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notfreetoday · 9 months

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On Returning Favors in Jun & Jun

First of all @plantsarepeopletoo and @twig-tea I'm really sorry I couldn't do this in a reblog to your original post - I think there were just too many gifs and tumblr wouldn't let me post it once I started adding links - so I reblogged a link to this post instead! Second of all - apologies for just randomly jumping in all of a sudden but I think a lot of things are being read through different cultural lenses here and I thought it'd be nice to exchange perspectives. Returning favors seems to be seen as an imposed burden in OP's post, something that is demanded of an individual as opposed to an individual expressing their desire to show appreciation. Also, some of the English subs are awkward, and whilst I certainly don't speak enough Korean to give a blow-by-blow translation - I've asked friends who do and done some research for myself.

Except, the comment about not letting Jun eat made me cautious. Telling him to eat, and not skip, like Jun was prone to skipping breakfast, but we saw he was already at the convince store. It's the start of the implied ineptitude of Jun.

Asking if someone has eaten, and reminding someone to eat, to most Asians, is more of a way to show concern for each other than it is an actual, functional question. Hyun Jae is simply expressing his care for Lee Jun, not actually implying that Lee Jun doesn't know how to take care of himself. As for the comment Lee Jun makes about "previously you wouldn't even let me drink a sip of water" - this has been mentioned in some of the show's already released BTS videos/interviews where they each introduce their characters but not in specifically in the show yet so [SPOILER IN YELLOW] this is a reference to Hyun Jae previously being Lee Jun's manager when he was an idol.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Jo Chan Hyun Hyun Jae is the one who made Jun think he NEEDED to return favors. He at least is using the idea of favors to get closer to Jun. But who demands, expects, or allows close friends/brothers to return favors for things like that? That's just a "thank you"

I don't really feel as if Hyun Jae is demanding anything in return - I think Lee Jun wants to do it of his own volition. As a junior in a workplace, having a senior give you little tips, even if it's just about the type of people at the office, is often appreciated. And whilst it is considered good manners to look for a way to "repay" or "give back" or "return the favor" as a way of showing gratitude and acknowledging their effort, it is not expected, and if a senior lorded a favor over a junior then that would be considered poor behavior (unfortunately toxic workplace environments and harassment in Korea is well known). But here all Hyun Jae has done thus far is to look out for Lee Jun and make sure he settles in well, and really all Lee Jun would need to do in return is to be respectful, listen closely and do his best in his job (not putting in effort would result in a loss of face for Hyun Jae). A step further would be to treat someone to a meal as thanks or bring back some local delicacies from your hometown or after coming back from a holiday (again, we Asians like food). However, the show has established that Lee Jun feels very strongly about returning favors so that someone's kindness isn't taken for granted - so he pays a lot more attention to these things than the average person. I do, however, agree that Hyun Jae pays special attention to Lee Jun because well, he likes him.

Lee Jun is ordering the coffees just fine, honestly. Then Hyun pulls this stunt and starts rattling off orders. To impress Jun? To make Jun feel off balance?

I think this may not have come across in the English subtitles - Lee Jun makes a small mistake when ordering the drinks - he says "two ice vanilla lattes, and 5 americanos...and..." - because he forgets to indicate that the americanos are iced as well, the lady at the cashier interrupts him to confirm "iced...right?" but turns towards Hyun Jae instead. Lee Jun follows up saying "oh yes 4 iced americanos and 1 hot, and one hot chocolate latte, and lemonade...". This is the part where Hyun Jae interrupts Lee Jun and rattles off the orders in verbal shorthand instead. I don't actually see this as Hyun Jae pulling a stunt but...as someone who has made similar coffee runs for my seniors before, I will say I was sufficiently impressed hahaha It's a more efficient way of ordering and well as a newbie who will likely be making many coffee runs in the future, it's good for Lee Jun to know that (it really is quite a stressful thing and it's not easy to learn the verbal shorthand yourself). It does also show that Hyun Jae takes care of his team, because he knows these orders by heart, which means he's going himself and not sending the youngest on the team to go. And it's also a nice way to fit in the 2nd reference to the spoiler up in yellow I mentioned earlier. The rest of the conversation in the coffee shop... I don't actually think Hyun Jae is being condescending at all. Admittedly, some of the phrasings sound awkward in English - "High maintenance" for eg is not the best translation and sounds rather insulting in English - that whole sentence is probably more like "you really are new (to this) aren't you! Or hmm... maybe it's just that you're a handful?". Incidentally this is the same phrase that Choi Jun will use to describe Lee Jun later too - and in both situations, Lee Jun protests that phrase. Here, when Lee Jun says he's better with the skills one needs to function in society (not just social skills), Hyun Jae offers the praise that Lee Jun has always done well in that aspect - hence Lee Jun's shy smile and "really?". Maybe the sentence after that, where Lee Jun says "I still have many areas I'm not good in right? For now, I'll have to trouble you to keep looking out for me, even if that might be annoying for you", sounds a little too deferential in English? It's actually a really common way to talk about yourself and ask for continued guidance when you're new - it's also implied that you will make mistakes because of how new you are, and you're asking for leniency when it does happen. There are many versions of this phrase in many different languages (mostly Confucian Heritage Cultures) but it is an explicit request (and in some places, is accompanied by a gift, if more formal). Hence in response to that request Hyun Jae asks "so how will you repay me? Don't tell me... you're just saying that (without really meaning it)?". It's at this point that Lee Jun switches from addressing Hyun Jae as Hyung to his work title, Team Leader, and asks "Is there anything you might like to eat?". Again, this is really common - treating someone to a meal as a way to express thanks (yes we really like food). Hyun Jae then suggests Lee Jun treats him to a meal with his first paycheck.

This is like reaching a milestone in life. It may sound like I'm exaggerating, but it's true. This isn't about owning anyone a favor, it's about expressing gratitude to someone who has gone out of their way to help you in your life, and it feels good to be able to do it. When I first started work, my seniors and superiors paid for my meals whenever we went to eat. No amount of protesting was going to stop that - because I was "young" and "still learning". I still remember how it felt when I finally moved up in rank and my senior actually allowed me to pay for myself (but not treat), and a few years later, my (much more senior) mentor finally accepted my formal request to bring her out for dinner - because that was an acknowledgement that I had "grown up". There's a reason why Lee Jun is so enthusiastic about using his first paycheck to treat Hyun Jae - it's a recognition of Lee Jun's ability and well, of becoming someone who can contribute to society.

About the chocolate milk - no that's just Hyun Jae chasing Lee Jun hahaha Now I'm sorry for replying to 2 blog posts in one reblog but...

did Hyun Jae not just agree when Lee Jun asked if the Director was nice in ep1 (instead he caveats "you could say that")?

Here Lee Jun actually asks "So (based on what you said) it seems like the Director is a good person?" to which Hyun Jae replies "Mmm... (seems like) a good person, right?". He's not really throwing shade here, he's just agreeing with Lee Jun (and asking for Lee Jun's confirmation - you can read more about the ~지(요) sentence ending here)

Did I imagine him holding his lanyard down so that he would not have to hold the coffee cup with two hands when handing it to Choi Jun?

This is also an acceptable way to hand something to someone actually (3rd point from the bottom)

About the direction Hyun Jae is facing when he drinks - no clue actually. I thought it was weird too.

Ok so ends my sharing! Sorry it got so long. If you're interested in more discussions about social hierarchy in Confucian Heritage Cultures, I've written a small section here when I talked about Win/Team from Between Us (Korea and the Thai-Chinese community are both considered CHCs and thus the concept of the senior/junior dynamic is similar)

#jun and jun #cultural differences #confucian heritage cultures #i'm still rooting for jun/jun #i hope hyun jae doesn't get too depressed :(

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grokebaby · 8 days

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Hi!! [Points a million microphones at you]

Can I ask you about MewMew?? What's their story? What's their personality like? What relationship do they have with Evilicus? If they could send a message to the world, what would it be? Are they a milk-before-cereal or a cereal-before-milk kind of individual? (Or none? Do they even drink milk? I heard grown-up cats couldn't have milk)

+ any random facts you want to add! Take this ask as a ranting invitation.

HII OH MY GOURSH!! WHERE DID ALL THESE MICROPHONES COME FROM

This is such a nice surprise! Alot of what you're asking upfront can be discovered by just looking at everything I've posted about Mew thus far :) here's a few posts to get started though > Mew and Evie Part1 and Part2, follow ups to that part3 and Part4

Those are pretty good for catching up on what the "situation" between them is currently! The story is ongoing and I plan to reveal stuff about their past as well, slowly. I'd planned new developments to their current situation and adding more characters but I don't have the technical opportunities to do that now (irl stuff going on lol).

I've also answered tons of asks to talk about Mewmew in the past but I'm not sure how reliable tumblrs search function is... I'm very sorry. 🐟

Basic summaries!

Mewmew (Original intro post) - (m/ms or mew/mews) A mecha shapeshifter cat thing with a go getter attitude and a dark past in the Galactic alliance of public safety, aka a several galaxies wide military force. Mewmew has since retired due to preferring actually peaceful methods to attain peace. Now lives in a far off peaceful human village in the mountains and wants to live a normal life and do the little, everyday things that matter. If m could send a message to the world, it would be "Be kinder to everyone. This includes nyourself"

Evilicus - (they/them) An ex powerful demon lord covered head to toe in cursed armor, with a very nihilistic attitude and a grim perception of the world. Though since being defeated by the heroic Mewmew and hitting absolute rock bottom, they're aiming to do better, if at least for the sake of being fair to Mew, who ever so kindly offered them shelter even after their messy history. Rather oblivious to things we consider ordinary, and quite clumsy once you get past the spiky demeanor.

