#why are there so many misconceptions surrounding this guy

[dephoraowo]

Jiang Cheng and a List of his Fanon Tropes

I don't know how this happened in the mdzs fandom. But the majority of the fandom somehow screwed up Jiang Cheng's characterization completely. Was this because of the Untamed? I ain't sure. But I am here to help all of you see which ones are fanon and which ones are canon.

List of Fanon Tropes:

Jiang Cheng loves and considers Wei Wuxian as his brother. (+ this, this, this, this.)

Jiang Cheng is a good clan leader. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng is as powerful as Lan Wangji. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng is a good jiujiu to Jin Ling and has never abused him before. (+ this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this, this.)

Jiang Cheng has a soft heart.

Jiang Cheng tortured and killed demonic cultivators for 13 years to protect other people.

Jiang Cheng never meant to hurt / kill Wei Wuxian. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng never mattered to / was not favoured / was ignored by Jiang Fengmian. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng wasn't allowed consent during the transfer. (+ this, this, this, this, this.)

Jiang Cheng's clan was weak after the war. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng respected Wei Wuxian as an equal.

Jiang Cheng is good at politics.

Jiang Cheng is good with the ladies. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng is a good clan leader who cares about his people.

Jiang Cheng didn't use Jiang Yanli as a bargaining chip. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng is not homophobic. (+ this, this, this, this, this, this.)

Jiang Cheng never tortured Wei Wuxian with a dog. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng was right during the Ancestral Hall scene. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng cares about Jiang Yanli over his thirst for revenge.

Jiang Cheng distracted the Wens purely out of love for Wei Wuxian.

Jiang Cheng kept Chenqing because he missed Wei Wuxian. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng rebuilt Lotus Pier / recruited disciples all on his own / raised Jin Ling all on his own / spends his time helping the people in Yunmeng.

Jiang Cheng isn't responsible for Wei Wuxian's death. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng would be a good uncle to A-Yuan. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng kept Wei Wuxian's living quarters in Lotus Pier.

Jiang Cheng was thought to be the gong early on when mdzs was first published. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng prioritises his own clan over helping Wei Wuxian save the Wen remnants. (+ this, this, this.)

Jiang Cheng didn't know the Wen remnants were civilians. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng never wanted Jin Zixuan to die.

Jiang Cheng grew out of the cycle of abuse.

Jiang Cheng matured over the years.

Jiang Cheng wasn't that bad since he managed to survive until the end of the novel. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng never suspected Wei Wuxian's feelings for Lan Wangji. (+ this, this.)

Jiang Cheng is a hero. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng's sacrifice for Wei Wuxian was meant to tell readers that Jiang Cheng loved Wei Wuxian after all.

Jiang Cheng often cared for Wei Wuxian very well.

Jiang Cheng declaring Wei Wuxian as enemy of the cultivation world wasn't meant to be emphasized.

Jiang Cheng was a helpless clan leader who always wanted to help Wei Wuxian but was forced to hurt him.

Jiang Cheng would have helped or understood Wei Wuxian if Wei Wuxian stopped keeping secrets from him.

Jiang Cheng wanted to protect Wei Wuxian, but he and his clan were too weak, or they were being threatened. (+ this.)

Jiang Cheng wanted Wen Ning dead because he wanted justice for his family and clan.

Jiang Cheng never tortured and killed people for 13 years.

Jiang Cheng acknowledges his own debts.

Jiang Cheng is a powerful cultivator.

Jiang Cheng stabbing Wei Wuxian in the gut was part of the agreed upon duel.

All of these posts do not belong to me! Please support the actual people who posted these wonderful metas and analyses. If there's anything I missed, please do tell! There's still quite some more I haven't listed down, but I've reached the limit of links for this post. I will post more in a reblog below this one 😊.

[pals-pet-project]

Pal's Pro Pet Tip #2: Setting Up a Betta Tank

The betta fish is my favorite fish of all time. They're spunky, they're sassy, they're smart. But there are so many misconceptions about them that most don't get the quality of life they deserve.

Step One: Choosing a Tank

When I worked at a pet store, so many people came in and would tell me "I have a betta in a half gallon tank/vase/cup :)" and I would have to tell them "Hey. That's no good." The analogy I like to use is to imagine living in just your bathroom. You don't have much space to move around and you're surrounded by your own grime and waste. Is that how you'd want to live? Why would your fish want to live that way?

The bare minimum I recommend for a betta is 5 gallons, and even then I would only recommend that for a long-finned betta. Their fins weigh them down and make swimming harder. If you have a short-finned/plakat betta, I'd go 10 gallons or more. I had a plakat in a 36 gallon, and the only reason I moved him was because he was getting bullied (and tank mates are a whole other can of worms). But he used every inch of that space.

Bowls are not appropriate tanks for any fish! Including bettas!

Step Two: Supplies

Bettas need, at the bare minimum, a filter, a heater, and a thermometer.

Filters are important because they keep the water flow going and because they help establish a nitrogen cycle (there will be a separate post on this later) to keep your betta safe and healthy.

Wild bettas live in bodies of water with little to no water flow. They're not good at keeping up with a current. So if your filter is too strong, it's going to stress out your little guy and make it hard for him to swim. Especially in a smaller tank, I highly suggest a sponge filter! They limit the amount of flow in the tank while still cleaning the water.

As for heaters, I suggest an adjustable one. They're a little more than the preset ones, but they're more... you know. Adjustable. The ideal temperature range is 76-82 degrees Fahrenheit.

I prefer glass thermometers, but I hear digital ones are relatively accurate as well.

Step Three: Decorations

Bettas love clutter!!! It gives them things to do! Imagine an empty room. Now, imagine a room full of places to explore. Which room would you wanna live in? You can't really overcrowd a betta tank!

Some rules of thumb for decorating your tank:

Avoid any decorations that are rough or sharp. If you wouldn't be able to drag pantyhose across it without it ripping or tearing, it isn't appropriate for a betta's fins.

Lots and lots of plants! Live plants are best because they better replicate the natural environment of the betta. They're also WAY easier to keep alive than people realize! I don't have a green thumb with dry plants, but both my tanks are fully planted and it's one of my favorite parts of fish keeping. Still, if the idea is too intimidating, stick to silk plants and not plastic ones. The plastic ones can be too sharp for the little guys' fins.

Give them hiding places! I have driftwood for my little guy to swim in and around, as well as a few cute little swim-throughs and hides. There are so many hides out there--both natural and artificial--that you'll have plenty of options!

Have stuff towards the top of your tank! Bettas--especially those with long fins--are not the best swimmers. They also have an air-breathing organ called the labyrinth, so they need to have easy access to the top of the tank. I personally have some anubias plants on suction cups and a floating betta log, but you can also buy artificial leaves meant to stick to the side. Bettas love to sleep near the surface, and it's really cute!!

Step Four: Chemicals and Water

When you are finally ready to fill your tank with water, it's still not ready for a fish. First off, tap water has chlorine and other trace minerals in it that aren't safe for your fishy! So they need to be removed. Pet stores are really good about branding products specifically for bettas--but guess what! You don't need betta-specific products! They're usually lower quality and higher price. Some even contain aloe, which can coat the labyrinth and be harmful to bettas.

Get yourself some Seachem Prime and call it a day. It's a water conditioner that I trust above all others for all types of fish, bettas included (but there's no affiliation between me and them beyond how much I enjoy the product). You're gonna add one drop per gallon of water into your tank.

Then, you're gonna cycle your tank completely so it's safe for your fishy. Again, I'll make an in-depth post on this later--but basically you're establishing an ammonia cycle, so you should have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and somewhere between 20 and 40 nitrate. It can take a month or two to get here. But it's worth it to keep the little guys safe and healthy, right?

Oh, and another thing--don't use distilled water! It doesn't have essential minerals in the water--because it's been distilled--and can actually be harmful to your fish.

And that's it!

Put all of that together, and you've got a perfect little Betta house. When they're happy, you can really see their personalities come out, and their colors will be more vibrant!

[foreignswaggersession]

Thank you for your IWTV posts and clearing up misconceptions. Tbh I wouldn't be so annoyed if people weren't constantly determined to do as many bad faith readings as possible when it came to Louis and Armand's relationship. Like of course it was a very flawed and very complicated relationship, we know this! But it's so obvious when a fan is making a post about how it was "completely loveless and devoid of sexual intimacy" solely so their own otp could look better. So many examples that others have already pointed out, including that one take about Louis disliking the first TVD performance, so this means that he hates theater in general and prefers Lestat over Armand (excuse me, what?)

Also more than one person trying to say how loumand had more PDA and not just for Daniel in the Dubai interview. But that this meant "every affectionate gesture between them to ever happen including Paris was just for performance" and was not truly genuine compared to what was with Lestat? Um no shit, Louis and Lestat had more of their love scenes behind closed doors. But also consider the context with how things were in NOLA and Louis having to pose as another person (brother, business partner, etc) because of rumors surrounding him and his lover. How due to racial discrimination he couldn't even get into an opera house without playing Lestat's servant. Then skip forward to the 1940s when he believed he can actually be comfortable doing this openly "Paris was a formative sexual liberation", with him having those casual relationships with other men while cruising. To kissing and being affectionate with Armand in public and not give a damn who is watching or if he's being heckled for it. This isn't even trying to reduce Louis' previous relationships either or say they're less important, more that Louis' comfort with how he expressed his own sexuality and romantic gestures developed over time.

