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katsukikitten · 4 years

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Part 2! Here is Part 1 f you have yet to read it! I hope you enjoy my little Walmart brand of summer wars as much as I am writing it! Let me know what you think!

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The two of you leave with a small bow before your grandmother answers the phone.

The second you are out of the room Bakugou grabs you roughly by the wrist, pulling you down into the small dimly lit hallway to press you against the dark wooden wall, caging you in much like he did on the train.

But this time with malintent. Small pops ring out from his forearms, one hand threatening to char the wood beside your head while the other grips your wrist harder.

You could understand his anger, it's not as if you had been truthful to Bakugou. He detests liars and although you didn't necessarily lie to him you still told him a half truth. He was still figuring out which was worse.

"Fucking fiance?!" He snarls close to your face, "Deal's off."

You had planned to allow him to bitch and moan about the shitty situation you put him in without argument.

But his refusal to act semi decent towards you for the sake of your grandmother's old heart had rage burning hot in your veins.

It wasn't like you were asking him to fuck you. With a tick in your jaw you drop your precious Kimono. Grabbing onto his chin with your free hand, tilting his face closer to yours to have a better look at those stunning crimson eyes. They widen from both the force of your grip and the proximity of your lips. He swallows thickly, his glare slowly coming back.

"Listen here Bakugou Katsuki. I'm asking you to pretend to be my fiance for two weeks. I'm asking for small shit like sitting close to me, maybe giving a small smile in my direction and at the most hand holding. I'm not asking you to fucking marry me or fuck me in front of my family. My grandmother is a bit old fashioned if you couldn't tell by the house or her demeanor, she has been hounding me about bringing a man to her for approval since I was 16. She wanted to make sure I had a man that deserved me, that I would be taken care of. So I've made up boyfriend after boyfriend since I've never really had time for more than a good fuck but my Uncle called me last winter to tell me her health was beginning to decline and rapidly at that. I called her immediately and told her I had just become engaged and she'd meet him on her birthday. So you've got two choices Katsuki." You let every syllable of his name soak in sugar coated venom, "Suck it up for two fucking weeks and be semi decent to me or break my grandmother's heart and earn a dangerous enemy."

Bakugou's heart pounded in his chest the entire time you were ranting, unsure of why he was attracted to the hard set of your eyes and the ice in your voice. His stomach flips when you say his first name causing him to grind his teeth. He breaks away from your grip with his free hand, quickly pinning your arms above your head. Locking your delicate yet deadly wrists in one of his broad hands while the other presses against your hip bone. Thumb sliding through the loop of your too short shorts, bringing your pelvis to his. The denim was barely able to contain your ass and thick thighs, he is surprised none of your elders have scolded you for such indecency if they were as old fashioned as you say.

The faint blush on your cheeks and the defiant look in your eyes has his voice turn husky as he speaks.

"I should make you regret bringing me here. Maybe have you begging for something else." His lips a breath away as he presses his forehead to yours. Eyes molten with what you think is lust before he tilts his face. Amplifying the sudden magnetism between your plump lips and his own. Your chest tightens with mixed emotions as your eyes begin to flutter closed.

Suddenly he changes direction and gives you a harsh headbutt, hard enough your vision blurs at the edges causing you to growl in response.

"This better not fucking bruise."

He rolls his eyes, dropping your hands as he reaches down for the old Kimino. His heart racing from almost losing control of these odd feelings.

Feelings that had never been aimed towards you until your grandmother stirred them up.

"Would you die for my granddaughter?"

The question drives him mad, mad enough that he places the kimono in your hands speaking the dark thought that he should have fucking kept to himself.

"Did you actually drag me along for your grandmother's sake or did you just want the kimono, Princess?" His voice is all bite, holding your gaze, your eyes widening.

"Don't call me that." Your voice threatens to crack but he walks away before he can see the rest of your reaction to wander the house for his room until dinner.

You're left standing there, eyes glued to the fabric, the deep navy blue and hand stitched cranes and lotus blur in your hands. Before fat droplets fall from your eyes.

Why did you ever think Bakugou Katsuki would be a good partner, fake or not.

You collect yourself quickly, angrily swiping at your eyes before you set to find your normal room.

It doesn't take you long and you're honestly hoping Bakugou stays lost until dinner. His room should be on the opposite wing of the house. Opening the old tatami door to find Mei setting down your stuff and Bakugou's bag. Mei follows your eyes to the well worn backpack with a skull pin on the strap. She knew exactly who it belonged to when she picked it up, having spotted the handsome devil from the hall.

"Mei what's this you know he's supposed to be in the western wing!" You exclaim, trudging past her to hang your kimono on the old rack in the corner of the room. Mei scoffs, eyes glued to her phone as she speaks.

"He was bound to sneak this way anyway. I'm doing you a favor." She rolls her eyes as if she knows everything at the ripe age of sixteen.

You thought you knew everything then too. You sigh, rolling your own eyes.

"What you call a favor I call a headache. Just take his bag to his room." You pass the straps to her, hating that it smells so much like him. Your stomach flips even as you look at the two person futon.

"Just sleep with him tonight no one will know! Plus I hadn't cleaned his room. It's full of spider webs, the floor needs patching and his futon is gonna be dusty." She counters.

"B..but one futon is not modest."

"Wow please tell me you're not a virgin jushi. You're gonna get married anyway! I know I wouldn't have said no to a catch like that either!"

Mei makes her way out of your room while you pinch the bridge or your nose.

"Yea…. Why would I ever say no to such a great catch?" You fall backwards onto the futon hoping that that asshole was still lost for now.

Someone would find him wandering and take him to the great dining room.

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Thankfully someone does end up showing Bakugou to the dining room but of course it would be Mei who also tells him where the SHARED room is. You bite your lip and choose to play dumb.

"Oh good you found your way, babe." You smile sinking next to him on one of the many blue cushions. He grunts in response but pulls your cushion closer to his. Carefully pouring you some water before he yanks down your tank top that was riding up and trying to expose your midriff. His fingers feel like fire as they brush against your skin, igniting a dying ember in your stomach.

You quickly remind yourself of his nasty comment, as you're about to set him straight your cousin Haru walks into the room. He sucks his teeth and sits further down the table across from his sister Mei as people slowly come in to sit or bring in food.

"I don't know why you bothered to bring him here. Sobo is never going to approve of him." He cracks open his beer and drinks prematurely earning an eye roll from his sister. Bakugou and yourself both open your mouth to retort when Mei pipes up. Eyes still glued to her phone as her thumbs fly across the illuminated glass.

"She already did stupid. She gave her the crane Kimono so get used to seeing his face." Mei rolls her eyes as your cheeks blush.

Bakugou regrets his comment now more than ever but sucks his own teeth. An older gentleman sits to Bakugou's left commenting on the conversation as he does.

"Wow the crane kimono! You know she's been holding onto that for quite some time. You must be very special. I'm Sozen, your lovely fiance's Uncle." He smiles, just as you're about pinch the blonde to make sure he answers he gives a small bow of his head.

"Bakugou Katsuki." He introduces himself as aunt Mai rushes into the room.

"Wait, wait! I want to meet him!" She sinks next to your right, all smiles as her eyes are fixated on the young man, "Wow he is as handsome as you said on the phone last night."

Fresh blush creeps onto your cheeks, remembering the phone conversation from when you were too nervous to sleep last night. Bakugou catches on and smirks in response. Everyone but Sobo takes their seats and you decide now is a good time as ever to get the formalities over with.

"Let's just get through the introductions shall we?" You say as you run through the names of each family member on both sides of the three low tables shoved together. Introducing the hot head to well over 12 adults and their children and even children's children. For now Bakugou only makes an effort to remember the ones closest to him.

Uncle Sozen who sits to his left and Aunt Mai who sits to your right. It's becoming quickly apparent that a lot of your family is either much older or much younger than yourself. He can understand why you could feel a little lonely at times. Being more of a black sheep than anything. Then he realises something very important.

"Wait, where are your parents?" He asks lowly to which you shrug.

"They show up closer to grandma's birthday. They are both extremely busy and always have been. Soba more or less raised me."

As if one cue grandmother comes in, looking over the table with the biggest and warmest smile she can muster. It reminds him of the summer sun lazily dancing across his skin in the late afternoon.

And again it reminds him of you. He looks to you and sees you mirroring the exact same smile, happy for your grandmother's happiness causing his chest to tighten and butterflies to awaken in his stomach. He grinds his teeth in an attempt to calm them down.

She sits at the head of the table, closest to Great Oba who he had the pleasure of meeting first thing, before grandmother holds up her small cup of sake.

"To family." She announces, everyone lifts what cup they have, whether it was a kids small sippy cup, their o-choko, or even their cup of tea.

"To family!" They roar back to her all taking a sip.

"Let's eat." She says while the family cries out, "Itadakimasu!"

The tables are loud and full of conversation. Although Katuski's family is not so big, the volume reminds him of his own family. A small smirk comes to his lips as he thinks of his mother and how she would fit in here.

"So no Shoji?" Haru asks with a sneer, almost purposefully stirring the pot.

"No surprise there." Someone else comments.

"Shut. Up. Haru." You bite out, look fierce as if you were to devour him whole. He swallows thickly.

"Great uncle Kodaka tell us about that battle we won here!" You change the subject and everyone groans as Kodaka starts the story they've heard thousands of times before.

"It was almost 150 years ago, when we were still a prosperous nation. Us samarai doing fine on our own. Hired by the wealthy or living by our own moral compass. It was like fish in a barrel…"

The story continues on, mostly the children listen and your grandmother who smiles as she hears her youngest speak.

Sozen leans closer to Bakugou, as grey eyes hold onto scarlet. Bakugou remains quiet, glancing to you and then back to the uncle. Uncle Sozen takes this as an invitation to speak.

"I guess since you're gonna be part of the family now I should tell you about Shoji. There was a time shortly before Grandpa died that he went down a dark path, gambling away majority of the family fortune and just when grams thought she had him under control then came Shoji.He was Grandpa's illegitimate child with a woman much younger than Sobo. But she loved Shoji fiercely anyway. She would take him through the field of wildflowers to the lake in the early mornings of summer. One hot day when he was small and the sun was rising, painting the sky in hues of red there was a crane. Our family's crest." Uncle Sozen points to the wooden crest above the door to the adjacent room that held the family's artifacts. A crane stands tall with a white lotus behind it in full bloom.

"It was the first time in decades that a crane had come to the lake and the lotus were in full bloom. He flew away, causing a gentle ripple in the lake and it was then Sobo knew that Shoji would bring fortune to our family." Sozen peeks your way to make sure you're not over hearing, he continues explaining softly as your loud laugh bellows out, "Everyone is so angry with him because he took the last of grandmother's savings and then ran away to America with no way to be contacted."

"She is quick to defend him because she was too young to really remember how much it upset Sobo. That and she believed in him wholeheartedly. She looked up to him because despite his quirklessness he was exceptionally intelligent. She had faith that he would restore honor and fortune to our name." Sozen's chopsticks point to you as he speaks before he picks up a dumpling. Bakugou's eyes follow over you.

"Hello Sobo." A deep voice calls from the engawa reducing the lively roar of dinner conversation to nothing more than the sad song of a lonely cricket.

"Uncle Shoji?!" You call excited, standing from your spot at the long table while the rest of the room holds animosity.

Bakugou downs his sake to which Uncle Sozen silently refills.

"I thought you were still abroad in the states!" You sink next to him and pull him into a crushing hug. He smiles, slowly separating the two of you.

"What the hell do you want trash?!" Uncle Kodaka snarls, to which you produce a deadly glare his way.

"Well yes I was in the states, thank you for asking Princess." He tucks a stay hair behind your ear before rising to speak with grandmother.

He does not address her properly nor does he bow. If anything he stands loosely with an arrogance about him that leaves majority of the room with a sour taste in their mouth. Bakugou watches Great Oba's chopsticks strain in her delicate hand, the distaste for him is becoming more and more obvious by the second.

And then he opens his mouth.

"I made tenfold out of what you let me borrow, Soba." He pulls a stack of money and a check from his pocket as he speaks, "I made a drug to make people powerless and sold it to the highest bidder."

Eyes around the room widen as news headlines flash in their heads about a new drug that made people quirkless. Villains shooting innocent bystanders and heroes in hopes of getting a leg up.

Shoji tosses the money and the check onto grandmother's lap. Dark brown eyes stare into her lap for a long moment.

Suddenly grandmother moves like an agile cat, jumping to her feet and grabbing for one of the divine naginata. She wields it masterfully before shoving the point towards him, fire burning in her eyes.

"Mother!" Half the table shouts, as you begin to see red. You stand stepping next to Shoji, body shaking with rage as your heart drums in your ears.

"I knew my Princess would save me." He says coyly to hide just how shaken he is, sweat dripping down his brow. Even ten years your senior he couldn't hide his fear of the fierce woman before him, shocked that a woman in her nineties could still brandish such a big and heavy weapon.

Your hands land harshly on Shoji's chest as you give him a shove. Shocking the table into further silence.

"YOU MADE THAT?!" Your voice echoes over the dining room, into the empty halls and out into the night but somehow the hurt in it does not reach Shoji.

"Of course, it was going to be a hot seller. Governments offered me billions. Besides I made an anti...." But before he can finish you've got him by the collar.

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO INTELLIGENT YET SO DAFT?!" Bakugou watches your knuckles turn white while your cheeks flush deep red. Shoji barely frees himself, his shirt crumpled but you press on.

"Those were my friends!" A stomp of your foot has the dishes rattling on the table, Bakugou becomes more on edge, "You hurt my fucking friends!"

You raise both of your fists above your head, ready to bring them down with all of your might. Too angry to control your gauge of power uncaring of the consequences. Katuski acts quickly, flicking his wrist to empty the shallow cup of sake high into the air. Igniting it into beautiful dancing fireworks, the kids oo and ah while he hopes to distract you if only for a moment.

It works, slightly. You realize his plan as he jumps to his feet, running along the low tables as you try to beat him to the punch.

Literally.

Bakugou barely makes it, shoving Shoji into the table, food and dishes fly into the air just to stain the freshly mopped wooden floors. The hot head holds out his other arm to take the brunt of your force. He let's off the smallest explosion to soften your blow but a small crack still rings out.

Heated eyes watch as a black bruise blooms from the crease of his elbow to all the way to his wrist as the shock shakes the house behind him. Paintings and pictures fall from the walls in the wake of your force.

"Are you trying to bring down the house dumbass?!" He yells before his voice dips low, soft almost, "What if the roof had caved and Soba-san got hurt?"

Your eyes widen at his words before they are locked with glistening scarlet pools. You look over Bakugou's toned arm, marred in angry shades of purplish black. Eyes darting over the family and the mess that lies beside you. Finally they fall on your grandmother behind your shoulder. Her own aged shoulders heave from the adrenaline, her graying white hair out of place with her lotus pin threatening to fall out. You spy Shoji, your once hero still squishing food beneath his torso and elbows, eyes filled with fear.

"Fuck this." You mutter storming off, leaving Bakugou to stand alone before your family. Shoji stands, rushing out of the house, moments later everyone can hear a car peeling down the gravel drive losing traction once or twice.

After a few moments of silence grandmother fixes her hair and returns the naginata as she speaks.

