#(and now they're selling even CHEAPER stuff)

[a-silent-observer]

Good lord, thank you very much for the fact that stationery doesn't expire...

[teaboot]

how do you find/buy sex stuff? I'm sure there are websites, but I don't even know where to start. What would be safe and reputable? Do you have any suggestions, or advice on picking something "good"? Also thank you for opening your asks for stuff like this.

okay, so here's the shake:

I personally believe that you can buy decent sex toys anywhere, providing that:

The listing is honest about the product's materials

You know what to look for

Silicone, glass, and metal are the safest materials you can use. They're the least reactive with natural bodily chemicals and are the least likely to give you problems.

SILICONE: Not 'silicon'- silicon is NOT SILICONE. Slicone solids are never 100% transparent and might, MIGHT appear translucent and foggy at the clearest. Silicon might be shiny OR matte, but if it's matte please know that velvet or soft-touch coatings are most often non-silicone materials added after the toy itself is molded. This is usually fine, but if you know your body is sensitive to that, one brand I know has the texture built into the mold is Fun Factory. It's pricy, but it's high quality and comes with a warranty.

NEVER ASSUME AN ITEM IS SILICONE UNLESS THE ITEM IS DESCRIBED AS SILICONE.

GLASS: Tempered glass is usually fine. If you notice chips, cracks, or hairline fractures in it, bag it up and throw it out.

Metal: Same story. Chipping, flaking, cracks, oxidization, toss it. Acrylic toys with metallic coatings will degrade in contact with oils, unlike actual metal, so be sure to check materials.

People shit on sites like Adam & Eve and Pinkcherry, and yeah those are cheap stores that dont sell the best stuff, but they still have LOADS of good quality product and do frequent sales and clearouts if you're nervous and not looking to drop a lot of cash right off.

If you can afford it, brands I absolutely recommend are Womanizer, Fun Factory, Hitachi (now owned by Vibratex), Tom of Finland, Sinvention, and We Vibe. They're all high-quality and most have warranties for damage or malfunction.

On the cheaper end, Calexotics, Doc Johnson, Evolved, and Ouch!.

Websites like Bad Dragon, Extreme Restraints, and Sinvention are known to have good customer service and high-quality products.

Websites like Adam and Eve, Pinkcherry, and Lovehoney I've heard good reviews for, you just need to be careful about what you buy.

I've yet to encounter a legit site that isn't discrete, btw. Everything is usually sent out in boxes.

Please avoid AliExpress. You CAN buy there, but I don't trust that shit

[itwasnotahamster]

- Letters from the Dead - (Part 1)

Langhus, 21 March 1990 | © The Old Nick | Source: Letters from the Dead

The brackets will indicate possible context or corrections (sometimes commentary). - 💜

"Only Black is true, only Death is real!!! Gore is trend! Hello Nick! It's Dead here again. Hey- you're really good at drawing, I use to do some drawing stuff myself. I enclose something of it in this letter. Maybe we together can work something out, maybe even in Metal Destruction…? You asked of releases, if we need some artworks for that... Well we rarely give out much and as for the next release we'll probably have some photograph instead. But if we would need something that you might feel for help us out with I'll tell of it. So what we can use drawings for is for stuff like flyers, ads and letter­pages. So far I have done the drawings for that... well the main reason of that is that we have a (old!) xerox mashine and I'm the one in the band that 'can' draw. It's not so often that I have time left to spend hours or sometimes days by making drawings and too many don't like that kind of drawings I make (but fuck them wimps!). But onto the Deathlike Silence Prod. now. The 2nd edition of the 1st release on DSP. - Merciless is out now, the one you get here as promo. We're looking for distributors everywhere and everybody who can sell 10 (or more) records will receive a copy for free + that 10 records will be cheaper. As soon as this the 2nd ed. has paid, Imperator will go in studio.

Imperators LP will contain 8-10 songs (depending on how many "old demo songs" they'll use - but it'll be new trax as well) and it'll be entitled "The time before time". After that it'll probably be the colombian Masacre as the next release. Masacre will be very soon release a 7- inches with 3 demo songs on the greek label Scene of Love. That's a new started label and I hope they can give out enough copies, not limited ed. of it. Of course we give the bands free hands and they're not bounded to use at all, but I'm thinking of the fact that Masacre is selling so much... Only in Colombia their 1st, and only demo sold 1000 copies ( which is more than our Deathcrush demo has sold worldwide...). We can only press up 1000 copies each time of every edition of DSP, and the first ed. Of Merciless sold out as fast as we could pack and post it. This second ed. we recieved [received] for not a so long time ago will depend on how much stamps we can get, of how soon it'll sell out. In Norway it's very hard to sell records - it's far away from USA or South America and I don't think any real scene exists here. Do you think you can take care of some distribution/selling of DSP releases, or you maybe know someone else who's interested? [True dedication]. I think Merciless will be very easy to sell in Italy. Many zines exists there and we recieve many letters from there also. We also sell other records (given out by various underground labels) but it can be so different of what records of others releases we sell 'cos we usually don't get so many of them, so they sell out so soon. But anyway - I can tell of what we presently have got (except of Merciless)

LP's (£10000 + postage)

Agressor/Loudblast (split LP, France) "Licenced to thrash"

Arakain (Czechoslovakia, speed metal - I do not like this one!) "Thrash the Trash"

Nomed (France)... very boring mainstream... "Like..."

Abomination (USA)

Disharmonic Orchestra/Pungent Stench (Austria, split LP)

Malicious Intent (Canada) "Shades of black"

7's (£5000 + postage)

Asphyx (Holland, Limited ed. 1000 copies) "Mutilating Process"

Atrocity (Germany) "Blue Blood"

Pungent Stench (Austria) "Extreme Deformity"

Disharmonic Orchestra (Austria) "Successive Substitution"

Do not print this in Metal Destruction, I will explain it to you, ok. If you want any of these records above, please tell of how many and of what records so I can see how much the postage will be. Now over to Mayhem. For the first time we've been in studio and recorded 2 songs (first time with this line-up I mean). It'll be released on Chicken Brain Records, a swedish kind of underground label some time in this autumn. It'll be 8-19 other (swedish) bands on it, among them Merciless. I don't know the title of this compilation LP/CD. Our songs that'll be on it are "The Freezing Moon" and "Carnage". The Freezing Moon is a new one and pretty different from our other songs, as example it's a long guitar solo on a very long Doom part on it and that's because we wanted to have a solo at only one track (of our new ones). Carnage was made in '85 (!) so it's really old. It was on the 1st demo/reh - Pure Fucking Armageddon (released in only 100 copies and not available) but with the thought of the very bad sound on it we feeled for playing it again and try to keep the original sound of it. I'll tape these trax for ya but I'm not so sure of if it'll be enclosed in this letter or if I'll put this letter togeather [together] with the Merciless record but anyhow you'll get this tape. You can record it to others if you like to but please don't trade it, and I'll record some else bands too for filling out the rest of the tape. Have you heard of the INCREADIBLY KILLING GREAT band Tormentor from Hungary? Their demo is about 4 years old but it sounds like the Death/Black metal bands of today. We try to find out if they want a deal on DSP. But unfortunately they hardly speak any English at all so it seems like neither them or us understood it... We think of releasing a full-lengtht LP of Mayhem but it seems to take a fucking longtime before we got material enough for it... The only we know about it is a title that MUST be used - De Mysteriis Dom. Sathanas. That was about all future plans I can tell of I guess. I look forward to see Metal Destruction. There's a possibility that we can sell it also, but I can't say if for sure.

