#Pre Spring 2020 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

vs120shound · 1 month

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Congratulate us for lasting so long. Had been top of mind for so many years yet we refused to cave in when we thought of super sexy Quinn of USA Smokers. We whip it out now: "Quintessential Quinn!"

'THE QUINTESSENTIAL QUINN' OF USA SMOKERS: NEVER SEEN HER SO FINE!

No we haven't; no, no one has. Until now. Until after the remarkable Juniorjunior of Smoking Fetish Kingdom, who lives in Texas, U.S.A., finished his high-tech cleanup of her with the latest video-editing techniques, tools and apps. Was a little AI applied? This is as sharp and crisp and vivid as anyone has seen this petite, beautiful, super sweet, hyper-cute Smoking Bombshell from the American West who moved from Tucson, Arizona to Seattle, Wasington close to three years ago now.

Tri-Media 22-Post, 80-Pack Megapost!

Our long wait to find the perfect time and to spring what we knew would be so clichéd is now mercifully over. We did it, waited until it was just completely appropriate to use it in the proper context. We are proud of our patience, restraint and maturity yet all the while knowing there'd come a time to unleash those two magical words on the Quinn-loving members of the Greater SF World Community scene. If you are unsure whether this is the best-quality, pre-eminent, premier, Numero Uno video of our Number 3 choice during Jaunary 2023 and our "unofficial" official Top-25 all-time favorite SF models list, we can give you a nudge by clarifying what that "bonus" word means per www.dictionary.com's entry for quintessential:

of the pure and essential essence of something: the quintessential Jewish delicatessen.

of or relating to the most perfect embodiment of something: the quintessential performance of the Brandenburg Concertos.

This is the "perfect" video of the heavily-tattooed Marlboro 100s Gal who did 33 projects for USA Smokers and started her term as a model/actress as a 21 y.o. "Quinn Beautiful Heavy Smoker" was her introductory video for the Mega-SF website!

GIF (Graphics Interchange Formats) from Her Debut Video on USA Smokers!

THE MEDIA!

Megapost in Our Domain of Quinn!

From vs120shound on November 22, 2023, re-blogs of vs120shound-2 and smoking-media! . . .

Enhanced Photographs of Quinn by Juniorjunior of SFK!

Video Posts of Quinn on Social Media!

From Instagram@usasmokers on May 19, 2021 . . .

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A post shared by USA Smokers (@usasmokers)

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From Instagram@usasmokers on May 18, 2020 . . .

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A post shared by USA Smokers (@usasmokers)

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"Marlboro 100s: Yum! Yum! Smoke 'em Up!" caresses Quinn's thoughts while she is dreaming!

#SF #Hot women who love smoking cigarettes #Smoking cigarettes #Smoking #Quinn of Seattle--Washington State!#No. 3 on Top-25 all-time favorite SF models list!#Instagram@usasmokers!

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absolutebl · 1 year

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BL Streaming - Which Service is Worth Your Money?

I’m bored and I have a little extra time this morning so it’s time for ABL to play with the spreadsheet of doom.

Occasionally I get the question:

If I were to subscribe to only one platform for BL which should I pick?

This post is dated May 2023.

First things first. I am going to be (somewhat) objective about this and not judge on quality of content. Because if KinnPorsche is all you love in life, obvs you need iQIYI, but if you are a HIStory franchise stan, than it’s all about Viki. Those are your life choices, I’m just here to play numbers games, okay?

Secondly, some shows air on multiple platforms, particularly Viki & Gaga, but sometimes it’s Gaga & YouTube, occasionally it’s even iQIYI + others. This has only started happening in the last few years. Bed Friend was on 3 different platforms (GaGa, iQIYI, YT) - even though it was originally announced for Viki! I honestly don’t know how to track this, so I tend to log the spreadsheet with my preferred watching platform for that language, this will throw the numbers off for those platforms.

Since I join everything my platform preference choice is based on:

the quality of the subs/captions

the quality of the user experience

My subs experience tends to be:

YT = best for Thai

Viki = best for Korean and sometimes Japanese, okay for Thai

Gaga = best for Chinese and sometimes Japanese but very weak Thai subs

My user interface preference is:

YT, Viki, Gaga in that order then everyone else with iQIYI at the bottom. This is because I watch on mobile devices.

