#why do I have so many organizational tags for this ugh

[prince-liest]

tbh I'm not even one hundred percent sure if my favorite thing about Alastor and Rosie's relationship is fully intentional? But I'll say it anyway: I love the very subtle hints we get to why Alastor is so drawn/attached to Rosie.

Rosie herself and Cannibal Town are designed after the Edwardian era, 1900s to the very early 1910s; when Alastor would have still been a child and before he hits his prime 'home era' of the Jazz Age. And the little squeak he makes when Rosie grabs him? That's a Happy Fawn Noise; specifically, it's the sound they make when they see their mother.

So. I... think Rosie might remind Alastor of his mom? And that's part of the reason why he confides in her specifically and her opinion means so much to him, even compared to his other female friends? Not sure if I'm imagining it though bc I don't think I've seen anyone else point it out.

I really like Rosie and Alastor as having found family vibes, but I think similarly how I occasionally see Alastor made out to be Niffty's dad, I don't really enjoy them put in the framework of a literal family.

Which is not to disagree with you: I think Alastor should definitely get to deal with his own childhood nostalgia and low-key mommy issues in hell in the form of his friendship with Rosie, I just have lately been pondering how I really enjoy found family and platonic relationships but get frustrated when it feels like they're required to be pigeonholed into the framework of a nuclear family.

Anyway, I personally tend to see Alastor and Rosie as kindred spirits. They seem to be the kind of friends that have a lot in common and thus get each other - and I'm not just talking about the cannibalism, but also the way they navigate their friendship by offering each other favors and opportunities while carefully not overbalancing the tightrope walk that is a relationship between overlords, because they both know the importance of that station. Rosie is a nice, nosy person who helped Charlie out a lot in the battle against heaven, but she's also fully on board with Alastor's ominous little "full of potential that I can guide!" bit about Charlie. Alastor brings Charlie's relationship drama to Rosie because he knows she'd get a kick out of it. Rosie knows he's ace even though he doesn't even know what that means. They're both violent, dangerous cannibals that wear and value the veneer of being a lady and a gentleman.

I just think they're really good buddies that are on the same wavelength (their silent little reunion at the overlord meeting is delightful), and that means a lot when your wavelength is one that most other people would judge you negatively for or just plain not understand. Some of that absolutely comes from the fact that Rosie is from an era that helped build Alastor's values. A lot of it also comes from the sheer well-matchedness of their personalities!

[endemictoearth]

rules: answer 30 questions and tag people you would like to get to know better

tagged by: @my-mad-fatuation​ (ta muchly!)

​gender: cis lady

star sign: cancer on the cusp of leo (but maybe cusps aren’t real even tho they feel real?)

height: 5′ 9″ and a bit

favourite bands: They Might Be Giants, Bastille, Cake, Jethro Tull

favourite solo artists: Lizzo, Kishi Bashi, Fiona Apple, Elvis Costello, Imogen Heap, Rufus Wainwright, Sondre Lerche

current favourite song: Bloodsport ‘15 by Raleigh Ritchie (that whole album is just amazing)

last movie i watched: Love, Simon (in the theater), some bullshit Hallmark movie (tv)

last tv show i watched: currently watching One Day at a Time on Netflix

when i created this blog: March 2013

what i post: this blog is dedicated to MMFD and it’s fanfic and fandom, with some body positivity/fat acceptance and mental health awareness around the edges

last thing i googled: my local library to put a book on hold

any other blogs: @ @aspiringpolymath​ is my main jam, a true hodge podge of wtf-ever, @mmfd1930au-blog​ which has been sadly neglected and covered in cobwebs, @mmfdfanfic​ to soothe my organizational librarian skills, @180t0180​ in a fit of folly trying to organize my life (ugh too many why am i the way i am)

do i get asks: not nearly as many as i used to, and i have one that i need to reply to (i can get real up in my head about replying and sometimes delay to the point of ridiculousness . . . which might be why i don’t get many these days . . . *shrug emoji*)

followers: somehow i still have a little over 2000 followers here . . . thanks for hanging in there, you guys!

favourite colours: teal, navy, coral, silver, but really ALL of them

average hours of sleep: 6-ish? 7 on a good night

lucky number: i’ve always had a fondness for 47

instruments: none, but i used to be a real choir nerd

what i’m currently wearing: ratty old hot air balloon tunic and yoga capris (casual Tuesday here at the house)

how many blankets i sleep with: right now, a sheet, 1-2 blankets, and comforter . . . in the summer, one sheet with a leg out

dream job: writer and/or librarian 

dream trip: there’s so many! i want to go back to places i’ve been and go to new places . . . i’d love to have like two months to spend in scotland/england/ireland/wales and see all the places i haven’t seen yet . . .

do i have a crush: not really, i’m demi-sexual so i’m at most appreciative 

favourite animal: capybaras

hair colour: auburnesque

tagging any and all who feel so inclined (but tag me so i can read your answers!)

[sidewritings]

Tiny Side Adventures: Sleep Should Be Simple

Inspired by this post. Also, check out this version of events by tinysidestrashcaptain.  Sincerest thanks to romananalogicality for the idea, it’s a lot of fun, even if it did grow beyond what I thought it would be.

Pairings: None

Genres: Tiny Sides, Fluff, Adventure, Parenting(ish)

Warnings: Bedtime drama, the joys of parenting

Word Count: 901

Author’s Note: So many feels about this chapter! Just, ugh. Anyway, having a hard time with the next section, so it may not be up ‘on time’. Sorry, dear readers.

Part 1  Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Sleep was posing a problem.

They needed to sleep. That wasn't in question. With Thomas already compromised by the regression of three of his sides, he would need a full night's rest in order to function, or at least not be a danger to himself. That meant Roman had to make sure all of them got a good night's rest. 

