just wander. You don't have to have a goal. Just explore. Living in a new place is the perfect time to do this. I recently ended up in a random church just because the gate was unlocked and the door was open. I ended up accidentally eavesdropping on a late night discussion of eleventh-century catholic manuscripts or something I can't remember and came home with a pamphlet for the catholic church I'm never going to join but it was an experience. Make awkward conversations with the people you haven't met before because maybe you'll end up crushing really hard for her even though she's straight and has a boyfriend and you'll spend the next week hopelessly pining but at least it will be something to mark the passing of time, creeping at this petty pace from day to day. Maybe the way she describes how she's learning to dissect cadavers and the way her eyebrows tilt will inspire you.

It's okay to be lonely. It's hard to adjust to living in a new place. Especially if you're a student at a new school. It may feel like everyone is making friends but you. That may be true. You may find that your neighbor has already met a guy and they are really cute together, and they no longer really want to hang out with you. You may find that the person you connected with really well now longer remembers your name but that's okay. It is a superpower, knowing how to be comfortable on your own. It's something you must learn before you can make a lasting connection with anyone. Those people who are making friends so fast are doing it because they are afraid to be alone. You aren't afraid.

Don't overcomit. Sometimes, you might feel so guilty about not donating to a freind's program to help survivers of domestic abuse in africa that you offer to design a website for them. But yuu're swamped. You have three essays due next week and you need to have an opinion about Homer's portrayal of Ithaka and you're terrified every second you spend not working on your essays, so that yiu ccan't relax even during breaks because you're constantly thinking you're behind but now you have to design a website. Don't fucking do that, What were yoy thinking you fuckin idiot. Just give your freind the money and tell her you can't do it.

Keep in touch with people. Don't fall off the map. There are people you love who are still out there. Your gramma wants to know how you're doing so give them a call, but not when you're drunk that will just make her anxious. Call your freinds from your old school. Ask them how they're doing. When tey tell you they're going on a date be happy for them and don't think bout how single you are. Fuck.

Invest in your projects. Don't forget what you love. Join that Good Omens fanfiction group even though it's one of the few things that you're not obligated to do. Don;t forget your hobbies. Watch the thing that David Tennent was in even though you don't have any prior interest in true crime and watch yourself fall into another spiral of hyperfixation.

Read Shakespeare. Relate so hard. Spend an inordinate amount of time memorizing the Yoric soliquiy from Hamlet. Spend a fortune on tickets to see David Tennent play Macbeth in the west end. Let it be your light. The only thing you are looking forward too at the moment.

You'e on your forth glass of wine. You havent neber been this drunk before becuse you are a syupid American who has just moved to the Uk unserpivused. and you're stressing about exams. You were supposed to be working.

Goodbye!

[butchdarling]

Hi, thanks for all your IDs! I'm new to Tumblr and want to write IDs. Are there etiquettes that I should take note of, like which posts to write IDs for and which not to? Any tags I should look out for? I came from Reddit and I'm aware that not all users want to have IDs on their posts, there's probably something similar here.

Hi, first of all you're very welcome for the descriptions! It's always nice to hear that my efforts are appreciated :)

Ideally, any post with images should also have a description for those images. Any post that doesn't already have an ID in the original post is one that's appropriate to add a description to. Even if someone else already wrote a description in a reblog, you're allowed to write your own if you want to. I personally haven't encountered anyone who has been upset when I've written a description? I think that's more an individual thing than something specific to a certain type of post.

There's not a consensus on what format works best for image descriptions, but alt text or plain text (not colored and normal size) directly below the image in the body of the post are generally considered the most accessible. Alt text tends to work better for screen readers, and plain text works better for some people who need descriptions but don't use screen readers. I personally use alt text for posts with a lot of images and plain text for posts with only a few. I've also seen people put a short description in alt text and a more detailed one in body text.

Other etiquette includes indicating when a description starts and ends. I use brackets and start and end with [ID / End ID] but some other formats I’ve seen include “Start ID / End ID” of “Image description / End image description” and being objective in your descriptions. If you're describing a picture of a dog as a "cute puppy," you're telling the reader what to think instead of letting them come to their own conclusion.

