#the eternal struggle

[legobiwan]

Okay, I was going through some old drafts this morning and I might (might) go back to my "The Council sends Obi-wan to Serenno during the last months of the war under the pretense that he's betraying the Republic and wants to train as a Sith" story at some point over the next few weeks. It's been a very long, sun-hot minute since I've posted anything even remotely having to do with Star Wars in my writing, but this paragraph tickled me as I know where this story goes :D

~~~~~~~~

“So then what? I saunter up to Dooku’s front door, politely knock, and entreat him to hear out my fabricated tale of betrayal?” Obi-wan gave an ugly chuckle, shaking his head. “I know the man funds various arts and drama causes within the Confederacy, but I fear his critical analysis of my performance would be a rather short and painful epitaph to this particular mission.”

#hello there #writing #the eternal struggle #obi wan kenobi #i also just listed out all my whumptober prompts that i never wrote but might try and get to now if I can get the next few weeks of teachin #material together before the semester ends #gods i've missed writing and thinking about this crap

[naamahdarling]

Dried Pickle Man "helping" with the holiday ornaments.

#please ignore his bsd haircut it isn't finished yet! #he can't be brushed and so must be shorn but he also can't be sedated too often so we have to do it in bits and pieces while he is awake #he hates this #i enjoy this #the eternal struggle

[spanishskulduggery]

hi, I was wondering when to switch between the imperfect and preterite tenses? I’ve been reading some spanish texts and I’ve noticed that the imperfect is the main tense used, but I also see the preterite thrown in sometimes.

I'll link to my other things I've done on this in a reblog since I'm on my phone atm but it comes down to narration vs action a lot of the time

In linguistic terms "perfect" means "completed" [lit. "thoroughly done"], so "imperfect" means "not yet completed"... the imperfect tense is used for things that may or may not still be happening or continuing, so it is often used for narration and description

Imperfect is often used for:

narration, description

continuous past ("was doing", "was eating", "was sleeping")

used to, was in the habit of

telling time - always imperfect (era la una, eran las dos, etc)

soler + infinitive as "used to" as past tense is ALWAYS imperfect; there is no preterite form accepted so you normally only see soler in present tense "to be in the habit of" and imperfect "used to"

Preterite is commonly called "simple past", where it is things that happened and are done, and they are actions

In terms of reading, it's more that imperfect introduces something and describes it, while the preterite shows an "interruption" or "the action"

A common example I like to use:

Dormía y sonaba el teléfono. = I was sleeping and the phone was ringing. [imperfect + imperfect; no interruption, background description] Dormía y sonó el teléfono. = I was sleeping and the phone rang. [imperfect + preterite; involves an "interruption" of an "action" to the background description]

If you use the two imperfect, it sounds like someone was sleeping through the phone ringing, and/or that the phone ringing was part of the background. If you use imperfect and then preterite, it implies the preterite was a sudden occurrence that breaks up the narration.

...

But please be aware that most verbs can exist in the two different tenses and it becomes a matter of how they're understood...

Assuming 3rd person singular - se dormía would be "was falling asleep", while se durmió would be "fell asleep"

Sometimes it really depends on the mood - especially with ser and estar in preterite or imperfect - like you don't see too much difference between ¿dónde estabas? "where were you?" vs. ¿dónde estuviste? "where were you?" except in context where preterite feels more like interrogation "where were you (at that specific time)?"

...

There are a handful of verbs that change meaning depending on preterite and imperfect

I'll link things below that will explain it more but in general be wary of:

poder

no poder

querer

no querer

conocer

saber

haber

And also tener. Where normally tener is imperfect as preterite tener can come across as "to obtain", but there are so many idiomatic ways of using tener like "hungry", "thirsty", "hot/cold", and your age that there are times when preterite could be used. Still, in general, preterite tener is most often a synonym of conseguir or obtener as "to get"

-

Additional links:

A Linguistic Perspective on the Spanish Past

More in-depth explanation of imperfect

Using soler

The imperfect tag

The preterite tag

Preterite and Imperfect Contrasted from Bowdoin

Spanish Tenses & Moods Masterpost

#spanish #langblr #learn spanish #language learning #spanish lessons #asks #long post #la gramatica #preterite #imperfect #the eternal struggle

[mama-mozzarella]

I crave to be desired and lusted for but the only people who do are 50 year old men and I can't think of anything less attractive

#the eternal struggle #what I wouldn't give to be LOOKED at

[imhere-imqueer-ilikedeer]

me: man, dick is awesome

my friend: I thought you were asexual?????

