#and most of the shittiness is not work related | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

silverware-is-interesting · 30 days

Text

got some sketches of the band au

Note: these are not final, design's are likely going to change when i eventually clean them up. they all technically have 2 outfits (onstage n offstage) these are just the onstage fits

idk what to make the tag for this au tbh "kinitopet band au" seems kinda boring... ANYWAYS! Have a terrible overview of the concept so far. n the band members too ig

Meet the KinitoBAND (placeholder name while i think, i'm open to suggestions though). They're a rather niche yet beloved band who play a multitude of different genres. all of their songs have a rather upbeat nature, or, they used to. lately they've been leaning more into rock and sometimes it just gets a little... strange... wonder why that is? they're actually more like vocaloids(???) that are programmed like Kinito with the react response algorithm (Kinito's i more advanced, but they've all got it) so if they ever did interact it'd be alright. the programmer (Sonny C) had initially only meant for there to be a vocalist but there was a decision somewhere to make a band (so there's a drummer and a guitarist too)

Let's get into the characters

Kinito The vocalist + tech Kinito is a fan-favourite, to be expected of the one who is always in view front 'n center. personality-wise he's similar to his canon counterpart, just a bit (emphasis on bit) more chill. i've imagined him to get a little... parasocial with his fans who probably just went for the music. he has a bit of a persona on stage, you could say. he's more energetic and in general might be a little more aggressive than usual, especially lately.

Sam The drummer Sam isn't quite as popular as Kinito, but he's got quite a few fans who might not gravitate towards Kinito like almost all the promotional material wants you to or people who like the drums. personality - Sam has a calm, almost 'cool guy' demeanor. he acts relitivley the same on and off stage. Jade the guitarist Jade, unfortunately, is the least popular member of the band. She's got a couple devoted fans, but noticeably less than the others. just as intended. personality- she's quite resourceful and the most upfront about things of the band. she's generally louder than the others, not on purpose, she's just not the best at maintain a good speaking volume.

#silverware's art #kinitopet #kinito the axolotl #sam the sea anemone #jade the jellyfish #kinitopet band au #yeah i've noticed people like kinito the most. then sam. which leaves jade off to the side..#so i included that!#also sonny is like. LONG (not that long maybe a few months-) DEAD here. kinda work related. barely relevant to this au #marketing was so shitty to sam n jade man...#(in the au. that is)#jade plays the bass. just a fun fact.#sorry man kinito doesn't make a world for you here. you get. uh. different gift ig..#anyways i hope you can play an instrument #sonny isn't quite the sun in this au.. he's rpresented by one though. so. kinda #it is WAYY too hard to not spoil the little plot i have..

85 notes · View notes

fckedupnerd · 10 days

Text

Mathew Baynton in the Dodges and Feints music video for DM Stith

Video here:

youtube

#mathew baynton #mat baynton #his ARM in that third gif #the little muscle and that SHARP freaking tendon or whatever there connecting it to his elbow #you could CUT yourself on that (/pos /affectionate) 🔥#his body is so fucking tight and flawless it drives me crazy looking at him #he’s gotta be like 0% bodyfat for real omfg 😭 I wish I looked like him so bad y’all #perfect perfect human wtf #also his face is so pretty #those HUGE EYES #oh my goodness #and the most expressive #aaaaaah just too pretty #also James Corden posted the music video to his story which… 👀 I’m hoping means he has a reason to be publicly consorting with Mat again??#pleeeeease say they’re working together again soon now that James is back in the UK #I know a lot of people dislike him #and it’s not like I’m a huge fan of James on his own #but I am NOT above admitting that I always liked them together and I always thought James genuinely liked seeing Mat shine which he deserves #anyway have some shitty watermarked gifs of Mat being sexy in black and white #because I hadn’t seen any yet and sometimes if you want something done you have to do it yourself 🥰#bbc ghosts #wonka 2023 #tagging for Mat-related visibility #Youtube

32 notes · View notes

tswwwit · 1 year

Note

Did Bill not come to terms with his feelings for Dipper until he was forced to in Confessing It, or was it earlier in the series (even if he would never admit it)? Sorry if this is sorta implied, I’m not amazing with subtext. Rereading atm and I was curious lol

Actually, Bill (sort of) came to terms with having fallen for Dipper well before Dipper got his feelings sorted.

