monkeyman2020

[monkeyman2020]

Just got an ad that started with “if you’re earning SEVEN FIGURES” while watching an hour-long video on unused content in Plants Vs. Zombies by TetraBitGaming.

I regret to inform the algorithm that I may not have procured such a bounty…

[monkeyman2020]

had a dream about chapter 5

[monkeyman2020]

today is my birthday! i’m 33 today and i have done an ungodly amount of stupid shit in my life that honestly probably should have gotten me killed. so here are 33 hard-won things i’ve learned that i wish someone had told me sooner.

whenever you buy an object, you are going to own that object for your entire life unless you make the conscious decision to throw it away or give it a new home. maybe other people don’t struggle with this as much as i do, but i’ve grown to become a little exhausted by finding a thing and realizing i don’t want it anymore, but i don’t have the energy or motivation to do anything with it. signed, a woman with a packed 10x10 storage unit who is now extremely hesitant to buy new things.

food, and by that i mean good food (and by that i don’t necessarily mean healthy food, but food of good quality that you love), is necessary to live, and buying it, preparing it, and eating it is not a chore. the sooner you accept this and make food a priority in your life, the healthier you’ll be. 

speaking of food, not everything you buy should be the cheapest version of it. personally i’ve found it’s always worth it to splurge on good olive oil, butter, and canned tomatoes. for years i thought i was an awful cook because i was cooking with cheap, disgusting olive oil that made my food taste like shit.

speaking of food part 2, i can’t BELIEVE how long this took me to figure out, but mise en place is the real real. get your shit out and organized and prepped *before* you start cooking, even if it makes things take longer. and yes, it is always worth it to do the dishes as you go, which pisses me off.

when i was teaching myself how to cook and feeling daunted about it, the best advice i ever got was to aim to learn 15 recipes and then put them in rotation.

this is the most horrific and awful truth i have forced myself to accept: there may come a day you can no longer digest your favorite foods, and you will either have to stop eating them, or remain very close to a toilet. i’m sorry.

other people are always going to misperceive you and misunderstand you, sometimes willfully. other people’s opinions of you don’t actually have anything to do with you. they’re not your business, and you don’t have to worry about it or change yourself.

when innocuous or neutral things make you irrationally angry or upset, step back, realize you’re having a big reaction, and then when you’re ready, pay very close attention to the thing that upset you, because you’re about to learn something important about yourself.

a pill sorter can save your life. i don’t know how i managed my meds without one.

sometimes college is about learning stuff, and not about becoming something.

no matter how many perfectionist tendencies you have, it’s worth it to remind yourself that no matter how much of a mess you actually are, you deserve to be loved.

if you’re always forgetting to do important but tedious things, set an alarm and set aside one hour of each week, not to do the important tedious things, but to assess what needs to be done, and *schedule* the important tedious things for the following week. this literally changed my life.

during that hour, make a meal plan too. the point of doing this is condense the time in which you’re making decisions (what to do, what to eat, etc) so you don’t have to burden yourself with them throughout the week. decision fatigue is real. any way you can alleviate that is a good thing.

learn the difference between aggressive, passive, passive-aggressive, and assertive behavior. recognize when you’re being one of the first three, re-assess and aim for being assertive, even if it’s hard.

you can tell you’ve processed trauma, not when the traumatic thing stops upsetting you to think about, but when the traumatic thing takes up the same size in your brain as all your other memories.

if you’re one of those people who never seems to finish projects or follow through with things, there’s a chance you may just grow out of it naturally. until then, follow your interests and don’t feel bad about putting down a hobby to pick up another.

if you love stickers but have sticker anxiety, buy vinyl stickers. you can re-stick them.

there are only a few careers i can think of that you have to commit to early in life because getting the undergraduate credentials is a pain in the ass (teachers, doctors, and engineers, from my research). nearly everything else you can switch to later, which takes a LOT of pressure off having to figure out what you want to do with your life.

people say there’s no money in becoming an artist, writer, musician, etc. actually there’s a ton of money in all of those things, it’s just in the stuff other people want you to make and never what you want to make. it’s still worth it to develop the creative skill and not force yourself into business school because it’s more “practical” or whatever. 