me: oh. OH. FUCK I MEANT DICK GRAYSON.

My friend: 🤦

#Dick grayson #the eternal struggle #batman #herequeerdeerrobin #nightwing

[nell0-0]

The urge to share my ideas but also wanting to keep them a surprise for when I actually do something with them

#talk tag #should I just go ahead and share them #should I just get around to finally drawing them? #the eternal struggle #also. if you left me an ask and I haven't answered it yet #it's probably bc I'm trying to draw something for it (and failing for now) #i love asks but I'm such a procrastinator ahdksbsjk

[juliewlters]

Daphne (2007) dir. Clare Beavan

#sarahlancashire #daphne 2007 #geraldine somerville #elizabeth mcgovern #* #the eternal struggle

[finniestoncrane]

i wanna. write about my silly self-insert oc. i wanna draw my self-insert oc. but i don't know what situations to put that bean in

#the eternal struggle #also i am at my desk but like everyone else is at home and the ones who are here are just chatting so??? #i do the bare minimum anyway #and in case you're thinking im scamming the system first of all i am and i dont care #second of all i work at the university where i got my degree #i'm just claiming back what is owed to me through wage theft #finnie shouts into the void

[whatislifebesidesrehearsal]

Actor: *says a line quietly*

Stage Manager: Louder!

Actor: *says line even quieter*

Stage Manager: *bluescreens*

#the eternal struggle #submission #theater #theatre #behind the scenes #theater tech #techblr #stage management #smblr #acting

[vulcan-moon]

i hate that i spend every day looking forward to doing my hobby when i get back from work, but then i get home and im just fucking exhausted. its not even that i hate my job, i genuinely love what i do and enjoy the time i spend doing it, but i want to do things that arent my job as well. i just dont have the time or the energy for them

#but i need to work or i will die yknow #the eternal struggle #text post #dont mind me im just ranting #like if you cant tell i just got home from work like woo! yeah! #time to draw time to answer this ask that requires drawing as an example time to #time to... time... time to lay #lay down actually i think #time to lay down no draw i am so heavy #urghh

[legobiwan]

So I was prompted to write my own take on the Luigi jailbreak scenario via someone's tags :D I'll probably cross-post this to ao3 sometime later today.

I've definitely taken a more comedic bent with my interpretation, which I feel is in more in line with what the movie will be like. But there's some smidgens of angst. And a fair amount of silliness. And yes, the brothers will reunite at the end :)

And so, I give you, "Jailbreak." A comedy in two parts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Speech! Speech! Speech!”

“I’m not really much of a speech-giver…” Luigi protests as the Penguin King’s burly aide pushes him towards the center of the gathered escapees. 

The chamber, or the evil rotunda, as Luigi thinks of it, is a circular room punched through the middle, a series of chains descending from a large, wooden crank set high in the rafters. Bits of armor and weaponry are strewn about the floor, spears and hammers and something resembling a megaphone that shoots fire, which was definitely the first thing Luigi clipped to his belt after they had thrown the remaining guards into the pit. The interior design can only be described as ghoulish, stone busts of various Koopas, as he had learned they were called, inflicting violence on various species - penguins, birds, some kind of mushroom people, and a green, happy-looking lizard wearing boots and a saddle. 

The Penguin aide continues to push him bodily through the throng, which is smushed together near the entrance doors, careful to keep far, far away from the menacing cavity in the middle of the room. Luigi takes stock of the strange group, wondering how in the hell he went from checking out a warehouse leak in Flushing to shimmying up a chain dangling over a pit of lava to knocking out an armed, sentient turtle with a well-placed pitch of one of those ghastly busts.

“Gathered friends,” the aide begins, having caught the attention of the murmuring group. “Fellow penguins, goombas, birdos, and…” he trails off, glancing over at Luma, who gives a high-pitched, broken giggle, the effect of which is like nails drawn across a chalkboard. The penguin’s expression crumples into folds of distaste. “And psychotic star…things…”

“Weeeee!” Luma exclaims helpfully, bounding across the ceiling rafters, setting the chains off into a chorus of tortured groans.

