#nothing holier than the act of creating. to me

[dykebeckett]

new mantra for the girlies who are plagued and blessed by thoughts and ideas: kill cringe and create something

#nothing holier than the act of creating. to me #'self inserts are cringe' FALSE they rule #'selfshipping is cri' NO do it if you wanna #'people don't read crossovers/aus/ whatever idea i want to work with' i promise you they do babe! #make that thing! nobody else can make the thing you can make! #my best posts

[councilman-horsemeat]

The Greatest Star Trek Characters, Ranked

I was recently reading a few articles ranking the various Star Trek characters and got really infuriated. I started punching my solid wood table until my fists were blooded and filled with splinter. Kirk, Spock, Picard- who gives a shit? There was no flavor, no spice to these lists. After taking a long walk and eating some meal, I decided I oughta make my own. Here it goes; In no particular order, so they're not actually ranked at all.

Sylvia Tilly Star Trek: Discovery is full of people whose lives have sucked, in a way which reflects their outlook on life. Some are hardened, some burdened, some both. Sylvia Tilly offers a delightful contrast to these characters. I’m not through the first season of Discovery yet, but I hope she and Michael Burnham become best friends forever.

Mobar (Fake Tuvok) Part of a criminal group that travels the Delta quadrant scamming various strangers through various schemes. Mobar and his friend Dala ended up acting as Tuvok and Janeway, fooling hapless aliens into joining the “Federation”, which meant little more than handing over their starships or cargo. Mobar ended up getting WAY into character, oftentimes chastising his fellow criminals for not adhering to Starfleet protocols. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to make him not a criminal, and in the end he went down like a chump. RIP to a legend. I don’t think he died but whatever.

Dax (Jadzia, Ezri and Curzon/Odo) Jadzia Dax, our first true look into what trill really are. The fusion of Jadzia and Dax created a woman with wisdom far beyond her years, enough to make her approach life in a very confident, laid-back way. This, along with her highly analytical mind and charm, would have made her a perfect ship’s captain. Gone too soon.

On the other hand, I really liked Ezri Dax too. I’m conflicted, because seeing what it’s like for an unprepared, naive trill to be joined (despite never training to) was really interesting, and I even wish we got more than just the one season with her- but I also wish Jadzia could have been around for the finale.

When they were temporarily joined in a trill ritual, Curzon brought a certain down-in-the-dirt, slob attitude to the usually uptight Odo. I really liked him. He could have been less of a pervert.

Bearded Geordi LaForge Beautiful. Majestic. Just a touch of rogueish charm. Too bad he only had it for two episodes and like some movies or whatever.

Mirror Sarek I understand WHY he has a goatee. They needed to make him visually distinct from normal Sarek and it’s an homage to mirror Spock from way back when. The problem is that the homage only works if you didn’t already think mirror Spock’s goatee is funny as hell. They also call him the prophet for some reason. All in all a weird guy, which means I like him.

Neelix He brought a genuine heart of gold to the crew of the voyager when they needed it the most. A rock, a true friend and a shoulder to lean on. His friendship with Tuvok allowed him to occasionally bring out a different side of the indomitable vulcan. I also liked that his eye color randomly changed with no in-show explanation.

T’pring Spock’s almost-wife T’pring probably has the quickest turnaround from “WTF why is she so needlessly brutal” to “she’s a genius and she’s so logical” of any Star Trek character. She will always have my respect.

Sela It’s just really funny to me that she had all that buildup on top of already being the return of a written-off main character’s actor. And then like, nothing happened.

Kai Winn Opaka There’s something so incredibly about Louise Fletcher’s performance as Kai Winn in the later seasons that I sometimes have a hard time putting into words. She just captures the self-righteous, holier-than-thou, but also absolutely desparate character in such a captivating way- while also maintaining this underlying confidence and power.

“Klingon Chef” Deep Space Nine’s resident Klingon chef/opera singer showed a side of Klingon culture we don’t often see - the civilian side. He truly made the most of his few appearances, and I will always love him for it.

Seven of Nine (Possessed) Maybe it’s because of Seven’s usually stoic, reserved demeanour, but seeing Jeri Ryan take on the exaggerated personalities of a Klingon warrior, a Ferengi DaiMon, and the EMH of the USS Voyager amongst others, was one hell of a lot of fun. Enough fun to end up on this list! Unfortunately, not enough for that Oscar nom. Next time!

Dr. Michael Dingo Dingo’s brief stint as nurse aboard the Enterprise-D established him as little more than a grumpy old man, but he really shone after his promotion to main cast member and CMO of the USS Pioneer. His usual snarky personality being torn down upon meeting his long-believed-to-be-dead wife went down as one of my favorite moments in all of Star Trek. His refusal to poison the crew on behalf of his madly sick captain gave me goosebumps.

Lwaxana Troi She started out as no more than “Deanna Troi’s Annoying Mom” but evolved into so much more across her many appearances. Absolutely wonderfully played by Majel Barrett, the writers explore many facets of sorrow, motherhood, and what it means to grow old. I also believe that she should have ended up with Odo instead of Nerys, but whatev.

Falow The leader of the Wadi, a gamma quadrant species that value various types of games above all else. He and his entourage visit Deep Space Nine and end up throwing the main cast INTO a highly-advanced video game where they think they’ll actually die, but it’s actually just a game. What I like most is that he truly looks like the Most Advanced Gamer. If I was a highly advanced space-gamer this is what I would want to look like.

Riker Picard’s number one actually features on a lot of these lists. They usually list his loyalty or how cool he is or whatever. I’m mostly interested in his absolutely off-the-charts adventurous spirit. He was the first starfleet officer to serve aboard a klingon ship and was GLAD to eat gagh. When he learned that a trill symbiont needed a new host he practically jumped at the chance, despite the fact that no human had ever hosted a trill symbiont before. And he had absolutely no shame in wearing his slutty outfit in ‘Angel One’. There’s many similarities between Riker and Kirk, but Kirk would never have worn it so proudly.

Horny/drunk-ish Picard Patrick Stewart’s performance as a pseudo-drunk and very horny Jean-Luc Picard in The Naked Now has seared itself into my mind forever. It’s like he’s screaming, but also whispering, and sort of putting on an accent? Deciding just how to portray the usually stoic captain so completely out of his element must have been quite the challenge, and Patrick Stewart ended up making some very inspired choices.

Alyssa Ogawa She may not have done much more than help out in medbay every now and then, but the conversations between her and Crusher were the first to show that the main crew actually DO have friends outside the “inner circle”. Does that truly earn her a spot on a list of the greatest Star Trek characters of all time? Probably not but I don’t really care and neither should you.

Grand Nagus Zek Every time he got more screentime I remembered how much I loved his dumbass voice. His shrill bleating is hilarious, and every time he shows up I can’t wait to find out what his latest scheme is. His behavior towards women is regrettable, but that’s true for a lot of Star Trek men and unlike most of them, Zek actually sort-of changes.

