#the only one there I'm not opposed to is translator but. from what I've heard. translators are paid a fucking pittance

[meezer]

something simultaneously disheartening and also very tragicomedy when professors are talking so assuredly about your supposed future in a field you have no interest in

profs: you guys are future teachers! professors! researchers! translators!

me, thinking about how I'm gonna board a plane the second I touch my graduation diploma and go work in a field nobody in the room has ever even heard of: uh-huh

[eleni-cherie]

Translation of the Greek in WWDITS s5e4

Hellooo, I'm back! Since y'all enjoyed my last translation I figured I could do another one for the latest episode :)

*Nadja and grandma sitting at the table*

grandma: ela. ela! apo to fourno zestes einai. fae! - come, come! they're warm from the oven. eat! [typical greek grandma lol]

*Nadja introducing Laszlo to the family*

Nadja: yiayia! - grandmother/grandma!

*after Laszlo greeted the dog instead*

Nadja: ohi - no [can't comprehend what she says after that, sorry. either the pronounciation is off or the word just doesn't exist]

hazos - fool/idiot

hazoulis - little fool/idiot [basically the cute/lighter version]

*song Laszlo was singing*

skotose antipaxos - kill antipaxos [the greek isn't grammatically correct here tho, it should be 'skotose tin antipaxos']

*Nadja explaining in the interview what was wrong w the song*

Nadja: nisitha Moggonisi - islet of Moggonisi [the greek is a bit off again, usually you wouldn't add the 'island/islet of' in greek, especially since the name 'Moggonisi' already contains the name 'island']

[Moggonisi is a small greek Island that belongs to Paxos, the neighbouring island of Antipaxos. Paxos is the big island and Antipaxos its small neighbour. Basically Antipaxos means 'opposing Paxos'.]

nisitha Moggonisans - islet Moggonisans [tbh this part confused me a lot, bc she wanted to name their enemies and habitants of that island, so idk why they also added the 'nisitha' in the front. also 'Moggonisans' obviously isn't very greek and rather how an english-speaking person would refer to the inhabitants. The correct greek name for the inhabitants would probably be 'Moggonisii']

*after Laszlo held his monologue*

Nadja: panayia mou - holy Mary [Mary being Jesus' mother, it's an exclamation of surprise or frustration like "oh my God"]

grandma: the to pistevo! - I can't believe it!

ine o vasilias yourounion - it's the king of pigs

irthe o vasilias yourounion - the king of pigs came

[i swear I've never heard of this tale and I extra googled and only found a kids book but the author wasn't greek, so I'm pretty sure they invented that for the show]

it's not that much, bc Nadja & Lazslo were talking over the family, so most parts weren't audible and also sometimes the grammar/pronounciation was just so off, that I simply could not understand it. e.g. when they were throwing food at Laszlo for that song and Nadja yelled something, I listened to it like 20 times and I still don't no what she yelled. it could be 'skotoste auton ton malaka - kill that asshole' but it doesn't really sound like it.. idk sorry

like @FX hire me for actual correct greek dialogues haha

anyway i hope this post still helped a little tho😅

[riddlerosehearts]

idia/vil is such a sweet and interesting ship to me and does not deserve to be a rarepair i'm serious. this might end up a bit incoherent and disorganized because i'm not great with words, but listen. the thing is that while on a surface level idia shroud and vil schoenheit--a nerdy shut-in with anxiety who likes to game all day and a mega famous celebrity who's strict about self-improvement--might seem completely incompatible, their actual interactions show us that that just isn't true!!

like, for example idia's starsending robes vignette is a big one!! the way that vil sees idia trying to hide when he's supposed to be at the ceremony, and idia says he's terrified that people will make fun of him, that he's not like vil and can't just go out and not care what anyone think the way he does. and then vil... tells him he's wrong, that it's the opposite, that he cares so much what other people think but has enough of a grip on himself that he can ignore it and appear confidently in public. the way vil admits to idia that they are so much more alike that he thinks.

also, the way that (in this fan translation at least, as well as in other TLs i've seen--the localization translates it to have the complete opposite meaning, for whatever reason) idia then says "so in other words, you've got to level up your ignore skill", and instead of getting annoyed at him for translating his advice into video game terms vil just says "isn't that obvious?". he's going out of his way to try and give idia genuine advice and is willing to speak his language to get him to understand it. he even does a similar thing later on in book 6, when he tells idia that it's worth taking chances because after all, the star rogue protagonist took his chances and went from zero to a hero.

and on that note, book 6 is so good for them. book 6 has idia get all excited and carried away while infodumping about star rogue, only to abruptly lose his enthusiasm and start talking quietly and stuttering. and who is it that tells him he shouldn't act so embarrassed and that they weren't judging him? it's none other than vil. vil who also shows an interest in gaming, much to the surprise of idia who believed, in his own words, that a "sparkly, gorgeous supermodel" like vil couldn't possibly like any of the same things as him! but no, vil wanted to try out the games they had and vil expressed a desire for idia to talk about his passions without fear of being judged. vil enjoyed playing star rogue and he was glad to discuss the movie adaptation with idia and ortho.

it's also vil who, when idia expresses his disappointment at the star rogue sequel being canceled and his wish for the original team to get back together and create a sequel that would be made with passion behind it, is the only one to genuinely understand where he's coming from (as opposed to jamil who's like "is it really that complicated?" and leona who suggests that he just throw money at the creators). vil is the one who encourages him to take a chance at doing what he can to make that wish a reality, to let the original team know that there's a passionate and loyal fanbase waiting for a sequel, and tells him that he just generally shouldn't give up on changing his future and achieving his dreams before he's even tried. of course ortho heard this advice too and took it very much the wrong way, but vil showed a surprising amount of understanding and support for idia and i feel like it was exactly the kind of thing he needed to hear.

also. remember the scene in disney's hercules where hercules temporarily gives up his godhood and his youth by diving into the underworld to save megara? because vil literally did the same thing to save idia. yeah, he may say he only did it for plot reasons, but like come on, how am i supposed to just not ship them after they parallel one of my favorite disney couples like that? vil is a world famous actor and model who was terrified of aging, and he still took such an insane risk!! i'm sure idia would have a crush on him after that.

i'm trying to wrap this up now because it's already too long but also idia has actually been said to have great fashion sense as his online persona and shown to enjoy cosplay and dressing up on occasion (for example, he went all out on his pumpkin knight costume and this hasn't made it to EN yet but he liked wearing the masquerade outfit). vil had pretty high praise for his design sense when he saw ortho's burst gear. and vil gets along incredibly well with ortho and is in the film club with him post-book 6, which is something i imagine idia would appreciate a lot. the contrast between them and the things they unexpectedly have in common are just so neat to me.

so, in conclusion,

i love them and i think they should be boyfriends

[veliseraptor]

so after reading about a thousand songxuexiao fics i thought I should probably go back and finish the actual text and I'm at about episode 15 of the show and chapter 18 of the novel. i started reading the novel because of people saying how different the show was. i see now that official english translations are out but they're apparently bad? what do you think I should do now as I will be reading everything for the first time?

love the order of operations here.

as far as answer to your question...I actually think yi city is one of the places where the drama doesn't change all that much about core events, though it does leave some things out (and there is the timeline change where wwx & co. meet (most of) the characters first, as opposed to the novel where the entire story, beginning to (almost) end, happens while wei wuxian is dead, which makes the whole thing a little more personal for our main characters.)

but setting that aside as largely irrelevant to your ask - I can't speak to the quality of the official translations one way or the other; I've certainly heard people say that they're bad in terms of what they've simplified or left out compared to previous fan translations, from the perspective of native speakers, but - and this isn't a copout! - I don't know the language myself to be able to speak to that accurately. you can find plenty of other people discussing that elsewhere who know more than I do.

