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fabuloustrash05 · 1 year

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What is your honest opinion on the TMNT 2012 girls? In my opinion I don't understand a lot of the hate they get and they weren't even horrible or that badly writen. Yeah there were flaws in their writing but so did the other male characters have it as well.

I love all the girls! Some more than others. They all have their good qualities and I will admit even my favorites have flaws, but I blame the writer's more than the characters themselves.

This took awhile to put together and get my honest thoughts through, but here it is! Here’s my opinion of the TMNT 2012 Girls: April, Karai, Irma, Renet, Mona Lisa, Shinigami and Alopex!

April O'Neil

My opinion of April has changed throughout the years. As a kid first watching the series I felt indifferent towards her (I didn’t hate her but I also didn’t like her), then when the series was over I grew salty and began to hate her on rewatch. I became a toxic person because of my hatred for 2012 April, but lately I’ve grown to like her and appreciate her for the good things she’s done. I’m proud of her for how far she’s come in her ninja training. I think most of that change came from how ridiculously hated she is in the fandom when honestly she doesn’t deserve that hate. She's not the best or the perfect character, but some people make it their religion to hate on her and it's pathetic. I realized how toxic 2012 April haters are and I wanted to distance myself from that and I began to chat with 2012 April fans and things got better for me and my opinion of her change to something more positive.

My biggest problem with April still to this day is her relationship with Donnie and how it was handled. I disagree when people say she was manipulative towards Donnie and Casey cause honestly I can understand that she feels uncomfortable and awkward in this situation these boys put her in and is conflicted on how she should handle it, because in the end she is only a 16 year old girl and both Donnie and Casey are still her friends that she cares about. Now her kissing Donnie at the farmhouse, I was mad at her for, but that was a dumb decision on the writer's end. That choice made it come off that April is leading him on, but honestly Donnie is not perfect either and he is just as bad when is comes to this relationship, but this post isn't about Apritello, it’s about April. If you wanna know how I would've handle Donnie and April's romance, you can check it out HERE.

I fully blame the writer's on this one, but I feel April's plot with her family's connection to the Kraang, her mom missing, and her being a half Kraang herself was totally wasted and forgotten by the 3rd season. They were doing good build up to it but then I feel they completely dropped it and forgot about it by season 4 and onward. My guess is the writer's didn't know where to go on from there so they just ignored it for the rest of the series hoping we wouldn't notice. Her have psychic powers is cool but feels totally random and out of place at times. Yeah, Kraang Prime has psychic powers too but most of April's Kraang heritage plot often leaves more questions than answers. Another thing is I wish she was given more Kraang features as the series progressed. I see a lot of fans today draw her with Kraang like eyes or tentacles coming out of her head and neck and it looks really cool! Let my girl embrace her alien side!!

Karai

She used to be my all time favorite character in the series, her intro episode is what got me into fully watching the rest of the series. So I thank Karai for being the reason I really got into TMNT. I loved her, but after rewatching the show a few times, I would see her choices and just wonder “what the hell was she thinking?” She does so many dumb decisions as the series goes on and it begins frustrate me. She had two opportunities to go back to her real father and be a family with him and her turtle brothers, but instead she is blinded by her vendetta against Shredder and wants to overthrow his empire. Now that is a cool concept, Karai taking over the Foot, but when she returned in season 4 it just feels out of no where and I feel I skip a whole arc or season. I wish they gave her more time to grow and we see her come to this decision instead of it just happening. Side note, but I love how even before the reveal, Karai acts like a teasing older sister towards the Turtles. Her dynamic with Donnie, Raph and Mikey is rare to see but you can see that they care about her and she cares about them too and I love it.

Her snake form was very cool and had a creative design, though that whole arc of trying to find her and then her being brainwashed was pointless filler, such a waste of time. How she out of no where mastered her turning from human to snake at will was so random. The whole brainwashed Karai arc in general didn't need to happened!

I feel I'm obligated to talk about it, but Karai's biggest flaw, as well as it being TMNT 2012's worst quality, was her relationship with Leo. What were they thinking with that shit?! If they wanted Leo to have a crush on the enemy that's fine! That can be good drama, but why then throw in the twist that his crush is also his sister and continue to push a romance between them in the same episode when they are acknowledged as being family?!! Such wasted potential for them to just be enemies who respect one another that grows into a friendly rivalry that becomes two siblings looking out for one another, but still like to get on each other's nerves. Beside that mess, her and Leo do have a fun and good dynamic, when it isn't being ruined with forced uncomfortable romance. I also wanna add I like her dynamic with April and parallels between the two girls. Overall, I like Karai, but she could've been better.

Irma/Rook

I'm adding "Irma" to the list cause she counted as a character for a short while before the twist and she did technically come back in season 4. I liked Irma, she was funny, quirky, and her dynamic with April and Casey was fun to watch. I liked her banter with Casey, it always made me laugh. I'm honestly still disappointed that it was revealed Irma was not even Irma but was just a robot controlled by Kraang Sub Prime. All that hope to see Irma befriend the Turtles was destroy for me.

I am glad they were able to find a way to bring back Irma in the form of the Utrom Rook in season 4. She had little screen time but she always stuck out to me for some reason. Also, wasted potential of not having April meet Rook and for her to have a heart to heart with her about the friend lost because Rook looks like her old best friend.

I actually did a whole rewrite of how I would've handle the Irma is robot twist and still keep her as a character: LINK.

Renet Tilley

I love her so much! She's funny, entertaining and a total sweetheart. I love how she's a very bubbly and overall kind person but isn't afraid to punch someone right in the face. I like how she's perceived as dumb and naïve but is actually very smart and is usually the one saving the Turtle's from certain doom. I also love the little detail of her having a gap in her teeth. Really brings out the childish nature to her character. My favorite part about Renet is how much of a fangirl she is, literally representing the entire TMNT fandom. From first meeting them Renet has so much faith and trust in the Turtles because of what she's read about them in her history books. They are her heroes, she believes in them and knows in the end they'll save the day. The very concept of the Turtles befriend a time traveler from the future was another thing that was underused and could've open the door to so many cool new stories and adventures, but like many characters, she was underused and only came back when need, like for a Halloween special of all things. I'm really surprised Mikey or any of the Turtles didn’t mentioned her after the Earth was destroyed by the Black Hole Generation, remembering what she told them about how they've saved the world so many times.

I know some people find controversy with her romantic relationship with Mikey nowadays because of them both being from different time periods, but I still find their dynamic very sweet and entertaining to watch. As best friends or as romantic partners, you got to admit that they are fun to see together. She understands Mikey and never judges him for his weird antics/ideas and Mikey finds her quirkiness adoring and always makes sure she is safe.

A little nitpick I have is with her character design, mainly when we see her without her helmet. Her hair model design doesn't look good, like it looks like she's wearing a wig that they just slapped on her at the last minute. Which sucks cause in her concept sketches her hair looks very good, with having a more proper hair line, but since the braid crown is playing as her hairline in the 3D model it doesn't look good.

Also, technically Renet is the most powerful ally the Turtles have because of her weapon alone. Why does no one talk about that?? The Turtles are lucky that Renet is on their side.

Mona Lisa/Y'gythgba

SHE IS MY QUEEN AND I LOVE HER SO MUCH!! <3

Next to April, Mona Lisa also gets a lot of unnecessary hate, but I know why she gets hate. It those toxic whiney Raphael fangirls who can't accept the fact that he's fictional and is happy with an actual girlfriend so now they can't have him or ship him with their self insert Mary Sue OCs. A true Raphael fangirl, like myself, would be happy for Raph that he found someone who loves and respects him for who he is.

It's already obvious that Mona was another underused character in this series. I absolutely LOVE the space arc in season 4, but the concept of the Salamandrians, though cool, were very underused despite the Turtles fighting a Salamandiran before (Newtrailzer). If you ask me, Mona and Sal should've been more present during the space arc and they should've been there helping the Turtles when they were fighting the Triceratons on Earth at the end of the arc. This choice could've given the writer's the opening for Mona to start living on Earth sooner and join the Mighty Mutanimals during mid season 4 instead of saying she joined the Mutanimals in season 5 but never see her with them! (I'm still so mad that they got our hopes up that we'd see Mona interact/become friends with the Mutanimals only to find out that we will never see her again after When Worlds Collide) I have actually wrote a whole post on how I would've included Mona in more episodes, give her more time in the spotlight and her joining the Mutanimals sooner: LINK.

Mona being a lieutenant for the Salamandiran army already says a lot about who she is and what she has been through. You cannot tell me that this woman as killed people and has war trauma! Mona is an interesting character and her personality clashes well with Raph's, even before they became a couple, them butting heads shows what kind of person Mona is. She can be short tempered and stubborn like him and would often jump to conclusions, a fight first ask question later kind of gal. She loves to fight and is a very strong and skilled warrior. She is loyal to those she looks up to and respects like her commander and is a rule follower, but sometimes she loses control of herself and steps out of line, to which her commander has to hold her back. She cares deeply about the ones she's close to and especially shows how much she loves and cares for Raph. Most fans result her to just being a love interest, but she's still her own character and grows as a person from being with Raph. Honestly the push up scene was one of her highlights, not only for being hilarious and showing how in love she is with Raph, but also showing that she's more than a strict serious lieutenant. That scene reminds us that she's still a teenager and is acting her age, even she can't help but break her serious military persona once in a while.

I absolutely adore her and I'm so happy more fans today are growing to love her as much as I do! She's such a great character and its ashamed that we didn't get to see more of her in the show, but I'm happy with what I got.

Shinigami

My only criticism I have of her is that she is underused (I know I say that a lot) and I really dislike that she was forced shipped with Mikey. It was the most pointless decision they did for her character. You can just tell the writer's didn't know what to do with her so the made her a love interest as well thinking that would make her more interesting. That was a dumb decision. Her and Mikey are not a good match for many reasons I won't get into, but here's what they should've done:

Not ship her with anyone cause we already had enough love interests by the time she entered the show.

Ship her with Leo instead of making him crush on his freaking sister. They already wanted him to have a crush on a female ninja from the Foot Clan who's a bad girl, why couldn't they hold it off until he met Shini instead of Karai?

Ship her with Casey as a way to give Casey a happy ending after that whole love triangle drama.

Ship her with Karai cause they were obviously already dating in the show! Shinirai forever!!

Regardless of that poor decision, I love Shini, her design is very gorgeous and creative, and her concept of being a witch brings something new to the series with magic and illusions. I feel there has been wasted potential with her not being involved during the Kavaxas arc, cause come on, she's a witch who specializes in dark magic. Why didn't they have her be attached to the Kavaxas cult in some way? Or have her know about Kavaxas and help the team stop him? Honestly I was convinced at one point that Shini was going to be a surprise villain and she was secretly loyal to Shredder not Karai and betray her during the finale. I made a whole post about it actually LINK.

Overall, I love Shinigami! Next to Mona Lisa she is one of my favorite female characters. I love seeing her teasing April and the others, especially towards her enemies, treating a battle like its nothing more than a game to her. Her loyalty and romance friendship with Karai I adore. She is such a fun character and underrated too if you ask me.

Alopex

She stole the show and she was only in one episode! Once again, another underused female character. Alopex is technically (not counting April) the first female mutant on the show (not counting Karai cause she's able to turn back), and we only get one episode with her. That should be consider a crime, but the episode she was in, she made a damn good impression. We learn of her and Tiger Claw's tragic backstory and you grow to understand why she is so hatful towards her brother for the life he put her through and him supposedly killing their parents. She establishes herself as a badass and continues to prove she is a badass throughout the episode. The way she cut off her brother's tail and later is arm without a second thought and then leaves shows shows how ruthless she is, but her sparring him also shows her compassion and her hope that one day her and Tiger Claw can be a family again.

Her line "Just remember, I could have taken your life" sent chills down my spine when I first heard it.

My biggest complaint is WHY didn't they bring Alopex back during the Kavaxas arc in season 5?! How cool would it have been if the Turtles recruited and teamed up with Alopex to take down her brother!

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birb-tangleblog · 3 years

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Rise of Flynn Rider - THOUGHTS

THE PROMISED LONGER POST ON THE RISE OF FLYNN RIDER- spoiler warning!

Ok so first off, a very brief summary: the book centers on Eugene and Arnie (Lance), childhood best friends. The orphanage they've grown up in is financially struggling, under threat by a crooked tax collector, and they're both aging out of the system; the only clue Eugene has to his parents is a letter from the woman who left him there, which is signed with a ~mysterious symbol~. When a traveling circus run by the Baron (yes, that Baron) passes through town and Eugene learns of a possible lead on his past, the two boys reinvent themselves, join up, and eventually end up entangled in a scheme to steal from the King and Queen of Corona.

I won't lie, I enjoyed this one a lot- it was a fun read, very cozy to curl up with, and even with some contradictions, it felt like a novel that was derivative of the series and set in that world. There are a lot of cameos and references, enough that I think most TTS fans will find something they like to nibble on.

Like I said in my earlier post abt the prologue and first few chapters, I'm so happy that Lance got a role alongside Eugene- he's definitely a secondary character to Eugene’s main, and he does get sidelined somewhat, but it's charming to see his friendship with Eugene and his growing passion for cooking.

'I didn't expect anything, so I'm more delighted and pleasantly surprised than genuinely unhappy with the execution' is a running theme with this book for me and basically the tl;dr of this write-up.

There are soo many cameos and little treats- I get the impression Calonita didn't have the most complete knowledge of the series, but her chats with Chris and interest in the series’ writing definitely show. King Edmund, the Stabbingtons, all of the pub thugs, Weasel, Stalyan, and the Baron all make appearances, and we get cameos from Cap, Maximus, Pascal's mother, and even Cass gets a name drop. Several series-exclusive locations are also mentioned by name- Vardaros, the Spire, and the Forest of No Return.

I'm not immune to the fannish hit of 'hey! I understand that reference!' and I really enjoyed hunting for easter eggs, so even if the presence of the pub thugs in the Baron's crew, or the boys stumbling on Rapunzel's tower in one scene and making nothing of it (yea that happened) is a lil questionable, it made me smile and I can't be mad.

I would just describe this book as 'comfy'.

(That said, I'm a little unsure who all those references are for- I feel like if you hadn't seen the series, you'd lack context and some details would be meaningless, but if you had, I think you might long for more depth and exploration...)

Structure & Progression

Here's the part where I start criticizing the book aimed at middle and elementary schoolers lmao

It's a v short book, but the plot progression still feels a little scattered- it didn’t feel quite like a heist OR a mystery. The subplot that takes up a lot of focus is actually interpersonal conflict between Lance and Eugene- and they reconcile, but not after spending much of the book in a standoff due to a misunderstanding/'liar revealed' trope.

