birdsofabone

[birdsofabone]

Same, if I ever reblog from a term, let me know. Im deleting that post from my blog. End of story. Trans rights are important

Half of being trans is being hypervigilant against transphobes. Like, I spent 15 minutes scrolling down on a blog that I would be super interested in just to make sure that it wasn’t going to start reblogging stuff from my favorite transmisogynists. Turns out that my hypervigilance was right again.

[birdsofabone]

Transparent Lipgloss Gif (lipgloss matches colour of your blog)

[birdsofabone]

New (well, new back in September he was new) addition!!!!!

We adopted from the humane society back in September. His name is Hogan. He was 12 weeks then, going on 11mo now. We think he might be a Maine coone. He's chatty, loves water, clingy, curious, happy, fluffy, cannot stop chewing cardboard and paper. But that's ok, he must love the texture. He snuggles me every morning like clockwork. He's 11lbs so carrying him around the way he likes is getting harder 😅 but the vet says he average all around so that's great.

[birdsofabone]

I made a little art corner for myself. I'm gonna stare at that painting until I figure out what to do with it. Pudge is helping out.

[birdsofabone]

Vegetable soup

🍅🥔🍠🧄🥫🧅🥦🥬

Fry or roast pepper, garlic, onions

Broccoli stalks, cabbage leaves, onion peel, sweet potato peel, butternut squash peel, cauliflower stalk

(We use leftovers for this bit but use what you want or have)

Simmer with other veg in water with seasoning and tin of tomatoes, add vegetable broth as well if you want, we did.

Cut up potatoes, carrots, and we used leftover chick peas and peas, boil to add to soup base when done.

Once soup base is done simmering, sieve out all of the veg, (remember to compost or reuse)!

Add a little flour to thicken, a cup of plant milk and add the potatoes etc. Bring to boil, and done!

[birdsofabone]

trans women are real women

art by liberal jane

[birdsofabone]

You’re not behind. [ https://ift.tt/3bcnElO ]

[birdsofabone]

odd forest companions

[birdsofabone]

30-Day Writing Challenge (for novelists)

this challenge is intended for novel writers who have had a strong novel idea for a while and know their story fairly well, or who have already made a little progress on a novel, and are stuck on it. i’m not an expert so i don’t know how much this is actually going to help you get out of that rut, but the hope is that you’ll spend a month immersing yourself in the world of your story and you’ll get some motivation out of it. i’d suggest taking about 30 minutes (at least) to do each activity, and to do everything completely distraction-free, with your phone in another room and your computer on do not disturb (if you’re writing on a computer). enjoy you nerds.

1. Write out your entire plot, even if you’ve already done it. This will re-familiarize you with your project.

2. Get the basic information on your main character. Write their backstory up until the point where your novel begins, make note of characteristics, and get their basic appearance down. Got multiple main characters? Great! You get to write more. (That’s what you get.) For all characters, make sure you know:

your character’s wants

your character’s values

at least five character flaws

the role your character will play in the story

how you want them to change over the course of the story

optional but recommended: cultural aspects like race or religion, which will help you develop their background and values a lot better.

3. Do some basic worldbuilding: what year is this novel set? Country? Planet? What are some traditions or norms? Is there magic or new technology? What’s up with the government? If your novel is set in our current world, work out the specifics of the characters’ neighborhood, home, city, etc.

4. Without allowing yourself to see any previous versions that may exist, write the opening scene.

5. Do what you did on day 2, except for your antagonist. No clear-cut antagonist? Pick whoever’s closest, or do the prompts for a supporting or minor character.

6. Research day: go through what you’ve already written and highlight everything you wanted to look up later, then spend some time researching it. You’ll probably find out more things that you’ll want to add to the plot.

7. Character day: you’ll have four of these, so divide up your characters accordingly. Do some of the character work you did for your main and antagonist for however many . You can go into less detail if they’re less important, but make sure you still know the six main points that you got to know about the more featured characters.

8. Pick a few parts of your worldbuilding exercise that you want to go more in-depth into (i.e. political systems, technology, cultural traditions) and spend about thirty minutes writing, brainstorming, and researching things to flesh them out. There will be three worldbuilding days, so make sure to save some material for the others!