It's in Faking It chapter 15:

[Bill] glances up at Dipper. “You…. are the single worst thing that has ever happened to me. And I don’t say that lightly, you got no idea how old I am."

#answers #Bill still had a lot of struggling to do after that #But if you're looking for him accepting his feelings *this* was the moment #When Bill realized he'd fallen pretty far even though he couldn't make himself say or think the proper word yet #His thoughts on the matter are addressed in more detail in Chapter 9 of Hating It #Dipper liked Bill. Even when he was trapped and nearly powerless and in a shitty situation - Dip *still* respected and lusted after him #Not after position or power or wanting him to be different. Even knowing he wasn't remotely human!! He just wanted *Bill*.#And it goes BOTH ways #Dipper was most of the way there too but also trying REALLY HARD not to care about a demon at that point #Then a minute or so later Bill's cheering up attempt did the rest of the work #Dipper had stayed so strong. Fighting against this horrible yet compelling demonic force. No feelings here no sir it's a bad idea #And in the one moment he got weak. When he teared up. Bill got awkward and tried to perk *him* up #Both hilarious and relatable AND a moment where Dipper realized Bill actually in his own way cared about him #These idiots were never going to be able to resist someone who could see them at a truly low point and like them anyway #Confessing It is basically: Them Trying To Actually Talk: The Fic #They both already knew how the other felt #But actually Communicating about it like a functional couple was hard #All the very kinky smuts are canon btw #I like my absurd smut to have character development #And believe it or not #Amazingly they communicate well when both of them have the same fun goal in mind

86 notes · View notes

softandwildx · 7 months

Text

Idk why I've never tried door dash before

#i've made $50 in 3 hours #not the MOST profitable considering a good chunk of that will go to gas money #but i actually chose to go work today #i didn't have to do that #i've never chosen to do something work related that i didn't have to #sometimes quitting your shitty retail job and starting a shitty door dash shift is worth it

14 notes · View notes

deva-arts · 8 months

Text

No better way to end your day than to have your eye shanked by your boss' son! without any safe way of receiving medical attention! Then smiling about it to your last remaining family!

...Being a variant in this world is hard.

#amontag #adratag #featuring amon's shitty apartment #woa bad words #Amon could REALLY use a break. And actual rest. And money. Lots of it. poor boy's 17 and his only inheritance from his dad was $500k of deb #in which working as a mafia grunt is not cool and cash money #oc comic #oc lore #oc backstory #Amon's muscle/bone structure is SUPER dense! (contrary to birdpeople) most of the punches were reserved for the tender spots of his face.#he is violently holding back the urge to kill Mr.Richard Wucci here. Gotta stick to his grits because otherwise they can destroy everything #sometimes even having the advantage of immense strength means nothing and does nothing. talk about salting wounds!#needless to say Amon has built up an insurmountable amount of self-restraint. Not to mention endurance to obvious disrespect.#“Auntie” is actually not related to them at all. She and her husband run a local bodega and are close family friends. free dorto's!#Amon's fridge is holding on for dear life. Almost everything in his home was thrifted or just refurbished by him to try making things cozie #Both of them smile in an attempt to keep things light... But they're both painfully alone in a world that is entirely uncaring for them.#they need a hug.#If only someone short winged and angry could come and break them from this situation... but that doesn't come for two years or so.#ARK_SYSTEMA

14 notes · View notes

biblicallyaccuratefaggot · 29 days

Text

in a perfect world i think i would be a science teacher

#idk i was taught so much misinformation about science growing up and i know kids these days dont have it much better so i wanna make it so #kids can learn and be fascinated by (real) science as much as i was as a kid learning about dinosaurs and space #not how i was as a kid learning about vaccines and medicine #and i truly do think that a foundation in one science will make it exceedingly difficult to be misinformed in any other science #since they all operate on the same exact principles #idk i want future generations to be as fascinated and filled with wonder about *everything* that young me #because nothing is as freeing as learning how everything truly works #i want future kids to be as fascinated by evolution and space as i was #but also with any other field of science because i think the more the general populous knows how things work #the less shitty our societies will be #and countless people will benefit in the long run #i want to teach the future generations of a future sunrise that i will never see #i want people invested in every aspect of learning and bettering our understanding of everything #including empathy and learning to relate to your fellow human and also your cousin species #because literally everything in this fucking universe is related to eachother #we are all born from the same stardust that would form the most massive of galaxies and the most minute of organisms #we should be taught that life is a miracle and we should treasure every bit of it we possibly can

2 notes · View notes

unhingedselfships · 1 year

Text

In The Tags/Reblog Game

Describe yourself in the most EBONY DARK'NESS DEMENTIA RAVEN WAY My Immortal manner you can.

