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Just got to do some woodworking for the first time in a long while, and I am once again reminded of why I enjoy my favorite type of word to work with: Purpleheart.

Why’s it called purpleheart?

Muthafuckin’ purple wood. How cool is that? It’s brown when you cut it, but due to oxidization, eventually turns to a beautiful purple color. (if you don’t seal it at this stage, it’ll eventually turn red, I believe, which is still pretty, but you buy purpleheart for purple, damnit!)

And everything you make with it turns out amazing.

Purple floors?

Nice.

Purple stairs?

Fancy.

Purple table?

Sweet.

Purple guitar?

Awesome.

Purple whatever the hell is going on here?

Epic.

It’s just such a cool wood to work with, and it’s sturdy enough to be used for just about anything. If I ever get a house, half of it might just end up being made out of purpleheart.

Anyway, that’s enough nerdery for one post. I will now return to reblogging stupid pictures and recipes.

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It Shouldn't Need to Happen...

Someone open the tequila! I'm back on my Kataang salt.

One of the (many) things I hate about Kataang is that there is no real build on Katara's side. Even the moments that get trotted out as proof that Katara liked Aang back (like the dance in that stupid Footloose pastiche that meant nothing to the overall plot) are undercut by the fact that Katara doesn't acknowledge them. It's business as usual afterwards, and nothing about how she treats him (like her baby brother-son) changes. The only explicit proof we get that Katara likes him back in an he is my equal and I see him as a potential partner way is that awkward kiss in the end. Here's the thing, that kiss shouldn't have been necessary.

Go with with me for a second. I was recently revisiting Legally Blonde (classic), and it gave me another reason to hate the Kataang kiss in the finale. Compare how Kataang was handled to Elle and Emmet's relationship in Legally Blonde. We never see them together in an explicitly romantic way. Even the last scene, at Elle's graduation, he's in the crowd, and the whole post script reveal that he and Elle had been dating for two years and were about to be engaged could have been skipped and nothing would've been lost. The movie wasn't about Elle and Emmet. It was about Elle learning that she was smarter and more capable than anyone realized, even her, and she didn't have to change anything about her personality to be successful. Still, the fact that they did end up together makes sense. We understand why they are attracted to each other. In Emmet, Elle finds a rare supportive figure who believes in her abilities and values her beyond her physical appearance. He, in turn, is drawn to Elle's determination and intelligence (and the fact that she's hot is a bonus). That's made clear in the movie before anything remotely romantic happens between them. They don't kiss in the movie at all. We don't even see the proposal. Still, them ending up together makes sense because the movie set them up for it. It was a bit disappointing that we didn't get to see them kiss, but that's not what the movie was about. My point is, we didn't need them to kiss to believe their relationship. We may have wanted it, but we didn't need it. Because the writers did their job.

Circling back around to Kataang. They needed the kiss to show where their relationship stood. If the show had ended without them kissing, even with Katara going out to stand on the balcony with Aang, it could just be read as completely platonic. Following with the undercurrent of mom/sitter and child, Katara going out to the balcony with Aang could've been read as his caretaker's quiet pride in the child she'd raised. They needed to kiss to make it clear that their relationship was no longer platonic, and it was entirely because the writers had neglected to give Katara any real reason to want to be with Aang romantically.

That's its. That's the post.

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i’m so glad earth only has one moon, if there were more i’d have to pick a favorite and that sounds too emotionally taxing to even fathom

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How is it possible to get so many guest kudos in one day when I write for such an old fandom?! I’ve never seen this happen before, I usually only get a few a day if that

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Cuando el agente Quito suena la campana de 587 Hz en el depósito número tres del subsuelo secreto de la Rosada, lo hace con una sonrisita burlona. En su larga y lucrativa carrera como lavarropas estatal, Quito ha hecho de todo: firmar papeles, seleccionar lapiceras para acesores de diputados, reenviar cadenas de mails, y en el último tiempo, se estuvo destacando en su verdadera pasión: Twitter.

Su posición en el aparato comunicativo estatal es fuente de un orgullo taimado y cínico. Trabajó con todos y para todos; con los radicales, con el peronismo, con el pro, con los libertarios. La demencia cíclica nacional lleva el pan a su mesa y viste a sus hijos. Quito es un fiel devoto de la post-verdad, sus valores y principios tienen precio, como calzado seleccionado acorde a la situación. Y si hay algo que tiene muy en claro es que todos mienten.

Nada es real.

Todo es parte del mismo vaivén de la historia. La gente se columpia entre los dedos de los que están en esas búsquedas despiadadas por poder y los hombres inteligentes, como Quito se precia de ser, se hacen un hueco seguro e invisible donde comer cómodamente, intocables por las guerras.