About Satanism... well, I'd like to join a very underground and Illful, Evil and Grim Coven. I think you know of the hassles by finding any or getting any contact with a such. I do NOT like what's created by Anton LaVey like 1st Church of Satan. I came in contact with a dude who's a degree in the American Satans Sons - Church of Satan and he explained of it has nothing to do with LaVey at all. I asked of if it does exist in Europe also and of what it is exactly... well he didn't reply. But I heard later thet Satans Sons shall exist in Europe but I still don't know in which countries it is. In Norway it's not much of this, but in Sweden (-I am swedish) that 1st Church shall be in Stockholm (the capital there) and it shall be about 5 churches built by satanic sects, used only by satanists, mostly it's under christian churches - like the one under "Mariakyrkan" (Mary's Church) in the South of Stockholm where the 1st Church of Satan use to hang around at. I know it exists really Dark covens that use human sacrifices and are eating human flesh - them are those I try to find. I do not know much about magic and I can't say I'm a practicer of it 'cos I havn't succed. What is depending on what one can do in magic (all of its kind) is of what books one can get...those are hidden in libraries and so hard to even see... 'cos of course they don't let anyone even see them. You must be a scientist or something like if you would see the microfilms of that kind of books. A great library of many various kinds of magical arts and the Blackest of Black Arts too is the British Museum in London. But it's so damned difficult to get ones claws on those books. One book I really wanna get is De Mysteriis Dom. Sathanas, unfortunately it exists only in one copy... are you practicing any magic and do you know of any covens? Have you seen/heard/felt anything supernatural? I have but I didn't understand much of what that was and I think the most of it was only so-called echoes from the past or the future [I am curious about this]. Do you know anything about astral planes and out-of body travelling? You seem to be into it and I agree about stupid trendmakers so it is something that I feel I can tell you of. I had a weird experience once, I had inner bleedings and it couldn't be found at x-rays so when it continued to bleed and bleed I finally fainted and dropped down the floor 'cos I run out of blood. The heart had no blood left to beat and my veins/artairs were almost emptied of blood. "Tecnically" I was dead. At that moment I fell down (into a door I heard of later) I saw a strange blue colour everywhere, it was transparent so I could, for a short moment, see everything in blue, till something shining white and "hot" surrounded me. What happened later is out of interest, I woke up when some ambulance men came and drove me to a hospital and there the bastards of surgery started to cut me up at the wrong side so I got a huge scar for that. However, it's someone I know who's had many out of body experiences and is using magic of various kinds and knows much more than I do of "supernatural" experiences, that I asked of this 'cos it was so strange about those colours. She told me that the first 'plane' in the astral world has the colour blue. The "earthly" plane has the colour black, then comes a grey one that is very near the earthly one and is easy to come to. The next one further is blue, and then it gets brighter and brighter till it "stops" at a white-shining one that can't be entered by mortals. IF any mortal succee enter it, that one is no longer a mortal and can not come back to the other planes nor back to this earth. After the white plane or level or whatever it goes further with other colour I don't know of, there only spirits and great sorcerers can travel. I was told that the white plane I then entered, without I knew it, was the dead world and I died. But I also got thrown back after a short time which very rarely happens. So of what I've heard of I have some kind of purpose to achieve here."

Reached the limit for this one, I will add on!

[beardedmrbean]

Is it just me that thinks there's something fishy as hell with e-cigarette bans ?

I've never smoked or vaped in my life, but every time I hear about a new vaping ban it's always the same thing, "vaping is harmful" and "kids are using it as a gateway drug to real cigarettes". And considering the studies linked always list deaths in the hundreds, compared to millions of deaths from tobacco every year, it just seems like flimsy evidence to me.

Seems like the best thing to do would be to ban tobacco then, but unlike vaping bans where half the world has already completely banned them, the strictest smoking laws I've seen only restrict smoking indoors and outside some public spaces. As far as I know, no country has completely banned cigarettes.

Idk, it just feels like we're seeing corruption happen right in front of our eyes.

We're always seeing corruption happen right in front of our eyes, just might not be identifying it when we do.

E-Cigarette thing is a weird one though, popped up a thing from the UK yesterday handing them out resulted in a 50% increase in people successfully quitting smoking,

Giving out free vapes in A&E helped to double the number of people that quit smoking cigarettes, a trial has found.

Even more my bad, nearly 24% that got the vape starter pack and referral to quitting service did so.

Then there's China that has a state monopoly on cigarettes so they encourage people to smoke, but not directly.

For states and such it'll be a hit on the tax revenue that it will take a while to see reverse, but it eventually will start saving the place money in lower hospital and healthcare so encouraging not smoking is the long run winner, people don't think that way lately for some reason.

The bans on them are weird, yes zoomers were on their way to beating the addiction to nicotine until they made it taste like mango.

All that said the only significant number of deaths or injuries I've seen coming from vapes is from people that get the bootleg juice for them that some dude over on the corner makes and sells cheaper than that stuff you get at the shop and he doesn't check ID's either.

And that's already illegal.

As far as I know, no country has completely banned cigarettes.

New Zealand Scraps World's First Generational Smoking Ban

Dang it they were going to be my GO-TO for this, anyone born this century was too young to buy cigarettes was the law, not shocked it got scrapped even in not the US there's still people that believe in the freedom to live your life as you choose and enough of them to get in the way of a law like that.

Big tobacco in the US has managed to diversify enough that they don't need to fight vaping, since they're making money off of it, vape thing if there's a conspiracy it's probably people that just have no clue and think the posts they see on facebook about a kid who's lungs looked to be full of silicone from vaping either actually happened or is the normal result of vaping or both.

As far as things that shouldn't be banned go, vape stuff is pretty high up there and the benefits outweigh the risks a whole lot in the long run.

At least provide they don't find out in 25 years that it alters your DNA and will cause a 2nd head to grow out of your shoulder and now we've got a whole lot of new contestants for the Zaphod Beeblebrox lookalike competition.

Which would be weird.

[quff]

stuff blew up with my mom yesterday and I may no longer be able to live at my current apartment. it was bound to happen eventually.

our agreement year 1 of apartment: "I'll pay your rent until you graduate in 3 years." (she chose a fucking 1,900$ a month apartment because it's right next to the college. I would of been fine with cheaper and farther away. Nonetheless I'm extremely thankful for her help. She told me it was okay to rely on her since she's my mom and that she loves me.)

