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A new way to navigate Tumblr
If you use Tumblr on a web browser, you might have noticed us testing a brand new navigation on your dashboard in the last month. Now, after some extensive tweaks, we’ve begun rolling out this new dashboard navigation to everyone using a web browser. Welcome to the new world. It’s very like the old world, just in a different layout.
Why are we doing this? We want it to be as easy as possible for everyone to understand and explore what’s happening on Tumblr—newbies and seasoned travelers alike.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/06f1918af89bf65bbb5acc20abdcc487/1a2f4e9020ae3388-84/s540x810/a86b5c2c27fade08a1dd090a23ca1dd950fbea49.webp)
Labels over icons: When adding something new to Tumblr in the past, we’d simply add a new icon to our navigation with little further explanation. Turns out no one likes to press a button when they don’t know what it does. So now, where there’s space, the navigation includes text labels. Since adding these, we’ve noticed more of you venturing to previously unexplored corners of Tumblr. Intrepid!
What’s already been fixed? Thanks to feedback from folks during the testing phase, we’ve been able to make some improvements right out of the gate. Those include returning settings subpages (Account, Dashboard, etc.) to the right of the settings page instead of having them in an expandable item in the navigation on the left; fixing some issues with messaging windows on smaller screens; and streamlining the Account section to make it easier to get to your blogs.
What’s next? We’re looking into making a collapsible version of this navigation and improving the use of screen space for those of you with enormous screens. We’re also working on improving access to your account and sideblogs.
That’s all for now, folks. For questions and suggestions, contact Support using the “Feedback” category. Please select the “Report a bug or crash” category on the support form for technical issues. And keep an eye out for more updates here on @changes.
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Quickly being reminded of how much Martin Blackwood really is the character of all time. He faked his CV. He’s a serial arsonist. He has mommy issues. He got pissed at his boyfriend for killing their boss without him. He gets the hots when said boyfriend kills monsters with his eldritch horror powers. His love language is tea. He’s got psychopathic tendencies. He writes poetry. He made up a fake middle name for no reason. He’s gay. He’s fucked up. He’s even trapped in a modified version of Windows NT 4.0, a business focused predecessor to Windows 95. I can only hope to one day create a character so iconic.
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TEACH YOU HOW TO GET TO PUREST HELL - L.H.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/6ee059cf089f0823eae5e28529649685/2bf5f92f14472c34-7c/s540x810/7293cb608f9a22eba33b7b10ca5e93c2391f850b.jpg)
Summary: On the way to one of his cage fights, Logan's truck begins to break down and that's how he meets you, the owner of a repair shop in Northern Alberta. He promises to pay you with his winnings - but what he ultimately offers is far more interesting.
Pairing: Logan Howlett x Female Reader
Warnings: Smut 18+ only, Fluff, Flirting, Dirty talk, Praise kink, Fingering, Unprotected sex (against the cage), Aftercare, Logan's a snarky motherfucker (but secretly a softie)
A/N: The filthiest 4k I've ever written. I just know he was a menace during his cage fighter era. It's okay though, I'll still be clawing at the enclosure. Title creds to Radiohead. Hope you enjoy!
MASTERLIST
Smoke curls around him, bearing a semblance of warmth against the biting wind. Logan's grip on the steering wheel is loose, the other arm draped lazily across the window. He flicks his fingertips ever so often, the ashes of his cigar disappearing into the falling snow. Mile after mile, the same barren landscape stretches before him.
He's lost amidst the silence, having turned the radio all the way down in frustration at the nonsense plaguing the stations earlier. As sunshine glares through the windshield, he scrunches his eyebrows, vaguely entertaining some ideas swirling in his mind.
Hours pass by painfully slow. He tries to ignore the low rumbling that interrupts his flow of thoughts, body firmly protesting against this all-alcohol diet he'd unintentionally adopted. Logan skims a hand into the glove compartment, clicking his tongue when he discovers only a few wrappers lying inside. Slumping back into the seat, he takes another drag, disappointment etching onto his features.
An orange, flashing icon on the dashboard snaps his attention. His eyes dart to the blinking light, a sense of irritation washing over him when he recognises the ‘check engine’ symbol. In a haste, he pulls the truck over, slamming the door shut behind him as he ventures into the cold to inspect the issue. Though he has an extensive knowledge of motorcycles, by no means does that expertise carry over to whatever mess he finds beneath the hood. Logan returns with a sigh, recalling a faded road sign he'd passed ages ago - at least he isn't awfully far from his destination.
In the distance, the town welcome monument brings him some sort of peace. After driving by plenty of dimly lit diners and pubs, he reluctantly asks a stranger for directions to the nearest repair shop. Logan arrives shortly thereafter, parking at the entrance of this seemingly empty building. Curious, he scans the place, sliding out of his seat in search of anyone.
The distinct ring of metal hitting the floor has him spinning around. He fights back the amused huff at the sight of you, bottom lip slightly caught between his teeth in an attempt to stop the smirk threatening to break free. His eyes rake over your figure as you come closer - appreciating the way your overalls perfectly capture the slopes and curves of your body - before finally, rising to meet your unimpressed expression.
"What're you here for?"
There's a smidge of annoyance in your words, a reaction he very much enjoys being the reason for. He nods towards the truck parked out front, "Problem with the engine."
When you brush past him, Logan spots a name neatly embroidered onto your otherwise soiled clothes. Smiling, he follows after you, shamelessly dropping his gaze to your ass for a moment.
Waiting patiently while you poke around the hood, he steals glances at your profile, filled with the sudden urge to wipe away the grease stain remnants off your cheeks, "Yeah... looks like the head gasket needs replacing."
Logan groans to himself before agreeing with your judgment. He runs a hand across his face, stilling in brief confusion when you chuckle quietly.
"Somethin' funny?" He asks, noting how you browse the insides of his camper with a flair of barely-masked mockery.
"Just admiring the interior design."
That one almost draws a scoff out of him. Logan knows his living quarters are rather bare-bones in nature, at best, providing decent shelter for when he's on the go. Inside, a makeshift bed large enough for a man of his size and basic kitchen appliances - though he rarely uses those. It's all he cares for anyway, yet there's a tinge of self-consciousness he shakes before gruffly responding, "You can do it by tonight?"
"Tonight?" Your eyebrows raise in surprise, "Fine... but it's gonna set you back about three grand."
"I got half for now."
A sharp laugh pierces his ears. And even though it's undoubtedly fake, he thinks you look pretty like this - shooting what can't be anything less than a deadly glare just for him. The corners of his lips tilt up when your tone suddenly becomes stern, "That's not how it works, buddy."
"Listen, I got a fight later, I'll be good for it."
"What? You that sure you're gonna win?"
You're teasing him. You know it, and so does he. Logan studies the way your hand rests against your hip, a challenging glint behind your eyes while you consider this ridiculous suggestion. He moves one step closer and proudly welcomes the surge of satisfaction at the slight crack of your demeanour.
"Darlin', I always win." It's a whisper that leaves him, hushed and dangerously low. Giving your shoulder a playful nudge as he walks by, he circles to the trailer behind the truck, retrieving his motorcycle. He smirks, pleased to witness such a glimpse of weakness, "Eleven-thirty. O'Malley's. I'll see you there."
The engine revs with each twist of his wrist, the movement so precise and natural. As he sinks onto the bike, the suspension adjusting to his weight, he sends you a wink.
"And if you lose?" You shout over the blaring sounds.
With one final grin, "Just fix my truck, alright."
Even from outside, O'Malley's is deafeningly loud. The wooden door creaks lightly with the gentlest push, and a mixture of overly enthusiastic yells paired with the clashing of glass greet your presence. You're no regular here whatsoever, but the fights that occur in this bar are usually the talk of the town. And despite its reputation, you've never had much interest in being surrounded by a crowd of angry, intoxicated men - all drowning beneath the crude insults and empty threats tossed into the air.
Some of the patrons, customers you recognise from work, acknowledge you with a polite smile while you settle into a booth near the cage. As you observe the utter chaos around the room, it only cements your distaste for this so-called form of entertainment. The current match's loser staggers past your table, barely walking on two feet even with the support of his friends.
All you can think about is returning home with your hard-earned cash. It was a rather tiring day, running around salvage yards scouring for spare parts to tend to the old piece of junk he'd called a truck. Not to mention the unforgiving weather, which seemed determined to make your day more miserable. And to top it all off, the jerk wanted it done by nightfall - the audacity! Just the simple reminder of today's events has your body tensing from restlessness.
Behind you, a group of men sneer amongst themselves and between their slurring, the words "pretty boy" and "his ass kicked" grasp your attention. Turning around, you watch as they hand over money to some younger fella, taunting others to join the bet. Oh, that makes your blood boil. This Logan had strolled into your shop with nothing but a superficial promise for your services, and now, he's presumed to lose?
You stand up abruptly, peering across the space in search of him. A rush of fury courses through you at the same time you spot him casually lounging in the corner. As you approach, the faint glow of the bulb illuminates his face, a cloud of smoke momentarily hiding the smirk playing on his lips. His chuckle cuts through the hum of the jukebox he's leaning on, eyes crinkling with a kind of smugness at your arrival.
"You're joking." The bottle of whiskey between his fingers shocks you the most, "Are you seriously getting drunk before your fight?"
Logan grins at your concerned expression, eyes tracing you up and down, "You fix it?"
"Yes, I fucking fixed it. Took me all day!" Fists clenching, you stare at him intently, "Look, I did my job - you better do yours."
"Don't worry 'bout it, darlin'. I'm a man of my word." He dismisses you completely, taking a prolonged swig of his drink. A beat passes before he lazily holds up two fingers right to your face, "Scout's honour."
He laughs again when you roughly shove his hand aside, not sparing another second for this cocksure attitude. You grumble under your breath, making your way back to the booth, "It's three fingers, asshole."
A few matches take place over the next hour, and you're only getting more antsy as each of the competitors exits the cage with nothing short of bloody faces and broken bones. The audience roars all of a sudden, some even rattling the fence as this new person strides into the threshold.
Of course, he'd stripped his shirt off and the sight of his muscle-toned chest only serves to further fuel your irritation. Logan's eyes find yours immediately, looking past the crowd of hecklers now whistling at him. With a nod, he throws you a confident smirk and turns to his rival.
The man he's up against is much more burly and has a couple of inches on him. Though that doesn't seem to faze Logan in the slightest, instead he's flexing his arms almost playfully before adopting a fighting stance. Every punch and kick has you twitching in your seat, your feet firmly stuck to the ground in anticipation.
Remembering how he'd chugged an entire bottle of liquor earlier, you're astonished by the ferocity with which he attacks his opponent, dodging most moves with deadly precision. As he lands more jabs, the spectators begin to jeer and boo, swarming the enclosure of the cage in a tantrum. You peek over their shoulders, ducking away from the things they're flinging around. There's a collective gasp when he knocks out the other man, and you sigh in relief.
