#i started this like in September but i forgot about it until now and finished it | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

iam93percentstardust · 5 months

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It's not just the commodification of fandom. It's not just the disinterest in wips in favor of completed stories. It's not just the unwillingness to take chances on new writers.

It's the demand for instant gratification too.

I'm posting a "wip" right now. It's actually a fully completed story, and I stated that in the A/N when I started posting it a few weeks ago. I finished writing it early in December. It's not going to be abandoned and discontinued. Short of a tragic accident, it will 100% be posted in its entirety before the end of January.

It's also almost 60k words long. Each chapter is approximately 14k words. That's a lot to expect people to read quickly, so I made the decision to post weekly instead of dumping it all at once. I don't normally do that for wips. I normally post bimonthly to give myself time to write the next chapter. But in concession to the fact that this one is already finished, I decided to post once a week. Could I have posted it all at once or even once a day? Sure, but again, I have more than a few close friends who are slow readers, and I thought it was better to give people the time to read each chapter and let it digest before dumping another one on them instead of making them feel like they have to read it immediately so they don't miss the next update.

This, apparently, was a mistake.

I've been very open about working on this fic since I started it in September. People told me they were excited to get the chance to read it every time I posted an update about where I was in the writing process. When I announced that I was posting it, they told me that they couldn't wait to read it. It's not like I was expecting massive numbers of kudos and comments; this fandom has shrunk in size and engagement, I'm not the most popular writer in it, and I try not to feel entitled to engagement, but considering all the people telling me they were excited for it, I was expecting something.

Instead it was crickets. All those people who were so excited and told me they couldn't wait to get home to read it? That was the last I heard from them, unless it was to express outright incredulity that I expected them to read a work in progress. "It's not a work in progress!" I protested. "I'm just taking a little longer to post it!" Yeah, but it's not posted all in one go, so why should we bother to read it? We'll just wait until the end of January once it's finished. "Will I hear from you then? Will I get any indication at all that you liked it?" Eh, maybe. If we feel like it. But it'll only be one comment at the very end. If that.

This keeps happening. If it's not an already completed chaptered fic that I'm posting over time instead of immediately, then it's an idea that I had first talked about a while ago but took a couple months to write only to be met with silence once I start posting because everyone moved on and forgot about it. If it's not ready to go right now in all its fully finished glory and all 60k words posted immediately after I first spoke about it, then why am I talking about it at all? Why should I expect people to be waiting in anticipatory eagerness?

I remember when I posted my first Christmas event fic in 2020. It was already finished too when I started posting it. I'd been talking about it all year. People had seemed really excited for it when I first mentioned it, but then interest seemed to die out somewhere around August. By the time I started posting it in late November, I was fully convinced that no one was going to read it. I actually posted the first chapter and then immediately turned my computer off and didn't let myself turn it back on until the next day.

I was shocked by the number of readers I had. The number of comments. The sheer amount of people telling me they'd been waiting on tenterhooks for me to post that first chapter. And it kept coming. People were talking and theorizing and marking their conversations with spoiler bars for anyone who hadn't read the latest chapter. People timed when I posted the first few chapters so they could be waiting by their computer for when I dropped the next one. I was randomly gifted art. It was really an event, and I'll always be grateful for the support and community I was given for that month.

I never believed I'd ever be able to capture that kind of readership again, and I was right, and that's okay. But when I posted last year's Christmas event fic, for the first time since I started doing this in 2020, someone asked me why I bothered to space it out over a month instead of just posting the entire thing in one go on Christmas Day and how could I possibly expect them to be that invested for an entire month instead of just waiting until it was finished. I didn't know how to tell them that only three years prior, that's not only exactly what people did but they were excited for it to be like that.

If I'm not going to post my already completed fic in one lump sum right now, then the audience for it is nonexistent. And the audience won't grow once it's finished. It's like I have one opportunity to capture the readers and if they weren't willing to take the chance on the first chapter, then they'll never come back. It's disheartening, to say the least. Only six months ago, I was telling a friend that I thought this was my forever pairing, that I'd still be writing for this ship when I was old and grey. And now I'm going through my ideas folder, wondering what can be repurposed for other ships, because I increasingly feel not just that I'm shouting into a void but that the void is actively ignoring me.

I can't post wips because what if I abandon them or take too long to update? I can't post a chaptered fic in one go because that's too many words to expect people to read. But I can't space out posting completed chaptered fics either because everyone wants the instant gratification of the full fic right now. So what am I supposed to do?

I miss December 2020, but it's not the random art that I miss or the kudos or the number of comments. It was the community that built up around this fic. It was knowing that it was okay to space out the chapters because everyone was still right there with me, talking and theorizing and using their spoiler bars. It was my audience trusting me enough to come along with me for the ride instead of waiting for me to be done. I was so scared back then that the full year between me first talking about the idea and posting the first chapter had lost me my audience, scared that they'd all forgotten about me and moved on to other authors who were quicker to post, but I wish I'd known that three years later, it would only take four months for people to lose interest in an idea.

I'd have treated December 2020 like it was way more special than I did.

#alle talks #bad comments #fandom #writing

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crownsofesha · 5 months

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Top Post of Each Month of 2023

(I used tumblr top ten to find out which when the top post of each month)

January

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This was just a really simple post, in my old editing style as well, apart of a short series of portiture introducing the Holmes. Cousins of Anne through Jane. Not my favorite of the month, but still cute. Other parts of the month in general was just some story posts.

February

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I love this post a lot, it marks the beginning of a collab that will come out in the next arc. I thought it would have come out sooner, but I ride the waves of motivation. The picture itself was one of my favorites with that editing styles, and still is. February saw one of my favorite posts, featuring Jane and their kids (including Anne).

March

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And so begins my recent editing style. I love it so much. This post as well. And I was able to come out with the part two to this lookbook in this year, thats a win for me. The post itself really helped me establish more cultural things about the people of Esha and their connection to plants and colors. In March I made my first and probably only guide on Russian Titles and the first part of the "What Once Was, Will Never Be." The second part gets to come out wayyyy later.

April

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My first poll! (I'm pretty sure). I just love dressing Esther up, and wanted a little cinderella moment, but Hildegard really did look way better in the dress (as well as the color chosen for her). This month I only posted 5 seperare posts, and most of it was asks.

May

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An introduction of three Queens and a Grand Princess through out the history of Esha. (Including one for the future) I introduced a decent amount of future gens this month. I wish the mother's day post from this month got more traction than this. (It had my next two gens featured) I also did a couple of lookbooks.

June

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I finally had another story post this month and this post for some reason was the most popular of the month, and for the rest of the year until just recently. Its just a picture of a crown! I was so confused when I found out that it was my top post. Don't get me wrong I love the work and worldbuilding I put into the royal collection I made, but it just confuses me why it was so popular. I did a lot of worldbuilding in June.

July

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This was very fun to do! Also technically a worldbuilding thing for me in the fashion, but the portraits that came out of it are really pretty! I didn't have much going on for this blog during July.

August

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A lookbook of Arabella's outfits! This was very fun, it got me more interested into what They wear for royal outings and just in general. This month saw another story post (One of my favorites) and the start of the Six Queens storyline!

September

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This is an Au post where if Anne didn't marry George, Esther would have, for ...reasons :) The month saw the beginning of chapter two of the six queens story and just some of my favorite edits as well. Like some magazines I did for Esha.

October

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This was the beginning of a series of portraits I did for the modern royals of Catalia. October was also the start of Sima and I creating a second short story other than Six Queens, which will come out after Six Queens has finished. It also saw two of my favorite posts of the Six Queens short story and the end of Six Queens Chapter Two.