One of Eugene's motivations for joining the circus is spotting a man with a mark on his arm that matches the one from his letter working there, and believing he'll be able to learn more abt his parents from him. He doesn't disclose this to Lance right away, and when it comes out later on, he's upset that Eugene didn't tell him- he feels tricked, and like Eugene's prioritizing his biological family over their bond. I had a hard time with this, b/c I honestly think Eugene could've literally said to Lance, 'hey, joining this circus is a great opportunity to travel, make money, send some back to the orphanage, AND I found something about my parents, will you come with me?' and Lance still would've jumped on it. Later on, there's also another similar miscommunication that deepens the rift.

It feels like manufactured drama, and I would've loved a book of the two of them just being buds, bouncing off each other, and trying to unravel the mysteries of the DK symbol and the Baron's ulterior motives together. Lance's fears of being left behind by his friend absolutely could've surfaced without the misunderstandings, especially the closer they got to the truth. (And I don't think that'd have been dissimilar to the unused 'Trial' episode concept and flashback.)

The pacing itself... meanders. After the boys complete an initiation mission to get a hold of a special key for the Baron, time passes (two weeks in-story) and there's some slice of life as they learn the ropes, get inducted into a lifestyle of thieving (it’s revealed the circus is a front for a crime ring), and get to know the Baron's crew.

I liked these parts and would've kept them in a longer book! But maybe there could've been some fine-tuning here so big events (Eugene stealing for the first time, the heist, the meeting with the mysterious Man with the Mark) weren’t so one-and-done. There are several points where nothing's really happening because the characters can't quite connect with each other, or they're waiting around for an opportunity passively, and that makes for a frustrating exp for me as a reader.

There were also lot of elements I thought were getting set up to come into play later, but not a lot of follow through? The folk hero Lance Archer is mentioned several times and has wanted posters, but we never meet him in the flesh. The Man with the Mark is revealed to be a former member of the Brotherhood(!) named Vedis(!!), but he isn't seen again after Eugene speaks with him... once. (More on this later this post is getting so long omg)

The Baron’s plan is revealed to be stealing a reward offered for the lost princess when it’s on display to the public during a festival. Eugene and Lance balk b/c stealing doesn’t sit well with them, especially when it’s from what are ultimately a family trying to find their lost child- they decide to do the right thing by foiling the scheme/stealing it back and returning it to the royals. It goes a bit pear-shaped and they’re caught, but are forgiven and face no consequences after explaining, other than being ousted from the circus/crime ring and making enemies of the Baron. Eugene hasn’t given up on finding the DK, but he realizes he already has a family in Lance, and that’s the most important thing; the two resolve to travel the world and have adventures together.

I want to make another post on it, but at the least it feels like a foregone conclusion given we know ‘Flynn Rider’ goes on to become a renown thief who steals the crown of the lost princess- that’s literally the plot of the movie, and being a dashing rogue is Flynn’s defining trait- so even aside from questionable ideas about wealth, class, and morality, the novel’s ending doesn’t fit what’s firmly established about his character, and I think big fans of Eugene might have an even harder time with that then me.

(I’m very suspicious that there might’ve been some executive meddling in an attempt to soften young Eugene’s character, and send a more palatable/upstanding message to children- it feels like Disney editing the old SW films to show Han didn’t shoot first.)

It’s def one of those novels where you can take some elements you like and leave others, but overall I’d still rly rec it for series fans! I’ve been buzzing and what-iffing about it for a few days, and I got some tasty tidbits on the characters and nods to the series, which is exactly what I wanted out of it.

And maybe it’s a funky take, but honestly I want to think of this book as the beginning of an alternate timeline where Lance and Eugene got out of crime earlier, Eugene got a clue abt his heritage by chance, and it changed his course. I think embracing the retcons and contradictions to canon makes for an interesting angle, and you’ll enjoy it more if you don’t take it too seriously.

#OKAY PHEW GOD took me way too long to post this #I'd consider this a general reaction/impression and overview #and I have more written that I want to sort out into posts abt Eugene's char AND my thoughts on Vedis as a Brotherhood Stan™#if I included it here it'd have been like... another 1k words lmfao #hopefully I can post those in the next day or so!#I have no idea how to structure proper reviews man I just want to yammer #I'm honestly just having fun reacting to smth new again C:#the rise of flynn rider #text post #my post #eugene #lance

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passionate-reply · 3 years

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This time on Great Albums, I talk about an album that actually isn’t older than I am for a change! Enter the spooky, haunted forest of The Knife with me, and find out why it was Pitchfork’s Album of the Year in 2006! Full transcript after the break.

Welcome to Passionate Reply, and welcome to Great Albums! Today, I’ll be tackling an album that’s more recent than anything I’ve done on Great Albums before, but it’s still old enough to start being considered a classic: The Knife’s Silent Shout, released in 2006, and hence seeing its fifteenth birthday in 2021. Silent Shout is a bit special to me, insofar as it was an album I loved as a teenager, back when it was still pretty new, and it was probably the first album I really fell in love with that wasn’t significantly older than I was. I was quite surprised when I eventually learned just how beloved Silent Shout is among music aficionados. This album has been lauded in critical circles, recommended as a “patrician” essential, and even considered one of the greatest electronic albums of all time! So, what’s the fuss about?

Before Silent Shout, The Knife were significantly closer to a conventional electronic pop duo. Their biggest claim to fame was the track “Heartbeats,” which scored some exposure after a cover of it was featured in a TV ad.

Music: “Heartbeats”

I like to think that “Heartbeats” contains the seeds of what’s great about Silent Shout, with its grinding synth backing and vocalist Karin Dreijer’s affecting wail. But its indie-pop brightness is something distinctively absent from their follow-up. Contrary to what might’ve been expected from an up-and-coming pop act, the sibling duo hunkered down in the studio and set about making something stranger and more exotic. On the technical front, they stripped the production down to its bare essentials, using just digital rhythms and two synthesisers to achieve everything we hear on the album. Stylistically, they took their sound into moody, atmospheric territory, imbuing it with this eerie, claustrophobic ambiance. It’s the musical equivalent of Frankenstein emerging from Mary Shelley’s mind, while the dreary “Year Without a Summer” had poisoned the world around her.

Music: “Silent Shout”

The title track here is also the opener, and introduces us to the frightful world of Silent Shout without mercy. This track is dominated by a powerful contrast of sound: low, thrumming bass, and these quick, but delicate and meandering synth arpeggios, carrying a distinctively Scandinavian flair. This bewitching synthesis of musical ideas makes sense in light of the diverse influences of the two siblings who made up The Knife: Instrumentalist Olaf Dreijer was strongly influenced by dance styles like house, trance, and progressive techno, as well as ambient electronic music, whereas vocalist Karin Dreijer was interested in guitar-based popular music, as well as the distinctive folk traditions of their native Sweden. Not unlike the Pet Shop Boys, they’ve got a wide gap between their influences, but that only serves to intensify the uniqueness of their work, which strikes listeners in a way the constituent musical parts of its heritage never could. Perhaps the most significant sonic feature of the album, though, is the extreme electronic distortions of Karin Dreijer’s voice.

Music: “One Hit”

If raw and everymannish vocals make music feel more in line with our everyday reality, the shocking and monstrous ones on *Silent Shout* render it a truly otherworldly work of art. While many people are quick to decry the “fakeness” of electronically mediated vocals--despite the fact that all art is, of course, artificial--I think Silent Shout proves, more boldly than anything else, just how uniquely powerful this musical tool can be in the right hands. Once you get past the sheer sonic force of the vocals, and their peculiar, skin-crawling timbres, you’ll find that most of the lyrical subject matter is actually painfully quotidian. “One Hit,” for instance, is told from the perspective of an all-too-normal “monster”: a domestic abuser, extracting and enforcing femininity and domestic servitude through the force of violence, dealing in “one hit, one kiss.” Sex, gender, and exploitation based upon them are among the album’s most central themes, and expressed harrowingly on tracks like “Na Na Na”:

Music: “Na Na Na”

Perhaps moreso than any other track on the album, “Na Na Na” is rendered borderline incomprehensible by vocal treatment--a trait magnified by its obviously meaningless title and chorus. But “Na Na Na” does have real lyrics, which tell the story of a life mediated by reproductive anatomy, defined by the rhythm of menstruation, coming from within, and the constant fear of sexual violence from without. It’s a tale of hidden anxiety, and experiences that go unseen and unspoken despite how common they are, making the haze of inscrutability laid over them all the more poignant. It’s clear that these issues are of high importance to Karin Dreijer, who has publicly described themself as “genderqueer,” despite both members of the band being remarkably sparing with all personal details. In another of the most striking vocal performances on the album, “We Share Our Mother’s Health,” Dreijer even gets to sing a duet with themself, and embody two distinct characters at once.

Music: “We Share Our Mother’s Health”

“We Share Our Mother’s Health” can be read in the light of gender and sex dynamics, as well, particularly if you’re willing to read its twin narrators as representations of masculinity and femininity. Personally, though, I think that’s a bit too easy, and really, a bit too cisnormative. I think the album is more interesting if we embrace the fundamental uncertainty of identity, and the transgressive queerness of it all. That said, I prefer to think of “We Share Our Mother’s Health” as a piece about capitalism--the endless toiling and scrounging for more material comfort and security, and the emptiness left behind when that proves to be no pathway towards true happiness. Besides, it’s not like sexism and the class struggle don’t feed off of each other in the end. This track’s sense of cacophony, with voices nearly battling to drown each other out, shows its more strident, aggressive, and downright angry side, which it delivers as powerfully as it does those moody atmospheres.

Silent Shout is the perfect title for this album, given its emphasis on voicing internal and private laments that go unheard--and voicing them with this terrifying sense of primal scream catharsis. While I initially wasn’t overly fond of the album art, it’s grown on me a bit now that I’ve seen it blown up to a larger size. This central disc shape is certainly evocative of a record or a CD, and its industrial-looking lattice structure, with a mottled, grimey-looking texture, helps conjure the impression of machine-age ennui.

I think a lot of the enduring appeal of Silent Shout is its sense of mystery. A lot of that mystery is deliberately crafted iconoclasm, and part of the art--while promoting the album, The Knife were photographed wearing sinister, elaborate beaked “plague doctor” masks, and their live performances from this period shrouded the band in darkness to obfuscate their appearances. They’ve refused to accept awards for their music or attend award ceremonies, including one memorable incident in which they sent costumed representatives of feminist organisation Guerrilla Girls in their stead. After Silent Shout, the duo created an opera based on Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species in 2009, and released one more studio album in 2013: Shaking the Habitual.

Music: “A Tooth For an Eye”

Shaking the Habitual received mixed reviews, and so far, has proven to be the siblings’ final work together, though they remain active as musicians independently, with Karin Dreijer recording under the moniker “Fever Ray.” Part of the great myth of Silent Shout is the fact that nothing else in their discography really quite approaches its specific sound, and sharp precision of conceptual focus. It’s like the album is tailor made to stand perfectly alone, outside of context, perhaps even outside of genre.

For many of us, this great legend of lightning-in-a-bottle genius is infinitely alluring. But I’ve never really bought into it too thoroughly myself. I obviously adore Silent Shout, and I think it’s a Great Album. But, unlike many people who have showered it with praise, often claiming that they don’t enjoy “electronic music” overall, I’ve always been interested in a lot of heavy, angry, creepy synthesiser-based music, and so I never thought too much of listening to this and liking it. People praise Silent Shout for being unlike anything else, but I think it sounds like a lot of post-industrial dark wave, like Attrition or Chris & Cosey, and its themes of feminist rage feel like a strong parallel to that of more recent stars of noise music such as Pharmakon and Lingua Ignota. But that’s not to devalue what Silent Shout does achieve! I think it *is* a unique album...in the way that a bat is a unique animal. Much as bats are not the only creatures who fly, but stand out for having developed that ability despite their mammalian heritage, Silent Shout doesn’t actually take direct inspiration from the earlier music it sounds the most like. It ended up there through the aforementioned eldritch alchemy, combining trance and folk and Kate Bush to get something new. That’s still something worth celebrating! Silent Shout needn’t be a perfect enigma to be a stirring masterpiece of an album.

My overall top track on Silent Shout, which I bet will be a popular choice, is “Forest Families.” It’s equal parts bleak and strangely anthemic, defined by both the unease of adapting to a plainer and harsher existence, outside the bounds of society, as well as the release that music itself provides to so many of us as we seek comfort. Since music is so important to me, I’m a real sucker for music about the importance of music, and it feels particularly well-placed on an album that’s a cathartic listen in so many ways. That about wraps this one up; thank you for watching!

Music: “Forest Families”

#music #great albums #album review #album reviews #the knife #fever ray #silent shout

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multifan-dump · 3 years

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Hi! I really liked your post about Raya and the Last Dragon. As a second generation immigrant and a South East Asian living in the US, I feel like I’ve always been disconnected from my roots and culture. Growing up in a predominantly white community, it was hard to find other Asians that I could connect with. And most likely I was the only South East Asian in my entire community. It didn’t help that there was virtually no media representation for us either. Because of this, I always felt self conscious and ashamed of my background. I felt isolated and disappointed in myself because I didn’t fully embrace my culture. This resentment made me wish I had been born with a different ethnicity when I was younger. So when I heard that Disney was going to be making a new film inspired by South East Asia, I was so excited. It felt surreal to see people that look like me and my family in a popular and influential platform like Disney. It made me feel validated. I am aware of all the valid criticisms this film has. And yes, Disney could always do better, but it’s great that we’re finally having these discussions. I’m learning a lot from fellow South East Asians, and I hope this movie can spark more healthy conversations about good representation in hopes of leading to better media representation for us. The fact we even got a film like this is amazing in itself, and I hope we can still celebrate it. I think all the constructive criticism and celebration for the film can coexist. Because it’s progress. Change doesn’t happen overnight, so I hope we can continue to encourage more positive representation for South East Asians and all Asians in general. (Sorrythiswasreallylong)

hi anon!! first off, absolutely no need to apologize for the length. you have every right to take up space, and i’m glad that you have. ♥️

thank you so much for sharing your story with me. though i can’t fully know or understand your experience—it’s your own—i do personally connect with your experience of isolation, shame, and silent marginality as an asian american. i absolutely know how it feels to try to wish away that part of yourself, and i’m so sorry you’ve had that experience; it’s indescribably terrible. but the fact that even just the news of raya and the last dragon could bring you so much joy and validation makes me so, so glad. this movie is a big step in representation—it’s my hope that it will be part of a larger cultural shift that allows later generations of asians and asian americans to take pride and joy in their heritage and their identities, because being asian is a beautiful thing.

i think you’re absolutely right when you say that celebration and constructive criticism for raya can coexist. the existence of this movie is a milestone, and at the same time, the film will ofc be imperfect. i’m 100% with you on this one: i hope we can move forward and have productive, inclusive conversations. and i hope that we can see these conversations led by the communities most directly implicated in and personally knowledgeable about the subject. because really…that’s just how it should be.