Leaning towards the cage, a cigar lightly pressed against his mouth, Logan's focus shifts to you. His chest is heaving from all the physical exertion, skin damp from the sweat. As he exhales the smoke, blowing a kiss in your direction, a satisfied expression returns to his face. He runs a hand through his wet hair, leaving the arena with no regard for the protesting crowd.
You follow after him, squeezing through the tightly packed space. He's settling a score with the owner, a wad of rolled cash passing between them as a reward. After a nod of mutual agreement, Logan faces you, tossing his leather jacket on. And while you're ultimately happy he won, there's also this urge to smack the cheeky look that seems to be glowing as you come closer.
What's more upsetting is the fact that he is undeniably gorgeous - especially like this, all sweaty and wound up from the adrenaline rushing inside. And of course, he doesn't miss how your gaze wanders to the sliver of skin peeking through his jacket, every slight movement only revealing more.
Logan grabs a few bills from the roll of money and stuffs them into his back pocket, holding the rest out towards you. As you reach for the cash, he swiftly draws his hand back with a teasing smile, "Have a drink with me."
"No."
"C'mon." He drags out, repeating the same thing when you try again, "No one needs their cute, little mechanic right now."
Watching you sigh triggers a thrill of excitement, an unspoken victory he claims with no shame. With a simple gesture, he leads you towards a secluded booth, determined to make this a worthwhile exchange. Despite your hesitation, he maintains a sort of relaxed energy, draping his arm along the seat - his eyes not straying from yours.
Two shots of vodka are placed on the table and Logan mirrors your action, slowly raising the glass to his lips. In no time, the air of unease dissipates, replaced by a comfortable silence while the drinks keep coming. As the night wears on, casual conversation flows between you and he asks a few things like how long you've lived here, why you became a mechanic and eventually, when he slides you the money, "What now, darlin'? You gonna leave?"
His voice, dripping with honeyed sweetness, sends a shiver down your spine. You can't exactly place the feeling, but it's a tangle of exasperation and something else - something you're not quite ready to define. Instead, you blame it on the drinks, the late hour, and the fact that there's an incredibly attractive man just inches away.
As frustration envelops your thoughts, you suddenly excuse yourself and head towards the bathroom. The alcohol, previously a gentle companion, now seems to be taking its toll. Looking at your reflection in the mirror, you try to fight against the sensations running through your body. The splash of cold water does little to your state of mind, yet you're back outside in what feels like a tilted world, using all your strength to walk straight.
As you brush past the cage, someone collides into you. Desperate for balance, you reach out to grip the fence, but a strong hand lays steady on your lower back. With a gasp and a tilt of your head, you're caught off-guard when Logan comes into your view. His arm snakes around to gently hold your waist, his body now pressing into yours.
Overwhelmed by the sudden proximity, you tear your attention away from him and glance at the wire pricking your fingers, "This is fucking sharp."
He doesn't break the eye contact. A low hum vibrates through his chest as he leans in, the warmth of his breath dancing with yours. The space between you slowly shrinks, whatever lighthearted facade he'd worn earlier vanishes only to be replaced by something raw and inexplicable.
"How're you not bruised?" You whisper, remembering the way he'd been thrown against the cage earlier.
"Call it a special talent."
Despite your better judgment, you find yourself captivated by him, the intensity of his gaze reeling you in. And so, you decide to play his game, "Can you teach me?"
Logan pauses, "You wanna learn... how to fight?"
"Just a little punch or something."
A faint smile spreads across his face, you're absolutely sure he can feel the way your heart is pounding. When his lips lightly brush against your ear, a quiet rumble escapes and something flickers in your gut - a twist of exhilaration laced with a hint of caution.
There's barely anyone left in the bar at this point besides the one or two stragglers hanging around. Logan and you stand alone in the cage, seemingly tucked away in a little pocket of your own. He doesn't wander too far, remaining within an arm's distance while demonstrating the proper technique for a jab - the motion so fluid and effortless.
Your initial attempts to mimic his movements are clumsy and awkward, his amusement only growing more evident with each try. Slipping behind you, he sheds the jacket, once again exposing his glorious muscles and the thought of tracing his vein-riddled biceps with your tongue leaves you dazed for a moment. This time, he circles his arms around you and guides your hands into the correct position.
As you practice, your bodies nudge against each other, his breath fans across your neck and ignites a fire within you. The tension is palpable, the air thick with implicit desire. You can almost feel his gaze burning into you, every second posing a challenge to cross this imaginary line.
The rest of the patrons are ushered out the door, the owner nodding at Logan before disappearing into the back room. And the silence settles in, a stark contrast to all the commotion that lingered for hours prior. You notice the difference, inching towards the exit, "Looks like they're closing up."
Before you can move away, Logan's hand shoots out to catch your wrist, "And we got it all to ourselves."
"What?"
"Might've slipped the owner a little somethin’."
His fingers trail up your arm, thumb gently pushing your soft skin. Slowly, he brings you closer, his words just a whisper of heat on your cheek. You can feel the rise and fall of his chest, a rhythm echoing your own racing heart. Your voice, hoarse and strained, barely manages a response, "Is this how you budget? No wonder you're broke."
It's his laughter that breaks you at first, followed by, "You got a smart mouth, darlin'. Tell me, what else can it do?"
His lips hover mere inches above yours, there's a moment of hesitation hanging in the air - an out, if you don't want this. But, temptation is a dangerous siren and you're already ensnared by her song.
Fuck it.
Logan's dog tags hang pretty between the slopes of your breasts, his mouth moving against yours in a rough, demanding fashion. It's sloppy. It's wet. And it's goddamn heavenly when his fingers thread through your hair, the gap between you now completely erased. You cling to him as if he's an anchor, nails digging into his shoulders while he pins you to the cool metal of the cage.
He wants to touch you. To feel the warmth radiating straight off your body. The straps of your overalls fall from his force, he takes the opportunity to slide one hand through the side, kneading your waist with a kind of tenderness that surprises him too. When you take a second to breathe, Logan peppers kisses along your jawline, then some beneath your ear before grazing his lips on your neck.
The pulsing vein he finds nearly has him growling in pleasure, "Fuck, darlin'... feel so good already... can't wait to taste you when I'm done..."
He stills when you gasp, glancing up through his lashes and then quietly chuckling at your flustered expression. Yet, he can't revel in his victory for any longer than a blink, your palm tilts his head back before you fiercely capture his mouth once more.
His name rolls out your lips, drawn out and glazed with an obvious need. Taking a deep inhale, Logan feels the bulge in his jeans growing with each passing moment. You're only getting restless as his hands roam over your body, becoming nothing more than a whimpering mess all from his doing.
"Lemme hear you for real, baby... don't be shy." His fingers latch onto the cage, using it to thrust forward and deepen the kiss. Your clothes end up pooling at your feet, the barriers between you peeling away with every layer gone. Now, skin to skin, sweat glistening on your brow, you're left bare and vulnerable to his touch.
Logan reaches down, spreading your thighs wide enough till he can push your panties aside, stroking the outside of your entrance. Clenching his jaw when he's met with a distinct wetness, "Hidin' all this for me?" He almost laughs at how you curl forward and then whine his name, craving for any part of him to be inside you, "Hm... what'd you say to me before? Three fingers?
With no warning, he slides exactly three inside your cunt, pumping in and out as best as he can, "So fuckin' tight, darlin'... c'mon... show me you're ready for the real thing." He knows he's doing something right when you squirm at his actions, jumping at the invitation to delicately flick your clit before sinking his fingers back into you.
"Logan-"
Pain consumes you as he continues, tears springing to your eyes. You've never felt pleasure like this, so intense and so profound, words lost amongst the moans trembling out your lips. Your knees begin to shake under the pressure, and his free hand immediately cups your thigh, securing your body to his. As you call out for him, urging him to fuck you senseless, he tugs his fingers away.
The belt flies, jeans tossed behind in an instant and he grunts, freeing his hard length from his boxers. The tip of his cock teases your folds, the precum slicking down from the head. His nose presses against your cheek when your hand runs up and down - getting him all nice and ready. Breath hitching at the sensation, Logan involuntarily bucks his hips, your eagerness carrying him over the edge.
He's careless about lining himself up, giving it no more than a fleeting thought before thrusting into you. Whatever floods your brain at that moment is much more potent than anything you've ever experienced. It's vigorous, almost animalistic in nature, how hard he fucks you. The veins on his arms become more apparent as he hoists you up, pushing you against the cage. He can hear the little fibers of your skin tearing because of the friction, yet he does little to ease that pain, knowing you're enjoying the hurricane of emotions whisking you away.
Logan pants into your tits, nipping at the soft flesh, "Wanted to ruin that pussy since I saw you this mornin'... all dirty and pissed off at me - god. Thought 'bout somethin' else on your face too."
"Logan - don't... fucking stop. Feels amazing... wanna feel all of you." The words escape you - laboured and breathless - your eyes soften in delight, watching this sort of enraptured expression wash across his face, "So good for me, Logan."
So good.
For me.
And boy, if that doesn't spur him on.
Picking up speed, his movements turn greedy, grinding into you with a degree of passion he's never felt before. As you tug his hair, fingers raking through the dark tresses in a frenzy, Logan taps into the primal energy swelling within. His hands squeeze you further, your thighs constricting his waist as he drives up into you, "That's it baby... fuckin' perfect. Takin' all of me like a good girl... mhmm."
The way your body helplessly arches has him grinning, but that quickly gets swept away when his cock twitches inside you, aching to burst at any given moment. He tries his hardest to control himself, longing for your cries of pleasure as you finish. Thrusts weakening to a leisurely pace, Logan grunts into your neck, mumbling a string of curses while he rides out this wave. Thankfully, you're on the precipice as well, your body reaching its peak with a shiver.
His cum trickles out of you, thighs getting sticky as it seeps lower and lower. Lost in a daze, Logan thinks he can see the damn sun in your eyes. With a gentle swipe of your cunt, he sheepishly licks his own fingertips, a smile brightening his face.
The mattress, once a source of great discomfort, now feels like paradise as you cuddle into the crook of his neck, the soft rhythm of your breath soothing him to a state of peace. He'd carried you to his truck earlier, threatening you with a barrage of kisses when you dangled his keys in front of him. There was a rather short game of tag before you relented and collapsed into his embrace, tiredly blinking up at him. He'd tucked the loose strands of your hair back then tenderly caressed your cheek. It took all but one affectionate grin to convince you to spend the night in his camper.
Not a single inch of your body is free from his touch. He pulls you even closer, tracing patterns around the tiny scratches spreading across your shoulders. If you'd asked him yesterday, he would tell you he has no plans of sticking around this town, grown used to a life of impermanence. Yet, as he rests, tangled in your arms, Logan finds a reason to stay.