Feel free to stick as close to the original description format, or go completely off the rails.

#MY NAME IS KIMBERLY ANABIEL EPHEM'RAL BUNNY TEMPEST #I have messy ashy-red-brown hair (that is not how I got my name)#that is curly and reaches my shoulder blades and dark brown eyes that look black in most lighting and sometimes photograph solid black #which makes me look like some kinda of demonic being #(or just a shitty selfie taker)#Literally no one ever tells me I look like Ivy Levan (AN: if you don't know who that is fair enough).#I'm not related to Rimuru Tempest because he is not a real person #I'm not a vampire and my teeth could use some work but I am a broke American so I'm shit out of luck.#I AM NOT A PREP #I AM A LOSER #I AM TOO BROKE TO BE A GOTH #I wear mostly oversized tops and leggings in the most obnoxious colors and patterns I can find.#I want people to cringe when they look at me.#I hate WalMart but buy most of my clothes from there.#For example today I'm wearing an old ass soft as hell pale pink tshirt and crayon-blue sweatpants.

10 notes · View notes

coffeebanana · 1 year

Text

why am i searching for jobs again when i already know what i want to do with my life? i don't think winning the lottery so i can write fics full-time is too much to ask for. ...no i don't buy tickets, what's your point?

#kayla rambles #send help because i'm actually considering applying to a chemistry-related job (like in a lab) that's how we know things are desperate #like YES that's what my degree is in and YES i like the topic in theory and YES i was in grad school for 2 years before dropping out #but i have literally never seriously considered applying to a lab job before because labs bore me #what if it's as Straight™️ as my grad school lab was what then?#i can survive in a heterosexual environment but i cannot THRIVE #i have always enjoyed jobs the most when my coworkers are mostly queer because i just. can be myself?#and i don't know how to find that in an 'adult' job that pays me a decent amount and that i don't hate #if my current job didn't have shitty management i'd consider staying despite the crap pay because i genuinely love most of my coworkers #i love going into work and making silly sound effects and not having it questioned that's all i want

8 notes · View notes

musical-chick-13 · 10 months

Text

I hate Raúl/Sofía :)

#why did I think going in the show tag was a good idea #remember when I wrote a whole essay on why this ship doesn't work I should reblog that #I will NEVER forgive this show for making their genuinely sweet and selfless mentally ill character not only a) make excuses for a shitty #guy incapable of understanding her or treating her well who participated in calling her 'crazy' along with other SPECIFICALLY ABLEISM-RELATE #BEHAVIOR (that is LITERALLY what happened iN CANON) even when he was supposedly interested in her and b) do all of this while #not even going through a corruption arc #I will ALSO never forgive them for having the AUDACITY to have said character say (about a toxic relationship) that 'nothing that's worth it #is ever easy' (or whatever tf it was that she actually said I'm not gonna look up the exact wording)#most of the time I have mild irritation at most toward ships that I'm not into but this is one of the few that I TRULY /HATE/#look how they massacred my girl :(#(ALSO even if they DID do a proper Corruption Arc™ like...idk maybe we have one example of a piece of media where they don't do that?)#(like genuinely she was the only explicitly mentally ill character I can think of where the whole point was SUPPOSED to be that she is #a genuinely nice person. like Idk maybe we don't take that away from me. for once. could be fun. idk.)#ANYWAY #the real horror was the ableism we found along the way

1 note · View note

imsobadatnicknames2 · 6 months

Text

This isn't related to anything recent it's just a thought about a couple things that happened earlier this year that I didn't manage to put into words back when it was relevant.

While I sympathize with the way D&D bloggers start posting stuff like "teehee don't click this link, it will take you to a PDF of the Player's Handbook, DMG, Monster Manual and Scrimblo Brimblo's Guide To Scrunkly, remember not to click this link because it's illegal!!!" every time WotC does something naughty, because there will never be a circumstance under which I don't consider piracy to be based as fuck, I also think pirating D&D material doesn't really do much to really challenge WotC.

