#that influx of new followers and i can't keep up with you all ;___; i can't even keep up with mutuals </3

[septembersghost]

every day i'm so sorry for this blog and all its contents and my effusive excitement and/or excessive crying over too many things

#needed this kitten saved #though the kitten itself is a lie i never sleep #jess.mess #that influx of new followers and i can't keep up with you all ;___; i can't even keep up with mutuals </3 #but i appreciate you all dearly and apologize 🥺💕

[porcelana-r0ta]

let the mourners come

Title: let the mourners come

Ao3 Link: Only available to Ao3 users

Word Count: 3045

Summary:

It started, as most things do with Danny Fenton, as a joke.

It ended, as most things do with Jazz Fenton, with things better than they were before.

xxXxx

When Danny finally gets a Twitter, it’s during Elon Musk’s shit show takeover. He’s able to secure a good Twitter handle thanks to people leaving en masse and fleeing to Tumblr. He knows about things that happen outside of Amity Park (he is terminally online rather than chronically, after all), but he still doesn’t think anything of using @TheJoker as his handle, even knowing about Gotham City’s clown troubles. It’s just going to be a shitpost account, anyway, one that dances in the chaos of Elon’s electronic graveyard. Nothing will come about him using @TheJoker when he’s merely posting things like, “Just grew a new row of teeth!!! very pointy but can’t go to the dentist anymore bc they might turn me in to the giw.”

So Danny honestly never foresaw The Actual Real Joker breaking out of Arkham Asylum all the way in Gotham City, New Jersey, and deciding to get a Twitter account to terrorize people online as well as offline. And he definitely never foresaw The Joker @’ing him on Twitter, demanding that Danny change his Twitter handle. But, well. Here he was. 

[Image Description: A screenshot of a Twitter reply chain, starting with the real Joker @'ing Danny's Twitter account, which uses TheJoker as his Twitter handle. The Joker, who has a verified account, demands that Danny "change your handle", and Danny replies with a simple "no" followed by red heart emoji. The Joker Tweets, "Kid you don't know who you're fucking with," to which Danny replies, "Ye I do ur some dude w/ poor fashion sense and lame jokes. Maybe try badjokesbyjeff bc originality is ugly on u" followed by a shrugging emoticon. The Joker responds, "Check your DMs." Danny then responds, "Perf [happy emoji surrounded by hearts] I've sent you a time and place. Can't wait to beat the shit out of another disgrace of a clown." Someone with the username "Gregg rulz ok" responds to Danny's last Tweet, "Bro is absolutely RATIOING the joker but the clown keeps responding [three skull emojis] embarrassing frfr too bad he's gonna die for realsies".

End ID]

Danny is quick to respond and then makes even quicker work of roasting The Joker. This soon results in The Joker DMing him his IP Address and a creative threat. Still, Danny isn’t about to cow to a clown with no respect for the art of clowning. He replies to the DM: 

Cool, meet me at the Nasty Burger parking lot in Amity Park IL on tuesday at 2am

The response from The Joker is quick:

Fourteen year olds are too confident these days

Danny rolls his eyes and ignores the influx of notifications from Twitter, and instead makes another Tweet.

Imagine beefing with someone over a Twitter handle lol acc so embarrassing for him

He blackens his screen and stretches in bed, letting his spine pop more than what is humanly possible. He runs his tongue over that second row of teeth, his lips curling into a grin. 

xxXxx

Gothamite Twitter is blowing up over The Joker’s social media beef with a faceless shitposting account. Jason, upon finding out about it, has a series of reactions: first, he looks up the shitposter and follows them. Then, he finds the actual chain between the poster and The Joker, and his vision goes vibrant green when he sees that The Joker’s profile picture is of the second Robin, beaten and swollen in an abandoned building in Ethiopia. 

When his vision clears and he can breathe without wanting to kill, he likes the shitposter’s replies, and he calls the Replacement to see if the other Bats know already.

“We know,” Tim says in lieu of a hello when the ringing cuts out. “We’re working on it.”

“What, you think anything’s gonna come of it?” But even as Jason asks, he already knows the answer. The Joker is unhinged and once he’s threatened something, he’ll follow up unless he comes up with a “funnier” option. 

Tim’s breath hitches, and he says, “I’ve hacked their DMs. Joker knows the kid’s IP address and sent it to him. He knows everything from that address alone.”

He pauses in the middle of suiting up, “Kid?”

He hears Tim swallow, “Yes, kid. He’s fifteen. And he gave The Joker a specific time and place to meet up to fight. In his own hometown.”

“Are— are you fucking kidding me?” 

“No. B is already calling Nightwing. We’re taking the Batwing to Illinois.”

“Jesus fuck. I’ll be there in twenty.”

“Hood, I—”

“Shut up, I’m already in my gear.” He hangs up without waiting for a response. 

He refreshes the Twitter feed and barks a laugh at the newest Tweet:

Jason Todd votes, and the Red Hood leaves his safe house. 

xxXxx

A commercial flight to Illinois takes around two and a half hours. In the Batwing, they get there in an hour, and don’t even have to worry about the drive from Chicago to a small speck of a town like Amity Park. They spend the quick flight learning everything they can about Daniel James Fenton, the owner of the Twitter account, and they can all sense the growing tension from (and between) Bruce and Jason.

But, well. Jason doesn’t care. Let them be uncomfortable. It doesn’t compare to being ripped back into life and finding out his dad didn’t even get justice for his death. 

When they reach town, it doesn’t take long to find the Fentons’ home. This is in part because Amity Park is a very navigable town, and because of the giant neon sign proclaiming FentonWorks on the side of the building. 

“Is that a blimp?” Dick asks. “Why don’t we have a blimp?” 

“Where would we keep it?” the Demon Brat counters practically. “Goliath takes up all of the Cave’s extra space.” 

Jason rolls his eyes and knows veins would be popping out of Bruce’s forehead if it weren’t for the cowl. 

“Let’s go,” Bruce says instead, and they all make their way to the house. 

Nightwing, predictably, goes for the front door approach. Jason rolls his eyes as he takes one of the second-story windows and finds his way downstairs.

He gets down at the same time that a redheaded girl answers the door and nearly slams it in Dick’s face. Jason has to suppress snickers at the sight. 

“Wait, wait, wait, are you Jazz Fenton? We need to talk to your brother!” 

“...We?” she asks, then tenses and turns around to see the rest of the Bats in the hall behind her. Dick takes the opportunity to step in completely, closing the door behind him. “Wha— what’s going on?”

“Where are your parents, Jazz?” Bruce makes every question sound like a demand. Jason rolls his eyes from behind his mask—way to put the teenager at ease, B.

“Why do you need to know?” Her voice has a defensive edge to it. “What do you want with Danny?” 

“Hey, it’s okay,” Nightwing comforts. “He didn’t do anything too bad, just said some dumb things online. It’s not his fault.” 

This relaxes her, and her shoulders begin un-hunching. “Oh, s-so what’d he do?”

“He foolishly challenged The Joker to a battle in a ‘Nasty Burger’ parking lot tonight.” 

“You could’ve had some more tact, Robin,” Nightwing scolds. But the Demon Spawn just crosses his arms. 

“He did what?” Jazz shrieks. “Like, The Joker from Gotham? That Joker?”

“Are there others?” Red Hood comments dryly. 

Her face goes through several different emotions—disbelief, rage, fear, and then rage again, “DANIEL JAMES FENTON! GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!” 

There’s a thumping noise, and then frantic footsteps down the stairs. 

“Wha? Who died?” asks the figure of a tiny fifteen-year-old, smaller than even Jason had been when he was alone with The Joker. He’s tiny and lanky. Zero muscle definition. Eye bags to rival the Replacement’s. Something ripples in the Pit, deep and distinct, but he can’t name what causes it.

