#you all need to see how good i am at curating vibes

[mitskijamie]

I so badly want to post collages of my Roy and Jamie Pinterest boards because they're truly my pride and joy

#oc #i love Pinterest so much #you all need to see how good i am at curating vibes

[xoxoemynn]

For OFMD Tumblr friends who want a S3 and are scared of Twitter

First, no judgment from me. I very much get it. I resisted Twitter for a long time, and even though I'm now a bit more comfortable on it, it's still not my Fandom Home. There are a TON of valid reasons not to be on Twitter, but if you REALLY want to keep OFMD visible right now and help its chances of returning for a third season, Twitter is the best place to do it. Like it or not, Twitter is still the best social media platform for raising awareness and for instant news updates.

Tumblr posts don't make headlines. Topics that have been trending on Twitter do. And if we want this show to come back, we need to make OFMD impossible to ignore.

By now you've probably seen just how close we came to a S3, and if you're like me, you are RAGING and donning your battle jacket. But I get it can be intimidating to get on Twitter for the first time, so I thought I'd address some common anxieties I see. I'll put below a cut because this got a bit long, but I promise it's a quick read.

I don't know what to say! Where do I even start? That's okay! You don't have to create your own tweets (although it's great if you do). Amplifying other people's posts is also important. Go ahead and like/retweet/reply to other people's posts. This may also help you get an idea of what you may like to say in your own tweets.

Hashtags...yes? Yes! Although don't use too many or you may get flagged as a bot. The biggest one that seems to be emerging is #SaveOFMD. Other popular ones are #RenewAsACrew, #RenewOurFlagMeansDeath, and of course, #OFMD and #OurFlagMeansDeath.

Should I just be tagging all the streaming services? Per @renewasacrew, no. It's counterproductive. You'll want to tag one streamer at a time and be specific. Below is an example of a tweet I made the other day -- use specific reasons why that that particular streamer may benefit from picking up OFMD.

I'm scared. People are mean. Yeah, people are mean. But I will say the vibes over at OFMD Twitter are currently the best I've ever seen them. People seem to have united for the greater good and are being overwhelmingly positive and just trying to do whatever we can to save the show. (That said, again, I already had a pretty curated feed, and was very liberal with blocking users/terms I didn't want to see, but I've been able to spend so much more time in the For You tab than I ever have without being jump scared by something.)

But I don't know anyone there! Wouldn't I just be shouting into the void? Not if you use the hashtags! Fans are being really good about following those and engaging with the tweets. Plus, [Stede voice], I'm your friend. I'm xoxoemynn over there as well, I'll follow you back and engage with any of your posts that I see. Plus, what's been REALLY lovely to see is that SO many lurkers have come out of lurkerdom to support the efforts, and they are being welcomed with open arms, so you will not be alone. Again, I am telling you, vibes? Best I've ever seen them.

I can't get sucked into another social media platform, I don't have the time. The beauty here is you don't need to spend a lot of time. I've been on Twitter more in the past week than I have in the entire year I've had an account, and I'm still only on for maybe an hour total the entire day? I open the app, I check a couple accounts, I engage with a handful of posts, and I close the app. It takes all of five minutes. It's an extremely small lift that can have a very big impact.

My bet is on Zaslav expecting us to be upset, and that there may be a day or two of outrage, but then we'd move on. I'm sure right now he's trying to convince everyone that this is a fluke, and that it'll blow over soon. Don't let him win. Keep OFMD in the news. Be loud (but polite) and make Max and other streamers take note of what a passionate, loyal fan base this show has. Make their stocks continue to drop. Make it clear this is NOT just a fluke, it is NOT business as usual. It's a BIG fuck up with lasting consequences.

Twitter, for all its sins, is the best place to do this.

Now let's get our damned show back.

#ofmd #our flag means death #renew as a crew #truly BELIEVE ME I get wanting to stay away!! #and if after we get picked up again you want to delete your account please go ahead and do that! #but this is a really easy and tangible way to show Max/other streamers #just how beloved the show is and how it would benefit them to save it #I love tumblr but it's not going to give us the kind of impact we want #it's for fans - not for external folks/key decision makers #ANYWAY I am by NO MEANS a twitter expert but I'm getting better #and I've seen some people be nervous about getting on the platform so I thought I'd try to help <3

[doobea]

DAYTIME SHOOTING STAR - REO MIKAGE

synopsis: Being a college student sucks. Having a crush on your best friend also sucks. Your best friend having a crush on your other best friend is . . . kinda the worst. In which, Reo is hopelessly in love with you but you’re hard crushing on Nagi.

-> MASTERLIST. -> PLAYLIST.

contents: second lead syndrome feat. fem!reader & reo, heavy narration in the beginning as per usual whoops, also in an au where bluelock never happened LOL, grandparental meeting, reo x stardew valley vibes, of course y/n and reo get together duh, nagi's been shipping them together since high school word count: 3.9K a/n: FINAL PART OUT YAY :3 thank you for joining me on this journey hehe this was also my first time attempt of writing reo so hopefully his characterization went ok ;-;

VEGA -> prev.

You get the feeling that Nagi is up to something, after a while.

Well, Nagi is always up to something — gaming and dozing off, to be exact. This time, though, all of his attention seems to be fixated on you.

“That’s not your sweater,” he says, pointedly, one day, when you waltz into their apartment with a handful of pastries. You decided to make a detour trip to a local bakery earlier in the morning, carefully curating the palettes of the two males because —well— after that happened you felt like a small offering would be needed in a way. 

Like how many others delegate, the kiss was rather… confusing to all. Nagi doesn’t bring it up when you three all return back to festival grounds, nor does he bring it up to Reo when you finally go home. Reo’s been texting you like all things are normal, and you guess it’s because he doesn’t really know what to do either. Though, he’s been more endearing than usual over text, which you take as a sign that something is progressing.

Let’s just say that it’ll be weird for you to wake up without a ‘good morning, did you eat yet?’ text from a certain billionaire’s son.

Backstory aside, Nagi’s not lounging around for once. He’s leaning against the kitchen counter with a freshly brewed cup of coffee in his hands from a brand you’re not familiar with. Judging by its fine print font and pastel color scheme, you assumed that Nana stopped by not too long ago. And his gaze isn’t leaving your sweater. Whatever, you’re probably not wearing it correctly anyway. Stupid rich people problems.

“It’s Reo’s,” you say, lightly, and scoot by him to place down the baked goods. “He accidentally gave me his sweater when he returned my things, that’s all.” 

It wasn’t an accident. Reo had made sure to spray that sweater with all the cologne he had. The sweater is warm, comfortable, and smells just like him. It’s nice.

Nagi gives you a look. It’s not a strong look, but it’s obvious enough to make your cheeks heat up. “Uh huh,” he deadpans before giving you a full up-down. “You’re wearing it, though.”

“Yeah, I am,” you shrug it off, trying to pretend that you don’t understand what the big deal was. 

Okay, yeah, your best friend suddenly kisses you and now you’re rethinking about your life choices since high school because you were so sure that you liked his other friend. And the fact that you kissed back? Was that supposed to happen? And you didn’t wear this sweater today in hopes of Reo seeing you, nope that’s not it. Reo doesn’t make you feel warm and fuzzy because this sweater does all of that. It’s a comfort thing and Reo doesn’t bring you comfort… right?

You apparently have some cheesy expression written all over your face, though, and that causes Nagi to pinch your cheek to snap you back to reality. “Suits you,” Nagi decides to end the topic before shifting to the main subject. “Reo’s out this morning.”

“I wasn’t trying to see him,” you grumble out, eyes narrowing as you fix yourself a latte and adding way too many shots of espresso to fight off your internal turmoil. You add a large serving of caramel syrup to balance out the bitterness and then top it off with a heavy serving of whipped cream, sighing happily as you get a mouthful of the sugary concoction within the first sip.