#please feel free to reach out and message me <3 #always happy to create a safe space for conversation #raya and the last dragon #disney #asks #anon

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fudgetunblr · 3 years

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It’s international women’s day today, so here’s some things I’ve learnt about being a woman:

In the early 2010s the “Not like other girls” trope was very, very common. I think on Tumblr specifically it was a huge phenomenon, grounded in internalized misogyny and the notion that stereotypically girly things are bad and makes you less of a woman. There are greater analyses of this than I can provide you, but what it all comes down to is this: Society hates femininity and things targeted to women, specifically teenage girls. There’s a reason why Superwholock was so big back in the day and works like Twilight got ripped apart. Sherlock, Supernatural and Doctor Who were shows mainly targeted to men, but had large female demographics. And the only one that actually made an effort was Doctor Who, introducing a female doctor, and recognizing their viewership, rather than feeling uncomfortable with it, like say, the Sherlock writers clearly did.

Twilight was a female led story that was heavily marketed towards women. Sure, criticism grounded in criticizing the actual work is one thing, but jumping on a bandwagon because you feel you have to hate something that is directly targeted towards women, and is apologetically so, is another.

I believe that we as a society have progressed past this. I see way more women embrace parts about themselves they previously rejected, because there is not a right way to be a woman, and liking certain things does not make you less.

“Not like other girls” was a trend that separated, when we really should have focused on uniting. I may not share a sexual preference with all my friends, or the same background, or skin colour, etc. but as women, we share a lot of things. We share struggle, not always the same, but struggle. We share fear and shame and pressure. The standard will always be different for us.

A lot of internalized hate stems from different things. Some have been raised to believe that they are less because they were born a female, others believe that some women deserve less because of the colour of their skin, or because they’re trans. A women of a different heritage or sexuality is not less. A trans woman is not less. There is no excuse for your racism, homophobia and transmisogyny. Educate yourself and do better.

Society loves to turn us against each other, and make us feel like we need to fit inside a box. It’s when we step outside that box and notice the sea of boxes, when we start supporting each other, not just a select few, but every single woman, that we can truly be free.

There’s a quote that reads “I do not wish women to have power over men; but over themselves.” Every woman does not have this power, but someday, I hope they will.

#international womens day #international women’s day

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sourcherrybomb · 4 years

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SoKai Week 2020 - Day 5 - Beneath the Light of Vega and Altair

Synopsis: When they were children, Sora told Kairi the story of the fearless sailor Altair and his voyage to meet his beloved, the Sea Goddess Vega. Kairi, seeing herself as Altair, embarks on her own journey to find her Vega, Sora.

Sneak Peak: After a certain point Kairi stopped keeping track of time. Sometimes she would lie down and think about her time with Sora to see if her heart could make any connection to his.

Tags: Romance, Angst, All Ages, KH3 Spoilers, F/M

Prompt for the Day: Sea and Sky / Tanabata / Star-Crossed Lovers

Words: 1.8k

Fanart By: @anniths

Using the countless stars and constellations scattered across the nighttime skies, sailors would always find their way back home.

Many believed it to be a wives’ tale, something told to scared and nervous children to assure them that their parents would come back from sea. Others saw it as a part of their heritage, a belief not to be taken lightly. Regardless of your stance on it, the young children of Destiny Islands grew up learning how to navigate the stars and memorizing the constellations.

As someone who was not originally from the Islands, Kairi had to spend a lot of time catching up to the rest of her Islander peers. Even Selphie, a girl who had no desire to sail or explore other worlds, knew more about finding your way using the stars. As one of her few female friends, Kairi cherished her, but did lament at this fact for the longest time.

Of course, whenever she did have trouble, Sora and Riku would always come to help her out. Out of the two, Riku was definitely the more studious one. If Kairi aimed at a random part of the night sky, the boy could point out several stars that could be used to determine direction or even time of day depending on its position. Sora on the other hand wasn’t as proficient in navigation, but could talk your ear off about the constellations and their meanings.

While Sora found himself jealous of Riku’s demonstrable skills, it was his love for the stories behind the stars that, unbeknownst to the both of them, drew Kairi to him. She loved hearing stories about the various heroes and monsters placed amongst the stars, and Sora was more than willing to prattle on about them. But out of all the stories Sora shared with her, Kairi found herself holding the story of Vega and Altair close to her heart.

Altair, a proud and boastful sailor, proclaimed that he would sail through every sea and ocean in the world to prove that his skills were amongst that of the gods. Cygnus, God of the Sky heard of this boast. Thinking that Altair would fail spectacularly, Cygnus offered the hand of his daughter, Vega the Sea Goddess, in marriage. Once he set sail, Altair was faced with countless obstacles sent by Cygnus to sabotage the sailor’s efforts. Each challenge shook at his pride and humbled him. However, he did not relent and continued on his journey. Unbeknownst to Altair, Vega had watched over the sailor during his adventures and over time came to love him.

It would take him decades, but Altair did successfully sail through the seas and oceans. At once, Vega greeted him with a loving embrace. Furious at this outcome, Cygnus cast away the now old sailor with a powerful gust of wind, separating the lovers.

Lost at sea and nearly drowning without his vessel, Altair was greeted by a vision of Vega. Overcome with her love for Altair, the goddess gave the sailor a blessing of immortality and eternal youth as long as he stayed on the ocean. In return, Altair would have to complete his journey once again in order to get one day with Vega. This precaution was put in place by Vega so as to not incur the wrath of Cygnus. Undaunted by this task, Altair set off to sail towards his betrothed. The storytellers of Destiny Islands say that year after year, Altair completes his journey and is reunited with his beloved Vega.

Kairi, now a young woman, hoped that she would be able to reunite with the Sora that she loved so much, similar to Vega and Altair.

After the final battle with Xehanort and the True Organization XIII, Sora was able to do so with Kairi after his countless trials. However, just like Vega and Altair, all she got from him was one day together before he had to leave. Not willing to live a life like Vega, constantly waiting for her love to return, Kairi decided to switch the roles.

She saw herself as Altair and took on the challenge of finding Sora’s whereabouts. For once in her life, Sora would await his rescue, similar to the beloved Vega.

It was this decision that made Kairi decide to look everywhere for clues in order to obtain clues on where Sora could be. This search led her to look within her own heart, a journey made possible with the help of the Ansem the Wise and his apprentices. The scientist told Kairi that she would be put into a comatose state similar to Sora’s after his time in Castle Oblivion. Like Namine for Sora, Ansem the Wise and his apprentices would help take care of her while she slept.

The idea of once again being left in such a helpless state wasn’t the most comforting idea to Kairi. Afterall, the first time was under much more... dire circumstances. But if it had any chance of making her have a more proactive role in searching for Sora, then it’s a fear that she would nonetheless overcome.

Ansem the Wise assured her that if things went smoothly, she wouldn’t be left in such a state for too long. At first, Kairi was put to sleep for hours at a time. As progress was made, those hours turned to days.

Days turning to weeks.

Weeks to months.

Those months eventually become a year.

After a certain point Kairi stopped keeping track of time. Sometimes she would lie down and think about her time with Sora to see if her heart could make any connection to his. But those thoughts always came back to her personal declaration to act as Altair. Like the sailor, was Kairi acting too proud by making such a statement? Perhaps the trials she went through on her search weren’t enough to prove her strength?

Of course, she’d push those thoughts away. If there was anything she’d take away from the sailor was his absolute stubbornness to achieve his goal of reaching Vega. Kairi’s persistence led her up to the present, where she found herself back at the Final World. This wasn’t Kairi’s first trip to this purgatory during her search, but it definitely was different from the previous visits. Instead of a clear blue sky, she is surrounded by an inky black, star-filled sky.

On instinct, Kairi stares into the vast sky above, searching the countless lights until she finds Vega. Focusing her mind and heart on Sora, she walks towards the star. Eventually, the rest of the stars fade away from Kairi’s vision as her seemingly endless trek towards Vega continues. Just as she feels like giving up, far away on the horizon she sees something.

Someone.

Once Kairi registers what she sees, she makes a mad dash for the person, seemingly lit by the light of Vega. But as she continues to run, Kairi can’t help but feel like he’s only getting farther away. Still running, tears run down her eyes as she calls out his name, her words never reaching the young man.

Until suddenly, he turns around. On his face is a somber smile.

Just as her legs begin to give out, Kairi catches up with the young man and brings him into a loving embrace, the both of them falling to the ground. She has so many things to say, so many words to convey her loneliness for the past year and the relief for finding him. But after all the yelling on top of being out of breath, all Kairi can muster out is a single word. A single name.

“Sora…”

“I’m here, Kairi.”

As time passes, the two continue to lie in their embrace, enjoying each other’s company. Occasionally they would meet eyes, but Kairi always found herself nuzzling her face into Sora’s chest. In return, Sora would rest his chin on her head. To the two of them, it was like the sky was lit by only Vega and Altair. But eventually, on the horizon of The Final World, a sun begins to rise.

Sora glances at his left hand and frowns as a crystal slowly envelops it. With his other hand, he gently wakes up Kairi. At first she’s smiling at him, but her expression quickly turns to shock as the crystal enveloping Sora’s hand travels up his arm. The both of them stand up, the rising sun creating a light behind Sora as he places his right on Kairi’s cheek to wipe away a tear.

As the sun continues to rise and the star and night sky melt away, the crystal continues to overtake Sora’s body. Kairi, still in shock, is nearly unable to say anything. At least until the crystallization reaches Sora’s neck. As she opens her mouth, more tears fall from her eyes.

“Sora… I’ll come back to you. I promise!”

“I know you will.”

Just as the crystal envelops the rest of Sora’s body, he smiles at Kairi once more, tears streaming down his face. As the rising sun behind Sora overtakes him, the crystallized Sora fades away.

Falling onto her knees, Kairi lets out a pained yell as she starts to sob.

She was Altair, and she did find her Vega. But like Altair, Kairi was unable to stay with her love for more than a day.

Unable to break the cycle.

After a while, Kairi composes herself. She wipes away the tears on her face as she slowly rises from the ground.

Staring into the morning sky, Kairi makes another promise to herself.

Even if it took another year, she’d reunite with Sora. But unlike her model, Kairi swore that she wouldn’t be separated. She would take her love in her arms and never let him go.

They would meet again, beneath the light of Vega and Altair.

---

Out of all the oneshots I’ve written up until now, I feel the most proud of this one. I’ve never really written anything with angst before, so this was a fun experiment. I blame Yoko Taro and his games as they were my inspiration for my need to create a bittersweet ending. Because of this, I want to ask you all something:

Do you think Kairi’s promise here is a hopeful one or a desperate one?

Please think about Altair and Vega when you consider your answer. This oneshot is one where I hope its readers can walk away with unique thoughts on it. Nothing is right or wrong when it comes to answering the question.

As usual, shoutout to the Sokai: Destined Oath Discord server, and a special thanks to the server member Gee for acting as my Beta Reader.

Thanks for Reading!

#sokai #sokaiweek #sokaiweek2020 #Day 5 #kingdom hearts fanfiction #sora #kairi #fanfiction #oneshot #F/M #sourcherrybomb

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wellesleyunderground · 3 years

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Wellesley Writes It: Conversation with Sumita Chakraborty '08 (@notsumatra), author of ARROW

Sumita Chakraborty is a poet, essayist, scholar, and a graduate of Wellesley College, class of 2008. Her debut collection of poetry, Arrow, was released in September 2020 with Alice James Books in the United States and Carcanet Press in the United Kingdom, and has received coverage in The New York Times, NPR, and The Guardian. Her first scholarly book, tentatively titled Grave Dangers: Death, Ethics, and Poetics in the Anthropocene, is in progress. She is Helen Zell Visiting Professor in Poetry at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, where she teaches in literary studies and creative writing.

Sumita’s poetry appears or is forthcoming in POETRY, The American Poetry Review, Best American Poetry 2019, the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, and elsewhere. Her essays most recently appear in the Los Angeles Review of Books. Her scholarship appears or is forthcoming in Cultural Critique, Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and the Environment (ISLE), Modernism/modernity, College Literature, and elsewhere. Previously, she was Visiting Assistant Professor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, as well as Lecturer in English and Creative Writing, at Emory University.

Wellesley Underground’s Wellesley Writes it Series Editor, E.B. Bartels ’10, had the chance to chat with Sumita about publishing, reading, and writing. E.B. is grateful to Sumita for willing to be part of the Wellesley Writes It series in the middle of her book debut!

EB: Thank you so much for being part of the Wellesley Writes It series, Sumita! I’m excited to get to talk to you about writing in general, but especially your debut collection Arrow. Can you start off speaking a bit about how this book came about?

SC: Thank YOU so much! This is such a joy.

The book that’s now Arrow went through about seven prior full versions.

EB: Oh my gosh! Wow.

SC: While there’s a lot going on in there, the most fundamental story I wanted to tell was that of the experience of living in the aftermath of severe domestic violence, other entangled forms of assault, and grief (in my case, particularly for my sister, who died in 2014 at the age of 24). The word “aftermath” is a tricky one, because there is no neat and tidy “after” violence or grief, particularly when one considers the varying scales on which various devastations and mournings take place. One of the main narrative arcs of the collection, though, is that of becoming someone who can embrace love and joy and care and kinship even when those concepts have been weaponized or altogether foreclosed for all of one’s childhood and adolescence. And that’s a narrative that requires a sense of an “after” that I am deeply fortunate to have personally experienced. That’s the main tightrope the collection is invested in walking, which forms the through-line around which and with which its other preoccupations and obsessions orbit and collide.

EB: Wow, thank you so much for sharing all that, Sumita. I especially like what you said about the lack of a “neat and tidy” ending -- isn’t that always the case when it comes to writing about things from our own lives? We want real-life closure but sometimes have to settle for just narrative closure instead.

I meant to say also congratulations on the publication of your collection not only in the US but in the UK as well! What was it like to put that version together? The same? Different?

SC: I was wildly lucky in this regard. Some years ago, I published the poem “Dear, beloved” in Poetry, before it was in Arrow—and in fact before this version of Arrow even existed. At that point, the editor of Carcanet reached out to me to say that the press would be interested in bringing out my collection in the UK. I kind of panicked!

EB: I totally would have, too!

SC: As I mentioned, there was no Arrow yet. I was on a much earlier version that was “complete,” but when I looked at it, I knew: This ain’t it. And querying US presses was therefore not something I was prepared to do at that time; UK publication was even less within the realm of my imagination. I essentially told them the manuscript was in progress and asked if I could reach back out when it was ready and if I had secured a US publisher. Some years later, the collection was picked up by Alice James in the States and I reached back out to Carcanet to see if they were still interested, and they were! Alice James and Carcanet worked together during the production process, so while there were certainly some differences in approaches across either side of the pond, much of it was really streamlined, and that is all thanks to the outstanding and immense labor of the extraordinary editors and staffs at both publishers.

EB: How did you begin writing poetry in the first place? What was your path to becoming a writer?

