#spends 60 years as a titan

[coffeecatcraze]

I would just like to point out that when Ymir got a second chance at life, she immediately used it to be gay and do crime. Truly the lesbian icon we all deserve. 💖

[semi-sketchy]

I finally got sick enough of my chair with the foam that deteriorated within a month and left me sitting on a plank of wood and the wheels dry rotting and leaving bits of plastic all over my floor

I spent $300 on a new one

If it breaks down quickly I will eat the fucking floorboards

[batshit-auspol]

So a bit of background first for our international followers: Clive Palmer is one of Australia's many mining billionaires who like to meddle in our country's politics, and as such he is utterly despised by all of Australia.

Picture for context:

He is most commonly known online by the title "Fatty McFuckhead", (problematic as it may be) because he tried to sue a youtuber for $500,000 for calling him that - and he lost. So the name stuck.

Up until his most recent foray into parliament, the legally certified Fuckhead was best known for his batshit business ventures, such as attempting to build "The Titanic 2" (failed) and trying to build a dinosaur theme park (also failed, but at least nobody got eaten by a T-Rex in this one).

For a very long time Clive played the role of sugar daddy to Australia's largest conservative party, the ironically named Liberal Party, until they had a falling out in 2012 after Clive claimed there was too much money influencing politics (lol), at which point he started his own party, days after saying he totally quit and wasn't fired and he only left because he didn't want to be a distraction.

His initial run at parliament was actually kinda successful, with Palmer's group winning 4 seats, plus a member from the "Motoring Enthusiasts Party" joined them too after accidentally getting elected and not knowing what the fuck to do.

Despite this initial success however, Palmer's party (which ran on basically no platform other than "I'm rich") hit an iceberg (titanic 2 achieved) and seven elected state and federal politicians quit within the first year.

By the time the next federal election rolled around, only one Palmer party candidate was still running for re-election. The most successful of this group - Jaquie Lambie - quit to sit as an independant and is still in parliament today.

Here she is with a painting of herself strangling Clive (she sells signed copies of this)

And here the senator is posting about liking sausage:

Anyway, we're getting to the point: which is the yellow posters. By the 2016 election, just two years after forming, the party was in complete freefall. It won just 0.01% of the vote at their second election, and it was announced shortly after that Clive was quitting politics and the party was being shut down. Australia breathed a sigh of relief.

It was, of course, short lived.

Clive, in desperate need of attention, restarted the party for the 2019 election, fielding candidates in every seat and spending $60 million in advertising in an attempt to win votes.

Every single candidate lost.

It was in this campaign however that Australia really started to fall out of love with Palmer, because most of that $60 million went towards putting up the world's least compelling marketing billboards on almost every single free space in the country.

For a good six months this was basically the only thing you would see in Australia if you went outside:

Clearly Graphic design is his passion. And yes, the genius did just straight up try and copy Trump's homework while changing a few words, hoping nobody would notice.

Very quickly these all got vandalised and it seemed the ad companies didn't care enough to replace them.

We could go on posting examples, there are thousands, but the best is definitely the one Ikea put up shortly after Clive lost the election:

In 2022, Clive's party contested the election AGAIN, this time also opting to send millions on spam text messages to every person in Australia begging for people to vote for him, as well as buying almost every youtube ad for a year, at the cost of $100 million.

He won a whopping one seat.

During this election Clive ran on an anti-lockdown, anti-vax platform with the slogan "freedom, freedom, freedom". That message, however, was slightly undermined when his goons, dressed in 'Freedom!' shirts, made national news for trying to beat up a protester who turned up at a rally dressed as an annoying text message, shouting "pay your workers" at Clive.

As if that wasn't bad enough, at another rally Clive knocked himself unconscious while trying to jump up on stage, and then a few weeks later was rushed to hospital with covid, while his anti-vax ads were still in regular rotation on TV, at which point it was also leaked to the press that Palmer had been alledgedly trying to buy Hitler's car.

Utterly humiliated, the party deregistered again shortly after the election.

Can't wait until he runs again in 2025.

Anyway, on the other "Clive tweeting Miss Kobayashi's Dragon" thing, we have no idea what that means but here's a screencap:

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dan Pfeiffer at The Message Box:

Even in a media environment where consumers have unlimited choices, a 60 Minutes interview is the coup de grace. A campaign would do almost anything to be featured. The highly-rated program comes on right after NFL football — making it the one thing on broadcast TV that still draws a mass audience. Donald Trump pulled out of the 60 Minutes interview, ceding the entire show to his opponent. In the campaign's final weeks, Trump also reportedly pulled out of interviews with CNBC and NBC News. He turned down an opportunity to participate in a prime-time CNN town hall. In fact, Trump didn’t do a single interview with a traditional news outlet in the campaign's final stretch. No national broadcast interviews, no sit-downs with local TV anchors or newspapers.

The winning candidate ignored the traditional media, focusing instead on partisan media outlets and politics-adjacent podcasts. While this change isn’t new, it seems clear that 2024 was a pivot point for the role of the legacy media in politics. Democratic communications strategies have evolved over the years — and the Harris campaign did some very innovative things. Nevertheless, our approach to communicating with voters continues to depend heavily on the legacy media. When we have something to say, we look for a cable or broadcast network to say it on. We spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about the morning tipsheets and which surrogates are booked on cable news. New York Times headlines can be a party-wide obsession. Do Democrats need to follow Trump’s lead and break up with the legacy media? The Right Wing media’s advantage was particularly decisive during this election. This is the first in a series of posts discussing how Trump outmessaged us in the 2024 election and what we can do in the future. 

A Changed Dynamic

For a long time, the political press was the most powerful force in politics. So powerful that they were known as the “Fourth Estate” with the capacity to make or break a campaign. The list of failed presidential candidates who were unable to win over the tastemakers in the media is long. One can credibly argue that unfair press coverage from the New York Times and others were a significant factor in Hillary Clinton’s 2016 loss.

The traditional media has been losing relevance for a while now. The death spiral of the political media is a much longer, more complicated story (I wrote a lot about it in my most recent book), but there have been a few dynamics driving this descent.  The first is the rapid pace of technological innovation. Newspapers were once the most powerful entities in media. A presidential campaign wanted nothing more than a great picture on the front page of the Des Moines Register, Philadelphia Inquirer, or Detroit Free Press. Most local papers are shells of themselves — simply carrion for private equity to drain the last few cents before closing up shop. While the New York Times and Wall Street Journal are thriving, the Washington Post is bleeding money and full of controversy, and USA Today barely registers (I had to Google if it was still published). Cable and broadcast viewership is down as more consumers cut the cord or turn to social media for news. Legacy media is simply reaching fewer people. Second, the media reaches people who are less likely to believe what they read/see/hear. 

[...] A Data for Progress poll found that Kamala Harris won voters who consumed “a great deal” and “a lot” of news but lost the voters who consumed no news by a whopping 19 points.

The New New Media

The biggest media events of the 2024 campaign were not on 60 Minutes or Meet the Press. They didn’t involve the New York Times or any of the major cable channels. They were interviews with podcasters Joe Rogan and Alex Cooper. The media titans are influencers with large followings and parasocial relationships with their audiences. Many voters no longer trust media institutions, but instead trust folks with whom they often spend hours every week. A Pew Knight study found that one-in-five Americans – 37% of adults under 30 – regularly get their news from social media influencers. Trump and the Republicans have better understood this shift than Democrats. At the end of the campaign, nearly all of Trump’s media interactions were with Right-leaning podcasters commanding massive social media followings. During Trump’s victory speech, UFC boss Dana White came on stage and specifically thanked Adin Ross, the NELK Boys, Theo Von, and the folks from Barstool Sports. The GOP has actively tried to support their influencers with interviews and attention. While Kamala Harris did appear on Cooper’s wildly popular Call Her Daddy podcast, most Democrats kept podcasters and news influencers at arms length.

Dan Pfeiffer’s latest Message Box Substack post shows that the Democratic Party’s overreliance on legacy media at the expense of nontraditional media came back to bite them, and that Dems should focus more on nontraditional media outlets in addition to the legacy MSM.

[witchkillr]

A LOOSE TIMELINE OF EVENTS, or: how agat.ha hark.ness became arguably the most wanted witch in western history. this timeline is heavily headcanon-based and does not adhere to aaa especially strictly, though that is its primary influence.