Oh, this kid is so dead. 

“Danny,” says Jazz calmly while Danny blinks uncomprehendingly at the heroes in their hallway. She is solemn when she says, “I’m afraid I’m going to have to kill you now.” 

“What did I do?” 

She stares at him, “Why have you scheduled a fight with The Joker?” 

“Oh, that.” He rubs the back of his neck, “Is he taking that seriously?”

“Of course he is, Danny! It’s The Joker! That’s what he does! He can’t differentiate between a joke and reality! He would tear off his own face for the bit!” 

“Oof,” is all Danny can muster. He digs his phone out and starts typing before Jazz yanks it out his hand. 

“You’re fucking TWEETING about this?” Jazz asks incredulously, and Hood’s hackles rise. She even reads the Tweet aloud, “‘Just found out @TheJ0ker is being fr about fighting me. Sad but i can take a clown.’”

“I was gonna add ‘i’ve done it b4,’ but like the letter and the number four. But yeah.” 

“You’re grounded forever.” Danny opens his mouth to protest, but the look Jazz cuts at him is so scathing that he shuts his mouth. Hood is reluctantly impressed—she had what could be cultivated into a fantastic Batglare. She pockets the phone, “You’re never getting this phone back. Taunting The Joker to Amity? Have you any brain cells? What if he brings Joker gas with him, huh? Or any of his goons? What if he starts hurting other people? Have you thought any of this through?” 

Danny’s face goes from tired to chastised, his lips drawing into a frown, especially at the mention of other people. 

“I’m sorry,” he says. “I didn’t think that he’d take it so seriously.”

“He sent you your IP Address.”

“I thought that was just a random string of numbers?”

“Oh my god,” Jazz despairs. “Oh my god. Grounded forever. See, I know you're lying to me. I know you're lying because Tucker, the nerdiest tech nerd to have ever been born, is your best friend.”

He rubs the back of his neck, “I tune him out?”

“You’re still lying to me?” Jazz scoffs and turns to Batman, “Do whatever you want with him. I’m not going to defend him from this.” 

“Hey!” complained her brother, but Batman just continued on, “Where are your parents?”

“They’re in Sweden for a science convention,” Jazz answers. “They left this morning.” 

Damn, Jason curses to himself. 

“Jazz, seriously. You’re not gonna let Batman kill me, right?” 

“Do you want to be cremated or buried, Danny?” Jazz asks blasély, and Danny gulps, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes. 

“It’s my Twitter handle,” he mutters petulantly, and Jason can’t believe the gall of this kid. Or maybe stupidity. Audacity’s a good one, too. “If he wanted it, he should’ve gotten it first. And he gives clowns a bad name.” 

“Not the clown thing again.” Jazz digs her palms into her eyes, sighs, then turns to the heroes. “He has a whole clown thing ever since Circus Gothica came to town and robbed a bunch of jewelry stores.” 

Danny gestures wildly with his hands, as if demonizing clowns was the real problem and not the egomaniacal mass murderer who wanted to murder him for his Twitter handle, “Clowning is an art form, Jazz, and people like Freakshow and The Joker make a mockery of the very serious societal statements that clowns make!” 

All of the Bats very carefully Did Not look at Nightwing, who has made very similar rants on quiet patrols.

“You are never leaving this house again,” she says serenely. “And I’m unplugging the wifi router.”

“You would punish even yourself?”

“Oh, little brother. I would watch the world burn if it meant knocking sense into your thick skull.” 

“Okay, Christ,” Red Hood finally interrupted the siblings’ melodrama. An unyielding redheaded girl and a mouthy black-haired, blue-eyed boy? They’d fit in a little too well back at the Manor, so Jason needs to cut this shit out before Bruce’s bat-doption instincts start tingling. “Stop. Just… Christ. Stop. Is this how you always interact with each other?”

“Sometimes there’s explosions,” Danny pipes up, a cheeky grin on his face. 

Jazz doesn’t dispute it. 

Fucking hell. God damn it. I can’t. I just can’t. 

Batman doesn’t give anything away, “Robin and Red Robin will be staying here with you until Nightwing, Hood, and I apprehend The Joker. First, we’re going to check the perimeter.” 

“Oooh, I get to give the lab tour!” 

Lab?

“No lab. You’re grounded. You’ll only be in there for cleaning duty now.”

“Wh– hey! No fair!” 

“What’s this lab you two are talking about?” Red Robin asks before Jazz can rip into her brother again. 

She sighs, “Our parents’ lab. I’ll show you, but someone needs to stay with Danny.” 

“You act like I’m gonna run off and start World War III….”

“I wonder why,” she says sarcastically.

Batman nods to Robin, who nods back, and the rest of them follow Jazz out of the living room to a metal reinforced door. She types in a code—Jason catches the numbers 03-14-99. There’s an assenting beep, and she opens the door, flicking on the lights and leading them down into what is apparently a basement lab. 

A stone settles in Red Hood’s stomach, cold and heavy. 

The basement is large, likely the floor size of the entire building. There are several work tables, filled with miscellaneous blueprints and spare parts and weapons and tools. Against the farthest wall is another armored door, but what draws Hood’s—and the entire Batclan’s—attention is the south wall, where a circular hole in the wall was glowing a toxic Pit green. 

The stone shattered in his stomach, splintering into his body. Is it harder or easier to breathe? Jason can’t tell. 

“Wow,” says Nightwing. His voice is cheerful, but Jason can feel the stress beneath it. “Do I even want to know?” 

Wasn’t this supposed to just be typical Joker bullshit?

“Our parents are ectobiologists,” Jazz explains nonchalantly, walking further into the lab. “As in, ghost biologists.” She pauses at one of the work tables, picking up a green and white thermos. Pretty boring, considering the rest of their surroundings. 

“Ghosts.” Red Robin’s voice is carefully neutral. 

“Ghosts,” Jazz reaffirms. “I know. I thought they were crazy at first, too. But I can prove it, if you like.” Then, without waiting for a yes or no, she untwists the thermos, and there’s a bright flash of white, and a whole entire body sprouting out of it. 

“WHOO! I’M FREE!” cries the…being, pale and floating and lanky and entirely too big to have fit into a fucking thermos, of all the fucking things. “....And not in the Realms? Wait.” He stops stretching, descending to rest closer to the ground, but still hovering a few inches from the floor. He’s got green eyes and lifeless (ha) blond hair. He’s wearing a trenchcoat and a green skull necklace. Overall, he looks like the type of thug he’d arrest in the Bowery. 

“Hello, Johnny.” The man’s—ghost’s?—eyes flicker around each person in the room, his gaze becoming more and more confused and panicked as he takes in each Bat, before settling on Jazz Fenton. 

“Why are the fucking Bats here?” 

“The Joker’s coming to Amity,” she says. The ghost’s eyes widen. Jazz tilts her head, “How many ghosts would you say passed away in Gotham, Johnny?” 

As Jason and the Bats tense, this Johnny guy lets out a wicked laugh, “Oh, Doll, you have the best surprises. Why did we break up?” 

“You did try to have my body possessed. That ruins any good relationship.” 

“Man, but Kitty’ll love this. Thanks for letting me out of Soup Time, Doll.” He floats higher, “Any advice?” 

She throws him the phone she’d confiscated from Danny and he catches it easily, “Everything’s on here. Have fun.”

“What exactly are you planning?” Batman scowls. 

Johnny laughs, “Aww, don’t worry, Bats. Peace and love on Planet Earth, or whatever. We’ll make it quick.” Then, as the Bats leap into action as one, Johnny turns invisible, the Batarangs passing harmlessly through where he’d once been floating. 