As for Dreamstat... guys he's an extension of Louis' inner thoughts (a complex mixture of emotions before Louis was ready to enter a new relationship), but he wasn't present during loumand sex scenes either... and Louis certainly wasn't having sex with Armand just for Dreamstat to watch??

Despite already knowing what's "endgame" some people still can't allow even a single moment of love, attraction and vulnerability between loumand to just exist without twisting it into something else, or making it actually about Lestat or Daniel while propping up their preferred pairing. good lord, I'm tired of this.

🥰thanks anon! i'm not as familiar with tv fandom so maybe i'm not understanding why people are so resistant to acknowledging louis's attraction to armand (even pre-claudia's murder) when they were together in canon. like in both the show and the book (and not in a future book, devil's minion stans). since when are people not allowed to enjoy different relationships at different times? i think it's silly to ignore or misrepresent whole sections of the plot just to feel like your favorite ship is the more romantic(?) or healthier (😂) ship, i guess? but yeah, recognizing any romance or attraction between louis and armand (especially from louis towards armand) makes some people angry, as though it undermines armand's abuse or any future relationship either party will have.

not much to add to what you said - the majority of fans only care about louis to the extent he cares about lestat, so they focus on dreamstat/lestat scenes in s2 and ignore the many scenes without him. then there are fans that can't let go of their s1 headcanons that conflict with new information from s2 (louis tops sometimes. it's just a fact now. please stop being weird about it.) i also hate the refusal to engage with louis's repeated statements about his changing relationship to his sexuality over time. his sexual preferences are not stuck in 1910, and i don't agree with pathologizing louis topping or having sex with men besides lestat (if you're not into it, just say that, but don't act like there's no evidence for louis enjoying a different sex life in the show).

i'm not a solo shipper and i love thinking about louis so it's not hard for me to imagine louis in multiple relationships (and in various positions 🥵), and lucky for me i get to see that on screen! cause that's what the show is about actually! louis! the titular vampire.

[dustbuneary]

Hello, hello — What a beautiful day it is!

I found myself scrolling a bit today and your lovely image of your Pokémon battling caught my eye! That’s a “Mismagius”, isn’t it? What a state they’re in too, I’m sure they’re great at battling and holding their own!

Buuut — what if I told you I knew the inside secret that Big Pokécenter doesn’t want you to know? The rarest of the rare candies you could possibly find? You see those gems sticking out of your ghostly friend? Bright red, shiny little things, can’t miss ‘em! What if I told you those are a reflection into the Pokémon’s true level?

I’ve got a new order of my Evolutionary Gloss in just recently! One coat of this stuff and it’ll change the color of your little guy’s gems in no time! I can even include the handy little color guide for an extra 500 pokédollars. Red is good, not anything to scoff at — but could you imagine if your Mismagius shifted their gem color to blue with a little bit of your influence? A blue-gemed Magius isn’t anything to scoff at.

Pink? Oh Arc, you’d have people running the minute you stepped into town! That’s why you’ve never seen one with different colored gems — most people have to hide them to not scare everyone away with the amount of unseen power they hold. It’s a blessing and a curse! But, really it‘s just a blessing. Especially for you with this limited time offer, since I’m so kind.

You buy a tube of my patented Evolutionary Gloss and I’ll throw in the exclusive color chart for an measly extra 500 pokédollars! Bringing your actual total to a simple 3,500 pokédollars for a deal that could help level up your little friend in a matter of days! What do you say, yes or yes?

— 💰🍸

Huh. Scam team huh? Why does that sound so familiar... I'm sure I'll figure it out.

You would think if you're going to have such an obvious name you would at least get a more convincing pitch, or maybe try it on someone who ISN'T a competitive battler that's raised a Mismagius for years, haha. But I guess this is a good reason for me to talk about Anise and some of the misconceptions that apparently surround Mismagius' gems!

First off, no, the color of a Mismagius's gems have no bearing on their power level. They are generally red, though if I remember right there are a few conditions, genetic or illness, that can effect the coloration of their gems, as well as many breeders that breed 'fancy' versions of Misdrevous with different colors and shapes, so at the end of the day this means next to nothing.

More importantly though, the gems are not just ornamental, either!! Those gems are how Mismagius sustain themselves, absorbing fear and negative energy from their surroundings to be able to keep themselves well fed and healthy! Now, while I have no idea personally if these paints or gloss or whatever it is would actually stop a Mismagius from being able to absorb the energy it needs, it WOULD stop you from being able to see the gems, and the first and sometimes only sign of failing health in a Misdreavus or Mismagius is a translucent or clear gem, as the color draining is a serious sign that you need to get your friend to a pokemon center right away!!

All that to say, absolutely not, thanks. Hell, even if it WAS completely safe, and what you said about colors wasn't just nonsense, why on earth would i EVER want to scare off potential battles?? I LIKE battling!! What would even be the point?? If you ever want a demonstration though, you're more than welcome to stop by the Amity Department Store sometime :)

[xltribe]

XL Tribesmen Of The Week Demaine Tyrone

It's been an interesting 2020 and as we come to a close we wanna honor XL Tribesmen Of The Week Demaine Tyrone he's our final feature of 2020. See y'all in 2021 with that new new. 1. There are so many fashion brands available now, what do you still think is missing in menswear? As a designer, I think about this question often. I always strive to re-create classic pieces with a pop or twist to keep it exciting and new. I love to take a traditional piece like the hoodie, varsity jacket, or the men’s suit and add elements of surprise, innovative construction, or colour to refresh it. I think that menswear generally tends to be conservative, traditional, and classic which undoubtedly works well with many brands. Personally, I love to design pieces that break those barriers of tradition while embracing them at the same time and that’s the missing piece that my brand Demaine Tyrone delivers. 2. What are some of your personal goals for the last quarter of 2020? My biggest project is coming to fruition at the moment as I finish up a 7-piece collection that will drop in early 2021. Although it’s business, it’s a collection that is very personal and dear to my heart. Please follow @demainetyrone to stay tuned. 3. What are some of your favorite brands and why? BALMAIN is my favorite luxury designer. Creative Director Olivier Rousteing is a huge inspiration for me, the Balmain collections he’s done are some of the best in my opinion. The use of colour, texture, and the way the pieces push the limit of modern design and structure is so intriguing and exciting. From the Oscar de La Renta era to now, the brand delivers powerful confidence and aesthetic that is so captivating. I aspire to bring that same energy to my pieces daily. Virgil Abloh. Period. From his humble beginnings, his artistic rise up, his success as designer, entrepreneur, DJ, he’s conquered it all. He’s the first black man in Louis Vuitton's 164-year history to debut a men's-wear line. Come on, he designed Drake’s personal jet. His influence is endless, enough said. I have to mention my local mentors from Toronto, Rowan James and Sebastian Styles, Toronto. If you are looking for tailored, sophisticated, sexy, menswear look no further than Rowan James. For the mandem who need some style and swag infused into their look, get at Sebastian Styles and pick up a custom fedora while you’re at it. 4. How long have you been on the journey of being a Big & Tall man? I have always been big and tall. As a basketball player, I was also always surrounded by big and tall guys who were on the same journey. I draw a lot of inspiration and relativity from my high school years and college years when I shared the journey with my peers too. I weathered the days of feeling awkward, dressing awkward, and just feeling uncomfortable in my own skin. I believe it gave me an even better understanding of the true needs and possibilities for inclusive clothing design which a huge inspiration behind my work. 5. What’s the biggest misconception you hear about Big & Tall Guys? That big and tall men can’t dress! That they are limited to boring or basic style. This is not our destiny. I want to challenge those damaging misconceptions and end them. Being big and tall should never be a hurdle for self-expression in fashion, it should be an asset. Looking good and feeling good isn’t only for the average-sized man. I want men to know that there is somebody else in their position, who’s felt the insecurity, shame, and frustration as them but who’s also creating change for those who look and feel different. Come to Demaine Tyrone and we’ll change that immediately. Inclusive sizing from boutique brands will always give you more options than the typical big box plus size menswear lines. 6. If you could swap styles with one celebrity who would it be and why? Carmelo Anthony is a style boss that I would swap styles with. He’s really on his grown man game with his double-breasted suits, cashmere turtle necks and clean lines.

He kills those looks every time. I have some Demaine Tyrone pieces that would fit right in. Go follow our XL Tribesmen Of The Week Demaine Tyrone all across thee socials. Instagram: @demainetyrone @behinddemainetyrone Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Demaine-Tyrone-104925494274443/ TikTok: @demainenyce Website: www.demainetyrone.com

[futureotstudent]

Barriers to help-seeking in South Africa and it's negative impact.