9. Look through the plot you wrote out and see if you can find any plotholes, concepts you want to flesh out more, or parts that are unclear or missing. Really take some time to understand what the problems are, and come up with some possible solutions. It’s great if you figure out what you want to do, but if you don’t, that’s fine! You still made progress.

10. Without allowing yourself to see any previous versions that may exist, write the ending scene. Spoiler alert: this is going to be really hard. You can try writing a couple contenders, or even outlining a scene if you’re not quite sure where to go. Don’t worry about trying to make it pretty, because it’s not gonna be pretty: you don’t have all the details that you would if you were writing in chronological order.

11. Character day

12. Write your favorite scene. If you have a strong story idea in your head, you most likely know the one: you daydream about it when you wish you were doing something else, it plays like a movie in your head, it’s probably located somewhere around the middle of the book, and you probably haven’t let yourself write it because you “haven’t gotten there yet”. Today’s the day. Go nuts.

13. Rewrite the opening scene from a different character’s perspective. I know this sounds really cliche, but even if it doesn’t give you more insight on the story, it’s fun to do.

14. Worldbuilding day

15. Research day: research new stuff that you hadn’t written last time, plus anything over from the first research day. Not sure what to research? Characters’ cultures, the history of your setting (if in our world), famous fictional worlds, language development… if you sit and think for a little, you’ll figure out something you want to know.

16. Pick a few of your favorite character relationships: romantic, platonic, familial, whatever you want, and spend some time sketching them out. Think about their arcs, how they met (if they’re not related), what they think about each other, how they interact… basically anything you want, as long as you come away knowing more about the relationships between your characters. Also, please make only half (or less) of these romantic! It’s super important to develop the other relationships in the story.

17. Pick up from where you left off in your opening scene and write the next scene. Again, don’t look at any previously existing drafts.

18. Character day

19. Emotion break! Make a list of everything you don’t like about your book. Get all your insecurities out onto the paper, then refute everything you don’t like. If it’s specifics like “I don’t like that x happens”, figure out how to make x not happen. If it’s general doubts like “This has been done before and I’m unoriginal,” refute that too! Everyone doubts their work all the time and I can guarantee that we are all more critical of our own work than others will be. Finish today’s unconventional activity off by writing a list of everything you love about your book.

20. Pick any scene you’ve written for this book, whether it be from this challenge or something you had before, and rewrite it in some form of AU. Change the genre, time period, location, context… you are a god.

21. Worldbuilding day

22. You know those books that are stories told entirely in poems? You heard me. (Start anywhere you want to, write at least five or however many you can get done in 30 minutes. No one will ever read them, so don’t complain that you’re not a poet.)

23. Find a list of dialogue prompts and pick a few to do with your characters. Want a challenge? Choose two characters at random. (I mean using a generator or drawing names out of a hat. COMPLETELY random.)

24. Pick up from day 16 and write the next scene.

25. Last character day :(

26. Write, or at least, begin, a very short story in your world. Try to include no characters from your actual story. If your novel takes place in our world, focus in on the characters’ neighborhood, time period, workplace, school, etc. This exercise will help you get to know your world through a different perspective. Don’t stress too much about this! It doesn’t have to be very long or even to be finished.

27. Fun day! Pick three of these activities to do with your novel:

Make a playlist about the novel as a whole, or make some character playlists

Design the cover

Cast actors in the film/TV version

Draw: character portraits, scenes, maps, landscapes…

Put together a moodboard for the novel or a character

Write that completely unrealistic scene you love so much but can’t put in the novel for plot reasons

Make memes about your characters

Sit and daydream for a solid 10 minutes about the Vibe of the novel

Anything that falls into a similar category

This is a callout activity for all you ””””””””writers”””””””” who spend more time daydreaming about novel ideas than actually writing. (this is 100% a joke because this is 100% me)

28. Rewrite your opening scene from a different narrator. If you wrote in first person, use third. If you wrote in third, use first. You can also mess with second person if you feel like you have an artist superiority complex and aren’t like other girls.