SC: I didn’t come into much of a sense that I was interested in poetry and in literature until college. When I got there, I didn’t have a sense of really any passions and skills that I had, and that’s not imposter syndrome speaking—it’s because I had a terrible record in high school and found nothing inspirational there, and I was also pretty busy attempting to survive the violence I was experiencing at home and working toward moving out, which I did before college. In my first year and my sophomore fall at Wellesley, I took a really broad smattering of courses, including (with wild, and probably inappropriate, disregard for prerequisites in both cases) Advanced Shakespeare with William Cain and Advanced Poetry Writing with Frank Bidart. I was very much not good enough for both of those courses! But even as I was flailing around in them, something in my mind clicked: this was something I was willing to be terrible at until I started to understand it a bit better. These were puzzles that I liked, questions I liked, problems I cared about dwelling with. It was pretty much “love at first confusion.”

EB: I love that idea: “this was something I was willing to be terrible at.” That 100% nails how I feel about writing, too.

So, obviously, as you just said, Wellesley was very important in your trajectory as a poet -- the title of your book is a reference to a Frank Bidart poem! Which other faculty, staff, fellow students have influenced or inspired you? Are there any professors or classes you would tell young Wellesley writers that they 100% have to take?

SC: Following “love at first confusion,” I essentially made a second home of the first floor of Founders, so my answer to who at Wellesley influenced or inspired me could fill multiple pages!

EB: I love Founders. I miss Founders.

SC: I will invariably accidentally leave someone out and feel guilty, so I offer my mea culpas in advance. In addition to Bill Cain and Frank Bidart, I am beyond grateful to Dan Chiasson, with whom I worked on both my literary studies (including my thesis) and my poetry, and who graciously offered me more mentorship than I’d ever experienced in my life before that point; to Kate Brogan, from whom I got the bug for twentieth-century poetics, which remains the focus of my literary studies research; to Yoon Sun Lee, who taught the theory class when I took it, and planted a hugely important seed that I didn’t even know had been planted until much later simply by being a brilliant Asian American literary scholar (not a role I had ever before seen filled by someone of this subject position); to Larry Rosenwald, who was the first person I had ever met in a literary context who both knew that English was not my heritage language and, in his infinite and genuine passion for multilingualism, viewed that fact as a strength.

I wish I’d had more of a chance to get to know my peers while actually at Wellesley—my life circumstances while I was in college differed from the typical Wellesley experience in ways that made doing so challenging (for one, I worked multiple jobs the entire way through), but I’ve gotten to better know many people I knew at Wellesley more in the years since and that’s been a wonderful experience.

EB: I’ve also made a lot of Wellesley friends post-Wellesley. The Wellesley experience never ends, in that way.

SC: Since I’ve already spoken to the coursework that inspired me, I’m going to zig a bit where your last question zags: there isn’t a single course I would tell young Wellesley writers or literary enthusiasts that they 100% have to take. I don’t think one could go wrong with anyone I’ve named here (and I’ve been really excited to learn about the new additions to the English department: I would have loved to have learned from Cord Whitaker and Octavio González, and have heard wonderful things about both!). But I think that what made the Wellesley experience truly influential for me was that I had the opportunity, like Whitman’s “Noiseless Patient Spider” (though, um, not very noiselessly or patiently), to “launch’d forth filament, filament, filament,” and really listen to what spoke to me. I came in with no preconceptions, no expectations, no firm career plan (or even career plan). Knowing what undergraduates at environments like Wellesley frequently pressure themselves or feel pressured to do (or achieve or produce or attain), I don’t want to offer advice along the lines of a “must-do.” Rather, try things out and truly listen to yourself. What’s your “love at first confusion”?

EB: I know from personal experience that writing can be a really lonely practice. Who did you rely on for support during those really frustrating writing moments? Other writers? Your spouse? Friends? Fellow Wellesley grads? What does your writing/artistic community look like?

SC: All of the above! The thing is, for me, I don’t think writing is a lonely practice. When I feel most energized about writing, it is because I feel like I am in a conversation—or, to put a finer point on it, when I’m in a conversation that is nestled within hundreds of thousands of other conversations that have happened for millennia, are currently happening all around me, and will continue to happen after I’m a hunk of dirt. Tapping into that is often what brings me to the page in the first place.

EB: That’s such a good point.

SC: So when students, for example, feel really isolated or alone in their writing life, my first recommendation is to remind themselves of their beloveds. These may be actual living ride-or-die humans in their lives; these may be ghosts of writers and artists past that are important to them; they might be their most frequently bustling group text or their favorite TV show. Honestly, if one’s thinking of this question as broadly as I recommend, those beloveds probably belong to all of the above categories, to some degree. When you write, even if none of these beloveds are your subject or your audience or anything quite that easily analogous to the process, they are with you, and they have formed who you are before you’ve even picked up a pen or turned your computer on, so they are with you when you are writing, too.

EB: What is it like to now be teaching poetry to undergrads? Are you channeling your inner Dan Chiasson?

SC: Ha! Thank you for that—I just got a visual of myself trying to go as Dan for Halloween and I cracked myself up. (Dan, if you’re reading this: sorry!) I teach undergraduates and graduate students at Michigan, both in literary studies and in creative writing, and I love it very, very much. My students of all levels are brilliant, thoughtful, curious, and wildly imaginative people who often help bolster my faith in the ongoing importance of literary work. Honestly, particularly during this year, I have frequently been in awe of my students and have felt overwhelmingly lucky to be able to work with them.

EB: I know that you are also currently working on your first scholarly book, Grave Dangers: Death, Ethics, and Poetics in the Anthropocene. How do you approach writing poetry vs. writing an academic work? How is your creative process similar or different?

SC: For me the two have been inseparable since Wellesley. I essentially ask similar questions and have similar preoccupations no matter what genre I write; in terms of deciding which thought belongs to which genre, or which project a particular moment is better suited to, that’s often a matter of thinking carefully of what shapes that I want the questions to take, and what kinds of “answers”—in quotation marks because I don’t strive at certainty or mastery in either genre, or in anything for that matter—for which I imagine reaching or searching. For me, the processes for writing both are very, very similar: I draft wildly and edit painstakingly. It’s more a matter of closely listening to my patterns of thinking on any given subject or day in order to find out if the rhetorical patterns of academic prose would better suit them or if the rhetorical patterns of poetry would better suit them.

EB: What are you currently reading, and/or what have you read recently that you’ve really enjoyed? What would you recommend to read while we (are continuing to) lay low during this pandemic?

SC: 2020 was such an incredible year for books! Which feels somewhat perverse to say, considering everything else was dismal and it was hardly an easy year to put out a book, either. In terms of new poetry releases—and this is not a comprehensive list, so my mea culpas here too to the many that I have loved and will end up accidentally leaving off—I have this year read and loved: Taylor Johnson’s Inheritance, francine j. harris’s Here is the Sweet Hand, Craig Santos Perez’s Habitat Threshold, Jihyun Yun’s Some Are Always Hungry, Eduardo Corral’s Guillotine, Rick Barot’s The Galleons, Jericho Brown’s The Tradition, Shane McCrae’s Sometimes I Never Suffered, Victoria Chang’s Obit, Danez Smith’s Homie, Aricka Foreman’s Salt Body Shimmer, and Natalie Diaz’s Postcolonial Love Poem. Two prior-to-2020 poetry collections that I reread every year are Brigit Pegeen Kelly’s Song and Lucille Clifton’s The Book of Light. I’m currently reading Claudia Rankine’s Just Us and Alice Oswald’s Nobody.

EB: Also what about Lucie Brock-Broido? I know she was a teacher of yours at one time, and she was a professor in my MFA program. I had the pleasure of once sitting in on her lecture, and it was life-changing. Are there any particular poems of hers you would suggest?

SC: I joined Lucie’s summer workshop held at her home in Cambridge, MA the summer after my sophomore year at Wellesley, and I stayed in it until I moved to Atlanta for graduate school in 2012. “Life-changing” is right—in fact, it feels a little too modest. She was transformative. A cosmos-realigner. A hilarious, brilliant, extraordinarily kind meteor. A fox with wings. A unicorn. I could go on, and on. For a reader new to her work, I’d recommend starting with her posthumously published “Giraffe” in The New Yorker. I think “A Girl Ago” and “You Have Harnessed Yourself Ridiculously to This World” from Stay, Illusion (2015) are also remarkable entry points. After that, I would probably recommend reading her collections in this order: first Stay, Illusion; then A Hunger (1988); then The Master Letters (1997); and finally Trouble in Mind (2005). The sequencing here isn’t intended as a ranking in the least—my own personal favorites toggle back and forth depending on where my own “trouble in mind” lives, and each collection is dazzlingly strong and has its own raison d’être—but rather because I think the story those collections tell in that order would let a new reader have a full sense of Lucie’s poetics outside of the story that mere chronology can tell.

EB: Any advice for aspiring young poets?

SC: Filament, filament, filament. Let your writing life be as huge and wild and disparate as the whole person you are—don’t feel like there’s only a part of you that’s “worthy of poetry,” and don’t let anyone else tell you what kind of writer you should or shouldn’t be.

EB: Thank you, Sumita! That was wonderful.

#wellesley writes it #wellesleywritesit #wellesley #wellesley underground #wellesleyunderground #sumita chakraborty #eb bartels #e.b. bartels #class of 2008 #class of 2010 #poet #poetry #writer #writers

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whoneedssexed · 4 years

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Is there anything to be proud of if you’re British? I’ve seen a lot of things about people embracing their heritage and their cultures and it’s so amazing to see that that is finally moving into the spotlight and becoming acceptable but I feel like being English means there’s not a lot of culture to have or a lot to be proud of, my ancestors are the prevailing reason for the state of the world right now. I know this potentially isn’t important rn, so ignore me if I’m being silly. Ty

I mean, sure, England has been around a long time and has been occupied by various cultures. Yes, there’s a LOT of imperialism in it, but that doesn’t mean that’s all there ever was to it.

There are some things that are quintessentially English, there are multiple notable people in your history, there are advancements made by your own folks, works of art and literature that the entire world has known, and so on.

The reason people get upset with this topic is that a lot of people lay a claim to “celebrating heritage” when what they mean is “celebrating whiteness, no particular heritage involved”, or only celebrating the bad, such as in the case of believing England civilized the world or has a right to claim the various artifacts they’ve stolen from other peoples.

People can be proud to be American and of the good things of American history. There’s often a remark made here that true patriotism is about pride in your country moving forward and making the effort to continue to progress, acknowledging the bad and giving voices to the downtrodden of your citizens and vowing to do better for your people.

And so the same could be said of your country.

But also similarly, your history becomes diverse and colorful due to immigration and assimilation from the cultures you’ve consumed. It’s likely the only “bright” spot of that imperialism. So you’ll have things that are specific to the culture of, say, English Muslims, or English Mexicans (admittedly, I’m not sure how you guys word these identities), creating unique blends of what it means to be an English citizen. You may claim them with pride, but it’s important to remember they also truly belong to their own people and not exactly to you.

It’s important to acknowledge this is also English, and that they aren’t subnotes in your culture and history.

I guess to end my rambling, you do have some things that are good in your history. Everyone does. It’s remembering to acknowledge it’s not all peachy or immune to criticism that is important, and it’s also important not to raise yourself above others in your pride.

- mod BP

#england #english #british #britain #culture #identity #Anonymous

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bolbianddolanhouse · 3 years

Text

Book 3 FAQ!

Need to catch up? Heres all the previous FAQs 1 * 2 Heres the master post of all three books 1 * 2 * 3

Wow...you would think that with the whole pandemic that I’d get these chapters out faster. But alas this year got the best of me too. I’ve been a lil vulnerable in the tags with y’all and the check-in messages really touched me. So thank you very much to everyone that has checked up on me and enjoyed the chapters! I appreciate all of you :3 So lets roll out the questions!

Q: Who is Iwata based off? A: Iwata is based off my self-insert, which is also me. I know that sounds a lil narcissistic but it’s that real life reference that you’re a spitting image of your parent. Iwata was designed to look and act very similar to his mother based off that. What made him a little more original and not a copy of my self-insert is the tropes I added. I mirrored the trope of that of the relationship between Steven and his mom in Steven Universe; where he adored, then hated but then came to terms that he is not his mom but someone better. A whole journey of self-discovery and self-worth.

Q: The representation is amazing! How did you come up with these queer characters? A: Glad you liked them! Like I’ve said in previous FAQs and in the tags, all these characters were dreamt and I just build upon them in writing. So yes, most of my characters were created queer in my dreams but I make them more in depth by setting up how they discovered they’re queer. I did a bit of research on coming out stories and self-discovery epiphanies to have these characters more relatable so a fellow queer reader feels seen in a way. There’s already too much hetero works out there, I just want to gay it up in a respectful way.

Q: The culture mixing is really good and consistent, how do you do it? A: For starters, I am latina. But the culture mixing stems from my knowledge about other cultures through language. I’ve been studying Japanese for almost a decade now and Chinese for about 4 years, so it’s no surprise that I’m referencing them in my work. Maybe what I depict isn’t what other half-Japanese half-Latinx families do, but it’s what I’d do if I started such a family. Plus there’s some overlap within those cultures and it makes it easy to put into writing.

Q: So. much. drama! Why is this book more dramatic than the previous two? A: Book 3 is were main on-going plot gets picked up more and shows signs of resolution. In book 2, it was to focus on not only Lili and the family dynamic but to remind the reader that life moved on with little resolve for the self-insert character. Iwata has a HUGE role in the resolution but in his own special way. And I’m not saying the answer is love...but it’s leaning there.

Q: You reference specific food and snacks in this AU/ what are your favorite Cheetos? A: Like I said, I’m latina! Of course I write in the food of my home culture. Mainly the home cooked meals my mom would make for me and my siblings. It might not seem like much to the reader, but those simple meals add to the narrative of being home and traditions that help them embrace their mixed heritage. The reference of Cheetos are all over this AU because they’re my favorite hot chip. Naturally, my favorite Cheetos are the Hot con Límon with chamoy.

Q: Love that there’s no canon character deaths in this book so far, but are there any major deaths planned? A: Just one but it’s not a tragic, hero fallen type death. It’s a natural death but it’s gonna be a tear jerker. That death won’t come until the WAY end of this AU, so I’m not gonna spoil anything yet.

Q: Can’t believe you predicted Dabi’s true identity. A: It was obvious tho. I didn’t really predict anything canon if you’re an anime only for BNHA. In this AU (without spoiling too much) there’s no Endeavor redemption and Dabi doesn’t cause that big drama on live TV. So if you’re an Endeavor hater like me, you’re gonna love what I have in store for them in the next book!

Q: I love Tenya being a dad and loving husband in this AU! Will we see more dad moments? A: Glad you like those snippets of dad Tenya! I love writing them for my own indulgence since there isn’t enough love for this character in the fandom. Plus I see a whole lot of consistent readers are Iida-stans and that makes me want to write more married fluff whenever I can.

