#↱ start of something new ➵ starter ↲

[docholligay]

Oh that's why I was clowning on myself for 'falling for it" and saying "I think roy is easy to like" and then having the audacity to be shocked that people like him. But to be honest I had no fucking clue! None! The only person I had ever seen in passing was Ed and I could not have told you his name.

I don't know what fanon says about them though I can guess at least one aspect of them and that I know I do not like. I don't get too salty about canon v fanon in my old age, for starters.

*PLEASE SEE NOTE BELOW SINCE I REREAD THIS*

But also I kind of don't care. It's one of those things where I feel very "Your boo means nothing, I've seen what makes you cheer" for me. I have had, by and large, very negative interactions with the FMA fandom before I started doing this liveblog. I got a really fascinating barrage of abuse around I think it was episode one or two, which I did as a one off years ago. I had the largest and most sophisticated cheating ever around FMA for Eight Days of Content. It was actually for a very long time banned from even commission. I wouldn't do it. It wasn't until @automatuck9 came along and basically ran the long con of "See how normal I am how good my book recs are how I regularly engage with adult stuff but also I love FMA by the way your hair looks terrific" and I was like, 'We'll give it a shot."

So I have basically no interest in what fandom has to say about them, because for me I'm coming to everything with my own frame and understanding of the world and I'm not interested in regurgitating the most palatable version of how you're 'supposed' to take this show for the most people. If everyone wants to mama bird pass the best takes to each other for the rest of eternity that's fine by me.

To take a step the fuck back because jesus christ holligay, one of the hopes I have had for doing this show is to sort of get this bad taste out of my mouth re: the fandom. The loudest members of something are not a good representative of the whole. And I think this is something that's starting to prove true MOSTLY. For starters, there are a whole bunch of very nice followers I have that it turns also liked FMA ahaha. And then a couple new people have started to show up that are also cool. So, I'm hoping to come away with, if nothing else, a more positive view.

WOW SORRY ABOUT ALL THAT THIS WENT DOWN A ROAD. Tl;dr, whatever fandom says is fine and can't hurt me.

I love nothing to be simple and for everything to be worse ahaha. "Everyone sucks here" is my absolute favorite position for fiction. I was not joking when I said I think I would like Ed more if he just told Roy to fucking kill himself ahahah. I wish Al were as passive aggressive as he occasionally comes off as being. I PERSONALLY find that I can like a character more when they are a person you are allowed to dislike.

And I too am absolutely a human person and get stuck in ruts and have dynamics I like and can fall into. I'm not here to play, "my read is the only valid read ever" I'm too old for that. But yeah! Like, a domestic couple is the most boring take on something that is more akin to two shattered fucking plates someone made a mosaic out of. Separate things that are also one. Only made possible because something broke. I just do not think that romance is the most fun you can have here. Love, sure, I guess. I'd call it that. In the way a vine and a rotting fence love each other. But hearts and flowers? Pledges of adoration? Hm. Do what thou wilt but it's not for me.

I mean if you want a boring couple I presume Ed and Winry will be right there.

*Eta: This all ended up coming off a little more chip on my shoulder than I realized initially. I am apparently still mad about this. Which was interesting to learn about myself, especially since I don't feel mad at the show when I watch it. Hm. Sorry this is so aggressive. I'm not going to say, "I don't mean it" because I clearly do but I recognize that I'm coming out of the gate hot here

[gasgasdaily]

We've been talking about the 80s, 90s, the height of racing, the lows of racing, the technological marvels of modern engineering and the fails of it. How companies rise and fall but today, we're gonna talking about something that revolutionized the motoring world, something that's iconic that drove two contrasting ideologies during different periods of time and also, we're going back in time, WAY back and that's the topic, "The Birth of a Revolution: The Volkswagen Beetle".