“Where did he go?” Batman turns his scowl, angrier than ever, to Jazmin Fenton, who stares back unflinchingly. “He’s going to solve the problem.”

“You mean he’s going to kill The Joker.”

She shakes her head, “Oh, no. That’d just be asking for him to come back as a ghost. Could you imagine a Joker with powers like invisibility, intangibility, flight, and more? Johnny can be impulsive, but he’s smart. None of them will kill The Joker.” 

“Then what are they going to do?” Red Robin asks. 

“My parents are ectobiologists,” Jazz repeats from earlier. “But I am more of an anthro-ectopologist. I am concerned with the study of ectoplasmic beings’ societies and cultures. And while it is very ancient, there is protocol in the Infinite Realms—that is, where you go when you die, should you remain after death—to prosecute living criminals who have killed a certain number of Realms citizens. So you don’t have to worry about your moral code, Batman. The Joker will be tried by a much fairer court than Gotham can ever hope to have. No offense.” 

Jason stares at Jazz Fenton, who he’d pegged as the sane sibling. He’s not so sure now, but he can’t say he hates it.

“And how do we know it’s a fair trial?” Nightwing asks. 

She waves her hand, “Oh, as Gotham’s Knights, you’re key witnesses. I’m sure you’ll be summoned to testify. You will see then. And don’t worry about your secret identities—the dead don’t care much for that sort of thing.” 

“So if this is a ‘fair’ trial or whatever, The Joker’s going to be locked up forever?” Jason asks. “I mean, that’s the only option for shit like him.” 

Batman sends him a look, but he ignores it. 

“Well, there are several different punishments that could be deemed appropriate, but he’ll never be able to set foot in the mortal world again, yes.” 

Jason Todd grins, “Oh, I’m glad your brother’s stupid, kid.” 

She sighs, long-suffering, “Well, that makes one of us. Still, there’s more important things we should discuss now that you’re here.”

“More important than The Joker trying to kill your brother over a Twitter handle?” Red Robin asks doubtfully. 

Jazz smiles, sharp and dangerous, and asks, ”Have you ever heard of the Anti-Ecto Acts?” 

xxXxx

Several months later when Danny is finally un-grounded, he Tweets his last three Tweets before Twitter can become the foolishly named X: 

Imagine bullying the Joker so hard that it not only lands the Joker in ghost prison BUT it also leads to major law reform in the US lmao someone make the domino effect meme about this pls

Y’allre replying to me with thanks like i did anything other than be an internet troll. My sister literally manipulated local, federal, and interdimensional law so you should be thanking her. 

i just a babie 🥺🥺🥺

xxXxx

Thanks for reading! This is the whole fic, so pls do not ask for tags! Thank you :)

#dc x dp #dp x dc #dcxdp #dpxdc #danny phantom #danny fenton #jazz fenton #jason todd #batman #fanfiction #fanfic #ao3 #the joker #johnny 13 #severely ooc

[wip]

Hi there! I am a long time user (over a DECADE on my original blog), but this is a brand new blog I just made, on the web, after seeing a post about the creation process for new blogs and wanting to test it myself. I like the suggestion that people follow some tags to start, to help put some good stuff on their For You page! However, you'll also notice that this blank blog with a generic name and default appearance looks an awful lot like a bot. And there is also an influx of spam bots right now as well - @changes always tells us to report those when there's a new wave of them, and we usually block them too. I think I've managed to discern the difference after looking at the suggested names vs some actual bots, but most people can't. Suggesting random names for new users (which is fine on its own), sending them to an unskippable page where they have to follow *people* (not just tags) before they've had a chance to explore the site, and not ever pointing them in the direction of their personalization settings (which are buried in the new layout) is going to end up with a lot of new users getting blocked and reported as spam! Perhaps after the tag following page, you could redirect people to the Blog Settings page, where you can have informative pop-ups suggesting people add a profile picture and header that reflects their personality/interests, and point out the description section to "Tell people about yourself!" You could make the page skippable if you think it would discourage people who just want to jump right in, but it would be really useful. I see on the app that a section like that comes up when you go to your own blog, but I think it should be a step in the sign-up process, before you follow anyone. Skippable, but encouraged. (Also, the requirement to follow individual blogs REALLY needs to be skippable) Encouraging new users to have a profile picture, header, and personalized bio would really help in preventing real users from getting blocked by all the cool blogs they're trying to follow who think that they're spam bots! Getting blocked for no reason won't encourage new tumblrs to stick around! Please, encourage some individuality from our new internet neighbors, so they can become our internet friends 💙

Answer: Hey, @lefttragedysandwich!

Thanks for getting in touch with this. We are very aware of this situation, and we are trying to find the best way to solve it—without just adding more steps to onboarding, which (unfortunately) most people won’t do.

This, in turn, just adds friction to signing up for Tumblr, which means fewer people sign up to join us. Which means fewer internet neighbors, let alone less individuality. 

But this is an important question to answer, and we are grateful you raised it with us. As and when we have a good solution, we’ll announce it on @changes. Keep your eyes peeled, and hopefully, it won't be too long.

Best,

—The Tumblr WIP Team. 

#feature #blog #new users #your suggestions

[todaydreambelieversfic]

Welcome to To Daydream Believers : A Community Klaine FanWorks Blog

Hello Everyone!

Welcome and Re-Welcome to To Daydream Believers!!

I know the blog has been around forever, but with the influx of new people I thought I'd refresh the blog and welcome everyone again! I've been wanting to give the blog a facelift for a while, and it seems now is as good a time as any to reintroduce and reinvigorate the blog.

What is TDBFic?

I originally started the blog as the fanfiction reblogging sideblog to my original Glee/Klaine rewatch, fun&games, and podcasting blog - @todaydreambelievers. TDB isn't being run any more, but I've always maintained that as long as there is interest - I'd keep the blog going.

The intention of the blog was to be a safe space where fans of Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson could read works (about them individually or as a couple) without fear of running into bashing of either character. It was also meant to be a community blog where anyone could choose to participate on their own terms.

Becoming a Member -

Whether you're an author who would like a place to showcase their works or just a fan who'd like to recommend their favorite fics, anyone is allowed to be a member. All you need to do is shoot me -- @spaceorphan18 -- a message, and I'll make you a member. All I ask is that you follow (my relatively few) guidelines.

Also - even if you become a member, there's no obligation to reblog content, but the option is always open!

Guidelines -

So what are the guidelines?

All fanworks must be Kurt Hummel friendly and Blaine Anderson friendly. While that doesn't mean bad things can't happen to them - it does mean that a fan of either character can read a work and not feel like their favorite character is being intentionally bashed.

Be respectful of other users.

A couple of smaller items such as - please reblog, don't post and don't spam. Some basic common curtesy things.

That's really it. I'll have some more details on a main page when I get that up. But really, it boils down to play nice.

What about tagging?

You don't have to tag - but it is encouraged so people can find your works if they click on one of our links. I'm working on cleaning up the tagging page so that the tagging system is clear and easy to use.

What about all the old stuff?

It's not going anywhere - though please bear with me as I try to clean up the main page. You should be able to find all of the old content, as I don't plan on taking anything down.

Anything new to the blog?

Why yes! I have some ideas for ways to keep the activity up on the blog...

Author Spotlights -- Every week we would highlight a author or artist - featuring their works on the blog. I'd like to do this again! I'll get more details out soon - but anyone is welcome to participate, even if they've done it already!

Prompts & Tropes -- I'm not sure how I'd like to implement these, but I thought it'd be fun if we occasionally did prompts or trope weeks to inspire you to create new things.