He couldn't let them sleep in their own rooms. No, it couldn't be that simple. The furnishings in those rooms were still adult size, they'd be in danger of falling out of bed and getting hurt.  Also, each of the sides could prevent the others from entering their 'rooms'. What if one of them got in trouble and Roman couldn't get in to help them?  

They also couldn't sleep in his room. Roman's 'room' was vast.  It was an entire kingdom, or a world, of imagination.  What if one of them slipped past him and got lost?  Not to mention that his kingdom was where the problem had come from in the first place.  Nope, no way was he going to have them sleep in there.

So they'd all have to bunk down in the living room for a while. Easy enough, just convert the couch into a large, low bed for the three munchkins and he'd sleep in the recliner. He was imagination, he was creativity, he could manage that. Of course, not everything can be dreamt up.

First, Patton needed his Pooh bear stuffie from his room and special ducky blanket. So, Roman had gone into Patton's room, rummaged through his closet, and found the desired objects.  

Then he'd come downstairs to find Logan refusing to get into bed without a story. Roman had to go back upstairs, go into Logan's room, and find a book of children's fairy tales.  Given all the books in there it had been a tall order, although Roman was sure there was some organizational system to it all, a four-year-old didn't have the means to communicate that.  Of course, this book hadn’t been on the well-organized bookshelves lining the walls anyway, it had been tucked under some academic journals on his bed-side table. 

Once he'd changed their clothing into pajamas (considering none of their actual pajamas currently fit) and tucked them all in, and read two stories to them, Roman was more than ready to call it a night. As Logan closed his eyes and Patton was already dozing, Romans dragged himself into the recliner to get some long awaited rest.

He woke to the sound of quiet sobs coming from upstairs. He was on his feet in an instant.  He checked the bed, Logan was holding his Einstein doll and Patton was cuddling Pooh bear. That meant that Virgil was upstairs crying. Oh boy, he had no idea how to deal with this, but he would do it.

Roman walked softly up the stairs and saw Virgil in front of his door. He was in the black and purple striped PJs Roman had changed his clothing into but had somehow created or gotten a hoodie to put on over it. His eyes were puffy and his cheeks were wet, he must have been crying for a while. Moving slowly, Roman sat down next to Virgil.

Virgil glared at him and stuck out his little chin. “Well? You gonna yell at me for being out of bed?”

Roman shook his head. “No. I'm going to ask why you're crying and try to make it better.”

Virgil dropped his gaze to the carpet. “It's stupid. And you don't care anyway. You're just pretending so I'll go back to bed like you want and stop being a bother.”

Roman looked at the young boy on the floor beside him. He was vulnerable, he was scared, and he was convinced Roman didn't care.  It was heartbreaking.

“We fight, all the time. You hated me, and you probably still do.  Just don't pretend, okay?” Virgil had silent tears dripping down his face and Roman couldn't take it anymore, he reached out and pulled Virgil into a hug.

“I am so sorry, Virgil.  I'm sorry I was antagonistic instead of trying to understand you before. I'm sorry I let prejudice blind me and keep me from noticing how wonderful you are. I'm sorry you ever felt that I hated you.  I want to do better. I want to prove that I care about you. Let me do that, please?”

Roman felt Virgil slowly relax into the embrace. Tiny arms finally wrapped around him.

“I wanted my blanket,” Virgil whispered into his shoulder, “but I'm too scared to go in there.” Virgil tensed up and Roman rubbed his back in soothing circles until he relaxed again.

“I'm scared of the monsters under the bed downstairs too.”

Roman slowly let go of Virgil. “Are you okay to stay out here for a minute while I go grab your blanket?” Virgil nodded. “Good, then I'm going to bring your blanket to you, then we're going downstairs. I'll whip up a batch of monster repellant for under the bed, and if you're still worried, you can sleep with me. Okay, Verge?”

A soft thud against his chest and an armful of Virgil was his answer. All in all, not a bad response he thought as he wrapped his arms around the petite anxious side in a warm hug.

Tags List: @virgilmood ,@ashrain5, @zaisling, @01001100-01010011, @sombraplayslazertag, @justanotherpurplebutterfly, @virgils-jacket, @thelogicalloganipus, @fandomsandanythingelse

[dragon-robot]

Thank u Red ily <3

Nickname: Uh. Kinda difficult to get a nickname out of “Sarah” so. Mostly really weird stuff like “Sarahdactyl” (from pterodactyl) and terms of affection like “lovely” or “wifebutt” I know I call him Spouse Human, but come on, seriously??

Zodiac: I have no clue, my dude

Last thing I googled: “google docs bullet indentation settings examples“ and no, I will NOT explain

Song stuck in my head: uhhh the song from Over The Garden Wall in the cloud place/heaven? But only part of it. And, honestly, not very loud. I’m used to much louder songs in my head, so I had to hunt for that.

Height: 5′5″ (Red did you gain 1/4 of an inch?? I thought I was taller than you. Where did this extra 1/4 of an inch come from?)

Followers: 46. Which is like. 50% more than I thought because I very intentionally don’t check lol

Amount of sleep: never enough. Because I hate it. I HATE sleeping. Waste of mY TIME. I am TOO ADHD FOR SLEEP. ugh i hate sleep

Lucky number: I mean, I don’t think it’s lucky, but I like the number 4?

Favorite song: I dunno. It changes often. Right now, let’s go with Dodie’s Burnt Out.

Favorite instrument: Piano. It’s just darn pretty and you can do so much with it!

Favorite author: WOW I’m not good at favorites. Too sleepy, don’t have an answer, sorry!!