"This family cleans up their own messes. Now get to work!"

And with that your family and Bakugou begin to pick up the shattered pieces of dishes, pride and family matters.

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randompasserbyer · 3 years

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For the D.I.D meme, 1, 6, 16 and 17

sytfuygihnoi #1 is a big one so I’ll answer the other 3 in another ask lmao

1. Introduce your headmates/alters. How many are there? What are they all like?

So, there’s 26 of us, give or take 2, so I’ll try to give brief descriptions of everyone in order of when they split. Thank you for asking uwu

Blue is our host. He's the one we all refer to as the owner of the body. His form in the headspace shifts depending on his kinshift, but he’s usually presenting as an Underswap Sans fictive. He uses he/him pronouns a lot but he’s genderfluid and often doesn’t consider himself a man and appreciates being called a woman despite using he/him pronouns. Gender is confusing tyfugihop

Sam is the main protector/gatekeeper of our system. She’s been around the longest, she was the first that Blue was aware of when he noticed the system, and we all kind of look up to her. She’s a “take no shit” type of person and we’re all very grateful for her. She looks like a ghost and I don’t know how else to describe her iohguyfutd

Quadi is our main trauma holder. She rarely fronts and I have zero clue how to describe what she looks like. Nobody ever interacts with her in the headspace because she’s always in her room. If she fronts,, just send her love and support.

Shnep is.. well, I don’t actually know her role, to tell you the truth oiugfyt She looks like Walmart-brand Flame Atronach from Skyrim. She only gets to front if Sam lets her front and it’s a controlled environment. Loves to play videogames tho. Murder Mystery is her favorite cause she gets to let loose.

Watcher is our persecutor. He’s only gotten front, like, twice in the last year but he causes plenty of harm in the headspace. He can shapeshift and the only way we can tell it’s him is that his eyes will stay black. He’s been around just as long as Sam, but you can never find him unless he wants you to. Our protectors are good at keeping everyone safe.

Zane is our sexual protector/trauma holder. He stays in his room as well but we’re free to come visit him at any time. I don’t,, really know?? how to describe him?? He’s another shapeshifter but I personally haven’t interacted with him since I formed so I can’t tell you much ftuhiojn

Viper is a giant skeleton lamia and while I personally quake in fear, he’s a genuine sweetheart and he loves talking to people. He knows broken English but he doesn’t let that stop him. He actually went dormant shortly after forming and nobody knew he even formed until he woke up a year and a half later and everyone went “Huh?????”

Nightshade is an Error Sans fictive. He’s another one of our protectors and he’s really good at his job. To be more specific, he’s an avenger, he helps us deal with our abusers. He’s gotten over his haphephobia for the most part since splitting, though it flares up around strangers and honestly I don’t blame him.

Template is a Template Sans fictive lmao. creative nickname I know XD He’s a middle and Nightshade is fiercely protective of him. He loves to play videogames and draw. Ask him about Spyro or Pokemon ;) He keeps going in and out of dormancy so,, idk when he’ll front again but he always seems to have a good time when he does.

404 is a Blueberror fictive. He’s fairly impulsive and.. yknow, I want to say he’s impulsive, but the guy has so many amnesia barriers about his entire being that I can’t say it for certain. He’s a cryptid. You’ll never see him in the headspace unless you see one of his soft triggers and he has so few of those lmao (Our partner says he’s like Ghostbur but hyper, so take that as you will)

Gold is a Birdtale Sans fictive. He doesn’t like to talk unless you’ve gained his complete trust, or he’s alone. He’s very much a “body language is a universal language and it’s the only language in the universe I know” kind of guy. He tells great puns tho. He’s pretty chill. Apparently he formed like.. years ago?? And Sam had just been blocking him from the main area of our headspace for a really long time??

Squid is our Ink Sans fictive (are you seeing a pattern here? Hyperfixation go brrrr). He’s chaos but he can be pretty down to earth if he wants to be. He’s stuck in a state of constantly missing his old life, though. He loves to draw and leave long supportive chaotic comments on other people’s art. If he can’t draw, he gets anxious.

WDG is our Handplates Gaster fictive. His lab takes up the entire basement of the headspace mansion and half of it is just an entrance to the Void, which only he and Shard can access. He’s very analytical and emotionally and physically distant, but he’s really good at making sure the body is taken care of. He likes to document everything he does and when so it’s pretty easy to see what he did when he fronted. Terrified of his curiosity though, that skeleton loves science way too much.

Shard and Sunshine are a subsystem Shattered!Dream fictive. Sunshine is really sweet but very paranoid and sensitive. Shard is actually both a persecutor and a protector. Kind of a.. “Nobody gets to hurt this system except me” kind of vibe, yknow? He’s been working hard to reform though because he hurt our partner once and felt really bad. He’s come a long way ^^

Viola is an Underswap Sans fictive, but she split from a fanfiction called By the Angel (it’s nsfw if you look it up, but it’s got a great plot lol). She’s actually transgender since her fic has her as he/him and we’re very supportive of her <3 She’s.. I don’t know how to describe her other than she’s got an old soul and a old-fashioned way of speaking. She loves to listen to kulning videos. Swedish culture really vibes with her.

Drake is a fictive from a really old Minecraft roleplay called The Haunted. He’s half Enderman and he can do magic. He’s kind of timid and his anxiety is always through the roof. He gets hella dysphoric when he fronts and often has headaches and we’re?? not sure?? if he’s a subsystem or not??? with Herobrine??????? He won’t tell anyone if he is or not, he just dodges the question.

*inhale* Pinky is a vampire Ink Sans fictive. He’s what would happen if you gave a vampiric opossum a bigger body lmao. He’s incredibly mischievous (and a tad selfish, if you ask me) and likes to cause pranks at the worst times. He adores our partner though.

TB is a Technoblade fictive/factive. Both?? It’s hard to tell with him. He looks like a twunk piglin and behaves like one too. He’s taken on the role of protector recently, though, and he monitors any new splits until we’re sure they’re not going to hurt the body or any relationships with other folks. He likes to talk about piglin culture a lot. (he kins Billiam and it’s entertaining to watch him call everyone peasants and poor when we too are in fact poor)

Phil is our Philza fictive. He’s the dad friend of the system, the caretaker. He takes a very neutral stance on things and will often refuse to step into a fight, but he will try to calm folks down. I can’t tell you how much of a comfort he is. He loves to talk about his past life and his little family, though he gets sad about it sometimes.

Ghost is our Ghostbur fictive. He loves pranks and he’s very sweet. He has so much blue, you would not believe. He’s such a softy and loves to make people smile. He either hangs around TB, Phil, or Theo and he doesn’t usually front alone. He does have Alivebur shifts but he essentially just gets really edgy and depressed in a sort of self destructive way, but he’s still soft. He just tells really wild jokes and he’s a lot more impulsive.

SNL/Space Heater (he doesn’t have a good nickname yet) is our Sapnap factive/fictive. He really enjoys front but he doesn’t really get much done when he fronts tfuygiuhoip He just reads fanfiction lmao. He loves Dadboyhalo and Dreamnap content. He’s a pretty chill guy, doesn’t get into a lot of fights. He just wants to have fun.

Theo is our protege!Tommy fictive. He actually split from the popular fic Rewind and he’s just been.. vibing? He gets along well with Sapnap most of the time but he’s had a lot of trouble warming up to TB, Phil, and Ghost. I think he enjoys front?? He fronts often enough. I don’t know how to describe him except that he’s very Tommy-like lmao

Fakier is our newest split. He’s an ARG Wilbur fictive. He doesn’t like to talk too much about himself but he loves to infodump about codes and cryptic stuff like that. He’s actually done a lot with taking care of the body and taking long walks outside and just, enjoying life. He did leave the windows open on a really cold day tho and our apartment hasn’t been warm since :\ He seems cool, I’m just annoyed that my fingers and toes are freezing off lmao /hyperbole

We’ve had a few integrate over the past two years so it’s hard to keep track of how many there are for sure, but that should be everyone. Sorry for the wall of text dytufibonk Hope you liked the answer tho ^^ I’ll answer the other 3 answers tomorrow in a post together and @ you so you don’t miss them uwu

#rasks #actually did #actually osdd #fictive alter #tb is fronting #my posts #about our system #ask meme

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letterstothemidnightsociety · 3 years

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It's 2007 and somehow, miraculously, Supernatural survives yet another rocky (?) season of mediocre ratings to come back for a third season, or at least, half season, but that season starts out with a real bang! Like, just a real solid trio of an opener for season three. It reminds me of all the things I love about SPN and also it reminds us of all the things that frustrate the hell out of me on SPN. So where did we leave things off?

First up, there’s Dean, who sold his soul to the devil in order to bring Sam back from the dead. Sam, you’ll remember, was part of some overly complicated ponzi scheme to find the perfect vessel to open a door - yep, open a door - and lost to Aldous Hodge who just straight up murders Sam in the season finale. So Dean get’s Sammy back, but in exchange, he’s only got one year left before he permanently moves down south. Oh! And even though they got Sam back and Sam kills Aldous Hodge (RIP pal), they neglected to keep the door from opening. The door to Hell, that is, and now they’ve allowed a shiz ton of demons out to freely roam the earth. Way to go, boys, you lost again! They are two for two on these season finales guys!

OH but they DO kill the Yellow Eyed Demon, so that’s a plus, but not before he plants the most perfect seed of doubt in Dean’s mind - “How do you know what you brought back is all Sammy?” Like, ugh, UGH, ugh!!!! What a way to drive the knife in deeper! What a way to make the heart of this show slowly start to crumble! C’est Magnifique!! *chef's kissy fingers*

So with all that emotional baggage weighing us down, how do we start season 3? How else - with a threesome of course! And also some technicolor grading, it’s wild guys.

Oh boy guys, let’s talk about this opener for a hot sec. I got into it a little bit last season, but as much as I love Dean, you HAVE to admit that that boy is gross. Just like...he’s a little gross. I’m also old enough now to see exactly how many red flags he’s raising through the last 45 episodes. Like, sorry Little Me, but he is not boyfriend material. Not to mention that all this debauchery is 1,000% him distracting himself from the consequences of his own actions, but we’ll get into that later.

Meanwhile, Sam is doing something constructive and trying to figure out how to reverse the curse and save Dean’s soul. And here we have the culmination of two seasons worth of character development - faced with the imminent demise of Dean Samuel Winchester, Sam tries to step up and take care of his brother for once in his life; Dean parties like it’s 1999. There were two things I thought of during this episode - 1) isn’t this not unlike the sort of behavior you see in suicidal people who have finally decided to take their own life? Which is just, like, further held up by the fact that Dean’s big monologue at the end literally has the line “Truth is I’m tired, Sam. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel.” and like...dude, you are NOT ok! Why isn't??? ANYONE??? ADDRESSING THIS????? And 2) Dean is sharing a lot of similarities with the demons in this episode.

Because MEANwhile, there’s demons! So many demons! Specifically, the Seven Deadly Sins ones, but also, spoiler alert, Ruby, who is gettin’ reeeeealll into that ketchup.

All these baddies just really taking advantage of their time topside cuz Hell is, as they so artfully put it, it’s like Hell, so they’re just livin’ it up while they still can ~almost like foreshadowing or something~?!?!?

Real talk though, it being a real long time since I’ve watched this season, it’s these kinds of details that I’m impressed with this time around. There is so much character work that goes into this show and it’s something I definitely connected with the first time around, but not on conscious level. Now I can look at it through time and experience and articulate what I’m seeing, which makes this re-watch infinitely more enjoyable.

Episode 1 of this season continues what they started in season 2 and just keeps building out that Hunter Community. Like, there really is a whole Community out there that keeps in contact and works together and makes sure everyone’s up to date on the latest hot goss, and it all makes John Winchester come off like a real creepy splinter cell lone gunman type. And that in turn makes the Winchester sons look like total, unprofessional boneheads who managed to open a portal to Hell. “UGH Great Jorb Guys, but can we blame them? They’re John’s kids,” is a conversation between hunters that I am headcannoning, but also 100% support.

Honestly, I love the idea of the Winchesters being just these real, like, b-grade, Walmart Brand Hunters that other Hunters are just SO done with. We kind of see a little bit of that with Isaac and Tamara, but by the end of the episode, the Winchesters prove that they’re...better Hunters? I hope somewhere in the next 12 seasons I get an episode that is told from another Hunter’s POV who is legitimately better/more emotionally balanced than the Winchesters and the whole episode is them just, like, cleaning up a bunch of Winchester messes like, SONuvabitch, these two ASSholes. I think we see a fair amount of episodes from the POV of people who are less qualified than the Winchesters who end up being mentored by them, but I’d be stoked for them to run into just a group of people who hate them for totally legitimate, professional vs amature reasons.

Bobby does not count because Bobby signed up to be their Dad and so he agreed to take care of their messes when he took that job.

And then we get to “The Kids Are Alright” which showcases one of my fav changes for this season - BRIGHTLY! LIT! HIGH! SATURATION!!!! And of course, by fav, I mean, Most Hilarious.

I do walk a fine line on this one truth be told. Like, season 1 was definitely going for A Look. It’s super gritty and high contrasty and stylized. Now, I got what they were going for but I wasn’t always crazy about it, mostly because the quality on the DVD’s was terrible. Quick tip for everyone: in order to get 2+ hours worth of content on a DVD, you have to compress the final edit of the program to a pretty small bitrate. When we drop videos onto DVD’s at my work (it isn’t often, thank goodness), the discs themselves only hold, like, 2GB worth of content and that is NOT A LOT when it comes to video files. The more compressed a video file is, the less detail you’re gonna get in the visuals. Watching episodes on Netflix (where everything’s probably at a higher bitrate and therefore is a better quality visual), it’s not bad, but on my DVDs, the compression is so heavy that we get SUPER hot highlights and SUPER crunchy shadows - what a lot of people would called “crushed blacks” because you’ve lost all the detail in the shadows and you’re left with a grainy, noisy, black hole on the screen. Like I lost so much detail in the pilot episode guys, I could not make out this guy’s face.

A rough approximation of my DVD quality. Still recommend it over Netflix for the Accurate Soundtrack tho.

Season 2 SPN toned that Look down a lot, like, a lot a lot. Enough that you still got the general vibe they were going for but not enough that you couldn’t make out faces anymore. But through this whole process, the CW execs kept pushing for the show to look lighter, more colorful, less film noir more...well, CW. And in season 3 it finally happened!!!

I get what those execs were going for, but also, I feel like the colorists on these first few episodes just REALLY went wild out of spite. Lookit this shot from “Magnificent Seven” right before Envy causes some rando innocent bystander to beat a girl to death for her shoes -

GREEN GREEN GREEN GREEN!!!! I WONDER WHICH SIN THIS GUY IS????

Then in “The Kids Are Alright” the birthday party looks like everything is coated in day-glow neon.

The Winchester Bros look like they just got back from 3 weeks in Aruba - LOOK at the saturation levels in these skin tones! LOOK AT THEM!!

My screencap ability aside, only in SPN can a cemetery at night have brighter lighting than a diner in the middle of the afternoon.

This is definitely a thing I will be tracking the rest of the season because I have a distinct memory of a future episode where the brothers have been magically gifted completely different lives where they were never Hunters, they know nothing of Hunting, and they’re completely normal until the end when everything gets snapped back and the episode literally changes colors. V. Excited to see just how saturated this season stays through the end.

