#that's why it's called diet culture

[lesbianslovebts]

@ichwillkeinenblognurlesen

Fatphobic beauty standards are normalized in the vast majority of the world, and that is The Problem. Dieting is disordered eating. It leads to all kinds of full-blown eating disorders like anorexia, bulimia, bingeing, etc. Not to mention the extensive research that shows dieting is not sustainable, as most people will gain it all back as soon as they stop restricting and/or purging. I am sure that every single member of BTS has gone on multiple restrictive diets throughout their career, if not battled with full-blown eating disorders, precisely because of the beauty standards you mentioned. If they wanted to be open and honest with their fans about that struggle, good for them. However, we're not their besties or their therapists. Talking about dieting in a neutral-positive light (i.e., Jungkook waving the pizza under Taehyung's nose and laughing about it) in front of millions of fans is irresponsible because it reinforces unhealthy societal expectations about weight.

You won't change my mind about this. In fact, I'm pretty sure you whined about this on a post I made before, too. You're fast approaching a block.

Please, please stop talking about dieting in front of your millions of impressionable young fans. 😬 The Run episode was so good today except for that. Especially right at the beginning of the year, too, when all the weight loss companies are swooping down like vultures. 😩

[starcrossed-sky]

wait... not being able to kneel without extreme pain is a disability thing? i've always been told i was just fat and needed to lose weight then this wouldn't happen anymore 😭

Movement restrictions are never "just fat." Unless the case is, quite literally, that the fat prevents the motion - which due to the way fat zones vs joints works, pretty much only happens at the waist - there is some form of underlying issue.

That said... Why are you separating "fat" and "disability"? To be disabled is simply a statement that you can't do something the way a better-abled person can. It says nothing about the cause. Fat can be a contributing factor to disability (it sure doesn't help my back problems!), it's just rarely the cause in and of itself. "I can't kneel" is a disability, regardless of the cause.

In my case, the inability to kneel is at the confluence of a couple of factors. The first is that I have what I'm pretty sure is a congenital pelvic deformation, potentially a congenital femur deformation, which prevents me from sitting with my knees together in any position. (You can also tell when I'm standing because I stand with my feet in a V, rather than parallel. Neither of these things is typical.) Add that to the autism superpower "hypersensitivity to pain," particularly knobby/no-fat-cushion knees, and yes, the amount of weight involved, and you have a position that's at most mildly uncomfortable to the average person but legitimately painful for me. I Cannot Kneel.

All of that said... Anon, I promise you that I am not saying this to be unkind. But you know that there is not actually a way to lose meaningful weight and be a healthy person, right? There is no diet nor exercise routine nor miracle pill nor surgery that can provide that to you. Weight loss works in a five year span in under 1% of cases, and those cases are all people who are dedicated enough to starving themselves (which is a serious health issue) to do it. A doctor who tells you that weight loss is possible and a goal you should hope to achieve is, at best, willfully ignorant on the subject. If you're looking for sources on this you can find a bunch in my diet culture tag at the bottom of this post.

If inability to kneel specifically affects your quality of life, then I'd advise you to work with a physical therapist on it. NOT a doctor. A physical therapist is the specialist you go to for "hey my body does not move in the way I want it to move, can we do anything about that?" They're the ones who are going to be able to help you find alternatives that suit your body.

[mynameisbillandimaheadcase]

Cw

[mikuyuuss]

Learning about more your body type is such a double edged sword. On one hand, it's a good thing because you now know why certain clothes sit with you a certain way, and it's a great way for you to figure out your preferences in clothing.

One one hand, if you're TOO aware, you start to perceive your unique traits as flaws, which makes you feel bitter and resentful of your body over time. I just randomly saw a video of a woman being self deprecating about her "wide rib cage" and it so happens she has the same body type as me so..... hahahahah... Why am I crying

[fading-event-608]

A fig tree for pixel dailies.

"Figs are planted in most Palestinian cities. However, it is most common in two districts, Nablus — especially in the village of Tell — and Ramallah — namely in Silwad, which became known as Im-Qutteen (mother of dried figs). Other villages also have names relating to the fig, such as Teeneh (fig). There are also flat areas called masateeh referring to the places where figs are dried to produce qutteen.

The fig has long been linked to Palestinian cultural heritage because it is nutritious and filling, and thus a staple of the Palestinian diet. It was known in Palestine as far back as the Canaanites. Palestinians have their own terms for the fig: while it is forming, the fruit is taqsh, then faj and then ‘ajr. Other used terms are nafal and thbeel.

Old traditional sayings reflect the importance of figs in Palestine. For example: ‘I tasted the first fruit, I hope my life has a long route’; ‘Eat the figs from the early season and the grapes from the late season’;* and ‘If we have qutteen (dried figs), we are safe from hunger.'"

-from The Palestinian Museum which took that info from 'A Garden Among the Hills: The Floral Heritage of Palestine'

Trees, would it be olive trees (which I also have a drawing of) or fig ones are important in Palestine. Just like in other countries, they provide shade, fresh air and produce. But in Palestine, they are also a symbol of resistance - as long as family's tree is growing, they are growing too; as long as the tree is alive, they are alive too.

When Israeli occupiers takes Palestinian's homes that they've built over multiple generations, they take their trees that they groomed too. When IOF drops bombs on civilians, they take trees with them. They uproot the trees, they burn them - because those trees remind them of people they've killed and whose land they have taken.

It seems like the world is slowly growing numb to cries for help; it seems like people are closing their eyes and covering their ears to not see the Palestinian blood on their screens, to not hear them scream. And Israel sees that and continues it's aggression on Lebanon. After all, if they can get away with a year (76 years) of genocide, why not start another one?

Please take any action you can. Protest, boycott, keep your eyes on Palestine and please, please, please donate to Palestinian fundraisers. I have spotlighted one fundraiser, for Falastin's family evacuation funds from Gaza that she organized in late June - it is still very far away from it's goal.

There are 24 family members that depend on that fundraiser. They need not only evacuation funds but also money to buy basic necessities like food and medicine that are very expensive in Gaza right now. Recently Falastin started hearing them talk about waiting for their fate because the funds this campaign gets daily are not enough to ease their suffering and cover evacuation.

Please, do not let it happen. Please, donate and check conversion rates before you do as:

10$ = 103 SEK

25$ = 257 SEK

50$ = 515 SEK

100$ = 1,030 SEK

I've talked about this fundraiser before numerous times, a lot of info can be found on this post [here] or [here].

Vetting info: #282 in El-Shab-Hussein and Nabulsi's spreadsheet [here], #957 in the Butterfly Project spreadsheet [here]

I do semi-regular art updates (last one [here]) and accept commissions for proof of donations, please dm me for info as my art blog was terminated recenty.

[exeggcute]

the leaked mrbeast production doc kills me because like, for better or worse, this guy clearly has his shit down to a science. he knows exactly what game he's playing and he knows how to play to win. the actual doc is structured well, communicates its ideas clearly, but also was thrown together by a youtube guy who paid no attention to visual formatting or proofreading. and yet as much as I hate to say it, stuff like this is actually great and widely applicable advice:

What you consume on social media, when you watch youtube, tv, the games you play, etc. are what I like to call your information diet. Chris Tyson (our first subscriber and the guy in the videos) is a wonderful example of an information diet being used to perfection. The dude is funny as fuck. I’ve never met anyone in my entire life that can make people laugh like he can and I never understood why he was so good at it until I lived with him for a few years. The dude watches an obscene amount of cartoons and stupid shit. His eyeballs exsist to inhail copious amounts of just goofy, dumb, and brain numbing content. And as a result he can quote almost any line from any episode of spongebob. He’s able to draw from so much stupid shit in his head as inspiration to make jokes and be quirky. As a result he is fucken hilarious. But let’s imagine a different Chris, let’s say instead of cartoons and stupid shit, his information diet was stocks and investing advice. And for 5 years that’s all he consumed. Do you think he’d be just as funny as he currently is? No. He in my opinion wouldn’t even be 20% as funny. If you’re a writer or director you really need to monitor and perfect your information diet. If your diet is not correct, you won’t have a good pulse on culture. I don’t want you to be a chris, in fact, I think that would probably do you harm. Talent needs to inhale cartoons so they can be funny, writers need to inhale inspiration. Let’s say there is a purple fruit in the middle of Australia that when eaten makes you 2 feet taller. If it truly did exist, you wouldn’t have known that until just right now. But now that you know of it, you can draw on it for inspiration for every piece of content you write going forward. That’s beautiful, it can now sit in the back of your mind waiting for that one video where it is needed. It might take 10 videos or even 100 but eventually you’ll be brainstorming a bit and think of the right one to use the fruit for. Apply this to everything on this fucken planet. You. Can’t. Get. Inspired. By. Things. You. Don’t. Know. Exist. So how do you learn more about what's out there in the world? How do you stay up to date on the latest memes? How do you know what’s going on with celebrities? What’s trending on youtube? What other creators are doing? What’s popping on tik tok? Your information diet. Consume things on a daily basis that help you write better content.