Their relationship - this may be subject to change as their story goes on but both have difficult feelings about each other I can say that much. Evie struggles with what's fair and acceptable behavior and tends to be jumpy around Mew as well as prone to outbursts (in fear or otherwise). Mewmew struggles with compassion fatigue and feeling like m needs to be a good person but struggling to find the limits and boundaries within that and knowing where to give or take in any situation.

More posts exploring this Here, and Here. (These ones in particular happen to be very grim)

Note that while the character premises are obviously silly, I do explore very dark topics in this story and I find alot of passion taking silly character archetypes and applying some level of realism onto them and putting them in situations that way :) it's not an "Edgy" reimagining, I genuinely love these characters and love exploring their roles in a story while balancing their inherent sillyness. Still, be warned!

More on Evilicus related stuff Here, here and Here

HERE'S A DRAWING REFERENCE POST

Milk before cereal? - Mewmew can in fact drink cows milk, m isn't a Cat (the animal) the way we know it. Mewmew is an alien biomechanical entity. Who chose to look like an earth cat, and is approximately under two meters tall. Frankly mew doesn't care for which one goes in the bowl first, ms eaten dry kibble before (yes, cat food.) but tends to prefer vegan options for milk, so soy rice or oat. Other than that, no notable preference! Mewmew is quite passionate about environmentalism

#Mewmew Agricola #(official Mewmew tag)#Dark lord Evilicus #(official Evie tag)#Ask #Character notes #Ref #Wow this ended up being. Quite a post #I gathered so much for this I hope the links behave #THANK YOU THIS WAS EXCITING PLEASE ENJOY!!!!

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triflesandparsnips · 1 year

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coccinelf said: This was absolutely fascinating! But as someone who has been using Marseilles soap and Alleppo soap for a decade, I'm still stuck as how in the world soap made with virgin olive oil can be that white!?!?

I'm pulling this reply out from the lavender soap shenanigan post because INFORMATION IS FUN.

As you may know, there are several different kinds of olive oil -- the Romans sorted them into five categories based on how ripe the olives were and where/how they were gathered, while these days we seem to differentiate them based on the amount of refining and the acid levels found within the finished oils. For soapmaking in particular, this site leaves out the "Extra Light/Light" olive oil given by the International Olive Council, but lists the remaining four as:

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Virgin Olive Oil

Pure Olive Oil

Pomace Olive Oil

Apparently it doesn't matter a whole lot which olive oil you use when you're making soap, aside from some fun properties related to arcane words like "trace" and "unsaponifiables", but one thing it can do is affect the color -- the "lower" the oil grade, the more green the soap, pomace olive oil soap being the greenest. Which, idk, may be a valuable thing for marketing purposes -- olives are (often) green, so it makes sense to have a green soap, right? Similarly, in America at least, white eggs are often cheaper than brown eggs (except for Easter time), because brown eggs look more "natural".

Marketing is made up by brain wizards, I am pretty sure.

ANYWAY. On the matter of white soap.

When I was originally researching the lavender soap, I kept running into recipes referencing "Venetian" soap, and trying to figure out whatever the fuck it was supposed to be is what led me toward researching the whole history of European soap-- and from there coming up with some Theories as to how maybe all the different major soap producers in Europe could've backwards-engineered the Aleppo soap they were getting via trade routes.

(Important History Note: Everyone is super fucking weird when it comes to Who Is the Originator of Really Nice Soap. Everyone. I have no idea why. Nobody is fucking reliable. I'm not reliable. Trust no one.)

Figure 1. Local soap truther.

... I should also say, now, that I have tried to write the following section thrice, and tumblr has eaten it every time. Therefore, let me instead give The Short Version:

Aleppo Soap (Syria)

Four ingredients:

olive oil

laurel berry oil

water

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide lye, made from ash of... some salt-tolerant plant, probably)

Hot process, as all these ye olde soap beauties are going to be -- cures for six months to a year -- does start green, but gets turns gold as it ages. The older the soap, the thicker the gold "rind" if you cut into the soap -- but the interior, where it hasn't dried/oxidized, is still green. (This, I suspect, is where the idea of shaving down your soaps and letting them dry for ages like that came from -- to get a uniform light color.)

Nablus Soap (Palestine)

Three ingredients:

olive oil

water

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide lye, made from barilla [a salt-tolerant marine plant] ash and lime)

Mentioned in this list because it's what I've been using in my soap experiments, as the soap closest to what would likely have been carried by Renaissance-era apothecaries. Hot process -- cures for 2 to 3 months, though I also saw up to 8 months -- starts gold and then, as it dries, turns a really bright white (and seems to turn whiter the older it ages).

Venetian Soap (Italy)

No fucking clue. It gets mentioned consistently in tons of early recipes, and I've come to the conclusion that it was an umbrella term for olive-oil soaps much the way we use Castile now, but there was also a thriving soapmaking guild system in Venice for a long time, and I don't speak enough Italian to track down and read their trade bills to try and figure out the ingredients list. Additionally, they were a major trading hub between the Middle East and the rest of Europe, so like, this bring it right back around to the idea of Venetian Soap just being an umbrella term for "the really good shit."

Castile Soap (Spain)

Three ingredients:

olive oil

water

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide lye, possibly? made from another salt-loving plant?)

I would say that aside from whatever the fuck was going on in Venice (if anything), this is the closest backwards-engineered European soap. Hot process -- 6 to 9 months to cure -- and while I didn't see anybody talking about color change in particular, you can see that in most how-tos and such, gold-to-cream-to-white is a pretty standard color range.

Marseilles Soap (France)

Here we finally start seeing some weird changes, which is why I put Marseilles Soap last (even though if you ask the French, they think they're the Original Deal). According to the 1688 Edict of Colbert, which naturally I cannot find a copy of and also, did I mention that I don't speak French, the ingredients are:

olive oil

water

salt

caustic soda (sodium hydroxide lye, possibly made from glasswort [a salt-tolerant marsh plant] ash)

The water and salt are separate here, but I've also seen local seawater being mentioned again, which would mix both. They also seem to use the saltwater to rinse the cooked soap goo, rather than have it part of the manufacture? No one else mentions doing something like that, thus making it a funky outlier. It is, once again, hot process -- it can take up to 12 months to cure -- and a color change from dark green to light beige is expected as they age (and also become longer lasting and gentler on the skin).

In conclusion:

Olive-oil soap often turns white, sometimes stays green, and either way, wow chemistry is neat.

#history #SOAP #lotta ridiculous research #trifles the amateur history enthusiast strikes again

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the-hilda-librarians-wife · 1 year

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Carpe Diem - Chapter 4

Pairing: Sketchbook (Kaisa/Johanna)

Summary: Carpe diem: one of the five latim mottos of the arcadist, or neoclassical movement. Literally translates to "seize the day"

Picking up where Locus Amoenus left off, this fic follows the lives of Kaisa and Johanna for a couple weeks as their feelings grow and develop. At some point there will be a couple of weeks of hiatus, but for now this fic will be updated weekly.

Notes: Happy Valentine’s day! This is your reminder to go reblog aromantic stuff because they deserve to be trending. It’s the smallest compensation we can give them for putting up with our bs (and also objectively funny)

Most of Kaisa’s plushies are ones that I have in real life, you should find them easily enough by looking them up on the internet, but the catowl one comes from the fan made familiar that hilda tumblr gave her! Link to the original post: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/waddles-ex-machina/180462531236

This is another one of those chapters that became too big and had to be cut in half, so there will be a second chapter this week as well but then 2 or 3 weeks of hiatus for reasons beyond my control :’)

Read it on ao3 or read the first installment on this verse or read the second installment on this verse

When Kaisa was dropped off at her house that night, Tildy was in the kitchen giving their dinner its last touches, and Frida was by her side at the sink, washing the dishes that their mother had used to cook.

“Welcome back, sugar pie!” The greeting reached Kaisa’s ears as soon as she turned to lock the front door. Sometimes she swore Tildy had supernatural hearing to go with all the other clearly out of the ordinary things about her. “How was it?”

“Pretty nice.” She said as she dropped her bag with two small candles carefully on the sofa. Later, she’d pick it up and put the candles in her room, where she could feel soothed by their scent while she studied, but for the moment being she let them lie there while she headed for the kitchen.

“Is that so?” Tildy prompted, sounding amused as Kaisa walked closer to give her a kiss on the cheek. Kaisa hummed an affirmative sound as she moved to do the same with Frida.

“Did she comment on your makeup?” Frida asked to Kaisa’s back while she rose on her tiptoes to put the honey jar she’d acquired in the overhead cabinets. Considering this was a house of pygmies, it felt like a really bad design flaw that those had been built so far above the ground.

“Not really. She only told me I looked nice when I got in the car.”

Honey safely tucked away, Kaisa put herself by Frida’s side and picked up the kitchen towel to dry the dishes she was washing.

“And was that the actual word she used?”

“I don’t know.” Kaisa shrugged as if she couldn’t see why that was relevant, failing to notice how Tildy hovered over the kitchen door with a tray, not wanting to go place it on the table and miss the gossip. “I think what she said was ‘so beautiful’, but she’s very polite. It is a very nice set of clothes you picked for me, anyhow.”

Though Kaisa couldn’t see it, Tildy looked like she would slap her own forehead if she wasn’t holding a hot tray, and Frida craned her neck to give her an “I told you so” look.

“Sure, Kai.”

They were sitting around the table in no time, and even though Kaisa didn’t think the single pastry she’d eaten earlier at the market was enough to sate her hunger for the entire evening, there was a nervous, coiling feeling in her stomach that made Tildy’s delicious cooking not look so inviting. She still grabbed some of the rice with lentils and the mix of steamed legumes, though, even if only in order to not worry her family.

