alfhildr-the-word-weaver

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

The other day I was walking out the back door at work and a crow startled me and I can tell I'm far gone on the Vampire Diaries because, just for a split second, something in my brain went "Damon? Is that you?"

#help me lol #like there was the briefest of moments when I actually expected to see a vampire out there in the alley #this should be too embarrassing to post but it is also very funny #and he doesn't even have the crow anymore! he had it for like. two episodes!! #but it was so iconic and I wish he'd kept it lol #the Vampire Diaries #TVD #Damon Salvatore #Damon's crow #or was his meant to be a raven? #either way it was a vibe #you bet I'm maintagging my embarrassing story lol #imagine if a vampire had shown up though... I'd've been thrilled tbh #even in the tags i ramble

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

I must say, it's pretty poetic that I've gotten to season 6 of Vampire Diaries right before another solar eclipse happens in America. I certainly didn't plan it, but it does feel like my timing is very appropriate with this one. I do have questions about the accuracy of the eclipse portrayal in the show, though. I mean, a solar eclipse did in fact happen on May 10, 1994, and it was visible across much of the country, so that much is accurate. But I don't think Mystic Falls would've had quite as good of a view as they show it having. For reference, here's a map of the May 1994 eclipse path (credit: timeanddate.com):

And, if you'll remember, Mystic Falls is like two hours from my old hometown just a stone's throw north of Lynchburg, Virginia, as seen on the locator spell map (this one's all over tumblr, forgive me for not remembering what blog I grabbed it from):

So if you zoom in on the timeanddate map and pick somewhere closeish to there:

It looks like Mystic Falls would be getting a little over 77% coverage or so. It's also worth noting that the '94 eclipse was an annular eclipse, not a total eclipse like tomorrow's eclipse. That still means that the moon went directly in front of the sun, but it does mean that it was small enough/far enough from earth that you didn't quite get full coverage of the sun (thanks to weather.gov for the nifty graphic):

So, I'm not positive whether it would've looked quite as dark as was shown in the show:

Although, I must admit, in this video I found on youtube of the '94 eclipse, (part of me is shocked to find footage from then but I know I shouldn't be like yes they had cameras in the 90s) it actually looks more similar than I expected it to look, but I imagine it was most likely filmed within the path of totality:

But also, when Kai takes Bonnie to Portland, don't they see the eclipse again there? I couldn't find that clip on youtube just now, but Portland barely had any eclipse--only 42-43% coverage, so it would've been way milder of a visual effect, barely any dimming in the sky noticeable without eclipse glasses.

The funny thing is, the area where I live is going to be sitting right around 80% coverage tomorrow. I was lucky enough to get to travel to Missouri for the 2017 eclipse to get into the path of totality, but I'm afraid that it hasn't worked out for me to do so this year, which is immensely disappointing to me as an astronomy enjoyer, but I do still plan to go to an eclipse party and I'm going to start saving to try and get to Spain for the next total eclipse in 2026, which is going to be right around my 30th birthday (screaming). Anyways, it isn't great, but here's my best picture from the '17 eclipse:

I didn't even have a smartphone yet then, because despite it being 2017, I was somewhat of a luddite, so I had the purple flip phone I so stubbornly clung to and a point-and-click Nikon, but I still think this picture is pretty cool for what it is. Here's the zoom in so you can really see that ring of fire (and my shaking hands doubling the image):

Obviously you can find thousands of better eclipse pictures online, but that one's still special to me because it's mine. Anyways, I'll report back with smart phone pictures from whatever I see of the 80% total eclipse tomorrow to compare and contrast with Mystic Falls's 70% annular eclipse of the 90s, because from what I've heard it's going to be much less impressive than full totality was, but I've yet to watch a partial solar eclipse, so I'll just have to find out. Also, if you happen to have any vampiric loved ones trapped in a magical prison dimension who you need help freeing during the eclipse tomorrow, let me know and I'll see what I can do! ;) Hahaha. Anyways, happy eclipse everyone, and may we all possess sufficient self restraint to avoid eye damage (says the woman who has looked at the sun unprotected so many times and is probably going to go blind because of it some day. I know what I've done lol. Don't be me.)