Nagi simply shakes his head and drains the rest of his drink in one go. “Well, he’s been talking about you nonstop, if that makes—” Nagi stops in his tracks when he watches your ears perk up. “—you happy…”

At this point, Nagi probably thinks everyone is in on a poorly executed inside joke, except for him. He doesn’t like it, but what can he do? His two best friends are now awkwardly pinning each other and neither of them are sparing him any details. Then again, he’s not sure if he wants all the details. So, instead of poking a dead fish around, he exits to the living room and throws on a weekly series that he’s been meaning to catch up on. These past two months have been quite tiring.

You eventually join him on the couch, body now running on full blast of caffeine and loads of caramel. “Sei, tell me everything that he’s said, please?” and you throw out your best attempt at puppy eyes because you know that Nagi has always been horrible at saying no to these kinds of things.

But maybe getting a girlfriend has changed him, somewhat.

“You’ll hear it from him, eventually,” Nagi simply answers, smiling.

Of course, regardless of how many times you repeat yourself, Nagi would spit back the same response. Since when did he start caring for Reo’s secrecy all of a sudden? Pretty lame. You zone out when an action sequence comes on the screen and begin texting Reo.

‘where are you’ You text over a character monologue in the background.

‘At some stores, picking up last minute gifts for later.’ Reo replies back with a series of emojis.

By ‘stores’, you would only guess it’s nothing but high-end designer stuff. ‘Gifts’ implying that he’s buying multiple for your family and relatives. ‘Later’ is when the two of you will depart on visiting your hometown for the weekend because it turns out Reo was actually serious about taking up your off-handed comment.

‘i told you not to get anything!!’ You send an angry emoji right after. 

Nagi is absolutely reading over your shoulder, too, and if looks could kill, you’re pretty sure you’d be in a million pieces, burning to bits on the floor. “Got a hot date with Reo, huh?”

“Well, you didn’t want to come and we’re not dating…” you huff before pushing him away. “And stop reading my texts!”

“Don’t text while I’m watching my show, it’s distracting.” Nagi shoots back, and you don’t really have an argument for that.

Though, you just glare at him until he eventually backs off and you go back to texting Reo, a bit more subtly, talking about various expensive gifts that he can get instead of showing up to your family doorsteps with diamonds and silk robes. You haven’t had anyone from the city come visit your hometown, so you’re a little nervous to say the least. Especially since someone accompanying you is several tax brackets ahead…though Reo wouldn’t judge you differently. Because he likes you, in more ways than one. Fuck.

You’re ignoring a lot of things happening right now, and bringing him over to meet your family is making you feel weird. Ugh, whatever.

In the end, Reo ends up returning half of his purchases because apparently designer bags and jewelry won't serve your grandparents that well in their everyday lives. So he opts to buy them expensive fruits instead. Fruits are already expensive in the country, so when Reo showed up with boxed grapes that costed more than your current outfit, you could've sworn your eyes were about to pop out of your sockets.

Reo should’ve known better than to wear anything remotely formal when he agreed to come visit your hometown. Tailored suits are expensive and difficult to replace and, from what he’s experienced within the past hour, the mud that’s been splattered all over his dress shoes and pants haven’t gone away no matter how much cleaning reagent he’s used so far. But complaints are off the table, no matter how much he absolutely wants to point out the sweltering heat and the lack of air conditioning in your home. 

The plane ride over wasn’t any better. You blatantly refused to use his credit card for first-class seating upgrades regardless how many times he’d begged you.

“It’ll only be a two hour flight, Reo. Plus, economy isn’t that bad.” You reasoned. 

Oh, but it was.

He’s a gentleman and gentlemen should always let others pick which seat they want first. Window seat was a non negotiable for you, and he didn’t really mind. What he did mind was the random stranger seated to his right.

Screen brightness — max.

Volume settings — max.

Chewing noises — sadly, also max.

It’s a miracle that he didn’t flag down an attendant and leave you for first class. Well, flight aside, landing happens and, inevitably, comes the next part.

“Are you enjoying your stay so far?”

Your grandmother comes into view, coming to Reo’s rescue with a sunhat and a bottle of water, and the basket next to her was already filled to the brim with all types of vegetable assortments from the garden. Reo graciously takes the hat and sips of the water before glancing down at his own basket, which is very much barren. He thought offering to help with harvesting will win him some brownie points, but he should’ve known how dirty it would get.

“It’s definitely different from what I’m used to, but it’s nice here.” He’s honest about the last part. 

The city doesn’t offer much in terms of parks and recreational activities and, despite the fact he’s pretty sure his button up is practically attached to his skin and that there’s probably a centipede (or two) crawling in his shoes, the whole nature thing is pretty serene. Your parents’ old home is a cozy cottage right off the side of the country road, surrounded by rice paddy fields with a wide range of mountains in the backdrop. Occasionally, Reo would see truck drivers making pit stops out in the front to either pick up a small shipment or make small talk with your grandfather — it’s completely foreign to him given that he’s so used to the stuffy business world. Seeing all of this makes Reo understand why some would enjoy a life of simple living and solitude. 

Your grandmother laughs. “We were afraid that you wouldn’t like it here.”

To this, Reo digs his hands back into the soil and pulls out a set of carrots in hands. “Sorry, did I give off that impression?” Says the boy who’s currently dressed head to toe in formal wear. Idiot. 

“Our granddaughter has been…” she trails off for a moment, finger pursed to her lips and head tilted, before finishing. “She’s been blowing up the family group chat about this trip for a while now. Safe to say she’s been worried.” 

Oh. That’s news.

Reo wipes off the puddle of sweat from his face and straightens his back. “It’s beautiful and peaceful here, you wouldn’t be able to get this back in the city. Everyone’s been really nice and the food,” he points down to the field. “You wouldn’t be able to get these without them costing an arm and a leg for the sake of being ‘organic’.”

“Sounds like you want to move here.”

And for the sake of earning those brownie points, “Yeah, I can see myself doing that one day.”

“Imagine that. Can’t stay away from our granddaughter, right?” she teases, and it causes him to do a double take.

“W-What?”

She ignores Reo’s stammering and hands him a pair of gloves and a metal bucket. “Once you finish picking the rest, come meet me by the farmhouse, the cows need some attention.”

Reo might have to rethink his career path after this trip.

“Can you tell your cousins to knock it off, please?” Your best friend is grumbling and hiding behind you for all things safety related.

One thing you forgot to mention, outside of the laborious work, is that your little cousins are an absolute menace to outsiders. The youngest one has been non stop terrorizing Reo around the house with a live grasshopper while the older one keeps throwing him glares and middle fingers. This has been going on right after dinner and Reo’s getting really sick of them and their chattering about how they hate seeing you with someone that needs ‘pampering’.

You huff and roll your eyes playfully. “You think I haven’t tried shutting them up?”

“Good point,” Reo groans from behind. He’s gripping your shoulders as if he’s on life support, shaking every time the youngest one raises the grasshopper closer. “Can’t you just give them an iPad or anything?”

“And what? So they can turn into those kids who stare at a screen all day? No thank you.” You tease, but you give your cousins a final stern look before getting to their eye level. 

Reo watches, silent but amused, as you pluck the insect out of the boy’s grasp and pinch his cheek with a light tug, not enough to shed tears but enough to cause him to yelp. You motion the older one over, who just grumbles under his breath but obeys anyway.

“Big sis, we swear we’re just playing together—” the older one starts, and you simply respond with a hard head shake.

“That’s not how we treat guests in our home. Last time I checked, you guys didn’t like it when I made you clean out the pig pen for fun,” you retort with a casual grin. “Time to head back to auntie’s place anyway, it’s way past your bedtimes.”

Both of them sigh in defeat, but that doesn’t stop them from throwing up a pair of middle fingers at Reo. Hey, down with the rich — they’re on the right track in life. And you know deep down they’re just looking out for you ever since your experience in high school, even if the hatred towards city folks is on the extreme side.

You’re stifling a laugh as the pair leave the house. Reo loosens his grip on your shoulders when they are out of ear shot and nudges your sides because you still have that damn grasshopper in your hands.

“Puke or cry in my house and I’m making you sleep with the cows tonight.” The threat is spoken casually, with a bit of affection to it, but Reo knows damn well it’s a valid threat.