sleep when you’re tired. SLEEP WHEN YOU’RE TIRED. don’t beat yourself up about it, don’t tell yourself you shouldn’t be tired or that you’ve already slept too much, just take a fucking nap. you would never say “hm i’ve already had enough water today, therefore i should not be thirsty” so don’t treat sleep the same way.

when you build a piece of furniture from target or ikea or whatever, the first thing you should do is count all the little screws and things to make sure everything’s there that should be. it sucks to get halfway into putting something together only to find there’s a piece missing and you have to go buy it.

learn to travel by yourself, go out to eat by yourself, see a movie by yourself. in my early 20s i was scared to do these things, but i do them so often now i don’t even think about it. it’s the most fulfilling skill i’ve ever learned.

adding to the above, if you’re a people-pleaser, being alone is especially important, because you’ve probably developed the habit of making the people you’re with more comfortable and happy than yourself, and you’re missing a lot of the beautiful and interesting things around you. when you’re by yourself, you can focus on what *you* want without guilt. 

sometimes you’ll want to break things off with a friend for reasons that are no one’s fault, and you don’t want it to be volatile or make a big thing of it, in which case the goal is to simply fade out of their life. it is okay to let people go.

shame is useless. get rid of it.

no matter how much of yourself you put into your art (or writing, or music, or whatever), when people criticize it, they are not criticizing you. they are having a reaction colored by their own tastes and perspectives. their opinion of your work has nothing to do with you. you don’t have to take everyone’s feedback. in fact you don’t have to take anyone’s feedback. the other side to this coin unfortunately is that compliments don’t have anything to do with you either. it’s good to accept this because it means you’ll stop seeking validation from other people and won’t let anyone else’s perspectives impact your work. anything nice anyone says about your work is merely a bonus to an already good thing.

if you’re an artist of any kind, take one day a year to look up opportunities like grants, funding, residencies, workshops, whatever. put the due dates of all of them on a calendar for the year following and get into the habit of applying for stuff. getting rejected sucks, application fees suck, but in all the years i’ve been doing this, it has always, always been worth it. these things give you a chance not only to help fund and support what you’re passionate about, but they force you to take your own work seriously, and that is something that’s absolutely necessary in order to be successful.

you must become your own greatest advocate. in all respects–in health, in love, in happiness, in freedom, you must. no one will ever fight as hard for you as you will. this in turn will give you the strength and motivation to help others fight for themselves too. the only way the world will ever get better is if every person on this planet learns to see themselves as equals to everyone around them.

brag about yourself as often as you can. for one, people develop their perceptions of you based on how you treat yourself and speak about yourself. but for two, it’s the fastest way to figure out which people to keep in your life, because they’re the ones who are going “oh hell yeah, you’re awesome.” 

be the person other people want to brag to.

at some point in your life, someone is going to hurt you, and it’s going to be willful and intentional. it is not worth it to waste brain space figuring out why they did it or why you think you deserved it. all you have to do is let yourself feel that pain, acknowledge it, and try to move on.

no matter how bad off you think you are, recovery is possible. the first and hardest step is to learn you’re worth the time and effort it takes to recover from the awful things that have happened to you.

developing an expertise does not mean you’re getting objectively better at something. becoming an expert is only the process of seeing your mistakes and having the patience to sit in the discomfort of not knowing how to fix them.    

[monkeyman2020]

The irony of this new breed of self-righteous AI hunters on AO3 is that they're all just copy and pasting peoples fics into AI detectors, which are all operated by AI and therefore THEY are feeding people's work into the algorithm without their consent and in some cases no doubt circumventing the locks people put on to avoid getting scraped...

Don't copy and paste anyone's AO3 work into third party websites, you're not the good guys in this situation?