The reason WotC feels like it can get away with so many shitty practices is not only because they make a shitload of money selling D&D products, but also because D&D's monolithic brand recognition has engulfed public perception of the entire hobby and as long as they can keep it that way they know D&D is gonna keep being the product most newcomers to the hobby are gonna initially flock to and very rarely branch out from, and that's not gonna change as long as so many people keep playing exclusively D&D stuff even if it's pirated.

So like... Yeah, it's great to get your friends to pirate every D&D material and not give WotC any money, but it'd be even better to use WotC doing something shitty as an opportunity to branch out and maybe consider giving a chance to that one weirdo in the group who keeps offering to run a campaign in a different RPG that everyone keeps saying no to because y'all already learned D&D and it looks like too much work to learn a different system.

#ttrpg

3K notes · View notes

lovingmattysposts · 1 month

Text

Quiet 9

P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8

pairing: y/n and Matt sturniolo

summary: a girl with a lot of baggage and a boy with even more try to help put each others pieces back together one by one. A story about a girl who’s broken and a boy who doesn’t talk

warnings: none I don’t think? Maybe suggestive?

-----------------------------------------------------

I knocked softly on the front door before stepping back. I felt my stomach twist as I waited for Jake to answer the door.

His house was ridiculous. 5 cars in the driveway, with a huge garage. A garden displaying in the front and gates that wrap around the entire house. I looked down at my clothes and tugged my shorts uncomfortably.

I let out an uneasy breath. I felt uneasy about this whole thing. The way Jake acted in front of Matt today, biology in general. I'm not even good at biology, I just jumped at the opportunity at being friends.

I shuffled my feet, I've never felt more shitty about myself. Never felt like such a liar. That's what I was. Everything about me he's seen so far was fake.

I swallowed.

The door opened and Jake's eyes landed down on mine. I couldn't not glance down at his state. His hair pushed back, his chest bare, out of breath and sweaty. He smiled and I filcked my eyes up to his and my cheeks pinkened. He just watched me checkhim out.

"Hey" He crossed him arms over his chest as he looked down at me. I let out a breath his abs mocking me as I avoided looking. "Hey" I answered, my voice shaking.

"I just got done working out, I was afraid you weren't coming" He smiled tilting his head, his eyes grazing my figure just as I'd done to him. I crossed my arms over myself as I turned and looked around to pretend I didn't notice.

"Your home is......beautiful" I breathed as I looked around. He glanced around before nodding. "Thank you, my mom takes pride in it. It's annoyingly noticeable" He chuckled before stepping back in the threshold.

"Come in" He motioned me in. I stepped forward before walking in. Everything was clean, everything was white. I couldn't help the face I made as my eyes widened in my surroundings.

"You look like you've seen a ghost, come on" He chuckled, placing his hand on my arm and pulling me towards the stairs. I sighed as I looked around. It looked like one of those homes on a tv show. Like the relator tv shows titled "How to sell a multimillion dollar home"

I swallowed.

The furniture screamed at me "You don't belong here"

I looked up at Jake as we made our way up the steps. He sighed once we finally made it up the steps. Still, I glanced around like I was in a museum. He pushed the door at the end of the hall open and we walked in.

His bedroom was dark, like any typical teenage boy's room. Poster's that held jeresey hung next to his flatscreen tv. His bed covered in navy sheets and comforter and expensive colonges on a shelf next to the bed.

It didn’t look like Matt’s room. It didn’t feel like Matt’s room.

"Welcome to the estate" He chuckled as he opened one of his drawers and pulled out a t-shirt to put on. I looked over at him as his muscles flexed and the abs were hidden again behind the fabric.

Clean cut, muscle-y guys have never really been my type. Not that I have a type, but I'm just not overly attracted to it like most girls. I've know guys who mirror Jake's physique and have the personalities of the ping pong balls they like to throw into cups full of beer.

Disappointing really. Still, girls would fall to their knees at one flash of there lined stomachs. I never saw the appeal personally. Not that they ever wanted me to anyway.

"I look like Matt, I am your type"

I looked down blinking to stop the memory.

"Are you okay?" Jake walked over to me smiling. I looked back up and gave him a quick nod as I shook the memory of Chris’s words out of my head. He approached me and peered down at me until our bodies were almost pressed together. I didn't move.