But maybe more importantly in “The Kids Are Alright” we learn that Dean does NOT, in fact, have a son. Not that he would be a good father...well...maybe? I mean, this Dean, this season 3, definitely-suicidal, completely-reckless, can’t-keep-it-together Dean, is not good Dad material. Later seasons Dean? Probably fine? Earlier seasons Dean might ALSO be fine? And if he’d found out that Ben was his legitimate kid, it could have made a WORLD of difference, who knows. I know he ultimately does become father-like to Ben and that gives me a lot of feelings. But this Dean is not in a good place to take care of anyone, including himself and really, someone ought to do something about that.

I gotta say, this is an actual bummer. I can’t remember if, in the later seasons, they do any clarifying on this or not, but I am legitimately bummed that Ben is not Dean’s kid and that as far as we know, Dean has no natural children floating around out there with surly attitudes and soft hearts. Dean’s motivation from Day 1 has always been family and despite what comments he may make in early seasons, Dean’s secret desire is to have the wife and the kids and the dog and the white picket fence. And honestly, we’re only 3 seasons in and I just want Dean to have nice things!!

And then guys, we come to “Bad Day at Black Rock,” and I just...WHAT a masterpiece. I had almost NO memory of ever watching this episode before and I don't understand why. What a glorious masterpiece this episode is. Let’s make a list -

More Hunters™, who should be really annoying but were actually kinda charming in a Marx Brothers kind of way

Gordon’s in jail, where he belongs, but also is masterminding a coup against the Winchesters which is A+ spooky stuff

Slapstick comedy that I didn’t know I was missing from my life

Bela F*cking Talbot

Guys, I think this is my fav episode so far purely because I felt, while watching it, that the last 10 years of my life were not in vain and that I had in fact grown as a human person. I remembered hating Bela Talbot. Like, I DID. NOT. LIKE. HER. To the point that I questioned if her British accent was even real. It is, her mother is from the UK and she lived there for a time, but like, honestly, the audacity of Little Me.

This time around? Oh she’s defs my new fav. Just everything about her is like, A+, Great Job, Why-Did-We-Cancel-Her??? Like, oh yeah, probably because somewhere in here they try to shoehorn a romantic side plot with Dean. I don’t actually mind rioting over shoehorned romance, but also, if they’d let this play out for a season or two and then got the two of them to bone? I’m on board. I’m 100% on board.

Maybe it’s just that she is unapologetically out for herself, maybe it’s the fact that she is definitely a match for the Winchesters in a non-murdery way, probably it is both of those things. She's smart, she’s crooked, she has impeccable taste, she’s honestly a helluva lot of fun and I am so excited to see more of her and so BUMMED that she will not make it past this season.

Despite the fact that I absolutely adore all three of these episodes, they also bring up the problem that I was starting to see in season 2 - WHO is this show about? Isn’t it supposed to be about the Brothers as a whole? But the majority of these first three lean pretty heavily on Dean’s emotional arc. Granted, it makes sense. I mean, of COURSE Dean’s demon deal is gonna be the BIG thing in a season where he is literally staring down the barrel, but knowing that there’s a side plot about Is Sam Evil?? seems like...something we should really explore more? I believe it comes up in season 4, or at least, Sam’s demon-blood powers become a bigger deal in season 4, but I would have enjoyed seeing Sam have a more active stake in this season. I can see planting some weird new ticks being planted for Alive-Again Sam that just get weirder and darker and then a mid-season finale or a run up episode to the end of the season where Dean (finally) decides he needs to stop his demon deal because he needs to stick around so he can keep Sam from going completely off the rails. As much as I love Dean 5ever, I do think the show works best when the emotional weight of the season is distributed equally is all. And to be fair to the writers this season, there could have been a bigger plan for something like that but they ran out of time - their season was cut by about a third due to the Writer’s Strike.

Still, all in all, a solid opening to the third season. I want to say that these episodes feel like Classic SPN, but then I remember that this is season three out of fifteen. These ARE Classic SPN. Mostly self contained with enough emotional drama to remind us of the overarching plot. Maybe a little heavy on the emotional drama, but Dean’s only got a year to live and the show’s only got 16 episodes to resolve that crisis, so it’s fine.

#Supernatural #Supernatural rewatch #Season 3 #Magnificent Seven #The Kids are Alright #bad day at black rock #Sam Winchester #Dean Winchester #Bela Talbot #Hunters #Sam and Dean #Writer's Strike #TV #TV History #Bela talbot is maybe great #and I should say it

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keiyokoi · 4 years

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Reflection “Essay” #2

Hey everyone! I just wanted to take some time this week and talk about something that I think is extremely important, so buckle up, because this piece is kind of long.

Activism is something we encounter in our everyday lives, whether it be in social media, the news, or something ordinary like laptop stickers. Most recently, Black Lives Matter was under the spotlight (as it should) in the wake of America’s track record of police brutality and George Floyd’s death. Unfortunately, the movement that was fueled by public outcry and outstanding shows of allyship in the early summer months has largely vanished.

The voices of many celebrities and influencers on platforms Instagram and Twitter have gone silent, moving on as the news turned away from BLM protests despite the thousands of people that continued to rally around the country and the world. As we wrap up election season and move into December, what the US is focused on now is the soon-to-be former POTUS and other political news. (My point is that the world of media has largely deemed BLM “no longer relevant” despite the ongoing struggle BIPOC folxs continue to face even after thousands of protests nation AND worldwide.)

To all the people who posted black squares with the hashtags #BlackoutTuesday and #BlackLivesMatter, where are you now? Where is the support, the public outcry that had been so loud in June? Why do civil rights only matter when they’re relevant in the media, when you can score easy clout from it?

I’m sure most of them had their hearts in the right place, but the fact remains true that they fell victim to ‘ally theater’, a term that Anderson and Accomando credit Princess Harmony Rodrigez for coining. The two authors go on to say, “The concern here is about activists who focus on performing an identity for an audience of disadvantaged folk rather than doing the hard and often unseen work of social change.” (P 713) and “To get out of the surface-level ally theater loop, white people need to challenge other whites about racism—even when no one else is watching.” (P 714) in their article The Pitfalls of Ally Performance.

That’s where many people fail the first step of being an ally; they mistakenly believe that for a month of sparse posts concerning awareness, they gain the privilege of being an ally. They forget that allyship is a title that needs to be earned. It’s not enough to play activist for a month and then move on with your life—to be an ally, you must continue to be an activist, even if that’s something as simple as shopping at BIPOC small-owned businesses instead of Amazon. (Here’s a little help for those of you who don’t know where to start: 42 Black-owned beauty brands to shop at instead of Sephora, and 108 Black-owned businesses you can check out.) You have to acknowledge the hard work of POC the exact same way you praise white celebrities and influencers for being ‘woke’. A fantastic example is Harry Styles.

For the 2019 Met Gala, Styles showed up to the red carpet in heels and a sheer black Gucci blouse. This made fans go nuts; they praised him for being a camp icon but glossed over equally stunning outfits like Billy Porter’s golden, winged ensemble (who was carried in on a litter!!! by SIX MEN!!!) or Lena Waithe’s suit. This year fans ran to social media again, this time to gush over the photo spread of him in a dress, thanking Styles for ending toxic masculinity (yes this was a Tweet I read with my own two eyes), congratulating him on defying gender norms, and completely forgetting about others who did it before him.

Male and AMAB (assigned male at birth) non-binary stars like Billy Porter, Jared Leto, Ezra Miller, and JVN are only a handful who’ve appeared in public in dresses and/or skirts before, making it unfair for people to heap gratuitous praise onto Styles’s photoshoot. I’m not trying to bash him or anything and I think that cover was gorgeous, but you can’t be an ally while you idolize Harry Styles for wearing a dress but ignore POC/queer folx who did too.

Now, the second topic I wanted to address: a second helping of fake allyship, this time in the corporate realm.

I love June, but it’s also a mentally exhausting month queer individuals who are sick and tired of fake allyship. Cisgenderists crawl out of the woodwork to whine about ‘straight pride’ as if they don’t have enough of it, influencers capitalize on Pride’s popularity to promote their brand, and large corporations break out the rainbow merch to make a pretty penny off the same people marginalize the other eleven months of the year.

June is for people like me to celebrate our identities together, whether it be at a public Pride event or in the privacy of our own homes. It is not for big businesses to slap rainbows on their merchandise and boast false claims of LGBTQ+ support when corporations like Walmart and Starbucks have done nothing at all to support the message or the mission of Pride.

Building an Abolitionist and Trans Queer Movement With Everything We’ve Got by Bassichis, Lee, and Spade writes “transgender and gender-non-conforming people are repeatedly abandoned and marginalized in the agendas and priorities of our “lead” organizations” (P743) and I couldn’t agree more. The fact of the matter is that under this capitalist regime, queer individuals are just another tool for the privledged elite to take advantage of.

Mega corporations claim to be on our side for a month, playing at queer allyship with rainbow beer cans and happy ads that feature more rainbows and scripted proclamations of LGBTQ+ support, but disappear just as quickly come July.

Certain celebrities tweet during Pride, garnering the applause of the public and cause people across social media to ‘stan’ celebrities that post “Happy Pride!” just for the shallow allyship it grants them. And it’s so normalized for public figures to post all month long about Pride, and suddenly stop in July that we don’t question it.

Donald Trump occasionally preaches about his support of the queer community (which we all know is a joke) and how he’s “the first president to openly support the LGBT community” despite the fact that he gutted LGBTQ+ legislation and his terrible track record concerning queer folx. If he really was a queer ally then why, as Bassichis, Lee, and Spade say, is there “ no inheritance, no health benefits from employers, no legal immigration status, and no state protection of our relationship to our children.”?

That’s why I want to put the spotlight on a game called The Last of Us: Part II. It’s a post-apocalyptic survival horror game so it’s the last place you’d expect to find LGBTQ+ representation, but the main character is a lesbian who has a (Jewish) girlfriend and has an Asian (not white!!) transman, along with another character I strongly believe is aromantic and/or asexual. Their character arcs tie into the story well despite many fans calling out the game developers for pandering to the queer community, and the exhilaration I felt when I saw myself (mostly) represented in a character (who was voiced by an Asian transman!) is unparalleled.

They didn’t have to include any LGBTQ+ content or accurate representation, could have left the main character’s sexuality presumably heterosexual, but they went where most bestselling games don’t, because they’re genuine allies. They brought in voice actors who were Black, Asian, and Latinx to voice characters who were Black, Asian, and Latinx.

That’s what we need more of, not trendsetting celebrities and people who say trans rights just to feel better about themselves.

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lovemesomesurveys · 4 years

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Do you have a pair of Beat headphones? Yeah, I have the wireless black ones.

How was your week? Ugh, I’ve had a bad pain flareup this week.

Are any of your electronics not working properly at the moment? My phone has been acting up for the past month. It starts to get warm pretty fast when I’m on YouTube, which crashes a lot for me lately despite my phone and app being up to date on the updates. The battery has been dying a lot faster. It’s also been laggy. I have the iPhone XR, which is considered old now. It was working perfectly fine up until the past month, though.

Are you excited to pick out your wedding dress one day? I don’t plan on getting married.

When was the last time you felt relieved? Hm. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt that.

Does it bother you when an artist remakes a song that one has previously done? No, I wouldn’t say that. Some covers and remixes are good.

What brand of chapstick do you use? EOS or Vaseline.

Do you really think someone could be perfect? Nope.

When was the last time you cried? Yesterday.

What’s a food that you like every once in awhile but not often? I’m not as into Mexican food as I once was, but I still like to have it now and then.

What letter is the song you’re listening to under? I’m not listening to music right now. If I’m doing a survey, just assume I’m listening to an ASMR video.

Would you rather visit the 60s or 70s? I guess the 70s.

Are you the type of person that enjoys getting hugs? From certain people.

Do your socks say anything on them? They say, “Adidas.”

Name a TV channel that only has three letters in it. MTV.

Have you found out who your true friends are? I don’t have any friends.

Gray or Grey? Gray is the American spelling, but I honestly prefer “grey.”

Will you be buying concert tickets any time soon? No. Who knows when I’ll attend a concert again. It’s been over 10 years since my last concert, so I can’t even blame covid. I hope to attend one again, though. I miss ‘em.

Have you seen the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower? Did you like it? Yeah, I liked it.

Is there something you’d fall apart if you didn’t have? My loved ones.

How many weddings have you been to? Three.

When you smile, are you confident? No.

Have you ever not done something because you were afraid of getting in trouble? Yesss, all the time. I’ve always been all about following the rules and I’ve never seen the appeal in breaking them. That makes me sound boring but at least I’ve never gotten in serious trouble lol. <<<

Was the weather beautiful today? I’m really upset that we’re having 90 F still when it’s OCTOBER. Summer just won’t go away. D:

Do you have to have a fan on when you sleep? Yep. During the summer months and even still cause California summers are miserably long, I have 3 fans going at all times. When it finally cools down I can go down to one. We’ve had some especially cold winters (for us) some years and during those I didn’t need any fans. Would you rather have an orange, red or gray bedroom? I guess out of those I’d choose gray. I’d really not have any of those, though.

Would you ever dye part of your hair blue? Nah.

Have you ever gone to a private school? Yes. Is Finding Nemo a favorite movie of yours? No, but I do like it.

Does/Did your school have a uniform? My preschool did.

Turn on the TV. What channel are you on? It’s on TV Land currently. The Golden Girls is on.

Does your house have security cameras? Yes.

Does a popsicle sound good right now? No. I don’t care much for popsicles. I’m not even a big ice cream person in general, but if I wanted something like that I’d go for ice cream over a popsicle.

What’s your favorite exercise workout? I don’t workout.

What’s your favorite thing to do? I like to do my Bible studies, spend time with family, check my social medias (TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat), watch YouTube videos, watch TV, scroll through Tumblr, do surveys, read, play Animal Crossing: New Horizons, drink coffee, sleep... there’s other things, but those are things I do on a normal, everyday basis.

What did you do for your 17th birthday? Wow, I really don’t recall. Probably just something small with the fam.

Does your local Walmart have benches in them to rest? Yeah.

Was your favorite stuffed animal really a teddy bear growing up? No. I had a lot of stuffed animals as a kid, but I didn’t really have a particular favorite. Now, as a full grown adult, I have a shitload of giraffe stuffed animals and a few others and I love ‘em all.

If your house was haunted, what would you do? If it was like legit crazy weird stuff happening like the movies then we’d be moving asap lol. It wouldn’t be like every movie where somebody is like, “oh it’s fine, we’re not going anywhere” but things were definitely not fine.

Are you good at swimming? No, I can’t swim. If I actually go swimming, which is not something I care to do and it’s been almost 10 years now since the last time, I have to use a inner tube and I stay close to the edges, not venturing very far away at all. When I was a kid I had those little plastic or inflatable pools that didn’t fill up very high so I was okay in those and actually enjoyed it.

What’s worse: Slow internet or slow walkers? Slow internet drives me insane. People walking slowly in front of me is quite annoying, though, especially as someone in a wheelchair. Especially people who abruptly stop in front of me.

What is the rudest thing a guy has ever done to you? Play and use me.