“This Johanna sounds lovely, sugar.” Tildy said at one point, after they’d asked her to narrate her afternoon. Kaisa didn’t understand why they were so interested. They’d all been at the market a couple of times before, even if usually it was to accompany Tildy on her search for cooking ingredients. “You should invite her over sometime.”

Chewing on a mouthful of legumes, Frida nodded at Tildy’s suggestion, making Kaisa lift an eyebrow.

“Really? Would that be okay?”

Truth be told, she’d been daydreaming about inviting Johanna for a visit for a couple of weeks now. Not only did it feel appropriate, since by now she’d already seen her house and spent lovely times in it, but also she realised she wanted Johanna to meet those spaces that were essentially hers. She wanted her to meet her family and see where she’d come from and where she wanted to go. At this point, she already knew she could trust her with those bits of herself and know that they would be treated gently.

Tildy looked at Frida before answering, but quickly saw that the two of them were in the same boat. She wasn’t inviting anyone into her home without both of her daughters being fine with it, of course.

“Oh, yes! Any friend of yours is welcome here, you know this.”

With her fork, Kaisa pressed down on the small mount of rice with lentils, making it crumple. “Could I invite her over for lunch next Saturday, then?”

Both of them assured that yes, of course, that would be just fine. As Kaisa continued to daydream about having Johanna meet her lovely family, said lovely family stared at each other like a war had just begun.

“Get ready to lose.” The stubborn set of Tildy’s jaw and the furrow between her white eyebrows said.

“You wish.” Frida’s relaxed face and confident smirk answered.

Next Saturday couldn’t come fast enough.

………

The invitation had been popped shyly by Kaisa the following Tuesday, when they were walking from their seminar to Johanna’s house. Edmund said he’d be out working on the project he begrudgingly took part on, so they decided to take the opportunity to be there without bothering anyone. Johanna had, of course, enthusiastically agreed, and spent the rest of the day feeling lighthearted about having been asked to go to Kaisa’s house and take part in one of their family programs.

Now, standing on the last one of the circular stone tiles that traced a path from the sidewalk to their front door, Johanna wondered where that excitement had gone, and how it had turned into such dread. The butterflies in her belly sounded more like a swarm of wasps, now.

Wasps serve a crucial role in the ecosystem, her cousin’s voice in her head reminded her. They’re pollinators, and do pest control, as well as decompose biomass. You’re not in bad company, even if it feels uncomfortable.

Doing her best to allow the metaphor to steel her nerves, Johanna took a deep, steadying breath and knocked three times on the door.

There was the sound of some commotion coming from inside the house, though Johanna couldn’t make out any specific words, and soon the door swung open to reveal a satisfied looking girl with a messy, curly bun atop of her head.

“Good afternoon!” She greeted politely. “You must be Johanna.”

“I am!” Frida stepped aside to allow her in, and Johanna bowed her head slightly in thanks. “Frida, am I right? I’ve heard a lot about you, it’s lovely to meet you at last.”

A mischievous spark was lit in Frida’s eyes when she answered. “I could say the same.”

Before Johanna had the chance to think too much about how Kaisa apparently talked about her to her family, she heard the noise of frantic feet on wooden boards just before the girl herself appeared at the back of the corridor Johanna was standing in. Her face was flustered, and her hair was still wet, the strands falling straight on the sides of her face without their usual volume. She still looked cute as hell.

“Anna! Sorry, I was just finishing getting dressed. I see you’ve met my sister.”

Johanna, turned towards Kaisa as she was, didn’t really understand the tone with which Kaisa had said that last sentence, nor did she understand the glare that she was giving the child, but that was mostly because she couldn’t see the knowing smirk on the child’s face.

“Sure took your time with it, Kai.” Frida said sweetly. “Never saw you dress so nicely when we had guests over.”

Kaisa was, indeed, looking very nice. She wore a plain grey shirt under a fluffy looking cardigan with a checked pattern, and her skirt had a whimsy embroidered pattern. Her leggings were also grey, and her shoes were black buckled doll shoes. Though Johanna was biassed to say so, because she always thought that Kaisa looked gorgeous, the clothes suited her very nicely, so she didn’t get why she seemed annoyed that her wardrobe choices had been pointed out.

“I like to switch things up.” She hissed through clenched teeth and pink cheeks. Any signs of irritation had vanished when she turned her eyes to the guest.

“Tildy is still working on lunch, but would you like to come meet her?”

“Of course!” Even though Frida had been nice enough, the wasps returned as if on cue at the prospect of meeting Kaisa’s mother. “I’d love to.”

After smiling at her, Kaisa guided her through the entrance corridor, which ended with a staircase to an upper floor to the right, just beside a passage that led to another room. Though the door to said room was only half open, she could see stacks of books inside, and made a mental note to ask Kaisa about it later. They turned the opposite way, to the left and into a cosy living room. It had a fireplace and a couch, as well as one well loved armchair and a coffee table at the centre. On the wall behind the seats, there were some majestic paintings of viking boats, but the eyes of any observers would immediately be drawn to the large framed picture of a teenager Kaisa reading to a much younger Frida. The sight of it alone was enough to ease Johanna’s nerves.

A doorless passageway separated the living room from the eating area, where a glass door to the backyard let sunlight in, illuminating the long wooden table with eight places on it. She didn’t have any time to look out into their garden, though, because Kaisa kept moving to a door that, when opened, released a delicious cheese scented steam into the air, making the mouths of them both water.

“Johanna’s here.” Kaisa said briefly to the person inside, and not two seconds later the woman came out.

Tildy was not at all how Johanna had imagined. She was much better, in every way. Even if all that Kaisa had told her about her led her to believe she’d given her children a healthy upbringing, she could never help but wonder where Kaisa’s rigidness and obsession with perfection had come from.

Probably not from here, she concluded as the grandmotherly looking woman walked over to her wiping her hands on her (no longer) white apron, all smiles and sweet words.

Once introductions had been made and Tildy had assured her, profusely, just how long she’d been wanting to meet her and the amount of good she did to Kaisa, she suggested she showed Johanna around while the meal wasn’t yet ready. All the while, the girl herself had been looking like all she wanted to do was bolt and hide behind anywhere big enough to conceal her face. While they both offered to stay and help however they could, the woman insisted on it, asking simply that they called for Frida to come help set the table. Which was just as well, because Johanna herself had been beginning to feel like she needed to bury her face in her hands and scream. Maybe it was a family thing to want to drive her crazy.

Kaisa took her wrist, making her feel like little bolts of electricity were shocking her wherever their skin made contact, and led her away with urgency. Before they had left the room, however, she gestured to the glass door.

“I’m looking forward to showing you outside later.”

Frida was in the living room when they arrived there again, and her sister briefly told her to go help with the table. She went without a problem, but not before smiling at Kaisa and Johanna’s linked hands.

“The living room is probably… self explanatory.” Kaisa said, then pointed to the wall with the paintings. “Tildy got those as a gift from the artist who illustrated one of the editions of her books. I don’t know if I ever mentioned this, but she used to research Scandinavian history before retiring.”

Johanna would most certainly take her time to appreciate the technique behind those paintings later, but Kaisa had already moved on. She showed her the family pictures on the mantelpiece, telling the history behind the ones that Johanna asked about. It was all very sweet, and she cooed several times while listening. It was hard to think of any families she’d ever met that loved one another as much as this one seemed to.

Even if they had apparently taken the day to get on Kaisa’s nerves, if Johanna was reading the situation even remotely correctly.

When they walked away from the living room again and Johanna asked what was in the room full of books, Kaisa smiled brightly and ushered her in with excitement.

“It’s our little library!” She declared as she held the door open for Johanna. “Originally, it was just Tildy’s office, but when I took to reading she installed more shelves and added a beanbag so I could keep her company while she worked. And then Frida came, hence the second beanbag.”

The room had an hexagonal shape, and every wall was lined with shelves from floor to ceiling, save for a space for a big window. There was a desk with a typewriter, pens, and a comfortable looking chair tucked under it, and in front of it two beanbags: one purple and the other blue. It was majestic. The sort of thing she was not at all surprised to find in Kaisa’s home.

A tiny snoring sound drew Johanna’s attention to the fact that, beside the desk, there was a dog bed with a little creature soundly asleep in it.

“That’s Cornelius.” Kaisa said when she noticed Johanna looking at it. “He’s been Tildy’s since before I arrived. Good thing that he’s sleeping right now, he can be a bit… much, when awake.”

“He’s so cute!” It was true, even if Johanna couldn’t quite understand what position the dog was even laying in. Was that his head or his belly? He didn’t look like any dog she knew, more like a cloud who had gained free will and moved into an elderly lady’s home. “What breed is he?”

Kaisa blinked, as if it had never occurred to her to ask that question before. “I have no fucking idea.”

When she led her guest up the stairs, Johanna realised that that was where all the bedrooms were. Walking forward a couple of steps when they arrived at the upper floor, Kaisa’s was to the left, exactly above the library.

Holding the door open for her, Kaisa gestured for Johanna to follow inside. As soon as she did, she was struck by the distinct scent of lavender and green tea; she’d never been able to pinpoint what Kaisa smelled like from their brief hugs, only that it was pleasant, but stepping into a space that was entirely hers made it much more prominent. She could also see where the scent came from: there was an empty tea mug on her disorganised desk, along with scattered notes and an open book filled with highlights and annotations, and on the table by the side of her corner bed there was a mason jar with some fresh stems of lavender.

Johanna felt like she’d stepped into the room of a ghibli character.