ASplay, WeTV, former Line, Amarin TV, Netflix and the other smaller suppliers (and apps) will all be grouped together for this assessment. Since they have so few offerings, by default I would not recommend subbing those platforms unless you are a hard stan of all BL with disposable income.

Super bad BLs that I watched back in the day on grey sites or YT (pre 2020 crack down) because there were no other options and I am a completest are still listed as grey. I would never suggest anyone watch these shows anyway, so I don’t care if they have now shown up on legitimate sites. If they are somewhere, it’s likely Gaga. Which means Gaga’s percentage of the market share is probably UNDER reported by my numbers.

Movies and cinema-only releases that never got international distribution fall into the “grey” category. If I got it off an indie subber, since that too is technically illegal, it falls into the grey category as well.

Final note: This is from a USA based IP, I don’t use a VPN, so platforms assessments are from that perspective.

Spring 2023, current state of the spreadsheet. AKA

Our BL Data Set

Total # of BLs = 564

# of BLs ongoing (so finished runtime is best guess) = 18

Just Answer the Damn Question

Round Number of Actual BLs - % of market share

YouTube = 218 - 38.6%

Gaga = 148 - 26.2%

Viki = 77 - 13.7%

Grey = 53 - 9.4%

BLs I’ve never been able to find on any platform (including grey): 36 - 6.4%

iQIYI = 14 - 2.5%

Other platforms = 12 - 2.2%

Margin of error: +- 1% (look I’m just not driven to be that accurate here)

Subscription Platforms Breakdown - % of market share

Eliminating YouTube, Grey, and missing BLs. Viki is included because I do not know which of theirs are behind the paywall and which are not.

Total subscribe-only BLs: 257

Gaga = 59%

Viki = 30%

iQIYI = 6%

Sml sites/apps = 5%

(rounded)

Okay but how about actual runtime?

Gaga = 360 hrs - 44%

Viki = 311 hrs - 38%

iQIYI = 98 hrs - 12%

Sml sites = 50 hrs - 6%

Anyway you cut it... on pure BL standards...

GAGAOOLALA WINS

Other consideration? In most places Gaga is ALSO the cheapest per month option.

Final Thoughts

YouTube (America’s Alphabet)

YT has the most pieces of content and longest overall runtime because of all the Thai stuff. ALSO bootlegs show up there, especially the early Chinese and Japanese stuff. They will often get taken down and you have to hunt for it again. YT takedowns come in waves, every 6 months or so.

However, GMMTV, some Star Hunter, some Studio Wabi Sabi, all the Vietnamese & Pinoy stuff (until now), and a few choice bits of Strongberry are YT content.

YT’s app is the best UX of a poor set (for me), but the web based YT at Premium level doesn’t work with Firefox. I use YT for work A LOT, so the fee for Premium ($13.99) and lack of ads + downloads (travel) is worth it for me, but I think it probubly isn’t if you’re on a budget.

GaGaOOLaLa (Taiwan’s Portico Media)

Of the pay to play platforms, GaGa dominates with the most BLs by all metrics. If you’re intersted in darker BL, GL and other queer content, very high heat, the history of the genre, or Japanese stuff - most of that is on GaGa. Also all of Strongberry and some of the newer queerer series (like My Ride).

At $6.99 a month it’s ALSO one of the cheapest options.

Gaga is based out of Taiwan, the only Asian country with marriage equality (as of 2022) AND it specializes in exclusively queer content so they need our support. If you can afford them, you should support them. GaGa is the only platform that will always have more BL, guaranteed (so long as Taiwan is autonomous). Ironically, you can follow their YT channel for previews and teasers to their latest series, short content, and acquisitions.

Their app isn’t great, but their web-based interface is fine. That said: there’s no categories (way to organize), and the way they roll out new episodes is unintuitive. Their mobile app ALWAYS pauses not mater what you actually want it to do and the lack of the quick skip ahead is frustrating.

Viki (Japan’s Rakutan)

Viki specializes in longer series, mostly Thai, Taiwanese, and a few of the Chinese bromances. It also now has a lot of KBLs. But in general only more recent stuff (2018 is as far back as they go).

At $4.99-$11.99 depending, it’s low to average cost. I’m not sure which one (if any) you actually need for BL. Most of my favorite new shows tend to air on Viki, and I like Rakutan as a parent company, so I don’t mind supporting them.

They happen to have 5 of my top ten BLs, which is A LOT (since I hand out 10/10 so rarely). So for me they host the objective best BL content.