Do you sleep with the sheets tucked in or out? Well, my bed always stays made. I sleep and sit on top and just use a throw blanket that I keep to the side.

What do you do to fall asleep faster? ASMR videos can help me get sleepy, but I can’t really do anything to fall asleep faster. It happens when it happens.

Do you carry a bottle of water wherever you go? No. I always have a bottle(s) nearby on my bedside table, though.

Are you afraid that one day you might get cancer? It is a fear of mine.

Are you a fast or slow walker? I don’t feel I wheel fast normally, but I guess compared to the average walking speed it might be considered fast.

Do you usually have to wear a belt with your pants? I never wear a belt.

Does it bother you when people’s underwear hangs out? It’s awkward for me cause I’m often at the level of most people’s behinds in my wheelchair.

Are you usually the person to try new things with your hair? No.

When’s your birthday? July 28th.

What age do you look forward to reaching? I’m 31 now, there aren’t anymore exciting milestones. Not to me, anyway.

Name a state that begins with the letter M. Massachusetts.

What’s the first thing you do after a car accident? I’ve never been in one, thankfully.

What do you use to get rid of bad breath? Brush my teeth.

What exercise do you hate the most? I don’t exercise.

What do you do at a party? I haven’t been to a party in years, and didn’t go to many anyway, but I was always one who clung to the people I knew and was closest to and just chilled and snacked haha. The parties I went to were more lowkey and chill, though. Never anything wild or crazy. My family get togethers were often quite big, but I was more comfortable at those. Although, even then I stuck by my mom and the cousins I was close to haha. That’s just how I am.

#personal #text #survey #surveys

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mousedetective · 5 years

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My Holiday Wishlist

@a-lafaye pointed out the link I’ve been using is on a locked LJ community, so I’m posting it here to link to my please for help.

1. Anything from this Amazon wish list. It's mostly stuff we need for our new apartment that we had to leave behind or got destroyed while sitting in storage for nearly two years, but there are some gifts for my son, my mother and I on there as well. 2. Starbucks gift cards in physical cards for $10 each. My mom and I know how good it is to have a safe place to sit when you're homeless, and Starbucks was a lifesaver for us. We're trying to make care bags for homeless people with some necessities and goodies in them, but we also want to include Starbucks gift cards so that homeless people in our area as well as Mission Bay (where my son volunteers with his National Honor Society group once a month) can have a little something to give them more than just a cup of water when they sit in Starbucks to stay warm as it gets colder. 3. Walmart gift cards (can be purchased here). While I do most of my big shopping trips at Walmart, the nearest one is currently three cities over so it's a bit of a trip and I only go when I can drop a decent sum of money of food/necessities. This November and December my visit times with my kidlet are increasing since he has school breaks and I have to feed him with no help from his adoptive mom. I love my child but he is a teenager and growing like a reed and therefore each week on a regular weekend we barely have anything left. I'm worried about the 4 day visits and the two weeks at the end of December. And we also want to get some nice stuff for the homeless care bags from Walmart (like their green tea & cucumber wipes, small name brand deodorants, body sprays, etc). I can take both physical cards and e-cards since I have the app. 4. Help for anyone on this post or on this tag that isn't Ragna/mousedetective (as that's me and I'm already asking for enough). My friend Jaimi maintains the list and all the people on it are awesome, and there are various ways to help with GoFundMes, Patreons and etc. The Tumblr tag is my personal running reblog list on Tumblr of people I'm friends with who need help/people who ask me to blog stuff for them, and as I check the notes every few reblogs, I try and reblog the most current posts from people. 5. Help San Diego Center for Children in some way, shape or form. My son utilizes their services and it's a great cause. 6. Comic books and manga. Paper issues, TPBs, hardcover comics...DC or Marvel or other brands, it doesn't matter. As long as it's not considered adult material I would love it. My son is a huge comic book fan (he's currently in a Homestuck, Bleach, Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel/Ms. Marvel phase) and I'd love to refresh his comics and manga collection, which seems to have disappeared since we put stuff in storage, and it makes me think I left a lot of them in our old apartment. 7. Boyfriend cardigans/sheer kimono-type cardigans. I'm not a really big sweater person, but I love the "boyfriend cardigan" type cardigans, either of thick or thin material (I'm linking to one on Amazon that's out of stock that is an idea of what I like), as well as the kimono type tops to wear in the summer that are similar, except shorter-sleeved. 2XL is my size. 8. Headbands. My mom lost all her hair when she went through chemo for breast cancer and ever since it grew back long enough to push back with headbands she's started collecting as many as possible. Pretty, simple, gaudy and a bunch of cat-eared ones as well, my mom's got about twenty of them now that she wears, but she would love more. While she doesn't mind cloth ones, she prefers metal and plastic, and the more fun the better. 9. Postcards. I love getting postcards and I have restarted my collection last year with the list I posted here. Any kind of postcard at all is amazing, but I love homemade ones a ton. 10. Care packages for my mother, son and I. We are still getting used to having housing again and anything anyone could think of to help make a lean holiday a little better with stuff to pamper, stuff to eat, etc. I have no idea what's in general care packages, it's been so long since I got one! Umm...if it helps, my mother's in her 60s and her favorite colors are pink and purple, my son is 17 and his favorite colors are green, red and blue, and I'm 38 and my favorite colors are black, white, grey and blue. None of us have food allergies, my son and I have a tub/my mother has a shower and that's all I can think of.

#signal boost #wishlist #amazon wishlist #care package #gift card #comic books #headband #postcards #for a good cause #donations #personal stuff

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monst · 5 years

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The O.G Ship BakuMon!!!

BakuMon

Bakugou Katsuki x Monst

All characters 18+

Warnings: Pure dumbassery at it’s finest! I have a big ass lack of Bakugou asks and I was bored so it manifested into this. When I’m bored I want to bother people but there was no one for me to tease so this happened. Also, it’s about time that this ship gets fans ‘cause Hori said it’s canon! (Jk) Anywhos I don’t ever wanna hear ya say I don’t entertain ya!

(I also canon Bakugou as Ace feel free to ask why)

sfw

How did Bakugou and Monst end up together? There both emotionally stunted aces so wtf happened? Dunno story for another time and plot holes exist and I’m not feeling creative. And this is long enough as it is :/

When they first get together it’s almost the same as when they were friends except that they get red in the face when either initiates hand holding….. Hugs? Hugs come into the relationship five months later and none of these touch starved fools want to stop cuddling when it happens.

Bakugou has also forgotten what it feels like to drive because Monst hogs both cars and, doesn’t like sharing.

As stated this relationship looks very platonic on the outside just two idiots doing normal things. A two hour hug here, sweaty hand holding there and oh lord a kiss?!!! After seven months these beans are progressing way too fast!!

That aside these two have lots of fun competing. Whether it be on the best tasting dish to who can drink more cups of water. Both dumbasses love to go hiking! “Why the hell is it that you can read a car GPS just fine but you can’t read a goddamn map to save your life!” “It said to turn here!” “Yeah? Then why haven’t we reached the otherside?!” “……we took a wrong turn….” “You mean you!” “I’m not the only one standing here you took it too” “because I going off what you said!” “Well who the heck- aww que cute! Look at you trusting me” “Shut up! This is the last time I trust you give me the damn map!” “Pfft your still blushing” “I’m leaving you here” “you know I have legs right?….oh silent treatment real mature…”

These two can really get into things and forget the others existence. So when Bakugou wants attention he has to rip Monst away from what she’s reading. When Monst wants attention she becomes terrifying. Relentlessly teasing and bothering him until he gets mad. Because Monst loves ticking people off when she’s bored. But, it’s worth it in the end because nothing cools his anger quicker than her giving him the innocent look and, telling him she only bothers him ‘casue she likes him. Which switches there teasing roles.

“Oi you’re doing it wrong” “No I’m not this is how it goes,” “no it doesn’t, look just let me do it” “No, you think you can do it better or something??” “Of course” “is that a challenge?“ This conversation can go either way :’D

But all that aside they know that they can be vulnerable with each other. This is only because there so damn honest and they know that they won’t ever betray each other. They know no judgment will be dished and can express all there frustrations. Whether there venting or want comfort. Ears are listening and arms are open. These bums are loud when angry but, they know what to do. Good thing they keep a punching bag.

“Katsuki is to much of a pussy to go to the store and buy me pads. Hell he wouldn’t dare. Ha him have the guts to walk out of Walmart with vagina soap? Nope.” “I’m at Walmart which fucking brand you want.” “The one to the left of the razors oh and get me some bubble bath. Yup that’s the one.” “We’re taking a bath?” Yeah Monst is really adept at getting what she wants but so is he.

“Let’s go to the gym.” “Can’t I’m busy” “the book isn’t going anywhere” “what’s the schedule?” “The usual. But I’m doing two extra laps” “Have fun” “Knew you’d bail. Of course you wouldn’t be able to handle it.” He walks out the door with a grin because Monst has a proper workout bra and is slipping on her sneakers. “I’m not going cause you told me too, it’s just that I decided that I need to workout more” “Yeah sure.”

Monst really doesn’t take his shit when he’s bashing other people, especially his mother. “Apologize” “What? No.” “You are going to call her back and apologize for that rude ass tone or else.” ��Oh yeah? Or else what?” Bakugou learned that you should listen to what Monst says or suffer the consequences. Monst learned not to threaten Bakugou so much…. Also Bakugou is ticklish….

It’s probably been a year or more and people are a bit curious. “So tell me how’s Bakugou in bed Monst?” “I dunno.” “Wait what?!! But you guys have been together for a long ass time!” “So what? It’s not like that shits the most important thing.“

"Katsuki what the heck are you looking at?” “Now that I think of it you’ve given me full body massages” “Yeah?” “You’ve seen me naked but, I don’t even know what you look like naked.” “Your point?"

Nsfw

Intimacy between Bakugou and I? Oh lord have mercy!So how do two aces who have never had sex have sex?

Awkwardly is how. I’m talking red faces and "I already took something off you next” The air is just thick with unfamiliarity. Like these virgins know what to do but, there very hesitant and insecure.

Bakugou’s eyes look down at her now exposed tiddies. “Stop staring ya perv.” “There big” “your one to talk?!” He comes closer and Monst looks away when his hand cup her breasts. “Does it feel good?” “I don’t know your just holding them. Besides why the heck are you touching me it was your turn to take something off.” “Shut up” “you shut up-ah” “you. Shut. Up.” “Freakin make me bitc-mmph”

But once they get it going there hooked. These newly turned demi’s will wanna fuck all the time……..It’s still awkward.

Bakugou is in the mood and Monst is none the wiser. He looks down at her with bedroom eyes a smirk on his face cornering the bespectacled girl. So she gives him the wtf do you want face. Until his lips meet her neck and he’s grinding on her. “O-oh y-you want to t-that.” Pulls back “what you didn’t want to?” “I mean I guess. I’m not busy or anything..” “*snort* way to ruin the mood” “oh so now you don’t want to?” “What?- "no I see how it is you get me all riled up then you go off and say you dont wanna” “Wait?” "No, no it’s all good.” “Where the hell are you going?!” “I mean if you don’t give me the vitamin D I gotta- "hell no.”

When Monst is in the mood the social cues are even worse. Red staining her face she grabs onto his wrist pressing her body to his thick ass arm. “I um…you..we you know.” Luckily Bakugou has become a code despherer “You tryna fuck?” He is very cocky about it because Monst begs for no one. But he’s an asshole who will tease and Monst wont put up with it and tells him “I have hands you know. Just asked you cause I’d thought it’d be easier but if your not-” “Dont even fucking finish that sentence. I’m gonna fuck you so good you’ll forget your damn name.”

These brats will get kinky real quick. Although the conversations that proceed the kinky titty titty bang bang are so cringeworthy. As a switch Monst wasn’t gonna let him dictate all the time so when the strap on came on Bakugou’s ass virginity came off. “You liked it. Admit it.” “You fuck like a bitch” “says the bitch I fucked, made you cum two times with my big ass ween” “it wasn’t even that big” o.O

I can’t even I cringed so hard writing this. Like do ya know how hard it is to write yourself with a character??!!! Its so weird. Lmaoo it doesn’t feel right 🤣 That and, you couldn’t pay me to write anything detailed with Kacchan and I having sex hell no, no way I’ll write it with others yes but naw b I dont play that shit. O/////O

Okay now comes the real question: Rip it? Or Ship it?

#bnha #Bakugou x Monst #BakuMon #Pure shitpost #Bakugou Smut #i have no life #Bakugou lemon #bakugou katsuki #bnha insert #bakugou headcanons

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vorefluff · 5 years

Text

if anyone is curious

This is legit how I come up with new storylines and things. This is just a copy/paste of something I sent my girlfriend when I was in the middle of Figuring A Thing Out.

Featuring a new character, Hue and a drawing of him! Mostly this is about Blaze tho, and some stuff about John too. It sorta goes all over the place - the moment it seems like ‘oh this is what this post is about’ it switches on you.

Warnings: Lots of “so anyway”, no proofreading, completely filled with lowercase sentence starters, fragments, cussing, a couple vague s*xual references. It’s a brain barf.

[day 1]

This is Hue. He's a werewolf boi-o and one of the shortest characters i've made so far, clocking in at 4'10". you can just barely see his bite scars under the arm hair I decided that John shouldn't be entirely partner-less because Blaze decided to be stubborn and not embrace the gay. Cause that's just unfair to john. Like, Blaze said no, John respects that, so John moves on.

No matter how much I rlly rlly want the two to be together.

so anyway is seems that John has a Type. smol grumpy and easy to fluster I mean, in terms of potential romantic partners. in terms of Hotness and potential one-night-stands and such he's more physically attracted to guys in snappy suits and confidence like raknu but also not raknu himself because it'd be weird to bang your boss.

[day 2]

[insert some Spoilery Things about Alchemy Brothers from my World Of Glass And Bone and my character I’m basing Hue off of. This is also a first - usually I don’t base one character off of another. I did it in this case to absolutely make 100% sure that Hue’s personality doesn’t end up being like a Blaze2.0.]

[....] cause like, yeah, I made him with the intent of finding an Actual Partner for John, but I don't want that to be his Entire Personality. I don't want him to just be off-brand discount walmart version of Blaze. I've never done this before k. Like, usually I make characters, and then decide relationships to other people, not the other way around. And now I'm just Worried and low-key Freaking Out that he won't be seen as anything more than a Blaze-wannabe.

[day 3]

so THIS is how love triangles get started, huh - throwing in Hue threw a wrench into things. so like we got John and Blaze, right? they're like. bestest buds. John is like, the only person that Blaze really actually feels completely comfortable around. and like, a big part of the reason why Blaze doesn't want to be in an Actual Official Relationship is a lot of smaller very valid reasons.

1) he's in denial that it's even a thing he wants at all. All relationships end in Bad Things - either death as Blaze outlives them, or breakups, or deception and misunderstanding, or other Fun Things like that. So why the fuck would he want to put himself through that again?

2) he still gets nightmares about Alex and not over that 3) all past relationships have been either abusive or at least a little bit Toxic - including alex (just as the nature of the culture, and the social power difference between people and vampires, toxic masculinity, just straight up assholes with a pretty face, ect) and that's just sorta the standard, normal thing that Blaze expects to happen with relationships in general. So it's showing a little bit of growth on Blazes part by saying no to the perceived toxicity, but still misunderstanding what a normal relationship is.