Ishka And who is Zek without Rom and Quark’s moogie Ishka? Despite the usual underestimatable Ferengi personality traits, I genuinely believe Ishka could have one of the highest power levels in all of Star Trek canon. Women not even having the right to wear clothes has been a part of Ferengi culture for centuries and she managed to turn it around COMPLETELY in a handful of years. If she put her mind to it, I genuinely believe she could have brokered peace between the Cardassians and Bajorans, and that’s on the prophets.

Jae Yeah, I got a bit of a crush on this frankly random Enterprise-D crewmember. I think she’s friends with Picard? She sat next to him at a poetry reading once. I’m not sure if she even had any speaking lines.

#Star Trek #Deep Space Nine #Voyager #TNG #VOY #DS9 #iprixtwt

[rainbowdaisy13]

You all know I don’t beat around the bush, so here it goes. We are 13 days away from the start of what will probably be one of Taylor’s most epic tours yet. In my 7 years of being a tumblr Kaylor, this is the most ostracized and detached I’ve felt from this community and it sucks.

In the time I’ve been here, I’ve been nothing but honest about who am I here and in real life, what I believe about Taylor/Kaylor, and that I don’t know shit for certain besides what my own two eyes have witnessed. I’ve never stolen ideas or posts. I love giving credit and support to the people here who come up with truly brilliant takes/spend hours doing real detective work to uncover these hidden in plain sight breadcrumb trails Taylor has been leaving for us from the jump. I designed, created, and mailed out Kaylor pins all around the globe for us to share and only asked for a donation for shipping.

I don’t fall into peer pressure and imma loyal bitch until I have reason to question someone’s integrity. Spade has never given me reason to question her integrity, so why would I stop reblogging her? Because some Anti decided it would be funny to meddle in our community? I’m not gonna keep pretending things are normal anymore because they aren’t. My point is this: this is the internet—most of y’all would not throw a grape in a food fight, so to act Holier than Thou when you are actively participating in dividing our already minuscule corner of the fandom is bonkers. This call out is me letting you know I see you and I hope this post reminds anyone reading you don’t have to participate in alienation out of fear—I’d love to see the community brought back together during the Eras Tour—we need to hold each other up now more than ever

[actuallycassidyiambusy]

You have become one of my favorite blogs. For several reasons.

Your art is fantastic.

Your writing is so good. Like really. Never stop.

You're a funny motherfucker.

But the main reason?

You don't give a SHIT.

I'll elaborate lmao

There are so many antis out there. So many petty people who feel the need to drag others for anything they don't agree with. There are Bluffy shippers that get attacked on Twitter, on here and just about anywhere else they decide to reveal themselves. They get shit on and called names for literally NOTHING. Hypocritical assholes who just can't stand when someone is happy with something they don't like. People who act like you're the antichrist for something as stupid as an age gap or something that isn't technically "canon"

I have been a target myself for some of my Bluffy art and it always upsets me. I get my shit screenshot and then I get blasted for something fictional 😕

But you? It doesn't faze you. You couldn't give a fuck less what people have to say, and I envy that so much. You dust off your shoulders and keep creating some of the best Bluffy content I've ever seen. Seriously, I love when you post and you post with zero regrets. I wish I was like you. I wish the antis didn't bother me.

I'm always showing my friends your work and several of us are currently reading your fic. Please don't ever stop creating. You may not know it, but you make me feel seen. That sounds really sappy, but it's true. A lot of people love what you do and we love your don't give a fuck attitude. It's refreshing for the people who are too shy or too afraid to post their work.

It always pisses me off when I find out someone is bullied into silence or anonymity. There is no reason to hate on something that hurts absolutely no one. No one should be afraid to post their art or share their favorite pair.

You shouldn't be afraid. There are fuckers on this site shipping people with animals for fuck's sake. People who draw monster porn, furry porn and fuck knows what else. And you're feeling scared to post a ship that has an age gap? Fuck, that just doesn't sit right with me. They're literally both adults. Didn't Damon and Stefan Salvatore flirt with a literal high school girl? The age gaps in Supernatural are wild as fuck. (And just to be clear, I'm not hating on those fandoms. I love me some vampires and demons🥴)

Not to mention the people the same fucking age as Luffy shipping themselves with Buggy? Everyone seems okay with that. It's hypocrisy at it's finest, kid.

Fandoms can be extremely toxic and I'm so sorry you got treated so horribly. My blog will always be a safe space and I will never stop posting or answering my asks. I do hope at some point, you feel confident enough to post again. Antis will never go away and they'll never stop being complete assholes. There's no reason for them to screenshot your shit and blast it. A block button is a beautiful thing. They have options, and every time, they choose to act holier than thou. There are times it does bother me. It really just pisses me off more than anything else, but it's not gonna stop me. I'm not hurting a single damn person and neither are you.

I'm flattered that you love my work so much and that you share it with whoever you can. Fuck what they say. Keep making whatever art you like and shove it down their throats. Eventually, they'll see that their behavior has no effect on you and they'll back off. And if they don't? Fuck it. Keep drawing anyway.

Idc who you are. I'm someone you can come to if you need to talk. I'll listen and let you get it all out. Life is hard enough and I'll never understand the people out there who want to make it worse. That's not me.

#one piece #anon ask #answered #buggy the clown #monkey d. luffy #buggy x luffy #buggy #luffy #one piece netflix #bluffy #im so fucking tired of antis #buncha idiots crying over a fictional fucking couple #get over yourselves and let people be fucking happy #ffs

[bcofl0ve]

So, I have a very gentle, very non-judgmental comment to make about the 'relationship discourse'. I say this with nothing but good vibes and intentions, so please don't interpret it as me coming at you or anyone else!

No matter where you stand, it seems a little odd to be heavily invested in someone else's relationship. I say this as someone who has followed celebrity gossip off and on for a long time, so I get it. It's fun to speculate, but at the end of the day no one really *knows* anything other than the people in the relationship itself. I'm a casual fan, and I was surprised at the strong feelings that this relationship seemed to elicit from so many people. Because (I say with love) no one really knows what goes on in their personal lives, and everything that's discussed (on both sides) is only speculation.

