#this post is the pre-requisite

[xerith-42]

Glenda

Remember Glenda? No you don't, only I do because The Tragedy of Cadenza Zvahl haunts me in my every waking moment.

Here's an entire essay about a character who shows up in a grand total of... I think 5 episodes? And yet she has one of the greatest and most forgotten impacts on the narrative.

For those of you who need a quick refresher, Glenda is Hayden's head guard in Meteli, first introduced in episode 26 of the first season, along with all the other Meteli characters. She's initially shown as a pretty strict, no nonsense guard. But in episode 27 we get to see her open up. At the time Cadenza is missing, and Glenda expresses great worry for her safety and says the following line

(sorry for how dark this is I took the screenie on my phone at like midnight)

So uhm. That's a bit of a big deal right off the bat, right? Cadenza is an orphan. Just before this Hayden speaks about how he found Cadenza picking flowers next to a burning village, about how she lost everyone and he took her in. And while Hayden acted as her father, Glenda acted as her mother. Cadenza had a mother.

This is where things get a bit... Mirky. I think a lot of us forget this, but Cadenza and Laurance being siblings isn't something that's revealed until [checks my notes] Episode 54. Which might not seem like a big deal, but Laurance has multiple conversations between episodes 26-40 (he dies in ep 40) about Cadenza, about growing up in Meteli, conversations where he could have said something, anything to indicate that Cadenza is his sister. But he doesn't.

He doesn't refer to Hayden as "our dad", he never refers to Glenda as Mom (which I'll get into later), he doesn't even say the phrase "Cadenza is like a sister to me" until AFTER they've both undergone their transformations. Me personally if I was the head guard of the swamp village, my sister goes missing, and my dad and her not boyfriend start fighting about it, and then some random woman shows up to help, I'd mention to the woman that this missing girl is my sister and this is a family affair. But Laurance... Doesn't.

This makes me think that them being siblings is an idea that came to the writers at some point after Laurance was introduced, but before he came back from the Nether. But this idea was either never incorporated, or they decided to put off incorporating it until after Laurance made his redesigned return.

Who knows. All I know is that Laurance and Cadenza were not intended to be siblings at first, and later retconned into that. And that's fine! They're not related, they're both adopted orphans, it's totally fine to make this retroactive change. But this change is important to remember regarding Glenda.

Yeah that's still who this post is about but there's so little to say that I padded it out with my whole tangent about the Zvahl family retcon. Anyways, Glenda, like everyone in Cadenza's family, is incredibly protective of her daughter, and clearly worried for her safety. This worry doesn't extend to... Doing anything, but that's because Aphmau had to show up and main character her way through things.

But it does lead to criticizing Aphmau when she seemingly fails as a main character. Aphmau does know where Cadenza is and knows that she's safe, but she lies to Hayden and Kenmur about it so they don't hurt Castor, and Glenda is PISSED. Not only because Aphmau promised she'd find Cadenza and failed, but she took one of their swords the last time she was in Meteli too! The disrespect of this woman! And she's the Lord of Phoenix Drop?! How low has this world gotten...?

Anyways the next time we see Glenda she's debating if she'll sign her life away. Now... I could go on about The Oath for... [glances at Oathbreakers word count] a while. But I'll try to keep it brief and focused on Glenda, who it actually has the most direct impact on. In episode 42 Garroth makes all the guards signing an oath swearing that they will take their own lives before they become a Shadow Knight and kill their lord, or to prevent themselves from doing so as a result of Shadow influences.

And while everyone else at the guard meeting is largely down with this, Glenda isn't. She's hesitant. Unsure. We don't get an explanation as to why in the episode, at least not the true one. But there are two things we can get from her. One, her eye color has changed. Which Aphmau doesn't notice at all or even comment on.

Two, she jumps immediately to leaving Hayden's guard, but stops herself because Cadenza is missing. And that's all that she says on it. Because after that, Glenda quits her job. She abandons the guard and we don't even hear about that happening until EPISODE 86. WE GO A FULL 44 EPISODES WITHOUT HER HAVING ANY RELEVANCE TO THE PLOT OR MENTION BY ANY CHARACTERS WHO KNEW HER LIKE I DUNNO

HER DAUGHTER???

And when she comes back in episode 86 we get the big reveal that Glenda was actually a Shadow Knight! And she framed Castor for murder all so she could draw Cadenza out, get her alone, kidnap her, and then sacrifice her to open a Nether portal and presumably return home.

There's a lot of questions this whole series of events raises, but not a single one of them are answered. I'm not even being hyperbolic, once Cadenza wakes up she is (understandably) more focused on the fact that her dad is alive and getting him back to safety. But she doesn't say anything about Glenda, doesn't give any sign of grieving or insight on the matter to Aphmau, she doesn't seem to care because her dad is safe.

The only details we're given are from Laurance, but these also raise questions. He says that Glenda must have become a Shadow Knight "at some point", and quit Hayden's guard because she planned to kill him to gain immortality. But... If that was the case, why fake his death? Why not have him actually be fully murdered with all the other evidence still stacked against Castor? Why not kill him, get immortality, and then kidnap your daughter and try to sacrifice her. Is it because she still cares about Hayden? Is it because she doesn't want to hurt Cadenza? She's about to kill her so I doubt it's that.

So much just doesn't add up with Glenda, so much that I have a never ending series of questions. When did she become a Shadow Knight? Was it in the Nether when they left Sasha behind? Was it before that? Did she go on that mission to save Hayden as a Shadow Knight and somehow not blow her cover? Or was it after that, in the brief window of time between Sasha coming back and Cadenza going missing, that she somehow ended up dead, in the Nether, and then back in the over world without raising an eyebrow? Or was she a Shadow Knight the whole time? Did Cadenza spend her entire childhood being raised by one?? Will I ever get answers as to any details regarding Cadenza's childhood outside of Laurance?! (The answer to that one is no)

But then one question made me really stop and think. One that matters more than any questions if lore, or continuity, or a series of events to follow.

Did the writers remember that they made Glenda Cadenza's mom?

And let's be clear, it's not like, a sin if they forgot. I'm a writer and I forget my own plotlines all the time. I go back through my drafts and other chapters all the time to make sure I'm maintaining at least some semblance of continuity, and I know that in a world as big and full of characters as this one, some details are going to get left behind or forgotten.

But it is mad disappointing because if the writers did remember that Glenda was a maternal figure to Cadenza, then they would also then realize that every member of her family has been either killed by shadow knights, nearly killed by shadow knights, or become shadow knights. Every. Single. One.

If Glenda was able to properly be Cadenza's mother there's a wellspring of character work to go down. It's never directly stated where Cadenza learned to sew from, so what if she learned it from her mother? One of her greatest forms of self expression is seemingly forever tainted with the presence of the monster who took the place of the mother who taught her everything she knows.

And how does Laurance feel about all this? He never refers to Glenda as a mother, even after he starts tossing around the Dad word around Hayden. It gives a sign that maybe Glenda didn't have an interest in raising Laurance, perhaps that while Hayden and Joh may have had some kind of co-parenting or gay marriage set up, Glenda was exclusively focused on being the mother of Cadenza. Or maybe she tried but Laurance pushed her away and she never tried hard enough. Maybe Laurance rejects the idea that he can have a mother. A father can be replaced, but a mother? Nobody can replace the woman who nearly gave her life just to bring him into this world. No one.

As it is in canon, Glenda is a footnote in Cadenza's tragedy. Just another shadow creature that tried to hurt Cadenza, without a proper recognition of just how significant her betrayal is. If Glenda's status as Cadenza's Mother was used to its fullest effect, we could have a family tragedy to surpass the Ro'Meave's, one where a single girl can be at the center of so much shadow and still barely manage to be a beacon of light in the darkness, even if her own family tries to kill her.