#logan howlett#deadpool and wolverine#logan howlett x reader#logan howlett smut#logan howlett angst#logan howlett fluff#logan x you#logan howlett imagine#wolverine x you#wolverine#logan howlett x you#wolverine x reader#wolverine imagine#wolverine fluff#wolverine angst#logan smut#wolverine smut#logan x reader#logan howlett xmen#logan howlett x fem!reader#logan x f!reader#logan x female reader#logan howlett x f!reader#wolverine x female reader#wolverine x f!reader#james logan howlett#logan howlett fanfiction#arya’s logan howlett
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A Deep Dive Into Why Cass Threw Dick Out A Window
If you've been here long enough you've probably seen or heard of this moment, which is super hilarious and iconic. It's mostly discussed in reference to Dick and Cass' relationship. However, in my opinion Cass throwing Dick out a window had very little to do with her opinion of him, or even of Barbara; it has more to do with her understanding of romance and love. I briefly touched on this in my gender/sexuality post, but I'm going to explain more in depth my interpretation of how Dick functions in Batgirl (2000) as a whole. (This moment is very open to interpretation though, this is just my opinion!). So let's try to answer Dick's question: what was that all about?
Love, Language, and DickBabs
While Puckett's run is notable for not having Cass date anyone, romantic love does play a role in Cass' early understanding of the world. It's the impetus that spurs her to write: in issue 2, she sees a wife read a letter from her deceased husband, and her reaction affects Cass so strongly she immediately starts trying to write. (She also kisses the husband on the cheek earlier, which may or may not be a crush). Romance, and the ability to communicate your love, is a fundamental part of Cass' desire to learn language.
So we have Cass, who has experienced neither love nor language, living with Babs, who's in a relationship with Dick. This telephone conversation in #4 (the issue where a metahuman changes Cass' brain into understanding language) again links romance to communication. Dick and Babs are talking on the phone, unable to see each other but understanding each other perfectly; Cass and Babs, on the other hand, live together and can't understand each other at all.
"She can't talk, so it's not all that different [to living alone]." Babs is telling an eavesdropping Cass that her inability to speak prevents her from love and connection - a love and connection symbolised by one of the first romantic relationships Cass is consistently around, Dick and Barbara.
Dick as an Ideal
There's a debate whether Cass likes Dick or not because half the time they're friendly, and half the time she's punching him or throwing him out windows. This disparity makes sense if you consider that Cass strongly associates DickBabs with communication, understanding, love - very idealised notions - but she does not associate Dick as a person with them. Her interactions with Dick (sans Babs) are cute and normal - Batgirl #29 and Nightwing #81 feature some very adorable Dick-Cass moments, with no real tension whatsoever.
It's only when Cass sees Dick in a romantic light (as in associated with Babs) that she makes him into a symbol.
Cass often tries to copy Babs, thinking it's the 'correct' thing to do - in DC First: Batgirl/Joker, she goes after Joker because that's what Barbara did; later in Horrocks' run she'll wear Barbara's outfit. In a way, Cass' affairs with Tai'Darshan and Kon - as much as I do think Tai'Darshan was genuine attraction - is another way to 'copy' Barbara. In #42, Cass stares at a picture of Dick and Babs while asking if Babs likes boys. Obviously Cass knows the answer is yes, but see what she asks next, and how Barbara responds:
She shifts from 'like' to 'love', and Babs responds that she 'care[s]' about him. For Cass, whose arc in Horrocks' run is about parsing out the nuances of attraction, understanding the difference between like, love, and care is incredibly difficult. She struggles to separate familial from romantic (Bruce in #50) or romantic from platonic (Kon, and in somewhat the reverse way Steph). In this conversation, Cass comes to associate Dick with like, love, and care - DickBabs becomes not just a symbol of romantic love, but of any connection whatsoever.
The Old Costume
I've discussed elsewhere that Cass wearing Babs' old costume in #45 is a representation of her desire to be 'girly', and how she associates girlhood with someone other than herself, discarding her own costume for Babs'. But putting on a costume is not the only prerequisite for being a 'girl'. In Babs' speech to Cass, she emphasises being sexually attractive to men, with her final comment being about this "particular look Dick used to give [her]". For Cass, visual language is incredibly important; putting on Babs' costume is not about being or feeling like a girl, but about being perceived as one. Dick is symbolic of the perceiver: the one who can essentially 'grant' women their femininity.
But Cass is disgusted when Tim calls her hot, which adds to her confusion - why should Dick being attracted to Babs make Babs happy, but Tim (who's not a sibling at this time) perceiving her like that grosses her out? Cass' inability to feel good - to feel 'feminine' - through the male gaze is another sign, to her, of her failure to be a woman.
Which finally brings us to issue 46...
That Ableist Kon Comment
Cass finds out Dick breaks Babs' heart and then starts hallucinating on a drug. One of the things she hallucinates is Kon saying "who wants to date a cripple? Ain't that right, Nightwing?" and Nightwing responding "not me--at least, not anymore."
For the first time, we get to the heart of why DickBabs mattered to Cass: it was an example of a disabled person in a loving, romantic relationship. It goes back to that phone call in #4, where Babs implies that Cass is hard to care about because she can't speak. The Kon comment suggests Cass has carried that with her all this time, trying to find proof that she can be loved, no matter her disability. DickBabs showed her it could be done - the break-up shows her now that it can't be done.
Dick's hallucination mocks her disability: "look at her--she can't even read!" Attributing this mockery to Dick (whose real-life counterpart, unlike the other hallucinations, has never said anything remotely like this) shows that this 'Dick-as-ideal' is intrinsically tied to Cass' self-worth.
Honestly this whole post stemmed from me thinking about this one panel. There is no real reason, from Cass' view of Dick as a person, for her to think he's brave and noble and kind (more so than anyone else). But it's in the DickBabs context - that Dick seemed to love, wholeheartedly, a disabled woman - that makes Cass think this way. And now that DickBabs is broken up, it shows that she, too, is rotten to the core; that someone like her cannot be loved.
And so when Dick shows up, she throws him out the window.
Conclusion
In this moment, Cass isn't just reacting to Dick breaking up with Barbara, she's reacting to what it means to her. If Dick can't stay with Barbara, then that means Cass, as another disabled woman, is also unable to be loved. This all leads up to #50, which features another Cass punch to Dick's face, but more importantly is when Bruce and Cass reconcile through Cass' first language. It's a confirmation that though her verbal skills may not be fully developed, she still can communicate, and she can love and be loved.
I don't think a lot of the ideas I touched on here are fully developed, or conclude cleanly. For example, how does Cass' 'failure' to be a woman relate to her inability to be loved? Is she able to have a stable romantic relationship? There are lots more questions, but the role Dick specifically plays in Cass' understanding of romance is probably not going to develop further. I just think it's interesting how Horrocks uses the Dick-Babs relationship to explore Cass' identity.
#cassandra cain#dick grayson#barbara gordon#batgirl 2000#meta#im sorry if this doesn't make sense im not sure how coherent this is#i always see people bring the window thing up as an example of cass hating dick which is fair but undersells this moment by a lot#it's one of the many many moments in horrocks run that are somewhat ambiguous and have to do with cass' gender crisis#people can still joke about this ofc it's funny but it's also just really intriguing to me#idk anyway forever a horrocks champion i guess. he gets some flack for sexualising cass (which does happen and is gross)#but his exploration of cass' gender and sexuality is STILL unmatched. god give cass more long-term woman writers
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How to use DXVK with The Sims 3
Have you seen this post about using DXVK by Criisolate? But felt intimidated by the sheer mass of facts and information?
@desiree-uk and I compiled a guide and the configuration file to make your life easier. It focuses on players not using the EA App, but it might work for those just the same. It’s definitely worth a try.
Adding this to your game installation will result in a better RAM usage. So your game is less likely to give you Error 12 or crash due to RAM issues. It does NOT give a huge performance boost, but more stability and allows for higher graphics settings in game.
The full guide behind the cut. Let me know if you also would like it as PDF.
Happy simming!
Disclaimer and Credits
Desiree and I are no tech experts and just wrote down how we did this. Our ability to help if you run into trouble is limited. So use at your own risk and back up your files!
We both are on Windows 10 and start the game via TS3W.exe, not the EA App. So your experience may differ.
This guide is based on our own experiments and of course criisolate’s post on tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/criisolate/749374223346286592/ill-explain-what-i-did-below-before-making-any
This guide is brought to you by Desiree-UK and Norn.
Compatibility
Note: This will conflict with other programs that “inject” functionality into your game so they may stop working. Notably
Reshade
GShade
Nvidia Experience/Nvidia Inspector/Nvidia Shaders
RivaTuner Statistics Server
It does work seamlessly with LazyDuchess’ Smooth Patch.
LazyDuchess’ Launcher: unknown
Alder Lake patch: does conflict. One user got it working by starting the game by launching TS3.exe (also with admin rights) instead of TS3W.exe. This seemed to create the cache file for DXVK. After that, the game could be started from TS3W.exe again. That might not work for everyone though.
A word on FPS and V-Sync
With such an old game it’s crucial to cap framerate (FPS). This is done in the DXVK.conf file. Same with V-Sync.
You need
a text editor (easiest to use is Windows Notepad)
to download DXVK, version 2.3.1 from here: https://github.com/doitsujin/DXVK/releases/tag/v2.3.1 Extract the archive, you are going to need the file d3d9.dll from the x32 folder
the configuration file DXVK.conf from here: https://github.com/doitsujin/DXVK/blob/master/DXVK.conf. Optional: download the edited version with the required changes here.
administrator rights on your PC
to know your game’s installation path (bin folder) and where to find the user folder
a tiny bit of patience :)
First Step: Backup
Backup your original Bin folder in your Sims 3 installation path! The DXVK file may overwrite some files! The path should be something like this (for retail): \Program Files (x86)\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Game\Bin (This is the folder where also GraphicsRule.sgr and the TS3W.exe and TS3.exe are located.)
Backup your options.ini in your game’s user folder! Making the game use the DXVK file will count as a change in GPU driver, so the options.ini will reset once you start your game after installation. The path should be something like this: \Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 (This is the folder where your Mods folder is located).
Preparations
Make sure you run the game as administrator. You can check that by right-clicking on the icon that starts your game. Go to Properties > Advanced and check the box “Run as administrator”. Note: This will result in a prompt each time you start your game, if you want to allow this application to make modifications to your system. Click “Yes” and the game will load.
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2. Make sure you have the DEP settings from Windows applied to your game.
Open the Windows Control Panel.
Click System and Security > System > Advanced System Settings.
On the Advanced tab, next to the Performance heading, click Settings.
Click the Data Execution Prevention tab.
Select 'Turn on DEP for all programs and services except these”:
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/fbe380914ab3e8ca6a382f8c6dfa0c13/a9037f82a67119dd-fe/s500x750/9d71a1a660cc6e3eba37e5494b168a3ab9f75fd6.jpg)
Click the Add button, a window to the file explorer opens. Navigate to your Sims 3 installation folder (the bin folder once again) and add TS3W.exe and TS3.exe.