I feel so preachy coming into your inbox with all this, and I know you probably are aware of/have considered most of the points I made. I also know that I used the word 'odd' and I don't feel entirely good about that, because I'm not suggesting that you or anyone else here is odd. I'm also also not trying to act holier-than-thou because I'm a casual fan. I'm just giving my two cents as an observer. I hope that you take this in the spirit I meant it, because I realize this might come off as patronizing through the wrong lens. Long story short? Everyone should take a yoga breath and rewarch Dune before Dune 2 comes out (and not come for me with pitchforks, because I know this is a heated discussion and I fear I may have poured gasoline on the 🔥🫣).

you’re so fine don’t worry. getting Meta about fandom/stan culture etc is actually something i really enjoy- no problems chatting about it when folks are civil like you!

i mean, in the most bare bones terms: i’m invested because i enjoy celebrity culture/hollywood gossip, really like both austin and kaia as creatives and people- and think that the flip side of being so private is that it makes people inherently more nosy about what we don’t see. on both ends, as we see with people taking advantage of all the ‘empty space’ to create wild PR theories, whereas i think the ““shippers”” use the empty space to giggle and kick our feet and lean more towards happier gap fillers like “hm i wonder if they’ll do xyz together!”.

i do consider austin’s fandom my hobby at this point, so i’m invested in him i would be any other hypothetical hobby- not a sports person but maybe that’s a good example? lots of sports fans get really into the people who play on a team they really like- i guess you could see hollywood is my “sport” and two of my favorite players are austin and kaia, haha. i fully acknowledge that’s parasocial, but i do have my own boundaries and try to be an ‘ethical’ a gossiper as possible, even when i know ethical gossip blogger is an oxymoron. the second this is more serious than fun for me is the day i leave- a rule i wish i adopted sooner re: the broadway gossip blog days of yore. fandom is supposed to be fun, and at least right now i’m having a great time!

i will clarify though that re: tumblr specifically, me and that other blog’s issues with each other are deeper than disagreeing about austin and kaia- and so if we seem very heated with *each other* it’s not just. coming from our passionate celebrity opinions lol. i don’t know how closely you follow my blog/how long you’ve been around these parts but that blog has spent a year giving a platform to people personally insulting me as an individual (not just my fandom opinions) and smearing me and at one point got honey potted by someone who decided to see if she’d want to doxx me given the opportunity (someone sent her an anon saying to vague post if she wanted to know where i’m in law school- something i keep very private, i don’t even say what state i live in- and she immediately followed the bait instructions, lol).

i won’t say the tit for tat between us every now and then will ever end because like- it won’t lol. we’re both bitey people and we both have narc followers who send our posts back and forth and we both strongly dislike each other. i think at this rate our occasional sparring is just a staple of the tumblr fandom- god love all of you that put up with it. i hope all of this made sense though, pls feel free to follow up! (:

#mod talk #gossip time with mollie

[tadsweep]

Oh, so it does talk.

And who the FUCK do you think you are? You speak of warmth and cold like it means anything to you. You speak of humanity as if it means anything to you. It doesn’t. If you were thrust into the inferno, you wouldn’t know how to cope either. If you were stripped of your blissful greys, you’d close your eyes to the light just like you close them to the truth.

All I wanted was to win. Where is the sin in that? You speak of my destruction like I kicked the stool out from under me when it was yanked, as if I didn’t claw and kick and grab onto anything I could.

You know what’s worse than being stupid? Being a hypocrite. You were born into the world by a maker, you do not know joy so you do not know the loss of it. You are a miserable little mindless creature (who seems to have finally found its tongue ? talk about claiming to be pitiful) and you DID kill me simply because you are everything I am not, your sad little squealing about your precious creator and their lie of peace drove me mad. Extending my friendship didn’t make you see the truth, and now you spew this holier than thou bullshit in my face. My corpse. You killed me. You and so many other people, but you… You grieve either my loss or my existence or my wretched ghost but it doesn’t matter. All I wanted was to win. Tad did not, so you did not either. Tad killed me. You killed me.

you speak of this as if you are in the right.

all you wanted was to win. isn't that right? that's all you ever wanted.

a rather flimsy excuse, if you ask me.

a yearn for victory is such a pathetic, human thing to have. you as a species don't know what to do with your useless, meaningless lives, so you duke it out against each other to attempt to find a purpose. a natural propensity to prove thay you're inherently better, that you as a being are simply superior to everyone else is all you're ever good for, it seems.

but does this remove the fact that all living and loving beings are on this earth for nothing but to fuck and die? does this truly make you believe that the tacit truth of you being utterly devoid of purpose is nothing but a nihilistic thought that should be simply pushed aside?

i was created with a purpose, and that was to serve tad. is it small? yes. is it pathetic? yes. but at least i know what im here for. at least i exist with certainty that yes, i'm doing everything right. i'm acting exactly as i am meant to act.

i may have killed you, but you deserved it. you were selfish, greedy, and abhorrantly human.

you're correct. humanity means nothing to me. it sparks nothing but a faraway revulsion and long before buried ire that I've tried so hard to suppress, but you? you make me sick. you extended a hand in the name of friendship and you twisted my arm and sank your claws deep within me and you whispered "this is what love is." you tried to cut the strings of a marionette that will fall apart without them and that is nothing short of repulsive.

organics are put onto this earth so fleetingly. you're here one moment, and you're gone the next. you were bound to die anyway. if anything, i saved you.

[alltimefail-sims]

@ those twitter piracy discoursers: if you want me to buy the damn game personally give me the $1000 it takes to buy it then

Yes!!! This!! It is simply not an option for everyone to be able to shuck out $800+ dollars on a game, not to mention a game with several issues!!! Like hello!! It doesn't even function correctly if you do have all the packs ffs!

And it's FUNNY these people want to talk about ethics and act "holier-than-thou" while actively profiting off a game they recieved for free!! The audacity to be like "Well if you are poor just say that." Like pal... those people you're calling poor are paying your bills right now, and your "business" of content creation relies on an already existing game franchise that you had no hand in creating and did not pay for yourself... you are a glorified walking paid advertisement. 🤦‍♀️ Just take your money and mind your business! Why they are worried about what others do... I have no idea. All they have to do is shut up and pop out some videos for daddy EA!! It's the whole "if you have nothing nice to say don't say anything at all" argument.

Then they'll be like BUT IT'S ILLEGAL!! 😲 And okay babe that's true but I don't really see how that is *your* problem if you aren't the one yar-har ship ahoying 🏴‍☠️ the damn game??? I promise it will not impact you in any way. In all fairness, putting your shitty cc behind a paywall for 4+ months (or forever in some cases) is ALSO against the rules set by EA and ya'll have no problem twisting right and wrong then!!! Or supporting people who ignore EAs terms! At least be a consistent virtue signaling keyboard warrior goofball!

