#that's my advice as an Adult thanks for coming to my Ted Talk

[who-is-page]

I've gotten 100 new followers in less than a month and a LOT of them are younger than me, and I just feel like

and also

[clover-the-awesomest]

Sorry for using classic meme images as a reaction to this but I honestly don’t really know what to say… I don’t understand in the slightest as I am not an adult and don’t quite get that feeling of hopelessness yet, but I do still wish the best for you. I want to understand, to give proper advice or words of encouragement but I just. Don’t know how??

However, I do think that things will get better for you. You’re still so young, you’re still so new to this life, you are just starting out. You’re barely even 32, judging by this post, so please. Do not tell yourself that it’s over, that you’ve wasted your life. Don’t keep believing that you’ll never amount to anything in life, that you mean nothing to anyone. Do not listen to those voices that say you’re a waste of space or anything like that at all! Because none of it is true!

You are a wonderful artist! Your attention to detail is immaculate, and you’re really great at hyper-analyzing things that others wouldn’t even batt an eye at! You are funny, you are kind, and you are incredibly considerate. I don’t know what you do IRL since you value your privacy and I greatly appreciate that about you, so I can’t really judge you otherwise. But I still do know, without a shadow of a doubt, that you matter. You matter to me. You matter to others. You matter to your family, your friends, your pets, the strangers online that you’ve adopted, the random people on the street that pass you by, YOU MATTER.

And don’t you dare let anyone ever tell you otherwise.

❤️💖💞

I don’t feel like I belong anywhere. I’ve cried. I’m bitter. I’m bitter watching people get to travel and explore and go pretty places. I’m bitter that i can’t get help for my medical complications. I’m jealous that others can go swimming and experience nature while I’m confined to a tight little space and a bathtub. I’m sad that i have no IRL friend/peer group. I feel alone. I’m exhausted. My best is never good enough. I feel my family doesn’t take me seriously when i say “I’m checked out.” I wish i was impressive to them. I wish i was intelligent or competent to them. I wish i was useful. But I’m not. I’m dependent and trapped and, in this moment, fairly convinced my future is dull and bleak. I live in a world beyond my reach. Everything is dreams. My 20’s are almost completely gone. I feel like dreams don’t come true.

It’s just an episode. They pass. I got triggered and i’ll get over it. But lately the sensation of being trapped and feeling like it’s impossible to have the life i want has been very persistent. There’s been loads of progress in some spaces, but in this one idk. All that keeps me going are my dog, my gecko and Ash. This has been all that’s kept me alive for a long time. It continues to be the only thing. I genuinely do not see a way out of this tunnel. Not tonight. There is sorrow, and sleep. But at least i have a place to sleep and a dog to snuggle.

Tomorrow is another world, most likely as uneventful and stagnant as the last…

[haveihitanerve]

Alfred Pennyworth is to Blame

Okay first- let me start this by saying I love Alfred Pennyworth. He is the one who raised the great Bruce Wayne, hes a badass, and hes a killer Grandfather. But thats just it. He’s a good grandfather. Not a good father. I see so many people giving Bruce shit for how he treats his kids and then praise alfred as the savior, the only good responsible adult in the world, the one who should have taken all the kids and left Bruce because he ruined them and Alfred would have done better. But thats not true. I fully believe all of the kids would have suffered under just Alfred’s care because, well, he doesn't get it. Bruce’s prime motivator for almost al of his children is that they have shared pain and grief and he helps them work through it. Alfred? So many people have said being a grandparent is easier than being a parent- and its true. Because you don't have to deal with actually raising this child. You get to be the “fun one”. You don't have rules, you spoil them, you give hugs and advice. The actual parent is the one who has to criticize and raise you and punish and teach everything. Do I think Bruce could have raised his kids on his own? Probably. Do I think Alfred definitely helped raise them to be as amazing as they are today? Hell yeah! But Bruce, and I firmly believe this, is such a “terrible” dad, because Alfred was his. Alfred, who doesn’t call Bruce son or even Bruce because first and foremost this boy is his charge, his master, not his child. Bruce was not raised on much affection from the butler, because thats who he was- a butler. Alfred does his best, its not his fault- this was a job that unwillingly turned into a lifelong dedication of suddenly raising a child, but its not enough. And people need to realize that. Maybe, Bruce isn't that great at communicating because he was raised by a mostly silent butler. Maybe Bruce doesn't say I love you quite that often because Alfred never did. Maybe Bruce is so strict because he was raised by a man from the military. But, lets take a look at his kids. Dick Grayson. Dick Grayson is arguably one of my favorite Batfam members, and he became the man he is, overcoming his trauma and being nice and funny and joyous, because he had Bruce in his life. “Robin needed to help take down the man who murdered his parents. ‘So he could turn out like you?’ So that he wouldn't.” Because Bruce took him in and helped him overcome his trauma, Dick became better. Dick is what Bruce would have become… if he had had a Bruce in his life. But he hadn’t. He had an Alfred. 

