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exercise is important and good for you but the way its discussed is so inextricably wrapped in like weight loss and it being a moral failing to be unathletic or whatever and that really sucks

like im someone who does more strenuous exercise (tho literally just like. walking a half hour every day is perfectly ideal) but i dont care if it affects my weight or not bc regardless i know im doing something healthy for my lifestyle. when i lose weight as a byproduct, fine, its not my goal. if i dont, fine, it doesnt matter to me bc my body is doing what it needs to do. i think thats a pretty healthy frame of mind for it. like it needs to be reframed as what it is- something good for your physical and mental health , not as a means to an end of getting skinny or as a punishment

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i think a big thing that disconcerts adults about learning new skills is that learning as an adult means you are very aware of how bad you are at the beginning in a way children aren’t.

i picked up the saxophone when i was 11 and played until i was about 17. by the end of it i was first chair in our highest ensemble, a district honor band player, etc. but at the beginning – and this is important – i was bad. for the first year or so, i had no rhythm, i couldn’t make my tongue line up with my fingers, i was consistently sharp, etc. etc. other kids actually made fun of me for my lack of skill.

but 11 year old me didn’t care. 11 year old me practiced, but she also thought that being able to play the pink panther made her incredible (i shudder in retrospect). i mean, i was aware i wasn’t a master, but my skill level didn’t deter me from wailing out those notes in a way that i’m sure had my band director questioning his career decisions.

right now, i’m trying to pick up the guitar. it’s a very different instrument from the saxophone, and i struggle a lot with things like strumming patterns and barre chords. and sometimes i don’t want to play, because i know i’m bad at guitar. and sometimes i beat myself up when stumbling through a poor acoustic rendition of Everybody Wants to Rule the World because it’s not how i want it to sound. and it’s made even more frustrating because i can navigate the saxophone so smoothly.

but then i remember that i have to think like a kid. i might not be the best at guitar by any stretch of the imagination, but every little bit of progress is still progress. humility is a big part of learning, but if you treat a practice session like your own private concert, it becomes so much more fun, even if you’re bad like i am.  when you’re first picking up a skill, whether it be an instrument, or a language, or a fine art, no one is expecting you to be the yo yo ma of that thing. forget about how little you know about the skill and think instead about how much you have to learn – that’s fun! do your best!!

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Republic City can wait 😉

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Joanie Laurer

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A gif dedication to the She-Hulk of 90′s and early 2000′s sports entertainment: The late Joan Marie Laurer also known as Chyna.

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was missing korrasami

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Water bending cosplay

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korrasami month prompt: spirit world

Okay I have never worked in this style ever (this can be said about literally everything on this blog tho) so not sure how I feel about it but oh well.

Damn, I forgot to post the source for the outfits, sorry. I saw this post and was blown away by the designer, so had to use it.

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I don’t know if anyone else needs to hear this right now, but I need to hear it so i’m gonna say it.

you are not hopeless. nothing is set in stone for you. you are not destined to be anything other than great. we can fail and we can be upset, but failure doesn’t mean it’s the end. failure is a chance to change course and there are endless possibilities for you, but you have to believe that it’s not hopeless for you.

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here is a compilation of some of my favorite resources, workbooks & apps for people who cannot afford going to therapy, but would like to improve themselves in any way:

therapistaid has many, many worksheets for skills from dbt and even a self care assesment!

cbt worksheets from psychologytools.

coping skills for anger, managing difficult thoughts, getting better sleeping habits, etc.

mental health resources for kids & teens.

DBT skills training (pdf)

DBT skills workbook (pdf)

wysa app offers a wide range of skills, from a personalized AI chat where you can vent to a compilation of your emergency contacts. (only available on google play as of feb 2021)

sanvello app (google play + app store) allows you to track your progress, identify which self care habits you need to improve and guives you monthly reports of your overall state.

feel free to add more!

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at the end of the day it’s you. it’s you who has to make sure that you’re okay. it’s you who has to hold yourself. it’s you who has to decided to keep going. sure making some tea will make you feel okay but you really do have to make sure you’re okay. you have to keep holding on and keep trying, it’s hard out here, I know that. it’s you and you can do it. you can do whatever you want to do because you are strong and you’ve made it so far

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Are you an artist, art-lover, or fat bear enthusiast? Join the Fat Bear Week! community server and participate in our upcoming art contest: your job is to make the most adorable bear in the artistic media of your choice and/or vote for your favorite submissions! Prizes for this event include: 1 month Discord Nitro and free art requests done by our talented team!

We offer:

Welcoming, supportive, LGBTQ+ friendly community

Open to artists and non-artists alike

13+, SFW, and international server

Unique self-assignable roles such as favorite bear type

30+ adorable bear-related emojis!

Prizes for our contest winners (Nitro & free art)

Art and gallery features for all participants

We’re a rapidly growing community, and expect to organize many more contests and events of this type throughout the year. Share your art, make new friends, and try your luck at winning some cool prizes! Link in source, or copy this invite code:

WwYaQhH