They have the second best app (after YT, it’s kinda a combo of YT + Netflix) but the lack of a speed-up option is frustrating for many. Also the desktop version is super buggy. But they DO have categories you can name and control, which I love.

Other Platforms

iQIYI - is Mainland China based (hello Baidu, you ugly fucker), so the platform getting/pimping BL for an international audience only is… how do I put this?… oh yeah: shitty. I will often rename it Icky, for this reason. It clearly wants to break the market, but… do we want it in the market at all? How long will they host BLs? When will they be shut down and censored? I would say it’s only worth it if you really also like Chinese dramas. And even so, Viki also has A LOT of those. Unfortunately for us, Wabi Sabi seems to have cut a distribution deal with Icky. And, of course, there is the KinnPorsche situation (so ironic that Icky hosts the highest heat). The interface is a nightmare. They have the WORST app, even when you pay, it serves ads, some of which alpha crash the platform.

Netflix - here in the states it almost never has new BL content. Sometimes some old stuff. They tested the waters with SOTUS and Love Sick. I have a feeling they aren’t particularly intersted in this market. So if BL is what you watch, don’t bother. At last check they still had Gameboys and Your Name Engraved Herein and Wish You.

WeTV - acts like LineTV used to, has Manner of Death and We Best Love and a few of the more obscure Thai pulps. But probably not worth it for anyone but a completest.

Grey - Unknown or No Distributor

Indie subbers: there’s some BLs that you can watch by supporting indie subbers who supply private links to their personal versions. This is not legal, but it is a slightly nicer way to get stuff you can’t find anywhere else. I’ve done this for some Thai and Japanese stuff.

I find the leads for these sources here on Tumblr. If someone is giffing and talking about a show and I don’t know how they are getting hold of it, I simply ask.

DramaCool (USA) & Dailymotion (France) & Bilibili (China) and others - AKA the grey space. You SHOULD feel guilty using these sites, you’re stealing, but it’s where many of us go for BL we can’t find anywhere else (in defiance of what few morals we have left). These are BLs that originally sold to very odd platforms or never got international distribution. Unfortunately, some of my favorites are in this category like Great Men Academy or Seven Days. It’s a nightmare. The ads are terrible and the virus/bug risk is high. They get taken down all the time. Or the leads are faked. I use an old computer to access and suggest you take all necessary precautions yourself.

P’ABL SOAP BOX TIME

Look I work tangential to the entertainment industry, so if you thought I wasn’t going to learn you a little on this subject, you got another think coming.

HERE’S THE THING:

You watch a show on one of the grey platforms, ESPECIALLY if it actually has distribution on Gaga or Viki - you better review that shit. You spread the word and advocate for that content here, on MDL, on social media, with fan art, I don’t care. You steal it, you find a way to pay back in your time and/or creativity.

I get it if you’re poor, but don’t be a goddamn scab. Find a way to reward content creators with non-monetary support. If you had the time to watch the thing you stole, you have time to pay it forward in some substantial way. Do this even if you didn’t steal it but got it for free. Do this if you read fanfic. Do this with articles, blogs, books. Do this with podcasts.

It isn’t hard to be a decent human and support creators. Don’t you dare just TAKE. If you’re that kind of person stop reading this blog immediately. I don’t want anything to do with you and you don’t deserve my words or my spreadsheet of Doom.

/rant

MORE ON THIS TOPIC WITH FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS

Original post on this subject that I adapted for this post.

(source)

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dollsinvogue · 6 months

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These new Monster High x Off-White dolls are not freaky fabulous.

I always try to be optimistic with doll releases even when I don’t like them because I know despite my opinion they will appeal to someone else, but these new dolls are extremely disappointing.

To start I will say that the actual garments seem to be constructed and replicated amazingly, if you look at the real life versions they are exactly the same (I will make fashion parallel posts of these later [spring 2018 rtw, spring 2017 rtw, spring 2017 rtw, fall 2020 rtw.]) I am speculating that Monster High is collaborating with these big fashion houses because it is something that a rival brand Bratz has done (Mowalola, GCDS, Cult Gaia.)

It is very odd to me that these are not pre-existing characters. I think they would be perceived better if they were ghouls we already knew (seriously imagine Gooliope in that black and white diamond pattern dress!) if they were already established characters we would also have a sense for who they are and what their fashion is, these four new characters are very beautiful but I just do not care for them, they are reused sculpts who fans do not connect with. I have heard many people say that these are “deviant art OCs” and it’s true honestly these do not look like Monster High dolls to me they look like customs.