Anyway, just my thoughts. It makes me so mad when people are so quick to serenade Alfred and shower him with love and then shit on Bruce so hard… when its fucking alfreds fault. Well, not fault thats not the right word but still. Bruce is, unfortunately, my favorite DC person ever and its a hard battle to fight and defend but I’ll do it gladly everyday. Please stop hating on Bruce only to turn around and applaud Alfred. No. Thats not how this works. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk. 

[bearskvlls]

I JUST FOUND OUT LADY PENELOPE IS SUPPOSED TO BE 26 EVEN IN TOS???????? SHE'S NOT A 40-YEAR-OLD GIRLBOSS WHO'S BEST FRIENDS WITH JEFF TRACY????????????? THEY DON'T FALL IN LOVE AT THE END????????? I'M SO CONFUSED............ 😭 after briefly sitting in shock (LMAO) i did a ton of frantic research and there are a lot of conflicting sources and ages, but APPARENTLY according to the Magical World of Gerry Anderson book, she's "an old friend of Jeff's from his Agency days", so. i'm sorry but as far as i'm concerned she is in her 40s and they're Appropriately Aged Adult Friends the way she's written in TOS feels so much more like she's an adult friend of jeff tracy's with history and inside jokes and motherly instinct/advice for the boys?? so this being said, please know that when i (eventually) draw her, it's always always always going to be 40-something!Penelope 😭 i promise i would not ship 56-year-old jeff tracy with someone in their 20s!!! thank you for coming to my Ted Talk :'^) (idk if anyone else feels this way too but if you do please lmk that i'm not alone dghjkfldhgfjkd)

[aevallare]

I fell out of love with Sarah J Maas books a while back, but watching her descent into madness and watching the fanbase build, then turn toxic, has been the most interesting thing to me. I guess you could say I grew as a reader alongside her as a writer, but keep in mind, I’m old now.

She started out as one of us, an online poster. I’m about to show my age here but she wrote Queen of glass, which would later become throne of glass series, on fictionpress in the mid 2000s. She definitely would have been a watpad girlie. I remember her responding and engaging with those of us who followed her and really taking feedback to heart. She was so excited when her book, eventually, got picked up and was especially keen on it being available on the kindle store. She would release novellas for kindle exclusives and was so proud it. I remember her so exited to write for DC comics at one point. She even made a little YouTube video with cat ears on asking us to read it. (she fumbled that so hard btw)

When the first few TOG books first came out remember there being no fanbase, no fan art, no online discussions on theories. Ghost town. As someone who had followed since the beginning it was just nice to see someone get flowers for their hard work. She still engaged with her followers, she loved specific fan artists and spreading their work on socials, and eventually started having her favourite fan artists make art for the physical copies of her books. Still a woman of the people. Still taking notes.

THEN ACOTAR, and something shifted in the wind. It’s odd to see a woman so keen on the YA genre just decide one day…. Nah I’m good. I think that’s the appeal. She was writing YA for the people who were beginning to age out of YA at the time. Since then the books exploded, and in my opinion, dropped in quality with every release. I can’t say when it was but at one point she just… removed her self. Stopped getting involved in discussions and engaging with people. Which professionally, smart move. Creatively though, keep in mind this woman THRIVED on online feedback at one point.

Ironically Sarah has since built her self a new reputation in the last 12 years of publishing. With hit after hit She’s a gatekeeper and a hater, who is mean to new and upcoming authors, won’t play well others, and won’t take an editors advice to save her life. I hear editors flat out refuse to work with her now which is so ironic.

I was once so happy to see her get popular, but now it’s just embarrassing to be associated with her new fans. Fans who bully an actress and fat shame her while gushing about their “kind of” feminist “icon” love interest… it’s not the group I want to be associated with anymore.

Anyway thanks for coming to the ted talk of a former SJM fan.

Love your work! Keep being you!

i admit, i'm not very dialed in to SJM as a sort of... institution. in my experience, this attitude toward editing is very common, especially in people who found success in the past. i don't edit on anywhere near this scale, but it's just so. who do you think helped you put the good in it. obviously this is your baby but i want your baby to blossom into a beautiful adult someday. please listen to me. please.

more power to her for success and clearly it's working for her. i'm throwing stones from the sewer up at mount olympus. i don't begrudge anyone liking her books. they're just not for me.