In our first year we had more than 3 floods. We couldn't move because of the leasing agreement + mom wouldn't let us.

our agreement year 2 of apartment: "You're not graduating fast enough!!! you should of been out by now!!!" (She'd call to tell me this almost every single day until I had to tell her to call me only on Sunday due to her calling during classes way too often. At some point we're made to pay for electricity and other apartment stuff except the rent. Sucks, but tolerable. I was only still a junior in college and have multiple mental disabilities that make certain subjects more difficult but I was still trucking along. I don't have the ability to drive due to these disabilities btw.)

We had to deal with even more floods this year, on top of bottom-floor apartment tier german cockroaches infesting everything warm and electric. At some point there was a crack found in the tub that flooded into the closet that ruined a lot of our clothes. It took management over 6 months to fix this leak, and all they did was roll some rubber cement over it once they finally showed up.

our agreement year 3 of apartment, I become old enough to not be on my parents insurance anymore so Miranda went from paying only 60 a month to 200 a month on health insurance. I have to take pills for prior health conditions: "since you haven't graduated fast enough–(not my fault because there wasn't a professor available for the classes i needed at a specific time, I ONLY HAVE 6 CLASSES LEFT.)–"We're going to ask for 500 a month. No you may not move to a cheaper apartment. The cheaper apartment you found is in a 'bad neighborhood' and I'm only looking out for you..." (she wouldn't hear us when we offered cheaper places to stay so we'd both get to pay less. She was also in the process of selling her current giant house for a smaller house that she paid to have BUILT for her)

Yesterday when she called while I was at Miranda's moms house, we were struggling even more and Miranda is forced to look for a second job while I also looked for work. I didn't even ask for help, only a sympathetic shoulder to cry on because I didn't know how we're gonna survive this: "How old are you to still need your moms help? How dare you?"

Why the fuck would you offer help in the first place...?

Mom hasn't worked since her 30's. She's been a stay at home type ever since I was 12. She wasn't even good at being a stay at home mom because I learned absolutely nothing from her other than how to have an eating disorder, and that everyone is trying to kill me(they're not, she just used to make me watch 1000 Ways to Die for 'educational reasons').

She found a really rich husband. He died and she inherited all his money. She then found an even richer husband (one that has a brother who has a patent on storage locker doors so he made BIG bank). And now every time she calls she's on another vacation. Vacation from what? idk.

[beesmygod]

Uhauls for local and Pods for long distance. Those are used like generic terms like "Jell-o". Look up different companies and compare prices. Pods are very inconvenient because you'll have to live without your stuff before and after, but the cost is by far the cheapest for big distances. Sleep on an air mattress for awhile and eat off paper plates. BIG RISK IF YOU'RE MOVING FAR DISTANCES: See if you can stay with friends to look for a place in person. Websites like Zillow don't list everywhere, and they sell data to landlords to see where people are interested in moving, so they can buy houses and jack up prices. We live in Hell. You might be able to find someplace cheaper if you drive around in person regardless.

Also if you can help it/stomach it, don't move to the city. Move 30 minutes (or more) away from the city. You can always find a cheaper place than getting gouged by some shitty landlord renting you a place in the city for over 2-3k a month where the floor is caving in and the street smells like piss.

Go to shipping places (uhaul not UPS) and liquor stores for boxes. Liquor stores throw them out daily, and shipping places let people donate boxes which is great for everyone. Make a HARD assessment of what you need/what you can stand to lose/what you can replace. I've never had a new couch, and it seems like I never will. Often facebook marketplace (set up an account now if you don't have a facebook account. it's a safeguard for scammers) and craigslist have people who are happy to give things away just so you can get rid of it for them. Second hand furniture grosses you out? Clean it. Get a free couch with stains and rent a cleaner from home depot. Free table? wipe it down and/or paint it. Also consider the landfill. You can clean and restore things. It's time, but it's not money. Youtube is there to teach you how to do these things. If there are things you absolutely can't allow yourself to buy used furniture (no judgement! I wouldn't want a used bed!), either reconsider throwing stuff out or look into refurbished/damaged equipment. Never be afraid to ask friends for help either especially if you're small or disabled. If you feel bad, buy/make everyone lunch and/or dinner. More hands means less work and full bellies make happy faces. All you need is deli stuff to make sandwiches and chips for lunch, and little ceaser's for dinner. Let them know before hand what you're serving when you ask. It's more courteous and you don't have to worry about what if people don't like the food or what if they're expecting something nicer, and that means less stress for everyone around. Moving FUCKING SUCKS and it's expensive. This can save you hundreds even if it won't feel like it, and it will come down to how much work you want to put in vs how much you're willing to save, but every penny saved helps. I have moved enough that this all feels like normal/common sense stuff to me at this point, and I'm sorry you have to move, but I hope this helps anyone if only as a jumping off point.

anon to the rescue!! thank you anon

[demonsfate]

Ikr?! I totally rolled my eyes when I found out it's another damn port. Honestly, ports should be FREE. Anything that is a port from a MUCH OLDER game should be ABSOLUTELY FREE. The STORE should be reserved for BRAND NEW ITEMS ONLY. At first I thought Kazuya's Tek6 outfit was a brand new remake and sb pointed out it's not, they just upscaled the textures - I wasn't certain. But now seeing this? I'm sure EVERYTHING in the store is recycled materials! That means this game is making ppl pay $5 for items that are from games that are 9 YEARS - 15 YEARS OLD!! Tekken 6 is from nearly two decade agos and they are literally taking clothes from it and RESELLING THEM?! It's absolute madness! All the outfits currently in the store cost $50 to get them all if my math is correct. (Maybe even more if they think they can charge more for the "cyber pack") Which may not be as pricey as Mortal Kombat 1's prices... but the thing is. I'm PRETTY SURE everything in MK1 is new content. Meanwhile, Tekken 8 is charging us these prices for ports! And most of the ports don't even look good at that! I'm sure if I could get a closer look of the "cyber" outfits from more than just a mere thumbnail, I could see the low quality TK7 textures on them!

No wonder why Bamco is taking down any MODS videos! Because modders show they can do what Bamco is selling! for free! That even a normal person who doesn't work for Bamco can just take an outfit from a game and port it to another!!!

Like the prob with the store is that... I wouldn't even complain about it as much if the items were cheaper ($0.99 to $1.99) and if they weren't ALL LITERALLY PORTS! It also really kills the excitement because fans probs wanna see the really old classic outfits (from Tek1-Tek5) remade into glorious high definition, but now we know we'll probably never get those. At least not for a long, long, long time. Tek6, Tag 2, and Tek7 has quite a bit they can port before we see new stuff coming around. Just. My gosh!

And even with the Battle ("Fight") pass, maybe I'd be less critical of it, too if there were just more exciting items available. If maybe in the free pass, the free players (technically not free players because EVERYONE paid for this game) could get at least one or two clothing options! But nope! Looks like free players can't even get ONE clothing option in the start! That's crazy!

Idc what anyone says; this isn't to maintain servers, this is just straight up Greed. Not only greed, but laziness too. You gotta pick your poison; Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat has crazy prices but original outfits. Tekken has lower prices, but they're all recycled from older games. Cannot believe this...