#posts where I actually feel like I'm using my blog as a blog #Solar Eclipse #Solar Eclipse 2024 #Solar Eclipse 1994 #The Vampire Diaries #TVD 6x02 #is where the screenshot's from specifically #Damon Salvatore #Bonnie Bennett #Eclipse History #nerding out over the eclipse in the vampire show #it's also funny to me how two eclipses in my lifetime are so close to my birthday. I think it probably means I have magical powers ;) #May 10 1994 #that's two years and change before I was born #April 8 2024 #I'm so tempted to ditch all my responsibilities and drive south to totality but it's an 8 hour drive and I'd have to leave at like 4am #if it was a 4-5 hour drive to totality I'd do it. but I think a 16 hour round trip would kill me and I didn't have the good sense to plan #or book a hotel in advance or anything and everything in totality will be booked up for sure. and tonight is the night I would need to be #in a hotel anyways so. missed that boat. I mean I could go now and just drive through the night. but ugh. I just. ugh. I can but I can't yk #anyways everybody says that the Vampire Diaries writing quality drops off around here but I'm still loving it so far #it's incredibly frustrating sometimes but like. it knows how to give me The Feels(tm) and so I'll let it jerk me around all it wants #I would personally prolly want to stay in the prison world for at least a little bit to get to enjoy that eclipse from a bunch of angles th #like that's a rad as heck day to get trapped on imho. Love me a good eclipse #i ramble #even in the tags I ramble #Youtube

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, 1.16 ‘There Goes The Neighborhood’

#it's been too long since I reblogged gifs from a show I'm watching to my main #and this is quickly becoming a new favorite‚ and this is definitely a favorite moment from it so far #yeah‚ there's nothing like offering a vampire your blood. it always gets me #honestly for a vampire show it doesn't have a ton of that so far; Jeremy/Anna is almost a more classic vampire/human ship #than either of Elena's vampire boys so far. I mean I guess she did let Stefan have some of her blood and I appreciated that #but the tension is just different somehow. it was honorable but not as exciting ya know? #but yeah. I might have to write Jeranna fic. I would love more of him hanging around the vampire world with her and all that #yeah this show definitely scratches my vampire itch. and my itch for chaotic complicated fantasy dramas with so much happening all the time #the Vampire Diaries #tvd #Jeremy/Anna #Jeranna #or I've seen people use #Janna #Jeremy Gilbert #Anna Zhu #vampires #blood tw #nothing like the romance of giving your blood to a vampire #they had a neat little star crossed thing going too with her mom and Jonathan Gilbert and Uncle Jon's vampire vendetta #I really do wish that got to be explored more #yeah once in a while I still remember to put my favorite gifs on main #just in time for my monthly post lol #tvd 1x16 #even in the tags I ramble #(trying to remember my tagging system on this blog lol) #very nice gifs #of a very good moment

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

I'll tell you one thing about the British though is they've got me saying "advert". We were flipping channels and came to the one with the Superb Owl and I was like "oh we could check out the adverts". It just came out, but to their credit, it does sound better than ads I think. For one thing I mean at least it isn't like completely indistinguishable from abs. I dunno, there's just a flow to it; it has a nice inflection. Advert. I knew I was reading too much Doctor Who fanfic the other day, lol. I've got to be the first person to call them the super bowl adverts.

#I know I'm probably not but it's funny to think I could be #I feel like my grammar is atrocious in this and I should edit it but also I think it's probably funnier #if I just leave it straight stream of consciousness as it came out #organic Tumblr posting #as it were #my rambling thoughts #actually my tag for that is #I ramble #Super Bowl #Superb Owl #adverts #speaking British #Britishly #lol #even in the tags i ramble #<- I hate how if I let tumblr complete the tag for me it uncapitalizes the I #anyways #funny linguistic things #I will give the British points for this one word

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

So! I've been working on the My Home(TM) kitchen in Design Home, and I've got it juuuuust about perfect (or as much as it can be within the limited options of design home), but I keep going back and forth on which rug I want. And then I thought, why not ask tumblr? So, behold:

Option 1:

I've always wanted a yellow kitchen, but there was no option to make the walls yellow in design home, so a nice bright yellow rug seems like a good compromise. However, my yellow/multicolor floral accent chair doesn't shine as well against this background.