Random: I hated the bullet journal culture when it hit its height like 3 or so years ago. Like, don’t come into my house and tell me that I *have* to start using *this specific way* of writing things down and using a calendar and make it sound like it’s for functionality and ease of use and then show me color coded giant block schedules that take up two pages and made up symbol charts to memorize and calligraphy and professional-level graphic designs by hand and just, what??

Cut to now. I am re-introduced to the actual concepts behind the bullet journal. ACTUAL ease of use. The entire symbol chart is optional, but there are some smart things built into one or two, like a symbol for “I didn’t do this to-do item, so I’m moving it to my next to-do list” (so you can look back and see how many times you put off doing that thing and then realize that it’s not worth re-writing one more hecking time, you’re never gonna do it). The index? Gosh why didn’t I start using an index sooner?? My complaint about paper organizational systems is I can’t “control-f” on paper. This isn’t a perfect solution to that, but it helps a LOT. Now, I’m still not doing the whole system of like, “future logs” and whatever, I’m just a goofball with a love of spiral bound, cheap notebooks and a lot of pens who has added an index to the back of her notebook. But I’m actually finding myself looking for more info on this stuff and seeing what parts of it would work for me. And I’m kinda liking it.

But I will still roll my eyes at anyone who says “bujo” and that is a threat.

Favorite book: Ooh! A favorite I know for sure!! Howl’s Moving Castle. I still remember who suggested it to me. I remember the cover of the copy of the book that my library had. I remember trying to argue that I should get to use examples from it on my English final one year. I love that book. My copy is so beat up lol

Favorite movie: Emperor’s New Groove. It’s a good time, friend.

tagging: @ninja-knox-ur-sox-off​ @dragon-of-the-sea​ @journalofimprobablethings​ if you want to, and anyone who wants to that I didn’t tag, please do, I LOVE reading these <3

17 questions, 17 people

(Tagged by @tea-tavern)

Nickname: Alex short for Alexandria, Mora, or Nora.

Zodiac: Pisces♓

Last thing I googled: pictures of Pyrrah Nikos from RWBY (I'm working on a drawing)

Song stuck in my head: O.D.D. by Hey Violet

Height: 5'4 I think...?

Followers:

Amount of sleep: well...I went 48 hours without sleep then got 5 last night...

Lucky number: 16

Favorite song: shiiiiiiz....um....O.D.D. or Boop from RWBY

Favorite instrument: guitar and violin

Favorite author: uhhhh....idk....I have so many

Random: uh....listen...idk...*forgets everything about myself*

Favorite book: again...I have so many

Favorite movie: Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them

Tagging: @punktransandwhalem @icebutterfly116 @hadesisqueer @animegeekforlife @aerohaze @blake-belladonna-defence-force @bookishfangirl14 @cinnder @enigmew @frankielucky @nova-a3 @tutantmeenageneetleteetles @the-one-and-only-ruby-rose @throughthiswindow @tupayapsina @violettalespinner @whiterosebranches @yangs-vibrating-arm @neopolitea

[minyeodan]

questions tag

hello hello i was tagged by the darl @hwangminyeo and @hyun95!!!

under the cut are my answers + tags hueheuhue

THE LAST

drink: cold brew coffee to wake myself the fuck up after waking up at 5am for wanna one energetic mv to drop icb

phone call: i think with qiqi (@minhyuun) oh my god

text message: idk does line count? then it’s “i support ur trashiness with all my heart” @ qiqi

song you listened to: “DNA” by kendrick lamar

time you cried: this morning bc i was so tired lol my eyes were watering

HAVE YOU EVER

dated someone twice: no

kissed someone and regretted it: yes

been cheated on: no

lost someone special: yes

been depressed: yes

gotten drunk and thrown up: many times tbh LOL

3 FAVORITE COLORS

red

pink

blue

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU

made new friends: yes

fallen out of love: no

laughed until you cried: yes bc qiqi is trash

found out someone was talking about you: yes (qiqi @ her boyfriend icb but he ships us now)

met someone who changed you: yes (@ all my mutuals who enable my trashiness esp qiqi)

found out who your friends are: yes

kissed someone on your Facebook list: yes

GENERAL

how many Facebook friends do you know in real life: like 99%

do you have any pets: no

do you want to change your name: nah

what did you do for your last birthday: ate bibimbap and cake with my dad and lil sis :)

what time did you wake up: 5am...........rip i hate myself

what were you doing at midnight last night: withering away & screaming at qiqi i think

name something you can’t wait for: KCON LA OMFG

when was the last time you saw your mom: summer 2015

what are you listening to right now: “energetic”

have you ever talked to a person named tom: yes

something that is getting on your nerves: the fact that hwang minhyun is ruINING MY LIFE

most visited website: tumblr probably

hair color: dark brown

long or short hair: medium? a lil past my shoulders

do you have a crush on someone: @ all my mutuals

what do you like about yourself: i type fast..........

blood type: B+

nickname: nutting trash 

relationship status: single

zodiac: taurus

pronouns: she/her/hers

favorite tv show: new journey to the west omfg

tattoos: none and prob never bc im too indecisive

right or left handed: right

surgery: nope

sport: i used to do modern dance LOL

vacation: spent a month in korea this summer

pair of shoes: idk my me too sandals? and my keds prob

MORE GENERAL

eating: all these showcon fancams are feeding me real well

drinking: water now bc im a thirsty bitch ;)

I’m about to: eat

waiting for: my phone to finish charging

want: to drink hite extra cold beer tbh

get married: idk if i meet the right person and feel comfortable with my career at that point

career: praying to become a thriving organizational development consultant ten years from now

