#putting my degree to good use. on tumblr

[achromic-red-dreams-doze-angrily]

So I was cutting up my soda six pack's plastic when I realized this is a perfect example of individual action vs corporate/industrial action. "Cut up your soda's plastic to save the turtles! Don't use plastic bags at the grocery store to save the turtles!" IDK maybe companies shouldn't be throwing plastic trash in the ocean in the first place or something! Just a thought!

#like!!!!! #WHY ARE TURTLES ABLE TO EAT IT IN THE FIRST PLACE HM? TELL ME. #BECAUSE I'M SURE AS HELL NOT THROWING MY SHIT IN THE OCEAN #putting my degree to good use. on tumblr

[franklyimissparis]

analysing mclennon feels like being an academic and pouring over historical texts and connecting the dots between passages because you basically are doing exactly that

#if old white guys can come up with their own beatles theories and write books and be taken seriously in an academic space… #then so should we #i trust beatles tumblr users opinions infinitely more than the opinions of 87% of music journalists out there #ppl will complain about beatles rpf fans cherry-picking evidence as if music journalists aren’t 100x worse abt doing just that #anyway i just really love mclennon lore and finding sources to support our theories #feels like putting my half-finished history degree to good (questionable) use #also enjoy that mclennon genuinely just feels very different to basically any other rpf ship #the beatles #paul mccartney #john lennon #mclennon #beatles rpf

[tycarstairs]

ok i need to talk about alastair for a (long) moment bc i love him.

this got a lot longer than i expected it to btw so ig it’s just for the alastair stans bc it’s basically just a character study lmao

first of all, there’s obviously this:

“I wanted you to have a childhood, a thing I never had. I wanted you to be able to love and respect your father as I never could. Every time he made a mess, who do you think had to clean it up? Who told you Father was ill or sleeping when he was drunk? Who went out and fetched him when he passed out in a gin palace and smuggled him in through the back door? Who learned at ten years old to refill the brandy bottles with water each morning so no one would notice the levels had sunk—?”

like he put so much energy into making sure cordelia could grow up loving and adoring her father in a way he was never able to. from age ten he was hiding his father’s alcoholism, even before he started at the academy.

“Alastair never acknowledging any of it, laughing it off, turning her attention in some other direction, always, so she did not dwell. So she would not have to.”

and then he got to the academy and had bullying and beatings added on top of all that.

“They … let’s just say that by the end of the first week, I had been made to understand my place in the hierarchy, and I had the bruises to remind me should I ever forget.”

like… does this excuse bullying? no, it doesn’t, but it does explain it, especially after he had taken all that for a year:

“After about a year of being knocked around,” Alastair went on, “I realized I could either become one of the bullies, or suffer for the rest of my school days.”

and as he says himself no, he didn’t beat anyone, didn’t get his hands bloody, but yes, he was a bully to save himself from the beatings.

and again, this does not excuse the bullying because of course that’s still bad. i just feel like a lot of people really fucking underestimate how much growing up with an alcoholic parent can affect you. especially when 1) you actually know about it, and 2) you’re the one who has to deal with it from age ten, and 3) they verbally attack you when they’re drunk (as we also saw when elias talked to james)

and then we get to this:

“Then you lot arrived, a bunch of boys from famous families, too well brought up to understand at first what went on far from home. Expecting the world would embrace you. That you would be treated well. As I never had been.” Alastair pushed back a lock of hair with a shaking hand. “I suppose I hated you because you were happy. Because you had each other—friends you could like and admire—and I had nothing like that. You had parents who loved each other.”

and does this excuse the way he treated them? again, no. but once again, it does explain it. alastair had dealt with so damn much since he was a kid so of course he’s gonna feel jealousy. alastair isn’t white, he’s never been able to go anywhere and expected that the world would embrace him as he put it, so that’s yet another thing he was more than likely jealous about.

and he knows what he did was wrong. he knows there’s no excuse, he knows they would all be well within their right to hate him for the rest of their lives if they wanted to, and i feel like so many people forget that?? alastair never expected to be forgiven for any of this.

and then we get to his sexuality and charles.

if i did the math right, alastair would’ve been either 16 or freshly 17 when he started dating a 23-year-old charles and to quote cc:

“it was a bad and unhealthy relationship, and i think the age gap is part of that.”

anyway, there’s one quote i’ve had in my mind ever since chog, and it’s when alastair asks charles, “If this is not what you came for, then why are you here?”

this implies that charles is only ever there for one thing. like, alastair is in love with this man and he wants to show that but charles isn’t letting him.

not to mention that charles is also dismissing alastair’s wishes:

“And I thought that you would agree to marry too.”

“That I would marry?” Alastair sprang to his feet. “I have told you over and over, Charles, even if I did not have you, I would never marry some poor woman and deceive her as to my love and regard.”

alastair having to tell charles over and over again that he’s not marrying a woman and charles still assuming that he will like… sir 🤨 he said no 🤨

anyway. then there’s to how he felt about his sexuality:

“Father’s weakness is not your weakness.”