You’re standing outside your exam hall about to write your third exam for this week. You feel mentally drained after going back and forth with your boyfriend about balancing your relationship and academics. You needed to study throughout the night in order to be prepared but somehow fell asleep and was only able to learn 4 of the 8 topics. Then you hear your phone chime as you’re about to step into the room…“I can’t do this anymore; I’m breaking up with you”. You wrote your test and walked out knowing you’ve failed. After trying to cope on your own for 3 days, you finally decide to share your sadness and stress with your mum, but all she could tell you was that losing a guy is not the end of the world and to pray about it. This is the sad reality for some individuals who suffer with mental health.  Research has found that “parental attitudes surrounding mental health and mental health services have been shown to influence help-seeking decisions” (Reardon et al., 2017). The negative perceptions and various understandings prevent individuals from getting the help they need.

Although we have aimed at raising more awareness and better access mental healthcare there are still many aspects that pose a dilemma to help-seeking in SA, some of theses include: emotional competence, lack of insight and understanding, family, cultural views, stigma, and poor financial health.

Rickwood et al. (2005), describes emotional competence as our ability to describe, understand and manage our emotions. Some people choose not to seek help for due to not being able to properly explain their condition to a health care professional and their unsuccessful past experiences.

South Africa is so diverse with many cultures, but a common misconception found in some south African cultures is that western medicine is a means to treat physical illnesses and traditional medicine is for mental illnesses (Bila and Carbonatto, 2022) . Furthermore, many people lack the understanding of the symptoms of mental illnesses. They may understand that they feel stressed, extreme sadness or overwhelmed but they may find alternate explanations to these feelings (Gulliver et al., 2010) .

Many people choose to avoid seeking help or are dissuaded from seeking help due to the fear of the stigma attached to a diagnosis or needing help itself. This leads back to culture and family, they may be taught that seeking help for mental health shows weakness and is something to be embarrassed about (Rickwood et al., 2005).

Another major factor that poses a barrier to help-seeking in SA is the poor financial health of people. SA has high levels of unemployment and of poverty. Seeking help for mental illnesses may not be high up on peoples priority list.

As a future occupational therapist these barriers create concern. Lack of help for mental illnesses results in the lack of management of the symptoms of these illnesses. This in turn negatively effects the occupational participation and performance. It was found that people engage in their occupations infrequently and saw it as a long-term goal due to their lack of motivation, energy, and normal sleeping patterns (Baker and Procter, 2014). This is concerning. If we want to be a progressive nation that reaches our full potential. Change needs to happen. That change starts with us. Our perspectives, views, and attitudes. Nobody wants to go through life not understanding why they feel extreme sadness, cannot eat, or sleep properly. Nobody wants their feelings to be minimized and discredited. Nobody wants to suffer in silence. Whilst the change has begun there is still a long way to go- We need to continue to be advocates for mental health, because this should be a priority.

References

Baker, A. E. Z., & Procter, N. G. (2014). Losses related to everyday occupations for adults affected by mental illness. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 21(4), 287–294. https://doi.org/10.3109/11038128.2014.894571

Bila, N. J., & Carbonatto, C. L. (2022). Culture and help-seeking behaviour in the rural communities of Limpopo, South Africa: unearthing beliefs of mental health care users and caregivers. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2022.2097210

Gulliver, A., Griffiths, K. M., & Christensen, H. (2010). Perceived barriers and facilitators to mental health help-seeking in young people: a systematic review. BMC Psychiatry, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244x-10-113

Reardon, T., Harvey, K., Baranowska, M., O’Brien, D., Smith, L., & Creswell, C. (2017). What do parents perceive are the barriers and facilitators to accessing psychological treatment for mental health problems in children and adolescents? A systematic review of qualitative and quantitative studies. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 26(6), 623–647. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-016-0930-6

Rickwood, D., Deane, F., Wilson, C., & Ciarrochi, J. (2005). Young people’s help-seeking for mental health problems. Young people’s help-seeking for mental health problems. https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3159&context=hbspapers

[blindsnewcastle]

The Shutter Guy Newcastle

Located amongst pristine beaches and lush bushland and National Parks, Newcastle is a must-see tourist destination. But it is also a Global Gateway City, with a strong, working culture that has embraced the cosmopolitan cafe, wine and foodie vibes of its neighbours to the south. It is this culture that has led many homes and businesses to seek better thermal regulation for their windows through modern shutters.

Choosing the right product for your home

Choosing the right shutters for your home is important, as they will add value to your property and give it a stylish look. Sliding shutters come in many different materials, including timber and aluminium, so you can choose the perfect option for your home. They are also easy to keep clean, making them a great choice for homeowners. They can be cleaned with a hose or brush, and they can be easily locked to prevent intruders from entering your house.

Newcastle is a city that is surrounded by pristine beaches, bushland and national parks. It is a must-see holiday destination, with a relaxed beach culture and a cosmopolitan cafe, wine and foodie scene.

Its changeable temperate climate has prompted homeowners and business owners to seek ways to improve their building’s indoor temperature regulation. Shutters Quickly provides them with superior quality window solutions for better thermal protection and energy efficiency at the best prices in Australia. The company offers an extensive range of high-quality domestic and imported window shutters to suit a variety of styles and tastes. In addition, it offers custom-made options for all products. It also offers a wide selection of colours and designs to complement any interior décor.

Installation

We offer a full service, from measurement through to installation of shutters and blinds in your home. Using products from carefully-selected manufacturers, we can supply you with an extensive range of internal and external window shutters and blinds. Our goal is to help you make the right choice of products for your unique needs and budget.

When you choose The Shutter Guy, you’ll get expert advice and assistance from a knowledgeable specialist. We’ll guide you through the options available to you, and help you decide whether you want soft window treatments or hard window coverings. We can also assist you in selecting a style, such as aluminum or PVC, genuine or faux wood.

Newcastle’s changing weather, which can be prone to hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters, has led many residents in this beautiful city to look for more energy-efficient solutions for their window treatments. One popular option is plantation shutters. These window treatments are easy to clean and provide great light control and insulation. They can also be tilted to allow more sunlight in during the day or to keep out the cold in winter.

Maintenance

One of the most common mistakes that people make when purchasing shutters is not maintaining them correctly. This can lead to the shutters losing their functionality and not being able to perform their purpose in the home. This is why it is so important to make sure that your window treatments are properly installed and maintained by a professional.

Another mistake that people often make is thinking that shutters are only for older homes. This is a big misconception because shutters can be used in any type of home, and they can offer a modern look that can really enhance the beauty of any room. They are also very durable and long-lasting, so they can be a good investment for your home. This is especially true when you choose high-quality shutters like those from shutter guy newcastle.

source https://blindsnewcastle358125862.wordpress.com/2023/07/19/the-shutter-guy-newcastle/

[haleigh-sloth]

I think the reason why there's so many misconceptions of Tomura's character is because people refuse to consider AFO's role in his story outside of "he just picked him up and is slightly weird to him" Which stems from their dislike of AFO as many prefer if he just let Tomura have the reigns and retired in the background, they genuinely believed he was sincere when he said he wanted Tomura to take over his position as the symbol of evil.

They don't consider the grooming and just how much influence AFO has had over Tomura and how they take everything Tomura says at face value. I think a lot just underestimate AFOs role into shaping Tomura into who he is today, which is why we get all the "Tomura got cheated out of his rawness" or "he's an advocator for social justice!" takes.

I think if you refuse to consider AFO's role to the story and refuse to look at him beyond basic dislike of him then you're missing a huge chunk of the story and robbing yourself of an interesting character dynamic between AFO and Tomura. The body possession plotline doesn't come off as a surprise if you read more into AfO's character and Tomura's.

Yes I do think there was a wide-scale issue of people just...ignoring AFO.

He's one of those characters who was present throughout the entire story but in a way that he was haunting the narrative rather than directly participating in it.

The take you're talking about is one that I honestly don't bother debating with because anybody who thinks AFO is just some guy is...idk, not worth arguing with. But what puzzles me is the subset of raw Tomura stans who are fully aware of AFO's influence on him and yet still feel robbed by the body snatching plot...somehow.

Idk how you look at Tomura's development and be confused by the direction it went. AFO was never truly "gone" and if you look at MVA and look at the narration and the pictures separately it's almost like two entirely different stories are being told. You can EASILY see where the narration turns from a clear recollection of a memory to a distorted perspective that only JUST FORMED IN THAT MOMENT.

MVA for Tomura was the opposite of what so many people describe it as. It was not him stepping out of AFO's shadow. He literally stepped into the palms of AFO's hands and whether it was a take that formed because of weekly release of chapters at the time or not, we literally have almost all of the context surrounding MVA, so there's seriously no reason to continue thinking that MVA was a positive step forward for Tomura.

Everything that happened in MVA can easily be related to everything happening right now. Tomura broke out of AFO's possession (for now) but he didn't break out of AFO's narrative for him--that being that he's destruction incarnate with no other purpose for being alive. No, Tomura has not suddenly realized what he actually wants yet. That shit is still buried so deep, and his behavior right now rejecting the sheer concept of Izuku having any other intention besides forever opposing "his villain" shows that Tomura still views salvation as something so far beyond his reach, hence why he clings to the story AFO wrote for him because in that case, he knows the answer.

Openly crying out for help leaves room to be rejected and hurt again. Refusing to cry out for help and just forcing his counterpart to continue fighting him means he doesn't have to wonder what could be, he already knows the answer. That's why he's like this. It's because AFO convinced him that there is only one future for him, and it's a miserable one. The concept of possibly escaping it but being rejected that opportunity is too painful so Tomura clings to the story where he doesn't have to hold onto hope (even though he still is).