29. Pick your favorite activity from so far and do it again.

30. List everything that you need to do before you can jump right into the first draft. Then do it.

[birdsofabone]

But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and

[birdsofabone]

Things to do to help save the fuckin’ planet

1. Hang clothes out to dry inside or outside your home

2. Use cloth napkins that are washable/reusable

3. Make sure your home is properly insulated - this’ll be cheaper in the long run too

4. Buy rechargeable batteries

5. Always reuse plastic bags, don’t buy new ones, invest in cloth bags/tote bags/reusable bags

6. Reduce the physical mail you get - ask for emails instead

7. Use matches rather than plastic lighters

8. Buy cotton swabs with paper rather than plastic

9. Buy plants for your house or garden

10. Go to the library or buy second-hand books from charity shops, online etc.

11. Donate things on Facebook, freecycle etc - someone else might need your junk

12. Buy biodegradable dog poo bags

13. Avoid beef and lamb for yourself and your pets - it’s the worst meat for the environment

14. Buy biodegradable baby wipes

15. Try meat-free days, try good vegan alternatives or even go vegetarian (hit me up for tips and recommendations)

16. Decline plastic straws in restaurants or bring your own reusable ones

17. Buy a reusable travel mug - places like Costa and Starbucks give you money off if you bring your own mug!

18. Donate old towels, blankets, bedding etc to dog/cat shelters

19. Buy local produce when available

20. Buy coffee and chocolate that says it protects the rainforests e.g. Fairtrade

21. Switch the plugs off at the wall before you leave the house/while you’re asleep

22. Take your phone to a recycling centre when you get a new one

23. When at ATMs or self-checkouts, don’t print your receipts or ask for them to be emailed instead

24. Turn off your car while waiting to pick someone up

25. Use sites like FreeRice.com and Ecosia to plant trees and donate rice to the hungry

26. Grow your own food - it’s cheaper

27. Eat less meat and dairy!

28. Take shorter showers

29. Use leftover water to water your plants - like the strained water from cooking vegetables

30. Turn off the lights when you’re not in the room

31. Buy energy-efficient bulbs

32. Turn off the tap while you’re brushing your teeth

33. Take public transportation, car share, walk or cycle

34. Recycle - can’t believe I have to say that one

35. Try composting

36. Go to charity-shops, second-hand stores, thrift stores or whatever they’re called - use Depop, Ebay etc. and buy second-hand

37. Donate and sell on rather than throwing away

38. Freeze food before it goes bad - fruit, veg, bread etc. and leftovers

39. Get a reusable water bottle - stop buying plastic bottles

40. Get out and vote, go to protests, sign petitions online, email local businesses

[birdsofabone]

How To: Make Ink from Flowers

This is by far the most abundant ink I have in my house is that of inks made from flowers. This is the easiest and fastest inks to be made and require the least amount of materials to produce brilliant and soft colors. The inks from flowers can be either stunning and dark, or a lighter and more pale like one would expect from watercolor. Flower inks don’t last as long as inks produced from berries or nuts, and being left in the sunlight will fade their colors faster, but since this ink is so fast and easy to make, it can always be in supply. The shelf life of this ink is about a month if kept in the dark, but this is dependent on the color itself.

Materials:

Glass containers (preferably mason jars or drinking cups)

A pestle or other wooden tool (to crush the flowers with)

Boiling water

Cheese cloth

Rubbing Alcohol or 100 Proof Vodka

Glass storage container

Optional: Gum Arabic

Steps:

First, gather the flower petals of choice for the color desired (note some flower ink isn’t the same color as the flower petals).

Take these petals and crush them into the glass container, stuffing as many as you can in 1/3rd of the container as possible. The more crushed the petals, the more color will come out.

Fill the container with just enough boiling water to barely cover the flower petals. Do not fill the container, as this will dull the ink.

Set this container aside to brew overnight (I actually leave mine in the window to brew for 24 hours).

Strain the flower petals from the liquid, pouring the colored ink into a clean glass storage container.

Add 1 part alcohol to the container and shake gently (do not shake hard enough to form bubbles).

Optional: You may add Gum Arabic to give the ink a thicker consistency.

A recommendations on flowers, I have found that roses and other soft petaled flowers make a stronger ink.