[strangeauthor]

just venting about writing for a bit tho i do wish i could have some. advice. like always do cause im walking ball of insecurity lol

i often think about my writing journey and i am trying so, so, so hard not to be the yandev of writing (as in writing something for so long and then Never finishing it/delaying it further). this is supposed to be a four book series and i have been working on book ONE for years. like i started this story back in middle school. havent worked on any other project in my life other than this. and i honestly do want to get this published!!! its been a dream of mine since i got inspired by rick riordan (who i am now mad at cause hes a zionist)

but it never feels like the "final" drafts i make are enough. sometimes i feel like the writing gotten worse since i turned into an adult. even mom's like "you've been working on this for years you need to decide when youre gonna publish this" (thanks mom thats so helpful/s). everytime im like "ok this is gonna be the one" i end up going "no thats not good" and starting over. and i just want to finally make a version of Chaos that im personally happy with. but thats just making me delay this even further. maybe the writing groups ive joined up could lessen this a bit but idk.

anyway thanks for coming to my ted talk

[unnecessarilygrandiose]

Guys, come on. You have to try to understand. Eddie being 'the angry guy' in Buck's dream wasn't bad writing, an injustice to Eddie's character, or racist.

Hear me out.

If Eddie never met Buck, Eddie never met Carla. Which means he's struggling to be a firefighter, raise Christopher, trying to make it work with Shannon, and also probably trying to put up a good front for Abuela and Pepa because it's quite likely that whatever they know will get back to his parents. That's fucking hard for anyone, never mind someone with as much repressed PTSD as Eddie.

If there was no Buck, then, as the episode very clearly states, there would be no Bobby. Buck and Bobby are the first two people Eddie starts to trust in the firehouse. He forms a relationship with them before he gets closer to Hen or Chim. If there's no Buck and there's no Bobby, he probably isn't able to get close to Hen and Chim so easily. And that too is if he even ended up in the 118. We know from 2x01 that Bobby fought to have Eddie from the academy. All of this is to say that not only does he not have Buck, he doesn't have the entire support system that being in the 118 gave to him.

And maybe, even without Buck and the firefam, he would have eventually found someone to take care of Christopher, but that's a very difficult task, and certainly even more so when you've only moved to a new place a only few months ago. He's completely alone out here.

When Shannon died, Eddie's grief turned to anger. Remember fight club? Yeah, he's a war veteran, he's been trained to channel all his emotions into anger, to hit something. So it's not too far fetched to think that her dying and him being burnt out from all of his responsibilities and not having any real friends would turn him angrier. Maybe after joining fight club, he would have kept going. No Bobby to calm him down or coax him into therapy he doesn't want, no Buck to be annoyed at for suing departments, no Chim for Eddie to give sage romantic advice to, no Hen to bond over playdates with their kids.

Pepa and Abuela are probably seeing their nephew and grandson struggling, and while I'm sure they'd want to be on his side, maybe they decide that it's for his own good that they ask Eddie's parents to intervene.

So they come, they fight, and Eddie hasn't yet tried to mend his relationship with them, so they genuinely believe they're better for Chris than whatever Eddie can offer, and when he refuses to give Chris up, they take him to court.

Eddie loses his son. He never gets to meet his found family. He never gets to mend his relationship with his biological family. He doesn't go to therapy, because at least initially, Christopher was his only motivation to go to therapy.

Hence, he's 'the angry guy'.

I get why someone might not immediately get it, because all of this was distilled into one line in the show, but that doesn't mean it isn't true.

Also, it truly isn't a case of the white guy being the brown guy's saviour, god no. Eddie saved Buck as much as Buck saved Eddie. Imagine if Eddie never came to LA. What then? What would Buck do in season 2, when he's lonely and grieving the loss of his first adult relationship? In season 3, when he's recovering in his loft all alone, because there's no Eddie dropping Christopher off every day? He had a best friend, and he sued the department anyway. What if, because Eddie wasn't there to say “Do you know how much Chris misses you?”, Buck never dropped the charges? What if that completely ruined his relationship with the firefam? What if he completely regressed?

Those are very real things that could have happened if Buck never met Eddie. So truly, it is not a case of the nice white boy saving the angry brown man. It is a case of ‘what if this very pivotal character was removed from the equation, how would it affect the lives of the people who love them?’

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

[surreality51]

Things people don’t tell you when you’re young:

Nobody gives a shit about your SAT scores. Nobody. The only thing SAT scores are good for is helping you clear that minimum-score bar to get into a brand-name college.

High school sucks. I don’t know why all the movies and TV shows pretend that it’s the best time of your life. The good news is that you’ll never see 95% of your classmates ever again.

Life doesn’t get easier, it only gets harder. More challenges will come your way, bigger challenges, sometimes in packs because they’re jerks. Luckily your skills and experience will grow too, hopefully in proportion to meet those challenges. It will never be easy, but you can do it.

