#like as someone who likes to watch pastry videos but also as a lesbian

[aprillikesthings]

I lead part of EfM thing today (see earlier posts) and it went well ahhhhh thank God

and I've made my lunches for the next week!

and I'm munching on a salad

and all day I was looking forward to this, the moment I can (re)watch MORE SHE-RA

I've barely worked on my longer fic this weekend (other than copy/pasting a bunch of things Nate said after the show ended into the notes section of the doc) and tbh rewatching the ACTUAL SHOW is hella distracting bc with twenty eps left we're going to start getting into more of the really high-stakes stuff

Also, true story: I originally watched, like, the second half of season 4 and all of season 5 in two days of marathoning with Daci. So quite frankly? The last, like, third of the show is just kind of a blur to me now.

SO LET'S GO

s4 ep7 Mer-Mysteries

A mission in Dryl went badly, they've figured out someone's telling the Horde what they're doing, they're not tracking Adora because she wasn't even there--

YES

plz enjoy Sea Hawk's faces

Bow's sudden nervousness reminds me of when I was in line at the TSA in Dulles airport and was weirdly nervous. I had no reason to be nervous. AND YET. I'm usually totally fine at TSA? But the people at Dulles were scary!!!

(I was way less nervous coming back from Iceland, despite knowing I had Kinder Surprise Eggs in my suitcase. Which are actually illegal to bring into the USA. You can buy "Kinder Joy Eggs" in the USA, which do not have the toy, but the ones with the toys are against the law! Anyway I bought them for Daci. I was only nervous for a split second at customs in the USA bc they asked me what I'd brought home from Iceland and I was like...wool yarn. books. sweets (I'd also bought licorice and chocolate). But he just waved me through. WHEW.)

she's still big mad about this lolol

BUT she's right a spy IS the only thing that makes sense (but also the audience knows shit they don't)

Pearl?? A Pearl who knows too much?????

c'mon I had to

lolol they lampshaded the way lightning keeps striking when Mermista says something

to be fair she IS the most recent addition and the one they know the least

oh hey I also write everything in purple (or lavender) ink

lol

oh, shut up

well not this episode, specifically

LOLLLLL

honestly this is a lot like the DnD episode

so on the one hand, I know Flutterina is doing this to make them fight, but on the other hand Glimmer is right; on the other OTHER hand, I also would prefer a warning before being forced to see my abusive parent having free range of the castle I live in

BAHAHAHA I read Nate saying these two were interrupted on a date night, but also plz notice the colors of the flowers, it's literally most of the lesbian pride flag, they were SO unsubtle

The Ken from Plumeria is talking to the pastry chef from Dryl with the super cute outfit, and she looks bashful for a second after this screenshot; I am now shipping this and no one can stop me

speaking of ships (yes I know this isn't meant to be shippy lol)

a youtube video titled "it's raining on your window and you live in Bright Moon Castle ASMR for sleep 4 hours"

(....I'd listen to that)

(On a related note, mynoise dot net has a bunch of rain sounds on the website, and it also has an app--it's seriously the BEST website/app for ambient sounds because they're so adjustable and never repeat, and I just want everyone to know about them. The rain and ocean sounds are great on earbuds to cover up snoring so you can sleep!!! Worked better than my fancy earplugs while I was on the Camino and sleeping in all those hostels)

And back to the cartoon, where there's obviously suspicious shit happening because people seem to be in two places at once and their communications thing got shattered

oh so her name IS just The General

Flutterina (aka Double Trouble) has got to be like "oh my god wtf is up with this dude I cannot handle this bullshit"

Once again Glimmer proves that her and Catra are actually very, very alike

BUSTED

OOHHHHH they set up a trap I forgot, this is amazing

Adora: "we created a diversion :)" Glimmer: "You were a really good actress. For once."

pfft

Anyway Double Trouble is confessing the whole plan

:(

poor Mermista :(

there's a creepy-ass moment of seeing part of Horde Prime's face as he smiles, roll credits

#april rewatches spop #mer-mysteries

[entamewitchlulu]

My Top Books of 2021

I was thinking about recording a video, but I’m very lazy, so I’m just going to write a post. I read like, an obscene amount of books this year (checks Goodreads count).....141 books?????

So yeah there’s no way I can talk about all of those, so I managed to narrow it down to my top twenty. It’s all under the cut for length.

20. The Bullet Journal Method / Ryder Carroll

I read this right at the beginning of the year, and honestly, it really clarified a lot of stuff about bullet journaling to me. I had tried to do it once before but got overwhelmed by all the fancy spreads I saw people doing, and dropped it quickly. Reading the actual original method was eye opening and led to me keeping a bullet journal for the rest of the year, and making one for this coming year, too, because the system finally made sense. If you’re planning on every trying bullet journaling, do not google what other people are doing. Just read what the original guy suggested, and you will be so much better off.

19. Educated / Tara Westover

This is a memoir about the author’s life growing up in a prepper family in a rural town, and her dealing with the isolation of her childhood as she was kept from school, the abuse she experienced from her family along with the happier memories, and how she eventually managed to extricate herself from the toxic hierarchy of her family. I can’t say this was a fun read, because the things that the author describes she went through are horrific, but what I found the most interesting was how it really did show that the people who abuse you can also love you and want to protect you. No one’s one hundred percent evil, and that makes it all the harder to try and detach yourself from the harm someone causes to you. It was very well written and crafted, and as someone who rarely enjoys memoirs, this one stuck with me.

18. Cosmoknights / Hannah Templer

This is a great graphic novel about a galaxy in which royals hire champions to fight in mecha battles to earn the hands of the planet’s princesses, and the women who go into battle to rescue those girls from their fates of being treated like property to be passed around. The artwork of this story is amazing, and while the first novel doesn’t give you a whole lot of substance, I’ll be completely honest. I’m here for muscle lesbian.