I will say that in terms of sheer readability I found the official translation more enjoyable to read purely in terms of flow of English language than the ExR translation (the only other complete English translation in existence, that I'm aware of); of the partial translations I read I think I liked Fan Yiyi's best but as far as I know that one remains incomplete.

basically the issue here is that regardless of the quality of the English official translation, it is the one that exists and exists in its entirety, since the other translations are either partial or (in the case of ExR) have been pulled down. you can get copies of the latter (and potentially what exists of the former) from people who might have saved them before then, but since that is, technically, an exercise that might be considered piracy, it's not something I'd feel comfortable digging into further in a public space.

I guess the upshot here is maybe:

Consider where the money is going and how you want to support the author; the official translation, setting quality aside, does direct at least some of that money to the author (though I don't know exactly what the terms are, for obvious reasons), or you can use one of the guides to figuring out JJWXC to pay the money that way, but I think it's worth throwing the financial support an author's way somehow.

There is really only one complete translation (again, at last check! correct me if I am wrong!) in English other than the official translation and I personally found it a less than pleasant reading experience for sheer readability reasons. Other translations I personally found more readable are incomplete.

If you're really feeling hesitant about reading the English translation based on what people have said about its quality, you can find copies of the other translations floating around. Ask me off anon and I can give you more information.

my personal feeling: based on everything I've read about the official translation(s), I wish that seven seas had gone with a professional translator and treated the translations with a bit more care than seems to have been the case. they're also what we have, in a lot of cases, when it comes to an English translation at all, and as someone who doesn't have access to reading in the original language and doesn't have time at the moment to change that, I value having access to these texts at all, but I try to recognize that I'm reading the text through a layer of remove and calibrate my responses, to a certain extent, with that in mind.

my real preference is to be able to read multiple translations of the same work so I can see how different translators choose to work with a text, but. I recognize the impracticality of that on a number of levels.

this was probably unnecessarily wordy but that's what happens when you ask me stuff

[hammieslice]

20 Questions For Fanfic Writers!

I got tagged in this by the lovely @onewhoturns, and I'll tag some others at the end!

1: How many works do you have on Ao3?

I only have 8 actually published there, but for reference, I went into my WIP folder and found over 100 more... So I do write things! I'm just really really bad at actually publishing them.

2: What's your total Ao3 word count?

Assuming I've done my math right, my current total word count sits at 262,909. Most of that is probably the longfics I've done with Turner, but there are almost certainly some hidden gems in there as well.

3: What fandoms do you write for?

Well, I haven't actually written and published something for a specific fandom for a while now, but my more common interests these days are Genshin Impact, Fire Emblem, Metal Gear Solid, Ace Attorney, Shadow & Bone (Netflix TV show specifically) and a few sporadic others! But my past works were for Oxenfree, Destiny, Ava's Demon, Homestuck, Overwatch, Critical Role, The Magnus Archives and Half Life.

4: Top five fics by kudos?

That would beeee So It Goes, Blue Hair, Red Jacket, A Different Angle, One Foot, and finally Holy Spirits!

5: Do you respond to comments? Why/Why not?

As much as I love getting comments on fics, I don't often respond to them. I don't really have enough published to get engagement super often, and even then, I'm just not the kind of person to reach out at random simply because I've heard too many Internet Horror Stories(tm). But, maybe if I do publish more in the future, I'll make a habit of answering then!

6: What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I... Don't really know? Most of my fics are either one-shots or unfinished multi-chapter works. There's probably something really angsty in my WIPs, but since it's never seen the light of day, we'll never really knows.

7: What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

Hmm. Hm hm hm. That would probably be a toss up between A Different Angle, which is just meant to be a nice, feel-good oneshot, or Pyrite-50: Quiet Moments, which is a kind of character study of one of my Destiny PC's.

8: Do you get hate on fics?

Since I only have 8 published, and I'm not like a super-duper popular author, I don't really think I get hate. All of the comments I've seen have been really sweet and lovely, which I'm thankful for.

9: Do you write smut?

I've been known to partake... On occasion....... <- Currently hiding most of it away in that damned WIP folder

10: Do you write crossovers?

Aside from the every-so-often "AU fic inspired by another piece of media", no, not really. But maybe that will change sometime! I wouldn't be truly opposed.

11: Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I'm aware!

12: Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope. My reach, like I said, is pretty minimal. But if anybody were to ask, I'd say go for it, as long as I got credit as the author.

13: Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Most of my published fics are co-written! My co-author was actually the one who tagged me in this, Turner. You can go check out all our Oxenfree stuff on Ao3 right now.

14: What's your all-time favorite ship?

Oooooh, this one is hard. The one I've undoubtedly written the most for is jonalex, but I'm a huge multishipper, so I've never really preferred one pairing over another before. It's always so dependent on my mood! Can I just say all of them?

15: What's the WIP you hope to finish but doubt you ever will?

The forgotten Kaz Brekker/Darkling smut. It sits in its little google document, taunting me. I know that you're there. I KNOW.

16: What are your writing strengths?

I'd like to think I'm good at metaphors? Generally, getting into a character's psyche is what I strive for, and when I get it right it feels like a real achievement. I've also been told that I'm very good at making dialogue that feels real, or that flows in a way that makes sense, which is something else I'm really proud of.

17: What are your writing weaknesses?

Finishing things. Fight scenes (of the physical variety). The two big F's.

18: Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

Seeing as I am a person who only knows one language (and guess which one that is), I don't often write in other languages for my fics, because I'm a liiiiittle too scared of fucking up. On the rare chances I have, I usually use someone I know as a translator, but that limits me on how many languages I can conceivably use. As far as foreign languages in other fics go, I'm all for it!

19: First fandom you wrote for?

It's either Harry Potter, and that fic has now been orphaned to the wind, or maybe Homestuck?

20: Favorite fic you've ever written?

Of my published fics, it has to be So It Goes. That one has a special place in my heart for a multitude of reasons, and not just because Turner and I got to write it together. Of my WIPs, there's an unnamed freemance fic that I've been dying to finish that I just recently found again, and it made me fall in love with my writing for a second time; in a strange way.

Tagging!!

@artemis-crimson @reddgiant @starchemist @starlit-bawka @cranehusbands @duvirii and basically whoever else wants to do it.

[zannolin]

20 questions for fic writers

tagged by @beautyofsorrow, tagging @lordgrimwing @faebriel and anyone else who wants to do it!!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

publicly associated with my account, 45. in total, including a couple i orphaned before i knew you could put them on anon, 84 i believe. 85 if you count the two chapters of that leakira zine i wrote that are up there somewhere. i could be off. but i forgot how to get to where it shows me the total number and i can't be bothered lol.