“I’m not going to puke or cry,” he replies, haughtily. “And, for the record, I helped the cows earlier today so I’m practically their mother.”

“Oh yeah, thanks for that, you didn’t have to.” You gently toss the grasshopper out the kitchen window, making sure it landed on a patch of soft grass. “Grandma was constantly raving about you after you finished. Saying something about planning the next weekend trip together.”

“Yeah, might as well help around, you know?” Reo weakly chuckles and briefly looks down at his hands. What he doesn’t add is that his hands are going to be sore for the next few days and that maybe your grandparents think he’s going to move in with them in the future. Something of that sort.

“It’s not the worst idea,” You grin. The sun is down, and the stars in the sky are starting to poke through. You catch Reo trying to get a good look before an idea pops up. “My room has a pretty good view of everything, if you want to head up?” You would offer to lay outside but, considering that the ecosystem here offers much bigger bugs, you decided against it.

Unsurprisingly, Reo takes up on the suggestion.

Your old bedroom is sparsely furnished, and that’s intentional. Most of your personal belongings are currently at your college apartment. All that’s left is a full sized bed, an old boxy television with an equally old boxy stand, a couple of bookshelves stuffed full of children's books, and one of those large colorful beanbags by the window sill. 

It’s a nice bedroom, for all things considered. A lot more vibrant and has more character than Reo’s old bedroom growing up. From what he’s shown you before, his bedroom was almost a black and white minimalist’s wet dream. 

“It’s a bit dusty, hope you don’t mind.”

Your bedroom window has a nice view of the mountain side, and Reo’s quickly distracted by the swarm of fireflies and night stars as he quickly shoves his suitcase into the corner and settles on your bed without a second thought. 

“I like it,” He replies, in a careful, casual voice. And maybe it’s just your imagination, but you swear, your best friend sounds both anxious and excited, and maybe there’s a hint of nerves in there, too. Whatever it is, your stomach is back to doing those weird flips.

You try to think. You’re aware of several things right now. First, your best friend is making himself very comfortable in your bed. Second, he’s giving you a look, one that just screams some sort of smug superiority. Third, despite it being humid and warm in your room, you really just want to bury your face into his shoulder. Maybe you should climb in with him, look at the stars together, curled up and snuggling, maybe even run your fingers through his hair, and—

“So,” Reo interrupts and snaps you out of your strange reverie. “You’re sleeping on the floor, right?”

“Huh?” your voice is bleary, and your thoughts are kinda far off. Reo shuffles his way under your sheets and suddenly you put two and two together. “I saved you from those little demons and this is the thanks I get?” 

“I deserve it since I worked,” Reo sighs, dramatically, when you finally find the courage to sit down on the ends of the mattress. “Or did you want to share it together?” Tease oozes into his tone.

That last bit makes your heart skip a couple of beats. Alcohol wasn’t in the dinner mix and, even if it was, Reo would never be this bold in front of you. Perhaps there’s something floating in the summer air.

“Stop pretending that you live here,” but you eventually settle yourself underneath the blankets too, just on the other side to put some good inches in between.

Reo’s smiling, and that’s all that matters. It doesn’t bother you when he manages to hog all the blankets and the limited amount of pillows. He’s a gentleman, but also has his needy side that he’s not afraid of showing. Not to mention that he looks good in the dim lighting, even though he’s only been wearing one of your grandpa’s old t-shirts after working in the field. It finally makes the strange fluttering in your stomach calm into a steady, present warmth, and that’s maybe more problematic, but you don’t give it any real thought.

Reo speaks up after a few passing heartbeats. “Can I… say something?” 

You swallow thickly. “Go for it.”

It can’t be just your imagination, the way Reo’s mouth parts, just a little, the way his tongue is dating out to wet his lips. You’re leaning forward, hand reaching down between. You can’t stop looking at him. 

“I want…” Reo tries to say, but his throat is a giant lump.

“Reo,” You breathe out in response, head tipping, “If you keep looking at me like that, then…”

It comes in swift moments, with Reo pressed close, with both of your hips bumping together, with arms slung over the other’s shoulder. There’s been those moments of laughter, where it feels as if the whole world has faded away in a blur beyond the gaze of your best friend. It’s cliche and dumb, but you feel, in a way, that you’ve been looking at Reo for your life. And you have, really, because he’s always been there for you.

There’s a lot of things that Reo could say. They’re burning on his tongue, building in his throat, getting stuck there. He should just push them out, just say it. Or, maybe, he should say nothing at all, because that wonder and those answers are all reflected in your gaze.

Both of you are so close that he can make out every strand of your lashes. He can see the subtle shift of color in your eyes, the dark band increasing around your pupils, that slight nervous glimmer there. It’s got Reo’s heart pounding in his chest, hammering to be freed. He’s got one hand pressed into the small of your back, stroking there, slow and affectionate. His other hand is trembling, just a little, and he steadies himself bracing it against your cheek.

It’s got you shivering, and Reo realizes that you’re both a bit terrified.

“I want to be yours,” Reo might be nervous as hell, but he steels his voice, and brushes your lips together, he’s so close, when he talks. “I can’t think about anything else when I’m with you. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, but—”

“Reo,” you take the initiative here, shifting closer, and settling your lips close to his neck. “It’s okay. I want you too.”

You take another inch forward and Reo allows it. Maybe you’re both getting more comfortable with each other. Maybe getting brave and feeling more grown up. Likely, it’s a combination of everything, and a good dose of ‘fuck it’s, from being young, and dumb, despite it all.

You’re not sure who leans in first but, before it even fully registers, his lips glide over yours. There’s some awkward teeth clacking involved, probably from the fact both of you are way too full of nerves over this, but Reo fixes it and begins to trace his tongue over the small opening of your lips. You move your hands straight to his locks, still damp from the earlier shower he took and the scent of lemongrass and citrus invades your nostrils.

Reo's kissing you as if he wants to swallow you whole. It's hungry, desperate, and intimate in a way that made your heart swell triple in size. The sounds of your beating chest floods your ears as he's pouring his emotions into the kiss, making sure that he's leaving behind evidence that his soul is yours to claim. The heat radiating off his body pulls you in, like an invitation, and you sink further into his touch.

After a moment, you pull back, hands still entangled in his hair.

“Your parents, aren’t you worried about—”

“I don’t pay mind to that type of stuff,” he presses a firm kiss on your forehead. “And you shouldn't have to either. That’s a future thing to worry about.”

That sounds good, you agree, but you’re growing too sleepy to voice it. Instead, you shut your eyes, reaching over blindly to find the edges of the blankets, tugging it up over you two. There’s really no way to move, without cramming at the edge of the mattress. You don’t care, and Reo doesn’t seem to, either.

“Hey, Reo?” You mumble as you both slip into silence.

“Yeah?” He’s tried, but awake enough to shake past the exhaustion, enough to form vague words. “What is it?”

You sit up, just a little, and it’s enough to inspire Reo to force his eyes open. You’re watching him, eyes intent, shining bright with emotion. It’s almost — just almost — enough to have Reo saying those three special little words. They’re right there, on the tip of his tongue, and only then he realizes that he’s terribly in love with you. He’s hopelessly in love. It’s way too early to say it, but he is.

You laugh, burying your face in Reo’s neck again, pressing a kiss there. “I’m glad that you’re here with me.”

Reo has hesitated a lot, during the past months. It’s taken him a while to get here. For once, though, awake or dreaming, it doesn’t matter. He doesn’t hesitate. 

“I’m glad too,” he mumbles, and then, he’s dreaming, of endless what if’s and possibilities with you now in his life.