As I keep saying I do think these dolls are lovely for what they are, I even looked at the red and blue coat girl and said “I want her!” …and then I found out the price… $150 USD and for international friends that is approximately $205 CAD, $235 AUD, R$775 BRL, $2735 MXN, 1650 Swedish kr, £123, and €140. I have never payed that much for a doll and I honestly cannot imagine how any average person can spend that much on one doll, let alone the four in the set. What really bothers me is that doll influencers like clawdeena9 or thedollcircle and others will likely be getting these dolls as PR packages for free as they do with many of the collector dolls.

I will not be getting these dolls and I have seen many others expressing that they will not be purchasing them either. Many of the collector dolls as of recent have been overpriced and fans are not happy, and these Off-White collab dolls really do just feel like a slap in the face.

#monster high #monster high x off white

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iamadequate1 · 2 months

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TBT

Posted this on Twitter, and forgot to post it here, too!

This article from 2020 (so pre-Zaslav) is hilarious.

"The Numbers", "Too Violent", "Not Up for Awards", blah blah blah... we know that OFMD was canceled by WBD/Max for being Woke and Ghey, so this article from three and a half years ago about HBO setting the standard on inclusive media representation is a sharp fall from grace. Liiiike...

Although HBO has long led the pack, other worthy competitors have nipped at their heels in recent years—especially streaming platforms with a “more is more and something for everyone” approach to their programming. But there’s something fundamentally different about seeing representation delivered on a platform with history, reach, and prestige. While many of those rivals tailor their content to audiences already actively seeking inclusivity on their screens (read: younger, more woke viewers), HBO’s not just catering to their subscribers—they’ve also likely changed minds as they’ve spent decades paving the way for others to follow in their footsteps.

and

Rosenstein, in partnership with HBO's president of programming Casey Bloys, is responsible for bringing the six-episode We’re Here (recently renewed for a second season, halleloo!) to the small screen this year. Bloys also championed the queer-friendly Betty, a series based on documentary filmmaker Crystal Moselle’s beloved movie Skate Kitchen, which also ran for six episodes this spring and was also just picked up for a sophomore order. “Now more than ever, diverse representation of all kinds has a real power to impact on how people see themselves reflected in the world,” Bloys says of his run at the network. “We’re not looking to check a box, but to find the truth in each character’s journey. Everyone is more than their gender identity or sexual preference, and we hope that our characters have all kinds of traits that define them.”

Meanwhile, Bloys today is likely the "insider" in that Vulture article (look at the screenshots if you can, and don't give them clicks). We have an openly gay CEO switch from championing queer stories to desperately and pathetically trying to cover up why a successful queer show was canceled in just a few years. This merger was great!

Yep.

In my previous post, there is a source of Zaslav claiming

And while the third quarter subscriber numbers were impacted by one of our lightest original content schedules in years, in part due to the strike constraints that compelled us to delay some releases

while this Vulture article claims

This change in investor sentiment, combined with slowing subscriber growth at most streamers, was a big reason for the aforementioned 2022 content purge implemented by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav.

The first gives an implication of (lighter original content schedule -> lower subscriber numbers) while the second gives an implication of (lower subscriber numbers -> lighter original content schedule), making it a biconditional statement... so the negations also imply one another (i.e., heavier original content schedule -> higher subscriber numbers), meaning the cancelations were bad business by their own admission?

Every sentence in that article is easily refuted drivel (they waited to January to announce to give the crew a stress free Christmas, really?). We know they're just saying anything to try to make themselves look good, but it's just sad. Just say it's Woke and Ghey and say that HBO quickly dumped that "Most Inclusive" mantle to make way for reality shows and exploitative true crime specials because they decided that LOTS AND LOTS money in the short term and company ruin in the long term is more important than stories that only make LOTS of money in a more stable environment.