The fire in the grate had nearly burned down. Alastair’s eyes were luminous in the dark. “I have my own weaknesses, as you well know.”

and after this when cordelia tells him that love isn’t a weakness, he responds with “isn’t it?”

like this man is comparing his own sexuality to the way his father treated him. you cannot tell me he was always okay with being gay because he so clearly was not, especially not with charles trying to keep him hidden and trying to make him marry a woman.

and after elias dies:

“I can’t mourn,” he said in a choked voice. “I cannot mourn my own father. What does that say about me?”

his relationship with his father was so ruined to the point where he couldn’t mourn him because he wasn’t able to love him in the way cordelia was, likely because he mourned his father already when he was 10.

and there’s also some of cordelia’s observations in choi:

Some months ago Cordelia had learned the emotional cost of Alastair’s interventions, the invisible scars he worked so diligently to conceal.”

the emotional costs being this:

“She knew Alastair was not always like this—she knew he could be kind, sweet, vulnerable even. She knew her father had broken his son’s heart a dozen different ways, and Alastair was doing the best he could with the pieces.”

like. elias has been breaking alastair’s heart over and over basically in every possible way since he was at least 10 so he’s really just doing what he can to stitch himself together at this point, the exact reason he put up walls.

“But it didn’t help for Alastair to behave like this, to retreat behind a cold facade as cutting as glass.

The way James retreated behind the Mask.”

alastair is basically just one big defense mechanism.

we also have thomas’ observations about alastair:

“There was only one other person Thomas had known with eyes like that. Not golden eyes, but dark, and so sad—he had always been drawn to that dichotomy, he thought, of the cruelty of Alastair’s words, and the sadness with which he said them. Sorrowful eyes and a vicious tongue. Tell me, he had always wanted to say, what broke your heart, and let such bitterness spill out?”

the answer to his question: elias.

elias broke alastair’s heart and left him to respond to everything with defense mechanisms.

alastair is such a complex character and he’s also one of my absolute favorites because of that. his relationship with his father is so realistic, and him distancing himself from everyone else because of his father is also so realistic. i just love this character with my whole heart ok

this is so long but istg i could write a whole essay about this man and ykw? maybe i will.

#putting my english degree to good use once again #when people ask me in the future ‘so what do u do with your english degree?’ #i will simply say ‘i write long ass tumblr posts about my fav characters’ #alastair carstairs #cordelia carstairs #elias carstairs #thomas lightwood #thomastair #the last hours #tlh #shadowhunters #chain of gold #chain of iron #chain of thorns

[mandyyvibes]

no one touch me

#goodbye goodbye you were bigger than the whole sky #putting my digital marketing degree in progress to good use by posting on tumblr so that people will go read possums story #cuz that’s digital marketing for sure

[possiblytracker]

back to cycling through random underplayed games in my steam library to tide me over i GUESS

#i was doing this a little to procrastinate a few weeks ago. like to an almost dysfunctional degree. #like id (try to) write all day and get a little done and just be like 'fuck it time for a break' that was not actually a break id just stop #it was like full on videogame masochism type shit i would just throw myself at the most difficult frustrating challenges bc Anything #was better than writing and smth just made me really want to put Effort into smth stupid kdjJSDKJ #i was too scared to tell anyone i was really embarrassed dfjkSD;; #was a weird time but i broke out of it and wrote my diss and thats DONE so its FINE NOW #on that note i picked up don't starve recently after sitting unplayed in my library for over 2 years #and tbh i am Fascinated but im also so so so bad at it #which was good and fine when 'i need a Struggle or my brain will shrivel and combust' was the whole deal #but now im like. if i was Any less annoyingly stubborn abt videogames i mightve stopped already but we are still here #THEN AGAIN im trying to distract myself from totk just like i was previously distracting myself from work so #still pretty good conditions for metaphorically slamming up against a brick wall over and over kjgSDKJ #im in a weird headspace rn idk how i feel abt bursting back into conversation rn im so tired and headachey but somehow #wordvomiting into tumblr tags is still fine. sdkjhg #i didnt use tumblr for so long im just making up for it you all just have to deal with me for a bit

[neverendingford]

.

#I love my queer community support group because I get to put my tumblr degree to good use #I quoted that thing by Bell Hooks that's like 'the first act of violence patriarchy requires of men is against themselves' #anyway I'm back on my grateful to tumblr university mood because I've genuinely learned so much great stuff here #like. gd it I was such an ignorant punk when I first got on tumblr exclusively for the gay furries #and now I can lecture for an hour straight about feminism and bio determinism and the intersection of toxic masculinity and homophobia #I just. I've learned so fucking much here and I'm so grateful I've grown so much as a person #ngl I love talking about men because masculinity is so interesting and how it applies to feminism and queer community is so important #anyway go watch 'gender theory for dudes' by chill goblin if you haven't because he's very cool and it's a super good intro to it #I've sent it to like six people because it's such a good first jump for anyone genuinely curious about gender theory #tag talk

[miserye]

i just had subway and two things, one. i fucking love tuna and 2. that churro is a crime against humanity and they should be sued for selling something that bad