17. Girl Haven / Lilah Sturges

This is another graphic novel, a rather sweet, if somewhat convoluted plotwise, story about Ash, whose mother disappeared some years ago. He brings some new friends over to see his mother’s workshop, where she created artwork of a fantasy world of only women. When the group uses a spell from a book left open to transport themselves to the real fantasy world, Ash starts to question what it means that he was able to travel to this women-only world, and what it means for his own private questioning of his identity.

This one is so sweet, and it does such an excellent job of dealing with the multifaceted experience of gender seeking. If you worry that this world might just slap a “well Ash made it to this world which means irrefutably she is a girl!” don’t worry. It really addresses how there’s never going to be someone to tell you straight up who you are, and that your journey is your own, and I love it for that.

16. Space Battle Lunchtime / Natalie Riess

I read a lot of graphic novels this year lol. Space Battle Lunchtime is about a pastry chef who gets recuited to fill in a spot on an intergalactic cooking show. She has to work with ingredients she’s never seen before, equipment with inscrutable languages and settings, and rival chefs who are more than willing to get their hands dirty to edge out the competition.

The art style for this series is just SO lively and cute, it has such a colorful cast and the cooking challenges are so much fun! If you like watching cooking competitions, you’ll really enjoy the way this story is both an homage and a parody of such shows.

15. White Smoke / Tiffany D. Jackson

After an anxious breakdown, Mari moves to a new city with her newly blended family. But their new house isn’t all that it seems; they’re not allowed in the basement, things regularly go missing, and Mari is starting to believe that there may be something malicious that wants them all out, something she’ll have to discover before it’s too late.

This was so delightfully creepy; I’m not a big horror fan, but this rode that edge of being frightening without sending me into a meltdown. Mari is such an amazing character, and I love the way her anxiety is treated within the narrative as something so very real. It reminds me of my own struggles with anxiety and my own occasional anxious intrusive thought. If you’re a horror fan, you will definitely want to pick this up; Tiffany Jackson is a master at weaving this terrifying story that is laden with layers upon layers of social commentary, which leads to the ultimate twist at the end in a galaxy brain moment that will have you going “oh my god wait that makes so much sense how did I not see that??”

14. Elatsoe / Darcie Little Badger

In an alternate America, magic and various supernatural skills are far more ordinary and mundane. Elatsoe, a Lipan Apache teen, has learned the ways of raising the ghosts of dead animals from her family. And when her cousin is murdered in a very strange town that doesn’t seem to want prying eyes, Elatsoe will have to use all her courage and skills to dig down into a dangerous mystery, before her cousin’s murderous ghost is unleashed or something even greater causes tragedy.

This is such an incredibly crafted world. I love the way that Darcie Little Badger has managed to pull together such a vibrant retelling of an America that’s familiar, but shaped in different ways by magic touching it in a way that I feel like no other “magic in mundane” story has really managed to do. It touches on things from magic healing to fairy circles to vampires and it does so with this groundedness that is inspiring.

13. Pilu of the Woods / Mai K. Nguyen

An extremely sweet little graphic novel about a girl who runs away from home into the woods, and meets a little tree girl who has also run from home. As the two girls find their way back home together, they discuss the reasons why they felt they had to run away, and come to terms with some of their inner turmoils with themselves and their families.

The art of this is goooorgeous, and it was really just...sweet! A sweet little story with nice artwork about young kids dealing with their “inner monsters”, that cause them to say nasty things they regret. This is definitely for a younger crowd but I think it has lessons to share for all ages.

12. Virtual Unicorn Experience / Dana Simpson

I actually read several of the Phoebe and Unicorn books this year, and I cannot get enough of them. They feel like the spiritual successor to Calvin and Hobbies, only with less philosophy and more comedy. Phoebe and Marigold are just the funniest friends, and while I tend to dislike depictions of unicorns as vain and silly, Marigold really owns what she is in a way that makes me love the way she’s handled. Unicorns may be rather vain and silly in this universe, but they are also still incredibly cool, and that’s all I need.

11. Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts / Yu Tomofuji

An extremely beautiful manga about a girl sacrificed to the beasts, but unlike previous sacrifices, she doesn’t seem to fear her death. Intrigued by her, the king of beasts (who has been secretly releasing the sacrifices up til now), decides to keep her with him as his consort, and their strange but honestly very sweet love story begins.

If you love Beauty and the Beast stories, you will love this one. Sariphi is such a lovely protagonist; equal parts silly and yet wise. The way she is unfazed by literally anything and takes it all in stride is so much fun, especially with the much more stoic Leonhart, who doesn’t know how to deal with a girl like her. I look forward to getting a hold of more of this soon so that I can see how their love story unfolds.

10. A Tropical Fish Yearns for Snow / Makoto Hagino

Konatsu pretends that she isn’t lonely when her father moves overseas for work, and she’s sent to live with an aunt in a rural seaside town. But when she meets Koyuki, the single member of the Aquarium Club, who seems to have a similar loneliness, she finds herself drawn to the older girl.

This is ostensibly a yuri manga, but there is little to no romance, which was disappointing. The manga is still beautifully illustrated, with some really deep and resonating thoughts about how you can feel lonely even when the people around you support you and are near to you. I really liked the way that the two leads’ grew together and learned from each other, and how they both ended up fulfilling both roles of frog and salamander (makes sense if you read it) for each other equally.