[birdsofabone]

fucked up how cooking and baking from scratch is viewed as a luxury…..like baking a loaf of bread or whatever is seen as something that only people with money/time can do. I’m not sure why capitalism decided to sell us the idea that we can’t make our own damn food bc it’s a special expensive thing that’s exclusive to wealthy retirees but it’s stupid as hell and it makes me angry

[birdsofabone]

Cheap Vegan Recipes

Here are a selection of simple and delicious recipes that are made mainly using the ingredients featured in my cheap vegan essentials list. The ingredients required which do not appear on this list are either cheap and widely available or are optional and easily substituted.

Soups and Salads

Spiced red lentil soup

Potato leek soup

Potato lentil tumeric soup

Vegetable and dumpling soup

Chunky potato split pea soup

Cream of broccoli soup

Summer corn soup (GF)

Spicy carrot soup

Barley and bean soup

Hot and sour soup

Black bean tortilla soup (GF)

Lentil and turnip soup with lemon

Tomato and noodle soup with potatoes

Tofu noodle broth

Chickpea salad (GF)

Macaroni salad (GF)

Light and healthy potato salad

Broccoli, red bell pepper & chickpea salad (GF)

Bulgar and lentil salad

Soba noodle salad

Tomato kachumber salad

Marinated kale, white bean & tomato salad

Mixed bean salad

Mediterranean lentil salad

Chipotle bowl

Sides and Small Plates

Classic falafel (GF)

Baked falafel

Olive oil baked potatoes (GF)

Spanish cauliflower rice

Orange cauliflower

BBQ cauliflower bites

Pastatas bravas

Curried chickpeas

Curried lentils

Spicy tempeh bites

Fresh spring rolls

Pad thai spring rolls (GF)

Bahn mi spring rolls (GF)

Cucumber tofu rolls (GF)

Samosa potato cakes with green chutney

Crispy turnip and bean balls

Mexican rice

Street tacos

Chipotle lime tacos

Potato and chickpea tacos

BBQ cauliflower wraps

BBQ chickpea wraps

Roasted red pepper wraps

Tofu lettuce wraps

Kichari patties

Broccoli and onion pakora (GF)

Crispy carrot cutlets

Crispy breaded tofu nuggets

Taco skillet

Quinoa stuffed peppers (GF)

Roasted cauliflower in lemon-tahini Sauce (GF)

Easy hummus (GF)

Easy tomato chutney (GF)

Lentil and onion sandwich spread (GF)

Salt and cinnamon kale chips (GF)

Baked sweet potato chips (GF)

Stuffed tomatoes (GF)

Simple tofu scramble (GF)

Simple vegan omelet (GF)

Crispy fried tofu tontons

Sesame potato puffs

Baked zucchini fries

Dill pickle french fries

Carrot fries (GF)

Home made vegetable crisps (GF)

Sesame roasted kale (GF)

Corn salsa (GF)

Sweet and salty tofu bites (GF)

Salt and pepper tofu

Sesame soba noodles

Homemade meatless meatballs

Blackbean meatballs

Smoky mixed potato wedges (GF)

Quick and easy biscuits

Potato & rosemary focaccia

Tomato bruschetta

French toast

Rice balls

Quinoa tater tots

Spice red pasta with lentils

Easy homemade calzones

Chickpea bolognese

Pita bread pizza

Pizza rolls

Mains

Spinach and chickpea curry

Kadala curry (GF)

Mushroom & potato curry

Sweet potato, spinach & potato curry

Baked potatoes with spicy dhal

Chickpea tandoori with rissoto

Aloo gobi

Gobi musallam (GF)

Chana massala (GF)

Tahini lentils (GF)

Tofu omelette

Orange and ginger tofu

Sweet coconut thai tofu

Caribbean tofu with coconut quinoa (GF)

Buffalo tofu slices (GF)

Spiced sesame tofu stir fry

Kale stir fry (GF)

Pad thai

Chow mein

Singapore noodles

Spicy tomato basil pasta (GF)

Cauliflower stew with white beans

Vegan chilli

Sweet potato & white bean chilli (GF)

Quinoa chilli (GF)