And they think they eat every time they come for people... truly embarrassing at best and revealing of just how unempathetic, how absolutely hypocritical they are at worst. Couldn't be me licking the boots of a COM-PAN-Y. But hey, I mind my business and say do what you gotta do 🤷‍♀️. EA will be just fine, they'll make up the difference with their shitty kits that these silly simps are paid to gaslight impressionable fans into buying 👍

#I'm not gonna be nice when I talk about this because I do think it's ridiculous #I have a thin patience for these creators making up to six figures off a game they don't pay for #and then looking down on people who just want to literally have fun like ???? #talking about urban sims harrie simlicy #etc they all look down on people and have no understanding of nuance when it comes to ethics and capitalism #tldr fuck those guys for making people feel bad #love you anon thank you for sharing your thoughts ❤ #personal #ts4 #paywalls #fuck paywalls #atfs ask #cursing tw #tw: cursing #cursingtw

[apollos-boyfriend]

I’m fucking loosing it okay, I lost my thoughts last time when I first saw the “I don’t wanna speculate uwu” boobers but I just

WHAT!!! IS!!! THE!!! POINT??? What do you MEAN you don’t theorize about the possibilities of cranboo’s species?? Why Say It Like That Too!!! What is with the holier than thou attitude coming off of that like. Am I missing something?? He’s playing a character why wouldn’t you want to theorize on the character he’s playing when it’s a /mystery/ it’s meant to be a /mystery/ we the audience don’t know I don’t get it it doesn’t make sense to me. I?? Do you think your better than your average boober if you don’t speculate?? This isn’t, your not gonna get scolded, it’s okay to have headcanons, your not on the gallows being deemed Valid or Not. I don’t know it just. Boggles my mind how some people act and feel in regards to engaging with aspects of dsmp

honestly? my best guess is down to the fact that the dream smp is a lot of kid’s first major fandom, if not their first fandom, period. which leads to a whole bunch of interesting phenomena and issues, ranging from the sheer scale of it to how user-interactive everything can be. here, though, it’s probably just the inexperience in fandom. i definitely had similar trains of thoughts in my first big fandoms, thinking i was better than other members by not believing a theory, or not speculating on a character, or anything along those lines.

and i’m just here to say. that does nothing but make your own personal experience absolute shit. there’s no enjoyment that’s gained from it. not for you, and definitely not for the people that interact with you. it’s okay if you’re wrong. it’s okay to believe in something that’s not canon. that’s the beauty in fandom; the ability to create a space based on the characters you enjoy, but one that is still wholly your own, with theories and headcanons and aus. no one cares if what you believe in isn’t canon, unless you begin crossing boundaries and attempting to assert it as such. have fun! create stuff that doesn’t make sense! as long as it’s all respectful and self-aware (in the sense that it is a divergence from canon), you’re allowed to spin the stories however you wish!!

#muse talk #anon #god. this makes me feel. old. #like it really hits me sometimes that dsmp/mcyt IS the first experience for some people #this is their mianite. their homestuck and danganronpa and undertale #dealing with all of that really annoyed me at first #and it still does. but like. i could see myself doing that as a kid #like if you asked little idk. 12? year old me. to speculate karkats blood color #i might’ve given you the same type of answer #it’s definitely something that you learn and work past the more involved and accustomed you are to fandom spaces #and i hope they do some day. it all gets so much better when you let go of that strict mindset #and let yourself truly delve deep into what is possible. and maybe even what isn’t.

[maifrenthebesto]

Thinking about the imes I've been shamed by others for doing what I wanted to do at the time.

This one is a vent rather than an introspective monolog.

One time I wanted to do a silly little dance to make the new classmates laugh, since they seemed to be doing the same. They saw me do it and the defacto leader asked me to never do that again. I didn't, but not because he asked, but rather because there was no point in following up the act with the given audience.

There was another time where someone with an unusual amount of information on me tried to gesture at some notions that they deemed as moral failures that I would engage on in private with frequency in the hopes that I would conform to the standard they hoped of me to achieve. That may work for me, but given the information being hinted at, there was a level of intrusion that I was not comfortable with rather than a shared understanding of the concept masquerading as discussion. I stopped for a bit because it made me uncomfortable that they were that intrusive, then I got over it and realized that the path they took to be this holier than thou personality with nothing else on their hands than to cyberstalk me in order to justify their actions was an unstable foundation for any argument. You wouldn't want to do anything in private that you wouldn't do in public, or, "...if you need to do it in hiding you shouldn't do it at all." Ended up bein the most hypocritical statement amongst a sea of hypocrisy emanating from the mind of a man with an inferiority complex twice his stature.

Another time, a relative of mine was entrusted with an ounce of power after diligently working towards that end, as soon as they got it, they proceeded to shame me into not smoking (weed in particular) in front of the whole restaurant, which was conveniently populated at the time with people who could gain from having the ability to hold that over my head at a later time. I made a case for myself then but really I had to be okay with being seen as the black sheep from that point moving forward, because in a small town, anyone's business is a better topic of conversation other than your own.

In case you're wondering, I smoke still, not a lot, but it was never a lot. It just so happens that any amount was unacceptable in the eyes of some people. Whether they have good or bad intentions, the position comes from a place of a moral grandstanding, and while I encourage folk to do edibles over smoking any day, we shouldn't hate our neighbors just because their prerogative differs from our own, and that's not something you can force, let alone shame others into doing.

That one is a deeper wound because I know for a fact it's been talked behind my back by people outside of the table, but at the very least it shows me who is my friend because of me, and not because of what they could get out of me. So thank you! c:

One more to close out the series.

Once upon another life, there was an elaborate test put together by someone who needed to know how to feel about what they had done to me behind closed doors, so through unknown machinations, their first-removed cousin came with the intention of being a honey pot trap. They were overly nice to me, inviting me to be closer to their inner circle, and I felt as though a ray of sunshine hit me in an otherwise deolate moment of my life. The reality turned out to be much grimmer, as they only wanted me close to be able to mock me for failing the secret test they constructed, they set the parameters and conditions, and played against my over easy disposition towards kindness. It definitely was suspicious, and they always thought they were the "best" at what they did. It is a sad end to that tale, as I tried to forgive them over and over, but it was their cynicism that really glared through it all. I was disposable from the beginning, like the one before me, there's always a reason to seek an out, and the out can be easily created to save face. I think that if you want an out you should come out and say it, but I think theatrics are just easier for emotionally immature folk who need to have a jester to mock from afar to feel better about their situation in life.

Well, it's okay, I want to be okay with all of these things, and at the end of the day I am, it would just be better if these things weren't so, but if they weren't, I'd be writing about another set of items in this vent, wouldn't I?

Try to be kinder to those around you, because not everyone wears their heart on their sleeve, but we all bleed the same. So if I cut you, I apologize.

Can you apologize to those you've cut with your sharpness? A misguided blade, however sharp it may be, does not compare to a blunted edge with purpose.

[homiro]

I absolutely am hated lmao like why were people even following this damn account? Now I have 442 followers I know it was 480+ just a couple of days ago because I was trying to create new sideblogs on mobile so I saw it lmao maybe I'm just being nEgAtiVe and this this is why people don't like me as usual but fuck it you know I'm tired as hell of this bullshit life of all the bad luck of just idk being too autistic or something for anyone to want hang out with me for real lol oh you don't put yourself out there lmaooo yeah for what? To be shut down and get mad and just cut off the relationship? I guess I'm meant to be alone and that self-isolation really is the way about it not matter what the lazlos and other such American (from ANY of the countries in the AmericaS PLURAL) say. Honestly fuck ableist fuckers and fuck covert transphobes literally go to hell.