Novemeber

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One of my favorite posts of all time, and getting to feature some of my favorite historical sims that are now dead in the present. The month itself was mostly just portraits and answering asks.

Decemember

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The post that beat the crown! I was so happy with how this came out. This involed more worldbuilding for the country of Chelyabinsk, and me wishing for more Kokoshnik cc. This portrait was used for Tsarina Sofiya's wikipedia post, which I accidently forgot to add her death date, which I will add at a later date and publish again with other wikipedia articles. I want to add more just to hers. The rest of this month was more portraits and a chanukkah post that I planned on having more to it, which I do plan on posting for when its chanukkah in universe (insert crying emoji here) and I got to 200 followers, which was very exciting!

I can't wait to see what happens in the next year for this blog. I have a lot going on in TBS and I can't wait to publish it all. Happy New Years!

#nonstory #ts4 #the sims

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the-empress-7 · 1 year

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Sooo there was that whole weird thing where Harry was trying to do that Texas rodeo in early March 2022? Nothing seems to have come of it but it was super weird. The staff there said at the time "he was going to enter the bull riding but the airline lost his rigging bag"

Then Frogmore was being discussed March/April 2022, after which Harry comes out with the statement that he is 'protecting' the Queen from 'those around her'. But they knew their lease was up. He openly says to Hoda Kotb that "home for me now, for the time being, is in the United States".

In early May 2022, NF cancelled Pearl, so they started to panic about having content. They had hoped they could ride on the 'success' of releasing Pearl until they could build up more royal + invictus footage. So they hit up the polo, and Meghan does Uvalde. Unsurprisingly NF wants nothing to do with this weird pivot to Texas, or non-royal polo.

End of May, Harry takes a bike ride with one of the Van Strawberries, probably learning that Chelsea got married that month. And another Met Gala comes and goes without invites to Meghan. This wasn't how they imagined things going at all!!!

So they call up Misan in June 2022, and task him with photographing Lili for the birthday. But they also probably get him to take as many other pics as possible while there - perhaps those professional looking photos of the duo in the Queen's childhood wendy house?

They pack everything up in June, sob, take pics, finish packing, sob, and take more pics. The royals don't want a circus and H&M don't want to admit to losing Frogmore, so no one leaks about the arrangement. But H&M finally have some recent 'royal content' to hand over.

Barely 2 months later in September and the Queen passes, to everyone's surprise. H&M's original plans are completely screwed, with Meghan acknowledging their doco in October but claiming "it may not be the way we would have told it". NF doesn't care and just wants to get something out of them at this point to justify their deal.

The doco gets pushed out in December 2022, when they wanted the book to come out first (the negative stuff) and the doco second (the love/overcoming/triumph stuff). With the book out in early 2023, it's clear all bridges have been burnt. Worse, the book sunk Harry's remaining popularity like a lead balloon.

The royals have finally got around to figuring out royal residences post-Queen, and tell Harry to hurry up and move his "ornate Ottoman bench and a chaise longue" over to Casa Olivegarden. The press finally picks up on the fact that H&M no longer rent Frogmore.

To try to claw back some sympathy, they trot out Omid to tell everyone what a "cruel and unusual punishment" this is. Unfortunately it just so happens that the news coincides with being papped at an exclusive private dining club. Hence no sympathy.

#timeline

All excellent points and I totally forgot about the odd rodeo appearance. You are right that they absolutely could not have afforded to let the news about Frogmore leak before their reality show aired, because they did their damndest to film everything they could while they could on that property. They needed to showcase it as a "current home in the UK". Which brings us to January, which again, they could not let the news distract from Harry's book. I guess they were saving it for their reconciliation tour turned victim tour 8984.0

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flyawaybooks · 11 months

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shhh don't cry

cassmako Cinderella story, okay?

Euanthe is on the verge of death, Sokrates has betrayed the Apostolisian empire, and after Cassander, there's no heir to the throne. This simply will not do. The Apokine declares that it is time for their child to find a suitable spouse, and that there will be a royal ball open to all eligible citizens of the Golden Branch sector who can afford a transport to Apostolos and an outfit suitable for a royal event.

Mako is nobody. He's iteration 37 of an experiment gone mostly wrong. He's good at fogging, though, so the September institute has decided that he's their best shot at getting access to the inner secrets of the Apostolisian court. And, if it goes wrong? Well, there's more Makos where he came from.

Mako knows how to do this. Well. He did until about thirty seconds ago, when he crashed his Ring of Saturn directly into a finely-dressed Apostolisian and sent their bundle of dried squid-ink pasta and fresh vegetables tumbling to the streets.

"Seriously?" they snap at him. "Can you watch where you're going?"

Mako grins sheepishly and starts scrambling to help pick up the scattered ingredients.

"Sorry, got caught up with getting to my final destination as fast as possible, and I'm also a little lost. Guess I forgot to make sure the path was clear!" He hands over a bundle of formerly fresh basil, which is now decidedly squashed. "Uh, I don't suppose you happen to know where the Embassy is?"

The Apostolisian sighs. "Follow the market path past the next three crossings, and turn left at the fourth one. Keep going until you see the huge ostentatious building on the right, it's impossible to miss."

Mako finishes collecting a handful of what appear to be bright blue tomatoes and gives them back to the stranger. "Listen, I really appreciate it. And...yeah, sorry again, I got a bit carried away." He gives the Apostolisian a once-over, taking note of the well-pressed midnight blue tunic and slacks, the golden-brown skin, and the light dusting of teal scales scattered across their cheeks and over the backs of their hands. Their shoes look expensive, too. Upper class, then, or at least wealthy. Probably gonna be at the ball. "Hey, maybe I'll catch you at the big party this weekend, yeah? I'll save you a dance to make up for it!"

He reaches out a hand to shake the Apostolisian's, and then remembers that shaking hands with someone you haven't been introduced to is considered rude in Apostolisian society. He awkwardly pretends like he's fixing his hair and blushes a little bit, finally feeling the weight of his rapid-fire social failures. Great.

He's too focused on remembering the way he's supposed to be acting to notice the way the Apostolisian blanches at the mention of the party. Embarrassed and ready to make a speedy exit, he fires off one last, "Sorry!" before hopping back on the Ring and surfing away down the street.

Cassander now stands alone in the crowded market square with a bag of very rumpled groceries and a whole lot of questions about what just happened to them. But somewhere behind their initial surge of frustration, they find themself intrigued by this skinny, messy, clumsy guy who believes that he'll be attending the party. How did he get to Apostolos? He's clearly not a local. Dressed in a baggy pink hoodie and the shortest jean shorts they've ever seen, he also didn't seem to be a foreign dignitary. And yet he had asked for directions to the Embassy. What in the name of the Apokine was going on?

#the idea has gripped my brain in the final moments before my unholy bedtime #i have no idea how any of the logistics work but i CAN picture them singing the r&h 'do i want you because you're wonderful' song #cassmako #f@tt #counter/weight #you know? i think this is the first fanfic I've written since i was in fifth grade doing warrior cats #monica rambles #mako trig #cassander timaeus berenice #does anyone want more of this? cause tbh I'm feeling it i might write more

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kayzig · 8 months

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Hello! Just as these evil-looking characters said, I, Kayzig, have a Patreon!