Love isn’t big, showy gestures like flowers and chocolates and romantic dinners. It’s not wild sex or jet setting or getting drunk together. Love is in the boring, daily grind of life—getting your ass off the couch because you promised you’d take care of that chore, paying attention even though you just want to sleep because what your partner is saying is important to you, sitting quietly on the couch together when you’re exhausted because you want to press your leg against his. It’s being there for each other, day in and day out, no matter what. It’s a marathon, not a race.

You have to love yourself before you can love someone else. Loving yourself and forgiving yourself for your shortcomings will be one of the hardest things you will ever do.

“You can be anything you want to be” is bullshit. Your 20s is about negotiating between who you think you are and who you want to be; between what you are able to do and what you want to do. Sometimes you have to adjust your dreams. This is one of the hardest parts of growing up. It doesn’t mean you won’t be happy. It just means that what you think happiness means when you’re 20 might be different from what you think happiness means when you’re 30.

Time is your most valuable resource. You don’t realize how much you have of it until it’s gone. Every day you waste at a job you hate is time you don’t get back. Every day you spend in an unhappy relationship is time you don’t get back. Don’t waste your time. Get moving.

Your hard skills will get your hired, or at least an initial interview. Your soft skills will get you promoted.

Going from “I don’t give a fuck about money, I just want to do what I love” to realizing that money=freedom does not mean you’re selling out. It just means you’ve realized how the game is played.

Travel while you’re young. Just do it. Especially before you have kids.

Raising kids is fucking hard and exhausting. You will never be this tired in your entire life. That time you pulled 3 all-nighters in a row to study for your finals? Pffffft.

[justseveralowls]

Hii,

Wanted to ask how do I explain to other adults why i don't want to people please anymore? Because people think explaining that it's not good for one's own mental health is not logical enough. I have been so deeply conditioned to do it but now am repulsed by it.

Thanks!

This is a very difficult topic to explain and something I'm still trying to figure out. Thus far I have had the most success addressing situations as they come. For example, someone tells me I'm laughing too much in public, and I respond "I'm laughing, I'm not hurting anyone or anything and I don't know those people and likely will never see them again.". Otherwise, I find being honest with people helps to get my point across (Example: "Your aunt will be so disappointed if you don't show up to this event." "I understand this is important to her but I am not comfortable in that situation or around those people and instead have decided to not attend the event. I hope you have a nice time and give my regards") Additionally, you can say things along the lines of "worrying about how people perceive me isn't worth my time or energy because people will decide to judge how they want"

I'm guilty of over-explaining and I've found that it often makes things more confusing and complicated. Often times the best result comes when I say something along the lines of "No thank you. I don't feel the need to be ashamed of who I am/ this action/this trait. Or I haven't found that doing (situation) is beneficial and want to do x instead"

The biggest advice I can give is that you don't owe anyone an explanation for keeping yourself safe, happy, and comfortable. You are not obligated to make them understand or provide a Ted talk on your coping mechanisms or decisions. Though being blunt and keeping your answers simple can feel awkward it saves a lot of headaches in the future.

I hope this helps, you aren't alone and I believe in you

-Love from a fellow people pleaser trying not to give a *dolphin noise*

[dandeebakes]

Okay, I’m dropping a bit of the first fic I HAVE EVER written! It’s the first scene from a 5+1.

Five Times Rose Crimm Asks for a Puppy and One Time Ted Asks

I’m fully in the ‘Trent Crimm is a dog person’ camp, but single fatherhood and a demanding job is not the best sitch for puppy raising…but a lot can change when you no longer have said job and possibly(??) a second parent in the picture….

“Well, looky here, if it isn’t Trent Crimm of The Independent, admiring one of London’s most adoptable shelter pups.”

“Hello, Coach Lasso.”

“I didn’t know you were coverin’ this event; I woulda tossed ya a little inside scoop. Like which puppies gotta be kept in separate kennels, due to conflicting personalities and what not.”

“That would have been very generous of you, Ted,” Trent says, suddenly looking advantageous, “but I’m not here in a professional capacity. Not officially anyhow.”

Ted thinks he is being played when he hears a tiny, unseen voice.

“Daddy, I want this puppy.”

Ted looks down and notices a toddler crouched at Trent’s feet, peering into the kennel of a small terrier mix.

“Darling,” Trent says, picking up the tiny dark-haired toddler, rocking a long, impressive french braid. “We discussed this, remember? We agreed on a kitten. We can talk about a puppy again in a few years, when you’re a bit older.”

Ted’s not sure how to process this new information. Trent Crimm has a child. A child that he apparently talks to like a tiny adult. Up until this moment, Ted has known absolutely nothing about the man's personal life. He suddenly feels extraordinarily privileged to have this new knowledge. Trent Crimm, The Independent, is also Trent Crimm, The Dad of a Little Girl. Two, possibly three years old? And she is cute. Big green eyes and a similar mane of long dark hair.