“Sorry for the mess.” Closing the door behind her, Kaisa apologised, referring to the couple of clothes laid out on the bed and the remains of frantic revising on the desk. As she did so, she scratched at the silver band on her left middle finger with her right index one. A gentle breeze was coming in from the open window, making Johanna long to settle with a book on the cushioned windowsill seat. “Lost track of time this morning and forgot to put my stuff away.”

Johanna turned to her with a sympathetic smile. “Hey, we’re friends! You don’t have to hide any part of yourself from me. When people like each other, they enjoy even the messy parts, right?”

Just when Kaisa felt like she’d finally stopped blushing due to Tildy’s extremely unsubtle comments to Johanna, here she was, feeling her face heat up again. She really didn’t understand why, and blamed it on her friend being one of the only people she’d ever met to accept her so easily, and not be afraid to say it.

“Right. Thanks.” She cleared her throat. “Likewise, by the way. I bumped into Edmund the other day on campus, he said you’d been stressed about that cake you baked us not turning out how you wanted. You don’t have to try to impress me, I’m impressed enough already.”

Now Johanna didn’t know if the correct reaction to this was murdering her cousin in his sleep or bursting up into flames, but she somehow managed to keep it together and just smile at her friend. She turned away to pretend to analyse the room further, feeling her heart beating faster.

It couldn’t be a coincidence, right? That Kaisa would say something like this, and that all of her family would act like they were aware of something Johanna wasn’t and use it to drive them both mad? Maybe Johanna’s hope was making her connect all the wrong dots to draw a completely false picture - heavens knew it wouldn’t be the first time - but it had to mean something, right?

Her corner bed was couple-sized, which had Johanna wondering if Kaisa was a ‘starfish’ sleeper and actually needed all that space, or if she was a ‘cocoon’ and simply occupied a ridiculously small part of the bed. Either way, it looked like she wasn’t the only occupant of that space, because a couple of stuffed animals laid atop of it.

Johanna walked closer to them in order to inspect her collection. She recognized a butterfly with floppy blue wings, a squishmallow stylised like the Boogie Man from Nightmare Before Christmas, a pink axolotl, a pokemon whose name she didn’t know (but Edmund would certainly be able to tell her instantly) with a pikachu face on its head and two little eyes where she supposed its belly should be. There was only one she couldn’t understand. It was black, very much so, but it looked like a hybrid between a cat and an owl.

“These are so cute!” Johanna craned her neck to look back at her, noticing a flash of relief cross over her face. Was she expecting judgement for her stuffed collection, Johanna wondered. Because if she was, she was going to personally hunt down whoever gave her the idea that it was something to be ashamed of. “Can I pick one up?”

“Of course.”

Johanna took the cat/owl hybrid in her hands to inspect it more closely. It had big eyes and feathery wings, as well as soft plumes through the course of its tail. Two white fangs were embroidered poking out of its mouth.

“This one’s cute! What is it?”

“That’s Freya!” Kaisa explained as she stepped to Johanna’s side, happy to have been asked about it. “She’s a catowl. She’s… not real, obviously. When I was little I’d ask Tildy to make up stories for me, and she one day told me one about the adventures of a catowl cub. I became obsessed with it and constantly asked her to tell me more of them. So for my birthday, she commissioned someone to sew it for me. I’ve had many stuffed animals in my life, most of which I donate when I feel like it’s time they move on, but this one I’ve always refused to let go of.”

It was only by a miracle Johanna wasn’t tearing up when she thanked Kaisa for the story. Seriously, there was something about that family that made Johanna feel like vomiting a rainbow. If she wasn’t head over heels for one of her daughters, she might just run downstairs and beg Tildy to adopt her too, nevermind that she was legally an adult already.

Placing Freya back on the mattress with the care that she deserved, Johanna turned her gaze to the opposite wall, the one against which the study desk was, noticing that it was covered in framed documents. A quick scan through a couple told her all she needed to know about them.

They were certificates. Of competitions, of successful exams, of course completions, of academic excellence. Just looking at the amount of them felt dizzying, and awakened in Johanna a feeling she would rather not allow to flourish, not in a pleasant moment like this, and not ever.

“Ah.” Kaisa breathed when she followed Johanna’s line of sight. “Sorry. I know this must look self-centred. Tildy encourages me to do it.”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t think it was.” Johanna said, and then cringed at how robotic her voice sounded for a moment. As her mind processed it, she found she needed to ask for clarification. “You mean she encourages you to do all these things, or to put up the frames?”

“The last one.” She answered readily. Of course, Tildy had always been her number one supporter, and any win she got made her mother so happy for her it might as well have been her own success. But there was always something so sad in the woman’s face whenever she noticed how her daughter brushed off any of those accomplishments, and how quickly she ignored her latest ones to go look for another way to prove herself.

Who it was that she was trying so hard to impress was something Kaisa was still trying to answer.

“So you don’t forget how much you have done already.” Was the answer she’d gotten when she was a teen and had asked why Tildy insisted on putting them up. She’d accepted that explanation, and allowed the woman to do as she pleased; it wasn’t like she had been using that wall for anything else, anyway. There had been one time, however, in which she’d gotten a reply that was slightly different, a moment in which Tildy had let her worries slip from her.

She’d been about to put up the framed certificate of a weekend course which Kaisa had skipped her last High School dance to attend. It had caused some trouble between her and the girl she’d agreed to attend with, but it wasn’t like she could force Kaisa to go when she didn’t want to anymore. The girl hadn’t spoken to her again after that day, but Kaisa told herself she preferred being alone, anyway. When Tildy had walked into the room to do it, Kaisa had been studying at her desk, not failing to notice the tight lines on her face. She’d ever gently given her daughter her opinion on not showing up to an important milestone in order to study when Kaisa had told her she was planning on doing it, but it hadn’t been listened to simply because Kaisa felt it was something that would look good on her application. So when she walked into the room, Kaisa had quipped.

“Why put it up if you hate it so much?”

The answer she’d gotten was very much not as light hearted.

“Because I keep hoping that when you eventually run out of space on this wall, you’ll finally realise that you can’t fill your life with anything meaningful like this.”

That night, Tildy had walked out of her room with no further comments, leaving behind a Kaisa that was well and truly alone. And the worst thing had been knowing it was her own doing.

She was snapped out of her memories by Johanna’s soft voice, sounding very much like she was having flashbacks of her own.

“There’s one just like this back at my parents’ house.” She said with a ghostly quality to her words, like she was either talking about a dead thing, or about something she hoped was dead. Memories of days spent lying on her bed, hating herself for not managing to study or prepare for an exam floated around her mind, as well as those of nights spent awake at her study desk without remembering to so much as drink water, but Kaisa could see neither. “But it wasn’t for me. It was in the living room, for everyone else.”

Failing to pick up on why that would be something that would bring her distress, Kaisa looked at her with a smile filled with a sense of kinship and pride.

“An overachiever as well, are you?”

“I was.” Still looking at the wall, Johanna answered. Kaisa didn’t think she’d ever seen her sound so sad, and it both baffled her and made her want to do anything to bring back the Golden Retriever she’d known, even if she had to collect every single frame and throw it out of the window. That girl being upset looked like something that should be illegal. “In many ways, still am. But I’ve been working hard to heal.”

Kaisa opened her mouth, meaning to ask why that was something she felt she needed to ‘heal’ from, but for some reason, nothing came out. Maybe she didn’t know how to ask. Maybe she just already knew the answer. Either way, it didn’t last long, because there was a knock on the door that brought them back to reality, and they heard Frida’s voice from the other side.

“Lunch is ready!” She declared, making them switch glances of relief and excitement. Neither had noticed how hungry they were. The fact that it came with an excuse to postpone this conversation was just a bonus.

Looking at her with a mischievous glint in her eyes now, Johanna was about to propose something when she noticed Kaisa was thinking the same thing. They smirked to each other, wondering who would be the one to make the first move.

And set off in a race to the dining room.

#SOOOOO many thanks to blaithnne for talking about adhd to me :''')#I wanted to adhd-code Johanna but I don't know nearly enough. They helped me a lot <3 #my fic #fic: cd #verse: carpe diem #sketchbook ship #sketchbook ship hilda #sketchbook ship fanfic #kaisa hilda #johanna hilda #tildy hilda #sketchbook college au

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buttercupsfrocks · 2 years

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Greetings, tumblr. I warn you this isn't going to be much of a post for a whole raft of reasons:-

It's hotter than Satan's buttcrack outside and, consequently, inside my un-airconditioned first floor flat.

It's impossible for me to look soigné or remotely put together when I'm a sweaty, irritable mess.

There is a British Gas engineer currently boring holes in the outside walls of my flat with the aim of relocating my gas meter. The same thing is going on in my downstairs neighbours' flat. We have no say in this noisy, intrusive, cat-terrorising folderol. They've been threatening to do it for four years and we are literally the last house in the last street to be done. 'twas ever thus.

I had in fact written about two thirds of this original post and saved it as a draft. Tumblr since appears to have eaten that draft and washed it down with a nice Chianti. I have since lost the will to live.

My hair, as you can see, looked like crap when I took these pics.

The reason my hair looks like shite is because twelve days ago I had a cataract in my right eye removed and getting one's 'do done is not recommended for a couple of weeks after surgery.

Prior to surgery I had to take out my right contact lens and affect an eye-patch for a couple of weeks. I did not look piratical. Mainly because the size and positioning of my ears made the elastic intolerable after twenty minutes tops. Instead I had to make do with a Moorfields eyeshield stuffed with tissues and stuck to my face with Micropore. In 40ºC.