And I should really talk about it more now that, one, there's a project to support! You may have noticed my comic, Liege Doomveil! One of the major features of my Patreon right now is sneak previews of character designs that have not yet appeared, as well as "stages" of the comic, such as its pencils, inks, and an early-bird view of it as a supporter, instead of waiting for the batches I tend to send out on Saturdays mornings.

Sometimes you even get to see "bloopers", like inked pages where I forgot to add in details, and the lettering before I fix tangents, or other silly things that happen when you rush to finish a page at 2am and then slam dunk yourself immediately into bed.

The secondary reason I am pushing this is because, normally, with my day job, my hours aren't cut back horrifically until AFTER the holidays, but the capitalist horrors have started early! If a subscription basis or, in general, Patreon isn't your cup of tea, there's also my Ko-Fi!

There's nothing that will imminently threaten my ability to keep doing art, and my actual EMPLOYMENT isn't in danger, but I'd like to use my free time to KEEP working on art, and not stressing about The (Actual, Real Life, Non-Monster Boyfriend) Horrors. I've had 19 supporter-exclusive posts on there for September, and had 33 for August, so there's generally a steady stream of SOMETHING that I have coming up there, even if it's mostly work-in-progress comics.

#signal boost #that's right everyone sorry to do this #but being hit with a week where I have less than 15 work hours when I need to spend a little extra money on my special eyes contact lenses #has got me stressed

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misplacedmidlanders · 1 month

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Friday, May 10th 2024. Wellington.

It's officially been one week today that we first flew to NZ, and much like the after-effects of a dodgy kebab, things are moving far too quickly. For our hotel room we flipped a coin to see who would have the bed with a beautiful view of Lambton Harbour vs. the bedroom that looks like an abandoned dungeon. Jake won the nicer room, but at least I've got a mirror next to my bed to look at myself whenever I want to (so who's the real winner here).

Our first stop today was Mount Victoria, where we got to see the area that the hobbits first hid from a Nazgûl shortly after they left the Shire, as well as some other nearby areas in the films. For any fortune Kiwis who were passing us by they got to see a bunch of nutters pose for photos recreating these scenes (if you thought we were cool up until now you may want to re-check the previous blog posts). We also had a wander up to Mount Victoria Lookout which gave us a 360⁰ view of the entirety of Wellington (not too shabby, in all honesty).

Afterwards things started to get really ugly for my bank account, as were taken to a place called the Weta Cave - which is essentially the DLC of our tour, in that we paid a lot of money for things that we didn't actually need. I picked up a Fellowship poster, pins and magnets, whist Jake paid for one of every item (or thereabouts) in the gift shop and now has to figure out how to pack these items into his suitcase. It is definitely a place I would like to revisit when I've won the lottery, if for nothing else I still wouldn't be able to afford a house but I could buy myself some more hobbit pins (as Tolkien would have wanted).

We finished off the day by having a lovely lunch at The Roxy Cinema, a vintage but classy venue that had all manner of film memorabilia, posters, and ice cream options (I had the plum, which looked like an alien's brekkie but tasted incredible), and then headed to Weta Workshop where we crafted our own keyrings and then were given a tour of the company's history of prosthetics, costume and set building, and learned about their invaluable contributions to Lord of the Rings, Avatar, Prometheus and various other projects (but strangely not mentioning any of the bad ones they worked on, I guess they forgot about these).

We had dinner at a place called September Vegan Food with two Alabamians and two Scots who are also on our tour, both of whom, as it transpired, have a shared dislike of vegan food. But we tore down some cultural barriers and, dare I say it, made some friends tonight (which is good cos maybe I could trade one of them for Jake). Tomorrow, we are meeting a calligrapher from the films, and then we will have the afternoon free to ourselves, and I, for one, couldn't be more excited to get some laundry done.

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carlos-tk · 8 months

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nice ask week

hi D! it's nice ask week! What made you start watching LS and what was it about the show that made you spiral into fandom?

Hi Rae! Thanks for the question! 💗 Apologies for how long this took me to answer. Work took over my life this week 😢 Now buckle in for a stupidly long story 😅

Firstly, I had watched the original 911s first and half of its 2nd season whenever they aired (2018/19 thanks Wikipedia) and then totally forgot all about it because again #life 😅 I did hear about a spin off whenever they announced it but I guess the only info was that it was coming soon. Wikipedia is helping out and it seems it was May 2019. I didn’t really pay it much mind because by then I had already stopped watching the og.

So I move on with my life and don’t think about either series until September 2022. I saw a youtube clip of a scene: the throwing each other against the wall hookup from 1x02. I watched it and I was like.. OH?!👀🔥🥵 Saved it to my YouTube watch later and again forgot all about it because back then I was doing full time shift work and had no time to breathe let alone watch anything new 😂 (kicking myself because I could’ve been here a year ago) 😭

Cut to this year. I can give you an exact date i rediscovered 911 verse. May 17th 2023!! 🥳 All because of the Tarlos wedding.

Twitter is probably the platform I use the most cos it’s got all my sports content😅 Anyway I happened to be on the discover/trending tab and one of the top hashtags was #TarlosWedding which was airing that day. I clicked it to investigate and scrolled through. It was full of pics and fanvids of the wedding and again I was like OH 👁👁. I liked a bunch of the tweets to revisit and moved on with my day. A few days later because I had liked all that stuff, Twitter keeps recommending me more content. So I find myself back on YouTube and watched these:

and then a series of random scenes and I was like... okay I need full context for all of this. Another month passes and it’s probably end of June/early July and I’m like let me see if this is available anywhere to watch in Australia. I find it on Disney+ and they have seasons 1-3. This is finally when I watched the show. And then I could not stop thinking about it. S4 is no where to be found though. So I google and see it’s halfway through airing on Channel 7 here which means it won’t be uploaded to Disney+ for a while. So then I’m like UGH 😒😩😤 I wanted to binge the whole season like I had for the others. I kept tabs on when it would finish airing on TV and eventually the finale airs August 14th. The next day I start it and binge the whole season on 7Plus over a few days.

Now that I had seen their entire story so far, I was full blown hyper fixating. Like they’re on my mind ALL the time. I’m reading a book or watching a movie/show and thinking about Tarlos in place of the characters. I’m listening to a song or reading a poem/lyric and being like oh that’s so Tarlos coded😂😂 At this point i’m like oh no 😅😅 The fandom life is coming for me.

Then the biggest surprise of all I start getting the urge to write fanfic again! Which is insane because I had not written anything in (redacted) years. Like nearly every time as I was about to sleep, I start having ideas and rambling it out in my notes app at stupid hours like 2am 😂😅

Next we have the writers/actors strike and I’m like 👀trust me to find a new obsession and everyone is on strike and I’m gonna get nothing new for ages. Then I remember AO3 is a thing that exists and find my way to the 911 Lone Star tag and start reading fic again. Any spare moment I had I was itching to read whatever I could get my eyeballs on. I said to you the other day that I read your gym!AU first and look I might’ve read a random 1k word one shot or two but nothing I can actually remember like yours 😂🥵 I think the added pictures and texts made it so memorable because 1. I did not know you could do that on AO3 2. Rafael is like the hottest guy I’ve ever seen 😅😅 and 3. It was just so damn good 🥵 Sm*t with feelings and I am there. You teased the feelings a little and if/when (no pressure btw) you decide to revisit this universe just know I’ll be first in line 🙋🏼‍♀️ and the reason I can recall it as the first is it’s the oldest AO3 tab saved to my safari reading list 😅

By this point I’m reading fic through the end of August and September constantly. A few I read had peoples Tumblr links in the end notes so then I remember that Tumblr also exists 😂 I come over and lurk, explore the tags, look at all the beautiful gifs, look at a few peoples blogs and make a mental note to maybe join Tumblr again. I had 2 blogs back in hs, 1 fandom specific blog that got abandoned during my last year of hs and a sports/tv-series one I used a little in the years after hs but then again #life and I didn’t touch it after like 2016.