1675-1693. the harkness baby is born cursed, or so her mother says. she is a strange child from her first moments. she never cries, never, and develops into an insatiable hunger for knowledge that eclipses all else: friendship, community, caring. this is due in part to her strange and dangerous power, which she seeks to control and which, when it manifests, becomes a lightning rod for her mother's abuse and neglect. it is otherwise, quite simply, in her nature.

in 1693, she is put on trial before her coven for the crimes of stealing "knowledge beyond her age and station" and "practicing dark magick". they attack her, she siphons them to death and in so doing, attracts the attention of "rio", whose identity she won't discern until later.

for the next 60 years, she runs a variety of cons across new england. in that time, the salem seven grow up and come looking, leaving agatha to a nomadic lifestyle that suits her snake oil saleswoman persona just fine, actually. she continues to run into (and slowly fall in love with) rio consistently.

eventually she runs out of towns to flee to that a. don't see her as a fraud and b. won't attract the attention of the seven, so she bargains her way aboard a trade vessel, billing herself as a protection witch who can ensure clear skies and safe passage.

1753-1796 are spent becoming one of the more infamous lady pirates in history. she has a myth to rival blackbeard's, and not only makes a killing in gold, but in knowledge, too - she captures witches in transit, tortures them for information, and steals all the interesting books from aristocratic vessels for herself, leaving piles of bodies for her beloved to enjoy.

this pattern grows boring after a time, and so she settles in the english countryside with her newfound wealth, eventually coming to own a sizeable estate in london (~1813). having just turned the corner on her second century, she still appears young enough to be bombarded with countless questions as to her marriage prospects. at rio's sultry suggestion, she puts a viscount under her spell, marries him, and kills him within the year.

the widow harkness makes a series of wise investments, here, that will pay dividends well into her future.

it is the second husband's suspiciously tragic death (~1840) that renders mayfair inhospitable for agatha. having heard whispers of a witching settlement on the american frontier, she and rio settle awhile in the forests of colorado.

nicholas is born in 1856, at which point agatha's relationship with rio becomes irrevocably strained, but she keeps that from their son as best she can, moving properly into new salem with him.

agatha loses her son, (effectively) divorces her wife and acquires the darkhold in 1862. in her rage and grief, she razes new salem to the ground (but allows the children to go free - this is a mistake she will make over and over again) and goes looking for the next place to assimilate into.

that place is new orleans, where she promptly starts up a deeply homoerotic feud with marie laveau while she dedicates herself to studying the darkhold. the family will hate her for generations to come, despite her enduring fondness for zoe.

the titanic and hindenburg are rituals, designed to unlock the full potential of the book of the damned. the fact that her ex-wife is drawn to both tragedies is an unfortunate side effect. in between the two, she spends some time doing silent films.

she spends the 1940s in nyc, working on and off as a consultant for the us army thanks to peggy carter's recruitment efforts. (yes, that is code for "they fucked nasty", thank you to that one poster for putting it so eloquently)

the most important thing about the 1950s for agatha is her car, and an unfortunate run-in with the sorcerer supreme in tibet.

for the next twenty years, she's really into the music scene. dolly parton, then lorna wu. only one of those seductions was successful. bet you can't guess which.

it's about here that she becomes a two time poker world champion, gambling a select portion of her vast fortune and cheating only a little. when she isn't in vegas, she has a penthouse in berlin.

yes, she is a card-carrying member of dykes on bikes. yes, she does have a harley hotrod with purple flames on the sides.

it's pretty much the usual scum and villainy until the snap. agatha does not blip. she is a cockroach. she doesn't know whether it was pure luck, the darkhold, or rio looking out for her somewhere, but she spends those four years taking advantage of desperate, lonely witches looking to use the road to get their loved ones back.

enter wanda maximoff. the rest, as they say, is history.

[chroniclingworlds]

Fluvictus

The evolution from land-dwelling predators to swimming titans wasn’t a straight shot. Unlike their more famous cousins the Lancetes, Fluvictus inhabit fresh and brackish water. Semi-aquatic, with powerful flippers and tails, they are exquisitely adapted to life in the water.

Flagtails

Pictured: the midland Flagtail, the most common species which inhabits the central portion of the river.

In the huge, slow-moving White River of Ejoa, a living fossil lurks. One of the first offshoots of the Fluvictus lineage, they have changed very little over the last 75 million years. Although we know the Fluvictus and Lancetes evolved from land-dwelling ancestors and modern Fluvictus such as River Tigers spend time on land, the Flagtails are almost fully aquatic. These cryptic animals only return to land to lay eggs, and are quite awkward out of the water. However, in their preferred habitat under the surface, they are surprisingly elegant and almost seem to “fly” around the murky waters. They have never been especially common, and today are quite rare in the wild. The highland and lowland species especially are considered endangered and the topic of releasing captive populations is being discussed to re-establish their presence throughout their historic territory.

River Tigers

Pictured: the striated river tiger, native to the Noxa River of Axane.

Living in rivers and lakes nearly worldwide, these aquatic predators lurk just beneath the surface to ambush prey with a stab of their serrated proboscis. They can be found venturing into saltwater as well, although they cannot live there full-time as they need to drink freshwater to survive. This could explain their worldwide distribution despite the limited ranges of the other two Fluvictus varieties; they simply swam to new continents, or perhaps got washed out to sea in a storm and found their way to the nearest landmass. Whatever the case, River Tigers are very successful predators and display a fascinating array of species. Large groups of them can be seen basking on the shores of rivers.

Icefish

Pictured: the short-nose Icefish, found in the Boreal River of southwestern Amki.

These strange creatures only live in Amki, but exactly how they arrived there is up for debate. Some believe their ancestors crossed the Xraa Sea during the last ice age and became isolated on the continent when water levels rose again, however, their DNA indicates they split off from other Fluvictus species around 60 million years ago, long before the last ice age. Whatever the case, these animals live in lakes and rivers across the frigid continent of Amki. Their bodies are blubbery to conserve heat and their blood contains a type of antifreeze that allows them to remain active even in winter. Their solid head-crest can break ice to allow them to reach air even as their rivers freeze. Feeding on whatever small animals they can catch, they lead a very slow and steady life. Despite their reputation of being a passive animal, they have been seen catching and feeding on the much faster Remmanites.

[thisbirdhasceasedtobe]

I actually have more thoughts I'm sorry.

TL;DR

Transport -> Successful Transport = Not Death, either to us or them Transport -> Accident -> Split Personalities = Not death to them, could be death to Us, happens to Kirk

Transport -> Accident -> Duplication = Not Death, either to us or them, could be considered a birth

Transport -> Accident -> Splice = Not death, could be considered a birth

Transport -> Accident -> Fatal Merge = Very death, RIP Commander Sonak

Transport -> Accident -> Splice -> Split = Very death, in fact Murder

Death in Star Trek is, like I jokingly said, hardly worse than the flu, but that's not to diminish how important death still is in the year 2375. I also say that I don't think they'd have the same concept of death as us, and I stand by it, but that concept is certainly more similar than I let on.

We see in DS9's "The Visitor" what a concept of death closest to our own looks like. Benjamin and Jake Sisko are in Engineering on the Defiant studying a subspace anomaly when Ben gets swallowed by the anomaly. Jake spends the next couple years aboard DS9 grieving his father, but the *second* Jake lays eyes on his briefly re-materialized father, Jake funnels all thought into bringing his Father back, studying every bit of knowledge he can get his hands on, sacrificing his whole life to bring his Dad back. To you or I, in our modern world, this would be the height of unhealthy obsession and would absolutely get someone a trip to a psych ward, but to them it shows just how mutable the concept of death is. To Jake, to the people in his life, that glimpse of his father erases nearly any idea that he's *actually* dead.

Let's take a step back and look at The Wrath of Khan and The Search for Spock. We all know Spock's sacrifice at the end of TWoK, Hallmark made it a Christmas ornament for Roddenberry's sake, but after Spock's death Kirk goes home and does his grieving, that's that, done and dusted. Sarek breaks down the door and calmly asks "did my son put his soul in you," Kirk is reasonably confused and with the stunning realization that Vulcan's have literal, physical souls, begins the quest to "resurrect" Spock. Vulcan's clearly don't share our same concept of Death, and Death in Kirk's mind is plenty flexible enough to grapple with the idea that Spock might not be dead.