[hyperlexichypatia]

Discourse is like "People take this 'ableism' thing way too far, they'll say it's ableist to [thing that is definitely ableist, but not for the reason the people they're rebutting think it is]."

Most things are ableist, because we live in a structurally ableist world. Most of our core assumptions about value and hierarchy and correct behavior are ableist, because we live in an ableist society. So yes, "People on the internet go around calling everything 'ableist'" because everything is, in fact, ableist! Because systemic ableism is the water we fish all swim in!

But anti-ableist discourse often begins and ends with "It's ableist to say that people should do that because some people are disabled and can't do that." This kind of objection kind of... only touches the surface of systemic ableism. And it gives the impression of objecting to a valid generality with some kind of special pleading, which is just... beside the point. Any discussion of ableism centered on "There should be An Exception for Legitimately Disabled People" is just... an insufficient framework for addressing systemic ableism.

So you end up with someone saying "I said that people should eat their vegetables, and somebody called me ableist, because some disabled people can't eat vegetables! Isn't that ridiculous? Obviously I'm not talking about people who legitimately can't! I'm talking about people who are too lazy to try! These 'anti-ableism' people take things ridiculously too far!" And. Like. "Some disabled people can't eat vegetables" only touches the surface of why saying "People should eat their vegetables" is ableist in the first place.

Why is eating certain foods being framed as an obligation that someone needs a "legitimate excuse" to opt out of? What underlying beliefs about health, diet, nutrition, and morality are built into your premises about what people "should" eat? Why does the spectre of the person who "Doesn't take care of their health because they're lazy" bother you? What function does judgment of this real or hypothetical person serve? Do someone else's food choices affect anyone else? Even if you can come up with a way that someone else's food choices can theoretically affect other people, is that the real reason why you're judging them? Or are you reacting to a lifetime of cultural messages around health moralizing and judgment of "laziness" and "excuses" all of which are rooted in systemic ableism and then retroactively justifying it with an ad-hoc claim about "Well uh... uh... the environmental impact of food production!"? Cool, but is that the real reason you've constructed this image of a Lazy, Unhealthy Person With Bad Health Habits to get angry at?

"People on the internet" say that "everything is ableist" because everything is in fact ableist!

[ye4gerism]

𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐊, 𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍!- 𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐋𝐘 𝐗 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑

word count 4.8k

content warning a little bit of spiciness, false positive pregnancy mention, black reader friendly

author’s note hi. i suffered through writer’s block these past three months but BOOM mouthwashing and fanart of this fine ass man popped up on my fyp. i’ve watched two playthroughs of this game, so i hope i captured the right image of curly. oh and he’s australian here. and my requests are open!

synopsis on a study abroad trip, you meet another (handsome) study abroad student who talks his way into your heart and ends up being a key part of your life

Winter in London was not up to your standards.

You were here on a study abroad trip for your master's program. You did the whole overseas thing during one quarter during your time as an undergrad - it was a little visit to South Africa which you thoroughly enjoyed. But “travel some more,” everyone said.

After a lot of thinking, you gave in and decided to travel to the U.K. as you wanted something that felt familiar. You were wrong in so many ways - the roads followed unnecessary loops, plugs were shaped unusually, and...oh, every drink there was some sort of 'diet' or 'zero sugar' crap.

But over time, this place began to feel like a routine. It wasn't home but you were okay. You liked the opportunity to grow in your program and you liked your classmates. Everything was balanced - school, eat, chat, sleep.

Except for one particular day after your classes, a few of your classmates insisted you go to a pub with them. Something about 'getting you more exposed to the London culture'. After much pestering, you indulged.

So you found yourself at this pub but not as excited as the people who invited you. Over time, they were engulfed in their own conversations and inside jokes and you were off to the side, whiskey in front of you, own your own. It's weird to drink when the people who are supposed to have your back don't.

"Enjoying yourself?"

Oh boy, were you about to have your first unwanted encounter in London?

You look over your shoulder and see this strikingly tall man, his head full of bright hair. His shy smile

is highlighted by his stubble. Your eyes soften for a moment and the tension in your shoulders fades.

But then it returns. "I'm enjoying myself. Thank you. I'm with my...my classmates." Your tone is sharp. You gesture to your classmates, who are still in their own world.

"You're American? Are you sure these people know you?" He asks. You pause, trying to find a witty answer of your own. Part of you wanted to point out his thick accent as it wasn't as posh as the Londoners. Maybe Australian. You think for a while but you're still stuck.

"Curly." He extends his hand to you. You shake it.

"Your name is Curly?" you ask curtly. "And I'm supposed to feel bad about my situation?"

He chuckles at your response, his face settling into a smirk. "My name is Grant. Everyone just calls me Curly."  He swirls his glass, eyeing the empty barstool next to you. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

You look him over noticing his muscular build once more. "I don't mind." He swings his leg over the seat and rests his forearms on the counter. Curly takes you in for a moment. You take this time to take note of his eyes - a shade of deep blue. He's sort of cute, you think.

"So, why exactly is an American girl like you here in London?" And it all goes away. You find yourself a little annoyed with his question as it's yet another variation of the same question you've heard since you arrived here.

"You ask that like I'm not supposed to be here. It's not like the United Kingdom is some sort of war zone," you respond. He raises his right hand in defense. "I'm studying abroad for a quarter. I'm a grad student," you finally answer. "You don't sound like you're from here either. What's your deal?"

"Well, I'm here for school too." He downs the rest of his drink. "Masters too actually. I'm trying to go to space."

"Still doesn't explain the accent," you cut in.

"Well, my father's Aussie and my mother's from here. They separated years ago and I spent most of my life in Australia with my Pa and spent time with my mother when I wasn't in school. She moved to the States after the divorce. I decided I'd pursue my college education in America and have been there since."

"So you're here studying abroad as well," you state. He nods and then gestures to someone behind him. "That's Jimmy. I like to think we've been attached to the hip for the longest time."

This Jimmy he speaks of is on the opposite side of the bar, socializing. "I'm really happy we got to take this trip together. He made my breaks great. I was really bummed that the person I considered my best friend lived on the other side of the world but the great thing about adulthood is the lack of limitation."

You laugh at his comment and he gives you a confused look. "As an adult, I feel that there are so many limitations. Especially as we get older."

"Well, it's up to you if you let those limitations run your life. You have free will, you know, and...and you typically only live once." He places a hand on your arm and it slowly runs down to your elbow. Your eyes are locked now.

"My name is Y/N."

"I like that."

You like the weight of his hand and you like his eyes and you like his hair. He seems like a cute guy and he has such a cute name - Grant Curly. What a cute face.

"Hey Curly." The moment is broken by an unfamiliar voice but a familiar face. The Jimmy guy. "It's getting late and we have shit to do. You think you can stop flirting and leave now." He pauses and looks at you. "No offense."

You're taken aback and not sure of what to say but you respect him for keeping his friend in check...but maybe not with that tone. You look behind you and see that your classmates have left you. So much for adults.

"You're right. I lost track of time," Curly admits sheepishly. He looks at you first, then at Jimmy. "This is Y/N."

"Great. Nice to meet you, Y/N." You wait for a handshake or something. "Let's go now." Jimmy starts to walk away from where you're both sitting.

"Sorry about him. He's nice! I promise!" Curly rubs his neck nervously. "How are you getting home? Going back with your friends?"

"They left. I'll have to call a cab or something," you say. He looks over at Jimmy, who's exiting the pub, and then back at you. "I'll take you back home. What's your address?"

"It's okay. Your friend...he doesn't seem receptive. And besides, I can take care of myself," You answer. You start to rummage through your purse and pull out your wallet to pay for your drink. Curly gently holds your wrist. Your breath hitches at the electrifying feeling. "Let me pay for your drink and take you home," he starts, "I know you're definitely capable of taking care of yourself but it'd kill me if I left you alone."

You look away from him for a moment and think. This was your opportunity to get his number. "Okay...I'll pay for the drink and you can take me home," you offer. He shakes his head and gestures to the bartender. "Please put this lady's drink on my tab," he says. Curly pulls out his wallet, then his card, and slides it over to the bartender. You lightly slap his arm in protest. "Why would you do that?"

He just smirks at you before taking back his card and receipt. "Let's go." He offers his hand to you to help you off the barstool but you playfully swat it away before plopping off.

Curly leads you outside to the parking lot and clicks the unlock button on his keys. His friend is leaning against the car and you take note of the fact that he was rushing Curly when he didn't even own a car himself.

"What is she doing here?" He asks. "Jimmy, we're dropping her off. You think you could move to the back so the pretty lady can sit up front?" His friend asks.

Jimmy gets off of the car and mumbles something illegible under his breath. You feel bad so you say something, “He can sit-"

Curly cuts you off, "No, no, you sit down." He opens the passenger seat for you and you slide inside.