“Trent Crimm, I didn’t know you had a little girl! And boy howdy is she cute.”

“Thank you, Ted, I agree. And no I can’t imagine you would have known, considering I’ve never mentioned it before. But since we are here, Coach Lasso this is Rosie. Rosie would you like to say hello Coach Lasso”

“Hello, Coach”, Rosie says timidly, her head resting on Trent's shoulder.

Ted notices she's toying with a lock of his at his shoulder. It reminds him of Henry. He used to do the same thing to Michelle, when he was tired or nervous.

“Hello there, Miss Rosie'', Ted says with a little wave. “I’m pleased as punch to meet ya. And don't worry about all that Coach Lasso stuff. You can call me Ted or Teddy. Did I hear y’all are in the market for a kitten today?”

“Mmm,” Trent hums in agreement. “Rose has a birthday coming up—”

“I’m going to be three next week!” Rosie is beaming now, holding out three fingers to Ted.

“THREE!” Ted shouts, feigning surprise. “ You’ve gotta kitten me. I was sure you were gonna say 16.”

“No,” Rosie giggles, “I’m only little.”

“Well, you coulda fooled me. But, hey, a kitten sure does sound like a swell birthday present.”

“Yes,” Trent agrees. “Much better than her initial request for a pony, which was immediately overruled. Then, of course, it was a puppy. Finally we finally agreed on a cat. The wisest choice for a three year old who adores animals, but is unfortunate enough to have a single father who works unconventional hours.

“Sure, I get that. You need a self sufficient pet. One who takes themselves to the loo, if you catch my drift.”

“I do.”

“Daddy, kittens!”

“Right, kittens. We’d better be going, before all the friendly ones are spoken for.”

Right, yeah, you don’t wanna get stuck with one of those aloof floofs, that have no interest in laps. Little advice, hang back and let the right one choose you.

“Of course,” Trent says with a chuckle, “Thank you, Ted”

“It sure was great to meet you, Rosie. And hey, I’ll send your dad home with a few of Teddy’s famous homemade biscuits next week, as a little birthday treat.”

“Biscuits?!”

“Heck yeah, little cutie!”

“Ted, that’s really not necessary. Please, don’t go to any trouble-”

“Nah, it’s no trouble at all.” Ted says, with a wave of his hand. “I make ‘em for Rebecca anyhow. There for our weekly ‘Biscuits with the Boss’ chats. Plus-” Ted leans in towards Trent in mock whisper, “She’s already heard me, so it’s too late to say no now. I can’t disappoint the birthday girl. Trust me, you’ll both love ‘em. It was a real pleasure to meet ya, Rosie. Happy purr-thday!”

“That’s very kind of you, Ted. She’ll be delighted. Say goodbye to Coach La—uh Ted, Rose.”

“Bye, Coach Teddy Biscuits!”

[jessybarnes]

How would people show this jealousy or passiveness lol

(They wrong in their blog “no jealous or possessiveness” )

Hi, anon. I'm gonna answer your question, but first I must warn you that you may not like said answer. This will probably be lengthy, so it's under the cut.

Jealousy and possessiveness can be shown in many different ways, so why don't we start with the definitions of both of them?

Those are screenshots from the Merriam-Webster dictionary website, but I'm still going to give you another example.

But, before I do, I'm going to go ahead and throw out there that this example goes for any role-play blog. Not just the TJ Hammond one you tagged in your ask.

If I am having a role-play chat with the TJ you mentioned, and you are scrolling through his blog and you see it, then just keep scrolling. What that TJ and I talk about doesn't pertain to you. Sure, it may be out there for everyone to read because I sent the role-play through their asks or reblogs instead of through DMs, but that doesn't give you or anyone else the right to insert themselves into OUR role-play.

Of course, we can't help it if you or someone else is jealous because we can't control your feelings, but it's still our role-play conversation. Not yours.

Unless the role-play blog was made SPECIFICALLY for one person to interact with, then it's most likely open to anyone who's over the age of 18, and that means that you and everyone else is going to have to share.

You know, the thing we all learned when we were in Kindergarten?

If you or anyone else can't learn to share on an open role-play blog, then it's safe to say that you probably shouldn't be role-playing.

Oh, and another thing, these role-play blogs are run by moderators. I, myself, am the moderator for two role-play blogs. These lovely, gracious people do this as a service to others who enjoy interacting with a fictional character they love.

Let me say that again just to make sure I get through to you.

These blogs are run by moderators who PORTRAY the actions and mannerisms of a FICTIONAL character.

That's right, FICTIONAL.

TJ Hammond, Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers, Steve Kemp, Ransom Drysdale, Nick Fowler, and all the other role-play blog characters AREN'T REAL.