#chatterye #it was so gross jesus #but my tuna sandwich was banger i love tuna #actually here's my favorite way to make tuna salad #korean tuna <- aka tuna that's in oil and not water. does it matter? maybe maybe not but that;s what i prefer #pickles <- i actually despise pickles BUT it's good when it's in tuna salad and i really don't put in a lot because i still hate thme but i #is a nice contrast with the tuna. i also want to say that celery does not cut it. not the right flavor. also i hate celery in anything othe #than chicken salad #mayo <- obvious but yeah a lot of mayo; i use and prefer american mayo to kewpie but preferences #soy sauce!!!!!! <- secret (not really) ingredient to making a really good tuna salad. it's really good. you don't need to add a lot but it #makes it like 1309r829309 times better it's a necessity NOT optional #corn <- i add corn for texture and because i like corn! you do not need to add it to make this yummy but it is yummy! #the end! it's good w crackers or it is fantastic in triangle kimbap/onigiri! #i would eat tuna every day if i could but unfortunately they're apex predators and biomagnification is not a joke #this is such a random tangent to have in my tags #actually i saw an instagram comment that was like why the fuck do they use hashtags like that on tumblr #just add it to the fucking post that's not how hashtags work #and like first of all. we call 'em tags 'round here #second of all. it is tumblr culture #like subtweeting or whatever #my tags are always like one degree away from relating to the post ykwim #also i was born to yap leave me be #anyways subway's churros are so fucking gross

[zouisalmightie]

Sorry it was about your tags on Jack's post about season 7 and you spelled it wonna multiple times

oh wow, thanks for reading my tags. i had a long think and ive decided i’ll continue to spell wonna like that!! i hope your new year is as insufferable as you are babes.

#correcting someone’s spelling on TUMBLR is a choice. not a good choice but it’s the one you made #the website where i consistently put things such as ‘alfhskfhskfjdi’ in the tags you thought id care that we spell wonna differently? #a word that is technically not a true english contraction but was colloquially used by some and spelled #based off your region. wild wild wild im gonna keep spelling it wonna cuz guess what? ive got my degrees (one of them in english!) so i no #longer have to care about things like spelling or grammar 🤷🏾‍♀️ #also i cannot stress this enough this is TUMBLR #nigga in my inbox thinking they’re a rhodes scholar on tumblr I can’t #anonymous #answered

[enterprise-me-capn]

i added reblog and like buttons to my custom theme 😌

#putting my software degree to good use #do people even look at custom tumblrs anymore 😭

[that-student-that-has-homework]

Portgas D. Ace Headcanons 01

Excuse me Oda-sensei, but that 40 year old Ace is simply criminal. Thank you so much for blessing us with him

Anyway! Have some Husband!Ace headcanons For more Ace content please head to my Tumblr MasterList

Ace is, respectfully, a huge simp for his wife

To the extent that the Whitebeard crew straight up jokingly awarded him with a “Biggest Wife Simp” Award

They made it look official and had Whitebeard sign it and everything. There's even a stamp.

Ace has it framed and hung proudly on the wall next to your bachelor’s degree / college diploma / degree in general. 

I feel like despite his own personal insecurities, Ace still manages to be an amazing father

I imagine Ace originally setting out for like one or two kiddos at most (because y'know...what if he's not good enough) and ending up with 3 or 4 kids

Thing is, that’s both your faults.

Ace is tender and goofy with his kids, and he’s so friggin caring: to the extent that…well wouldn’t it be neat to see him with maybe another 2 or 3 kiddos of his own? 

(Your husband is hot okay?)

In his case, he swears you have a unique glow about you when you’re pregnant. But more than that when he sees you with your first born, he suddenly wants a big family with you.

I imagine his kids are an eldest son, then his princess, then the youngest boy who takes after his uncle Luffy.

His kids aren’t parentified. He keeps his issues far, far, away from them. Besides, he’s got you by his side.

He was dedicated to making sure they got as much playtime as possible.

He heard about learning through play, and he is DEDICATED to doing that as much as possible

Ace’s kids are spoiled with affection, but not spoiled brats.

While it’s true he’d give them the world, he’d rather let them go get it themselves. 

For example: when they asked for a tree house, he gave them the greenlight immediately.

But they had to build it themselves.

It was a super fun project lasting a little over two months with the whole family involved.

Oh and the Whitebeard crew helped too.

It took a while to get the design down initially, then the shopping logistics and whatnot (they used a lot of math here - see education via play)

Building the thing took maybe a weekend or two because the Whitebeard Crew and even the Strawhats came over to help

(It was mostly Franky and Usopp doing work, Sanji was cooking with Thatch)

Uncle Luffy was not allowed near the construction zone after an accident.

They almost destroyed the tree house with their partying once

Ace’s kids were not happy and no one was allowed in the backyard for the rest of the night

He makes sure they have proper manners and self-defense skills

You had to help out here, no lie.