Something you noticed about the two friends was how opposite they were; Jimmy was clearly someone who didn't like too much change and you assumed that Curly lacked any anxiety. They seem to balance each other out...maybe?

As you conversed with Curly about your respective lives, you couldn't help but notice Jimmy's eyes piercing your image through the rear view mirror.

“Hi love." You feel so much relief when Curly's lips meet yours. You can't help but melt against him. It felt so good to have him in your home.

The two of you had decided to go long-distance months after you met in London. Curly was based in Colorado; his mother lived there, it was where he attended school and he loved it so much because of the snow. It seemed like whenever you called, he was on some sort of mountain or on his way there. While you were living in California, where there wasn't much of that, Curly claimed it reminded him so much of home - so he didn’t mind you living there.

After your first meeting, you regularly hung out and spoke over the phone. Sometimes you both were lucky to be alone; he'd take you out to lunch or take you to tourist sights in London. Sometimes you'd spend time in his flat and Jimmy would be there. The latter wouldn't say much but you always felt like he never really wanted you around. When he did speak to you, your conversations would start somewhat simple and then he'd say something to kill the mood.

One night as your school's study abroad program came to an end, Curly showed up at your flat without any notice. The Curly you saw that night wasn't the one you were getting to know all this time - he was much more bashful than ever. Not the type of bashful when Jimmy tries to embarrass him but bashful in the sense that he was well into his twenties, almost 30, and was struggling to find the words to confess to you. Luckily for him, he didn't need to completely contextualize as you felt the same way.

"How is work, baby?" You ask him. He came to California as it was his turn to take the flight to see you.

"Same old, same old." He started working for some space freighter company months before he met you; you only heard about it once you got back to the States. You weren't too sure about the whole thing but he was making money and getting practice for the career he really wanted.

You pull away from his chest and take his image in. "I missed you so so much." Curly pulls you closer to him so that he can kiss you again. This time it's a bit longer. He pulls away looks behind himself to find your couch and leads you to it without bumping into anything.

He sits first and invites you to crawl onto his lap. Once you're settled, he grabs your thighs and you take hold of his shoulders, kissing him again. His hands roam from your thighs to your back before finding themselves under your shirt. At the feel of your bra, he asks, "Oh, what's this?"

You feel your cheeks heating up at his playfulness. "Why don't you take my shirt off and find out?"

Taking this as permission, Curly unclasps your bra and moves his hands to your shirt; you raise your arm as he pulls the bottom of your shirt off. Once it's been discarded, your bra slightly falls off your chest and Curly does you the honor of taking it off of you.

He lets the back of his hand run lightly against your nipple and you can't help but mewl a bit. "Missed me?" He asks. You nod. "Every single day."

"I think about you a lot. At work, at home, when I'm outside. It's hard knowing that I have such a pretty darling on the other side of the country." He brings one of your breasts to his lips and wraps his lips around your nipple, where his tongue dances around. He pulls his lips away with a 'pop'. "Grant," you let out breathlessly.

"I think about doing you at my desk, on my bed, everywhere." He lowers you down on the couch and adjusts himself so that he's on top of your lower half. "I think I'll take you on this couch and maybe if you're up to it, on your island counter next, and then after-"

He's cut off by a vibration in his pocket. "Just a moment, it's probably work," he says, pulling out his phone. You notice a slight annoyance on his face when he reads the Caller ID.

"Jimmy, hi." Speak of the devil. At the sound of his name, you shuffle to sit up on the couch. Curly puts a hand out to stop you but you swat it away.

"No, Jimmy, I didn't eat your pickles. Have you tried looking around the fridge?"

You reach next to him to pull your shirt and bra out of the crevice of the couch.

"You found them- no, I landed here hours ago."

You clasp your bra and put your shirt back on.

"I'm sorry that - Jimmy!" You jump at the volume of Curly's voice. He sees this, places a hand on your knee and mouths an apology. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't call you. I just got here. I'm with my girlfriend- huh? Ok. I'll talk to you later. Bye Jimbo." He then hangs up. Curly sits back on his knees. He brushes his hair back with his hand and releases a sigh before placing both hands on his knees and looking at you. "Sorry. Just Jimmy."

"I don't like him." You give him a pointed look. You cross your arms, obviously disappointed that his idiot friend ruined your time with your man. You're aching for him but at the same time, you don't even want to fuck Curly anymore.

"I think he's a nice bloke," Curly says under his breath. You raise your eyebrows, practically asking him to speak up. "It's like you guys are the brother and sister that hate each other for fun. You'll both come around eventually."

Your face twists in disgust and you fake gag, which makes Curly laugh. "What brother is deeply in love with their sibling, you in this case?" you question, "He clearly wants me out of the way."

"No, he doesn't. He loves you!" You can see Curly's face melt into confusion. "Maybe not love you...but he likes you around?"

You scoff. "See, you don't even know yourself." You wiggle your legs from under Curly and get up off the couch. He reaches for your hand. "You don't know want to...?" He cocks his head toward the couch.

You purse your lips and shake your head no.

"So gorgeous!"

"How many karats?"

"The proposal! What was it like?"

One year and a few months after your meeting, Curly decided to propose. He took you to Australia to meet his paternal side. In truth, you were scared of those big-ass Australian spiders and whatever the hell else happened to live there but your love for Curly was stronger. The night before your flight back home, he planned a candlelight dinner for the both of you in his father's home and proposed to you - your answer obviously being 'yes!'.

Today you were at your wedding shower with all your friends - Jimmy too!

"How do you feel about getting married after just a year of knowing each other? I mean, Grant can't possibly know everything about you in a year!"

Curly's mother was a piece of work. You had met her a handful of times during your trips to Colorado and yet you couldn't seem to just get along. You were polite but she always had something to say. There was some attachment to her son but he was her only one so you let it slide.

"Well...you do know we're getting older. I fell in love with him and have been since I met him. I feel that Curly-"

"Grant. His name is Grant," she interrupts.

You take a deep breath and smile a forced one. "Grant. I feel that he and I can be mature adults and grow and learn about our marriage and what makes it work." Part of you wants to mention why her marriage didn't work out but one of had to be the bigger woman.

Mrs. Former Curly hums trying to find some witty response. "Is the Bride-to-be avoiding me?" You let out a sigh of relief and you never thought you'd do it to this particular voice.

"Jimmy! Nice to see you, hun!" Curly's mom moves past you to hug Jimmy and kiss him on the cheek. For once, Curly's friend looks cleaned up compared to the other times you've seen him.

When Curly's mom pulls away, he looks over at you. "I wanted to pull Y/N aside. Haven't gotten to properly congratulate her on the engagement. I can catch up with you before I head home," Jimmy tells her.

After the engagement, Curly decided to move in with you. It was a decision you were confused by; you were easily willing to pack up your bags and move to Colorado with him. You knew he loved the snow and his mom would probably lose his shit if he was so far but he insisted on moving in with you.

At first, he wouldn't tell you the truth, something about high housing prices and about wanting to explore more. Eventually, he told you he wanted to get away from Jimmy. He opened up to his friend about the idea of getting engaged - showed him the ring and everything. It turned into an argument about you being the right choice and Jimmy low-key insulting you. After he told you the truth, you let Curly move in before the wedding.

Over time, Jimmy apologized to Curly and even extended an apology to you and the two got closer again. Although they weren't best buddies, it didn't sit right with you how quickly Curly took Jimmy back as a friend. Maybe Mrs. Former Curly was on to something.

"How have you been, Jimmy? Has living alone served you well?" You ask. He makes a funny face at you. Were you making a dig at him?

"It's fine. I actually got a new roommate. He's pretty chill. Keeps to himself." Jimmy avoids eye contact for a second. "How's living with Curly? I know he's ecstatic but are you?"

Living with Curly was great, especially when Jimmy was briefly out of your lives; uninterrupted cuddles, uninterrupted dinner, uninterrupted sex. You were living the life!

Instead, you answer, "Living with Curly is great. He's lovely. He's the best roommate and fiancé I could ever ask for."

Jimmy's trying to keep a light demeanor but he truly couldn't. "You know, I hope you're really right about that. Hopefully, he doesn't drop you like a sack of potatoes...although, I hope he does. I really really hope he does. You don't deserve any of this."

Your face drops and for once he's left you silent. Jimmy smirks when he realizes he's really hurt you. "Congratulations again, princess," he says before walking off.

You feel your body buzzing and you just want to cry but everyone - your family, friends, Curly - are all gawking over you and you don't want to set any alarms off. You want to find Curly but you know at the sight of him, you'd burst into tears.

You eventually find the strength to walk out of the party - passing by with polite 'excuse me's and 'just a moment's. You take a moment to feel the breeze. It picks up and your breath struggles but once it slows down, an entire weight is off your shoulders.

You decide to sit in the car. A tired heavy sigh escaped you. You noticed your fiancé left his winter jacket in the car and used it as a blanket.

For a moment, you wanted to cry but you had all this makeup and didn't want others to realize that you were upset. But besides that, you didn’t have the urge. Why couldn’t you cry?