I'm hoping to get the left eye sorted late September/early October. A few weeks after that I'll find out whether I'll still need to wear contact lenses for distance and what prescription my new readers will be.

So, yeah, cataracts. Only partial but rubbish genetics on my paternal grandmother's side have resulted in those and an official diagnosis of Pathological Myopia along with a squint I didn't even know I had. The cataract/next-best-thing-to-blind double whammy has been causing me double vision and a blind spot in my right eye for years and the situation was becoming critical. I'd also experienced occular migraines during lockdown, though I think they were down to stress. But, in short, my eyesight was a shitshow and I'd gotten whiplash from the conflicting advice I've received by eye specialists the length and breadth of London. I'm relieved to say Moorfields cataract department got the last word. Thus far I'm optimistic. Three weeks ago I couldn't read the numbers on buses unless I was physically boarding one. Now I could probably see them from space.

But back to the main content of the post. Identically-cut Monki frock, gingham edition. Thus far they've offered this design in black, beige, light blue, orange, and lilac gingham. But there's a reason why the emerald green variation called to my heart.

Between the ages of 4 and 9 I attended a tiny private co-educational school. Admittedly this was many years ago but even then it was quaint and anachronistic. It was run by three sisters called Fowle and I had an elocution teacher who was older than God's dog and still wore long skirts and a bonnet. On Mondays we had to march, in single file, around the room we took dance classes in, in freshly whitened plimsoles to the strains of what later became the theme music to Monty Python's Flying Circus; this mysterious custom was known as Drill. We walked to the Headmistress's home for lunch every day, which was cooked by the kinder of her two sisters. That's how small the school was. It was also attended by kids of every conceivable nationality and ethnicity, and after it closed in the early 70s, the building subsequently became one of Erin Pizzey's shelters for women fleeing somestic violence.

As a sprog my summer school uniform featured a green gingham dress, which I always rather liked. But – get this – the size of the gingham squares increased proportionally with the age and height of the wearer. So, while my dresses had teeny tiny squares on them, the "seniors" had big ones on theirs. By the time I was of high school age and attending a different institution, sixth formers were no longer required to wear uniform, but as soon as I clocked this dress the exotic allure of achieving Big Green Square Status came rushing back and I knew I had to claim it.

Stay weird, tumblr. (And hydrated).

#fatshion #plus size style #Monki #what i'm wearing #older lady style

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deadkinwalking · 2 years

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In the interest of getting more object voices on tumblr, and as a way of easing myself into writing more about being a mannequin, I'm crossposting one of my posts from the Nonhuman National Park forum. Date of original post: 23 October 2021.

I'm going to talk about being a mannequin. For me this identity sits in the space between being an object and being a fictional character. I think this identity is tied heavily to my mental illness, specifically my body dysmorphia. I feel a lot of internal pressure to lose weight and be completely smooth. I don't like the way my body looks. Although everyone says I have an athletic body, all I see are areas that need to be smoothed out. I am most mannequin like in the mornings, when I haven't eaten and have had little water. At this time of day my skin is tight against my muscles, and it feels very good.

I also don't like having a head. As a mannequin I am headless. I don't like seeing my face in the mirror or in photos.

I just want to be sleek and smooth and rigid and plastic, and get dressed up in nice clothes for people to look at without even noticing I'm the one wearing them. No one notices mannequins, only the clothes that they wear.

In another post on there that referenced the above, I also talked about wanting to get a white morphsuit, so I could dress up as a mannequin. This is still a goal of mine, but unfortunately I dilly-dallied too long about it, and now they're all sold out.

I believe I posted here on tumblr about how my mannequin identity is tied into fictional identities. I'll have to see if I can find it again. Although looking back I'm not sure I still agree with that statement. It was a post that was made as I was first coming to terms with being a mannequin, and I believe it was my attempt to tie it to the more "legitimate" fictionkin community.

#otherkin #objectkin

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arintheman · 2 years

Photo

(tumblr is definitely gonna put how nice he looks in a blender)

Wow an original post. Haha. Anyways I know I have those requests and stuff to get to, but I wanted to try and do artfight this year, but I’m not sure if that’s going to happen because this is all I have managed to do on a reference sheet. This is Kobe, an OC I made like almost three years ago at this point and I’ve been thinking about doing a webcomic with him when I am less... busy.

I’ve been trying to get my life more organized, like finances, my job, the classes that are a month away, trans things, time for myself, and then trying to get art in too. I would like to do commissions but I think I should do some requests and start being consistent with doing them before I start charging. (If you’ve sent me a request, don’t worry! I won’t ask for money. Just be patient and I will get it done.) I should also mention that I’ve been trying to learn Clip Studio and ease off of Firealpaca, so that has added more time being eaten. I’m setting myself a deadline for the end of July to get completely caught up with everything. Even though I’m probably going to miss artfight completely (is it still too late to upload your oc/join? I haven’t done artfight before) but either way I want to get Kobe’s reference done (so I can stop changing his design) as well as the requests and six characters. Until I get that done I will happily answer questions about Kobe and whatever else. I am aiming to start posting something of my own every Saturday or Sunday, so look for that.

#oc #late night post #Kobe #hybrid oc #update #ugh #I SWEAR I'm working on things #I work 40 hours a week y'all #Like I actually want to draw #but I'm just too tired #artfight mention #arin talks

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ghostiewriter · 2 years

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i think tumblr may have eaten my ask but i finished the risk a few days ago and im literally still screaming about it!!!

like why did eric put brenna through hell sO MANY TIMES!!! he literally knocked her up and when she ALMOST DIED he blew her off like boY WHAT and i loved that she felt comfy enough opening up to jake about it

but he was a dumbass for panicking and breaking up with her and i wanted to kick him

but then she had such a nice convo with her dad and i literally SOBBED when her dad started sobbing and then brenna sobbed and all 3 of us just bawled our eyes out but they made up!!! and omg it was so sweet and he helped her bring back jake’s bracelet 😭😭😭 the growth

and lowkey even tho hazel was a brat i was kinda proud of her for realizing it and apologizing and saying how she felt bc there was no way her and jake (and brenna) would have been able to be friends if she kept internalizing everything and now they can all be friends and the ending with hazel and brenna and jake’s parents in the lil box watching the final game was so wholesome 😭 and when brenna got the call from georgia i SCREAMED it was the happy ending brenna needed i was so happy

ALSO on a complete side note (that made me realize tumblr probs ate the ask i originally sent) i was stalking the mindfuck series tag bc i heard a song that reminded me of it (and now im trying to convince myself not to reread it rip) and i saw you had posted about liking it and that series and the off campus series are like my top favorite book series’ so it looks like we have a hella similar taste in books so if you have any recs pls send em my way idk what to read when i finish the briar u series!!!

okay xoxoxox and if tumblr didnt eat my ask and im annoying you im super sorry!!!!

OMG YOU ARE NOT ANNOYING ME AT ALL!! ALSO FEEL FREE TO JUST MESSAGE ME AND SCREAM AS YOU READ IF IT MAKES IT EASIER!! tumblr can be a right jerk with asks sometimes bwkjdbkdjd

BUT AHHHHHH!! god i cannot explain the hatred i had for eric BUT THE WHOLE SCENE WITH COACH AND BRENNA😭😭😭I LOVE THEM SO MUCH BDWHKJBKQBD

I wont lie, i still dont vibe with hazel but that whole mess of her trying to get his bracelet back to him was just🥲so fucking cute dude i just love them so much

AND YES MINDFUCK SERIES SUPREMACY!!! but omg bestie god i have so many recs, what are you in the mood for? romance? fantasy? contemporary? I HAVE GOT YOU COVERED!!

#ask #off campus #mindfuck series

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fictionkinfessions · 10 months

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I'm like 95% sure one of my asks got eaten by Tumblr so I'm going to try to recreate it lol. Apologies if I just didn't see it (I did search the source tag on this blog and have sent in other asks after the original version of this one which at least one of has been posted so I am pretty sure but my brain is weird and will never be 100% certain of anything).

Me, in a Jaskier mood: Wouldn't it be nice to just... Not speak? People expect me to speak because they know I can but they don't know how hard it is for me, and I did so much of it when I was Jaskier, I deserve to be nonverbal for a while but nooo, people are-

My brain: Remember that time you were Geralt's Child Surprise and you were almost entirely nonverbal?

Me:

My brain:

Me: Fuck. I was trans, too, wasn't I.

My brain: Yep. I don't have the name you used but I do recall that Calanthe helped because you were too young to express yourself when your parents went away.

Me: It's nice that she was supportive.

My brain: I mean, yeah, but others really didn't follow her example. Also she didn't fully Get the way you communicated because it was mostly not sign language, some of it was but not a lot. She knew there were meanings behind things but couldn't quite get from there to what the meanings were unless they were obvious. And most people didn't even get that far.

Me: Geralt must have, right?

My brain: Oh yeah, absolutely, you two did this thing where you put one hand on his chest and the other on your own and he put his hands over yours, it was super meaningful and cute.

Me: Wait but this means I was effectively Ciri.

My brain: I mean yes in the sense that Ciri has your deadname from that life and basically was the girl everyone expected you to be. But no in the sense that you were not very much like her. Aside from being stubborn, the whole training bit went basically the same except you didn't actually speak. The Witchers were actually not terrible about trying to understand you.

Me: But some of them were jerks about me being a boy who wore dresses. Especially since I wasn't AMAB.

My brain: Well yeah but I'm pretty sure Geralt and Triss set them straight.

Me: I feel like Emhyr was kind of given an unfair start with me, though it was at least partly his fault for trying to have me kidnapped, who does that to their own kid?! But it wasn't fair that he was effectively competing with the ghost of Duny. Like, yeah, they were the same person, but in my brain, Duny was my dad who'd died, Emhyr was the guy who wanted me kidnapped.

