#may there be a time where I can commit to bigger projects again

[starlingstalk]

Nya animatic I will never finish/clean up bcs everything I draw cannot be done over more than one day or I‘ll explode

[astrologydray]

When your sun matches your rising sign: part 2

——Libra Sun & Libra Rising——

You glide through life with an air of elegance, like someone dipped in soft light and good taste. With both your Sun and Rising in Libra, Venus blesses you twice — once in your core identity and again in the way you show up in the world. People are drawn to your beauty, your grace, your ability to make everyone feel seen and considered. You’re the human embodiment of aesthetic harmony, and whether you lean more polished or artsy, your vibe always feels curated and intentional. But underneath the charm is someone deeply invested in balance — not just in relationships, but in your own inner world.

And that’s where your journey gets real. Double Libra can struggle with identity because so much of your energy is relational — you thrive in connection, but can lose yourself in it. People often project their desires onto you, and because you’re so attuned to harmony, you might shape-shift to keep the peace. But true balance for you comes from learning how to center yourself without guilt. When you speak from your own voice — not just what sounds good — your Libra magic evolves. You become more than a muse or mediator. You become a leader of beauty, justice, and truth.

—Scorpio Sun & Scorpio Rising—

You’re not just intense — you are the storm and the calm before it. Double Scorpio is a rare and unforgettable combo that gives you razor-sharp intuition, emotional depth, and an aura that whispers, “I know more than I’m saying.” You’re ruled by Pluto (and traditionally Mars), so you were born to transform, to pierce illusions, and to resurrect yourself again and again. People feel your presence like a force field — magnetic, mysterious, and a little intimidating. They don’t meet you, they experience you.

This combo also gives you an incredibly private and self-protective nature. You’re a fortress with a pulse — guarded, but alive with feeling. Trust isn’t something you hand out freely, and for good reason. You’ve likely been through deep emotional initiations that forced you to confront power, betrayal, or pain early in life. But when you learn to own your darkness instead of hiding it, you become unstoppable. Your healing journey is your power source. You’re not here to be light and airy — you’re here to go deep, and to help others rise from their own ashes. That’s Scorpio at full power.

—Sagittarius Sun & Sagittarius Rising—

When your Sun and Rising are both in Sagittarius, you walk through life like a wildfire of ideas, laughter, and bold truths. You’re the explorer, the philosopher, the cosmic comedian — someone whose mere presence sparks curiosity and inspiration. People see you as a free spirit, and that’s exactly how you see yourself. You’re ruled by Jupiter, the planet of expansion, so your entire life is one big search for meaning. Whether it’s travel, spirituality, or simply asking “Why?” — you need space to roam, think, question, and dream big.

But here’s the real tea: sometimes you can feel like you’re chasing something you can’t name. The double Sag vibe gives you restlessness — always moving, always seeking, often avoiding the emotional depth that slows you down. Commitment (to people, places, even your own ideas) can feel like a cage. But true growth for you happens when you learn that freedom isn’t always about escape — it’s about choosing a purpose and showing up for it. When your wild heart finds something worth sticking to, you don’t just inspire others — you liberate them.

—Capricorn Sun & Capricorn Rising—

You came into this life already carrying the weight of legacy. Double Capricorn gives off old soul energy — quiet strength, deep ambition, and a grounded presence that demands respect without asking for it. You’re ruled by Saturn, the planet of discipline and time, so you often feel like you have a responsibility bigger than yourself. Even as a child, people may have expected you to act grown, and now as an adult, you’re someone who builds. You construct your identity brick by brick — no shortcuts, no gimmicks. Just pure strategy and earned success.

This combo can sometimes feel heavy, like you’re living life on a timer or climbing a mountain you’re not allowed to rest on. Vulnerability doesn’t come easy, and that can make your inner world feel lonely even when you’re admired. But when you soften into your emotions and allow others to truly see you, not just your accomplishments — that’s when your Capricorn power becomes divine. You’re not just here to win. You’re here to show what legacy looks like when it’s built with both heart and vision.

-Aquarius Sun & Aquarius Rising-

Double Aquarius is like being born in the future but forced to live in the present. You’re ruled by Uranus (and traditionally Saturn), which gives you electric originality, rebellious charm, and a mind that never stops expanding. With both your core identity and your external self aligned in Aquarius, you’re impossible to box in. People see you as quirky, unconventional, brilliant — and they’re not wrong. You walk into a room and shift the frequency. Your ideas are ahead of their time, and your presence often disrupts norms without even trying.

But here’s the nuance: you can come off detached, even when you care deeply. Emotions may not be your native language, but that doesn’t mean you don’t feel — it just means you intellectualize first. The double Aquarius path is about balancing individuality with connection. You’re here to innovate, to rebel with purpose, and to build futures that serve everyone. But to truly lead the revolution, you must remember your own humanity. When you merge your genius with vulnerability, you become a visionary with soul — the kind that changes everything.

—Pisces Sun & Pisces Rising—

You’re ethereal by default. With both your Sun and Rising in Pisces, it’s like you were born halfway between this world and the next. Your presence is dreamy, soulful, and mystical — people may not even fully understand you, but they feel you in ways they can’t explain. You’re ruled by Neptune (and traditionally Jupiter), so your life is deeply shaped by fantasy, empathy, and an invisible intuition that guides your path. You don’t just sense emotions — you absorb them, which can make reality feel blurry or overwhelming.

This double Pisces combo can feel like both a blessing and a curse. You see beauty in places others miss, and you move through the world like a living poem. But boundaries are often your hardest lesson. People project onto you, and without protection, you risk losing yourself in other people’s needs, traumas, or illusions. The key is to learn that your softness is not weakness — it’s divine. When you combine your compassion with discernment, you become a powerful healer, artist, and spiritual guide. You’re not just living — you’re dreaming reality into being.

[starleska]

[stepping over the picket fence from my backyard into your backyard, like I’ve learnt anything about Despicable Me or Maxime since my last ask besides it is, indeed, the masc “le Mal” and not the feminine “la Mal”]

Hi, hey, howdy, don't worry about getting to this ask quickly or replying or anything, you take care of yourself, do what you need to do, do what you want to do 💕 I'm going on a thought experiment, a couple of thought experiments. <3 

but I was pondering my orb or taking a four hour nap or whatever you wanna call it and like. Is flustered, needy Maxime a new concept???? Not something that’s been greatly considered????? Bc tbh, he always gave me those vibes. For some reason. Like “Oh yeah, of COURSE he’s clingy and embarrassed and blushy and etc etc”. I’m not even sure why I was so sure but it just felt right. 💖 Surely…I wasn’t…projecting any type of …”personal biases” upon himAHEM so sorry, allergies. 

That big coat is for hiding and he totally can just, dissappear in there and hide from the world. He could pull the coat up and his head in and hope he can cover how read his face is. Like don't look at him rn, he's so vulnerable and uncomfortable about it bc he's used to being so big and impervious, but also don't go away, bc he likes you sm and this is so nice and he loves being adored. But also it's so much!!!!!!!!! Vicious cycle.

I'm a Blushy Needy Maxime truther. Or liar. I'll leave it to the people who've actually seen the movie to decide. Just the bigger the ego, the harder they fall, thats what I always say. Don't fact check that. 

What do you reckon flusters him most? Nice words? Physical affection? Teasing? Gifts? All of the above? I feel like it could be anything. 👀 or maybe it’s none of the above. 

Maybe I underestimate him, maybe he's got better composure than I assume, but every set of armor has a weakness! Anyone can get flustered, Maxime can get flustered, and tbh he probably should get flustered. Where there’s a will there’s a way! …Maybe Valentina would help. Either way I KNOW THAT GUY IS GETTING FLUSTERED I know it 

Accidentally a little overboard with the teasing and flustering and he gets all in a huff, giving the cold shoulder. You gotta say you’re sorry and wrap your arms around him, and in an ideal world he’d hold strong to his grudge until he felt you’ve paid your dues, but he can’t help but melt into your embrace. He compromises, turning back to you, burying his still-hot face into you and refusing to look at you instead. His arms tight around you, not letting you go even long after you assume all is well. His ire is still on you, you know! You owe him a lot for all that trouble you put him through! And besides, he still feels lightheaded from all this blood rushing to his face. You must let him stay in your soft, supportive embrace for just a moment longer. You wouldn’t turn him out now, would you? After you did this to him?  For shame. 

(He is Not intending to let you go anytime soon, he is making up all the excuses)

…hm…I may be talking in circles and not saying much of anything. I also feel like I’ve Greatly Exposed myself today. I gotta go disinfect my ear piercings…I gotta wash my neckties….I gotta refill my mint essential oil diffuser to keep away…the….the bugs…ahem…I gotta make a Pokémon team for Normal Reasons. 