I've just. I dunno I've been thinking about Glenda a lot recently

[autball]

Part 5 of a 5 part series about the ways harmful practices are being made to sound more appealing and how to spot the differences between helpful and harmful approaches.

Communication support is a desperately needed thing for so many autistic people and their families. So unlike some of the other things I’ve posted about this week, this is 100% a worthy goal. Unfortunately, many places that claim they can offer it are not delivering. 

In some cases, they simply don’t have the education to properly support communication needs (I’m looking at you, ABA). Other times they do have the proper education (ie Speech Language Pathologists) but they will gatekeep certain methods of communication, either because they believe harmful myths about them or they haven’t been trained in that particular method. Also, not every SLP knows about Gestalt Language Processing, so even an otherwise great therapist could be missing some information.

So here are some questions to ask when trying to figure out if someone is truly capable of offering well-rounded, neuro-affirming communication support:

Are they more concerned with making the client easier to deal with for others, or are they focused on the client’s rights, needs, and wishes? (We’re looking for the second one.)

Do they address the client directly, or do they speak as if the client isn’t even in the room? (We’re looking for the first one.)

Do they see speech and language as a behavioral thing? (Verbal Behavior and PECS are dead giveaways - and we want a NO.) 

Do they understand that an inability to produce speech has no bearing on a person’s ability to think and feel? (YES✅)

Do they only push for speech, see speech as the end goal, or value speech above all other methods of communication? (NO✅)

Do they honor things like echolalia, pointing to objects, and bringing an adult over to something they want as valid communication? (YES✅)

Do they honor things like refusal to participate, crying, and meltdowns as valid communication? (YES✅)

Do they believe that things like pacifiers, AAC, or responding to “non-functional communication” discourages speech/“functional” communication? (NO✅)

Do they know about Gestalt Language Processing and believe it is a thing? (YES✅)

Do they require “pre-requisites” before they will try alternative communication methods? (NO✅)

Do they require the client to earn time on their AAC device or remove the device when they deem it a distraction, essentially taking away their voice? (NO✅)

Do they know who to send you to if they aren’t personally trained in an approach they think would be more helpful? (YES✅)

Obviously, trying to find someone local to you with all the green flags and no red ones is kind of like trying to find a unicorn for most people. But if you have a choice between two or more therapists, you can at least go with the one who has more right answers and be ready to advocate/educate when needed. 

If you literally have only one option available to you and it’s not a good one, you can either be ready to advocate at every turn or just choose not to use their services. Yeah, that’s allowed! Not every autistic person needs speech therapy, and not all communication support has to be directly administered by a professional. You as the parent or caregiver will play a huge role in supporting your person with their communication needs, and luckily there are online resources and virtual trainings that can help you do that.

P.S. What’s the difference between PECS and picture cards, you ask? PECS is a whole ABA-based program that uses a limited set of picture cards and should be avoided for several reasons. Meanwhile, plain old picture cards are something that can be made and used by anyone without any specific program.

P.P.S. Zero debates about the legitimacy of Spelling to Communicate (S2C) or Rapid Prompting Method (RPM) will be entertained (translation - it will be deleted so don’t waste your time).

[marybatson]

Billy Batson Week 2024 Use #billybatsonweek and #bb84week to participate!

This year marks the 84th anniversary of Billy Batson as Captain Marvel debuting in Whiz Comics #2, the first official cover-dated issue released February 1940. We're three years into this fan-run event - hopefully we'll have many more to come!

Day 1 ✦ August 11, 2024 Bearing the Bolt + Favorite Costume

Over the years, Captain Marvel has gone through many design changes depending on the era and artist. Let us know which of them you favor the most - or even come up with your own! Bearing the bolt can also mean many things aside from the aesthetic. Is the bolt a heavy thing to bear?

Day 2 ✦ August 12, 2024 On the Battlefield + Favorite Fight

From the Captain Marvel battle that made us hold our breath to the one that you think about constantly - which is your most memorable battlefield moment? Or when has Cap struggled and still persevered?

Day 3 ✦ August 13, 2024 The Rock of Eternity + At Home Base

The Rock of Eternity is a place of reverence as well as the place of Captain Marvel's origin. It's had its moments since the first appearance of it in comics, but most notably it is our hero's home base, and a place he can find refuge.

Day 4 ✦ August 14, 2024 The Perfect Pair + Favorite Duo

Captain Marvel (as well as Billy himself) have had many iconic team-ups over the years. His occasional one-on-one collaborations are among some of the most noteworthy of his career. Who is your favorite Captain Marvel partner, either from canon or from your most wanted dream team?

Day 5 ✦ August 15, 2024 Into the Elseworlds + Favorite AU

Captain Marvel's Elseworlds appearances always have impact, no matter the weight of his role. Pick one to explore, or perhaps an alternate universe of your own making.

Day 6 ✦ August 16, 2024 Domestic Bliss + Off-Duty Hours

We love every moment our hero is a hero, but even more so when Cap turns in for the day and Billy has his own time to shine. Whether it's an unassuming picnic day or a day-in-the-life of Billy Batson, the off-duty hours can be just as fulfilling.

Day 7 ✦ August 17, 2024 Holiest of Molies + Favorite Moment

Holy Moly! Can you pinpoint the very moment that Billy Batson compelled you the very first time? He's been on this planet for way over three-quarters of a century, so let's talk about his impact! This day can also be used as a free-for-all.

Although the prompts have been laid out, you are more than welcome to refer to previous years’ (2022, 2023) to choose ideas from! All prompts may also be interpreted in any way you like, however abstract. Any form of content is encouraged, from drawing, multi-media work, photos, graphics, writing, and anything else under the sun. There's no pre-requisites or rules to join except for keeping everything SFW. Posting late is more than acceptable, especially if you find these dates to be incompatible with your own schedule.

Feel free to post your writing in our collection. There is no closing date, so works may be posted beyond the event.

Remember to use the tags #billybatsonweek and #bb84week so everyone will be able to view your masterpieces! View all previous years' works here.

[lesbianrobin]

hang on. your tags on the lightning arc post......my eyes are so open. they should have had buck join a cult!!!!!!!!!! like. even pre-lightning he was already part of the way there with the Happiness Convention (self-help conventions are basically low-level cults right) HE SHOULD HAVE JOINED A CULT.

they could have kept Natalia and made her his gateway into the cult. like im so serious i would have eaten this storyline up and im sorry but it does actually makes perfectly sense for his character.

And then everyone is like Buck i think you're in a cult. and buck is like no these are just all my cool new friends! And then they could have had their requisite copaganda episode and had Athena bust the cult for money laundering to get him out.

LITERALLYYYYY like okay the academic in me feels compelled to say that anybody might be susceptible to joining a cult and cults are good at providing people with what they need to draw them in etc etc all of that said. buck is absolutely the type of person who would So easily join a cult. ESPECIALLY when he's just had an insane one-in-a-million near-death experience and he's searching for meaning in life!

and like no natalia slander she seemed fine but you're RIGHT she could have made for a perfect entry point for buck to join a cult... the way buck was like She Sees Me literally lowkey the way somebody halfway into joining a cult talks about the cult members. if i ever get through my insane backlog of 9-1-1 fic ideas and get the urge to write something long i may have to give this concept a shot because GOD it could have been so good

EDIT: this also could have worked So well with like bobby and/or eddie exploring their relationship with their faith and like they could have asked the question of like When faith crosses the line from comfort to delusion when it is helpful vs harmful... leading into eddie gay realization..... i'm ruminating

[stormblessed95]

Genuine question but, is it really a big deal if people in the community think Jikook aren’t dating?