[entheosareian]

I see a lot of people talking abt the myth where Hades kidnaps Kore & the misinformation surrounding that myth is awful. Which makes sense, because to understand the myth in full you have to have knowledge of Ancient Greek society, which isn’t something most people have. So here’s a small breakdown, clearing up common misconceptions I see, surrounding that myth specifically.

When dissecting this myth, the first thing you must take into account is the fact that Demeter is not the antagonist here. In fact, this myth is more about Her than anyone else. I see a lot of people use this myth in particular to say things like “Demeter is an overbearing mom” but the reality is that She is a mother whose child was stolen from Her; She is reacting the way any mother would. Additionally, from a historical perspective, this myth was created to explain why crops don’t grow in the winter. This is Demeter’s myth, not Kore’s and Hades’. She is the protagonist, so to speak. And none of Her actions are wrong.

A common notion is that Kore wandered into the underworld or decided to stay there. This is just completely false and a more modern interpretation. Kore was literally kidnapped and forced to eat the pomegranate seeds, which some people argue is a metaphor for… a different kind of seed. Bridal kidnapping was not an uncommon practice in Ancient Greece. If a man wanted to marry a woman, he needed to talk to the father. With the fathers permission, he could take the woman from her home, without speaking to her or anyone else. This is what Hades did; He spoke directly to Zeus, Zeus agreed, and He took Kore. This doesn’t make Zeus or Hades the bad guys of the myth, though. By ancient social standards, their actions where moral and just and we cannot judge the Gods through a modern lense, especially when mythos are more so a reflection of the times rather than a reflection of the gods.

Demeters reaction to finding out Her daughter had been married off is also understandable. One moment she’s with Her daughter, the next She cannot locate Her daughter, what mother wouldn’t be panicking? Demeters refusal to grow crops was not an attempt to absolve Kore’s marriage or strong arm Her into coming back, it was Demeter grieving until She was able to see Her child again, something a lot of mothers in Ancient Greece where not able to do. Kore was finally able to be reunited with Her mother and spend over half the year with Her because Demeter fought against social norms and demanded that Her child not be entirely ripped away from her.

Mythos do not exist in a vacuum and these stories where very important to ancient people, even though not all of them took mythos literally. The story of Demeter was probably important to a lot of mothers who lost their children to bridal kidnappings, because seeing your child after their marriage was not always a guarantee in ancient times. Even though it’s hard to understand the perspective of Hades and Zeus in this myth in particular, it shouldn’t be used as an excuse to slander or disrespect them either, wether you’re a Hellenic polytheist or not. Because of fiction like Lore Olympus and Percy Jackson people forget that the Hellenic religion is alive and well and these gods are very real to many people, even if the mythology isn’t. It’s important to respect things, even if you do not understand them.

[ninjapotatohead]

SONIC & Dr. EGGMAN: An Analysis of Their Dynamic and Character

It shouldn't really be a surprise to anyone, but I've been a Sonic fan for pretty much my entire life. I've played pretty much all of the games front-to-end, watched the many adaptations of said games, and even read some of the comics whenever I could. It's also no secret that this franchise has a very dedicated and passionate fan-base (for better or worse), and it's a thing of wonder to behold that some members of the community have their talents recognized by the team that brought the blue hedgehog's fame into the stratosphere.

...that being said, it always comes as an eyebrow-raiser that, despite being so fixated on the details of the Sonic franchise, the one thing that's always being misrepresented (not just in fan-made works, but now in official media as well) is the dynamic shared between the titular protagonist and his archenemy.

It doesn't take a genius to realize that the interactions and dynamic between the main protagonist and antagonist (sometimes plural) can make or break a product. Especially when the subjects are as iconic in the world of fiction as Sonic the Hedgehog and Dr. Eggman. Which begs the question of why do so many people misunderstand Sonic and Eggman's animosity, much less the core of their characters? How did I even reach such a conclusion to make such a bold accusation? Well, let's find out (assuming the title didn't make you lose interest, that is)!

Sonic the Hedgehog, as the world already knows, is a speeding blue dude with attitude who's always on the search for his next big adventure. He's not the kind of guy would have the patience to stay tied down anywhere; he's always on the move. You know, like the wind. Sonic never takes oppression and injustice lying down, standing up for those who can't stand up for themselves. He's an unequivocally good guy at the end of the day, but he lives his life doing what he thinks is the right thing to do; to hell with the consequences or what anybody else has to say about it.

Doctor Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik (with an optional pompous trilling of the R's) is a mad genius bent on world domination, hatching (pardon the pun) an array of schemes to build an empire/theme park/race track/etc in his own image with himself as the sole ruler. He's an absurdly intelligent man, and he knows it... and he wants the entire world to have this etched into their collective skulls. Considering that this guy can and has made machines that can very well achieve just that and generally cares not for the lives of innocent bystanders, that's probably not a good thing.

Pretty basic rundown of the characters so far. Nothing too complex or hard to understand. But, then we have the whole reason I even wrote this dumb essay in the first place; the amount of misconceptions surrounding these two and the extent of their life-long animosity.

Let's start with...

"Dr. Eggman isn't actually that bad of a guy deep down."

This may actually hold true to certain animated iterations of the character (Like Sonic X or Sonic Boom, depending on who you ask), but as far as the games/main canon is concerned, Eggman is still a bastard at the end of the day. He's a villain, one of the most iconic villains in the video game medium (up there with the likes of Super Mario's Koopa King Bowser and Street Fighter's M. Bison). A villain has no need to be deep and complicated in order to be effective.

Not to mention that he tends to treat his own robots like crap more often than not; especially when they spectacularly fail at a job that the doc himself has assigned them to. Matter of fact, for as much as the fandom loves to believe that Eggman treats Metal Sonic like a son thanks to the Archie/IDW Comics... the actual games showcase that this couldn't really be any further from the truth. Eggman's even straight-up just abandoned Metal quite a few times in the series when it benefited him (and only him).

Sentiments towards the game in question aside, Eggman literally just abandoned Metal on Little Planet after the events of Sonic CD, and Eggman only really brings him back purely out of convenience. Eggman doesn't really care about Metal Sonic as a sentient being with wants and aspirations; as far as Eggman's concerned, Metal is designed to be a killing machine. Metal is just the best at his job, and that's quite literally the only reason why Metal is ever given any special treatment or congrats compared to, say, Orbot & Cubot. Hell, whenever Metal shows any insubordination towards his master, Eggman either just abandons him, punishes him offscreen, or probably both.

And remember how I said earlier that Eggman is always hatching plans to achieve his goal of taking over the world, and that he doesn't really care who gets caught in the crossfire?

Yeeeeeeaaahh... That was NOT an exaggeration. Eggman's completely willing to throw countless innocent lives under the bus for his own ends, and without remorse. He more often than not just shrugs off the damage he (regularly) causes, and simply moves on to another crazy scheme. Has Eggman saved the world before? Well, yes. There have been a few times where he'll begrudgingly join forces with Sonic and friends to save their world... but again, it's always for Eggman's own self-interest. As Eggman himself has succinctly said...

Dr. Eggman already has quite a body count anyhow, and he doesn't care; as far as Eggman's concerned, what's a few more barrages of missiles into very heavily populated areas gonna hurt? Certainly not him.

And then, there's the supposed "smoking gun" people often use to support their argument. That being the ending of Sonic Adventure 2. After Shadow's... "Disney Death", Sonic and the gang (and Eggman) all have a moment of reflection once everything's said and done. Eggman himself expressing disappointment that his grandfather, Professor Gerald, had planned to destroy humanity. Sometimes, this is accompanied by Eggman being appalled that his old man also made a deal with Black Doom in 2005's Shadow The Hedgehog.

This argument falls apart for a number of reasons. The main reason being that Eggman himself has done so much worse than this. I mean, the sort of callous things he would do just for his own ends (aka the aforementioned nonchalant attitude towards the lives of countless innocents) are far beyond the scumminess of an old man who just wanted to save his dying granddaughter. That, and Eggman himself hasn't shown any signs of being all that affected by these revelations anyhow. By the time Sonic Battle rolls around (which obviously takes place after ShTH), Eggman's pretty much remained completely unchanged. Because he ultimately doesn't care. Moving on.

"Eggman is completely incapable of forming a solid plan."

This is, by far, one of the most flat-out untrue things I've heard regarding Eggman as a character, especially from a writer on an officially licensed SEGA product who should know better. It seems to me that every single example people use to support this... miss the point/context of each plan entirely. Even when Eggman's schemes don't always work out exactly as planned, Eggman is perfectly capable of adapting to a situation and turning the tide in his favor despite what Ian Flynn thinks. I'm so tempted be a complete smart-ass, just saying that the mere existence of Sonic Forces completely slaps this claim in the face, and leave it at that... but, I might as well address the more common examples of this argument (aka Ian Flynn's statements) rapid-fire;

1) "He blows up the Master Emerald to release Chaos just to feed him more Chaos Emeralds. He doesn't know what's its going to do, aside from giving it more power that he'll assume will be able to control. And we all saw how that went."