I'm also once again coming to you cold, literally standing next to an actual oven for warmth like a Victorian child when my jacket is on a chair literally just one Maxime away. I’ve Got to GO. I CANT KEEP BEING LET OUT OF CONTAINMENT LIKE THIS. Thank you for listening to my TEDTalk/hostage situation. If anyone asks, I was never here. Take care, you’re great <3 

[Runs away, jumping fences like I committed a crime here.]

not you dropping an entire three course meal and dessert into my askbox, á la mode!!!!!!! 🙈💖💖 for someone who claims they don't know anything about Maxime, you certainly have put a lot of thought into this message...😉

you know, at the time you sent this ask I would've said that flustered, needy Maxime is a new concept, but we've had an amazing wave of art for him over the past week and there's so much of him being all cute and blushy 🙈🙈💖💖 i think it's that he is so easily angered and hates being called cute…he's total fluster-bait!!! we NEED to make him blush 🥺 AAAAA ohhh my god the idea of him wrapping his coat around himself and hiding is so soft!!!! no no you are SO onto something because Maxime is so horribly arrogant and confident, he's a bully who loves the spotlight and desperately wants attention…so wouldn't it be interesting to finally hit that sweet spot and get him wanting to hide? i really do think overt affection like that would make him curl up, and if you did it in a pointed enough way, his face would light up like a traffic light 🥰💖 i think that Maxime is probably really unprepared for anyone who is able to match his energy. he's looking down at you all heavy-lidded, boasting about himself and casually belittling you, but you shoot back with a well-aimed flirtation and it just. hits him like a truck. his cheeks warm, he starts to stammer. he desperately tries to recover, but he's actually looking for an out because he needs to find somewhere to breathe and quiet his beating heart 👀💖 YOU ARE CORRECT Valentina would so get involved!!! you've probably seen us talk about Valentina a bit before, and our wishes that she'd had more dialogue/character development in the movie…but two things that are very canon about Valentina is that she loves cute things, and she also thinks MAXIME is really cute 👉👈 i am certain that behind closed doors those two lavish all kinds of attention on each other, and Valentina turns Maxime tomato-red every time!!!! squealing no no no please don't be embarrassed i LOVE this!!!! gahhhh i adore that quick possessive flip from being so embarrassed and curling in on himself to it being something where he desperately wants to keep you, he can't let you go…!!! oh, my heart 😳😳😳 it's going to sound so silly given all of the stuff i've made for Maxime and being a selfshipper but i adore him so much that i STILL get so incredibly squirmy even trying to imagine any degree of one-on-one discussion with him, let alone contact…!!!! it's taken me a week to answer this ask for exactly that reason 🙈💖 so THANK YOU for fueling my brain i am going to chew through my hoodie sleeves now 😳😳😳 cackles. are we both sufficiently dead now? did you manage to do all of those convenient excuse-related things (including making the Pokémon team which i would LOVE to hear about)? 👀 it's OKAY lovely, open yourself up!!! there are no rules when it comes to loving characters - who says we can't adore many at once?! 🥰 thank you for always sending the loveliest, most interesting asks!! i've been mulling over this one for a hot minute and it's really, really cheered me up after a tough month, so big big hugs 🫂💖💖

[asgardian--angels]

Taika and OFMD

thinking about Taika's new interview where he's said the season 2 ending seems like a natural conclusion to the show.

We know that David wrote the season finale the way he did in case it didn't get renewed for s3. And we know that David does have a season 3 storyline in mind, as he's envisioned Ed and Stede's love story as having three acts. And I know that the fans believe there's more story to tell, too, because they haven't resolved their communication issues, their trauma, or lingering plotlines.

The interview mentions that one of the limits on the show's capacity to keep running is Taika's schedule. To me, that may be the biggest holdup of anything when you get down to it. We're so lucky to have had him for two seasons of this show, given just how many projects he has going concurrently. But it gets more and more difficult to block off months of his time - and when looking for a season 3, David is going to need to produce an exceptionally compelling reason to bring him back in again. If Taika believes the show could end where it is, as much as he's adored being on it, he may prioritize other projects.

To me it felt as much of a risk to end s2 on a 'happy ending' note than to end on a cliffhanger, because it leaves the door open for cancellation on the basis of 'good enough.' I get why he did it, and I do think it was the right choice, but still. It makes the season 3 setup harder, because as Taika even said, he wouldn't want a situation where Ed and Stede have to leave their idyllic life behind. Which would have to happen to some extent - pulled back into the fray at least temporarily when the crew needs their help or the larger conflict of the pirates vs the English comes to a head, otherwise there'd be no drama or excitement. And if the storyline was simply Ed and Stede running an inn and having domestic mornings and working out their feelings, that's just not enough for Taika to clear his schedule and sacrifice other potential projects.

I trust David Jenkins to have something in mind that can convince tptb a third season would bring them great ratings and streaming subscriptions. I honestly don't think that's the part of this process that would hold (is holding?) the execs' decision up. Rather, it's whether the premise for season 3 is deemed compelling and necessary enough for our big name actors to sign on and commit their time to. For all we know, it's taking more time than anything to just figure out if Taika has any time in the next two years to devote to this (have you seen the sheer number and scale of his upcoming films?). They're not going to greenlight a third season if Taika can't commit. And Taika's so busy right now with Next Goal Wins that maybe they haven't even been able to sit down with him to have a lengthy contract discussion.

I'd like to think that Taika and David have discussed the three-act story premise for OFMD thoroughly, since it's something David's been saying since season 1 and if Taika didn't think he could do three seasons then I'd think the show would have been a nonstarter unless it was a 'cross that bridge when we come to it' situation, so the potential difference in opinion here is interesting. But it leads to some possibilities such as a season 3 where Ed and Stede aren't main characters - the focus turns more to the crew, with only half or even a third of the episodes featuring the main duo. Or an even shorter season 3 such as a 3 or 5 episode miniseries to reduce the time commitment for Taika. If the timeline for the show's production has to get pushed out an extra year to fit with his schedule, HBO Max might just decide it's not worthwhile to pursue. So there's a lot of things that can happen, and as much as we want an expanded season 3 with more episodes and a bigger budget, that may very well not be compatible with the reality of Taika's long-term availability.

We have to consider these possibilities. As I've said before, season 3 is in no way guaranteed, even from streaming analytics and critical success - but this is another dimension to this conversation that I haven't heard anyone talking about, and quite possibly the most important one because it's very concrete. No Taika, no OFMD. The fact that he said the show could perhaps go on without him and Rhys shows me this is where his thoughts are as well.

I don't want to make anyone despair here - I want season 3 more than anything. I do believe the show, and the story, deserves the full arc and natural conclusion that David has planned. We absolutely need to keep campaigning for renewal, harder than ever as we move into the one-month-post-finale window. But we should also realize that a big part of the renewal decision is out of our hands, and comes down to the ability of the show's star to actually stay involved. I think Taika will try his best to shuffle things around, but as I said David needs to be able to pitch him a season 3 that convinces him Ed and Stede's story isn't finished yet.

So fingers crossed. We may not hear anything for a while, as negotiations have to involve Taika and he's a busy busy man right now. I am optimistic, but I just wanted to remind folks of this aspect of the process.

[uupdirector]

With a day into the album's release, I think it's time I reflected on it and give my thoughts on the experience.

Storm Before The Calm was the result of 2 years of hard, time managed, and thought provoked work, which I wasn't even certain as to what the end result would be.

Normally when I work on projects, I make it very clear as to what people can expect as soon as possible when they jump in - as a GModder and fan game dev, I've been used to this mindset for years. But this was the first time I would make something that... I had absolutely no idea what it would end up being in the end. An original project requires a lot for it to gather any sort of interest, and from the start - while a synopsis was provided, I still wasn't sure what I wanted it to be.

The focus of making music and lore to continue building this new world was the best way I could get Scarlet Combine started - not just because I learned this from many of my inspirations, but also because before I wanted to commit to anything bigger, the world needed to be set into motion.

And now that I've reached an endpoint, I now have a base to build on for whatever may be next, and whenever it happens.

I'm happy with where Scarlet Combine is now, but I won't lie and say it came without struggle. This year has had its upsides, in addition with downsides, and I know now that before my next endeavor with this story, I need time for myself, as well as with smaller endeavors to pass the time and rebuild my motivation for it.

Again, this isn't the end of Scarlet Combine by a longshot - I can safely say one of the hardest aspects of working on it is over, and I'm glad I was even able to show you anything in the process. But because of that, I am still very drained, and I just need time to focus on other things. It will return, and when it does, hopefully, you won't have to wait long for the end result.

As for what's on the table now - there's quite a few mysteries and aspects of the story that people might have missed, or went right over their heads. You don't have to look far to know where these details started, so keep your eyes peeled. ;)

Until then, thank you everyone for supporting me in this project - here's to the future of Scarlet Combine; forward. 💙

[pastorsperspective]

Worry's Only Wasted Time

It’s Friday again! If you noticed, there was no blog post last week, I do apologize. I simply never had time within my week to accomplish it at any point and now here we are. If you missed the sermon on Sunday, you can watch it here: https://fb.watch/mvjqNfHwhY/ I was able to chat with Pastor Chad via email regarding the message and it went like this:

I wasn’t really left with a ton of questions after this message, but I have some thoughts. Obviously, things would be easier to commit to if we had some assurance that we were going to succeed at what we were trying to do. If God would show us some glimmer of the future, some shred of what's to come, that it all works out, sure, it would be so much easier to keep fighting the battles. That was the whole point though, right? We will never have that assurance? (Other than the fact that we've read the Bible and we know in the last chapter that God wins, the end.) We don't get to know all the details of how everything in our lives is going to work out, or how God is going to use our trials to better us. We are just supposed to trust that He will. Why is that SO hard though?

I think it's so hard because we want things on our terms. The human-ness of all of us wants to be in control and order all things to what we see is the best. In many ways, this is our self-idolatry or pride getting in the way of our faith. We lose sight and don't want to accept that there is a God who knows more, sees more, and is capable of more than we are. We humans (at the top of the food chain) tend to think we are the supreme beings of the land and to concede that control and order push against our human nature. Stress is a natural response to uncertainty and we want to eliminate stress by being in control of the future. The reality is we are caught up in our own perception of wants and needs that we lose sight of bigger focuses. The harsh reality is, if it were this way and there were no uncertainty we would complain and moan about the lack of spontaneity in our world. Maybe we're just unhappy people (just kidding). The trick is in seeing the beauty in the unknown, finding the excitement in the uncertainty, and growing in faith all the time.