He admitted he needed your help, especially after a dinner with Garp where Makino tagged along to see Ace again

He puts all of his kids into martial arts classes

especially his princess - he’s so proud of her when she beats up bullies

He’s not great at discipline though to be honest. He probably goes about it similarly to Garp. 

Ace will not tolerate any of his kids being nasty to their mother. No matter the phase.

You will have to hold him back if you want to let them get their frustration off their chest.

He’ll let them talk, but you’ll have to keep a hand on him somewhere, his arm, his hand, his knee, his shoulder, his back and rub soothing circles

Let’s just say, “talk shit, get hit,” is Ace’s attitude towards anyone being demeaning towards you (more so with adults, not his kids, but that's why they get a scolding)

"Ace my love" (he melts every time you call him that) "the kids’ll start thinking you love me more than them if you do that"

"My kids won’t disrespect their mother though!"

"They’re just venting darling, and when they say or do something that violates my boundaries, I'll be sure to reinforce it. Lead by example right?"

If they ever feel like pissing Ace off for fun they can just say something kinda not nice about you and he'll get mad and they'll flee from him giggling like the little gremlins they are

Ace is veeeeeeeeerry physically affectionate and he isn’t shy about it at all.

At gatherings with the Whitebeard family, he will gladly seat you in his lap, he will happily hug you as you are seated.

His arm is on your waist most of the time.

They tease him to make him tone it down, he does not.

He, in fact, dials it up. Turns up the heat lol.

You have kids? Not in front of them? What do you mean, not in front of the kids? It’s important they know just how much he loves their mama!

So he will continue to be playful with his hugs and kisses and other displays of affection.

It’s nothing too over the top. Just hugs and quick pecks wherever.

Your entire head is fair game for his smooches, your arms (he loves kissing your pulse and then making eye contact, sneaky guy that he is), your shoulders.

Maybe lifting you and spinning you around. Cuddles. Little bites.

He will play-wrestle his kids to “fight” them over getting to cuddle you, and then he’ll just put all his weight on all of you in a group cuddle

Just to let you know, your kids also receive all the warmth and love of his affections.

When his sons are still tiny and adorable, he smooches them all over. The kisses grow less frequent as they grow older, but the hugs do not stop.

Oh no, hugs galore.

Ace still pecks his little princess on her forehead though

When they’re all under ten he’ll wrap them in a hug (after he chased them down and caught them so they’re laughing and screaming) and start smooching their cheeks while they laugh and try to get out of his grasp

Also yes she’s his princess, but that girl has no problem throwing a fully grown man twice her size around, he made sure of it.

I reiterate: Ace is not remotely shy about displays of affection

Like his eldest could have a friend over, and Ace would still launch a full scale hug attack using the rest of his troops (daughter/youngest)

It's complete with screeching, screaming, and a lot of laughter

His kids used to get teased for it, but it didn’t take more than a few conversations for them to instead jeer at the kids that teased them.

"You’re all jealous your parents don’t love you like ours do"

"How sad, your parents don't hug and kiss you"

Their dad, grandpa, uncle - uncles really, are all gremlins - it's in their DNA

The kids are really physically affectionate with each other as a result

Deadass they’ll be kicking the shit out of each other one second and the next they’ll be all cuddled and huddled up playing Mario Kart or something

Ace is his kids’ hero.

His sons aspire to have his level of fitness.

His daughter, when she’s older, uses him as a standard for dating

You're relieved

Ace is touched and a touch nervous, because he is aware of his shortcomings, though he works hard to keep improving

Of course when you look at him, a twinkle in your eyes, and tell him, “I’m so proud of her, I’m so proud of you!” He feels better

When you continue: “if she can find a guy like you, who cherishes her as much as you cherish me, I’d be so happy.”

Ace loves you so much he swears

#portgas d ace x reader #portgas ace x reader #portgas ace x you #one piece x reader #one piece x you #portgas d ace x you #portgas d ace fluff #portgas d ace #portgas d ace fanfic #one piece fanfiction #one piece #ace one piece

[achromic-red-dreams-doze-angrily]

Followed for the "putting my degree to good use" posts - friend is writing a(n amazing) novel that features energy scarcity as a main plot point and I'm very involved in the process and WE'RE MAKING IT SCIENTIFICALLY ACCURATE BOYS! Ur doing the lords work tysm

YES I LOVE IT WHEN YOU GUYS LIKE MY ENERGY STUFF!!!!! I'm glad you find my info useful, hit me up if you have any questions!

#red qanda #putting my degree to good use. on tumblr #for those who don't know i've got a master's in international energy policy with a focus on environment and sustainability #and i work at a public institution as an energy policy analyst #hence me talking about random energy policies sometimes #uhhhhhhhhh fun fact of the day: nebraska is the only US state to have all of its electric utilities be 100% public! #no private companies controlling electricity here! #makes it a bitch to track though

[art]

Creator Spotlight: @jdebbiel

Deb JJ Lee is a non-binary Korean artist based in Brooklyn, NY. They have appeared in the New Yorker, New York Times, NPR, Google, Radiolab, and more. Their award-winning graphic memoir, IN LIMBO, about mental illness and difficult relationships with trauma, released in March 2023 from First Second.