Option 2:

The blue complements the rest of the kitchen well and gives my table and chairs a solid background to pop against. However, I worry it makes the room too dark and the color palette too cool for my goal of a bright, sunshiney kitchen.

Option 3:

Purple is my favorite color (quelle surprise if you know me at all, lol) and it's a good inbetween tone-wise I think. However, I worry the pattern of this rug is a touch busy.

If you pick the fourth one, you're legally obligated to tell me what rug you're thinking of. Also legal disclaimer that I am not bound by the results of this poll and I'll probably make up my mind on my own eventually, but I'm curious to see how things shake out, and also I lowkey wanted to show off my home designing.

Yeah I'm a gamer (*spends hours playing a home design game on my phone*)

#Design Home #my home kitchen #specifically it's the #main home kitchen #polls #vote now! #you can critique other elements of my design if you want I guess but at this point I'm not changing it most likely #I'm really pretty happy with this but none of the rugs feel quite perfect #mobile gaming #interior design #I could almost call this art or something but I don't want to spam too many tags ;) #I do think I've got a certain composition going though #but yeah opinions welcome! (be nice) (or the laser cats will get you) (I am not legally responsible for the actions of the laser cats) #lol #color theory #hehe #but I do have kind of a purple/blue/yellow palette going‚ which isn't a proper triadic palette technically but I dig it #I do love design home... I might be a little too into it but it's fun #the hgtv kid to wish I owned a house pipeline. oof lol #anyways look at my pretty kitchen. love my pretty kitchen with me #even in the tags i ramble

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

Currently watching this very cliche (but still decently enjoyable) Christmas movie and it has this horse girl subplot where the older sister is falling in love with horses, but there are these long, lingering shots where she's looking at this female farmhand working with the horses, and she keeps talking about how great and cool that farmhand is, and I can't decide whether it's actually a burgeoning lesbian subplot or just a heavy accidental implication, but it really does feel soooo close to overtly romantic.

Anyways my hot new ship is these two. Time to build it from the ground up ;)

#All Good Things (2019) #Christmas movies #it's so heavy handed but I'm not sure they realize it #tale as old as time I guess #also there's apparently a completely different movie also called All Good Things from 2010 that keeps dominating the search results #but yeah still watching but I'll let you know if anything actually comes of it #tempted to make a sappy video edit of them together either way but also that'd be a lot of work #maybe not building the fandom singlehandedly then but putting it out there that they're cute #Christmas lesbians #or bis or whatever #maybe it's the shipper goggles but how long do you spend staring longingly at your friends? #anyways #'tis the season #Merry Christmas! #I ramble #I should tag the characters but I already don't remember their names #Callista and Fiona #thanks imbd #no last names though #I don't think I feel compelled enough to write a fic about it but I like them #also Shawn's dad from Psych is in it! #some pretty flat acting here and there (not from him) but par for the course in this genre

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

I gotta say it's poetic that song #100 on my youtube recap is Saturday by Fall Out Boy. My playlist ends the same way as a Fall Out Boy concert. Couldn't've planned it better.

#Fall Out Boy #Saturday #youtube recap #which is my version of #spotify wrapped #I just don't care for a lot of the functionality of Spotify tbh #random thoughts #actually using my blog to blog #trying to remember what organizational tags I even use #music year in review #my music taste #bandom #poetic moments

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

Okay, so. I finally downloaded a VPN so I could watch Doctor Who on the BBC site, but even with my location set to London, it's still not working. I clicked on the little troubleshooting link (of course I'm in the UK BBC, don't you see my IP address?), and one of the suggestions was to turn off any VPNs. Is this just in case a British person forgot their IP address was set to somewhere else, and maybe the VPN I got isn't very good, or is it not possible to watch on the BBC site with a VPN at all? Is anybody out there having any luck with this, and if so, what VPN are you using? Or does anybody have any... other suggestions for somewhere else I could maybe watch Doctor Who online?