When I said the people in the world of Star Trek would have a completely different view of death, this is the distinction I was trying to articulate. Death, for us, is permanent and inevitable. It is neither in Star Trek, and that's the difference that makes everything. People, like Jake and Kirk, still grieve long and fully, but the fundamental difference in permanence and effect leads them to have a significantly less rigid view of the concept.

Spock got his brain stolen in TOS 3x01 Spock's Brain. I dunno about you, but I would certainly call a brainless body a dead one, even if it's being artificially kept alive. If brain death counts as death, then being brainless should also, even if the body is artificially supported.

Kirk gets split in two in TOS 1x04 The Enemy Within by a transporter accident, resulting basically in a 'good' Kirk and an 'evil' one. The original Kirk is no longer there, and this certainly counts as the transporter killing a person, but because of Kirk's subsequent re-integration, it's a non-issue.

"But Jesse," I hear you raise your finger pointedly, "that's just TOS being silly and 60's!" and you'd be correct! But you'd be a fool to think the hijinks stop here!

How about we look at a pair, or rather, two pairs of people who have some experience with transporters. William T. Riker and Bradward Boimler. Both got duplicated the transporter, and in the first place it's the original that returned, in the latter, the copy. Thomas Riker, Will's clone, wasn't discovered for some eight years and no one could have known he was alive. The original Boimler, however, makes it back to the Titan just after his clone, later taking the name William, walks off the Transporter pad.

If, as I claim, the transporter splitting Kirk in half is killing, then surely so should these, right? Well, to you or I, sure. But to them, there's a person who's clearly the original, they know their circumstances. The "original" Riker and Boimler could be said to have died when they were split, but since no one was any the wiser until OG Boimler showed up and Riker Beta was discovered. Are they then considered, retroactively, dead? No, because that's a very silly thing to do, and death in Star Trek is flexible enough a concept to accommodate them all.

As I put in the Tags, I don't view it as death in either our view or in Star Trek's view. I think this is also evidenced by the way transporter suspicion is viewed in-universe. Bones is considered 'quaint' or even 'misguided' over his fear of transporters in The Motion Picture, despite those fears being proven valid just a little bit earlier when Commander Sonak and an Unnamed officer get merged by the recently refit Enterprise's, NCC-1701, transporters and, according to the TMP novelization, essentially turned inside out. Horrific, isn't it? THIS is what a transporter death looks like, this is our first canonical bit of evidence of what a true Transporter Death looks like.

A hundred years later, Reginald Barclay is a lieutenant on the Enterprise, NCC-1701-D, and by this time advances in Transporter tech have made them safer than either flying or driving by orders of magnitude, and Barclay's transporter fear is treated as a psychological problem, with him being directed to Ship's counselor, Commander Deanna Troi. Despite accidents appearing to us as frequent, because it's an easy to use plot point, they're extremely rare in the context of the show and are broadly treated like automitive accidents now.

Let's shift now to using the Transporter for execution. Surely, you could kill with a transporter by sending the occupant into space or re-materializing them in a bulkhead. In fact, the ways you could kill with a Transporter might outnumber the ways you can safely use them. Hey, wait, that almost sounds like what you can do with a car!

Let's commit a murder with the Transporter though. Voyager 2x24.Two crew members transport down, successfully, to a planet. They pick up some samples, one of them has a laugh, they beam back up. Oh no! The crew members got merged into one! One person, a merge of two, is born from their de-materialization. This person's name is Tuvix, a splicing of Lieutenant Commander Tuvok and Neelix. This person is both Tuvok and Neelix, yet neither. A distinct, living sentient being. But ah shoot, the captain misses her bestie and Kes misses her boyfriend, so the choice is made to split Tuvix back into Tuvok and Neelix. This is, rightfully, treated as a killing. This is another canonical example of what Transporter Death looks like.

In conclusion: it's the re-materialization or lack thereof that makes for a Transporter Death. Since, to successfuly use the transporter requires a re-materialization, successful transport cannot be considered a Transporter Death. It's not Death to them, but if we were to watch someone be beamed away, our only reasonable assumption would be Death.

In Star Trek, the transporter works by converting you as a complete copy from matter to energy containing all information necessary to reassemble you, sends that information wirelessly over a distance to a location where you are then reassembled, molecule by molecule. Since the copy is so perfect you do not perceive any interruption between conversions and everything about you is physically in tact at the end of the procedure (assuming nothing goes wrong, which canonically very rarely happens).

[zarinamcri]

[cis woman. she/her] Welcome to Aurora Bay, [ZARINA MARI]! I couldn’t help but notice you look an awful lot like [AYESHA MADON]. You must be the [TWENTY-FOUR] year old [PERSONAL ASSISTANT / ASPIRING INFLUENCER]. Word is you’re [JAUNTY] but can also be a bit [GULLIBLE] and your favorite song is [MAN OF YOUR DREAMS by RAFFAELLA]. I also heard you’ll be staying in [AURORA BAY DRIVE]. I’m sure you’ll love it! 

navigation . pinterest .

THE BASICS

NAME: zarina aryana mari .  NICKNAME: z, & rina. PRONOUNS: she / her . GENDER: cis female. SEXUALITY: pansexual. BIRTHDAY: october 1st CURRENT RESIDENCE: aurora bay drive . FAMILY: unnamed mother, unnamed father, and unnamed younger brother .

PERSONALITY

+TRAITS: optimistic, honest, jaunty.  -TRAITS: gullible, changeable, meddlesome.  LIKES: gel pens, girl power, maximalism , sharks, the color pink, glitter, hair jewelry, a colorful wardrobe, crochet (even tho she can't do it), yapping, 2000's romcoms, any popular tiktok trend/dance, second chances, anything cotton candy flavored, & strawberry uncrustables. DISLIKES: sand, humidity, boats(like hello the titanic was an actual thing), capsule wardrobes, mean people, curbs, pedestrians (bc why do they get the right away), & conflict.

APPEARANCE

HAIRCOLOR: dark brown / black .  HAIR LENGTH: past her collarbones.  EYECOLOR: brown. HEIGHT: 5'6’’. SIGNATURE SCENT: marc jacobs, daisy. TATTOOS / PIERCINGS : single lobe piercings on both ears, left nostril, and smiley.

BIO

Zarina Mari had never imagined she would find herself on the West Coast, but isn't Los Angeles where stars are made? From a young age, Zarina always aspired to be something more—better yet, someone special. At just five years old, she took the stage at a local theater, performing in an original community play. With the spotlight shining down on her, she delivered her one and only line, which she proudly claimed to have perfected. The rush of adrenaline surged through her as she saw the awe on the faces in the audience. From that moment on, she chased that dream, along with the exhilarating feeling it brought. She participated in more community plays and enrolled in multiple theater classes throughout high school. Zarina was convinced that if the right person saw her perform, she would be the next big thing. So, it came as no surprise when she announced to her parents her desire to attend Juilliard. What shocked everyone, however, was when she received a letter of denial. She had put all her eggs in one basket, and while the situation was far from ideal, Zarina had to make the best of it. Like many aspiring actresses, Zarina did what she thought was right: she packed her bags and pursued her dreams. After spending $200 on a bus ticket and enduring a grueling 60+ hour journey, she arrived in Los Angeles with two overstuffed suitcases and a heart full of hope. However, she quickly learned that the industry wasn't quite what she had imagined. After facing repeated disappointments in auditions and juggling multiple jobs to make ends meet, she realized that her acting skills were often just mediocre compared to her peers. Moreover, the opportunities for women - especially those of color - were severely limited. After two years, the hope she once had for her breakout role never materialized. Instead, a new opportunity presented itself. One evening, she received a call from her roommate who had landed a project and was looking for extra help. Zarina jumped at the chance, excited by the prospect of good pay and the opportunity to stay connected to something she loved. Why not give it a shot? It wasn't surprising that she excelled at it—catering to her friends' every need by grabbing coffees, answering calls, and scheduling meetings and interviews. These were tasks she could do in her sleep, having managed them for herself all those years. However, it was when her friends' moment in the spotlight came and went that things began to slow down—not just for them, but for Zarina as well. The calls became less frequent, the schedule wasn’t as packed, and most of the time, Leila found herself simply hanging around their home with little to do but keep them company. It was then that the decision was made to downsize and temporarily leave Los Angeles. They decided to continue with a handful of brand deals her friend had secured and see what they could make of it. They've been in Aurora Bay for just over three years now, and with the sequel to their breakout film finally in production, Zarina has been entrusted with managing the property back in Aurora Bay while working from the headquarters (the home office).