Events -- We haven't been event heavy, but @snarkyhag and I are already thinking of something fun to do for this summer!

Polls -- Okay, so this isn't entirely creation focused, but back in the day, TDB did polls every Tuesday. Now that tumblr has a fun, new polling system, I thought I'd bring these back - because why not?

Questions, Comments, Concerns?

I'm really open to anything you guys might have to say! Please drop a line any time you like -- I'm always happy to hear from you!

I do encourage you to come join and be a member! The more the merrier!

Happy Creating!

Xoxo- Spaceorphan18 :)

#glee #glee fic #klaine #klaine fic #I'd really appreciate a reblog on this one so we can get the word out

[demonlikejudgeoffire]

can you gimme the full run down of what you disagree with the webtoon on? pretty please??

I know that they missed HSY's beauty spot, made everyone look the same and made KDJ into a standard hotboy protagonist when he should be a swagless rat.

but I wanna know what else you've got since you can probably articulate it all better than me.

This is a terrible question with terrible timing because I am so busy right now but briefly because I am a little hater at heart—

I will preface this by saying that I stopped reading the webtoon after a few weeks out of disgust because I didn't like it and continue to dislike it. I've seen screenshots of it since I stopped, particularly because a few of my friends do keep up with it (they are aware that I am a hater and allow me my little rants) and am aware of character designs due to the influx of screenshots and art that arises on my TL and dash (never tagged so I can't even filter it out) whenever a new face pops up in the webtoon. So, that's where I'm coming from with this. If you like the webtoon then this is where you stop reading because I am going to be pretty blunt here. All of the following is my own personal opinion about the ORV webtoon yadda yadda if you get butthurt that's on you.

First: I hate the character designs. I can excuse little details like missing the beauty mark or whatever because it's not actually in-text canon but this goes deeper. As you mentioned, all of the characters have the same generic body type. The women, especially, suffer from this. Han Sooyoung's proportions are so wacky at times. I swear the artists have no idea how to draw short people. with characters like Lee Hyunsung it's particularly egregious. Someone who's described as bear-like is depicted as skinny. Yoo Joonghyuk's muscles are like. Non-existent. Beyond that, everyone is paper pale and washed out. There's very little variation in skin tones, so they all look like vampire standees. Some of the side characters look better than the main cast. the outfits don't reflect characters' personalities or ages either.

Second: general gripes re: the art not being dynamic, emotive or fun to look at. static expressions on character faces. fighting scenes are boring. more griping about the incredibly limited colour palette. you get the gist.

Third: kdj looking like pretty much every single hotboy protag. This one is particularly due to redice's work on solo levelling—kdj could be a stand in for the mc of that manhwa honestly. The point of kdj is that he's an average dude, not some wish fulfillment powerlevelling harem protag. Instead it feels like the artists have a hard on for kdj like the art is so horny for him at times it's off-putting.

Fourth: the official webtoon TL is awful. I know there are fan TLs but those aren't what the vast majority of casual readers are going to find first. the romanisation of the names, the lack of ANY kind of honorifics, the absolute horror that is TWSA like what the fuck kind of acronym is that—im going to stop because this isn't about the manhwa itself.

Fifth: this is probably the point that erks me the most. I could excuse sucky art. I would wish to my heart of hearts that they picked an orv fanartist to the webtoon instead but I get it, they wanted a studio that had demonstrated the capacity to work to the bone and churn out chapters with no love embedded in them. I would get that. but the webtoon does nothing as an adaptation of orv.

see, the thing is that orv on its own is hardly ground breaking. the conceit is that s&s took established webnovel tropes and put it all together in a well grounded commentary that actually said something important about stories. that was clearly a dedication to readers and writers and the binds between them. That used the fact that readers would be familiar with these concepts to turn those same expectations on its head. ORV is so great because of its metatextual approach, the breaking of the 4th wall in so many ways to truly build it into something more. The webtoon does nothing to work with that. I had hoped that it could use the medium to add something to the interaction between the reader and Reader (독자) but it's nothing but a tired copy of the novel that does nothing to convey the nuances of KDJ's internal narrative, the emotional turmoil that makes it so hard hitting, or the metatextual nature of its premise. I've talked before about the ways that they could have adapted it to take advantage of the comic format but the webtoon fails to do Anything with the medium.

There are probably other things I've missed but like I said you caught me at a bad time lol. I really try to forget the webtoon exists for the most part because I have nothing good to say about it <3

Anyway, if you want to read a manhwa that actually makes you excited to look at it with amazing character design and dynamic fighting scenes that made me sob like a baby, check out sss-class regression hunter (prev called sss-class suicide hunter) DONT read the official TL because they decided to Anglicize the name of the protag (Kim Gongja) as Confucius Kim which is ugh on so many levels.

#opalanswers #pov: you are reading a post of a little hater <3

[crimeronan]

WHEW okay. ROUGH fucking start to the morning but things are gonna be okay now. putting under a cut for people who don't care abt my endless unrelenting medical drama but for those who do. Come On This Fucking Journey With Me.

so, necessary background.

i have been having intermittent medical emergencies since february and my doctor has been trying since march to get me a specialist rheumatology appointment. the rheumatology clinic keeps ignoring the referral and/or saying that they need more paperwork and documentation for it.

my doctor has at this point provided them with

her physical observations of my visibly abnormal symptoms

all of the many many many many Many medications i've been prescribed and their effects on said symptoms

multiple different types of positive ANA showing i have uncontrolled progressive autoimmune disease

all my negative antibody tests (have yet to test positive for any one specific antibody)

my doctor - who is excellent - has also followed up with them repeatedly to try to get me scheduled. because i am dying. like i try not to be super dramatic here bc i don't like worrying people and maybe i'm overblowing my symptoms but like. when you're at the point that one of your partners schedules an impromptu overnight flight to come up and monitor you for a week bc your other partner is on vacation & you're in danger of stroking and being unable to call an ambulance for yourself if someone isn't in the room to notice the signs...... i feel like at that point it's fair enough to say I Am Fucking Dying. i am dying. i've been dying for months. like very slowly and inconsequentially but MORE THAN MOST PEOPLE ARE DYING AT ANY GIVEN TIME.

so two weeks ago, after even more fucking phone tag, rheumatology was like. we have all of your tests and documentation now. we'll call to schedule you in soon :) if we don't, call us in two weeks!

today is, of course, the two week mark.

i thought it was strange that they hadn't called because my current symptom progression is usually triaged as The Top Tier Of Autoimmune Medical Emergencies. and my doctor herself has gotten me in for same-day appointments whenever i develop new symptoms because i am apparently not being fucking dramatic about how fucked up i am.

but! rheumatology is overburdened by a combination of COVID-era backups and a MASSIVE influx of newly disabled people with long COVID. and they're dealing with the same understaffing and shortages as the rest of the healthcare system. so it wasn't THAT weird.

called the clinic as soon as they opened this morning. was put on hold for a few minutes, which is normal.

guy gets back on the line. informs me they actually Don't have the test results that they need to schedule me (even though they TOLD ME THEY DID two weeks ago). and that they can't help me.

at this point i got off the phone and had a hysterical crying breakdown so profound that multiple partners swooped in to make a Shitload of Very Testy phone calls to various places on my behalf. bc they love me and are wonderful i am very loved. i have been taking the whole "actively dying" thing in stride for months for the most part but apparently this morning i hit my Fucking Limit. because OH MY FUCKING GOD.

so after an hour of hysterical crying, the receptionist at my main doctor's office calls back. she has always been very kind and takes calls from me / my partners extremely seriously, because of..... you know. The Everything.