Letting go is probably particularly difficult for women. Not to stereotype, but women are typically the keepers of schedule and order for the household, kids, etc, and carry the mental load for the family. Not knowing HOW something is going to happen is pure torture. We NEED to have the details; we NEED to plan. Or maybe that's just a me thing and I'm projecting it onto "most" women. I can't imagine having been one of the apostles trying to figure out how to feed the crowd! Let alone feeling confident in any man saying, "it'll be fine, just let me pass out these five loaves!" I mean, have you ever planned a dinner party?? I'm getting heart palpitations just thinking about it! How did the apostles know that it was going to be ok? Did they know? Do you think that even until their deaths, the apostles struggled with "believing is seeing"? 

Oh, they didn't, and most scripture points to a sneaking suspicion they all had that this may end horribly. They knew from the get-go that this was radical and different, and would most likely not be perceived well by everyone. As things went along there are hints that this thing was going to end with a bang, and not necessarily a good bang. Christ himself gave several Passion Predictions where he prepared them for the worst, and as the crucifixion took place, they began to understand that their own lives would most likely end up the same. So, all of these clues, red flags, indicators, whatever we want to call them were there, and yet they still hung in there. They never gave up, they never abandoned the call, they followed it even unto death... why? The answer is simple, the grace they found and were called to share with the world was worth dying for. Not only that, it was worth living for as it changed their very lives. The love of Jesus was so powerful in their lives that they couldn't do anything else, and they didn't. I wonder how many would sign up to be Christians today if it were the same; if this faith would cost you your life at some point? The reality is that we're going to lose our lives at some point anyhow, might as well use it doing something that matters. Life itself is fleeting, what we do with it can last forever. This again comes back to giving up control and letting our faith guide our steps, not our own comforts, dreams, plans, proclivities, etc.

Man, that’s hard. I’m sure it’s harder for some than others, just like everything else we do in this life. All people aren’t designed the same, with the same strengths and weaknesses, and that’s a good thing. It’s terrifying to admit that you don’t really have control over anything when you truly think about it. Maybe the small, mundane tasks of your everyday existence, but not much else. Admitting that can be really scary. It reminds me of a song – because all things do.  If you have some time today, check out this song:

Afraid by Tenth Avenue North

My favorite line is “worry’s only wasted time”. There’s so much truth in that statement. I wonder how much time the apostles wasted worrying about feeding the crowd before Jesus performed His miracle with the loves and fish? I wonder how afraid they were? Were they afraid that the crowd would turn on them? God says we don’t have to worry. We don’t have to fear. He is in control and all we have to do is let Him.

Until next time… If you have any thoughts or questions that you would like to share in our blog, send them to me via the church email, text message, call the office, tumblr message, or Facebook message me!

[handyowlet]

I guess what I’ve been trying to say and come to terms with is that this whole situation is complicated.

None of us are the predator, and none of us are the victims. Really, the crimes and crimes their punishment have nothing to do with us and are not our business. I question how much our opinions on any of this even matter.

NG has done something wrong and should face consequences for that. Typically when someone breaks the law, we’d expect and hope the law would rectify that, but the wrongs he committed are ones that more often that not cannot be satisfactorily remedied via the law alone. So that leaves other measures (economic, social, etc.).

And that is where we come in. We can be involved in enforcing some consequences where the law fails, but then, what exactly is our responsibility, if any? What’s the correct course of action? Honestly, I don’t think there is one.

Never buying anything of his ever again is an option. For me, that means not buying any new works or supporting any projects started AFTER the accusations were brought forward and supported. I think most of us would agree with that at the very least, but maybe not.

Then there is the question of any protects already underway, ones others entered into (and some are contractually obligated to) without any knowledge of NG’s actions. Some think we should cancel these too, full stop, no questions asked, because NG was involved and/or may continue to reap financial or social benefits in the future from them. The hundreds of others who may be adversely affected by such a move are acceptable collateral damage because the only thing that matters is punishing NG/supporting the victims (whether or not these are co-existing ideas or one-in-the-same also seems to be a debated topic).

Others, like me, struggle with that concept. How much collateral damage, if any, is acceptable? Should others have to share in NG’s consequences, even though they are not in any way responsible for the actions that warrant said consequences? If so, who should be included in that group? What price is acceptable for them to pay? At what point is it too much, and more harm is done than good?

I have no knowledge of how the TV industry works. I have no doubt that execs, etc. at Amazon and Netflix will not suffer if Sandman 2 are Good Omens 3 are cancelled. They have a shit ton of power as it is and so I am less inclined to worry about them anyway. Michael and David too I’m sure will be just fine. Same for the bigger names on Sandman, at least financially, for future work projects, etc. But I imagine they too would be upset that no one will see the work they already put in and the art they already created (Sandman), or that they won’t be able to finish the story they love so much (Good Omens). Many of the bigger names are also friends with NG and have to wrestle with a betrayal most of us will never truly understand (yes, we thought NG was a good person and he betrayed us too, but not in the same way).

What about the lesser known actors? If the strikes taught us anything, it’s that they don’t get paid enough as it is, and their residuals can be a pittance. If their work is not seen/they don’t get the work because the show is canceled, they have less of a portfolio to offer in order to get more work in the future, and fewer residuals. And these shows were booked months in advance. Will they be able to find replacement work for that time period?

Same for the crew, who I am sure are even less well paid. Those from Sandman have likely already been paid (other than post-production who may not yet have completed their work), but I can’t imagine Amazon would pay assistants, etc. prior to production so cancelation would mean a loss of income for them. Can they afford that? And again, should they have to when they are not the ones who did anything wrong?

Are there steps that can be taken to lessen NG’s benefit while mitigating the collateral damage? Can Rob be show runner so NG doesn’t get paid for that and doesn’t get to be involved? Can NG be excluded from any and all related events and promotion? Can Rhianna and/or Rob weigh in? I would argue they should be given that chance, but it could also be asked, should they even have to? How much do their opinions matter? Same with anyone involved in the production- they should be allowed to choose whether or not to continue with the project and/or to comment publicly, but also should they even have to comment? Does their public opinion matter and how much?

And the survivors- what do they want? Have they been asked? Are they even obligated to have such an opinion, much less comment publicly? How much weight should this be given if they do?

Again, I don’t know what the right answer is, if there even is one, and I would argue neither do any of us. It’s just too complicated. We can each decide for ourselves what feels right to us, and what we can individually live with in regards to our own actions. I don’t think we get to tell anyone else what to do or think though, and I don’t understand any of us thinking our opinion is the only right one.

And I wish we’d stop attacking each other. We can have healthy disagreements without telling each other to shut up, calling each other names, dog piling on one another, telling someone they are stupid or naive for having questions, or otherwise treating each other so terribly.

I love the Good Omens fandom. You all are my chosen family and I care about you. I want this family to not just survive, but thrive.

You know, NG has already been paid for the GOS3 scripts. We know he’s already written them as well. If GOS3 gets canceled because of his actions, then the only one to benefit from GOS3 is NG himself. The other cast, crew, etc. won’t get the work and be paid. Terry’s dream won’t be fulfilled (Rob can be the show runner to maintain integrity of that vision). We won’t see the fruition of everyone else’s hard work. But NG will still have been paid. I don’t understand how canceling GOS3 is supposed to punish NG and benefit his victims.

[benefits1986]

Lego Love on a Weekday

Monday. 23.10.23. I was on a legit high from the UP-Ateneo game last Sunday and honestly, I dragged myself to our HQ. Traffic was considerably light so, that's a plus point. There was a slated team building and as always, I came without expectation. What caught me off guard and pleasantly surprised me was that this team building involved Lego and dominoes. Lego is my childhood toy of choice alongside my BMX bike. Of course, I was on game on mode and got a decent score of 4 out 5. I was in a group where 2 were ex-team mates, 1 current team mate but from a different sub-unit and another team mate from a different department but we considerably closely collaborate. In my four years in my current org, this is probably my favorite team building activity. Yup, it takes quite a while to get my RBF interested, but here we are. The organizers were the same ones last year; so again, this is a pleasant way to jumpstart Monday before my long overdue mega leave, too. It's also something worthwhile since we're in full convergence mode! What I'd like to keep are some mental notes I can go back to a year or so from now in line with my Project Road to 40 and Outta MNL. Tribes are stronger than a lone wolf. Human beings are meant to socialize in order to survive and theoretically evolve. As a lone wolf trying to veer away from my trust issues, this is a WIP may be ad infinitum-ish. LOL. Ayoko mag-commit, so let's leave at that. While winning the game is the obvious end, it's how you play it that matters most. Been a goal-driven bitch with no surrender for over more than two decades, so, I like winning, a lot. I have to come clean that winning is my drug of choice. Well, it still is. But losing does not mean you don't win at times. It's me in my era of choosing my battles. Ready na talaga tayo for mature roles. HAHAHHAHAHAHA. Alam mo 'yung gigil na gigil ako yday sa tallest Lego in 3 minutes tapos, hirit nung second place is: Dapat manalo ako dito dahil nilalaro namin ito ng anak ko. At that time, my heart leaped and while I kept piling the blocks, hindi ko na pinatibay 'yung foundation. OKKKK. FINNEEE. I will give this guy his win. LOLLOLL. Obviously, I am winning at that time and I can easily beat the shit out of him, but sigeeeee. This is me being the bigger person. And yes, Lego gets me... always. Shemay. Entering my dalisay state of mind na ba talaga itoooo? I can imagine mother dragon breathing down my neck again and telling me to keep up with being dalisay kasi dream niya sa akin 'yun.

Teamwork makes the dream work hard and come to life faster. Easier said than done because it takes more than a tribe to build. Back in my start up era, I've learned the painful lessons of not giving a fuck in the name of winning. SIGH. This era allowed me to see that strengths come with weaknesses, especially mine. A team is always dynamic and diverse. This is where I slowly embraced that everyone, including me has a scope and a limit. It's always a buy one, take all kind of thing. While I still am learning the ropes of building a culture in my new team, I can say that teamwork is the secret sauce in any project.