[monkeyman2020]

really valuable little piece from a 17 year old poet and writer in gaza about the reality and indignity of relying on foreign aid solicited online. this has been the reality for gazans since the beginning of the genocide when a lot of people lost their jobs. while a lot of discourse around online fundraising understandably centers the necessity of this aid (or, less sympathetically, the feelings of westerners who object to the knowledge of our position of power that gazan fundraisers reveal) i really think the perspectives of the palestinians who do the e-begging has been lost.

notice how his post never once suggests you should /stop/ aiding gazans through donations or even deprioritize it. what he is asking is explicitly solidarity, not charity. while it cannot undo the hierarchy inherent to the practice, radical charity is a thing and i think we owe it to people like yazan that we do not see gazans as a helpless population (or a horde invading our attention) but people in their own right using the tools available for them, as we use the tools available to us to help keep them alive.

this post was taken from @abolishtheusa on instagram, and yazan's instagram is @yazan._.mohammd. here is his chuffed fundraiser.

here is the linktree for the sameer project, a which also relies on donations and is running seriously low on funds

here is the website for workshops 4 gaza, which sells radical books and tickets to exclusive workshops in exchange for donations to the sameer project and other fundraisers

[monkeyman2020]

Forgive me if this has already been done; the idea came to me and I just had to put it to life, lol. (My other idea was editing the scene where Phineas and Ferb see Agent P in “Toy To The World” to be this regular unassociated platypus, but I thought this would be funnier.)

@platypaws because Tumblr doesn’t allow you to upload videos to reblogs… alas. A hindrance, but an understandable one.

(Based on this post! https://www.tumblr.com/platypaws/793232119312859136)

[monkeyman2020]

Me thinking that I'm funny was probably the first problem

[monkeyman2020]

one of the hardest but most necessary things ever is realizing when ur being a dick or being really reactive to smth you shouldnt or being kinda toxic/guilt trippy/passive aggressive and youve gotta be able to take a step back and recognize that ur feeling that and why and then try to counter it intentionally by remembering that your behavior probably isn't helping the situation & the other people around you dont deserve that. this is hard but it is something u can do, please practice it

[monkeyman2020]

Israel announced a short while ago that Gaza has become a red combat zone. Since then, the bombing hasn’t stopped, and death chases us every minute.

I am Musab, a father of three daughters and husband to a strong and patient woman. We live in the heart of Gaza, which has turned into an open battlefield.

The ground shakes with every explosion, and innocent people are being killed around us. There is no safe place, no clean water, food is scarce, and there is no electricity. All we want is to survive. DONATE NOW

The Zionist occupation has threatened to cut off food and medicine completely from Gaza, even though supplies are already extremely limited, unless we move to southern Gaza — the Mawasi area — which barely accommodates a small portion of the population.

💔 Please help us survive by providing safety, food, medicine, and transportation for my wife and daughters.

Vetted by gazavatters #520

[monkeyman2020]

reblog if you're corny and insufferable

[monkeyman2020]

[monkeyman2020]

Urgent appeal, help my family⛔🍉

I am Yousef from Gaza, father of Lana, Abdul Karim, and Adam. My house was destroyed and we live in tents under the scorching sun. My wife is eight months pregnant and her health is poor due to malnutrition. Please help me. How will I wait for my child who was born in poor condition? My heart is broken. I dreamed of a wonderful life to spend with them, a dignified life. A life not filled with death, fear, destruction, and deprivation. I wanted to fill his room with toys and his closet with clothes. I wanted to buy him children's books, but I couldn't. The war came and my hopes were shattered. My goal became providing him with a carton of milk and food. I can barely afford anything. Everything is expensive, and we no longer have the income to buy his needs. The eggs of Al-Karm are deprived of many of their basic needs. They are deprived of security and stability. No fruit, no meat, no flour. A kilo of flour costs 30 British pounds. Vegetables are very expensive. A kilo of tomatoes costs 20 pounds, a kilo of eggplants is 20 pounds, a head of garlic is 25 pounds, and a kilo of peppers is 25 pounds. Nothing fills my children's eyes except fear. As soon as they hear the sounds of explosions around them, they start crying. Today, a kilo of onions costs 70 pounds, a kilo of zucchini is 30 pounds, and a kilo of lemons is 50 pounds. Water is undrinkable, and we struggle to get it by waiting in queues, and most of the time, we cannot get it.