[apoptoses]

What do you think was Armand’s favorite thing for Daniel to eat or drink when he was mortal? Why?

oh man, you're asking someone who has eaten quite a bit of renaissance period food so BUCKLE IN you're getting more than you bargained for with this answer.

The short answer: modern fruit, modern seasonings/meats, cold food, and olive garden style italian

Fruits: we have so many varieties of fruits that just were not available in Armand's time. The apples and pears you see at the grocery store now are distant relatives of the apples and pears that Armand would have known and I really think he'd have sat Daniel down and had him try a little bit of everything from the produce section just to see what's better and what's worse.

He'd be totally unimpressed with the fruits we pick early and ship to stores covered in wax (their flavoring pales in comparison to a fruit allowed to ripen) but enthralled by fruit which would have been totally unknown to him, like bananas or mangoes.

(also every time they walk through a store? he's stealing some grapes off a bunch or a strawberry from a pack and pushing daniel to eat it right then and there, he's one of those grubby little fruit tasting thieves)

Meats: he'd also be totally enthralled by modern meats, but not for the reason you'd think. Spice usage in the 15th century was very different from what we have now, and spicing your meat dishes to be kinda sweet/savory was the thing. The seven most common spices were: ceylon cinnamon (NOT the ground stuff you get from the store, a totally different variety), grains of paradise (a type of red pepper), hyssop (an herb), saffron, sandalwood, galingale (a relative of ginger), cubebs (another variety of pepper not at all like black pepper)

So like. Just tossing a burger on the grill and eating it as flavored by the charcoal? Throwing some black pepper on and calling it a day? Unthinkable to him!

Armand would go through the grocery store spice aisle, get one of every premixed seasoning in a jar that's available, and force Daniel to try them all. Daniel never wants a fucking burger or seasoned chicken breast again after that.

Cold Food: this one is kinda obvious, in Venice you couldn't just dig a hole and build an ice cellar so chances of Armand ever having had a frozen treat while mortal are slim. Even cold drinks just were not really a thing in the renaissance, so Daniel sipping an ice water would be just wild to him.

He'd love ice creams and gelatos and sherberts and frozen custards. They're colorful, they have strange (to him) flavors, Daniel would have to try a bite of literally every single one of the 31 flavors offered by Baskin Robbins.

Also pudding! Jello! Cheesecake, which befuddles him because it's not cheese as he knew cheese. If it's in the fridge/freezer section Armand makes Daniel get it and take it home.

Modern 'italian' food: DID YOU KNOW Olive Garden was founded in like 1982 so in my heart Armand dragged Daniel there multiple times because it's Italian themed but is nothing like the Italy he knew. Tomatoes? Not a thing in his time but they're in like 90% of the food on the menu! Alfredo sauce? Never heard of it! Deep fried ravioli bites? What in god's name is that?

Daniel tries the soup because whatever, it comes with the meal. He powers through the Tour of Italy because Armand can't comprehend lasagna or chicken parm. He downs like four glasses of different sangrias because that? Armand doesn't know what that is and he's delighted that it's similar to the mulled wines of his youth but sweeter.

By the time dessert hits our man is sweatin'. Armand doesn't understand what could be 'italian' about cheesecake (they sell jello no bake cheesecake powder at the store, what could be different about olive garden's??) so he orders a slice of that as well as the tiramisu AND a fancy espresso cocktail. It's the Copley all over again but cheaper and greasier and with Frank Sinatra blaring on the speakers.

Would you gentlemen like a frozen entree to go? NO Daniel says just as Armand says YES, PLEASE, ONE OF EACH. He's so stuffed, he's drunk, he's in hell. Armand rants all the way back to the Night Island about his mixed feelings on modern innovations in cooking, Daniel doesn't care, Daniel never wants to see a noodle again.

(they go back the next night. and the next. and then armand discovers the fact that barbecue is different depending on which state in the US you're in and he's calling for the private jet. It's their own version of Diners, Drive ins and Dives from there and today Daniel can be found in Trinity Gate, watching Guy Fieri on the TV and yelling that HE did that first, he should be getting royalties or at least financial compensation from Armand for the emotional damage eating THAT MUCH greasy food left him with)

[n7punk]

i did my post about merch and this is a general price guide to go along with that, but because it's so subject to change, i have reblogs turned off and will probably delete this after a bit when it's no longer relevant/correct. these prices are not based on original price but rather what you can expect to pay for it now if you actually want to get your hands on it.

this is a lot more informal and just based off what I've seen over the last 2-3 months of digging. lower-end average (not the best, but generally good enough) prices are listed in USD (since all of this was originally sold in the US, its pretty hard to get a hold of elsewhere).

note: the biggest tip i can give you is to look on Mercari. there's a lot fewer professional collectors/speculators ("investors" 🙄) over there, but also fewer listings in general. that said, definitely check other places before buying something, and Mercari doesn't have search alert emails like eBay. also, take a peek at Facebook Marketplace! I have seen one or two things there if you look "outside your area" with shipping.

original posters: (in mint condition) close to 10$ but sometimes pushing 20$. reproductions fall in this range too tbh.

pins vary based on what the pin is and if it still has its backing. most pins are still available direct too so i haven't paid much attention to their prices. I think like 10$ (give or take a few dollars) for the buttons (4-pack) is around what I've found. side note: double check any pins being sold against han cholo's catalogue and my con promos post, because if it's not in there it's a fan's design, which 1) you really should buy direct from them, 2) might be CHEAPER from them. i saw someone selling pins for 30$ when brand new from the fan artist they're 24$. same thing for the jewelry. there's a reseller who is my nemesis for marking up items and trying to make them seem rarer by calling them con exclusive when theyre for sale online right now. i cannot stress enough how much you should cross-check this stuff.

her universe clothes: this varies based on what it is, but in general you should be looking to get it for less than original list price. even if it's barely used, it is still used, and you will find it lower than original eventually, so use that as your general guide. for the jackets, you can get as good as 40$ off sometimes (I’ve seen the adora bomber that retailed at 70$ listed between 25-75$). the bomber is definitely the most common item i've seen, usually around 25$, but i haven't checked the situation over on poshmark/thredup so there might be more variety there. (also, i have the links to all the original clothing listings in my merch post, which includes the original sizing chart!)

action figures: they list for 800+, but listed doesn't equal sold at all. i havent seen any movement on the listings i've found (which span up into four figures, btw). i think i saw them sold for 450$ once. sometimes people list just the BOX for 150$ so good fucking luck if you want this one and make sure to read the listing carefully. also, if you want to look around for these, add "-keshi" (on sites that support it) to remove the super7 keshis from the search, which are these weird 7$ rubber things for the OG show that remind me of the straw buddies.

can you tell the difference between the items that collectors have targeted and the regular merch? lmao. speaking of collecting: NIB = new in box. basically, it's in the same condition as if you bought it directly from the store. sometimes you might see NIP for "new in package" (think the buttons, which obviously don't have a box).