By the way I'm not self diagnosed I had to go through a fucking insane battery of questions lol great thing. I gained nothing from it except an #actuallyautistic. And I'm tired of having to mask so that the motherfuckers who pretend to care about mentally ill people and act like they're ND but ick when they see someone with an actual condition that isn't uwu palatable uwu smol bean who's shyyy fuck outta here.

Rant over lol they want me to be the villain, I'll be their fucking villain I just won't willingly interact with these cunts anymore. I'll be the cunt who copped out when he was lied about and misgendered and the little uwu smol beans villanised me. And yes, no i HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN. AND I HAVEN'T LET GO. Because abusers and harassers want you to forget and let go to be exonerated of their own shittu behaviour. I apologised for my meltdowns and was met with nothing but condescending remarks and holier than thou attitudes and treated like shit by literally all of these clout chasing twats. I'm not upset I left that was a blessing in disguise but they robbed me of the only thing I had which was writing. I barely wrote this hear and when I did I had to push myself. And not because I had some block it was literally because I didn't want more harassment and to be told I suck by the fans of dubcon shit. And fuck every single MOTHERFUCKER who says it isn't. I'm an SA SURVIVOR I KNOW WHAT IS AND WHAT ISN'T SA. But you know, it's hot apparently lol so it's okay /s rant over unfollow away I guess lol some cunt on here said I was negative and shit as well before unfollowing instead of just doing it. Like just say you don't understand cptsd and fucking go.

I'm done.

#long post #rant #personal vent #fuck all this #I'm burning bridges #maybe that's my cue to actually cop out for good #I'm so tired of having to mask to be accepted for being different and for having permanent trauma

[everlastingspiral]

look, you're entitled to your own opinions, however contradictory they might be, but genuinely, i have got to ask: why do you watch/listen if you hate it that much? it seems you just have a blog for talking about how much you hate erik, the characters, the "statements," storylines, and more. why not just move on to something different?

the one thing i will add is the the caelum situation and the fred/bright situation were different, and anyone who witnessed both can see that. when fred and bright's controversy broke out, there were many insults to erik himself and his writing, personal attacks to him, whereas the caelum situation was completely removed from him. no one was attack him because of what was happening with the fictional character. does this mean that bullying and harassment was justified? no. but the situations each solicited a different response from the creator. you have to at least see that, right?

regardless, your point standing around your blog that "if you don't like it, don't read it" should be employed for your choice in listening to redacted. if all you're going to do is complain and hold erik accountable for his "sins," then just listen to someone else. i'd be happy to give you recommendations, but all you're doing is just spewing hatefulness that it generally unjustified (and i agree with some of your takes, while saying that). please, find a different hobby.

Ah yes, just what I needed after a bad day. A holier than thou anon.

Look, while I appreciate your fake concern, next time just cry and say you hate someone criticizing your favorite creator eh? You’re already hiding behind the anon mask. Might as well be honest.

To touch on each of your points here:

Enlighten me as to what makes you think I still listen to the content of his that I hate? I don’t sit here being spoon-fed like the majority of the fandom. There are parts of his work I do genuinely enjoy otherwise I wouldn’t be here. Outside of some of my more minor complaints like Milo’s, most of what is on that list I’ve already dropped a while ago. Not that there’s even been any plot to consume or complain about in months but still. I apologize that I’m a complex human being with my own thoughts and not a generic children’s cartoon you can easily pick apart.

Now I don’t remember Redacted receiving personal attacks, but maybe that was because I was trying to tune out that insanity. What I saw more often were people in the fandom attacking each other and arguing their points on the situation. Yes, I do see the difference between the two situations, and I compared the two in severity. What exactly is your point in bringing this up, anon? If you’re afraid of Caelum disappearing from the channel, or otherwise never getting another video, you have only the close-minded fools in the fandom to be angry with. I had nothing to do with that drama escalating and in fact I tried to stop it. As far as Redacted goes, that’s just fandom behavior and he’ll have to deal with it. No, that still doesn’t make all the harassment and direct attacks okay, but that’s what a fandom can turn into unfortunately. If he wants to build up a large fanbase he’s going to have to buck up and hold his ground.

If you don’t like my blog, don’t read it anon. I keep the majority of my posts out of the tags for a reason because this is mostly a vent blog. If you find a post that is tagged where I’ve begun a discussion and continued reading, that’s on you. If you found my posts on another blog and chose to read them and choose to search for more, that’s on you. Unlike you and several others, I don’t act like every single bit of fan content in this fandom is curated for my tastes and find no need to consume it all. I’m not going to mince words on posts I create specifically for myself either. You don’t like criticism? You don’t like how harsh I come across? Don’t come on my blog.

We could go back and forth all day about my choice to listen to Redacted and your choice to waste your time preaching to me about what I do with my time on my own blog, but I don’t care to deal with you after this response.

Just to humor you a little more, I also have no idea what makes you think I don’t follow other creators either. Of course I do. Woefully for you, your pleas to rid of me have fallen on uninterested ears so I’m afraid you’ll have to find a new blog to virtue-signal to. Go tell all your comrades how much of a terrible asshole I am, lurking in a hateful corner and minding my own hateful business. Meanwhile I’ll be doing just that. Have fun.

#anon #stay in school kid #if you want a nicer response see the other anon

[bookofmirth]

The framing of shipping as “I’m going to support what the characters want” is... super weird to me.

First off, it assumes that shipping otherwise is somehow “disrespecting” the fictional wishes of fictional people. That’s not a thing. You are not somehow more of a feminist for supporting the agency of a fictional character, because that agency doesn’t actually exist in the real world. People ship things in fandom based on what they think could be interesting, or a hot mess, or sexy, or whatever. Shipping has nothing to do with what the characters want, mainly because the characters aren’t real and the whole reason that we are here is to play with the canon material that we have.

Second, it assumes that nothing can or will change in canon. When canon is ongoing, that’s a faulty assumption. 

Third, when canon is romance-focused, it is completely normal for characters to not want one another initially. That’s how it happens all the time, and the entire point is to watch how their feelings towards one another change.

Fourth, it’s a transparent way to position oneself as more “respectful”, somehow more “enlightened”, or somehow more “progressive” than other shippers. This is perhaps the most insidious insinuation about comments like this. It creates a position for the speaker in which the insinuation is that no one else actually cares about the character, in which the rest of the world is so unfeminist and maybe even oppressive for daring to think about a character in a different way.

“I like this thing because I am the one who truly cares about these characters, no one else is as nice and respectful as I am.” 

Well that’s nice and all, but those characters are never going to know or appreciate you because they aren’t real, and you are meanwhile shaming actual, real life people for their so-called “treatment” of fictional characters. Do you want a medal for being so nice to these fictional characters when you can’t even give other people in the fandom basic respect, or...

The whole point of fandom is to interact with canon in ways that we want, to think about how it could be different, to think about what we would change, what we would prefer, to think about what could be. Saying “this is what I like because this is what I think that canon told me to like”, why are you even here. 