Every donation for my children will save us from the tragedy we live every day in Gaza.🙏🫂.

Thank you so much for your generous donations, kindness, and support for me and my family. We are just at the beginning of our journey. Our situation and fate in Gaza are still unknown, yet we continue to yearn for a better future. If possible, your generous donation for my children will bring us to safety.

@slendyverseargcollections @womenbehotfr @olivedacat @exhausted-asterism @iphigenia-wailing @enderenby404 @implalazz @lunar-eclipse-bunnies @a-court-of-valkyries @thegoodwitchluz-uea @diagnosedhorsegirl @bebbls-craft-blog @the-acid-pear @nickbluehour @number1liftyandshiftyfan @inkslingerharry @madspades @taptrial2 @virovac @timeless-orchid @cinnarainbow @aziraphaleapologist @harley-angel @swapauanon @piratefry @pegglefan69 @writing-is-a-martial-art @mildmayfoxe @sunnyartistwriter

[monkeyman2020]

Urgent Appeal: A Mother’s Cry for Help in Gaza

My name is Suheila, a mother of five from Gaza.

After our home was completely destroyed, we have been left with nothing — no shelter, no food, no water. We are living in the open, exposed to the harsh elements, hunger, and fear.

My husband, Shadi, is seriously injured and unable to move or work. There is no access to treatment or even pain relief. His condition worsens daily.

My son, Shukri, is slowly fading. He hasn't eaten in a week. His tiny body is withering before my eyes — and I am powerless to help him.

My daughter, Mira, suffers from severe malnutrition. I have a medical report confirming her condition, but there is no medicine, no food, and no milk available.

We are desperate. My children are in pain. We have nothing left.

Please, help us survive. Every donation — no matter how small — can provide food, clean water, and medical aid. Your support can save lives.

We are clinging to hope. Please don��t turn away.

This is not just our story — it's a call for humanity.

🙏 Donate now. Save a child. Save a family.

Campaign checked by 90-ghost

Donation link

......................................PayPal❤️

[monkeyman2020]

hate when u agree with the sentiment of a post but not the condescending tone . Why dont we do a cool prank that's called being kind for no reason and speaking respectfully Even on the internet

[monkeyman2020]

We’ve reached $4,287 out of $5,000

I’m so close to the goal… Please, I just need $720

To provide food, milk, and a bit of safety for my daughter 💔

If you can’t donate, please help us by sharing this.

Every share could reach someone willing to help.

Every dollar makes a difference.

Every act of kindness brings us closer to safety.

Thank you from the heart 💔🙏

@newyorker @newyorkersunposed @newyorkcarez-blog-blog @chicago-seb @donatella-versacee @palestinian-dream @palestinegenocide @palestin @gaza-giving-tree @gaza-evacuation-funds

[monkeyman2020]

help save your local trans girls from financial hell

hello tumblr people of the world .. so me and my partner are currently in the process of moving to another city, and over this last month we have just been hit with unexpected fee after unexpected fee after unexpected fee.

our old apartment charged us some ridiculous move out fees, leading to us having to stay longer and pay OVER A FULL MONTH'S RENT even though we originally wanted to move out at the start of august. we also had to pay half a month's rent to move in to our new place, as well as a full month's rent as the security deposit, and we're currently struggling to get together enough to pay next months rent by september 1st.

both of us work multiple jobs, but the amount we've gotten this month has just not been enough to cover everything. we still have to pay for the u-haul to move and potential deposits for utilities, and on top of all this, we got a flat tire and our cat got sick and we had to take her to the vet.

this has obviously been a lot for us. as you can see we've dealt with most of it, but we still have a lot to get through and we are really struggling to make ends meet in the meantime and cover things like groceries or other basic living expenses.

if anyone would be willing to contribute, it would just make surviving a lot easier until we can get moved and get back to actually paying a standard amount per month. weve already paid over 7000 dollars in all of these expenses this month and it just keeps going up.

im not going to ask for a hard amount, but truly anything helps at this point!! this is my venmo and my partners paypal (linked to their music bandcamp)

here's some pictures of my cat for your trouble. thanks for reading!!!