she's just as kind and sweet and apologetic as ever but also there is kinda an undercurrent of apoplectic fury. she's spent some time trying to figure out What The Fuck Is Going On. turns out that

there was one more test rheumatology needed, even tho they said they had all my documentation. ok. fine.

my doctor did in fact order this test immediately after my last appointment.

i did in fact have the bloodwork done for this test immediately after my last appointment. like within an hour.

there was NO REASON for rheumatology not to have these test results.

except.

that the phlebotomist who took my blood.

ran every fucking ordered test.

except.

the one.

i needed.

to get scheduled.

with rheumatology.

so i've been waiting two weeks for fucking Nothing. because i thought i had my referral sorted. and the rheumatology clinic did not fucking inform my doctor that actually! they were wrong! about having the documentation to schedule me in!

the receptionist called up the lab to make sure that they Can run the necessary test. confirmed that they can. then she called up the rheumatology clinic and sent over all of my current documentation all over again and told them to be on the lookout for the final test. THEN she called the lab AGAIN to say, "hey, i'm sending you this order electronically, but i'm making an extra note that you guys need to do it right this time, AND you need to treat this as highest priority n analyze the results immediately. and i'm giving you the specific test number right now to make sure you fucking write it down correctly."

and then she gave ME the test number. and said "write this down. and when you get there, ask them what the number is for your test. and make sure that it matches."

which all took up most of her morning and truly was going above and beyond, all she really Needed to do was resend the lab order n tell me to go get more blood drawn. ESPECIALLY since it's an indie office & she handles ALL of the patient scheduling and bureaucracy.

but she is mad. and also i have dying patient privilege.

i felt much better after this because tbh half of why i was so upset was because i already know i have multiple forms of irreversible damage to various body parts and i really fucking physically feel like i get closer to dying every day and i really cannot fucking deal with being triaged as a non-priority possibly-faker hysteria patient.

but this does not seem to be the case.

so. unless something ELSE manages to go wrong with all of this bureaucratic bullshit, what's going to happen is: i am going to drive to a lab 45 minutes away to get my bloodwork done today bc that's the closest place with same-day appointments. i am going to call my doctor's office and tell them that the blood test was done, bc the receptionist said to call her from the parking lot once i'm finished. my doctor is going to receive the test results and send them to rheumatology either today or tomorrow. and within two weeks (Supposedly For Fucking Real This Time), rheumatology will ACTUALLY FUCKING CALL TO SCHEDULE ME IN.

in the most ideal and luckiest world, i will in fact be triaged as an emergency case. which means things will move fast in terms of both getting a call from the scheduling team and getting scheduled in. however it's also possible that they will have patients who are in, like, multi-organ-failure shutdown crisis, who obviously need to be prioritized above me. i do have endless paper documentation and visible physical symptoms stating that i am very very very sick, so. fingers crossed but i don't want to jinx it.

this post is very long. medical bureaucracy is a nightmare. i am very very very lucky and blessed to have so many life partners who are willing to advocate for me because as you can imagine, none of this is easy to navigate when you are unbelievably fucking sick and have a brain that is progressively losing the ability to retain language or executive function or memory.

in conclusion.

being sick is so stupid.

#medical #autoimmune tag #hank green's note of 'when the american healthcare system moves fast that's when it's time to worry' #YEAH I FEEL THAT. it WAS moving so fucking fast until all THIS. #hopefully now that it's sorted it'll be back to moving really fucking fast because I Need Healthcare Pretty Fukkin Badley

[dragon-quest-ensemble]

hey dragon questy follows~

there has been a crazy influx of new followers recently and i'm trying hard to get to all of the asks and questions. i'm splitting the load with another mod so if you don't see your questions answered by me, chances are they're marked for her to answer them. i do want to address the tons and tons of asks about team positions and volunteering to work on the project. we can't have anyone else working right now, but this may change in the future. if you want to leave your contact information with me, add my discord and leave a message about the game there: mordegonswaifu i'm usually available to chat there always. i also know we never got round to filling out some faq about the game's plot, characters, etc. and we'll try to get to that soon. tons of asks about "what's the game about?" etc. tho the asks may not be answered directly, we'll put out a statement when new pages are up here that answer the questions.

again asking for people to try and keep yourselves anonymous/discreet when interacting with us for the time being.

#updates

[turflytlebuzzbuzz]

Something New Is Coming to Bayverse!

Not officially guys, it's just my AU, sorry to get your hopes up. XDXD Anyway this is just a little teaser!! I hope you all enjoy!!

500+ words

The click of the keys, followed by the dial tone sent a hush over the crowded room. The only noise being the collective exhale that punctured her soul; drowning her in nerves only comparable to a dark room filling until there's no space left for the breaths of thoughts to enter, except fear.

Fear that the end has finally been reached. Everything has converged to this very moment; there is no escape now, only acceptance of what is to come.

She took a deep breath as the final ring connected.

"Hey... is it just you around?"

Mumbling was all the room was privy to. Not even her partner, sitting less than a foot away from her, could make sense of the nonsense. He hung his head low, preceding to burn a hole in the carpet he quickly became transfixed by.

"Can you gather the others? Oh, and put the phone on speaker. This is a chat that demands all of you."

Biting her lip, she tried to focus on the influx of voices in her ear; while the sting of a dozen sets of piercing stares threatened to split her in two as the room hung on every syllable she uttered into the phone.

"It's time. You all can't run from this anymore."

The sentiment that was felt from the other half of the call couldn't have been more obvious from the anger that seized her brows... disagreement, violent disagreement.

"They saved my life." She spat with venom. The annoyance in her building to a level never before heard or seen from the young lady. Her fiancé's head shot up, seizing her hand in a half-baked effort to calm her.

She took a pause, shut her eyes, counted to three, and hit 'em where she knew it would hurt...

"What is one of the most important traits of the ninja?"

The line went dead silent.

"Honor-" She enunciated through gritted teeth, trying to bash her way barehanded through the bricked defense she was up against. "-and I know that after where you all came from, honor is of the upmost importance."

Still, silence.

"Now... what promise did you all reaffirm to me two weeks ago when this wild goose chase really heated up, where, in order to avoid the police and keep you lot hidden, I had no choice but to stay below with you all?"

No response...

She carried on, pushing until the slack in the resistance between the phones grew weak; so weak she could have yanked them through the service line, exposing them all at that instant.

"That should our paths come to diverge in an unavoidable manner, as they have tonight, that you four would come out of the shadows."

The tattoo on her arm burned from the impending exposure, matching the secret sigils spread throughout the city; their significance about to be revealed to mean what no one waiting on bated breath could have imagined.

With what felt like a tidal wave crashing down, drenching her in relief, she cut the line. Finally, she met the eyes of those around her.

While it was reluctant, a date has been set.

"Channel 6 news building, rooftop, a week from today, at midnight."

#tmnt 2014 #tmnt 2016 #tmnt bayverse #bayverse leo #bayverse raph #bayverse donnie #bayverse mikey #teenage mutant ninja turtles #bayverse turtles #leonardo tmnt #raphael tmnt #donatello tmnt #michelangelo tmnt #I AM SO EXCITED TO SHARE THISSSSSSSSSS #ocs #aged up characters #20s mutant ninja turtles

[embrace-your-inner-kid]

If you’re fed up with Netflix

This is especially to my fellow wlw, and only do this if it appeals to you. I’m not demanding anyone do anything before I get randos coming at me. If it’s not for you scroll on, simple as that.

I’m officially done with Netflix, Warrior Nun was the last chance I was giving them. It’s very clear what their platform is about, and it’s not worth trying to find joy on it because they won’t allow you to get immersed in anything with their quantity over quality model.