Obviously I’m thinking of how people talk about Elain in this post. The same thing keeps happening when it comes to her, “squaring her shoulders and declaring herself part of the Night Court”. People act like if we think she isn’t telling the truth, or if we imagine what her life would be like in the Spring Court, or the Day Court, we are hurting her feelings somehow. People say shit like “it’s so sad to take her away from her sisters” babe ELAIN ISN’T REAL. Maybe the idea makes you sad, but nobody is hurting Elain’s feelings by considering an alternative life for her because ELAIN ISN’T REAL. No one is “ignoring her wishes” by thinking about what her life could be beyond what we know or what she has said. 

Newsflash, no amount of headcanons or fanfiction or tumblr posts is actually forcing Elain to do anything, because she. isn’t. real. It’s just WILD to me that people act as if a headcanon is disrespectful to a character. Fandom discussion and works can be OOC, for sure. But that still isn’t somehow hurting that character’s feelings?

It’s just such a transparent holier-than-thou way of talking about a character. If we had to “respect” what a character said or wanted or whatever and couldn’t talk about them in any ways other than what canon has established, then we wouldn’t be here. 

#fandom things #acotar fandom #elain #acotar

[sundaeserenade]

Hi! A while ago (either here or on Twitter, I don't recall) you said that you felt as if you perceived Reguri very differently from large parts of the fandom. Could you elaborate on that? Genuinely not trying to create fandom drama, lol, so if it's too spicy feel free to ignore this, but I was just wondering because I feel the same - it mostly being about perceptions of dominance and submission and/or generally equality of the two of them. I easily get annoyed by people acting like Green's nothing but a fragile/weak sidekick to Red and playing into the usual Yaoi stereotypes. Anyway, would be very interested in hearing what you think!

Wow, i'm surprised someone remembered that. I don't have issues replying.

But I want to preface this by saying that everyone is free to interpret these characters however they want and that this is my opinion that you don't have to read or like or care about whatsoever. So please be sensible, because I'm not insulting people either and I'm not pointing fingers and I'm not acting holier than thou, because it's something that's not even unique to this fandom; it's in every fandom.

So with that disclaimer out of the way, sure! I'll tell you what I think.

Yeah, I feel like I perceive/interpret them in a way that a large part...or. Maybe not even large--just a part of the fandom does. Which is fine. That always happens and I'm in my corner here with my six other friends, but like. It's basically a little of what you said and also I think the thought was spurred by...something. I don't remember what. But i Just saw/read it and I was like "Damn... I don't agree with that take." Which is a feeling that comes and goes LMFAO

But it comes down to characterization just like it ALWAYS will come down to characterization with me despite the fandom because I'm a writer and that's what I care about the most and it's, frankly, what the fandom as a whole cares about the most: characterization. How a character is portrayed, how they act, how they respond. Is it close to the source material? Or is a large diversion from it? Do they take everything that is canon into account when writing/drawing/depicting this character? Or are there a lot of instances of projection that warp that character into something else?

I 100% devote so much thought/planning TO characterization that when I see something so off, I have to leave and do something else. I have to fix it--which is why I'm a fic writer. I mostly write fix-it fics in other fandoms because of plot issues or characterization issues. I fix things because I feel like there's been a departure in the canon material or that the fandom has run off with a character and ran them through the mud so much that they're not even that character anymore.

That's kind of where I am with Red and Green. Or. It was where I was. Until I heavily curated my experience and stayed in my own little corner to retain some of my sanity.

People love to portray/depict Green Oak as submissive, which I don't see due to his characterization. I don't see Green being a pushover, being submissive to Red or to anyone for that matter. I don't see him backing down and moving away from confrontation. I don't see him being passive.

Green is an active character--has been since his inception. He is stubborn. He is blunt/straightforward. He is confident (near to the point of arrogance in the early games) he is talkative. He is passionate. He is a go-getter. He rises to meet every challenge. He's intelligent. He's dedicated. He's a hard-worker (a work-a-holic) and he's got trauma and depression. He's multi-faceted.

So when I see Green depicted as submissive or bowing to people or not doing/saying anything when he doesn't get his way, I tend to disagree. He's just so active. He's so in your face! I can't see that going off of what canon has told me, going off of what he's said in the games. I can't believe that. I think it's a departure from his characterization.

Briefly--this does also play into sexual relationships. I don't think Green would just be submissive there, but I'll get into that later.

Red is a bit of an outlier. He's got a lot of different canon depictions that don't line up as well as Green's. We've got pokespe, where he’s more shounen-like and talks. We've got pokemas where he smiles and is selectively mute. And we've got the games where he's this legendary completely silent trainer. Red's depiction is so varied here because the canon material surrounding him is so varied. So I'm not as stringent with Red.

However, since I write primarily for the games, I don't see him as being solely dominant. Red can be passive. He can be determined. It depends on the situation with him. But he's caring. He's compassionate. He's got a strong sense of duty. He's heroic. He's loving. He's dedicated. He's foolhardy. He's a risk-taker. He lacks self-preservation. He's single-minded at times. He's multi-faceted.

So I can't see him as being this dominant presence always. Red sometimes doesn't go in and just takes what he wants. Sometimes he's reactionary. Sometimes he's cautious. Sometimes he does bow to what others say/do. Or--more likely, he leaves so he doesn't have to make a decision one way or the other.

That's the thing with the submissive/dominant shit--it doesn't work. It doesn't work putting two characters into these categories because that's not how writing characters works. Authors don't sit down and go "Okay, I need a submissive side-character now." I mean, some authors may do that, but I personally believe that's not how you write or develop a character based off of what I was taught.

You try and create a character with positive traits and flaws. These influence their decisions and can be used to drive the plot/alter it. It can be used for interactions that can serve the plot or just add some much needed development. You don't want characters to fit neatly into those roles because then they're not really characters--they're a personification of those stereotypes.

When I described Red and Green I listed good things and flaws. They're three-dimensional. They don't fit into that binary. So I don't agree with takes that follow that. I never will in any fandom. Ever in my life. Ever. I never have.

I adore writing and art that takes into account how these characters actually behave and depict them as close to that characterization as possible. It's fine if they put some headcanons on them--that's what you're meant to do. But when it devolves into "Green is submissive, Red is dominant" I feel like that's doing these characters a great disservice and I get very sad. So I write fic to fix that feeling.

I'm not trying to toot my own horn, either. I don't write for anyone else--I write for me. And in the things I write, I depict Red and Green as actual people or as close to possible as I can fucking get without ruining immersion.

Before, on twitter, i'd run polls asking what people thought about certain first times between red and green, and after seeing the results of those polls, I felt that feeling of seeing the characters in a unique way, but i got validated by like two friends of mine and I was like "okay, i've found my people" and that's what you should do in any fandom, but anyway. That poll and other polls just. revealed a lot to me to the point where i'm not going to do polls anymore unless it's just general things.

