gothlovingoth

[gothlovingoth]

I love how varied and universally weird the circumstances for making lifelong friendships are. Here's this guy I accidentally messaged once and I could not imagine my life without them now. Here's this girl I was so scared of when I met her, I would kill for her and remind her to rest on the regular. Here's this other guy we have so much in common we used to joke we were the same person in different timelines. It took us years to meet in person and I attended his wedding. There are also people who entered my life in absolutely unremarkable ways but changed it forever for the better. It's wonderful how easy it is to find people to love.

[gothlovingoth]

From a state hearing in Texas

[gothlovingoth]

A group of curious preschoolers visits some beehives in Stockholm

Submit your cute pet here | Source: https://bit.ly/3qre7V4

[gothlovingoth]

i'm not saying people shouldn't be reading more books, but i do think it's funny how many people thinking "reading comprehension" is just about how good you are at reading books and not like. criticial thinking skills.

[gothlovingoth]

I wish age gap discourse hadn't spiraled the way it has because I want there to be a safe space to say "Men in their 40s who date 25 year olds aren't predators, they're just fucking losers"

[gothlovingoth]

Angel I saw in a dream

[gothlovingoth]

34+33 ccreates a number so monstrous we cant even calculate it

[gothlovingoth]

Naps are a forbidden technique, I think. If you pull them off just right you'll access a pool of near-endless rejuvenating power, but if you mess up some inscrutable part of the ritual your vitality and might will be sapped and you'll be left at the mercy of your opponents

[gothlovingoth]

(guy who isnt beating the ocd voice) i know! maybe if i spend all night ruminating on something i feel guilty about until i’ve considered it from every possible angle and made myself physically ill, then i can finally forgive myself and i’ll feel better! 99% of morally abhorrent people stop self punishing right before they’re Absolved

[gothlovingoth]

[gothlovingoth]

📢📢📢

[gothlovingoth]

hey here's a website for downloading any video or image from any website.

works w/ youtube, soundcloud, twitch, twitter (gifs and videos), tumblr (video and audio), and most other websites you're probably lookin to download stuff off of.

[gothlovingoth]

conservatives want you to believe that allowing kids gender affirming will make them walk down the irreversible trans path they would’ve otherwise grown out of. most trans adults today did not have access to gender affirming care as minors and only transitioned well into adulthood. we fight not for children to walk down the same path we took, but for them to not have to live the life we did. we fight for children to have access to what most of us never had.

[gothlovingoth]

Emerald Spectacles from India, c. 1620-1660 CE: the lenses of these spectacles were cut from a single emerald, and the original, uncut stone weighed more than 300 carats

These eyeglasses are also known by the name Astaneh-e ferdaws, meaning "Gate of Paradise," based on the symbolic associations between the color green and the concept of spiritual salvation or "paradise." Those associations, which are rooted in Islamic tradition, were especially common in Mughal India.

The lenses were crafted from two thin slices of the same emerald. Together, the lenses have a combined weight of about 27 carats, but given the precision, size, and shape of each lens, experts believe that the original emerald likely weighed in excess of 300 carats (more than sixty grams) before it was cleaved down in order to produce the lenses.

The emerald was found at a mine in Muzo, Colombia, and it was then transported across the Atlantic by Spanish or Portuguese merchants.

Each lens is encircled by rose-cut diamonds, which run along an ornate frame made of gold and silver. This diamond-studded frame was installed during the late 1800s, when modern stylistic elements were incorporated into the original pince-nez design.

The "Gate of Paradise" spectacles are often accompanied by a second pair of eyeglasses that were created during the same period, and they were almost certainly commissioned by the same person; these other spectacles are known by the name Halqeh-e nur, meaning "Halo of Light," and they feature lenses that were cleaved from a single diamond.

It's estimated that the original, uncut diamond weighed about 200-300 carats, which would make it one of the largest uncut diamonds ever discovered.

The lenses are so clear and so flat that they sometimes seem almost invisible.

Both sets of spectacles date back to the mid-1600s, and it's believed that they were commissioned by a Mughal emperor or prince. The identity of that person is still a bit of a mystery, but it has been widely speculated that the patron was Shah Jahan -- the Mughal ruler who famously commissioned the Taj Mahal after the death of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan ruled as the Mughal emperor from about 1628 to 1658.

The emerald and diamond lenses may have been chosen for symbolic, sentimental, or cultural reasons, or they may have been chosen simply because they're pretty and extravagant; the original purpose and significance is still unclear, but there is evidence to suggest that they were actually designed to be worn by someone.

It has often been said that these spectacles possess mystical properties, including the ability to promote healing, to ward off evil, to impart wisdom, and/or to bring the wearer closer to enlightenment. Those beliefs mostly stem from Indic and Islamic traditions that ascribe spiritual qualities to both emeralds and diamonds. Emeralds are often associated with spiritual salvation, healing, cleansing, and eternal life, while diamonds are associated with enlightenment, wisdom, celestial light, and mysticism.

The "Gate of Paradise" and the "Halo of Light" spectacles were both kept in the collections of a wealthy Indian family until 1980, when they were sold to private collectors, and they were then put up for auction once again in 2021. They were most recently valued at about $2 million to $3.4 million per pair.

Sources & More Info:

Sotheby's: Mughal Spectacles

Architectural Digest of India: At Sotheby's auction, Mughal-era eyeglasses made of diamond and emerald create a stir

Only Natural Diamonds: Auspicious Sight & the Halqeh-e Nur Spectacles

The Royal Society Publishing: Cleaving the Halqeh-Ye Nur Diamonds

Gemological Institution of America: Two Antique Mughal Spectacles with Gemstone Lenses

Manuscript: From Satan's Crown to the Holy Grail: emeralds in myth, magic, and history

CNN: The $3.5 million Spectacles Said to Ward off Evil

BBC: Rare Mughal Era Spectacles to be Auctioned by Sotheby's

[gothlovingoth]

Kinda wild that every time a trans athlete does well it’s all about “ooh wahh but biological advantages” as if the kind of person who is both “Good At And Interested In Winning Competitive Sports” and also “Willing To Risk Losing Their Safety And Everything They Love In Order To Seize Life By The Ass And Be Who They Are Out Loud And In Public In A Society Prepared To Shred Them Alive” isn’t the kind of supremely driven person who might be actually pretty well-suited to Work Hard Get Point

[gothlovingoth]

Switching between these every day