My brain: I guess that was a little unfair but again, kidnapping. Bad.

#fictionkinfessions #fictionkin #jaskierkin #thewitcherkin #memories issue #canoning issue #deadnames cw #transphobia cw #kidnapping cw #death cw #mod party cat

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jordanprice · 11 months

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May 30 - Tea Ceremony

Here goes my second attempt, as tumblr decided to straight up delete my first attempt in the middle of posting it for some reason -_-

Today I got to attend a traditional Japanese tea ceremony hosted by a world renowned tea master. It was a good experience, despite tea really not being my thing. I felt bad that I did not finish the tea, but I at least took a coupes sips. It was very bitter, which is intentional by them. The ceremony felt proper and extremely well rehearsed. There was even a correct method of drinking the tea and steps to follow for that. They also served us each a little tea dessert made of sugar and bean paste. It was way too sweet for my liking and the texture wasn’t my favorite, but it looked cute.

I also got a chance to walk around the park there for a while, and I quite enjoyed it. It was very pretty and peaceful, and the weather was perfect. It’s a bit surprising to see such a nice and quiet park in the middle of such a larch, hyper modern, extremely busy city. It honestly felt a bit out of place, but in a good way.

Then, a while later for dinner I decided to try out this yakiniku place I found in Akihabara. What it is is they serve you slices of steak to then cook yourself on the grill in front of you. They had it so that you could either pay by the slice for different steaks that they had available that day, or you could opt for one of the chef recommendation platters. They said they get in new meat daily, so their menu is always changing. I got the largest platter, deciding to trust the chef on it. The meal was fantastic, and was one of the best meals I have eaten in my life, and definitely the best one so far on this trip. For 20 total slices of 9 different A5 wagyu, a bowl of rice, and a Coca Cola, it was only $48 USD. That is a very reasonable price for the quality and quantity, especially comparing it to the US. There, that same meal would most likely cost over $300 USD and be less fresh. The steak was incredible and I still can’t believe I got all that for under $50 USD. It was crazy how different they all tasted, even though they are all steak. Some of the. Also had pretty insane marbling, which was great.

To end out the night, I went to three different claw machine arcades. I enjoyed how many different types of claw machines they had, unlike America which mostly just had the traditional ones. It makes it more fun and interesting to lose money to a machine! For prizes they had a bunch of anime figurines, then also some Pokémon plushies. There was also this one hilarious machine that had just energy drinks in it.

Here, have a bonus photo of this cool Coca Cola bottling truck I encountered.

Academic Reflection

I learned about how green tea was originally brought to Japan by Zen Buddhists from China and India, and about how tea ceremonies in Japan were originally a symbol of status. This was interesting to me, as at the tea ceremony today, they stated that everyone in a tea ceremony are treated as equals, regardless of class or status. Additionally, I found it interesting that tea ceremonies used to be run my men (many of which were samurai), and now it is largely run by women. The articles also talked about how proper and well preformed the ceremonies are, which was confirmed for me by the one I attended today. Seeing it in person, you realize just how precise and perfect every little motion is during the routine. One thing I found interesting that I learned at the ceremony is that different tea schools prefer their tea slightly differently. For example, the one today said that they considered it better with more foam on top from the stirring, but that some consider it better to have less.

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saabbi · 3 years

Text

Regret part 8

Home

Genshin Impact Adeptus!au

warnings: -

notes: I definitely did NOT forget tumblr and posted this chapter on all other platforms except here. ao3 series link

[previous] [next]

A wave of nausea hits you, as you sit up with a throbbing headache. Your pounding head feels like it’s about to crack open, and the bumpy searide is definitely not helping, disrupting you from your much needed rest.

Knock knock. You dragged your body to the door, opening it to find a crew member greeting you.

“Hey! Our crew has prepared some meals, the captain asked if you’d like to sit with us to eat as well?”

“It’s fine, I don’t-” rumble , your stomach rumbles like the storms in Inazuma. Oh, how embarrassed you are.

“Oh my, you must be starving! Come on out! It should be ready!” they drag you out, seating you by the round table with several dishes already served.

Adepti don’t need sustenance , you remember what Xiao always said. Which is, or was , true, as you never felt the need to consume food, eating was only an act to satisfy your own taste buds, not that you ate much except for occasional snacks Childe brings you. But archons do you finally understand the word famished .

The Crux’s crew members are all amiable towards you and lively; filling your bowl with rice to the brim, keeps on adding more meat and vegetables to your bowl after seeing you wolf down the food given like you haven’t eaten for days- you couldn’t even thank them fast enough with your mouth full. The captain, boisterous and energetic, would tell you stories of the crew’s sea journeys while you devoured the dishes. It’s the first time we’ve had a Snezhnayan onboard , she told you with her crew’s eyes sparkling and nodding in agreement.

“So...you’re what they call the harbingers, right? From the Fatui-gang thing? Why are you heading to Liyue?” The captain nonchalantly asked you, causing your hands to freeze on the spot.

Swallowing the mouthful of rice and putting down your chopsticks, you lowered your voice, “Um, I was one, until recently. For now I suppose I’m… meeting up with old friends back in Liyue.” You awkwardly rubbed your neck. The harbinger title may once mean everything to you, but not anymore.

“Oh... is that so?” Beidou sensed stiffness from you, deciding not to press any further, “well, starting off fresh doesn't always mean it’s bad, and meeting up with good old friends huh? That is quite nice, must be looking forward to it, huh?”

“Yes...i-it is quite nice…” Beidou chuckles at your slightly flustered response and lightly ruffles your hair, then continues to stuff your bowl with even more food to make sure you eat enough. She said that you looked pale and sickly, urging you to gobble down more food, with you unable to protest with your mouth full.

You’re definitely less agile compared to before. Your body doesn’t feel as light, no longer able to reach high grounds with a simple jump. Your sword is also a lot heavier than it was, or maybe you just lost strength.

“The clean strikes and experience hidden in the stance...impressive indeed, gozaru. ” a uniquely dressed crewmate who saw you practicing your swings clap at your demonstration. You remember Beidou calling him Kazuha, he seems to be impressed at your skills which are aged like fine wine. Your swings are less powerful and slower than before, but you still have your swordsmanship skills and techniques embedded in you.

“Yet you seem a bit… preoccupied. Is there something on your mind?”

You put your blade aside and lean on the railing of the ship, aimlessly tracing the waves that seem to chase after the ship, “I’m not sure what to say when I see him again.”

What should you say when you see Zhongli? Long time no see? I was fired by the Tsarista herself, so I came back? Everything just sounds incredibly wrong.

“There’s a lot of things I want to say, but I also don’t know what to tell him.”

The tingling excitement in you clashes with the anxiousness, uncertain of how to face Zhongli. You were once an adeptus of Liyue, then the twelve harbinger of the Fatui, and now… you lost both titles. You even lost your adeptal powers, could you even consider yourself an adeptus now? How would Zhongli respond when he hears all of this? You sigh, wishing the ship would give you more time for mental preparation before reaching Liyue.

“I’m sure that your feelings, just like the wind, will surely properly reach them. What’s important is that you convey them before everything’s too late.” Kazuha gazes distantly into the ocean. You overlook the lingering loneliness in his last sentence, deciding you’re not in the position to pry into it and put your focus onto the gentle rocking of the sea instead.

Zhongli paces back and forth continuously by the harbour, rubbing his fingers apprehensively with a stern expression on his face which made even Hutao, who was passing by the harbour, not dare to sneak up and pull a prank on him.

Zhongli, usually a calm and reserved man, well liked by people, now shooting up and flinching at the slightest noise of a ship’s horn and looking around with uneasiness, seemingly searching for something, received confused looks from passersby.

Zhongli, who received a letter not long ago, delivered in a hurry by one of Childe’s subordinates, spit his pu-erh tea out when he read the contents. The letter was short, with messy and almost unreadable handwriting which seemed to be written in a rush, and only included a very brief idea of what happened in Snezhnaya, something about you getting exiled and hurt, now returning to Liyue on Crux, telling him to wait at the harbour for Crux and to get you home safe.

That letter gave him no further useful information at all on your safety, or whatever craziness happened to you, which nowhere reassures him. He fumbles with the letter until it’s all crumbled and wrinkly, as if it would speed up Crux’s arrival.

The blast of a ship’s horn grabs his attention, eyes widen at the long awaited sight of the majestic ship.

Zhongli spots you effortlessly among the crewmates, mouth slightly parting as his golden amber eyes lock onto yours. You watch as his ponytail dances freely in the wind, his diamond pupils containing mixed swirls of emotions.

Suddenly, you feel like a guilty child who secretly ate candy before dinnertime and turned your head away at lightning speed as you waited for Beidou to park her ship by the docks.

“Excuse me.” Zhongli hurriedly makes his way to where you are, scuffling across the harbour and pushing the offboarding crewmates aside. He needs to confirm that you’re okay. He halts just before the boarding plank, your figure located at the other end of it, standing slightly above him. A wave of intense relief rushed up his head making his vision spin for a second. You’re alright, you’re safe.

“Zhongli,” the worries you held dissipate upon the presence of him, your quiet voice reaching his ears without getting carried away by the wind.

Time is never enough, everytime he sees you, he is reminded of this saying. Never enough time to make amendments, never enough time to love his children and his people the way they deserved it. Time is never enough, but for you, he’ll always make time, as long as he still has the chance to do so, as long as you’re still here, alive and well.

Zhongli is not a man of many desires. The waves brought you back to Liyue, to him. What more to that would he ask for? He has all the time for you.