Yes he does? The man's read the stone tablets cover-to-cover; Eggman even blurts out that Chaos transforming was predicted by said stone monuments. Plus, even in the event that Chaos would've gotten out of control (which did happen), Eggman himself built a second Egg Carrier because he did consider the possibility! True, it didn't work against Perfect Chaos, but the fact remains that Eggman had a contingency plan. We saw how it went. Did you?

2) "He throws a missile into the heart of Station Square and went to manually detonate it because it didn't explode on impact. Didn't really think how far ahead that was gonna go!"

...yeah, this claim's bogus. This was Eggman's Plan B. You can choose to ignore gameplay/story segregation and say that Eggman's interference in the Chaos 6 fight was what put Chaos out of commission... and that simply wouldn't be a convincing argument because I can use that same logic and say that Eggman suicide-diving at Sonic in the Egg Viper fight was a highly effective move against him (still turning the situation into his favor).

3) "He single-handedly tears through G.U.N. facilities to grab Project Shadow, and he has no idea what it is. He just knows is a thing that he wants."

Okay, I never once thought SA2's plot was all that special, and even I know this is completely misinformed. Eggman storms Prison Island to procure Project Shadow because he had read documents about it in Gerald's diary (which literally has the old man goading whoever reads it to release Shadow into the world; Rouge herself surmises this). Eggman stumbling across Gerald's notes is what piqued his curiosity. Did we play the same game, per chance?

4) "Sonic Unleashed, he blows up the planet and throws Sonic and the Emeralds through the airlocks, except, oops, he needed those!"

Except, actually, no he didn't; he still was able to make his plan work just fine without them. Again, turning the situation around to work in his own favor; rolling with the punches and adapting to the situation.

5) "So no, Eggman never-ever has a solid plan. It's always a big execution, but he never settles on the details."

That's a funny way of saying you think that, because Eggman's plans tend to fail due to not being psychic enough to account for every possible scenario, Eggman himself is completely incapable of cognitive function. You know it's bad when even TVTropes calls you out on missing this much. Again, games like Sonic Forces exist.

"The Sonic franchise would be much more interesting if Eggman were replaced as the main villain by Mephiles/Scourge/Insert Evil Hedgehog OC here"

HahahahaHA, no. No, it wouldn't. What're you on about?

Really, what makes Eggman so effective as a villain is that the doc isn't some deity with otherworldly powers (Sonic 3 notwithstanding), nor is he a talking animal like Sonic or the rest of his friends. He's just a (relatively) normal human, and the only thing resembling a super-power that he has, apart from his absurd intellect, is his uncanny ability to cheat death. the series just can't really function without these two at each other's throats. Meta-textually, it's because Eggman's basically the Joker to Sonic's Batman. Whether the fanbase and Ian Flynn wants to accept it or not, Eggman's the main antagonist of the franchise, and like the titular hero, he's not going anywhere until the series actually comes to an end (which is not very likely to happen with a long-running franchise like Sonic). And, to steal an example from my GF, "Why watch/produce an entire Tom & Jerry series if you could only have Tom OR Jerry in it?"

"Sonic is all about giving second chances. This is why he never has it in him to out-and-out kill characters like Eggman or even Metal Sonic."

One of the more annoying ones I've seen. Just playing through the Storybook series alone is proof enough that Sonic is definitely not above ending a villain's life if he deems it necessary. And, believe it or not, he actually does more often than not. Biggest examples of this being characters like Void, Erazor Djinn, "King Arthur", and even Merlina.

Void was a lonely soul wandering the realm of Maginaryworld (yes, I know; dumb name). The dude was causing all sorts of trouble for this newfound dreamworld, to the point where Lumina was dead-set on making sure Void is dealt with. Sonic, in this case, did indeed have the power and the means to end Void's life; he could've done it... but (along with Amy, Knuckles and Tails) chose not to, as Void's very existence is necessary for Maginaryworld to keep itself running. As it turns out, Void is an entity born from negative emotions like sadness, emptiness, all that jazz. These negative emotions are exactly what cause dreams to occur in the first place (or at the very least, strengthens people's dreams), which in turn, keeps Maginaryworld around. Meaning that if Void is taken out of the equation, that means no more Maginaryworld. It eventually also turns out that Illumina was never kidnapped (nor was she even in any danger), as Lumina & Void are the two halves that compose Illumina. So, Sonic choosing to not kill Void here is a matter of necessity and pragmatism rather than any sort of blind "compassion".

Erazor Djinn, to put it simply, was a complete bastard through and through. He was a constant thorn in Sonic's side all throughout Secret Rings (both figuratively and literally). With how much of his dialogue is spent just taunting/belittling Sonic and Shahra, and with how little regard he treats Shahra with when she takes the bullet for Sonic (much like the hedgehog did for her at the beginning of the game), I can safely say that Sonic most certainly would've killed Erazor Djinn in a heartbeat if Erazor himself wasn't... y'know, literally immortal. Even that aside, he also still needed Erazor to grant Sonic's wishes with the lamp Erazor used to be bound to (and normally, I'd go into a tangent on how little sense this makes in context because it's Maekawa, but this essay is already getting long in the tooth).

Never mind the fact that Sonic was perfectly willing to violently de-horn the Mist Dragon (aka, the very first boss of Black Knight) and was not only perfectly fine with it, but also brags to Merlina about it; can we also bring up the fact that Sonic spends the entire game finding a way to kill "King Arthur", and has absolutely no reservations against attempting to slice a clearly depressed teenage girl into ribbons.

Contrary to popular belief, Sonic's never shown mercy to Eggman whatsoever. That whole Mr. Tinker fiasco in the IDW-verse might have been a perfectly fine exception because the Eggster legitimately (or maybe not-so?) did have amnesia, and punishing a once-evil man when he doesn't even remember a thing was quite a moral dilemma... but then, Sonic's negligence makes matters worse than they actually are. Sonic choosing to just let Metal Sonic go was a dumb decision any way you slice it because Sonic should've known that Metal Sonic is just as ruthless to the bone (or AI, I guess) with or without Eggman in the picture. Even if you want to argue that Starline was the one who threw a wrench in things, Sonic's still at fault here because he himself promised he would stop by Windmill Village regularly to check on Mr. Tinker. He apparently never lived up to his promise (which is already bad for a character like Sonic).

Frankly, the reason why Eggman continues to survive his scuffles with Sonic and friends isn't because they have some moral code against killing each other; Sonic and Eggman have attempted to do so multiple times. The actual reason (or reasons) being that Eggman has specialized in cheating death; he always come out relatively unscathed from scenarios that should've killed him millions of times over. And the reason why Sonic allows Eggman to concoct more of his schemes isn't because he's some "diet Spider-Man in a hedgehog suit", as much as I like to make the joke. It's never been that Sonic has never once attempted to kill Eggman before, because he most certainly has tried multiple times. It's actually because Sonic is a thrill-seeker who is just so confident in himself that he can handle anything the doc can possibly throw his way... because he always does.

I'm probably going to get crucified for this, but I'm just glad I finally got this out of my system.

[heejojo]

thirteen: how it really is

pairing: yang jungwon × female reader with txt and itzy appearances

genre: fluff, angst, crack, smau, flowers shop au

summary: y/n is used to getting what she wants, even if the person is in a relationship because as far as she’s concerned, the person isn’t married yet, but why is it frustrating when the flower shop owner doesn’t pay any attention to her?

wc: 1.3k

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Jungwon tried to stop the way his heart raced faster anytime someone said they needed to talk to him. He searched his brain trying to look for a moment where he had upset you. Did you want to leave? Although you caused trouble a lot, you still helped him when orders got too much and he was grateful for that.

You had been out of it lately, zoning out and forgetting orders. You knew whatever Mirae had said about you wasn’t true in the slightest. You feared that if Jungwon knew, he would be like the rest and think of you in a different way.

Everyone else already had their fixed perception of you in their heads and who were you to ruin it for them? As long as you looked good in the image they had in their heads, it didn’t bother you. For Jungwon, it was different. Not only do you work for him, you already regarded him as your friend.

Jungwon closed the store and sat down next to you. Wiping his hands by the side of his trousers so they wouldnt feel sweatier, he cleared his throat.

“Something was going around on Twitter and I wanted to let you know before you got the wrong idea.”

“I haven’t had the time, let me check now,” he says and brings out his phone and scrolls. He comes across one of Mirae’s comments and turns to you with a confused look on his face.

“That’s what I was talking about,” you tell him with a strained smile.

"Why is she saying those things about you? Are they true?" the emotions on his face are unreadable so you're not able to tell what he's thinking.

"They're true and at the same time, it's not true"

"It can't be in the middle. It's either it’s true or it isn't true"

"That's why I wanted to tell you now. Are you willing to listen?"

"I'm here already, aren't I?" he asks. Seeing your crestfallen look, he tries to reassure you, "I'm willing to listen"

You take in a deep breath, thinking everything through again. You were about to expose one of your most painful memories to him so he wouldn't have the same misconception others had of you.

The air that surrounds both of you becomes tense. Your hands reaching over to hold the handle beside you before beginning the story.