Below is our interview with Deb!

Have you ever had an art block? If so, how did you overcome it?

That implies I am over my art block, but I’m still in it! I think about Kiki’s Delivery Service a lot and how she had to stop doing a thing, and that you can’t really force it, and you have to let it come back to you. It’s a pretty humbling moment, realizing there is more to life than just drawing. I’ve been trying to consume other content like reading or watching movies—anything that is not drawing-related—and to trust that it will come back to me. I think not being afraid to do the small pieces before committing to the big pieces is helpful. Because big pieces are what I am known for, I dig myself into a deeper hole, thinking that each piece has to be bigger than the last one. So yeah! Relaxing and doing the small things before overcommitting to a big piece is the best way to go about it for me.

Which 3 famous artists (dead or alive) would you invite to your dinner party?

I feel like these are all artists that I have second-degree connections with! Jillian Tamaki, Victo Ngai, and Tillie Walden would be my picks!

What are your file name conventions?

…What file name conventions? I mean, I don’t have specific file name conventions, but I actually have a public Google Drive archive! But I usually put “djjl_whatever-the-title-is_final,” and I would always know it’s the final and legit version.

What is a recent creative project that you are proud of?

I did an illustration for the whiskey brand Johnnie Walker. It’s so wild because I only had four days to finish it, and it usually takes me a week and a half if I rush. And honestly, it’s probably one of my best pieces from this year, which is funny. It was for the Mid-Autumn festival, so I made it as Korean as possible.

How has technology changed the way you approach your work?

I only use my iPad to draw everything now, and if I want to pretend that I have a steady workstation, I’ll use my Cintiq. I still am not as comfortable on the Cintiq as I am on Procreate, but it’s still pretty solid and nice. That’s the good part about technology. The bad part about technology is how AI art has been messing things up for me. I’m currently in a lawsuit about AI art as a class rep. Some of my stuff got turned into AI art late last year, so I have to give a deposition at some point. 

What is a convention experience that has stuck with you?

Honestly, they’re all good! I feel like Lightbox Expo has been really nice because it’s truly been a convention for artists. I feel like that’s where most of my audience is, and they’re all around because their purpose is to be better at art. That’s where a lot of original artists do well because they’re getting art they’re inspired by, not so much fanart. I like the Lightbox Expo because it encompasses the pure love of art very well. 

Top tips on setting up an Artist Alley booth?

Use a Y axis, not just your X axis! Take advantage of it! Branding is also something to think about. It is definitely something I’m getting better at. Having an assistant is also very important. I’ve also heard that 8.5x11 to 12x18 inches is usually a good size for prints, but I also provide postcard-sized prints because sometimes people don’t want to commit to a larger size. 

Who on Tumblr inspires you and why?

You know this is so funny. I’ve been following @alicexz for over a decade on Tumblr and other platforms. I’ve followed her work since high school, and we’ve only recently become peers. I found her, and we met for the first time in real life, and she recognized me. And then I found all my drawings from when I was in my Alice phase, back in high school, and I was like, “Yo, this is when I was trying to be you so badly!” and she was cracking up and was like “Wow, this is so good!” It was such a sweet moment. I wanted to take a picture of her holding my drawing up. It’s really nice because now we’re peers.

Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing, Deb! Be sure to check out their Tumblr blog over at @jdebbiel.

#creator spotlight #artists on tumblr #deb jj lee #jdebbiel

[viv-hollande]

Ok, so this is a post that I should have made sooner. I've been somewhat out of the loop with regards to current events and the state of discourse on this website courtesy of a pretty serious depressive episode from which I am only just now recovering. As I have emerged from this state I have been pushed towards a conclusion about this website and the state of discussion around the ongoing Israel-Gaza War that I had thus far avoided due in part to my barely possessing the energy to keep myself alive and due in part to my denial that the conclusion could be true. But that denial can no longer hold.

It has become openly apparent that the pro-Palestinian camp on this website has become popularly infused with a degree of blatant, aggressive antisemitism that I, in my naivety thought impossible in the days just after October 7. I am trying to avoid turning this into a mea culpa because that would be unproductive and feel self-serving, but I do feel an obligation to admit that I disregarded prescient warnings from Jewish users whose warnings I dismissed as over-blowing a problem that I felt was real, but more limited in scope than they made out.

I'm neither an idiot nor am I ignorant. I am well aware of the long history of antisemitism in leftist politics and in the Palestinian Liberation movement. Back at the beginning of this crisis I was prepared to see the occasional instance of antisemites using the inevitable, overwhelming Israeli retaliation as an excuse to air their hateful politics. I was prepared to see both the well-meaning but ignorant and the malicious alike sharing tweets from antisemitic pro-Palestine accounts, spreading and normalizing low-grade, subtle antisemitism. Make no mistake, this should have been condemned. Antisemitism, like all bigotries, has no 'safe' level. There is no background level of antisemitism that society should just accept as normal. But I was more focused on the inevitable cacophony of suffering that Israel would almost certainly begin meting out, and so I failed to act.