Q: Beizu is best boi/Who is Beizu based off of? A: Beizu is the genius trope in this book. I made his character a more chill version of his mom but with that ‘who is my dad’ trope. Beizu is part of a trio that’s to mirror the agent trio of Ita, Jin and Mimi. The third member is yet to be revealed but they’re a BIG plot device in the coming book. But Beizu is one of my favorite OCs, maybe I’ll do a ranking of my OCs when everyone is introduced.

Q: The villains and Hawks plot has me SHOOK! What’s going to happen to hero society when this case gets solved? A: Without spoiling it, the truth is going to expose the corrupt higher ups in hero society. The kids in the household has a part in taking down hero society as well but in their own, special way. Iwata has the biggest part in closing the case (but it’s spoiler if I say how), Lili and twins help tearing down minor things like education systems and laws. I will say though, the case gets resolved after the trio retires because Ita gets to return to America and found an heir to the company before they could draw to a conclusion. Which is a happy ending at the end of the storyline, no major deaths!

Q: Confirmed weddings? A: Yes :) because Lili and Iwata deserve good things and love. The twins have it easy in the coming book. Lili’s comes first and Iwata’s comes later than expected (can’t say why yet, gotta keep reading :3). I guess I can say that all of them get married but Lili’s and Iwata’s are the only queer ones. All the spouses that marry into the family take the Iida name, so Lili and Hanaka don’t change family names when they get married! Y’all already know those wedding chapters are gonna be lavish and take up most of the chapter, you’ll love them.

Q: But are the kids Joji stans? A: Oh jeez...they are the same way we like 80′s music. It’s pleasant to listen to but kinda cringe when you see your parents dance to it. I don’t really portray it, but the family digital library has all of Joji’s music in a playlist called ‘Sad hours Soundtrack’. If you ask Mr Muffins 2.0 who last listened to the playlist, they’ll snitch who and how many times it has been looped. That’s how Tenya knows who needs cheering up.

Q: I love the little references to their childhood, what else can you tell us about their pre-book childhood? A: As I said a few times in the tags, I cut a ton of stuff that isn’t relevant to the plot. Most of it was their childhood and how they manifested their quirks. Lili really liked to scream before she learned to talk, a very fast learner and at 3 years old got her engine quirk and later that year showed signs of a second quirk. Iwata was very quiet child, hardly cried or gets upset but latched on to mom a lot. His first words were in Spanish but struggled a bit with Japanese before entering kinder. Tensei was born first, then Hanaka followed 10 minutes later. Hanaka’s fire quirk manifested after the first breast feeding when she was getting burped by mom in the hospital. Mom likes to believe Tensei came out first to warn everybody that Hanaka can breathe fire. Tensei didn’t manifest his metal quirk until the age of 7, making him a very late bloomer. Though very different in personalities, Hanaka and Tensei get along and get very creative when it’s playtime. Up until the age of 5, mom would place Hanaka in kindling to get the BBQ grill or bonfire started. Hanaka has been known to randomly burst into flames as a baby, so Tensei had to sleep in a different crib for his safety. Tensei spent more time reading as a child because everyone was focused on managing Hanaka’s flames, thus making him a very studious boy.

Q: Not an AU question, but how are you doing?/ We don’t mind waiting for the chapters! Please take your time. A: I’ve been getting check ins and validation in my asks for the inconsistent schedule. Too many things came at me this year, both good and bad. I was doing well in speech and debate that I went to nationals and prepared myself for some serious competition, leaving no time to do chapters. Then I fell in and out of depressive episodes during lockdown where I’m from. In the summer my grandmother passed away from the virus in Mexico, then my beloved dog Mr Muffins passed away of old age. Those deaths hurt me and my family the most that I was having a hard time trying to cope plus trying to be responsible by adhering to CDC guidelines (I’m in the immune-comprised group). In my want to get over my grief, I trained and received my certificate in ordained ministry (yea I know that’s not the best first step, but I just needed to feel like I’ve achieved something being cooped up at home). I’ve very grateful that theres some readers that see the tags and check up on me. All your kind words gives me a little strength to write and finish every chapter at my pace.

Q: More art please? A: Yes :3 I have one coming up real soon! After the end of this book is where I’ll be releasing some art as a sort of place holder.

Q: Is the the estate drama eluding to the ending? A: Yup! And it will show up every now and then in the next book.

Q: This is a really good self insert AU! There’s complexity to your character and others...how do you write these interactions/relationships really close to actual ones? A: Thanks for the complement :3 When I first started this AU, I was in the middle of my semester of a creative writing course. Near the end of book 2 was when I finished the course work for it and by then you could see the progression in writing. ALSO, I’m a communications major as well! Writing these relationships and other social things were things that I remembered learning in my interpersonal communications class. I was a bit on fence on whether or not to start this AU because I didn’t think my writing skill was at all that good. With some encouragement from my classmates and friends, I pushed myself to write this whole AU out. I don’t plan on stopping until I finish the storyline, plus I hate leaving things unfinished.

And that wraps up this FAQ! Hopefully I got everyone’s questions since most were check-ins for me. But expect the last chapter for book 3 in the next few days. After Book 3, I’m going on a lil hiatus until the end of February. I have so many life events happening in the upcoming weeks that I’m gonna need time to recharge before resuming this AU. Y’all know I bounce back as promised, in the meantime, I have some art things queued to remind y’all that Book 4 is in the works. Only 2 more books to go! Thanks again for reading and I’ll talk you y’all again later in the tags~

-Love, Palma-sama

P.S. Heres the end of Book 3 for your connivence :3 other links are at the top of this post!

#mha #bnha #self insert au #not canon #FAQ 3 #Book 3 #ask me anything

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about-feathers-and-claws · 4 years

Photo

Divinity Original Sin 2 : About Feathers and Claws - The Divine Doom Deleting scenes make me want to draw them.

-------------------- [Deleted Scene] --------------------

“So... how is that book, uh?”

Sandor blinked, “Do you want me to tell you about it?”

“Well... Unlike all that other stuff you usually talk about, I probably will get it.”

Ifan averted his eyes down for a moment.

Sandor believed to see a small fragment of insecurity. Raised eyebrows, he remained silent for a moment, surprised for such revelation. Putting aside the book he was reading, he observed Ifan who a bit uncomfortable hid his face in the curve of Sandor's neck.

Ifan was not a scholar. His knowledge of the world had always come from experience, from mistakes, from small teachings that other people gave him along his life. All what Sandor knew, that vast amount of fancy complicated words, of long logical procedures, of languages, of sources and books and authors; all that was completely out of his reach. He could follow the simplest concepts, but it was easy for him to get lost quickly. He knew he was not particularly the best companion for a scholar. And a scholar could not be the most suitable for him either. Still yet, here they were.

“Is it not boring for you?” Sandor said, his voice tinged with hesitation.

“Give it a shot. You have been reading that book since I know you. Almost.”

Sandor frowned. “Indeed, it's the same author but it's not the same book.”

Ifan closed his eyes, nuzzled in Sandor's neck breathing that scent of home-made bread that he liked so much, and embraced the man, letting his body relax. Sandor's voice, soft and calm, in combination with his warmth in that comfortable bed was the best combo to fall asleep.

“Well, what is it about?” Ifan insisted.

“It's a romance story, you know it.”

“Who with who?”

“You really want me to tell you all the details?”

“I'm not going to read it. I prefer your voice narrating it.”

Sandor smiled in a silly way and moved in the bed to be more comfortable. He slid his arm under Ifan's neck and caressed his long hair while talking. “It's the story of a Knight, defending the Empire from an foreign nation. There is a lot of political stuff. He found in the enemy line a Mage that he could not kill in an encounter.”

“Why? Too powerful?”

“No. The Mage had amber eyes. It's a feature of people of an almost extinct tribe that the Knight is part of. The Knight has been shamed for that past all his life, so he was under different magical procedures to change the colour of his own eyes. They turned black. It's an interesting concept, you know? Because he is described as the embodiment of moral and rightness, but his actions are twisted and dark, pretty much like his eyes.”

“Mhn?. So, he is all about shiny armour but dark insides?”

“A bit. It's more like a consequence of his inner battle against himself. Don't accept yourself and you will be twisted by your own nature. That kind of thing.”

Ifan only sighed a bit heavy, as if the concept had resounded a little bit in his mind. Then, he felt Sandor's fingers scratching his scalp gently. Ifan left a peck on Sandor’s neck.

“It doesn't look like a romance so far.” Ifan said.

“There are two more characters. The enemy Mage of amber eyes, who is attacking the Empire, and the son of the Queen of the Empire, who has been interested in the Knight since children.”

“Ah. A love story that started from childhood?”

“Kind of. The Knight and the Prince always played as friends, crossing certain limits in their teenage years. They... they had their first time together, in secret. It was lovely to read that part.” Now it was Sandor who sighed as his muscles tensed. “Exploring each other's body, their ability to feel, to share...” he swallowed hard, as his fingers tensed a little bit on Ifan's scalp. “First times shaping them, linking them, making their bond deeper...”

Ifan lifted his face a bit and saw Sandor's eyes. They were lost in the ceiling, only for a moment. Then, they lowered to see Ifan's. A long silence remained between them, observing each other. It was hard to say anything that could ease that pain in Sandor. It was part of his scars. Ifan only stretched his neck and kissed Sandor in his lips, returning to nuzzle his neck.

“So... the romance stops there?” Ifan said.

Sandor cleared his throat and continued, “No. When the Knight fought against the Mage, and saw his amber eyes, he was shocked. He could not behead the Mage so he took him prisoner. His soldiers interviewed the Mage with hard manners. One day, when the Knight went to the dungeon to see the progress, he found the Mage heavily wounded. The soldiers of that Empire hated that tribe. The whole series tells you that the tribe of the Sun Eyes were savages that attacked the Empire every time they could. They had massacred whole towns and killed and tortured people who were under the Empire protection. They were evil, so it was expected that the Mage would be treated that way. However, the picture of his mistreated body made the Knight wonder about his own present and his own secret. Would torture have been his future, had he not changed the colour of his own eyes?. Somehow, that wounded Mage was the answer of his thoughts.”

“Mnh, it doesn't sound like a bad story to read.”

“Do you want me to stop? So you can read it later?”

“No, forget it. I’ve told you already, I prefer the sound of your voice.”

Sandor beamed and accommodated his body on the mattress, noticing how immediately Ifan lifted his heavy body to allow him to do so, returning to his neck immediately afterwards. Several pecks were left there.

“Well. The Knight observed the bloody tortured body of the Mage, and his intense Sun Eyes looking at him, with hatred. You can't pretend before me, the Mage said. He could sense the Knight's true nature. The Mage knew that the Knight was one of them.”

“He needed to kill that Mage right there, before he could speak and use that secret as blackmail.” Ifan said, his mercenary mind stepping ahead.

“Too late.”

“Uh?.” Ifan lifted his head and looked at Sandor. “He had already spoke to the torturers?”

Sandor nodded, arranging Ifan's hair behind his ear. “They were setting a trap for the Knight. That scene was interesting too. The Mage confessed him that he had spoken about his secret. The soldiers were just trying to confirm his past, since for the first time, they wondered why the Knight had so many holes in his family story. So, the Knight had to run away, but he wanted to hurt that Mage for what he had done. For ruining his life. So he took him and left the Empire forever. They ended up in a cave where the Knight had decided to torture the Mage to his death, but the defiance of those Sun Eyes was a terrible weight for him. He couldn't. He only could punch him. And bursting into tears, the Knight shouted at the mage all the ordeals he had to pass through in order to have a life far away from the curse of the Sun Eyes tribes. The Mage told him that he was silly, that there was no curse. That only one to truly blame was the Empire. The Mage explained the tribe's perspective. How the Empire had taken them as slaves, had used them as workers to death, had stolen their cities, and destroyed millenia of culture and knowledge. No book from the Sun Eyes had survived the raging and euphoric systemic erasure of the Empire. The Empire rewrote the whole story of the Sun Eyes. All convenient lies. That was the last step to complete the massacre. Only a few children were spared that survived far away from the borders of the Empire. The Mage was one of them, and he wanted to spread the Truth.”

“The hell of a story. The romance is not important.”

“No, it is. The Mage and the Knight spent so many years in exile, reconnecting the Knight to his heritage, opening his eyes to the Truth, that they fell in love. They became the last of their kind: one proud of being a Sun Eye, the other, ashamed of it, with his feature contaminated. Their romance is full of contradictions and revelations. The scenes of those two are incredibly... hot.”

Ifan laughed. “Why?”

Sandor cleared his throat. “Sex with magic.”

Ifan blushed, burying his face in Sandor's neck. “Don't tell me you got ideas from them.”

“No, they are not Sourcerers. But the electricity thing... well... It gave me a lead.”

Ifan chuckled, his rumbling chest resonating against Sandor's ribs.

“The drama starts when the Knight joins the cause against the Empire and has to face the Prince. The Prince loves him so he is desperate to recover the Knight. He promises him that he would protect him from the Empire hatred, that he would manage to convince his Mother to accept their relationship now that the Knight has been uncovered as a Sun Eye too. That he still trusted in him deeply. And the Knight faltered.”

“Hell, no!. Don't tell me the asshole kicks the Mage.”

“Did you remember the other night you were worried about my tears?” Sandor said, a bit ashamed of the fact.

Ifan chuckled, “You told me it was the book.”

“It was that scene. The Mage could not compete with the childhood love. And the Knight betrayed him. They set a trap for the Mage. And the last one of the Sun Eyes, with amber eyes, died.”

“What? That's terrible!”.

“The scene was terrible. The Mage was still loving the Knight as he died, knowing it could have been very different if the world were not be so cruel. And the Knight, quite late, was mortified with the sight of the Mage being killed with a massive cast of ice around his body. The cold suffocating him to death. A death that, in the fantasy of this book, rips always the Sun from their eyes. Quite poetic. The Knight felt hollow with that execution. But it was too late to do anything. He was now the last one of his kind, but one who had tarnished his nature in all senses. He was a betrayer. And remained by the Prince's side. He kept sleeping with the one who had loved him without knowing about his nature, the one that kept encouraging him not to be who he truly was. Just because they were children when everything started. They kept trying to maintain things like they used to be in that more innocent time... and so far... that's the story. First times are something too engraved in a person's soul. They have a unique weight.”

Sandor's tears ran across his cheeks, as he analysed the story loudly. Worried, Ifan rested his body on his elbows and wiped Sandor's tears, smiling gently at him. “It's a story, Sandy.”

“It's something that has been happening for many, many centuries. The name or the ranks of the characters may be different. But this story… has happened thousands of times. It must be happening right now too. Imagine that... poor mage. First times shape a person too deeply.” His lips trembled.