Come September 2023. I made a new email, signed up to Tumblr again, and requested an AO3 invite. Learning how to use this site again was wild because so much had changed since I last used it. I saw something about getting mistaken for bots so I spent a little time making the blog look nice and like an actual person exists before I bothered to follow anyone or any tags. October rolls around and I finally start using it every day and now I’m here with all of y’all 💗

Sorry for the extremely long story and again sorry for how long it took 😅😅

#nice ask week #asked and answered

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thetorturedpoetsintern · 2 years

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Little bug

Note: I may or may not have taken inspiration from my friend's daughter who we all call her little bug since she was in diapers, even though she is starting first grade in September. All her dialogue lines are mostly what she tells me when we meet (I swear this child is killing my neurons daily now that she started texting me :D). Anyway, I thought this concept to be cute and also it would give you some answers about what happened to Ana's sister (she is mentioned in Memories). I hope you like the story as much as I do. Enjoy! 🤍

Warnings: pure, old fluff with a bit of NSFW activities mentioned... Oh, and Severus acts all fatherly with the little girl (if you can consider this a warning, I don't, I'll gladly let myself be surprised by this in fics)

"FOR FUCK SAKE, DARLING, I TOLD YOU NOT TO LEAVE THE SHOES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HALLWAY! Can’t even walk inside my DAMN HOUSE without trouble! " Small and hurried steps approached him while Severus crouched and started picking up the groceries he dropped when he stumbled.

"Uncle Snape! You finally came! I thought you'd never come! " And she threw her small arms around his neck and squeezed with all her force. Severus almost fell back due to the force of the attack. "You shouldn't speak like that. Mommy says it's not good to use bad words."

"Well, here I am, little bug! I apologize, the words slipped before I could think about it! "

"It's okay, just think about it next time."

"I will, little bug," He kissed her forehead and struggled to disentangle her arms from his neck. "Now tell me, where is Ana?"

"I'm here, sorry!" Ana said as she made her way toward the two of them. "She was so excited to be here that she ran straight into her room to unpack, and my mind was only focused on catching up with her. I forgot to put the shoes away. " She helped him stand up and left a chaste kiss on his lips.

"You kiss just like mommy and daddy." Isobel brought her palms up to her mouth to hide the fit of giggles that started to get a hold of her.

"Now Izzie, I think we were just starting your summer homework when your uncle arrived home. Why don't you go and start it while I help Severus put the groceries away, and I'll come to you in a minute. "

"But I don't want to..", she stopped when she saw Ana's "I didn't ask you'' face. "Fine, but can I at least get my notebook and join you in the kitchen?", Izzie said as she pulled the classic puppy eyes she was a master at.

"Ugh, okay, Izzie, but I expect you to finish a page from the book like you promised your mother, and then we can play all day long."

"Yes, I’ll go now. Stay where you are until I come back," Isobel stated as she motioned her hands in a stay here motion, turning her back to go upstairs and fetch her book and notebook when she suddenly remembered something. "Uncle Snape, did you bring something for me?"

"Isobel!" Ana slightly raised her voice towards her niece.

"I'm going now," she exhaled, defeated. "But can uncle Snape play with us when I finish my homework?"

"He will if you ask him nicely. But homework first, and no further delays. " With this, Isobel ran up the stairs, and they could hear the sound of her steps long after she was out of sight, probably distracted by Merlin knew what instead of grabbing her backpack.

Ana turned her eyes to Severus, who was once again crouching and picking up the groceries he missed when Isobel stormed into his arms.

"What do you think you're doing, Sev?" She pulled her wand out of her dress pocket and waved it at the whole mess. In an instant, all the groceries floated in the air and silently went into the kitchen where they would be arranged and stored in their rightful place by the spell she cast.

"Oh, aren’t you a smart one? What happened to she doesn't need to see magic until she exhibits signs of it ?"

"What she doesn't see won't affect her. Come now, I was about to make some iced tea, and we have lemon cake in the fridge. You must be hotter than usual." Ana winked playfully at Severus and dodged the slap going for her ass cheeks. "You won’t get dessert if you act like that." She laughed, and Severus' face relaxed upon hearing it.

"Would I get some dessert with that little bug around? Anyway, wasn’t she supposed to arrive tomorrow? "

"It was today, I told you again last night."

"When? Before or after you fucked my brains out? " He whispered in her ear, and now it was Severus' turn to smile mischievously, raising his brow in a silent challenge.

"Language!" She turned as they entered the kitchen, and smacked him in the chest before he caught hold of her wrist.

"If you kiss me, I'll consider it."

Ana rolled her eyes but still pressed her lips more passionately than before over his. Her free hand made its way toward the back of his neck and got hold of his ponytail, slightly pulling it, as his other hand cupped her breast.

"I swear you're acting more like a child than Isobel sometimes," Ana breathed against his cheek.

"About that little bug, remind me how long she'll be staying," Severus said as he planted a kiss on her jaw.

"A week. Her father came home from work after 3 months, and I invited her to let my sister and her husband have the most deserved time for two. "

"What about my deserved time for two?" Severus almost whined in her neck.

"It's not like we didn't make love in every room in this house, multiple times a day, for two summers already."

"I'm insatiable when it comes to you." Severus then nipped at her earlobe and drew a silent moan from Ana.

"Let's stop it before she sees us."

"One last kiss," Severus pleaded as he brushed her lips with his, his nose nudging hers, his warm breath filling all her senses.

"Only one kiss," she whispered, and before she could properly finish the sentence, he dropped her wrist and cupped her face with both his palms.

"You kiss too much." It was Isobel. "So she really can be silent when she wants to," thought Severus, and turned towards her after breaking the kiss.

"I am your aunt"s boyfriend, so I get to kiss her as many times as I want. Now, what is your homework? "

It was dark and the full moon was already high in the sky when there was a soft knock on the door of Sev and Ana's bedroom. He grabbed a robe from the end of the bed and made his way to the door after gently placing Ana from his chest to the pillow. Anastasia was shifting in bed behind him, searching for him in her sleep.

Severus opened the door, and there, in the unlit hallway, Isobel was carrying her blanket in her arms, eyes half asleep but still far away from any real rest.

"What is it, little bug? Trouble sleeping?"

"I miss mommy!" she whined. "Can I sleep here?"

"Of course, Izzie! Enter, "Severus gestured with his head and stepped away from the door. "You can sleep between me and Ana."

After she got comfortable under the duvet, her blanket still tightly wrapped in her tiny arms, Isobel turned to look at Severus, who was getting comfortable under the duvet as well.

"Have a good night, little bug!" He kissed her on the forehead, but her eyes were still as open as when he opened the door.

"You look at Ana the same way daddy looks at mommy," she mumbled in a failed attempt to whisper. "Do you love her?"

"I do, very much by the way." Severus didn't know what got him to open up so easily to this 6-year-old child. Maybe it was the ease of having a child with a pure mind to talk to, and to whom the world was still very much white and black, with no grayness on the canvas of life yet. He was entranced by her, not for the first time though, as she seemed to enter so easily into his soul, searching for answers. Severus pondered for the billionth time how she would be an excellent legilimens if she possessed magical abilities, as Isobel, eyes sleepy and slightly wet from crying, continued to fix his eyes with her own.