2. What's your total A03 word count?

438,464 baby. maybe 500k in 2024? who knows.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

ones 90% of you have never heard of, at this point. it fluctuates depending on whatever i'm getting ideas for, but actively at the moment, the mullverse (mostly beyonders), resident evil, and lockwood & co, national treasure (might be done with that tho, i've exhausted my must-writes). i have other stuff knocking around, like life is strange, mona lisa smile, mlp, some more shazam, bendy and the ink machine, a tlou fic...but who knows.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

ugh. 1. in this fearful fallen place (i will be your home) 2. welcome home, theseus 3. sanctuary 4. i'll carry the weight of you, i swear 5. eat you alive. it says a lot that only one of those is still publicly listed on my profile. even then i'm tempted to put it on anon. they're only my top kudos'd by virtue of being from a big fandom. definitely not my best. at all. even within that fandom. free me and my stats page.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

not all of them, but i make an effort when comments are thoughtful or especially brighten my day. it's easier now because writing for smaller very niche fandoms you don't tend to get a lot so i don't feel overwhelmed or anything, but man responding is hard sometimes. i want people to know they made me happy, though, when they do. so i try.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

i mean there's that tododeku one where they both die brutally and were supposed to get married next week. there's also the batcat fic that i wrote solely for the purpose of killing bruce wayne (sorry). there's um. also the klance titanic (historical not titanic the movie) au i wrote ages ago. haha. yeah. anyway.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

all of them. hfdsjkhfs no i honestly couldn't tell you. i have a mike flanagan-ass idea of a happy ending these days. maybe three's a crowd? hell if i know.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

i've had a couple instances of people harassing me over them but never like. "your fic is so bad i hate it die". so maybe?? i'm too obscure to be getting hate at this point lol. who out here is gonna read beyonders fic just to comment mean things.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

i do not. i did try years ago. that notebook has since been put through the shredder and dumped into the recycling bin for good measure. (yes, it was that bad.)

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

technically no but i've thought about it sometimes. they've all promptly fled my head though so just trust me on this one.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

gee i hope not. there's been a lot of suspicious similarities in some old cases but like. that literally does not matter to me anymore idc. it's not straight up theft in any case so not to my knowledge ig?

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

again not to my knowledge but i do have blanket permissions for that if anyone ever wanted to. it's cool.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

back in the 2010s my friend and i were writing a warriors fic together. she did one chapter, i did one, etc. i've had collaborative aus as well (cat's cradle and whatnot) but not a collaboratively written fic for any of them. me and tam were writing the coma au together but we're no longer in the fandom for that anymore, rest in peace coma au you were genuinely wonderful. i'm not opposed to the idea of collab fics but they always feel like a lot of work and i'm way way way too anxious to approach anyone about them.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

ah hell. i dunno. do i have to pick one?? like right in this moment i'd say locklyle and they've been here a hot minute (like. ten years almost) but i don't really have A Favorite I'd Choose Over Anyone Else.

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

mm. penumbra anastasia au haunts me. i want it out of my wips folder. also wild geese is probably never getting finished ever. i do think i'll get split ends done eventually but that one's taking forever. as for ones not posted, well, rip the gospel tent au. i might try to convert it to a short story but lord. i don't know. and don't get me started on the final girl au or the empty grave possession au. throwing myself out a window. they'll never be done i'll never be free.

16. What are your writing strengths?

uh. i honestly don't know anymore. knowing exceedingly tedious canon details to the point where i can make all sorts of metaphors and allusions relevant to said canon? i really couldn't say. introspection i guess.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

yes. next question

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

i have an overbearing anxiety that i will fuck it up somehow since i am a monolingual american loser. if i ever did need to i would definitely see if there's any native speakers willing to help translate or whatever bc i am not relying on google translate for that.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

like liv, lord of the rings. i still have my first fanfic btw. it's written on tinkerbell notebook paper.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

it changes. if i were to be completely objective (or as close as i can get), completely removing my emotions on fandom from the equation, prob without anesthetic. because i think i constructed it just right. being a dirty little subjective, right now i think it's three's a crowd or swallowing jupiter or the swing of things. they're all wonderfully unhinged.

[oleworm]

What comes into my mind when I think about a story I want to write, or those that I've liked to read. A free-writing exercise to figure out what I'm thinking (ha).

A society described in ethnographic detail. Social types, customs, relations, its economy and trade and how they are interrelated.

The commonplace is horror when looked at directly. Class society is horror, gender is horror, the institution of marriage is horror, motherhood is horror, childhood is horror, indispensable economic activities are social and ecological horrors. Bureaucracy is horror, debt is horror, laws and beliefs taken as true things, as tangible as the things that can be held in your hand, that is a horror.

The question of how knowledge can be acquired, stored or communicated. What physical medium, what language, what are the limitations and possibilities of each choice. The attempts to communicate the incommunicable, the metaphor as explanation. Relationships that cannot be described in themselves but only in approximation, compared to the relationship between two other, unrelated things. The gaps between what is assumed in one language yet must be clarified in another. And what if the author is dead? The translator’s subtle agenda.

Why create a machine for that which a human can create? Discussion of the positives and negatives. There must be things left for a human to do–and if there are fewer and fewer of these activities for humans to do then the value of one cannot depend on their capacity to become proficient in a task that has not been taken over by new technologies. If production were to be completely automatised, would societies continue to maintain a lower subclass of people among its ranks? Yes or no. Yes—there would be other modes of differentiation then. Despite abundance of resources an impression of scarcity is created, as it happens now. The existence of this lower class of people is a threat to keep the others in line. No one wants to lose what little they have and if they’ve been there before they’ll do what they can not to go back even when it means that another will have to take their place.

Utopia. A place that does not exist. A place that cannot exist, and yet one can move in its direction. Utopia as a miracle—of history, of a higher power. Utopia built on the blood and bones of the workers and of those who opposed it. A shape that makes sense in a dream and that one forgets upon waking except for the most general impression. How the worst elements in a society will take over any movement because those that have any sort of principle would refrain from the violence that the seizure of power requires. When the better ones have been removed we will have to make do with what is left: mercenaries, cowards, and those that are untrained—but who will teach them?

Those that have something to offer are those who have accumulated influence and other resources well before the situation comes to be. “Big man” theory and studies of hunter gatherers and other preindustrial societies as they are called, about self-aggrandisement and the consolidation of power. History is a process but acknowledge the advantages of being a charismatic man. There was a girl who cried when she heard the news on the radio that the great leader had died.

Empire is a rotting corpse. Empire is a body on a life support mechanism receiving the most aggressive methods of treatment. Like the tree that is constantly being eaten by insects and must grow just to remain in place Empire must continuously incorporate new territories and markets to maintain a semblance of authority in whatever happens to be its sphere of influence in any given moment. Provinces and satellite states break away when the hand is not strong to wield both the carrot and the stick. Empires expand quickly and then break apart after a short time, a few centuries at most. Those that claim to have lasted a very long time are those that do not acknowledge the interruptions, the territories that became independent and remained so for a significant period before being reconquered. A polity that has taken major territorial losses or a government in exile can maintain the fiction that they still constitute an Empire. Major powers may deny that they are Empires because their power over others is held indirectly. Convoluted arguments in either direction are made in a way that is intentionally theatrical, and for those that make them it is not a part of the question whether these claims are actually true or actually believed by them, which is the same.