Headcannons

+Zarina was born and raised in New Jersey, where she is the eldest child and a first-generation American. + She considers herself a nano-influencer, and with a little boost from her friend's career, she's managed to get a modest following of 20k across her social media platforms. + her content comes in various forms but it's mostly based off the three core elements; fashion, girl power & tik tok dances. + She currently lives in her employer/friend's home, where the basement feels like a cozy little apartment. She doesn’t pay rent and, honestly, has it pretty good. + She’s a master of various hobbies, though she tends to drop each one just a month after picking it up.

Wanted Connections

best friend ( employer ) ** wc on main / people she met in casting calls / people she's done indie films with / current friends / friends of the celebrity she works for / pa support group / people from jersey & la / hookups / exes / neighbors & totally up for plotting for future plots and brainstorming up ideas.

CURRENT CONNECTIONS

tba !

@aurorabayaesthetic

[thecommandertable]

How to build Commander EDH in 2010

It's summer of 2010 and you're looking for a Magic format to play besides Standard and Extended, so you, like Magic players everywhere, are building your first Elder Dragon Highlander deck. The EDH Rules Committee has recently banned Channel, Staff of Domination and Tolarian Academy—Rofellos too, but only as a general.

Choosing your Commander General

While you *can* use a mono-color legendary creature as a general, most people build around a multicolored legendary creature so they can have access to a greater range of effects. For instance, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker looks like a cool creature to build around, but your friend plays a Zur the Enchanter deck and always gets Solitary Confinement out—Gambling for Capricious Efreet seems like a really unreliable way to deal with that enchantment. Instead, you'll probably choose one of the 3-color dragons from Planar Chaos, or a 3-color legendary creature from the Shards of Alara block as your general. There are some 5-color options, but most of them care about specific creature types (3 Sliver legends!) and while there aren't any 4-color legends, some people are okay with letting people use one of the five Nephilims as a general.

Building around your general is important, but make sure that your deck can also function without it! People like to play "tuck" effects that will put your general on the bottom of your library or shuffle it in: Oblation, Proteus Staff, and Hinder are all popular cards in the format.

How Many Lands? Curve Considerations?

Most EDH playgroups use the Partial Paris mulligan: that means you can keep some of the cards in your initial hand and put the others on the bottom, then draw back up to seven. You can repeat that as many times as you need to, but every time after the first you draw one fewer card. The Partial Paris mulligan means you can regularly get starting hands with 4–5 mana sources while only having around 30 lands in the deck in total. As far as the mana curve is concerned—most 60-card decks have a curve that, depending on the format, center on two or three mana. But in EDH, games go long and players have a LOT of life, so decks are jammed full of 6, 7 and 8-mana cards that have big effects; expect to see haymakers like Insurrection, Tooth and Nail, and Titanic Ultimatum. Consequently, most EDH decks have mana curves that center on 3 or 4 mana.

Color Fixing

If you're a long-time Magic player, you might have some original dual lands gathering dust in your closet somewhere—unless you play Legacy or Vintage you probably haven't had any use for them—grab those! If you don't have them, don't worry about it too much—in a 40-life format the shocklands are basically equivalent, and those only range from $10–30 whereas the original duals range approximately $30–80 each for their cheapest printings (there's no good reason to spend $80 on a white-bordered Volcanic Island when you can get a Steam Vents for $25). What's important is that you have at least some lands with multiple basic land types so that you can grab exactly what you need with fetchlands. The painlands also benefit from the higher life total (as does City of Brass). The Shadowmoor/Eventide filterlands are a great option and a little cheaper now that they've rotated out of Standard (same for Reflecting Pool). The original filterlands from Odyssey are slightly worse, but still worth playing. At the moment there are only the allied color pairs—but WoTC might finish the cycle sometime in the next few years (no way they'd wait 14 years to do that).

And in a multiplayer game with all these multicolored generals being played, Exotic Orchard is likely to be able to tap for all of your colors. (Keep in mind that since it's 2010 you won't be able to produce colors outside your general's color identity—so if you're playing a Lord Tresserhorn deck and you Clone your opponent's Jenara, Asura of War, for example, you still won't be able to make white mana with Exotic Orchard to activate the ability.) All that said, if you can't afford to spend $150 or more on your mana base, there are some budget options. The Ravnican bouncelands (aka Karoo lands) are great in EDH—they help fix your colors and essentially put an extra land in your hand. Terramorphic Expanse and its new sister Evolving Wilds can be used to find whichever basic land you need. For 3-color "shard" decks, there's the uncommon land cycle from Shards of Alara; the vivid lands from Lorwyn can also be used in a pinch, as can the refuge lands from Zendikar. If you're on a tight budget, you might find it easier to build a shard color combination than a wedge, since there are more allied-color lands than enemy-color lands.

Ramp

When it comes to ramping your mana, if your general has green in its color identity, you're on easy street. Cards that destroy lands en-masse like Armageddon are considered taboo by most EDH playgroups, so cards that get extra lands into play are pretty surefire ways to ramp. Kodama's Reach (and its new non-arcane counterpart Cultivate), Explosive Vegetation and Skyshroud Claim are all gold-standard ramp cards. Land auras like Wild Growth, Fertile Ground and Overgrowth can be effective too, but they leave you vulnerable to Strip Mine and Avalanche Riders. If you don't have access to green, you're going to have to rely on mana rocks for ramp effects. Sol Ring is definitely the best option here; you can pick up a white-bordered one for around $5-10 (frankly, you should get ones for your green decks too). Its cousin Mana Crypt, on the other hand, is in the vicinity of $100 a pop—firmly outside most players' budgets. In between those extremes, we've got Grim Monolith, Mana Vault, and Gilded Lotus. Thran Dynamo, Worn Powerstone and Basalt Monolith are uncommons and each under $5.

Mana rocks can also help fix your colors. Coalition Relic is an all-star in decks with a lot of colors. The Signets, the Talismans (allied colors only), and Fellwar Stone can help shore up your mana base.

Not a mana rock—but still a form of colorless ramp—is Solemn Simulacrum (aka Sad Robot); an excellent early game play, the robot gets you an extra land when it enters and draws a card when it inevitably dies.

Card Draw

Drawing more than the standard one-card-per-turn is really important in EDH. Multiplayer games are battles of attrition, and you're going to want to make sure you always have gas in the tank. As you may know, some colors are better at this than others: blue is a natural at drawing cards, and black is no slouch either. Green has some ways to draw cards, but they (mostly) depend on having either a lot of creatures, one large creature, or having lots of large creatures.

White and red, however, have... not much to speak of. Mesa Enchantress and... Kor Spiritdancer, I guess, in white. Red's got... Browbeat? (Don't play Browbeat.) Card draw's just not in that part of the color pie; if your general doesn't have access to blue, black or green, you'll again have to turn to artifacts to fill in the cracks. Mind's Eye is a good way to draw a lot of cards, if you have the mana to spend. If your deck can make a lot of X/1 creatures, Skullclamp is there to turn them into new cards. If your creatures have flying, unblockable or double strike, Mask of Memory and Sword of Fire and Ice will help. If your deck gains lots of life, try Well of Lost Dreams.

In truth, those artifacts aren't enough to fill the gaps. Unless you're looking for a real uphill deckbuilding challenge, it's best to avoid generals that don't have any blue, black or green in their color identity.

Removal and Board Wipes

Make sure to include a handful of removal spells and board wipes to keep your opponents in check. The goal is to have some response to their most powerful move—Nature's Claim their Beastmaster Ascension before they attack with 10 creatures—Swords to Plowshares their Rafiq that's attacking for 22—Counterspell their Time Stretch, etc.

Be on the lookout for removal spells that remove two or more things (artifacts and enchantments especially) at once: Return to Dust, Hull Breach, Decimate, Aura Shards, etc. Since most board wipes only destroy creatures, it's crucial to make sure opposing Rhystic Studies and Doubling Seasons don't stick around for the whole game. (Speaking of Rhystic Study—if you or your LGS have got any old boxes of Prophecy bulk, check for copies of this 3 CMC common. It might look underwhelming, but you'll be shocked at how many cards this can draw you in a four or five-person game!)