WHICH IS BETTER

hugs or kisses: hugs

lips or eyes: ugh idk eyes probably but i really like pretty lips

shorter or taller: taller

older or younger: older

nice arms or nice stomach: arms

hook up or relationship: relationship

troublemaker or hesitant: hesitant

HAVE YOU EVER

kissed a stranger: yes

drank hard liquor: yes

lost glasses/contact lenses: honestly i temporarily lose my glasses pretty much every day, sooooo

turned someone down: yes

sex on the first date: no

broken someone’s heart: yes

had your heart broken: nu’est ;;;;;;; 2hyun separation;;;;;;; MINHYUN CRYING POST-FINALE

been arrested: not yet lol

cried when someone died: yes

fallen for a friend: no

DO YOU BELIEVE IN

yourself: sometimes

miracles: i mean hwang minhyun’s existence is a miracle and also the fact i met @minhyuun and my minbooties squad here????

love at first sight: yes bc @minhyuun :’)

santa clause: no

kiss on the first date: if u want to why not i dont judge

angels: yes bc hwang minhyun exists

OTHER

eye color: dark brown

favorite movie: spirited away omfg

im tagging some cuties whose content i rly appreciate: @minhyuun @kangbaeks @ongeuigeon @bbaekmin @eon1bugi @oneminhyun (hi everyone i just want to let you know i appreciate + admire you all. thank you so much for your incredible contributions to the love and/or wannable fandoms. and feel free to ignore this!)

& of course the minbooties squad: @2hyeons @minhwangs @hyuncakes @emperorhwangs (+ abby who tagged me!)

and @ anyone else who wants to do this!!

peace out darlings xx

[misguidedsims]

“sink” chatter & replies

hey, hey. 

so i’m not sure if i’m too tired to attempt loading the queue for tomorrow. i think i probably am -- it was crazy hot today and it zapped all my strength. in any case, there’s some lazy-man’s replies under the cut. 

(here have this outtake of briar and desi that never happened bc i’m the worst person ever and briar’s dead) 

i wanted to say a couple of things about sink first though. i meant to when i started gen 3, and i’ll probably go back and edit the “cover” image post to include some general info/trigger warnings at some point. but my organizational skills are horrible lately, so... here goes.

while this is a continuation of the pope legacy, i obviously am doing things a bit differently than i was before. this is mainly because it got too character heavy for me to keep up, so i needed to limit the perspective/pov when i was posting things. this will allow me to condense how i tell the story (so the gen doesn’t go on for years like gen 2), without dropping all the characters. i also am trying to improve my pacing, so that things are happening more. i feel like that’s my biggest weakness in writing. so hopefully i get better at that! 

now some important things to note about sink in terms of things changing... 

as everyone knows, tumblr has implemented it’s own censuring tools. a lot of sims 4 posts get marked (and obvs everything rn) as nsfw even when it isn’t. my blog is no different. i do go through a request review, but the process is slow. so if you’re under 18, just know that i do my best to keep up with that but i’m sorry. 

that being said -- a lot more of my posts are actually going to be nsfw this gen. 

because my teens will be tackling some heavy topics. i’m just going to tell you there will be some serious trigger warnings 

[[ HEY -- SPOILERS LAY AHEAD ]] including eating disorders, teen sex, teens talking about sex, so many sex references listen... i think sex is all these guys plan to talk about i’m srs, teen pregnancy, suicidal tendencies, mood disorders, violence, sexual preference bashing, bullying, drugs, alcohol, terrible parental units, possibly child abuse... those are the things that i know about. [[OKAY SPOILERS ARE BEHIND ]]

i will use trigger warnings and nsfw tags. i will also try to make a warning post the week or day (depending on how i load my queue) beforehand. 

but if any of this scares you... well... the best i can tell you is we’re not in kansas anymore. so if you don’t like oz, hey no hard feelings... i can’t keep doing the popes the way i was doing it before, it was making me yawn a little. i love you guys as my followers, but also i gotta like loading this queue or it’ll keep going dead so ^_^ 

hopefully, you enjoy what’s coming. i’m excited for it. thank you guys for reading, liking, following, commenting... all that! 

replies under the cut.

darkhunters13 replied to your photoset

I was hoping Desi would inherit the blonde hair but she is still so beautiful 

sweetchocolateysims

replied to your photoset

“when no one answers, chlesea pauses flipping pancakes to glance over...”

Did Desi make it??

yes! she looks like some kind of tiny super-model, idk what to do with myself honestly. she’s crazy adorable! 

sweetcocoberry replied to your photoset

LISTEN HERE! How could you... how could you bring these tears out of my body. These tears should never be outside this body.

nvaleee replied to your photoset

Why are you breaking my heart????

darkhunters13 replied to your photoset

I'm not crying, it's just raining. Inside my house

malyenoretsev replied to your photoset

HOW DARE YOU

darkhunters13 replied to your photoset

I'm crying

malyenoretsev replied to your photoset

How dare you though

pretty much all of sink is brand new eyes (plus every other sad paramore song ever) so... you know... prepare to die. i mean... it is called “sink” so... i kind of warned you??? 

sweetchocolateysims replied to your photoset

Getting a very OG Liam and Chelsea vibe and I'm loving it! Most definitely looking forward to see what happens to the two.

yes, this is very much so the case. when i planned grace, i knew she was a lot like chelsea. evan’s not a lot like liam though (well he is but... well you’ll see liam now and the liam you knew are so not the same, so). anyway! i’d buckle up, it’s gonna be a long ride lol

darkhunters13

replied to your photoset

“yeah? what kinds of things are important to you?” evan asked. he had...”

Dump him

about ashley & evan ... yeah. they get better, i think. but they get worse too. so, you know, you’re right. but ashley lacks the self-esteem and self-respect to heed that advice, so. yeah... she’s not gonna. unfortunately for all of you. and all these teens too, bc i think they’re all over ashlevan already. 

sweetchocolateysims

replied to your photoset

“dylan: “if you try to make my new life difficult, i will destroy you....”