Ifan lent in, kissed him slowly and gently. He looked into his eyes, caressing his temple. “Maybe. But...Don't worry, Sandy. You don’t have amber eyes. And I'll be choosing you in any story.”

That terribly cheesy phrase made Sandor smile, and a couple of tears fell accidently while accepting that strong embrace around him.

#fic: About Feathers and Claws #my crappy art #ifan ben mezd #Ifan Ben-Mezd #sandor das balurik #fanart #oc #godwoken #fiction #fanfiction #The Divine Doom - deleted scenes #deleted scenes

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allbeendonebefore · 5 years

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Hey hapo what's with the sea of blue in sask and Alberta during the election like did Sheer make that good of an impression on Sask voters??? NDP is option??

sea of blue you say? obviously we created our own blue sea since we’re not allowed access to tidewater JKJKJKJK

this is a really complicated question and I’m trying to think about how best to explain it. my feelings on the issue are very mixed because i feel like i have a foot or a hand in several camps like some convoluted twister game. it’s something that a lot of identity and emotion is tied up in for a lot of people and it’s rooted very firmly in inequalities that have existed for over a century and get expressed differently in different regions. It’s something that I grew up saturated in and I’ve done a lot of reading about (and of course there’s always more on my reading list) but I’ll try and highlight a few reasons that I’ve been musing about so as not to be too overwhelming.

it’s something that is really hard to explain to people from outside the province because we’re quick to be written off (sometimes rightfully so, others not) but it’s something that’s equally hard to explain to people inside the province. As I said it’s something we’re all saturated in, we are born into it or we grow up in it and it’s really hard to confront a lot of things surrounding it. And I definitely have my own biases and background and relation to this issue and I must stress that as furious as I am with people in large groups making dumb ass decisions, I can’t be angry at individuals because I get a lot of why this happens even though I find it personally misguided or ignorant at best and actively harmful, selfish, and self-sabotaging at worst. But when I explain this I hope it makes sense why for a lot of people it feels like the only option.

And my last preface is that I am speaking from an Alberta perspective, if my followers in Saskatchewan want to add on to this please feel free. I’m glossing over a lot here because I’m trying to keep this short and understandable… but when have I ever done that lol.

Yeah, it got long.

so why does the west go conservative. it’s not scheer, and if you remember harper you’ll remember personality is never high on our list of priorities. [insert gif of harper explaining how he too is a human who watches netflix here]

1. History

To sum up two hundred years: Alberta and Saskatchewan were never equal partners in confederation with other provinces. They were purchased and carved up by the Canadian government which then imposed the two party system on the provinces, which prior had consensus government which (i believe) was similar to how NWT and Nunavut continue to operate. They were not given the rights to their own resources until decades after joining confederation. They were given Liberal governments because the Liberals were and are considered the “natural” governing party of Canada, and while Saskatchewan has flopped between Liberal and Conservative governments like many eastern provinces, Alberta has always had a radical streak and has NEVER re-elected an unseated party in its history. And no, I don’t consider the UCP a continuation of the previous 4 decades of conservative rule, even though they imagine themselves to be the inheritors of that legacy.

Fast forward to the direct impacts: in the 70s, world events that severely impacted oil production caused Eastern Canada to absolutely panic and force Alberta and Saskatchewan (yet again) into providing discounts on their production to soften the blow in Ontario and Quebec of rising prices, forbidding them to sell for a profit to the United States. This included both oil products and potash, hugely lucrative products in AB and SK. It was a continuation of Eastern Canada imagining and treating the prairies as property, as chattel, where provinces like Quebec and BC would never be asked to undersell to benefit the rest of the country.

The current federal conservative party is an amalgamation of reactions to this situation and related ones: the Progressive party (which was a complete misnomer) originated in Manitoba, the Reform party emerged from what I understand as the “first wave” of western separatism, and even though Reform was defeated federally it is still a direct ancestor to Stephen Harper and by extension Andrew Scheer. Harper’s policies are the natural product of decades of conservative governments dating back to Preston and Earnest Manning’s Social Credit party in Alberta.

That said, people from both inside and outside the provinces completely misunderstand Harper’s (and Kenney’s) “Western-ness” or “Albertan-ness”. Both of them ran on western issues and appear to speak up for western interests, but those issues and interests only go as far as the CEOs of the oil companies are concerned, not the working class in the industry. Harper and Kenney actively undermined the equalization formula for the west and had the gall to campaign on striking a good deal for the west. Federal politicians do not have to ever strike a good deal for the west, they will ALWAYS prioritize voters in Ontario and Quebec so long as our voting system remains this way.

2. Identity

My next point in the long agonizing question of Why This is a sensitive one. In Alberta we have my parent’s generation who were voting age at the toppling of Social Credit by Lougheed’s Conservatives. For Alberta this was a monumental shift in taking no shit from Ottawa that people still look back on. Lougheed was a hero for demanding a fair price from Canada for Alberta, and he was incredibly concerned with managing the resource and the profits wisely. While conservative governments were natural and long standing in eastern Canada, this was the first time they had taken power in Alberta and they made a dramatic and revolutionary impression, which is not a thing that conservative governments are usually known to do.

My parent’s generation remembers this time of intense prosperity. My parent’s generation raised their children in this boom-bust cycle and my parent’s generation watched as Lougheed’s heritage fund was spent out from under us. I grew up under Ralph Klein’s government- intensely popular for a premier and who’s legacy was as powerful as Lougheed’s, but incredibly polarizing. He gave $300 to every man, woman and child in the province (except my fam because we had just moved back and didn’t have residency, lol) which was memorable if irresponsible. But it was men like Klein who had the charisma and the presence to make people really take pride in the industry, to worship the boom-bust, and to consider all problems solved. Klein did not give a shit about the part of Alberta I grew up in, and friends who lived in the far north of the province fared even worse. It’s absolutely no wonder that the Edmonton area consistently votes “against” the rest of the province when we were left isolated and broken during the bust of the 90s and ignored repeatedly in the mid to late 2000s.

I have a deep seated and extreme resentment for Ralph Klein’s government and it’s not because I missed out on my 300 Ralph Bucks or because I don’t have connections to the industry, it’s because I grew up with a deep seated fear that I wouldn’t be able to complete my education or that if I got sick something horrible would happen. I was legitimately terrified I would not be able to make it to secondary school because of the cuts his government made on rural schools, and for friends of mine who were not as lucky and well supported as I was, it was even worse. I won’t drag their personal stories onto the internet to make my point, but know

But the point of this all is that the people alive today who vote are people who remember this time of prosperity, of fighting Ottawa, and of relative ‘freedom’ from taxation and so on and so forth are constantly trying to hold onto that time. The kids in my generation who I went to school with did not have to graduate high school - my school had a 70% drop out rate because people would go straight to the patch or into a related industry. In Alberta, every industry is a related industry. There is not an aspect of living in Alberta that the patch doesn’t touch. This is hard to understand for people outside the province. It was actual culture shock to me to come to Ontario where funders of schools and businesses are families that date back to confederation rather than Enbridge or Suncor.

Moreover, the people who work in the patch do an incredibly difficult and dangerous job for incredible amounts of money and it’s no wonder they are so valourized. The people who work in the patch are more dependent on the companies than they are on the government. During the fire of 2016, it may have been the government providing evacuation stations, but it was the companies who got people out. Working class people feel seriously undervalued and are obviously seriously defensive about the industry for real, concrete reasons.

The past four decades have shaped generations of people in this way. This is not something easily reversed. Voting conservative is almost inextricable from Albertan identity and it’s impossible to explain concisely. We all grow up with the same arguments and talking points, we are all imbued with anger and defensive remarks from birth, and to people outside the province our arguments can sound rehearsed to the point of sounding cult-like. Stop Using Plastic If You Don’t Like It. Stop Driving and Flying. Stop Importing from Dictatorships. Stop Being a Hypocrite. They are easy, simple mantras to absolve anyone related to the industry (which is everyone) of any guilt because they don’t have to be a hypocrite if they just embrace the reality. There is no room for any critical thought in this identity, there is no room for discussion, there is nothing beyond Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and Don’t Ever Criticize What Keeps Everything Running. It’s normal and natural to feel upset when people who don’t grow up with this line of thinking find it strange.

3. Alienation

So why doesn’t our valourization of the working class translate directly into NDP votes? Why does Rachel Notley become vilified for speaking and acting as Peter Lougheed did in the 1970s? Why do we continue voting conservative and say thank you when they betray us and kick us in the balls every single time? Why do we cover up our oh-so-shameful history of birthing the CCF/NDP out of the desperation and destitution of the Great Depression?

As I’ve been saying it’s complicated, but it’s also really simple. No federal party ever speaks to us. Not a single one. The conservatives barely have to because they know our identity as conservative dates back to before a time when we even had a provincial upper-case Conservative government ourselves. Scheer can parade up and down parliament hill with his appeals to free speech and his pro life base and his white supremacist dogwhistles all he likes because he knows keeping Alberta and Saskatchewan “happy” (read: angry) is easy. This is a man who said himself that he doesn’t need ‘indian votes’ to win and he certainly was far more worried about keeping Doug Ford out of the spotlight during his campaign and pissing off Ontario than he was about us, and premier kenney spent all his time in office campaigning for scheer instead of running the goddamn province, including preparing us for an emergency. And we lap it up while screaming bloody murder if rachel notley is not personally handing out waterbottles on the side of the highway of death.

No party, not even the conservatives, truly speaks to Albertans. We get hated on constantly by the rest of the country because we appear to be full of climate change deniers, but even the CEO of SUNCOR condemns deniers and politicians who cater to them. A lot of Albertans do acknowledge climate change is a reality despite how we’re painted, but because of the misunderstanding we feel directed at us constantly we tend to react badly and would rather hole up in our bunkers and let the rest of the country freeze in the dark - or melt in the sun as it were. No party speaks to working class rural people. No party makes the attempt to speak to people who are still only grappling with already outdated terminology like “global warming” while they are shoveling snow in August or September. No party is talking about actual grievances that working class people in Alberta face, such as long hours away from home and family or intense isolation that leads to addiction and death, that matter more to people than seemingly hypothetical change in climate that happens Elsewhere, not Here. Parties need to start coming up with concrete solutions that will make the inevitable transition more than just necessary but inclusive and beneficial. No one wants to feel like they have to start from scratch, no one wants to worry about what to do or how it will help. We aren’t used to thinking about solving problems, and we keep putting it on the next generation while we make it even harder for them.

The more we are criticized the more militaristic the vocabulary becomes, and that’s why we provincially voted for a war room and tax cuts while taking the money from school lunch programs. We rest on our laurels of having the lowest child poverty rate in the country while stealing money from children and blaming their parents for them going hungry. It’s abominable. And a lot of us realize it. And a lot of us still feel as if we have no choice. A lot of progressive voices get drowned out in stifling silence and any change feels like an existential threat. We got ourselves into this mess, but we all need to work together to get out of it. And that means listening to the strongest opposition we’ve had in nearly a half century. That means being grown ups and sitting at the table with the rest of the country. That means fighting the gut reaction to sputter out talking points you were taught to say because it meant protecting your family. That also means that we need to be listened to in return without smugness or patronizing attitudes from politicians or the rest of the country.

If you want us to switch to alternative energy, you all need to step up and start helping us do that. As long as we feel as if it’s being imposed on us we will struggle and we will fight, but it’s exactly why it’s so important to change the tone of the conversation. Listen to us. Help us. Make us feel like we’re part of the country. Give us the tools we need to be better. Encourage us to be leaders in the energy industry because we love being the best and thrive off healthy competition. Appeal to real, concrete issues for working class people with real concrete solutions.

yeah. uh. [places mic shakily back on the stand] peace im going to bed, fight me or whatever.

#yeah y yeah alberta #long gone saskatchewan #hapo replies #hapo reads canadian history #if you want citations i can and will dig them up so like don't test my patience #if i am misinformed i appreciate a gentle correction #but when i'm speaking of my own experience don't fuckin correct me #weh weh wehxit #neef-breeks #i reread this the next morning and im like wow i didnt touch on so much #but also if i add more i'll lose a thread of what i was saying because i go off on tangents #anyway i still stand by what i've written here even if i didnt embellish enough

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rosalyn51 · 5 years

Link

May 7, 2019

A Discovery of Witches, the most watched series of 2018 on Sky One and the most successful title by far in the history of Sundance Now, is now streaming first on Showmax in South Africa.

youtube

Adapted from Deborah Harkness’s bestselling All Souls trilogy, A Discovery of Witches is a modern-day love story, set in a world where witches, vampires and daemons secretly live and work alongside humans, hidden in plain sight.

Teresa Palmer (I Am Number Four, Warm Bodies) stars as academic and historian Diana Bishop, a witch denying her magical heritage until the discovery of an ancient manuscript in Oxford’s Bodleian Library throws her into the heart of a dangerous mystery – and into the path of enigmatic geneticist and vampire Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode from The Good Wife, Downton Abbey and The Crown).

We caught up with Teresa and Matthew to find out more:

Tell us about your characters: Teresa: I’ve fallen in love with Diana; she’s such a dynamic character. She is a hyper-intellectual woman, an academic, a historian. She is very focused on that. Diana is an incredibly powerful witch but when we first meet her she is running away from her true self. As the series progresses, you see her start to really embrace and embody her own spirit. She becomes really proud of being a witch and of having these powers. It’s such a beautiful message for everyone watching because it is all about celebrating who you are. That is what made me want to do the show.

Matthew: Matthew Clairmont is a professor of biochemistry and an expert in genealogy. At the start, he is searching for the ancient manuscript, Ashmole 782. It talks about how vampires, daemons and witches came to be, and he’s been looking for it for hundreds of years. Matthew is so many different things: a chemist, a poet – and lethal. Matthew doesn’t have all the answers yet and he is an intriguing figure – that’s what attracted me to him. He’s mysterious and charming but at the same time he’s deadly. It’s a lot to play. He is multi-faceted, but he is without love. So Matthew’s past and his involvement with Diana are confusing for him because he wants the manuscript but then he starts falling in love with her.

Can you explain why Diana is a reluctant witch when we meet her in the first episode? Teresa: Diana has had a pretty traumatic childhood. She was raised by her aunties Sarah and Em because her parents were killed. They were both very powerful witches and her mother was descended from Bridget Bishop, one of the first witches who was hung following the Salem Witch Trials, so her roots run very deep. Diana denies the powers associated with her bloodline because she was led to believe her parents were killed by ignorant humans who were afraid of witches. So, naturally, she is afraid to show any signs of being a witch to the outside world. That’s why she is so focused on her studies; it’s the one thing that keeps her grounded to a human-like quality and everything else is too scary for her.

How do your characters feel when they meet each other? Matthew: Matthew’s only consideration is that he wants to find the Book of Life. Obviously, his opinion of witches is not great because of the wars that have been fought over many centuries. Given the chance he would like to eat her because they are obsessed with witch blood, as witch blood sings to them. That’s how he talks about it: ‘I can hear your witches’ blood singing in your veins.’ He has been training himself not to fall in love again but there is just something about her. When they first met, there was a frisson between them.