I don't think Red would top the first time he and Green bone. I just don't. I think that goes against their characterization. I think Green, being the more active and confident character, would take the initiative and Red, who's likely less experienced, would take the backseat and trust Green. I also believe that this shit changes as their relationship goes on because that's how relationships in the real world work. Things change. You get more comfortable. You try new things. So Red would want to try new things sometimes. Green would want to try new things. It depends on the situation, the emotions in that situation, and how each character responds to those emotions.

But that's the thing about this whole entire thing--at the end of the day, these are fictional characters and they're not real. People aren't going to try and depict them like real relationships because they may not want to. Maybe they prefer, in their fictional escape, to depict them according to that submissive/dominant binary and that's their right to do. But at the same time--please do not come at me and act like that's how the characters actually behave. Do not do that, because it's not true. I have no issues with you doing what you want, but when you come to me and try and act like that take is entirely correct and canon? We're going to have problems.

Same goes for people not taking Green seriously as a rival, which is laughable, because he's still--to this day--one of the strongest rivals in the series. He picks the starter that's stronger than yours so right off the bat he has an advantage. His endgame team is still really well composed when taking only kanto pokemon into account. He canonically defeated every gym and the elite four faster than Red did ( i know red was fighting team rocket but still).

Green has the ability to go toe-to-toe to Red. He is Red's rival in every sense of the word. That continues into adulthood because still for some unknown reason, he and Red are the only trainers known to have the battle legend title. The only two. They're both champions. They're both great trainers, and I get really heated when people downplay Green's capability to make Red appear stronger. You don't even need to do that. It's canon that Red wins, but Green is always one step behind. He is in no way weak. He is no way a sidekick. He can stand on even ground beside Red and Red himself respects and admires Green as his rival.

That? Is an issue of characterization but also ignoring canon material, which I also can't stand. You can say that I take this shit too seriously, but I honestly don't. I'm not gonna fight anyone about this shit. I just take my work seriously. I take my writing seriously because it's a stress reliever and I honestly think I'd be a mess without this creative outlet. And I want to improve my craft, so I take it seriously when it comes to what I do.

I want to put fics out there that accurately describe how I see these characters and I believe that's what I'm doing and it's refreshing to me to go back and read my own shit and be like "yes, thank you. that's how they act" and it's self-healing. I want these characters and every character to be treated respectfully and I'm going to surround myself with people who are of the same mind. I suggest you do too, anon. And my messages are always open so if you want to talk, feel free.

And that's the end of my explanation. Sorry it turned into an essay.

#ask #anon #nameless asks #thanks for the ask #sorry again that it's so fucking long #tw long post #long post warning #long post #text

[nightswithkookmin]

From Jimin: To the hyungs Jungkook is just my little brother...

I have no idea what that says. But if this is what he said, then definitely it leaves room for interpretation because it's an incomplete statement. You don't need to know the nuances of the language to understand that that statement is a sentence fragment that expresses an incomplete thought on the surface of it.

The omission of a second clause implies the opposite of what was said in the first. It's as simple as that.

The question anyone would ask upon hearing that is, so... he's more? Or, so he's not your little brother?

Makes sense...

But I've seen other translations such as, to the hyungs JK is like my little brother and in other instance, Jk is our little brother etc.

Makes you wonder if these interpretations took the context of the conversation into consideration or even why Jimin would make such a statement in the first place in their attempts to provide nuance.

"SUGA: Jungkook is good at everything

J-hope: Jungkook always surprises us. he changed his style recently!

Jimin: The hyungs all think he's like my actual little brother.

V: Jungkook is good at keeping his focus

JK: Everything about Jungkook is pretty!"

It's Jungkook from the members' lens.

When you interpret Jimin's bit within this context then it's more likely he is trying to highlight his dynamic with Jungkook more than anything, mainly to the effect that Jungkook is perhaps obedient, likeable, sweet, puppy etc.

Comparing Jungkook to his actual little brother is a compliment and perhaps has a much deeper meaning than mere friendships in my opinion. It shows just how close, more than co workers they are, how more than friends they are, how really close they are.

I don't know why shippers shy away from comparisons to family bond when in fact the bond of family is the greatest bond one could ever have.

BTS do have a habit of liking their bond to that of family- and they love to show that bond off.

It's interesting seeing Jikook through the lens of the members when most times the bond of those two are invalidated, watered down and downplayed.

Everyone would have us believe Jikook are sworn enemies from rival states. So however you wanna interpret what he said, there's value in taking things at face value. You don't need to do too too much with it to try to get its meaning across because then that would be analysis and analysis are always subjective and subject to our own confirmation biases.

To the hyungs, he's like my little brother, he is just my little brother, he's like our little brother- all have the same sentiment if taken from the perspective of that whatever JM said was intended as a compliment to Jungkook.

Perhaps Jungkook treats JM just like a younger brother would a Hyung- given the culture of respect between hyung/dongsaengs, given the way hyungs are expected to take care of their dongsaengs, given the emphasis BTS places on their bond, honorifics culture...

Perhaps he means, Jungkook treats me in such a way you'd think he were my actual younger brother- a theme which to me is in line with that whole Jimin treats me better than my own brother does or the numerous times he's compared him to his own brother or something along those lines.

They love eachother very much. Whether that is platonic or romantic is up for debate but I don't think after this anyone can invalidate their bond or gaslight is into thinking those two aren't close at all.

If the members see them as this close then it really puts an end to this whole Jungkook is uncomfortable with Jimin nonsense.

The busan bros, the busans, the sun and moon duo, the exceptionally close pair, the hyungs all think Jungkook is like my actual little brother etc

They all have a similar vibe to me.

I guess what I'm saying is, I don't care much about the nuances of the language in this context or in any context to be honest as the intention behind the text is pretty obvious💀

To me he is either providing the hyungs' perspective to affirm his dynamic with Jungkook or to affirm all that he's been saying of his dynamic with JK which is that JK is like a little brother to him just as he repeated in Festa.

To highlight and affirm their bond or to compliment Jungkook like the other's were in this instance.

This is the diagram some Karny drew to explain the nuances of the text.

And here I thought I was extra chilee.

I'm not mad at this. Love when a moment brings out the delulu in yall's eyes😭🤣🤣

I don't know why we are hung on Jimin's words out of all the statements that were made trying to dissect and over analyse it.

On one hand I feel some people are over sensationalizing while others are just plain invalidating Jikook's bonds- especially over something Jimin of all people would say.

He slick slick. I'll give him that. And he loves him some double entendres. But he's also usually the one to use dictum that makes it easier for his words and meaning to be translated- if they get translated. So it's fascinating to see the confusion his words are creating out in these streets. It really ain't that deep if you ask me chilee.

Alas, we are all adults and we all have different perspectives on these things. I'd say, find a source you trust based on their track record and stick with it. Do your own analysis or seek out others' perspectives on it. This is mine and how I take it- regardless of what any Karmy says😊

My delusions are mine and mine alone. No disrespect to Karmy. In fact, yall great people doing great holding it down for the gays🤭

Also disclaimer, I'm not a translator and any translation used here isn't mine.