9. Freshwater / Akwaeke Emezi

A haunting tale about a woman born out of the fragmented souls that were pulled over the gateway far too soon, this is a poetic and beautifully written story about one girl living her life with all the difficulties that have been thrust at her from birth.

I cannot give this story justice with my description. It’s gorgeous. It’s lyrical. It’s emotional. It’s powerful. It’s so much and everyone should read it. Akwaeke Emezi is a profound author.

8. The City We Became / N.K. Jemisin

Cities have souls. And when cities reach a certain state of maturity, that soul comes alive in the heart of an avatar, a physical representation of the city who will guard it from the creatures that will do anything to destroy a newborn city.

This is one of those books that I kept put off reading again and again because I knew it was going to be just too good and I wasn't in the brainspace for perfection. I was right, this book was incredible, magical in a way that defies explanation. The worldbuilding is both intensely detailed and wildly incomprehensible in a masterful way. The characters are as vibrant as the cities they represent and I loved spending time with each of them. When the sequel comes out it's gonna be over for everyone.

7. Raybearer / Jorden Ifueko

This is an absolutely gorgeous fantasy about a girl who just wants to feel connected to a family. Tarisai has spent her entire life growing up in a secret home, with nothing but her teachers and occasional visits from her mother, the Lady. When she finally gets to leave, it’s with a command from the Lady: befriend the boy whose picture she shows her, and then kill him.

Tarisai, barely more than a child, has no idea what to make of the political dealings she has now found herself in, especially once she finds out that the boy her mother wants her to kill is the prince, who is currently looking for his council, people who will become bound to him and he to them in a magical connection. Tarisai must struggle with her loyalty to her mother and her deep desire for friendship and connection.

I cannot say it enough: the worldbuilding in this story is immaculate. Immaculate! I know the sequel is out and I haven’t had time to read it but I’m so hype! It’s so good! Fantasy fans you gotta get on this! 

6. Moriarty the Patriot / Ryosuke Takeuchi

Ok if you followed me for any length of time this doesn’t surprise you. This is just a retelling of sherlock holmes but with his archnemesis moriarty as the pretty anime boy protagonist. While I was underwhelmed with the anime ending, I really like the manga still, and the early arcs are really just sooo incredible with some really dark and fascinating plots. I love watching Moriarty plan a murder <3

5. The Priory of the Orange Tree / Samantha Shannon

Another immaculate fantasy world, Priory is a well woven story of the many players involved in averting the next great catastrophy, as the awakening of the ancient cruel dragon draws ever nearer. What I love the most of this story is how it balances both eastern and western dragon myths and weaves them together into a cohesive whole, devising a really genius magic system of checks and balances that only slowly becomes totally visable as you read. 

The variety of great POV characters is also amazing! Every character is so distinct and fascinating, and every time we had to switch to a new character I was like wait!! I want to hear about the other guys some more!! only to be quickly drawn into the new POV just as quickly and start the cycle over again.

4. Eva Evergreen: Semi Magical Witch / Julie Abe

This is an extremely sweet middle grade novel about a young witch called Eva, who only has a smidgen of magic. Unlike others with far more power than her, she has to scrimp and save up her magic every day, and figure out how to work smarter, not harder. As she’s assigned to her first ever village, where she will work to assist the villagers as part of her training, she will have to pull all her skills and bravery together in order to become the full fledged witch she’s always wanted to be -- especially when a magical catastrophe heads her way!

This has big Kiki’s Delivery Service vibes, but it’s so much more than that too. Eva is so sweet and I love love love reading about characters who are less powerful finding ways to make things work in clever ways. To be completely honest the reason it’s so high on the list, too, is because I read it when I was in a very dark place this year, and it was one of the first things to start to gently tug me out of it.

3. The Song of Achilles / Madeline Miller

A lyrical retelling of the story of Achilles and Patrocles from Patrocles perspective, this story is haunting. The love between the two boys as they grow into men is so raw and emotional, but you know, the whole time, that it is going to end in tragedy. Reading with that in mind leaves you with this melancholy that is so powerfully woven and so expertly crafted that I still think about this book and it’s quotes regularly.

2. Iron Widow / Xiran Jay Zhao

The only defense of Huaxia are the great mecha monsters that can only be piloted by a boy and girl pilot together - but the girl almost always dies from the mental strain. Furious at the death of her sister, Zetian enlists under her murderer to assassinate him - but ends up becoming his copilot, a sacrifice - until she overwhelms his mind instead, and he is the one to die. Labeled an Iron Widow, Zetian is paired up with the powerful and dangerous convict pilor, Li Shimin, and must find a way to not only survive, but tear down the system that deems girls as worth nothing more than sacrifice.

I put off reading this for several months because I knew as soon as I started it it was going to consume my brain and you know what? I was right For all the hype surrounding it, part of me feared that it wouldn't live up and I would be disappointed. Nothing could be further from the truth. The moment I picked it up, it was an actual struggle to tear myself away, and I was thinking about it even while I wasn't reading it. The raw anger of the protagonist is so vibrant and cathartic, and watching her rise to power on her own terms is amazing. Zetian's relationship with both Yizhi and Li Shimin is so wonderfully woven, and watching her slowly start to come to terms with the possibility that the men in her life are capable of softness and not just enemies, while still hanging onto her deepseated rage at the system that destroys girls for its own benefit was just so so good. And the FIGHT SCENES! It's so hard to write good fight scenes because they're so visual, but I could just feel every impact and see every movement as vividly as though it were on screen in front of me. This book definitely deserves the hype, and I am waiting with bated breath for the sequel after that mind-blowing final twist. All hail Empress Wu Zetian!

1. Rhythm of War / Brandon Sanderson

Full disclosure. As of this writing I have not actually...finished this book yet.