As for tags I know some people like to sort their posts as “described” for posts with IDs and “undescribed” or “no ID” for posts without. I find most of my descriptions either from people I follow or from looking in the notes of specific posts as opposed to searching tags so I'm not much help there, but here is a link to a post listing a whole bunch of accounts that make image descriptions.

There isn't really one way to write image descriptions because people have different accessibility needs, but even a simple description is better than no description. The basic format I usually go with is this:

[ID: A (type of image, painting, photo, etc) of (subject; if it's fan art I like to include the source) doing (action, this can really be as detailed or as simple as you want.) End ID]

In general, I go with more simple descriptions for comedic posts and more detailed ones for art. My number one tip is to follow people who write and reblog descriptions and to read them! I've picked up a lot of formats and phrases I use a lot in descriptions from people I follow.

If you're looking for more resources, I’m going to point you towards my mutual Kay @pathos-logical ‘s accessibility tag that has a bunch of good posts on how to write descriptions. You're also welcome to send me another ask or DM me if you'd like ^^

[rimzieiei]

I HEARD FATUI KAVEH AU AND PLS TELL ME EVERYTHING I KNOW NOTHING. GIMME ALL THE DETAILS PLS

HI OKAY I DIDNT EXPECT TO ACTUALLY GET ASKS BUT ILL DO MY BEST TO EXPLAIN MY AWFUL BRAINROT :3

(im so sorry any die hard kaveh fans because this au fucks him up beyond comprehension this is NOT your babygirl anymore)

(also, ive made up a LOT of characters and lore for this au so bear with me while i explain it all)

brighella, the beast (4th of the 11 fatui harbingers)

he is in charge of the realms investigation division, aka fucking around with the abyss/the elements/celestial stuff and finding out

kaveh was recruited to the fatui right after his mom moved away to fontaine. the fatui had an interest in studying his unique constitution. during this time, he worked closely under the innamorati (the previous 4th harbingers). going so far as to become a right hand man.

after a tragic incident where one half of the innamorati attacked and killed their partner (before being taken out by kaveh), he was promoted and took over his old boss's position.

kaveh stays in sumeru (instead of working from snezhnaya) because its the easiest place to access irminsul, and (before the sumeru archon quest) it was a hot spot for abyssal activity.

also, with how awful the fatuis reputation is, id make a bet that most nations try to keep as many of them out as possible. but they cant really get rid of someone that was born there and has citizenship. dottore probably got his citizenship axed after his crimes against humanity or revoked it himself because he could just live in snezhnaya. tldr kavehs the only harbinger that can waltz in and out of sumeru without any problems which gives him an intensive to stay and manage the fatuus stationed there.

id say kaveh has a generally good relationship with the rest of the harbingers. he gets along well with sandrone. he often exchanges information with signora and dottore (plus they both attended the akademiya) so theyre friendly. with pulcinella and tartaglia, they just exists together. generally positive i guess!

the closest harbinger to a friend is definitely columbina! (columbinas role in the fatui is a historical archivist because i believe the theory that shes a seele so shes old as hell) most of the motivation for kaveh ending up as a harbinger had to do with understanding the fuckfest that is his family history so columbina would have been a big help to him! which would then lead to them becoming friends not friends (also i think them talking shit about the other harbingers together is such a fun concept) (you CANNOT tell me columbina isnt a mean girl LOOK at her)

and because capitano and columbina are basically mother and son (this originated from a theory video about natlan lore all in all i think theyd be pretty close due to their lore intertwining) kaveh and capitano are friendly.

anyways! onto the harbingers hes not on good terms with...

pantalone would dislike kavehs because the abyss is dangerous and verrry expensive to deal with safely (paying out the families of fallen agents...). he didnt have this problem with the innamorati. kaveh would despise pantalone for making it incredibly difficult to get funds.

scaramouche hated everyone.

and ohhhh boy arlecchino... these two have the craziest beef with each other. if they werent both harbingers, the other would be dead. ill probably make a separate post at some point that describes their eternal feud. but in simple terms: theyre like each others twisted mirror version.

i dont really know what else to add to this??? but i will definitely be posting more about it :3

[jaynehat]

Working the polls in the USA

This November will mark my second election as a volunteer poll worker. I highly recommend the experience, especially if you're wanting to do something that directly helps democracy to function.