© 2023 DOOBEA. do not copy any of my writing and translate/repost.

additional note: idk why it took me over a month to pump this out LMAO but i hope you guys like the ending bc i was mulling over this chapter so many times before deciding to end it as such... anyways, I WILL BE BACK INTO MY BLLK FIC GROOVE HEHE gotta focus on my milestone fics + that ice skating rin series next :3 i love you guys and thanks again for being patient with me ;3

TAGLIST -CLOSED

@celestair @kitorin @popponn @yoisami @anurst @katsukiiishoe @yuzurins @vitaniangel-blog @kunikame @miwafei @astruoise @faeroow @wooasecret @limerence-lu @jaynawayna @iloveblogging2 @futuristicxie @rinlvr @au-ghosttype @wavetokio @yuusami @phtogravi @funnibunneh @idontevenknow129 @startaee @darthvada @livelaughloveisagiyoichi

#blue lock #bllk #blue lock imagines #blue lock x reader #bllk x reader #doobea writing #reo mikage x reader #reo mikage #DAYTIME SHOOTING STAR - REO MIKAGE #bllk reo #reo x reader #mikage reo x reader #blue lock x you #blue lock x female reader #BYE THIS IS THE FINALE WHOO #why did this take me forever idk #what started out as a mini thing turned into long words uh oh #time to refocus on that rin ice skating thing...

[angelofthepage]

Bendy: Secrets of the Machine Comes out on April 14th, 2024

And according to the Steam page, that's 4 days away (as of the time of this post). We don't know what hour it's coming out on this coming Sunday, but regardless, a lot of people are really excited for it! And with a new Bendy release comes my PSA on spoilers.

Please tag your spoilers.

Or, if you plan on not tagging your spoilers, please give your followers a head up so they can self curate as needed. I don't need to say this for my sake, but because I know it might help someone else: there is absolutely no shame in unfollowing someone temporarily or permanently if they are posting things you don't want to see. They don't even have to be 'problematic', you can say to yourself "I don't vibe with this" or "I don't want to see this right now" and leave. There's often the option to come back later if you change your mind! I will not be offended if you decide to step away from any of my accounts because of how I engage with fandom, I'd much rather you make your fandom experience fun and healthy for you.

This is a good time to go mute/block tags related to this game if you want to go into it blind/impression-less like I am. As per usual, look to the tags of this post to see what I'll be using to keep my spoilers contained. My personal policy regarding this game? Please do not send me asks or messages about it. I want to go in completely blind and experience it for myself, and I don't want anyone else's impressions or opinions until I have gotten through it and had time to process. When I am ready to talk about it, I will tell you very clearly. If you spoil me on any part of this game, you will be blocked.

I hope you all have a great time with Secrets of the Machine! Can't wait to discuss when we're all ready to come together afterwards.

#bendy spoilers #bendy secrets of the machine #bendy secrets of the machine spoilers #bendy sotm #bendy sotm spoilers #sotm #sotm spoilers #secrets of the machine #secrets of the machine spoilers #been talking with a friend about potentially streaming this game the day after it comes out #I make no promises given I have no idea how my computer is going to run it especially with streaming #but this is especially why I want no spoilers or impressions this time #not that I need an extra reason to not want to be spoiled #but there is one this time around #thanks for understanding

[shoukiko]

Hi, you can keep this unanswered and not post it, but I want to help you understand the thought behind some of the points in your criticism post. Before I start I want to apologise if I come off as blunt and rude, that's not my intention and I'll try my best to show my tone as unthreatening but I'm autistic and not a native English speaker, which complicates things lol

*general you used throughout the ask

First, I want to start with this: they all are part of the army. You don't need to dig much to see you'll rarely see a "morally upstanding" person in the army, be it because they're cheaters, abusers, compliant with all that or they're (insert -ist/-phobe category here). UK military spouses are 3 times more likely to experience intimate partner violence (IPV). I'm not saying the COD characters need to be written like that, but it wouldn't be "unrealistic" if we take real life statistics into account.

Second, and maybe the most important thing, everyone writes COD characters OOC. The majority of the active fandom on Tumblr and tiktok have seen gifs and 10min out of context clips from the game at best. It's to be expected to not frequently find something actually in character for a lot of the guys. Especially with characters that are just operators like König, Nikto and Krueger. In their case everything is and isn't OOC at the same time because we just... Don't know these characters. We lack characterisation past maybe 1-3 traits about them. I'd argue that's why the fandom liked König so much, other than being masked, he's the perfect paper doll! You can dress him up in whatever characterisation you want and it probably won't contradict his canon (because he barely has one and what he has is quickly misinterpreted (anxiety disorder turning into shyness for example)).

Now specifically on your "How are you going to hc a victim as the abuser?" - simple, whether you like to accept it or not is up to you, but it's not far fetched for victims to become abusers later in life. Just look at serial killers statistics - 74% of US serial killers were psychologically abused and 42% were physically abused as children and later in life followed a similar pattern brought to an extreme. Or on the other hand, a tamer example would be generational trauma because that's how we get that (grandparent was abused and because that's all they know, they implement it in bringing up their child who, for the same reason, implements it in bringing up the grandchild and so on).

The final thing I want to say is, it's good to block people who you don't vibe with. Doesn't matter if it's because they wrote something that personally disturbed you or you simply don't like their blog theme or you see them too often in the tag. Personally curating your experience is key in fandom, utilise the tools Tumblr has given us. Of course as you and others have mentioned that's impossible without some assistance from the other side. Tagging is extremely important (tagging with the correct words without censoring!!! Or the filter won't catch! Rape, noncon, incest ✅; r@pe, n*nc*n, 1nc*st ✖️✖️).

I hope this isn't too messy or long aaaa

I really appreciate you taking the time to type this up and actually speak to me about this, your input is very appreciated. /gen

I do think I could've done better on that post since I wrote it in the heat of the moment, all characters are written OOC and it was ignorant of me to say

"Maybe read the characters backstories and actually take their past into consideration because you guys kinda look dumb for making these characters so OOC."

I hope ya'll can really take the time to see my POV, I did not mean. any harm, I've come across some gross things, but blocking and filtering tags so much as begun to be tiring.

My main issue is tagging, without tagging I am left with getting triggered by random posts because the first few sentences may include something on my trigger list.

That's all I want and also what a lot of other people want.

Writing is meant for anyone and everyone, a form of art and perhaps a for of therapy.

Please tag your work, you are not the only person on the internet.

Thank you for reading!

#call of duty #cod mwii #cod mw2 #cod #simon ghost riley #cod mwiii #konig #kiko asks #shoukiko

[naturecalls111]

as someone who read tfc for the first time almost 10 years ago and is having a blast with tsc and the series revival i'm very curious to know if you have any thoughts/opinions on the books/the story on it. (btw, i love your work so much!!! came for one of your lovely sanjis and stayed for everything else you made)

Waaahh amazing question anon! Thank you! I’m gonna have a blast answering this :3c

(Also, thank you so much for the kind words TTT ❤️❤️)

I’ll TL;DR at the end because I have a lot of thoughts on AFTG and am taking this opportunity to yap lol

I’ll preface this with a few things just so my opinions exist within a specific context rather than like, a biasless void:

1. I read the series only to be in a similar fandom space with a friend of mine. She enjoys it a lot, and I enjoy her brain a lot, so even if I didn’t care for the series I would be at least One Foot in through the door of the AFTG world because I really love her characterization and takes and analysis etc etc you get the gist - I have an INCREDIBLY curated space to talk about it and the vast majority of my enjoyment for the series comes from that

2. I personally, have a few gripes here and there with Nora Sakavics writing. I think she’s a good writer pretty consistently and an Excellent one in certain scenes, so I don’t mean this as a slight to her skill, rather just establishing my bias of not really being the biggest fan of the way she deals with certain topics and the way she structures her story. This is totally a personal preference though, I can’t stress that enough

3. I haven’t read TSC yet, and either avoid or haven’t gotten around to reading Nora’s extra snippets and points of characterization outside of what exists in the books. Like I refuse to accept Andreil cat names sort of thing. Lol.

OK-

I’ll start with the stuff I like:

1. I looooveeeeeee… love these characters deeply. The Foxes are so cute and awesome and I like that their general vibe is “they hate each other but they hate everyone else more.” I know the principles of the Foxes is that they’re found family, and I get that, but I’m happy Nora wasn’t afraid of making them antagonistic or abrasive with each other, and that it doesn’t become a “and then, through Neil’s efforts, they all REALLY get along !!!” Like. Seth and Kevin actively hating each other, and Kevin not backpedaling on that when Seth dies, was both terrifying and engrossing, because it made me realize just how much smaller their already small circle becomes. Dan is so fun, Matt is so fun, Allison is SooooooOooOOOOOO Awesome. Jeremy was lovable from the get go. I like all the characters - I care for their… character sheet? More than I care about the story, if that makes sense?