“I’m back, Morax.” You muster up the courage and break the silence, your words concise and firm. Morax, the name you liked most, also the one you’re most familiar with. You take a step forward, so does he.

“Yes, my child,”A soft smile gently spreads across Zhongli’s face, one that radiates warmth and relief. “Welcome back.”

Zhongli takes another step, his arm reaching out to you and the gloved palms spread open right before you, awaiting.

“Let’s go home.”

This time, without reluctance, you respond by taking up his offered hand.

You’re home.

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#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact zhongli #zhongli #zhongli x reader #ganyu #ganyu x reader #xiao #xiao x reader #genshin impact ganyu #genshin impact xiao #genshin #genshin x you #adeptus reader

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gemsofgreece · 3 years

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Bad Boys of the Greek Cuisine

Everyone’s taste is different but the Greek Cuisine is generally acknowledged as a very tasty cuisine with both European and Middle Eastern influences. Not only that but it is considered one of the healthiest diets in the world with one of its branches, the Cretan diet, taking the first place the last time I checked. The secret of this cuisine’s success lies on the use of top quality and very fresh products and not so much on the use of many or unusual ingredients. However, that’s not to say that the Greek cuisine does not come with its fair share of extreme dishes. Here are some of them: Πατσάς - Patsás Patsas is a tripe soup / stew aka a stew made of stomach. It looks innocent and it is usually eaten as a comfort food but the cooking process smells like the name sounds... In Greece, there are shops called Patsatzídika that stay open until way past midnight and offer exclusively this dish and they are preferred after a lot of alcohol consumption. I had to remove the picture because I had eleven in this post and Tumblr sucks. I removed Patsas because it is the most normal looking one. Χοχλιοί μπουμπουριστοί - Hochlií buburistí Probably the Greek dish with the hardest name, at least for me. It is a traditional dish of Crete island but you can enjoy it all around Greece, provided that you are eager to eat... snails.

Κοκορέτσι - Kokoretsi Kokoretsi is a roasted dish made of animal intestines, livers and lungs served in slices. While this name does not originate from the Greek language, the dish was already loved by the Byzantine Greeks who called it “Chordae” meaning cords. The dish is hard to be prepared as it is necessary that the intestines are very carefully cleaned with tools such as pencils and knitting needles. In Greece it is often served at Easter.

Σπληνάντερο - Splinándero It is what its name means: Spleen and Large Bowel. Plus heart. From old sheep and goats. Also served at Easter because apparently Greeks go feral during Easter.

Μαγειρίτσα - Mayiritsa Another Easter classic, served during the Holy Saturday, Mayiritsa is a liver and heart soup. It’s certainly not for the faint of... nose such as me who I had to leave the house as my mum was cooking it. This is why recently a new type of Mayiritsa is trending, which replaces the organs with mushrooms and it is ideal for vegetarians and people with a sensitive nose. Nevertheless, most people love traditional Mayiritsa. Once I found an ice cream shop in Thessaloniki serving a mayiritsa flavour. What the heck.

By they way we have like another gazillion intestine dishes for some unknown reason but I will skip them to make this post more varied. Αχινοί - Raw Urchins This is a delicacy to several sea cuisines around the world. Greece is one of them. Recipe: go to a beach with clear waters, look for an urchin, hold it carefully, cut the living urchin in half with a knife and pour fresh lemon juice on it. That's it, that's the recipe.

Χταπόδι - Octopus This is by no means an extreme food in Greece but I include it here because I was surprised to find out it is nowhere as common in most countries and people often have a strong reaction to it. Well, in Greece we only have a reaction of fierce love for it. Octopus is used in several Greek dishes but the most iconic is probably grilled octopus marinated in vinegar often served with Greek sauerkraut salad. Seafood restaurants often hang fresh fished octopuses outside their shops and let them dry in the sun. It is a classic image of Greece and a sign the restaurant offers very fresh products. It was literally grabbed from the sea and flung to your face, top that level of freshness if you can.

Σπινιάλο - Spinialo Spinialo is a traditional seafood dish originating from the island of Kalymnos. The dish consists of fouskes, sea squirts that are marinated in a bottle of seawater. These primitive marine vertebrates usually attach themselves to shells and rocks, and when cut in half, fouskes reveal a soft flesh with a strong and bitter flavor and a texture that's similar to scrambled eggs.

Αρνί στη σούβλα - Skewered lamb If you are in anyway familiar with Greece, you probably know what the main event of our Easter feasts is. Roasting a whole skewered lamb. I imagine people freaking out at that. But, hey, it's a huge part of our tradition. And don't mind me saying, it bloody tastes insane. It's funny that in 27 years of life, now that I'm typing this in English, it is the first time it occurs to me that some people could potentially find this weird.

Πεσκανδρίτσα - Angler fish This hideous fish is eaten in two ways. Its...uhm... head is a common ingredient of Greek fish soups. I am personally not that much into soups or fish but let me tell you and sign this as well: this unassuming fellow has the most delicious tail. Its tail is called Μπρασκοουρά (Braskourá) and is heaven when fried. Don't look at it, just read my words and trust them.

Κεφαλάκι σούπα - Head soup The name sounds too generic but at least it is only about (poor) goats and sheep. This dish is getting a little too extreme for young Greeks but in my parents' generation, parents would chase the children to eat the eyes because that supposedly made you clever. The tongue was enjoyed too. Anyway, I'll spare you of a graphic image.

I am loth to end this fantastic post but the new BETA mode I am on forbids more than 10 pictures (that’s the actual reason I did not add a head soup picture and not that I am kind-hearted) so I'm gonna end this with the weirdest type of meat we eat. Like I said above, some things here might look a bit much, but when it comes to the types of meat Greeks eat, we really don't like taking the uncommon path. Greek cuisine is more mellow than extreme. Ironically, Greeks eat meats well done or medium at most because they are squeamish at the idea of eating bloody or remotely raw meat. So they eat a load of bowels and heads that stare at your soul but at least they are cooked for, like, 6 hours, you know, to ensure they are absolutely dead. Greeks typically devour eat farm animals, poultry, boars and a few commonly hunted birds, almost all fish and seafood. They also eat rabbits and hares (would that be considered uncommon? IDK) but that's where it ends. For instance, deer can be found in Greek supermarkets but nobody wants to eat such a gorgeous being and if you eat horse intentionally, you might as well get kicked out of the country (exaggeration but still). So, farm mammals, a few birds, fish and seafood. And snails. That's all. Oh! And- Βατραχοπόδαρα - Frog legs Frog legs is a traditional delicacy of the mountainous lakeside city of Ioannina. It is the only region of Greece where frogs are eaten. It is a tasty looking dish and those who have tried it say it actually tastes a lot like chicken. Actually sign me up for this. I mean, look at that. Why the hell not?

Now I wonder how many people decided to all of a sudden not travel to Greece and how many decided to come just now. And I wonder what that nice Anon who complimented my delicious food posts thinks now. But remember, Greek cuisine might have some bad boys but it also has many good good gooooood ones.

#greece #food #cuisine #mediterranean cuisine #greek cuisine #greek food #crete #kalymnos #dodecanese #ioannina #epirus #mainland #greek islands

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othercat2 · 2 years

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Writing Update!

I am going to be posting some meta stuff to my Wordpress blog. Some might be from my tumblr, or from elsewhere. I have some original fic ideas, but they don't really go anywhere, much to my frustration. (I will post more about them on my original fic tumblr.) I have some vague plans to do more prompts. Failing all writing goals, I might also write about not being able to write!

(molasses dark as pitch): This has a slow build, and I'm not sure where I'm going with this, though some goddamn ashen dates would be nice, as well as confirmations of the pale and flushed romances with Shang Qinghua. How many chapters that will take, I have no clue. I also want to do something with the YQY/SQQ relationship.

some other story line: I have some idea where I'm going with this, and it is somewhat grimdark. I have to be in a certain Mood to write grimdark. PLS be patient. Grimdark is hard.

Duende: ALSO GRIMDARK. I kind of know how the ending goes, but I have less of an idea of the middle. I did mention grimdark is hard, right? I am also slightly frustrated with it because I realized the "gotcha" is similar to some other story line's "gotcha."

The cute little Murderbot/MDZS fics: I want to write more of them. I also want to write more of the cute Hidden Almanac/MDZS fics.

Of course I want to finish Build a Life from Scratch. I think it is closer to getting done! (I don't want to Jinx myself though.) I have some parts of the ending. I need the climactic battle and all that. I worry about climactic battles. :/

(they flow from form to form) I will have more time for this fic once Build is complete. That is unless my brain gets eaten by another fic. I have an idea of what's going on, and the ending, but I had to start over on the most recent chapter, and might have to re-re-restart. :/

Rebel and Conqueror: *sigh* I have no idea of what I'm going to do with this fic. OYYYYY.

Crooked Little House series: I want to continue the most recent story. As you do.

lions with blue mane: Same here! I don't know if I can get to it or not.

Pernstuck: I might want to do more stories in this setting.

That one Homestuck/Belgariad crossover: I really, really want to continue this. It makes me very sad that I haven't been able to work on it. I might rewrite bits.

All of the Bleach Stuff: *sob* I want to work on these but I have so many WIPs. I'll see what I can do, because I don't want to just dump them in the incomplete works section. :/

#writing #fanfic #homestuck #bleach #svsss #mdzs #pernstuck #update

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kyidyl · 3 years

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Kyidyl Explains Bones - Part 3

Well, I had this halfway done and then TUMBLR ATE IT, so let me start again. UGH.

(These posts are collected under the KyidylBones tag. Do with that information what you will, lol.)

So what are we getting into today? Sex determination!