Seems like it’s a bit of a pre requisite according to some of these anons

I can't answer for the Jikook community. I consider myself an OT7 with a heavy lean to a yoonminkooker for my biases. I can only answer for me. I don't care if you follow me and don't ship Jikook or don't think they are dating. I don't care if you follow me and aren't even ARMY (not talking about antis obviously, but I have people who follow me here for other reasons and like my posts even though they aren't a BTS fan). I have people who follow me here who have told me they ship a different duo, but enjoy my posts about their ship and all the others so they are here anyway and just ignore the parts of my posts they don't like.

So for my blog, as long as it's still around, there are no prerequisites other than being respectful in order to be here and participate

[shivunin]

Two Apace

(Cullen/Elowen Lavellan pre-relationship | 1,297 Words | No warnings)

"For I am bound with fleshly bands, Joy, beauty, lie beyond my scope; I strain my heart, I stretch my hands, And catch at hope." -Christina Rossetti, "De Profundis"

Cullen paced around the training ring, pausing to demonstrate the proper way to hold one’s shield before pacing away again. 

This practice session was much like others he’d held over these past months. The ones who’d volunteered for the mixed units had improved drastically, their troop cohesion strengthening as they learned each other’s strengths and weaknesses. The impact of simply understanding how a non-mage unit worked had improved the tactics of the mages drastically. Before, it had never occurred to Cullen that they might not know much about the composition and strategy of non-magical military units. Now that they did…

Well. He was proud of them; that was all. 

So this session was much like others had been, complete with its requisite crowd of observers. There was no need for nerves; no need for the catch in his breath, the tingle at the back of his neck. There was certainly no need for him to keep glancing at the far corner of the ring where the Inquisitor stood, watching. 

She’d been quiet since the previous morning. He hadn’t seen her at dinner later, and when he’d briefly stopped by Herald’s Rest (not to look for her!) she’d been absent there as well. He’d assumed that she must have forgotten about this practice, but when he’d commenced the first practice bout for warmups she’d been standing right there, a calm expression on her lo—on her face. 

Cullen had been struggling to regain his composure ever since. He wasn’t sure how successful he’d been, but at least his soldiers hadn’t seemed to notice. 

“Last bout,” he shouted over the clang of steel, and the mass of soldiers reformed itself into two groups, each composed by a mixture of archers, swordsmen, and mages. He snuck a glance at the Inquisitor, who’d climbed onto the bottom rung of the fence and steadied herself on the vertical post to her left. Her eyes were focused on the groups, who’d begun to send blunted arrows and quarter-strength magic at each other, and not on him at all. 

He reminded himself of that firmly when the corner of her mouth arched up, reshaping her generous mouth into a rare expression of happiness. Maker, he was a fool. 

She wasn’t looking at him. 

Cullen cleared his throat and turned his attention away again, striding behind the rearmost line of the soldiers on his right and ordering them about until the gap at their flank closed, and then repeating the process on the other side when one of the mages slammed the butt of her staff into an archer’s ear. There was plenty to focus on that wasn’t the shape of their leader standing heads above most of their watchers; Cullen exerted his formidable control to manage just that for the rest of the bout. 

Even so, he couldn’t help but wander in her direction when the groups broke up and began to drift away again. 

“Inquisitor?” he said. Lavellan blinked at the ring before turning her attention to him. 

There was something about her eyes, he decided; something about her stare that made one feel uncomfortably seen, as if the perception in them cut through the layers of steel and cloth and arrowed to the heart of him instead. 

He cleared his throat and went on:

“What are your thoughts?”

“Hmm,” she said, pursing her lips, and went on after a moment. “I think it’s inspired.”

“I know the mages still need some practice in working as part of a group,” Cullen rushed to say, so quickly that he hardly heard her. “Half the time, the soldiers stationed next to them need redirection to keep from shying back from certain types of spells, but—what?”

She was smiling again, but this time she was looking right at him. 

“I think it’s inspired, Cullen,” she repeated. “It’s a brilliant idea. Truly. I couldn’t have imagined it when I left; it is heartening to see them work together like that now. I can’t think of a single group of enemies who fights quite like that, and I can see how the tactics you’ve taught them here will counter other units in battle.”

The Inquisitor paused, cocking her head so a lock of brown hair drifted loose from the rest. Cullen curled his hands into fists to resist the immediate temptation to brush it back. It wasn’t his place; it wasn’t his business. He shouldn’t even be wanting to…

“You should be proud,” she told him, tilting her chin up in that way she had. “I would be. It was a great deal of work, I imagine, and you’ve accomplished a great deal in a short span of time. I can’t wait to see what you manage next.”

“I—thank you, Inquisitor,” Cullen said, taking a step closer and leaning against the other side of the fence. “I appreciate…well. I am glad you approve.”

“I do more than approve,” she said. When she paused, her stomach made a soft noise and she pressed a hand to it. 

“Forgive me,” she laughed. “It would seem I’m due for breakfast.”

“Ah—yes,” Cullen said, echoing the laugh. “I suppose I ought to do the same.”

“I’ll see you later?” she asked, and Cullen blinked. “Our sword practice? This evening?”

“Ah—of course!” Cullen said, straightening; it was Wednesday, so of course— “I will see you here.”

“See you here,” she echoed, and took several steps back toward the stairway to the great hall. She didn’t look away, and Cullen found that he couldn’t, either. He braced his hands on the fence instead and watched her go. 

“Yes,” he said, for lack of anything else to see.

“Yes,” she echoed, and turned to walk away when her heel bumped into the stone of the staircase. 

Cullen ruffled a hand through his hair when she vanished through the doors, exhaling slowly. 

What…did that mean? He’d no idea. Perhaps he was imagining things. But it had seemed like…

He shook his head at himself as he retrieved his armor and mantle, then stepped through the opening in the ring to trudge back up the stairs. 

Obviously, he was imagining things. 

|

She wasn’t imagining it.

Elowen stood with her back against the stone wall for a moment, taking deep breaths. Her heart thundered in her chest, such that she fancied she could feel it to her very fingertips. 

She’d watched carefully. Not once had he looked at one of the people he’d taught the way he looked at her when they practiced together. Not once had he flushed or dropped his eyes. 

How did she feel about that?

She didn’t know. 

No—she did. Because that feeling in her stomach wasn’t dread at all, wasn’t sick discomfort or disappointment. There was fear there, yes. She knew fear all too well. But—she wasn’t afraid of Cullen. 

It was strange, because she had been afraid of him once—that first day on the mountain. Now, the memory of it seemed so strange to her now, as if it had been someone else’s memory, someone else’s feelings. She couldn’t imagine being afraid of him now. Cullen would no more hurt her than he would…

Elowen realized, with precisely the sort of dawning comprehension she’d been trying to avoid, that she couldn’t even think of a proper comparison. It was just…something she knew. He wouldn’t hurt her if he could help it. That was all. He was—he was as true and honest as a drawn blade, as concretely himself as a piece on the chess board. There was no artifice to him; nothing to doubt. 

That is, she decided, gathering herself to go on into the hall, where she could hear people speaking, the clink of metal on stoneware, what scares me the most.

[deliciouskeys]

Voughtazon's newly posted 360-degree tours definitively prove that— given that the Seven conference room is in Vought Tower— Homelander's penthouse is not in Vought Tower, but rather in the Flatiron Building or a tiny bit uptown of it. In this essay I will...

But seriously, judge for yourselves if you don't believe me:

The tall landmarks in yellow, the vantage points in red:

The view from the Seven conference room, juxtaposed with the view from the roof of Rockefeller Center:

The view from Homelander's penthouse juxtaposed with the view from the Flatiron roof:

It's so nice that Homelander is the Boys' neighbor!

On an even nerdier note, the pictures were taken pre-2020, when One Vanderbilt was completed, but post-2016 when the 4 Seasons was completed.