But it’s Brandon Sanderson. I fucking LOVE this book.

I cannot literally say a word about it because it’s all spoilers! But GOD!!! The twists and turns get better every single book as the world just continues to expand and deepen, as you start to get a better picture of all the players and all the pieces, and GOD I CANNOT WAIT TO FINISH THIS BOOK! I WANNA GO READ NOW!!

#lulu talks #books #book recommendations #year in review #2021 year in review

[gayasinstupidpodcast]

What’s up gamers!!! Our fourth episode plowed through the chaos of thanksgiving holidays and is Here w/ some Facts and Opinions about creating shit and being LGBT and how being LGBT influences creating shit. HEADS UP we recorded this while I had a cold so my voice is probably a little off, but ik Isaac put SO much work into the editing so it would be ready on time and we have recorded statements from some amazing artists (transcriptions under the cut below!) & this is honestly one of my favorite episodes we’ve done so far, so give her a listen if you’re gay or enjoy fun things!

BIG thank you once again to everyone who participated in this month’s episode!! Your contributions are so valued and so beautiful!!

You can find us on the Itunes Podcast App/Webpage at Gay As In Stupid Podcast! You can also find our episodes uploaded to Youtube and Soundcloud!

You can also follow us on twitter at gayasinstupid!

Further Reading on LGBT Artists

Montage of a Queering Deferred: Memory, Ownership, and Archival Silencing in the Rhetorical Biography of Langston Hughes

The Political Provocations of Keith Haring 

Pop art politics: Activism of Keith Haring 

E M Forster’s Gay Fiction

Alok Vaid-Menon Tells Us What It’s Like To Be Femme In Public

Shea Diamond Speaks Her Truth

Aaron’s 2018 November Recs!

Alok Alok Vaid-Menon is one of my favorite poet/activist/performance artists out there! Their writing and stage presence is gorgeous and witty in a way that’s SO clever and still feels like you’re in a room trading jokes you don’t need to explain with your closest trans friends. The way they balance their art creates a real, deeply touching experience that feels very essential to our world.

Miles (2016) Miles is set in 1999 and is a coming of age story about a gay teenager trying to get a volleyball scholarship for college in Chicago. It’s not revolutionary and it’s not over the top dramatic, but it’s funny and honest and it makes me feel nice. Definitely the movie to watch when you’ve just been through something emotionally taxing and need a light crying session and some mediocre pastries.

Isaac’s 2018 November Recs!

The Adventure Zone I know half of you already kin the Mcelroys while the other half either don’t know or don’t care, but the Adventure Zone is one of my most favorite things in the world. It’s a DND podcast (yes, all episodes are transcribed, and they have a graphic novel for the first arc of Balance with a second one on the way!) by three brothers plus their dad, and not only does it have the most amazing story and is ungodly funny, but TONS of gays (Griffin went ape with those Lesbian NPCS)! And just because they can! Same with trans characters. It’s a story where they just exist, and that’s really important to me because in a lot of media LGBT have to almost prove why they deserve to take up space. And it’s not just something that goes on in their first campaign, Amnesty also has those sweet sweet gay! I could talk about this podcast for hours, so if you needed that final push to give it a listen, THIS IS IT!

Stardew Valley You get to farm and be gay. And if THAT hasn’t sold you on this charming video game, then maybe the super cute graphics, beautiful soundtrack and a handful of interesting characters will! TBH I spend so much time playing this game it’s concerning. It’s just such a fun way to relax, and I just really REALLY like video games were I can chose to be gay. Like. God Tier. YOU CAN HAVE CROPS AND CHICKENS AND BE GAY C’MON YALL!!

The Amazing Quotes And Artists Featured!

Meg | instagram | esty

“My identity as a bisexual woman influences my art in many ways. As a woman, i create art about the issues that effect me, such as abortion and gender equality, in order to resonate with the people that matter most to me. As a bisexual individual, my subjects often appear from a gaze that falls outside of the stereotypical eye. My figure drawings and portraits all come from a place of admiration, and don’t fall into the stereotype of the male gaze or womanly care- they are the space inbetween, equally sexualized and normalized. I feel lucky to be a bi gal in the art world because it is a place that is my own to create in. There are so many queer artists that i look up to such as Mapplethorpe and Warhol, and many female artists i can cite as influence (Jenny Holzer, Kiki Smith, and Louise Bourgeois to name a few). My identity gives me a whole new world of content to draw from and allows my work to resonate with a wider audience, and I really think that any artists goal is to reach and touch as many people as possible.“  

Cameron | twitter | instagram 

“I don’t think that it influences the form really, but it definitely influences the subject matter! (Much as I hate to admit it, my identity influences the majority of choices I make in life.) I write a lot of poems about lgbtq related things and religion, as well as other stuff too. I was raised catholic, so realizing that I was “different” at more than one point in my teen years was scary AF. Being a member of the lgbtq+ community and also trying to still feel like I belong, or wanting to, in a religious community is hard, the two things are usually at a crossroads in my life so writing about them makes it easier for me to get through. My hope is that someday someone reads what I wrote and finds some peace in their own life/experience.” 

Vince | art instagram

“Well, being transgender I feel like I’m constantly aware of the lack of representation of my community, and I feel like it might be because of that I tend to experiment with showing all sorts of different type of people in my work. Because there’s so much diversity in the world, why not showcase that?”