In conclusion,

Hyuna screws her dongsaeng and Rain fucks his Noona. Dead that whole Jikook womb mates shit before I lay my paws on ya.

Please pls Jikook is louder than this🙄

Jeonlous counts. Keep your wokeness yo yourself please. You must be in the wrong industry if you think you have to live by a code of ethic in these ship streets.

There is no ethical nor moderate consumption of ships under shipping. There is nothing like ethical or moderate shipping for the holier than thou shippers in the back.

We all ghetto ma'am. You might as well go all out😴

My favorite line from their song though is when Hyuna sings, "I'm finna tell my father about us and pledge eternity to you. You have to be careful always though, there are lots of pretty girls out there. We have to tell the world, I can't share you with another girl."

Eventually they told the world🤭

Their careers suffered but they did it anyway.

Please no nondelusional, fake woke, moderate shipper person should tell it to me when I talk about Jungkook's frustration to come out with their relationship and come act like it's illogical hence implausible for him to want to come out etc😒

I like my delulu perspective better😌

Peace.

GOLDY

#Youtube

[rainbowsky]

am i the only one who thinks turtles are reading too much into the budweiser ad? the stories are literally different/separate and some pronouns are even ‘she’ but they only choose to see their ‘clues’. heck even the photo is something up to interpretation. i’m a turtle myself but i find this aspect of the fandom displeasing. the majority of us always tries to link gg & dd in everything we find. it’s so stupid and annoying.

I think it's easy to over-interpret fans' enthusiasm and 🤡 around things like this. It is true that on Twitter there's some pretty outrageous foolishness about things like this, but for the most part people are just musing about some of the connections that they see.

It's also not completely impossible that these types of connections were intentional. Keep in mind that Budweiser, and in particular this product that GG endorses, is heavily marketed to younger generations and regularly uses queer marketing.

GG is associated with a very popular queer CP, and it is entirely possible that those involved in creating this campaign encoded some of those elements to appeal to CP fans. BXG are known to have pretty deep pockets and to show up for GG and DD's brands. They are also known to look through advertising campaigns for this kind of thing.

This is a Valentine's campaign that is intentionally including queer love stories. It's not completely outside the realm of possibility that they have specifically decided to try to appeal to CP fans among other target audiences.

Even if there was not a formal intention to appeal to CP fans, it's also possible that somebody in the marketing department is a turtle, and when writing the love story of the 29 year old with a 6 year age difference relationship, they chose those numbers for sentimental reasons of their own.

It's also easy to misunderstand what people are getting excited about. For example, the recent ask I answered about the love stories Budweiser launched on WeChat, I thought people were trying to connect the stories together into one narrative when it seems that actually they were just excited about the fact that some of the stories were queer ones.

When I was still a fairly new turtle I used to scoff at things like this and make really scathing negative comments about it and act all holier-than-thou because I didn't get caught up in any of this. That ended up biting me in the ass when a lot of the things that I had made fun of later proved to be true.

So before you get all worked up about what other people are saying and doing online, I would recommend taking a few deep breaths and realize that:

Rather than sneering at people for behaving in ways that we do not like, it's always within our power to block and ignore the people whose approach we do not respect.

It's always possible that we are the ones who are wrong, and that people are on to something. Don't be so quick to dismiss it, because I have been proved wrong many times myself. And I love washing candy.

Clowning is just that; clowning. People are just having fun. Nothing that they are doing is harmful, so if it's not fun for you then I urge you to scroll by and live and let live.

Painting everyone with such a broad brush is never a good idea either. There are plenty of BXG who just quietly ignore the things that they don't like, there are plenty of BXG who don't go looking for candy in everything connected with GG and DD. Not all turtles are into this stuff. Not even close.

Anyway, I hope this doesn't come across as harsh or pushing back too hard on what you were saying, I just really think that it's important for us to err on the side of kindness and understanding. Let people have their fun. It's harmless. We are living in apocalyptic times right now, and people are just having a little bit of fun. This type of thing really has almost no potential to cause any harm.

#bxg perspectives #fandom reflections #love not war #fake candies #the mysteries of yizhan #ask

[jtreat]

Fuck Perfect

I try to avoid swearing in these things, but this is important.

Perfect isn’t just the enemy of done. Perfect is the enemy.

Nothing charming is perfect. We are charmed by little dogs that act big; by scruffy suitors that act gorgeous; by gorgeous suitors that act scruffy; by contradictions, and earnest efforts, and close calls.

To appease the pedants, nothing is perfect; yet still we imagine things perfect, and we claim to prefer things closer to perfection, and we strive for perfection. 

Perfection is alien because it’s impossible. We cannot interact with the perfect because it is so beyond us, we incredibly imperfect things. If you ever actually found the literal perfect mate, you’d never mate with them; you wouldn’t even talk to them, how could you?

Perfection is boring because it’s seamless. In a perfect world, nothing ever goes awry, everything always goes as planned, and there are no surprises. 

Superman is a very hard character to tell a story around, because stories are celebrations of imperfection. A good Superman story has to be about the ways in which Superman isn’t perfect, the imperfections of the people in his life, or the way his perfection makes him incompatible with humanity. See Dr. Manhattan from the Watchmen.

Why is the underdog a thing? Why do people root for the unfavored? Because we’re all the underdog, and seeing someone like us come out on top gives us hope that we will too. Because victory means nothing to those who don’t strive; it is the struggling, and the sweating, and the questioning, and the trying that creates meaning. 

In fact, it doesn’t really matter whether you win or lose. It’s not the destination but the journey. It is the caring, and the trying, and the failing, and the trying again.

Acting is reacting because plot without emotion is mathematical. (Math is, btw, one of the most perfect things to exist, and consider how many people despise it for that.) We want to see people hurt, healing, afraid, soothed, angry, reconciled: affected. Nothing perfect can be affected. Who cares about anything that can’t be affected?

What makes improv so great is that we are trying to do this impossible thing, and kind of succeeding--which is exciting and impressive--but also failing in so many ways, big and small, over and over. And then instead of apologizing, we celebrate that failure, using it to build something strange and wonderful that no one could have foreseen: Creating our success from our failure. The only thing more terrifying than the worst improvisation is the perfect improvisation.

If you’re like me, you tense up whenever people talk about purity around you. Purity is a toxic idea used to marginalize people, and then to divide marginalized groups, and control populations. “If you do X you’re impure. If you don’t do Y, you’re impure. If you do it Z way, you’re impure.” Certainly, there are kinder, holier, more moral choices than others, but the concept of purity is poison. No one’s perfect, nothing is totally pure, nothing is totally impure. We all have value because we exist, because of the love we can share, and because of the good we can do.

Think about this, if there is a God and if they are omnipotent, they could have created a perfect world. This world is far from perfect. It’s ugly. And it’s beautiful. It’s complicated. And it’s so so simple. It’s imperfect, and thank God for that.

#perfection #philosophy #comic books #improv #acting