"Then you should get married. Daddy says he’s happier to have mommy as his wife. "

"Are you telling me, bug, that I"m not happy?" Severus unconsciously looked over Izzie"s shoulder, smiling slightly at the sleeping form of Anastasia, the silver light from the full moon outside tracing every curve of her covered body.

"You can be happier if you marry her. Then you could be my real uncle. "

"I"'ll think about it. Now how about we get some sleep before we wake Ana up, and she punishes us both, hm? "

"Good night, Uncle Snape!" Izzie got closer to Severus and nuzzled her forehead near his chest. Severus saw her scrunching her eyebrows together, and all of a sudden, the curtains drew by themselves.

"Did you do that, little bug?"

"Of course I did. I always do it. Too much light. Go to sleep before you wake Ana, "she giggled more loudly than she should.

"Good night, little bug!", and once more he kissed her forehead as best as he could in the dark bedroom, and enveloped her in his arms. "Sweet dreams!”

They were both sitting at the kitchen table the next morning, both drinking coffee, her smoking a cigarette, lost in small talk about what they were supposed to be doing around the house that day when the subject of Isobel began and Severus remembered what happened the night before. He told Anastasia, and her eyes widened, a single tear making its way down the swell of her cheek.

"We have another witch in the family," she cried happily. Even though it was taboo in the family, both she and her sister started to think that maybe Isobel was a squib. There was a high chance of this happening since her father was a no-maj; a muggle is what his kind is called here. So the news of Izzie's magical abilities was something she could only compare with riding her broom for the first time at Ilvermorny, pure happiness mixed with anticipation for what was to come next.

"And she said she always draws the curtains like that?" Severus nodded. "I can't wait to tell Julia! And to tell Izzie as well! "

"Tell me what?" It was Isobel, once again moving like a ghost in the house while rubbing her eyes with the back of one hand.

"Stop rubbing your eyes, or you'll get them all red and infected!" Ana said while getting up from the chair. The bud of the cigarette sat furiously smashed on the bottom of the ashtray. "You can sit here, bug. I'm going to make you something for breakfast."

"Were you talking about me?" Isobel flashed at them her most charming smile.

"In fact we did, Isobel. Have you heard about magic? "...

#severus snape #severus snape one shot #severus snape x oc #severus snape fluff #snape fluff #snapedom

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poupeesdecirque · 8 months

Text

Travel Blog - Büsum (North Sea)

15.-17. September 2023

I decided to write a little travel blog about my trip to Büsum as well C:

Overall I want to cherish the memories I made more, photos are great and all but thoughts count too. Polished cam photos will follow later on, for the blog I will keep it to phone pics <3

15th September - 1. Day

The little weekend trip to Büsum was my birthday present from my parents for this year. I went with my Mom. Last year we went to Cuxhaven for 4 days but it was a bit too long for my taste.

I got the friday off in exchange of not getting the Bookfair Friday, therefore we planned it later on. We went to Büsum a few times already, last time it was in the high of the pandemic, you still can see some leftovers from the time. But it's nice to see the city lively again.

We stayed in a hotel very close to the harbour. It's run by a family of alternative folks, they are all tattooed, pierced, have dyed hair and are super open to everyone who is different, I love that. We also found out there was a tattoo convention that weekend and a lot of artists stayed in our hotel.

My very wish was to eat at a specific pancake restaurant but it closed down last year, we decided to visit the replacement restaurant and I have to say... it became our favorite one to eat at over the days. And I loved their menu of teas, heck, so many teas.

We had a Kaiserschmarrn with Blueberry compot in the "style" of the former owner. Then we walked a bit around the city and the beach area, flood was there therefore we couldn't get into the Watt but that was okay. We had booked a spot in another restaurant for the evening and had to check in later on.

Also I had planned to do doll photos the first evening, we were quite packed.

It was the first time for me to eat fish at the sea that was not... fish sticks. But I actually liked it. That was new for me. As we finished we hurried back to hotel to fetch the 5 dolls I had packed to take pics.

We had the most beautiful sunset I very much loved it!

16th September - 2. Day

The day started in the Hotel with breakfast, we were told it would be absolute amazing and it was ... average? Dunno? It was okay but we had better over the years.

Then we went into the Watt for a nice long walk before the flood came in. We explored the area a lot and found some new spots or spots we forgot about?

After that we of course had to get to the tattoo convention, it was super interesting to see. The buzzing of the needles was a bit weird though.

Then we went to fetch lunch and .. well. The restaurant my Mom had chosen was the worst. I had asked for seasonal fruit with my pancake and was told to get kiwi and mango. I got melon, pineapple and a rather disgusting strawberry syrups smoldered on top. Mom's choice was advertised as served "hot" and it was cold and I was super disappointed here. I really feared my mood would declince more and more... Mom asked me what I want to do now. I told her I just want to walk and we... walked. And it helped.

We discovered new restaurants and spots, like a park with some outdoor sports equipment. Dunno why but it lifted my mood. We then got to the restaurant we ate lunch the day before and got some cake as I just wanted to relax somewhere. It had actual seasonal fruit (berries, apple) and we booked a spot for dinner there.

I am seriously not the type who loves burgers but since there are more restaurants popping up with non-meat patties I am testing them here and there. I had a vegetable patty and the sourdough bun was toasted so well it was crunchy until the end. The cabbage salad was really nice and not to mention the mousse au chocolate as dessert.

We came back to an incredible scenery as it got dark and the sun went down. We took another walk and went back to the hotel then.

17th September - 3rd Day

The last day had arrived. I went on a little morning walk on my own and the sunrise was absolutely beautiful and the fog on top of it... I am still in awe.

After checking out we took another big walk into the Watt, the scenery was amazing, I can't put it into words.

Before we left we had another stop at our new favorite restaurant and I had some american cheesecake (only had german one before). We left Büsum then.

Before we completely left we stopped at a local farmer and got some vegetables, the area is known for cabbage and it was in season.

Traveling back ate my complete spoons though as Mom mistook a route and we ended up in Hamburg... I mean... I saw the convention hall for the Polaris and all but I was just so done then.

Overall it was a very good trip, I had the feeling last year Mom and I grew apart a bit as she was a bit too clingy for my taste, maybe it was just that 4 days with her is too much, dunno. But this year was way better.

#north sea #travel blog #büsum #sea

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no-face-girl-76 · 9 months

Text

The camping trip.

Dear diary,

Today was the best day ever. I went camping with my friends Luna, Bella and Kayla. It started off with us all being a mess, Mary and Luna stayed up way too late last night. Kayla forgot the second air mattress and I forgot my slippers.

The four of us all got ourselves situated and planned out how we were all going to fit on one air mattress. We are going to have to all cuddle side by side.

Mary asked if we wanted to go swimming and we all took turns changing in the tent while Kayla blew up the floaties. We all went down to thé water and jumped in, it was mid September and freezing! The view was amazing, clear water and sky, the sun shining down on my skin. I felt like I was melting.

We were all sipping our drinks and talking but I could feel Kayla’s eyes on me. My top teased my nipples, if I shifted the wrong way I knew she would see everything. My bottoms were a cheeky cut. They fit me perfectly. I made eye contact with her and she shyly looked away. She said the suns right in my eyes but I could see perfectly fine. Luna and Mary didn’t seem to notice.

The four of us eventually finished our drinks and started getting cold so we went back to our campsite. Luna went to change first, while Kayla started the fire. Mary poured us more drinks even though it was 4pm and we were already very tipsy. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows until we all felt a little sick. We talked until 11pm when we noticed it was an hour after quiet time. We packed up and crammed into the tent.