4) he's still not sure he's part gay. Like, he was Trying Out A Thing with Alex and he didn't get enough time to process it or really tell if that's something for him.

5) Blaze is asexual and sex-repulsed, and John is Horny. Not that John would do anything that Blaze is uncomfortable with - just the idea that Blaze is holding John back from something that he really wants to do while simultaneously being really stuck on the idea of monogamy and being uncomfortable with the idea ofo John being with anyone else sexually if they're in a relationship.

6) and fear that if he says yes then He's Stuck. can't back out, can't break off, without losing John completely as a friend (which is not something John would do even if they did break off for whatever reason). but it's still intense fear, and strongly supported by the idea of 'history repeats itself'.

7) he's also still low-key weirded out by the thought that John was assigned female at birth and while he's Getting Better at that and normalizing it. Being closer than friends before he's finished sorting things out in his head properly only brings up those weirded out feelings more intensely and more frequently until it becomes a potential point of conflict. If they were to ever be a thing, it'd take a lot of time before it started up, for Blaze to be 100% okay and Chill and properly sort through his head around John being trans. Not that Blaze would ever insult or weaponize that against john or anything, just personally working through centuries of stigma/sterotypes/ect and trying to get to a point where that thought isn't weird or bad anymore.

and a few other little reasons here and there but those are the big main ones in the way between a Blaze and John relationship. and I've been trying to keep that in mind when writing stories between them, cause John would totally go out with Blaze, and if Blaze didn't have those blocks, then he'd totally be open to a relationship with John too.

Like, blaze low-key has a crush on John too. And I ship is so hard. And I want it to be a thing but I feel it's unfair to Blaze's character and all the stuff he has to work through himself before he's mentally stable enough to be able to have a healthy relationship with anyone.

and like maybe if no one else existed, yeah, sure, they'd get together at some point but like John isn't going to wait years for the possibility of a relationship with a person who already said 'no'.

So anyway, Hue comes on scene, right?

John is spending more time with Hue and due to the nature of time being limited and the fact that often John operates seperately in Hero Team Missions (he's a spellcaster where the others aren't - he can do a lot of behind the scenes things that the others can't)

Blaze finds himself really really wanting John's company more which makes him question why the fuck and therefore come to the realization that yeah okay fuck fine he's part gay but what the fuck ever John's with someone else already so.

so he's trying to shove down those annoyin' fckn feelings of jealousy, and also starting to distance himself from John and also throwing in some self-hate for missing his chance because Everything Blaze Does has to be low-key toxic (bad blaze stop it-)

and once there's something you Want that's out of reach, suddenly you start forgetting about the reasons why you didn't go for it in the first place when it was available which means at least some of the other barriers are temporarily forgotten - at least, until John is available again, then they'd re-surface with vengeance and more self-hate because now-is-you're-chance-what-are-you-waiting-for -

so anyway Blaze is a (valid) Dramatic Bitch who can't make up his goddamn mind

And right now I'm trying to figure out the new dynamic, and how things end there.

I'm like maybe 20% sure that they might end up turning it into a poly relationship instead of a love triangle

John would be down for that Hue would be down for that

it all just depends on Blaze and his dumb stupid (meant lovingly, they're still valid) limitations and quirks and trauma and shit.

there's nothing solid yet but the idea of it being turned into a poly relationship is rlly appealing to me

also

blaze needs a therapist

I'm pretty sure that's the first time I've said that and I don't know why I haven't said it sooner but Blaze needs a therapist.

vampires getting therapists isn't something that ever happens for lots of stupid and dumb (not valid) reasons but maybe maaaayyyyybeeeeeee Raknu can pull some strings, talk to some people, ya know. Maybe try and find a therapist who's willing to come in and try and talk to a vampire with hundreds of years of Shit.

raknu can claim it's for the good of the team, and teamwork, and shiz. I mean, having a vampire on a hero team at all is a New Thing, Blaze was one of the first. So obviously, there'll the other New Things that arise from this, that can bypass stupid rules

well I guess for Blaze to see a therapist Blaze would have to actually be willing to ya know.

see the therapist

that's more unlikely than raknu being able to call one in that's open to it

Blaze does not have a very good opinion on therapists. Blaze thinks they're all quacks and wishy-washy idiots

siiiiiiigh

blaze why why do you have to be this way like, you've got a whole bunch of Good Things that you could've had why do you have to be stubborn

all of these good things literally just hinge on you.

it's okay though

blaze is just taking the scenic route the long way around to Good Times.

I think what would be required for Blaze to see a therapist would be for someone he sees as similar to him - not wishy-washy, negativity and toxic central, similar opinion of therapists in general - to go in and see one first, and actually be helped and have their life improved.

then maybe blaze would give it a try and-

ooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

heheheheheheh

AHAHAHAHAHAHA

this is where it comes full circle!!!

This is perfect!!!!

Hue!

it all comes back to HUE!

Hue goes to therapy which then convinces Blaze to accept therapy which means Blaze can actually Work Through Some Of His Shit

and then we can have a valid Poly Relationship with John and Blaze and Hue and it wouldn't have been possible without Hue which low-key starts them off in a positive relationship, which is bolstered by John really liking Hue, and therefor Blaze has someone else he can Really Actually Enjoy And Feel Comfortable Around instead of being stuck on just John

Bonus Little Story Thing For Making It This Far:

Blaze tentatively kisses the top of Smol John’s head, giving a hesitant little smile. John blushes and grins, leaning against the vampire.

Glancing up though, Blaze sees Hue with a raised eyebrow and a an amused smirk.

A very intense possessiveness washes over Blaze. Blaze makes direct eye contact with Hue.

“aAURG!! wHAt the HECK!!!” John exclaims as Blaze’s teeth firmly rest on his back, pressing him into the tongue protecting him from the vampire’s bottom teeth.

Blaze lifts John up from his hand like that, pulling his tongue in and bringing John with it. John fumbles for an oxygen tank from his pockets.

Blaze maintains eye contact with Hue the entire time, swallowing the small form.

Hue is amused, a little disturbed, but mostly confused.

Finally Hue breaks the silence. “Couldn’t resist such a snacc, huh?”

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leigh-kelly · 5 years

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Showmance 6/6/19 Transcript Part 6: HEYA

J: And Naya, I’m supposed to ask you, Amber and Chris, we were talking about tour a lot on the episode and Amber remembers on the bus to Manchester you using Doo Grow in the back of the bus. N: I said that today. Literally, I talked about Doo Grow today. J: So all the fans want to know about the Doo Grow. N: So I was with Telly. We went shopping, um, I mean listen I had like a lot of hair extensions, things were breaking off, we’re in a strange place, different products. I go to a hair place with Telly and I’m like this looks great, this Doo Grow. I don’t know, it’s gonna grow, it’s like oil. I love oils, let’s see. So it was like a nice scalp treatment after a show. H: I remember all the girls with Beyonce wearing Doo Grow. N: Oh my God, and then I left like a giant—yes, yes. I love that that’s what I picked. And then I left a giant head of grease stain on the back of whatever seat I was sitting in. K: I remember there was like, a whole seat on the bus— N: So that’s what Amber saw? J: Yeah, so went to the back of the bus and there were a bunch of empty seats and then Naya all over the back with her sunglasses and this thing and she’s putting Doo Grow in her hair. N: Why was I ever like, ‘Doo Grow?’ K: I remember I was like ‘Telly, what is she doing?’ and he was like ‘Doo Grow, baby! You know what Doo Grow is!’ N: Stop! It’s Doo Grow, baby! He did say that all the time! K: And Naya, you got Doo Grow? And you’re like – N: Yeah, do you want some? Freaking Doo Grow. K: Every time I’m in Walmart, yes, I go to Walmart— N: I was there yesterday. K: I see Doo Grow sometimes. N: Oh my God. H: Naya. J: Is that where you found the Fairy Veil as well? N: Fairy Veil, yes! That was the same store! K: Oh! Let’s talk about Fairy Veil! J: Yes! H: Give us a back story on the Fairy Veil. J: Let’s talk about the Fairy Veil um, Genesis. K: The Fairy— N: Yes. J: Please. N: It was Telly’s nickname for like, no, it might have been like a brand name of hair. K & J: It was. J: So you went shopping right? N: Yeah, with Telly, same place where I got the Doo Grow. I did not get the Fairy Veil. H: I love that Telly’s with you in all this. N: I know. J: There was like a Fairy Veil— J, K, N: Hair extension. J: Brand. N: Yes. H: Great. N: Um, and yeah, then Telly made it its own thing, which meant the veil of secrets, like the more hair, the more you can hide in the hair. K: Which was very useful for us on a set of a lot people— J: That we don’t know. K: With a lot of young people, and we all had secrets. J: So I’d be like ‘I got some Fairy Veil for you.’ N: Fairy Veil. Yeah, it was like our tea. That we just like— J: Do you still use it? I still use it. N: Fairy Veil? J: Yeah, with Kevin, all the time. K: Telly uses it to me too. N: I don’t. I need to bring it back. J: Bring it back. N: No one else would know what I was talking about. K: No. J: That’s fair. N: Then I would have to sit here and do that whole explanation K: Yeah. H: Wait, hang on. J: Well, Fairy Veil is— K: A couple weeks ago, Telly was like, ‘oh man, I got some good Fairy Veil for you’ I was like ‘oh, like a breath of fresh air, I haven’t heard Fairy Veil in so long.’ N: Remember when we gave Gwyneth Paltrow— K: It culminated in Naya teaching Gwyneth about Fairy Veil and cut to Naya presenting Gwyneth with her own real Fairy Veil that she then— N: No, and then I gave her instructions on how—what was one of them, do not open windows, secrets might fly out? J: Yes! K: And then we go to the Grammy’s and she’s—do you remember this? N: No. K: She wore it at the Grammy’s! J: She did wear it at the Grammy’s! N: Did I give her a piece of hair? K: Yes! You gave her real Fairy Veil, like the brand! N: That’s amazing. J: Yes! K: And she wore it— J: Just zoom in on it. N: That’s amazing. J: We saw her in the bathroom with Beyonce. K: Oh my God! N: And she’s like ‘I have Fairy Veil in.’ J: Naya was pinning my dress because my dress ripped and in walks Gwyneth Paltrow and Beyonce— N: Oh my God. J: And she looks at Naya—Beyonce looks at Naya as she’s like on her knees— H: This is my favorite story. J: Pinning my dress— K: Wait, hold on, hold on. Rewind. H: You guys, you know Taylor knows this story? And he says it to me! J: Okay, rewind. N: I forgot it. K: Okay, I’ve had to do the whole Naya doesn’t want to explain what Fairy Veil is to strangers. I’ve had to do that to so many people with this story because I use this phrase— J: All the time. K: So often, because it is the very best thing that has ever happened in life. N: True. H: Okay, backstory, here we go. K: Here’s a quick summary of how we got there. I wasn’t even involved but let me, you guys tell it. J: No, no, Kevin, this is good. K: So we’re at the Grammy’s, Dianna and I see Gwyneth sitting with Beyonce in the front row. We’re like ‘next commercial break, that’s our in, we gotta go meet Bey.’ So we storm up front, me and Dianna and Gwyneth is like ‘hi, hi guys, do you know Bey?’ and we’re like ‘No! What? Hey, nice to meet you.’ And Gwyneth’s like ‘what are we gonna do after this? Are we gonna go take some shots?’ And she looks at Beyonce and Beyonce is like ‘mmhm.’ J: Oh my God. K: Like doesn’t speak. You are perfect. And so, cut to the after party, it’s like, the SONY afterparty at a hotel in Beverly Hills and then my sister, who was my Grammy date, and all of you guys go into the bathroom— J: Cause my dress ripped. N: Yes. K: While I’m out in the waiting room with Jay. H: Just one syllable. J: So we go into the bathroom. Naya is pinning—somehow we found safety pins. Naya is pinning my dress. Literally pinning the bottom of it and then in walks GP and Beyonce and she looks at Naya and is like ‘did you—’ K: No, do it. J: Didn’t you do a movie with my sister? N: Yeah, but she said ‘I know you’ Just that was it— J: Naya was like ‘what?’ N: Like, hi, do I say ‘no you don’t?’ and she was like ‘you were in a movie with my sister.’ And it was like—what did I say? J: You were like— J & H: ‘I don’t think so.’ N: No I don’t think so, but it’s so nice to meet you. Oh, she’s forever gonna— K: And then she turned around— N: Did we look up who— J: And then Beyonce, no no, and then Beyonce turned. K: Beyonce turned to a stranger and goes ‘who told me that?’ H: Oh my God. Oh my God. Who told me that? K: Who told me that? Turns— J: How do you not remember this? N: Oh my God! K: Turns to a stranger like at the sink, I think washing her hands from what I’ve heard— H & N: Who told me that? H: Like this stranger is gonna know. K: And goes ‘you tell me that?’ N: Who told me that? I’m like ‘okay, good, I’m glad someone’s gonna take the fall for this.’ K: Could you imagine being a stranger— N: Oh, right? K: A stranger in the bathroom with the cast of Glee, Gwyneth Paltrow and Beyonce and then Beyonce calls you out as you’re washing your hands, this poor person, be like ‘you tell me that?’ N: No, no, I didn’t. H: She’s like ‘uh…uh’ J: We came running out of that bathroom. N: Oh my God. K: You guys came running out to me, because I also didn’t realize I was sitting next to Jay Z for a solid five minutes and I started sweating and you told me that and then my sister was like ‘um, um, Beyonce asked me if she could have a mint, so I gave her all of my mints.’ She’s like ‘I opened it and she’s like ‘oh can I have one of those’’ she’s like ‘yeah, have all of them.’ N: Have all the mints. H: Oh my. N: The night of Beyonce, good times. K: And I couldn’t believe that. H: And that was a story that we heard for a long time. K & N: Who told me that? H: And then I told Taylor and sometimes he’ll look at me, he be like ‘was you in a movie with my sister?’ N: Stop! Stop! J: Noo! K: Because it’s so good, the times when you forget something, or you mess up— All: Who told me that? K: And then, it gets better because Naya was at—I’m telling your stories now. N: Go, I don’t remember any of them. J: They’re not our stories to tell. K: I’m telling this one because— J: Okay. I always say that when we come on, don’t spill those secrets, Kevin. K: I spill those, the Fairy Veil is loose these days. N: It’s gone. K: It’s come out. N: It’s permed guys. K: And shaved. Um, you went to like, Gwyneth’s birthday party. N: Yes. K: And you sat at a table with Beyonce. Because you texted me as this was happening and she goes ‘Oh my God, I’m at a table with Beyonce. It happened again.’ J: No! K: She looks across the table at Naya and she goes— N: She did! K: Weren’t you in a movie with my sister? N: At that point, wasn’t I like ‘yes, yes I was? I absolutely was and it was a blast. I love your sister, tell her I said hi.’ H: You just owned it immediately. J: Just owned it. N: I was like, I can’t do this a second time. K: Yeah, yeah. N: I was like, so confused. But if Beyonce wants you to be the girl that was in the movie with her sister— K: Yeah. N: Then I’m the girl that was in a movie. K: The legend of that bathroom story had lived on for like two years after that and— J: No, longer. K: And then it like happened again and it was just like, I can’t believe, Beyonce also remembers. N: I was like ‘is she gonna drop it, or…is she gonna believe me?’ K: She did, she dropped it. N: She dropped it. K: She was like ‘okay, yes you are.’ J: No, you dropped it. K: She just needed her things confirmed. N: Yup.