[0mega-x]

This gonna be a sort of rant/vent but I'm always confused as to how I'm supposed to describe myself in terms of race/ethnicity/nationality 😭

My dad is French, and my mom is Moroccan. So, the easiest thing would be to say that I am french and Moroccan, right? But like, I don't feel like I am both. I don't feel as connected to Morocco as I feel connected to France. And it's not just about the fact that I was born and grew up in France. Most people I know who are like half French half North African do have a link to their North African half, they speak Arabic and are Muslims (OR know a lot about Islam). If I present myself as part Moroccan, people will assume I can speak Arabic and am probably Muslim. And it's not something necessarily bad, I'd assume that too if someone told me they were (part) Moroccan.

But the thing is I don't speak Arabic and I am not Muslim. And I only have a very vague grasp on Moroccan culture. So how can I present myself as Moroccan too when I just have a vague sense of familiarity with it? Sometimes I'd rather not present myself as Moroccan, because apart from blood relations, I am basically not Moroccan. Doesn't mean I can't mention it (I have on this blog), but only mentioning my French half feels more appropriate because I do feel French.

And online, I can "hide" this. I can just not mention my Moroccan half if the topic doesn't need me to. I can't do that in real life. I very obviously look at least part Arab. So people assume right off the bat that I am mixed French and North African (my very French name + my appearance). And it's always awkward for me, especially when other North African ask, to explain that, no I am not Muslim, and no I don't speak Arabic.

And there's a part of me that feels ashamed. I am ashamed because I can't seem to feel that connected to my Moroccan side. I am ashamed of not mentioning it when I'm presenting myself. My mom always tells me that I shouldn't forget that I am also Moroccan. And yeah, duh. Obviously, I am Moroccan, too. I can see it. I am, but at the same time, I am not. I am in terms of origin, but not, let's say, in my "heart." I do have a bias towards Morocco. But that's it. I do have a sense of familiarity with the culture, the language, and the geography, but that's it. I don't truly feel Moroccan, even next to other half Moroccans in France.

I feel like I'm betraying my mom and my grandma. They used to teach me some words in Arabic. But they'd only teach me a few words when I'd be on holiday there. My mom never spoke to me in Arabic, and it's not like my dad would have been opposed to it. He also seemed interested in learning a bit of it. Then, at around 10, I started to "block." I didn't want to learn it anymore, like I was ashamed. I still don't exactly understand why, but I didn't seem to have any motivation to learn it. There was this attention I got when I'd say even one word in Arabic, and I didn't like it. It became increasingly obvious to me that I had no motivation to learn it, but that my mom wanted me to. And now I feel so awkward going to Morocco and having to have someone either switch to French to communicate with me or have someone translate for me.

But I can't just proudly say, "I'm also moroccan!" either. It doesn't feel right.

Anyway thank you for reading up until here :'D.

An aside, but what the fuck am I exactly in terms of race? I have never quite understood the race thing, we don't exactly have that concept in French (race in this sense translates to breed, and you can't really say black and white people are different breeds of humans...). I've heard some American census categorising Arabs as white, while lots of people consider Arabs as POC, it's confusing '-'.

[swimmingismywholelife]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love ❤

Thanks for the ask! If you check my Masterlist you can see which are my favorite fics but here are the explanations of my top 5!

Forever and Always: I honestly loved every moment of writing this. I knew I wanted it to have a more bittersweet ending as opposed to being straight fluff in the end because life has a funny way of working itself out. Arguably my fave fic I've written so far.

Wherever You Are: My favorite song by 5 Seconds of Summer from the moment I heard it as a 14 year old and I knew I had to write a fic based on it. Also a fic where I'm happy with it every time I reread it and I'm so proud of this one. This is the other fic that's arguably my all time fave.

What Kind of Future: This one is a little more personal. The title is based on "What Kind of Future" by Seventeen's Woozi. The song is entirely in Korean but the English translation is just as beautiful and something really personal to me. The overall fic is loosely based on an experience I once had so it really hits home for me. Beautifully heartbreaking and helps me cope.

Cuffing Season: An smau fic that I honestly thought about while I was at church lmao. I was truly cracking myself up and I wanted to use all those cheesy pick up lines in some regard. I still crack up reading it and I'm glad a lot of you guys seem to enjoy it too!

The Only Reason: Another fic based on a 5 Seconds of Summer song (I have A LOT more planned bc I love 5SOS so be on the lookout for that!). This one was a bit tricky to write because I ended up changing the concept at least 10 times and I straight up almost gave up on it. At one point I was like "what the actual fuck am I doing here LMAO" but I'm really happy with how it turned out in the end. Also my first smut fic and I'm surprised at how happy I am with the result!

[blackquillchillin]

I mean, yeah. not without any nuance, but yeah.

He's pushed both of them to an unhealthy relationship with perfection, and is dismissive to Franziska. Also, he murdered a man, took in his child and then framed that child for another murder once he was grown, that's minimum a bad sign.

Now, obviously, Miles has a great amount of respect towards Manfred, but Manfred shows no remorse towards framing him if my memory serves, so obviously that respect doesn't cut both ways, nor does Manfred seem all that concerned about his welfare afterward, only his own perfect record.

He also basically tells Miles to shut up in AAI, and yes I've heard that's a mistranslation, but one, its the official one unless I'm mixing up games, and 2, Miles' relationship with the Von Karma's is different in the English version as opposed to the japan version, isn't it? Like, Franziska calls him her little brother, a term endearing him as family, but I was under the impression that it was more of a rivalry in the Japanese version, changed because it didn't make a lot of sense for an American audience. It stands to reason then that we may have to accept that its not going to be one-to-one translation, because America doesn't have the same type of rivalry and master/student relationships.

Now, Franziska. He is dismissive towards her in AAI I believe. I haven't played it myself yet, but he brushes off the fact that she is going to have her first trial, at 13 no less. She is a prodigy, and instead of recognizing the work she's done, asking her father to please acknowledge what shes accomplished, he's fixated on what Miles is up to.

On the other hand, she calls him Papa. She wouldn't think of him like that if there was never any warmth there.

On the other-other hand, her relationship to perfection is clearly unhealthy, and while there could be a great many factors in that, given what we know of him its not hard to see where it comes from. I think minimum he applied too much pressure to her, requiring greatness, not allowing for failure, but not rewarding success accordingly.

Now, do I think he doesn't have any care at all for the duo? No. But that doesn't mean it wasn't abuse. Some warmth does not excuse everything else.

Lastly, I think the game is better for not spelling out exactly what growing up with Manfred is like. Miles is his own man, and Manfred is a villain in the story but its not his story. its not about him, and we're not meant to know Miles Edgeworth as a boy, but as a man.

Maybe that's just me though.

Lalala seeing this come up a lot lately so here’s a poll.

EDIT: Disregard my last comment. When I said some people are cartoonish, I meant “black and white”. He is nuanced. I can go either way. I don’t really care I didn’t want fighting over my words.