Fox | art instagram  

“Oof…I’m gay so my characters always be gay. Gotta Fill the void in media w my own bullshit so I don’t have to rely on straight showrunners who will inevitably discard the character since they themselves seem to have no personal attachment and treat lgbt characters as disposable extras. Bc if I don’t at least attempt to create representation in the field I’m going into then I can’t rlly complain about the lack of it right? If I don’t try and change it I can’t complain about the lack of change so being an lgbt artist is lowkey Big Pressure to be revolutionary in your work but sometime…..I just wanna draw funkey animeal and that’s aight too”

Jen | twitter | instagram

“As a female bisexual poet, I worry often that my poetry and art will be too niche to be appreciated. I’ve spent years editing my poetry down to its barest bones in hopes that someone will relate to it. Changing pronouns back and forth because I worry that if I do talk about a woman, the poem will be stripped of its context and suddenly be about my queerness when in reality it never was. When I write about love and people I have dated and have crushed on, I want the poem to exist outside of the gender of who I love. I fear my authorial death will result in a complete misinterpretation of what I mean. When I write, it truly does not matter to me if I am writing about a woman or a man. If I feel what I write and I can make someone else feel it too does it matter that I also love women? I write what matters to me overall, regardless of gender, I try to make my poetry as true as possible. Sometimes, when I catch myself over editing I try to take myself back to the moment, to the person, what I loved about him or her. “

Lain | art instagram

“My LGBT Identity has significantly impacted almost all of my art, especially my work over the last two years. Ever since I have allowed myself to accept that I am trans and began my transition (6 months on T!), the impact that my Roman Catholic upbringing has had on my bisexual trans identity has bled into my artwork. Because of the way I was raised, accepting and allowing myself to be authentic has been an upward struggle. And what better way to process and document struggle than art?  

Much of my recent work has had a focus on the trans body, particularly the “sanctity” of self-actualization and the god-like power that comes with accepting and creating yourself in the unique and exceptional way that LGBT people must in order to live authentically. Two of my pieces on this topic were actually recently exhibited at UWM in the Trans-lucent exhibition, and will remain there until December 15th (I think). I got sick and tired of never seeing trans representation, so now I am creating that space that I crave in my own work.”

Kobe | instagram | soundcloud

“My art from is very influenced by my LGBT identity. It is very influenced by my LGBT black Identity. I think that whenever an artist makes their art (in my case writing music, singing, dancing) they should incorporate as much of themselves as possible. I think my LGBT identity definitely adds a sense of representation as well. I want people like me to listen to my music to know they aren’t alone. So it influences my work a lot. “

Nat | art instagram

“I think the fact that I am part of the LGBT+ community influences my art directly. Even though I don’t draw as often as I wish, I believe both my drawings and college projects (I am a 3d art/animation student), and my creativity in general is inspired by my personal experiences as a gay woman and common things experienced by the community. I try as often as I can to bring representation of some kind in the things I do, mainly personal projects. I also feel that it influences me on my motivation to keep creating; whenever I listen to, see drawings, watch movies or see whatever form of artistic expression from LGBT+ artists it gives me the energy to keep going, to keep creating.”

#gay as in stupid podcast #lgbt podcast #lgbt artists #gay art #trans art

[totoroses]

i found this lesbian survey and decided to fill it out!

Femme or butch? is this what do i prefer or which i am? im a femme and i have no preference in dating, i’ve been wildly attracted to both and any in between

Do you have a “type”? If so, describe it. the only nearly completely common denominator though my exes are having brown eyes? i have dated only one person who did not have brown eyes. i always feel safer looking into brown eyes then blue. i woudl say i have often gone after the romantic artsy type with good music taste and some kind of signature style about them, ironically none of which drew me to my current girlfriend who i believe is probably defintiely the love of my life

Plaid button-ups or leather jackets? leather jackets! i will swoon over smartly dressed gals in button downs as well as a chill gal in some plaid unbuttoned flannel but the two together make me think of a lumberjack

Describe your style. i usually go for one of two styles- softly dressed forest wanderer, or slightly sassy soft grunge. both include my doc martens, but one is more natural colours and old fashioned dresses and the other is sassy tshirts and 90sish thrift store finds like denim and dark florals

Describe your aesthetic.pressed flowers between the pages of a book on forest spirits, rose milk tea, silver rainy downpours, curly baby hairs, white peaches, a cat sleeping in a library, custard pastries, a circle of mushrooms in moss, opals and furry moths

Favorite article of clothing? my one forever 21 dress ive had since like junior year that i can wear without a bra and it has like a cool cross back i just looooveee ittt, then also my embroidered minty 1930s style qipao sort of dress

Favorite pair of shoes? my doc martens and green chinese embroidered lace up slippers

Current haircut? currently blonde (ugh) and currently my hair falls just past my breasts, the goal is to grow it to my bellybutton!

Any haircut goals for the future? i really wanna get on the thick fluffy bangs bandwagon but i dont think i have the stamina to put up with growing them out again smh

Describe the best date you’ve been on. there was this one date i went on with one of my high school girlfriends where we went to a bookstore and hung out and then stuck googly eyes all over my city on random monuments and street signs, and we also ate thai food and listened to music and it was still one of the most lovely dates. BUT my girlfriend recently visited me in taiwan and we went in a glass bottom gondola ride up a mountain and drank from coconuts and wandered through old streets and had the most amazing tea food with a spectacular view and it was heaven

Describe the worst date you’ve been on. probably the one where i went on a picnic with my first girlfriend who then broke up with me that same day and even though our entire relationship was so awkward and not what is should have been it still hurt so bad

Single? Taken? taken!

If taken, talk about your girlfriend/wife! where do i begin! my girlfriend is a slightly shorter than me girl named lynn who loved korean variety shows, drinking coca cola, listening to cheesy love songs, and playing tricks on people (especially me). she used to be a major tomboy in middle and high school and date all the girls and get slapped a lot, as well as mess with teachers and play pranks on them and steal things from their lunchboxes. more than half of her birthchart including sun, rising, and venus are scorpio, and she wants to start her own streetstyle online brand but has not yet found a catchy brand name!