Teresa: There is something between Diana and Matthew that is otherworldly. It is in the subconscious. They are supposed to be together. The first few meetings between them are probably my favourite, because there is this funny dynamic between them where he is really annoying to her and he is amused that he is annoying her. She knows immediately that he is a vampire. He is charismatic and handsome but there is something she can’t explain in words. She is drawn to him; they’re like two magnets for each other. It’s that really rare quality that you find in your soulmate. They are these twin flames that just have to be together.

Matthew: She, like him, does not judge other species. Her mind is also hugely important to him as it is what intrigues him. She is accepting of him and believes in him. And she is also going through her own journey of being attracted to someone that she isn’t supposed to be, being a witch and all that jazz.

What was it like to work with each other? Matthew: Teresa is really fun to work with; we are like an old married couple now.

Teresa: He’s the best. I just love him; I adore him. He is funny and crazy and kooky and always up for a good laugh. We had a scene where we are talking about time-walking. We have this problem, Matthew and I, where we get the giggles. And when we have the giggles, we can’t stop giggling. So we ruined take after take. We would almost get there, he had one line to say, we almost made it through and then he lost it! He was on the ground laughing. He is so cheeky and charming. We just have so much fun together.

How would you sum up A Discovery of Witches? Matthew: I wanted to be a part of it because it sounded like an incredible world to inhabit. I’d never played a vampire before and there is a dark mythology to it. The whole point of A Discovery of Witches was that it was going to turn that on its head. It’s more about his involvement with this human woman. So it has a love story and notions about equality. It has a lot to say about the politics of our time.

Teresa: It is a fantasy love story. It’s dramatic, and funny, and adventurous. It’s enticing and sexy and inspiring. It’s many things. It’s an incredibly magical adventure with very lovable characters.

A Discovery of Witches has a rare 100% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes, an 8.2/10 rating on IMDB, and was nominated for Best New Drama at the UK’s National Television Awards this year. Watch it here: showmax.com

#matthew goode #matthewgoode #matthew clairmont #teresa palmer #a discovery of witches

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stormsingerstudios-blog · 5 years

Photo

Homecoming ~Morenatsu Revisited~ (Release #1)

Happy holidays, everyone!

It's been a long development process, but we've finally made it! Me and the rest of Stormsinger Studios are proud to bring you the first release of Homecoming!

After some extensive pre-release testing and a stream preview courtesy of our friend Deckerlink, we feel it's finally ready for the public. A lot of hard work and dedication has gone into this project, and I personally couldn't be more proud of the results so far. We hope all of you enjoy the experience as much as we've enjoyed making it!

As stated in previous posts, Homecoming is a radical reimagining of Morenatsu, so please understand what it actually is. Going in, be prepared for many in-progress elements, especially on the art side of things. Homecoming is a ground-up remake of the Morenatsu we love, and many artistic liberties have been taken with the source material. We know that isn't to everyone's preference, but the intent of Homecoming is to provide a new, updated experience for old fans and newcomers to Morenatsu. For most of us on the development team, Morenatsu was a first experience coming to terms with who we are, and we want to provide the best experience possible for people who are in the same situation as we were all those years ago. If even one person plays our game and learns to love themselves for who they are on the inside, well...I consider that a victory.

A-Anyway, links are after this next section, where I'm updating the FAQ I made way back when we first announced this project.

Have a good rest of the year!

~ Dzahn

+++++ FAQ +++++

1. What is Homecoming?

A. Homecoming is a ground-up recoding of what we've already finished for Revisited. We're also increasing the game's resolution to a widescreen format, so everything should look cleaner and more organized. Essentially, think of this as a soft reboot for the Revisited project and a remake for Morenatsu as a whole.

2. Why stop developing the old version?

A. We believed it was a necessary step forward. Many issues started mounting as we developed Revisited, such as pressure from hardcore fans of the original to not change, disregard for the hard work we've put into the project, and resulting bloated code/file size trying to accommodate everyone. Starting fresh gives us the opportunity to make the experience we can feel proud of, ensuring every aspect stays consistent and the best it can be.

3. Will this change the story?

A. Yes, quite a bit, but ideally still keeping enough that it "feels" like Morenatsu. Revisited originally started out as a project to bring Morenatsu to a more accessible platform and correct grammatical errors. Along the way, it morphed into a project that tried to update the stories and give them more emotional depth. The same quality of writing you see in Revisited will continue on into Homecoming. We are embracing the “adaptation” aspect of the project, though. This means that areas where we feel there needs to be a change, such as the inclusion of female sprites, we will be making adjustments. Entire routes from the original are being rewritten from scratch to match the quality of routes released later in the game's lifespan (Kounosuke, Shun, Kouya).

4. You keep using the word "adaptation". What do you mean by that?

A. Like when your favorite movie gets a modern remake, or an old classic television show gets a new revival, we see Homecoming as an opportunity to remake Morenatsu and give another spin on the classic storylines.

5. What does this mean for us who want the old art, music, and storylines?

We're making Homecoming because we love Morenatsu and feel another artistic direction will achieve the themes we're aiming for. We're not trying to spite anyone, as rumors have stated.

Other projects have popped up who meet the "don't change anything" expectations better than we ever could. Stormsinger Studios won't be the ones doing this for you, but if you want to experience the game the original creators intended, I highly recommend checking out rtlstien's Revival port: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/26153752/

6. When can we expect updates for Homecoming?

A. We're all very busy people. Even this first release took a lot longer than I anticipated. Since we're not on any payment plans like Patreon (and have no desire to be), game updates are going to be on the old fashioned "when it's done" schedule. We'll try to keep you up to date in places like FA and Twitter, but due to our crazy schedules it would be foolish to force strict deadlines.

7. What has changed going from Revisited to Homecoming?

A. Homecoming aims to remake Morenatsu with a different goal. We desire to make a game that connects with people personally, makes them feel like things will get better in life...because eventually everything does. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and we're restructuring Morenatsu to better achieve that theme.

Coming from Revisited, Homecoming will feature new sprites, CGs, music, sound effects...basically, new everything! The resolution has increased to a widescreen format, so everything has the chance to look better and feel more modern. As stated before, the storylines have been updated to aim for a theme of "Hope". Finally, most Gallery features from Revisited will be ported over to Homecoming over time, though they won't necessarily be there at first.

8. Why is the protagonist an Arctic Fox now?

A. I get this one a lot, so I'll copy/paste my most recent answer to this question: I've been pretty apprehensive about the species change (and writing out humans in general) because I knew it would be hands down the most controversial aspect of the game. So far it's been very polarized, which I expected, but I've also seen plenty of people come around to the idea as the days progress.

I wanted to remove humans from the setting because it does two things for me: It makes worldbuilding easier with not having to explain why a vastly inferior species (humans, as written in the OG) are able to coexist with superpowered beastmen (allowing me to better justify reasons why these characters would love Hiroyuki in the first place), and the concept of "if everyone is furry, nobody is", which is to say that it's up to the reader to interpret everyone the way they wish. If you want to see the characters as abstracted humans, then you're more than able to. If you want to see them as humanoid representations of their species, you're more than welcome to as well.

In short, I made the decision to remove humans from the setting because I believe it gives me more room to write interesting characters and scenarios. It provides a different perspective on things that the original game didn't have, and I believe that's reason enough to justify the change. Keep in mind, Homecoming is a "remake" and not everything is going to be (or even intends to be) exactly the way it was in the source material.

== Additional response from Frostclaw: One of the biggest things people tend to ask is "Why an arctic fox?" and though Dzahn answered the reason we made him a kemono, it wasn't exactly stated why we made him an arctic fox in particular. The truth is, we were looking for a species that wasn't represented as much in Morenatsu. Ultimately, fox was chosen, which seemed to go well, as foxes generally tend to be cute, albeit rather silly. Given that it went with Hiroyuki's personality, it just seemed to fit. However, the suggestion to make him an arctic fox was mine, for a few reasons:

1. The yuki portion of his name. Yuki, as some people may or may not be aware, is Japanese for snow. 2. Arctic foxes are an uncommon sight in Japan (though you can see a few at Zao Fox Village). They aren't native to the region. 3. Hiroyuki is extremely sensitive to the heat. Since arctic foxes have a thicker coat of fur, it fits well to make Hiroyuki an arctic fox.

As it stands, Hiroyuki is a set species, and there are no plans to allow for a species change (as that would require intensive programming and rewrites of story elements). Additionally, his kitsune heritage also will be playing an important part to the story. I can't say much about it now, but please look forward to it sometime in the future.

+++++ Release 1 Features +++++

+ Game recoded from scratch, featuring updated art along with an increased resolution

+ Tons of new and remixed writing, including three "events" that were never seen in Revisited

+ New UI

+ Most of Act 1, will take you to the end of August 6th

+ A complete soundtrack with functioning Music Room

+ New options to tailor the experience to your needs, such as enhanced adult content controls

+++++ Downloads +++++

https://stormsingerstudios.itch.io/homecoming-morenatsu-revisited

+++++ Cool Links +++++

Homecoming ~Morenatsu Revisited~ Discord Server: https://discord.gg/WTjM3S5

Homecoming Soundtrack Playlist (assorted):

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLjQbwdUtaxNekKAPzMx3Aw/videos

Deckerlink's preview stream:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fk16fWOi0mA

+++++ Our Pages +++++ DzahnDragon (Project Director, Lead Writer, Coder): https://www.furaffinity.net/user/dzahndragon/ https://dzahndragon.tumblr.com/ https://twitter.com/DzahnDragon https://www.twitch.tv/dzahndragon https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHwk40OW_bVzPqP6GBTU1qQ Devilizer (Art Director and Assistant Writer): https://www.furaffinity.net/user/devilizer/ Lesli-Chu!? (Composer and Assistant Writer): https://www.furaffinity.net/user/leslichu/ https://soundcloud.com/user-141917326 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLjQbwdUtaxNekKAPzMx3Aw Frostclaw (~Revisited~ Manager and Assistant Writer): https://www.furaffinity.net/user/grompyryokin/ https://www.the-gcn.com/ HypoNova (Assistant Artist)

#morenatsu #homecoming_morenatsu #stormsinger_studios #dzahndragon #morenatsu_revisited

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deereelis · 5 years

Text

RE-CALIBRATING...

Written June 11, 2019

Transcript:

Good Morning sunshines, thank you all for being here today. I’d like to start by acknowledging all of you for being here at this moment, friends, family, colleagues, ex-boyfriends, ex-PO’s, teachers, my esteemed spirit community but most importantly... my long lists of partners in crime. My partner whom I share with spirit, my other partner who I share with in love, My other partner whom I share with in laughter, my other partner whom I share with in art and my favorite partner of all: the one whom we shared a body: my seed, my love my utter joy, my mini-goddess... mi hija.

I invited you all here today because I’ve got a little bit of bad news & rather than go and send this many individual text messages, I decided to do it the ‘old-fashioned way’ & make a video on you tube.

Speech: I gathered you all here today to hold myself accountable and apologize to all the men & women I’ve disappointed. I recognize that I have not been the easiest person to deal with and for that, I am sorry. I also recognize that sometimes my snarky remarks, smug face, and my ability to lift your mistakes and downplay my errors can be provoking. Maybe those provocations have led to you wishing bad things for me, saying mean things to me and hoping I would disappear. Maybe you tried to make me disappear, maybe you threatened me, poked me, put yours hands on me, raised your voice, maybe you tried to smear me. Or maybe, you just didn’t say anything when you saw others express meanness toward me. Either way, I wanted to apologize to all of you whom I triggered or offended to the point that you felt uncomfortable.

I accompany your sentiment of discomfort. I too feel extremely uneasy that I exist in a world where we could treat one another so poorly. I have been treated like crap and I have treated others like crap and I regret it, I do. I am by far not a saint, though every day I try to be better than the day before. My life has given me the most unique of perspectives & I’ve learned to embrace them all. Every memory has contributed to the person that I am and who I strive to be and for that I am eternally grateful. The ability to have such vast life experiences that it allows you to connect with people genuinely through love is one of the many blessings of my life. It’s been a long journey and I still have a ways to go. As a child, I chuckled when I saw 2 men kiss; because that's what I knew to be humor. These days, I feel ‘love’... so deeply inside... it overcomes what the eyes can see and what the mind perceives. Sometimes I roll my eyes or make fun of people when they say foolish things, because that’s what I know to be humor; but I want to work on my humor not being at the expense of possibly shaming an individual. Though shame can build character, it’s not my place to build outside of my temple.

I want to free my mind of colonialism.

I want to be in the business of building others and not contribute to their stress. If my humor comes at the expense of picking another apart or using my words as venom to your spirit; no lifting can occur if I am pulling you down.

I want to free my mind of colonialism.

Far from perfect as I am, I live in a home where individuality and creativity is encouraged. I come from a long, deep lineage of strong Puerto Rican matriarchs & the warriors that lift us. In my community we hold up our men and our men hold us up. I have been lifted and supported through the grimiest seasons, by the most masculine of gods.

I try not to make plans too far in advance, because while I may enjoy drinking wine & sitting by a fire right now; in a couple of weeks I may not want to toxify my liver and would rather meditate by a lake. I am constantly changing, and more times than not- am barely recognizable, even to myself.

As many know, I ran for local office for the first time in 2015, because I was tired of challenging a non-inclusive system whose representatives didn’t feel they needed to respond to people like me. So I ran and I won. It’s been an amazing run and there’s nothing I love more than being able to sit at decision-making tables on behalf of folks who don’t typically have a voice: (My identities: disabled, woman, MOM, less-affluent, of Puerto-Rican heritage, reformed hood-rat, Goddess, Artist)

But the truth is, the system needs WD-40 because it is rusty and it has creaky ankles. This structure is set with such rigidity that any attempt to change anything would create such a significant shift in a cycle that’s perpetuated convenient chaos for years. I have had many heated one-sided conversations with humans of the male persuasion who believed that disagreeing on a vote was grounds to threaten, disrespect, or slander another. (Let’s hold this thought)

For the past few years, I have been on a spiritual journey that has intensified deeply in the past few months. Everything I’ve known to be true and my life as I knew it, was no longer. It wasn’t that I stopped loving those whom I’d chosen to build a life with. It was that, the way I was showing up for them, wasn't conducive with my best self (or who I believe her to be). In fact, recognizing that lacking self-love for so many years, created a falsehood of sorts, I had to re-evaluate EVERYTHING. How could I fully love my husband, if I hadn’t learned how to love me yet? What was I teaching my daughter about what love and relationships are through my actions? How could I ensure that my judgmental or critique didn’t make her self-aware or insecure? How can I create space for her to be her fullest self without inflicting my conditions? How can I be a better daughter, sister, mentor- without being a better individual, first? How could I fix my life when I’m so stuck in the hamster wheel of cycle of life to stop & actually fix it?