dolls: okay, listen. i've seen adora sell for 90$ and i've also seen her sit around and wait to be sold for 40$. every single one of these can go for three figures at times, but i would say an average list price (they're super over-priced, so you can make lower offers after a while of no movement, i've seen 100$ come off listings as time went on) is around 70-100$ (NIB) and a good one is closer to 40-50$. she-ra (regular) tends to be cheapest and easiest to get below this price point. the lowest ive seen NIB for them individually is 30$ each for glimbow, 39$ for adora, 25$ for she-ra, 45$ for she-ra+swift wind, and 57$ for catra (note: catra is the most expensive and rare to find below three figures. she sometimes goes for over 200$). i've also seen the entire BFS go as a 50$ lot NIB and the BFS + catra go as a lot for 30$ out of box so factor that how you will. these prices range a Lot. if you wait and are patient, you can get a more reasonable price eventually. (there's currently a lot of she-ra/glimmer/bow listed as 300$ despite she-ra being way more common and regularly going for $50. people are stupid) OH RIGHT i forgot the sdcc exclusive. yeah 100$ list is average on that. best price ive seen (initially listed) recently is 80$ NIB. that said, i've seen them sell as low as 31$ when the packaging was damaged. because prices are so variable, i've seen damaged out-of-boxes go for more than NIBs (see: 115$ damaged catra vs 57$ NIB) because the seller/buyer were pricing based off of a higher listing. if someone is trying to sell something damaged or with a slightly off screening (imperfect paint/print job), you can lean on that to get the price lower (there's a glimmer with a Hilariously skewed screening - and missing accessories + messy hair - listed for 1$ on ebay right now).

the Lootcrate and Sonic stuff varies based on what it is (and if it's in a lot) but they tend to span 5-20$. usually they aren't sold individually so it's hard to price.

the stickers/tattoo/coloring sheets usually go in lots but range 2-15$

the target toy sword/shield and target costume should be something like 30-45$ for a good NIB price (i've seen them go up to 75$ as a list price tho). i've seen the costume go for as low as 10$ if it's used.

i havent seen enough listings (or any in some cases) to get a vibe on the prices for anything else.

these prices are just based on what's going down right now. they'll go up around the holidays and then lower again, and it's possible in a year they're all way higher or way lower than currently. collectors have targeted some of these things and its so obvious when the con exclusive pin sets can sell for 12$ and the (originally 15$!) dolls from target can go for 160$. it's super annoying and i hope all of them choke <3 but maybe their stupid speculating will taper off and it will get easier to get stuff reasonably. we can only hope

this has been sitting in my drafts for ages but im posting it now, not even in the hopes it will help someone, but so i can infodump about this extremely specific knowledge i've developed over the summer lmao

[regarding-stories]

Rounding up is hard to do... Manga Edition (mostly)

While this is slowly changing, a lot of the time romantic manga series are more likely to get a single season if adapted to anime. So even if you might get into a series by watching it animated at first, you often have to finish it by getting into the print. Anime is still at times more of a promotional tool than anything.

So here comes stuff that I read at least partially in manga form.

Smoking Behind The Supermarket With You

This was a random find that I just got into because Kobo advertised it to me. While some of it is now collected as volumes, Bookwalker sells it by chapters for the start of the series, but never installments come as three-chapter books (and in the end, cheaper per page).

"Smoking" is a very sweet little slow-burn love story unfolding between a salarymen working in sales and much younger supermarket cashier. She stars in two roles - she's the young, super-friendly and wholesome cashier that he always lines up for due to her smile. But when not at work, she dons her private style - and he doesn't recognize her... (Thank God for oblivious manga protagonists.)

She ends up keeping the charade up, switching her name around for him. Both develop feelings for each other, but most of the time they simply socialize behind the store, a place where you can smoke freely - which is what by chance got them in closer touch.

Over time the cast grows to incorporate one of his coworkers, and all the staff at this local supermarket. Many of the people around her catch up with her two identities, and start rooting for her, especially her manager who wants to see some proper romantic developments, but both our lovebirds are too good at leaving things unsaid, and the whole Yamada/Tayama setup she maintains is not helping.

Given that this is about adults the slow-burn is even more surprising, barely progressing beyond touching at times and then taking at least one if not two steps back for each forward. Still, it's a very rewarding read to me. I do not want to label it "slice of life," but I guess you could call it that as well.

My Little Monster

Talk about a bad start! I really was put off by the male lead's first appearance, given that he was threatening the heroine. In the end, however, this seemed to be a fluke and didn't repeat. (Well, there are incidents but they don't rub me the same.) It left a sour taste for a while but I stayed with the series, and am glad for it.

She is obsessed with studying to an obscene degree, he is afraid of attending school and considered a delinquent, especially due to his threatening stare. In the end it they are drawn to each other, but their timing is at times horrible, they're not good at understanding their own feelings or each other's. Adding up to a surprising good, long read.

One thing that is good about the series is the humor, the quirks of the characters, watching their struggles is fun. Characters are indeed a strength of this series. We eventually also learn the psychological background why our leads are as they are. Mixed with a lot of high school slice-of-life, all taken together, "My Little Monster" is something you want to follow to finish.

The one thing that kept me confused was why Haru (male lead) was so strongly traumatized, and even after the end of the anime season you wouldn't really know - this part comes in very slowly, but it has to do a lot with abandonment, loss, and rejection - all from within his family as growing up. There are also hints of not being neurotypical on both leads, especially given that Haru is a sort of genius savant. (Still, I'd say, it doesn't all quite add up, so you have to forgive it and read on...)

But what makes you stay in the end are the characters, their unfolding stories, and their interactions. Which is why it's a shame that the last main book rushes through their last year of high school, and the later-added bonus book doesn't fully make up for it, even though it's meant to keep us in touch with all the side stories of the other characters.

Blue Spring Ride

Blue Spring Ride is much easier to understand, its only mystery are the family dynamics of the male lead, and this mystery will be finished by the time you're done with the series as well, probably more like halfway through.

Our lead couple had a blossoming love in middle school, but then he moved away. When they meet again in high school, many years later, he's a different person - his parents' divorce and his mother's death have left him scarred. She in turn tries to get away from being ostracized by pretending to not care about her (good) looks and maintains shallow friendships without authenticity. Their coming back together changes this gradually and a new circle of friends emerges.

Normally this would make for a satisfying story, and for a large part it does, but the last third is built on a "stretching out the gum" plotline that just stirs drama, is built on piling misunderstandings and bad timing, and generally wants to keep the reader around to see how this mess resolves. Thankfully, unlike "Rent-A-Girlfriend", this "keep making money" shtick is only done once. It was still unnerving and soured my impression of the series.

Insomniacs After School

I started reading this one because it was advertised for HiDive and I wanted to watch it there, but the service stopped being offered in my country before I could. I'm glad I did, I find this manga's art style especially evocative and well done, slightly less mainstream.

This is about two high school students who suffer from severe insomnia, the reasons for which will be slowly expanded upon later in the series. They end up reviving the astronomy club at school after being caught abusing the abandoned clubroom for naps and hanging out together. Sleeping in the same room, hearing another's voice (she podcasts for him)... it's a wonderfully intimate series, long before ever they start to act on their feelings in other ways.