I could go on, but I haven't had my coffee yet, so I'm gonna wrap this up.

That TJ mod isn't wrong in stating their rules and regulations. I have the same rules in my TJ role-play blog. Our rules are whatever we say they are because they're OUR blogs. Not yours.

If you can't abide by them, then you'll be blocked. Simple as that.

One final word of advice that you can choose to listen to or not, I can't control how you perceive this response and I'm not gonna lose sleep over it.

If you get jealous or have the urge to be possessive over a role-play conversation that two grown adults are having, and it doesn't involve you, then you should probably go outside and touch some grass.

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

[northwest-cryptid]

As a general rule of thumb, because I forget Tumblr is home to self righteous and pretentious people

I'm an adult, I owe strangers on the internet nothing. Do not waste your time sending me random Anon messages about how I need to change my life to fit your idea of "right" because A. If you care about your opinion enough you'd not use Anon and B. I owe you nothing move on dude I'm literally just gonna block you and go back to posting memes.

I understand if you spend all your time on this site and have some weird sense of self importance you think you're going to actually get me to read stuff but no I really don't, I have friends, I have a job, I have a life. To be blunt whether or not you like me couldn't matter less to be. Anon is there for any shy folks who may want to say something not for mindless links and paragraphs of "life advice" I look at and go "yup not reading that extremely pretentious garbage"

Thanks for coming to my TED talk, you also owe me nothing so the fact you made it this far is pretty cool, thanks 👍

[lindsaymendezobsessed]

Just a thought here…

Instead of having Hollywood film makers who only saw the original production once 18 years ago make the crucial decisions about how to cast the wicked movie

why don’t they like… ask the Wicked super fans??

Find the teens and young adults who’ve seen it multiple times, have seen videos of dozens of different actors and actresses in the roles, have read the books, have written the fan fiction, who’ve devoted their lives to loving the story

THOSE are the people who know what to look for in an Elphaba. They know these characters inside out because they’ve been living in their own personal Oz in their head for years

So Hollywood, please go out and find the super fans, not the ones who’ve only seen the original cast, not the 12 year olds who are Idina ride or die, the real ones, and have them give their advice, they know how to make it great

Thanks for coming to my Ted talk 😌

(obv this is never going to happen and I’m not dissing on the Hollywood producers, I mostly trust they’ll do a great job, I just think that there are endless people with endless knowledge that would greatly help, like the people on this app)

[karajaynetoday]

how to support your favourite creators on tumblr dot com

hello friends and welcome to unsolicited advice from karajaynetoday

here are 5 simple ways you can support your favourite creators on tumblr/the internet in general, whether they be writers, artists, incredible GIF makers and edit-creators, and everything else in between. I get so much joy out of tumblr content, so I’d thought I’d share some tips that I’ve gathered throughout ten years on this hellsite/safe haven lol

1. REBLOG THEIR CONTENT

go on, tell us how you really feel in the tags. no really, by sharing their original content (always reblog rather than re-post. NEVER re-post without permission or credit - you’ll see on the GIF I’ve used above Tumblr has added the credit to @ghostofmashton as the OG creator), you’re helping give their work more exposure, feedback and love, which is a lovely thing to do.

2. INTERACT AND GIVE FEEDBACK 

Did you lose your mind over that blurb? have a meltdown (in a good way) over that GIFset?? Head on over to their ask box or the replies and let them know!! Giving feedback helps your fave creators figure out what kinds of things you like to read or see on their blog, so they can plan future content! With writing feedback in particular, I like to be specific - if there was a particular phrase or section that made me feel an emotion, I mention it; if there was a particular writing element that struck me (the character dynamics, the scene descriptions, the narrative structure, the fictional universe etc etc) I call that out. A lot of people have an anon option on their ask box if you feel more comfortable giving feedback that way! If creators post things and all it gets is likes but no feedback, it can feel a little bit like you’re screaming into the void! 

3. RECOMMENDATIONS/REQUESTS/FINDING LOST CONTENT

Most creators will say in their bios or on their ask page if requests are open or closed - be sure to be respectful of this! But, did you read a fic or see an edit a while ago that you can’t remember the name or creator of? ASK SOMEONE! Are you in the mood to read a particular kind of vibe? ASK SOMEONE! The 5SOS community on tumblr is incredibly supportive and helpful when it comes to sharing recommendations, whether it’s through having a recommendations sideblog or fic recs tag (for example, I regularly check Lau @sexgodashton‘s rec tag for new pieces to read), responding to specific ask messages that request recommendations, or helping people find things they’re looking for (check out Crystal @kindahoping4forever​ for all your 5sos historian needs) so don’t be afraid to ask.