Click OK. Then you can close all those dialog windows again.
Setting up the DXVK.conf file
Open the file with a text editor and delete everything in it. Then add these values:
d3d9.textureMemory = 1
d3d9.presentInterval = 1
d3d9.maxFrameRate = 60
d3d9.presentInterval enables V-Sync,d3d9.maxFrameRate sets the FrameRate. You can edit those values, but never change the first line (d3d9.textureMemory)!
The original DXVK.conf contains many more options in case you would like to add more settings.
A. no Reshade/GShade
Setting up DXVK
Copy the two files d3d9.dll and DXVK.conf into the Bin folder in your Sims 3 installation path. This is the folder where also GraphicsRule.sgr and the TS3W.exe and TS3.exe are located. If you are prompted to overwrite files, please choose yes (you DID backup your folder, right?)
And that’s basically all that is required to install.
Start your game now and let it run for a short while. Click around, open Buy mode or CAS, move the camera.
Now quit without saving. Once the game is closed fully, open your bin folder again and double check if a file “TS3W.DXVK-cache” was generated. If so – congrats! All done!
Things to note
Heads up, the game options will reset! So it will give you a “vanilla” start screen and options.
Don’t worry if the game seems to be frozen during loading. It may take a few minutes longer to load but it will load eventually.
The TS3W.DXVK-cache file is the actual cache DXVK is using. So don’t delete this! Just ignore it and leave it alone. When someone tells to clear cache files – this is not one of them!
Update Options.ini
Go to your user folder and open the options.ini file with a text editor like Notepad.
Find the line “lastdevice = “. It will have several values, separated by semicolons. Copy the last one, after the last semicolon, the digits only. Close the file.
Now go to your backup version of the Options.ini file, open it and find that line “lastdevice” again. Replace the last value with the one you just copied. Make sure to only replace those digits!
Save and close the file.
Copy this version of the file into your user folder, replacing the one that is there.
Things to note:
If your GPU driver is updated, you might have to do these steps again as it might reset your device ID again. Though it seems that the DXVK ID overrides the GPU ID, so it might not happen.
How do I know it’s working?
Open the task manager and look at RAM usage. Remember the game can only use 4 GB of RAM at maximum and starts crashing when usage goes up to somewhere between 3.2 – 3.8 GB (it’s a bit different for everybody).
So if you see values like 2.1456 for RAM usage in a large world and an ongoing save, it’s working. Generally the lower the value, the better for stability.
Also, DXVK will have generated its cache file called TS3W.DXVK-cache in the bin folder. The file size will grow with time as DXVK is adding stuff to it, e.g. from different worlds or savegames. Initially it might be something like 46 KB or 58 KB, so it’s really small.
Optional: changing MemCacheBudgetValue
MemCacheBudgetValue determines the size of the game's VRAM Cache. You can edit those values but the difference might not be noticeable in game. It also depends on your computer’s hardware how much you can allow here.
The two lines of seti MemCacheBudgetValue correspond to the high RAM level and low RAM level situations. Therefore, theoretically, the first line MemCacheBudgetValue should be set to a larger value, while the second line should be set to a value less than or equal to the first line.
The original values represent 200MB (209715200) and 160MB (167772160) respectively. They are calculated as 200x1024x1024=209175200 and 160x1024x1024=167772160.
Back up your GraphicsRules.sgr file! If you make a mistake here, your game won’t work anymore.
Go to your bin folder and open your GraphicsRules.sgr with a text editor.
Search and find two lines that set the variables for MemCacheBudgetValue.
Modify these two values to larger numbers. Make sure the value in the first line is higher or equals the value in the second line. Examples for values: 1073741824, which means 1GB 2147483648 which means 2 GB. -1 (minus 1) means no limit (but is highly experimental, use at own risk)
Save and close the file. It might prompt you to save the file to a different place and not allow you to save in the Bin folder. Just save it someplace else in this case and copy/paste it to the Bin folder afterwards. If asked to overwrite the existing file, click yes.
Now start your game and see if it makes a difference in smoothness or texture loading. Make sure to check RAM and VRAM usage to see how it works.
You might need to change the values back and forth to find the “sweet spot” for your game. Mine seems to work best with setting the first value to 2147483648 and the second to 1073741824.
Uninstallation
Delete these files from your bin folder (installation path):
d3d9.dll
DXVK.conf
TS3W.DXVK-cache
And if you have it, also TS3W_d3d9.log
if you changed the values in your GraphicsRule.sgr file, too, don’t forget to change them back or to replace the file with your backed up version.
OR
delete the bin folder and add it from your backup again.
B. with Reshade/GShade
Follow the steps from part A. no Reshade/Gshade to set up DXVK.
If you are already using Reshade (RS) or GShade (GS), you will be prompted to overwrite files, so choose YES. RS and GS may stop working, so you will need to reinstall them.
Whatever version you are using, the interface shows similar options of which API you can choose from (these screenshots are from the latest versions of RS and GS).
Please note:
Each time you install and uninstall DXVK, switching the game between Vulkan and d3d9, is essentially changing the graphics card ID again, which results in the settings in your options.ini file being repeatedly reset.
ReShade interface
Choose – Vulcan
Click next and choose your preferred shaders.
Hopefully this install method works and it won't install its own d3d9.dll file.
If it doesn't work, then choose DirectX9 in RS, but you must make sure to replace the d3d9.dll file with DXVK's d3d9.dll (the one from its 32bit folder, checking its size is 3.86mb.)
GShade interface
Choose –
Executable Architecture: 32bit
Graphics API: DXVK
Hooking: Normal Mode
GShade is very problematic, it won't work straight out of the box and the overlay doesn't show up, which defeats the purpose of using it if you can't add or edit the shaders you want to use.
Check the game's bin folder, making sure the d3d9.dll is still there and its size is 3.86mb - that is DXVK's dll file.
If installing using the DXVK method doesn't work, you can choose the DirectX method, but there is no guarantee it works either.
The game will not run with these files in the folder:
d3d10core.dll
d3d11.dll
dxgi.dll
If you delete them, the game will start but you can't access GShade! It might be better to use ReShade.
Some Vulcan and DirectX information, if you’re interested:
Vulcan is for rather high end graphic cards but is backward compatible with some older cards. Try this method with ReShade or GShade first.
DirectX is more stable and works best with older cards and systems. Try this method if Vulcan doesn't work with ReShade/GShade in your game – remember to replace the d3d9.dll with DXVK's d3d9.dll.
For more information on the difference between Vulcan and DirectX, see this article:
https://www.howtogeek.com/884042/vulkan-vs-DirectX-12/
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And who are you? - Oscar Piastri x McLarenHeir! Reader
Plot: Granddaughter of Bruce McLaren comes to a race.
Warning: I think maybe some people have considered this a little misogynistic. Obviously women in motorsport has improved and gotten better, but there are still issues involving this and I just wanted to bring some of them to light. I never meant to cause offence so here’s a little warning for that if it not for you!
Again this is a work of fiction and doesn’t represent anyone accurately!
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You were the grand-daughter of one of the most iconic men in Formula One. Not only did he have his own team, but he drove for that team as well which resulted in McLaren sports cars all over the world.
When Zac offered you to come to a grand prix, everyone in the team was dreading it. From what they knew you were just another social media girlie obsessed with getting into an F1 race for the clout. However they were oh so wrong.
You'd been karting since a young age, and knew your way around all kind of cars. You were an encyclopedia of everything motorsport and cars. You'd gone to university and studied engineering so you knew more about it all so you were excited to speak to everyone.
You pulled up in your one of a kind McLaren X-FM, perks of sharing a last name with a car and having big stakes in the business.
"Zac!" you exclaimed as you saw him and run over to him. You pull him in for a tight hug and he hugs you back.
"How's my best girl doing?" he grins looking down at you and you nod furiously. You talk for a little longer before he leads you into the garage.
"Dude what are they all hovering around!" Lando asks looking at 9 or 10 of the drivers stood around something. Lando and Oscar walk over to see the most beautiful orange car in the parking lot. It wasn't rare to see beautiful cars at the grand prix because of all the drivers that were there but this was next level.
"Lando did you get a new car?" Carlos asks in awe, elbowing his friend.
"No, I wish this was my car!" Lando sighs running his hand along the edge.
"Oh my gosh, please please be careful if your touching my car!" you cry running over to all the drivers, you'd forgotten your bag of gifts for the team and drivers and came back to get them.
"T-this is your car?" Lewis asks in shock.
"Yes?" you say holding up the keys and opening the door, Charles looking at Lewis in shock.
"Can i sit in it?" Pierre asks looking at you with a grin.
All the drivers weren't only in awe of their car but the girl that had just come running up asking them to be careful of the car.
"Sure..." you say and let him open the door.
"Lando Oscar! It's great to finally meet you!" you smile, your bubbly friendly nature pulling them in for a joint hug. You watch behind them as drivers look inside the car and switch out whose sat in the drivers seat.
"And who are you?" Oscar asks crossing his arms over his chest, not looking to impressed at the current moment.
"Oh my names Y/N! I'm a guest of McLaren today!" you smile, and everyone there just fell in love with you even more.
"Wait... i know you. You're Y/N McLaren!" Max grins, and you look down with a blush.
"Wait ... you're Bruce McLaren's grand-daughter?" Carlos asks looking you up and down, and he was starting to realize Max was right. Your New Zealand accent being the biggest give away.
"Wait, so you like own the company?" Lando asks with a shocked look. You giggle a little before shaking your head.
"No, I have shares in it but I have to be 25 before the transaction occurs...!" you explain and he nods looking over you.
"I can't believe your here, that's kinda crazy! Why have you never come to a race before?" Logan asks kindly and you look down sadly.
"Bad memories for mum, wasn't allowed to go to one until I was 18 but by the time I was I was in university studying" you answer and they all nod, knowing how hard it must have been on your mum.
"What did you study?" Charles asks as his head pops up from hanging into the window on the other side.
"Engineering, your routes will always find a way back!" you grin.
"Oooo that reminds me!" you start to say as you open the passenger side door, it flicking up into the air as you pull the seat forward to get the bags out the back. They were neatly wrapped gift bags in the specific McLaren shade with little white bows.
"One for you!" you smile handing Lando the first bag.
"And one for you!" you grin handing another bag to Oscar!
"I erm need to get back to the garage I have so many questions for the engineers and the mechanics and I don't want to take up more of their time! So ..." you nod towards Carlos who was currently having a feel around in the car.
"Ah yes, I am very sorry!" he smiles getting out. You smile and lock the car before running back off towards the paddock entrance.
"She is nothing like I expected her to be when we first saw her!" Max smiles, liking your vibes.
"I don't like her!" Oscar declares and everyone's head snaps towards him.
"What do you mean you don't like her, she literally WHAT?" Lando almost laughs, looking at his friend and teammate.