Rationally it’s unlikely we can “save a show” no matter how popular or how much noise is made, but if there’s even a sliver of a chance it has to be quick, because once a show is canceled good luck getting everyone who was under contract back in order to continue it.  So the more time that goes by the less likely it will happen if there was even a chance to begin with.

In my opinion those change.org petitions seem useless, they’re easily ignored, but sign them if you want. Of course, continue making noise about the show on social media, it deserves the hype and if by some miracle a show is able to get picked up somewhere else, that buzz is needed to make that possible

The only effort I see worth it as a hail Mary is to put your money where your mouth is if you’re seriously as fed up as I am. If Netflix gets a sudden influx of cancelations and account deletions it'll be noticed.

So, if you want, do the following:

Cancel your Netflix membership and include Warrior Nun as a reason in the 'Other' option

2. Request Netflix delete your account and include Warrior Nun as a reason. Netflix will automatically delete accounts that are inactive for 10 weeks, but you can request they delete your account right away or after you current subscription is up. I decided to do this so notice would HAVE to be taken instead of my account slowly fading into obscurity. Follow the instructions here: 

I couldn't find the option to delete by mobile so I followed the option to email.

Email [email protected] and make sure to do the request from the email you used to sign up with Netflix. Under the ‘Keep reading’ I’ll include the email I wrote as an example for those who like something to go off of.

Dear Netflix team,

I have canceled my Netflix subscription today (December 13th, 2022) and have decided not to use Netflix anymore. I would like to request you immediately delete my account from your database along with all the data associated to it ahead of the 10-month cooldown period.

I've grown tired of this company canceling shows even if they've grown in viewership and buzz substantially. I can't trust my time or joy with this platform, and it's very clear that the business model is quantity over quality.

I've given chance after chance, and the final straw is the recent cancelation of Warrior Nun. The show exploded in popularity despite $0 in promotion spent on it and it being buried on Netflix to the point that a lot of fans waiting for the new season didn't even know the new season released. This platform didn't have to spend any extra money or effort on it. I really don't get the decision with the traction and hype it gained, and it being the type of show that could monetize off merchandise. I'm starting to think is was already canceled, which is why the amazing reception of season 2 didn't matter. Would also make sense why the show was buried and released quietly amongst the heavily promoted and established Netflix shows.

I've learned over and over again that I can't get excited or invested in anything on Netflix no matter how big something starts getting outside of the few heavily advertised darlings. The only way I can think of coming back to Netflix is if it's proven that it's worth it to invest enjoyment in Netflix shows. I get a show being cancelled if it has nothing going for it, but there have been too many occasions where something has viewership, hype, and an active big fandom that would normally have it renewed and that joy continuously gets ripped away for a new batch of nonsense to rinse and repeat.

I'm guessing that Warrior Nun wouldn't even be allowed to find a new home with its hype despite Netflix not being willing to continue it? All in all, I'm just really tired and ready to move on.

Regards,

[Your Name Here]

#warrior nun #I'm done with Netflix #can't trust them #no need to invest in them #If you still want to have Warrior Nun to watch there are ways to download it #I used flixicam to download Warrior Nun and a couple of movies to my computer before canceling and deleting #It does cost a subscription #but I found it worth it

[zeroducklings]

important stuff for new followers

Idk why but lately I've been having an influx of new followers - a lot of them are likely my degenerate twitter friends (I love you, you know who you are) whose handles I don't immediately recognize cause I have a shit memory. Remember that tumblr added this feature that basically hides mature labelled posts, and also keeps forcing the mature label on me even for random stuff. If you wanna see my posts you have to manually allow mature content to show on your dashboard (it's in your profile settings) or basically you're gonna miss out on the fun lmao.

BUT ALSO!

it's too many new people for me to screen all of them, so for everyone who followed me and doesn't already know me, please keep in mind a few important caveats:

I REBLOG THINGS MOST PEOPLE CONSIDER NASTY (including but not limited to fictional incest, rape, abuse, dark ships, big age gaps, weird kinks, gross stuff in general).

I am queer as fuck, polyamorous, and a bitch who does their own thing & is interacting with fandom stuff cause real life sucks. It is not in my interest to directly engage with fandom discourse because I don't have the energy for it, but my stance is that if you can't make a difference between reality and fiction, and you feel the personal need to attack people who dabble in content that makes you feel uncomfortable, block me ASAP because sure as fuck I'm gonna reblog and post things that make your delicate ass uncomfortable.

I don't bother writing out under every post the classic "I don't condone this in real life!1" because I feel it's unnecessary - I assume that who follows me has enough critical thinking skills to not need a reminder, but in case you do you can have it here: I don't condone any of the fucked up shit I post/reblog in real life, this is fiction, we're just having fun. Again if you don't manage to grasp this then please kindly block me.

Last but not least - this blog really hates capitalism, terfs, swerfs, all flavors of queerphobes, ableists and exclusionists of any kind.

If any of the aforementioned bothers you on any level, do unfollow/block me and let's all keep conducting our peaceful existences away from each other. I don't want to interact with you as much as you don't want to interact with me; I don't want to expose you to stuff which might make you uncomfortable, and I don't want to expose the people I follow and whose stuff I reblog to your eyes.

Everyone else, please stay as frickin handsome as you currently are and enjoy the rest of your weekend ♥

#personal

[nightingaelic]

Ooh you're doing character opinions? Could you do Julie Farkas, please?

WIFE MATERIAL

I like Julie. I think she's doing the best with what she's been handed. It's just too bad that what the Followers were handed in New Vegas is heartaches by the number (🎵), in the form of everyone getting caught in the crossfire between the Bull, the Bear, the Ben-Man, the Billionaire, and that one idiot in a ranger helmet that keeps breaking all their limbs trying to make friends with night stalkers.

With Julie at least, what you see is what you get, and she runs a tight ship so as to stay on everyone's good side and keep administering care as freely as possible. I am honestly very pleased with the way she was written, and the only changes I long for are the sort of changes that would render parts of Fallout New Vegas' story less meaningful than they are now. Many a time I've seen a fan bemoan the fact that you can't do more to help the Followers of the Apocalypse if you choose the Independent pathway, and how their courier would flood the Old Mormon Fort with caps from the Strip and supplies from every caravan that operates in the Mojave. I say headcanon away, but the game's writers left that shortcoming for Yes Man's plan in for a reason. It's a bleak reason, even a cruel one, but it's more true to life about what happens in regions where civil government is absent or unrecognized. Maybe the courier's leadership will get to the point of social programs one day, but in the meantime, people in Freeside will suffer, the NCR won't have any incentive to help, and the Followers will get buried under the influx of patients in semi-anarchic Sin City.

And of course, I want to give Julie the space to vent about this. I bet she doesn't often get the chance. I want to see her brainstorm ways to save the downtrodden when she senses the political winds shifting, when the armies begin to march and she has an idea of who will be flying their flag over Hoover Dam the next day. I want to help her hammer out trade deals, even try to patch things up with the Great Khans or seek help from her western superiors, and failing that, share a late night with her and Cass and a bottle of whiskey to pair with their hot tempers and Arcade's cynicism. I want to give Julie space to breathe. She deserves it.

Link to template

#fallout #fallout new vegas #fnv #julie farkas #followers of the apocalypse #character opinion bingo

[valiant-if]

A Welcome and an Update 7/8/22

In light of the influx of new followers, I figured this was a good time to post!

First of all, welcome! 🤗🎉

For those of you who aren't following my main project, this is a side project. I have a job, and writing is a hobby (though much-beloved), so I generally try to get as much done as I can, but how much I can realistically get done varies a lot. Sometimes I can write 15k in a single day, sometimes only a couple hudred words.