4. BE RESPECTFUL

yeah look this one is just a good general rule for life and everywhere you are on the internet but basically remember that there is a human on the other side of the screen. this is a safe space, and we can all engage in discourse and headcanons and whatnot, but don’t be a c*nt about it. if you don’t want to see a particular type of content, you can block tags. at the end of the day, the creator of the blog is in control of their own content, and if you don’t like it, unfollow them. if you think their content puts someone in danger or violates the tumblr community guidelines, you can report it. Jex @sadistmichael​ has some of the best NSFW writing on this site, and also some of the most reasonable opinions and responses to divisive discourse and I think this post of theirs sums it up:

a reminder that it’s okay to exist in the same fandom as someone that doesn’t have the same preferences or opinions that you do when it comes to a celebrity you don’t know <3 everyone does not have to think like you to be valid <3 as long as they are not encroaching on someone’s human rights and are in their lane you can unfollow them <3 having different opinions on things is a central part of being an adult in the real world <3 

5. GIVE WHERE YOU CAN 

okay now this is potentially the most controversial one?? maybe?? Idk, that’s why it’s last. obviously right now the world is on FIRE and a lot of people are struggling, so don’t feel pressure at all to do this if you can’t. it’s important to look after yourself first, especially during crazy times like 2020. however, personally I’ve been in a position recently where I’ve had a little spare money (that I would usually spend on my morning coffee in the office, or whatever, that I’m now not spending thanks to rona) and I’ve chosen to support a few of my favourite creators that have ko-fi pages with a small donation as a thank you for their work (@ everyone I follow who doesn’t have a ko-fi page pls make one so I can keep doing this!!! lol). The way I see it, I’d usually buy a book to read, pay for a netflix subscription to watch content, or things like that - so this is my way of repaying creators for delivering excellent content essentially for free in terms of $$$, but not really free if you think about the time and effort that they put into their creations. I know a lot of people pursue creative work for the love and passion they have for it, but everyone also has bills to pay - just because it’s fandom-based work, doesn’t mean it’s any less valuable than mainstream creative work you engage with. If the creators you want to support don’t have a ko-fi or similar, maybe see if you could commission them to do some work for an upcoming birthday or something like that! that being said, donating to support their work doesn't give you ownership or rights - just like buying a 5sos album doesn't. They're not at your beck and call to create and engage 24/7 - see point 4 about BEING RESPECTFUL 🙃🙃🙃

tl:dr: reblog, interact & give feedback, ask for recommendations and make requests, BE RESPECTFUL, give where you can.

thank you for coming to my TED talk <3 

[merthurmagic]

Self-Fulfilling Prophecies and Primary Motivations in Merlin - Why Everything Went Wrong

Alright folks buckle up. I’ve got THOUGHTS.

Issue #1: Merlin’s role models and their primary motivations

Consider Gaius. A man who stood by and watched while Uther burned innocent sorcerers. A man who stopped practicing magic even though he knew it wasn’t evil in order to appease Uther. A man motivated by fear of dying on the pyre.

Obviously Gaius has issues. His primary motivation for everything is fear. “Merlin, don’t reveal your magic, you might be killed.” “Merlin, don’t go on this quest, it’s dangerous.” To Gaius, life is fleeting and should be protected. But his fear of death only leads to an empty life. After all, risks must be taken in order to gain rewards.

So, Gaius is motivated by fear and imbues that fear in Merlin.

Now, consider Kilgarrah. A dragon whose kin were murdered by Uther. A dragon entrapped under the very castle that houses the man responsible for the deaths of all other dragons. A dragon who longs to have blood for blood, and eye for an eye. A dragon motivated by revenge.

Revenge is a bloodthirsty, ugly need. It’s similar to fear, but full of a lot more anger. Mostly, Kilgarrah is angry. But while his anger might be directed only at Uther, his thirst for revenge applies to the whole of Camelot, as seen when he attacks civilians as soon as he’s released.

Importantly, this means that Kilgarrah has very little care for innocent lives. For him, any association with a bad thing (in the past or in the future) justifies death.

To summarize, the vast majority of advice that Merlin receives is motivated by fear and revenge. No wonder he failed in his destiny.

Issue #2: Mordred as a child

Now, a little boy is running from the guards and Merlin helps him. Of course he helps him. The boy clearly has magic and Merlin sees himself in him. At this point, Merlin is completely motivated by compassion.

Then he talks to the dragon, who tells him to MURDER THIS CHILD (or at least let him die) because he is Arthur’s doom. 

Merlin CONSIDERS this! He almost doesn’t go to help Mordred and Arthur escape from the city. He does help eventually, but Mordred knows that he wasn’t initially planning on it.

Later, at the druid camp, Merlin uses magic to trip Mordred in an attempt to get him captured.