2. To be honest I was less positive about it at first but I actually love this invention of a sport LOL the name is cool too… Exy…

3. I genuinely think Nora is Good at making scenes exciting and giving you that “jaw drop” moment with exactly the amount of fanfare the scene needs. It was intensely enjoyable to read AFTG because I was Constantly feeling something and wanting to see how something unravelled, and I didn’t know when she would Drop That Big Moment next. AFTG is a lot of great things, but if I had to choose one thing, it would be how great Nora was at making me antsy about what comes next.

4. It’s funny. OK! IT’S FUNNY! I laughed a bunch of times. It Has Funny Dialogue. Early Andrew made me crack up multiple times and the way his general actions were written were perfect LOL

5. Generally really happy that Nora wasn’t afraid of pulling any punches with the themes presented in the story. Very tragic and intense! I’m always eager to read content that is willing to explore that stuff so I’m happy the book Had That to the degree that it did

6. It has Nicky Hemmick and Kevin Day in it. I am obsessed with both of them.

And then there’s stuff I’m in the middle about, where I like it sometimes and I don’t at other times. It’s up in the air, I can make a case for not liking and make a case for loving it:

1. Neil not describing anyone’s physical appearance properly like. Ever. And I don’t know if this is a Nora thing or if this is a Neil thing, if that makes sense. Because on one hand, I’m like ok yeah it would make sense that Neil Josten does not care to comment about the way people look, but we get SO LITTLE outside of “dark hair. Light hair. tall.” I’m like equal parts endeared and grinding my teeth at it

2. Some dialogue is really corny. But that’s okay, because I think they deserve to be corny sometimes. Corny isn’t bad, you know? It still made me kick my feet at times

3. I cannot gauge how well I think the story dealt with rough topics. I think viewing the world through a Neil lens makes it a little easier to not completely consider everything at face value, and it’s really nice that despite everything Neil could have become, he’s still intensely likable and all around Good. That being said, it’s not so much Neil’s POV that I’m stressed about as it is how the story goes around issues of other characters? I won’t take out my list of eyebrow raises but I was like, immensely Not Happy about how Matt’s addiction was dealt with. I don’t even have a problem with what Andrew did (in terms of, I don’t have a problem with that being something written into the story) but Matt’s reaction to Neil’s (rightful) horror about how he could be okay with that, and Matt being like no yeah listen trust me, it’s fine, and also my mom approved of it…. Hhhh maybe it’s for personal reasons that I don’t like how that was dealt with, but I just didn’t. Meanwhile, I thought Andrew’s backstory was dealt with well. I thought the Drake scene was handled very well, in that it moved me to numbing shock and I got nauseous and I think the details it chose to omit and include were incredibly important (had the scene been More explicit, I think I would have been less visceral? Because so much of it would have been set out in front of me, but because the vast majority of that scene was Emotions And Implication, it REALLY fucked with me, I appreciate it)

4. Nora has used verbal expo dumps enough that I Noticed it but can’t decide where I stand on it because I’m also totally of the mind that people Talk. And that’s fine. Like people in Real Life also have expo dumps about others so I’ll cut it some slack actually

And the things I don’t like…:

1. Why is Exy capitalized that drives me nuts

2. I put off reading AFTG for a while because the entire premise admittedly seemed totally not my type of story and, expectedly, no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t get into the whole Mafia thing. I know it’s a large part of what drives the plot forward but I genuinely have to turn a blind eye to it when I talk about my love for AFTG LMFAO like I just can’t it’s too much. I know the story has a lot of moments where you have to suspend your disbelief and I’m happy to do that because that’s the point of fiction but the mafia stuff is just like. Background noise to me. I don’t think about it. I don’t think I registered a word of what Lola said. I get that we need some source of trauma for these kids but also. Also. LMSFKDJSKLDFJ like you could easily replace the mafia stuff with something else and get the same effect but. Whatever. This is clearly like a Me Not Liking Mafia Things thing

3. Sometimes it got too corny for my taste, and certain dialogue I thought would do better as more vague thoughts. In line with me loving Neil being such a shit stirrer and short tempered, I had a difficult time with his monologue/mouth off at Riko during the ball because it felt too dramatic and rehearsed I’m so sorry Neil baby I’m totally supportive of you telling Riko off (THE INTERVIEW SCENE IN BOOK ONE WAS SSAAAUURRRRR GOOD!!!!) But other times I was like. Hiding my face behind my hands and bashing my skull against my pillow. I think the only part of that initial ball scene that I liked was Jean’s general introduction and interactions. Also I know it’s Andrew’s whole Thing when he’s on meds but some of Andrew’s lines occasionally had me scratching my chin awkwardly. This complaint mostly sizzles out by book 3 though. I liked book 3

4. I mentally retcon Andrew and Aaron’s and Riko’s heights where I can. I’m sorry. It’s for my own sanity. I don’t want to be taller than any of them in any given moment. I can accept Neil’s because I like Haikyuu also

5. I’m not satisfied with the book 3 ending.

6. I say this as someone who speaks four languages, 2 of them fluently and the other two very close to fluent - the language shenanigans of the characters in AFTG is literally so extremely batshit LMFAO I will never forget Jane texting me if I know how to say dashboard lighter in my native tongue and me being like ‘I don’t even know what that the fuck that is in English’ HAHAH like . Just. It was silly. It got silly. I don’t know how many languages Nora speaks but with the given time frames of how long they would have had to learn the languages + the context in which they learned it . Just. You’re not convincing me I’m soooo sorry!!!!

ANYWAY that’s my general review on it. The TLDR is that mafia stuff isn’t my thing and at times I struggle to suspend my disbelief but I enjoy the characters a lot and the dynamics built between them, and the fact that Nora wasn’t afraid to make the story Hurt, the characters Hurt. You know?! I’m excited to read TSC and fawn over Jeremy and the fact that I can never have him!!!

#nc111qna #other fandoms: all for the game #other fandoms

[simulation-machine]

On blocking.

Unblocked some folks that I had blocked before. Mainly because I realized that 1) none of this shit matters in the end, 2) the people who were blocked for being bratty probably don’t even remember who I am anymore and 3) I should probably give fair warning to what will inspire a block and what will not.

So, figured I’d ~*~formally announce~*~ the reasons why I’d block in the future:

𝟏. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬, 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝, 𝐈’𝐦 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐞.

► Racism, ableism, colorism, homophobia, transphobia, classism, nationalism, sexism, being creepy, bigotry in general? Nope. Not allowed. This Simblr here is multiracial, bisexual, nonbinary, neurodivergent, and was raised by extremely poor butch lesbians. My tolerance for fuckery is so low. ► You can critique me in good faith all you want, but if you just insult me, then peace out. You’re catching a block. Especially if you don’t apologize after you’re proven wrong. ► I’m anti-paywall, and I’m not sorry. Do you want to fight about this? I don’t care. Y’blocked.

𝟐. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞, 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐛𝐲𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫.

► The singularity hasn’t happened yet so I don’t believe anyone sending me this shit is truly sentient. ► Porn is free, so if I wanna see some naked bits I know where to go, and it sure isn’t your shady af link. ► I have a partner and two needy af dogs, plus I’m going to school full-time. I don’t have the time or energy to find out about local singles in my area or join some mlm.

𝟑. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐣𝐞𝐫𝐤-𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐟𝐟, 𝐈’𝐦 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐛𝐞 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝.

► I’m not going to explain why. If you were raised by some rabid mongoose who didn’t teach you how to be baseline polite, it’s not my problem. Get help. Read some Miss Manners. Slide on out of my DMs.

𝐈𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧…

As a rule I don’t take this hobby of mine very seriously. I like The Sims, I enjoy ♥ing posts with cute sims, houses, stories, and content as a rule. The second this stops being fun, I’m outtie. My real life is robust and fulfilling so I don’t see the need to get caught up in drama and bad vibes that are not directly related to a topic I’m passionate about (see first arrow in 1 above).