Huh, well that kinda answers my question. But I'll ask anyway. Would Dylan ever kill the kids? Even his "daughter"?

you asked this forever ago, but hey! hi! i think dylan would do anything to protect himself (so yes, if he had to) and unless he has some serious character development that’s not likely to change. but, also, i love character development. so maybe it will get better. but also, allison -- sadly bc she’s gorgeous and her storyline is awesome -- does not  have a huge role in my outline rn for “sink” so... probably we won’t find out.

simpyre replied to your photoset

no, seriously. wtf. bringing Akira back to their place? you WANTED to get caught, didn't you?

ugh. i had an entire side story for akira and like his criminal adventures but i just don’t think i have the time. to my eternal disappointment. also, there was a whole scene i cut out (i cut out a whole lot of ronan and reese scenes in gen 2 bc there was too much else to tell, sadly) of ronan’s where akira shows up there to say goodbye to him bc he’s leaving town. and that’s why he was at the apt. but also, yes, ronan wanted to blow up his relationship. that is also true.

i’m sure there were many things i didn’t reply to. but this was mostly bc by this point i think events have replied for me. i’m always saying i’ll get better about replies, so i just won’t even lie to myself! i’ll try! do know i always read your replies though and love them. so much.

[bambamramfan]

Superheroes

[Thing I wrote when Marvel was first promising a “woman Thor”]

I admit I was a little bothered by an article I saw bemoaning recent trends in science fiction and other genre movies. I don't argue with it's data, so much as the tilt of its conclusions. The article complains that scifi movies these days aren't really about the future, but rather about a different vision of now. They're not about tomorrow, they're about today.

Of course they are about today. Science fiction in all forms is always about today. Because today is all we know. We can talk about the future but it's almost entirely commentary on the current world, and the current truths we live in. None of us are from tomorrow, how could we write to it?

This is a good thing. It means science fiction (and other work) can tell us lessons for our current lives.

The other trend this article laments is the too many superheroes. A movie about superheroes isn't really a movie about us.

But much like "writing about the future" is really talking about today, then writing about "superheroes" can really be talking about everyone. When Spiderman recalls "with great power comes great responsibility", our reaction should not be "wow sounds like such a burden I'm glad I'm not him."

So I wanted to write about superheroes some. What are they telling us?

And first off, we need to distinguish a Super Hero movie from… well, a vigilante movie. A superhero is about a symbol that inspires the general populace. It's not that they do great things, but they proclaim "great things can be done."

A vigilante is just a dude who hits things pretty hard and solves the problem themselves.

What is Superman's power in one term? His power is to do the impossible. It's why they kept adding new powers all the time until cannon froze around Crisis on Infinite Earths (and why the end of Superman the movie wasn't shocking). It's all about thinking something is impossible, and then doing it! In an unexpected, garish, and often fairly public way. This is why the most famous line about him is "Up in the air, it's a bird, it's a plane, it's Superman!" He is all about us, the public, witnessing and being in awe of his impossibleness. (And his second most famous line, about truth, justice and the American way, is also meant to be inspiring.)

Superman's secret identity is a nebbish reporter who is almost offensively normal. This isn't a subtle disdain on his part, but rather a promise. Anyone could secretly be Superman. Why, even *you* could secretly be Superman. Any day you could rip off your shirt, fly over the moon, and save the city.

Superman is hope. Kryptonite represents, well, cynicism.

Batman, is like the opposite of this in all ways. He lurks in the shadows, and really does intend to fix all the problems himself. Batman is well known for inspiring an emotion – and that emotion is fear, in his enemies. (The yellow lanterns admit he is the greatest of them.) He's not a symbol for us to be in awe of, he's a symbol for others to cower before.

Populist fans admire Batman because he's human whereas Superman "cheats" by being an alien with superpowers. But well, I can be Clark Kent. We can't be Bruce Wayne. He's born a billionaire and has psychological fixtures we can never replicate. There's nothing populist about lionizing a obsessive billionaire.

(This is part of why The Dark Knight is such a morally bankrupt movie. People are inspired by Batman to be like him – and they are depicted as objects of pathetic ridicule who need to be stopped for their own safety. Gotham does need a hero to look up to, and so Batman and Gordon invent one out of a lie. It's basically saying "inspiration is for suckers.")

Who would win in a fight between Superman and Batman? That's really asking "Who would win in a fight between hope and fear?"

(Maybe if fear wore a ring of cynicism… See how these symbols work?)

***

Which brings me to the other goliath that's dominating the public imagination vis a vis superheroes and vigilantes: the Avengers. What do each of them stand for? By and large, they're not vigilantes.

Captain America is very, very obviously a superhero. His meek background is used to emphasize that anyone of us could become the symbol of idealism he currently is.

Iron Man is a billionaire yes, but at least he's a superhero for libertarians. He flaunts his power and oblivious do-gooder spirit, and encourages everyone else to be as smart as him and show up Uncle Sam who wants to horde all the cool toys to themselves. He's a fairly amoral superhero, but still it's something.

The Hulk is more primal than any of the above. It's not necessarily a pleasant inspiration to see him trampling through a metropolis, but it promises a sort of chaotic, undifferentiated power. There's more things than dreamt of in our philosophies.

Thor. And then there's Thor.

***

Oh my goodness, a woman Thor is such a bad idea. Why? Well lets go through the above Avengers and see what sort of inspiration they stand for. Then we can ask, how would a woman version of that character change the interpretation?