His hand came against my waist.

"Good" He smiled looking down at me. I forced a smile hoping he couldn't see the nervousness that lied within my smile.

"Come here" He said moving past me and grabbing my arm. I let him pull me until he sat me down against his bed.

He reached over onto his desk pulling out a textbook and plopping it next to me.

"It's your job to make sure I don't fail this next test" He breathed before sitting down next to me. I looked over at him chuckling.

"I said I’d help, I never said how much help I would be" I said shaking my head. He just held my stare. "I trust you" He said before opening the book.

Jake stared down at the page and then looked up at me.

"What?" He shook his head raising his eyebrows. I blinked at him. "What do you mean, what?" I asked back. He looked back down at the page.

"The cells--" I pointed to the page. "They have to connect. That's how they survive. It wouldn't make sense otherwise. You can't but them together wrong--they would physically explode" I breathed pointing to the page. He stared down at it.

"....Right" He tapped his pencil. I sighed and fell against his pillows. "Are you even retaining any of this?" I chuckled as I looked down at him. He glanced up at me before he dropped his head chuckling.

"It's hard to focus"

"The topic's not hard"

"That’s not what I meant" He looked up. I blinked down at him holding his stare before he sighed and looked back down. I could have swore his eyes scaled down me before he did.

"You're smart" He breathed. I pursed my lips and looked down at him. "I'm not that smart" I shook my head, I truly wasn’t. He licked his lips and then looked back down at the paper before closing the book and pushing it away from him.

I just watched him.

"I think you're smarter than you think" He said looking at me. I glanced from him to the closed book against the bed. "What?" I swallowed. He sighed and looked to the side.

Silence came between us before he sat up slightly and turned his attention to me.

"I don't think i've ever had to try this hard to get a girl to want to kiss me"

My eyes widened at his statement.

"What?" My voice wobbled again. He tapped his pencil before discarding it.

"I apologize if I'm forward, but why do you think I invited you to my game--or out with my friends...or to help with biology" He breathed motioning to the discarded book. I smacked my lips as I looked towards the book.

"I thought you....needed help with biology" I felt my nerves come up my throat. He wanted to kiss me. A boy's never said that to me before. Or wanted to do that before. I forced myself to not hug my arms out of nervousness. Was it hot in here? I let out a breath.

"I did---I do." He shook his head looking down. He glanced up at me. "I just..." He glanced down my face.

"You're really fucking pretty, and nice." He said shaking his head. “I don’t know may nice girls” His hand came over my knee. I looked down at it. My face reddened at his sentence. He chuckled. He tilted his head.

“Nadia’s nice” I spoke. He sighed and looked down. “Nadia’s sleeping with Tyler, I don’t do sloppy seconds” He raised his eyebrows.

The choice of words, I felt in my gut. It sat with me the wrong way. I opened my mouth to speak.

"I can help but want to...feel your lips against mine." He said softly. I looked down at my lap and let out a nervous laugh.

"I don't think you want that Jake. Lacey--She seems to really like you. I wouldn't want--" I shook my head.

"Lacey's not—“ He shook his head. “Lacey doesn’t have your lips” he breathed his fingers coming and brushing over my mouth. I just looked up at him.

“Or your smile.” He whispered, his finger coming under my chin. I opened my mouth and then closed it. "Jake-" I breathed swallowing. He sighed and looked off, before dropping his hand.

“Okay sorry” He breathed. “I got carried away” He shook his head.

"Please, tell me more about the cells, I'm interested" He smiled before moving next to me and laying on the pillow next to mine. I just looked at him feeling the chills run up my body.

"They...um" I cleared my throat as he looked at me. Staring directly at me.

"They--" I took in a breath, and then his lips were on mine.

My eyes widened as he moved his lips against mine, before I closed them and leaned into the kiss. His hands found my waist before he rolled over on top of me, one hand on my waist, the other under my chin.

Oh my god, I was kissing a boy.

As our lips moved together, he moved his hand against my sides. He bit down on my bottom lip before he slipped his tonuge into my mouth. Weird fucking feeling.

Panic sprung throughout me.

I pulled back. Jake opened his eyes as he hovered over me. I stared up at him.

"Too fast?" He breathed, brushing hair out of my face. I attempted to catch my breath from the lack of air. I swallowed.