Saying go and no is essential. I remember so well that when I had a 1 on 1 with my junior, I asked for feedback. Initially, he said, everything is going well and that he's is able to enjoy his wellness leaves. I actually prohibited him to work during his breaks because I believe that doing so is counter-productive and a mortal sin, even. Previously, he's been taking leaves to focus on his unfinished tasks. I asked again saying that: Hindi naman puwedeng walang area for improvement. So, please, indulge me. He paused for quite a while and I looked at him straight in the eye as I came closer to him. LOL. He said that he worries about me quite a bit because I seem to be stepping on the gas too much. He wonders why I haven't taken a wellness leave since I moved to our team. Na-dale ako ng junior ko. He said that I should take a break soon. Ergo, eto na nga po ang mega leave natin kaso may dumating na namang paganap. Nanganak na naman po tayo ng collabs. End of sharing. Saka na, 'pag natawid na. I often catch myself resisting the urge to be back to my workaholic era. LOL. It's too tempting, HOWEVER, we won't indulge all the way. Saktong tikim-tikim lang like me right now. :D It's 2:45 AM MNL and I'm off to tick some items off my to-do list. My plausible alibi: I'm on leave starting the 27th and will be back after the long weekend. LOLOLOLLOLLOLLOLL. Fair enough, ain't it? Ain't it?

Your moral compass brings home the bacon and breaks the legs of your opponents. The thing is, moral compass is a rarity these days. I guess that this is one of the most precious lessons that I got from mother dragon and my second dad. Though my sins are scarlet, I try my best to hang on dearly to my core's Polaris. Again, never an easy journey and this mindset brought me down the dumps and 12 feet below the ground at times. But, I'm not budging. As Steve Jobs says: You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. True that. So true. HOWEVER, as you move forward, you ought to bring with you the wisdom, the lesson, the questions. Also, you won't be able to move forward without facing your past traumas, biases and whatnots. EME. Ang aga-aga na naman po; but, just making habol stuff I'd delegate. Speaking of delegation, as a recovering lone wolf and in the name of character arc development, here I am in yet another social experiment. HUHUHUHUHU. Eto na ako sa era ng delegation doused with inception. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. As an ex-Type 4, nasa integration na yata ako Type 8 and 2. LOLOLLOLL. Hindi siya madali as in. Pero I've learned to be as grounded as I can lalo kapag may very strong resistance. Dati, I usually bulldoze my way to the goal. SHEMAY. Sarap e. Gets the job done right away na, I get to build my skyway pa. However, it's usually a skyway to hell. HAHAHAHAHAHA. I guess, I thrive in neutralizing conflicts talaga pero ngayon, may compassion and lambing na ako, even when ayaw ko talaga na I don't get things my way. Ang aga na naman pong pasavogue ito, pero game na. Let's slay more dragons and put the babies to sleep because, this is another day, shall we?

[pullhisteeth]

in which Eddie's love languages are quality time and acts of service - and you're a commitmentphobe

something small that came to mind the other day (I definitely do not do the annoying thing of never doing the things I commit to, no, definitely not). it's a lil bit christmassy so sorry about that lol. college!au, gn!reader, etc etc. fluff. 1.4k.

-

so you do this thing which you are convinced pisses all your friends off, where you declare that you're going to do something - wash the dishes, finally fold your laundry, finish a book, braid your hair, go to the gym, bake something - and then never do it. it happens far too often and you are so sure it drives them mad, Nance and Robin surely rolling their eyes at one another when you once again flop down on the couch and resolve that today will be the day that you repot the plants in your dorm room.

and it does. they're your friends, but friends can be irritating despite how much we love them regardless, and it's maybe one of your bigger flaws.

they groan about it between themselves sometimes, the same way you do with Robin when Nancy ditches girls night to finish another piece for your college newspaper, or the way you do with Steve when you catch Robin in another conversation with the cute girl behind the counter at the campus café who she still hasn't asked out. every single time, she joins the two of you with that look on her face that says, not this time, folks, sorry.

they often brush off your declarations of intent, humming without paying much interest, and you know it, of course. you also know they're your friends, so it's their job to put up with this.

but then there's Eddie. Eddie is a new friend, as of the months before summer break, though his presence at nights out or evenings in with the whole gang is so concrete he may as well have been here the whole time.

Eddie is also incredibly pretty. he throws you off guard often with his throwaway compliments ("you look great tonight, sugar") and those hands he fails to keep to himself. they land on the small of your back sometimes when you're leaving the bar. other times his knee nudges yours when you're sat beside each other during movie night. and, worst of all, sometimes his fingers brush yours as you walk, and it takes everything in you not to grab hold and never let go.

one evening, you've come home from class and changed into pyjamas and you're padding sullenly through the apartment you share with Nancy and Robin. like clockwork, you throw yourself onto the empty couch and say: "tomorrow I'm gonna go on a long walk."

"right," you hear Robin mutter from where she's sat on the other couch, her eyes trained on the complicated looking crochet project in her lap. Nancy's out but Steve and Eddie are sat at your dinner table - they may as well live here, you sometimes think - working on assignments.

"I'll come with you," Eddie says.

it surprises you; normally the only acknowledgement of these whims you ever get are the uninterested noises from Robin or Nancy.

"you will?" you return, turning your head to look away from the ceiling and over at Eddie.

"sure," he says, still looking at the assignment on the table in front of him. he's holding his forehead, pinching it in concentration. he looks pretty in the ebbing sunlight, as usual.

"sweet," you mutter back.

and he does. he sticks to his word, turning up sometime mid-morning the next day with a thick coat on and two coffees in takeaway cups. you wander with him around the park near campus and try your hardest to keep your expectations low.

he's a friend. it's not a date.

the following week you're back on the couch, watching a rerun of Golden Girls, and you let your eyes wander around the room, paying little attention to the television. you stare up at the plants hanging from the top of the cabinet by the door, and the ones on the windowsill.

"I'm gonna do it," you say. "I'm gonna repot them."

"mm-hmm."

Nancy's at the dinner table, scribbling away on various pieces of paper. she gives you the usual hum of okay, sure, yeah without looking up at you.

"need a hand?" Eddie asks. he's on the other couch, halfway through a joint.

you turn over onto your side to look at him.

"yeah, okay. wanna go to the garden centre?"

"only if we can look at the fish."

"obviously."

this cycle continues. every few days, your dramatic commitment to a new thing will go unnoticed by your seasoned friends, but Eddie won't let whatever it is go. when you tell them you're going to go to the beach, for some fresh air, he offers to drive you there. when you declare that you're going to bake them some bread, and finally learn how to kneed, he brings you bread flour and promises he'll bake weed brownies with you one day. and when you decide that today is the day that you'll take your resumé to the cafe round the corner, he looks it over with you and walks you over. I could do with a coffee, he tells you.

you get the job, starting a week later. you're working 3 shifts a week between classes and sometimes closings shifts roll into the evenings, when you'd usually be doing nothing in your little living room with your friends. on these nights, when it's dark before you finish, Eddie is always stood beside the back door as you leave. the first time it happened he said he'd been on his way home from class and had spotted you cleaning up inside so thought he'd wait for you, but then it happened two days later, when you know he doesn't have any afternoon classes. and so after every late shift you emerge from the back door to find him smudging out a cigarette with his shoe, and he looks up at you and smiles, and you walk with him two blocks back to your apartment.

after a month or two, you're on another close. it's December and you're on your last shift before you hitch a ride back to Hawkins.

"he's out there again," your boss mutters as he comes in from emptying the trash.

"hmm?"

"your boyfriend. does he have to smoke out there?"

you feel yourself warm, the bloom of embarrassment and something more under your skin.

"he's not my boyfriend. I'll ask him to stop smoking, though."

"some friend you got then, walkin' you home every night."

you don't respond, bottom lip between your teeth to hide your smile. you speed through everything else on the list and grab your jacket and bag when your boss waves you off with a half-hearted happy holidays, and skip a little too quick out the fire door behind the kitchen.

sure enough, here he is, though tonight feels different. you quickly spot him smudging the cigarette out, but as your eyes drift back up they land on something colourful in his hand.

he looks up when he hears the door but he doesn't smile like usual; instead it's small, laced with apprehension. but it blossoms when you grin at him, so wide your eyes nearly close.

"good shift?" he asks.

"hm, it was okay. what've you got?"

you step closer and look down to see that it's a pretty bunch of flowers.

"uh, I... if I don't do this now, I owe Steve fifty bucks."

you look up at him, confused. "what?"

"wanna go get dinner?"

the bliss that swells inside your chest feels like enough to lift you off your feet. you grin again, and he smiles back.

"Eddie Munson, are you taking me on a date?"

he looks down at his feet, bashfully kicking the stub of his cigarette with one shoe.

"I mean, I thought the walks home and everythin' were obvious enough, but..."

you giggle at him, thinking about all the evenings he'd drop you home without more than a hug goodbye, leaving you kicking yourself for thinking this could be anything more than good friends.

"my fault," you say. "wanted to say something, but I'm not good at committing to stuff."

"nah," he says, looking up at you again. "you just needed a hand gettin' it done."

lifting the flowers, he holds them out for you to take. as you do, he takes your bag and, before you can protest, slings it over his own shoulder. they're pretty, deep reds and purples.

"these are beautiful, Eddie."

he smiles back at you and brings his hand to the small of your back, as always, as you leave.

walking down the street, past closed-up shops in the cold, your hands brush his as he gets closer and closer. you seize the opportunity, finally committing to something, and wind your fingers between his.