Ethical Note: I’m adding this bc not everyone who sees this post saw my post yesterday and this is important info, especially on Tumblr. Anthropologists of all stripes are well aware that sex and gender are extremely complicated. Trust me, we know. But we still do sex determination for a few reasons. First, because missing persons databases are arranged on a male/female binary, and if we’re comparing a set of remains to that database to identify the remains then we need that info. Second, demographic info for populations that have disappeared is important, even if those populations are historical. This might shock you (<--sarcasm), but written records are usually either lacking or inaccurate. Third, if we know the sex of the skeleton we can compare that to the grave goods and learn some interesting cultural things, including possibly being trans, because none of the signs of being trans survive physically in the skeleton. So I am going to be using male/female binary language, but it isn’t to exclude the wide variety of sexes and genders that don’t exist on that binary, it’s because it’s what I’ve got to work with. And if you have questions about this, feel free to ask, but please be respectful.

Alright, so there are some vocab words for today’s post and I had them all nicely written out in an easy to read paragraph, but it got eaten, so I’m just gonna present them in list fashion this time:

Characteristic - All physical markers of human variation exist on a spectrum because humans are varied and we invented the categories to begin with. If something is characteristic of, say, a male? It means that it is very, very distinctly male. It matches the stereotypical expectation of what you’d see in a male. It’s a standard for an obvious example of a given thing.

Landmark - A landmark on your bones is a feature of the bones that is always in the same place. We use this to help us identify a bone and to help us know what side it is on. IE, your lesser trochanter is a bump on your femur (thigh bone) that is on the inside towards the back. It’s always in that spot, so we know which direction it should face and ergo which side it would be on. Landmarks are unique to the bone in question.

Foramen - A hole on a bone. The big one in your skull that your spinal cord goes through is the foramen magnum and it literally means big hole. But there are a lot of little ones all over your skeleton so your nerves and blood vessels can do to your skeleton what the weirwood did to Bryden Rivers. I said what I said. ;)

Bilateral - Both sides. Humans have bilateral symmetry and so one side is symmetrical (externally and WRT your skeleton, but not always your organs.) to the other. You can split us down the middle and the two sides are basically the same.

Ok, so there’s another set of terms that you need to know, but I’m going to be copying and pasting this into every post going forward so I’m making it separate. Anyone who works with any kind of anatomy uses these terms to be very specific about the location of something on the body. They are:

Anterior/Posterior - Front and back respectively. I remember them because my mom used to say posterior when she didn’t want to say butt, and because A comes before P the way front comes before back. Sometimes people say dorsal and ventral, and I remember that because a dorsal fin is on a whale’s back.

Proximal/Distal - Near and far vertically in relationship to the center of your body. I remember it because one end of the bone is in close proximity to me and the other one is distant.

Medial/Lateral - Near and far horizontally in relationship to the center of your body. I remember it because medial is closer to the middle of my body, and lateral isn’t medial. Also, if you are reading left to right L comes before M and you’d get to a lateral body part before a medial one.

So, where to begin? How do we know what sex people were assigned at birth from just their skeleton? Let’s start with what everyone is most familiar with:

The Pelvis

The pelvis of an adult human is a really common thing for an archaeologist to find. And by the time we find it, it’s usually in three pieces (excluding your tailbone aka last vertebra). Your left and right hip bones, called the innominates, and your sacrum. Mind you, the pelvis is made up of a number of bones, but they all fuse in adulthood except these three (fun fact: I’m so used to using the individual names for them that I had to *google* the word innominate.), so this is what we usually find. If it’s a kid, they still survive well because they’re thick, heavy bones, but they aren’t fused. Another fun fact, the bumps of bone that you feel under your ass are called your ischium and I’m only telling you that because I think it’s a fun word to say. Your hop bones, like the actual entirety of the flat bladed part at the top, that’s called the Illium. I like that word too. Aaanyway, here’s a human pelvis:

(Source)

These are actual bone specimens in the top down view, both are women, but they are of different ethnic origin.

(Source)

This is a cast (IE, plastic), front view of a male pelvis.

You can see those 3 pieces I’m talking about. The only joint there that remains unfused is the sacroiliac joint, IE, where the two halves of the pelvis join the sacrum. However! You sacrum is technically a series of fused vertebrae and your spinal cord runs almost all the way to the very tip. There are some conditions which cause these not to fuse, or to not fuse properly, or to not properly encase the spinal cord and it causes all KINDS of issues. But anyway, yeah, your sacrum is a really tough hunk of bone because it carries a lot of weight. The bit in the front is called the pubic symphysis and, despite what certain tumblr posts would have you believe, having children does NOT leave a notch on the inner side of it from the muscle tearing away tiny chunks of the bone. In fact, it is hotly debated whether or not pregnancy leaves behind any skeletal evidence at all.

Alright, so basically speaking, females make da babies and males don’t, so the different equipment is differently shaped......

.....wait, no, that’s not right. Let’s back up. Male and female humans are differently proportioned and their center of gravity is, on average, different. This is the whole thing about men having upper body strength and women having thighs that can crush watermelons. This is on *average* (I will be saying a lot about averages in these posts.) true. And so the physics of the forces exerted on your bones is different. Males are top-heavy, and so their pelvis is shaped in response to their gate and muscle structure because the pelvis supports and distributes the weight of your entire body. And bipedalism means that the shape of the pelvis is very, very different depending on the weight distribution. These changes to the pelvis are really obvious, which is why we can tell from just a few bones whether or not a hominin was bipedal. It changes the *entire* body.

It is true though that the pelvis of a female is different than a male, because a female pelvis has to be able to support the weight of a developing child while still allowing the individual to walk. So the interaction of average size, a uterus, and the bipedal gate means that male and female pelvises are a different shape.

Here is a comparison:

(Source)

So firstly, that angle is called the sub-public angle, and because a females pelvis is wider and flatter than a male’s (when viewed from the front) it’s wider in the front. This also gives any babies more room. Secondly, you can see the difference in the tilt of the sacrum - in the female you can’t see the tailbone. This, again, is due to the confluence of weight distribution and the necessity of passing a baby’s head through that space. It would be a lot harder to push it out if you had a tailbone in the way. Lastly, you can see that the shape of the circle when you look top down and bottom up are different - wider on the woman because of the same reasons I’ve already mentioned. There is one more major difference between the male and female pelvis, and that’s the sciatic notch:

(Source)

Characteristic of male on the left, intermediate in the middle, and female on the right (and dang, she was young, too.). Thinner is male, wider is female. Usually you can fit your thumb in a female’s notch but barely or not at all in a male. I personally find the subpubic arch and the sciatic notch the easiest to use because, fun fact #2, those 3 sections are a bitch to hold together with your hands and that makes it hard to see the other shapes. The amount of sacrums and pelvic bones I’ve accidentally dropped while trying to determine sex....it’s a lot, ok? It’s a lot. I only have two hands and pelvises are big.

There are also several less obvious ways of determining sex from a skeleton, so you guys should definitely visit the source for the above image because they go into it deeper and there are several excellent images of public bones.

So how else do we determine sex? The next easiest way is from the skull, because the features are distinct and skulls survive well.

The Skull

In my opinion the easiest landmark to use on a skull for sex determination is the jaw. There are several features of the jaw that can be used here - and, mind you, when determining sex we measure every small and large sex-linked feature according to a scale and then average it all out. We never look at any single thing (although sometimes the individual has something so characteristic that you can’t help it. The individual in my position has a brow like a neanderthal, so it was pretty obvious.). Anyway, there are several features here but the easiest is to look at the shape of the lateral distal posterior portion of the jaw. It’s called the masseteric tuberosity. Basically, it’s a little bit of bone that sticks out of the back of your jaw. It’s one of the attachment points of the masseter aka chewing muscles attach. Because males have stronger muscles pulling on that part of the jaw and exerting more force, it flares out further for them when you look at it from the front, like this:

(Source)

It’s that sticky-outy thing thing that I circled in red. Here is an example of the same thing on females:

(Source)

Female jaws are rounder, and so that bit is less defined, flares out less, and is not as sharp as it is on males. And this is a reminder that these measures aren’t absolutes - humans have a lot of variance in them. The female asian and the male on the right both have somewhat atypical structures, while the female european and the two other males have a very characteristic structure.

The two other easiest to identify are the shape of the brown line and the shape of the chin (the mental protuberance). Here is an image of the comparison:

(Source: Pinterest, but this images are from the Human Bone Manual text that I use and I used this image so I wouldn’t have to make my own. :P)

You can see in the profile that the female skull has a higher, more vertical forehead with less pronounced brow ridges. If you look, you can also see that her chin protrudes less in profile, and is softer and less pronounced in the frontal view. The angle under her teeth is less severe.

So these three things, the chin, the brow, and the jaw, are the easiest to identify the most likely to be characteristic of the sex of the individual. But, if you compare the images I’ve used here you’ll also notice that there are other differences in the skull. Females have more of a slope to the bottom of their jaw, the bump on the back of their heads (the occipital protuberance) tends to be far less pronounced; and this is the case for all muscle attachments generally speaking. On average, males are more easily able to build muscle mass and are larger, and so their muscles pull harder on their skeletons and create larger muscle attachments. The round, blunt thing to the right of the back of the jaw that sticks out from the skull (the mastoid process), is also at a different angle and is larger in males. This is another case of the muscles being bigger and stronger - the mastoid process is where several of your jaw and neck muscles attach.

There you have it, then. The easiest ways to tell the sex of a skeleton. :)

This post has been approved by Gage the science doggo:

#science #anthropology #skeletons #human remains #human skeletons #education #KyidylBones #archaeology #bioarchaeology #humans #bones #human bones

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