#Doctor Who #VPNs #streaming advice #bbc iplayer #troubleshooting #see I did buy the 13th Doctor's first season on Amazon but it's soooo annoying to have to buy every season and special individually #and I see that the 60th special is available on Disney Plus now which is great! but I don't want to jump ahead in the new series! #I jump around in the classic stuff all the time but so far I've always watched NuWho in order. and for me that means Resolution is next #and like I know spoilers from later in 13's run sure but I just want to watch it in order still #and I thought I'd figured it out but this is still all very frustrating #also the VPN I got is called Super Unlimited Proxy. I was just looking for a free one that let me do England and that's the first I found #I'm putting Thirteen's DVD box collection on my Christmas list but all of this chatter about the 60th makes me want to catch up ASAP #it's actually the first time I've bothered to filter Doctor Who spoiler tags on my tumblr dash #but I know I can only hold them off for so long... #plus I'm just in a mood for binging #even in the tags I ramble #anyways thanks in advance for any advice! #but yeah it's funny when I came back to tumblr with my vpn on it asked me about cookies and I'm like why is tumblr asking about cookies #all of a sudden? oh it thinks I'm British. lol. shouldn't it be saying biscuits then? ;)

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

I know it's a little belated, but I'm not ready to move on to Christmas music just yet personally. If you know any other good Thanksgiving-themed songs, please do tell me in the notes! I'm always looking to expand my holiday playlists and Thanksgiving is definitely the shortest on holiday-specific songs.

Edited to add, I know everybody says this, but please reblog for reach! I'm largely fishing for more songs to expand my Thanksgiving Playlist so the more people see this, hopefully the more suggestions I'll get. Also, even if it's not your all-time favorite thanksgiving song, you can still drop it in the notes :) Thanks, and happy belated Thanksgiving!

#Alice's Restaurant #Arlo Guthrie #Turkey in a Trash Can #Rhett and Link #Thanksgiving Song #Adam Sandler #Thanksgiving #holiday music #I do have more than three songs on my thanksgiving playlist but those are the only specifically thanksgiving themed ones #the rest is acoustic rock music because our radio station used to do acoustic thanksgivings and I miss it #plus a few generally fall-themed songs like Autumn Leaves by the Goo Goo Dolls #you can rec me fall songs too if you have good ones #but yeah this is a poll but it's also me asking for music recs #so please drop your suggestions! #honestly if I had to predict the poll outcomes I feel like Alice's Restaurant is probably going to sweep but I don't know #that's the thrill of a poll :)

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

It's also the inspiration for the title of one of my all-time favorite youtube miniseries, The Guards Themselves!

It's a fun little "the superheroes are being used by the rich to further their agendas and the anarchist supervillains have a point actually, though they're not exactly the most skilled supers ever tbh" type adventure with lots of fun memorable characters. It was basically the creator's film school senior project and I think it's pretty well done as low-budget youtube movies go.

But yeah, in this case, the guards are variously the superheroes, the private security force employed by Meyer (the primary rich guy in question), and the anarchists, and there's plenty of exploration of the guarding of the guards themselves!

Also Kyle (the main creator)'s best friend Ian actually teaches Latin--he plays Big Fist in this--and I'm pretty sure he had a hand in the title.

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0u5ZHidq4X4QhFAX9FzSiYJLRen74sLF&si=cd6os_w0rL3OFYs-

(General warning for some pretty gratuitous gun violence, but not too much in the way of blood)

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes ?

"Who will guard the guards themselves?" / "Who will watch the watchmen ?"