[bearerofcups]

Oracle Messages for the Moon Signs

In honor of the Cancer Moon, and first full moon of the year, I have asked my Moonology oracle deck what messages the moon has for all of you this month. This is specifically for moon signs, but take what resonates! Leave behind what isn't helpful. (Let me know if you have requests for spreads like this in the future!)

Aries

Your commitment is being tested

- First Quarter Moon

If you needed a sign to keep going Aries, this is it. Amidst chaos and trials, never forget who you are. Your inner self was forged in fire, your emotions are a call to action. Whatever commitment this card brings to mind, spend some time with it this month. Decide what is worth it.

Taurus

The answers you need are coming

- Full moon in Gemini

Look at the calming blues of this card. You may not find comfort in the unknown, or the unstable, but perhaps this discomfort is not a bad thing for you right now. Learn to trust the universe and yourself, and know that all will be well. A new moon will rise, and you'll be able to act again. For now, I wonder what you're capable of when you truly trust your instincts. With no safety net, what risks are you willing to take?

Gemini

Confidence is your key to success

- New Moon in Leo

It's time to light a fire underneath you. Have you been hiding? Have you been reveling in the mystery of invisibility? Or, maybe you're already feeling confident and just need a reminder. Either way, enough second guessing. You are your greatest asset, your most reliable advisor. If you shine with a vibration of self worth, I wonder what impact you'll have on the others around you. Start your year off in a blaze of glory.

Cancer

You are good enough

- Full Moon in Virgo

Cancers, whether you have new projects starting or are feeling the call of doing something with yourself this month, just know that you are capable. It is a difficult time right now for those sensitive of heart. You deserve the rest you've gotten, and you deserve the opportunities at your door. You are capable of both. Don't stretch yourself too thin this month, whether for personal, professional, or passionate reasons. You matter far beyond the external impacts you leave. Be confident in what you do. You're called to do it for a reason.

Leo

Work through your fears

- New Moon in Scorpio

The energy needed for this month may go against your nature, yet it is necessary. Throwing glitter at your problems will not hide them, it just wastes energy. Find a safe way to confront your inner demons. Your fears and problems live in you, so make them live on your terms. Whether your progress this month is small steps toward results, finding a support system, or achieving victory, it is all important and valid. What matters is putting the work in for yourself.

Virgo

Communication is key

- New Moon in Gemini

The people in your life do not live in your head, and you will communicate in different ways. Perhaps this has been something you've been ignoring. This month is a chance to start fresh, reach out to people you've had unsuccessful conversations with, and listen. Ask questions. Be generous with your curiosity. Try having a conversation where you respond to understand the other person better, as opposed to just answering. What will you learn?

Libra

Take time to breathe out

- Disseminating Moon

Do not ignore the 'ebb' of ebb and flow. It is okay to take a step back. Take time for yourself, be unproductive sometimes. Put the calm and mysticality back in your life. Life is chaotic, but there are things you can control. Find those things and fill them with peace. Spend time on things solely for the beauty and the joy of them. Living life constantly consuming and producing isn't sustainable. Take a breath.

Scorpio

Look at the bigger picture

- Full Moon in Sagittarius

You may be spending a bit too much time looking inwards right now. Take stock of the world around you. What has changed since you last checked in? Taking your inner awareness into your outside life is how you live with intention. What do you want? Find a way to get it. It may be time to evaluate your choices, and put some thought into your future. A plan is not always restricting, sometimes it is what allows you to accomplish your dreams.

Sagittarius

Believe in the impossible

- Blue Moon

I know that things are hard right now. Guess what? The good things have not disappeared. You just have to look for them again. Find the magic in life. What filled you with wonder as a child? Reconnect with that. What do you believe is impossible right now? Ignore that feeling. It is a new year, and anytime can be a new slate if you decide to work for it. You can choose who you want to become. You'll be surprised what comes your way when you choose with intention.

Capricorn

A fiery climax approaches!

- Full Moon in Aries

You seem to have a lot going on right now. Make the decision to go with it, lean into the chaos and charge forward ready for whatever comes. Fill your life with passion. Chaos, events, and liveliness are what prove you are alive. Choose to actively be a part of it. Know that all of these things are going to come together for you in a big way this month. How will you prepare? What is your response to life going to be? (Just be kind to the people on the sidelines right now.)

Aquarius

A personal issue reaches resolution

- Full Moon in Cancer

The moon in Cancer is lending its energy to you right now. This is a great gift, make sure to put it to use. If you are feeling extra emotional or turbulent right now, it has not been for nothing. You've been working through issues that will help you out, and you are going to reap the rewards this month. What are you going to do with your new revelations? This has been a brave journey, do not dismiss it. Spend some time in the peace that follows a war with your heart.

Pisces

Step out of your comfort zone

- North Node

This is a chance to reset your sense of direction. What do you wish you'd done last year? Do it. What are you afraid of? Sit with it. Life is too short to tip toe around our own minds. If you want something, you have the power to begin your journey towards it. Allow yourself to be seen trying. Don't worry about your image. Those who can be trusted with your dreams will support you in your most vulnerable times. Maybe it's time to see who that is. Maybe it's time to see who *you* are, without the fear or passivity.

[gospelofme]

47 Thoughts While Watching Part 1 of The Bad Batch season finale (spoilers ahead!!!!!)

“They’ll still come for you”. Ugh that sounds so sad. He’s confident about it too.

How did Echo get so good at ship repairs? Unless basic ship crap is mandatory for sudden repairs. Which I guess if you hang with Skywalker, that’s a requirement.

Aaahhh, the Kamino theme is memorable.

So I wonder if Rampart planned to leave Crosshair on Kamino all along?

I love the fact the Kaminoans kept secrets from the Republic/Empire. Like using their credits to fund their own projects.

I wonder how Omega knew about that platform….I didn’t think she’d ever left Kamino. Unless she went there with Nala Se for whatever.

Damn, I’d hate always getting wet when I go outside.

So the pad and lift are proximity sensor based. Not weight.

So the tubes aren’t documented on any schematics. So none of the blueprints that Tech has access to have them on there. That means one of two things:

- there are “official” and “unofficial” blueprints. Like some the Republic were given and the actual plans.

- Nala Se had the tube system built specifically for her.

Private research lab doesn’t mean secret…but still, why did she get a private one? Was it just to create the enhanced clones? Or was it used for more “off the records” projects?

And if there are other tubes that run throughout Kamino, and they’re all secret, WHY!? Like why do they exist? Surely the Kaminoans know they can just go wherever they want whenever they want because they fucking live there. Unless….they became prisoners in their own home….

About how uncomfortable Omega is having to go to the lab…

“why would I be?” He sounded like he rolled his eyes there.

The amount of salt that is being sprinkled by Crosshair right now.

“We didn’t have a choice?”

“And I did?”

Okay so when I first watched this episode, I thought that meant he no longer had his chip. But now I see it as Crosshair not having a choice because Hunter had committed treason by what his orders were telling him.

Also, I love the colors used in the control room. Idk why. They just all work. I think it’s because the rest of that place is so blinding with white light.

So how did they build the tubes under water….

“Most in Tipoca City don’t know about it.” So some do.

Omega sounds so sad. Honestly since I’m certain there were more than just five enhanced clones, since Nala Se said that that was all that remained, I wonder if Omega saw the clones that didn’t survive the experimentation.

About how Tech always looks like he’s texting. I’m waiting for him to take a selfie with Echo or something.

About Hunter still trying to convince Crosshair that this is all influenced by his chip. I think Crosshair knows he’s being used, but he (like the others in Clone Force 99) want some sense of normalcy. Like Echo said earlier, “we’re soldiers, what other path is there?”

Okay the alarm reminds me of the purge siren.

And the indoor alarm sounds like an airport alert.

About Echo taking charge, although I think he naturally is the next in command rank-wise. Do we even know the rank of Tech and Wrecker? What was Crosshair’s rank before?

Omega should’ve gone and tattled on them to Rex. Like “and then they just ditched me!! Again!! I know I have no combat training but still…”

Its pretty clear that Crosshair knows how the team is going to act. Like what tactics they’d use and decisions they’d make. Like on Bracca, Crosshair knew immediately the scanner frequencies were being jammed, because he had seen Tech use that trick before.

“We’re running out of time Commander” I have enjoyed that guy’s voice. It’s soothing.

The way Crosshair spits out “the Republic” makes me think there is something more than just the inhibitor chip at play. I wonder if he’s always harbored ill feelings towards the Republic. Cut had issues with the war that were so strong, he deserted. I wonder if Crosshair had similar feelings.

Wow he is really hurt about being left behind. And I can understand that. But Hunter did have a responsibility to Omega, Wrecker, Echo, and Tech too. He couldn’t risk them being shot and killed while trying to reason with someone who is shooting at him. Of course maybe if he had made more of an effort to get Crosshair to come with them…..of course I do think the Empire has done some brainwashing of Crosshair as well.

“I was one of you. You may have forgotten, but I haven’t. And it’s why I’m going to give you, what you never gave me. A chance.”

I think there is more to this than face value. It could very well mean he’s giving them a chance to join the Empire. But that whole conversion always used the term “choice”, not “chance”. “Chance” is used more as “an opportunity to do something”. That “do something” could be making a decision though. Like “I’m going to give you a chance to join the Empire.” But it could be “I’m going to give you a chance to get out of here.” Hunter didn’t give Crosshair a chance to prove he was loyal to them either. Plus the way the rest of Crosshair’s team reacted tells me they weren’t aware of their Commander’s intentions.

I love how Tech, Wrecker, and Echo are standing there like 😐

I thought it was interesting Crosshair decided to send Omega on a shuttle off world. Of course where would that have been? Just pick some random coordinates and say “good luck”? How would that be received by Rampart? Of course I don’t think he cared about Omega. That was just Nala Se and Lama Su really. And honestly, Crosshair was sounding like he’d actually thought about this. Like if Hunter wants to keep Omega safe, then he needs to realize that she won’t be safe with them. Especially if they’re being hunted. However there may have been an ulterior motive here too. With Omega out of the way, It will be like “old times” when it was just them. He probably feels like he was replaced by a kid.