Speaking of board wipes—EDH games are long and full of ups and downs, and if you want a chance to make a comeback when you've fallen behind, you'll want a board wipe to even the playing field.

White, of course, has the greatest variety of board wipes: Wrath of God and Day of Judgment are clean and efficient; Hour of Reckoning, Mass Calcify, and Soulscour can be near-one-sided board wipes in the right decks; and Martial Coup can leave behind a batch of tokens. Austere Command is probably the strongest due to its modality, but don't overlook Rout either—casting a wrath at instant speed is likely to catch other players off-guard. Black is the next best color at wiping the board. Damnation costs a pretty penny right now, but is the most mana-efficient. Living Death sees a lot of play, and is a good reason to play graveyard-hate cards like Tormod's Crypt. Decree of Pain is an all-star; in addition to clearing the board you'll typically draw at least 10 cards off this one.

Red's mostly got board wipes that clear off small to mid-sized creatures. If you want to kill something big like an Inkwell Leviathan, you're gonna have to invest a ton of mana into an Earthquake or Starstorm. Although we did just get Chain Reaction in Rise of the Eldrazi, which I have high hopes for. Keep an eye out for that one!

The closest Blue's got to board wipes are mass-bounce cards like Evacuation, Inundate and Kederekt Leviathan. Expect to see more of these played at instant speed now that blue decks have a second Vedalken Orrery with the newly-printed Leyline of Anticipation. Green doesn't really have board wipes. It's got some Windstorm effects for clearing away flying creatures, but that's it. How many removal spells and board wipes should you have in a deck? Well, that can vary depending on your strategy, but I'd say that on average decks are playing 4 of each.

Threats and Win-Conditions

So far we've covered color-fixing, ramp, card draw, removal and board wipes: all things needed to get your deck off the ground and preventing your opponents from getting too far ahead. But now we need some haymakers to actually win the game! You have a lot of flexibility here; go raid your trade binder and pull out some big splashy creatures! Kaervek the Merciless, Hamletback Goliath, Stormtide Leviathan, Godsire! Keep an eye out especially for large creatures that have some effect when they enter the battlefield or die; the new Titan cycle from M11, for example, or something like Magister Sphinx. They get you value even if one of your opponents wipes the board the turn after you cast them. Likewise, giving your creatures haste is a big plus—Lightning Greaves is a must-have card for EDH.

Large creatures are great, but you'll want a big sorcery or two to really bring the hammer down and finish the game. I've mentioned some of these already: Time Stretch, Insurrection, Tooth and Nail, etc. That, or have some sort of infinite combo that you can assemble that wins you the game. Kiki-Jiki + Pestermite is an obvious example, but there are lots of others that are too inefficient to see play in Extended or Legacy that you can use in EDH.

Thanks for reading

That's all from me! I hope this helps you have a fun time playing Elder Dragon Highlander! The difference in scale can take some getting used to, but once you do, you can get a ton of mileage out of your deck; since EDH is non-rotating and only a handful of cards from each new set get played in the format, you can comfortably go a year without making any upgrades to a deck and still have it be in fighting shape. The format moves very slowly. Hopefully this means that the advice in this guide, from 2010, will be applicable years and years from now! [DISCLAIMER: most of it isn't]

[chantylay]

The Roman concrete was like that because we only see the best, strongest, longest lasting examples of Roman concrete. Most Roman concrete was shitty and crumbled away, you have a perception bias because you're only looking at the best examples. The Hoover Dam will still be there in 10,000 years, whereas the Colosseum has already partially collapsed in an earthquake. I see concrete from the 1920s all the time that only has light weathering despite spending a century in weather conditions far harsher than Central Italy.

Modern steel deflects tank rounds but you want me to think Damascene steel is stronger? No. Nobody forgot how to make 'Damascus' steel (more properly, Wootz steel), it's just that no hwites bothered to fucking ask the South Indian master smelters making the stuff about how they made their steel until relatively recently. We absolutely know how to make it and hwite blacksmiths have been making it since the 90s. The process is just time consuming to do compared to modern steel production, so most stuff claiming to be 'Damascus' is just pattern welded for the aesthetic. It was never even renowned for being strong, but rather than it held an edge very well compared to conventional steels of the time. Bessemer process steel from the 1850s was already far harder.

Stradivarius' instruments don't actually sound any different from others made in a similar fashion. Blind sound tests and acoustic measurements have been done to study the instruments and the reality is that no one (not even the machines) can actually tell the difference between a Stradivarius and another high end violin. The value is in the history and no small amount of snobbery.

We haven't lost any fucking technology from the 19fucking60s. All that stuff is documented to hell and back in schematics, papers, and fucking photographs. We have replaced a lot of technology from the 60s because it became fucking obsolete. A modern Soyuz-2 rocket makes a Titan-II look like a sketchy prototype, and can deliver more than twice the payload into LEO.

As for the trunk chest, you too could have one if you could afford the price of having such a thing custom made. Whoever this thing belonged to was fucking loaded. The more things change, the more they stay the same my guy.

The past shouldn't be treated like everything just fucking sucked, but it shouldn't be put on a romanticized pedestal either. The past was just the past. People are as they have always been. And rich people shit is still rich people shit. Shocking.

[filaantrocrowdfunding]

Age is Just a Number: Inspiring Stories of Legends Who Achieved Greatness

On October 1st of each year, the world celebrates the International Day of Older Persons to recognise and value the significant contributions and life experiences of older people. This day is meant to remind seniors of the knowledge, tenacity, and tales they have gathered throughout their lives. It is important to recognise the significant contributions that older people make to our society and honour their ongoing development and learning.

The International Day of Older Persons was established on October 1 by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 45/106 in 1990 and on October 1, 1991, this day was first acknowledged. The Vienna International Plan of Action on Ageing was approved by the World Assembly on Ageing in 1982 to launch the International Day of Older Persons. Every year with a new theme this day is celebrated and for 2023 the theme was “Fulfilling the Promises of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for Older Persons: Across Generations”.

The International Day of Older Persons is held to raise awareness of myths about the elderly and ageing.

This day is celebrated to inspire seniors and raise awareness of their potential.

The International Day of Older Persons may be observed by visiting old age homes, spending time with our grandparents, and learning from them.

We need to support the elderly on this day and spend time with them by engaging in activities that make the day special.

Here are 5 such legends who have succeeded in life even after their 60s, these inspiring stories showcase that age doesn’t stop a person from being ambitious and hard-working.

Colonel Harland Sanders: Left school in seventh grade and worked several jobs, often quitting in anger or getting fired. At the age of 40, he ran a small gas station and opened a small restaurant in the apartment next to the station. Word soon spread and business grew. In 1952, at the age of 62, Sanders opened the first Kentucky Fried Chicken, and history was set in motion.

2. Grandma Moses: Grandma Moses, whose real name is Anna Mary Robertson Moses, started her successful painting career when she was 78 years old. International acclaim for her pastoral vistas and sentimental scenes demonstrated that it is never too late to discover and express one’s artistic abilities. Before her death at the age of 101, she produced about 1500 pieces.

3. Harry Bernstein: He was regarded as a lacklustre playwright throughout the majority of his life before quitting at age 62. When he was 93 years old, he began writing his memoir, and this is where he achieved success. He released three additional novels after The Invisible Wall, one at age 98, one at age 99, and one at age 100.

4. Paul Siromoni: a man who proved that age is never an excuse to not go back to school. After his retirement, he found that he had enough time to write his thesis. He enrolled himself for a PhD and was recently awarded one at the age of 90. He had to write six papers, attend several seminars, and take three long exams.

5. Dr. Bhagwati Oza: At the age of 79, Bhagwati Oza was awarded the National Award for Older Persons for Sports and Adventure. Oza, a gynaecologist by profession, has achieved more than 100 medals at both the national and international levels of swimming and athletics. At the age of 75, she rode more than 3,000 km from Kolkata to Kanyakumari. She is also the oldest woman in the nation to have completed high-altitude mountain climbing and scuba diving.

These motivational tales illustrate that age is just a number and should never stand in the way of one’s goals. These titans show that it’s never too late to pursue your hobbies and make a lasting impact on the world, whether that be through societal change, artistic pursuits, company creation, or industry revolution. Filaantro along with Child Help Foundation works towards empowering people who have the resilience to do better for society.