[mouseratz]

of course I'm reading the SH2 novel with an English fan translation.

it decides to frame Laura & Eddie's entrance to the town and confirms they entered together (though, I am considering this novel canon/still only a distinct interpretation as opposed to word of God confirmation, unless like, the developers were like oh yeah the book just says exactly everything we thought and meant), which is interesting. I'd heard others say that's what happened but I am wondering how they know each other, as in the game it's implied Eddie and Laura just met (there's a line from James like, how did you know her name? And Eddie's like, well, she told me it) as well.

also just because Laura's an orphan doesn't mean she can just. fuck off and leave wherever she wants. HOW did she get here for real who drove her here did she take a bus....whoever was watching her Fucked Up.....(although I think if the game took time to answer these questions it would be boring. but like. I still have them.)

I do like how this particular version emphasizes James' utter disgust with the monsters, and how instinctually he would like to run, but in actuality reacts with violence (and anger! he viciously hates them because they're disgusting!). which. idk if they'll go there. but almost parallels his relationship with Mary's illness- how he still loved her as a person & wanted to treat her well, but some part of him did find her disgusting as she feared, and it may have increased his resentment of her and led to him violently ending her life (the book also notes how the monsters deserve to die, despite James having little to base that assessment on other than his emotions. he's right, in this case, but if you carry that perspective over to anything else....)

and also once again yes this is an incredibly fucked up way to view someone who's sick but I do feel that's kind of the crucial point of James' character- he knows it's wrong, but instead of being able to properly grapple with that idea, why he's so disgusted and angry, the guilt makes him afraid to do anything but deny it until it comes to a head. the guilt is what makes him come to silent hill, but honestly in some way, I think could also be why he repressed these feelings until he did something terrible, didn't have the courage to acknowledge them, to properly handle them, to accept them as part of a complicated grieving process, instead shoving them away because they're ugly, too, until he couldn't handle it anymore, reaching that terrible solution.

....I also think that's why SH2 resonates so deeply with me- guilt is something I feel a lot. about everything. because my brains just built funny and I've been through an awful lot of bad things on a relatively short period of time on this earth. the game can absolutely be read as a cautionary tale around what happens when guilt guides all of your actions and how you interact with your own thoughts and feelings and your perception of the world. guilt breeds repression and this entire hell is one of repressed feelings and desires and memories.....you felt you had to protect yourself from these feelings because they were ugly, because they were frightening, and now you must harvest what you've sowed.....either face them or let them consume you.

and I absolutely love the concept that, really, the answer to this guilt is not punishment. guilt wants you to be punished, but that punishment achieves very little. your suffering will not change what you've done (but refusing to own up to it, continuing to deny, is still dangerous, as shown in Eddie's story.) you still have to choose what to do with yourself. can you live with it?

it doesn't tell you either way is right. maybe James dying is more peaceful, maybe it is the best choice for him. maybe James can live with it, though, too- he'll still have to carry it, but there could be something outside of this, maybe he will be a good friend or caretaker to Laura. We don't know. it doesn't really matter what he deserves....it only really matters what he does, because no amount of punishment will change what he did, even if you decide he is indeed 100% irredeemable and evil (which I just don't think is what you should walk away with, though- it's undeniable he did something deeply wrong, but the character is fairly nuanced imo).

[biggestdev]

Sup, intro post time.

Hmm, it's funny, I've never actually wanted to post anything online before! Turns out, when you subconsciously hate everything about the way you look and sound, one ends up wanting to hide from the public eye! Weird coincidence 🤔. After starting to transition, I began feeling those cool things I heard that other people have. You know, pride in the things I do, liking the way I look, and, weirdest of all, wanting to tell people about it!

So if you don't mind, lemme just dump this all out here:

So I figured out I was trans at 28, and it was an odd feeling to say the least. Once I got over my panic attack, I have never in my life had such a clear goal as transitioning. Everything I did before that: hobbies, college degree, career, was all picked out for me, in a sense. I went along with what others suggested, because I never had a clear idea of what I wanted, ever, my future was just a grey haze. I asked other people what I should do, and did that.

After starting transitioning, I found that I started caring about what I did. I realised I actually really like my job, and that I'm proud of my little hobby projects, handcrafted things with love and care put into them, as opposed to just a means to an end, tools to solve a problem, which is honestly why I picked up some of them in the first place.

And so that's what I'll be posting from my own life. Mostly pictures of things I make or do that I think are cool.

Tangent: My job is, in broad terms (stalker no stalking!) a service tech for communication infrastructure, on towers and in cars, buildings, random shacks by the side of the road, everywhere. Part IT tech, part system engineer, and part automotive upfitter, means nearly every day at work is different from all the others. Sprinkle that with a little ADHD for seasoning, and I've got probably the best job I could ask for! It translates well into my hobbies, which are ham radio, self-hosting internet services for myself, keeping my shitbox car running, and hobby electronics. Now that I actually want to share stuff with the world, I'll probably mainly post about all that.

Part of the reason I like my job so much is sometimes I get to play the "fixer", in the sense of "you went for the lowball price from our competitors and got shit for fuck. Thankfully you've realised your mistake and came pleading to my boss to come in and make it actually work". I like that feeling of satisfaction after fixing a problem for someone, which is why I have asks open for tech questions on top of normal asks.

... Back on topic, I guess? Occasionally maybe I'll post some pics of myself (no not like that), if I think I got a really good one. Lemme start with these. Which one do you think is better, hair up or down?

Once I figured out I was a trans woman, getting on hrt was the most obvious thing in the world to me, I have been for a year and change. Thankfully, being an adult in the US (New England) made that very easy for me. Aside from the occasional "am I trans enough?" worry (and now the ever-present low level dread of "will I be un-personed after the next election"), I've never experienced such a powerful feeling of "this is what WILL happen, come hell or high water". It was refreshing to feel that way about something in my life, finally. Like, I'm not just coasting through life to the grave any more!

I recognize that I'm very lucky as far as access goes, I went from egg crack to staring HRT in probably 3 months, thanks to informed consent in my state, and a halfway decent health insurance plan. I also found a local laser tech to zap my beard hair that is REALLY good, and doesn't gouge on price. Honestly, the hardest thing to deal with has been my voice, I was "blessed" with a pitch and inflection only a little less over-the-top than that movie trailer guy, so changing that has been... a journey.

I'm also lucky in the total lack of resistance on the personal side. None of my friends, family, or even co-workers have fought me on my transition, everyone that I care about has been accepting of me so far. From what I see posted here so often, I'm in a rare situation, and I deeply appreciate all the people IRL that support me. ❤️

Identity-wise, I'm still up in the air a bit, mostly because I haven't dug into what all the different labels mean in detail. I'm definately all about women, but I'm also some flavor of ace, so I guess only romantically? I think that nets me the L, T, Q and A in LGBTQIA+, though tbh I don't really keep a hard list of identities for myself. I'm not one of those weirdo transmeds, I never had overt disphoria before my egg cracked, everyone is valid in their identity, regardless of their dumb-ass takes (pickme's, lookin' at you).

So, intro post done, thanks for reading!

[tellmegoodbye]

Thank you @suchagallabitch for tagging me to do this Fic Writer Interview!

(I also did some picrews at the bottom)

1. How many works do you have on Ao3?

34

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

127,463

3. What are your top five fics by Kudos?

My top three are all three of the shameless fics that I have written, 4th and 5th are fics from another fandom.