When you go to vote, your polling location may have an interest sheet asking if you want to volunteer to work at the polls. Just marking that you're interested doesn't commit you to anything, it just means you'll get an e-mail at some point asking if you're still up for volunteering.

In my case, my local poll judge contacted me later and I indicated I was still interested. After providing several options, we set up a training time that worked for me. Everybody - new or returning - has to be trained, because it is very, very important that we all be in compliance with the current laws.

I live in a mid-sized city, and training was in a government center downtown, in a big meeting room with a wide variety of citizens who didn't seem to have anything in common except for a desire to help out. Training took a couple of hours, and consisted of election officials presenting information at the front of the room, as well as via Powerpoint and printed materials. It included details like what to do if someone with a disability needs to vote from their car, which forms of picture ID are valid (this was a new requirement for my state this spring), and what to do if you're not sure about something.

There were options for half day and full day volunteers on voting day. I picked full day because the poll judge basically begged me to, since they had a shortage of full day workers. We would have been fine, it turns out, but it was kind of cool seeing the whole day through. Independently of each other, most of the poll workers brought in snacks for everybody to have. It was much appreciated. One guy even brought in red white and blue bunting and decorated the place.

I already had confidence in the integrity of the polls, but after having volunteered once, I have even more confidence. Everybody really is there just to make sure things go smoothly, and the number of people, including me, checking over every single tiny tick mark and scrap of paper was mind-blowing. After the polls closed, we went back and checked every single voter slip (these slips do not show who someone voted for, we NEVER have access to that info) against the voter registration book to be sure that all the names matched up exactly as they were supposed to. When all the checks were completed, we could have total confidence that the paper records of physical votes cast were in accordance with the digital votes cast at the machines.

Most of the poll workers had done this many times before and were up on how things worked, which helped my nervousness greatly. Also, while I am using the term "volunteer," you actually do get a small paycheck for doing this.

I am Gen X in my 50's, and I was the youngest volunteer there. I can see how this would be a great volunteer opportunity for a retiree, but I couldn't help thinking that maybe we could add a little youth to the mix as well. You could also choose to help out at an early voting place, if you want something that wouldn't be so crowded.

In conclusion: if you're looking for something to do to help out American democracy, volunteering at your polling place could be right for you.

[beeben]

hi, i was a previous victim of ultimatehater/realultimatehater, i can go message you off anon if you wish

i have a gif aesthetic side blog and in my main blog i post media edits. i posted a gifset from each hh on my main, and reblogged some of them to my aes blog bc i have more followers there.

anyways RUH sent my over 50 death threats that i decided not to acknowledge at all. i did delete them so i have no evidence. many of them felt ai generated, just generic 'your edits are ugly, no one likes you, kill yourself' messages. nothing really outside that, i didnt receive any doxxing/rape threats

anyways i DID answer one ask, and then she proceeded to claim i somehow edited the ask???? that is literally not possible, and more concerning people believed it???

BUT ALSO before ultimatehater was deleted, if you went back enough to her blog, you can see her original url was a bunch of numbers. before getting to hazbin discourse she baited scott vs the world fans, calling them pedophiles. it seems she just wants drama and rn she's making some bold statements in her new blog, that i'll be completely honest and also is just my opinion, i think she is lying.

I feel the same thing ngl.. i don't like to discredit someone's trauma but shes been copy pasting the things she's said to me and then sending them to other people unedited. I genuinely think shes a troll, and attacking random people with fandom blogs hoping to lure in and harm a child. It seems that way from the types of media she obsesses over (hazbin hotel/helluva boss, she ra) ive never heard of scot vs the world but id guess it's probably in that same category tbh. Im really not worried about her claiming to doxx people, claiming to add people to a hit list, i dont believe it. What i do worry about is children interacting with her and thinking she is legitimate. Thats what i mean by luring children. Shes goading people into responding to her and hoping they take her seriously. Children online who watch shows like hazbin hotel (most likely with unrestricted access to the Internet) are EXACTLY the type of "im more emotionally mature than my peers" type of kid that gets pushed into these harmful and frankly predatory groomer esque situations. Even if she's a troll and this is all fake, traumatizing children isnt. She's trying to perform a power play on these kids who are just beginning to understand themes like rape or abuse or racism or brutality and care about them so emotionally as children do, and trying to use it against them. Trying to hurt them

[an-absolute-nightmare]

hi. so im trying to help make this website more accessible, by trying to add a screen reader, a dark/light mode toggle, and a font size changer. why i, a person with no computer background or interest is doing this, is a question i have asked myself and have no answer to, but i would prefer that this were done. could someone please guide me in this?