#naya rivera #heather morris #jenna ushkowitz #kevin mchale #showmance

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stimtoybox · 5 years

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My Stim Toy Collection

Given that there’s a lot of people like me who don’t like buying online, I thought I might go over in more detail what I’ve gotten that HAS worked for me in the recent past as I find online shopping intensely overwhelming.

I live in Canada in the Fraser Valley, and have to get around by bus, so all of this is focusing on Canadian chain stores, as finding all the tiny corner-shops with niche items is almost impossible, even though I absolutely know they exist here. I’ll group the items as best I can by place, but this is still going to be a long post.

WALMART (Classic Fidgets):

Zuru Fidget Cube; I believe mine cost about 8.00 - 9.00 CAD, you can find it on Walmart.ca too right now for 8.77. It works quite well, the weight is nice and the plastic is that lovely texture. It has the silent and clicky buttons, and all the parts move quite smoothly (except possibly the joystick, but I might just find it inferior to actual game controller ones.) However, it mixes really poorly with my love-hate relationship with clicking and inability to NOT use those sides even when the noise is bothering me intensely.

Zuru Tangle Jr.; their website currently lists them for 24.00 CAD, but I found mine for I think 10.00 or 12.00 CAD in store when I went recently. I’d tried someone else’s recently and found in to be very engaging but horribly clicky; the one I bought is dead silent unless it brushes against itself. It moves like an absolute dream, and I love it to pieces. I am SO happy.

Kitty in My Pocket; these are a mystery grab bag item, for 3.47 CAD. The kitties are about the size of a large adult’s thumbnail, made of hard plastic, and absolutely adorable - they are also FLOCKED. It’s a lovely texture and I’m super happy I got one. Walmart (and Superstore) both have a ton of mystery package items right now and I had been wanting to try one out, and this was the first where I liked the potential results. If you love cats, I’d definitely suggest it.

PARTY CITY (Tiny fidgets):

Woolly Balls; singlets for 40 cents, or a pack of twelve for 5.00 CAD. These are like my ideal work fidget, as they’re small enough to go in a pocket discretely, they look fairly non-descript despite their colour, and can vanish into my palm or back into a pocket on a moment’s notice. I love rolling them across my palm for texture, or crushing two together for a different feel.

Puzzle Erasers; also singlets for 40 cents, I didn’t look for larger packs as this isn’t my favourite toy but I’m glad I tried it out. There was a lot of extra material from molding that I had to pick off but that wasn’t too much effort to do. I got a box that breaks down into six pieces and can be slot back together again, but I believe they may have had other things too.

Keychain Plush; “YooHoo and Friends” are fairly high quality tiny (smaller than my palm) minky plush, for 4.00 CAD. It’s stuffed very tightly, except for the arms and tail that are empty fabric. The keychain seems securely attached, but I pulled off one of the felt paws already while stimming. The seam seems undamaged by it, though, so while he only has three paws left it didn’t cause on-going flaw.

Mermaid sequin keychain; this was the last one of that particular style in-store at the location I went to, but they are still stocking online also 4.00 CAD. The backing is minky plush, which is what I’d wanted from a sequin keychain as the sequins themselves can be overstimulating for me. The plush part is kind of low, and the seams are a bit rough - enough I’m considering the relative risk of unpicking a seam to add either more plush or some poly pellets to increase the volume. The sequins however flip quite well.

Spiky Light up Ball: I actually bought mine at a local hardware store, but when I was trying to find things online to check prices, I found that Party City had packs of four for 4.00 CAD as well at least online. The one I got has a finicky light; sometimes it goes off sitting still in the wrong position, other times I can shake it three times and not get it to go. Still, the spikes feel great and the ball is pretty firm (although I can’t say I’d call it ‘bouncy’ as Party City does.)

TOYS R US (BABIES R US): (teethers)

IIRC Canada’s still supports A$, but I wasn’t aware of anywhere else to look for the kind of silicon baby toothbrush I needed for self-care.

Teethers: I got a Nuby round teether for I believe 3.00 - 5.00 CAD on sale; most were potentially on clearance when I went in last, so no idea if this is eve still an option. If its not, there’s a Canadian website for that that’s possibly a better option. However, if you’re like me and the thought of buying online makes you sick with anxiety, I’m not sure what other baby stores even exist? Either way I’m not the best judge, as both teethers I got don’t actually work well for me due to my sensitive gag reflex (a thing I suspected, given I was looking for a finger toothbrush for precisely that reason.)

Perhaps more relevant, I don’t think I saw anything super stimmy in Toys R Us that wasn’t also present for much the same price in Walmart or Superstore. The only thing that was significantly different was that I found a single-pack for the toothbrush (you could buy it with other stuff for slightly more money from Superstore, which I compulsively avoid waste) and teethers of any kind. If you don’t need either of those, you can happily stick with the other department stores.

SUPERSTORE: (Plush, slime, Playdough, Kinetic Sand, mojmoj squishies)

*Much of this is also at Walmart, but I currently work at Superstore with this stuff so I know their selection better. What I mentioned about Walmart is basically what I could not find at Superstore. I cannot review playdough for allergy reasons and I’m not interested in buying kinetic sand, but for people who want to know a retailer that has it in store, Superstore does.

Slime: Currently a seasonal item (IE it will no longer be stocked after Easter clearance is gone) but they have “Easter Putty” that is actually quite a nice slime. The marbled effect vanishes after some use, and the egg-shaped container is useless once opened, but it has a nice vibrate to it, it doesn’t melt so quickly you can’t keep up with it, and it cost 5.00 or less to try out if I like slime at all. It leaves a watery feelign residue that vanishes even if you don’t wash your hands immediately, and has no scent. Its prone to tearing if you’re not careful, but if you’ve been wondering if you’d even LIKE slime or not it might be worth checking it out.

Plush: Superstore store-brand plush are the absolute best so far, I stg. I own two of their seasonal plushies from Christmas - giant rotund cats - and they are SO soft and so well-stuffed and they were 15.00 CAD for plush 16" tall and 12" wide (approx. 40 cm by 30 cm). Currently their seasonal plush are rabbits, sheep, and llamas, plus others - the most expensive at the moment is a 34.00 CAD giant rabbit that’s 3-4 FEET tall. They have in the past carried mermaid sequin plushies too, but not for the current season. If you are a stimmer who collects plush, I’d highly recommend checking regularly to see what’s in stock - not in the toy aisle, but in the back corner seasonal stuff. There always seems to be some kind of stuffy offered.

If you want the most amazing plush blanket EVER, I’d go in the next two weeks for the faux rabbit fur blankets but they should be sold out before long too.

(I’d review the mojmoj squishies, but handling them as a retail employee who has to clean up after others is just. Heavily biased towards the “OMG dirt magnets” end of things. Do NOT drop your squishy in a department store??? There are, however, currently giant plush mojmoj puppies and unicorns, but as they are 34.00 CAD I will not be going more than “Cute looking” about them anytime soon.)

OTHER:

I found a decent spinner at Pharmasave, but they were all on sale so I don’t know if they’ll still be available anywhere else. I’ve seen decent plushies offered at Indigo Books recently, but haven’t been in of late to see what all they have. I heard that Odin Books in downtown Vancouver has Tangles as well, but that’s quite a long ways for me to go to see. The only other location I could suggest to people who want tiny shops in Greater Vancouver would be Commercial Drive or Kitsilano along 4th Avenue.

The above are things and places I’ve been in looking with stim toys in mind in the past couple of weeks, so hopefully the information should be more up to date and helpful to people.

This is an epic resource, and I am always here for posting about more offline resources outside of Australia. (There’s so many reasons why stimmers can’t purchase or easily purchase toys online, so conversations about alternatives are so important!). Thank you so very much, @tassledown, for all the time and effort you’ve put into such a fabulous post.

And yes: flocked toys are great little palm fidgets! I have a childhood Sylvanian Families (Calico Critters for US-based folks) collection, and I keep a few of the knock-off Lil Woodzeez figures just for stimming so I don’t wear the plush off my expensive (and vintage!) Sylvanian figures. I know there’s a surprise box set of Lil Woodzeez babies available in the US, which I’d love to own...

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angelixii · 6 years

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1-140 (anything you haven't answered already) - Felix

Oh, hello! Thanks for the ask!! 💕

3 fears - Spiders (I get frightened when I think about them) heights (slightly) and the public (anything like murder, kidnapped, ya know stupid people)

3 Things I love - Music, Idols, and animals

2 Turns on - ig Hats (like snapbacks) and glasses

2 Turns off - oof I don’t really know.. ig self absorbed or a fudge boy

My best friend - C: @straykids-sk (wuv you)

How tall am I - 5′2

What do I miss right now - My cat that passed away :c (her name was P.J)

Favourite color - Blue, red, and sometimes green

Do I have a crush - no not really

Favourite place - my home

What am I listening to right now - theres a website called asoftmurmur.com and it has noises like rain or waves and stuff like that

Shoe size - pretty sure 10 in US womens

Eye color - brown

Hair color - light-ish brown

Meaning behind my URL - I chose Felix cause hes my bias wrecker and hes angelic C:

Favourite song - Theres like a million but 5SOS’s She Looks So Perfect wil always be a favorite (idk why)

Favourite band - Ill just chose Stray Kids cause I don’t wanna write them all out

How I feel right now - kinda tired but ig ok

Someone I love - Ill say my best fren Georgia (@straykids-sk) cause i wuv her

My current relationship status - single and i kinda wanna stay that way for a while

My relationship with my parents - We all live in the same house and its just us (I have one other sister but she moved out. But shes here a lot tho) and we all get along well

Favorite season - probably Spring c:

Tattoos and piercing I have - none and I don’t really want any

Tattoos and piercing I want - ^^^

The reasons I joined Tumblr - Georgia wanted me to and I thought it would be fun (I was right c:)

Do I ever get “good morning” or “good night ” texts? - no :/

Have I ever kissed the last person you texted? - oh heel no she my best fren I would never

How long does it take me to get ready in the morning? - when I have school like 20 minutes at max

Have you shaved your legs in the past three days? - I did today

Where am I right now? - at my house on my laptop c:

Do I like my music loud or at a reasonable level? - reasonable level cause I’ve always had ear problems and they are sensitive (even tho I always have my earbuds in)

Do I live with my Mom and Dad? - yup

Am I excited for anything? - not that I can think of no

Do I have someone of the opposite sex I can tell everything to? - nope :/

How often do I wear a fake smile? - not THAT often

If I could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be? - oooof I don’t think I could answer that question

What do I think about most? - probably k-pop

Do I prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it? - Definitely behind

What was the last lie I told? - It was kinda a joke but “i’ll do it because im the good child”

Do I prefer talking on the phone or video chatting online? - Eh depends on who it is but facetiming/video chatting

Do I believe in ghosts? How about aliens? - ghosts kinda and aliens, I mean sure we’ve barely discovered space, who knows whats out there

Do I believe in magic? - sometimes yeah

Do I believe in luck? - I mean yeah

What’s the weather like right now?- theres nothing really going on

What was the last book I’ve read? - uhhhhhh fully on my own (not in class)? The Maze Runner Scorch Trials

Do I have any nicknames? - Kassadoodle, Kassidilla, Kassy

Do I spend money or save it? - I’m trying to save as much as I can rn in my little money jar c:

Can I touch my nose with a tounge? - nah

Favourite animal? - Lions and Fennec Foxes

What was I doing last night at 12 AM? - uhhh im pretty sure saying goodbye to Georgia on video chat

What’s a song that always makes me happy when I hear it? - oo um I cant really think of one rn :/

What is my favorite word? - yeet

My top 5 blogs on tumblr (not in any order)

@honeylixs

@zoxsu

@tinyfigureskater

@stray-kids-dork

@straykidsmate

If the whole world were listening to me right now, what would I say? - I probably wouldn’t say anything cause im shy and afraid people would judge me on what I say c:

Do I have any relatives in jail? -not that I know of

What is my current desktop picture? - a pic of Bts

Had sex? Bought condoms? Gotten pregnant? Have I ever kissed somebody in the rain? Had job? Smoked weed? Smoked cigarettes? Drank alcohol?

no to ALL those questions C:

Am I a vegetarian/vegan? - nope don’t think I could ever

Been overweight? - …

Been underweight? - no.

Gotten my heart broken? - nah

Been to prom? - nope

Been in airplane? - nope and I never want to really

Learned another language? - I take required (cause im one of the more intelligent kids in school. I know shocker right?) Spanish classes in school but im on summer break so I dont remember any c:

Wore make up?- nope

Dyed my hair? - nope

Had a surgery? - plenty of ear surgery and had my tonsils removed

Met someone famous? - nope

Stalked someone on a social network? - nope

Been fishing? - no but my dad has always wanted to take me and it sounds kinda fun

Been rejected by a crush? - nope never really had one and if I did I would never have the guts

What do I want for birthday? - ooo idk but i have to wait till next year anyway cause its already passed

Do I like my handwriting? - sometimes when my hand cooperates

Where do I want to live when older? - with my girl Georgia

Have I ever got caught sneaking out or doing anything bad? - nope ima good child (yeah ok suuureee)

What I’m really bad at - running :/

What my greatest achievments are - managing to keep straight A’s and I dont even study cause im online so

The meanest thing somebody has ever said to me - “u bird cage” - Georgia c;

What I’d do if I won in a lottery - ooooooooof idk

What do I like about myself - uhhhhh heh ig my hair or eyes/eyelashes

My closest Tumblr friend - Georgia (yes I do know her irl but shes honestly the closet tumblr friend I have so)

Any question you’d like? - hmm idk

Are you outgoing or shy? - definitely shy, unless with people im close to then quite crazy

What kind of people are you attracted to? - funny, cute and nice people

Do you think you’ll be in a relationship two months from now? - hA no

Does talking about sex make you uncomfortable? - kinda

Who was the last person you had a deep conversation with? - oof idk

What does the most recent text that you sent say? “ohhhh no XDD” (sent to Georgia)

What are your 5 favorite songs right now? - (I already answered this question and don’t wanna answer again)

Do you like it when people play with your hair? - yes I love when freinds at school did (once we were watching a movie in Spanish and my friend next to me was playing with my hair and I almost fell asleep heh)

Do you think there is life on other planets? - totally

Do you like bubble baths? - I haven’t had one in forever

Do you like your neighbors? - only one cause I think im related to them somehow or they are to like my uncle

Where would you like to travel? - out of this hell hole country c:

Favorite part of your daily routine? - checking my tumblr and stanning talent

What part of your body are you most uncomfortable with? - stomach

What do you do when you wake up? - check my notifications on my phone

Do you wish your skin was lighter or darker? - I wish it was more tan than it is (im quite pale)

Do you ever want to get married? - yeah

If your hair long enough for a pony tail? - yes but I hate pony tails so I never do it (I used to all the time as a kid)

Would you rather live without TV or music? - I rarely watch t.v anymore and listen to music almost all day so

Have you ever liked someone and never told them? - I mean yeah

What are your favorite stores to shop in? - I dont really have one for clothes but I do like Walmart

Do you believe everyone deserves a second chance? - I mean sometimes

Do you smile at strangers? - If the smile at me first yeah

Have you done anything recently that you hope nobody finds out about? - not that I can remember no

Ever wished you were someone else? - no (as much as I hate myself no)

Favorite makeup brand? - son;t wear any so I dont got one

Last thing you ate? - a Reese cup

Ever won a competition? For what? - not a big one I can remeber no

Ever been in love? - c:

Facebook or Twitter? - dont have a fb and i barely use twitter anymore but twitter

Twitter or Tumblr? - DEFINITELy tumblr

Are you watching tv right now? - i mean its always on for bg noise and light so ig so

What color are your towels? - all kinds of colors

Favorite ice cream flavor? - either Strawberry with out the strawberries or cookie dough

First person you talked to today? - my mom

Last person you talked to today? - Georgia

Name a person you hate? - C: theres too many

Name a person you love? - once again, theres too many

Is there anyone you want to punch in the face right now? - C: theres too many

Do you tan a lot? - I barely go outside so thats a no

Have any pets? - too many

Do you type fast? - I mean kinda yeah

Do you regret anything from your past? - everything XD

Ever broken someone’s heart? - I highly doubt it

Have you ever liked someone so much it hurt? - C:

Is cheating ever okay? - hell no

Do you believe in true love? - I mean sure

What your zodiac sign? - Pisces

Do you believe in ghosts? - why is this question on here twice?