The change in music though. The emotional, sweeping theme dropping down to a more sinister theme when Crosshair mentions their superiority over regular troopers.

“This is what we were made for.” What if, and hear me out…what if the enhanced clones were created specifically for the Empire. Their deployment during the Clone Wars could’ve been a testing phase. They may not have been prepared for the chance the inhibitor chips didn’t work. Crosshair had mentioned that Hunter couldn’t see the bigger picture. What if that is the bigger picture. That all of them were created to serve the Empire. Not the Republic. Which would explain Crosshair’s sudden disgust with it.

That reflection shot of Tech staring into the mirror. I like that shot. That’s really beautifully animated.

I have a feeling Crosshair knew his new squad wouldn’t listen to him. The “stand down” sounded like he was just saying it to say it. I don’t think he ever had respect for them, not after what happened with Saw’s fighters. They weren’t following him out of loyalty, but fear. And loyalty is a big deal to Crosshair. Honestly I think he had planned all along to kill his new squad. Like from the beginning. Which is why he was trying so hard to get his old squad members. The sooner he got them and convinced them to come to his side, the sooner he could shoot his new squad.

I have a feeling Crosshair know’s the reason why they were all created. Granted that could be brainwashing by the Empire to gain his compliance and loyalty. But something tells me that they were created specifically to become an elite squad for the Emperor.

Crosshair has some serious Anakin vibes when he’s telling Hunter to not become his enemy. And Hunter has some Obiwan vibes with the whole “we never were” line.

I do enjoy the weight they give Crosshair when Hunter flips him. Like the sound of him hitting the floor. He’s heavier than he looks.

Lmao that one TK trooper like “nope, imma get the fuck out of here.”

“Let the clones die together.” Yeah that bitch always intended to leave Crosshair on Kamino. Rampart never actually considered him important since he was the one that pitched the idea of an all conscripted trooper squad. He only had Crosshair as a part of it because Admiral Tarkin still liked the idea of clones. I think Rampart is going to try to climb over Tarkin on that Empire ladder. He didn’t mention to Tarkin that Crosshair was still on Kamino.

Aaahhh now the subject of the chip. Does he or doesn’t he? I think he does. The Empire wouldn’t remove it and take that risk of losing that compliance and blind loyalty. Plus the “does it really matter?” tells me he doesn’t know when, which he would if it was recent. He did have it in the first episode though. It showed up on the scanner and he did the whole “good soldiers follow orders.”

So I don’t think he was going to shoot Hunter. I think he feigned movement to make Hunter shoot him. He may not have thought Hunter’s blaster was sent to stun even. He may have intended to have Hunter kill him.

I do like how Hunter doesn’t hesitate to not bring Crosshair this time.

Damn the shots of the empty facility kills me.

Okay, so I know this was sad BUT the bombardment of Kamino was beautifully animated. Honestly. The underwater shots of the bolts hitting the support pillars. And it reminds me…Omega asked Tech about these the war was like and now she kinda knows. She’s never seen explosions like that.

Get ready for part 2

@jgvfhl @leias-left-hair-bun @escapedthesarlacc @halzore @eyecandyeoz

[rigelmejo]

I present today, the free reader app Duoreader!

The app has several short novels and also some articles, and provides them in parallel texts. It also provides audio for both the languages you select (so you could pick a story with chinese/English text or french/Japanese etc). It also has the ability to look up words with a click dictionary. I'm not quite sure how to utilize that feature though, as the way my phone is set up Google Translate is always an option go highlight and translate text so that's what I end up doing in that app.

It's basically a really convenient app for reading, reading listening, getting parallel texts for an upper beginner/lower intermediate learner where you can start to push into non graded materials but aren't ready to give up some support tools and would like to start with something on the easier end (a lot of the novels on here are stuff i read from 8th grade to 10th grade in school or stuff I've seen read in another language as first novels in a class - The Little Prince, Around the World in 80 Days, Alice in Wonderland etc). Each of these novels is between Around 1-3 hours of audio so theyre short listens/reads, and even if you spend 3x the time just looking up words and figuring out each sentence, one of these novels is not a huge time commitment (for fun, zhenhun is at minimum 26 hours of audio... so zhenhuns a significantly bigger time commitment even if I never pause at all ToT).

I plan to try a Listening-Reading Method experiment with Duoreader app in Japanese at some point, just because I think I can manage it with a short novel. I'd do step 2 (Language 2 audio/Language 2 text), and step 3 (Language 2 audio/Language 1 text follow along). Then doing L2/L2 again slower with pauses/repetition to catch a lot of words I can figure out with the context if I just slow down. I may do the initial step 2 slow too, since I can comprehend a lot more Japanese if I slow down to break up the sentences mentally and figure out the grammar and word amount (then with a parallel text and Kanji I can figure out some word meanings). Alice in Wonderland takes about 1 hour to read, I'll give myself 1.5 hours for all the relistening to some sentences. Maybe 2 hours for the step 2 sessions where I slow down and try to break down sentences. So 5.5 hours to L R Method with Alice and Wonderland. Even if I double that and do some steps more, it should be a 1-3 day project. Certainly something I can do within a week and see if it works. I've often mentioned Wasabi Japanese websites lessons, because one of their courses is basically intensive listening reading repetition with short passages to learn and I love that style of study (and their other courses similarly work in a way that works well for me). Well L R Method works a lot like that for me when I put the effort in.

This is what Duoreader looks like:

I tried a little bit the other day, just to see how much I could understand. I did a lot of relistening to sentences over and over. And comparing the Japanese to English. After a little while I realized I knew a lot of words in that first paragraph already I just hadn't learned to READ them (and definitely not recognize them at speaking speed). A bit of breaking down sentences later, I'd made some progress. It's not anything impressive yet lol! But for me it was a big deal to manage to read that first paragraph and mostly get what parts meant what with the help of the parallel text. I also noticed this app uses a combo of hiragana at some times and Kanji other times for words that can be spelled with both. Kodomo for child was spelled both with Kanji and hiragana in this and I didn't even recognize it at first cause I'm used to only reading it in Kanji. It was good practice trying to recognize it both ways.

[adhd-asd]

What are some tricks for getting executive dysfunction to bugger off long enough to do the thing?

     Here are some ideas I’ve either found work for me or I’ve been told work for other people. Hopefully you’ll find some of them effective or, if not, maybe they’ll inspire you to come up with some brand new strategies of your own.

Declare your intent aloud. Announce to yourself (and other people, if they’re around) that you’re going to do the thing you need to do. Eg: “I will clean the sink.” “I am going to have a shower.”

Talk yourself through the task. Narrating the steps of my current task as I do them helps me to concentrate and follow through. Eg: “I am gathering the empty cups from the table and putting them in the sink.” Sometimes I can then even start narrating things I am not doing and I’ll automatically follow through because it’s become a habit in the moment. If a task involves reading, try reading it aloud.

Steal the energy from elsewhere. Engage with something that makes you feel good first, then ride that high to do the thing that doesn’t. If the task involves doing something physical, put on some energetic music that makes you want to dance and then channel that dance energy into task energy.

Hype yourself up. Channel your inner feel-good sports movie coach and start telling yourself how awesome you are, how you’re gonna kick this task’s butt and this task doesn’t stand a chance. Repeat random over-the-top motivational phrases until the motivation has no choice but to appear, like summoning an eldritch being by annoying them until they acknowledge you.

Break the task into steps. Very often I’ll have trouble tackling tasks, even simple ones, just because I don’t know where to start and the whole thing feels bigger than it is. In this case I find it helps to determine the steps that a task involves and do them one at a time, treating each one as its own job. Eg: Instead of “I will write an essay” try “I will write an introductory paragraph” or even just “I will write an introductory sentence”.

Write the steps down. Goodness knows I can’t follow verbal instructions for the life of me unless they’re given one step at a time. Rather than trying to keep the steps straight in your head, write them down and keep referring back to that list when you get sidetracked, lost, or stuck.

Do the task out of order. If the task allows it, try doing whatever part is most appealing first to ease yourself into the workflow.

Make the workload smaller. If jobs like doing dishes or laundry seem like too much work, consider if you can get rid of some of the clothes or dishes to cut down on how much work there is in the first place. If you’ve committed to too large a project, see if you can simplify it or distribute the work involved among a group.

Narrow your focus. Rather than tackling an entire task at once, try breaking it into easier-to-manage chunks. If you need to do laundry or dishes, specify that you’re only going to wash shirts or plates. If reading an entire book is intimidating, assign yourself a certain number of pages at a time. If reading an entire page of text is intimidating, try covering the page with a loose piece of paper and slowly revealing lines as you read.

Do it in five minute increments. Set a timer for five minutes and do the task for the duration. If you feel like you could do a little more, keep at it. If you’re still struggling, give yourself a break (you can also time your break if you find that helps) and try again later.

Use a buddy. See if there’s someone who’s willing to have a call going or who will come sit by you or even just check in every once in a while to keep you accountable. ADHDers are notorious for lacking internal motivation, so employing someone else to externalize it can make a big difference.

Be kind to yourself. Sometimes, no matter what you do, your brain just doesn’t want to cooperate. If you feel yourself getting frustrated, remember that it’s not your fault. Take a step back, have a snack or drink of water, give yourself some time to decompress, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Taking care of yourself will help you to actually be in good enough condition to do the job.

     I’ve also talked more in-depth about how I personally tackle doing tasks despite executive dysfunction here, and I have an ADHD Writing Advice post here that has some tips that may be applicable to tasks other than writing.