Also, I tend to work on this project when I need a break from my other one, so it's not currently my main focus. Because of this, I don't have a progress update schedule, but you can generally expect that I will keep you apprised of my progress at least once a month.

As a quick reminder, this project is 18+ and will at times deal with heavy subjects. I will be as thorough as I can about appropriate content warnings. If I miss anything, however, please do not hesitate to let me know! I will do as much as I can from my end of things to make sure that you all can interact with this content safely.

Additionally, I will be trying to keep any asks that might contain triggering content under a read-more with appropriate tagging so that people may avoid them if they need to. The same rules apply here—please communicate with me if you see something that you feel needs a content warning attached.

I currently I have about 45k words written for the prologue, which is a total count, not a read-through count. Currently, the prologue has three main parts. The first part is an introduction to the characters and the setting and consists of 4 major branches. The second part is narratively linear, though there will be a lot of personality, relationship, and general flavor choices within. The third part is the prologue's conclusion, in which you'll have the opportunity to speak with one or two characters of your choosing (from the ones present).

The first part with its four branches makes up the bulk of the chapter, and it's what I'm currently working on. It is almost done.

By the time I am finished writing these three parts, I estimate the total wordcount for the chapter will be between 80k and 100k. This IF is also intended to allow for the MC to be HoH if you so choose, so I will be going back and adding HoH versions for passages that need them, which will affect the total wordcount as well.

Questions about the setting, characters, plot, etc are all welcome! I also accept NSFW asks for the most part, though I reserve the right not to answer any ask if the subject matter makes me uncomfortable.

Thanks for following! I can't wait to share this project with you all!

#update #progress update

[kart0]

meds update: switching back to the previous one

hey guys, today was my psychiatrist appointment and we decided to switch back to my previous meds, that I think it was working way better than the one I was on. I also talked about my OCD and stuff and she prescribed a new med that I will take half a dose, at night right before I go to bed.

next appointment will be in 2 months, and honestly I feel very relieved. I hope I will get better in the next two months, now that I'm back with the first med that made be feel ok.

and I hope this one will make me feel less anxious as well. for depression I will take it in the morning, and for OCD at night. fun !

I'm very tired, today was a hectic day, I got only 4 hours of sleep, and since I woke up I've been feeling super jittery and anxious, with too much energy. and now, at night, I can feel all the adrenaline gone and I'm like, a popped balloon, cuz I am very, very tired.

I will keep updates very spare, maybe only if something changes or whatever, because honestly I'm kinda... lazy, rn

so I don't feel too committed to keep updates like these, I know they're mostly for me but I got a sudden influx of followers here and it kinda bothers me, in a way that, damn, no one cares ? I am grateful of course, but I know most of you follow me for my art, and I keep posting about my meds ? what ? idk idk but like I said before, I do treat my Tumblr like a personal journal.

anyways, that's it for today, I'm gonna go sleep. I'm almost, ALMOST finished with this uni semester and I can't wait to be on my break and be able to draw. hopefully the meds will make me feel happy with my art as well.

thank you for reading, and goodnight.

#me #update #antidepressants

[tiny-tigers]

✨ Oh god that is an influx 😂😅🙈 I now promise to stop sending more until you reply to the last one! [you don't have to reply to any more that are left publicly!] 🙏🏻😂

Awww no why angry? His recent follows? (copying his hubby don't worry 😂)

Can't see the resemblance between the Martin bro's but they seem a lovely family! 🥰💕

Those tattoo's are very artsy! Love it! 🤌🏻

Also no sorry its not me liking these posts! So must be someone liking whenever they agree with something in your reply maybe? 💕

The 'this rose' live thing is pretty good tbh - Topsy is a sweetheart & the players actually give insights into the timings of their schedule/tad bits of info on teammates! Ellis & Ben spoke about Marchant & Fred being the musicians of the group 🎸🎹

I saw her tagged pics of the house reno too so definitely unlikely they're leaving! Also you're right he barely played for sale last year because of injury and they still made it to the bloody final! He's surely staying...! *pedicure prince keeping those feet in ze uk*

Can't make my mind up on DK, on some of the tigers 'retro games' YouTube vids he came across quite well, but yeh who knows...Teddy M is Freds new roommate now & they're following each other around in the background of every clip of 'this rose' 😅👀🙈💕 *new roomie besties*

Sorry for the long message & if I missed anything in my reply...! 😖❤️Hope your day improves sweetie!! ✨💕✨💕 xxx

Oh but They are great the previous ask :( I want to answer it :(

It is all Marbella all over again Fredanon I hate iiiiiiit 🙄 I had parasite thoughts all day long

Not sleeping well so I am grump and he doesn't help. I knew even before he followed because I know him so well I hate it even more.

I don't know if it is the heat but my MD artist have a lot of crisis lately and I had to manage not one but 2 exhibits this week. I think they have in mind that I am a robot ... Work is still very enjoyable and I have more and more responsabilities but I struggle with the rythmn.

Reaally ??? Oh they look like young teddy martin tho ! I only realized now that Jack followed them all that time.

Thank you ♡ second one is based on a photographic selfportrait from one of my fav artist from arte povera movement. He is wearing mirror lenses on the image

And I fell in love with that serie ^ always wanted 3 tats for my 3 main passions : art / mythology and rugby so 3rd missing.

Gotta do it right and I want to start aprenticeship but my drawings... mmmh Idk if I have the level.

Buuuut Addie loves France so... 😗 wait and see.

I swear right now I want to switch for your Fred, share it please.

Oh ok gonna watch that then with my well deserved latte and make a JvP break. Everyone can wait one day for a publication right ? I have 897 or 890 When it glitch so I guess they won't pass 900 without me

[cmcsmen]

What Matters To God

What's God going to care about when you die?

Identity: Son of God, Husband, Dad.

If you can't unite with Christ you can't give Christ.

This is why the new mission statement for CMCS is:  Catholic Men Chicago Southland (CMCS) is engaged in fostering holy and courageous men and proclaiming the importance of husbands and fathers to children and the family. CMCS is a Catholic Apostolate founded in 2004 by Most Reverend Joseph N. Perry, Deacon John Rangel, and Mr. Frank J Casella.

As a follow up to my fiscal update ‘Keeping True to Mission’ I’d like to share with you an update on the state of the CMCS apostolate, and invite you to reply with your thoughts as we journey together as Catholic men.

Since 2004, when CMCS was founded, there have been many Catholic men's ministries which have come and gone, as there are also many new Catholic men's movements, blogs, newsletters, etc. that are always starting up and evolving. Why? If I could pick one thing, it's because of how us men often neglect our physical as well as spiritual health, and this is especially problematic in a digital age where our time is constantly distracted.

CMCS has been impacting thousands of men's lives through our Men's Forum, blog and email newsletters. We believe that this is God-given, and we are not focused on the numbers game. Our goal is to help men connect with God and each other, and we hope to continue doing this for years to come. The CMCS team wants to thank you for your continued enagement and support.

I've long been a proponent of healthy and authentic relationships with other like-minded Catholic men. Unfortunately, it can be difficult especially if you're not a part of a parish or active at church. CMCS has done a great job of creating welcoming environments for men, and we want to continue to help men connect with other men, so they can develop lasting relationships together on their spiritual journey, and so they can learn how to lead healthy lives. We believe these friendships with other men can be transformative. 

Spiritual growth is difficult to measure because it happens over a period of time and often goes unnoticed. In the early days of CMCS, for example, we applied for grants and were told over and over again how they don't count spiritual growth. In fact, most of us don’t know how we are growing spiritually until we look back at our own lives and see how we have evolved in harmony with God.