"She's too nice... and like ickily perfect" Oscar frowns watching as she bumps into someone just inside the gates of the paddock apologizing profusely.
"Ickily perfect? Is ickily even a word?" Logan asks with a frown.
"No, but that is the only way i can describe it... there's something off!" Oscar declares.
"Mate come on, she gave us gifts and she let everyone look at her cool car ... just because you had one bad celebrity experience here doesn't mean they are all like that!" Lando sighs, before nodding for them all to leave and get to where they need to be in the garage.
"Guys I'm back!" you smile and all the mechanics and engineers look happy to see you.
"Here's my gift to the team!" you say starting to pull out all the baked goods you'd made for them earlier in the day. Brownies, cake ... you name it and it was there.
"Oh thanks Y/N!" one of them says jogging over, he takes a brownie and seconds later groans at the incredible taste that he's being welcomed with.
"So can i ask you a few questions about the suspension of the car?" you ask and he looks shocked for a second before nodding and wiping his mouth clean.
You chat with him for what seemed like ages, talking about the car and the improvements made since the last race and gradually more engineers had started to join in the conversation.
There was a group of people around you as you observed the car, close but not too close that you or McLaren would be fined, just observing the raw mechanics and engineering that went behind it. You pointed out certain things and sometimes it was just observation rather than questions.
"See!" Lando smirks towards Oscar after having watched you talk to the team for a few minutes.
"Okay so she's smart too and is actually interested in the cars ... but that doesn't change my opinion!" Oscar whispers to Lando. He was watching you animatedly talk to the engineers about the car, questioning where they felt the car was at this weekend.
“Dude … come on! What is it about her you don’t like? She’s basically our boss …” Lando explains before turning left and seeing the sweet treats you’d brought in.
“Look she even brought treats … that she baked these herself and wrote a little note for the team with a smiley face and heart ��� how … can you NOT like her” Lando cries a little too loudly making your head whip round.
You hadn’t heard what he said but he seemed a little distressed.
“Lando, are you okay?” You ask walking over to the duo making Oscar sigh.
“Y-yeah im fine sorry i didn’t mean to yell” he says sheepishly.
“It’s pretty loud in here anyway. I’m not surprised your having to raise your voice!” You laugh, raising your own a little as the sound of drilling and engines occur.
The weekend went by, and Lando stuck around. He was so polite and really kind. A little flirty but you didn’t mind because he was very respectful.
Oscar on the other hand you couldn’t read. He seemed to have this axe against you. This general dislike that you didn’t know where it had come from.
So you devised a plan, to pull him to one side. You stayed put in his drivers room waiting for him to come back from the race. He’d come P4 and Lando had a podium do it was a special weekend for McLaren.
“What are you doing in MY room!” His voice startles you from looking at your phone.
“Please don’t leave before I can talk!” You ask and he looks at you as if you’ve grown two heads.
“This is my room, your the one that needs to leave! I’m not going anywhere!” He cries with his hands up.
“Good, because I’m not leaving till you tell me why you hate me so much!” You ask and there’s an awkward silence of you both just staring at each other. You wait sitting politely on the small sofa.
“Argh I - I don’t … hate you” he sighs and you now look at him like he’s grown two heads.
“Oh come on! It’s so obvious!” You exclaim standing up.
“I don’t I just … don’t like when social media influencers come to the race” he sighs and you laugh out loud at the thought you’d been considered a social media influencer.
In some respect you were. You had a large platform and brands would take advantage of that. But it was purely your last name and legacy that got you that platform.
“I don’t know what your experience is like with celebrity’s who come here … but I’m not like them. Whoever has … swayed your opinion on well my kind of people” you mutter the last bit.
“Look I’m sorry for being so blunt and stand offish with you at the start. I didn’t mean too. Truce?” He offers and you mock a thoughtful look on your face before a grin comes onto your face that has him blushing.
“Truce Piastri! Now will you try a cookie for the love of god!” You grin showing him the plate you’d made just for him as he hasn’t eaten any of yours yet!
Taglist:
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#f1 imagine#f1 x reader#formula 1 x you#formula 1#formula one#formula one fanfiction#lando norris#oscar piastri series#oscar piastri masterlist#oscar piastri angst#oscar piastri fanfic#oscar piastri x you#oscar piastri f1#oscar piastri one shot#oscar piastri imagine#oscar piastri#op81 x you#op81 fluff#op81 imagine#op81 x reader#op81 fic#op81#op81 angst#op81 x y/n
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Create Your Own Main Menu for The Sims 4 - Tutorial
Hey folks!
This tutorial will walk you through creating your own main menu override for The Sims 4 based on my custom repository.
_________
What is required:
JPEXS Free Flash Decompiler
Sims 4 Studio
Raster graphics editor (e.g. Photoshop, Gimp, Photopea)
Your Own Main Menu repository
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Step 1: Download and unzip the Your Own Main Menu repository
It's available on my Patreon page for free.
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Step 2: Prepare your custom images
There are two images that you need to customize:
SimMattically_YourOwnMainMenu_MainBG.pngThis is the main background image, where you want to put the desired graphic.Size: 1440px x 1200px
SimMattically_YourOwnMainMenu_BarBG.pngThis is the second background for the navigation bar on the right.Size: 480px x 1200px
Prepare your own images based on these templates. Do not change the size of the images.
Tips: If you're using a more complex background, such as a screenshot from your game, I recommend blurring the Bar_BG with a Gaussian Blur (~60px). Additionally, I suggest adding a white overlay with ~50% opacity and a 5-pixel wide white bar on the left edge with ~10% opacity. This helps improve the readability of the navigation bar buttons and adds an extra layer of detail to your menu design.
The repository also contains the optional file "SimMattically_RefreshedMainMenu_ScenarioButton.package" from my other mod, which replaces the Scenario button icon with a semi-transparent white version. It's up to you whether you want to use it.
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Step 3: Import the images to the .GFX file
Firstly, open JPEXS Free Flash Decompiler and then open my SimMattically_YourOwnMainMenu_Template.gfx with it.
Select "No to all" when prompted.
On the left, choose "images" and scroll to the bottom where you will see the images you just edited in their original form. Right-click on each and select "Replace." Select the custom images you prepared in step 2.
Save the file.
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Step 4: Import the .GFX file into the .package file.
Open Sims 4 Studio, then click on "My Projects" and open SimMattically_YourOwnMainMenu.package. Select "Scale Form GFX" (the one with the "gameentrylauncher" description) and click on "Import." Select the modified .GFX file and import it. On Windows OS, you need to switch from .binary to all file types to see the file.
Save the .package file via File -> Save As... Give it a custom name and place it in The Sims 4/Mods folder.
That's it! Enjoy!
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IMPORTANT INFORMATION/TERMS OF USE:
Main menu overrides can become outdated with some game updates, causing them to break the game. You will have to remake your custom main menu with a new, updated template in this case. Always make sure you are using the latest available template and that it's not outdated.
Since these mods can break the game, I do not advise sharing your custom main menus with other players. You are free to do so, but be aware that since you're relying on this repository to create your own version, you most likely won't be able to update the mod and resolve issues for other players on your own, so you take responsibility for breaking their game.
If you decide to share your version with other players, please credit my repository and link to my Patreon post.
Do not put your custom main menu based on this repository behind any paywall or early access. I made this repository and tutorial free for everyone, so keep it fair.
I do not take responsibility for people misusing this repository or breaking your game with incorrectly modified files. I do not provide support for custom main menu overrides created by other creators using this repository.
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#sims#thesims#thesims4#sims4#sims 4 mods#sims 4 custom content#simblr#s4cc#ts4#main menu override#sims tutorial
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New Desktop Dash, No Bueno
Okay so, new dash layout on desktop.
As seems to be a common reaction: not a fan.
Let's talk about some of the issues:
1. Really visually cluttered
The new sidebar crowds out the dashboard content and the bright blue popup notifications (now at the side AND top) and create-post bar pull your eyes in different directions. There is no space for the eye to rest on anymore - it's all noise. The end result is that everything flattens - there's no focal point anymore.
It's also pretty overwhelming - even for someone like me - so I can't imagine it would be very user-friendly to someone who was photosensitive or struggled with visual overload (especially when paired with the high-contrast 'true blue' default site palette and animated icons for the changes-on-tumblr/staff-picks/trending buttons).
2. The activity pop-up now covers dashboard content
This is really bad from a usability standpoint. In the old layout the activity pop-up used to drop down over the recommended blogs sidebar. Now it actively gets in the way of looking at core content. The dash is why we are here, burying it like this is baffling.
The search bar now drops down over the recommended blogs banner instead, but where the old design had non-critical space on each side of the dashboard to visually allow both features to pop in, this new layout is way worse for efficiency. And for what? Having a rarely-used former drop-down menu now permanently active? The old banner with quick-links for the key use-features (notes, messages, askbox) made much more design sense.
It also means that the activity pop-up gets now completely covered by the blog pop-up that opens when you click the notification, so double demerit there. 0/10.
3. It's harder to navigate to the activity page, and the new page-stretch means you can't see new notes without scrolling down
That first bit is kind of a nitpick but cramming the 'See everything' link down at the bottom of a browser window isn't a great navigation choice. (Again, the visual signifiers and eye-direction in this new design are incredibly poor.)
That the main activity page now requires you to scroll to even see the top note due to the new display ratio is really egregious. It makes another key site feature just slightly less convenient and accessible in a very irritating way. Bad choice.
4. The new ratio pushes the Radar and Main Sponsored slot completely off-screen
This one is directed the tumblr staff: that's also a bad choice, guys. That's your main ad-slot for people loading into Tumblr so hiding it is going to hurt both your ad-impressions and your ability to promote the ad-free option. The new layout ratio also means that the in-dash ads are going to be a lot more invasively screen-filling - and let's be real most users will either add-block or leave before purchasing ad-free. I have no idea what the new layout is trying to achieve but if ad optimisation is the goal then this ain't it, chief.
To be honest I cannot comprehend the rationale for this change. I guess it's visually a bit more like Twitter... but that site is currently being demolished from the inside by poor management decisions so maybe it's not the best aesthetic to be aping.
Well then, what do?
Okay so, new dash bad. And so, in true Tumblr spirit: we complain. However, to get results we must deploy the art of kvetching productively.
If you want the old dash back (or at least, a better new-dash design that corrects some of these big weaknesses) what you should do is head over to https://www.tumblr.com/support and lodge a feedback ticket pointing out the problems. The more users who do that, the more likely you are to see an effective response.
Remember, tagging @staff and @support in posts won't fix this. There's no guarantee they'll see it among the notes barrage.
Also: please don't be rude or abusive when you lodge tickets. Whoever is manning those blogs and inboxes probably isn't the person who forced through this change. Save an intern, be polite.
Go forth in disgruntlement to keep this hellhole a hellhome.