“The people that you see around me now are the people that have been by my side for the past five years. You’ve had this shop for almost four years haven’t you?” he nods and you continue. “I studied law because of my parents. Back then, I had no aspirations and didn’t know what I wanted to be. All I knew was that I enjoyed working. My dad convinced me to study law and I agreed because it was better to do something like that than nothing at all. I had worked as a criminal lawyer for almost a year before I quit my job.”

“I met Yuna in university. She was the first person I talked to and we clicked ever since. At that time, Niki's parents kicked him out for not wanting to study engineering so he stayed with Sunghoon off-campus and worked many jobs and studied hard so he could attend that particular school. He got a scholarship and is studying animation now. He forgave his parents later and talks to them now”

“Jay studied business to work with his dad and he enjoys what he does because he can work from home. He enjoys what he does since he gets to work from home” the thought of your best friend enjoying his life made you smile.

“We all met each other at different times. Jay met Niki and Sunghoon at a convenience store and at that time, it was a friend of mine that introduced us all. The irony was that we’re no longer friends anymore” you stated with a bitter laugh.

“What happened between you guys?”

“At that time, I had a crush on him and everyone knew it. It’s not like it was obvious but I told him about it and he told me that he reciprocated them. Things went well at first, with Sunghoon and Niki faking disgust anytime we did cute things together or Jay and Yuna fawning over it. Then one day, I started getting texts from random people who would call me a homewrecker and when I’d ask them, they wouldnt respond. I told Jay about it and he tried contacting the girls that sent those messages himself but they wouldnt respond to him. I showed Heeseung and he brushed it off saying that they would leave me soon”

“Even though I tried not to show it, I hurt a lot from those messages. After a while, we swept them under the rug. I changed my number and they had stopped the messages. At that time, Heeseung still hadn’t asked me out. Anytime I asked him why he’d say, ‘I’m waiting for the perfect time to do so’. I let it slide. When I’d take the initiative, he’d say we should wait instead. He was messing with my feelings and I let him,” Tears were already welling up in your eyes and your hands started to itch. Gripping the handle of the chair even harder, you decide to continue talking.

“He would get pissed if I talked to other boys and say stupid stuff. Niki was the first one that noticed the way he was treating me and tried to talk sense into me but I wouldnt budge. Jay and Yuna knew because I told them how upset I was over it and tried to counsel Heeseung but nothing was working. I didn’t tell Sunghoon because he would get angry and want to retaliate”

“Heeseung later apologized and things went back to normal. It was nearing the end of that particular semester and Sunghoon took us out for drinks. At the restaurant, I could feel that people were watching me but I couldn’t tell who.”

“After that day, Heeseung took me to the movies to celebrate me getting my summer job but we didn’t even make it into the cinema before a girl came and started calling me names. I was very unsettled because I didn’t know her and yet she said those types of things and Heeseung didn’t bother to defend me. He stood there and when I tried to explain myself, she shouted at me even more. She didn’t shout at the boyfriend that cheated on her, instead of at the person that was unaware of it all. Believe me, if I knew he was in a relationship I would have not gone for him”

The tears that you were trying your best to control came down in full force. All that time when you and he would talk about how much you wanted to be part of each other’s future, he had a future with someone else all along. With a gentle touch, he lifted your hand from the chair and gave it a squeeze which made you cry harder.

“You don’t have to finish the story. I trust you” he said. More tears streamed down your face. It was the first time someone apart from your friends said that they had believed you and it felt satisfying. You didn’t have to continue hiding under your facade anymore. You gave him a soft smile and continued speaking.

“I called Yuna to pick me up and I stayed with her for a month. She told the boys what happened and said I needed to be alone. I cried the whole time I was with her. The boys gave me space for about two weeks before they came to check up on me. They were so angry and wanted to go out. Sunghoon was the scariest. I had never seen him that annoyed before. Jay had to cool him down. That day, we all promised each other that we wouldnt do anything to him and forget about it. After all, he was now with his girlfriend so there was nothing else to worry about. Since then, we’ve been even closer and even if they irritate my soul, they’ll always be like family to me”

Jungwon felt sorry for you and angry at himself. Angry for not being nice to you when he met you and sorry that you went through so much. To date, people still thought of you as a homewrecker or a mistress when you were nothing of the sort.

“He deserves to a beating up” he stated wanting nothing more than to hit Heeseung.

“I’m over it, I wanted to tell you.” Jungwon could tell that you were still not over it, considering the way your body shook.

“Do you want a hug?”

“Yes please,” and he took you in for one. Even if he worked with soil all day, he smelt good. He smelt like comfort and wait...baby powder!?

After a while, you had to ask, “Do you use baby powder?”

“It makes my skin soft” and you giggle.

You don’t know for how long you stay in his arms, all you know is that you feel better.

[benjaminmoorepaint]

red: the color of...grantaire?

Figured I might do another meta post like the one I did for Marius to address the myths and misconceptions surrounding certain characters, so it's Grantaire's turn!

I'm sure we all know Grantaire quite well...a sensitive starving artist, with his Apollo as his muse, and a cynic who pragmatically points out the flaws in Enjolras's idealism, which they quarrel over.

Let's unpack that!

Grantaire is most likely middle class if not wealthy, he is certainly not poor. We don't know what he's studying (if he's studying at all) but he is nevertheless a quintessentially Parisian bourgeoise "student", much like Bahorel. "A rover, a gambler, a libertine..." As the foil of "severe in his enjoyments" Enjolras, Grantaire is a pleasure-seeker, indulging in the excesses that Enjolras disdains.

Again, though we don't know what Grantaire is studying (and I suspect he's just Bahorel-ing it) he's clearly an educated man, judging by the references he throws into his speeches, and he mentions that he once was a student of Gros.

So is he really an artist? He might have been an apprentice at some point, but it's clear he was not particularly enthused by it. After all, discipline is something that Grantaire…lacks. And because it's Grantaire, you can't completely discount the idea that he made it up just for a pun (though I do find that unlikely.) But it's a triple (quadruple?) play--it's important not to take this quote too far out of context because he's actually saying several things here.

It is a shame that I am ignorant, otherwise I would quote to you a mass of things; but I know nothing. For instance, I have always been witty; when I was a pupil of Gros, instead of daubing wretched little pictures, I passed my time in pilfering apples; rapin is the masculine of rapine. So much for myself; as for the rest of you, you are worth no more than I am. I scoff at your perfections, excellencies, and qualities. Every good quality tends towards a defect [...] there are just as many vices in virtue as there are holes in Diogenes’ cloak.

Gros was a well-known neoclassical painter of the time, and I believe Hugo's inclusion of him here is a jab at the neoclassicists, as Grantaire doesn't seem to care for him.

There's a pun! "Rapin"--term for a painter's assistant--is the masculine of "rapine"--to steal.

So he likely means he stole the apples intended to be painted for a still life, which fits his careless attitude... but he's ironically putting himself down for it too, and at the same time

putting his companions down, saying they're no better than him even if they do have more "good" qualities because each good quality has a corresponding downside, so what's the point, really?

You can see that even in this small sample of his speech that Grantaire often has layers upon layers of meaning in what he says. He's a smart guy! But that means you can't always take what he says at face value, as Hugo says, he's constantly "reasoning and contradicting" himself. So let me invite you further down into what I think his real meaning is here (though now firmly into the depths of my own conjecture, so others may have different interpretations.)

I would speculate that "the rest of you" who he professes to mock refers mostly to a specific person, you can probably guess who. After all, Enjolras is surely the paragon of virtue among them, and you could certainly argue that his good qualities edge on being flaws. I think Grantaire is right about that, and it's a sort of theme we see pop up again and again--the Bishop's generosity does hurt the women he lives with, Valjean's self-sacrifice hurts Cosette, and Javert is someone who's tipped all the way over to his virtues being vices.

But like, man, come on. Seriously. "I scoff at your perfections, excellencies, and qualities." Dude. We all know that you're obsessed with this man.

And you might notice that this is just a whole lot of Grantaire talking and talking over people, never letting anyone else get a word in. It's not a debate, Grantaire never actually debates anyone, let alone Enjolras. The idea of Grantaire debating Enjolras and making him see the flaws in his idealistic revolution is wholly a fandom invention.

The closest we get, really, is Grantaire trying to convince Enjolras to send him to the Barriere du Maine...and Grantaire doesn't come out of that looking so good.

“Do you know anything of those comrades who meet at Richefeu’s?”

“Not much. We only address each other as tu.”

“What will you say to them?”

“I will speak to them of Robespierre, pardi! Of Danton. Of principles.”

“You?”

“I. But I don’t receive justice. When I set about it, I am terrible. I have read Prudhomme, I know the Social Contract, I know my constitution of the year Two by heart. ‘The liberty of one citizen ends where the liberty of another citizen begins.’ Do you take me for a brute? I have an old bank-bill of the Republic in my drawer. The Rights of Man, the sovereignty of the people, sapristi! I am even a bit of a Hébertist. I can talk the most superb twaddle for six hours by the clock, watch in hand.”

I won't bother going too in-depth here since you're probably familiar with all this--Grantaire talks a big game and then fails to follow through. And we see one of two red waistcoats mentioned, neither of which are worn by Enjolras.