The fatal blow to my denial was the increasing prevalence of the use of quotation marks around the word "Israel" and "Israeli". The first few times I saw this, I didn't really understand what it meant. Still laboring under the belief that antisemitism was a manageable problem on the left, I was certain that most of the users on this site, well-intentioned, goodhearted, critically thinking people that they were, would have recognized and called out even disguised antisemitism before it took over a good 20-40% of all posts about the conflict. I was a damn naive fool. For those, like past me, who have not cottoned on to the meaning of the quotation marks, they have become a way to express the denial of the legitimacy or even existence of, individually or all together, the State of Israel, the Israeli people, or the right of either Jews or Israelis to identify as Israelis.

CONGRATULATIONS TUMBLR! You have successfully revived from depths of 4chan neo-Nazi boards the (((fucking echoes))).

Are you serious? Are you fuckers for real? This, right here, encapsulates the pitch-black absurdity of this whole situation and why I remained in denial for so long. Never, in a million years, would I imagine that the proudly pro-Social Justice, anti-fascist, 100% Certified SAFE-SPACE(tm) website would end up using the same language as the goddamn Nazis on 4chan. I thought this website was smarter than that. But noooo, it turns out that I was a damn naive fool.

This was where the post was originally going to end. I say my piece, hope to change a few minds, and commit myself to actually fighting antisemitism instead of sitting back and dismissing the problem. But I figure, while I'm here and while I still have the driving forces of anger and guilt pushing me along, I may as well put pen to paper and spew forth my other thoughts on the ongoing crisis. I am thus compiling a much longer post detailing my thoughts on some aspects of the current situation. [EDITED ~1:25 AM GMT, 5 Dec 2023: add link to finished post] That post will definitely be long, probably be angry, possibly wrong on some aspect of fact, and will absolutely be pretentious, preachy, self-righteous and hubristic to a positively Hellenistic degree. Brief, non-comprehensive summary so you can decide whether or not get mad at me ahead of time;

Israel does apartheid, or near enough for government work.

Israel is definitely conducting a campaign of forced displacement, possibly amounting to ethnic cleansing, but I remain unconvinced of the claim of genocide.

Hamas may or may not be a anti-colonialist revolutionary group, but it definitely is an antisemitic terrorist organization with genocidal aspirations and actively supporting them is morally indefensible. Yes, this includes the Al-Qassam Brigades.

Anti-colonial and other revolutionary movements do in fact have fundamental moral obligations and suffering oppression does not give you carte blanche to do terrorism, even when an oppressor attempts to render peaceful opposition impossible. There is a middle ground between peaceful marching and 850+ dead civilians; aim for that.

The left is just as prone to unhinged conspiracism as the right.

Verify your sources, for fuck's sake.

Use nuance. It won't kill you.

There's more, but it's a little difficult to summarize an unfinished post. If you want to argue with any of these points, go ahead, just keep in mind that a longer, more comprehensive post is in the works that might have the answer to your argument/complaint/insult/intellectual disagreement. If that post isn't up by midnight GMT on Friday, assume I forgot about it and argue away. In conclusion, antisemitism is bad, apartheid is also bad, Tumblr is a hellsite (derogatory), "From the river to the sea" is, in fact, antisemitic, seriously, stop saying it, take Jews seriously when they warn you about antisemitism instead of writing them off like a damn naive fool, and last but not least, free Palestine.

#antisemitism #israel gaza war #israel #palestine #fuck hamas #politics #leftism #free palestine #israel palestine conflict #misinformation #here goes nothing #kicking the hornet's nest

[cannivalisms]

hi everyone, long time no see! coming back to tumblr with a pitch that one friend rated 12/10, another 15/10, and no one less than a 10 (that i will be mentioning for the purposes of this post).

so basically me and my girlfriend are in our final year as university undergrads, and are fighting for our lives for stuff to put on our cvs / master applications that falls in line with our degree programs and interests (english literature for both). as much as i'd like it to, 'spending well over 80 hours mapping out dnd sessions' for some reason doesn't tend to appeal to employers or admissions offices.

this is where VULTURE CULTURE comes in.

we've laid out the principal tenets on the 'about' page, but a tldr for whoever is interested:

At Vulture Culture, we aim to take the works of people they may not necessarily feel the best about, works that may not otherwise see the light of day, and give them a ‘home.’ We believe that there’s no such thing as a story not worth telling. By not charging submission fees (be so for real) and keeping our guidelines few, we also hope to erode some of the traditional barriers in publishing, and create a more accessible space for all.

in other words, GIVE US YOUR LEFTOVERS.

we are a literary magazine that will accept anything that exists in the mid range of what you love and hate. have you ever wanted to be published but where do you even start? here. are you unsure what to do with that old work that's been sitting in your drafts forever (it's good enough to post, but not good enough to be picked up by anyone of significance)? hi.

our first issue theme is NEW BODIES, and we are just as curious as you to find out what that means. deadline is march 1st, 2024.

come help us be employable or whatever. also in return you get to clear up some draft space and see your name in print. together, love wins 🏆

#writeblr #original writing #literary magazine #writers on tumblr #vulture culture #notnow #might tag some people who i think could be interested but also that feels v tacky. so ill just throw it into the wild for now #and see who bites 🐟 #also we do have people irl who we can rope into this so its a very low pressure deal here. low stakes if it flops #just thought to check anyway!