#our flag means death #ofmd #woke and ghey #casey bloys #david zaslav #mediocre white men pretending to be brilliant

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wildpeachfarm · 7 days

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https://www.tumblr.com/wildpeachfarm/747243369546366976/new-theory-q-never-went-to-law-school?source=share

Okay, I might be diving into some tinfoil conspiracy here. But I don't actually think Quackity is in law school

Okay I was initially gonna send a variation of this ask but after some further research I'm almost convinced it's true. The only way it's not true if this was a mass miscommunication by the fandom

In America (according to what I've found), in order to go to law school, you first need an undergraduate degree. Pre-law exists but to my knowledge, unlike med-school, you don't need pre-law to get into law. In fact from what I've heard it's actually discouraged

And if Quackity were doing pre-law, I think he would've mentioned that but he never did, everyone thinks he's been in law school the whole time

According to the math I've done (and I checked, the Mexican school system is very similar to the American one so the ages line up) Quackity at the absolute earliest, would've started law school in September 2022. But as an audience we've always been like, yeah he's in law school. That's impossible though

He was born in the year 2000, meaning he would've graduated high school in 2018 and finished his undergrad in spring 2022 and only since September of that year would be have been in law school

I may he going crazy but as far as I can tell, he can't have been in law school in 2020 like I remember hearing

Although it's also possible that he just said that wanted to be a lawyer and the fan base took it to mean he was in law school and he never corrected himself lol. But yeah idk that's a little sus

wow you really thought this through haha I respect the dedication

#ask #anon #anti drummyache tag

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nobodys-saviour · 2 months

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Li Shen ❄️ Pre-Main Story Timeline 🤗

2020/2021

5 September, Autumn 🍂 — 1) birth

2034

(12/13 yo) 1) Chronorift Catastrophe

2035

(13/14 yo) Autumn 🍂— 1) Started his studies in the Department of Clinical Medicine of Skywalk/Skyhaven* University Medical School. 2) Met his senior Wei Tingjun (William) and his teacher, Head Doctor Fang (Doctor Noah)

2043

(21 yo) Spring 🌱 1) Finishes his Bachelor's, PhD, MD and residency 2) Starts working in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at Linkon Central Hospital

(21/22 yo) 1) Became an attending surgeon and the chief medical officer 2) Accident on Mt Eternal with Wei Tingjun and Doctor Fang present. 3) Presumably the time he cuts off contact with MC, Zhang Su (Grandma Josephine), and Xia Yizhou (Caleb)

2046

(24/25 yo) - Receives the Starcatcher and Linde Award

2048

(27yo) 1) replaced Doctor Fang as the chief cardiologist in Akso hospital. Doctor Fang moves to the arctic 2) established the EVOL-Cardiac Medical Laboratory in Akso 3) Met Zhang Su in the hospital 4) Met MC again and became her primary healthcare physician

*translation inconsistencies

#love and deepspace #zayne #li shen #wait i wasnt supposed to post this yet but i did and its too late its out in the world #jforgot to click save to draft but whatever its basically complete anyway

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unes23 · 10 months

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Lia Pavlova at Chanel Pre Spring 2020

#lia pavlova #chanel #fashion #runway #pre spring 2020 #unes23

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thefashionfold · 8 months

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I'M Isola Marras Resort 2020

#isola marras #i'm isola marras #resort 2020 #resort 20 #cruise 2020 #pre spring 2020 #damask #pearls #fashion #womens style #womens fashion #womenswear #the fashion fold

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monstersandmaw · 2 months

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Male naga x gn. reader - Valentine's Day returns to Starfall Springs!

Back to Starfall Springs again for February's Patreon-exclusive story! You said you wanted more nagas, so here's a gorgeous lad with a little bit of secret...!

You can read it tomorrow (Valentine's Day) and you'll also have access to every story from the pre-2020 mothballing, as well as lifetime membership to our chilled out Discord server, and access to all stories that go up on Tumblr one week before they go live here :).

#starfall springs #patreon #valentine's day monster romance

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foreverlogical · 1 month

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We have been seeing numerous stories in the media about how people support Donald Trump because he did such a great job with the economy. Obviously, people can believe whatever they want about the world, but it is worth reminding people what the world actually looked like when Trump left office (kicking and screaming) and Biden stepped into the White House.

Trump’s Legacy: Mass Unemployment

The economy had largely shut down in the spring of 2020 because of the pandemic. It was still very far from fully reopening at the point of the transition.

In January of 2021, the unemployment rate was 6.4 percent, up from 3.5 percent before the pandemic hit at the start of the year. A more striking figure than the unemployment rate was the employment rate, the percentage of the population that was working. This had fallen from 61.1 percent to 57.4 percent, a level that was lower than the low point of the Great Recession.