If single, what are you looking for in a potential girlfriend/wife? :)

Describe your dream wedding my girlfriend says if we get married we need two, a traditional chinese wedding (she is from china) and a western one with a priest since i am catholic, and i couldnt agree more. my dream wedding includes just very close friends and family, extravagant lights and flowers and a reception party playlist chosen by me, catered by the teahouse we went to in taiwan. i know its so silly and superficial but i want the dreamiest dress that i design, wisteria everywhere, and most of all i just want lynn at the end of the alter looking stunning in whatever it is she decides to wear

Do you want kids? YES me and lynn talk about this a lot because we both love kids and both agree on at least 4, no more than 8. and we will share who carries the kids so not just one of us is having our uteruses worn out

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live? guilin, china. but its a fantasy. guilin is real and beautiful but chinese laws make it so that even if we settle down there and build a house it cant truly belong to us, and in china you cant have a private business and it jsut sucks because the drema is to live in the quiet countryside with a simple life and beautiful scenery to explore together and with our children

Favorite lesbian movie? i love so many but im gonna go with the handmaiden!

Favorite lesbian novel/story? i havent read nearly enough, but  adore all things by malinda lo and julie anne peters! ash by malinda lo is probably my favourite. i have to still read sarah waters though, i hear she reigns supreme

Favorite lesbian song? don’t pull away by milosh ft jviews (the music video is gay at least, i also love hayley kiyoko)

Favorite lesbian musician? hayley kiyoko probably

What lesbian stereotypes do you fit into, if any? mmmm i dont like softball so that doesnt work...i read a lot of sappho though! and i have short nails? and love buffy? are these stereotypes?

Ever been assumed to be nothing more than a gal pal? ugh yes

If a woman wanted to woo you, what would a surefire way to accomplish that? write me a love letter or make me a mixtape about your feleings something cheesy

Be positive! What do you like most about being a lesbian? girls!!!!

Are you more of a cat person or a dog person? cat but i also love pups!

Turn ons? a musical wonderful voice i could listen to and listen to, easy and stimulating conversations, passion for something that lights up their eyes

Turn offs? rudeness in any shape or form, indecisiveness or feigning indecisiveness because you think i want to make the decisions, despicable movie and music taste, smell

Do you usually ask other women out or do you wait for them to ask you? mmmm in the past it has been pretty even. i have learned though that with women it really is a waiting game more than with guys so with my current girlfriend the tension was killing me so much i had to straight up ask her if something was going on and when she said yes she did like me too i was so relieved because she admitted to having not dated anyone since high school (5 years ago for her) and not asking anyone out while at college so if i had kept waiting for her who knows if we would have gotten together!

What is your dream career? i want to be a stay at home mom and author and perhaps an art teacher or preschool teacher on the side if the books dont pa the bills!

Talk about your interests or hobbies! writing and reading and drawing and singing and hiking and listening to music and watching korean dramas and making lists and studying languages

What is the most attractive quality a woman can have? passion, not necessarily in the sexual wya, but passion for something in general. like if she is an actress you see her on the stage and see how into it she is, and offstage she talks about it in a way that shows she is capable of truly loving something so much and seeing wonder in life. or a girl who seems quiet but then when she starts to show you the music she likes she closes her eyes and knows every lyric and has this expression of true passion and love for the music, i am captivated by women who are captivated by the purest elements of life from music to dance to nature

Do you love easily or does it take time for you to warm up to someone? for women, i fall in infatuation quite easily. i was always more cautious with men of course and now i avoid them altogether. but love is something i’ve been becoming more conservative of somehow. i think because i was so hurt by someone before and gave and gave without receiving and im scared of that happening again. i have to be receiving love to give it, thats something i finally can control my impulses over and protect myself from.

Ever fallen for your best-friend? HA

Ever fallen for a straight girl? HAHA

The L-Word: yes or no? (love it or hate it?) heck to the no i couldnt make it past two episodes 

Favorite comfort food? macaroni and cheese

Coffee or tea? tea

Vegetarian? Vegan? None of the above? none but i have tried vegetarian before

Do you have any pets? a chinchilla and a cat!

Early-riser or night-owl? night owl 

What is your sign? gemini sun, sag moon, sag rising

What is your Myers-Briggs type? INFP

Who was your first lesbian crush? my first serious lesbian crush was on a girl at my middle school who dressed to the nines every day in vintage dresses and sweaters and she flirted with practically everyone just joking around and always had a boyfriend but was just charming in every way. my whoel day would eb ruined if i couldn’t just see her or say hello once, and i thought i was just obsessed until i was like ‘wait what if she kissed me’ and BAM i knew it was a real life crush

At what age did you know you were a lesbian? im not really sure. i identified as bi/pan from freshman year to junior year i think, but then was realizing i definitely had a preference and didn’t want to be with guys in a relationship at all to be honest but even up until last summer i was really questioning if i was asexual, so its been a journey but i think i finally fully realized i am a happy happy lesbian after meeting lynn

At what age did you come out (if you have)? i was 14 when i first told my parents i was bi, 18 when i said im a lesbian 

Are you crushing on anyone at the moment (celebrity or otherwise)? just my girly friend

Talk about how your day went i worked this morning 7-11 after only sleeping 4 hours since i got hooked on ‘tipping the velvet’ the bbc miniseries, said goodbye to a friend, had school and did a presentation on how to make rosemilk bubble tea, i ate at a moomin cafe with my coworker, and now am working on homework and doing this survey and putting off my night cleaning duties eheh

Talk about your dreams/aspirations for the future  i just want to have a family and to have my books published, thats all i really need. a loving wife, my sister still by my side as my partner in crime, so many children, so many stories finally told that people are reading. i really want to build a lovely house for my family like my grandparents did once upon a time, with secret rooms and unique hiding places, a house they can pass down as they grow up and it can have our lineage. i want to live by the mountains and trees and water, i want to be able to speak mandarin, cantonese, korean, japanese, icelandic, italian, arabic, and polish fluently

[learningtobushmechanic]

To Do List

So I've been thinking about what I need to replace or add to my motorbike whilst driving towards Johannesburg. When I arrived in I felt overwhelmed and unsure of where to get what. Instead of immediately going about acquiring the things I needed, I spent my first few days sewing a cover and a holder for my fuel and my dromedary water bladder.