Captain America stands for America of course, but he also stands for idealism itself. He believes in people, and not out of naivete. He sees the fallen world and still believes in the best.  He never compromises, but also never loses faith in the people he cares about. A woman filling that role… is actually a radical departure AND an unambiguously good statement. I don't even know what it would mean, but I'd like to see it.

A woman Iron Man means like, nothing. You can be rich and smart and make things and generally disdainful of other people AND a woman. Iron Man is not a good person, he just happens to tag along for good things. There's nothing inherently revolutionary about a woman filling that role instead. It would work pretty smoothly and we might not even notice the difference. It would be Ayn Rand, but less edgy.

(Perhaps the best joke in that comic would be that when she's inside the suit of armor, no one can tell the difference between her and Tony Stark at all.)

The Hulk? The Hulk is basically phallic power. The woman version of the Hulk… is already a really popular comic called She-Hulk. And any fan of that series knows that she mostly solves her problems without or going beyond the use of brute force. She's clever and has personal skills besides her super powers (Note: superscience is a superpower. Itisn’t really a skill any of us can develop. Her organizational skills are.) The entire comic is basically a joke "What would a woman do with a phallus? Not much, she doesn’t need it." Consequently, it's a pretty good comic.

So what is Thor. Thor stands for worthiness. He didn't create or climb to his power, it was just given to him for who he is (son of Odin). But on the other hand, it necessitates an incredible standard that he must always maintain. He's good-hearted, loyal, determined, and many other generically good moral traits. Whenever he goes against Asgardian-morality, he loses his powers. The chief feature of his hammer is that no one else can lift it – Mjolnir is a worthiness symbol just as much as the sword in the stone. He doesn't even want his future kingship, which is contrasted with his very UNworthy brother.

I don't really like this, even though I like Thor. He's generally a liberal superhero arguing on the liberal side of things when politics comes up. And he dearly loves his brother, even as he's a pathetic snake. These are great things, but are largely treated as inconvenient biproducts of his essential worthiness. Like "Oh yeah, Thor is very generous because he's worthy, which means he will never give up on Loki, but that's just Thor, that's not at all a sign that *we* shouldn't give up on Loki." (This contrasts with Captain America. When Cap never gives up on Bucky, we understand that *we* should never give up on Bucky either. Faith in Bucky is *why* we admire Cap. For Thor, it's just a side-effect.) And worthiness… is not a good meta-virtue. Judging that people can only have certain power if they meet a standard of personality, is a fairly destructive moral heuristics. I could give plenty of examples of groups where this goes more wrong than right.

You know what group *really* doesn't need more of the message of worthiness? Women. A woman Thor would basically redouble on his inherent message that you can only participate if you meet certain unwritten standards. That you have no inherent value, but you have to prove your value every day. Ugh ugh ugh. How many times are women already told this? Too many.

This would be bad. So bad.

Now, one comic reinforcing sexism isn't going to be the dowfall of western civilization, obviously. But here's what will happen. The very people excited for "A Big Name Woman Superhero!" are going to find themselves… surprised. Upset. Woman Thor will be trying to live up to impossible standards, and only praised when she does (or punished when she strays from the arbitrarily chosen moral path) and holy shit will that look uncomfortable to readers. And Thor will meekly accept that and continue to try to retain the good graces of Odin.

Imagine the first scene where woman Thor can’t lift Mjolnir for whatever stupid reason it is this week.

They'll wonder why, and they'll conclude "latent sexism by the writers" which was half true, but was inevitable from the word go because of what Thor stands for. And since no one will be happy from this, it counts as a bad idea.

There is of course, one way this could be redeemed, but it would be the end of the comic. Thor could go before Odin, after she has strayed, and say "My time as a woman has taught me what utter bullshit all these rules and moral standards are. Fuck worthiness. Fuck you. I am done with all this. Me and Loki are out."

That would be rad.

[malonepolitics]

What the heck are we doing?

September 30 - October 5, 2018  Suburbs of Detroit, Michigan

Maybe we have lost our minds, but it seems in many ways the US has also. 

Not being very active in politics in the past (voting, of course, and making some contributions to some past campaigns) we suddenly are in the thick of it joining a group of like-minded folks to campaign for two issues and a US House candidate in Michigan. This recent activism is not a very long story, since it only started a little over a month ago when we attended a series of lectures by David Domke on the history of voting rights in the US.  About the middle of the second lecture Linda leaned over to me and said, “Oh-oh, we are not going to finish this series without getting involved”.   Indeed she was right.  Within a couple of weeks we had attended organizational meetings and signed up with the group called “Common Purpose” to go to Michigan for a week. We have just finished up this interesting, a little scary and very satisfying trip.  Here I recount a few highlights and thoughts on the experience.  If you think this might be a typical  “L & S Malone trips” blog, sorry, this is serious stuff.

The preparation

We attended the first organizational meeting of Common Purpose on Sep. 15 where we realized it was only OUR first meeting. There have been many more in the past including previous campaign trips all over the country.  There were a lot of rah-rah “team building” and motivational talks at this meeting, but looking at the group of people who are seriously involved is indeed motivational.  While not really into this sort of thing, I felt the vibe.  Toward the end of the meeting the group, maybe 200 strong, split up into groups associated with about 10 different states to which a trip was planned to help with particular campaigns.  Before we knew it we were talking with Ron, the Michigan trip leader (the only trip for which the timing would work for us).  Linda and I looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders and signed up.  Within a few days we had our plane tickets, motel and car reservations, so we were committed.