As they discover astronomy and photography for themselves, the series expands their and our horizons through very detailed, realistic art. Both the characters also seem more real and less cute than usual, and especially the eyes in the books are amazing by themselves.

It does get quite dramatic at times, and the upcoming volumes to be translated will amp up that drama (I peeked), but in general, this series seems very real and original, definitely not something that regurgitates just tropes. Highly recommended!

[johannestevans]

Lots of new work, some comedy, and an upcoming pub quiz for Galway Pride!

Good evening!

You can get these updates direct to your email inbox here.

So much to cover this week. I have a bunch of event announcements and several media recs - just scroll down to the bottom if you just want my round-up of new works published.

First things first - I've started playing with some buttons on Zazzle, trialling some badge designs for when I'm selling books at conventions next year.

These, and a few other designs, are available on my Zazzle store now! They're obviously quite expensive for individual badges because it's a print-on-demand store, but I'm planning to experiment with some designs over the next year or so, with the hope of selling these sorts of pin badges (as well as stickers and so on) for cheaper later on.

Secondly, I did a comedy set at Ireland's Smallest Comedy Club last week, and I'm going to do another set at Basement Jokes, also here in Galway City, on the 17th of May. If you're up this end of Ireland, come along at 8pm! Basement Jokes is a free entry comedy club, and it's in the basement of The Cellar Bar. Here's the show info.

Thirdly, if you're not in Galway next week but you can make it down the week after, I'll be hosting a pub quiz to help fundraise for Galway Pride this year. There'll be a big quiz with a bunch of rounds, and there'll also be a raffle with prizes from local businesses - there'll be a few signed copies of Heart of Stone in with the other prizes. Quiz entry is €5 per person, and you can find the info here on EventBrite.

A few people have recently approached me about doing book clubs and so on, so I just wanted to state explicitly here that I'm more than happy to answer questions and chat on stream at queer or fantasy book clubs via Zoom or similar! If you're going to have Heart of Stone or any of my other work as your book club pick in Ireland, the North of England, or Bristol, depending on where you are, I might be able to come along in person and sign books and so on! You can reach out with that sort of enquiry at contact@johannestevans.com.

Media Recommendations

Maintenance Phase - Maintenance Phase is a great podcast that Lewis got me into, and I've been catching up on a bunch of their old episodes of recent - Maintenance Phase is put together by Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes, and it's a podcast where they unpack common myths and outright lies told in the wellness and diet industries, especially common fatphobic rhetoric, bad science, and conartistry by fitspo and health "experts". They get so catty with unpacking this stuff and it's so cathartic to listen to, but it's all backed up with good, robust tear-downs of the shitty science behind a lot of what they're tearing apart. If you want to listen to just one episode to see how you feel, I would recommend, Is Being Fat Bad For You?, from 16/11/2021.

Yellowjackets (2021--) - Presumably everyone and their mother has been telling you already to check out Yellowjackets - let me just add to the cacophony of voices and say, absolutely, do it. It's got cannibalism, it's got lesbianism, it's got toxic codependency, it's got mental health issues out the wazoo, it's got all the trauma, it's got a breakdown of the effects of misogyny on young sports women in the 90s, it's got cults, it's got the wildest gore, it's got bears, it's got a classic plane, it's got everything! It's fucked up and it's pretty fucking harrowing, especially in the second series, but I'm very much enjoying it.

Lawn Dogs (1997, dir. John Duigan) - This is such a fun flick, and one that I think I related to a lot in regards to the childhood emotions depicted - this is about a young girl growing up in an isolated gated community and her friendship with a guy who mows lawns and is an outsider to that community. I really fucking dug it, I loved the fairy tale aesthetics contrasted with the miserable reality, loved the unpacking of class and gender feels, loved the trauma, love the particularly scathing depiction of emotional neglect. I did review it, and I also watched the same director's 1994 film, Sirens, which stars Hugh Grant. I was planning to go through Duigan's back catalogue and watch some more of his work, but I just want to forewarn that Thandiwe Newton has accused him of sexual abuse - this has obviously put me off going back through it and has tempered my feelings about the art to say the least. Obviously I believe Newton, and if you are going to watch Duigan's work, make sure to do it in a way that won't give him further payment or aplomb where you can.

For new releases, I watched The Pope's Exorcist (2023, dir. Julius Avery) and Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Among Thieves (2023, dir. John Francis Daley & Jonatham M. Goldstein). These are obviously very different films, one a supernatural horror about an Italian exorcist on a silly little mopend and the other a fucking A++ adventurous romp of a DnD party on a disastrous and delightful campaign - I recommend them, glowingly and with love, in the same breath because both of them feel so completely sincere and earnest in their shameless love of their subject. There's no ironic self-effacement, there's no sarcasm about the plot from within the plot iself, there's no attempts to imply that the characters or the plot are above or superior to others in their genre. Everyone in these movies goes fucking ham, they camp it up, and it's absolutely glorious. I am so tired of Joss Whedon-esque quips about how shitty the tropes are while we're doing the trope - this sort of return to open sincerity is where it's at. I also watched Renfield (2023, dir. Chris McKay), which unfortunately is not nearly as good - I mention it because it's Nicholas Hoult and Nicholas Cage hamming it up as vampires, and there's some fun aesthetics even though the broader execution is unfortunately pretty shit.

I was in a mood for classic musicals this week, and so I went back and watched Fiddler on the Roof (1971, dir. Norman Jewison) which is obviously one of the best film musicals ever made, and also Guys and Dolls (1955, dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz) and Hello, Dolly! (1969, dir. Gene Kelly). They're fun, silly films, and I'm planning to dive deeper and watch a few more old musicals if I can stay on this kick. If you're in the mood for classic movie M/F/M threesomes, there's obviously Cabaret (1972, dir. Bob Fosse) and Singin' in the Rain (1952, dir. Stephen Donen & Gene Kelly).

I've also been replaying Xenoblade Chronicles (2010) this week, and I really recommend it if you've never played it before! It's a gorgeous game with a beautiful soundtrack and some really fucked up themes around body horror, cannibalism, and war alongside the central fantastical plot, and I love it a lot. It's on a few platforms, but I'm playing the original on the Wii.

New Works Published

Firstly, for some Tumblr stuff, I had:

Some notes about casual sex and hook-ups as a disabled person, for which I would love if people do have resources to contribute!

I gave some advice about approaching the introduction of new characters, especially when coming from a background in fanfic.

And if you're doing Monstrous May, I put together some header images for use on your social medias!

Movie Review: Lawn Dogs (1997, dir. John Duigan)

I talked about this movie a bit in my media recs section, but this review is a more extensive dive into the film's themes, especially class, childhood neglect and isolation, queerness and going stealth, and the social dynamics at play in the film.

On Medium / / On Letterboxd

Erotic Short: Hypnotised

Monstrous May Day #3: Hypnotised - An assistant bartender is drawn in by a vampire.

1k, M/M, rated M. Some sexy hypnosis for the purposes of public blood drinking — no sex. An entry for Day #3 of #MonstrousMay.