Pic from top to bottom, left to right in zigzag pattern: The creator and designer of the concept and the eventual starter of Porsche, Ferdinand Porsche -> Porsche and his creation, the Beetle -> The original form of the Beetle which had no rear windows at all -> Hitler addressing the crowd at the 1938 Nuremberg Rally whilst unveiling the car -> Post-war 1950s Type 1 production model of the Beetle

Post-WWI Germany was in total shambles as the economy tanked hard due to the Versailles Treaty sucking all resources out of Germany plus the collapse of Wall Street in 1928 kicking in the Great Depression turned the whole economics of Germany into turmoil and the Weimar Republic was doing a shoddy work of rebuilding it. When Hitler officially took power from the Weimar Republic by force, he managed to stabilize the economy by whatever means and by 1934, he drastically changed Germany's financial situation by withhelding supplies towards the reparations payment for the Versailles Treaty and he opened up tons of new factories to re-promote industrialization and thus, a reformed Germany began and this time, under the Nazi Party.

In 1933, to facilitate the movement of goods up and down the country and with future military plans in sight, Hitler set up a transportation ministry and from there, he started the project to set up a national highway across the country which would eventually become what's now known as the "Autobahn" but back then, it's known as the "Reichsautobahn". Subsequently, he would also set up the Verband de Automobilindustrie which was basically a ministry to control and dictate what the vehicle manufacturers in Germany could and couldn't do. In 1934, with the autobahn done, Hitler needed to prove a point. Cars back then was only for the elites and the extremely rich but to prove that Germany has the capacity and to show off how industrialized they were, he devised a plan in 1934 to produce a car that everyone can own and drive as free as they want across the German countryside and on the autobahn. Thus, he gave the orders to spread the contracts out to German car designers and Ferdinand Porsche was one of the few that picked the contract up.

Ferdinand Porsche at that time was a destitute car designer who despite having great works under his name with multiple big companies of its time from Daimler to Wanderer, he was on hard times like many during the Great Depression and the designing firm that he had set up was also hanging on a thread. When the contract landed on his desk in 1934, it was a saving move. He quickly got to work by pulling his firm staff for assistance and with aides like Karl Rabe, Erwin Komenda and Josef Kales helping him, the designed the car rather quickly due to the specifications set.

Hitler's specification was rather simple. It has to be a car that can fit 5 people, 4+driver comfortably and the engine has to be air-cooled as mechanics were sparse back than thus having an engine that doesn't require tons of maintenance was the key to a successful "people's carrier" (Hence the name "Volkswagen"). The team got to work and by the tailend of October 1935, they already had two working prototypes being the V1 and V2. V1 was a sedan and V2 was a cabriolet to test the car's features and also to see which one would work better. The selected version was scaled to the V3 which was released approx half a year later in July 1936 and 3 V3s were made. Two was sent to the Reich Chancellery for Nazi party officials to critique and view the prototype project which many had actually given pretty good reviews upon what they saw and the remaining one was sent to Hitler for his personal review and he too liked what he saw. The V3s would then go thru vigorous testing across various terrains across Germany and would travel up and down the country without any significant damages for over 50,000km/31,000 miles. This made Hitler very happy and thus he greenlit the program and passed it to Daimler-Benz to create some actual production models for extra testing. Daimler-Benz did just that and by April 1937 would produce 30 W30s (The then-production code) for extra testing and unsurprisingly, the car performed well again and this time the cars in total did over a million km marked at over 2.9mil km/1.8mil miles and again, without any major issues. Daimler-Benz would tweak the design abit more with Porsche's help and decided to put a split-window at the rear to aid rear visibility as the W38 which would be the benchmark for the actual production car.