Let’s celebrate and honour these people’s outstanding accomplishments on this International Day of Older Persons while underlining the significance of realising our potential at any age.

We hope this article will resonate with you and these people inspire you that age is just a number, one can succeed in life at any stage of their life. Do share this article with your friends and family members.

[softxsuki]

It's 1000 Follower Event Matchup request Congratulations! Absolutly deserved.

So my pronouns are she/her and I'm an INTP, Cancer. I'd like romantic matchup with male characters from Attack on Titan and Jujutsu Kaisen

I think I'm pretty understanding, I'm trying to don't judge people and understand that their life can be difficult sometimes and that's why they can act a bit weird or sth. I analyze everything obsessively and wonder why something went so and not different. This is not the worst feature, it allows me to understand some dependencies, but sometimes it makes my life difficult. Honestly, involvement in relationships gives me some difficulties. When you meet me for the first time, I'm shy and quiet, and I need a couple of years to open up. However, even after a few years, I rare show emotions, it's hard for me to talk about them. It's like tearing down one wall and another is standing behind it. It might look like I don't love someone because I don't show it by words or deeds. I have mood swings. Sometimes I can laugh with someone all week just to spend the next week in complete isolation. So it takes a lot of patience to understand that one day I'm having fun and scheduling meetings and canceling them the next day. It will take years for someone to get to know my emotions, but it's actually easy to learn simple things about me. Somtiems I am walking with a friend on the street and I start talking about my favorite type of architecture when I see a new building. And I love giving advice! Although I'm rather bad at it ... Usually I do it, but then adds "BUT IT DEPENDS" and I start a monologue about all the variables and possibilities. So when someone asks me for advice they end up more confused than before the question. But I can safely advise on clothes. I have always liked fashion, even as a child I wanted to be a stylist.

One of my favorite things is reading! I try to read as many classics as possible. But I also like more experimental literature, such as books by Bukowski or Miller. I like movies, the old ones from the 50s and 60s as well as the new ones. Although I'm quite picky about this, I hardly ever think a movie is really good. The next thing will be art for sure. There is no option for me to miss an art exhibition in my city. And I am trying to learn new languages, I'm currently learning Korean, English and German but plan to start Japanese and go back to French.

As for my type, I basically like men with dark hair and light eyes. My favorite hair is a bit longer, not long hair but like Eren's in the first season or Levi's. In general, height doesn't matter to me because I am short (around 5'1 / 155 cm).

I value open and determined people. I like when someone puts as much into relationships as I do, it's important that they have some interest in my life.

As for the scenario ... I honestly would like you to consider how this character feels towards me, and you can write whatever you want! It could be the first date or anniversary of a relationship, I give you a free hand.

So that would be it ... I got the feeling it was so long and I hope I didn't tire you out! Have a nice day!

1000 Follower Event Matchup #21

This event is now CLOSED. You can find the masterlist here.

Note: Hope you like who I matched you with. You seem like such an old-soul in the best way possible! Enjoy <3

I match you with: JEAN and NANAMI

Runner-ups: Armin and Itadori

Jean:

Jean instantly popped into my head when I read your description; mostly because I can see him enjoying the artsy things that you like–reading classics and art exhibits

I headcanon that Jean is an old soul (he sure looks the part post-timeskip o.o)

If he truly cares about you, your mood swings won’t bother him at all

He understands that it's just part of who you are, so he gives you your space whenever you need it, but he checks in on you to make sure you’re okay

He’s interested in anything that you like–once Jean falls for someone, he falls hard, so he becomes dedicated to learning more about you and your interests

Idk if he’s a big reader, but he gives off classical novel, and old movie vibes so i think it fits lol

What do first dates with Jean look like?

He’s definitely a nervous wreck, but he feels a little calmer when he sees you’re just as nervous, if not more nervous that he is

He finds your shyness very cute and that's when he falls for you–he wants to protect your heart and make sure no one ever takes advantage of your shy nature

You both go to an art exhibit in the village for your first date since you mentioned it was something you loved to do

It’s a tiny exhibit, but Jean finds himself enjoying it with you (he’s enjoying your starstruck expressions the most though)

Does his best to make you feel comfortable with him, even if you can’t completely open up to him emotionally, he’s willing to work hard to gain your trust and have you open up to him on your own terms–he’ll wait

So yeah, pretty perfect match for you if I do say so myself

Nanami:

Another old soul that I think compliments you nicely

I imagine Nanami with an intelligent woman, someone who can keep up with him, who has her own little charm that captivates him–and you definitely have that

He’d be super impressed that you’re going out of your way to learn so many languages–he admires that a lot and he’d never say it, but it makes him put in a little more effort into his daily tasks too

Nothing too crazy though, he still won’t go into overtime lol, but he wants to look like a hard working man in your eyes

Nanami loves quiet time with you, whether it be snuggled up indoors with one of your classics as he has a book you recommended to him in his own hands, or if you both watch an old movie together–he’s happy 

He loves going on walks with you and looks at you fondly as you point out something that catches your attention and you go into a long tangent on it

He’ll just listen quietly, making mental notes of all the little things you like

ALSO, he doesn’t mind that you can’t open up emotionally, because he’s the same way, so together you both work on communication and expressing your feelings for each other (mostly through actions though)

If you ever cancel plans with him, he’s very understanding and gives you all the time you need to yourself until you’re ready to see him again (he doesn’t mind quiet time with himself anyway)

What are anniversaries like with Nanami?

Romantic of course

He put a lot of effort into his plans for you (shocking right?)

He’d wear a suit that you picked out for him one day when shopping together and he’s already prepared a matching outfit for you to change into

Your day starts with your favorite flowers along with all your favorite things

He manages to find a drive-in movie theater that plays all the old classics, so you do that together

Perhaps maybe even share a milkshake 

And the day ends with a romantic dinner that he prepared himself somewhere extravagant

He’s really gone way beyond over-time for you, but it’s all worth it

10/10 man but we already knew that

EVENT REQUESTS ARE CLOSED

REGULAR REQUESTS ARE OPEN :D

Posted: 6/27/2023 (just pretend like it's not the 28th yet lol)

[qocsuing]

Genshin Impact was the top-grossing mobile game worldwide in October

Genshin Impact was the top-grossing mobile game worldwide in October

Genshin Impact was the highest-grossing mobile game across the App Store and Google Play for the month of October, according to Sensor Tower.To get more news about recharge genshin impact, you can visit topuplive.com official website.

According to the analytics group, Genshin Impact brought in nearly $239 million in player spending for the month, approximately 31% of which was from China, followed by 24% from Japan and 19% from the US.

The game brought in $60 million in its first week on mobile alone, and $245 million in its first 30 days following its September launch. This does not include the game's revenue on PS4 or PC.

Notably, Genshin Impact reached No.1 on Google Play, but was at No.1 on the App Store beneath Honor of Kings and PUBG Mobile.

The game beat out Honor of Kings for the No.1 spot on the charts, with Tencent's game bringing in $225 million in revenue -- up 65% year-over-year. 96% of the game's revenue came from China.

Another Tencent title, Moonlight Blade, debuted at No.9 across both stores, and No.4 on the App Store alone.

Other revenue titans of October were mostly familiar faces, including Coin Master, Roblox, and Pokemon Go.

[anitosoul]

My Favorite Albums of 2020, 20-11

20. Porridge Radio, Every Bad

Favorite Tracks: Sweet | Born Confused | Lilac

I wish I found this album earlier, because after only a few listens it quickly jumped to one of my favorite albums of the year. This album is post-everything, incorporating aspects of punk, garage rock, metal, and indie into a bundle of frustratingly modern angst similar to Mannequin Pussy’s 2019 album Patience. Lead singer Dana Margolin deftly moves from quiet, dark singing into full on screaming, representing the difficulties of masquerading as fully-hinged when it’s obvious that everyone is, at least to some extent, totally unhinged. Every Bad is an album of shielding mantras and piercing emotions; it’s for anyone who’s sought clarity by reciting self-help book affirmations but ripped the pages to shreds right after. Every Bad exists in the deeply relatable space of desperately trying to listen to your mind and simultaneously resisting the clamoring pangs of the heart. The beauty of this album is that it doesn’t present itself in a sense of futility, but rather that of intent: anger and calm are important steps in processing trauma, and any recognition of that represents progress.