I must say that Linda is the main instigator.  I am not so much of a joiner for this sort of thing.  I detest being called on the phone by robots even if a real person is on the other end, and I am not much for knocking on strangers’ doors.  It seems that almost everyone in the group agrees to some extent with these sentiments, but all assured me that I could get over my phobias and would feel good about doing this no matter what.  We attended one additional meeting two weeks later for “training”, etc., and there was again lots of rah-rah and kumbaya stuff but also a very interesting small group discussion.  I ended up in a group of four; one union member/organizer, one previous politician and an older (my age), African-American guy who had been invited to this meeting by his son who is part of the leadership team.  It turned out that this guy and I had something in common.  We had both grown up in the South in segregated schools.  OK, not the same experience, but in discussions we realized that there were more similarities than one might think. As kids we both accepted school segregation as just the way was even if it didn’t seem right.  Neither of us, at the the time, realized how destructive it was.  We made plans to try and get together again some time later to compare our growing-up experiences in the deep South from our very different backgrounds.

The only other preparation we did for the Michigan trip was to read some campaign material handed out and go online to get a feeling for the issues from newspapers and web pages, both pro and con.  There are three state initiative proposals on the ballot two of which we were needed to campaign for. “Proposal 1″ regarded marijuana legalization, which we were not involved with - but maybe could have used.  “Proposal 2” is a redistricting plan to try to do away with gerrymandering.  Michigan has some of the most bizarrely shaped congressional districts designed solely by the the party in power behind closed doors to make sure they stay in power.  This gerrymandering also has the effect of keeping minority party members in power even if they do little for their constituents.  Consequently, not many actual politicians from either party are strongly supportive.  The initiative campaign is totally grassroots and non-partisan.  The name for this initiative is “Voters not Politicians” with a tag-line of “Lets get the people to choose the politicians rather than the other way around”.  “Proposal 3” is the “Promote the Vote” initiative, which seems not to have a lot of opposition.  It is a fairly complicated initiative of seven items to remove many obstacles to registering and/or voting that currently are relatively subtle but effective voter suppression provisions.  Michigan’s laws are nowhere near as egregious as in many southern states but still could benefit from improvements to just get more people to vote.  Perhaps our most important and interesting campaign was for a challenger to the current US House member in the fairly Republican 8th congressional district.  Elissa Slotkin jumped into this race fairly recently easily winning the Democratic Party’s nomination.  With a very strong background in international relations and national security she has recently taken on health care and environmental issues as ones that Michiganders have increasing concerns about.  The poles currently have the candidates almost tied, so a win for her would be a real coup. Somehow we would be doing something in an area near Detroit, MI to help with these three campaigns.  We were told to be prepared for phone banking (ugh) and door belling (scary).  What the heck are we doing joining such activities?

The Trip

Our flight to Detroit left last Monday at 7am.  Yuk.  Fortunately for us our lovely daughter Erika was on a slightly later flight to Pittsburgh where she was leading a national training workshop on affordable housing issues for municipal departments.  She picked us up at 5am in a car-to-go (clever girl) in plenty of time for our uneventful flight. Fourteen of our sixteen member, Team Michigan (motto: “pedal to the metal”  facebook: #commonpurposemichigan) folks were on the same flight.  We rented a car and took two others to our Red Roof Inn motel; very basic (no pool, no spa, no exercise room, no breakfast, no mints on our pillows but clean with a comfortable bed).  Our first activity was a training session that evening at a local tavern where, it turned out, we did not have a separate room as planned but rather were in the main, very loud area at a long table.  Two local campaign staffers came to brief us who were, unfortunately, nearly impossible to hear.  A happy result was that when the pub’s owner heard who we were and what we were doing comp-ed us the dinner and drinks (should have ordered the lobster dinner and top-shelf bourbon).

The following morning we all met at a breakfast place where we had a separate, quiet room and got trained on “Proposal 3”, our first cause, and also on how to use the smartphone app called “MiniVan” (nothing to do with multi-passenger vehicles).  This app provides the names, addresses, ages and a map of our canvassing area and also a way to record our results for each “door”.  Each of our three campaigns provided us with “lit” (literature) and “turfs” (down-loadable lists of 30 - 50 addresses).  One could work from a hard-copy and clipboard form, which the old hands swore by.  However, even a few of them switched to MiniVan when they realized how simple and convenient it was. Training for Proposal 2 and the Slotkin campaign took place either after the first lunch or the second morning.

Each morning and afternoon groups of 2 or 3 people would head out in a car to do one or two (or for the hot-shots three) turfs in a session. Most turfs were in the mega-suburbia of Rochester Hills (white-flight area 25 miles north of Detroit).  I have never seen such expanses of green lawns lined up as far as the eye could see; actually, not so far in the twisty, cull-de-sacky developed subdivisions of 1980s-90s vintage.  Typically we would pull up and leave our car in the middle of a turf and spread out in three different directions walking between addresses listed in our app.  They were rarely every house since they were targeted to voters who were either unknown or undecided.  Those known to be either strongly for or against the issue/candidate were not canvassed since it would be a waste of time in either case.  At first we were under the impression that mostly we were to sample preferences, but it soon became clear that it was OK…. actually expected, that we would do persuasion on those contacts who were undecided.

I was very nervous at first…. and never got totally comfortable, with ringing a door bell and if someone answered (only about 1/4 to 1/3 of the time), introducing myself and why I was there and then trying to sell them on the issue/candidate. Most people were at least minimally polite, some very gracious, even if they were on the other side politically. A few were down right rude and one who came up to me on the street was aggressively nasty; asking if I had a permit to be in the neighborhood, threatening to call the police if I didn’t leave and he would be watching me.  We skipped a few houses right around his.  It left a bad taste in my mouth but provided an interesting story to tell at dinner that night.  Our sub-group of 9 people staying at the Red Roof Inn would compare notes each night over dinner.  We all seemed to be having similar experiences of generally interested, polite people with the rare unpleasant one. The positive experiences far outweighed the few bad ones. Here are a few Linda and I remember:

An older couple (90 and 91) both come to the door.  I ask if they know about Elissa Slotkin.  They say, “not much”.  I give a long-winded shpeal about who and how great she is and why they should vote for her.  They say, “OK, we will”. I say, “what about signing a reminder pledge card that will be sent back to you shortly before the election”.  OK, they sign it and then thank me for the good information. Then, as I am leaving they tell me that now they remember Elissa and were going to vote for her in the first place.