It was freezing in the tent and we all called out where we wanted to sleep. Luna on one end, Mary in the middle beside me, me and then Kayla on the other end. It was only a queen size mattress so we had to spoon, I didn’t mind. I didn’t realise how touch deprived I was. I wanted to be in the middle. It was perfect. We laughed for another couple hours and then Kayla asked if she could warm her hands on me.

She put them on my stomach at first they were freezing. The touch felt nice and comforting. The others passed out, occasionally snoring.

K-“can i move my hand higher? It’s cold here now.” She asked

“Yeah”

she slowly drifted her hand up, her cool hand just slightly under my boob.

K-“higher?”

“Yeah.”

Her hand caressing my boob. Her leg was wrapped over me, in between my legs, just teasing my desperate clit. Her cold fingers slowly caressing my nipple, I was desperate I wanted it and so much more. I hoped she wouldn’t stop and think about the two other girls sleeping inches away.

K-“is this okay”

“Yes.” I Saïd sheepishly

Mary and Luna had already fell asleep. But I still felt guilty. what if they woke up? what am I even doing? Why am I turned on by my best friend right now?? But it felt so good. She slowly rolled my nipple in her finger and I felt them get hard. I heard her chuckle. I could feel my face get hot and red. My breaths became deeper.

K-“do you like this?”

I could hear the smile in her voice.

« yes, but Mary and Luna are right there »

« we don’t have to do anything but I do not think they are waking up. Besides, I'm just warming my hands, right?»

I felt her knee slide down a little bit. It was right on the sweet spot, it took everything in me to not start grinding against it. I was throbbing, it’s been so long.

Her hand moved slowly down my side, creating goose bumps along the way. Then she slowly went back up

« I’m sensitive «

she chuckled

K-« I know…do you want me to stop? »

« No » I said sheepishly.

I can’t let this go too far, our friends are right beside us. What if they wake up? Her hand slowly but firmly rubbing all the way up to my breast and down to my waist band made me crazy. Oh god how I wanted her to make the next move. She sat up

K-« can I kiss you »

« Yes »

K-« Here? » she asked with her thumb making tiny circles right above my pant line.

« Yes »

She sat in between my legs and bent over me, one hand holding her up and the other holding my waist. She moved her thumb upwards

K-« here? »

« Yes » I almost moaned

She slowly made her way up my body asking before every kiss. She knew right were to kiss to make me crazy.

« her hand grasped my boob,

K-“here? »

I couldn’t help it anymore

« yes » I moaned.

« We have to be quiet »

she said as she lowered her head on to my nipples.

She softly kissed them, over and over. She stopped for a second, leaned in and whispered

K- « do you want more »

Fuck I wanted more so bad. Her hand slowly rubbing my body while she softly teased my nipples. I could take it anymore, I started to grind on her knee.

« please » I begged

K- « god you are so pretty when you beg »

She started sucking lightly and teasing with her tongue, switching sides every couple of minutes.

K- “Do you want more”

“Please” I whimpered

She slowly and firmly kissed my body, making her way all the way down. Her hands firmly placed on my sides.

“Do you want me to take these off” she tugged slightly on my waist band.

“Yes”

K- “yes what?” She asked

“Please” I begged

She slid off my pants, keeping my panties on. She slowly ran her thumb over my clit.

K- “do you want me to kiss here”

“Please” I whimpered

I could feel my swollen clit throbbing, begging for attention. Her soft lips kissed it through my soaked panties.

K- “do you want me to take them off?”

“Please” I said already out of breath, my body felt like it was going to explode.

She slid them off. Kissing from my knees all the way down. She teased all around my clit, she wanted me to beg.

“Please “ I begged

I could hear her smile.

K- “tell me what you want”

“More”

She lightly sucked on my clit

K-“This?”

“Yes” i moaned

She lightly sucked and teased with her tongue.

K- « do you want more?´

« Yes »

She slowly moved her hand down

« Do you want me inside of you? »

« Please » I begged

Her warm fingers slowly slipped in, her other hand dragged down my body to my lower stomach. She applied some pressure and started moving her fingers a little faster, she was hitting my G spot and it felt like heaven.

« Do you want more »

« Yes »

She went a little faster and sucked a little harder. I was so close

K- « I want you to ask to cum »

« I’m going to cum » I moaned

K-« no » she slowed down

« I’m so close » I whined

K-« I’m not done with you yet »

she slowly took her fingers out and teased your clit with them. I couldn’t take it anymore

« Please « I begged

She slipped her fingers in massaging my g spot. Her tongue slowly teasing my clit.

« Please, I’m going to explode »

K-« good girl, cum for me » her fingers sped up, and she sucked harder.

My whole body tensed up

« Oh my fucking god » I moaned

I came. Soaking the sheets, I felt like I had come out of my body.

She kissed my clit softly, and I slowly regained consciousness.

K-« you taste so good »

She slowly kissed up my body. Her hand rested on my stomach.

K« Hey, you okay »

« Yeah, I’m just recovering » I chuckled

K »you did so good.”

She resumed kissing my stomach all the way up to my neck, her hand still holding my waist. I wish I could stop time and feel this forever. After a couple minutes go by she asked,

K-“do you want to go skinny dipping with me before they wake up? We smell like pussy and it might be hard to explain.”

Oh my god, I completely forgot my friends were right beside us. She handed me a towel

K-« come on »

We quickly run out of the tent and down to the water.

K- « on three we drop our towels and jump, you ready? »

« oh no its going to be so cold »

K- «one…two…three!”

We jumped in holding hands. It was absolutely freezing!

« I can’t believe we just did that »

K-« I can » she chuckled

The end for now…

#smut #le$bean #le$bian #camping #outdoors #risky

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bonesandthebees · 10 months

Note

The end:(( sobs cries wails

Time to loop bittersweet symphony

Oh yeah i forgot about the surprise bday jdsvfkgkf tommy is so SWEET i hate him sobs hes sooo<33

I LOVE THEM SO MUCHDHFJDKDF

the fucking fire IM LAUGHFOGNGKG i loved this bit so much its so funny ohmugod

CRIMEBOYSDSS AAAAA SOBS CRIES WAILS

THEY MAKE ME SOOOOOFFGOFUAVEKFKGJDKS

Its sooo lovely:( this fic is so lovely i want to cry picturing the house they live in :( they mean the world to me :( i love hats so much

Petition for u to write a chat fic /hj

The texts are some of my fav parts of this fic 😭 theyre so fucking hilarious bee, I'd consume the shit outta a chat fic if u wrote one

THIS IS SO CUTEEEHDISOFJG IM GOING TO CRYYYDHFJGJ AAAAAA

I love techno shfkgklgf

I FORGOT ABOUT PLAN B IM SCREAMIGNGKDHSIFOFODGKFOSHF HELPPPPP

OMG CIDERRR

When i first read this fic I'd never had cider and was against alcohol bc i thought it all tasted like shit 😭😭 but then once i turned legal age i had cider and DAMN BRO i love cider sm...

I had this delicious berry flavoured one... somersby... so good FHGKKG

I honestly was shocked that i liked cider considering that apple flavoured things normally make me feel nauseous, but cider tasted diff enough that i was able to enjoy it !!!