[neverendingford]

.

#tag talk #tumblr university #I put my tumblr degree to good use again today. a kid at work talks a lot about exercise and said an offhand comment about fat people #the usual “why do fat people not control themselves better and eat less?” opinion. which like. he's a cool guy. curious and active and kind #so I did my best to not jump on it sjw-style and kind of go at it slowly but still explain that like. you can't just change your default #culturally we recognize that skinny people have genetics that predispose themselves to being thin. #but then when we (general culture) talk about fat people it's “why don't you exercise more and eat less?” “why don't you control yourself?” #there's a hypocritical shift in how people talk about it. #I was like bro.. I can sit around and do nothing all day and eat my normal amount and not gain weight. my whole family can. #so there's clearly something different between people who weigh 250lb and people who weigh 120lb. #anyway. he kinda nodded and mused over it and asked a few questions and like. idk. this is something I learned on tumblr so it was cool #I like sharing information I learned here. it changed how I view people and I'm honored to be able to make that change in other people #I've learnt to be kinder here and spreading it outside of the isolated tumblr bubble is very fulfilling. passing it forward yaknow? #anyway. I'm still mad about my speech impediment because I deadass still wish I could be a teacher in some way #like. I love teaching people things. evolving someone's ability to interact with information and ideas. #giving someone a set of tools and sitting back to see what they do with them. how they solve a problem. I love it. #and I just. ugh. I love the little moments when I get to teach something I've learned to someone else #OH OH OH! I saw a really good parent today! she brought her daughter up to the self checkout registers and I was like “can I help you?” #but the mom was like “no. I want her to learn how to be a big girl” and so they walked up to the register and the kid scanned her stuff and #and then navigated to the “pay now” button and paused and her mom was like “remember to take your time and read the screen” and the kid fou #found the “cash” button and then fed the five dollar bill in and got her receipt and change and. . that moment made me smile so fucking big #like.... the mom being like “take your time” and just.. being there to show her kid how to do an important life task. I wanted to cry. #I just. idk. stuff like that is beautiful. I love working with people so fucking much. #like. idk. I detach really easily so I don't always care about people and human suffering or all that stuff. but other times? #other times I'm both feet flat on the ground rooted into the heart of everything that makes us beautiful social creatures full of love #and it's so beautiful and I feel so fucking lucky to be allowed to watch that moment. #I just. all I can do is smile and hope that my eyes reflect the magic I just saw #also a hoard of small goth middle schoolers came through garden each with their own succulent. they were lead by an older teen. #it was just. idk. cool. funny. this little posse of piercings and bleached hair and nightmare before christmas merch and intense enby vibes #I always hope I represent a future to kids like that. big obvious scars. heavy queer vibes. and a life I'm obviously living.

[sinners-rejoice]

Short Alastor x reader oneshot I cooked up way too fast.

In which reader tends to Alastors wounds after his fight with Adam.

Gn reader, Sfw

Woah I’m on tumblr, wooooaaaah.

Hi hello, this is my first time writing on here so be nice

The air was thick, uncomfortable.

The last time anyone spoke was you throwing a fit over Alastors current predicament. Followed by a lot of bickering and ending with him begrudgingly allowing you to “assist” him.

You were sitting on a stool you had dragged over to the couch he angrily plopped himself in, leaned toward him with a damp cloth in hand and a few bandages on your lap.

You’ve been near him before, plenty of times actually. For someone who hates being touched he sure likes to put his hands on you at every damn opportunity he gets. From adjusting your clothes to dragging you around by the wrist. He’s danced with you, linked elbows during evening walks, he’s even done up your hair on occasion.

But all of that was casual.

This was strangely intimate.

You gently wiped the dried blood from his chest, very keen on directing your attention to his wound rather than the fact that he was breathing down your fuckin neck. Or the fact that he was even letting you do this at all.

You noticed he was acting off when he returned to the hotel, he seemed overconfident, like he was trying to show off how absolutely wonderful he was doing. Certainly not hiding the fact that he got his ass handed to him by Adam like an hour ago. He kept side eyeing you too, of course he knew you were onto him, it’s like he was threatening you with his eyes.

Well jokes on him because you’re actually a huge fucking idiot.

You followed around him for hours, silently pestering him. Waiting for a moment to be alone together so you could properly interrogate him. You’d be scared for your life with the way he was glaring at you, if not for the fact that you were much more worried about his well being.

You did eventually manage to get him alone, where you continued to pester him. Which started a mini argument between you two, you even pulled a “I’ll tell everyone your a baby bitch who’s actively bleeding out” which ended in him admitting defeat. Telling you he’d “let you do whatever necessary to make yourself feel better”, as long as you kept this little “scratch” a secret.