"No I--" I shook my head terrified to mess this up. "I just wasn't expecting any of this" I shook my head.

“Yeah? What’d you expect?” He smiled before his lips connected with the side of my face. I stared up at the ceiling.

He kissed right under my jaw.

"I thought we would--that we were--" his teeth sank down on my neck. "Friends" My voice cracked. He couldn't give me hickeys. He could not give me hickeys. I wouldn't be able to look Matt in the eyes.

Matt? Why the fuck was I worried about what Matt would think right now? The man with the three Porsche and a Jaguar parked in front of his house right now was biting your neck, and you're thinking about Matt.

Well, that and the butterly drawing. All of those books with the details in the spine. I fought back on my mind.

Y/n, fucking focus. It rebuttled.

"You thought we'd be friends?" He breathed against my ear. He pressed his lips right below my ear. "Does this feel like I wanna be friends?" He asked before pressing his lips against mine again, pushing his tounge back into my mouth.

His hand came under my knee as he gripped the back of my thigh as he kissed me harder. I attempted to match him.

This wasn't me. This wasn't me.

"Jake" I pulled from him. He looked down at me before dropping my leg. "What? Whats wrong? Is this not okay?” His hand came to the side of my face. I blinked up at him.

This was okay. A boy was kissing you, y/n. This was okay. I blinked up at him and for a split second I could have sworn his green eyes turned blue, Matt's blue.

"I've gotta go okay?" I whispered down at Matt who laid against the pillow next to mine. He might be asleep, I told myself. I couldn’t see his face. I didn't want to wake him.

He opened one of his blue eyes and peered up at me. He sighed before turning over, pulling the blanket over him, hiding his face from my view. It was almost 6, I had to go to Jake's.

"Don't miss me too much" I chuckled on the other side of him. He didn't react. I swallowed before I slid off his bed and turned off the tv.

"I'll meet you tomorrow, library. 7:30? Before school?" I asked softly as I grabbed his door handle. He didn't move, let alone respond to me. I stood there for a second before looking down at my feet.

"I'll see you tomorrow" I stated and then I left.

“It’s okay” I nodded. He smiled before he pressed his lips back down to mine. I smiled as I kissed him back, running my hands through his hair. He sighed against my mouth as he gripped my waist harder, running his fingers under my shirt.

His hand came back under my leg as he pressed our bodies together and his tongue explored my mouth, and I let it.

I could feel his eyes on me. I had my hood up and my head down. He wouldn’t stop looking. I glanced up at him finally. Matt met my eyes before he sighed and looked back down.

“What?” I asked staring at him. I was on edge enough, I didn’t need his staring too.

He let out a hard breath before he leaned over and tightened the strings to my hoodie to conceal my neck and tapped to his own neck. The same place where a mark laid on my own neck. As if to say:

Hide your hickeys better, I can see them.

My face turned red at my attempted to hide what I didn’t want Matt to see, but he already had. Embarrassing washed over me. I stared down at my page. Matt tapped his foot.

“It was my curling iron” I lied. He looked up at me, no emotion on his face. Nothing behind his eyes. He just looked back down at his notebook for a second before he closed it and stood up and walked away, not even glancing back.

I slumped back in my seat tightening my hoodie even further.

I went home after that. I didn't chase after him. I simply got up and walked out. I walked home, alone.

I didn't want to face Matt or Jake. Didn't want to look either of them in the eye. I shouldn't have went to school on the first place, so I went home.

I hunched over the mirror as I rubbed my neck, pressed a spoon to it, ice, everything in the book.

Everything just shined more red to my eyes the more I messed with it. Tears brimmed my eyes as I threw the spoon down and it hit the floor.

I couldn't get Matt's face out of my head. The way he looked at me, the way he stared at my neck. Knowing what it was. And I lied to him. And he knew I had.

I swallowed and hunched over the sink.

I reached up wiping the tears from my eyes before walking over to my bed and crawling under the sheets, pulling them under my chin.

I wondered if Matt was wondering where I was right now, if i went home, or if he didn't care—didn't notice my absence. I wondered what Jake was thinking. If he was waiting to talk to me. If it was a one time thing.

As each thought crossed my head, it made me feel more and more like an idiot. Sick to my stomach. Pathetic. I closed my eyes. I felt abandoned. I hated this.