You chalked it up to space. You needed to be away from Curly's petty mom. You needed to be away from Jimmy and his weird attachment to your fiancé. You both needed space for this whole thing to work out.

A shadow hovers over the window and you turn your head to see Curly, who lifts his finger to knock on the window. You open the passenger seat door and before allowing him to speak, you start first.

"Sit."

He doesn't argue and walks around the car to sit in the driver's seat. "Babe, what's going-"

"I can't do this, Grant." You can see his eyes and panicking and his mouth trying to find the right words. He grabs your hands and lets out an incoherent version of "but I love you" and other things you couldn't catch on.

You shush him and it takes him a while to quiet. You place a hand on his cheek. "I don't want to say my vows in front of people who are wishing on our downfall. You know what Jimmy said to me tonight?"

His eyes go from saddened to worry and then a building. "I knew it. I shouldn't have - what did he say to you?!"

You place a finger on his lip, quieting him again. "Grant, baby, please. We'll deal with him later. I want to go to the courthouse and marry you. I want to say the vows I wrote for you there. And then after, I want to eat a burger or something...something greasy and salty as hell, and then after that I..." You move your finger from his lips down to his chest and then even lower.

"You want to...?" He's playing coy.

You move his finger away from his pants and slap his chest, which makes him release an "oof". "I want Jimmy and your mom to suck it and let us have our moment," you say. You watch his face as he starts to think (he has this cute thinking face that you can't help but melt for).

"Ok. Deal." Curly kisses the corner of your lip. "Can you come inside now? Everyone's worried." You kiss his cheek now and chuckle an 'ok'.

Back at the party, everything felt fine. You had your friends and family to cheer you on and your amazing fiancé who loved you more than life. It was toward the end of the night you felt a shift.

You were catching up with another friend when you observed Curly walking Jimmy outside. After a few moments, it was just Curly that returned.

"They want you to do what for how long?"

"It's just a year, baby." He was still with this Pony Express bullshit. "It's nothing we haven't done before. Think of the other times as practice.”

He was doing space deliveries in a span of a few days or even hours to the International Space Station....when he could be working up there.

A part of you felt bad for complaining but the money with good. With your income combined, you were able to buy your first home. You had the most spacious dining room and connected kitchen. It helped with family gatherings, dinners with friends, and hard conversations like these.

"Why can't you get like...I don't know...a real job at like NASA?"

He slams his hand on the table. "It is a real job like NASA!"

You're startled - you can't think of one time he has ever raised his voice at you. Your utensils clutter against the plate and you get up, pushing the chair back with your legs. “Y/N, babe, sorry-” he tries.

You ignore him and leave the dining room, your shared bedroom being your target. Curly’s pleadings and footsteps can be heard behind you.

You reach your bedroom and Curly places a hand on your shoulder. It stops you from walking away from him again. He counters you and now both hands are holding your shoulders. “I didn’t mean to yell at you. I know I never yell at you.” His right hand moves from your shoulder to your cheek. “I’m really really sorry. I shouldn’t have taken my frustrations out on you.”

You blink and your face scrunches up trying to stop yourself from crying, which you fail. Curly brings you in and holds you.

“Grant, I can’t do it. I can’t do a year,” you sob, “And with all the negative tests…I can’t do it. I need you here with me.”

The both of you were trying for a baby but haven’t been lucky. Just a lot of no’s and one false positive - that was the one that hurt the most. The excitement was immediately gone when your doctor told you there wasn’t anything to begin with.

So it was back to Square one and other options.

But this year's mission had thrown a wrench in your plans.

Curly leads you over to the bed and has you sit down. He kneels in front of you and takes your hand. “Listen, it’s some quick cash. A lot of money. When I get back, I’ll quit. I’ll find something else. And we can focus on ourselves and our family. I’ll make it happen. It’s a promise.”

There’s so much hope in his eyes. He sticks out his pinky finger, indicating that he is serious in his own lighthearted way. You hug him instead.

"So who's the lucky girl?"

Curly looks up and sees Swansea, who's pointing at the gold ring on his left hand.

"Oh!" He turns red at the thought of you. "My wife is back home. I didn't realize how hard it would be - being this far from her. We actually dated long distance for the longest time but yet, I can't shake the unusual feeling in me."

“Your wife…” The older man thinks for a moment. “Oh! The one that pulled you to the side to give you an earful!” He lets out this belly laugh and it goes on for quite a long time. Curly takes a deep sigh, letting his shoulders drop. Swansea slaps his left shoulder, perking him up again. “Yeah, I miss that too.”

Curly was about a month into this delivery trip. He stopped counting the days because it made him miss you more. He just wanted to blink and be home so that he could hold you in his arms and apologize a hundred times over.

You both got into an argument when you found out that Jimmy once again found a way to be in Curly’s space.

One night, Curly got back-to-back calls that he kept ignoring. “Just pick up please so we can sleep,” you tiredly snapped. He chuckled at your annoyance and kissed your forehead before complying.

You didn’t find out until you saw Curly off at work before the start of the mission.

“Are you kidding me? Don’t tell me he was the one calling!” You exclaimed. Curly looks back at his crew who are feet away saying bye to their own families or prepping the ship. “Can you please-”

“No! No, no, no, no,” you hold a finger in front of his face. “Why is he there? I tell you all the time - I don’t like him and I don’t like the influence he had, or I guess has in this case, on you-”

“He needed a job! He needed some help. Things aren’t good on his end. He’s a damn good pilot. He just…he just needs the right push.” His blue eyes hold so much sympathy. You loved your husband’s compassion for others but when it came to Jimmy - after all the times he made it clear you weren’t welcomed - you just wished Curly had a little bit of backbone.

There’s still so much anger and disappointment in you but you can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped.

“I hope it all works out and that your boy succeeds. Good luck, Captain.”

You raise both hands in defeat and start to walk away from Curly. This is your last image of him before you fully turn around. He says your name once but doesn’t follow you.

[kick-a-long]

i find it so desperately sad that goyim generally would be so much less antisemitic if jews started physically fighting back with guns or sticks in every country. calling for the murder of muslims all over the world, if the jewish population was big enough to have large scary groups of crazy fringe fundamentalist synagogues all over the world, a billion strong, that preached murder and hate so goyim could look down on jews like some noble savage in need of assistance and western education and protection. so we could be reformed in obvious patronizing ways because there were so many of us that we had militant violent fringe extremists, like christians and muslims have, mixed in with the normal jews.

if jews didn't have such a reputation for success and intelligence maybe conspiracy theories would stop blaming us for controlling the world. if we felt less in danger maybe we wouldn't be so obsessed with long term survival.

is antisemitism some warped form of envy? maybe. what sucks is that jews are no better or worse than anyone else. some jews are brutes and some are the most wonderful people imaginable, just like any other group. what sucks is we don't all live up to the reputation of tactical geniuses and wizards with mind control magic. all of us jews are just tired and abused humans who have lived with 2000+ years of generational trauma and the endless fall out from a popular jewish book written 3000+ years ago describing the best practices of jewish culture. It has some great stories, histories, life advice, diet recommendations, hygiene, and rules about how to treat others.

is that such a crime?

trying to show a path forward? not demanding anyone else follow those rules but wanting to do our best to follow them anyway? how to live a good life that makes the world better and makes you proud to have been on earth for the time you were there? jews fail to do this all the time, just like everyone else. I fail all the time. why are people so obsessed with that? people say shylock is a stereotyped antisemitic character but,

"I am a Jew. Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions? Fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by Christian example? Why, revenge! The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction."

so why do jews always have to be the better man? why do we have to apologize for being angry and sad and hating the people that attack us? that was written by Shakespeare, a christian in the 1600s who who had probably never met a jew, they were expelled from england, but imagined us as money lenders, the only profession left to jews at that time. even he saw the double standard. it makes a good point.

now, i don't want vengeance, i don't want violence, but i feel vengeful. i feel angry that i am unsafe because of play actors and terrorist supporters who want revenge for jews existing but scream bloody murder when jews refuse to dig their own graves, beg forgiveness for ever being born, and lay down in them to be mocked and pissed on and abused in the worst ways imaginable for the entertainment and conquest of it. i want peace with them. they are as human as i am, full of foibles and anger. i want nothing to do with them. i want them to never come near a jew again for the rest of time.

i am sad. all i want is to feel my feelings and advocate for what is the most ethical and practical work around to a world filled with unending suffering while i am still alive. i want them on thier side to live in the world they want and me on my side to live in the world i want. why don't these children of all ages, lost in delusions of fantastical battles and ultimate good and evil, see that? why can't I be a human first as well as a jew first? why do they ask me to pick? why am i not allowed to pick?

it's been almost a year. we're all so tired.

I'm going to a music festival. I'm trying to decide whether to wear a star. why is it dangerous to wear a star around my neck?

[82mitsu]

Previously translated pair names that had been posted to Twitter. However corrections had to be made (misinterpretations & an instance of mistranslation), so this is version 2.