The aide clears his throat. “Yes, well. As I was saying. We’re gathered here today - or tonight. Or maybe this afternoon. You know, it’s honestly hard to know being stuck in the bowels of a lava castle…” Off to the side, the Penguin King is making cutting gestures across his throat. 

“It’s two thirty-seven!” one of the Goombas calls from the back.

“Afternoon, then! That’s lunchtime!” a Birdo exclaims from the other side of the room.

“I could eat!”

“Me, too. Think they have any turnips down here?”

“Weeeee!”

The aide slaps a fin to his forehead with a deep sigh. “Can we please focus here?” he yells over the growing din. Luigi chews on his lower lip, fingering the trigger of the fire gun hanging from his belt. This is the ragtag group of rebels he's supposed to be leading to the gates of the Lava Castle?

He’s definitely going to die here.

“As I was saying,” the aide begins again, deepening his voice into a royal solemnity. “In our darkest hour - “

“It’s still two thirty-seven, Mr. Penguin!”

“In our darkest lightest hour,” the aide hisses. “A hero arrived from another world. Beaten but not defeated, he liberated us from our imprisonment with his courage, intelligence, and most importantly, his opposable thumbs. And now, this hero will lead us to storm the gates of the Koopa Castle and aid us in smiting our enemies to take back what is ours!”

“Friends, I give you - “ the penguin flings his fins open, whacking the Luigi in the shin. 

“Our hero - Loogi!”

The crowd erupts in a high-pitched cheer, raising an assortment of cobbled-together weapons over their small heads. Even the ridiculous, toothy Goombas are hopping up and down, chanting Loogi! Loogi! Loogi!

Luigi pulls at his collar, giving the odd gathering the kind of half-smile, half-grimace he usually reserved for school pictures and his brother’s cooking. 

“Uhhhhh…..” Luigi begins when the clamor dies down. He gives a small wave in all directions, adding, “Hi?”

Fifty or so pairs of eyes, and some other appendages he couldn’t even begin to name, stare at him wide-eyed, expectant. He wonders if they see him as some kind of action hero, or trained assassin, or even a mercenary soldier of fortune, like that one movie he and his brother watched all the time back in Bensonurst.

What the hell is he supposed to say? He’s a mechanical engineer-turned-plumber from Brooklyn, a street kid and a science geek, not some kind of war hero. Not to mention, he still doesn’t know where the hell he is, surrounded by talking penguins, birds with cannons for mouths, and whatever those weird little Goombas are supposed to be.

Luigi clenches his jaw.

He thinks it’s been about three days since he was dropped unceremoniously into whatever incarnation of hell this place is supposed to be. And in that time, he’s been chased by skeletons and tied up by a bunch of miniature red monks with gasmasks. He’s had his moustache hairs plucked out by a giant, firebreathing turtle bent on taking over whatever world this was. He’s been magically levitated and thrown about by a dinosaur wizard in a goofy hat. And to top it all off, to put the crap cherry on the crap cake, he was tossed into a cage like some old lady’s pet bird and dropped over a pit of freakin’ lava. 

Screw speeches. I want Bowser’s kneecaps.

“You guys want a speech?” Luigi growls, tightening his grip on the gigantic hammer in his hand. “Here’s your damn speech.” Luigi raises his weapon over his head, yelling, “Let’s kick some Koopa ass!”

A raucous cheer rises from the gathered motley group, Luma zooming around the chamber, shouting “Meat for the grinder! Meat for the grinder!” between fits of maniacal laughter. The penguins dance awkwardly, their weapons twice as large as they are and Luigi hopes what they lack in stature they can make up for with enthusiasm. Off to the side, the collection of Goombas bounce up and down. Without any discernible arms or hands, Luigi has no clue what help the Goombas could be, but who knows? Maybe they can bite somebody with those fangs.

He has no plan, no knowledge of where he is, and he prays to every deity he can name that his brother is safe, that whatever world he got pulled into is treating him better than this one has Luigi. But watching the ragtag group celebrate in front of him, he feels something akin to hope.

For the first time in three days, Luigi smiles. 

Maybe, just maybe, he can be a hero after all. 

--------------------------------------

Epilogue

“Watch to your left, Loogi!”

Luigi spins, hurtling his hammer at a charging spiny-shelled Koopa, sending him flying into the general fracas of the first floor antechamber. Towards the middle of the room, Penguins and Birdos and little mushroom people armed with spears are battling it out with Bowser’s minions, shell, fur, and feather flying as his ragtag band of rebels pokes and swats and, in some cases, bodily hurl themselves at the gathered Koopa forces. 