I ring a slightly down-at-the-dumps looking house.  A man comes to the door and the name I have is for a woman.  I ask if she is there.  He yells to the other room and the woman comes out, sees my Elissa Slotkin button, comes out of the house and closes the door.  I ask her about Elissa, and she quickly says she knows all about her.  I start to say more and she whispers over her shoulder to me as she goes back in the house that she is a strong supporter and will vote for sure.  I put her down as a supporter and note that her “roommate” is not.

A refreshing interlude occurred on our last day.  A young man is zooming down the street on roller-blades being pulled by his dog.  As he sees our Slotkin buttons he gives a big wave and yells that he is voting for her.

Some of our most interesting, but semi-scary work was in an area another 30 miles north in a very rural area near the town of Holly, MI where Elissa lives on her family’s farm.  Our turf houses were either along a busy rural highway or off a muddy back road.  There were NO lawns here; though one woman was out on a riding mower in what could have been a pasture.  In a few cases as one headed into the woods to find an “address” one imagined the banjo theme from Deliverance playing in the distance.  All had long drives and many had big, barking dogs.

I head down the drive toward one, and here comes rover barking like mad to scare me off.  I give him a good glare and then a nice voice and he starts wagging like mad as the owner comes hoofing down the drive to call off the dog.  The name I have is for a woman whom I ask for.  He leads me around back of his house and onto his porch.  As soon as I say ask about Elissa he and the woman both start talking a mile a minute about how great she is and how bad the Republican in office now is and how the ranker in DC is just terrible and how Elissa has the right attitude and on and on and would I like a glass of lemonade and I should be careful turning my car around that I don’t get stuck. What?  You are walking?  You better sit for a while and rest up and be careful walking on the highway.  No one does that.  Oh, and don’t go to the guy who lives next door.  Old whoever is a nasty old Trumpest who will shoot you if you come on his property.  “OK”, I say, “so I can put you down is a supporter and old whoever next door as a no”?  The lady then says, “Yep and put down our son, who is in town now, as a yes and our daughter, who is in New Jersey right now, as a yes.  Oh, we better call her to make sure she gets her absentee ballot in”.

In the same area Linda found a couple of old dudes sitting on a back porch looking over the local lake smoking cigars.  They looked to be Bubba and Bubba but were quite friendly.  However, the one not on the turf list says something like, “She’s the one John McCain hates. She looks a little slimy to me”.  But the other guy pipes up, “Naw, she’s OK. I’ll probably vote for her”. After a bit more chit chat they indicate that they are just out here in the woods doing “man stuff”.  Linda, says “Ok, good luck. Have a nice evening” and heads quickly for the next address.  Nobody wants to know what Bubba and Bubba’s man stuff is.

One address I had was down a long drive with a few run-down, out-buildings on either side, and the house on my list is not much better.  It looks as if someone lives there, but it is just a tar paper, tin roof shack itself.  I think it has electricity but hard to tell the front door from the side one.  After knocking both and getting no answer I look through to the back yard where drying on the line are two large and one smaller pair of full sleeved long-johns, complete with drop bottom.  I guess they had just done the family laundry getting ready for winter.  Really sorry I didn’t get to meet the family or get a photo of the place.

This rural turf was certainly the most spread out and took the longest to do, but the reward at the end was great.  We were all invited to Elissa Slotkin’s farm to meet the candidate.  She was running behind filming an ad for TV, so we waited in a screened-in porch drinking beer and snacking on chips.  After a bit she joined us.  Some pizza arrived, and we sat around eating and chatting about all sorts of issues….. actually, just politics.  She is a very impressive lady with energy and stamina that is hard to believe. What a treat for us. She took the time for us foreigners after a very long day.  Even posing with us for a group photo (Elissa is the lady in a blue top, front row, left of center).  We didn’t get back to the motel until after 11pm.

After four very full and satisfying days of pounding the pavement my feet were toast.  Our step counters indicate somewhere around 13 - 18,000 steps a day (5.5 -7 miles).  As many know, I am a cyclist.  Walking is for losers.  Oops, I signed on for the wrong activity.  But still I (and all of Team Michigan) would rather this than phone-banking.  Linda and I left on Friday afternoon but could have done another turf in the morning.  I feel guilty that we wimped out and slept in a bit. With the help of another team member, Richard, who was leaving on the same flight we did a quick pilgrimage to the graves of Rosa Parks and Aretha Franklin and then did a drive-through, tourist visit of downtown Detroit before heading to the airport. We got back to Seattle, and because of the gracious lift Richard’s wife provided, we were in time to attend a fund raiser for “Rebuilding Together - Seattle” at MOHAI.  Yikes, too much civic duty stuff in one week. 

 After I have had some time to recover and cogitate on the past week I may fill in another post with erudite missives covering a newbies reactions to getting out of ones comfort zone in politics.  I also may add some statistics about how many doors knocked, people talked to, dogs kicked, votes secured  (from our leader’s calculations).  In the mean time thanks to the the whole Team Michigan for your companionship and encouragement to us newbies.  A particular big thanks to Ron, our leader whose low-key, but totally organized plans kept us busy in an efficient way but never pressured us to take on more than we could comfortably do.

Also see: facebook: #commonpurposemichigan

Now, it’s time to take a break, kick back and watch some soccer with a beer this weekend.