Probablemente por eso nunca se habría esperado que al tocar la campana, la vibración resultante le reverberara en los huesos e instantáneamente una criatura sacada directamente de las pesadillas de un escritor de horror cósmico se revelara frente a el. Con el corazón estallándole en el pecho, ve ese rostro como de una flor marchita y pútrida, babosa, irrumpir en el aire, la boca desencajada saliendo del fondo de la garganta, como exponiendo un tracto digestivo y saliendo y saliendo y saliendo. No llega a percibir bien el cuerpo más allá de que parece encorvado para mirarlo. Los ojos se le llenan de lágrimas, la criatura lo mira, parece hasta tranquila, hasta gentil, como si a pesar de su monstruosidad no guardara ninguna malicia.

Lento, lento, como queriendo creer que el bicho no lo está viendo, Quito retrocede. Las manos, las manos gotean una especie de baba y las está levantando, se alzan y se extienden más de lo que ninguna mano se tendría que extender. El olor es fétido. Se está por mear encima. La puerta está a un metro y de repente la urgencia por salir, por respirar, es irrefrenable, tiene que salir, salir y correr e irse lejos, lejos, a dónde sea pero lejos. Se arroja con todo su considerable peso hacia la puerta de madera, tratando futilmente de tumbarla. Las manos le tiemblan y no puede ni agarrar el picaporte. No le sale, se está meando, no puede abrir la maldita puerta.

La cámara de seguridad del cuartito de depósito llega a captar la puteada final se Quitó, algo que se parece a "la reputísima madre", pero la voz le sale en un hilo lastimero, lloroso y humillante. El bicho lo toca con sus manos babosas, huesudas y llenas de dientes. La piel se le da vuelta en un instante y se desploma en un charco de sangre.

El bicho sale del subsuelo de la rosada, caminando lentamente, invisible al ojo humano. Detrás, el agente Quito de la flamante división ultraespacial de la SIDE yace derrotado en su primera misión.

En media hora, el cuerpo va a ser hallado por una señora de limpieza que ahogue un grito, llame al supervisor y vomite. A pesar del grito de la señora, en el piso vacío no van a dispararse sirenas de alarma, desde el departamento de Quito no van a destinarse ni flores para la viuda, la misión va a ser archivada como un éxito por la supervisora y el cuerpo va a quedar prolijamente barrido abajo de una capa de misterio que no va a trascender, como lo harán otros, a las noticias o al imaginario colectivo.

milei puso una rama de la side a luchar contra fantasmas

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No sé, man, esto tiene potencial de serie, esto sirve, esto sirve, llamen a Szifrión

milei puso una rama de la side a luchar contra fantasmas

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*with a hand upon my heart* qué contestarme, de seguro te mareé

might get canceled for this but i find it disrespectful when ppl don’t stand for the national anthem. as soon as you hear it, you need to show respect and stand up. i get chills every time i hear “Quiero saber que me pasa, te pregunto que me pasa y no sabes”

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Gay tango y son dos obreros de la construcción

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gente de 🇺🇸:

Armar quilombo y romper absolutamente todo, tomar universidades, hacer paros, marchas, afectar la economía de una manera substancial:❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌

no hacer nada y dormirse por 4 años, quejándose en twitter, pensar que el único tipo de activismo válido es votar y nada más: ✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅

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most kat@@ng shippers annoying as fuck but the most annoying of them are the obtuse ones, and oh boy, there are so many of them

you gonna look me in the eyes (or in this case, at my tumblr’s pfp, almost the same thing) and say there is not a single hint of romance in katara and zuko’s dynamic? no, you can’t! stop lying.

trying to deny the very obvious romantic subtext is so stupid, we all know you don’t really believe that, you can’t be this unaware, the only way the writers could be more obvious about what they were trying to do with those two is if they had put a little momo holding a sign in the corner of every zutara interaction with a text breaking down the meanings of the scene, and there are a lot, just throwing here some ones without really going into it one by one or i would be here all day:

the fact that we have zuko and katara’s main fight in book 1 finale that is also when we learn about tui and la, atlaverse’s version of yin yang

their personal arcs being literally that “in kindness there’s evil and in evil there’s kindness” meme

not only that but they’re basically the catalysts in each other’s arcs (zuko’s in “the crossroads of destiny” and katara’s in “the southern raiders”)

“you rise with the moon, i rise with the sun” (they’re so nasty for this one)

do i really need to extend the “zutara are yin yang” topic? like come on

also tui and la means push and pull, zuko incorporates this waterbending pushing and pulling move he learnt by watching katara to his firebending

blue spirit zuko at book 1: water x painted lady katara at book 3: fire ????? absolute cinema

zutara bonding in a cave designed to resemble the cave of the two lovers (they’re so nasty for this one 2: electric boogaloo)

and wearing the same colors as oma and shu?!!?!! the star-crossed lovers on opposite sides of a war??¿? sounds quite familiar