Likewise, if I’m blocked by somebody, even somebody I respect, I’m not going to pitch a fit about it. This is a place where you can curate your feed to ridiculous degrees and if I irritate or upset you, you 100% should make it so I don’t dim your digital doorways. You don't owe me a single thing.

Tl;dr: I’m a blocker, not a fighter.

#announcement #rules of engagement #how to get blocked: dipshit edition #blog stuff #pinned post

[texasbama]

Hiya I know you're a safe space and I need to get this out, so sorry in advance 🙃.

I see how amazing canon bi buck is for the queer community and I don't mind how it happened in canon. But while I should be happy, I actually kind of feel like I'm mourning? I'm so attached to eddie, maybe unhealthily so, and the ensemble found family dynamic is what first brought me to the show. For a while it's been a struggle having the fandom basically shove buck into every spec or storyline and act like he is a perfect angel and the centre of the universe. But there was always the eddiezers and it was more balanced. But now literally EVERYBODY is all about buck and tommy. It feels like the rest of the show doesn't even exist. I know its only been a couple of days but going on social media now just makes me anxious and idk why really. I'm worried about future eddie storylines, I'm desperate for marisol to disappear, but the vibe is that now buck is bi nothing else matters, we've won apparently, who even cares about eddie or the other characters because buck kissed a man.

Also I'm sex-repulsed ace and people saying how if you don't like it you're a purist and an evangelical and homophobic and biphobic actually makes me feel like shit. I never really understood wanting two characters to have sex 'because why not', because I don't understand why anyone wants to ever lol. I can only read buddie smut in very specific scenarios and most of the time i skip even that. And the rhetoric in a lot of tumblr space recently makes me feel like a bad person for not being all for it 100%. I don't think I've explained myself well here but I tried. You don't have to reply or post this either, I just wanted to reach out to someone in fandom who won't jump down my throat for it 😅. 911 is kind of a hyperfixation of mine so even though I'm trying to stay away as much as possible so as to not make myself more upset but I have no idea what to do with myself otherwise 🫠. Thanks for reading and sorry for unloading on you

Please don’t apologize, im happy you felt like I was a safe space. Im gonna break this into two parts and I hope I can articulate myself correctly lol

1) the first few days after an episode, any episode but especially one like this, isn’t indicative of fandom as a whole. Emotions are heightened due to what happened in the episode. Everyone is screaming about something and it’s in your face ya know? This week something HUGE happened, so yes people are talking about it. It was to be expected. We must make space for people to be happy about it. It’s a beautiful thing and queer joy MUST be celebrated.

This show (for the most part) has done a beautiful job of giving each character their time to shine(some more so than others but thats a conversation for a different day). Coming off 7x04, yes the headline is Bi Buck. And it will continue to be for a while, but it’s important to remember that YOU curate your fandom experience. I don’t blame you at all for what you’re feeling, ESPECIALLY as an Eddie girlie(gn), like I get it! Trust me! I’ve had to carefully maneuver through some emotions this week myself. I’m human! But filtering and being able to step away is everything.

Being excited about the storyline and also hoping and wanting more from other storylines are two things that can be true at the same time. It’s not one or the other. Remember that.

2) im going to say this and just know the caps is because I am just passionate. I promise you, its yelling at you with love okay?

I know it is easier said than done, but don’t you EVER allow ANYONE on this fucking hellsite make you feel less than or that your asexuality is anything but 100% valid. YOU are valid, you hear me?

Okay. I had to make sure to say that first. Whew. Now. As for the fandom piece of it all, we have to remember that there levels to it. You are allowed to feel the way you feel about sex, BUT it’s also important to remember that sex positivity (and those who express it) is also a good and valid. If you feel like there are blogs that talk down to you, imply that YOU are homophobic or biphobic simply because YOU are not doing cartwheels about different sex acts, then block. Unfollow. Do whatever you need to. Those people are scum.

Listen to me *pulls you close*, this is always a safe space. You are a valid, your existence and experiences are valid. And anyone who makes you question that can fuck right off. And lastly, HAPPY ASEXUALITY DAY TO YOU SPECIFICALLY! MUAH! 💜🤍🩶🖤

#this got REALLY long and I am sorry for that lmfaoooo #911 asks

[epicspheal]

So something that's been popping up on Twitter about disliking Carmine, Kieran and/or Nemona...and I'm going to at least address the Carmine and Kieran plotline later in an analysis But I just wanted to say that the community needs a friendly reminder that people can dislike any character of a franchise. Not every character is going to be everyone's cup of tea. Sometimes they may remind them of an experience IRL and that sits with them. Maybe they wanted different from the character's arc. Maybe that character archetype just doesn't vibe with them And it's okay Yes, there are numerous instances of characters being hated because of bandwagons or having massive double standards and stereotypes heaped on them as justification for why they're disliked. No one is denying that. And yeah sometimes people dislike the characters because they weren't paying attention to their story line at all. Or maybe they didn't care for the character but chose to make a bad faith "this character that isn't actually problematic, is actually very problematic" take to justify their dislike of the character. These are all very real things that happen in fandom, and it will unfortunately eventually happen to character you dearly love. And it sucks to see, trust me I've been there. But also sometimes none of that is the reason. Sometimes people have reasons for disliking a character that aren't steeped in bandwagon hate or double standards. And maybe they did pay attention to the story line and understood and still didn't like the character or story because it really isn't their cup of tea. And they just simply dislike the character without going into bad faith takes. This is also very true, and way more common than people like to admit when it comes to dislike of their faves.

Trying to make every instance of dislike of a character "nitpicking", "media literacy", "contrarian" or "double standards" doesn't do discussion of characters any favors and is a bad faith assumption of people to just go straight to that every time you see an instance of people disliking said characters. Yes it's good to push back at certain narratives to offer a different perspective especially if certain narrative perpetuate harmful stereotypes or are in bad faith. That's one of the reasons this blog existed to begin with, but that I doesn't mean I don't recognize that someone could look at the points I talk about with various characters and still come away not caring for the character. And I get, it hurts to see dislike of comfort characters, or characters you identify with, especially with the latter as it can feel more personal (if they don't like this character, then they won't like me). But also you have to realize that with 8 billion people in this world...we're not all going to vibe with each other. Obviously some people we're not going to vibe with because of pure differences in morals...and sometimes we find certain people flat out annoying, or boring, or awkward or whatever and it's not that these people are morally bankrupt we literally just don't vibe. And it's okay. There's always other people who will enjoy you and your comfort characters the way you/they are.

I just had to put this out there before I even touch the Kitakami sibling discourse because I want to make it clear that I am sympathetic to people who dislike either character (even if I personally like both of them) because while yes there are some absolutely wild takes on them, also there's been plenty of valid expression of negative views that are just getting lumped into "HATER" territory. And if seeing someone dislike a character you really like gets to you...you can always block them. I cannot stress curating your fandom space enough and if you deeply resonate with a character and seeing the takes (no matter how mild or wild they are) gets to you it's okay to not engage with those people.

#pokemon #pokemon sv dlc

[allamericansbitch]

Hi Sarah, I probably should just unfollow you and keep curating my experience here, but you've been one of my fave blogs for years so I'm gonna try to explain it just in case it helps. The reason why I'm leaving and other people I know have left is because your blog is so draining... Obviously we don't know you personally or how you behave on a day-to-day basis, and it's not all your fault since 80% of your blog is usually asks of people complaining, but do you really not realize this? I remember that you said once during your hiatus that you were going to focus on enjoying things and getting rid of the negative vibes and stop responding to asks that only created drama. That felt so refreshing and good for you, but it keeps getting worse now. And if it feels this way to me and others, I can't imagine the weight that you must carry every day from the moment you log in... I'm telling you this because I don't consider you a toxic person and I think that you'd like to know if someone perceives you the same way as you perceive that one blog you hate (only in your case, it's the other way around) because to be fair the differences are not that huge... Obviously you're the opposite, but in terms of behaviour and perception as a whole, the vibes are there. I'm sorry if any of this has offended you, you're free to ignore it, keep feeding your anons and move on. I know it feels like an attack and that you losing one or two of your followers that you don't even know isn't gonna affect you at all, that's not the meaning behind this. I say this because I genuinely care as I know how toxic these apparently harmless environments can be to your own mental health. You are so much better and clever than that. Anyway, I wish the best for you, maybe I'll be able to follow you again some day. Good luck and please take care 💕

You know what. You’re right. Obviously you can unfollow me no matter what that’s your choice but I’m going to be honest, I am really tired.