Then a thought hit me and I stood up from my bed and I walked down my steps. A few seconds later I opened the door to see the white cat still perched on my porch. I sighed before bending down and picking it up.

"Hi Sparkle" I whispered as I held her up. She just looked down at me. "If I let you stay can you promise to never leave me?" I whispered. Blank stare. Kind of like Matt’s. I smiled at the kitty, before hugging it to my chest.

I walked up the stairs and to my bed. I crawled under the covers before Sparkle came over to the pillow next to mine, where Matt once sat and closed her eyes. I smiled running my hand behind her ears.

My smiled dropped. Sleep, I just needed....sleep.

#matt sturniolo #nick sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo smut #sturniolo x reader #nicolas sturniolo #chris sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #sturniolo triplets

551 notes · View notes

thagomizersshow · 11 months

Text

Ranting about how JP is not a good critique of capitalism made me want to talk about a sci-fi monster movie that is an excellent AND highly relevant exploration of anticapitalistic themes: Alien (1979).

First I want to say that if you haven’t seen Alien, please do so before I spoil it for you. It’s not just one of my all time favourites, but also one of the greatest pieces of science fiction ever created. For real, please go watch it.

The biological aspects of Alien are often the most talked about themes in the movie, which is fair, because they’re simultaneously very interesting and in-your-face. Most viewers remember the movie for the gory sexual imagery, not for an authentic depiction of class struggle. I actually wrote a video essay a while back that I never made about how our innate disgust and resulting fear of parasites/parasitoids is the primary driver behind the xenomorph’s ongoing popularity. I’m not immune to this aspect of Alien’s eternal intrigue, that’s for sure.

However, there’s one narrative element that makes Alien ripe for class analysis, especially today, and that is the film’s portrayal of artificial intelligence.

AI in Alien is consistently shown to be hostile to the crew, but not because of a glitch, like HAL in 2001: Space Odyssey, or because they decide to rise up against their oppressors, like in Terminator. No, what makes Ash, the android, and MOTHER, the ship’s AI, so threatening is that they are doing exactly what they were programmed to do — whatever it takes to ensure corporate interests. In this case, they are programmed to ensure the survival of an extraterrestrial monster at the cost of the crew.

The audience isn’t privy to all the things that Ash does to meet this goal, but at the very least he breaks quarantine protocols, does a shitty job of watching the facehugger, lets Kane join the rest of the crew for a meal (when they still don’t know what it did to him!), plays dumb once the xenomorph is on the loose, and attempts to murder Ripley when she discovers his mandate. If it weren’t for Ripley being a determined badass, Ash might’ve gone unnoticed until the whole crew was dead and the Weyland-Yutani Corporation had their mitts on the alien so they can cause another catastrophe.

This horror, that you will encounter AI whose programming doesn’t care if you live or die, is what makes Alien’s take on the subject so relevant. Dipshits like Elon Musk or some shitty tech journalist might try and convince us that ChatGBT scary because it can fake being human, as if Skynet is right around the corner.

No, the real horror of AI is that the people in power (our bosses, our politicians, etc.) are going to use it to exploit us, just like how they use everything else.

In the end, it takes being skeptical of things that seem trustworthy for Ripley to defeat Ash. The audience finds out from the Nostromo’s captain, Dallas, that Ash was a last minute addition to the crew, as chief science officer. This is a role that inherently engenders trustworthiness in the face of the unknown, especially for a crew that is basically a bunch of working joes. It’s not unbelievable to conceive this was purposeful by Weyland-Yutani to make Ash above suspicion. That, combined with literally naming the ship’s AI MOTHER, of all things, shows that the company is deliberately weaponizing aesthetics to foster a positive relationship between the crew and their AI agents.

Alien serves as a reminder to be vigilant as we enter the AI boom, because these programs will be used to exploit us, and corporations WILL try to cloak this purpose behind relatability, convenience, and trust. The AI we encounter is more likely to be Ash or MOTHER than it is to be Data or Skynet.

#alien #movies #crit post

2K notes · View notes

fantastic-nonsense · 4 months

Text

I think people who genuinely wanted Percy to rebel against the gods and overthrow the system kind of...miss the whole point of the series

The question is not whether or not the gods deserve to rule; the books are kind of unambiguous that they don't! That the gods are generally undeserving of their children's loyalty is the one thing that Percy and Luke both agree on! But PJO is less about divine right to rule vs. ruling via consent of the governed and more about improving dysfunctional family systems. It's not about whether unfair rulers deserve to continue ruling; it's about forcing the gods to be better, fairer rulers and a better, fairer family given limited alternatives.