Luigi sprints to retrieve his hammer, intent on throwing himself into the fray when the large double-doors to the throne room boom open in a rush of blinding, white light. It takes Luigi a minute for his eyes to adjust, so long has he been trapped in the gloomy castle chambers. There’s something coming from the light, some kind of shadow hurtling forward. Luigi squints, raising his hammer above his head, ready to strike at whatever newest enemy he'll be certain to pound into the ground.

“Luigi?” An all-too familiar voice yelps from across the chamber. “What in the - “ his brother stammers, rushing towards him, stopping short a few feet away. “Why the hell do you look like Duke Murdock?”

Luigi smashes his hammer down on one of those stupid skeletons, sending splinters everywhere. He turns to his brother, suddenly very aware of his tattered overalls, his soot-stained cap, the dark bags beneath his eyes. "What do you mean?” Luigi counters. “It's a great movie!"

"That's not the point, meatball head! What are you doing?" Mario gestures at the wild chaos unfolding between the escapees and the Koopa troops.

"I'm trying to run a rebellion here, big bro. You could stop standing there and help, you know."

"A rebellion, I - " Mario chuckles, jogging to his brother's side. "Why am I not surprised?"

With the arrival of Mario and his allies, the melee turns decidedly against the Koopas, who, sensing victory slipping through their claws, launch one last offensive of spikes and shells. Luigi and his brother get to work, slamming, punching, and pounding their enemies. It strikes Luigi that Mario looks like he knows what he’s doing, almost as if he’s had some kind of combat training, like he's the one trying to be Duke Murdock. He’s about to ask his brother about it when Mario stops, pulling, of all things, a flower from his overalls.

“Have you gone insane?” Luigi yells.

But he’s left speechless as his brother is enveloped by two quick flashes of light, his overalls changing from blue to white. Luigi's jaw drops open. He has seen a lot of weird crap in the last few days but his brother, performing real magic?

What is this place?

A moment later, Mario winds up, as if he were pitching for his high school baseball team again, letting loose a series of fireballs from his palm, which barrel into the Koopa forces, sending them flying like a set of ten-pins.

"Holy hell, bro!" Luigi exclaims. "You have got to teach me how to do that!"

"Oh no," Mario rockets another flaming missile towards a group of Spinys. "You remember the flambé incident that one Valentine's Day." Luigi groans, slamming his hammer into one of those gas mask monks who kidnapped him. "And the Benson burner in high school." Luigi groans again. "And the fuel injector in the van - "

"That one was not my fault!" Luigi exclaims over the whine of a spiky projectile which whizzes past his head, knocking his cap to the ground.

Mario’s eyes widen as he pulls Luigi towards him, spinning him around so they’re back-to-back.

"You're not going near fire," Mario says over his shoulder.

Too bad his fire gun gave out three levels ago, Luigi thinks, slashing his hammer into the gut of a large Koopa Trooper.

"Electricity, then," Luigi says as he makes a second parry with the hammer. The Koopa Trooper falls back, grunting.

"Wait, what?" Mario shoots him a look, throwing another fireball into the fray.

"Electricity. If you can shoot fireballs, I get to shoot electricity."

Mario gives an aggrieved sigh.

"I - no. First of all, that's not even possible. Second of all, no. And third of all…” Mario trails off, his features softening. The battle is on its last legs, penguins and mushrooms giving chase to a small group of Koopa stragglers, who scurry towards the nearest exit. 

Mario turns, taking Luigi by his shoulders. 

“You're taking this all really well, Luigi."

Luigi gives a wan smile, gaze finding the floor. "Bro, I've led a prison escape gang consisting of penguins, walking mushrooms, and one really messed-up star. We broke out from cages hanging over a pit of lava, stole weapons, and have fought our way up here ever since."

He doesn’t mention being chased through a nightmare hellscape by a pack of hungry skeletons. Doesn’t mention being kidnapped, hands bound, led by a rope through the Dark Land to meet almost certain death. He doesn’t mention the moustache. 

His brother doesn’t need to know about all of that. It’s enough - more than enough - that he’s here. 

Luigi’s chest tightens. "Nothing short of ghosts is going to surprise me at this point, bro," he laughs. It’s a wet, croaky sound.

Mario stares at his brother for a moment. All at once, he grabs Luigi, enveloping his brother in a fierce hug. 