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to! Sometimes there's only so many ways I can say 'thank you' to someone so I won't respond to every single one, but I definitely read all of them.

5. What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

I would say all three of my shameless fics have happy endings, allthough shut the door and let go is very bittersweet when you know what happens next in canon.

If we're talking non-shameless fics, I did write mcd in my other fandom (nothing too crazy) and you can find that fic here.

6. What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

When all is said and done definitely has the happiest ending if we're talking about the context of all three of these fics. Most of my other fics have pretty happy endings as well.

7. Do you write crossovers?

No. Not my thing.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Not necessarily hate, but I have received some weird comments in the past.

9. Do you ever write smut? If so, what kind?

Yep! I never used to so you won't find it in any of my old fics, but all three of my shameless fics have smut in them so.....character development. 😂

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but that would be cool!

12. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

I've cowritten several fics with my girlfriend! My favourite of ours that we did is for the rest of our lives. Not a shameless fic, but I'm still proud of it.

13. What's your all time favourite ship?

I'm about to betray my branding here, but just because of how much time I spent in that fandom and how hard I was hyperfixating (and still am, let's be honest) it still has to be Dan and Phil.

If you have problems with that I don't want to hear it I've already heard it all and I'm tired okay thank you.

14. What's a WIP you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I had planned out a whole chaptered fic to write and then completely fell off for months after getting overwhelmed. I still really love the idea but the task was a little too much for me and I just don't think I have chaptered-fic writing in me anymore.

15. What are your writing strengths?

I'm really good at coming up with different ideas. I also really love going into detail and trying to describe everything I see in my mind. I can see my fics play like movies in my brain, so sometimes it's a little overwhelming trying to get it all into words.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Transitions. The less a scene has going on in it, the harder it is to write. I also suck at time management, and consistency in general.

Cries in haven't posted since March.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

It's cool. Haven't done it myself, wouldn't be opposed to it though.

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

It was very small and hasn't been relevant for years so I'm just gonna go with the first fandom I actually published anything for, which again, was Dan and Phil.

19. What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

I breifly considered heartstopper (shortest hyperfixation of my life) but I'm kind of already over the obsessive stage. The fandom is fucking awful anyway.

I also considered arcane but I would have to go full on AU (which isn't a strength of mine) because I don't know nearly enough about that universe to write anything canon compliant. I also just didn't really get to the point of actually wanting to write something for it.