It was found in Juvenal's Satires but it may have been added by someone else

Nowadays, it's sually used in relation to tyrannic governments or corrupted law enforcers but it was originally about the moral behavior of wives and eunuchs.

"Who watches the Watchmen ?" is a phrase used several times in Watchmen

In Terry Pratchett's Watch series (Discworld universe), it's super important and is an acab phrase of sorts used by Commander Vimes, the cop main character to keep himself in check in a pre-acab world when these books were published

*Note : the Discworld propaganda isn't mine. I had actually cut parts of my original list of phrases before letting you make picks and this one hadn't made the cut. However, one of you had asked about this specific phrase and I elected to add it to the form

If you want to submit a new form to vote for it, go for it. Same thing if you've changed your mind about other phrases, but please try to remember which ones you have already voted for

#it's kind of silly but I do love this #I haven't been properly obsessed with it in some time now but when I first found it I watched it like 20 times on repeat #and started multiple fanfics of it #I actually also put together a playlist of its soundtrack and got tweeted by the band whose music is mainly featured in it #and I was one of the financial backers for the sequel which is. well. several years behind schedule now #but Kyle's having a time of it I guess so I understand. I'm patient #*gently pokes Kyle with a stick* lol jk. sorry Kyle #I did leave their Patreon a while ago but I'm still a subscriber #anyways I still recommend this series pretty enthusiastically #the Guards Themselves #Door Monster #media that really stuck with me in the twenty teens #I haven't watched it in a few years now.. maybe I should rewatch again #TGT #TGT2 #someday #yeah I'll put this on main. why not #I think this was my main obsession around 2017 or so before Gotham took over my brain #anyways I might have to vote for this phrase just because of this series

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

learning

#oh I love this <3 #very bright and peaceful art #it's like. the energy and contemplativeness of skating are both there #and it makes me wish I had a friend I could teach to skate #the connection between these two is very sweet. the emotion in their faces and pose #I do love skating <3 #lovely skate art #lovely art #roller skating #roller skates #aesthetic #v i b e s #yeah I love how you can feel the emotion in their connection. the trust and the joy and the newness #beautiful #what other tags do I use on here even #I should really update this blog more than once monthly. but here we are with the September post #I meant to post pictures from that Goo Goo Dolls concert I went to but haven't gotten to it yet #but yeah this is an art piece I'd like to display :)

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

The other night I had a dream that there was a hot new parody of the song Lump by Presidents of the United States of America. Tragically, I don't remember any of the parody lyrics beyond the chorus of "she's Lump, she's Lump, she's Lump" being replaced with "he's Trump, he's Trump, he's Trump".

#I know there's a lot of talk about people making dreams up just because they want to invent a meme but genuinely #I just woke up with that stuck in my head and vague memories of annoying my grandma with it in my dream #that said. feel free to get on this. just don't forget to credit ya girl Alfhildr! :) #what an appropriate band name too. I was just like‚ nice one subconscious! haha #ugh if I actually do make this a real meme though my grandma's gonna kill me. she's a pretty big Trump fan unfortunately #I don't think she knows I'm Alfhildr though... #anyways it's a darn catchy song #Lump #Presidents of the United States of America #in more than one sense #Donald Trump #listen there's a Bible verse about rejoicing in the downfall of the wicked is there not? #eh google is giving me mixed messages on that one actually #but I still remember our baptist minister quoting it and cheering when our town palm reader went out of business when I was a kid #feel a touch guilty posting this in case I do start something but I think it's justifiable perhaps #anyways. here you go internet. do what thou wilt with that #parody songs #political satire #dreams #memes from dreams #genuinely feel like this could start something and I both do and don't want the credit #I'm currently living in my grandma's basement you see (in my Gerard Way era) #we had a huge fight yesterday... anyways I've rambled in the tags long enough #I ramble

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

*Wiggling the string toy for my cats*

*I swing it over to Maple's paws*

Maple: Mother you are breaking my immersion. No prey would so readily surrender itself to me. I am a hunter to be feared. Mother I cannot believe that this is a creature I am meant to hunt. It should fear me. It should tremble and flee before--

*I swing the toy away*

Maple: Mother. That is simply too far. I am not going over there.