The number of people employed in January of 2021 was nearly 8 million people below what it had been before the pandemic. We see the same story if we look at the measure of jobs in the Bureau of Labor Statistics establishment survey. The number of jobs was down by more than 9.4 million from the pre-pandemic level.

We were also not on a clear path toward regaining these jobs rapidly. The economy actually lost 268,000 jobs in December of 2020. The average rate of job creation in the last three months of the Trump administration was just 163,000.

What the World Looked Like When Donald Trump Left Office

In the fourth quarter of 2020 the economy was still being shaped in a very big way by the pandemic. Most of the closures mandated at the start of the pandemic had been lifted, but most people were not conducting their lives as if the pandemic had gone away. We can see this very clearly in the consumption data.

Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis and author’s calculations.

The figure above shows the falloff in consumption between the fourth quarter of 2019 and the fourth quarter of 2020 in some of the areas hardest hit by the pandemic. While overall consumption was down just 0.8 percent, there has been an enormous shift from services to goods.

Inflation-adjusted spending at restaurants was down by 21.5 percent, and much of this spending went for picking up food rather than sit-down meals. Spending at bars was down 47.7 percent. Spending at hotels and motels was down by 43.8 percent as people had hugely cut back travel. Air travel was down 52.4 percent.

Spending on football games, baseball games, and sports events was down by 68.3 percent. Spending on live concerts and other entertainment was down a bit less, at 67.4 percent. And movie going was down 92.7 percent.

The Story of Cheap Gas

Donald Trump and his supporters have often boasted about the cheap gas we had when he was in office. This is true. Gas prices did fall below $2.00 a gallon in the spring of 2020 when the economy was largely shut down, although they had risen above $2.30 a gallon by the time Trump left office. The cause of low prices was hardly a secret, demand in the U.S. and around the world had collapsed. In the fourth quarter of 2020 gas consumption was still 12.5 percent below where it had been before the pandemic.

In fact, gas prices likely would have been even lower in this period if not for Trump’s actions, which he boasted about at the time. Trump claimed to have worked a deal with Russia and OPEC to slash production and keep gas prices from falling further. The sharp cutbacks in production were a major factor in the high prices when the economy began to normalize after President Biden came into office since oil production cannot be instantly restarted.

The End of the Trump Economy Was a Sad Story

Donald Trump handed President Biden an incredibly damaged economy at the start of 2021. People can rightfully say that the problems were due to the pandemic, not Trump’s mismanagement, but the impact of the pandemic did not end on January 21. The problems associated with the pandemic were the main reason the United States, like every other wealthy country, suffered a major bout of inflation in 2021 and 2022.

It is often said that people don’t care about causes, they just care about results. This is entirely plausible, but the results in the last year of the Trump administration were truly horrible by almost any measure.

It may be the case that people are more willing to forgive Trump for the damage the pandemic did to the economy than Biden, but that is not an explanation based on the reality in people’s lives, or “lived experience” to use the fashionable term.

That would mean that for some reason people recognize and forgive Trump for the difficult circumstances he faced as a result of the pandemic, but they don’t with Biden. It would be worth asking why that could be the case.

#donald trump #trump #us news #politics #us politics #republicans #joe biden #gop

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retellingthehobbit · 2 months

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I went to read your comic on Ao3 and I noticed you'd started back in 2020. Aside from your clear and beautiful art progression, what can you tell me about the timeline of your comic?

Thank you! And yes, started this webcomic in January of 2020. “I sure hope nothing bad happens in 2020 that will hamper my ability to focus on a large personal project!” — me in January 2020 with all the naivety of youth. Top ten images taken minutes before disaster. This comic is like a deeply personal diary of my mental state, complete with the long empty hiatuses that are sort of like that part of Twilight where months of depression are represented by blank pages.

One of my favorite things about webcomics is how you can often see an artist’s style grow organically over time. I think it’s something that’s getting lost in the age of “Webtoon Originals,” where people are starting to expect webcomics to be produced by an actual production studio with a team of artists behind them and to maintain a consistent highly curated art style throughout. These professionally funded comics are fun, but they do lose the messy personal organic growth that used to separate webcomics from traditional print comics? But i could go on a whole tirade about webtoon haha 😂 !

The Hobbit is partially a story about someone learning how to express themselves. Bilbo starts the story as this stuffy little guy who is repressing a lot his own personality; he ends the story as a skilled artist writing elaborate prosy poetry about his adventures. I deliberately chose to start drawing the comic before I went to college, knowing my art style would change a lot of over that period!