Note: This is the only translated thing I will be posting, I am not off hiatus. I had been meaning to archive this before my hiatus, but I also had to fix some things, which is why there was a delay.

Please consult to this post only regarding pair name translations done by me (82mitsu), any other posts or reposts you might see of this chart is the older version. (Previous version has been deleted, but I'm unaware how far the information had spread.)

If any other corrections need to be made, feel free to contact me and I'll make them as soon as possible.

Below follows an extreme lengthy TL note breaking down some pair names, it's a lot of text, so be warned once you unfold the read more.

A lot of research went into these due to 18TRIPs tendency to mix up words, use Gen-Z slang that hasn’t been picked up by everyone yet (or limited to TikTok) and make up their own words (“Omotenashisto” -> “Hospitalister”). I used dictionaries, searched forum results, looked up how people use these words on social media, went TikTok digging, etc.

I tried my best to localize in a way that should make sense even without added context. I only explained the ones that I thought might needed some more back-up in a cultural sense or because it was a specific JPN thing. Thus, not everything has been explained. However, I hope things are clearer compared to the first version that was posted. For Renga & Yukikaze: For ぽゆぽゆ (poyupoyu) there is no definition or anything for this word, but from context clues and digging through how people used it, I deduced that it means something soft and squishy like a plushie or cheeks, so to say. For Renga & Liguang: かりそめの宿縁 (karisome no shukuen) is a Japanese saying about a fated connection of bond that only lasts for a brief moment, but leaves a deep impact on your life. For Renga & Raito: Party is mispelled in the katakana as “paachii” and not the usual “paatii”. Renga has a tendecy to say English words wrong. While “friends” is spelled the correct way, both words have been “mispelled” to drive the point home. For Renga & Kinari: なぁぜなぁぜ (naaze, naaze) is JPN Gen-Z slang from Tiktok. It’s a statement made as an act for complaining, with a bit of sarcasm and irony thrown in at times. Like, “I said I wanna diet but I ate a big meal anyway! なぁぜなぁぜ” or “I’m an idol but I get more anxious doing improv than performances! なぁぜなぁぜ”. Best way I can describe the usage in this context is Renga is throwing a bit of a self-aware tantrum as to why Kinari would correct him. (As mentioned earlier, he isn’t good at English). I guessed a close equivalent would be “nuh-uh”, since that is a dismissal of someone else’s opinion without actual good reason, even if the other person has a point. For Renga & Netaro: まんまん (manman) means “a lot” but I also believe it’s a reference to meatbuns (nikuman). For Kafka & Yodaka: Hanbei is Takenaka Shigeharu, a Japanese samurai from the Sengoku era. He was known for being Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s strategist. For Liguang & Yodaka: 闘牌伝 (touhaiden) is related to Mahjong stuff. 闘牌伝 seems to be an old timey Mahjong video game with RPG elements. Rekka is a fighting game term, and I will quote the website The Fighting Game Glossary by Infil on this: “A type of special move that has multiple stages, as long as you input more commands to continue the sequence. Not all multi-part specials can be called rekkas though; a rekka tends to have exactly three distinct parts and will move your character forward along the ground with each new input.”  For Akuta & Nanaki: They went to the same kindergarten and were grouped together in the “Oden Class”. Japanese kindergartens, from my understanding from researching, tend to have a name for their class, rather than a number. To give an idea what such names could be, in 2019 the website hyenasclubs hosted a poll of most commonly used names for classes, and the top 3 were “baby chick” (hiyoko), “peach” (momo) and “dandelion” (tanpopo). For Akuta & Muneuji: My take on はっけよい輝矢部屋 (hakkeyoi kaguya heya) is a bit of an elaborate bit joking with Princess Kaguya of the Moon (from Tale of the Bamboo Cutter) because I was wondering why they suddenly opted for Muneuji’s last name instead of first. (I might’ve also just overestimated Kaguya Heya being some joke on Kaguya Hime). Hakkeyoi is what a referee shouts at the start of a sumo wrestling match. For Akuta & Ushio: I think ポ��ティブに腕押し (positive ni ude oshi) is a take on 暖簾に腕押し (noren ni ude oshi) that means something has no effect or is pointless. Lit. it means “pushing a curtain with one's arm”.    For Akuta & Tao: Akuta Nine is a joke on the baseball movie Gyakkyo Nine which is an adaptation of the manga of the same series, I believe. The movie is referred to as GK9, hence I made it AKT9.  For Akuta & Ryui: The original is OYAxKOBU which comes from 親分子分 (oyabunkobun) meaning “boss and his underlings”. Akuta also calls Ryui by “Oyabun”.

For Kiroku & Nanaki: Weebs who watch highschool anime should be familiar with this, but emergency staircase refers to the hallway stairs in a JPN highschool that are sometimes used as chilling out spots by students. For Kiroku & Chihiro: TuRyStA is the clothing brand they wear. 18TRIP has a various selection of clothing brands, which each character having a preference for one or another. For Kiroku & Yodaka: Zhao Yun, as quoted by Wikipedia, “was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China.” For Ushio & Raito: Some heavy freedom was taken with バスボムしゅわリスト (basubamu shuwaristo). After considering how to approach it in the most sensical way, I decided to translate it as “bubblist” due the other options being “hand sign list” or “bubble list”. I thought リスト might function as in -ist, like dentist, artist, guitarist. しゅわ comes from しゅわしゅわ which means bubbly. Although bubblist isn’t not that common, it is sometimes referred to entertainers that do bubble performances (in English). And I think it made more sense than “hand sign list” or “bubble list” to say the least. This was also taking in consideration how 18TRIP, as explained in the intro, gets very creative with its language usage. For Raito & Nagi: Mandarin ducks symbolize “soulmates” of some kind in China. In other words, Mandarin Duck Touring is more along the lines of “Motorcycle touring soulmates”. However, I find the mandarin duck reference and interesting pull compared to just “soulmates”, so it was kept as is. For Kinari & Ryui: “Super Darling Gap Inspection” is more along the original lines. “Gap” in Japanese is usually used in the context of when someone acts one way, but unexpectedly, can act a different way. Ex. A very shy person shows they can be super vulgar, that can be considered a “gap” of some kind. In English, people are more familiar with “gap moe”, thus gap moe was used. For Tao & Nagi: Might be a reference to Yokohama’s Zo-no-hana (Elephant Nose) Park. For Toi & Yodaka: The original is more along the lines of, in the most literal sense, “going around raisins circle (of friends).” Toi likes raisins, but Yodaka doesn’t, so Yodaka passes them onto Toi. I’ve turned into on a play on “sharing is caring” since that’s a common concept in English.

[serpentface]

An interaction between Kulyos, the legendary founding hero of the collective Hill Tribes, and the wildfolk witch Bernike, as depicted in folklore.

The collective Hill Tribes all descended from a single population (informally called Kulyites) who migrated south across the Viper seaway from what is now Finnerich, prior to their written history. Here, they found themselves in a new landscape and in both conflict and cooperation with its preexisting inhabitants (a broad collection of tribes, many of which would eventually coalesce into the Wardi and Wogan peoples).

The detail of why this ancestral group fled their homeland depends on the specific tradition. In some cases, it’s a cultural non-issue- they’re here now, have been for hundreds of years, and will be here for hundreds more. In other cases, they describe a local war, a famine, barbarian invaders from the northwest (likely Dain-speakers, possibly a distant leg of the first Burri empire, maybe both), or a combination of all three. All sources agree that cattle and horses were brought on ships with the migrants, though they differ on whether they already had a khait riding tradition or if this (or khait themselves) were adopted from the native population.

The Kulyites were small in number and had neither the power to gain territory by force or negotiation, thus having to settle in some of the few uninhabited territories, the rocky highlands of the northwest. These were difficult lands, far from ideal for farming and grazing, and much of the founding mythology surrounds the first Kulyites learning the ways of this new land and how to thrive where no one had before.

It is said that this original group was led by a young chieftain named Kulyos (this name comes directly from the word 'kulys', the thick mountain plant with yellow flowers seen here, which is important in the regional diet for its fruits and use in tea, and as a symbol of hardiness). He is credited with leading his people to their current lands, establishing many of their core traditions and ways of life, and settling conflicts with the local mountain spirits, thus allowing for his descendants to live there to this day.

Kulyos is very likely to be a based on a real person (possibly the actual chieftain of the original Kulyites, but more likely one of their sons or grandsons), but the details of his life are lost, his history interwoven with myth and allegory. He is usually characterized as well humored and supremely wily, a good leader and beloved by his people, overcoming most challenges with cunning and cooperation rather than brute force. He is wise in the ways of the mountain gods and spirits, and often escapes trouble by means of proper respect to the gods and calculated (if risky) dealings with spirits. He is a mostly venerable figure, but often cast as comically flawed (notably, being lecherous and prone to lying).