On Medium / / On Patreon

Erotic Short: The Tentacle Beast

Monstrous May Challenge Day #5: The Tentacle Beast - A priest makes a pledge to his chapter's master. 

Cis M/tentacle beast. Just 600w, short and sweet! For the Monstrous May Challenge 2023.

On Medium / / On Patreon

Fantasy Short: The Many Deaths of Baldr the Undying

One of Odin’s record-keepers interviews the god Loki.

Here’s a big one! 13.6k, rated M for violence, featuring some Loki and Baldr, some Odin scheming off-screen. Lots of delving into and playing with the stories, but with an angel thrown in for flavour.

On Medium / / On Patreon

Fantasy Short: The Injured King

A king seeks out the healing services of a local witch.

Just a little 800w piece.

On Medium / / On Patreon

Fantasy/Romance Short: Paper Houses

A train conductor begins a relationship with a regular passenger.

7k, rated M, M/M. Some sweet autistic 4 autistic love and affection with a build to the relationship and some fantastical elements on the side. Adapted from a TweetFic.

On Medium / / On Patreon

Fantasy Short: Luca's Monster

Cute fiction short! A boy talks to the monster that keeps coming out from under his bed.

1.2k, rated G. Sweet fantasy piece. Adapted from a TweetFic.

On Medium / / On Patreon

[earlgreytea68]

hello!! is the merch they're selling online the same they had at the show (excluding the chicago exclusives ofc)? it all looks great

Okay, YES. LET'S TALK MERCH.

The first time I saw Fall Out Boy it was at a festival and so I spent the whole day hanging out by the barricades waiting for them to start, and at one point the nice person next to me saved my spot for me so I could go off and get lunch and then I walked up to the merch tent and bought merch, the end.

So I was COMPLETELY unprepared for the chaos of buying merch at this concert. Now I understand why I was reading about people being in line all day or whatever, and I was like, ...are people trying to buy last-minute tickets? Why are people in line? NOW I KNOW.

SO. I got to the stadium at 6 and I thought that would be plenty of time and it was, they didn't start playing until after 9, so it didn't matter that the merch lines were super-long because I had plenty of time to kill. (Although I wanted to catch the TAI set so I was glad that I found a merch stand with a shorter line and got through in 45 minutes.) BUT they were already sold out of a bunch of stuff by then. So if you really care what you get, I guess yeah, you have to get there early. I thought for sure they shouldn't sell out THE FIRST NIGHT OF THE TOUR but I'm also sure they're trying to create artificial scarcity.

I got one of the Wrigley exclusive shirts, which I really wanted, but the other shirt I was looking for I THINK turned out to be "the tour shirt" that's not available online. Their Instagram seemed to show a shirt that had the dog on it and the lyric "I think that I've been going through it and I've been putting your name to it." I love their shirts with lyrics and I love that lyric so that was the shirt I was aiming for and it was sold out when I got there. Whatever, I wasn't devastated, I got my Wrigley shirt and then I chose the shirt with the stars that's available online (the front of that shirt says "I'd never go, I just want to be invited" and as I said, I love the lyric shirts, and also I think it is so hilariously clever to use that lyric on the front of the shirt listing the tour stops lolololol GOOD ONE, BRONX loololol). But! This would be my advice to all of you (because I know you're all dying to hear it):

If you find the dog shirt, BUY IT, because apparently you can't get that one online. All of the other ones you can get online. And yes, to answer your actual question, all of the shirts online I saw there in person. The only one I don't see online is the dog one, and I didn't see that in person because I'm pretty sure it was already sold out, and because it's the only one not available online I assume that's the "tour shirt" they reference in the post as only being available at the venues.

Okay, so now! More information! I got the VIP package, not the one with the drinks or anything. Really I just got it for the seat. I got so confused by the ticket-buying process that by the time I figured it out, the Ticketmaster dynamic prices were through the roof, and the seats weren't even that good, and I was frustrated and clicked on the lowest VIP package and because those prices weren't on Ticketmaster (I think this is what happened), the seat was better AND cheaper, so it was a no-brainer, I bought the VIP package. (I have no idea how ticket prices/availability look right now, but I guess that's a tip for you, that the VIP package might not be as expensive as you think, especially if Ticketmaster prices are outrageous.)

So the VIP package came with merch which made me laugh because I assumed it would be terrible because: Fall Out Boy merch. It's actually cute! Honestly, their merch has entered a new era, Bronx must have taken a graphic design class. So, in case you're curious about that merch: It was a clear backpack with the smiley-face logo stamped on it; a fantastic cell phone lanyard thing with "FOB" on it; a keychain with "So Much for (Tour) Dust" on it; a coin with the same (?? Is this a thing people collect and I'm just Too Old); and THE BEST THING: A MAGIC 8-BALL.

Let me clarify: I'm no magic-8 ball aficionado. Like, they're not really my thing, that kitschy sort of thing. I know some people love it, and it seems totally on brand for Pete, but I saw the magic-8 ball and kind of shrugged. Today, I was finding places to stash all the merch and I decided to actually fool around with the magic-8 ball and IT'S A SPECIAL FALL OUT BOY MAGIC-8 BALL, THE CHOICES ARE FOB LYRICS. Like, one of them was "Stay thirsty like before." It's somewhat poorly made, the little triangle thing is hard to read (or, again, maybe I'm just Too Old), but it is SO CUTE, I'M DYING, WHAT A GREAT THING, I LOVE IT. So the VIP package was totally worth it for the magic-8 ball, A+, Pete Wentz, if you're reading this, I LOVE IT, WELL DONE.

[fizzingwizard]

A few months ago I was complaining to my mom that family restaurants and other cheaper food places here had gone all fat all the time. Everything is fried, everything is meat-based. Hard to find any vegetables at all on a lot of the most common menus.

The yen tanking and issues related to covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war really drove places to cut back, increase prices while offering less overall. But the absence of vegetables was stunning to me. Talk to anyone, in Japan or out, and they'll say oh, the Japanese diet is so healthy. And even though we're talking about eating out, which is considered special and you don't necessarily expect the same dishes you'd make at home, people would really be surprised, I think, by how hard it was just to find even veggie sides. (This is restricted to the cheaper places, especially chain restaurants that like to keep costs low - if you go out to eat at a real restaurant-y restaurant in Japan I feel confident that you'll never be disappointed.) Japanese food is about color and balance, and for a very long time that extended to youshoku as well. That's one reason why when you go out for something like tonkatsu, you always get cabbage, and probably miso soup and Japanese pickles as well.