AAAAAAAIFIVPDUWROFHSBFKFJDFJKDB SCREAMING CRYING PISSIGN MYSELF OHMGUDODHFKGJD OHMGUDOFOD FANS FACE SHFLGOFN I CANT DO THIS OHKHUDOAHDFKSHF FOGMYHUDODDFOAGDOFGSKDHSKFJD THEYRE BROTHERS THEYRE ACTUAL BROTHERS KHMGYDODHDKFMS

"I love you"

NOBODYYYYY MOVE NOBODY FUCKING MOVE OHMYFUCMINGOGDKFHSKFJSOSJFMF

U are SO good at writing music into fics man... ur so good at describing it

ANGELDUO HUG NOBODY MOVE

Youre such a talented author bee, i don't think I'll ever get over just *how good* u are at writing

The way you describe stuff... sk well so pretty rahhsss

AAAAAAAAAAAAA

;-;

I love this fic so much

It is 2 am whoops... worth it tho ❤️

This fic makes me feel so whole i adore it with everything i love ti sosoososo much:( i think it gen might be my fav fic by you... it is so lovely:( it means so much to me

eueueueueueueudufufjgigkg

Also damn yeah bittersweet symphony fit this fics vibes sooo well, its just been on loop for half n hour shfjgkg

Okie i go sleep now, thanks for being the best author ever ❤️❤️

I loved writing the surprise birthday party in this for many reasons. for one thing it felt natural after I wrote about wilbur throwing tommy a birthday party in nocturnal animals, and also I wrote honey and tangerines over the course of the summer. in a way that timeline of tangerines followed real time, because I wrote the wilbur surprise birthday party in mid to late september which is roughly around cc!wilbur's actual bday (yes yes I know he could be lying about his birthday but it's the one we all go with) so it just felt very fitting time-wise

the fire 😭 I love writing tubbo's antics so much

"petition for you to write a chatfic" you do not know the war flashbacks you just gave me with that

you wanna know why I'm good at writing funny texts? it's bc I have experience. I'm never going to publicly reveal my old ao3 (not really out of embarrassment but bc I don't want people I know from that account to find out I'm writing mcyt fic bc I will legitimately lose friends), but on that old ao3 when I was 16 I wrote a voltron chatfic. and it got somewhat popular. not super popular or anything, but it was my most popular fic up until I started writing for mcyt and it's how I really learned how to write humor. anyway the voltron fandom was the worst fandom experience I've ever had and I hated the ship the chatfic was centered on by the time I finished it bc the fandom was just so goddamn annoying about it. anyway yeah I can't write chatfic anymore it brings back war memories LMAO

I love cider man I love going to a bar and getting a nice cold cider if there isn't any beer I want. it's just so refreshing! and yes not all of it tastes like apples! I had a pineapple cider at a bar recently and it was so good

god I had so many emotions writing the card scene between crimeboys just waaaaa tangerines crimeboys i miss you

I'm so glad I write the music in my fics well, I try so hard to integrate it in a way that feels natural and doesn't pull the reader out of the scene

bittersweet symphony is a song that means a lot to me for many reasons so I usually have a rule to never include it in anything I write so it just stays as something for me, but it fit too perfectly for this fic for me to not throw in there and I'm so glad I did

thank you icy you're so sweet I'm really proud of how I wrote so much of honey and tangerines it's definitely one of my favorite things I've done. I'm so glad you enjoyed your reread :D

#ask #icyfox17 #honey and tangerines

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re-readingcomics · 2 years

Text

Comics Read 09/06 - 10/07/2022

I marked Graphic Details edited by Sarah Lightman as “to read” on Goodreads seven years ago, forgot about it, bought it on sale when I had a gift card about a year and a half ago. I didn’t actually start reading it until around September 19th. (I was busy and my non comics reading was demanding.) So rather appropriately my reading of this covered my first vacation in over two years, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur. Even though the full title of the Graphic Details Jewish Women’s Confessional Comics in Essays and Interviews I was surprised that this was more essays than comics. I though thought it would be an anthology of essays and interviews in comics form. But it is more of a companion book to a traveling exhibition of comic book art exhibit (that I didn’t see), and the essay are pretty dense and scholarly. I like reading these types of essays when I am familiar with the subject, but I wasn’t here. The only comic that I have read that was sampled in this collection, Laurie Sandell’s The Imposter’s Daughter, is barely discussed in the essay. Which I guess makes me feel better about not remembering anything remotely Jewish about that memoir.

Every time I find out about some of my cultural blindspots I feel overwhelmed. I can’t say which if any of these comics I had never heard of before I want to read now. So many comics that I have been reading for a while have released new volumes that I haven’t bought yet and taking a month to finish this book makes me feel even more behind on the ones I have bought. Some look intriguing. I definitely liked some of the art, and you can see from the choice to sample. Others feel like it wouldn’t make an enjoyable reading. Some feel historically important, and when I am less overwhelmed by to-reads, or need to reference non-Maus Holocaust comics format memoirs, I will look to this book for suggestions. In the meantime, I don’t think I really got much out of this book.

#What I'm reading #Graphic Details #Sarah Lightman #Graphic Details Jewish Women’s Confessional Comics in Essays and Interviews #Laurie Sandell #Ilana Zeffren

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vanillacup-cakes · 3 months

Text

It's been a while since I've done this. And by that I mean it's been a while since I finished one of these. I always end up drafting and never publishing.

I kinda forgot what happened in 2023 until I started writing my appraisal at work, and then it started to trickle back in. In short, 2023 was one hell of a stressful year.

Work wise, we started the year wherein a major project that we've been working on for literal years, and then finally got pushed through in 2022, and was centimetres away from the finish line, was pulled. It was too expensive they said, so all the work we did was not only redundant, but also had to be reversed. Everything.

Speaking of redundant... We also had to go through a redundancy process, and boy was that a rollercoaster. Did I think I had a good chance of keeping my job? Yes, I mean I had been working for the company for nearly 6 years and had been keeping team afloat for all those 6 years with roughly 1 manager a year, for probably about 6-9 months of that year. I wasn't 100% sure, you never know with these things, but I thought it was going to be okay.

I got to keep my job but shit only got started, I take one sick day off and suddenly I'm being flung in different directions that doesn't make sense. On top of all of that, we also moved offices, meaning I was getting up at 5:30am to make sure I beat the traffic and got to the office around 7:45am.

I was stressed, and tired, and people I liked at work started disappearing, and then suddenly my job is no longer what I thought it would be, and, honestly, I've never felt that miserable in my whole entire working life.

Sure there's been peaks and troughs at work but this was a whole new level.

Here's the thing. After spending time thinking about it, I think I never really recovered from the pandemic situation. Pre-covid I had a full-on calendar but I felt like I managed. Post-covid, I think I was feeling overwhelmed all the time but I kept insisting to myself that it was fine and I'll get back into the swing of things soon.

Then I read articles about how people felt that their life foundations went down when the pandemic happened and it finally made sense. For years and years I built a steady foundation for the life I was leading, slowly putting in routines and habits to help with the persistence of events, and chores, and things I wanted and needed to do. And then that all came crashing down when the pandemic happened. Life was different and so things were different, my routine and habits were different, and trying to get back into a post-covid era was not easy.

I was overwhelmed and didn't know how to get back into the high-speed train that was my pre-covid schedule. And so in 2023, I found myself just about getting through.

That's not to say nothing was good in 2023.

On the contrary, January started with a weekend away to A's place. It might have been cold and dreary sometimes, but we had fun at the boardgames cafe, chatting til the late hours, and eating the best damn pie I've ever had.

We went back to ballet, and the monthly dinners were back on track again! In fact, it might be a record? We went from January to May, on a 5-month streak, only broken up by Singing on the river (June), and birthday celebration (July), then back again in August. Then it was S's birthday (September), and one final dine out (October) before I went on my sabbatical (November), and then it was Christmas.