     To others who struggle with executive dysfunction, what are some strategies you’ve discovered work for you?

[legionofpotatoes]

I love your art, it is very detailed in a neat way. Was wondering how you got started making it as a source of income? How did you get your first paid work, I'd love some advice on how to get started, if that's ok

Thank you. Of course it's okay, although I doubt I have enough work experience in art to really delve into this. I only went full freelance this year, and had been juggling art as a side hobby until then. If you're still interested in my somewhat narrow perspective, and are okay with my long-winded rambles, I'll give it a shot:

So to answer your question fully, I'll describe how I started and move into personal advice and learnings later on. As a disclaimer, I am a white cishet dude in my late twenties with a moderate cocktail of mental illnesses, but overall I can pass for a functioning adult so a lot I have to say may come laced with privilege I cannot fully identify.

So uhh I began drawing in around 2012? I think? Maybe halfway through 2011? And I mostly made fanart for things I enjoyed and tried to branch out in communities that felt nourishing to my style and interests (I caught a bug for alt posters and enjoyed mainstream movies so I spent a long time on posterspy early on). There were a handful of opportunities that came from there but I could only accept a couple because of primary workplace commitments. Still, it showed that networking in a focused community was definitely a good place to start; I myself have huge trouble committing to social networks and really staying socially active, but I knew it was an essential ingredient in succeeding so I tried to make myself be involved in challenges and art support trains etc. as much as I could.

In parallel to all that I also ran a few third party online stores (redbubble, teepublic) for disposable income and would sometimes, if rarely, hit around $100-150 a month from those sources combined. It is a sort of thing that requires helper accounts on other social media sites to promote it on, because the stores themselves have a huge volume of content that translates into low organic discoverability. Obviously it was never gonna be the way towards financial independence through art, and with community projects being few and far between, I opened private commissions in around uhhh 2017 I think, focusing on offering a few styles I knew I could do well, and sometimes operating in individual fandoms (it was mostly a bioware thing to be frank). But I had to close them back down after a year or so, again because of work-life conflict and how badly it was burning me out. The reason I kept trying to monetize this hobby is because I honestly hated what I did for my main job and wanted to see a way out in some shape or form in the future.

And then in 2020 I had to quit my main job altogether because of *gestures at pandemic* and deal with a mental breakdown from all the wonderful things it did to us and me specifically. I took a short break and decided to give art a shot full-time, and that was around May this year. I was planning on opening up commissions again (and I still am), but a few sudden opportunities that fell in my lap moved that timetable down and now I'm grateful to even be doing something I am getting adequately paid for.

So, with that somewhat limited perspective, here's what I've learned that I'd tell myself if I was just starting out:

1. Being a fan of something can be a shortcut towards effective networking kickoffs. Which are important evidently. If you love something and enjoy making content for it, join communities, settle into a combination of social media websites that feel right for those interests + your body of work + your inner rhythm, and try to play to content discovery as much as your mental health allows you to. Like I said, I know that I myself am incredibly bad at self-motivating to talk to people, so I found that synergizing common interests into fanart - which I enjoyed making anyway - could be a way to give myself a gentle nudge forward and build those bridges leading to community activities, which then net experience and coverage. Sometimes even freelance projects from official avenues. Again; picking the right spaces for what you're after is key. Companies roam twitter, concept art recruiters scour artstation or linkedin etc, instagram can land you private commissions and collab opportunities, so on and so forth. Find your niche and try to kick up dust. However...

2. I do not believe that any social profile can replace a good portfolio. The thing that made an immediate difference to me this year was building a coherent, simple website with my best work front and center and a contact form on top. Every single opportunity I got came from that form (maybe via twitter or instagram initially, but always sealing the decision after going through the website), so I firmly believe that showcasing your skills and portfolio in a visually arresting and user-friendly way is a big priority. I had some reservations about tackling that task but fortunately I had help from a savvy life partner and we slapped it together via wordpress in less than a day. Twitter/whatever social media is prevalent in your target groups is definitely important to get the right eyes on your shit, yes, but those eyes will then look for a second stop where your work and rates are more clear and concise. Simplicity is key imo, I cannot overstate this. So make a cute, simple portfolio!

3. Your skills and rates will grow and change as you do. Let them. Over the years I built several lasting professional relationships from my obsession over mass effect and kept getting opportunities both from bioware and their partner companies, some small and some a bit bigger. A one-off job earlier this year opened an unexpected door to another much larger commitment, and then the work I did there brought some attention from small businesses looking for commercial commissions. These were all incredibly different projects in terms of scope and budget, and I've been tackling them all on a case-by-case basis and slowly coming into my own irt my needs, rates, and SOW thresholds. It is still a work in progress (and a LOT of literal work as well), and very much a thing I struggle with in publicly marketing, which is why I felt a tad underqualified to answer your question in the first place (obviously I did not let that stop me). But what it means for me now is that I am rapidly developing into whatever my "version" of a functioning freelance artist is, and when the conditions for that guy are met, I need to be able to confidently plant myself and operate from that space despite past precedents. Do not let anyone bully you into downpricing what you yourself perceive as legitimate products of personal growth and development. Speaking of which...

4. The shitty challenge of turning envy into inspiration, and paddling outside your comfort zones in full riot gear. it is hard, but realizing that being a miserable, self-hating artist in my early days got me nothing but more misery back was the first real step I took and what truly blew the hinges off. I was just not pleasant to be around, I would badmouth my work all the time, and it all somehow made sense in my broken mind because the validation I sought was purely external and the way I sought it was through eliciting sympathy via self-victimization (even when I made something objectively nice). It all led fucking nowhere. Except perhaps to my own narcissism that I one day managed to identify and start managing. So I started looking at things that made me seethe with envy and calmly deconstruct and figure out their inner workings instead, do studies, and find nuggets of inspiration or discover new ways to approach rendering or building up specific elements. It was an application of analytical diligence to what I wanted to be a purely emotional, esoteric workflow, but that I deep down knew wasn't. Art is a discipline and a skill, and maybe it isn't a straight line, but you gotta find some line to thread nevertheless. Being self-hating was almost an identity I had to break out of, and despite it still being like, 4-5% there? I realize its cause and effect on me, my work, and those around me, so it is with a conscious choice that I gently set it aside when I work and especially when I learn. It won't always stay quiet, but the effort is the difference. Your doors towards accepting true growth and venturing into uncharted territories, art styles, and networking will really open from there. But there's a huge caveat...

5. Toolsets, accessibility, privilege, and all the good things that enable artistic expression and profitability are not given equal to all. you might do all the mental work I mentioned to be ready to rock and roll and learn and draw your way out of anything, but digital art is a fucking money pit that asks almost too much at times. I don't got a good case study here but identifying and ensuring accessibility to the tools you need to do your best work is, like, super important. The ergonomics can improve as you make money and settle into the job, but the basics have to be made available to you. And some of that might not even be under your direct control. That can be anything from pen tablets to software subscriptions to opportunities in hiring sullied by sexism or what have you. You gotta navigate all that through careful networking and money/time management. I don't do a good job of devoting specific slices of time to work/study, and my primary clutch is iPad software which went from a good deal to a nightmare scenario over the years. So all I can say here is do what I didn't; network, invest in a PC/tablet, and pick a software you'll learn that won't burn a hole in your pocket.

6. Be nice to work with? This one is hard to articulate and has landed my own ass in hot water in my early years because of how socially inept I am, but nothing is more worthwhile than being.. like. a good person to work with. That can be anything like meeting deadlines, or sometimes missing them but eloquently articulating why, being generous in early stages, being communicable and not too wordy in your emails, having a good grasp on abstract artistic concepts and how to describe them in simple terms, having a clear, laid out framework of your working rates in commercial and non-commercial projects and sticking to those guns with grace, understanding when you need to say no and saying it well, the works. Just being nice. Sometimes that might mean going headstrong with something you believe in, or simmering down and sucking up to the big man, all relative and adaptive. Part and parcel of the service provision dance that we all have to do in order to make bank. Know your lines here, obviously, and don't like. work for nazis. or uh.. *shudders* exposure. but be nice and empathetic and communicable and word will travel eventually. Skill may be in abundance these days, but good people are most certainly not, and capitalism has a way of bubbling up scarcity. Grim, but uh, them's the breaks.

I know I'm ultimately telling you to like. Have a body of work, make a portfolio, grow, and network. But that's really how I see it for now. And being nice can be a cherry on top that sets you apart, along with the inherent irreplaceable voice of your artwork. I think I rambled on enough, but if there is something specific you need my help with, even if you want to come off anon and talk in private, please feel free.

[thesagedahlia]

♂️Masculine ➕ Feminine♀️

♀️

She is wanting to find stability for herself after having it ripped away from her, figuratively or not. Looking to invest in different avenues of financial resources, even through creative endeavors/projects, & slowly moving toward a place of planning for your individual future. She may be experiencing delays/setbacks in her plans, but she'll need to use this time wisely; things will be coming together in the right way. She may be overwhelmed of her own pain or anxiety that could be in regards to an emotional connection that was underdeveloped; she is searching to emphasize her own self love after losing that foundation of being with another who wasn't working with her to build. She should know that holding onto this outcome is blocking the next best thing. Her innocence/inner child is being tested with this one; can she find that true happiness for being by herself all over again? Of course, she can. The hurt lives, but she has made up her mind about being hopeful & her dedication to healing.