Because what are the alternatives, as presented to us within the scope of the original PJO series?

Option 1: allow Kronos to topple Olympus and take over. Clearly not a viable alternative for all of the reasons the books show us.

Option 2: the demigods overthrow the Olympians and rule the world themselves. Okay. How's that going to work out long-term, given demigods are mortal and cannot control or protect their parents' domains? Demigods will die out within a generation or two, so that's potentially a one-generation short-term solution, and then everyone's right back where they started. Except worse, because now the world has been out of divine balance for a century and the gods have a completely legitimate bone to pick with all demigods. Materially worse outcome.

Option 3: demigods ignore the gods and their will entirely. They integrate into the mortal world, refuse to participate in quests or talk to their parents, and pretend prophecies don't exist. Except that's clearly not a viable option, since we see that demigods usually can't safely exist in the mortal world without monsters coming after them, the gods are cruel enough to use blackmail and engage in hostage situations to get demigods to act as heroes, and prophecies have a way of coming true regardless of everyone's best attempts to circumvent them. Again: materially worse outcome.

And for Percy, for the demigods at Camp Half-Blood, for Luke and for everyone else who defected....for the most part, they don't actually have an inherent problem with the gods ruling them. They just want to be acknowledged, valued, and loved by their families, to be treated as more than a tool for their parents to wield whenever their services are needed. That was the core thesis of the demigod rebellion, which was wholly separate from Kronos' specific motivations for overthrowing the Olympians, and it's why Percy's asks at the end of TLO were what they were.

The point was always that had Percy grown up in a slightly more dysfunctional family environment...had he grown up with Frederick Chase's seemingly conditional love or May Castellan's madness instead of Sally Jackson's steady, quiet, unconditional love...he could have turned out like Luke. Like Ethan. Like the dozens of demigods who defected from camp to join Luke's cause. Percy could have turned out just as a bitter and angry and vengeful. Just as ready to tear down the system. Just as willing to betray and kill his own family for the sake of making a point.

But instead, Percy openly reprimands the gods for abandoning their families and using them as cannon fodder in their own petty disagreements. He forces them to acknowledge and claim their children. He demands that everyone who is part of the godly family be recognized and accepted, not just those related to the Twelve Olympians. He asks for those unjustly punished (like Calypso) to be set free and accepted back into the family. Because that's the point at the end of the day: not forcing bad rulers to step down, but changing an insanely dysfunctional family system that the gods and demigods are all members of into a better, safer, and more accepting environment for demigods to grow up and live in.

Overthrowing the gods wouldn't solve the problem at the heart of the series, which is the gods' shitty parenting and family management skills. It would only exacerbate the massive familial fault-lines that Kronos exploited and leave the demigods open to more godly manipulation. Which is why the series ends as it does, with Percy using his wish to tangibly improve the lives of his family instead of selfishly improving his own life (via accepting immortality/godhood) or overthrowing the gods. Because the conflict isn't about the gods as rulers. It's about the gods as parents.

PJO's core thesis is Percy, who grew up knowing unconditional familial love, looking at this whole world of children who didn't and saying "that's not fair. Gods should be better than this!" But instead of destroying them the way Luke wants to, instead of overthrowing them and putting himself on the throne, he instead challenges them to be better parents and family members. To be part of the solution instead of the problem. And Percy's demands don't solve everything, but they were necessary first steps! Without forcing the gods to acknowledge a bare minimum floor of inclusion, the cycle would simply begin all over again the next time a major conflict popped up.

So that's the problem Percy solves and how he successfully fulfills the prophecy: by believing that the gods had the capacity to change and forcing them to break the cycle of familial abandonment, he preserves Olympus and takes the first steps towards a new status quo, one that is objectively better for demigods than the one he grew up in. That's why he succeeds, and it's why Percy overthrowing the gods would have made for a much less satisfying ending than what actually happened.

#pjo #pjo meta #percy jackson #luke castellan #ethan nakamura #annabeth chase #long post #pjo tv #wow it's been awhile since I've written proper pjo meta lmfao

709 notes · View notes