I also always nearly forget I went to Japan in March, just before everything went on lockdown (not that lockdown) at work, then no more travelling for work after that.

The only travel now was personal, to the Lake District in wet April, to sunny Italy for B's wedding, and the Cotswolds in October for our anniversary, and annual weekend away.

There were AmDram evenings with raffles, comedy shows with our favourite comediennes (some booked almost a year in advance), Harry Styles, Hozier, and a couple of West End musicals scattered around the year.

The Eras Tour Ticket Debacle.

Turning 30.

I deferred my chance for a big birthday bash to 2024 in hopes that H would be able to come to the UK. C deferred too but for different reasons. S planned a wonderfully relaxing spa weekend, and K planned a delicious trip to Hungary.

Turning 30 is not so bad when you use it as an excuse to be a little frivolous and enjoy the money you make sitting at a desk 37.5 hours a week. Or 40+ if you're S.

I changed jobs, same company, different departments. Just as my hope to get out of then current predicament was dashed, another opportunity arose.

I also moved houses, moved in.

So, as September closed, just over a month before my big trip, I moved house, and started a new job all at once. Why make one big life change at a time when you can do almost three things at once!

Speaking of which, 2023 was also a year of vaccines, so many goddamned vaccines. Well, at least the 2nd half was full of vaccines. Finally, after a turbulent year at work, I was getting close to my years-hoped sabbatical trip, 3 weeks in Thailand; 2 weeks at an elephant sanctuary, and then a few days at a dog shelter. From August to October, I had various vaccine appointments. So much money spent!

And November came and went in a strange time flux that felt slow but quick all at the same time, like life in Thailand was always going to be the way, but also like it was all a dream.

Then it was December. Going from days walking around Thailand in 30 degree heat, to coming home to -6 in the UK, barely two weeks back at work and then it was suddenly Christmas.

And of course there are the date nights, Christmas in February, and the evenings of laughing at the most mundane things in our little flat. Walking for hours and just missing the lunch hours at the pub, saying he won't share food but not caring if I steal a chip or two, and stocking up the fridge with his and hers desserts. Paper cranes, post-it notes, and bringing two winter coats when he came to pick me up from the airport because he knew I'd need an extra one to keep warm.

Boxes, and boxes, and even more boxes at every corner of the flat. Constantly trying to think of ways we can make more space.

There's starting a new routine of yoga before bedtime and starting immediately after we came back from his parents'. We followed the routine even on New Year's Eve, in bed before it was even 10pm.

And just like that 2023 was over.

2023 was chaotic.

I think that's really the best way to describe it.

I've never felt so out of my depth in my own life, but also such a happy year in many other ways.

2024 will hopefully be the year of new routines and habits and maybe less overwhelm and just more fun.

Here goes nothing!

#personal #end of the year #end of the year 2023 #ffr

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wevelocityteampresents-blog · 8 months

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SEPTEMBER 20TH

I managed to finish another art piece today. I feel so happy now that it's finally done. But at the same time, I also feel like there's not much else for me to do at the moment... But then again, there are those new character designs I need to finish. I hope I can get back to those without any trouble.

During this time, I feel like I can do so much without anything to distract me. I also feel a little happier too.

In Pokémon Violet, I went to finish my assignment. But not without a few stops along the way.

It's funny how the tables have turned.

Of all the Pokémon in the world, Golem was the one I'd least expect to get salt from.

When it comes to treasure, this place is a gold mine! Also, I managed to unlock the ability to use this area as a new stage in Ogre Oustin'. I should play that game again someday for a higher score.

Eventually, I managed to meet up with Kieran. (Who STILL showed up last.)

I still didn't get a badge for this.

After that, I headed back to the community center to get some rest. That doesn't mean I didn't run into anything interesting along the way.

I should fight this Annihilape someday with a Pokémon whose Attack needs some work.

What? AGAIN? More fun for me, I guess.

Before I healed my Pokémon at the Pokémon Center, I thought it'd be funny to talk to Nurse Joy from behind to see if I could still heal them. To my surprise, she had some dialogue for anyone trying to do so.

It managed to get a chuckle out of me.

SEPTEMBER 21TH

I had to go somewhere with my stepfamily to do something important. I thought I could just sit around and play Pokémon or draw while waiting. But that didn't happen. No matter where we went, the entire building smelled like cigarettes. I had to cover my nose the entire time we were there. We never even got our appointment because the staff were acting like idiots. So there goes an entire afternoon...

It wasn't all bad, though. My stepmom actually had the empathy to take us all to a town where we got to eat burgers while also getting treated to the town's fresh air. (Which is good because the car was ANOTHER rental that smelled like tobacco. Yes, it was unbearable. And, YES, I had to cover my nose whenever I had to sit in it. At least this one didn't have a lighter on the floor.)

The only good thing about today was that it's all over.

SEPTEMBER 22ND

In Pokémon Violet, I finally managed to find the item I needed to evolve Applin into Dipplin.

I feel bad for small shops like these. There are probably some dumb kids out there who might steal all the fruit from this stand without paying.

SEPTEMBER 23RD

Due to some recent developments at my school, I had to travel to the campus to sign up for additional tutoring services. (In the rain without an umbrella because I forgot mine at home.) I thought it would only take me half an hour. But I actually had to wait until noon. (I nearly got hungry by then.) It wasn't until then that I learned tutoring services were offered digitally on weekends. I still managed to get some information on tutoring hours for certain classes.

After I ate dinner, I managed to complete that new art piece I've had lying around for weeks. You can see it for yourself on this page. I based it on a frame from an episode of the Pokémon anime I found on another website. Now that I'm finished with it, I can get back to designing new characters before getting started on a future project.

In Pokémon Violet, I tried completing the Kitakami Pokédex.

I guess other non-water Pokémon can swim too. I tried catching this Poliwhirl using Umbre's Toxic. I nearly weakened it when I came to a shocking realization...

Wild Terastalized Pokémon only lose their Terastalization state after getting weakened by damaging moves. Status effects are useless for catching them.

But that was alright because I managed to find another Poliwhirl nearby. I also learned that there's 200 Pokémon in the Kitakami Pokédex. And I'm almost close to completing it. Before I met with Carmine, I visited Perrin since I already caught the amount of Pokémon she asked me to catch.

It's not that big a deal... Besides, I still need to study the stats of Pokémon like Ogerpon and Bloodmoon Ursaluna.

She soon challenged me to a battle to see if I was strong enough to stand a chance against the Pokémon she was looking for.

So did I...

Apparently, the Pokémon Perrin is looking for IS Bloodmoon Ursaluna.

She also comes from Sinnoh. (Which makes sense considering how familiar she looks.) I wanted to follow her to the Timeless Woods. But I felt like I could save Ursaluna for last.

After I met with Carmine in Moussi Town, she told me we needed some Crystal Clusters from the Crystal Pool. After a steady climb, I finally made it. Before we could gather some clusters, we were ambushed by a Milotic.

I managed to beat her in a single turn.

Eventually, Briar showed up to investigate the crystals at the bottom of the lake. She also says that Terastalization exists in other countries outside of Paldea.

(Exactly WHERE in those countries is beyond my guess.)

I was going to take the road back to town. But I fell down a cave and decided to explore it for its riches. While doing so, I hit a booby trap in the form of a Ogre Clan member.

If I had known about her Pokémon sooner, I would've beaten her with just Miraidon.

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