Requisite disclaimer after causing confusion: I’m kidding. Just pointing out that Vought Tower seems to exist in two different places in Manhattan.

[quokki]

Full giffing process - tutorial (*≧ω≦*)

Due to little demand, i will be going thru my complete process for making gifs. so this will cover all the basics i hope! keep in mind this is just the way I personally do things! please feel free to send me asks or dms if you have any doubts or questions!

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ DISCLAIMER: Everything I know about giffing, I've learned from other tutorials, including the VapourSynth Resources I'll be using in this tutorial so I'll leave links to those tutorials I've used here as well!

In Depth Giffing Tutorial (link here) How to use VapourSynth (link here) ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

(o´▽`o) I'm a windows user so idk if this works exactly the same on mac!

First things first, you will need:

☆ 4k video downloader (download it here!) ☆ Vapoursynth (32bit download / 64bit download) ☆ Photoshop (download it here! -64bit version only)

Okay! The first thing you need to do is make sure you're working with the highest quality material possible to ensure a decent looking gif!

I'd say the minimum quality needed for decent gifs is 1080px. But if you really want to gif that low quality 2 frame milisecond of your fave, i respect that

☆ lives / streams and tiktoks are typically not very high quality ☆ for stage performances such as music shows, ts/tp files are preferred but those can be really hard to get a hold of (this is a whole deeper level of giffing hell and more of an advanced class topic so nevermind this for now!) ☆ those occasional 4k facecams on youtube work fine tho! ☆ for mvs, variety shows etc, you can download the video with good quality from youtube using 4k video downloader

_(:3 」∠)_

Now let's talk about tumblr and it's pre-requisites for a good looking gif post :D

Tumblr can be sooooo annoying about gifs okay.... I find it's best to plan my whole set before I actually start doing anything but hey that's just me. Some things to keep in mind are: dimensions, file size, number of frames and post layout!

☆ Dimensions

You have 3 main options here and it's all about the width!

☆ 1 collumn: single gifs! these should be 540px wide ☆ 2 collumns: split that in half! 268px wide so there's a lil breathing space between the gifs! ☆ 3 collumns: 3's a party! 177px for each gif please

You can go crazy on the height but the width should mostly stick to one of those 3 unless you want tumblr to pull and squeeze your gif around like a piece of gum.

☆ File Size

This is really important because tumblr has a single image size limit of 10mb. Which means that every single gif you make has to be under that size or you won't be able to post it. The other thing about this is that the dimensions, number of frames and ammount of varying colors throughtout your gif will greatly impact on the final file size. Basically, the larger the dimensions and the more frames it has, the bigger the final file will be. Later on I will show you how to check your gif's final size before exporting it!

☆ Number of frames

This has more to do with the length of your gif, the longer it is, the bigger the final file will be. Typically gifs should be under 3 seconds long. So if you are making a set, try to break the moments you want to include in your set by increments of up to 2 - 3 seconds each, otherwise it might not fit all into one single gif. The number of frames is also extremely important when making combined gifs but that's for another tutorial.

☆ Post layout

If you want to make a cool looking gifset (where some gifs are larger in dimension than others, or when you want to have a single gif followed by a line of 2 gifs next to each other), then it might be worth it to plan out the layout before you start making the gifs. This way you ensure you won't have to remake gifs down the line because they don't fit together the way you wanted to.

☆ﾐ(o*･ω･)ﾉ

Timestamping

For this step, you will go through the video you want to gif from and you will just write down all the sections you want to use, down to the exact seconds. Example: 02:30 - 02:32.

(^◕ᴥ◕^)

VapourSynth (VS) - Clipping the video

I know VS can look pretty intimidating with it's bare coding and all but I promise it can be your friend. You just have to set it up correctly and pay close attention whenever you're using it. This software is a must for giffing, it will do all your cropping, resizing, sharpening and denoising for you, making sure your gifs look good. It is also indispensable when giffing ts/tp files because it deinterlaces those files so you can clip them.

First, let's set it up. This is the most annoying and difficult part of this tutorial so make sure you pay full attention to every single step!

☆ step 1) download a version of VS here (link).

☆ step 2) unzip the file on your desktop area.

☆ step 3) open the folder and find the file named "vapourscript (drop video file on me)" - make a shortcut of that file and move it to the desktop.

☆ step 4) find the folder named "gifs" - make a shortcut of that file and move it to the desktop.

☆ step 5) drag your video file you want to gif from and drop it on top of the "vapourscript (drop video file on me)" shortcut on your desktop.

☆ step 6) enter the timestamp input, in the first line it will be the starting of your timestamp, in hours format, then hit enter. in the second line enter how long your timestamps lasts, in seconds, also in hours format. then hit enter and let the code run.

☆ step 7) the resizer tab should now load on a web browser, then you will set the dimensions of your gif on the top left corner. you can also adjust the position of your gif within the video screen and zoom in if wanted.

☆ step 8) choose the preprocessor, denoise and sharpening options on the left and tick the boxes on. I usually just stick to the settings i'm using in my video down below.

☆ step 9) now in the VS box, go to file > load, choose the script saved in the gifs folder.

☆ step 10) copy the code from the resizer into the code in the vs screen, under the designated line.

☆ step 11) alter the code exactly like I did in my video down below. save it. this is now your default vs script for clipping your gifs. what you are doing by adding the hastag and the quotation marks is you're disabling those sections of the code. the reason you do that is in case you want to run the preview before exporting. this is because those lines involve some heavy graphic processing which can make the computer slow. I will talk about the script in more detail later on.

☆ step 12) i don't usually use this option but you can also preview your gif and set specific frames to start and end your gif. This is around the 4:30 mark in the video.

☆ step 13) time to export your clip! now you will temporarily remove the marks you added to disable the code and then go to script > encode video. in the popup box, you will select the option "export to MOV", then start so that you can use that video file in photoshop later.

☆ step 14) after you are done exporting, close the encoding box and then close vapoursynth, never agree to save the script when closing it, or that will override your default script.

☆ step 15) now you need to rename the encoded file for your gif. go to the gifs shortcut folder you created on your desktop, then go to output. this is the folder where VS will save all your encoded files. but everytime it saves the file with the same name so you need to come to this folder and change the name for every gif file you encode before you clip a new one, otherwise VS will just replace the previous clip with the new one you just finished.

Here's a detailed walk through of each step in this video tutorial:

IMPORTANT

After you are done processing your first clipped file, now you have your default script already built in VS, so whenever you run it to clip more videos, this script will already be in your VS screen. So now all you need to do whenever you want to clip more files (to make more gifs) is to adjust the dimensions, positioning and zoom of the video in the resizer screen and then change a few numbers in your script! then run encode to save the clipped file.

☆ To make new clips: go thru steps 5- 7, also do 8 if you want to mess with the denoise and sharpening filters again, but I don't really know much about how those work so I can't help you with this.

Now what you need to alter in the code, each time you are making a new gif: after you run VS and change the settings in the resizer to what you want, you need to change the zoom numbers and the video positioning in the code.

you need to replace the numbers in the VS script on the left so they match the numbers in the resizer on the right.

Do step 12 if you want to set specific frames to clip. Then steps 13 - 15 and you are done! You need to do all this every single time you want to make a new gif.

Now let me talk a bit more about some of the lines in this script:

☆ line 14: #video = core.std.Trim(video, a, b) this line is to set specific frames to trim your video section, your final encoded file will be only the frames inbetween the numbers you input here. a = first frame, b = last frame. you will need to run the preview option in VS in order to see every single frame of your clip and select your first and last frame. I usually do this in photoshop later instead so I don't bother with it on VS unless i'm making combined gifs, in which you need all the clips to have the exact same number of frames. the hashtag at the beginning of this line means that the script won't follow this command when executed. so if you want to include it, you need to remove the hashtag before encoding your file.