#tumblr#tumblr problems#new dashboard#yes it's bad#but there is a way#I've already lodged tickets about it
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Plumbug's TS2: Setup List ˎˊ˗
This is a list of everything that I personally used recently to get The Sims 2 running smoothly after I reset my computer. I hope that this helps both new and seasoned players, and myself the next time I do my yearly PC reset. ✰(ᐛ )
˗ˏˋ The Game and Launcher ˎˊ˗
1—The Sim 2: Ultimate Collection
⚠ — Please don't support EA's "Legacy" version. ⚠ — The link I used to use on The Internet Archive is dead, but I have a copy on my external hard drive. I'd like to upload it sometime, but I don't currently have strong internet connection. 2—RPC Launcher ⊹ — Seperates Mod
˗ˏˋ Programs ˎˊ˗
1—Bulk Rename Utility 2—CC Merger 3—Clean Installer 4—Compressorizer 5—Empty Standby List ⊹ — Guide 6—Graphics Rules Maker 7—Hood Checker 8—Hood Replace 9—Lot Adjuster 10—SimPe
˗ˏˋ Visuals ˎˊ˗
1—Body Shop ⊹ — Guide ⊹ — Body Shop Room (I use "Ellcrze Livin") ⊹ — Brightness Fix (I use XB) 2—Camera Mod Compilation 3—Cinema Secrets Lighting Mod ⊹ — Shader Fixes (I use Moi’s Water Mod) 4—Clean UI ⊹ — Better Bubbles ⊹ — Bigger Hobby Panels ⊹ — Body Shop ⊹ — Improved Pets ⊹ — No Pause Frame ⊹ — OSAB Addons ⊹ — Pie Menu Fix ⊹ — Widescreen CAS Fix 5—Custom Loading Screens (I use everything) 6—Terrain and Water Fix ⚠ — I was having this issue, but it's a simple fix! 7—ReShade 4.9.1 ⊹ — Guide ⊹ — Turniphead Preset
˗ˏˋ Neighborhoods Cleanup ˎˊ˗
1—Clean and Empty Neighborhood Templates ⊹ — Guide ⊹ — Stealth 'Hoods ⊹ — Pleasantview (I use "main — without townies" version) ⊹ — Strangetown ⊹ — Veronaville 2—Pleasantview Terrain (No Bridge) ⚠ — I used Hood Replace to make a new 'hood with this terrain and copied it to Pleasantview so I could place a custom bridge instead!
˗ˏˋ Mods in Game Files ˎˊ˗
1—CEP 2—Fewer Hobby Wants (I use "fewer nature" version) 3—Custom Walls ⚠ — I don't use Scriptorium. I used comment #72 to help me install these manually. This is the path I used to find "walls.txt" ⋯ C:\Program Files\The Sims 2 Ultimate Collection\Fun with Pets\SP9\TSData\Res\Catalog\Scripts
˗ˏˋ Notes ˎˊ˗
✪—I run every program as an administrator ✪—If you're annoyed by the Windows Defender icon, try "Shortcut⋯Advanced⋯Run as Administrator" instead of the usual "Compatibility⋯Run as Administrator". Huzzah! ⊹ ࣪ ˖
˗ˏˋ My Computer Specs ˎˊ˗
✪—Computer: Surface Pro 8 ✪—Resolution: 2880x1920 ✪—Processor: 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-1185G7 ✪—RAM: 16.0 GB (15.8 GB usable) ✪—Windows: 11 (24H2)
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🎄💾🗓️ Day 9: Retrocomputing Advent Calendar - The Apple Lisa 🎄💾🗓️
The Apple Lisa, introduced on January 19, 1983, was a pioneering personal computer notable for its graphical user interface (GUI) and mouse input, a big departure from text-based command-line interfaces. Featured a Motorola 68000 CPU running at 5 MHz, 1 MB of RAM (expandable to 2 MB), and a 12-inch monochrome display with a resolution of 720×364 pixels. The system initially included dual 5.25-inch "Twiggy" floppy drives, later replaced by a single 3.5-inch Sony floppy drive in the Lisa 2 model. An optional 5 or 10 MB external ProFile hard drive provided more storage.
The Lisa's price of $9,995 (equivalent to approximately $30,600 in 2023) and performance issues held back its commercial success; sales were estimated at about 10,000 units.
It introduced advanced concepts such as memory protection and a document-oriented workflow, which influenced future Apple products and personal computing.
The Lisa's legacy had a huge impact on Apple computers, specifically the Macintosh line, which adopted and refined many of its features. While the Lisa was not exactly a commercial success, its contributions to the evolution of user-friendly computing interfaces are widely recognized in computing history.
These screen pictures come from Adafruit fan Philip " It still boots up from the Twiggy hard drive and runs. It also has a complete Pascal Development System." …"mine is a Lisa 2 with the 3.5” floppy and the 5 MB hard disk. In addition all of the unsold Lisa machines reached an ignominious end."
What end was that? From the Verge -
In September 1989, according to a news article, Apple buried about 2,700 unsold Lisa computers in Logan, Utah at a very closely guarded garbage dump. The Lisa was released in 1983, and it was Apple’s first stab at a truly modern, graphically driven computer: it had a mouse, windows, icons, menus, and other things we’ve all come to expect from “user-friendly” desktops. It had those features a full year before the release of the Macintosh.
Article, and video…
youtube
Check out the Apple Lisa page on Wikipedia
, the Computer History's article -
and the National Museum of American History – Behring center -
Have first computer memories? Post’em up in the comments, or post yours on socialz’ and tag them #firstcomputer #retrocomputing – See you back here tomorrow!
#applelisa#retrocomputing#firstcomputer#applehistory#computinghistory#vintagecomputers#macintosh#1980scomputers#applecomputer#gui#vintagehardware#personalcomputers#motorola68000#technostalgia#twiggydrive#floppydisk#graphicalinterface#applefans#computinginnovation#historictech#computerlegacy#techthrowback#techhistory#memoryprotection#profiledrive#userinterface#firstmac#computermilestone#techmemories#1983tech
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IT IS HE!!
back to shimeji making and with the white hons himself
LMK AO LIE SHIMEJI VER 1.0!!
Just click on the big words and ya can download, ye :D Contains 2 zipfiles: The normal version and less frames version
Read down below for explanations on that
if got any problems launching and stuff, dont be afraid to message me, i'll try to help ya out :>
OR you can join my Discord server for easier help (will explain more down in the post)
but as seen in the quick lil poster i made there, it says extra animation + more, more info about that underneath the read 👇
from the top,
EXTRA ANIMATION
like my previous Shimejis, this one has unique frames for each action of the Shimeji. best example is the walk, run, dash actions seen below
there are other actions that have unique frames like these, but that's for you to find out yourself sksks
CUSTOM ACTION NAME
As per usual, some actions are renamed to better fit the character. Here is a guide for what they do:
Fall Over = Ao Lie falls down in a silly way and sits up again
Suprise From Behind = Shimeji breeding 1
Invite In = Shimeji breeding 2
disclaimer, I still have not done the full action guide list but I have listed a few renamed actions in guide.txt for referencing. Stay tune when I finally make that ref list
CUSTOM ACTION
Just like SWK & Mackie, petting is enabled here too!! So pet Ao Lie's little head to your heart's content hehe (credit to Kilkakon for the original script)
ALSO, the pet action is now fully animated!! However, the animation will keep playing even after you're done petting him
as seen in this gif :3
Steps to do this action is as followed:
Make the shimeji sit down (any surface is okay, ie work floor/window top)
Move the cursor to the shimeji's head
Make sure it is a hand cursor and not an arrow cursor
Pet away!!
If you want to pick up the shimeji without prompting the pet action, just move the cursor lower until it turns into the arrow icon
NON-SYMMETRICAL SHIMEJI
Like Macaque, Ao Lie also has non-symmetrical frames. So his collar will always shape a "Y" anywhere he goes!
Same as before, Ao Lie needed much more frames than he needs to get this effect to work. But, it may make some devices lag me thinks. So, there's 2 versions to download. One with symmetry and one without
PLEASE DOWNLOAD THE LESS FRAME VERSION TO NOT FRY YOUR PC'S!!
COLORED SETTINGS
Oh yea one thing I am excited to announce. The settings for the shimeji are now coloured!!
this has been a feature since long ago in the program but there was a bug. But now, it is fixed and now I can customize the colour scheme whenever and whatever I choose so >:3c
If you would like to change the colours yourself, just head into the "Theme" tab and change the colours there.
ALTERED SOME ACTIONS
There are now a few actions that will happen by itself, without you needing to choose in the "Set Behaviour" list.
Like the previous dash action, and now the daggling legs action that can happen when he sits down.
UPDATES WILL HAPPEN!!
Like the rest of my shimejis. UPDATES, UPDATES, UPDATES!! honestly, for Ao Lie I cant think for much updates besides software updates. For features and what not, he probably is going to have the least features update. But if yall have any suggestions, drop me a message or in my discord server
oh yea
I HAVE A DISCORD SERVER NOW!!
So after releasing the Shadowpeach Shimeji, so many people messaged me questions and needing help on how to work the shimeji and other stuff. So far, people only contacted me through dm's on tumblr, instagram, and just using Patreon's comment section.
Honestly, worse way to communicate since some issues I needed pictures and long messages to help out. So, discord server it is. Here's what ya can expect
Shimeji stuff (questions, wips, FAQ, etc)
Alerts on my posts and streams
Space for arts (any arts, not just drawing :>)
Share anything ya want (shitposts, current fixation, info, etc)
Just socialize and make friends :D
Ya can read more info in the rules & directory channel when ya join
So if ya interested, just click the link below
DISCORD SERVER: BEA'S CHILLAX HOLE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
but for now that will be all for ver. 1.0
many thanks to anyone interested in this project and of course
BIGGEST THANKS TO THOSE THAT HELPED BETA TEST THEM
for privacy reason they shall stay anonymous but
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ >:3
PLUS EVEN MORE HEARTS!! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
ACCEPT MORE HEARTS HHHHHHHHHHHHHHH ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
okay bye
#monkiekid#lego#lego monkie kid#monkie kid#ao lie lego monkie kid#ao lie monkie kid#ao lie lmk#ao lie#shimeji#bai longma#white horse dragon
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Friday, July 28th, 2023
🌟 New
We’ve updated the text for the blog setting that said it would “hide your blog from search results”. Unfortunately, we’ve never been able to guarantee hiding content from search crawlers, unless they play nice with the standard prevention measures of robots.txt and noindex. With this in mind, we’ve changed the text of that setting to be more accurate, insofar as we discourage them, but cannot prevent search indexing. If you want to completely isolate your blog from the outside internet and require only logged in folks to see your blog, then that’s the separate “Hide [blog] from people without an account” setting, which does prevent search engines from indexing your blog.
When creating a poll on the web, you can now have 12 poll options instead of 10. Wow.
For folks using the Android app, if you get a push notification that a blog you’re subscribed to has a new post, that push will take you to the post itself, instead of the blog view.