19. Lil Uzi Vert, Eternal Atake / Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World 2

Favorite Tracks: Lo Mein | Moon Relate | Yessirskii

The machine of hip-hop hype has become bigger than itself, a serpent eating its own tail. Major releases for artists like Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Kanye West, and most notoriously Frank Ocean blast through a roller coaster of twists and turns involving missed release dates, cryptic social media actions, leaked songs purchased through online “group buys,” and ravenous fans who spend most of their life on the Internet, setting both the anticipation for the album and the expectations for new content at unimaginable and arguably unattainable highs. The artist is left with a single critical shot to slay the hype monster, with first impressions largely dominating the public discourse: Travis Scott’s ASTROWORLD soared him to rap titan status, allowing him to sell stupid amounts of overpriced merchandise (like $60 T-shirts commemorating buying a meal at McDonald’s between September and October of 2020), Frank Ocean’s critical darling Blonde (and please don’t forget Endless) topped Album of the Decade lists solidifying him as a musical legend, Kanye West’s JESUS IS KING confirmed his decline as an artist, blemishing his legacy and leaving fans clamoring for the album-that-never-was Yandhi, and most recently Playboi Carti’s Whole Lotta Red found Internet kids immediately hating on the album on social media as a commemorative “I Was There” stamp due to its left-field sound.

In the case of Uzi, Eternal Atake and the subsequent deluxe/sequel album Lil Uzi Vert Vs. The World 2 land somewhere between ASTROWORLD and Whole Lotta Red. Uzi delivered two extremely high quality projects, the second of which was made up of curated snippets and guest features that fans had been demanding. While no individual song across these twin albums reaches nearly the height that “XO Tour Llif3” did in 2017 (whether due to COVID preventing any of the songs from making club rounds or simply that none of them caught on), I can’t help but feel like most of the fun of these hip-hop releases now lies in the anticipation, memes, frustration, and community leading up to the drop. Artists now have a very peculiar relationship to their fans where the balance of power and influence over their work can literally rest in the keyboards of a handful of vocal teenagers. In that sense, Uzi’s ride wasn’t a roller coaster, but a tilt-a-whirl: an exhilarating journey, but one without too many surprises in the end.

18. Fiona Apple, Fetch the Bolt Cutters

Favorite Tracks: I Want You to Love Me | Newspaper | Cosmonauts

I don’t think I’m a good enough writer to do this album justice with words. The only reason it’s not higher up for me is because this is a list of my personal favorites. Just know the praise is completely deserved—it’s the best album of 2020.

17. Sufjan Stevens, The Ascension

Favorite Tracks: Die Happy | Make Me an Offer I Cannot Refuse | Tell Me You Love Me

This album is…a lot. I had to listen to it over two sessions, already floored on my first listen by the time I got to my favorite song on the album “Die Happy” (it’s only six songs in). I was in a, um, fully altered headspace when I heard that song for the first time, melted into the couch as the music combined with my very being: when the song’s only lyric is “I want to die happy,” it can be overwhelming. I saved the rest for my trip to the Catskills, having no idea Stevens recorded the album there until I started writing this (coincidentally, I also found out Shore by Fleet Foxes was recorded in the Catskills when I first listened to it on this same Catskills trip). After a long day of hiking and the others had gone to bed, I filled the bathtub in the cabin with hot water, threw some leftover glowsticks in there, and opened the window to the cool mountain air as I came down and listened to the rest of the album. The middle was admittedly slow, but the album’s themes of reevaluating the American dream and existing in modern American society struck a chord. By utilizing the platitudes found throughout the album as anchor points, I was able to absorb every sound on The Ascension’s richly detailed electronic instrumentation. This was most prevalent in the closer track, the 12-minute “America.” I sat in the soft glow of the bath, thinking about my existence as a first-generation Filipino-American privileged enough to live in NYC and vacation in the Catskills with two fellow immigrant friends. The final platitude of the song lingered in my mind as I realized I was living out one version of the American dream:

Despite apparent prosperity, Stevens implores prudence: he does so by wrapping the chaos of existing in America in 2020—-including the exhaustion of constantly performing for an ever-expanding digital audience under the strict guidelines of a destructive society that often feels like it’s left its people behind—in a final call to God to make the world a better place. The Ascension is an album for a year that’s felt like the end of the world, a desperate grasp for a glimmer of hope within a terrible darkness.

16. Yaeji, WHAT WE DREW

Favorite Tracks: WAKING UP DOWN | WHAT WE DREW | SPELL

Oh, how I dream of seeing Yaeji DJ a dark, sweaty club in a Bushwick warehouse (I know this is getting old, but I swear I wrote this one before the previous entries!). WHAT WE DREW is Yaeji’s first studio album after her breakout EP EP2, which featured infectious pop house tune “Raingurl” and a techno-fied cover of Drake’s “Passionfruit.” On WHAT WE DREW, Yaeji has her heart on her sleeve and is vibing on her own wavelength. From the momentum she’s gained from her EPs and collaborations with big names like Charli XCX and Dua Lipa, she could have easily focused her efforts on making viral club bangers. Instead, she uses WHAT WE DREW as a canvas for self-expression and celebration of identity, which sets the basis for why I love this album. She fully embraces her background as a Korean-American, placing Korean track titles next to the English and singing and rapping in Korean throughout. The guest appearances are equally genuine, with Yaeji eschewing big name artists for friends from around the world, adding tilts of trap and J-pop to her already genre-defying sound. The airy but comforting abstract light greens and blues of the cover art match the mood of this album perfectly, as Yaeji includes lyrical hints of anxiety and struggle as a young Asian-American throughout her distinct production style. It’s a bold choice for a genre that doesn’t typically focus on lyricism: she’s putting out dance music that’s not just playful, but genuinely personal as well.

15. 100 gecs, 1000 gecs and the Tree of Clues

Favorite Tracks: ringtone (Remix) | hand crushed by a mallet (Remix) | toothless

All right, I’ll admit it—I’m a 100 gecs stan. When I first heard their music, I, like many others, was turned off by their abrasive, stupid sound. But over time, something clicked and I found myself loving it. It was hard to listen to anything else; I was addicted to the rapid-fire post-post-post-ironic tracks and felt like they sonically and lyrically captured Gen Z malaise in a way I had never heard before. When I found out about the remix album I was ecstatic; my hype was building after listening to the “Hand Crushed by a Mallet” Fall Out Boy remix on a low quality YouTube video of a 100 gecs DJ set. When the “Ringtone (Remix)” dropped as the first 2020 single for the album, I was floored at how well the guest features of Charli XCX, Rico Nasty, and Kero Kero Bonito worked together—it’s since become tied for my favorite song of the year. The rest of the remix album is more of a mixed bag, but at the very least offers interesting takes on an already ambitious and uniquely creative base that was the original 1000 gecs album. Their music is like getting the Star on Mario Kart—short-lived, but intensely chaotic and fun. If new song “toothless” is anything to go by, 100 gecs are just getting started and I can’t wait to hear how they continue to define and refine the hyperpop genre.

14. HAIM, Women in Music Pt. III

Favorite Tracks: Los Angeles | The Steps | I’ve Been Down

This is HAIM at their realest: the sisters know exactly who they are and they’re unafraid to show it throughout this album. While still firmly rooted in breezy West Coast 70’s rock, they’ve expanded further, reining in new sounds and styles into their music. The subject matter is personal but tongue-in-cheek, satirical and sincere at the same time. Listening to album opener “Los Angeles” always put a smile on my face, listening to their musings on what a hometown can represent in one’s life: just like family, a hometown has seen your ups and downs, and love it or hate it, it will always be a part of you. This album is self-aware in the same way you might burst into absurd laughter instead of woeful tears when everything in your life is falling apart: the Haim sisters have been there, and they want you to know you’re not alone.

13. Lianne La Havas, Lianne La Havas

Favorite Tracks: Can’t Fight | Bittersweet | Paper Thin

This is straight up just a beautiful album. It’s effortless and sparse, and La Havas simply lets her talents carry the album. It’s folk and jazz and R&B but still uniquely her own sound; it’s wide and bold but still intimately personal, making it fittingly self-titled. I honestly can’t say too much about it in terms of relating the themes to my current experience or listening to it because I really connected to it at this point in my life, but it was in constant rotation throughout the year because listening to it was like laying in a field and watching the clouds: simple appreciation of natural beauty.