☆ line 18: #video = haf.QTGMC(video, Preset="Slower", TFF=True) this line is for the preprocessor option in VS, that tool is mainly only used when giffing ts/tp files because you need to deinterlace them before you can use them on photoshop. so you will only need to remove the hashtag and enable it when giffing those types of files. when im giffing those files, i usually always keep it with this setting:

I don't really understand much about this so I never mess with it. If you want to know more, I believe there's more info about it in the tutuorials I linked at the beginning of my post.

☆ line 22: video = descale.Debilinear(video, 786,442) this line is for the zoom of the video screen. you just need to match what you have in your VS script to what you end up with in your resizer.

☆ line 25: video = core.knlm.KNLMeansCL(video, 1, 2, 4, 2.5, channels="YUV") this line is for the denoising filters, in my case I always use KNLM and this is what it's line looks like. I know you can change those numbers to change the filtering settings but I never messed with it so I'd usually just have it like that.

☆ line 27: video = fun.FineSharp(video, sstr=2.5) this line is for the sharpening, in my case I always use FineSharp and this is what it's line looks like. I know you can change the number to change it's settings but I never messed with it so I'd usually just have it like that.

note: lines 25 and 27 (which have to do with denoise and sharpening) are the ones within quotation marks in your default script. I believe the quotations work in a similar way as the hashtag, in which the script only executes the lines when the quotations are removed. Which is what you do everytime you are about to encode your clip, otherwise they stay on. I think you should also remove them if you want to test how they affect your gif in the preview screen but i think these filters also require heavier graphic processing which my computer can't handle well so I never do that.

☆ line 30: video = core.std.CropRel(video, left=303, top=16, right=215, bottom=26) this line is for the positioning of your video screen within the gif dimensions. you just need to match what you have in your VS script to what you end up with in your resizer.

ʕ •̀ o •́ ʔ

Photoshop (PS) - let's make a gif!

Now that we have clipped and preprocessed our video file, it's ready to go to photoshop!

☆ step 1) after you have opened PS, go to File > Import > Video Frames to Layers. Then choose the clipped file you created through VS.

PS should open a box like this:

Keep those options ticked and hit OK

☆ step 2) now you need to go to Window > Timeline to bring up the timeline tool box. This window will always be necessary when making gifs. Let's take a look at it, I've marked down all the important buttons you will need:

timeline menu: there are several commands in here, you will need to use some of them later on.

convert to video / frame timeline

play controls to watch your gif

trash can to delete selected frames. (when deleting frames, first delete them here and then delete it's matching layers which are still there after deleting the frames)

frame delay time: this is where you set the time for how long that frame will be visible in your gif

☆ step 3) remember how I mentioned the preview option in VS and how i don't usually use it to trim the frames of my clip? That's because I usually do that at this step of the process, in PS. Notice how each frame is also a layer, and when a frame is selected, the matching layer has the eye symbol next to it turned on. So now you should play your gif and see if there are any frames you don't want to keep, then delete the frames and it's matching layers.

Since we applied sharpening filters back when we were clipping the video on VS, your clip should probably already look pretty decent even before the next steps, so steps 4 - 9 are optional. The coloring part of my video has been sped up.

☆ step 4) click on the timeline menu and select "Select all frames", then go to the select menu at the top of the PS screen and select "All layers". Now click on button 2 of the timeline at the bottom left, switching from the frame timeline to the video timeline.

☆ step 5) before you do anything else, make sure the blue holder is at the beginning of the track before you do anything else. Then go to Filter (at the top of PS) and select "Convert for smart filters". This will convert all the layers into one single layer.

☆ step 6) now make sure the layer is selected, then go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen. A box will open with several options:

I usually keep the amount to around 30, I don't touch on radius and you can also mess with reduce noise if you think your gif is looking too sharp. Hit OK when you're done.

Since this is a filter applied to a smart object (the converted layer that contains all our layer - frames), this means you can turn this filter on or off as long as the layers are in the form of a smart object. You can also go back to it and alter it's settings (like I've done in my video down below)

☆ step 7) now while making sure the blue holder is still at the beginning of the track and the layer is selected, click on the timeline menu that i mentioned above. Then go to Convert Frames, then select Flatten frames into clips.

☆ step 8) again go to the timeline menu, Convert Frames, but now select Make Frames from Clips. Now click on the button at the bottom left of the timeline box, to convert the video timeline back into a frame animation. Then hit continue in the pop up box.

☆ step 9) now you are back to the frame timeline screen from before, but now the first frame is empty. You need to delete that first frame and then check the final frame because sometimes PS also creates another empty frame at the end at this point.

☆ step 10) PS also created a new layer under the layer 0, where the filter is still applied, you can delete this new layer as well. Now for organizational purposes, select all remaining layers (that contain your frames) and group them (you can see how in the video).

☆ step 11) This step is also optional, now I like to add the coloring to the gif. I have a separate tutorial exclusively on this topic. You can check it here:

☆ step 12) This is the time when I also add my signature. This is optional. You need to have the signature layer(s) on top of all the other layers. I usually have it in all black or all white, with lowered opacity of around 40%.

NOTE:

When adding elements (such as a signature) to a gif, it's important to always make sure you have the first frame selected, otherwise PS can move your newly added elements around the canvas on different and random frames. This also applies to anything in the layers pannel that has specific opacities. It's best to already add the elements with the final wanted opacity with the first frame selected.

Exporting + Delay time

☆ step 13) To export: go to File > Export > Save for web (Legacy). PS will open this box:

First I just use the exporting screen to test the delay time of my gif, and to check the gif's final size.

About the size: The final size is displayed at the bottom left. Remember it needs to be under 10mb. If it's above that, then you will have to go back and delete frames and test again until the size is within the limit.

About the delay time: To test the delay time, hit that play button and the gif will play at it's default delay time. If it's too fast or too slow, you will hit cancel and change the delay time (at the next step).

For actual exporting: The highlighted box at the top right of the screen is very relevant now. Make sure the first box has the GIF option selected. At the next box, you can select either perceptual, selective or adaptive. I usually like to use adaptive. At the next box you need to choose either diffusion or pattern. I like to use pattern. Tick the transparency box and then select either pattern or diffusion transparency dither.

Once you are satisfied with all aspects of your gif, hit save to export your final gif.

To fix the delay time: After you have exited the export box, go back to your timeline, click on the menu button at the top right and select "Select all frames". Then, on any random frame, click at the small arrow next to the numbers under the frame. Select the option "Other". That will open a pop up box to alter the delay time. To test it again, use the export box explained above. Once you are satisfied, save your gif! I've also altered the delay time in my video to show you the process.

☆ step 14) After your gif is done and saved, I'd suggest to save your psd file if you added any coloring to it. This is so you can reuse the coloring later in other gifs without having to redo it all. This is useful if mking a set of gifs from the same moment / video.

Here's a detailed walk through of each PS step in this video tutorial:

I hope this tutorial is helpful! Feel free to send me any asks if you have doubts or need extra help! (つ≧▽≦)つ

[birchbow]

Have you ever went into detail abt how you think bulges/nooks work? Seems simple enough, cooch and tentadick, but I started thinking abt it and like... how the hell does everything on the inside work? Whats really the point of having the "afab" bits if trolls depend on mother grub to reproduce? Gestures vaguely to bulges??? What?????

So okay. Honestly much like the drone season thoughts I posted a while ago, this makes sense to me if you consider a species that has the reproductive strategy they do, but consider them several millennia ago.