So I worked at being better. I woke up early to watch sunrises, sunsets, I’ve written, I’ve meditated, traveled, spent time in nature, be mindful of how I eat, reading, called old friends, spoke my truths, participated in ceremony and began to exhibit this beautiful thing called unconditional love within friends and friends of friends. Through this healing community of love, I made new connections with people with similar interests. The question remained, how do I maintain these newfound relationships when I still haven’t figured out how to maintain my nucleus, myself? And who was she anyway? (Let’s hold this thought)

I’ve been in conversation with friends where we project our insecurities onto each other. You accept it because as the more ‘enlightened one’ you see the bigger picture and respect their process? When family begins to ‘judge’ you; ‘resent’ you; and loved ones want to attempt to ‘compete’ with you; you tolerate it because you know that they must be going through something and it will eventually work itself out. When people who were once supporters begin to attack you, and ‘agreeing to disagree’ is no longer a viable option, but you accept it because you accept it as part of the ‘game’ you signed up for. (Let’s hold this thought)

When death, abuse, disease and long held traumas begin to peer their ugly heads to remind you of your limited time on this plane. When you see loved ones suffering, homeless, sick, dying, abused, children left with no parents. When you know your love is vast but your resources aren’t. When you stretch yourself so thin that you no longer respond to emails, phone calls at the pace you once did. There were activities that I once was so excited for that no longer resonate for me, because of my constant evolution. It seemed like a great idea in January, but NO, I am no longer interested in going to that concert. Yes, the book seemed like a great idea a month ago, but I rather read something pertaining to astrology or genetically modified foods. I am a constant, ever-changing soul that has found her way and unfortunately it is NOT the way in which people know or remember me. I am not sorry for what this loss means for you. For to know me is to know how I’ve struggled and to know those struggles, only an enemy couldn’t find joy in my growth.

You see, I am holding myself to a higher standard. I want to ALWAYS see the humanity in folks and am committed to treating everyone I come in contact with, with full-respect and honesty. Mainly, because as long as your heart beats, you remain a wonder and worthy of love. As a steward of love, I accept that calling.. I don’t ask for ANYTHING in return, except mutual respect..

This means that those games of ‘playing victim’ to make me feel bad, the little jabs you take to send a message when you refuse to ‘use your words’ to communicate, those blatant calls and texts of mine you ignore, the ways in which you feel it’s okay to touch me when you’re upset, lie about me, spread rumors about me, threaten me; if it isn’t centered in love & growth; I NO LONGER speak that language. So you can go fly a kite and go fu&k yourself with all that negative self-talk. I can’t keep holding space for all those thoughts without it depleting me.

You see, with all due respect: colleagues, family, friends, husband, daughter, soul mates: we all have a lot of work to do. I won’t ever sit here and pretend to be healed because I’ve got a long way to go before I even scratch the surface of progress. But, I can recognize that I haven’t been living up to the standard in which I know I’m capable of and want to strive to be better. You can come with me for the ride of growth or you can stay where we’ve been. I will love you anyway, but for me- settling in the same ol’ same ol’ is NO LONGER a path I’m willing to travel. I want to be better. I will be better. I don’t mean better THAN you, I mean better than I have been to myself and to others.

I scheduled a trip for my spirit in the first week in July where I’ll be traveling alone to New Orleans. While down there, I will be attending a concert of soul music and only invited my best friends for the concert ONLY. The rest of the week is to nurture my soul, sit with myself and just be. I have a lot of releasing to do of the many ways I’ve absorbed other people’s toxic behaviors towards me and in the ways I’ve internalized and perpetuated those vicious cycles. I also have a lot of forgiving to do: of myself & those who’ve demonstrated remorse.

Being a City Councilor while on this spiritual path has been the most exhausting time of my life. Holding space for others and not having a place to release those holdings has been tiring. Having people tell me I’m a diamond, yet ignore and disregard me like rubbish, is brutal. But what is even more brutal than someone who dares mistreat the Goddess is that their view of whether I am rubbish or a diamond are irrelevant; what matters is that I KNOW I’m a diamond & never settle for less-than diamond treatment.

This diamond has been in the rough & as she buffs herself to shine; she hopes you do the same. So we can all shine together.

For those that feel discomfort of my shine; it isn’t your decision to make.

Blessed be, beloveds.

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cactii-studies · 6 years

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To discover and learn more about different cultures and their traditions (@annikki-studies)

To make friends who speak a different language! (@annikki-studies)

To fully appreciate music in other languages (anon)

I have always thought that it was awesome to be able to call yourself bilingual (anon)

To communicate with so many different people (anon)

Being able to connect with a culture entirely different from yours and make new friends would be great. It is really eye opening and fascinating to see how other people in other parts of the world live. (anon)

You can meet and truly connect with amazing people you wouldn't have met otherwise (anon)

To enrich my perspective (anon)

To better communicate with my long-distance friends (anon)

To absolutely FLOOR the annoying people who inevitably go, "oh you're learning[...]? say something!" with a shakespearean monologue in your target language (anon)

Because I once read a quote that said that learning another language makes it possible to add more characters to your storybook (it's my favorite analogy ever) (anon)

I find that language comes easier to me than most subjects which is nice because I've always felt dumb and now I finally have something that I excel in :) (anon)

I find it so fascinating how a bunch of random noises make up something we basically use to live our lives by?? idk its so cool ^^ (@artemistudying)

The joy on people’s faces when you speak their language is so pure & fun haha (@artemistudying)

To embrace my heritage. I am a Chinese-American living in a city with a pretty small Chinese community. To learn my heritage languages would mean that I'm able to connect with my relatives who don't speak English and spread cultural awareness around my community. I am proud of where my family is from, and I am proud of the languages we speak. (@aspiringpolyglot)

Language learning is a lot of fun. Duolingo is a lot of fun. (@aspiringpolyglot)

I make friends because of language learning! I recently met a girl at a mock trial conference, and we bonded over languages. I met a guy from a different state at a model UN conference, and we have a Snapchat streak--but we only use Chinese with each other. I've made a surprising amount of friends just by geeking out over language learning materials. (@aspiringpolyglot)

I also make friends who speak my target languages! It's interesting to look at my Snapchat map and see all my friends from around the world. (@aspiringpolyglot)

It changes the way you see the world and its cultures! (@autumnteastudies)

Learning different languages requires us to think differently, because they're structured differently and have different cultural connotations, so the more languages a person speaks the more creatively they think. (@beenthiswaysincedayone)

Learning foreign languages allows us to communicate with people we'd otherwise have no way of communicating with. (@beenthiswaysincedayone)

I think it's the best way to open up your mind. You can learn about the history of another country, how they ended up with that specific grammatical rule, and their culture, from their customs to the little quirky local expressions; you can see how much it shares with your native language or how utterly alien it is by comparison, to the point where you have to reshape your entire way of thinking to understand. (@beevean)

I love being able to communicate and talk to people clearly. (@blithely-study)

I love words and the imagery that words create so through learning a new language there are new ways to describe and see the world. (@blithely-study)

For the work I want to do in the future, it would be beneficial to be bi, tri, or quadro lingual. (@blithely-study)

I’m learning German because my friend who is German can tutor me and one day I want to study abroad in Berlin. (@bluewire13)

I am learning Russian because I fell in love with the way it sounds.(@bluewire13)

I want to learn Icelandic because it sounds beautiful to me (@bluewire13)

I don’t want to fall into the “Americans / native English speakers are lazy and only speak English” stereotype. (@cactii-studies)

There are words in each language that are unique and untranslatable, and to me, that is beautiful. (@cactii-studies)

Learning a language leads to health benefits when you’re older. (@cactii-studies)

To prove people wrong. I’m tired of people saying that learning another language is stupid. (@cactii-studies)

Because every new language is a new way of thinking (@captaindoicaretoomuchornotenough)

To add new shows to your Netflix list. (@ccstudys)

To talk about your crush behind their back. (@ccstudys)

I'm learning the languages I'm learning for lots of reasons but they all come down to my art. I love graphic novels and I love creating them. Languages have different aesthetic properties to me that fit better with different stories and art styles. I want to be able to tell the stories and create the art I want to create authentically using the languages they're begging to be told in. (@chaquelangue)

Your best friend could speak only your target language. (@erudite-gulch)

I feel encouraged to keep studying / learning when I connect with native speakers and am able to have casual conversations with them. (@erudite-gulch)

There's a lot to learn from older people especially, but sometimes they aren't familiar with more than one language. Knowing how to speak with them is an amazing experience. (@erudite-gulch)

Exploring anything else related to culture through language? Art, music, food,.. the list goes on. (@erudite-gulch)

Knowing even a few phrases in another language can help you get the most out of your experiences with people who are different from you. (@erudite-gulch)

Pride for yourself. In my opinion, it's easy to impress others with your 'stunning language abilities' (even if you're a bit rusty), and those compliments can make you feel better about your skills. But the real show of success, to me, is when you surprise or impress yourself. That could mean unknowingly thinking in your target language, accidentally mixing words, or ending a conversation and feeling shocked at how easy it was to speak. I think that seeing that sort of progress isn't always possible day to day, but the end result is absolutely worth the time and effort. (@erudite-gulch)

I want to be able to read the literary works of my favourite foreign authors in the original version. (@goblissthings)

Knowing multiple languages improves your connection with and understanding of others, their lives and their experiences (@hinodestudies)

Learning a language is an invaluable life tool; it looks awesome on a resume :p (@hinodestudies)

You are capable of speaking to other people that are not from your own cultural background, and you can get more information on topics and other perspectives! (@ilostmyheartintokyo)

It's also calming. For example, to repeat vocab is like meditation - you can forget all problems around you and focus on this one thing...I hope this doesn't sound weird but when everything is overwhelming, studying is the thing I do to concentrate and is motivating to tackle other things after? (@ilostmyheartintokyo)

Talking in a language I really love (@imcloser)

Talking with different people (@imcloser)

Learning about different cultures (@imcloser)

Being able to understand what my favorite singers/bands post in their sns, reading their interviews or articles about them (@imcloser)

Being able to understand songs I like (@imcloser)

Watching movies, reading books, playing games in their original language (@imcloser)

I want to become a translator (@imcloser)

I want to be able to travel abroad alone and be on my own (@imcloser)

I love it when I see what big progress I made (@imcloser)

I love the feeling that is like OMG I NEED TO KNOW HOW TO SAY *ABSOLUTELY RANDOM AND USELESS WORD* IN A LANGUAGE I'M STUDYING I DON'T KNOW WHY BUT I HAVE TO, AND LATER I ACCIDENTALLY SEE THAT WORD SOMEWHERE AND I'M LIKE AHA! I KNOW IT! Though in most cases I never get to use them...But you know I just like learning vocabulary I'm gonna use like never (@imcloser)

I love it when I forget a word in my native language...And remember it in like two foreign languages (@imcloser)

I love making the dumbest and funniest mistakes (@imcloser)

I love it when I see a word in Japanese, for example, 存在. I know the first kanji from the word 保存 and I know that its reading is either “ho” or “son”. But damn it, I almost always get such words wrong! (@imcloser)

I love the fact about foreign languages that there is always something new to study. My teachers say that they're still learning. (@imcloser)

I love the langblr community (@imcloser)

I think a great reason to learn a language is to understand another culture better, and thus to understand the difference between your own culture's understanding of the world and another's. When you learn a language, you discover differences in expression that you never knew before. By understanding these differences, we can all be more open-minded and treat each other with the kindness and dignity we deserve. (@isitanylittlewonder)

When I'm learning a language I feel like it opens a door for me. I can understand the culture through the original language; so I get to know how the people living there think, talk or learn. This is all inspired by a quote of Nelson Mandela: If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart. (@kleinemissawkward)

You'll look smarter, like a scholar. (@kookyandrambles)

Experiencing your favorite foreign media in the words they were intended to be heard in. (@kuzupekos)

The love of your life / your soulmate might be a speaker of a different language (@languagesandshootingstars)

For me learning a new language is fun. (@lenekopf)

You jump into a new culture via the way people express themselves and you win the opportunity to talk to everyone that speaks your new learned language. (@lenekopf)

It means that you are challenging your brain all the time. (@lenekopf)

Whenever you can speak and understand it makes you happy and it makes people around you happy! (@lenekopf)

Learning a language means to learn a lot more than just words. (@lenekopf)

To fit in with my friends (@lunasanguis1996)

To learn a useful skill (@lunasanguis1996)

To be able to help people if I can (@lunasanguis1996)

So you can read a book in its original language (@origami10)

So you can understand jokes (and make bad jokes) (@origami10)

Mostly because you can study in whatever way you think is fun! Anything can be a language learning activity! (@origami10)

I like learning Japanese because of how it looks and sounds. I may also include "Japan is so freakin' clean!" as a reason I would like to visit. (@ristray)

Also dabbling in Mandarin because, again, I just really like how it sounds. (@ristray)

I learn languages because it makes me feel happy and at peace. My anxiety is gone when I study! (@schneeloewe)

Getting to talk to natives and listen to their stories when you travel (@swooping--evil)

Meeting new friends (be it on- or off-line) who are also learning or speak your target language (@swooping--evil)

Understanding your favourite songs / reading books in the language they were written in (@swooping--evil)

To not let age stop you from learning. (@uninico)

To always improve yourself. (@uninico)

To be more interesting to others. (@uninico)

To have something new to share with those you know and love. (@uninico)

To connect with a new culture. (@uninico)

To know the feeling of success when you share what you've learned.(@uninico)

To not have to read the subtitles. (@uninico)

To inspire others around you to try. (@uninico)

To learn new (old) traditions. (@uninico)

To express yourself in new ways, in new words. (@uninico)

To shift the way you think. (@uninico)

Because the fact that two people can express the exact same idea in two completely different ways, and still understand each other, is magical. (@uni-venture)

Because knowing more than one writing system is AWESOME. (@uni-venture)

To gain a better understanding of yourself. (@worldapprentice)

I think it helps you develop an open mind in general. (@worldapprentice)

It’s fun! (@worldapprentice)

You “unlock” more content (e.g. you can read a book or watch a movie in the original language; you get to know more singers that sing in your target language and read articles about them; etc...) (@worldapprentice)

It can turn out useful later in life (@worldapprentice)

It’s really cool when you meet a native speaker and have a conversation with them “showing off” your skills (@worldapprentice)

I’d like to give a huge thank you to everyone who participated and sent in their reasons! I hope that you enjoy the final product, because I had a lot of fun doing this! I’d also like to thank everyone who reblogged & liked the post with the project info, and spread the word around. 103 is more reasons than I thought I’d get, so I’m ecstatic!

Here’s a list of everyone who participated:

#rtlalproject #reasons to learn a language #langblrnet #equaticns #phctcsynthesis #aoademic #studyflwr #brbimstudying #areistotle #focusign

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