20. What's your favourite fic you've written?

Out of my shamless fics: lover, please stay

Out of my other fics: unequivocally yours

~~~

Tag 2: Thank you @grumpymickmilk and @vintagelacerosette for tagging me to do this picrew! I did this picrew as well even though I don't think anyone tagged me, I just really liked it.

I'm tagging @sunoficarus @gallawitchxx @heymrspatel @auds-and-evens @traenawrites @squidyyy23 and @sleepyfacetoughguy to do either the questions, the picrews or both!

[idylls-of-the-divine-romance]

I am simultaneously flattered and kinda put off by the fact that when you thought of demons you were like "Ahh yes Kaleb would know about this lol"

First things first: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD EVERYBODY STOP TALKING ABOUT LILITH. Anything is too much for goodness sake everyone move on.

Anyway, to the other demons.

Azazel: Very interesting, I was unfamiliar with the association between this goat and dark spirits. In fact, one of my earliest exposures to the Scapegoat was as a Messiah Figure, one who takes the sins of the people, is exiled out into the wilderness (exile is death and wilderness is the grave) to take the people's failures out of the community. Also: Loki also fits this category and Loki (at least Snorri's version) is distinctly a Jesus figure and not a demonic figure. Edit: Okay, I misread. Did more research and the goat is being sent TO Azazel. Okay. That... makes more sense. And in fact still works with exile into wilderness being on parallel with exile into death. And now my mind is going all Christus Victor, because try as I might I can't not see Jesus in everything. So yeah. Tracks to me that Azazel is a demon or at the very least symbolic of them, specifically the unclean spirits associated with death and sickness. I am, ofc, ignoring the Septuagint as well. As I am wont to do lol. I am also ignoring the book of Enoch because.... what the heck? Mostly it just doesn't fit with the vibes of Azazel as in context of Leviticus. Maybe I just need to meditate on it but *shrugs*

Resheph, Hereb, Ra'av, Deber, and Qeteb: To me, it didn't make much since to separate these too much as they all seem very interconnected: they are the forces of evil that wish to bring decreation upon God's creation, dragging the world back into chaos and disorder. Conquest, Violence, Famine, Pestilence, Ruin. All of these forces are opposed to the life, beauty, order, and goodness of Genesis 1 and 2. And I like what you said about demons working in packs. These things are most definitely interconnected which is why i just handled them all together like this. I also think it's really important for readers not to only think of them as either 1) personifications or 2) demonic forces. They are both. And that's really important to understand. Also I am so glad you brought up Paul's "hand them over" language because it is honestly Paul at maybe his most prophetic. This is constantly how the prophets speak of God's work in the world and specifically his judgement: handing the idolatrous over to their demonic forces they worship. Also, the way The Sword is constantly drinking blood is kind of cool to me. I know it shouldn't be but like.... it sounds rad T-T. Also, I love Fr. De Young's article on the Four Horseman.

Lilit: Ahh Lilith. Okay first the concept of Lilith as Adam's first wife is from the 9th Century in the Middle Ages written by a non-Christian Jew as a satire. Thus, OBVIOUSLY, it has no bearing whatsoever on Christian theology, doctrine, philosophy, or tradition. In fact, the earliest I can find it having any influence on Christian thought is in the Romantic Era. As much as I love the Romantics, I really don't think I should have to explain why it is problematic to say Lilith is a part of Christian tradition that "the Church suppressed." It's a satire guys. Grow up. Anyway, as to translation of lilit, I do side with translating it as an demon rather than just an owl because of the Mesopotamian view of it as a class of demons, I find it likely that lilit in Isaiah is as well. In fact all of these demons I see as classes or titles and not names. It's while you'll never catch me saying "Satan" really; because these... things do not deserve the dignity of being named.

Livyatan: YAYYYYY!!!! A SEA DRAGON!!!!! *coughs* I'm sorry. I kind of have a thing for dragon slayers in the bible (Abraham, Yael, David, Jesus, Paul). Snake-Crushers/Dragon-Slayers are just the coolest. I've heard the Chaos-Dragon refereed to as the worlds oldest meme and I'm going to be going down a podcast series on dragons in the bible soon so I am very excited. Anyway, God bragging about the literal chaos monsters in the book of Job will always shock me. Like these things are dangerous, and God's just bragging about it lol. Love the correlation between leviathan and the beast from the sea, I hadn't caught that but it makes sense. Again what we have here (as with all demons) is a force that has devoted itself to being anti-life, which is why it's associated with the deep, dark, chaotic, abyss of Genesis 1, and in Revelation with Oppressive Empire (either the military or the economy; I can't remember).

Nephilim and Rephaim: Hehehehe. Now, I pair these together because I subscribe to the interpretation that these two are one in the same. First: I think everyone reading Genesis 6 has to ask themselves "What were the writers thinking when they wrote this?" And if you ponder that question honestly, I believe you will come to the conclusion that the writers did intend for you to read this as the ben Elohim, coming down and abusing women (also: this is a good example of sexual assault language being hyperlinked back to Gen 3 and why I say God is a SA victim but i digress). What this narrative is, is trash talk. Political commentary. The kings of Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon (the nation these people would be exiled to) claimed to be the sons of gods and that therefore their oppressive military conquests were justified and divinely ordained. What the children of Israel are saying is that yes, their kings are the sons of gods/spiritual beings, but that it was not divinely ordained by the King of Kings and that in fact it led to the land being filled with blood. If you pay attention, it is these demonic, child-sacrificing, women-raping nations, that the Israelites destroy. So. These mighty warrior kings are half-mortal, half-divine. What, pray tell, happens when they die? Now, I know I have a rather heterodox view (conditional immortality) but I think anyone, no matter what they believe about the "afterlife" would agree it's unlikely that half-human half-spirit-beings would just go to hell or something when they die. So it is my (as well as other scholars and I believe some Second Temple Jewish commentators) refer to 1) Giant Warrior Kings, 2) dead Giant Warrior Kings, 3) unclean spirits, associated with sickness and death, that possess people. The one possessed person who we know the name of their demons is a man chained in a graveyard and the group of demons in him call themselves "Legion" as if they are a military or something. Just food for thought i suppose

Se'irim: I agree with your assessment of them. Ruin, desolation, chaos, and divine judgement seems to be the association. They seem similar to the concept of satyrs but only by the association with goats. Other than that they are quite distinct. I definitely understand how Abraham ibn Ezra connected these to madness because dancing and singing goats definitely seems to me something that a mad man would think up lol. Thinking, though, about the language of handing over nations, and how these creatures are associated with the destruction of cities. It is like when Yahweh hands over a city, these creatures are a part of who it get's handed over too. *shrugs* Again it's a sort of, "You want to worship them? Enslave yourself to them? Fine. I'll let you. And watch what happens."

Shedim: I'm at a loss lol. I've got nothing other than what you have. Child sacrifice. Probably Assyrian deity. Definitely related to *some* kind of foreign deity from what I can gather.

Anyway.

I think I want to close this with one final thought: I know that to some people, be they a naturalist or just a pastor or theologian, talking about things like this seems weird and strange etc. But, as someone interested in biblical studies, discussion of these things is important. Understanding what the bible is saying and what has been read into the bible is important. So while to some discussion of the nephilim, for example, may be tedious (and sure, if you're a pastor maybe it is), but it is important and it does have wisdom.

Demons of the Hebrew Bible

Since today is also the day for Lord of Spiritsposting, I've decided to make a post I considered yesterday - the demons of the Hebrew Bible. This will be a long post, so I'm inserting a "Keep Reading".

Azazel: Appears only once in Leviticus 16, as the being in the wilderness to whom the goat with the people's sins laid on it in the Day of Atonement ritual is given (this isn't sacrifice, because the animal isn't killed or offered on an altar, among other things). Becomes a Devil figure in some later Jewish literature like the Book of Enoch, and is associated with deserts, sin and goats - the name literally means "the goat that goes away" (an archaic translation gives us the word "scapegoat"), and the seemingly-random reference to goat demons in Leviticus 17:7 comes just after Azazel's appearance.

Deber: The most prominent of the gang, appearing (usually in conjunction with other figures on this list) in Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Amos, Habakkuk and the Pentateuch a total of 49 times, usually unleashed as punishment for some sin by Israel (compare "handing people over to Satan" in St. Paul's letters - 1 Corinthians 5:5, 1 Timothy 1:20). A nocturnal demon of pestilence and destruction associated with the underworld in Canaanite mythology.

Hereb: Rendered as "the sword" in English; the next most prominent one, appearing 29 times and, like Deber, in conjunction with the others. A demon of violence and destruction associated with blood-drinking (Isaiah 34:5, Jeremiah 46:10) and flesh-eating (Deuteronomy 32:42, Jeremiah 12:12) and probably the rider on a red horse from Revelation 6:3-4.

Lilit: Appears just once, Isaiah 34:14, where she's dwelling in some ruins. Usually translated as "screech owl" or "night bird", but some use "Lilith". In Mesopotamian mythology, the lili are a class of nocturnal female demons associated who kill babies and are associated with owls, so the translation as "screech owl" is acceptable. The Songs of the Sage from the Dead Sea Scrolls refer to liliyot (feminine plural) as a class of demons: "And I, the Instructor, proclaim His glorious splendour so as to frighten and to te[rrify] all the spirits of the destroying angels, spirits of the bastards, demons, liliths, howlers...