Hitler would then order the split of the company for the "Volkswagan" project to have its own facility in Wolfsburg where it can focus more on producing the "car for the people". He also found out that due to the simplicity of the design that Porsche had made, it made adapting the core support to become a military vehicle rather easy thus he too wanted Volkswagen to focus on that thus, the new factory. However, it was all a pipedream as just as the car was going thru it's full production in 1939 once the plant had finished, the Germans declared war on Poland which in return kicked the nation into full war with other nations resulting in WWII kicking off. Now with WWII in motion, the need for a civilian vehicle was on the back foot as military vehicles were needed more thus Volkswagen, despite being set up as a civilian vehicle production facility switched towards making military vehicles. Plus raw materials into making war supplies was the most vital importance, civilian vehicle production was tossed even further thus for a period of time, the "Beetle" project was canned and didn't get revived till war ended in 1945. When the British seized the plant, they found on the log that 210 "KdF-Wagen" (The actual production name of the car which meant "Strength thru joy wagon") was actually made and might have been given to Nazi party officials in the early 1940s and they too found parts strewn all around and thus, they quickly restarted the factory and by 1946 had produced over 1,700 remaining cars from the spare parts leftover and gifted it to various post-war services in the occupied parts of Germany like the postal services and even occupying forces officers.

Despite the outlook of the car, the occupying British instantly disliked the car and even mocked it as "unbefitting of a motor vehicle" and can't grasp the concept. Despite that, the Volkswagonwerk would continue going and was even at one point nearly wiped out as the Americans were ready to knock the factory down due to the reports from the British but Herbert Hoover, the 31st POTUS helped sway the votes on not to knock down these factories and instead keep the status quo to keep Germany united once again. After that scare, Volkswagenwerk also saw a new management coming in to take over the reins from the distrusting British and also with Ferdinand Porsche leaving to focus more on his own company, Porsche. An engineer, Heinrich Nordhoff was asked to take over the company by the British in 1948 and from then on, he revitalized the factory. He expanded the company and pushed for more production of the vehicle and also expand Wolfsburg as it's now the homestate of the factory workers and the company itself.

By 1955, Volkswagen was already producing its 1 million Beetle and the company was even projected to build at least 700,000 units per annum, something that wasn't heard of in the auto industry then and that made Volkswagen a household name not only in West Germany but soon, the whole of Europe. Volkswagen would see the Type 1 Beetle being made as the standard of the company since the end of WWII and along the way, a Type 2 was made but shares about the same components basically albeit subtle changes. The recipe is the same as the original pre-war concept that they're all air-cooled and rear-engine RWD config. What was true about their adaptability to become many things was true as VW not only turned the Beetle into "a Beetle", it became many other products with the base of the car being practically the same like the Volkswagen Kombi van being one of them. The other would be the kit car companies like Manx who would take Beetle chassis and engine, stick a fibreglass tub onto the frame, stick big wheels on it and sell them as dune buggies. Not only was the car versatile for multiple platforms, it was also easy to make thus Volkswagen would later on sell their manufacturing licenses out to other nations like Mexico, Malaysia, Brazil, Venezuela and Finland being the few but most important foreign builders of the Beetle was Mexico and Venezuela.

Volkswagen itself would see production numbers slowly tethering off in the 60s and 70s signaling the time for a change of a newer product which they did in Germany itself with the introduction of the Golf. However, not so much in foreign markets as the Beetle continued to thrive. As mentioned above, Volkswagen was built in Mexico, Venezuela and even Brazil which made these cars a household favorite in these lower income nation as they are cheap to buy, easy to work on and reliable. Mexicans loved it soo much that they even nicknamed the car, "Vocho" What was even more ironic was that when the West German Volkswagen had already stopped production of the Beetle by the end of the 70s, the South American plants didn't and same goes to the Mexican ones where they were still producing the Beetle and even selling them back towards Europe in the 80s for customers who wanted them. The American Volkswagen entities would then produce the Beetle deep into the 90s and Mexico itself didn't stop production of the original Beetle till the arrival of the new Beetle in 2003.