For those of you seeing the new desktop website layout, we’ve eased up the spacing between columns a bit to hopefully make things feel less cramped. Thanks to everyone who sent in feedback about this! We’re still triaging more feedback as the experiment continues.
🛠 Fixed
While experimenting with new dashboard tab configuration options, we accidentally broke dashboard tabs that had been enabled via Tumblr Labs, like the Blog Subs tab. We’ve rolled back that change to fix those tabs.
We’ve fixed more problems with how we choose what content goes into blogs’ RSS feeds. This time we’ve fixed a few issues with how answer post content is shown as RSS items.
We’ve also fixed some layout issues with the new desktop website navigation, especially glitches caused when resizing the browser window.
Fixed a visual glitch in the new activity redesign experiment on web that was making unread activity items difficult to read in some color palettes.
Fixed a bug in Safari that was preventing mature content from being blurred properly.
When using Tumblr on a mobile phone browser, the hamburger menu icon will now have an indicator when you have an unread ask or submission in your Inbox.
🚧 Ongoing
Nothing to report here today.
🌱 Upcoming
We hear it’s crab day tomorrow on Tumblr. 🦀
We’re working on adding the ability to reply to posts as a sideblog! We’re just getting started, so it may be a little while before we run an experiment with it.
Experiencing an issue? File a Support Request and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!
Want to share your feedback about something? Check out our Work in Progress blog and start a discussion with the community.
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LUCKY CHARM
PAIRING: Abby x reader
SUMMARY: This, almost?
CW: Part 1? maybe. sfw. tlou universe. fluff. very Christmas-winter- whatever vibes ig.
TAGLIST: @twopeoplee @greysontheidiot @sapphic-ovaries @bilsvlt @tlouloser @marsworlddd @1-800-fantasy @prwttiestbunny @thesevi0lentdelights @lvlymicha @stickycherritart @abbys-muscles @lott6i @abvisionss @usuck @thalchmy @lovelyy-moonlight @fakevalentine
It was an unseasonably cold morning, the kind that crept into your bones and refused to leave, but cold waits for no one. You pressed forward, beginning the ritual of your day as if on autopilot.
A large window near your bed offered a panoramic view of the snow-draped stadium, its once vibrant greens now muted under a heavy blanket of frost. Out there, a few determined figures were already at work, their breath visible in the biting air. It stirred something in you—a silent reminder of your own responsibilities. You needed to hurry.
And hurry you did. The shower was brief, a fleeting luxury that barely warmed your skin. The water seemed to mock the chill outside, its heat rationed, shared among the stadium’s many residents. The scent of pine soap filled the space. It wasn’t your usual brand, but you’d taken what you could during your last errand.
It was either adapt or go without, and you had chosen the former, though it left you longing for the small comforts of familiarity.
Dressed in layers of warm clothes, you tugged on your scuffed, weathered boots. "I really should get new ones," you muttered to yourself. You pulled your coat tighter, the zipper’s reluctant rasp breaking the silence, and stepped into the shared hallway.
The number 200 greeted you as you turned to lock the door with the hope that your roommate wouldn’t need access anytime soon.
They should really issue double keys for shared rooms.
The corridor stretched ahead, illuminated by the cold, sterile glow of white light. The walls bore the weight of history, adorned with big photographs of soccer players clad in iconic blue uniforms, their frozen triumphs preserved in time.
Beyond the open doors at the far end, a second hallway beckoned, leading to the stairs.
The cold seemed to deepen as you moved closer to the heart of the stadium. The vast, empty space amplified the chill, making it almost palpable. Two automatic escalators stood beside the concrete stairwell, their age evident. You hesitated, your gaze lingering on the escalators. The thought of their worn mechanisms giving way beneath your weight sent a shiver down your spine.
Opting for the safer path, you descended the concrete stairs, your fingers trailing along the icy blue railing, its metal biting against your skin.
The hallway below was a gallery of memories—faded photographs of players, their faces etched with determination, and gleaming awards, victories now frozen in time. The stadium’s logo, a bold blueprint against the white walls.
You pushed open the gray door at the bottom, and the muffled hum of conversation spilled out, growing louder as you stepped inside. The familiar scent of food wafted through the air, rich and inviting, mingling with the sound of clinking dishes and muted chatter. The communal dining hall buzzed with life, a stark contrast to the stillness of the corridors. But food wasn’t your destination—not today.
You turned to your right, peering through the narrow gap between the walls toward the modest display of cleaning products. Hope flickered faintly in your chest—perhaps this time you’d find what you needed- what you wanted. The small thrift shop was a makeshift affair, its layout haphazard yet functional.
A single counter acted as a barrier, forming a narrow path for people to queue, their presence marked by the shuffle of boots against the concrete floor.
You approached the counter, stepping beside a woman you vaguely knew. Her tall frame and blonde hair were unmistakable; you'd seen her just a few days ago picking up burritos for Manny.
Manny, who had no regard for lines or patience, had caused a commotion loud enough to turn heads that day. Though you hadn’t exchanged words with her then, his sharp call of “Abs!” had stuck with you. Now, here you were, standing next to Abs herself.
She leaned against the counter, her forearms resting casually on its surface, waiting for the attendant to return from helping another customer. You mimicked her stance, your fingers idly drumming a soft rhythm on the cold concrete.
The chill seeped into your skin, but you didn’t mind, the wait gave you time to think, to observe.
The woman behind the counter flitted between tasks, her movements efficient yet unhurried. She shot you a cursory glance of acknowledgment before turning her attention to the blonde.
“Still looking for the soap, huh?” she asked, her voice tinged with a knowing amusement as she rummaged through a crate behind her.
You chuckled softly, nodding in affirmation. “Yeah. The pine one didn’t really do it for me.”
Abs turned slightly, her interest piqued. “The pine one? Not a fan?”
You shrugged, feeling her gaze on you. “Not really. It, uh, kind of reminds me of an old man. I mean, it’s fine—it suits the season, but it’s just not my thing.”
Your comment drew simultaneous laughter from both women. The shopkeeper smirked, holding up a familiar bar of soap—the very one you had lamented over weeks ago. “Hear that, Abby? You smell like an old man.”
The realization hit you, mortification washing over you in an instant. “Oh God, no! That’s not what I meant—I’m so sorry,” you stammered, your hands flailing slightly as you tried to recover. You cut yourself off, turning to the attendant with mock indignation. “Can you not cause drama between your customers?”
But she merely chuckled, sliding a few familiar items across the counter towards you. “Saved this for you. Thank me later,” her tone still laced with playful mockery.
Abs chuckled, brushing your shoulder lightly with her hand as she paid for her own items. “Don’t worry about it."
You paid as well, gathering your essentials awkwardly into your arms. As you turned toward the clothing section at the back of the shop, a thought struck you—new boots. The ones you were wearing were barely holding together, the sole starting to peel away. Perhaps today was the day to replace them.
You knelt down near the rows of second-hand clothes and shoes, your thick layers making the movement cumbersome. Most of the shirts were worn thin, their fabric stained or frayed beyond repair. Pants hung limp and uninspiring, and then—there they were. Boots.You reached for a pair but quickly realized your hands were too full to properly check the size. With a resigned sigh, you shifted the items to one arm, fumbling to get a better look.
“Need help?” The voice came from above, and you glanced up to find Abs standing there again.
You hesitated briefly before nodding. “Please.”
Without another word, she held out her hands, taking the pile of items from you with ease. Freed from your burden, you examined the boots more closely, only to discover they weren’t your size. A frustrated groan escaped your lips as you stood back up.
“No luck?” Abs asked, handing back your items with a small, sympathetic smile.
You shook your head, glancing down at your current boots. “No. I really need new ones because—” You trailed off, gesturing to the peeling sole. “It could probably be fixed, but honestly, getting new ones would be easier.”
She hummed thoughtfully, scanning the room. “There’s another section over there,” she said, tilting her chin toward a far corner. “I can carry your stuff while you check.”
You blinked, momentarily surprised by her offer. “Are you sure?”
She shrugged, already taking the items from you again. “Yeah, I don’t mind.”
Her casual kindness caught you off guard, but you didn’t argue. Together, you moved toward the next section, Abs trailing behind you as you crouched to inspect the rows of boots. After what felt like an eternity of searching, you finally found a pair in your size. Relief washed over you as you held them up triumphantly.
“Got them!” you announced, standing up with a grin.
Abs smiled, handing back your essentials as you began awkwardly juggling everything. “Thanks a lot,” your gratitude spilling over. “And, uh...” You hesitated, glancing at her bar of soap. “I’m really sorry about the pine thing.”
She laughed softly, shaking her head. “Don’t worry about it. At least I smell seasonal, right?”
You laughed too, nodding shyly. “Yeah, you do.”
As the moment stretched, she tilted her head slightly. “You’re the girl from Room 200, right?”
You frowned, caught off guard. “Yeah... why?”
A knowing smile played on her lips. “One of my friends asked for our room to bring in your roommate, I assume?
Realization dawned, and you laughed along with her. “I was wondering where she was.”
The two of you shared a brief silence, the kind that didn’t feel awkward but comfortable, like an unexpected pause in an otherwise chaotic day.
For the first time in a while, the cold didn’t feel so oppressive.
#A𝕽𝐂𝐇𝖎V𝕰 ( abby )#abby x reader#abby x fem!reader#abby x you#abby x y/n#abby anderson x reader#abby anderson x you#abby anderson x female reader#abby anderson x y/n#abby anderson x black reader#abby anderson fluff#abby fluff
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ava has an issue with characters' driving forces
this post does have spoilers for the new episode, so i'll put this all under a "read more"
disclaimer goes away after a week, i will edit this post so be warned
there's a trend i've noticed when it comes to the main antagonists of ava and avm. theres a common theme amongst all of the villains (i'm counting second and chosen, since they are technically antagonists per ava season 1). let's explore this.
case 1: king orange
it's obvious that the thing motivating king to take over the bastion and get the minecraft icon is the fact that he lost his kid, and to an extent the kid's other guardian (wife, husband, s/o, pick your favorite); he creates a literal black hole in order to see his kid again because of an incident he couldn't control. not to mention king orange also lost purple's trust, and their support as a whole, which further emphasizes the loss of his son given that purple was a second chance, and he messed it up by losing sight of their relationship. this is something that king orange couldn't willingly control.
case 2: purple
purple experiences two kinds of loss: death and abandonment. obviously lapis (regular blue) abandons the family because they didn't approve of orchid (pink) coddling their child, something that purple couldn't control. then purple has to live with the fact that their only other parent is dying to some unforeseen reason, likely illness, and that too is something that they couldn't control.