(edit) because how tf did i forgot to include him willing to die for her in the last episode? directly mirroring the way her own mother sacrificed herself to save katara from the fire nation? and now there’s the fire nation’s prince jumping in front of a lightning for her

katara saving zuko’s life is supposed to be the final step of her healing, she was too young when the fire nation came and she felt helpless she couldn’t help her mother, her arc ends with her not only being able to overthrow azula, therefore putting an end to the fire nation’s tyranny but she was finally able to fell she can protect herself and her loved ones

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me fr

cred: kendollisms on insta

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yall need to stop this “but katara choose aang!” nonsense because a) idk how she personally told you that when she doesn’t exist and b) even if katara were a real woman, this is some choice feminism bs that willfully ignores a lot of the social pressures and dynamics within heterosexual relationships that kat.aang as a relationship taps into both within the world of atla & as a narrative.

the creators themselves have alluded to the fact that katara & aang’s relationship draws from the trope of a younger boy pining after an older, more mature woman who doesn’t give him the time of day at first but is eventually brought around with his persistence and determination to win her heart.

and this dynamic bleeds through into the show itself, especially when aang is talking to people about katara. he is told multiple times that she’ll come around because he’s the avatar and that all he needs to do is not give up. the social dynamics of the kat.aang relationship even within atla reflects the prevalent narrative around straight relationships in our world: if you keep trying, the girl you like will obviously give you a chance eventually, because how could she not?

that’s troubling enough but then comes the second half of book 3, and now this narrative isn’t reflected just in those around aang, but in aang himself. what began as a sweet, harmless adolescent crush warps into something more dangerous, more familiar: entitlement. the aang of ember island players is one who demands katara’s love, not one who wishes for it. just look at the language used here:

i thought we were going to be together, but we’re not.

why don’t you know?

when is the right time?

the line delivery here is frustrated, almost accusing — this is not the way you talk to a girl you claim to love. this is the irritation of a long-promised reward that continues to be denied, something you wanted but cannot yet possess. this is eerily, intensely reminiscent of real-world gender dynamics, and it continues to be reinforced when katara responds according to the same gendered script:

aang, i don’t know.

we’re in the middle of a war. this isn’t the right time.

i’m sorry but right now, i’m just a little confused.

katara gives neither a yes nor a no but a neutral, noncommittal in-between. her tone and body language are apologetic yet clearly tense, uncomfortable — dancing that fine line most women are familiar with, of having to let down a man yet protect his feelings at the same time.

it’s one thing for the narrative of kat.aang to be misogynistic from a doylist perspective, but when the same applies within a watsonian analysis as well, that’s a far bigger problem. when you set up this dynamic for kat.aang in the show and double down on it as their last romantic interaction, you cannot then remove the implications that follow when katara inexplicably, wordlessly, obediently kisses aang in the finale:

that she loved him because she felt she had to.

because that is the underlying societal expectation of this particular dynamic, the same expectation the show itself has set up within the advice aang receives: that a woman’s affections are owed to the man who fights for them, and if he fulfils his obligations in pursuing her, she will fulfill hers in turn by dutifully rewarding him.

as with women in the real world, no choice katara makes in her world is free of the delicate, insidious entanglement of social pressures and gendered expectations that underlie and drive those choices, even subconsciously.

so yes — katara chose aang. but as the show ends with no insight on her part as to the nature of this choice, the question still remains: did she choose him freely, joyfully, unfettered and unburdened by the weight of expectation? or did she choose him as the girl who always did what had to be done, who took on duties that she was too young to shoulder for the sake of the people she loved, who could never let down the child she fiercely, lovingly protected from the moment she met him?

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Interesting genre of image

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oh my god. og my god. the symbolism of it all

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Imagining Zuko having a secret crush on Katara throughout book 3 is soo good and angsty and peak drama. What if you tenderly touched my face during a shared moment of vulnerability, and then I betrayed you anyway. What if afterwards I couldn't get you out of my head, so I tried kissing another girl in hopes that might fix it. What if I came back to you, but you hate me so much now that being around you feels like getting my heart ripped out, and I have no one to blame except myself. What if I fell in love with a girl who despises me.

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Anyways conozcan a Horacio. Es un perrito que se apareció en la verdulería en donde trabajo hace como una semana en un estado moribundo y medio que lo adoptamos. El chabón tiene una comida re cara, le compran sobresitos de pollo y le cocinan aparte, lo bañaron ayer y ahora básicamente es como nuestro hijo. Una familia puede ser 3 pibas, un grupo de viejos en sus 50's, un jefe metalero medio explotador y su comfort dog.

Pd: los que lo bañaron le pusieron brillitos y ahora lo tratan de gay, they are being homophobic to the dog!!!!