Along with the influx of the Catholic men’s movement, the two main reasons that CMCS has sustained all these years is that we have been provided the generous support of Bishop Perry, and that we are all volunteers. The other two reasons are that we have meaningful men who are deeply engaged with this apostolate, and men and women to believe in this mission and who keep us in continuous prayer or likewise donate to cover our expenses.

At the Bishop Perry Chicago Catholic Men's Forum in the spring of 2022 there were two main discussion topics that showed us how the CMCS strategic plan was and is going in the right direction:

1) Where are the most difficult areas in your life to find Jesus?

Bringing Jesus to the vulnerable.

Bringing Jesus to the workplace.

Family.

Violence.

While in traffic.

Untrustworthy people.

Church – Bureaucracy

2) Where do I find courage to persevere in pursuit of Jesus?

Prayer.

Mass / The Eucharist.

Scripture.

Confession.

The CMCS strategic plan has been to focus on the fundamentals of the Catholic Faith, and communicating about how to put this into action. As mentioned, there are many good men's ministries doing great things in the lives of men, and they generally focus on things like pornography, addictions, and all the other vices we experience. The answer for CMCS, and evangelization in Chicagoland, is simply to put our basic faith into practice.

We believe the foundation of 'Living the Goodness of a Catholic Man' is about concentration on the Sacraments, the Catechism, the Ten Commandments, living out the Magisterial Teachings of the Church, and having a good spiritual director - things that we find many Catholic men take for granted.

We all have busy lives and constant information in the palm of our hands, yet we find distractions to make time for simply praying and allowing the promptings of the Holy Spirit to change us and be in unity with Christ. This doesn't cost anything but our concentrated intentions and living it out day by day and replace bad habits with good habits.

This is why it is important for CMCS to provide our online content for free, and our event tickets at cost (for only food expense) through our generous donors who provide for these expenses. Because people naturally take the path of least resistance, and thus we don't want any cost, commitment, membership, or any other barrier to get in the way of igniting that spark in a man's life that will set him on the right path.

Many men have told us how CMCS is what they've been looking for, this is what they needed, and every week they share the ways how we make a positive difference in their lives. So looking at our strategic plan for 2023, it is both more of the same of keeping faith in action simple, as well as making an important transition that Bishop Perry will share with you as our keynote speaker for the Bishop Men's Forum on Saturday, April 15, 2023.

If you’d like to stay in touch with our team and other Catholic men around the archdiocese and the world, I invite you to subscribe to our blog or download the app, and follow us on our MeWe page. Plus the Catholic Manhood MeWe group is our main social media for sharing content from around the web, so you’ll be able to stay up to date on our latest blog posts and more and engage with other Catholic men in discussion.

In closing, the CMCS movement has had a profound impact on my life over these years and has helped me to see things in a different light. I would like to thank all of you who have participated in our events and who have embraced our message. I would also like to thank the CMCS team, our donors, Bishop Perry, and most of all the tremendous support from my family for making this possible.

Frank J Casella, 

CMCS Executive Director

#catholic #male catholic spirituality #mission #what matters to God #chicago #manhood #catholicism #frank j casella #photography #photographers on tumblr

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Cultural Corner: Employee Feature on Hannah R.

What is your favorite family dish? Who makes it the best? Why? 

My favorite family dish is Arroz con pollo. My grandmother slaves over the stove for hours, getting everything to the perfect consistency. She's very tight-lipped regarding her recipe but has carefully crafted a family cookbook to ensure that her recipe gets passed down for years. She is very persistent that the only thing that makes her recipe different from the rest is the love she mixes with the rice. Obviously, no amount of love matches up to a grandmother's, right?

What local restaurant do you recommend for us to dine at that will give us a scrumptious taste of your culture? What do we absolutely have to order?

Although this restaurant is not Cuban food, my grandmother swears by it. Many Cubans migrated to Cuba from Spain, so many traditions and recipes stuck around. Her favorite restaurant is Centro Vasco in Little Havana, and the two dishes she and my grandfather order are the Cochinillo de Segovia and Zarzuela de Mariscos. It is definitely worth the visit if you’re in the area! If you're on the hunt for good Cuban food, you cannot go wrong with Havana Harry's or Versailles, both of which are Miami staples. 

What is one of your favorite family traditions that you feel is representative of your ethnic culture? 

 My favorite family tradition that represents my culture happens on Christmas Eve and goes by Noche Buena. It’s tradition to roast a pig, which preparation begins three days in advance, and have all the traditional dishes such as rice and beans or sometimes even steamed yuca. My grandmother recalls a time in her childhood when she lived in Cienfuegos, Cuba. All her family flew to her hometown to celebrate Noche Buena together, immediately making it her favorite time of the year since it was a guarantee that no one in their right mind would ever even think of missing it.

When visiting the country of your ethnic/cultural origin what should we do as tourists? (Visit a particular site? Purchase an item from a specific vendor?) 

Due to the current conditions of Cuba, it is a relatively rare place to visit. My grandmother had never returned since leaving the country through the Pedro Pan program when she was twelve. She loved Cuba and wants to keep her memory of it which is why she will never return. Many places in Miami began to mold into the likeness of Cuba because of the influx of Cuban immigrants in the 1960s. The area of Little Havana is the perfect example of this. Many traditions, decor, and ambiances have carried over from Cuba, which is why my grandmother lives to visit that area. Many Cubans gather around El Parque de Domino, which translates to "Domino Park." Domino tables are scattered throughout the space, and the booming voices of Cubans trash-talking one another fill the air. This traditional Cuban pastime reminds my grandmother of home and reminds me of every family get-together. An event that takes place in Little Havana that my grandmother enjoys is Carnival de Miami on Calle Ocho. It's just one other thing that the Cubans brought over to ensure that Miami feels like home.

What should we not do as tourists that can be seen as disrespectful or offensive? 

"Pais que fueres, coma costumbre que vieres."

This a quote that my grandmother highly recommends we follow. When visiting anywhere, you should adopt the customs throughout the location. When my grandmother emigrated to Miami, she adopted the customs here; why can't others do the same? 

What is a stereotype you would like to do away with? 

Two stereotypes my grandmother and I would love to do away with are that Cubans are loud and talk enthusiastically with our hands. We definitely live up to the stereotype ourselves; we just wish it wasn't a standard correlation to Cuban Culture.

What was a time that you were embarrassed by your culture? How have you grown from that experience?

My grandmother touched on the fact that she's embarrassed by the refusal of the new generation to learn the native tongue of their heritage. She has grown from this experience by ensuring that she keeps the language alive in her home. 

How would you describe your culture in three words? 

 Loud, happy, and expressive. Unfortunately, as much as my grandmother and I wish that Cubans weren't known for being so loud and expressive, we are just as much to blame for stereotyping Cubans as such... clearly.

What is something that you would teach us from your culture and traditions? 

Cubans tend not to restrain their feelings or emotions in any situation. The restraining of feelings or emotions is something that, at times, can be limited due to the cultural climate. We hope that Cubans can teach others not to let those limitations stop them from being more expressive, kind, and loving throughout; something essential that we believe Cubans embody.

What is a song we can listen to that represents your culture? 

Caballo Viejo sung by Roberto Torres. This song is a Cuban bonding song for all the exiles. 

 How does your culture define your perspective?

My grandmother expressed that the Cuban culture "gives me family ties, defines me of who I was, and prepares me for who I am."

To me, the Cuban culture has shown me never to take for granted what I have and the country I live in. Through hard work and a fresh new start, my grandparents were able to plant roots and grow in ways they never deemed possible, and for     that, I will always be grateful for the Cuban culture's perseverance.