Mordred remembers these actions against him. Because of the fear instilled in him by Gaius, and the black-and-white he-will-do-a-bad-thing-so-he-deserves-death logic of Kilgarrah, Merlin acts against an innocent little boy and turns the boy against him.

This sets the stage for Mordred not trusting him as an adult

Issue #3: Mordred as an adult

So Merlin sees Mordred again and immediately acts hostile towards him. (granted, he was taking them to Morgana, but still). Even after Mordred helps them escape from Morgana’s clutches, Merlin STILL acts hostile towards Mordred.

Had Merlin not known about the prophecy, he and Mordred could have bonded over being magical in Camelot and everything honestly would have gone so much better.

But alas, that’s not what happened.

Had Merlin built a rapport with Mordred, he could have talked him down after Kara’s execution. After all, she was given a chance and she didn’t take it. Mordred honestly over-reacted, but he had no one there to calm him down or talk to him, so he went to the only person he still felt welcomed by: Morgana.

issue #4: The Disir

So the Disir gave Arthur (and by extension, Merlin) a choice: Sacrifice Mordred or bring back magic. Merlin advises Arthur to sacrifice Mordred because he’s afraid that Mordred will kill Arthur later.

Where does that fear come from? The stupid prophecy.

Then, surprise, Mordred’s alive. Why? Was it all a trick? Did the Disir just want Arthur to die? I don’t think so.

I fully believe this was a test for Merlin and not for Arthur because if he had saved Mordred, something he DEFINITELY WOULD HAVE DONE IF NOT FOR THE PROPHECY, magic would have been returned to Camelot.

Instead he chose to sacrifice Mordred because he was afraid. Why did fear become such a primary motivation for him? See issue #1.

Had Merlin advised Arthur to save Mordred and welcome magic back into Camelot, Kara would never have been executed. Mordred would still have faith in Arthur and in Emrys and would never have gone to Morgana with Emrys’s true identity.

So, Merlin’s knowledge of the prophecy that Mordred would kill Arthur is WHY MORDRED KILLS ARTHUR.

Self-fulfilling prophecy.

Issue #4: Merlin’s primary motivation

Merlin is undoubtedly motivated by Arthur’s well-being and happiness. While this starts as a good thing, helping Merlin protect Arthur against the numerous threats against him, it morphs into something darker.

Soon Merlin is killing sorcerers who attacked Arthur. He could have talked to them, made them see that Arthur is not Uther, but instead he just killed them, because they were against him. This is a very Kilgarrah thing to do.

Then, Merlin’s motivations turn even darker. While Mordred is in Camelot, Merlin acts almost solely based on fear. Fear of Arthur dying, specifically. Fear of Mordred.

This leads him to act coldly towards Mordred, which, as stated in issue #3, leads to Arthur’s eventual death.

A Hypothetical:

What if Merlin let Mordred die as a child? Would Arthur have lived?

I don’t think so. Letting Mordred go was an act of Merlin’s compassion. Letting him go was the right decision. If this was a test, he passed it.

Had Merlin killed Mordred (or let him die), a few things would have happened. Firstly, Merlin would not have been able to live with himself.

Remember that shell of a man Merlin became in the later seasons, haunted by the people he’d killed and able to focus only on the one person he’d killed them to save (because focusing on anything else would mean allowing himself to think that maybe he’d made the wrong choice)? Imagine if that happened even earlier, and baby season 1 Merlin lost his happiness and innocence that early.

Secondly, I think that fate would have killed Arthur anyway. The whole prophecy thing is a test of Merlin’s morality and motivations. Killing Mordred as a child is the same as advising Arthur to sacrifice Mordred in season 5. The latter led to Mordred being alive anyway, so naturally the former would result in terrible consequences as well.

If we want to get really dark, maybe Merlin would end up being the one to kill Arthur, possibly in a fit of rage as he realizes that the man he’s killed for isn’t all he’s cracked up to be, and he still hasn’t legalized magic. (not hating on Arthur btw, he’s got his own problems but that’s for another post)

Thanks for attending my TED Talk. I might add to this at some point but that’s all for now. Please share your thoughts!

[bolinshipskorrasami]

the thing that gets me so heated about people sh*tting on korra for losing the past lives and saying it's her "fault" is that this line of thinking is just unabashed victim blaming.

repeat after me: trusting someone who then later betrays you is not a character flaw.

and korra HAD flaws! she is at times impatient and not always good at listening to other people's perspectives/advice, especially early on in the series (this is one of her major points of growth - and no she didn't need to be traumatized to achieve it but I digress...).

but korra trusting her uncle, who for all intents and purposes SHOULD be a trusted adult, is not one of her flaws. her uncle betraying her is not korra's fault. stop blaming a teenager for the sh*tty actions of an adult!!

thanks for coming to my ted talk.