Quinoa casserole (GF)

Blackened sweet potato mash (GF)

Veggie ramen

Cauliflower alfredo, spinach & artichoke lasagne 

Cauliflower dhal (GF)

Cabbage stir fry with noodles

Garlic fried rice with crispy tofu & tomato salad 

Lemony tomato and cauliflower pasta 

Black bean & onion pilaf

Chickpea broccoli casserole (GF)

Creamy baked sweet potato with mashed potatoes (GF)

Shepherds pie with chickpeas & sweet potato (GF)

Biscuits and gravy

Pea and cabbage patties

Falafel burgers

Curried chickpea burgers

Sweet potato burgers (GF)

Griled lentil burgers

Veggie burgers with pea patties

Vegan burger

Chipotle Maple Sweet Potato burgers

Chickpea veggie loaf

Macaroni & no cheese bake

Toasted tempeh burritos

Quick brown rice & bean burritos

Sweet potato burritos

Mexican Pinwheels

Quinoa burritos

Smoky tempeh burrito bowls

Soyrizo quesadilla

Mediterranean polenta scramble (GF)

Potato and rice stew with red lentils (GF)

Creamy cabbage and tomato pie

Chilli tomato & basil baked beans on toast

Baked pasta with creamy spinach & brussel sprouts

Pasta italiano

Lentil balls with tomato sauce

Mustard greens & tofu with rice noodles (GF)

Oriental rice noodles

Baked cauliflower with rye breadcrumbs

Cauliflower steaks with mushroom gravy (GF)

Oven-baked mexican quinoa casserole (GF)

Roasted veggie tacos

Tempeh harsh with brussels sprouts

Tempeh snack sandwich

Quick and easy tofu sandwich (GF)

Falafel and hummus sandwich

Vegan Tuna Sandwich

Easy oven-baked risotto

Veggie sausage

Vegan quiche

Mac ‘n’ cheese

Lentil bolognese

Veggie ramen

Vegan alfredo (GF)

Tofu lasagna (GF)

Pasta with veggies & breaded tofu

Spaghetti squash with broccoli and garlic

Lentil tabbouleh (GF)

Ratatouille (GF)

Shephards pie

Turkish style couscous

Smoky red lentil stew

Snacks and Desserts

Chocolate brownies (GF)

Super fudgey brownies

Simple chocolate brownies

Chocolate peanut butter pancakes (GF)

Carrot apple muffins (GF)

Waffles (GF)

Apple cinnamon waffles

Dark chocolate truffles

Dark chocolate macaroons

Peanut butter and jelly snack bars

Simple crumb cake with apple jam

Toffee apple upside down cake

Chocolate pudding

Chocolate cake

Apple cake

Apple pie bars (GF)

Apple pie

Chocolate pie

Apple pie burritos

Banana cream pie blizzards

Banana cheesecake

Peanut butter banana bars

Bread and butter pudding

Crispy apple chips

Blueberry pancakes

Berry pop tarts

Lemon poppy seed snack cake

Chai spiced popcorn

Creamy lemon ice pops

Vanilla fudge cupcakes

Peanut butter “nice” cream

Easy banana ice cream

Carrot cake bites

Berry lemon scones

Sweetheart short stacks

Banana pecan shortbread (GF)

Chocolate banana bread muffins

Banana bread corn stack (GF)

Coconut oatmeal cookies

Cinnamon chocolate chip cookies

Peanut buttery sandwich cookies

Peanut butter cookies (GF)

California cookies

No-bake peanut butter cups

Espresso glazed donuts

Strawberry oat bars

Chocolate peanut butter patties

Peanut butter bonbons (GF)

[birdsofabone]

5 ingredient vegan biscuits | recipe

[birdsofabone]

Made the mini chocolate chip pumpkin cookies by @veganfoody.

I used coconut sugar, earth balance, and whole wheat flour instead. Turned out great! Very soft and delicious after I figured out that 6 min is the ideal time for my personal taste. Thanks for much for the recipe @veganfoody! Love em! I'm gonna share with my non-vegan friends! 🍪🎃🍪🎃🍪🎃

[birdsofabone]

This is why I don’t tell 99% people im bisexual