Grantaire lived in furnished lodgings very near the Café Musain. He went out, and five minutes later he returned. He had gone home to put on a Robespierre waistcoat.

“Red,” said he as he entered, and he looked intently at Enjolras. Then, with the palm of his energetic hand, he laid the two scarlet points of the waistcoat across his breast.

So yeah, it's actually Grantaire who wears red, at least canonically! I know their popular red/green color scheme comes from the musical, but it might be fun to reverse it sometimes...I think Enjolras would look great in a nice emerald green, and he'd be more likely to wear that, actually.

Why? A red waistcoat like would be a very obvious, in-your-face political statement--perfect for Bahorel, the other red waistcoat wearer, but Enjolras is actually a lot more reserved and less reckless than fandom sometimes makes him out to be. Wearing something that blatant isn't really his style.

The real question is, why does Grantaire, of all people, own one? Why has he read Prudhomme and the Social Contract and the Rights of Man?

Grantaire is not a super sympathetic character. He's a man of means, talent, intelligence...and he wastes those gifts and privileges on doing nothing, he has no aims in life, he does not aspire to do better or make the world better. He may be Enjolras's foil but I would also contrast him with Feuilly, who has spent his life dedicated to improving himself and the world despite the challenges he's faced. He's obnoxious to women, denigrates his friends for their beliefs, and is generally useless. He's given the opportunity to change and he squanders it. He's not so much cynical (because that's a belief) as he is indifferent, which is arguably worse. His indifference can certainly be read as symbolic within the group, their belief versus the apathy of the world.

But, layers upon layers...Grantaire does have a good heart hiding underneath all that. What I've been getting at all along here is that he does care; he may say he doesn't, he may even believe he doesn't, but he does, clearly, care. He says he hates mankind; he loves people. He says he scoffs at his companions; he admires them. He declares himself indifferent, yet he can't help but talk about the sufferings of the world.

Which isn't to say that simply caring absolves him of anything. Up to this point, he's still just been a useless layabout. What does absolve him (narratively speaking) is the first time, possibly the first time in his life, that he chooses to act. He chooses to take a stand. And this transfigures him, as Hugo says.

Grantaire had risen. The immense gleam of the whole combat which he had missed, and in which he had had no part, appeared in the brilliant glance of the transfigured drunken man.

At the last moment, he chooses to believe, and Enjolras finally accepts him.

One last thing: Grantaire never calls Enjolras "Apollo". Furthermore, he's actually the only one who couldn't have called him "Apollo". The only line where this nickname is mentioned is as follows:

It was of him, possibly, that a witness spoke afterwards, before the council of war: “There was an insurgent whom I heard called Apollo.”

Who could have called him that? Not Grantaire, he was fast asleep during the whole thing. So I choose to believe it was Prouvaire…he would.

[racingtoaredlight]

Playing “Naked”

I feel there’s this misconception by laymen that jazz musicians are just playing complete nonsense that has no point, structure or coherence.  And in a lot of cases that’s true.

Think of jazz as finance.

Both are hugely reaching terms that cover a lot of ground, and are kind of hard to define in a singular “this is it” term.  They also share a lot of high-level intellectual stuff that can be off-putting, and purveyors of these industries (lol at calling jazz an industry) have little problem tossing around concepts that seem very complex and difficult to grasp.  Which makes them playgrounds for bullshit artists and conmen.

Conmen like John Scofield, for example.

When you take away all the surrounding noise, all the help from bandmates or clever arrangements.  When you take away tools and leave a musician with just their hands and mind...that’s playing naked.  Watch the video at the top.

Then watch this...

It doesn’t blow my mind to see shcucksters playing solo gigs with two amps (mic’d and including a gigantic wedge monitor for some reason...) and two pedal boards, one reserved for looping yourself.  It doesn’t blow my mind because these guys are everywhere...go to some rib burn off or some county fair and I guarantee you see some dude with an acoustic, a mic, and a quarter mile of pedals at his feet.

There ain’t shit “naked” about this.  Well, there kinda is...because his aimless melodies are more exposed than they typically are.

And I’ll admit, there’s some decent stuff going on here at first...almost like he’s restrained...oh wait, nope.  Go to the 3:00 mark and watch him vomit all over himself.  Listen for at least 30 seconds.

When you play “naked,” it can be intimidating because all those things that help fill up space...bass, drums, piano and horns...are gone.  Some guys fill this up with parlor tricks like slapping your guitar and making all this percussive bullshit...which is lame as fuck.

But, again to the video at the top...there are no parlor tricks here.  No loopers or giant pedal boards.  Sure, there’s a drummer, but his job here is to follow and mimic exactly what Metheny does.  There’s no support here for Metheny...he’s just got his hands and mind.

And what he does with it is incredible.  Compare what he’s doing melodically to what Scofield is attempting to do with great difficulty...those melodies are clear and defined, they’re coherent and each one blends into the other cohesively.  You can tell where he is in the harmony...even though there isn’t harmony there.  You can tell because his melody is so clearly defining it, which is what a musician is supposed to do, instead of just puke all over the floor and charge people to watch.

Seriously, that Scofield video pisses me off.  Why not just call it “I’m too cheap to hire a band, but I have a bloated lifestyle to maintain?”

The master of playing “naked” is my idol, Joe Pass.  You listen to him...yea, he’s fucking with the harmony and stretching sections out...but you know exactly where he is in the song, you can hear the melody in your head, and...if you catch yourself tapping your foot...you’ll likely match up with him during one of the many cuts where they cut from his Tommy Bahama shirt to show him tapping his old man walking shoes.  The man had groove.

The whole point is this...

If you’re going to be naked in public, you might as well invite the audience along with you.  Otherwise you’re just some weirdo making dumb sounds until the cops show up.

I’ve found a nice niche playing solo guitar in this vein and have probably done 15-20 gigs like this now since last October.  It was nerve-wracking at first, let me tell you.  Just standing there like some jamoke...and that’s before you play a note.

But once you get used to it, it’s a fucking blast.  People seem to like this shit more, and get more into it, than when I was playing rock gigs blasting ear drums out for drunk people.  Again tho...that’s only if you’re inviting them along to join in enjoying the music.

Because good god, I’d never get hired again if I showed up and did shit like Scofield in that video above.  The only thing keeping the crowd there is the fact that they paid, and if they walked out, they know they’d be wasting their money.  Because everything he’s playing is metaphorically no different than him standing on a stage with his dick hanging out while giving two blazing middle fingers to the audience.

It’s not hard...ok let me amend this...it’s incredibly hard to learn how to play melody that clearly outlines the harmony while still sounding interesting, and it’s even harder to add in chords and basslines at the same time.  THAT SAID...if you wanna play “naked,” and play “naked” well, this is what you gotta do.

Otherwise the audience will be even more lost than they were with bass, drums and piano.  And also, if you don’t, people will start to think all jazz musicians are conmen like Scofield.

[mithliya]

FGM is an islamic thing, the lines between culture and religion are very blended when you have a closed society that refuses change but the prophet Muhammad in Hadith said that men should be circumcised as well as women, it's considered سنه (sunnah) and it's one of the five fitrah's (الْفِطْرَةُ خَمْسٌ -أَوْ خَمْسٌ مِنَ الفِطْرَةِ- الخِتانُ، والاسْتِحْدادُ، وتَقْلِيمُ الأظْفارِ، ونَتْفُ الإبِطِ، وقَصُّ الشَّارِبِ). I'm rooting for you but you are clearly undereducated on Islam.

islamic studies is obligatory for muslim-born people in bahrain throughout the entirety of our schooling so, no, i am not uneducated on islam. i grew up in a muslim country surrounded by muslims and know the statistics. the country where islam originated (Saudi Arabia) even doesn’t have fgm rates anywhere near many African countries where the practice predates Islam.

many of the countries where fgm is common (shown above) are predominantly christian. because fgm isn’t an Islamic practice.

one thing u guys don’t seem to know is that the way islam is taught is all about the interpretations and explanations already given. that’s how things like the hijab are believed to be mandatory by the majority of muslims despite there being nothing in the books telling women to cover our hair. when u look at the interpretation of what you quoted, it very clearly states circumcision as mandatory for males:

this is the typical interpretation. some will interpret it as mandatory for women, but most times that is not the case. you guys need to read into the history of fgm, where it’s frequent, and why it’s practiced bc the misconception that bc it’s common in some muslim countries, that means the practice is typically done bc of islam is completely ignorant as well as erasing the fact that a huge portion of fgm victims are not even muslim & that fgm predates both islam & Christianity.

[pikslasrce]

*cracks all joints in quick succession* OKAY its time we elaborated on the concept of the 𝖁𝖊𝖌𝖆𝖓 𝖁𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊 𝕬𝖘𝖘𝖔𝖈𝖎𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 (visualization, dialogue and all that stuff <3)

the camera (person) pans across a dark, seemingly abandoned graveyard. a dark figure appears in the peripheral field of view. the person starts following the figure to a mansion. or it so it seems.

the building is big and unlit so the details of it are indiscernible. the person following the dark figure rushes towards it after seeing that it went in there. they approach the door with caution. with their lamp they illuminate the sign with the inscription '𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓲𝓷!' right next to it.

PERSON: *to themselves* dont mind if i do >:3

they enter the building. strange chanting is heard from one of the rooms.