I also needed gloves. My current gloves are cheap summer gloves with silicone working gloves i put inside to make them waterproof. They are super thick and sweaty and cold. I also would like to get a waterproof Bike jacket and pants so  I would not ned to wear the extra jacket, but will have to see if I can afford it.

I spent time seeing my friends from Johannesburg, hanging out with Jolandie and Bella at a new Turkish bakery where we ate average pastries that took forever. But had the loveliest time catching up and seeing my old neighborhood in Braamfontein.

I watched Wonder Woman with them and was underwhelmed by the scriptwriting! And the lack of queer lesbian relationships on a woman only island that are warriors- obviously you are making this movie intentionally not queer!? The copious special effects and explosions would bore me normally so I won't waste your time 😋. Oh wait I just want to complain about one more thing- whoever heard of someone fighting in high heel sandals by choice and what warrior has such limp looking arms (the amazons that aren't Wonder Woman had muscles!) oh and apparently the actor is a Zionist.

🙌🏽👌Yay feminism 😱

Also she kills the god of war which should end all wars but what about World War Two and wars in the middle east and Africa?!

I'm sure if I read the comic book there's some explanation?

I like that the actress isn't American though and there are many Eastern European actors but what's with the one Native American guy that's all mystical- why is everyone so white! 🤢

I wouldn't watch it or make someone else watch it and I don't feel grateful that at least there is a focus on making more white women protagonists in film.

And why does this character mercilessly kill German soldiers and act as if everyone is innocent except for the god of war who is making them all do things?

Ugh

I'll stop now

So instead of doing what I was originally setting out to do and learn to do everything myself  I decided to call a motorcycle place and ask them to change my front tire and change my clutch cable and check my break fluid etc

I took it in and the next day I called

To pick it up and they said they will me with the invoice in an hour or so.

They finally called me at 3pm saying that they will charge me this amount to do these things- do I agree?

And I was very upset

Because i had told them exactly what I wanted done. And it hadn't been done and now they were asking me to accept it before going ahead?!

Anyway I thought about it for a while and decided to be brave and

Get the supplies from them and do it myself.

I am concerned about not having a center stand to lift my motorbike with. I have a paddock stand in Cape Town but now I am lost.

I started looking online at foldable stands from polisport but they are very bulky and obviously I'd want to take it with me. I looked at one tonne jacks at Midas and contemplated making a flat top for it and seeing how it goes.

I decided to start work on things that did not require it up yet and took off my aluminium box and my panniers and seat. I remembered an earlier plan I had to use the box as a stand but having been too afraid that it wouldn't hold up I had let it be. I'd been thinking recently of leaving the box in favor of repacking lower down and changing my setup.

So feeling like if it broke I will just make a new plan for luggage- I decided to try it.

God my bike is heavy!!

I've picked it up from its side many times. But literally picking it up with your legs feels impossibly heavy. I decided that there has to be a technique or a clever plan I could use and after googling around for a bit and watching videos of muscly men struggling and managing to pick up their dirt bikes onto stands with pure brawn- I found a very helpful comment in a video. It was an older man saying :for people whose knees aren't so good anymore - you must attempt wiggling the bike onto it. So after a few minutes I managed to get it on by  pivoting the bike on its side stand then pulling in the stand under the bikes engine. Pushing it onto the stand and wiggling it on more until it's on there.

Now I, a not so muscle bound thing can also quite easily lift my bike onto a stand.

I then instantly remembered that I hadn't pre-loosened the axle bolt on m front wheel so I had to take it down again -good practice!(loosening the bolts first is recommended because you have to apply a lot of torque to remove them and if you are doing this whilst the bike is  balancing on its belly you're very likely tip it over- so just pre loosen the bolts slightly on the floor.)

I've changed a few bicycle tires and I've seen someone change a car tyre at a farm (and though it was the scariest thing ever) but getting a motorcycle wheel off the rim and putting a new one back on is hard but nothing compared to blood sweat coming out of when trying to reinstall the wheel in the brake caliper.

I recently changed the front brakes pads at MO's in Cape Town. Mo made me an offer to have the person changing the brakes and doing the service show me exactly how to do everything.(this was before I had access to my bikes manual - which I was then waiting for in the post in Johannesburg).