Get the closest book next to you, open it to page 42, what’s the first line on that page? (via catscuddlingandyou) - “…but not at all overwhelming, the balance of the different fragrances was subtle and flawless.” Twilight - Breaking Dawn (Do NOt ask me why thats the closest book its not mine and ive never read it and i NEVER plan on it)

oof that took like two hours heh.. its now currently 2:18am. and im very tired

but thanks for the ask anyway love! Im sorry for the wait! I was busy today. But im probably going to go to bed now

#oof #anon ask #thanks for the ask love #love you anon #c:#this whole post looks like a mess I’m sorry

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kaylabliss · 6 years

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Since I'm posting again...

I figure I'll post about why I've disappeared from Tumblr for about a million years. I missed all you people that I don't actually talk to but enjoy seeing posts from.

This year has been total shit. I don't know what my last "update" was, but I doubt anyone else will remember either.

I'm finally on ADHD medication (as of November), which has made a very slight difference in my ability to function. However, I'm thinking of asking for something different. I'm on Adderall XR, and I'm wondering if Vyvanse would be more helpful. It costs twice as much, but if it helps, it would be worth it.

Despite taking daily amphetamines, I've gained even more weight and I'm at my highest weight since pregnancy. (I'm not taking Adderall for weight loss, of course, but it would have been a really nice side effect. I have little to no appetite, but I still eat way too much because depression anxiety and laziness.)

In January, we found out Toys R Us was closing. My partner has been a supervisor there for ten years, so this was a pretty devastating blow for us. His last day was in April. Fortunately, he was only unemployed for about a month. In the week after TRU closed, he helped a local mom and pop toy store owner move some shelves that they'd bought from the TRU liquidation. That got his foot in the door, and now he's actually making more money there than he was at TRU.... To the tune of an extra $250 a week. Better yet, they love him. And his boss? Small world, he was my favorite patient at my old job. So we're going into this with me already knowing and liking his boss! And a fun bonus: when new movies come out, they rent out entire rows at the theater and all the employees and whoever they want to invite can go see it. Eric went to see Solo with them-- I've been trying to convince him to go out and do things with people for literally our entire relationship, so I was THRILLED about this. Also, the store sells mostly older collectibles, so when he saw what his toys were worth, he was psyched. He sold two of his old action figures this week for $400, and he gets 60% of that on consignment.

The salary increase and extra money is great, because in February, my car broke down. The transmission died, and as it was a POS 1996 Lexus, it would have cost four times what the car was worth to fix it. So we've been sharing a car, which has been difficult, but thankfully both our jobs close at 8 and we're right across the street from each other. While he was still at TRU, he was sometimes getting off around 10, which meant keeping my daughter out way too late. But now we can start saving for a down payment on a car, and actually afford car payments without having to live on ramen.

Also in February, his mom was diagnosed with lung cancer. This has been hard. Last week, she had her final surgery to remove the cancerous mass from her lung. She came home on Thursday and she's doing well. Aside from the anxiety over her diagnosis, this has been hard in about a dozen other ways. She had some moments where she was legitimately scared that she wouldn't get to see Shilo grow up, and this was made even harder when she lost her hair. She looked different, and Shilo acted scared of her. I don't know if she was having trouble recognizing her or what. And then to top it off, they've always been pretty well off financially and have always been able to help out their kids when needed-- including us. But there was a lot of things their insurance didn't pay for, and they had a $100 copay for each radiation treatment for six weeks. We haven't needed help with money, thankfully, but under normal circumstances they may have been able to help us get a new car. They also missed their granddaughter's graduation in Texas, which I know was disappointing. Eric's unemployment was actually helpful though, because he was able to stay home with Shilo for the greater part of his mom's chemo and radiation.

All that aside, there have been a lot of daily stressors and disappointments for me. I don't know how much I should really go into here, since someone could stumble into my blog.... Eh, I think I have it locked from public view, so.

One of the biggest things that bugged me was my mom. I didn't get to see her for Christmas because on Christmas eve, it was more important to her to go pass out coffee at a local men's shelter. (I know it sounds noble, but sometimes I wonder. She's wound up dating several of the men there.) I had to work on Christmas day. I didn't see her until the end of January at my niece's birthday party. She didn't bring Shilo's Christmas presents with her, because we had planned to do lunch before the party but neither of us felt well enough for it, so she decided not to bring the presents. I brought her and Lily's presents, because I knew it could be a while before we could get together, and it was already a month late. After that, she said several times she would come over with them. One day, she had told me she was going to be down the street at Walmart and would drop by... She actually called me from Walmart to ask me for diet advice.... And didn't come over when she was done.

In May, she finally just brought the presents to me at work, because she was at a dentist appointment in the same complex I work in. I didn't ACTUALLY see her until last week.

In all that time, she knew about all the crap I've been going through, and she hasn't checked on me one single time. In fact, the week after my car broke down, she called me to brag that she had traded in her perfectly good, brand new car for an even newer car. This was particularly infuriating to me, because I was busting my ass working overtime and working every single holiday and I was barely making rent (forget any chance of getting even a cheap functioning car), but she's on SSDI and is taking on this huge car payment for literally no reason.

Then, when we finally did get together and go to lunch, she spent the first fifteen minutes listing every celebrity who has ever @ her on Twitter (despite me saying repeatedly "I have no idea who that is" and showing zero interest in the discussion because c'mon), talked about herself the whole time, and didn't ask me any questions about how things are going. When I did manage to get a word in, it was about Shilo's behavior at school, and she took over the conversation again to tell me about this place where you can drop autistic kids off for a few hours (but they're not even a licensed childcare facility, which makes me nervous, and they don't list their prices on their website which means I can't afford them). They also have family classes and actives and whatever, but still, I'm sure I can't afford them.

One of the things that really hurt me though? She had been "too busy" to see us for nearly six months, but she had time to make a 400 mile round trip to the other end of the state to spend time with my high school roommate and her children... Two weekends in a row, including on Mother's Day weekend. But yeah, too fucking busy to see her own daughter and granddaughter. When I tried to confront her on it, she was really blasé about it and deflected the conversation.

And? She didn't tell me that she broke up with her boyfriend months ago, and was not living where I thought she was living. In fact, I'm pretty sure she straight up lied to me about it, because she sent me what appeared to be an accidental text about moving, and when I said "wait what, you're moving?" she said "oh yeah from one trailer to the other" (they were living in a trailer park where you can only stay six months due to the sewage system or something, so they bought two trailers so they could move to the second every six months).

It's all made me feel really alone. I miss my grandma, because she never would have treated me this way. My mom is the only "family" I have, and she has zero interest in being part of my life.

Anyway, done with that section.

Shilo has been very violent at school, to a point where we actually got TWO behavior referrals in one day (a slip explaining her behavior and consequences-- usually involves missing recess, having to eat lunch in the principal's office, and/or writing an apology letter). It's been frustrating, and I haven't been sure what to do since I work so much and have my own issues with executive function and lack the ability to keep a stable routine. I'm hoping next year will be better, and I'm going to get a behavior intervention plan added to her IEP so we can figure out WHY she acts this way instead of just trying to correct the behavior after it happens. They do try to circumvent the behavior, mostly using social stories before transitions and things, but I don't think it's working.

Another big thing is that I got my IUD removed, and while I'm pissed about having a real menstrual cycle again, I'm shocked at some of the effects the IUD had on me that I didn't even realize. It turns out it was really dampening my sex drive, and portions of my personality. Suddenly I was interested in sex again and attracted to anything that moves lmao. An increased sex drive is a bad thing for me though, which I won't go into here.... But in short, let's say that it's caused some hurt feelings due to rejection.

So yeah, that's most of it. If you actually read my wall of text and whining, thanks! You're a champ.

#personal #complaining

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lovemesomesurveys · 5 years

Text

Do you actually enjoy going to Walmart? Yeah. We go there twice a month for our grocery shopping and it’s convenient being able to get other non-food stuff that we need there as well. I have a hard time during the holidays; though, cause I wanna buy everything.

Have you ever thought about becoming a crime scene investigator? No.

Do you think you could win on Jepardy? Nope.

Does your mom buy a lot of can foods sometimes? Why? Yeah, we get some canned foods like green beans, soups, and chili beans.

Who is your cell phone carrier? Are they reliable? Verizon. Yeah, I’ve never had an issue with them.

If I asked around, would people say you’re an actually good friend? Yikes... I don’t want to know what former friends would say about me now.

Where are your siblings at right now, if you have any? My younger brother is here in his room. I’m assuming my older brother is at his house, but I don’t know.

Would you rather choose a shower or a bath? Shower. I haven’t taken a bath since I was a kid.

How old is the computer you’re currently on? It’s a 2017 model.

What does the cover of the last book you read, look like? I’d have to go look cause I don’t remember, but I don’t feel like it.

Have you ever griped someone out just because you could? Uh, no. I don’t go around picking fights. I try and avoid that kind of thing.

When you’re stressed, are you mean to everyone? >> No, but I’m less likely to be pleasant and easy to deal with. <<< I’m the same way.

Are you good at faking surprises? I feel like I’m so awkward and that it comes off as faking even when I’m genuinely surprised.

Do people say you complain too much? No. I have a lot I could complain about, but I really try not to do that and keep it to myself. At least in person, anyway... I save all my complaining for surveys and Twitter, ha.

Who was the last person you texted and what’s the relationship between you? He’s my brother.

What channel does your favorite TV show come on? I have a lot of favorite TV shows on different channels. Some are on Netflix.

Do you write long or short replies to texts? Depends on the conversation.

Did the last food you ate consist of sour cream in any way? No.

What color would you dye your hair if you absolutely had to? I like dying it red.

What do you normally call your mother? (mommy, mom, mother, mum, etc.) Mom or mama bear haha.

Have you ever considered changing your sexual orientation? I don’t think of that as something you can just “change.”

What is something you think you say too much? “I don’t know.”

Where did you lose your virginity, if you have already? I haven’t.

Do you miss any of your past best friends? Yes.

Have you graduated high school yet? If so, what color were your cap and gown? Yes, back in 2008.

When was the last time you punched someone? Was it playful? I’ve never punched anyone.

Do you ever take pictures of yourself with a scrunched up face? Uhh I have.

Does your significant other complain about the way you dress? I’m single, but pfft whomever I date will just have to be okay with my very casual attire of leggings and graphic tees cause that’s what I like to wear. If they don’t like it, well tough titty said the kitty.

Anyone ever call you a pain in the ass? Jokingly, yeah. Though, I’m sure there’s some truth in it. I know I can be a pain in the ass. I annoy the hell out of myself.

Do you think your friends really do respect you? Yeah, I think they did.

Have you ever been in an abusive relationship? Are you right now? No.

What would you do if a stranger smacked your ass and whistled? I honestly don’t know what I would do, if anything. :/ I would be so shocked and caught off guard that it happened, and probably look at whoever did it like, “wtf??” while getting away from them as quickly as possible. I wouldn’t confront them like I should. Now if someone else was with me, like my parents or brother, they most definitely would. That guy better start running.

What was the brand of gum you chewed last? Probably Orbit.

Do you understand the game of Monopoly? Yeah.

Have you ever had mononucleosis? Was it as bad as it sounds? I’ve never had it.

Do you know anyone who has died from cancer? No.

What is the worst scar on your body? I have a ton of scars.

Are you currently waiting for anything? What would that be, if so? Not really.

Do you like drinking juice? If so, what’s your favorite? Nope.

Do you ever make fun of short people? I’m short, so...

Would you say you’re reliable to be a good babysitter? I couldn’t babysit now. I don’t have the energy for that.

Do you have a lot of responsibilities in your household? No.

Do you think you understand the concept of ‘love?’ I believe so.

Do you use good grammar all the time? Yes. Well, okay, sometimes I go on my rambles and my sentences turn into run ons. I use good grammar majority of the time.

When did you last read a book with one of your classes in school? Back in 2015.

Do you ever accidentaly text the wrong person? It’s happened a few times before, but not often.

Do you feel replaced in any way at all right now? I’m sure former friends have replaced me and rightfully so. They deserve a better friend than me.

Where was the last place you went to just sit and think for a while? When I went to the beach a few weeks ago.

Do you find it hard to talk while crying? I do. Yes. My voice does that shaky thing.

Do you normally have more good dreams or nightmares? My dreams are usually just very random and weird.

Do you think it’s actually possible to have a 'beautiful nightmare?’ Never quite understood that.

Do you like to make fun of people on Youtube? No?

Have you ever held an intervention for someone before? No.

Have you ever wanted to literally kill someone? No.

What was the last television show you watched? Did you like it? Rugrats. Yeah, I still like watching stuff like that. I watch Hey Arnold and Doug, too. It’s nostalgic and cute.

What is your favorite day of the week? I don’t have one. They’re all pretty much the same to me.

Would you say you’re a good liar? Not something I want to be good at it, but sometimes I can be.

In four words, describe the person you currently like or love: I don’t have feelings for anyone currently in the romantic sense.

Do you ever blame your problems on someone else? I’m always blaming myself for everything.

Would you ever date someone of a different ethnicity than you? Yes.

Are you a fast texter? I’m pretty fast. I’m a faster typer on my laptop.

As a child, were you ever made fun of? What about right now? No.

What is one thing in life that really pushes your buttons? Hmm. I get irritated pretty easily.

Ever think you have bi polar disorder? No.

Do have more traits of your parents than your siblings to? I don’t know if I’d say more or less. I’ve never compared it.

What is your blood type, if you know what it is? I don’t know.

Do you feel comfortable answering questions about your sex life? I have nothing to say about it cause I don’t have a sex life. Are you more of an open, optomistic person or lonely and pessimistic? Lonely and pessimistic.

What is the most exciting thing that happened to you today? It’s only been today for 15 minutes, so not much has happened.