It makes sense for buckets to be a convenient adaptation that trolls came up with but it doesn't make sense for them to be a pre-requisite for their species to breed! So instead, in lieu of buckets, it makes sense to me trolls would just have an organ that's meant entirely for fluid storage and was hooked to both nook and bulge, and would just mix genetic material via fucking each other so it mixed internally. They don't need a uterus to gestate babies; by the same token, an organ that just exists to hold fluid and keep it body temperature and genetically viable before eventually expelling it after long-term storage is not something the human body needs, but would be pretty necessary if you procreate like trolls but don't have the technology of buckets yet lol.

In that case, the nook would basically be an entry point for that storage organ, which I don't know if I personally have ever mentioned by a name in a fic, although I know I've made reference to a seedflap which in my head is the entry point for it--about where a human might have a cervix, although in this case much more intended for potential ingress, depending on relative sizes. And the bulge would just be the means of getting genetic material into your partner so they could store it.

various points of note that come to mind:

This does mean that whenever a troll in Ancient Times fucked a partner, if they hadn't emptied out recently, the odds aren't bad that they would actually have some mixture of their own genetic material and somebody else's in there. And would not come entirely your own come, which is a wild concept as a human.

A reasonable excuse if you were pretending to be a slightly different shade than you were and got caught because of slurry: uhhh I fucked somebody yellow-blooded, that's why it looks lime instead of jade. BYE!!

Also means that although there was no concern about getting somebody pregnant, any form of STI that trolls could contract would be a pretty huge deal before vessels/buckets became a thing and it became more reasonable to clean out after fucking a single partner. Anything that spreads through fluid exchange, highly transmissible and dangerous!

Because most trolls in modern days haven't had to retain large amounts or for long, they tend to get cramping and a feeling of fullness for much smaller amounts than their ancient relatives would have.

Not wanting a bucket immediately after you fucked would have some connotations--old-fashioned, but romantic. A little sexy and kinky.

Modern trolls just don't have the carrying capacity they used to. >:I Buckets have ruined our bodies!!! Retain your slurry, it's natural!!! It gives you the power of your natural connection with the Mother Grub!!! << the modern troll's equivalent of the nofap guy.

Anyway there you go that's been my general theory in the porn I'm writing, ta-da~~

[blackjackkent]

@rhysintherain replied to your post “OK. So, obviously that was a pretty upsetting...”:

I'm very curious to see how Rakha reacts to Z'rell. She's like a mirror image - a half-orc with one eye, an in-depth knowledge of magic, and a bloodthirsty streak. Somehow I doubt Rakha will appreciate what she sees.

​So, I've been rotating this in my mind for the last fifteen minutes and did some double checking in the character creator and...

Rakha and Z'rell:

are both missing the same eye

have the same facial scar OVER that eye

have roughly the same skin tint

have almost the same heavy dark eye makeup

have basically inverse tattoos

have THE SAME BASE FACE

None of this was intentional on my part at all, but I feel like I've got to be able to make something out of it.

Hear me out. (Wild baseless Durge headcanoning under the cut.)

I have NO idea if there's any basis for this in what we're eventually going to learn about Rakha's background with the Bhaalists, so I'm not committing to anything here and if this is the case Rakha will learn about it much too late for it to impact any actions she takes. But I find myself wondering if there's some possibility that Rakha is one of a pair of Bhaalspawn twins.

Z'rell absolutely has the level of bloodthirst requisite for The Urge, and I don't think there's any canon information about her history pre-Moonrise. Consider the possibility that Z'rell was mindwiped by the same mechanism as Rakha and also kidnapped by the cult of the Absolute. However, instead of being protected by the Emperor, she was fully indoctrinated and rose through the ranks during the time that Rakha has spent running around the wilderness.

Rakha's missing eye is, of course, due to Ethel, not to whatever injury gave her the scar there. But in this scenario, Z'rell's matching scar suggests some sort of ritual injury. Perhaps Z'rell lost her eye to that ritual and now, years later, Rakha unconsciously selected the loss of her right eye to Ethel in a reflection of a sister she doesn't remember.

Again, I don't know if canon allows for this at all (not that canon is permabinding in my story regardless XD), and I doubt that it would have any significant impact on Rakha's decisions one way or the other.

But I am finding the possibility fascinating. :P Especially given that Z'rell is going to end up super dead at Rakha's hands.

[zytes]

Question from someone just starting with creating and then posting art to Tumblr, do you think I should be watermarking my pieces?

I’ve always disliked watermarks as they naturally tend to dissuade people from interacting with art in a natural manner; it depends very heavily on the size and placement of the mark, obviously. BUT, often times an artist will overzealously obscure their work with identification and it has a somewhat repulsive effect on the average viewer - a wall has been erected between the viewer and the art, in a sense. Watermarks, to me, exist to prevent very specific situations from unfolding with your work - almost all of those reasons seem to be financially motivated, like preventing strangers from printing your art out at home or reposting without attribution. Situations that could affect your ability to profit off of your work.

Admittedly, much of my perception about this issue was inspired by an article included in the book “Context” by Cory Doctorow, wherein he writes about how he’s benefitted from “thinking like a dandelion”, which is an idea that was inspired by conversation the author had with Neil Gaiman — I’ll try and summarize the parts of the point that are more relevant to visual arts; since portions of the allegory refer more specifically to certain qualities of written media.

He begins with, “Mammals worry about what happens to each and every one of their offspring, but dandelions only care that every crack in every sidewalk has dandelions growing out of it. The former is a good strategy for situations in which reproduction is expensive, but the latter works best when reproduction is practically free — as on the Internet.”

So how do you “think like a dandelion” then?

“Your work needs to be easily copied, to anywhere whence it might find its way into the right hands. That means that the nimble text-file, HTML file, and PDF (the preferred triumvirate of formats) should be distributed without formality — no logins, no e-mail address collections, and with a license that allows your fans to reproduce the work on their own in order to share it with more potential fans. Remember, copying is a cost-center — insisting that all copies must be downloaded from your site and only your site is insisting that you — and only you — will bear the cost of making those copies. Sure, having a single, central repository for your works makes it easier to count copies and figure out where they’re going, but remember: dandelions don’t keep track of their seeds. Once you get past the vanity of knowing exactly how many copies have been made, and find the zen of knowing that the copying will take care of itself, you’ll attain dandelionesque contentment.”

The rest of the allegory more specifically applies to written work, but I’ll link it here for the sake of posterity. Essentially: every wall or pre-requisite that you establish before allowing a fresh set of eyes to fall upon your work actually may deter people from engaging with the work and sharing it with others. Signatures, subtle watermarks that are “baked” into the work, or maybe like.. a well-placed QR code that links people back to you — all of those would be my suggestion for someone who wants to leave a lasting, linking thread between a given work and it’s artist. If the right person sees your art and connects with it, there SHOULD be a way for them to follow that thread back to you and discover more; but if you over-prioritize demonstrating ownership over your work, you’re likely to drive those coveted genuine connections away.

On the other hand, if your primary goal is to sell prints or other products, brazenly watermarking your work will protect your bottom line from the kind of low-level art-scraping that drives all those shady redbubble shops and etsy stores that sell stolen works on cheap t-shirts and hankies. For me, art is a primarily social interest in which I prioritize the sharing of culture and ideas. I don’t want financial factors to take precedence and alter how/why I created something; it feels like I’d have to take much of myself out of my art in order to make it palatable for consumer spaces.

You should determine your priorities and then strive to make art that fulfills those priorities without compromise. I think you’ll find that self-satisfaction manifests readily at different points in the midst of that process.

[cr-noble-writes]

Mass Effect Master Post

A collection of all my Mass Effect fanfic, meta, and character posts.