Also, remember when I said how the Beetle shaped a whole time period and changed two contrasting ideologies? Yup.. Welcome to the hippie 60s but let's swing off for abit 1st. When Porsche left Volkswagen, he took his design concept of the Beetle with him and with him basically being the one that filed for the patent of the car, no one disputed him in Germany alone thus his cars would soon resemble the Beetle from then on but keeping the story short, let's head back to the 60s.

1960s saw the height of global tension with the Cold War being super warm with the Cuban Missile Crisis and for the Americans themselves, the Vietnam War. Counter-war sentiments ran high throughout the late 1960s to the early 1970s as people were against a foreign war that didn't help them and also forcing people thru conscripts to fight a war that they shouldn't even be involved in and these counter-movement soon gained a name, "hippie". These hippies would often roam the whole of the US thru protests after protests across states and what they needed was a car and the perfect car for them was one that's reliable, easy to maintain, comfy enough to drive, not American (As they figured that dumping money to American car companies would = funding the war which, in a weird way, is true) and the car that fits their bill was the Beetle. Thus, many hippies started buying Beetles to prove their point of being rebels of the system and not paying huge prices for large cars just to fund the war machine. What was ironic about it was that they're doing the counters of what the Nazi regime was doing in the 1940s which was pretty funny regardless. Despite the irony, the Beetle did shape a whole period as these hippies would often paint their car in outlandish and psychedelic paint and thus it became an iconic scene that if you talk about the Beetle, it's automatically accustomed to the period and would automatically label one's driver as a "hippie".

In total, Volkswagen across all it's production line from Germany to Mexico would produce over 21.5 million units from 1938-2003 making it not only the most produced motor vehicle in history and also one of the longest, non-breaking production lines ever in history with the Mexico line starting in the early 50s, without break, till 2003.

Who would have thought that a car that was supposed to be made in peace time would be mired due to the person who idealized the vehicle and would revolutionize culture in such a big way and from a dinky little passenger vehicle would spawn soo many things from commercial vehicles to literal war vehicles and later on sports cars? No one else could do it but.. The Beetle did. Herbie says hi.

[sarcastic-clapping]

jobs paying wildly different rates for the literal exact same role based on your location is so wild when you think about it for more than 0.5 seconds because it’s like. so you’re not assigning a dollar amount to my time and energy based on the value delivered by my work, you’re dictating how well and how comfortably you think that it means i deserve to live in whatever area i happen to exist in

[stardustedstories]

Still workin' on getting through my inbox, but like this post for a short starter! I am going to attempt to actually keep them short! Please make sure to specify a muse or at least a series or I'll roll the dice! ^^

[inspotlight]

❝     merry     christmas!     ❞     nini     exclaims,     the     girl     practically     jumping     with     excitement     as     she     holds     the     little     stack     of     presents     in     her     hand.     ❝     here!     open     it,     open     it,     open     it!     ❞

open to mutuals !

[grimowled]

;psa: it's always ok to start multiple things with me, regardless of how many threads we already have going on. never feel obligated to reply in a certain order, or reply at all to ongoing stuff if you are not feeling it at any moment!

[allpossibilitiesold]

the shop is closed, lights dimmed lightly to avoid catching attention from the streets of the zaun. not that jayce wasn't trusted enough to take care of the shop if something were to happen, it was just policy. besides, he'd rather keep his face intact these days. he always managed to make a little more when fixing old clocks and hair trimmers when he could smile without being in immense pain. so he let's himself settle on the counter in the dim light. he's sitting on far corner, his leg hanging off the side so he can swing it casually. journal on his still thigh as he tries to work out a theory.

when the door of the shop opens, he doesn't even look up. the door had been locked, so he knew e x a c t l y who it was. “ you're late, ” he says, not looking up from his notes

@gettnup / zaunite!jayce starter.

[sunless-not-sinless]

one thing i love about tumblr is the queue. i have it so five reblogs a day will go up cone rain or shine.

but the queue has a max size of 1_000, so that could mean 200 days between me seeing a post and reblogging it. 200 days. even at ~30 days ive forgotten most of the posts and theyre fresh to me when i see them on my dash.