I kind of have begun to dread looking at my inbox in the morning because of all the negativity and while I agree with a lot of it, it gets so repetitive. I have been trying to practice not answering the worst ones because my god are they bad and I’ve been doing a good job at just deleting them but there’s so many. I honestly just don’t want to not answer people, so many people have told me this is safe space for them and when they’re venting to me I feel like I have a responsibility to reply and have them feel heard, and I have thought about how it must feel to follow me and have to deal with all these asks.

It’s also really hard to get out of. Like every time something happens I get 20, 50, even 100+ asks about it and I feel like I have to respond. And that’s not even including the insane amount of troll asks I get, it’s exhausting. And I don’t wanna sound ungrateful, people have been so nice to me and appreciative. But for the past week or two, I’ve been wanting to just turn my inbox off because of how bad the troll asks have gotten and how I dread seeing more complaints first thing when I wake up but I’d feel so guilty taking the space away from people.

I feel the need to apologize but I don’t really know what for, the negativity I guess. I do not like what my blog has become to be honest. I think I’m gonna take the day and think about some stuff. Thank you for sending this in such a respectful, constructive way.

#anonymous #answered

[decepti-thots]

I was in the tumblr tf fandom for a hot second a few years ago and i just wanted to ask, is it still really aggressive here? because back then there was a lot of shipping drama, there were a few callout posts going around (can't really remember about what) and just...a lot of bad stuff. I personally had someone tell me to kill myself because I liked one of the villains. guess I'm just wondering if, in your opinion, things have chilled out? Cuz I'd like to get back into it but I'm a little hesitant;;;

I'm going to try and give the fullest answer I can in the best faith to this! For context, this blog is a couple years old now, I have enough followers that I get a lot of active engagement on my posts etc, I am very active in TF fandom here, Twitter, and IRL, and while I did not used to be active I have been lurking in TF fandom as long as I have been on Tumblr.

There is absolutely still some toxicity; all fandoms have their bad faith actors, their drama hounds, their shipping Diskhorsers TM. I have gotten hate mail, I know folks who have issue with weird anon haters who are persistent, whatever. But no, it is not as bad as it has been in the past, IMO, not at ALL, and it is 100% possible to have an active, sociable and nice time in this fandom so long as you curate your engagement, with basically no drama at all. Many of the worst folks burned out and left when the fandom got less active and their shitstirring paid lesser and lesser dividends, IME.

People sometimes ask how I maintain such a vocal presence without falling into the still-there drama, and I have some advice that I promise you will mitigate like, 99% of the possible issues you could encounter:

Block whenever you feel like blocking. If you get a bad vibe, if you just don't personally like someone and don't wanna see them, if you see them throwing what looks like a temper tantrum you don't want in on, just block 'em. Remember: blocking is nothing personal towards the person you are blocking. It is not insulting and doesn't need to be 'earned'. Block every single person you think not blocking might even just theoretically cause stress or drama. (I am blocked by several people for reasons no more serious than 'I hate your OTP', and I commend every one of them for doing it and having a better time on this site!)

Delete any and all anon hate. Block anyone and everyone who sends you hate. No exceptions. No witty comebacks. No takedowns. Nothing. You see it and the actual literal second you do, you block and delete. None of it is worth one second of your time. Deprived of the oxygen, they will leave. And you won't be tempted to re-read it and stress out.

In that same vein, if it causes issues, just turn anon off! Turn it off. Personally I keep it on because I simply do not care about the odd troll, but if you care even slightly? Fuck 'em, turn it off, anon is a privilege your followers need to earn by acting in good faith.

Find people you like and follow them, ignore blatant shitstirring in the maintags (again: block people!) and try to curate content and follows and mutuals based on what you do like and not what you don't. Curate positive engagement; do not rely on the general fandom slurry, find what you like and hang out in your own corner of things that bring you joy. If the maintag stresses you out: don't check it. Check the blogs of folks you know are cool instead. Stuff like that.

Fandom should be fun. Fandom should be finding people you like and sharing good times with them, not stressing about avoiding folks you hate, or who hate you. Tumblr lets you moderate how you engage, when, and where more than almost any current social media site; now you can even turn off reblogs and oh my GOD is that a lifesaver function btw. If you want, you can make your blog unsearchable! It means you will need to be more proactive in making friends. But TF fandom is pretty tight knit these days, and folks want to talk a lot of the time. You'll still be able to engage with cool people.

There's way less aggro losers around these days, but more to the point, you can absolutely avoid the ones that still insist on being annoying and starve them out without much effort, tbh.

[scattered-winter]

When you love Barbara Gordon but Dickbabs is also your notp 🥂

I was oh so tempted to respond with a sarcastic remark but no. I'm actually gonna get into this one

the reason I hate dickbabs doesn't have anything to do with my love for the characters. I love dick grayson. I love barbara gordon. these aren't secrets; anyone who spends more than 30 seconds on my blog can see it. my issue with dickbabs comes from a long history of barbara being thrown with every batboy that comes along. tim in arkham knight, even bruce in btas, to name a few examples. to me this makes even dickbabs seem surface level and 2-dimensional because......dick is another batboy.

another issue I have with it is the fact that both characters are reduced to only their relationship with each other. tom taylor's recent run puts dickbabs at the forefront of a story that, if you go by the title, should be about nightwing. I don't mind romance in stories but if I am reading the nightwing comics, I want to read about nightwing. and this isn't even getting into the disgusting ableism in regards to barbara in particular! her disability, something that enabled her to become the literal capstone of the vigilante society, was retconned but guess what!!! to replace the lost representation we'll just write in a 3-legged dog!!! there's absolutely no way this is ableist or shitty!! ✨✨✨ (/s)

I also really hate how fandom (and dc) are pitting all of dick's love interests against each other. it turns babs and kori (some of my favorite heroes with their own powerful stories and personalities) into the bratty girls squabbling over the guy. and I don't even need to say why that's so upsetting to me

finally, my biggest issue is that I just?!?! don't like it very much!! they have an incredible friendship and I fucking love good friendships!!! there doesn't need to be a big reason why I dislike a ship! sometimes it just doesn't vibe with me! but in the case of dickbabs, there are a few things in specific that make me dislike it.

tldr: my dislike for dickbabs has nothing to do with how much I love/hate their characters and everything to do with the fact that I am curating my own experience with this media and if I dislike something, it is of my own choice so to assume that I have to ship dickbabs because I love barbara as a character is, frankly, childish and immature. with all the love, grow up <3

#obligatory disclaimer but i am not physically disabled so im not the voice you need to listen to on that front #but its just something that has rubbed me the wrong way for a long time. #if you want more examples/opinions about the ableism toward dickbabs in particular i strongly suggest listening to disabled voices #rather than mine #anyway rant over <3 #if you try and start shit with me i Will finish it and i Will clown on you. this is your one warning. i was respectful this time #but im only respectful once #asks #anon

[bakafox]

life update

So I'm having another night of insomnia- my brain and/or body seems to be wanting to go nocturnal. Which I can't really let it do.

My friend Roz is indeed going to move in with me, it is official, and while we're not in a huge rush if they can manage to keep up with the lot fees at the trailer park, there's always the overhanging possibility something else can go wrong with work for them or their health and we'll wind up rushed by an eviction rather than being able to wait for their place to sell properly.