Anyway here's the timeline as I remember it: Pre-development: I was working on sketches of the comic itself as early as 2016. Chapter 1 (A Bedtime Story/Tooks and Bagginses): (Posted on Tumblr in January 2020, on Ao3 later): Published shortly before I went to college. I was drawing in Paint Tool Sai, and hand-writing all the words instead of using a font. I set out to adapt at least the Unexpected Party chapter, but thought I'd probably adapt the entire novel within a year or two. ("It's a webcomic Michael. How long could it take? twelve months?") Chapter 2: (A Very Respectable Hobbit): Posted like a week after Chapter 1. This was when I still thought I could post a ten page chapter every week, haahahahahahahahahaha Fs in the chat.

HIATUS #1: DANCE BREAK: TIME FOR A GLOBAL PANDEMIC. The exact timeline of 2020 is a blur for obvious reasons, but I do remember the updates became very sporadic over this period. Chapter 3-5 (Very Old Friends and An Unexpected Party chapters): there’s a global pandemic. During Spring Break my college abruptly kicks us all off campus and sends us home. I keep looking at the “post dates” on these chapters like what??? Really? I posted that at thAt time? But there was a global pandemic happening and I was so busy and overwhelmed with college???? When did I have the time? I have no memory of drawing these. My memories of all 2020 are so blurry. I think these chapters just manifested spontaneously.

The weekly/biweekly update schedule has been tossed to the wind, never to return. Alas. Chapter 6 (An Enormously Important Dwarf, aka Thorin’s intro): I was back “at college” during our “hybrid” year, so in practice I was extremely isolated. this was posted during a year after the first chapter, in 2021. I would never have found the motivation to continue if I wasn't so excited to draw Thorin! I also joined a "comic club" at my college which was comprised mainly of awkward video calls with like three people. On a weirder note, this chapter was posted a few weeks after the January 6th attempted coup. I was drawing in a a weird headspace.

DANCE BREAK #2: IT’S TIME FOR A YEAR LONG HIATUS:

I've started to often dislike the word “burnout” when it’s applied to art. It implies that the problem is that you were drawing too much or that you can’t find inspiration, when often the problem is much bigger than your art-- it's wider economic anxieties and social circumstances outside your control. It is very hard to think clearly and create things when you are worried about your future, about work, about housing, about a global pandemic, about constant demands on your time, and about being extremely isolated. In hindsight, I wasn’t “burned out”— I was in a situation where I could not think clearly or produce anything. Chapter 7 (The Lonely Mountain): posted a full year after chapter 6. For a while I considered having this be the “last chapter” of the comic!

Changing art styles was a thing I was really motivated to do, and was my last “bucket list” item for the comic.

HIATUS #3: I get really busy with junior year of college! I grow more and more disillusioned with Tolkien as I learn more about The Hobbit Law crushing labor unions and worker's rights in New Zealand, and how Amazon takes advantage of that. The Tolkien Estate also releases a statement saying they disapprove of any unauthorized use of Tolkien's works for profit or not, which isn't really legally enforceable but is also just an act of pure contempt XD. Chapter 8 (A Tangled Web): I get sent to the emergency room in an ambulance for Reasons and begin drawing this in the weeks after, as I realize I don't care about the Tolkien Estate or Amazon or Warner Brothers or whatever hollow marketable products they produce under the tolkien brand. I think this is the weakest chapter of the comic, both in writing and art, and in hindisght think the comic works better without it pacing-wise. However!!!! I was drawing it in a weird mental state, so. XD

Also, at this point I am drawing entirely in Photoshop. Chapter 9 (Ash and Smoke): Back at college for senior year— time for dragon! The comic starts updating with something that resembles a "regular schedule!" this year had more and more people on campus in person, and I started to slowly make college friends :). Also, at this point I am the President of the comic club, and we are now meeting in person and rebuilding our comic empire. Chapter 10 (The Heart of the Mountain): Some funky bits of writing I'd like to revise at some point, but I enjoy the art in this chapter. Chapter 11 (Polite Nothings): If I were to do this all again I'd shorten this chapter and combine it with chapter 12. One important note is that originally, I tried to keep all chapters under ten pages. This made it easier to post them to Instagram and Tumblr, because tumblr still had a “ten image limit” at the time. However at some point I realized that was more trouble than it was worth, and really made the pacing difficult/slow as I struggled to split the story into ten page chunks.