One of the most popular and widespread legends is his theft of the wildfolk witch Bernike’s deer and magic cloak.

---

Bernike was the greatest sorcerer of all the Wildfolk, unmatched in power and likened to a god. Her secret was her feather cloak, obtained in a pact with the storm goddess Ariakh and made from the goddess' very own black feathers. Ariakh agreed to provide Bernike with great power in return for routine sacrifice of fine livestock which her sons, the winds, would tend among the clouds. (This likely references practices of some of the proto-Wardi, who may have venerated a form of Ariakh in similar ways). The other condition was that all of Bernike’s magic arts would be contained within the feather cloak, making her powerless without this artifact (this would prevent her from challenging the goddess herself- being made from her body, it could not be used against her).

Bernike ruled over the highest mountain, which had a small pass critical to travel in the area, and took glee in torment of the new human additions to the region. The best grazing in the highlands was upon Bernike's foothills, and this was where the Kulyites settled. In their herding and trading, they would often have to traverse her mountain pass, and she would stop them and demand tribute (usually in form of cattle).

The reason for Bernike's demands was her herd of a hundred scimitar deer, her greatest prizes. These deer were magical in nature- strong enough to be used as mounts and plow animals, faster and more surefooted than any other hooved animal, and their milk could cure disease and impart longevity in those who partook (Bernike herself was over 5,000 years old and as spry as ever). Now that new people with cattle, khait, and horses had entered her lands, Bernike had a new source of livestock for the goddess and no longer would have to offer up her own precious herd.

She would be greedy and merciless with the settlers, demanding exorbitant offerings and inflicting them with terrible curses when they refused. The people all learned to live in fear of her, but had no other option but to submit to her demands in order to pass through her mountain.

After a few years of this, Kulyos had grown quite tired of her demands on his people, and aimed to level the playing field. He had his wife, Brunil (herself a major character in this mythos), disguise herself and take a herd of cattle and ox-drawn cart through the pass. Bernike, of course, appeared and demanded tribute- the woman would only be allowed to pass if she gave the witch her choice of two of her finest cattle, and otherwise would be turned into a biting fly. Perhaps a sparrow, if she was lucky.

Brunil sorrowfully conceded, and begged that Bernike at least be quick about making her choice. Brunil said she was on her way to her sister's wedding, down in the village to the south of the pass. The cattle were to be a gift, and she also had a cask of the finest mead with her that needed to be delivered on time for the ceremonies.

Just as planned, Bernike immediately lost interest in the cattle and instead demanded the mead. Brunil put on a great show of hesitation and sorrow, but eventually relented and allowed the sorceress to take the entire cask. Brunil was allowed to travel onward (‘my sister will be so disappointed’), while Bernike eagerly set about drinking.

Kulyos had followed his wife from a distance and now watched and waited in a copse of trees. The witch drank enough mead to kill a man before she even began to get tipsy, and drank enough to kill two more before she fell into a deep, drunken slumber.

Kulyos then crept up upon her and took the cloak from her unconscious body, donning it over his shoulders. He then approached her deer, which did not flee, recognizing the scent of their master. He mounted on back of one of the bucks, and used it to drive the rest of the herd back down the mountains.

The next morning, Bernike awoke on the hillside, finding herself without her cloak, robbed of her deer, and with a nasty hangover.

She was outraged. This was not the first time she had dealt with Kulyos, and she recognized his scent in the air. She knew exactly who had robbed her. If she were in full power, she could have hunted Kulyos down and turned him into a flea, or made him impotent, or given him dysentery with a mere wave of the hand. Without her cloak, she was powerless, having no magic at all and no more physical capability than any other small (unusually spry, 5000 year old) woman.

She finally relented and contacted Ariakh herself, expecting the goddess to be furious at the theft. Ariakh was indeed furious, but not so much at Kulyos. The man had shown nothing but the proper respect to her, and she was unwilling to punish him for his deed. It was Bernike's failure, and would be up to Bernike herself to put things right. Still, as a favor to her most devoted follower, Ariakh agreed to give Bernike one of her magical arts back to help her along- the power of shapeshifting.

Back in the village, the deer were already showing their worth. Just two bucks had been put to the plow, and they had turned a field in three hours that would have taken an oxen three days. The animals were docile towards their new owner, even letting themselves be milked, and this was the most delicious milk any had ever tasted and could be fermented into the finest of murre.

Kulyos was quite pleased with his theft, but knew this would not be the end of things, and he kept the cloak on his person day and night. He took great care of it, and left out offerings of murre to Ariakh each night that he had it in his possession, to show his continued and utmost respect for the goddess he may have insulted as a byproduct of his theft. He went about his life, always watching and waiting for Bernike's inevitable return.

And so she came, though she was crafty and subtle, and did not make herself obvious. She first took the form of a bat and attempted to fly in through his window and take the cloak as he slept, only to find herself entangled. Those familiar with the legends would know that Kulyos had already bargained with the queen of the spiders to send some of her children into his village, who had cast their webs over the windows and happily ate all the bothersome flies and mosquitoes that had previously plagued his people. Humiliated and harassed by hungry spiders, Bernike fled.

The next day, she took the form of a viper, perfectly camouflaged and waiting in the grass to bite him as he tended to his herds. Kulyos indeed approached, but it was his little son who came near to Bernike. No matter, she thought. She would bite his son and seize the cloak when Kulyos tended to his child's wounds. Ariakh herself was offended at the aggression towards the child, innocent of Kulyos' crime and for whom he had prayed protection, and she sent a crested eagle (a snake eater) to swoop straight overhead.

Kulyos wisely realized a serpent must be in the area, and told his son to stay still. He used his spear to part the grasses in search of it, and at the sight of snake-Bernike, pulled back to stab her. In her panic, Bernike changed shape into a gazelle and fled, thus revealing herself and losing the element of surprise. Now, Kulyos knew for sure that she was after him, and knew she would come in the form of an animal.

Bernike was not stupid, she knew she had lost her advantage. So she waited a month for him to let his guard down, and took the form of a huge, beautiful aurochs bull, trotting and bellowing among Kulyos’ cows as if looking to mate. Surely he would be tempted by such a handsome and valuable animal, and she could take the cloak from him when he got close. And it seemed to have worked, for he excitedly approached with a lasso and slung it around her neck, speaking softly and soothingly as one would to such a wild prize. But instead of trying to lead her off, he tied the other end of the rope around a tree and walked away.

Bernike waited patiently for his return, no doubt in her mind that he was simply getting assistance in leading such a powerful animal away. Instead, Kulyos came back alone, leading his own prized bull (the giant white beast, Pyliod) along with him. As soon as Pyliod caught sight of what he perceived to be a rival bull, he became enraged, and charged at Bernike. She was chased around the tree ten times before she turned into a lion to face him down. The great bull was only more enraged at the sight of a predator, and chased her ten times more (and giving her a nasty jab in the hind, she is said to still bear the scars) before she gave up, turning into a sparrow to slip the rope and flying away. (The trunk of this tree still stands today, with the frayed remnants of an ancient rope around its base).

Now, Bernike waited another month, and took the form of a beautiful young woman, barely-dressed in riverfolk garb and tempting him from the edge of a creek. This attempt would have worked, but Brunil herself, quite annoyed, interceded by chasing the girl away with her staff and giving her husband a stern reprimanding. (“I knew it was her,” Kulyos insisted. "I had a plan.")

Finally, Bernike threw subtlety to the wind and took the form of a huge king hyena, the most powerful beast in the land, and came rampaging into the village. All the people feared this great animal, and even the most powerful warriors would hesitate to approach such a beast head-on. But Kulyos had known the witch would lose her temper at some point or another from the very beginning, and had tasked all the mothers and young children in the village with weaving a great net, so wide as to hold the largest beast, and so finely woven that not even a flea could escape.

Seeing the beast approach, he called to his his three daughters to fetch the net. He stood at the center of the village as bait, running and dodging from the beast while his daughters prepared the trap between two huts. His eldest, Aylian, whistled her signal, and Kulyos ran straight for the net, diving through the small space beneath. The witch in catform was far too big for such a maneuver and barreled right into the net, and Kulyos and his daughters wrapped it around her, trapping her in its clutches.

She fought the net with everything she had, turning into everything she knew how- a great bull, a lion, a tremendous riverdrake, a giant leviathan, a tiny songbird, a mosquito, and so on, but there was nothing she could do to break through. Finally, she turned back into her original shape, a tiny, bearded old woman, and demanded Kulyos approach.

He offered her a deal. If she would swear an oath in front of Ariakh herself of nonretribution and to end her demands of tribute from his people, he would return the cloak and all but two of her precious deer (a doe and stag), and his people would leave offerings of mead and murre at her pass every year on this day to grant them safe passage. Utterly defeated (and finding this offer quite appealing, in spite of her wounded pride), Bernike agreed, and called the great goddess forth.