200 days. thats a pretty long time.

posts ive made have been dead for months and then suddenly someones queue came around and theres a new spark

whenever i see current political posts i fast reblog and queue. sure pretty much no one sees my posts but i see them! i get to be reminded of important events the collective consciousness stops talking about them!

if im ever too ill for screens my blog remains the same.

its my memories that i chose to share with my future self. its something there even when im not. its a reminder its nothing its jokes its memes

yknow what? its comforting

[the-physicality]

paige shouting out tash cloud at every opportunity....love that

[storiedhistories]

I'm heading off to meet a friend soon! I've been working on queuing drafts and things from my inbox, so how about a smol starter call?

[patchedstars]

and if i said teen jami starter call?

[stardustedstories]

All righty! Let's get some things going over here! Make sure to specify which muse you'd like, or risk the wrath fate of the dice gods!

[hymnoire]

Wanted plot :    Together, we conquer, we reign.

Looking for a companion/cult leader associate/king for Kaeleeana ( Tag / Bio ) . Plot inspired in an original lore from midsommar roots to a bene gesserit spirit, in modern times/near future. Transhumanism/dune coded core.

Kaeleena Nara, Mother Supreme of the Church and Sisterhood of Misericorde. The time has changed and so did the world. Now, forces are colliding. She raises daughters, mutated humans of great abilities with the purpose of making the world theirs. A cult, some would ask? A family, she would answer. The sisters of the Sisterhood of Misericorde then find their way to the arms of powerful men, human men, to bare their child and extend their reach. She too, the Mother Supreme, seeks such a partner—but not just any man. Only the strongest, the most formidable of all. He will be her equal, a reflection of the power she wields. A partnership. Should they take the world in their own hands together now? With what he is capable of, what she is capable of as well, if a war between humans and mutants arise, they shall win.

"I promise to never use my abilities on you and to honor our partnership," Kaeleena says, her voice a smooth lullaby. "My daughters, the Sisterhood of Misericorde, will serve our common interest, just as you provide your weapons and soldiers for our shared conquest. I also promise to cherish and love you through this union of ours." Her intense eyes lock with his, a silent challenge in their depths, burning with the weight of her words.

He smirks, his fingers gripping her chin as he tilts her head toward him. "Is such a sadistic, cold heart of yours even capable of love?" he murmurs, his tone dripping with dark amusement.

Kaeleena's lips curve into a wicked smile. "Doesn't that make us perfect for each other, my Sovereign of Terror?" she replies, her voice velvet.

[inspotlight]

❝     i     fear     that     they     already     got     all     the     best     parts     of     me...     ❞     the     actress     sniffles     as     she     looks     over     at     her     friend,     shrugging     her     shoulders     as     if     to     say     what     can     you     do     about     it?     she     wasn't     sure     where     to     go     from     here.     maybe     she     just     needed     to     take     a     break     and     refocus.     take     some     time     for     herself.

@theha1r

[milobooker]

milo 💬 ???

milo: hi pls help me milo: i'm stuck in a fish tank milo: fish cove milo: aquatic cove milo: im weirded out milo: y fish 👁👄👁 milo: 👁👄👁 milo: why they gotta look like that milo: im freakin out milo: this isnt the finding nemo experience i was hoping for

[ltghsta]

☾ ─── ⋆ head is pulled back and a hiss escapes his lips. eyes narrow up at bucky , who was busy cleaning the cut above his brow. theo had tried his best to come in quietly , but he knew it would be pointless when he spotted ellie asleep on the couch and the super soldier on the other. he'd heard him of course. ❛ will you quit it ? ❜ he practically whined , swiping at his hand. ❛ you're not as gentle. ❜

☾ ─── ⋆ @wnterslder : liked for a starter