case 3: second
second is more interesting, because it's something that gets glossed over. they're the antagonist in ava 4 up until the very end, and why does second do the things they do? because they lost their friends to something (someone; alan) they couldn't control and this is repeated in showdown; second watches dark kill their friends because of dark's own spite and hatred, which i will cover next. that is something second cannot control
case 4: dark
i think dark is a really good example of this trend; they were made to attack chosen and lost control, ultimately losing and teaming up with chosen to work against alan. then they convinced chosen to go on a conquest to essentially take over the world, which ends in dark losing chosen's trust and support as a friend due to beliefs that dark couldn't control (chosen's own morals)
case 5: chosen
compared to everyone else, chosen experiences loss and the inability to maintain control in different ways. they fought back against alan and, as punishment, was forced to be alan's pop-up window destroyer against their own will, and they can't control it then he does, freeing himself, prompting dark's creation, and eventually befriending dark and teaming up with them to destroy the world. they grew distant, not sharing the same beliefs and reasoning as dark anymore, and directly opposed dark during the virabot sequence. this all leads to chosen and dark fighting during the showdown, which is when chosen ultimately watches second kill their former friend and can't control that
case 6: victim
the whole reason why this post was made is because of victim's whole deal with mitsi. they endured abuse, lost the upperhand in that initial fight with alan, took matters into their own hands and fled the computer then met mitsi, fell in love, started a company together, and they lost her in a situation that they couldn't control, that being chosen and dark destroying newgrounds
if you couldn't notice already, there is something that happens between every single antagonist, and that's the fact that every antagonist has lost something due to circumstances they can't control
obviously the circumstances are different. majority of these antagonists have experienced loss through death, while a handful also experienced loss through losing control, losing free will, so on so forth
"why is this an issue?"
put it this way: every single antagonist is being driven by the same exact thing, just in different fonts
every single major antagonist, in some way, shape, or form, loses something. as a result they are driven to get whatever they lost back, whether it's a loved one or the love of someone that is now gone (or in dark's case, trust).
i personally believe that there was a lot of missed potential within the antagonists, as i'm sure some people think, and i think it's because instead of having characters do things out of spite or out of sheer evil, it's in an attempt to get something back.
the reason i'm saying main antagonists and not villains is because in the case of youtube from animation vs youtube, the corrupt video green in the influencer arc, the pokemon universe in animation vs pokemon, and even the entire animation vs education series, the antagonists aren't going against second and the color gang because they lost someone dear to them or they lost the affection of those around them
case in point: corrupt video green. they were never loved to begin with, and that is what causes them to lash out at the color gang and fight them. everyone turned their back on them because they were imperfect, because they loved other creations more than them
also case in point: animation vs math. euler's identity only combatted second because second was technically the one that invaded their space. they're not trying to bring anyone back to life like king orange was, they were just protecting their territory
my thoughts are a little incoherent right now but i have a point, that being that the antagonists should have another reason to do the things they do that isn't just "oh my wife/son/friend/dad and mom died"
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Benchmark Tech Notes
Running the Benchmark
If your Benchmark isn't opening, it's an issue with the executable file, and something not completing properly on either download, or extracting the Zip file. The Benchmark is designed to run and give you scores for your potato computer, I promise.
I actually saved my Benchmark to my external drive, and it still pulls and saves data and runs as it should. Make sure you allowed the download to complete before extracting the zip.
Resolution
Check your Settings; in Display, it may be defaulting your monitor Resolution to something than you might otherwise use if you aren't on standard 1920x1080.
To check your monitor Resolution, minimize everything on your screen and right click anywhere on your Desktop. Go to Display Settings and scroll down to find Resolution and what it's set at.
You can set the Graphic Settings 1 tab to Maximum, or to Import your game settings. Display Settings tab is where you set it to be Windowed, Bordered, or Full Screen, as well as select Resolution to match your monitor in the dropdown (or customize it if needed). I speak on Resolution as some folks in my FC noted it changed how their characters looked.
The Other tab in Settings is where you can change the text output, or even check a box to disable the logo and score; I do this on subsequent plays, once I have my scores at various settings, to get the clean screenshots.
@calico-heart has a post about fixing graphics settings, with screenshots of the settings tab. Basically, change graphics upscaling from AMD to NVIDIA, and/or uncheck Enable Dynamic Resolution. Also check the Framerate Threshold dropdown.
Screenshots
The benchmark auto-saves 5 screens each playthrough. In the Benchmark folder there is a Screenshots folder to find the auto-images taken of your characters.
Character Appearance
If you want to get your current in game appearance, including non-standard hairstyles, make sure to load up the live game, right click and "Save Character Settings."
Then go to Documents/My Games/Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (this is the default in Windows 10 so mileage varies). The file will have the date you last updated their settings and be named FFXIV_CHARA_01.dat (or however many saves you have/made).
Grab those newly updated DAT files for your character(s) and copy them, then in the same base folder, go to Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (Benchmark).
Paste the copied DAT files in there, and rename to FFXIV_CHARA_BENCH01.dat (the number doesn't matter, and you may have more).
When running Benchmark Character Creation, use the dropdown menu.
If you do Create a Custom Character and Load Appearance Data, it will give you default hairstyles again. Meteor's Dawntrail hairstyle is a new default.
In Char Gen I am finding that a very pale hrothgal reflects the green scenery around her, giving her white skin/fur a green tinge. The other zones do not have this problem, or at least not to the same degree.
They added a Midday vs Evening setting in outdoor areas as well to test lighting. The lighting in the Gridanian innroom is better; not as bright as outdoors, to be expected, but not completely useless.
New voice type icons to clarifying the sounds you make.
Remember we're getting a free fantasia with the expansion, so some tweaking may be needed; Iyna I felt like I needed to adjust her jaw. Other colors--skin, hair, eyes, tattoos, etc--are showing differently in the various kinds of lighting.
Uncertain if the limit on hairstyles for the Hrothgals so far is just a Benchmark thing; they do have set styles for different head options. Everyone gets Meteor's hair though, so it may be a temporary/Benchmark limit. But which clan and face you choose drastically alters what hair and facial feature options you have access to.
Check your settings, tweak them a bit, play around with chargen, and remember this is still a Benchmark; they always strike me as a little less polished than the finished game, but so far I'm actually pretty pleased with having defined fingers and toes, the irises in the eyes, scars looking cut into the skin, and other improvements.
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One of the reasons I like Valentina from Saw X so much is because I think honestly for a period of the movie- I feel the most bad for her. Right before she's kidnapped, Valentina is literally in the midst of fighting off an attempted sexual assault. The only reason she was able to get out of that was due to Amanda smashing the car window and by proxy hitting Valentina's attacker. You'd rather Amanda have showed up when she did than some minutes later.... Yet Valentina goes from one highly traumatising situation to the next as she's then dragged out of the car and knocked out.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/cbdf2923ebe6af24d94eba89c485b9c5/ddc00b7efe97a47a-24/s540x810/8457f55764e2e590e5684f9c2848296652f4e18f.jpg)
She's a sex worker and it's not a shocking line of work for her due to the fact that everyone who is a part of the scam besides Cecilia and possibly Parker are struggling financially. Valentina is doing whatever she can really to gain any sort of income, which we can only assume is just to get by as there is no mention of her funding something such as a substance issue like Gabriela. This to me is almost... Realistic horror? The horror of the world let's say. It's not the gore or torture, it's the fact that this woman is turning to either amoral or unsafe places to support herself. I'll also state here that I have no issues whatsoever with sex work and that you don't always have to be struggling money wise for it to be where you source your income! However, it's very well known and documented that almost all forms of sex work can take advantage of people in a number of ways. Valentina isn't the only sex worker in Saw either, there is Addison Corday who was also a prostitute and then we have Brenda who was a pimp.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/6616ea46707fdf14c946c312a44f51e3/ddc00b7efe97a47a-85/s540x810/08341a3eb0e50c51a2c79dc7c0afdc01ddb6b1ad.jpg)
Anyway, I think Valentina day to day would've always been aware of possible violence against her... But just the same as being a member of the scam, it was a risk she had to take for the money. What she could have never expected was being put in a death contraption where her only way of avoiding having her head cut off was sawing her own leg off instead. Oh, she also needed to collect the bone marrow out of said leg in I believe it was 3 minutes overall? It gets better though! EVEN IN DEATH, HER BODY IS STILL BEING USED. First Cecilia disembowels Valentina and uses her intestines as a rope. Then as a decoy to distract Parker, Amanda uses Valentina's severed head.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/ca1d939e39421903ca90099cfce84af9/ddc00b7efe97a47a-35/s540x810/a84a7ae85cbfc3fbc6a4e1ce7b628c855fcb2fc9.jpg)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/2df7a2afd610793713ff5e74e0b9d624/ddc00b7efe97a47a-6e/s540x810/331925ece7da9ed482aeb0764104c32a084e4104.jpg)
CANNOT CATCH A BREAK. Not to mention the fact that even though sure she was successful in removing her leg and starting the extraction of the bone marrow... Valentina realised she was still fucked. Impending doom as she watches her time go down and there is nothing she can do to speed the process up. (ADD ON: I also believe that her trap shows everyone else the reality of the situation they're in. She's the first to be tested among them and in that way she's like the guinea pig or even the lamb to the slaughter. I feel for a while there is this atmosphere of disbelief which is shared between all of them and when Valentina's head comes off that's when chaos really erupts. Your life truly is on the line.... And if you don't win your test? You'll end up like her.)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/c4fb4b89df553e1189e2c445559894a8/ddc00b7efe97a47a-6d/s540x810/800d46f3fe9a137cc2de1f1cbf2eca72fbf49272.jpg)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/e7326466f87334cf0d1093422c09f19c/ddc00b7efe97a47a-90/s540x810/d952dd96c616b85b01d310d3bc1c94f6dbca01af.jpg)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/1da2675e67103cab62c1cf55a3d149cb/ddc00b7efe97a47a-52/s540x810/72e845ce34031e049db7f4614564f2c15c4ea72b.jpg)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/f2d56e9123e5213904ef3970ad69f8c4/ddc00b7efe97a47a-60/s540x810/4d2a0cd97b6a60ad841366f20ea45bbb5c991fcb.jpg)
Another thing we discuss with feeling pity for characters and etc is age. With Gabriela she's early 20s for example... Paulette Hernàndez (Valentina's Actor) is 34 now and I always viewed the character as early 30s- THAT IS YOUNG. SHE WAS STILL A YOUNG WOMAN. To end this off because it is just rambling. I think her trap is my favourite from Saw X and I know that's a common opinion. I love the practical effects and the overall set up of it.
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/bf2f0edbf4ba7784f9aa4e3b44e9ff04/ddc00b7efe97a47a-b6/s540x810/882a6b43ca98144b65fbd3f4eed8e082a69477c7.jpg)
I feel as though this one is very well up there into being one of the most iconic Saw traps? I think it's memorable for all the right reasons and Paulette gave an amazing performance alongside that.
#valentina saw x#paulette hernández#amanda young#cecilia pederson#gabriela saw x#addison corday#brenda saw iv#saw#saw x#saw 2023#saw franchise#saw movies#sawposting
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