Ever have to call the cops on someone? Yes.

Have you ever had braces? Do you have them right now? I have, but not for my teeth.

Does anyone ever confuse your sexual orientation? I don’t think so.

Do you find what you say confusing sometimes? Yes. I feel like I either don’t make sense or I’m not getting my point across very well a lot of the time.

#personal #text #survey #surveys

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drummcarpentry · 3 years

Text

Are You Ready to Sell Like QVC?

A photo. Some text. A shopping cart button.

It’s the setup you’ve been used to since you were Internet-years-old.

Electronic commerce has existed since the 1970s, passing through a prescient experimental phase of telephone-based TV shopping in the 1980s, and setting the tone for the future with Stephan Schambach’s 1990s invention of the first standardized online shopping software. US consumers spent $861.12 billion with online merchants in 2020. By making the “add to cart” ritual so familiar, it may seem like we’ve seen it all when it comes to digital commerce.

But hold onto your hats, because signs are emerging that we’re on the verge of the next online sales phase, akin to the 19th century leap from still photos to moving pictures.

If I’m right, with its standard product shots, conventional e-commerce will soon start to seem dull and dated in many categories compared to products sold via interactive video and further supported with post-purchase video.

Now is the time to prep for a filmed future, and fortunately, the trail has already been blazed for us by home shopping leader QVC, which took over television and then digitally remastered itself for the web, perfecting the art of video-based sales. Today, we’re going to deconstruct what’s happening on QVC, and how and why you may need to learn to apply it as an SEO, local SEO, or business owner — sooner than you think.

Why video sales?

A series of developments and disruptions point to a future in which many product sales will be facilitated via video. Let’s have a look at them:

First, we all know that humans love video content so much, they’ve caused YouTube to be the #2 search engine.

Google has documented the growth of video searches for “which (product) should I buy”.

When we look beyond the US, we encounter the phenomenon that livestreaming e-commerce video has become in China, highly-monopolized by Alibaba’s Taobao and creating celebrities out of its hosts.

Meanwhile, within the US, the pandemic caused a 44% increase in digital shopping spend between 2019-2020. We moved online last year for both our basic needs and nonessentials like never before.

The pandemic has also caused physical local brands to implement digital shopping, blurring former online-to-offline (O2O) barriers to such a degree that Internet transactions are no longer the special property of virtual e-commerce companies. This weirdly-dubbed “phygital” phenomenon — which is making Google the nexus of Maps-based local product sales — can be seen as a boon to local brands that take advantage of the search engine’s famed user-to-business proximity bias to rank their inventory for nearby customers.

At least, Google hopes to be the nexus of all this. The truth is, Google is reacting strongly right now to consumers starting half of their product searches on Amazon instead of on Google. Are you seeing ads everywhere these days informing you that Google is the best place to shop? So am I. With that massive, lucrative local business index in their back pocket and with GMB listings long supporting video uploads, Google has recently:

Acquired Pointy to integrate with retail POS systems

Made product listings free

Amped up their nearby shopping filter

Attempted to insert themselves directly into consumers’ curbside pickup routines while integrating deeply into data partnerships with major grocery brands

Experienced massive growth in local business reviews, and just released an algorithmic update specific to product review content (look out, Amazon!)

Experimented with detecting products in YouTube videos amid rumors flying about product results appearing in YouTube

Been spotted experimenting beyond influencer cameo videos to product cameos in knowledge panels

Meanwhile, big brands everywhere are getting into video sales. Walmart leapt ahead in the shoppable video contest with their debut of Cookshop, in which celebrity chefs cook while consumers click on the interactive video cues to add ingredients to their shopping carts.

Crate & Barrel is tiptoeing into the pool with quick product romance videos that resemble perfume ads, in which models lounge about on lovely accent chairs, creating the aura of a lifestyle to be lived. Nordstrom is filming bite-sized home shopping channel-style product videos for their website and YouTube channel, complete with hosts.

And, smaller brands are experimenting with video-supported sales content, too. Check out Green Building Supply’s product videos for their eco-friendly home improvement inventory (with personable hosts). Absolute Domestics shows how SABs can use video to support sales of services rather than goods, as in this simple but nicely-produced video on what to expect from their cleaning service. Meanwhile, post-sales support videos are a persuasive value add from Purl Soho to help you master knitting techniques needed when you buy a pattern from them.

To sum up, at the deep end of the pool, live-streamed e-commerce and shoppable video are already in use by big brands, but smaller brands can wade in with basic static goods-and-services videos on their websites and social channels to support sales.

Now is the time to look for inspiration about what video sales could do for brands you market, and nobody — nobody — has more experience with all of this than QVC.

Why QVC?

“I didn’t even know QVC still existed,” more than one of my marketing colleagues has responded when I’ve pointed to the 35-year-old home shopping empire as the way of the future.

The truth is, I’d probably be sleeping on QVC, too, if it weren’t for my Irish ancestry having drawn me to their annual St. Patrick’s Day sales event for the past 30+ years to enjoy their made-in-Ireland product lineup.

About seven times more people with Irish roots live in the United States than on the actual island of Ireland, yet the shopping channel’s holiday broadcast is one of the few televised events tailored to our famous nostalgia for our old country home. My family tunes in every March for the craic of examining Aran Crafts sweaters, Nicholas Mosse pottery, Belleek china, and Solvar jewelry, while munching on cake made from my great-grandmother Cotter’s recipe. Sometimes we get so excited, we buy things, but for the past few years, I’ve mainly been actively studying how QVC sells these items with such stunning success.

“Stunning” is the word and the wakeup call

QVC, which is a subsidiary of Quarate Retail International, generated $11.47 billion in 2020 and as early as 2015, nearly half of those sales were taking place online — consistently placing the brand in the top 10 for e-commerce sales, including mobile sales. The company has 16.5 million consolidated customers worldwide, and marketers’ mouths will surely water to learn that 90% of QVC’s revenue comes from loyal repeat shoppers. The average QVC shopper makes between 22-25 purchases per year!

Figures like these, paired with QVC’s graceful pas de deux incorporating both TV remotes and mobile devices should command our attention long enough to study what they’ve done and how they’ve done it.

“Enjoy visiting Ireland, but buy your sweaters on QVC!”

While supplies last, I want to invite you to spend the next 10 minutes watching this Internet rebroadcast of a televised segment selling an Aran Crafts sweater, with your marketer’s eye on the magic happening in it. Watch this while imagining how it might translate as a static product or service video for a brand you’re marketing.

TL;DW? Here’s the breakdown of how QVC sells:

Main host

QVC hosts are personalities, many of whom have devoted fan bases. They’re trained in the products they sell, often visiting manufacturing plants to school themselves. When on air, the host juggles promoting a product and interacting with models, guest hosts, callers, and off-screen analysts. The host physically interacts with the product, highlights its features in abundant detail, and makes their sales pitch.

For our purposes, digital marketers are fully aware of the phenomenon of social influencers taking on celebrity status and being sought after as sales reps. At a more modest scale, small e-commerce companies (or any local business) that’s adopted digital sales models should identify one or more staff members with the necessary talents to become a video host for the brand.

You’ll need a spot of luck to secure relatable hosts. Just keep in mind that QVC’s secret formula is to get the viewer to ask, “Is this me?”, and that should help you match a host to your audience. This example of a nicely-done, low-key, densely-detailed presentation of a camping chair by a plainspoken host shows how simple and effective a short product video can be.

Guest hosts

Many QVC segments feature a representative from the brand associated with the product being sold. In our example, the guest host from Aran Crafts is a member of her family’s business, signing in remotely (due to the pandemic) to share the company’s story and build romance around the product.

Depending on the model you’re marketing, having a rep from any brand you resell would be an extra trust signal to convey via video sales. Think of the back-and-forth chat in a podcast and you’re almost there. Small retailers just reselling big brands may face a challenge here, but if you have a good portion of inventory from smaller companies and specialty or local manufacturers, definitely invite them to step in front of the camera with your host, as higher sales will benefit you both.

Models

Frequently, sales presentations include one or more models further interacting with the product. In our example, models are wearing these Irish sweaters while strolling around Ashford Castle. More romance.

Other segments feature models as subjects of various cosmetic treatments or as demonstrators of how merchandise is to be used. Models and demonstrators used to be standard in major American department stores. QVC brilliantly televised this incredible form of persuasion at about the same time it disappeared from real-world shopping in the US. Their sales figures prove just how huge the desire still is to see merchandise worn and used before buying.

For our scenario of creating online sales videos, such models could be a convincing extra in selling certain types of products, and many products should be demonstrated by the host or guest host. One thing I’ve not seen QVC do that I think e-commerce and O2O local brands definitely could do is a UGC approach of making your customer your model, demoing how they use your products in their real-world lives. Almost everybody can film themselves these days.

Callers

There are no live callers in our example, but QVC traditionally increases interactivity with the public with on-air phone calls.

If your sales videos are static, you’re not quite to the point of having to learn the art of handling live calls, but your product support phone and SMS numbers and links should be featured in every video.

Method

“If you go up there with the intent to sell, it’s all going to come crashing down around you...The real goal of QVC.... was to feel like a conversation between the host, the product specialist (us), and ‘Her’ – the woman age 35 to 65 who is sitting at home watching television.” - I went on air at QVC and sold something to America

There’s an element of magic to how QVC vends such a massive volume of products, but it’s all data-based. They’ve invested so heavily in understanding customer demographics that they’ve mastered exactly how to sell to them. Your consumer base may be totally different, but the key is to know your customer so well that you understand the exact approach to take when offering them your inventory of goods and services.

Another excerpt from the article cited above really gets this point across when talking about guest hosts:

“Our experienced guests tend to focus on the product. But our best guests are focused on the viewer. Is this for the viewer? Everything goes through that filter. And if you do that, everything comes out more naturally.”

Here at Moz, there may be Whiteboard Friday hosts you especially enjoy learning from. As a business owner or marketer, your job will be to identify talented people who can blend your brand culture with consumer research and translate that into a form of vending infotainment that succeeds with your particular shoppers. Successful QVC hosts make upwards of $500,000 a year for being so good at what they do.

Being good, in the sweater sample, means pairing QVC’s customer-centric, conversational selling method with USPs and an aura of scarcity. I’ll paraphrase the cues I heard:

“These sweaters are made exclusively for QVC” — a USP regarding rarity.

“Enjoy visiting Ireland, but buy your sweaters on QVC” — this is a strong USP based on having better prices than a traveler would find if buying direct from the manufacturer.

“Reviews read like a love letter to this sweater” — incorporating persuasive UGC into the pitch.

“Half of our supply is already gone; don’t wait to order if you want one of these” —- this creates a sense of urgency to prompt customers to buy right away.

Analytics

The example presentation probably looked quite seamless and simple to you. But what’s actually going on “behind the scenes” of a QVC sales segment is that the host is receiving earpiece cues on exactly how to shape the pitch.

QVC’s analytics track what’s called a “feverline” of reaction to each word the host says and each movement they make. Producers can tell in real time which verbal signals and gestures are causing sales spikes, and communicate to the host to repeat them. One host, for example, dances repeatedly while demoing food products because more customers buy when he does so.

For most of the brands you market, you’re not likely to be called upon to deliver analytical data on par with QVC’s mission control-style setup, but you will want to learn about video analytics and do A/B testing to measure performance of product pages with video vs. those with static images. As you progress, analytics should be able to tell you which hosts, guests, and products are yielding the best ROI.

Three O2O advantages

In a large 2020 survey of local business owners and marketers, Moz found that more than half of respondents intend to maintain pandemic-era services of convenience beyond the hoped-for end of COVID-19. I’d expect this number to be even higher if we reran the survey in mid-2021. Online-to-offline shopping falls in this category and readers of my column know I’m always looking for advantages specific to local businesses.

I see three ways local brands have a leg up on their virtual e-commerce cousins, including behemoths like Amazon and even QVC:

1. Limited local competition = better SERP visibility

Virtual e-commerce brands have to compete against a whole country or the world for SERP visibility. Google Shopping’s “available nearby” filter cuts your market down to local map-size, making it easier to capture the attention of customers nearest your business. If you’re one of the only local brands supporting sales of your goods and services via videos on your website, you’re really going to stand out in the cities you serve.

2. Limited local inventory = more convincing authenticity

QVC is certainly an impressive enterprise, but one drawback of their methodology, at least in my eyes, is that their hosts have to be endlessly excited about millions of products. The same host who is exuding enthusiasm one minute over an electric toothbrush is breathless with admiration over a flameless candle the next. While QVC’s amazingly loyal customers are clearly not put off by the bottomless supply of energy over every single product sold, I find I don’t quite believe that the joy is continuously genuine. In my recognition of the sales pitch tactics, the company feels big and remote to me.

70% of Americans say they want to shop small. Your advantage in marketing a local business is that it will have limited inventory and an owner and staff who can realistically convey authenticity to the video viewer about products the business has hand-selected to sell. A big chain supermarket wants me to believe all of its apples are crisp, but my local farmer telling me in a product video that this year’s crop is crisper than last year’s makes a world of believable difference.

3. Even a small boost in conversions = a big difference for local brands

Backlinko recently compiled this list of exciting video marketing statistics that I hope you’ll read in full. I want to excerpt a few that really caught my eye:

84% of consumers cite video as the convincing factor in purchases

Product videos can help e-commerce stores increase sales by up to 144%

96% of people have watched an explainer video to better understand a product they’re evaluating

The Local Search Association found that 53% of people contact a business after watching one of their videos and 71% of people who made a purchase had watched an online video from that brand

Including filmed content on an e-commerce page can increase the average order value by 50+%

Video on a landing page can grow its conversion rate by up to 80%

If the company you’re promoting is one of the only ones in your local market to seize the opportunities hinted at by these statistics, think of what a difference it would make to see conversions (including leads and sales) rise by even a fraction of these numbers. Moreover, if the standout UX and helpfulness of the “v-commerce” environment you create makes you memorable to customers, you could grow local loyalty to new levels as the best resource in a community, generating a recipe for retention that, if not quite as astonishing as QVC’s, is pretty amazing for your region.

Go n-éirí leat — good luck!

Like you, I’m longing for the time when all customers can safely return to shopping locally in-person, but I do agree with fellow analysts predicting that the taste we’ve gotten for the convenience of shipping and local home delivery, curbside pickup, and tele-meetings is one that consumers won’t simply abandon.

Sales videos tackle one of digital marketing’s largest challenges by letting customers see people interacting with products when they can’t do it themselves, and 2021 is a good year to begin your investigation of this promising medium. My top tip is to spend some time this week watching QVC on TV and examining how they’ve parlayed live broadcasts into static

product videos that sell inventory like hotcakes on their website. I’m wishing you the luck and intrepidity of the Irish in your video ventures!

Ready to learn more about video marketing? Try these resources:

17 Best Ecommerce Product Video Examples

The ABCs of Video Content

8 Beginner Tips for Making Professional-Looking Videos

How to Film Creative Product Videos

YouTube Dominates Google Video in 2020

How to Track YouTube Videos in Google Analytics Using Google Tag Manager in 4 Steps

Need to learn more about local search marketing before you start filming yourself and your products? Read The Essential Local SEO Strategy Guide.

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lakelandseo · 3 years