(if you can't pls signal boost anyways so that it might appear on the dash of someone who can, bc id rather this was done asap. thanks:3)

[s0fti3w1tch]

Gonna be adding alt text to my art more.

Since a lot of my stuff is comics and ref sheets I'm not exactly sure how to describe those well, especially in a concise way-- but I'm gonna give it a try because how am I gonna get better at writing Image Descriptions if I never do it?

I've been checking out @rottmnt-described (please check them out-- they do amazing work) for examples and other drawings with image IDs! After this post, July 6th 2k23, I'll be adding image IDs to all of my drawings (if not, because of circumstances: I will tag 'no image id yet' and 'undescribed' but I will get back to them.)

Please give me constructive criticisms in both DMs and asks so I can make my work more accessible. Also ask/dm me about any specific art I've made that I should add alt text to if I haven't gotten to it.

I encourage my other ROTTMNT artists to give it a go or find someone who can do it

[ocean-sapphics]

what are ocean sapphics? & flags!

'ocean' is the umbrella grouping term for presentation labels that lesbian & bi/pan sapphics can use regarding femininity, masculinity, and androgyny.

these terms were initially coined by strwbryfemme on twitter, using their gimmick account sapphicimagines back in january of 2022. both accounts have since been deactivated and therefore this thread is long gone. i found them in an old flag hoard album on my camera roll recently and decided to respectfully reupload them in case anyone else would enjoy.

NOTE #1: i will not be putting the rest of this, admittedly quite long, post under a ‘read more’ cut due to the fact that all the information would be lost if someone decided to reblog it and the original post ended up gone sometime in the future. you would not be able to view anything under it, since whatever is there can only be seen on the original page. i apologize if you have to scroll a lot because of this, but that’s unfortunately one of the many inconvenient ways tumblr works.

NOTE #2 (MUST READ): i felt it would be best to swap their usage of 'pearl' to mean masc, not androgyne. this is because these chosen words feel unbalanced in their meanings to me. 'ocean' feels too broad and vague to cover just one category (hence why i made it overarching instead), and doesn't fit its place in the hierarchy of the theme. it'd be like saying, for example: 'cat' is fem, 'animal' is masc, and 'dog' is androgynous; instead of saying 'cat' is fem, 'dog' is masc, and 'furry' (lmao idk ok? bear with me) is androgynous. i then turned what was previously 'pearl' into 'coral' as a replacement, since that made more sense from my perspective. if this confuses you while reading the tweets below, i have put my corrections for the labels/flags in alt text, which you can click on each image to access. if that doesn't help, feel free to ask questions. i tried to make this as easy and least complex as possible, so i apologize if that didn't work.

NOTE #3: if cat (strwbryfemme) and/or atlas (ilikegaycookies, who designed the bi flags btw) finds this and would like me to take it down, i will do so upon request, directly or indirectly, and also delete this blog. i intend no disrespect to either of you and i'm posting this because i like your ideas and don't want them to rot and be forgotten anymore than they already have. i edited the words themselves because i thought they would fit better, but i can also revert them back to their original versions if need be.

with that out of the way, let’s get onto the flags first!

sapphic:

lesbian:

bisexual:

information (REMINDER THAT I HAVE RE-COINED A COUPLE OF TERMS. READ ALT TEXT TO KNOW WHICH WORDS TO SWAP OUT WHEN READING THE SCREENSHOTS!):

any and all help with IDs/PTs are appreciated! i do not have the spoons to write them out as of now due to the rest of the work i'm putting into this post, but if someone wants to volunteer then i can put all the text into a rentry (or multiple) and edit it here to make the images more accessible to disabled readers. thank you!