Ariakh descended in the form of a dragon (a legendary beast with the head of a horned serpent and body of a bird), alighting on the roof of a hut. She plucked a single, massive feather from her breast and threw it to the ground, and Kulyos and Bernike both laid hands on it and swore their oaths. A vow before a goddess would have unspeakable consequences if broken, even for such a mighty sorcerer as Bernike.

Bernike donned her cloak and took her favorite form, that of a gigantic gray eagle. She took to the sky with a fearsome screech, circling the village three times, and then led all but two of her deer, a stag and a doe, back into the mountains.

And with this, the conflict was ended.

---

These deer are said to have become a great boon to the Kulyites. The herds they produced were eventually lost to the people and none of the Hill Tribes have herded deer ever since (that's another story), but their impact lives on. Being magical animals, they could breed not only with each other, but with khait, and produced the small, hardy khait stock still used as mounts and plow animals by the people to this day.

Bernike had only sworn nonretribution and an end to the tributes from Kulyos' people, but she did not swear to never harm them again, and as such all people who claim descent from the Kulyites avoid her mountaintop to this very day (with many more legends describing the consequence to those that do not), and are always sure to bring their yearly offerings of mead and murre to ensure continued safe usage of her pass.

Bernike also only swore to end tribute from his people, and other legends involve her stopping entire invading armies from navigating her pass with (often mischievous and utterly impossible) demands of tribute, and great consequences when these demands are not met.

Bernike is an ambiguous figure in the cultural schema, being feared and respected, an annoyance in her neutrality in (or active inflaming of) conflicts between the Hill Tribes, but credited as a protector of the collective peoples of the highlands. She is often cited as one of the reasons that neither the Burri empires nor the contemporary Wardi empire have ever seized the inner highlands, and no invader ever will.

[catcas22]

Elden Ring Spider Headcanons

Radahn: Doesn't mind spiders (he can barely see them). But he's a helpful guy... Unfortunately for everyone around him. His followers have learned not to call out spiders when he's around, otherwise he'll slap down an entire zipcode trying to kill it for them.

Ranni: She vibes with the spiders. They add to that dilapidated haunted mansion look she's going for in her tower. And she's made of twine and ceramic, so she doesn't worry about bites. The spiders even eat pests that might ruin her books! She was, of course, thrilled to find out that those larger, pest-eating spiders she loved so much were called "wolf spiders."

Unfortunately, spider buddies come and go depressingly quickly. But one particularly large wolf spider has stuck around, his longevity most likely due to his diet of glintstone fireflies. Ranni most definitely has not nicknamed him "Spider Blaidd," and she definitely does not hold full conversations with him while Blaidd is away, because she definitely does not get lonely.

Rykard: He does not vibe with spiders. They ruin that immaculately kept haunted mansion look he's going for in the volcano manor. He initially burnt spiders to a crisp with tiny magma sorceries and left their charred shells as a warning to their brethren. He eventually switched to glintblades, as they don't leave scorch marks on the carpet.

Miquella: He doesn't like to kill them, and after much discussion he's convinced Malenia to let them be. He catches venomous spiders with a long-handled bug trapper he invented for just such a purpose, then releases them outside. The harmless house spiders can stay, so long as they don't bite. He'll gladly explain that spiders are a vital part of the ecosystem who keep down the numbers of insects who do spread disease, and they really only bite when threatened.

Malenia: She respects Miquella's wishes, but she's insisted on taking over the venomous catch-and-release duties. She's got her eye (metaphorically) on the spiders. She doesn't want them getting ideas just because Miquella has moth wings.

Marika: "Radagon, pass me the hammer."

"Why do you need... Oh gods!"

[entire wall explodes]

She's not even afraid of them. She just indulges in overkill for her own amusement. So few things bring her joy these days.

Morgott: Spiders give him anxiety. Not because he's afraid of spiders -- they just remind him of growing up in the sewers, and trying to keep Mohg from eating spiders. He was never sure if they were venomous, but Morgott wasn't taking any chances.

Mohg: He definitely doesn't eat spiders. Anymore. Maybe he did once, but Morgott is exaggerating. He doesn't eat them now. He is a prince, even if he did spend his formative years in a sewer. He is a cultured gentleman who can resist the temptation to eat delicious, delicious spiders.

He does occasionally ask Varré, hypothetically, if someone were to eat a crunchy, chewy spider with shiny red spots that look like candy... And then his cheek started swelling up, would that be, like, cause for concern?

Feel free to add your own!

[clonehub]

there's surprisingly very little about clones that is determined by genetics. height, weight, fat/muscle distribution, stamina, and some aspects of mental fortitude definitely are, but a common flaw is for one to believe that anything a clone does or doesn't do, or thinks or doesn't think, is the direct result of genetic tampering. little to nothing is credited to the powerful force of upbringing. nurture. culture. ideology.

as a general rule of thumb, clones don't like fish. this isn't because there's a set of taste bud genes that the Kaminoans played around with, and it doesn't stem from Jango in particular. the clones don't like fish because they didn't grow up eating it, and they didn't grow up eating it (it is theorized, at least) because the Kaminoans themselves are vegetarian and eat a lot of seaweed. THIS is because the catastrophic event that wiped out most of their species also destroyed many of the prey they naturally fed on, forcing the remaining Kaminoans to subsist on more plant matter than they used to.

this is an example of unintended Kaminoan lifestyle influence on the clone's lives and interests. While the Kaminoan scientists most certainly brought in expert nutritionists, whoever was primarily in charge of building the menu would not have thought to add fish or fish products to the menu. this is the same reason why the majority of older generations of clones are lactose intolerant to some degree. Not only was Jango lacking the crucial gene, the Kaminoans would not have thought to supplement the clones' diet with dairy products because they themselves cannot digest it and the human species, while mammalian, gets weaned at about one and a half years old. That is the plan the Kaminoans followed. There are other, stronger sources of calcium that the Kaminoans put into the clones' diet to ensure proper bone development.

(in fact, the majority of clones' food was supplemented with nutritional additives rather than the nutrients being part of the meal itself, initially. Their diets are so strictly controlled that the Kaminoans would rather give the clones dried fruit flavored fiber sticks than fresh fruit. Fresh fruit was rare.)

Multiple things got more dairy and a wider variety of foods in general into the clones' diet:

Bounty Hunter and Drill Sergeant influence.

They brought parts of their cultures or personal influences to Kamino. They had special orders of the things they enjoyed, including icecreams, snacks, cheeses, etc. The "nicer" instructors would sometimes let a clone they liked sample a piece of food. This is also how it was discovered that every single clone was deathly allergic to the space version of a cashew nut (a flaw swiftly handled by the scientists via both allergen therapy shots for already-born clones and a change to the standard clone template).

2. Returning clone influence.

Clones coming back from deployment brought a plethora of goodies (illicit and not) with them. Foods, snacks, candies, miscellaneous ingredients, stories of what amazing meals could be had if you were savvy enough or adventurous enough lucky enough. There are rumors of a GAR galactic candy trading system that stretches all the way back to Kamino, though evidence of it is sparse. Even Captain Rex is reported to have brought back gummy worms when called to Kamino to give a training lecture to rising CCs. Though the bag was allegedly "family sized", it is unclear if the goods were actually shared.

3. Experimentation.

[This is actually canon lol] The Kaminoans found that clones were more enthusiastic about mealtimes and getting their calories in when the food actually tasted good and had more variety. Taking the previous two influences, the clones' diet on Kamino improved in both taste and texture -- but there's still no fish.

[fatphobiabusters]

"I don't believe that fat people deserve basic human needs like love, food, or clothes. I think fat people are automatically ugly because I grew up only seeing thin people treated as beautiful in media and society. Because fat people aren't fuckable to me, I tell them to kill themselves and call them ob*se pigs. Which reminds me, the term the medical field uses for fat people, I actually treat it as a slur. I also treat the word 'fat,' the most basic term for a specific human body type, as a taboo insult that you should never, ever call someone. Unless you want to call them ugly or worthless, which I treat 'fat' as a synonym for. I give fat disabled people judging looks because how dare any fat people be disabled. I think fat people should be forced to pay more taxes and to park as far away from a building as possible to force these fat asses to walk. There's countless insulting euphemisms for fat people: fat ass, lard ass, butter ball, diabetty. Oh, that reminds me! I also believe I know the medical records of all fat people and use that to call the over 2 billion fat people on this Earth the dirt underneath my feet. I associate different diseases with fat people, who I hate, so I also put stigma on those diseases. I think it's okay for fat people to pay extra for clothing despite me being a size medium and not having to pay more than people who wear a size extra small. I mock fat people for dancing, walking, running, eating, exercising, swimming, existing, and even breathing! Literally! I laugh when a fat person breathes heavy for even a single second after they walk up a flight of stairs! I support and buy all of the diet culture products that make money off of fat people being viewed as scum. I once saw a fat person on the news talking about how she was enduring food insecurity, and I laughed for a full minute because obviously that fat woman is nothing but the stereotypes I support about fat people and actually overeats. I secretly have a thing for fat women, but I would never dare actually date a fat woman or be with a fat woman in public. That's why I fuck her in private and then pretend she doesn't exist. Whenever I create a character and want to make people know that the character is bad in some way, I make the character fat. I help bully fat people whenever I can. I not only make jokes when fat people die, I also assume every fat person died because they're fat and tell random fat strangers on the internet that they're going to die at age 35. I freely harass fat people because I know not a single person on this Earth will defend them from me, not even progressive people. But no, fat people definitely aren't oppressed. Stop kidding."