PERSON: *to themselves* theyre speaking tongues 👁👁

the person pays no mind to the surroundings as they head straight to the source of the voices.

PERSON: *pointing a flashlight into the room* AHA I KNEW YOU WERE UP TO NO GOOD YOU–

a few disgruntled hisses are heard as the lights are turned on. now we can clearly see that its a kitchen. diordan is there, and a few other... uh. "people".

the camera finally breaks the 1st person pov and reveals danwave as the tresspasser.

DANWAVE: 🧍‍♂️

DIORDAN: 🧍‍♂️

VAMP LADY 1: great now i put the wrong amount of coconut water in here >:/

DANWAVE: ... wh–

DIORDAN: *interrupting danwave* What are yOU DOING HERE?? Did you actually follow me all the way to here?

VAMP GUY: wait you know this guy?

DANWAVE: will someone tell me whats going on in here 👁👁 *gets his recalibrated Joygrave Portable Ghost Vacuum™ on stand by*

VAMP LADY 2: *in a thick southern accent* it would be rude to kick him out now that hes here, we could at least explain things to him ^w^

DIORDAN: *reluctantly* Alright then lets sit down.

they all gathered at the kitchen table as danwave analyzed the. uh.. "people" sitting next to diordan.

on diordans left was a young woman. she seemed to be in her mid to late twenties. she had medium length curly brown hair and wore a plain grey sweater. she was staring danwave down the entire time.

on diordans right were a man and a woman. they both appeared to be in their late 30s/early 40s. the man had short salt+pepper hair and a mustache, he was slightly oblique and wearing a white polo shirt. the woman had a blonde bob and she was wearing a plain pink shirt with a white embroidered apron on top.

as the two smiled at him danwave noticed that their teeth were also sharp, and their eyes gleaming with a barely noticeable reddish hue

DANWAVE: *internally* i mightve made a mistake

after a brief, uncomfortable silence, as danwave began to plot his escape and started reaching for the Joygrave Portable Ghost Vacuum™ again, diordan finally spoke

DIORDAN: There is no need for weapons friend.

DANWAVE: *internally* f– friend?? hUH? since when worstie? ಠಿ_ಠ

DIORDAN: *continuing* What you have interrupted here was our weekly meeting–

DANWAVE: uhh... meeting?

VAMP LADY 1: dont interrupt him 눈_눈

DIORDAN: Thank you Beck, as I was saying... The four of us, Beck, Jerry, Cheryl and I consist the VVA–

CHERYL: *in a thick southern accent* that stands for the 𝖁𝖊𝖌𝖆𝖓 𝖁𝖆𝖒𝖕𝖎𝖗𝖊 𝕬𝖘𝖘𝖔𝖈𝖎𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 in case you were wondering :)

DANWAVE: the wh—

JERRY: there are many misconceptions about vampires. not all of us are in this life by choice, and we dont want to participate in the violent acts that feral vampires partake in. we would wish to keep our humanity at least to some extent.

DIORDAN: That's why we meet up to exchange vampire friendly recipes every Sunday.

DANWAVE: wait. wait wait wait. youre telling me youre VEGAN?? i literally saw you eat a meatball sub on your way here

DIORDAN: Oh.. Well. Our little club's name could use some improvements, since most of us here do wish to eat meat as well. except Beck, she is actually vegan.

BECK: some people tempt me to go full on vampiric tho (ㆆ_ㆆ) but im a pacifist so that wont do

DANWAVE: okaaaayyyyyy uh. ill leave you guys to it then. to make. whatever it is you were making when i barged in *nervous laughter* sorry for that

DIORDAN: I will see you out *insert a half assed tired smile*

danwave says his goodbyes to beck, jerry and cheryl and heads outside with diordan. he starts feeling slightly guilty for following the guy like that.

DANWAVE: uh. hey man im sorr–

DIORDAN: There is no need to apologize my friend, your curiosity got the best of you, and as a good paranormal investigator, judging by your Yelp reviews, you went to find the answers to your questions, whatever they might have been.

DANWAVE: you.. you read yelp reviews for Joygrave™?? oh well thats. thats nice :') i– i should probably leave you be, go hang out with your uh. group.

DIORDAN: Of course friend. I hope you have a safe trip back *smiles tiredly with his fangs barely showing*

as danwave walked away from the house and toward his van, he kept thinking about that 'friend' diordan kept saying to him. it started growing on him. the idea that that tired grumpy-ass creature of the night could be something more than an enemy, or a reluctant ally, a friend, filled him with a certain feeling of warmth.

DANWAVE: huh... 'friend'...

[obsessivelollipoplalala]

If I was Mary, I would have accepted the fact that Freddie was gay and moved on with my life. If she really knew Freddie as well as she claims she did, she would know that Freddie struggled to let people go and that's part of the reason why he kept her so close. I would have reassured Freddie that I wasn't going anywhere and he'd always be my friend, but also that I need to start making a life for myself and that he didn't need to "look after me" out of guilt because our break up wasn't his fault. I would stay in touch with him, hang out with him, maybe even work for him if he wanted me to. But I'd always remind him that he didn't have to worry about losing me; he's my friend, he always will be, and I'll never resent him for being true to himself. I would find myself a nice boyfriend, get married if I wanted to, have kids and be more than just "Freddie Mercury's ex girlfriend."

If I was Mary, I would have been supportive whenever Freddie was in a relationship with another man. I'd squeal and go "tell me everything!" whenever he announced he had a new boyfriend. When we were out and about, I'd check out guys walking past and go, "what about him? Is he your type?" We'd trawl through bars together and I'd hook him up with someone after a few too many drinks. Of course, if I felt he was in an abusive situation or was being taken advantage of, I'd warn him, but at the end of the day he's a grown man, I'm not his mother, and it's not my place to stick my nose in someone else's relationships. I would let him know that I was there for him if he ever needed advice and that if he was happy, I was happy too, because that's what best friends do. Freddie would never feel the need to hide the gay aspect of his life from me because he'd know I'd never judge him for it.

If I was Mary, the first day I met Jim, I'd have given him the biggest hug and joked with Freddie about how he landed himself his own Burt Reynolds. Whenever Jim and Freddie had a row, I'd be the one to slap Freddie round the head (metaphorically) and go, "you have an amazing man right there! Stop trying to sabotage your own happiness!" I'd be jumping up and down, squealing like a little girl when Freddie showed me his wedding ring. Freddie and Jim would be the cool gay uncles my kids looked up to. When Freddie fell ill, I'd make it clear to Jim that I was there for him as well as Freddie, and if he ever needed a shoulder to cry on, I'd be right there. I would be there to support Jim whenever things became too much and when Freddie died, I would sit in the first car with him on the way to the funeral, holding his hand the entire time. I would let him stay in Garden Lodge during his bereavement period, and the day he decided to leave, I'd kiss him on the cheek and tell him my door is always open for him. We'd meet up occasionally, usually on Freddie's birthday or the anniversary of his death, drink tea, play with the cats and talk about the old days, comfortable in knowing that we both have each other to help us through this difficult time. I would make sure Jim knows that I love and care about him as much as I did Freddie.

If I was Mary, after Freddie's death I wouldn't have immediately turned Freddie's house into Fort Knox. I would have told the GL boys that they could stay as long as they needed to, until they came to terms with what happened. Phoebe would always have a job there if he wanted it. If Joe needed any financial or emotional support for his illness, all he had to do was ask. Jim could take all the photographs and memorabilia/gifts from Freddie that he wanted, they were his after all. You want to take one or two of the cats with you? Of course! They were your pets to begin with and anyway, it'll be hard enough having two kids in the house without having to contend with five cats.

If I was Mary, I would have told the truth about what happened during Freddie's final days instead of spreading bullshit like he was blind to tabloids that I knew he hated. I wouldn't let the press into Freddie's house to have a tacky photoshoot where I pose as the "grieving widow." I would squash the rumours that Freddie died alone. I would squash rumours that Freddie deliberately infected people. I would squash rumours that he never found love. I would tell the world that Freddie Mercury was loved by many, many people, and during the end of his life he was nursed by three men, one of which he loved as a husband (without outing Jim of course.) I wouldn't take the credit for Freddie's care when the people who looked after him, fed him, bathed him, medicated him, helped him to the bathroom and sat with him through the night were Jim, Joe and Phoebe, two of which who were HIV+ themselves.

If I was Mary, I wouldn't make everything about myself. I would make a point of dismissing all the misconceptions surrounding AIDS. I wouldn't selfishly say that it was decent of Freddie to tell me he was gay because it meant I didn't get AIDS. I wouldn't describe Freddie's coming out as "he became a gay." I wouldn't lowkey blame Freddie for "pressuring" me into accepting his fortune. I wouldn't act like a victim and blame everyone else for my own actions. I wouldn't tell Jim that "Freddie was waiting for him," knowing full well that he was suffering from HIV and likely scared for his own mortality. I wouldn't cut ties with all of Freddie's loved ones, throw out his grieving spouse, trash his bandmates, moan and bitch about being given his bulk of his estate and promote myself as the "love of his life."

If I was Mary, I would behave like a decent human being. Something the real Mary seemed incapable of.

.