here is some more stuff i would like to add (please also read these too if you are interested in claiming, or even if you are not on board with all this):

you should keep in mind that i am a white tme bi sapphic who knows my history and claims 'butch', so i will not argue about butch/femme discourse because i strongly support the terms not being lesbian-exclusive. however, it should be understood that i still know my place and privilege regarding other applicable aspects and do not wish to offend anyone or start discourse here. this post is simply a reupload and attempt at re-suggesting cute terms for personal use only, entirely by choice. they are not designed to be forced on anyone or become mainstream, especially not to replace femme/butch/futch or even the infamous doe/stag/tomcat. you do not have to like these or agree with them. you are allowed to dismiss the idea and move on as it wasn't made to erase or hurt anyone. please hold anyone who does spread these in bad faith accountable, thanks.

with that being said, it is my opinion that we should grant their wishes for wanting to keep this series exclusive to the sapphic community. i do not personally consider either of these individuals to be overall 'bad people', even if we disagree on some things heavily. they still deserve respect for the positive contributions they have made to our community, which is why, again, i will remove all of the above without hesitation if asked by a credible messenger.

one last thing to be reminded of ─ if anyone else ends up playing around with the theme of these terms + flags, for any given reason (such as designing pan/trans/enby/etc. versions), please do not use the word 'fish', especially if you are also white, as that already exists within a Black-exclusive context to be a cultural identity adjacent to 'femme'! i will not speak or give an opinion about what to do or not if you are Black, as i'm sure you will be able to take it from there.

this is not necessary to read, so you can stop now lol ─ anyway, thank you for your attention, and enjoy! reblogs are appreciated, and comments will be listened to. if you have any complaints directed towards the content itself, then i unfortunately cannot help you with that as said content is not really mine. however, i will try to respond to stuff related to my act of reuploading and/or adjusting the terminology. remember that i self-identify as butch and am critical of coining ideas with a similar purpose to doe/stag, but obviously i am not against it. as long as you can understand my point of view, your opinions will matter, even if they (respectfully!) dissent. have a lovely rest of your day/night!

[rjalker]

[ID: The MOGAI pride flag, with stripes of: robin's egg blue, teal, green, yellow, grey-purple, and brown, overlaid with white text with a black border that reads:

"You cannot claim the MOGAI community is welcoming to everyone if you exclude disabled people by refusing to make your posts accessible!

Use plain text!

Describe your images!

Put the ID directly below the image!

Use paragraph breaks!

Use punctuation!

If someone makes an ID for your post, add it to the original and ask people to reblog the new version!

Make your posts accessible so everyone is actually included!"

End ID.]

At the very least if you don't care enough to add image descriptions to your posts, tag them as "no ID" or "undescribed" or "undescribed images" or something so that people can filter them!

Stop using colorful frilly text or tiny text unless you also include a plain text transcription!

Stop making your blogs have eye burning neon colors without putting a warning on every single post you make so people with photosensitivity know not to click on your icon!

Stop adding flashing or sparkling gifs to your posts without tagging it as "flashing"! And no, not "flashing tw" or "tw flashing" or "///flashing" or "here be flashing"! Hyper specific tags mean the post doesn't get filtered!

Start making your MOGAI posts accessible or stop claiming that the MOGAI community is welcoming to everyone! Stop prioritizing aesthetics over accessibility!

I don't care if it takes a lot of energy to describe your million and one pride flags -- it uses up more energy to make them in the first place!

And don't just stop at describing your new ones, go through your old posts and describe as many as you can!

If someone adds an ID to your post, copy and paste it directly into the original post! Directly below the image being described! In plain, normal sized text without any colors or italics!

Make your posts accessible or at the very least, let people filter them out!

I'd love to help add image descriptions to people's pride flags if only I knew my efforts weren't being wasted becuse the OP's gonna throw a fit about me making their post accessible.

If you don't have the energy to describe your pride flags, tag it appropriately and leave a note saying that if someone makes an ID, you will edit it into the original post!

It should not be solely up to disabled people to make things accessible! If you have the time and energy to make fifty one pride flags a month complete with paragraphs of description you have the energy to make a simple image description of your pride flag so that disabled people can actually be welcomed into the community too.

It's 2023. Leave ableism behind. Actually welcome disabled people into the MOGAI community.