Livyatan: Usually anglicised as Leviathan, and appears five times: Job 3:8 and chapter 41, Psalms 74:12-14 and 104:26 and Isaiah 27:1. Based on those appearances, he's a multi-headed fire-breathing sea serpent immune to weapons who battles with Yahweh and (of course) always loses. The myth of a god fighting a sea serpent is a staple of world mythology. Likely correlates to the beast from the sea of Revelation 13:1-10, since Leviathan is paired with a beast from the earth (Behemoth; Job 40:15-24) - also compare Revelation 13:4 ("Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”) to Job 41:33-34 ("On earth there is not his like, a creature without fear. He sees everything that is high; he is king over all the sons of pride").

Nephilim: Famously appear in Genesis 6:1-4 as the warriors born of the sons of God and the daughters of men, understood in Second Temple Jewish texts such as the Book of Enoch and the Septuagint to be giants born of fallen angels and human women. They appear by the name Anakim or Rephaim in Genesis 14:5, 15:20, Deuteronomy 1:28, 2:10-11, 2:20-21, 3:11, 3;13, 9:2 and Joshua 11:21-22, 12:4, 13:12, 14:12, 14:15 and 15:8 and war with giants appears in 2 Samuel 21:16-22, 1 Chronicles 20:4-8 and, of course, 1 Samuel 17 (the David and Goliath story).

Qeteb: Appears just 4 times (Deuteronomy 32:24; Psalm 91:6; Isaiah 28:2; Hosea 13:14), together with Deber in the Psalms and Hosea appearances and together with Resheph in Deuteronomy; if there's any lesson from this post so far, it's that plague demons hunt in packs. A diurnal plague demon whose name is rendered in English as "destruction"; nothing more to be said.

Ra'av: The third most prominent one, appearing 35 times; a famine demon whose name is rendered in English as "famine" or "hunger" who is unleashed on Israel as punishment together with (surprise!) Hereb and either Deber or Resheph. Probably the rider on a black horse from Revelation 6:5-6.

Rephaim: The spirits of dead kings who dwell in the underworld not doing much, translated in the ESV as shades and appearing in Isaiah 14:9 and 26:14; the same imagery and concept is being used by Ezekiel 32:20-30.

Resheph: A demon of plague and conquest worshipped as a god in Canaanite and Egyptian culture, depicted as a bearded archer on a white horse. Appears just 6 times in the Hebrew Bible (Deuteronomy 32:24; Habakkuk 3:5 Psalm 78:48; Job 5:7, Song of Songs 8:6); the name is rendered as "plague" or "pestilence" or occasionally "fire" or "sparks" because the name literally means "burning". Probably the rider on a white horse from Revelation 6:2.

Sources and Further Reading

"Before Him Went Pestilence (Hab. 3:5) - Biblical Lexis and Semantic Field of Epidemics" by Jozef Jankovic for The Old Testament Society of South Africa

"A Land of Giants" by Frs. Andrew Stephen Damick and Stephen DeYoung on The Lord of Spirits

"War, Famine, Disease, Death and Hades" by Fr. Stephen DeYoung on The Whole Counsel of God

"Who is Azazel?" by Fr. Stephen DeYoung on The Whole Counsel of God

Who is Lilith - Ancient Development and Origins of the Demon Queen by Dr. Justin Sledge on ESOTERICA

Or in short - stop making it all about Lilith. Use some other Hebrew Bible demons.

[ellavaday]

sparksnotes/highlights/dumb fun facts from this 36 min long interview w Carmen bc i had time to kill omw to a thing today so why not

Edit. Here's a translation

her entrance line is a nod to her drag sisters (Vera and Barbara Farala, the 3 of them used to be a single act but no longer work together) it was smth like "I've won a lot of battles accompanied but this war i gotta win on my own"

the people that knew her from before ofc thought she had what it took to win bc she's a very hard worker but the first impression for a lot of people that didn't know her is that she was just some dumb beauty queen w no sense of humor and the prejudice helped her bc they didn't expect anything from her (guilty as charged that i can confirm bc i was one of them when i first saw her meet the queens bc i had seen her perform once or twice but i didn't follow her personally)

all of the dres girls lived in a shared house instead of being sequestered with no contact so that's why you can tell it really is a friendship based show (we really did miss out on drag race big brother style y'all; arantxa and hugaceo low-key thought there might be hidden footage or smth from said shared flat)

she really did not see any of the us american drag race because she didn't want to get too influenced by other people (she did watch snatch game bc she didn't know wtf was that) but knew what the show was and when the format got imported to Spain that she had to go to the first season and that if she was gonna go that she had to go all out but she did ask a friend that did watch rpdr 'yo i want to do this, has it been done before in the show? no? ok, then I'm doing it; this has been done? alright; we scrapping that one then'

they took about a month to film the entire series (which what the puto fuck)

they had 17 days to prepare everything they wore for the runways (and slept an average of 3h daily), she slept mostly in her living room bc her room was full of fabric when she was getting ready; the interviewer said that he heard she even had double looks just in case, she clears out the spare ones she did when they were on the show (she did do 100% of her looks)

the story of carmen and dovima in the show really is a love story, not about romantic love but definitely love, dovima is very realistic and v franc and carmen likes that about her (and that she really is a softie deep down for all her bravado)

when they filmed her win she did think for a second it was for real (but definitely almost thought it wasn't for real when they actually crowned her after the finale)

she was surprised she was the only one w a reveal during the final lipsync

her message is very "hard work will get you everywhere and make your dreams come true" and she knows it's very pageant queen but it is very real for her the whole 'i want it and i will fight for it and get it' (and i mean, she did)

she gets asked a lot if she would do maestros de la costura (project runway but make it spanish) but she's had enough reality tv for now bc she's very competitive; she is def not opposed to going more into fashion however (she wore ana locking before in a runway at fashion week years before drag race and dressed the girl that is going to eurovision from spain this year)

dream person to dress: jennifer lopez who she loves, it's a big referent in her character (strong woman in charge are her thing, her gran hotel de las reinas number was an homage to her🥰)

she is working things up to go to LatAm (Mexico, Peru, Argentina, etc)

she is working in something with Envy Peru (which !!!!)

she wants to be understood but she is not very pressed about speaking perfectly in english (... She knows at some point she gotta apologize to rupaul for not know her music but she kinda doesn't think she should because she was under pressure and it did help her in the end and she wants to hear how her name sounds out of rupaul's mouth and 🥺 i hope she gets her jimbo in ukvstw moment)

she's super bad w names and she's gonna call everyone darling at drag con (i love her lmao)

she thinks it's insane she's the only girl to go from drag race spain to drag con; she thought that at the very least they would take all the top 3

she is open to an all winner season bc she loves nothing more than stiff competition (HAVE I MENTIONED TO YOU SHE IS VERY COMPETITIVE)

she is realizing there's been a lot of benefit to the whole drag industry of spain not just the girls from the show (also true i agree, there's way more local drag shows now)

she might go into music again (this time by herself, her old song was when she was working w the other farala sisters, she's the brunette ofc)

[ceramicdove]

i wanna do ice breaker question in ur inbox too. whats ur fave music genre, what is ur favorite book, favorite food?

Wonderful ice breakers, because I actually don't have a concrete answer to any of these! You hit the jackpot!

I really cannot pick a genre...but according to my Spotify stats, you'll most commonly find me listening to different pop subgenres (K-pop, indie, electro, art pop), a weird little array of alternative music, musical soundtracks, video game OSTs and orchestral scores!

2. BOOKS....oh heavens. You are talking to the person who notoriously does not really have a favourite book. I'm just a bitch like that. Sorry. So no favourite book to gush about. That doesn't mean I haven't read things with a meaningful impact in one way or another, so here's a few recent reads that have intrigued me, or that have left some form of a mark on me:

–"This Is How You Lose The Time War" by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone - epistolary science-fiction lesbian novel about two agents on opposing sides of a time-space war who start leaving each other correspondence and end up fleshing out a relationship that goes beyond what the war allows them to have.

I read this in two sittings and, again, not a favourite, but it was very engaging and some of the quotes still stick to me. I'd like to re-read some parts of it again.

–"un nor în formă de cămilă" ("a cloud shaped like a camel") by Alina Nelega. I need to finish this one! This one is a Romanian novel and has yet to be translated into English, but it's a modern re-telling of Hamlet following a pseudo-found-family of actors and their warped relationships and worldviews, mostly told like a stream of consciousness through the eyes of a mother watching her son's mental health spiral and decay until their relationship becomes incomprehensible, and she's trying to tell where it all went wrong. There are other types of relationships and affairs on the side that are interesting to explore in and of themselves, and of course there is the wider narrative plan regarding Shakespeare's work.

Fun fact: I made a Wataru/Eichi mini-web-weaving with one of the scenes from this book. I don't usually do that stuff, but the scene was freakishly reminiscent of one of their canon moments. I still think about it sometimes.

Some of the scenes are so neurotic that I had to read them over multiple times to digest them, sometimes they felt like reading my own mother's thoughts about me (very uncanny feeling), truly a very interesting book. I heard the final chapter is actually written from the son's perspective, and I am very eager to get to that.

–I am also currently reading another Romanian novel (sorry.) that has yet to be translated, called "Am ucis pe Dumnezeu" ("I killed God") by Carol Ardeleanu. I am still VERY early on into this book, but from what I currently gouge out, it seems like art, suicide, sacrifice, and warped perspectives of religion/achieving divinity through art are notable themes. Excited and terrified for what it might hold next.

A few other books on my little "I need to read these soon" list: Decreation by Anne Carson, Power by Shakespeare, The Decay of the Angel by Yukio Mishima, Revenge by Yoko Ogawa.

3. Favourite food! Shit! Like I said, I don't really have one, but I do have quite the sweet tooth...In recent times, I've been craving a lot of banana split ice cream, choco-vanilla pudding and pain au chocolat or chocolate croissants (the only things French people were good for).

Thank you very much for the question, Matthew 😊