So here you two are, silently hiding away in a far off corner of the hotel. Sitting uncomfortably close to each other.

He hissed quietly as you applied disinfectant, muttering something about how he could do this himself, to which you began scolding him like a child for being too prideful for his own good.

“Watch it”

“Is that supposed to be a threat?”

He squints at you, and you blow a raspberry in his face.

Your stupid banter goes on like this for awhile, it’s pretty clear that his frustration isn’t actually directed at you, it’s more about his oh so wounded ego. Eventually things fade back into silence, any previous tension between the two of you is forgotten.

You apply a gauze and reach for the bandages in your lap. You have to move closer to him to do this, quietly urging him to lift his arms so you can get the fabric around him. He stiffens, then relaxes back into the sofa. Same stupid (strained) grin on his face as he stares off somewhere behind you. You notice that he’s a little flush, but chalk it up to general discomfort and begin working again.

You’re not sure what to call your relationship with him. You’d like to think he’s some sort of estranged friend to a degree, but he’s so damn cryptic with everything he says that you can’t tell if he has any semblance of care for you, or if he thinks your a useful pawn in some maniacal scheme he’s keeping from everyone.

Honestly you couldn’t care less either way, you’ve grown pretty fond of him over the past year he’s been staying at the Hazbin Hotel. He’s entertaining and always has something ridiculous to say. Plus he makes good food. Even if he gets some of the ingredients through.. questionable means.

You also think he’s hot. Because you’re an idiot.

At some point you lost track of time, your mind focusing more on his body language. You start to notice his quickened breath, on how warm the air around him is. The soft scratching of one of his claws tapping on the cushion under him. Mesh fabric glides seamlessly between your fingers as you work. You don’t notice that you’ve leaned even closer to him until your forehead bumps into his shoulder. You jolt backwards and shoot him an apologetic glance. He folds his ears down, giving you a hard look.

You take a slow breathe, and continue.

Out of your vision, he’s been slowly losing his typical composure. Eyes darting around the room as his ears twitch and react to every little sound in the room. He’s having a hard time keeping his signature smile as well.

He doesn’t like to admit it, but he’s grown a little attached to you.

Right from the start of his stay at the hotel, you’ve been the easiest to get along with. You seemed wary but never fully suspicious or afraid of him, and you always laughed at his jokes, even the terrible puns he threw out to annoy the others. Oh how he loved a good audience.

You’d ask him to tell you stories, to tell you what it was like in “the good old days” that he talked about so much. You’d ask him to teach you family recipes he knew, you even started keeping your phone locked away in your room if you knew he’d be around.

He found all of this endearing, even cute. But he never thought anything of it until he started expecting you in his daily routine.

He’d started scouting you out immediately upon entering rooms. Leaving little notes of recipes in the kitchen for you. He started wondering how your day was going when you weren’t around. Wondering when you were free, how you liked your coffee, if you liked jazz, if you-

Yeah the realization hit this man like a train.

Ohhhhh at first he denied denied denied

“Pretending to be their friend is beneficial because it makes me seem more trustworthy”

“I’m just leaving this note so they don’t come bothering me”

“I’m only thinking about them because I’m bored trapped in this tacky hotel”

Yeah good luck with that buddy.

Eventually though, he kind of accepted it. Emphasis on kind of.

He kept things friendly and distant. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to act on those petty emotions or not. He had bigger plans, he doesn’t have time for something so foolishly irrelevant as “love”

And yet here he is.

Vulnerable, speechless, injured and Embarrassed.

At some point you had finished patching him up, lightly patting around the bandage to check your work.

He felt.. light. Almost dizzy. Something about your hands being on him made him weak.

You pulled back to a comfortable distance and asked if the bandage was comfy, he gave you a nod and you affirmatively nodded back with a little “right. good”

You suddenly felt embarrassed again so you quickly went about tidying up. Collecting bloody tissues and tossing them into a bin while Alastor walked to a corner and began redressing. Once again the room fell into the awkward sort of silent and you were starting to feel jittery. Bouncing around the room reorganizing anything you moved during your time in here. Once you’re content you move to leave, pausing at the door to glance back at your friend.

Who’s standing ominously in the corner. Facing the wall.

Alright then.

“Uhh.. hey Alastor, I’m gonna head back now”

…

“Alas—

You’re cut off by a loud scratch.

The lights flicker out as ear splitting static fills the room, and you’re starting to wonder if you pushed him a little too far today.

Before you can finish that thought, he takes a impossibly large stride toward you (did he just extend his fucking leg????) effectively pinning you against the door in a matter of seconds. You completely freeze and stare in shock as he wraps a clawed hand tightly around your throat.

“Not a word of this to anyone”

“Eheh, yeah! Didn’t plan on it!”

Annnnd everything returns to normal.

Alastor bears a chipper smile, patting you on the head while saying something way too casual for what just happened. And with that he’s.. out the door.

Yeah. Estranged friend..

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel x reader #alastor x reader #alastor hazbin hotel