A lot of webcomics often fall into what I call a “wheel-spinning” phase, where the author is so focused on finishing smaller updates that they lose the pacing of the larger narrative—- and so the story stalls out. I feel like I dealt with a lot of “wheel-spinning” while I was at college, both in my life and in my comic XD. Chapter 12 (The Quest): My internship company gives me an offer to work full-time, which I accept. in the last semester of my last year of college, I take the most helpful elective class I have ever taken: a class on using 3D models in blender to aid with blocking out illustrations. This is the first chapter where you see one of those backgrounds! From this point on my background art will improve dramatically. I also have lots of internet friends and college friends!

As I grow more confident in my art I also make the decision to change the character designs, something I’d wanted to do for a while. Chapter 13 (The Necromancer): I graduate college! It's time for some Lotte Reiniger art. I stay in my student housing until my lease ends. The art starts to grow more elaborate as I have more time to spend on it. Chapter 14 (Terms and Conditions): my summer is free, so I spend it drawing gay little hobbits. I move up North to live with my grandmother until my work start date. This is the very last “normal-sized” chapter of the comic, where I hold myself to keeping it under 10 pages. I also think this is where my new more elaborate character designs actually start to look a lot better XD.

I was finishing up apartment-hunting at this time, so both Bilbo and I were goin over contract terms. Chapter 15 (Unattached): summer free time!! More gay little hobbits. I move into my New apartment and sleep on an air mattress for a while. I have a lot of time to draw and the art gets far more complex; this chapter was also twice as long as my usual chapters. I am still proud of this chapter, honestly, even though it's gotten less attention than Chapter 16/17-- it's one I'd been excited to draw for a while. A lot of this chapter was drawn on my beautiful powerful beloved air mattress. Air mattress, my beloved. Chapter 16 (the Song of the Lonely Mountain): I start my new job! I get a BED. Lots of exciting things are happening. I was really excited to draw and post this chapter, because it’s one id been dreaming about drawing from the beginning-- it was surreal to see it "posted" because part of me never thought I'd get this far. I even started a tiktok and posted the chapter there, certain that people would enjoy it. However, tiktok basically ignored it, alas! This is why tumblr is the only social media site. Chapter 17: I continue my new job. My roommate surprises me with the news that they will move out at the end of our lease, making me realize that months have somehow passed. I make a post asking for anyone looking for roommates in Milwaukee to contact me via dms (that offer is still open, if you’re looking to move here in early June.) I privately am very confused about why anyone would ever want to leave a comfortable settled home to go off on an adventure and then realize that I am behaving exactly like pre-quest Bilbo Baggins.

Chapter 18: the chapter I am working on now!!! Another chapter I have been excited to draw forever!! It’ll feature studio-Ghibli-inspired backgrounds, exciting landscape art, and so much fun! I’ve also started a Patreon where, if you want to see “one page a week” instead of “twenty pages every Mystery number of Months” you can subscribe there. (The first page of Chapter 18 has already been posted!)

But yeah! The TL:DR:

I think the moral of all this (to me) is that it’s hard to make art if you’re just not in a position to do it, and you have to allow yourself time to grow and change as a person XD. Sometimes you need to spend a few years thinking and getting better before you're ready to go on an Adventure. I started this comic when I was very Young and Naive to the Ways of the World. The quality (and dips in quality) reflect my wildly fluctuating mental/emotional states while trying to draw each chapter in the midst of a global pandemic. My art has improved a lot lately, and I think a large part of it is really just being in a situation where I *can* improve— having a decent job, not being in the middle of a global pandemic with no vaccine in sight, not needing to live in constant fever-pitch anxiety, having friends, etc etc. I am completely different person now than I was while drawing chapter 1.

Not to be dramatic, but I think you can see there’s a lot more joy in the recent chapters than there is in some of the older ones. It's weird to look at your art and realize you've gotten happier. XD

#thanks for the ask!!!#and sorry it took so long to respond #I am Treebeard-core when it comes to responding to asks #just like I am Treebeard-core when it comes to posting this comic #it takes a very loong time to say anything in oooold entish #and we never say anyythiiiiing #unlesssss #it is worth taking #a long #time #to say #the hobbit #the hobbit comic #retelling the hobbit #lotr #lord of the rings

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