Alex Shepard

Alex Shepard Character Info

Alex Shepard Asks Answered:

Greek Mythology from @heroofshield

Edgy/misc OC ask from @rotschopf-thedrow

OC ask from @briarch

OC asks from @crescentbunny

OC asks from @shadoedseptmbr

Shepard asks from @kalliesa

Shepard asks from @parker-of-loxley

Shepard asks from @theoriginalladya

Shepard asks from @rotschopf-thedrow

Shepard asks from @iheartgarrus

The Pigeon Parallel

How Gender is He?

Why Didn't He Join the Commandos?

Teenaged Boy Needs

Percy Jackson

Alex's biotics

The last several asks were from @butter-and-too-much-bread

Jackson Shepard

Shepard asks from @gardensystemtv

Shepard asks from @foofyschmoofer

Shepard asks from @ad-astra13

Shepard asks from @spacebunshep

Shepard asks from @pastelroyce

Shepard asks from @dandenbo

Other Mass Effect OCs

OC asks for Nyala Atruzea from @nickelkeep

OC asks for Taedra Atruzea from @swaps55

Sorry for all the tags, but y'all have all legitimately helped me build these characters by asking these questions, and you all deserve credit for that <3

Fanfic

Odyssey- Alex Shepard's canon series, mShep/Reyes, mShenko

New Stars Growing Pains The Upside of Down By The Stars Family Day A New Hope Argonauts

Virtue and Volatility- Jackson Shepard's canon series, mshep/Coats, Willenko

Verisimilitude Vicissitude Viaticum Venatic Vexillum

Can't Live Without You- John Shepard, mShenko

Night Terrors Don't Die, Kaidan Meanwhile, In Starboard Observation All's Fair in Love And Sparring

Canon Compliant

Baby, It's Cold Outside- Alex Shepard, mShenko The Man I Thought You Were- Scott Ryder, mReyder Couldn't Utter My Love- Jackson Shepard/Alex (Shepard) Atruzea, mercenary AU Let Me- Alex Shepard, mShenko Learning- Alex Shepard, mShenko

Alternate Universe

Kiss Me, Not Him- Alex Shepard, mShenko, roommates AU The Ties That Bind- Alex Shepard, mShenko, vampire/fey AU I Shouldn't Hope To Know- Alex Shepard, mShenko, magical Regency AU

Exchange Fics

Some Things Never Change- Shenko Summer 2023, mShenko Gun Mods and Handjobs- Fornax 2023, Venko (Kaidan/Vega) From The Bedside- Spectre Requisitions 2023, fShalibrations (femshep/Tali/Garrus) First, Last, Only- Holiday Hangover 2024, Alenkoats (Kaidan/Coats) Like Real People Do- Big Place 2024, Venko (Kaidan/Coats)

Unattached Fics

ME Drabbles- A collection of drabbles from prompts from the MEFFW discord server Penny For Your Thoughts- mShenko Primitive Pleasures- mShenko Disappointment- Jackson Shepard, pre-Canon Come and Save Me From It- Destiel, Supernatural crossover

Worldbuilding/Meta

Biotic Flora and Fauna of Thessia The Alliance Intelligence Organization Criminal Justice in Asari Space

[ratbastardman]

Transmasc BG3 Mods

Some of these are obvious but I hope others will be a surprise to some of you! Speaking of obvious, there will be NSFW visuals shown in some of these mods. (Some of these mods have pre-requisite mods I don't list so be sure to read their instructions!)

(TMTS) Transmasc Top Surgery for Body 3 AND Body 1. Titus get ridus. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1255 by noctilumi

(TMTS) Transmasc Clothing Pack for Body 1 and Body 3. Resolves phantom boob on some armor. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1375 by noctilumi

More Equal Underwear. Resolves phantom boob on underwear. You may have to take your underwear off before sex I haven't tested it yet. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1591 by FulcrumI

Modular Equipment. Tits out armor options, yes this is also related to phantom boob. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/443 by wesslen

Basket Full of Equipment. NSFW version. You may notice only the first three are actually essential to making a transmasc character, however the following is essential to make a hot transmac character. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/97 by AnteMaxx

Customizer's Compendium - NPC Options Unlocker. This is just for Gortash's hair, basically. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/10 by AlanaSP

Ellian's and Erevyn's face. Shout out my favorite mod creator on nexus. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/942 by Hijimare

Ellian's Hair. Like I said, my favorite. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1394 by Hijimare

Ellian's trinkets. Perfection. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/813 by Hijimare

Lab's Boratory. This post has devolved into random customization recommendations but you don't mind, do you? https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/329 by labotor

Horns of Faerun. Because queer bitches can't get enough of tieflings. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/466 by Aloija

Faces of Faerun. Faces. of Faerun. Title says it all. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/429 by Aloija

Faded Scars. I use this and I am transmasc therefore it goes in the list. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/2540 by lizardaggerx

Loulette Heads. Listen. I'm going to level with you all. I'm just going down my Vortex list here. This isn't installed on my computer for my character. I use it to make Lae'zel look like a little meow meow. I KNOW SHE'S PERFECT ALREADY I'M SORRY. Anyways, this mod has face presets. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/470 by loulette

SK's More CC Colours - WIP. I'm pretty sure there a similar mods that add basically the same things as this but this is the one I use so it's the best one. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1025?tab=posts by ShadyKnight

Tav's Hair Salon. This will add about 90 femme hair options and to your character creator but also what is femme and what is masc is arbitrary and some masc folk like to have femme qualities. Gender. Anyways. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/213 by Toarie

Trips' Accessory Collection. Yeah, the glasses sorta make you look like Harry Potter. Making me think about JKR could be interpreted as a anti-trans hatecrime but I'll let it slide. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/2067 by Tripsadin

Vessnelle's Hair Collection. This one is one of the best on the list probably should have put it higher before people stopped reading. A treat for you all who stuck with me in this BG3 induced madness. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/1420 by Vessnelle

GROWTH. I personally don't use this as I'm not a testosterone enjoyer myself but for those of you that are this is for you. https://www.nexusmods.com/baldursgate3/mods/2246 by FennelWitch

This is a stupid messy little post but if anyone finds it helpful then it will have been worth making.

[socstudies]

｡･ﾟﾟ･ Socstudies: Sociology 103 ･ﾟﾟ･｡

.⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡

Due to unexpected demand, I'm picking this series back up! Today's post is: Why study sociology?

.⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡

｡･ﾟﾟ･Why choose any subject?･ﾟﾟ･｡

I think first of all it's important to think about why you would choose to study any subject, as prioritising your criteria can be really helpful. Here are some examples, but you will likely have your own too:

it leads to a high paying job

it's interesting / you enjoy or will enjoy studying it

you have to study it to get the job you want (high paying or not)

you have the pre-requisites (unfortunately sometimes this will rule out a subject)

Now that you've ranked these let's walk through them.

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for making it this far!

｡･ﾟﾟ･Can sociology lead to a high paying job?･ﾟﾟ･｡

It depends! Sorry! Sociology is quite broad which means it can be applied to other fields that aren't directly sociological. For example, having a good knowledge of people and how they interact can be helpful in jobs such as a consultant or PR manager, but you don't need a sociology degree to do these.

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for making it this far!

｡･ﾟﾟ･Will you enjoy studying sociology?･ﾟﾟ･｡

Of course as a second year sociology student I'll say yes but this is up to you! Our classes cover literally anything (one of my highest grading essays talked about kpop and stan culture) so you can really tailor your classes and assignments to what interests you, since absolutely anything involving people can be related to sociology. This means that class discussions get really interesting since people bring all sorts of examples and case studies to the table. An added bonus: if you're shy or not a lover of group discussions, you'll definitely have something to say in sociology since you're a part of what is being studied - you can just relate your own experiences or observations to the class material! You're like a walking textbook!

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for making it this far!