12. Playboi Carti, Whole Lotta Red

Favorite Tracks: M3tamorphosis | Sky | Rockstar Made

This was by far my most anticipated album of the year. I’ve always been a huge Carti stan, downloading all of his leaks dating back to 2011. I love Carti because of his constant ability to defy convention and predict (define?) trends. When the SoundCloud era was coming up in 2016, Carti completely deconstructed any notion of traditional rap, reducing verses entirely to repeated ad-libs over wavy Pi’erre Bourne beats. As mentioned previously, Carti garnered immense amounts of hype with the unexpectedly huge hit in the “Kid Cudi” (officially titled “Pissy Pamper,” but I refuse to call it that) leak, utilizing an extremely weird “baby voice” that was teased in Die Lit songs like “FlatBed Freestyle” and totally went against traditional masculine notions you’d expect to hear in hip-hop. I was fully along for the ride, listening to all the leaks and gearing myself up for what was shaping up to be an evolved Die Lit. When Carti finally dropped Whole Lotta Red on Christmas (the audacity!) after months of teasing, he once again defied expectation and skipped over the baby voice era entirely, dropping an album of raspy punk-trap songs that sounded more like Hi-C or Drain Gang rather than the currently popular hip-hop sound that he helped put in place. While this departure of style immediately garnered internet hate from people who felt the need to involve themselves in the zeitgeist with reactionary social media posts, I realized that Carti once again delivered a sound I didn’t know I wanted. I had been listening to a lot of ‘90’s/early 2000’s rock and electronic music in the month leading up to its release, curating an aesthetic genre that my roommate and I coined “tech grunge.”

As I listened to Whole Lotta Red’s anxiety-ridden and surprisingly candid lyrics about addiction, death, and vampiric personification over distorted bass and Sega Genesis-type beats, I concluded that Carti put out perhaps the first fully realized tech grunge album ever:

They can’t understand me, I’m talkin’ hieroglyphics (yeah) They can’t understand me, I’m talkin’ hieroglyphics I feel like Morpheus (what? What?), I feel like Morpheus (what? What?) I got my whole gang on some other shit I done changed my swag (swag, swag, what? What?)

I mean, come on.

If I have any critique of the album it would be that it could have been stronger as a double album, splitting the harder hitting tracks onto one album and the Die Lit 2 sounding tracks onto another (which I actually did in the Spotify playlists below), but nonetheless this album completely delivered for me with its infectious beats and sick aesthetic.

11. The Microphones, Microphones in 2020

Favorite Tracks: Just listen to the whole thing

The Glow, Pt. 2 was one of the first albums I downloaded when I had an iPod in early high school and one of the albums that got me into indie music. Listening to this album alone under the stars was sublime and would probably have broken my top 10 if I heard it any earlier in the year. It’s difficult to put out a good concept album, especially when it all sounds like one long song, but Phil Elverum’s released a project that never bores and never drags: Microphones in 2020 is a slow burning, ambient experiment in storytelling, building up sonically as he recounts his own history from the early days of The Microphones through the period of his band Mount Eerie, which was defined by personal tragedy due to the death of his wife, into where he is right now in 2020, four years later. The 45-minute song brought me back to the many nights this past year that I spent ruminating in bed, looking back at old journal entries and photos, thinking about all that’s led me to this point. The reflections would never fully revive the all-encompassing joy, sadness, pleasure, or pain that was felt in those past moments, but instead faded the memories with a sepia of sentimental nostalgia: a reminder of the transience of emotion and the elusiveness of meaning.

[pluckyredhead]

jayroy for the meme

who hogs the duvet

Jason, 100%. Listen. One of these men wears a leather jacket over kevlar, and the other one doesn't own anything with sleeves. Who do you think is always cold?

who texts/rings to check how their day is going

Roy, because he is a chatterbox and also needs a lot of validation.

who’s the most creative when it comes to gifts

Jason, because his love languages are all non-verbal gift-giving and caretaking. (THE WATCH COMIC. ;_; )

who gets up first in the morning

Roy, to get Lian ready for school.

who suggests new things in bed

ROY LOL. I don't think anyone expected a different answer here! Jason is eager but inexperienced, Roy has plans and schemes.

who cries at movies

Mostly neither of them, but there is a specific genre of sad children's movie (The Land Before Time, Lilo and Stitch, Dumbo) that will instantly reduce Roy to a weepy puddle. Lian's fine with them but he has to leave the room during "Baby Mine."

who gives unprompted massages

Honestly probably both of them? Not even for sexy reasons, they both just constantly need PT.

who fusses over the other when they’re sick

Absolutely Jason. See above re: caretaking being his love language (and like...rationally he knows that as a small child he could not have saved his mom from being "sick," but that instinctive panic and Need To Fix is never going to go away entirely).

who gets jealous easiest

Jason. He has very little that is his and he doesn't like to share it.

who has the most embarrassing taste in music

So I have this thing where I tend to associate characters with music either from around their debuts, or crucial moments in their history. To me, Roy's musical tastes skew towards the 60s and 70s, his early Titans/Snowbirds/Great Frog years - so a lot of classic rock, folk, soul, etc. Pretty universally recognized as "cool" music. (With some nostalgic love for 40s swing and blues, which he canonically listened to growing up with Ollie.)

Meanwhile I associate Jason with the early 80s, so like...early Michael Jackson and Madonna, "Total Eclipse of the Heart," the Flashdance soundtrack. I firmly believe that to this day he thinks "Open Arms" by Journey is the most romantic song ever recorded. He's right, but yeah, the answer here is Jason.

who collects something unusual

What's more unusual, ancient weapons or vintage books?

who takes the longest to get ready

I think they're both pretty quick! The vigilante lifestyle trained them well.

who is the most tidy and organised

Jason. He is a Bat (and not one of the ones who was used to servants), he is orderly.

who gets most excited about the holidays

Roy. Jason doesn't like to get excited about anything in case it's a trap.

who is the big spoon/little spoon

They switch off, but mostly Jason is the big spoon, because he likes to cling and Roy likes to be clung to.

who gets most competitive when playing games and/or sports

Both of them, they're awful. The only reason no one has broken a bone is because Roy also thinks Jason's hot when he gets competitive so the game usually gets derailed by sex.

who starts the most arguments

Stupid arguments over nothing: Roy. Actual fights: Jason.

who suggests that they buy a pet

Lian. Frequently.

what couple traditions they have

Cleaning their gear after a mission. I'm serious.

what tv shows they watch together

Honestly, I watch so little TV that I am going to be terrible at answering this question for every pairing. I think they're more likely to put on something mindless and zone out when they get back from patrol at 3 am and need to decompress than anything where they need to follow a narrative. Probably cooking show reruns.

what other couple they hang out with

Kyle and Connor, when Kyle's on Earth. Yes, Jason and Kyle still hate each other. It's very entertaining.

how they spend time together as a couple

Raising Lian, fighting crime, Roy being ridiculous and Jason trying to pretend he's not charmed by it.

who made the first move

Roy made a very long series of incrementally tiny moves that Jason didn't notice. Jason made the one big move that actually got them together.

who brings flowers home

Roy, but it doesn't count because Dinah owns a florist shop and he got them for free.

who is the best cook

I think fandom has a pretty definitive answer for this one. ;)

[r0-boat]

My thoughts on Scarlet and violet spoiler free

I just finished Scarlet and violet and I'm not going to lie I wish It could have been better.

There was something there it's just....

I don't really know how to feel...

I do enjoy the game but, this franchise has been here for 25 years and this is how far we've gotten. Low poly pixels and game breaking glitches from what a Titan game company.

I don't really know because Legends Arceus was fun but Scarlet and violet just felt soulless and robotic.

The characters have as much characteristic as a blank piece of paper but that's normal Pokemon characters and it's time to do my job as a fanfic writer.

I really don't hate the game in fact I enjoyed it it was honestly better than any other Pokemon game I've played since Gen 5( but that's not a very hard competition LMAO)

I'm not angry I'm just a little disappointed.

I guess I'm just mad that I spend $60 on a looks like PokePark 2 and runs like Sonic 06.

However I did enjoy the fact that you can play three stories and I did like said stories.

I liked the character designs tho can't wait to see them in Masters.

It's a good game there's just...a lot of problems I can't ignore...

It almost feels like their Entire budget went into the Pokemon and not the actual game itself.

I miss 2D Pokemon.