A few years before covid, I feel, is when I started to see things change. Maybe the expectation of so many foreigner tastes arriving for the Olympics played a part too, idk. But I remember Yoshinoya, a fast food gyudon chain, used to have a delicious curry with carrots, onions, and potatos - cheap vegetables commonly found in Japanese curry. Then they got rid of it and have just the roux with meat now. And most places that do takeout curry are the same these days. One exception is Matsuya, which now has a "My Curry" off-shoot that lets you customize with veggie options. A while ago they were doing a veggie-heavy curry that I loved, but was only seasonal :( Probably because of the price of vegetables. But at least the usual onion/potato/carrot seems here to stay. But even curry-centric places like Cocoichi don't do much with veggies. Cocoichi's veggie curry is like a kid's curry, bits of carrot, potato, and green beans. There's a spinach option and an eggplant option too, but to me they're still just so uninspired. I don't really like Cocoichi curry though so that's probably part of it. It's a shame because curry is a GREAT way to get kids (and adults who've never developed a taste for veggies) not just to eat veggies, but to learn to like them. It worked for me - I definitely wish my parents knew about the magic of curry when I was little, because I don't really blame my younger self for getting sick of microwaved frozen cauliflower and baby carrots.

Anyway - all that to say, recently I've been noticing veggies making a comeback! Yoshinoya didn't bring back it's veggie curry, but it's got some salad options, including a gyudon that comes with veggies mixed in. (Which I might try tonight.) I've been noticing it other places too, especially convenience stores. Lawson and 7-11 have been boasting about their healthy options for years, but these past months I feel that I've begun to see variety and thought for nutrition that was pretty absent before. I wonder if prices for vegetables have gone down, or if restaurants just noticed that everyone was selling the same brown or beige food options with very little flavor differences. I'm happy, because it felt like a pretty important part of Japanese food culture was wasting away, and it's such a healthy and pretty to look at part. Yeah, it was just the chain restaurants, but the loss starts when major groups of people get priced out of values that used to be available to all. I hope Japanese food, whether it's traditional or Western, continues to value balance and color no matter how many people insist they really just want red meat and fried stuff.

[robotsandramblings]

bookoutlet.ca -- an amazing online shop for good quality used books!

so i've been using this site for years now, and i want everyone to know about it!! (esp since they're really improved their selection of Star Wars stuff!)

Book Outlet sells used books at way cheaper prices, but still in fairly good condition. i'd describe them as being in "Quite Good" or "Very Good" condition, sometimes even "Like New"!! (more info here)

they're based in Canada (another reason i'm promoting them lol) and ship within Canada, and they ship to the United States as well. (sorry, nothing international!)

their shipping is very reasonable too -- only $9.95 ! and if you spend $50 or more, the shipping is free!!

Their selection isn't super vast - don't expect to find every or any title - but it's still fairly good. A lot of newer titles for cheap prices. Kid's books, plenty of fiction and non-fiction, comic TPB/volumes (not individual issues), cookbooks, you name it!

I've been very happy with them over the years, and found some unlikely things from my book wishlist! I highly recommend them!! 📖💖

[hasufin]

Maintain course and heading

Yesterday I popped into CVS to pick up a few things, especially stuff we depleted in our recent illness - cough drops, dayquil, &c.

I had reason to look at the price difference between Vicks brand name Dayquil and the CVS store equivalent, which is functionally identical.

The former is $18, while the latter is $15. Now, these prices are insane. I don't remember exact number but I think not too long ago they were about half that. Which is, you know:

Inflation

And as we know, this is actually Greedflation. That is, it's been cast as "shadowy market forces" when in actuality it's roughly eight people going "You know what? I want my Capitalism High Score to be even higher, and people aren't gonna STOP using toilet paper just because it's more expensive."

The thing is, the conceit of capitalism is that this can't happen. What's supposed to happen is, one of these hyperrich people decides to be richer, jacks up the price of their product, and the other guy whose company sells basically the same thing goes "Nah" and so people buy more of the cheaper option.

That's not happening, though.

Why?

It would be easy to suggest this is due to collusion between companies. And that totally happens. Plus, there's the reality that the Vicks DayQuil and the CVS-brand just-like-dayquil are made in the same place, and there's actually only one factory in the world, employing 75 people (not real numbers, just giving you an idea) which makes the entire worldwide supply of the stuff.

But there's another factor. It's the same reason once in a while you hear about a $10000 ice cube tray on Amazon: dynamic pricing. In that example, you've got a vendor who is like "I can charge slightly more than this similar product because mine is BETTER so I'm going to set my price to 105% their price" but the other product is "I'm going to undercut theirs by being 95% that price" and they get in a loop where they keep jacking up their prices and a $40 item ends up being listed for thousands of dollars until a human gives it a reality check.

And that's lower key what's happening here. The CVS brand isn't $15 a bottle. It's $3 less than the name brand. Vicks charges $10, CVS will charge $7. Vicks charges $20, CVS will charge $17. They're both going based on what they think the market will bear and maintaining parity relative to each other. Because of this, the different companies are aiding and abetting rather than serving as a check on excess greed.

Which comes to, essentially, capitalism is broken.

[callmearcturus]

I'M LITERALLY WEARING ANGEL'S SHARE RIGHT NOW, ARC. :( Good god I'm fucked. Anyway.

I seem to like anything of theirs that is NOT citrussy and am definitely partial to the woody ones. Black phantom (I like this one the most out of all I think) & straight to heaven are insane to me, I love them. Intoxicated is probably my least favorite woody one. As for the narcotics, Love Don't Be Shy and Good Girl Gone Bad are my favorites. I like Apple Brandy On The Rocks as well when it comes to liquor-ey ones, but am not huge on the others beside Angel's Share. I do not care for the fresh citrus ones and I haven't gotten to try the smoke ones because they're all sold out even in the discovery vials :(

Okay I can tell you for Black Phantom you want one or two dupes.

Montagne's Phantom Noir (which is currently sold out) or Alexandria's Dark Knight. My plan was to get Phantom Noir for my mother, bc her fave scent is Black Phantom, but I waited too long and it went out of stock, so I got Dark Knight instead. From reading about 20 posts about these scents and comparing fragantica reviews, generally it seems like Montagne's formula is better, but a lot of people like Alexandria for the longevity of the juice.

For Love Don't Be Shy i am seeing a lot of arguments over the best one. I would maybe look at Dossier's version of it. And if that doesn't work, look into Oil Perfumery, which is a place that makes oil versions of EDPs and is very popular if you don't need the spray.

Good Girl Gone Bad was one of my faves and I haven't found a consensus on a good dupe of it so if I do, I'll post about it later.

NOW FOR ANGEL'S SHARE. If you spend any time reading reviews on dupes, the thing that's obvious is no one can agree on what's a good dupe. A lot of people seems to swear by Alexandria's Brooklyn Fragrance Lover, but others say it's bad. Other others say that you need to let it macerate a bit.

A note on dupes is that for lower cost clones of huge fragrances is that the big fragrance houses will let stuff macerate in-house before selling it to you, so from first spray it's perfect and ready to go.

For cheaper houses, they bottle that shit and mail it same day. You are getting what you pay for. So if you get a bottle and it feels bad in a way that feels wrong, let the bottle sit for a week or two, then try it again. That's maceration.

Hope this helps! Alexandria is actually super fun to go thru. When their black friday sale was happening and I knew I was getting Madre Dark Knight, I also grabbed a sample box by just reading EVERY perfume and jotting down the names of ones that sounded interesting.