｡･ﾟﾟ･Do any jobs require sociology?･ﾟﾟ･｡

The most obvious one is a sociologist but other jobs list sociology as part of potential entry requirements, such as social worker or teacher. To be honest, a lot of jobs just require you to have a degree (other than lawyers, doctors etc, but you can always to conversion courses or postgrad to do that, and having a sociological background will help with that!). It's all about transferrable skills. As you're studying such a wide scope of things, you will likely discover a certain area that you're super interested in (such as me with criminology and internet culture).

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for making it this far!

｡･ﾟﾟ･Are there any other reasons to study sociology?･ﾟﾟ･｡

Most people probably say this about their subject, but I do genuinely think it should be a requirement to take at least a few sociology classes. There's been so many times when people have said something that they would have a completely different view of if they had studied sociology; it completely changed my whole perspective of things.

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for making it this far!

.⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡

Review Questions!

1x Luke's coffee cup earnt for each correct answer! (and half a cup for attempting!)

What jobs could sociology potentially lead to? (Doesn't have to be from this list - could do your own research!)

What topics would you like to explore from a sociological perspective? (No right answer... unless you're lying....)

What are four possible reasons to keep in mind while choosing a subject?

.⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆..⋆｡⋆☂˚｡

Thank you for taking part! Exchange your cups here, view the previous lesson here, and view the syllabus here!

[canichangemyblogname]

for what it's worth, i don't think the 911 fandom is capable of critically engaging neither with the source material nor fandom... behaviours. your words are wasted on this audience, babe. 😔

OOF

NGL— I don’t actually expect to change hearts and minds if I don’t have an interpersonal relationship with someone. The internet isn’t really designed for revolutionary discussions because by design, it creates “echo chambers” and rather abrupt “culture shock” from the inelegant melding of worldviews. People are confronted with worldviews and analyses before they’ve been equipped with the background knowledge and vocabulary for the discussion at hand.

So someone with a conservative worldview, let’s say, will see a tweet by a history museum that seeks to teach about racial inequality. That tweet includes an infographic about how the nuclear family and perfectionism are features of cultural white supremacy. However, that conservative has not had the necessary pre-requisite conversations that establish the definitions of “social construct” or the features of “white supremacy” or the political origins of the “nuclear family.” But they know the tweet has something to do with race and racism because it mentions “white culture,” and so—through the knowledge they have—assume that this history museum is calling parenthood racist.

This is an actual thing that happened in US American Political discourse.

Given the primary criticism my post received was in regards to me “making up” reasons to hate a trope and trying to “moralize” dislike for a common feature of 911 fanfiction, I think it’s safe to assume that most 911 fans have not previously had discussion about the mammy trope. They’ve yet to essentially be taught to recognize the way racist writing tropes manifest in character building, the development of a character’s interpersonal relationships with other characters, and in plot and plot devices. (Although, I do find it hard to believe that they’ve never heard this criticism of the way they write Black Women, as there are Black Women in this fandom who have certainly said something before. Like… there is no way this has gone unsaid.)

Because they’re unfamiliar with this, they very likely think that their writing does no harm, despite the fact they’re shoving these characters into caricatures with a very long history in stereotypes and bigotry. They’re also unlikely to assume that these caricatures have affected the way they view people because they’re unaware of how they’re based in stereotypes or how these stereotypes do harm. Assigning the “caregiver” role to a Black Woman just feels right to them, no analysis on why they came to that gut assumption.

Then they see a post criticizing something they do and it feels to them like making a mountain out of a molehill.

(A recent example— although not race-related— being that one 911 blog who claimed that gay men are non-committal, sleep around a lot, and really lax about prophylactics and disease. When called out on that, her reasoning was that stereotypes must come from somewhere, and that “somewhere” must be reality. But while a hegemonic class may base stereotypes in some part of a political reality: the disparate treatment of a marginalized class by the hegemonic class, they are not materially true (aka— those realities that exist on the ground). EX: It is a political reality that queer communities were devastated by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, but the reason for that devastation was literal governmental neglect. The hegemonic class used this very real political truth to portray queer men as diseased, sexually deviant, and to further stigmatize queerness. It is true that queerness has been stigmatized by disease, but it is untrue that this is the fault of certain members of the queer community and their inherent behavior. A stereotype is ultimately a political narrative.)

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t people who are simply… underinformed. They see that same post and go, “Huh. I didn’t consider— that’s a good point.” They have a light-bulb moment and come to see what they were reading in a new light. An example being—well—you during 911’s “daddy discourse,” where you said that in hindsight, you recognize that your discomfort with “daddy,” but not “mommy” was due to your relationship with archetypes of masculinity as a woman in a patriarchal society.

And while I do write these posts for that light-bulb moment among a few, I ultimately write them for the people who are directly impacted. If you roll your eyes and say, “Why does everything have to be about controversy, just let me write whatever without criticism; I’m giving it to you for free,” you aren’t my intended audience. My intended audience is ALWAYS the individual who has been scrolling through the main tags, blocking people left and right for bad takes and terrible caricatures. My intended audience is the fan who wants to give up on a fan space because of how hostile it is to them. They deserve to see that there are people in that same fan space who recognize.

[i-fucked-your-milkshake]

One of the dopest literary stories of all time concerns the publication and distribution of Ulysses I’m not even a little bit joking.

James Joyce wrote Ulysses while living in Paris where he, and other modernist authors, hung out in a bookstore called Shakespeare and Company, founded by a woman named Sylvia Beach. The thing you gotta understand about this store and Sylvia is that this was The Place and she was That Bitch. If you were a writer and you came to Paris? You showed up. You bought a book. You talked with Sylvia. It was requisite. The result of this is that she was friends with all the modernists.

Joyce was kinda always perpetually fuckin broke and tended to overspend when he had money so he never had money for long. He was pretty broke at this time and was lamenting the fact that he couldn’t find a publisher to Sylvia. Sylvia was a big fan of Joyce’s work and also a good friend. She hated seeing him broke and was like “you know what my guy? Fuck it. I’ll publish your novel.”

So Joyce gets his book published and has some coin in his pocket and he’s happy. Sylvia has stepped up her career and she’s happy. Only problem? America is passing all sorts of obscenity laws about this time and the wretched moralists in charge have Heard About this book and will absolutely be destroying any copies that make it to port. Making matters worse is that there are hundreds of pre-orders that need to be fulfilled and she can’t do it without the books being confiscated and destroyed.

So Sylvia is lamenting this conundrum to her other good writer friend, Ernest Hemingway, who thinks for a minute and says “Sylvia, gimme a couple days and let me see what I can do.” What else do you say to Hemingway but “sure thing, Ernest.”

Couple days go by and Big Ern comes back to the store with a slip of paper. He hands that slip of paper to Sylvia and she sees it has a phone number. Hemingway tells her to call that number and tell who picks up that Ernest sent her.

There’s not a soul on earth who can resist that prompt and Sylvia, being both only human and also desperate to distribute this book she sunk money she couldn’t really afford into publishing, calls the number. Guy picks up. Asks a few questions about boxes and shipping addresses. Gives her an address in Canada and tells her to include the shipping invoices for the American addresses. Hangs up the phone.

So now a shit load of boxes containing James Joyce’s Ulysses are on their way to Canada. The address? Some fuckin apartment. Owned by This Guy. And everyday this guy takes a few books from the boxes, wraps them up and addresses them, tapes them to his body, and takes the ferry across the lake to the US where he casually slips them into the post boxes and goes on about his day.

Authorities are pretty baffled about how the book is being distributed but no one says a word about until Sylvia Beach spends roughly a page on it in her memoirs, “Shakespeare and Company.”

This was, I think, a few years before Hemingway had to look at F. Scott Fitzgerald’s dick and assure him it was a good size after Zelda told him he had a small cock during an argument…..but that’s another story.