"Pasta brain,” Mario whispers, ragged, into Luigi's shoulder.

The tension from the last few days - the constant alert, the self-preservation, the seemingly never-ending threat of death - it all seeps away in the safety of his brother’s arms. So what if they’re marooned on some other world, other universe, far away from anything resembling Brooklyn? He’s got Mario and that’s all he needs.

"Pizza breath," Luigi replies softly.

Mario grips him tighter. "I'm so, so glad you're safe, bro."

I've missed you so much. Luigi returns the hug with equal intensity. "Me, too, Mario."

#hello there #luigi #mario #smb movie #writing #the eternal struggle #don't ask me why i wrote the penguins that way this whole thing came from the single idea that after luigi helps them escape the cages #they want him to give a speech #anyway - enjoy!

[xiaq]

I like to think I'm not a particularly vain creature, but I've been struggling recently with my face. I know I look fantastic for someone in her 30's. However, I am starting to get the faintest of laugh lines around my mouth and eyes and, especially when I smile in photographs, I'm noticing... a lot more lines. Which makes sense. Because I am aging. And objectively that is a good thing and I really would like to continue my crusade against the beauty industry etc. but the only reason I stopped wearing makeup on a daily basis was because I got eyeliner tattooed on so, clearly the beauty standards are entrenched. Anyway. I'm doing everything I can topical/skincare wise as well as internal/food-wise to treat my skin kindly. I know several female friends my age who started getting regular filler years back but I just...don't want to spend the money or take the risk and B is adamantly against anything been injected into my face, which is fair. I wouldn't want anyone to touch his beautiful laugh lines.

So, I've been researching: 1. At-home microneedling stamps like Qure (seems rollers aren't a good idea) 2. Light therapy like Omnilux 3. Microcurrent therapy like NuFace

Does anyone have experience with any of these (or other!) options for desperately clinging to visible youth without A. filler or B. spending a shit ton of money?

I feel like I'm in this awkward place where there's still hope of looking younger than I am. If I was two decades older with deep laugh lines and was past the point of no return that would just be...easier. Like I wouldn't feel as if I had to try so hard anymore, you know? I don't know. There are days that being a woman in society is exhausting because yeah fuck traditional western standards of beauty, but also...I want to feel pretty.

#the eternal struggle #skincare #aging #anti aging #help

[spanishskulduggery]

I am studying Spanish and I canNot get my head around when to use por and when to use para. I cringe whenever I see a question where I have to use both in different places, I keep getting those wrong. Can you help me?

This post goes over a lot of it

In general, por is "for/in favor of" and para is often "for/for the purposes of/in order to"

A brief overview though:

por

via, by means of / por, or something like por medio de

due to, because of

through - por el parque "through the park" [while para el parque might sound like "up to the park (but not into it)"]

around - estar por ahí "to be around there" / "to be over there"

multiplication "by/times"... like dos por tres is "two times three"

per - por ciento "percent", por hora "per hour" / used in measurements, ratios, and things you'd say "per" for

exchange (like money or bartering) - una camisa por diez dólares or un favor por un favor "favor for favor"

substitution, replacement

"in favor of" - votar por alguien "to vote for someone", or in political things or rallying cries to show "support for" - you might see like por la Iglesia "for the Church" or por España "for Spain"

"why" and "because"

certain idiomatic expressions - por favor "please", por otro lado "on the other hand", por si acaso "just in case", por cierto "by the way", por lo visto "apparently"

passive voice expressions

para

for the purpose of, so that - purposes and general functions of things

due dates and scheduling - days of the week, months, years etc

"to what end?"

recipients for letters/packages/etc

opinions

Also, this is my por y para tag

#learning spanish #spanish lessons #langblr #spanish #spanish grammar #la gramatica #por y para #the eternal struggle

[buginateacup]

Writing be like

#just writing things #the eternal struggle

[signoraviolettavalery]

going to bed means one day closer to the new single but also what chaos will I wake up to, I'm scared

#joker out #the eternal struggle

[pixiealchemist]

Short hair cute, but Long hair so pretty

#The eternal struggle #I want to cuddle with someone who has long hair #but I also wanna make out with someone who has short hair #I want all three of us to have the hottest sex ever with each other #I think that's pretty universal though #hornyposting #bottomposting #topposting #196 #rule