How every fatphobic asshole sounds when they tell me fat people aren't oppressed.

-Mod Worthy

[vaspider]

Re: https://www.tumblr.com/vaspider/764251688311898112/okay-but-again-do-you-think-thats-what-this?source=share

I agree with the person you're chastising here. The OP, and OP's subsequent reblog with additional context, doesn't indicate "Talk to your kids responsibly about diet culture." It says "Don't talk about dieting where kids can hear. Not your own, and not anyone else's." If they wanted to say the first thing, they would have. But they said the second thing instead, and then subsequently reinforced that.

I think your stance of "Diet capitalism is based on bullshit, and it hurts people. Make sure you talk to your kids about it so they don't get hurt." is true and accurate. I just don't see that message in the top post. And I don't have any weird diet related trauma. (Only very pedestrian diet related trauma.)

You are putting words in my mouth the same way that the person I was responding to was putting words in other people's.

"Don't talk in front of your kids about dieting, your diet or other people's diets," is a perfectly reasonable thing to say, and does not extend to "don't let your child know that dieting exists." The person who I was responding to took the message of the post -- "don't normalize diet culture by making it so that your child is constantly hearing about 'oh I'm on a diet' 'oh she's dieting' 'oh I can't have that because I'm on a diet'" -- and blew it up to the point where it was about their individual trauma. Their mom was -- in their words -- so focused on not stigmatizing their body that they self-stigmatized.

That's basically a "so you hate waffles?" response.

And that's what I was calling out: the "you hate waffles" level of the response, which is why I asked, specifically, "do you think this is actually what this person is saying?"

Nowhere in that post does anyone actually talk about talking to your kids responsibly about diet culture. That's an entirely different conversation. What that post talks about - and all it really talks about - is not being part of the onslaught of negative, diet-based messaging that kids receive.

What you're saying and what the other person is saying are whole new sentences.

[ghetto-omega]

‎‧‎❀‎✿❀Omegaverse Culture Overview❀✿❀

𑁍 warning.. I am.. African American... Never been outside the US, so I can really only speak on the culture around me. If people wanna weigh in on culture from other places please do. Actually, I'm begging, I'm rolling over, I'm listening please please please please please please please please please please volunteer your own headcanons. 𑁍

This will be a short overview of a lot of things, so it's just gonna be a lot of thoughts and not a lot of depth. However I am planning on actually making an indepth post about each one of these topics.

With that being said...

‎‧₊˚✿Food✿˚₊‧

𑁍just general food headcanons𑁍

The omega stereotype is craving carbs and sweet foods, specifically because of what they're like after heats. Most energy during heat is depleted, so in order to get their stamina back they have to eat all of carb heavy foods

The alpha stereotype is craving tough or crunchy foods, because of their ruts. With biting instincts ramped up they tend to want things that are harder to chew through. It's like the equivalent of putting a live cricket in a spider enclosure because they want the stimulation from hunting their food

Carb and protein filled foods tend to be stocked in most houses. Especially filling carbs. Families are typically very large, with multiple generations all living within walking distance or in the same house. Keeping dense foods stocked is important to keep everyone fed

Pups in particular tend to have slightly stricter diets because their stomach isn't built for handing some foods until at least their preteen years

‎‧₊˚✿Names✿˚₊‧

𑁍naming your children, as well as derogatory names𑁍

I think that people would tend to name their kids after items that smell good, their favorite foods, other family members, plants, and religion

I also think they'd be a fan of situational names as well as generational names

For example, have three kids, one being named Sunday (situational, born on a Sunday), Suzie (maybe a pack members or a family members name), and Sumiya but her nickname is sushi, and all of the names starting with "su" makes the names generational.

You could even expand on that and have all the packs kids names be something like suki, sumirah, summer, summo, ect. Giving you a quite literal generation of names. (<- my family did this ! All the girls names end in "ah" and all the boys end in "en or on")

I can also see a kid being named something like Foxglove, Cedar, Jasmine, or even something like Honey or Teatree, because that's what the parent's mate smells like

I think calling an omega a "slick dripper" or a "slick house" is uhm... Not exactly a slur but it's not something you should say.

I think that married betas and omegas are told they are "Collared". It's typically derogatory, but there are exceptions. I think the alpha equivalent would be "Bitched", which is basically always derogatory

I think some people call betas "baren" or "scentless". Once again, not a slur, but definitely something close to it lol

‎‧₊˚✿Housing✿˚₊‧

𑁍pack houses and their differences𑁍

There's two different notable styles of home. There's a regular house, and a pack house

Pack houses don't have too much of a difference, but they are larger and tend to follow similar layouts. With one floor being taken up with giant meeting rooms and similarly size kitchens, as well as at least one bathroom with either a huge tub or multiple small ones. The upstairs floor(s) tend to house all the bedrooms and a few smaller on suite bathrooms

Some pack houses are essentially just mini mansions, completely with a few different wings of the house all marked by a different meeting room

And the term "meeting room" is also a difference. They're essentially just big living rooms. Why is there a different name, isn't that a bit pretentious? You ask. Bc some guy who thought he was better than everyone else coined the term pack house and decided there needed to be a difference, for some reason

‎‧₊˚✿Families/Packs✿˚₊‧

‎𑁍general pack headcanons𑁍

Big families !!! Huge families even !! Families that take up entire neighborhoods or culdesacs !!

Conversations between kids where they ask how many mom's someone has is common !! Kids ask their parents why their friend gets to have 5 dads but they only get to have 2 !!

Not everyone's parents are romantic !! Some are just part of the same pack !!

In my personal au I use prime omegas and prime alphas, but they're just titles for the leaders of the pack. Even then, modernly they aren't doing much leading. It's more event planning, pupsitting, tie breaking lol, things like that

Your primes do not have to be mates or anything. It's just about who's the most reliable and level headed. Oftentimes, anybody who stays home for most or all of the day falls to this roll by default

‎‧₊˚✿Clothing✿˚₊‧

𑁍a few clothing headcanons𑁍

Collars aren't typically worn outside casually. Typically they have a cause. Whether it's newly weds, protests, covering scent glands, or some secret 4th thing, they typically have a purpose.

Honestly this whole section would need to be it's own post for me to do it justice tbh

Clothes that "trap scent" are pretty commonly worn. They're made of a light but thick fabric that cinches or cuffs around the scent glands and they often comes in matching sets. This is especially common in omega targeted gym wear, but there are sets made for everyone

Nuns also typically wear this type of garment

‎‧₊˚✿Other✿˚₊‧

𑁍miscellaneous headcanons𑁍

Gift giving is very important. Specifically, giving food is very important (I am biased, I am a very food orientated and motivated person). Giving someone food they don't like by accident is alright, but if you know they don't like it, and give it to them? Disrespectful.

So I'm semi familiar with the Christian Bible, I grew up going to church (<- religious trauma haver). You know how a lot of people draw Jesus as white even though he very much wasn't ?? Yeah I think people claim Jesus was an alpha, but he was a beta and there's overwhelming evidence in the Bible to show he was beta and people just ?? Ignore that bc they want to lol

Some people are born with animal features, some aren't. The place you were born in + your parents (and maybe a little plot relevant magic lol) determines what type of features you get. People who live in deserts or next to mountains are often born with horns or scales, while tropical and temperate climates tend to be born with more feathers and furry features

Heat blockers/suppressants as well as rut blockers/suppressants can only be prescribed by doctors. Giving them out or selling them can land you in prison post haste, but they're also so hard to get your hands on that the market of people buying them counterfeit grows everyday, despite the complications and risks

Blockers and suppressants can lead to fertility issues as well as immune issues, particularly in omegas, but don't count out anyone with ruts either, it's just less common. Lots of people on blockers are immunocompromised

Scent/pheromone blockers on the other hand, are much easier to come by, especially because they sell patches right over the counter. Though, if you wanted a much more discreet pill you would need to get those prescribed as well. It is particularly hard for omegas to get them prescribed, as usual

And that's it for now U⁠^⁠ｪ⁠^⁠U

This post is basically just a giant reminder for me to write about these topics in depth. Just a whole lotta surface level thoughts. I also didn't cover weddings, holidays, mating rituals, social climate, etc. so I'll have to do separate posts on those

This took a bit longer than I wanted bc I am uhm. Suicidal lol. And then there's the drake v Kendrick beef and I've been fixated on it. Like I fr don't even like K dot that much I've just always hated Drake fuck that nga !!!

If you see a spelling mistake... No you didn't...