#this is not the tone I imagine Maple speaking to me in but I thought it was better for internet humor #he is my silly little boy <3 #Willa does this sometimes too #they are difficult to please; the toy's motion must be just so. lol #love my babies <3 #cats #silly kitties #my cats #I love cats #silly cat things #funny #cats that talk like Victorian children meme

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

Today on "tumblr ads that I wish were rebloggable":

I'm not wildly fond of tumblr ads promoting weight loss all willy-nilly, but the theming of this one combined with the fact that I saw it on a blog that I first followed for Dracula Daily posting has me losing it. Lose weight how, pray tell, dear tumblr ad? Lose blood weight? Because someone's drinking it? Am I going to be running through Transylvania because there's a vampire chasing me?

#funny #Dracula Daily #weight loss tw #tumblr ads #Transylvania #walking challenge #I don't mind the idea of a walking challenge but this idea that everybody needs to lose weight constantly is so dangerously pervasive #but the implied context of “lose weight because vampires” is kind of hilarious #image described in alt text #sorry to the people of Transylvania that your country gets flattened to heehoo vampires #but the spooky castle theming plus the theme of the blog that I saw this on made thinking about vampires unavoidable for me #vampires #rosebleue #sorry Rose (can I call you Rose?) I know you did not personally put this ad on your blog #it's just the combination of it with you as a vampire blog that made it so funny to me #blood drinking #ask to tag #if there's anything else I've missed #lunch break posting

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

Finishing off the year with an idea I've wanted to paint for a while, a cat in the clouds ☁️

#oh delightful!! #I am still trying not to go below my one post a month quota on this blog and I had other things planned but I have Stuff to finish now so #came into my drafts and found this gorgeous art #lovely art #cats #it's so whimsical and fantastical #I'd love to be in an airplane seeing a giant sky cat on the clouds #the energy/emotion of this is incredible... so light and freeing #combining things I love in a wonderful way #beautiful #excellent vibes #art I want hanging on my wall someday #this makes me feel things in a wonderful way #surrealism #planes #clouds #cloud cat :)

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

The real People’s Princess is Willa. Always has been

#heck yeah that's my kitty cat <3 #did a funny on my sideblog and decided I wanted to bring it over to my main #sorry Succession fans but when I see the name 'Willa' I am only thinking of my cat #actually technically she's named after another TV show character--Willa from the short-lived Finder series #I was really into that a decade ago when I got her #Willa Monday #is that character's name #but yeah these are some of my best photos of her #she's beautiful I can't help it. haha #absolute royalty #Willa #my cats #cats #I love cats #I swear she looks like an oil painting in that first one #actually I started drawing her based on that picture one time. I mean to try painting it eventually #her royal portrait <3 #sorry to be silly on your post op but yeah I couldn't resist #sharing my beautiful girl (and making a little funny :) ) #lol :) #being silly

[alfhildr-the-word-weaver]

I lowkey want one of those "live laugh love" type house signs that says "come freely, go safely, and leave something of the happiness you bring" for the entryway of my house someday. I think it'd be hilarious, but it's also lowkey a nice greeting in its own way, if perhaps mildly ominous... What a nice way to set a welcoming vibe! ;)

#I'm kind of joking but also kind of not #like whenever I manage to get myself a house I could totally paint a little sign like that #it'd be so fun seeing who got the reference too #definitely putting it on the 'projects to do when I finally obtain a dwelling' list #(I have been trying to move out but it is not cheap... it's a whole thing) #but yeah can you tell I'm behind on Drac Daily again? #I'm listening to the podcast one this year but I'm not even as caught up as I was last year #granted I have more other stuff going on and I didn't really set keeping up as a goal this time around #some day I will finally get through all of Dracula... maybe later this year. We'll see #Dracula Daily #Count Dracula #live laugh love #home decor #fandom decor #jonathan harker #tangentially #welcome signs #vampires