♂️

He seems to be chasing this balance of his physical world which has created distance from any emotional fulfillment; this seems to be a pattern for him. This may be in attempt to gain control of his life in some manner, but also holding onto some feelings of allowing romance into his life. He may be starting to realize how he's let these attachments to the material world around him has stifled his romantic/emotional success. He is feeling hurt by a foundation that has caused a breakup or separation that has extended indefinitely; he isn't vocalizing what is hurting him. He may also have deep commitment issues that were triggered when pursuing a connection. He hasn't gotten over this ending truly & it is festering within him, creating inner conflict he can't ignore. He's made conscious decisions to focus on his own stability & isolating himself, which is now visibly working to his detriment. He's seeing where being selfish is getting him & he wants to bring balance into his life, & by doing this he needs to be more forthcoming about the things he is passionate about & find the balance with that & his overall foundation. He may be prone to reckless behavior as his hurt outweighs his ability to make level-headed decisions.

☯️

Walking away from what we've invested time in can become a burden in itself for those who want to be happy in life. As the feminine walks away from what isn't serving her, she will start to see the answers in why these things had to happen this way. She may not be looking at the bigger picture to realize what she was destined to be, or destined to have in this world, & she's being asked not to lose faith; keep believing in it & merge it with her ambition to be all she can be & what she was brought here to do. She will benefit from balancing her energy at this time & taking life as it comes; the good, the bad & the ugly. The masculine is needing to free himself from what he is truly suppressing. He's here to serve a purpose in his own right, but the rigidity of focusing mainly on the physical world is only going to make him miss the bigger picture; his constant question may be "what the hell am I even doing it for?", to which he can't answer himself. He needs to act fast & efficiently toward his goals & there is a need for him to be vulnerable to what can come his way. We choose to shift our perspectives at any time, even through frustration from not seeing what you want to. Be more tuned into the light inside of you & how you wish to use this wisdom to shape your reality. You can't lose if you choose happiness.

*REMINDER: we all have & harbor masculine & feminine energy, therefore it is advised that in order to gain the guidance needed in this reading, that you read BOTH the masculine & feminine energy sections. Disregard the pronouns being used, since I am only referring to the ENERGY of the collective, & not the GENDERS. This reading is intended for entertainment purposes only. Energy is fluid, not linear. Take what resonates, leave the rest*

[mira--mira]

Question from an aspiring writer:

How do you stay motivated on one project for such a long time?

I personally have the attention span of a goldfish, and whenever I have an idea I either have to write down everything my brain can spew immediately or have it be lost in the void for eternity.

Never mind going back and turning my outline into a fic or gasp editing.

Do you have any tips and/or tricks you use?

Ok, I got completely carried away with this just fyi, but hopefully I ended up answering your actual question 😂 tl;dr at the bottom.

To be honest, staying motivated is a tricky thing, one that I feel I'm still learning how to do even now and varies a bit between shortfics/oneshots and multi-chaptered fics/longfics. For a bit of background, I've been writing fanfic for about a year and a half, but I've been writing original fiction since I was seven, over a decade and a half, and I still wrestle with it. It's definitely a learning process.

One thing I wish someone would have told me when I was starting out was the power of ~scenes~ in either multi-chapters or one-shots. All writing is ultimately made up of scenes, but if you're struggling to put things together, focusing on an individual scene, or multiple short scenes, might help you focus on getting something completed, and it's something that eventually can be applied to longer works as well. Writing has been a snowball process for me and once I started getting anything completed, I felt more secure in knowing what I could write comfortably and what was out of my comfort zone, eventually getting to the point where I felt comfortable tackling bigger and longer projects and knowing I could stay with them.

OoT's interlude chapters and the snippet series are both good examples of scenes because I wrote them with that intention...even if most of them are actually two or three scenes combined. "Gai meets Hashirama and Madara", "Hashirama gets revenge on Kakashi", "Tatsuki and Hashirama pick flowers for Madara, then give them to him" etc. were all my starting points.

If you're first starting out and feel comfortable with outlines of some sort before you start writing I would encourage you to try and write down a bullet point list of your scene(s) and what you know you want to happen in it.

"Gai meets Hashirama and Madara"

* Hashirama meets Gai first, mistakes him for Lee.

* Madara is shopping for a gift for Hashirama

* Madara finds Gai and Hashirama, they spar, Gai kicks his ass, both of them love him.

This is how my initial outline looked for the first interlude chapter, technically each one of these "points" are their own scenes stuck together. Outlining is different for everyone, some people like super specific points, others even less detail than this. For me this is a nice middle that gives me a roadmap for the chapter, but allows plenty of room to naturally diverge and add detail. Play around with outlines and see what you're comfortable with/what gives you the best results.

I'm not sure of your individual situation, but if you're struggling to put together fics in general something like this might help. Doing this process again and again personally helps me stay on track and gives me a sense of progress.

This sense of progress is ultimately key and why I think motivation differs slightly between one-shots/short fics and longfics. If you confine the individual scene to a one-shot, that might give you the motivation to complete it. Even if you start writing and you get interrupted/can't finish having in one setting, bullet points sometimes help inspire me to finish because I'm not starting from scratch when I return to writing. The whole "eat an elephant one piece at a time" thing was difficult for me to learn, but ultimately proved true. Learning to chip away at something bit by bit is going to be the only (healthy) way to write longer projects you can't complete in one sitting.

For longer projects, it's a similar beast just on bigger levels and with an added dimension. I would actually suggest something similar to OoT for a starting project because it is ultimately broken up into arcs that you know and can reference, instead of making a lot of og content for a fan setting. Maybe not go into it thinking, 'I'll do a complete rewrite' but once you feel like you're ready for a longer project 30K+ or so, the rough outline method and the ability to follow arcs was what got me started when I eventually decided to make the fic multi-chaptered. Try writing one arc and keep yourself contained in that. Now the added dimension aspect in general for longfics is that you eventually want to plot individual chapters in a multi-chaptered longfic and individual arcs (character, plot, etc). This comes with practice. I honestly don't think there's a way to get around that. It's something that I'm still trying to work on and I can look back at my early work and see how I've improved, how I can recognize where things didn't go well in certain places, and how I would change them if I was writing today. That's a good thing to be able to do, it means you've grown! The other thing I find that helps with staying motivated week after week for longer projects is to roughly know where you're going and to try to be excited about a plot point/scene/chapter/etc that you're going to write. Really try to hype yourself up. For me, it's a moment that comes at the very end of the chunin arc and I start grinning even thinking about it because I know it's going to be awesome. It's always what gets me through the rough days, imagining the moment I'll get to actually write that scene in its entirety (it's definitely already outlined and I mentally play it out at least twice a week lol) and is a big motivating drive.

So far I think this is pretty standard stuff if you're an outliner and you've been writing for a few years, but the other thing motivational-wise for me is having a schedule. From reading this message alone, I would not suggest it for you right away. Get comfortable finishing small things and feeling confident that if you let an idea sit for a week or two, you can pick it back up and continue. But if you eventually dip your toes into longfics (and don't plan to pre-write everything before you publish) that routine and rhythm really helps keep me going. I've made a commitment, I've posted it online, I'm going to stick to it. No one is going to jump down my throat if I fail to keep it (this is still a hobby and having fun is the most important thing) but in my mind I should commit to it unless something irl prevents me from doing so. Don't put a tight deadline on yourself, I'd start with once a month or if you write shorter chapters every three weeks. This also would help you build up and get a readership, interaction being another big motivational key.

Also, it's important to accept that sometimes you bite off more than you can chew, and when you feel completely demotivated from a fanfic project...it's okay to drop it. It's okay to take a step back and work on something else. Maybe you'll come back to it, maybe you won't. If you can, try to pinpoint what it was about that project that made you demotivated, were you pushing yourself too much and you got burnt out, was it an ongoing series and your interest for canon lagged and so did the fic, was it just too stressful to keep juggling plotpoints, etc. and keep that in mind moving forward. Every experience can be a learning one and eventually make you a better writer that can eventually tackle those bigger projects. Don't be afraid to take on big aspirational projects, but don't walk into them blind either. Above all, and this is repeated a lot because it's true, enjoy what you write. Some days you might not. That's true with anything, but any project you take on the good should outweigh the bad.

This is my wrap up of the motivational section but I also wanted to throw my two-cents in about editing because "oh no editing" is a perspective I've seen from a lot of writers, and used to have myself, but I think is going to stifle your progress in the long run.

Here's the thing: you need to look forward to editing.

You don't have to be jumping for joy, but editing, imo, should be a positive thing. You have all these great ideas, you made it into a fic, something you wrote, and now you get to go back and make it even better! This is a tough attitude to adopt. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. It took me a long time to unlearn the negative attitude and even then sometimes I still wish the editing was already done once I type in the last period. But I've learned to at least appreciate what editing does and I try to think to myself as I'm going through and making changes things like "wow, this suddenly became so much better. X plot point that I thought of ten pages from now is suddenly being hinted at and doesn't come out of left field. The transition points are a lot cleaner, it's not so jarring anymore. I bet the readers are going to love this little detail. Here's some foreshadowing that I hope someone picks up bc it's going to come back in like 5 chapters from now" it's hard, especially when you start, but this is something you made, and now are actively making better and that's something to celebrate.

I hope this helps anon! I know it's a lot and I'm by no means an expert but I've been doing this for more than a decade because I love it and I want to help others get into writing to! I have no problem answering any writing questions you may have if you find this helpful!

tl;dr

-motivation is slightly different between short/long fics.

-starting out, learn to outline by scenes and focus on finishing small projects and getting to a point where you feel like you can put something down and come back and pick it up again in a week. Completion is key and will help you feel satisfied/know your limits.

-long projects also can work on the scene-to-scene outline but now with individual chapters and individual arcs. It's tough to balance both but comes with practice. Bit-by-bit is key, as is having 'one moment you can't wait to write', possibly a schedule if it works for you, and reader feedback are all huge long-term motivational points.

-editing is tough but learn to look forward to it instead of dreading it.

edited: added a bit more/few typos fixed