#Wonder Woman #MO's motorcycles #Johannesburg #Adventure motorcycling

[andialmostdo]

selena gomez, jade thirlwall, taylor swift and tori kelly for the rp meme!!!

ahh hey bb!!

thanks so much for these!!

selena gomez // annette sanchez, 24. – addicted to youtube, iced tea and sleep.

essentially the world’s best dad trapped in the body of a 24 year old girl who is slowly trying to earn a degree and just….. not doing it.

she goes to school for a semester, drops out, takes a year off, reapplies, goes to school for a semester, drops out, and repeats the process over and over again it’s literally mind blowing how this is happening.

she is a youtuber but like not a beauty youtuber or anything, she’s a video game youtuber and by that i mean she plays pokemon and the sims games and gets paid to record it and put it on the internet while talking.

her favorite holiday is halloween and she has been a witch every single year for the past 23 years of her whole entire life.

she is one of those lesbians that is trying really hard to look gay while also looking femme so she wears a lot of muscle tanks and snapbacks but also makeup.

she’s got an iron stomach and fast metabolism. she can eat literally anything she wants and however much she wants. she’s a master at chubby bunny. she sort of lives on coffee most of the day and eats pizza all night. 

she’s always been interested in martial arts and fighting. so don’t say fight me because she will literally fight you.

she is legitimately obsessed with lush bath bombs and other products and spends way too much money on them. so if you can’t find her she’s probably taking a bath.

she’s really fucking competitive at mario kart and mario party and most board games. she rages when she plays and she plays when she’s drunk and it’s the most entertaining thing. there are videos on youtube of it.

jade thirlwall // sutter nasser, 22. – wants to end up on a deserted island with bruno mars and twenty million dogs.

her dad isn’t the same as her siblings bc her parents were told they couldn’t get pregnant so they did in vitro with a sperm donor with sutter and then by the time her siblings were popping out they basically learned that the doctor was 500% wrong.

wants to be on house hunters but realizes that her budget would be like $1000 and that’s not something she super wants to broadcast on television, so.

frugal to a fault. would rather live in a dumpster behind a grocery store than have to spend money on food and shelter, but that’s socially unacceptable so she lives in an apartment with like 30 other people.

she was the Biggest Disappointment to her rock and roll dad when instead of picking up the bass and tearing at the strings, her instrument of choice was an old, beat up cello she brought home from middle school one day.

she is almost always playing with her hair, putting it in buns, twirling a strand, always something ridiculous and elaborate to have attention kept on her face.

she has really strong opinions and doesn’t always like to be told she’s wrong which often leads her to getting confused rather easily in regards to some things.

taylor swift // luna sullivan, 27. – a spontaneous person who loves pastries.

she and her siblings lived that silver spoon life, but luna was almost completely independent by the time she left high school. i say almost, bc no one is gonna say no to financial help when they’re getting started in their adult life.

she really still has all the sensibilities of an eleven year old boy. she lives for danger and if someone tells her no, she’s going to want to do it all the more.

she’s boisterous with a capital b. she has no time for anyone’s bullshit and will not beat around the bush for anyone.

she also owns a crossbow and more than knows how to use it so, like, maybe don’t cross her? pun intended.

biggest flirt ever. about 70% of her flirting is because of genuine interest in at least hooking up with someone, 10% is because she learned that you can get ANYWHERE if you flirt with the right people, and the last 20% is because, WHY NOT? but if someone makes it very clear they’re not interested in her flirting, then she’ll stop. she’s a flirt, not a monster who doesn’t understand boundaries.

a lot of fun to be around, as she’s full of energy and life, and often has an interesting point of view to offer people that many others don’t have.

was never truly interested in school, or books, and is more of a hands-on kind of girl, and excelled well in a technical high school, where she studied culinary arts and went on to do that at the community college, too.

she used to enjoy cooking extremely interesting and foreign dishes, but stepped into the life of a pastry chef, which resulted in her becoming a baker and sticking strictly to desserts, which are her absolute weakness.

completely open to the existence and ideas of reincarnation, ghosts, bizarre scientific theories, and has the time to occasionally dabble in equally strange conspiracy theories that she really has no clue about.

she has a tendency to know things before they actually happen, which may come from an awesome ability to read people well, or just the ability to predict events because she can see the clues leading up to them.

while she can be straightforward and a little tough, she’s a sweetheart deep down on the inside.

tori kelly // sunny alexander, 24. – a little cutie with a love for art.

she is a 24 year old art student who is slowly meandering her ways towards her master’s in education but she keeps taking time off and dropping classes so it’s taking her quite awhile considering she initially did a 5 year program that would give her both her bachelor’s and her master’s.

she was supposed to graduate may of 2017 but….. that’s not happening.

is the daughter of two weird hippies who thought it was so great to name their twin daughters sunny and moon.

she’s a feminist and it will usually take someone about 20 seconds of conversation to figure this out about her, and that’s only if you didn’t notice her feminist tattoos and her fave t-shirt that says “this is what a feminist looks like”.

she’s not as intersectional as she really should be and tbh she believes in feminist unity above all else.

a huge part of the reason it’s taking her so long to get her degree is because she spends huge portions of her time in the library reading stuff that has nothing to do with her bachelors or masters degree just because learning interests her.

her favorite snapchat filter is the dog filter and she will tear you a new asshole if you so much as imply she should stop using it at the frequency that she does.

when she’s not all riled up, she’s a really cool person to be around. she’s super chill and likes listening to music and doing her art and writing.

she still watches disney channel and she falls asleep every single night with it playing in the background.

has a lot of feelings, and the strongest one is that there’s something wrong with her. she doesn’t really know what is wrong with her or missing, but it’s something. it’s kind of why she keeps herself so busy all the time, so that she can ignore that she is somehow an incomplete person.

writes a lot, and some of it is fiction and some of it is scholarly things about gender. her largest area of interest is female beauty standards in the media, so if you want to get her talking, that’s a good subject to bring up.

she’s really flighty and has a hard time sticking to plans that she’s made, especially if she’s having a great time by herself (which happens frequently) she finds it difficult to stop what she’s doing and go interact with people, so she will just cancel the plans that she made instead.

cannot cook anything without burning it, so her kitchen goes entirely unused and she eats exclusively take-out and things that don’t need to be cooked.

#rp things