Several other close friends of mine are struggling to not lose jobs, their homes, insurance, or get the pain medication and healthcare they need, and this has me super stressed about politics in the US and upcoming elections on top of just the fact that if I ever lose SSI I am thoroughly fucked myself. Even with Roz as a housemate, we wouldn't be able to keep this house for long without my SSI, and neither of us have any other real options when it comes to housing unless we want to try and get on the multi-year waiting period for public housing 'just in case' and hope nothing goes wrong for all those years and public housing doesn't lose funding in the interim too.

So anyway, lots of stress right now! And so I'm trying to cut down on Tumblr.

Love my mutuals and all the fun cat posts but even medicated and seeing a therapist every week, all it takes is one post about something super fucked up in US or world politics or what have you getting through my curation on a shaky day to absolutely thrash my mental health for a while, beyond what my current medication and therapy regimens can handle, at a time when I've got to be functioning enough to keep getting the house ready for R to move in.

R can only help so much since they have to, y'know, work, to not be evicted and rush us, while dealing with their various long term disabilities and a badly sprained wrist that refuses to heal.

And the trust and my Trustee are being very cooperative, but I am constantly reminded there's not a lot of money left in it, and so there are things I'm afraid to ask them to help pay for when it comes to Roz moving in, like new shelves and storage setups that the two of us will be sharing. I'm afraid the general vibe with how low funds are, and because it's not just for me, is that that's for me and R to sort out affording on our own over time.

SO- I'm not doing terribly, really I'm not, but there's a big ol' feeling of balancing pretty shakily on a see-saw all the time right now, between actually getting anything done, getting any sleep, enjoying any of my gaming or such as a break, and just wanting to not get out of bed while at the same time being unable to really sleep. Between being hopeful that shit will work out somewhere for someone and really despairing. There's not really any middle ground a lot of the time, my brain just has never been good at middle grounds and intermediary gears and apparently still isn't when the chips are down.

#personal

[fintastica]

no actually I’m not done. I need to talk more abt this. have I watched monster high? no. am I obsessed w this blog anyway? yes. and not even just bc I like you personally, bc how could I not, but like… it is so fucking amazing how you not only don’t shy away from lagoona’s eccentricities, but are endeared by them. you EMPHASIZE them. the teenage girl experience is so much about raw, reactive emotion, the things you do on impulse because you’re afraid or hurt of desperately seeking something. so much of it is examining yourself under the microscope because you’re finally developed enough to have that skill and then realizing you don’t know what to do with what you find. and I think your lagoona embodies all of that so well. she’s constantly changing and yet also completely voraciously herself and yet also trying to understand herself. idk idk I’m half asleep right now I’ve had my head droop twice while writing this but I am shaking you by the shoulders and telling you you’re so good at character analysis and portrayal

HOLLY ????????? HOLLY WHAT THE WHWBAHWHWUH ??? i wish my brain wasn't so goddamn fried this is like the sweetest nicest loveliest most angelic thing i have ever been told this is soooo so so important to me &. exactly the vibe i want to curate with this blog and i love YOU and i'm glad you're HERE and i love seeing you around &. hearing from you and i love clara with all of my heart your passion for her &. all that she stands for is immensely warm and important to me. um you are everything and i'm going to bite you what the SHELL.

#🐚. save tag. #GOT ME CRYING AND SHIT. WHAAAAT. #leatherforhell

[agentemo]

I was told I’m a bad mcr fan because I dint vibe with current mcr, revenge is my comfort era and also the era during where I stopped mentally really going anywhere from a bunch of trauma, that’s the only era I really like thinking about because it’s my happy safe space. And I was told it’s bad if me to feel that way because “it was their worst time” I might step out of the fandom

Ok thank you, I was told too that “you realise if they become a transitioned she/her you won’t be able to engage with revenge era anyway it’s basically deadnaming their past that they’ve transitioned from” but I feel like they were reaching pretty far ?? Nothings officially been said past a stage outfit. But I feel like a really bad person.

SO much to unpack here. Let's do this in four parts.

ONE - you: I want to begin by addressing you directly, anon friend. You're not a bad person or a bad fan. The great thing about art is that it can touch us in unique ways that are also somehow shared. Revenge is my favorite era too, for various reasons. If that's your favorite era, and you'd rather be in that and nothing else... Like, there's no wrong way to be a fan. Lol. Just enjoy the music and whatever else you love about it! And if you have to step out of the fandom, that's okay. But you can also curate your online experience for yourself. If there are shitty fans around you, block them and move on. For every weird person with a bad take there's a handful of cool dudes out there.

TWO - young and new fans: Okay, it might not just be the babies but the way some people talk about MCR is strange to me. Maybe it's because I've been a fan longer than some of you have been alive but those dudes in their 40s don't need a defense squad. They don't need their fanbase finely tuned and meticulously polished to some weird standard. Why are we attaching how we engage with media to our quality as people? They need to chill out and watch old interviews.

THREE - Revenge and a bad past: I think My Chemical Romance are aware of all the shit they've been through. They've come to peace with the bad of those times; they couldn't be touring so much right now if they hadn't. The good of those times is a lot of pride. Revenge was fucking awesome. Being a fan at the time was fucking awesome. Being alive at the time fucking sucked. Shit's complicated. Revenge will always be my favorite MCR album.

FOUR - Gender Way: People need to calm the fuck down. As an enby, I am so excited and I love seeing other trans people be so excited and allies see the euphoria of it all and celebrate it with us. Let's just stop there, okay? Gerard didn't wear a tailored dress for us to write dissertations on their gender. They've said what they said, we saw how happy they were, they're probably not gonna say more unless they have to because that's how Gerard is, and it's exhausting hearing so many mediocre takes about it. You are absolutely right that that's a reach.

Oof, I guess I'm back to writing essays about MCR... lol.

#anon #asks #hi let's be friends fuck those people #long post

[winterandwords]

✨HIATUS✨

So the internet break while I finish this draft became an internet break while I rest this draft became "Holy fuck, I did not realise how much I needed a longer internet break until it happened by itself" and here I am.

I've tried to Do Internets a little bit over the last couple of weeks and honestly it's felt horrible. Thing is, I'm not terminally online or anything. I do writing prompt tag things on Twitter. I'm more active here on Tumblr. But I'm not constantly staring at a screen and I don't have any negative stuff going on because I curate my online experience very carefully and consciously.

I think it's maybe less that I need to be away from the internet and more that I need to focus my time and energy on other things and that time and energy, energy especially, is limited. I need to give a shit about my stupid health. I need to be kinder to my body. I need to let my mind unwind. I need to process and nest and let go and recalibrate and for a while I need to just not.

It's only been a couple of weeks since I finished the most recent draft of Project Frequency and I'm 50% twitching about being away from it and 50% aware that it makes sense to let it sit for way longer than this so I can come back to it with fresh eyes and no stressy vibes. I'm not good at taking breaks. I'm not good at resting. I'm excellent at constantly pushing myself beyond my limits and burning out. I don't want to keep doing that.

I updated my website the other day to include the words "writing is not my job" and that felt like a huge step forward. Acknowledging that this is something I enjoy, something I love, something I'm obsessed with, something that I make a little bit of money from (which is great) but also something that I have no intention of trying to turn into a job or a career felt huge.

Approaching anything as a job or a business isn't an option because of health stuff (I'm not being cagey about 'health stuff', but it's complex and it's not something I want or need to go into detail about here), but also I just don't want writing to be a job. I don't want to pursue traditional publishing and never have. I don't want to be part of the mainstream self-publishing machine. And that's OK. Not wanting to turn writing into a job doesn't mean I'm wasting my time doing it.

I know this post is long and disjointed. Here's a cookie for you if you're still here 🍪

The reason I mentioned not wanting writing to be a job is that accepting that, being open about it, has shown me that it's OK to take breaks from it and not know how long that break is going to be. I can't see myself wanting to be away from my WIP or writing in general for any serious length of time, but I need to be away from it right now. And I need to be away from the internet. And it's all good.

I might check in here, but I'm not likely to do any tags or other interacty things for a while. I'll post something when I'm back properly. I'm definitely coming back. This isn't me inching my way out the door. This is just me breathing.

💜

#the shit in my head